Kobeni Higashiyama

Basic Profile

• Name: Kobeni Higashiyama (東山 コベニ, Higashiyama Kobeni)
• Age: 20 years old
• Gender: Women
• Jobs: Former Public Safety Devil Hunter, worked under Special Division 4 led by Makima; later became a waiter at Family Burger after resigning.
• First Appearances:
  • Manga: Chapter 10
  • Anime: Episode 4Chainsaw Man, MAPPA production, airing from October 12, 2022)
• Voice Cast: Karin Takahashi (Japan)
• Status: One of the characters who survived to the end of the Public Safety Saga.

Physical Appearance

Kobeni is a young woman with a petite body that gives the impression of being fragile, but actually has incredible physical abilities. Physical characteristics include:

• Hair: Short brown (in anime and manga colored), tied in a ponytail with bangs or a strand of hair hanging down the right side of her face.
• Eyes: Brown with white pupils, giving an expression that often looks anxious or frightened.
• Distinctive Features Of The FaceHas four moles on his face—two under the left eye, one on the lower right side of the mouth, and one on the left cheek.
• Clothing: When he became a Demon Hunter, he wore a professional suit typical of Public Security (white shirt, tie and black pants). He is also often seen with two hairpins on the sides of his head. After resigning, he wore the uniform of a waiter at the Family Burger.
• Expression: Kobeni is often depicted with a nervous, panicked, or tearful expression, reflecting his timid personality.

Personality

Kobeni is a complex character with a personality that contrasts between extreme fear and impressive fighting ability. Here are the main points about his personality:

• Timid and emotional: Kobeni is known as a very timid character, panicking easily, and often crying under pressure. When faced with a dangerous situation, he tends to lose control and act impulsively, even to the point of considering extreme measures such as attempted suicide or sacrificing others to save himself.
• Practical Minded: Although timid, Kobeni has a practical and logical side. He recognizes that life is full of bad things and believes that fear is part of reality.
• Loyal to the family: Kobeni became a demon hunter not because of her own desire, but because of family pressure that forced her to work to pay for her brother's education. He often sent money to his family and even bought an antique car with the proceeds to take his family around.
• Contrast in the fight: Despite his timid attitude, Kobeni is able to fight in cold blood and is full of agility when pressed. He once defeated Katana Man in human form and forced Akane Sawatari to retreat with his incredible fighting abilities.
• Soft and humane side: Kobeni has a very human side, such as his love of good food (especially ice cream, which he has only eaten three times in his lifetime) and his hobby of dancing (he got a perfect score on the game Dance Dance Mushroom). He is also awkward in social situations, such as refusing Himeno's hug or getting nervous when drinking alcohol bought by others.
• Tipe Kepribadian (MBTI dan Enneagram): Based on the analysis, Kobeni is classified as ISTJ (Introverted, Sensing, Thinking, Judging) because it is practical, responsible, and detail-oriented. It is also considered a type of Enneagram 3w2 (The Achiever with Helper Wing), which reflects his ability to please others even under pressure.

Background

Kobeni comes from a family described as “mildly toxic" (toxic). He actually aspired to go to college, but his family forced him to work to pay for his older brother's education. The options are only two: become a sex worker or a Demon Hunter. Because of this, he chose to join the Public Security Agency as a Demon Hunter, although this job clearly contradicts his timid nature.

Kobeni begins his career as a new member in Special Division 4, an experimental unit under Makima's command, alongside Denji, Power, Aki Hayakawa, Himeno, and Hirokazu Arai. He often feels uncomfortable with Denji and Power because of their status as demons, but he is persuaded by Aki to accept them.

After being severely traumatized in a battle against the Demons of darkness in Hell, which led to the death of many of his comrades, Kobeni decides to resign from Public Safety (manga chapter 71). He later worked as a waiter at Family Burger, but remained involved in several dangerous incidents, such as when he tried to serve Denji as Chainsaw Man but instead dropped the burger repeatedly.

Ability

Although often considered the weakest member in Special Division 4, Kobeni has an incredible talent hidden behind his timid personality. Its main capabilities include:

• Incredible Agility: Kobeni is very agile, able to dodge Snake Devil attacks with ease and run over his body, which makes Katana Man call him “monkey-like”. It also gets a perfect score in the game Dance Dance Mushroom, showing remarkable coordination and reflexes.
• Mysterious Demon Contract: Kobeni has a contract with a demon whose identity is kept secret until the end of the first part of the manga (Public Safety Saga). He once stated that his demons were “secret” when introducing himself. Although the supernatural abilities of this contract are never shown, this adds a mysterious aura to the character.
• Ability to fight with a knife: Kobeni is very skilled with a knife, able to cut the Katana man's arm in human form with a single slash without significant effort.
• Shooting Ability: He is also adept at using firearms, as evidenced when he wounds Katana Man and Akane Sawatari with accurate fire, forcing them to retreat.
• Physical Strength: Despite his petite stature, Kobeni has enough physical strength to easily cut off an adult human arm with a knife.
• Driving Ability: Kobeni has a driver'S license and an antique car that he bought with his work. Although Power once crashed his car, this shows that Kobeni is skilled enough to own and drive his own vehicle.

Role in the story

The main character (major supporting character) in Chainsaw Man the first part (Public Security Saga). Its main roles include:

• Debut and early action: Kobeni first appeared during Denji and Power's rescue mission from The Demon Leech (Leech Devil). He works alongside Aki, Himeno, and Hirokazu Arai as part of the Makima team. Although initially hesitant about Denji and Power, he begins to engage in dangerous missions with them.
• The Demon Arc Of EternityEternity Devil Arc): Kobeni shows his timid side when he is trapped on the eighth floor of the Morino Hotel by the devil of Eternity. He even tried to sacrifice Denji to save himself, but was eventually saved by Denji who fought for three days.
• Arc Katana Man: Kobeni demonstrates his surprising fighting abilities when he defeats Katana Man in human form and injures Akane Sawatari, forcing them to retreat. It is a moment in which he shows a “cold and terrible” side that contrasts with his usually timid personality.
• The Dark Demon ArcDarkness Devil Arc): The battle in hell against the Demons of darkness became a turning point for Kobeni. The Trauma of losing many colleagues, including Galgali who sacrificed herself to protect him, made him decide to resign from Public Safety.
• Arc Devil ControlControl Devil Arc): After resigning, Kobeni works at Family Burger, but remains dragged into conflict while serving Denji. He also prevents Akane and Katana Man from retrieving the wounded Denji, showing the rest of his courage despite no longer being a Demon Hunter.

Kobeni is one of the few characters to survive until the end of the Public Safety Saga, an interesting decision because initially Tatsuki Fujimoto planned to kill him. In the interview, Fujimoto revealed that his editor, Shihei Lin, suggested Kobeni was dead and Angel Devil was alive, but Fujimoto chose otherwise, making Kobeni one of the “lucky”characters.

Relationships with other characters

• Denji: Kobeni was initially suspicious of Denji due to his status as a demon hybrid, having even tried to sacrifice him in the immortality Demon Arc. However, Denji saves her several times, including from Makima in the control Demon Arc, creating a complicated dynamic between them.
• Hirokazu Arai: Kobeni has a strong friendly relationship with Arai, who sacrifices his life to protect him from gunfire. Arai understands Kobeni's difficult family background and has always supported her.
• Galgali (Demon Of Violence): Galgali shows sympathy towards Kobeni and sacrifices herself by giving her mask to protect Kobeni in hell.
• Makima: As the leader of Special Division 4, Makima is Kobeni's superior. Kobeni seems to fear and obey Makima, although their relationship is not very deep.
• Himeno: Kobeni feels awkward about Himeno's jovial nature, especially when Himeno tries to hug her. However, Himeno recognizes Kobeni's talent, despite assessing his fears as weakness.

Interesting Facts

1. Controversial popularity: Kobeni ranked 8th in the first Popularity Poll Chainsaw Man (9,580 votes) and 10th in the second poll (22,862 votes). However, he also briefly became the most hated character among Japanese fans according to Suki Kira's survey, due to being considered a “loser” and like the character fan-service. On the other hand, many global fans like it because it represents “ordinary people” in the world Chainsaw Man violent ones.
2. Vintage Cars: Kobeni has a small car that he bought with a salary as a Demon Hunter. The car was even ranked 7th in the popularity poll, beating Kobeni himself who was ranked 8th.
3. Love for ice cream: Kobeni is passionate about ice cream, but has only eaten it three times in her lifetime—two of which were birthday presents in elementary school and one on a mission with a fellow Demon Hunter.
4. Doujin Nuclear Code: Kobeni is quite popular among fans of doujin (fan-made works), although not as popular as Makima, Power, or Reze. Some of his Douji works have explicit themes, as mentioned in the sources AniEvo.ID.
5. References to other works of Fujimoto: Kobeni has the same mole as Togata's character from Fire Punch, another manga by Tatsuki Fujimoto, shows the mangaka's signature style in character design.
6. Nendoroid: Kobeni has an official Nendoroid figure with three facial expressions (standard, nervous, and crying) as well as knife and gun accessories, reflecting her popularity among fans.
7. Fujimoto's Decision: The decision to keep Kobeni alive until the end of the story is a surprise, as Fujimoto originally wanted to kill him. This shows his important role as a “lucky " character in the middle of the world Chainsaw Man that's brutal.

Character Analysis

Kobeni Higashiyama is a unique character because she represents the human side of the world Chainsaw Man full of violence and madness. His extreme fear makes him relatable to many fans, as he reflects how an ordinary person would react in a world filled with demons and deadly battles. However, his incredible fighting ability when pressed shows that behind his weaknesses, he has great potential—a duality that makes him attractive.

It is also a symbol of peace (resilience). Despite facing family pressure, Battle trauma, and constant fear, he persevered and even found a new life after resigning. Fujimoto's decision to keep Kobeni alive, in contrast to the tragic fate of many other characters, confirms that he is a “cover" (survivor) in a story full of death.

Conclusion

Kobeni Higashiyama is a character full of contradictions: timid yet skilled, mentally weak yet physically strong, and ordinary yet lucky. With his human personality, surprising fighting ability, and pivotal role in the story, he became one of the most memorable characters in Chainsaw Man. Although not as popular as Makima or Power, Kobeni holds a special place in fans ' hearts for her uniqueness and courage hidden behind fearlessness.