Kisame Hoshigaki

, the, is a missing-nin from Kirigakure, a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist and was partnered with Itachi Uchiha within Akatsuki.

Background
Kisame is a former member of Kirigakure's Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, an ever-changing group of ninja that wield particularly large weapons in battle. While in Kiri, Kisame is given the title of "Monster of the Hidden Mist". He is also known to have formed a connection to Suigetsu Hōzuki and Mangetsu Hōzuki. His former country, the Land of Water, sought him out, for plotting to overthrow its government and being involved in numerous assassinations, including that of a daimyo of an unknown country. Kisame later joined Akatsuki, and was partnered with Itachi Uchiha. Pain stated that his reason for joining Akatsuki was "spite".

Appearance
Kisame is a very tall and strong shinobi, with a distinctive shark-like appearance, complete with pale blue skin, small white eyes, gill-like facial structures, and sharp triangular teeth. When he removed his cloak he was shown to have gills on his shoulders. Even his name,, means "Demon Shark". Kisame also wears a dark purple nail color, like Itachi. Underneath his Akatsuki cloak, Kisame wears an outfit similar to the one that his colleague, Zabuza Momochi, wore during his first appearance. On his left ring finger is his Akatsuki ring, which bears the kanji for.

Personality
Kisame loves to fight. However, he was usually unable to finish his battles, being paired with Itachi who only fights when necessary. When this happens, he has been known to inform his opponent(s) that they "don't know how lucky they are." Like other characters who have trained to be one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, Kisame will not hesitate to mutilate his opponents, as seen when he suggested cutting off Naruto's legs to make him easier to carry, and to prevent the latter from escaping on foot. Despite his aggressive nature, Kisame is very perceptive in battle. He is seemingly aware of any potential danger to his person and can immediately react to it. He is also shown to be analytical, able to quickly deduce the basics behind an opponent's technique.

Kisame is one of the few members of Akatsuki that got along well with his partner. He was very loyal to Itachi, willing to take any commands he was given without question, and constantly looked out for his well-being. Although Kisame does have his pride, he acknowledged Itachi as the stronger of the duo. Madara has noted that, out of all of Akatsuki, Kisame was the closest to Itachi, implying that they were indeed good friends. Kisame also has a deep loathing for Might Guy since their first encounter, and Guy seemed to continue to agitate him by not remembering who Kisame was when they met again.

Abilities
Kisame is said to be the strongest of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. At one point, Guy battled a clone of Kisame's with 30% chakra-supply, and Guy was forced to open his Sixth Chakra Gate in order to survive. Kisame also proved powerful enough to successfully capture the Four-Tailed Monkey's jinchūriki, Rōshi, all by himself, despite noting his target's exceptional powers. Though a difficult task, by his own admission, Kisame merely complained that he was "a bit tired". Madara has great confidence in sending Kisame to capture Killer Bee, the Jinchūriki of the Eight-Tailed Giant Ox, all by himself once again. Chōjūrō noted that Kisame is a special case, whose immense chakra supply and unique abilities put him at the same level as a jinchūriki, and that he must not be taken lightly.

Samehada
Kisame is a sword-user, and savors the use of brute strength and melee fighting over any technique. Kisame's signature weapon is called Samehada, a sentient, scale-covered sword, that shaves flesh instead of cutting it. Samehada is also capable of detecting and absorbing chakra, but requires Kisame's own chakra to perform the latter. When Samehada absorbs chakra, its scales grow and it slowly begins to unwrap itself.

Kisame can heal and replenish his chakra by momentarily fusing with Samehada. He can also fuse all the way to further increase his power along with adding to his shark-like appearance. When fused with Samehada, he gains the ability to breathe underwater using gills. While using his Water Prison Shark Dance Technique, he can take full advantage of that ability by drowning his opponents. In this form he can sense other peoples' chakra, and absorb it just by touching the foe with any part of his body. He can also hide within Samehada.

Only Kisame is able to wield Samehada; if anyone besides him tries to pick it up, spikes protrude from its handle, and it returns to Kisame's side. Samehada's loyalty seems to be only because it likes Kisame's chakra. If it finds a ninja with better chakra, it may turn to that ninja's side, demonstrated when Samehada protected Killer Bee from Kisame's cut.

It was stated by Suigetsu that, if he killed Kisame, he would be able to wield the Samehada. Chōjūrō describes the Samehada as the most terrifying sword of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

Physical Prowess and Chakra
Unlike his partner Itachi, Kisame prefers direct physical combat, with which he has repeatedly been shown to be very proficient and dangerous. Generally while fighting, he combines strong taijutsu strikes with powerful slashes from Samehada. He has been seen displaying astonishing raw speed and immense physical strength, making it highly difficult for his opponents to directly overpower him, as shown from overpowering Might Guy, a powerful taijutsu master, during their battle. He also managed to overpower another skilled melee-weapon user, Asuma Sarutobi, by using only the tip of Samehada (wielded with one hand), against Asuma's two blades, which he held overhead using his body as extra support.

Kisame has an unusually large amount of chakra, even by Akatsuki standards. Karin, upon sensing Kisame, stated she had never seen so much chakra in one place. Even when he fought at 30% power in one instance, Neji compared his chakra supply to that of Naruto. Chōjūrō claims that Kisame was a "" due to his inhuman chakra level and combination with Samehada.

Water and Earth Release
Kisame's shark-like attributes carry over into his battles, for he even shapes his Water Release attacks into sharks. He is also able to alter the entire battlefield by using his Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave, to create a lake's worth of water to give him the field advantage, and to use for attacks Against stronger opponents, he increases his field advantage even further by creating a giant dome of water around himself, forcing his opponents to battle him underwater. Using Earth element, Kisame can use Earth Release: Underground Submarine Voyage to travel under the earth, with the tip of his sword, Samehada, jutting out making him look like a shark swimming towards his prey.

Return of Itachi arc
Kisame accompanied Itachi to Konoha to help kidnap Naruto Uzumaki. After the two gained attention due to their unusual clothing, they were stopped by Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai Yūhi. Asuma and Kurenai stood little chance and were quickly defeated, but Kakashi arrived in time to save their lives. Asuma was able to distract Kisame while Itachi fought Kakashi. He waited patiently for Itachi's victory, but before Itachi delivered the final blow, Kakashi remembered Jiraiya's warning and recognized the duo as members of Akatsuki from their black cloaks. Itachi changed his mind and ordered Kisame to kidnap Kakashi and kill Asuma and Kurenai. Before he could do so, Might Guy showed up and kicked an attacking Kisame in the face. Following Guy's arrival, Itachi ordered Kisame to retreat, not wanting to start a large-scale battle. Kisame seemed quite annoyed with Itachi's idea, as he desperately wanted to fight the Konoha shinobi.

Itachi and Kisame then continued to hunt Naruto, finding him under the protection of Jiraiya. After Itachi hypnotized a woman to distract Jiraiya and leave Naruto alone, Kisame and Itachi confronted Naruto in a hotel hallway. Kisame considered cutting off Naruto's legs so he could not run away, though Sasuke, Itachi's younger brother, showed up and drew their attention from Naruto. When Naruto attempted to fight, Kisame used Samehada to absorb all of Naruto's chakra. Kisame then attempted to cut off Naruto's arms so he wouldn't put up a fight. Before he could do this, however, Jiraiya arrived, and defended Naruto. Following the encounter, Kisame and Itachi were driven off by Jiraiya, failing in capturing Naruto.

Rescue Gaara arc
While Akatsuki extracted the One-Tailed Shukaku from Gaara's body, they learned that Team Guy was nearing their location. Remembering his last encounter with Guy, Kisame volunteered to keep them occupied while the sealing was completed. Pain used the Shapeshifting Technique to make a duplicate of Kisame's body that would be remotely controlled by Kisame, and engaged Team Guy, but was quickly disappointed to find that Guy didn't remember him. While Guy was barely able to withstand the clone Kisame's attacks, the rest of Team Guy were incapable of trading blows, and were eventually locked within Kisame's Water Prison Technique. Neji soon freed himself and the rest of his team, using his Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. Upon being forced into a corner, Guy opened his sixth gate, and defeated Kisame's clone with the Morning Peacock technique.

Hunt for Itachi arc
Kisame successfully managed to capture the Four-Tailed Monkey, his assigned tailed beast, without a scratch. During the following Akatsuki meeting to seal the Four-Tails, Kisame and Itachi were informed of Hebi's formation, with Sasuke as its leader. Kisame was later told by Itachi to stand guard outside the Abandoned Uchiha Stronghold and to let only Sasuke through. After Sasuke left the rest of Hebi, Suigetsu (who was a former candidate for The Seven Swordsman of the Mist) started a fight with Kisame, wanting to claim Samehada as his own. It was later revealed that Zetsu had stopped the fight.

Hunt for the Eight-Tails arc
Following Itachi's death, Kisame is confronted by Tobi, who revealed his identity as Madara Uchiha. Recognizing him as a former Mizukage, Kisame commented that he felt a lot better knowing it was Madara who was pulling the strings. Kisame later assist with the sealing of the Eight-Tails captured by Sasuke. When this turns out to be a fake, Kisame notes that the Eight-Tails' host, Killer Bee, fooled Sasuke.

Five Kage Summit arc
After Zetsu reported Pain's death, Madara ordered Kisame to capture the Eight-Tails by himself. Kisame used Samehada to find Killer Bee, being drawn to Bee's immense chakra. When he arrived at the residence of Sabu, Kisame was immediately attacked by Ponta, who he quickly defeated. Bee and Sabu then join forces, Bee even entering a four-tailed form. Kisame fended them both off and absorbed Bee's chakra cloak. He then removed the bandages from Samehada, noting that it liked the "taste" of Bee's chakra.

Killer Bee entered a version 2 form and used his Lariat to destroy Kisame's entire midsection. Kisame fused with Samehada to heal his injuries, becoming a monstrous shark-like creature. After trapping Killer Bee, Sabu, and Ponta inside a giant, movable dome of water, he continued his assault on Killer Bee. Bee was forced to throw Sabu and Ponta from the dome to save them from drowning, allowing Kisame to overpower him. He dissipated the dome and moved in to finish the job, but was stopped by Samehada, who protected Bee and gave him some chakra. He kicked Samehada away and prepared to try again with one of Bee's own swords. Using the chakra he got from Samehada, Bee attacked Kisame. Kisame barely evaded the attack and tried to cut off Bee's legs, but was stopped by the arrival of Bee's brother: the Fourth Raikage, and his two bodyguards. After being told how he was discovered because of the large dome of water and noticing Samehada giving more chakra to Bee, The Raikage and Bee join forces against Kisame as he attempted to use Water Release: Great Shark Missile Technique. Before he could finish the jutsu he was decapitated by their Double Lariat. With his last breath, he stated with a grin that their lightning-quick speed was simply too fast for him. His head then flew a distance and landed in front of the scared Sabu.

It was later revealed that the decapitated body was a clone of Zetsu and that the real Kisame had been hiding inside Samehada in order to infiltrate Kumogakure. The sword itself was taken by Killer Bee, who planned to use it as his new weapon.

Trivia

 * It is shown in the anime's omake specials that Kisame is insecure of his blue skin. This is portrayed when Deidara commented on how handsome his partner was, and how that must make him popular. Kisame sulked, and replied with, "After all, I'm strangely colored."
 * At 195 centimeters, Kisame is the tallest member of Akatsuki.
 * "Kisame" means demon shark, while "Hoshigaki" may mean dried persimmon.
 * Kishimoto first intended to make Akatsuki's members monsters with almost no human traits. Zetsu and Kisame are prime examples of this.
 * Kisame's birth date, March 18th, makes his Western astrological sign Pisces, or fish.
 * According to the Third Databook:
 * Kisame's hobby is taking care of his sword, Samehada.
 * Kisame's favorite foods are shrimp and crab, while his least favorite, predictably, is shark fin soup.
 * Kisame has completed 332 official missions in total: 3 D-rank, 68 C-rank, 154 B-rank, 78 A-rank, 29 S-rank.

Quotes

 * (To Asuma) "My Shark Skin doesn't slice... It cuts you to ribbons!"
 * (Talking about Naruto) "Itachi, it will be a pain in the neck if this kid makes a run for it... maybe we should chop off a leg just in case."
 * (To Might Guy) "Might Guy, huh? Mighty stupid-looking guy is more like it!"
 * (To Pain) "I liked Tobi, he was good at making this gloomy organization seem more cheerful."
 * (To Killer Bee) "I get stronger in direct proportion to how strong my opponent is. I do not tire, and cannot be defeated".