M1, M2, and M3 (Team Ichigaki)
Real names: Yen (M1), Kai (M2), Ryo (M3)
These three fighters grew up together under their master Mitamura, trained in martial arts from childhood. Everything changed when Dr. Ichigaki poisoned their master—desperate to save him, they surrendered their freedom to the doctor in exchange for his healing. Ichigaki then implanted Blood-Slaver Nodes on their backs, devices that could only be removed by killing the host. The nodes gave them a massive power boost but enslaved them completely, trapping their souls inside their own bodies with no control.
Despite being trapped, their souls held onto something Ichigaki couldn't fully break. They managed to contact Kuwabara one night, sending him a dream that revealed their whole story—how they'd become prisoners, what they'd lost. It was their way of reaching out, even if they couldn't free themselves.
The three are genuinely skilled fighters who work with eerie precision as a team. M2 and M3 use invisible attacks that only trained eyes can detect, while M1 keeps enemies distracted with visible strikes. They cover for each other perfectly, keeping opponents pinned and unable to mount a real offense.
They cruised through the Dark Tournament preliminaries without losing once. When they faced Team Urameshi in the main tournament, they nearly had it—Yusuke and Kuwabara couldn't even see what was hitting them at first. Kuwabara got neutralized pretty quick. But Yusuke's rage at watching them fight under Ichigaki's boot gave him the clarity to finally see through their technique and strike back. Then Genkai pulled off something remarkable: she used a special move that let their enslaved souls choose their own nature, pure or corrupt. They chose themselves, ripped out the nodes without dying, and lost the match.
Afterward, things got better. Mitamura forgave them once he understood they'd had no choice, and Genkai explained what she'd done. Kai even tried to join Team Urameshi out of guilt, though the tournament wouldn't allow it. All three made it out of the arena alive.
Content compiled by AnimeList.moe from publicly available sources.
