Ryoya Misato (美里良夜, Misato Ryōya) is a character in Bakuten!!. Ryoya was born in Miyagi and is a new member of the Ao High School boys' rhythmic gymnastics team. He is currently in his first year of high school.
Biography[]
Though he previously participated in solo competitions — having placed second in the solo program in the men's rhythmic gymnastics competition the year prior, Ryoya joined the Ao High School rhythmic gymnastics club after witnessing his current seniors' performance a year prior to his entry to the team.
While his specialties are unspecified, he was formerly an ace. He is now dubbed the team's "new ace."
Appearance[]
Ryoya has mid-length black hair that is styled with messy bangs. He has deep blue eyes that are closely purple in hue. In the manga, Ryoya has dark blue hair instead of black.
He wears his school uniform outside of club activities or drills, unlike his teammates who often wear their tracksuits. When he does wear his tracksuit, he zips it up to the collar. He usually wears a black t-shirt during practice, paired with blue shorts or sweatpants. His casual clothing follows average street fashion.
Personality[]
Ryoya generally wears a neutral or stoic expression that does not change even when speaking. He also often speaks in a monotonous tone. This leads to the impression that he is a distant person or that he doesn’t really care for much.
Contrary to this image, however, he is a very earnest and somewhat enthusiastic gymnast (though he doesn't outwardly show it). He puts much effort into his routines and works hard to meet the expectations of his seniors and coach.
He is a very perceptive and observant athlete, and showcases extensive knowledge about gymnastics. As a teacher to Shotaro, he is strict and unforgiving.
History[]
Ryoya was born in Miyagi Prefecture on October 16. He started gymnastics as a young boy after watching a video of his future coach, Shusaku Shida, performing rhythmic gymnastics in a high school competition. Ryoya spent years practicing and competing, refining his skills to the point of placing in the top three in solo programs prior to entering high school. Before attending Ao High School, he was on the same rhythmic gymnastics team as his Shiro High School counterpart, Mashiro Tsukiyuki, whom he was good friends with at their middle school, Natori Fourth Junior High. During his second year of junior high, Ryoya was involved in a gymnastics accident in practice, when a stunt gone wrong ended up with one of his teammates severely injuring their leg. Due to this unfortunate event, Ryoya is hesitant to perform the difficult stunt that led to the accident.
During Ryoya’s last year of junior high, he attended the Interhigh Tournament with his then-teammate Mashiro and watched Ao High perform their routine with only four men. It was here that Ryoya met his future teammate Shotaro Futaba. With Ryoya now entering high school, he made the decision to attend Ao High School, rather than the school with a widely known rhythmic gymnastics club - Shiro High - much to Mashiro’s disappointment. It is assumed that Ryoya chose Ao High due to his reason for beginning gymnastics, Shusaku, acting as the coach for the club, as well as watching the four-man team score so well at the Interhigh Tournament, even with the deductions from only having four members. As the four members of the team walk around the school handing out flyers, Ryoya comes forward and says that he wants to join the team. As Ryoya is signing up for the club, Asawo Kurikoma, the team’s manager, mentions that he finished second in the 37th Men's Junior Tournament, impressing the team. Upon officially joining the team, Ryoya was immediately dubbed the team’s “new ace,” replacing the former ace Nagayoshi Onagawa. Ryoya begins to practice with the other boys while fellow first-year Shotaro watches. Ryoya eventually, and unknowingly, becomes the example for Shotaro to follow when learning to backflip.
Now officially part of the men’s rhythmic gymnastics team, Ryoya is expected to move into school dormitories to live with the rest of the boys. However, he declines, saying he needs to go home in the evenings, without explaining further, which the others are not happy about, but accept anyway.
The team starts training hard to perfect their routine with six people. On one of the off-days from training, Ryoya is seen out shopping with an unknown girl, whom he calls Sako-chan, later revealed to be his aunt. This, however, embarrasses Ryoya when he sees his other teammates, minus Shotaro, out shopping as well. He frantically sends her away and tries to act normal, but that just makes him more embarrassed when the boys find him accidentally pretending to shop for lingerie. The other boys just play it off, though, and Ryoya joins them for their shopping trip. While shopping together, the team ends up running into the captain and vice-captain of their rival team - Shiro High. The Shiro High boys immediately recognize Ryoya, calling him “Ryoya Misato from Natori Fourth,” and confront Ryoya about turning Shiro High down for a spot on their team. Ryoya fires back that he wanted to join Ao High’s team, not Shiro High, which is why he turned the other team down, causing the Ao boys to get sappy with Ryoya.
The Ao High and Shiro High teams head back to the dorms, along with Ryoya, to get ready for the joint training camp between the schools. There, he runs into his old friend Mashiro, who immediately runs and hugs Ryoya while yelling “Misa-pon!” This causes much confusion on all sides - from the Ao boys, wondering how Ryoya knows Mashiro so closely, and from Ryoya, who is wondering why Mashiro arrived late and with Shotaro. While questions get answered, the coaches for both teams arrive. When Ryoya tries to introduce himself, Shiro High’s coach, Shuji Mabuchi, interjects, saying he knows who Ryoya is. At this point, Asawo explains to both teams that Mashiro from Shiro High is Ryoya’s old teammate who actually beat Ryoya in competition the year prior.
Ryoya trains hard during the joint training camp, and amidst the training, Mashiro confronts Ryoya about not being teammates anymore - with Mashiro telling Ryoya that he should have gone to Shiro High with him so they could continue doing great things together. Later, as the boys are all leaving from the training camp, Ryoya asks Shotaro if he is thinking about Mashiro. Ryoya then proceeds to tell Shotaro not to dwell on Mashiro - he is a prodigy while Shotaro is not. This leads to a revelation within the team, with Ryoya being told to not hold back his skills for the sake of the other teammates - he must always do his best and not worry about the others. Ryoya later participates in a party for the Shiro High team to welcome them to Miyagi. At this party, Shotaro asks Ryoya why he chose Ao High School. Ryoya tells him that Ao High was the only place that he could do the rhythm gymnastics that he wanted to do, and that that’s the only reason.
Etymology[]
- The name Ryoya consists of the kanji used for "good, goodness” (良) (ryo) and “night" (夜) (ya).
- His surname Misato means "beautiful" (美) (mi) and "village" (里) (sato).
Trivia[]
- He is very proficient in household duties.
- He was the only member of the team that did not reside in the club dormitory until episode 7.