Character Profile: Kaori Makimura

Kaori Makimura is a tough, tomboy-ish girl who is sometimes even mistaken for a man, though she is in fact quite cute. She is the partner of Ryo Saeba, Tokyo's renowned "Sweeper" (a sort of bodyguard/private detective). She is the adopted sister of Hideyuki Makimura, Ryo's original partner. Tragically, Hideyuki was murdered on Kaori's 20th birthday for refusing to accept an offer from the Yakuza (Japanese organized crime syndicate) to hire Ryo as an assassin. Much to Ryo's surprise, Kaori insisted upon taking her brother's place as his partner.

Not particularly skilled with firearms or the martial arts, Kaori analyses requests to hire Ryo, and presents to him the ones that seem most promising. As logical and practical as her recommendations are, it's virtually certain that only sexy young women will receive Ryo's services. An important part of her job is keeping his unparalleled perversion in check. Her trademark tool is a gigantic "100t" mallet which she uses to bash Ryo when his behavior becomes unacceptably embarrassing (no kidding!). In spite of her obvious disgust for Ryo's lechery, Kaori may well be secretly in love with him herself.