While there are a lot of delicate, trauma-ravage characters in anime that have their personalities and attitudes savaged by their mental scars, it has long been the realm of real badasses who have the proof that they lived proudly displayed right on their flesh.
One look, and you know that they have been through some things. One glance, and you know these are the type of anime characters you don’t want to mess with.
If you are looking for battle-hardened men and women of action whose frequent struggles have resulted in skin the texture of ground meat, the check out these badass anime scars.
Best Anime Scars
Himura Kenshin from Rurouni Kenshin
Kenshin’s signature ‘X’ scar is one that comes with a story – it’s just not a story you will get in the base anime. While Rurouni Kenshin, be it the original or the 2023 remake, tells the tale of a wandering samurai who gave up killing after serving as an assassin in the war.
While he no longer takes lives, the proof of his past is carved right onto his cheek. However, the story behind it is something you have to discover in the Samurai X OVAs.
Jet Black from Cowboy Bebop
Jet didn’t get the nickname of Black Dog during his time on the police force for no reason. He is as stubborn as they come, even daring to go after a criminal organization that had corrupted much of the police force.
Unfortunately, he fell into a trap that resulted in the destruction of his arm and (presumably) the scar so bad on his face he needs a metal piece to keep his skull stabilized.
While he could have had cell regeneration, as is common in the space-faring future world of Cowboy Bebop, he opted for mechanical replacements instead. You know, so he’d never forget the events that led to his life on a chronically poor bounty hunting crew of people running from their pasts.
Vash the Stampede from Trigun
Throughout much of Trigun, Vash appears to be untouchable. However, after a telling post-shower shot, his traveling companions (and the audience) see that he has had his fair share of misfortune. He has been labeled as a “Human Typhoon,” after all.
Trouble does follow him around like a horrid rain cloud. Looking at his bare body, you see tons of twisted gnarled flesh, even a bit of metal mesh. However, the most surprising part was the false arm that he got after his real one was blow off during a tragic incident long ago which ultimately drives the overall plot of Trigun – finding and stopping his brother, Knives.
Scar from Fullmetal Alchemist
Nothing says “don’t mess with me” like a giant ‘X’ shaped scar across your forehead.
However, the man named “Scar” didn’t choose his scar. Similar to many others on this list, the scars on Scar’s body after telling tales of a tragic past that pushed him into a life of serial murder and/or vigilante justice.
While an antagonist in Full Metal Alchemist due to his killing of State Alchemists, Scar’s story – and the story of his scars – makes him seem like maybe he isn’t just some base evil killer.
Gutts from Berserk
At this point, especially if you have been keeping up with the Berserk manga, Gutts has to be 100% scar tissue.
Gutts has a number of visible scars, like the nick on his nose that are the result of starting mercenary life at a very young age with mercenary foster father, whose approach to teaching was to beat him until he learned.
Of course, his most notable scar is the Brand of Sacrifice on his neck that occasionally gets a bit oozy when demons come sniffing around. However, as to how he got that unique scar, that’s a journey you need to take on your own.
Whitebeard from One Piece
There are probably thousands of interesting scars in One Piece. I mean, they’re pirates, they should have a little bit of skin flair. However, it could likely populate a separate list with interesting One Piece scars, so it is best to just picked the best of the scarred lot – Whitebeard.
While Whitebeard has a wide array of scars, you will note that he has none on his back, because this old badass never runs from a fight.
Worick from Gangsta
You know what they say – scars make a man more handsome – but Worick already had devilish good looks in spades.
Despite having a life that teetered between sheltered son of wealth and violent thug, he only has the one prominent scar on his eye.
Hidden under his eye patch, he hides a scar that he got when his father burned his eye with a cigarette. That seems like a fair reason to leave his pampered life behind for the more violent, but more rewarding life of a “handyman.”
Balalaika from Black Lagoon
Granddaughter of a prestigious USSR military leader, Balalaika would be a beautiful femme fatale… If it weren’t for horrible burns over half of her body. She got the scars in the Soviet war in Afghanistan prior to the start of the series.
To her enemies, she is affectionately known as “Fry Face,” but she will affectionately murder you if she hears you calling her that.
All Might from My Hero Academia
When you wear full body spandex, it’s is pretty hard to see scars. However, as you find out rather early in the series, All Might has a secret – he’s not as invincible as he seems.
Due to a wound he sustained during a fight long ago, he can only maintain his hero form for a few hours. The scar from the fight is pretty intense, too. It took out his stomach and now his body just now sort of collapses in on itself.
Manji from Blade of the Immortal
Even at first glance, you know Manji by that brilliant scar running across the horizon of his face.
However, upon closer inspection, you will find that Manji’s body is basically all scars, even his face is more mangled than the average warrior. Cursed with immortality for killing 100 samurai, including his own sister’s husband, Manji is kept alive by sacred bloodworms until he makes amends by killing 1,000 evil men.
While the bloodworms will attach limbs just fine, they don’t heal wounds flawlessly.
Genryuusai from Bleach
Whenever you see an ancient elderly man in a shounen action series, you know you are about witness a badass.
Genryuusai, sporting a magnificent beard finely honed by age and proper beard care, is the leader of the Shinigami, and – presumably – the most powerful of their organization. While his power level is certainly up to debate, you see the years of victorious battles carved into his chest whenever he has to throw hands.
Morino Ibiki from Naruto
You would think that as series about ninjas, covert missions that usually end in a fight, and eventually full-on ninja world war would feature some more unique and frequent scars. However, cool scars are alarmingly sparse in Naruto.
Ibiki, one of the few great scars in Naruto, is quickly forgotten because of his sparse appearance in the series, but he has some serious scar tissue lurking just under his headwrap.
As one of the more feared members of ANBU, the even more secret ninja organization in a village secret ninja warriors, he got his scars from years of occasional bouts of torture.
Sugimoto from Golden Kamuy
Not unlike Manji from Blade of the Immortal, Sugimoto from Golden Kamuy sports similar face-rending flesh wounds and reputation for immortality.
However, Sugimoto isn’t an immortal, he’s just reckless and strong.
After returning from the Russo-Japanese war, Sugimoto sported a reputation as an Immortal due to constantly charging into dangerous situations on the battlefield. It is this attitude that helps him on the dangerous treasure hunt that he becomes involved in after coming home.
Kenshiro from Fist of the North Star
Kenshiro sports some of the most iconic scars in anime history across that rippling chest of his.
Betrayed by his adoptive brother, Kenshiro was left for dead after a martial arts technique was used on him that left seven finger tip-shaped scars down his chest in the shape of the little dipper.
It is this event that set him on his path of revenge where he uses the Hokuto Shinken techniques to burst the heads and bodies of scoundrels prowling the post-apocalyptic, nuclear war-ravaged wasteland to get his stolen fiancee back like an unstoppable martial arts machine.
Naraku from Inuyasha
Originally, Inuyasha’s main antagonist Naraku was a human bandit named Onigumo. However, after suffering major burns all over his body and basically left to die in a cave under the care of a priestess he fell in love with, he offered his body to the demons.
Reborn as a spider demon, not only did he get a series of spider-like demon abilities, but he got a pretty wicked spider scar on his back.
Sensui from Yu Yu Hakusho
For as much fighting as there is in Yu Yu Hakusho, you would think there would be more cool scars, but you really only have Sensui.
Sensui doesn’t have what your would call “cool” scars, but he does feature a lot of them. It really gives him the ground meat texture of skin that the veteran warrior strives for.
Accumulated through his love of fighting and utterly insane attitude towards it, when shirts come off, you see that Sensui’s approach to battle is all offense and no defense.
Mika from Durarara
Who says girls other than Balalaika can’t have scars? Well, typically they don’t have very impressive scars, because reasons. Moe and marketability usually being said reasons.
However, Miki is one of the rare exceptions by having an awesome scar across her neck because she is a crazy yandere, and the specifics of that all are pretty big spoilers.
Just know this girl has a good head on her shoulders and she would do anything for the person she loved.
Adolf from Terra Formars
Although Adolf’s time on Terra Formars was brief, he was given plenty of spotlight during the fight for his life in the first season. He is, however, a pretty tragic character like his face-ravaging scars suggest.
With major burns on his face and body, we discover that the wounds on his body were his price to pay for power.
Like the other members of the Terra Formars crew, Adolf was implanted with animal DNA that allowed his body to produce electricity. However, his human body struggled to use this magnificent power, and his scars are the result of trying to acclimatize to it.
King from One Punch Man
With a reputation as the strongest man on earth, you need a few scars to go with that chiseled jaw.
King has three tidy slits running along the side of his face that just completely pull together his regal-yet-menacing look. While not strictly explained in One Punch Man, the rumor is he got the scars fighting against a God-level monster.
Yamcha from Dragon Ball Z
And finally, Yamcha, who, for as much as he gets dunked on in the Dragon Ball universe, should have vastly more scars than he does.
In the series, Yamcha got his scars training in order to win the World’s Martial Arts Tournament. However, if you gotta get scars, I pray you should be so lucky as to get the handsome-enhancing type of scars like Yamcha.
Did we miss any of your other favorite badass scars? Lay them on us in the comments section below.
