Yoshiya "Joshua" Kiryu

Yoshiya "Joshua" Kiryu
Age	15 in appearance; true age unknown
Gender	Male
Race	Human
Affiliations	Players (illegally)
Classification	Player (illegally) Shibuya's Composer
Partner(s)	Neku Sakuraba
Voice Actor(s)	Ryohei Kimura (Japanese) Aaron Spann (English)

"It's quickly evident Joshua is clever beyond his fifteen years—as sly as they come. Unfortunately, his insufferably snotty attitude only serves to widen the gulf between him and Neku...but his knowledge, especially about the Game, does earn him some points."

— Game manual description

Yoshiya Kiryu (桐生 義弥, Kiryū Yoshiya), nicknamed Joshua (ヨシュア, Yoshua), is Neku's second partner in the Reapers' Game. He could also be considered the true antagonist of the game.

Personality

"But Neku...I thought you couldn't afford to lose? Give up on yourself...And you give up on the world."

— Joshua

Joshua is an extremely intelligent character with a refined taste and knowledge for the world around him. Unfortunately, these traits are often overshadowed by his constant air of arrogance. He prefers to think and act by himself, always keeping his intentions mysterious, and is difficult to predict. Joshua very rarely gets honestly worked up (and is usually lying when he appears to be), and is always teasing when he is not sharing information. These snobby qualities always make him appear condescending and antagonistic — especially to Neku. Nevertheless, his long history with Hanekoma has ignited a bond of trust between the two. Despite his interpersonal issues, he remains a mature and wise person at heart underneath his attitude.

Deep down, Joshua is simply lonely. Hanekoma stated he had been alone most of his life and did not have that many friends. At the end of the game, Hanekoma pointed out that he looked sad when he was looking down at his friends (Neku, Shiki, Beat, Rhyme), possibly because he was not able join them in their reunion. It is seen when Hanekoma asked him of his feelings while the two were atop the 104 building, Joshua vanished. This could be seen as an act of sadness.

In Another Day

Joshua's personality is much the same as 'main' Joshua, unlike most characters, who have slight personality changes. He occasionally drops enigmatic hints, such as explaining that Shiki still appears in Eri's form because the player refuses to acknowledge her true form. It is implied that he has a similar position or powers to 'main' Joshua, as evidenced by his hints.

The Joshua from the Another Day is practically the same from the main game. When they reach the Room of Reckoning they met the Joshua from the main universe. The Joshua from this dimension and the one from the main dimension are not even surprised of seeing theirselves, but the others freak out.

Biography

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or character details follow.

Background

Joshua is a deity and the Composer of Shibuya's Reaper Game. Over a week before the game began, Joshua announced to Megumi Kitaniji, the Conductor, his plans to erase Shibuya. Megumi offered to save Shibuya and it's citizens, and a 30-day timer is placed on him as his time limit.

Later, Joshua, seeking a proxy to use against Kitaniji, goes to the Realground and tries to kill Neku Sakuraba for use, as he has high Soul energy. However, Sho Minamimoto intercepts him when he is about to shoot Neku. Joshua shoots at Minamimoto, barely missing. Minamimoto fires his gun at Joshua, but Joshua makes the bullets fall in midair. He then shoots and kills Neku.

Week 1

Joshua confronts Neku during his death.

Joshua spends most of this week hiding from Kitaniji. When Neku is running away from the Noise on the first day, Neku runs past him. He also observes Neku and Shiki Misaki teaming up and battling the Noise. In addition, it is also stated that he observed the pair for the entire week. He keeps in touch with the Producer, Sanae Hanekoma, and constantly requests items from him, including improved phone functionality for the following week.

Week 2

Joshua becomes Neku's partner for this week for three reasons; to confirm Kitaniji's strategy, to educate Neku, and to protect him. Joshua's behavior annoys Neku greatly, and proves to be a psychological strain for Neku. Neku also notices some suspicious behavior from Joshua, such as him calling people on his cell phone and his comment that he has watched Neku the week before. Joshua lies to Neku and tells him that he is still alive, and is in the game because he feels like it.

Throughout the week, Neku reads Joshua's mind and is led to believe that Joshua has shot him. Meanwhile, Joshua regularly takes Neku to Hanekoma's coffee shop to receive items and updates for their cell phones. One update allows them to detect Kitaniji's imagination and piece together his strategy, and a later update allows them to track down the Shibuya River. At this point, Joshua realizes that Kitaniji's plan to save Shibuya revolves around the Red Skull Pins. Towards the end of the week, Joshua is also forced to reveal some of his more powerful abilities in combat.

On the final day, Joshua and Neku go to Pork City to fight Minamimoto. The two gain the upper hand and defeat Minamimoto, therefore winning the game. However, Minamimoto shoots Neku with a laser beam, which Joshua shields Neku from while pretending to sacrifice himself. At this point, Neku reads another thought from Joshua which implies Joshua never killed Neku. In actuality, Joshua had teleported away to another dimension: the dimension of Another Day.

Week 3

During most of the week, Joshua is in an alternate dimension until the final day of the third week. When he arrives at the Shibuya River, he finds that Neku defeated Kitaniji, and reveals to him that he is the Composer. He is absorbed by Kitaniji along with Shiki and Beat, and Neku is forced to defeat Kitaniji once and for all. Having won the bet with Kitaniji, Joshua is free to destroy Shibuya, but instead wagers a game with Neku: both has a revolver, and the winner of the duel will decide the fate of Shibuya. Neku cannot bring himself to shoot Joshua, and so Joshua wins, but because Neku showed trust in Joshua, he decides to spare Shibuya.

In a secret epilogue unlocked after collecting all Secret Reports, Joshua in his true form is seen observing Neku and his friends meet up at the Statue of Hachiko with Hanekoma.

Another Day

There are two versions of Joshua in Another Day: one from the main universe that teleported to this one after the battle with Minamimoto, and one born in that universe. Joshua plays Tin Pin Slammer for a while, and hides in his base in the Shibuya River as well. Hanekoma eventually finds him and brings him back to the Underground.

Spoiler warning: Spoilers end here.

Non-canon Appearances

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance

"Another world, exactly the same and entirely different. To think of just one possible answer, one could say it's almost like..."

— Joshua to Riku

Joshua meets Riku in the Third District of Traverse Town. He sits atop the arch over the fountain and tells Riku about the goings-on in town. When Riku rejects his offer for assistance, Joshua tells him that he knows Sora and that he is in the same world with them. With a little more persuasion, Riku finally agrees to let Joshua be his guide around Traverse Town.

When Joshua and Riku reach the Second District, they are confronted by Beat, who challenges Joshua in the belief that he can return to his own world with Rhyme if he beats him. Joshua stands aside, watching with amusement as Riku fights and defeats Beat's Dream Eaters, and chuckles after Beat concedes the fight in frustration. Neither of them notice Riku passing out, and neither are there when he comes to.

After Sora defeats the Hakozaru in the Fifth District, Joshua appears before him and explains that he and Riku are in two seperate versions of Traverse Town, as Sora sees an illusion of Riku and the unknown figure in the black coat. Riku sees a similar image of Joshua, Sora, and Rhyme after he defeats his side's version of the Hakozaru.

Later, Joshua speaks to Sora and Riku simultaneously, between the two sides of Traverse Town. He explains the nature of the dreaming Traverse Town, telling them that the world seems entirely the same but also altogether different. He also tells them about how they are able to see each other is because of the strong bonds between, using Neku and Shiki and Beat and Rhyme as examples. When Sora and Riku ask in unison if he has any friends with strong ties to him too, he just chuckles and says, "Maybe." At that word, ethereal angel wings sprout onto his back, surprising the pair, and he flies up into the night sky and disappears.

On Sora and Riku's return trips to Traverse Town, Joshua coordinates between them in order to defeat the Spellican.

He also tells Riku that his previous theory, of the two Traverse towns being Parlell worlds is incorrect. When Shiki and Rhyme switched worlds to join their partners, it was discovered that time does not flow at the same rate between the two, leading Joshua to theorize that the two Traverse Towns are distinct worlds, as if they were dreams of two different people.

Gallery

Joshua while talking to Riku in Traverse Town

Joshua talks to Riku about the worlds.

Beat and Joshua

Sora,Joshua and Rhyme

Neku and Joshua

Joshua and Sora

Joshua and Riku

Relationships

At first he shows no true relationships to anyone other then an eerie fondness towards Neku (and a shared past with Mr. Hanekoma). As the game progresses, the two grow a bond seemingly based on their mutual hate of humanity, which slowly turns into true friendship.

This is especially evident as Joshua "sacrifices" himself for Neku. It is also established throughout several of the secret reports that Joshua may only have direct contact with Mr.Hanekoma and Megumi, both of whom share similar ideals and mutual respect, yet ultimatly clash in the end. Although Megumi's relationship could be seen as a form of worship, his love of Shibuya outranks that for Joshua, and Mr.Hanekoma's relationship could be seen as a mentor, or a guardian, but once again his love of Shibuya outranks Joshua.

In the very end, it seems as though Neku proved to be the only one who refused to do whatever it took to save Shibuya by defeating Joshua. This may be the reason why Joshua seems to care for him the most, and despite Neku losing the final game, lets Shibuya survive.

Abilities

• Joshua attacks by typing in digits on a phone to summon random objects to bombard enemies from above. He has two ways of fighting: ground and levitation. When Neku first forms a pact with him, Joshua will only attack on the ground; after a specific plot point, Joshua will be able to levitate in combat. When Joshua is in the air, every input to his combo tree inflicts damage and is generally stronger, especially against groups of enemies.

While on the ground, as you progress through his combos he will target enemies. When he finishes the combo, things will fall on each enemy that was targeted, larger things fall that are targeted multiple times. Later on, he gets a camera on his phone that has a chance of bringing targeted enemies to the opposite side and immobilizes them.

• Left/Y while attacking Right/A or vice versa (During a combo): Phone Camera- stuns/switches the position of Noise
• Down/B (When idle): Sidestep- momentary invulnerability
• Up/X (When idle): Levitate
• Any button (When knocked in the air): Safe Landing- prevents knockdown damage

During Joshua's Levitation, he is immune to almost all ground attacks. However, if he is hit while levitating, he will be knocked down, then returned to the ground (if an attack does no damage, unless it has a knockback effect, it will not knock Joshua back down). When progressing through his combos, each button press causes a beam to attack an enemy. At the end of the combo, a larger beam comes down on one side and hit all enemies on that side twice. However, if you go through enough steps in Joshua's Combo Map (specifically, enough so that a single enemy is hit at least six times), then the finisher will change from his basic air finisher to a massively more powerful one, in which two colossal beams will fire down on either side of Joshua. This advanced finisher damages enemies on both the top and bottom screens ten times each. It is recommended that a Combo Map Upgrade II effect be used, such as Pi-Face's Jeans, to help guarantee the effect.

• Down/B (When idle): Return to ground

As the Composer, Joshua also has several abilities that are not seen or available but implied, such as the ability to move between dimensions and the ability to erase the whole of Shibuya. He is also shown to be able to stop bullets in mid-air, when Minamimoto tries to shoot him.

Fusion Stars

The way Joshua gains Fusion Stars is through Highs and Lows. At the end of Joshua's combos, there is a number. That number goes up to the number at the top that the arrow is pointing to. The goal is to get the combo numbers less than, greater than or equal to the number at the top, depending on the symbol in the corner of the top numbers.

• Red arrow pointing up - greater than that number
• White equal sign - equal to that number, i.e, get that number
• Blue arrow pointing down - less than that number

Fusions

• Level 1: Neku and Joshua drop various objects on enemies.
  • Joshua: "Follow my lead!"
  • Neku: "Screw that!"

• Level 2: Joshua attacks the field with ice and Neku attacks the field with fire.
  • Joshua: "Work for you?"
  • Neku: "What do you think?"

• Level 3: Crashes the moon into the Earth, inflicting massive damage to all enemies.
  • Neku: "Another world awaits."
  • Joshua: "And you're going."

Etymology

Joshua may be a reference to the biblical figure Joshua, who created the laws and rules that the people of Israel live by, and liased with God on their behalf. This parallels Composer's place as the creator of rules of the UG and the Reapers' Game.

Similarly, Joshua may be an indirect reference to Jesus (the name Joshua comes from Jewish "Yeshua", which in Greek translates to Jesus). Also supporting this theory is the story of Sodom and Gomorrah; when God considered Sodom and Gomorrah for destruction, Abraham tried to find at least ten righteous persons. This is identical to Joshua, being the "God" of The World Ends With You universe, considering Shibuya for destruction as Megumi Kitaniji tries to "fix" the people of Shibuya.

The kanji of Joshua's Japanese name (桐生 義弥, Kiryū Yoshiya) literally translate from left to right as paulownia, birth, justice. This may also refer to his role as creator of the Game and suggests impartiality within it (although this is not absolutely established by the plot). He also makes a cameo in the beginning when Neku goes to the statue of Hachiko. At the beginning of his week as well, he calls Neku by his name twice, just before asking what it is, but Neku doesn't catch on to this. However, it should be noted that this is only present in the North American/European localization of the game; in the Japanese version, he never uses Neku's name until they are properly introduced.

"Yeshua" in Hebrew means "Yahweh saves" or "Yahweh is salvation".

Quotes

• "But Neku, I thought you couldn't afford to lose. Give up on yourself, and you give up on the world."
• "Did you think you were special? Every Player had to give up something. Everybody makes sacrifices."
• "Only by allowing strangers in, we can find new ways to BE ourselves."
• "Life's little crossroads are often as simple as the pull of a trigger."

Trivia

• Joshua is the only partner character that Neku cannot fight directly in a battle. However, Neku does fight him indirectly.
• Joshua's name in Hebrew translates roughly to "God is salvation".
• Joshua shares his English voice actor with the Onion Knight in Dissidia and Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, a video game also published by Square-Enix.
• In Week 1, Day 1, right before Shiki forms a pact with Neku, the player may look at the crowd in front of the Statue of Hachiko. Joshua is standing right next to Neku. He is no longer present there after the pact is formed.

Gallery

Joshua's boxart artwork.

Joshua with his Angel Feather.

Joshua's bottom-screen portrait.

Joshua shoots Neku

Joshua charging up his Max Fusion attack.

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