Kunimitsu Tezuka

Kunimitsu Tezuka (手塚 国光, Tezuka Kunimitsu?) is a fictional character in the manga and anime series The Prince of Tennis created by Takeshi Konomi, who described Tezuka as the character who he has the least in common with. In the story, he is introduced as the strict and serious captain of Seishun Academy's ("Seigaku" for short) tennis team who enforces order within his team, often making its members run laps. With his all-around tennis style and advanced techniques, Tezuka is considered to be a National-level tennis player by many of the other characters. He encourages the series' protagonist, Ryoma Echizen, to develop his own style of tennis, leading the latter to consider him to be both a mentor and a rival. Throughout the series, Tezuka continues to constantly struggle with the pain in his left arm that was caused by an injury inflicted upon him by an upperclassman two years prior to the main storyline. However, he is often willing to sacrifice the use of his arm in order to defeat his opponent and lead his team to the National Tennis Tournament. In addition to appearing in the series' other media, including musicals, movies, and soundtracks, different types of merchandise have been released in his likeness, including figurines and jewelry.

Tezuka's character has been well received by readers since his introduction, having ranked in the top five most popular characters in every Shonen Jump character popularity poll of series. He has also remained in the top 10 in the annual Valentine Chocolate Recipient rankings Takeshi Konomi releases in the manga, in which readers mail in who they want to send chocolate to. In publications on manga and anime, however, his character has received mixed reviews. Reviewers comment on his lack of originality, and that the impossibility of one his techniques is part of why the story seems idiotic. Though one reviewer questions his likability as a protagonist, his personality is praised, with one seeing an example of his devotion as one of the highlights of the series, and another commenting that he is a good captain who is properly motivating the main character.