From an early age, Draken knew that he was taller and stronger than most people his age and he used that to his advantage. But despite that, he didn’t lose his heart. Even though his life was bleak where he had no friends and had to simply gain power over everyone else, he remembered to be human. This is illustrated during his second interaction with Takemichi. Despite Draken being the Vice President of Tokyo Manji Gang and a fearsome person, Takemichi stood up to him. While Draken didn’t like that someone as weak as Takemichi actually threatened him, he still respected that he was willing to protect what he cherishes. This is where the image of Tokyo Manji Gang being just a group of middle school delinquents becomes something more human. And it’s all because of Draken’s philosophy that shapes Tokyo Manji Gang.

Draken’s childhood wasn’t pleasant. Abandoned by his mother from an early age, he grew up in a brothel in Shibuya. Such an early experience would taint anyone’s heart but Draken was different. When Mikey lost his brother to Kazutora, he was close to being enveloped by the darkness. But Draken, despite having a terrible childhood, didn’t choose to give in to the darkness. This is the difference between Draken and Mikey. While Mikey strives to think about justice and logic, Draken thinks about the heart behind everything. That’s how the two complement each other. This is illustrated when Mikey and Draken meet the parents of the girl who was raped by Moebius. While Mikey wanted to explain that it wasn’t their fault, Draken simply understood the pain that the parents were going through and decided to take the blame. He was thinking ahead to see how he can relieve the burden of the grieving parents.

This is why Draken’s death had to be prevented as it plays a huge role in the anime. He is the one not only keeping everyone in check but also taking care of everyone. If the Tokyo Manji Gang loses him, they will truly become delinquents who have no hearts, people who kill and torment people just because they want to. Draken’s name is a combination of his actual name Ryuguji Ken, where Ryu means dragon. That’s why he’s called Draken (Dra (Ryu) + Ken), literally meaning “firm/hard dragon”. When Mikey meets Draken, he calls him “Ken-chin” and this truly takes on a different meaning when you really get to know Draken. Mikey knows that Draken is the “firm” ground that Tokyo Manji Gang stands on and without him, it will crumble and even Mikey would be lost.