Takumi Inui


 * For the A.R. World version, see Takumi Ogami

Takumi Inui (乾 巧) is the protagonist of Kamen Rider 555. He's the primary user of the Faiz (Φ) gear.'''

Early Days
Takumi was originally a human until he died when hit by a car as a boy, resurrecting him as the Wolf Orphnoch and decided to use his newfound power to protect humans, intending to save Ryuusei School students when their reunion turned into a massacre caused by the Clover Four's Kitazaki. Since the incident, Takumi refused to transform and became a loner, bent on not getting into relationships with people out of fear of somehow betraying them, traveling without any self-confidence or lifelong dream of his own. He is also often teased by Mari for being a "nekojita" (literally means "cat tongue"; someone who cannot stand food that is too hot or cold).

Becoming Faiz & New Friends
By present time, while at a restaurant, Takumi sees Mari there and follows the girl under the notion that the bag she carried was one stolen from him three days prior, demanding the bag from her when two of her travelling companions dissolved and she assumed he killed them. But when the true killer, the Orphnoch Hiroshi Izawa, reveals himself to take the Faiz Gear, Mari put the Gear on a reluctant Takumi, becoming Faiz and kills the Stingfish Orphnoch.

Once the police find his bag, Takumi ends with the Faiz Gear when he and Mari got their bags mixed, coming to her aid when she is attacked by the Elephant Orphnoch before Mari guilt trips him into sticking with her. But once learning she was faking her injuries, Takumi ditches her and causes a laundry van to crash, with Mari forced to help its driver Keitaro Kikuchi make his deliveries before finding Takumi at a laundromat.

However, when the Orphnoch bounty hunter Aoki appears, Takumi uses the Gear to kill the Ox Ophenoch with Keitaro witnessing the fight, later stealing the Faiz Gear to use it to save people. However he also cannot transform, the incident results with Orphnoch bounty hunter Akai taking the Faiz Gear and using it to his own ends until the Autovajin cancels the Faiz Gear so Takumi can reclaim it and kill the Cactus Orphnoch, deciding to keep the Faiz Gear and the Autovajin, though very apathetic towards his "duties" as Faiz when there is no immediate threat.

Life in Tokyo & Smart Brain Attacks
Arriving at Tokyo, after Mari gets no reply from her father, Takumi suggests they head to Smart Brain to find him, only to not meet Mari's guardian. But after getting a traffic fine and an ensuing argument, Mari decides to borrow money from Keitaro to pay Takumi's fine on the condition to her pay back by working part time at Keitaro's shop. Later, when the Orphnoch Eiiji Toda chases after him and Mari once killing the master at the coffee shop he worked at, Takumi admits his flaws before Keitaro arrives in time with the Faiz Gear and Takumi uses to kill the Squid Oprenoch. Deciding to help Mari, Takumi attempts to steal a Smart Brain pass from Yuji Kiba, who refuses to press charges. Later, Takumi encounters the Snake Orphnoch (Naoya Kaido) and attempts to fight him until the Horse Orphenoch (Yuji Kiba) charged in to aid him.

Eventually, Takumi was getting used to being Faiz and decided that if fighting was a sin, after losing to Kaixa a few times and battling a few Orphnoch, then he would bear the sin and defeat all that get in his way. But, after his fight with Lucky Clover member Mr. J, he loses the Faiz Gear to the Centipede Orphnoch, Itsuro Takuma. But he gets it back and is able to transform into Axel Form, thanks to Kusaka, where he manages to defeat the Sea cucumber Orphnoch and drive Takuma away. But an act of deceit from Kaido and the Rabbit Orphnoch, Yoshio Kobayashi, Takumi and Kusaka lose the belts to them as they are attacked by Takuma and a fellow Lucky Clover member, Saeko Kageyama. Takumi then did an undercover mission to get back the gears for him and Kusaka. After his cover was blown, he and Kusaka discovered the Ryuusei School inside the Smart Brain Corporation along with the Delta Gear prototype. After getting back the Faiz Gear, Takumi transforms into Faiz to battle the Lucky Clover members who have escaped.

Takumi then learns that the rest of the students of Ryuusei School used the Delta Gear also to fight. He tries to help Kaixa take out the Frog Orphnoch, but finds that it was defeated by Kamen Rider Delta. Takumi then learns that the Delta Gear was stolen by Sawada, a Ryuusei student who became an Orphnoch. The male Ryuusei School members freak out over who the belt should belong to, with Takumi puzzled by their strange behaviour. Eventually, he learns that Mari was captured by the male students who wanted to trade her life for the Delta Gear. However, Sawada arrives and kills the two students, revealing he came to discard the last shred of his humanity by killing Mari, however Faiz and Kaixa interfere with this plan, also finding out his identity but let him escape.

Takumi then talks to Saya about being strong and able when Sawada comes back to take Mari's life. He and Kaixa team up but lose when the Dragon Orphnoch takes the belt from the newly arrived Saya (who is before killed by Sawada) and transforms into Kamen Rider Delta. Delta proves to be too much for him and Kaixa as they escape from him due to the Centipede Orphnoch (Itsuro Takuma) interfering with Delta's "fun". He then makes a vow to not leave one Orphnoch alive. He later finds the Horse Orphnoch battling the Lobster Orphnoch and becomes Faiz to take him on. However, Delta interferes and forces both Faiz and the Horse Orphnoch back into their human forms. Though astonished, Takumi eventually comes to understand Yuji's desire to protect humans and decides to fight alongside him. But Kusaka stole the Faiz Gear from Takumi in order to drive a wedge between him and Yuji (due to his personality). During this, Delta comes from out of nowhere and attacks Kaixa and Faiz and used the Jet Sliger to continue "playing". Faiz then summons his own Jet Sliger to battle Delta, but loses because of his inexperience using it. Delta then launches missiles from his Jet Sliger and destroys Faiz's Jet Sliger, but Faiz manages to escape with a quick activation of Accel mode.

Later, after talking to Mari about Sawada's humanity, he tries to believe in him and lets him protect her when she is attacked by an Orphnoch. But this was all a ruse so that he could get close to Mari to kill her like before. He succeeds in doing so and leaves Takumi in a state of shock. He asks what Kusaka meant by when he said that he will revive Mari. Sawada explained to him that she had special blood cells that normal doctors wouldn't be able to help her. Takumi talks to the Chief asking if he could use the facilities to revive Mari. The Chief agrees only if he became a member of Lucky Clover by killing Sawada to which he said is impossible for Takumi because he isn't an Orphnoch. But Takumi reveals his true nature as an Orphnoch during the fight that followed. Despite his attempt, Kusaka tells him that they cannot just ignore what that occurred.

Mari and everyone tried to have a picnic by a lake, but two Lucky Clover members wanted payment for using Smart Brain to save Mari's life. Eventually, Takumi revealed to Mari in battle that he was an Orphnoch and she was terrified at the sight of him. Later, Yuji asked him when he became an Orphnoch and about being terrified of the powers. He also mentioned to Yuji that he willingly transformed into an Orphnoch but could not remember anything after that. He tried to live with them again because Mari wanted to give him a second chance. Unfortunately, he left them of his own free will and went back to Smart Brain for some answers. It was there that the Chief of Smart Brain showed him footage of the night of the Ryuusei School Reunion; it was shown that an Orphnoch attacked the students and killed a huge number of them. The footage showed that Takumi was there in his Orphnoch form which he thought that he was responsible for what had happened. He then decided to become an official member of Lucky Clover; his first task was to take back the Faiz Gear that he gave to Yuji Kiba. The Chief wanted him to use the Gear to kill him, but Yuji refused to do it because he was human. Takumi then fled from the battle.

Once Kusaka learns that it was Takumi who slaughtered the class of Ryuusei School, he meets with Takumi with the intent to kill him. Luckily, Yuji was able to save Takumi from being killed. Takumi then found and helped Mihara and Rina by transforming into Kamen Rider Delta and fought an Orphnoch attacking them. However he faints soon after and Rina tries to show compassion, with Mihara having doubts from Kusaka. When he woke, he then decides that he would rather die than become Smart Brain's ally. He fights the Chief only to be beaten and somewhat saved by Yuji and Kusaka. He then finds out from Mari that he isn't the one who killed everyone on the night of the reunion, but the Dragon Orphnoch was responsible and that he was instead trying to protect everyone. Soon after, he becomes Faiz again but this time with a new form: Blaster Form. Using this new power he manages to destroy another Orphnoch out for his life and scare off the Dragon Orphnoch. Mari asked him to come back, with Kusaka retorting that he himself still doesn't trust Takumi (like he ever has), but refuses. He gives Mari the Faiz Gear and runs off. He then challenges the members of Lucky Clover to final battle where everything would be decided. After that, he finds that Sawada is still alive.

He eventually learns from Sawada that the attack on the Ryuusei School Reunion was not a random attack, but a plan cooked up by Smart Brain to try and artificially create Orphnoch. He also learned that most of the students were failed subjects and that only a handful survived, but only he himself became an Orphnoch. He passed out before he could tell Takumi anything else. Takumi takes Sawada to a safe location where Sawada learns why Mari can still believe in Takumi even though he's an Orphnoch before Sawada knocks him out and takes his place fighting the three members of Lucky Clover as the battle Takumi challenged to Lucky Clover. After witnessing Sawada's death, Takumi decides to fight alongside Kaixa and Delta not as an Orphnoch, but as Faiz.

After Yuji Kiba becomes president (after the first one was fired and defeated by Faiz, Kaixa, and Delta) and the death of Masato Kusaka, Takumi learns that the Orphnochs are destined to die unless the Orphnoch King is awakened. But if the King awakens, then all of humanity will die. He learns that the Orphnoch King is Teruo Suzuki and tries to destroy him to save humanity, but Kaido tried to stop him and Takumi failed. He tried again but this time Yuji stopped him and took his body back to Smart Brain for examination. He was saved by the combined efforts of Keitaro, Mari, Kaido (who found out from Yuji and told the others), Mihara, and Rina before being confronted by Yuji again. Both he and Yuji then have one last battle that involved their powers as Faiz and Kaixa and Orphnochs. Takumi is able to claim victory as he spares Yuji's life because he said that he is "human". With a renewed sense of living, Yuji agrees to help Takumi and Mihara take down the King using the power of the Gears. The fight doesn't go so well when the Kaixa Gear is destroyed and it slowly destroys Yuji. But before he died, Faiz managed to land a hit on the King, defeating the King and killing Yuji.

In the final scene of the final episode, Takumi, Mari, and Keitaro are seen lying on a large field of grass. After a short conversation, Takumi claims that he now has a dream. As both Mari and Keitaro asks what his dream is, Takumi looks at his hand; and the last time he looked at it, it was slowly starting to turn to dust, but looking at it now, he notices that his hand had completely heeled. With a face of joy, he states that his dream is to make pure white laundry, and to make everyone in the world happy.

Ambush & Survival
In a alternate story, during Takumi's battle with Smart Brain, he was defeated when he and Mari were ambushed by an army of Riotroopers. Although Takumi was able to fight them off as Faiz, there were just too many and he ultimately was dragged away by the Riotroopers. Without a successor to the Faiz Gear, Mari hid the belt, always believing Takumi would return one day. Unknown to her, Takumi survived his encounter with the Riotroopers, but was left severely injured, having sustained a head injury that resulted amnesia. He had since been under the care of a former Smart Brain scientist and his daughter, Mina. However, Mari started the local legend to the surviving humanity resistance cell that Faiz's return would bring peace.

Without his memories, the scientist renamed him Takeshi and gave him false memories in hopes he could take care of Mina after he passed. Takumi/Takeshi would spend the next several years with Mina, surviving through the shanty-town selling refurbished shoes. While Mina sold the shoes, Takumi would restore old shoes for sale. He would not have his memories back until Mina pressured him to a public dance.

Return of Faiz
Takeshi relented to Mina's request to attend the dance, but nobody came as everyone feared the Orphnochs, except Mari. Takeshi hadn't seen Mina yet and danced with Mari instead. As it was a masquerade ball, they didn't realize each other's identities until the Riotroopers attacked. After an explosion, Takumi's memories returned and he resumed his life with Mari in the human resistance cell.

His return isn't without doubt as everyone finds Takumi's return suspicious. Their resistance leader, Mizuhara, was the most suspicious as he finds it odd that Takumi was the only human that can use the Faiz Gear as it's well-known that only Orphnochs can only use the KR drivers. Takumi only ignored their doubts and went off with Mari for a haircut. Afterwards, he went to see Mina, where she explained everything to him about his false memories; little did he know Mizuhara trailed him.

Mina was afraid that Takumi would hate her for the facade, but Takumi was forgiving about the matter. Mina then gave him the Faiz Blaster. It was then Mizuhara tried to kill Takumi for the Faiz Gear. Mina loved Takumi and took the bullet for him; Mizuhara's victory was short lived as Yuji Kiba was nearby and killed him for the Faiz Gear. As Kiba and Takumi had been friends, he returned the Faiz Gear to him.

Rescue Mari & Battling the Emperor Riders
Later, KR Psyga attacked and abducted Mari,taking her into the city to the city. Takumi barged into Tokyo's indoor sports stadium to rescue Mari from the Elasmotherium Orphnoch. As Faiz, Takumi had a difficult time defeating the Elasmotherium Orphnoch. Auto Vajin helped, but the robot was defeated in battle. As Faiz was attempting to kill the Elasmotherium Orphnoch with a Rider Kick, Psgya appeared and forced him out of the stadium with his flight boosters.

Outside, Takumi switched to Axel Faiz for high-speed combat. Takumi was able to chase down Psyga and damage his flight pack before reverting to Faiz form. Psyga switched to melee combat with their saber weapons and the fight dragged back into the stadium. Mari was watching the fight as well and Psyga charged at Faiz for a charged saber attack with his tonfas. Mari threw Faiz his Faiz Edge for a counter attack. Their blows deflected each other, but Faiz re-directed the sword right under Psyga's stomach and quickly inserted the Faiz Mission Memory to energize his weapon, and initiated EXCEED CHARGE to vaporize Psyga and his Gear.

Just as Takumi thought he had won, Kiba revealed himself as KR Orga. Still enraged and saddened by the "betrayal" he experienced from humanity, a mind trick from Smart Brain that cost the lives of Kaido and Osada, Kiba devoted himself as the new champion of the Orphnochs. Due to the power Orga held and Takumi's reluctance to properly retaliate against a friend, Orga was winning easily, even knocking the Faiz Gear off of Takumi, deactivating it. With his belt at a distance, Takumi revealed his Wolf Orphnoch form, shocking Kiba and the rest of the Orphnoch spectators in the stadium. Takumi tried to reason with him, but Kiba refused to listen, and the two fought in their Orphnoch forms.

Unwilling to lose Mari and the fight, he activated Faiz's Faiz Blaster form to defeat Orga. Kiba had difficulty in defeating Faiz's new form. Takumi decided to end this with his Rider Kick, Kiba countering with his energized sword. Their power of the collision was so great, that a majority of the stadium roof was cut off. However, Takumi pressed on, destroyed Orga's attack, and his Rider Kick connected with Orga's chest, defeating him, but not killing him. After Orga's defeat, Takumi resumed rescuing Mari from the Elasmotherium Orphnoch. Kiba awakened to have a sudden change of heart and helped Takumi defeat the Elasmotherium Orphnoch, but at the price of his life. Kiba died in Takumi's arms and the crowd was stunned at Faiz's victory. The crowd peacefully allowed Mari and Takumi exit the stadium to start a new life together.

Kamen Rider Decade
Kamen Rider Faiz, Rider form, appears in episode 31 of Kamen Rider Decade, as one of Wataru Kurenai's companions, who antagonize Decade after he failed in his mission of saving the worlds. Faiz is seen as one of the Riders who gang up on Decade just minutes before Diend shoots Decade at point blank range. In the Rider War  dream Natsumi has and in the special edition of episode 31, Faiz is  one of the few Riders to not get destroyed by Decade.

Notes & Trivia

 * His given name, Takumi translates to adroit which means skillful, relative to Takumi's several skills.
 * Inui, his surname, is a pun on "Inu", the Japanese word for "dog", and his Orphnoch form is a canine.
 * Aside from Shouichi/Agito, Takumi is the only protagonist that has used a Rider System other than his own within his actual TV series.
 * Takumi is the first non human rider in Heisei era rider series.
 * Takumi is also the first primary rider to become one using a High Technology equipment.