Naomichi Taiga (大河 直倫, Taiga Naomichi) is a supporting character in Alice in Borderland RETRY, who participates in the Nine of Hearts game, "Earth Invasion".
Appearance[]
Taiga is a young man with blond hair who is always portrayed smoking a cigarette. He wears a black hoodie and shorts with pockets. His legs are covered in tattoos.
Personality[]
Taiga first appears as a calm and collected individual who does not easily panic or get overwhelmed with emotions. However, by Round 2, he realizes that the others have decided to sacrifice him, which reveals his cold ana cruel side: he does not care if he has to kill everyone in the room as long as his own life is prolonged. He is able to stab another person with no hesitation or regret, and the target does not matter to him, so his violence can only be stopped by other violence.
History []
Taiga got sent to multiple detention centers, was expelled from school, and had no relatives left. Before getting hit by a billboard, which transported his consciousness to the Borderland, Taiga cornered a man in a dark alley and threatened him with a knife. Despite the man's plea to spare his life and his readiness to give Taiga all his money, Taiga claimed that the man saw his face, stabbed him, and ran away. He stumbled upon a crowd, accusing them of walking too slowly, and the crowd later turned out to be the group of people he would have to play the death game with.
Story[]
Hall 1[]
Taiga arrived in the Borderland after a large billboard fell onto him and a few other strangers, including Arisu who tried to warn them. They all end up on the verge of death with no recollection of the incident, and the "Earth Invasion" game begins. Taiga remains silent and observes the situation.
After the game rules are explained, Round 1 begins, and the players decide to ignore the "DEATH" card for the time being, so they exchange "LIFE" cards with each other. Since the other two duos know each other, Taiga is forced to pair up with Arisu, which is when he first introduces himself.
Hall 2[]
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Taiga observing the panic
Upon entering the second hall and seeing how the number of shelters has been reduced, the players start panicking and coming up with strategies. Taiga points out that the ability to seize shelters with brute force increases the chances for male players to survive. Since nobody owes anyone anything in this game, there is no fool-proof plan with a guaranteed "LIFE" card, because anyone can simply refuse to transfer one in return, which is something all the players quickly realize.
Taiga suggests drawing lots instead of standing and panicking, but Kitou insists on discussing whose life is worth saving, and whose can be sacrificed for the greater good. His explanation is supported by both Himari and Yuzuru Horikawa, and by highlighting who contributes to society more they come to a silent conclusion that either Arisu or Taiga need to be cast out. Taiga does not let them call his name directly, he kicks the replica of the Tower of Pisa and breaks it to attract attention. As everyone looks at him in shock, he reveals a few details of his past and takes out a knife covered in blood.
"You saying that it doesn't matter if a murderer dies?"
— Taiga nonchalantly pointing his knife at the other players
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Taiga threatening to kill everyone
Taiga admits killing a passerby to get money for drugs and taunts the others to try and take him out, promising to murder them all and steal their phones in order to survive in the game. Onoue grabs a replica of a tower and uses it as a sword against Taiga, so Kitou suggests returning to the idea of drawing lots instead. He takes out a stack of cards from his pocket and drops them while shuffling, which irritates Taiga, but then everyone draws a card one by one. Taiga believes his card is random, but Kitou conceals his cheating techniques and keeps an ace on top despite shuffling the stack, so that Taiga would draw an ace regardless.
After comparing the cards and realizing his loss, Taiga accuses Kitou of sabotaging the results but has no evidence, so Kitou nonchalantly disregards his complaints and urges him to accept the outcome. Kitou's words enrage Taiga, he walks towards the crowd, and stabs the first person in front of him demanding a "LIFE". Taiga does not care who exactly becomes the victim, his knife pierces through Yuzuru's chest, leaving everyone in shock.
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Taiga getting attacked by the alien-looking lamp
Taiga walks towards the group, feeling no remorse over what has happened, and claims that the reason for his actions is them not taking his life seriously. He completely loses his composure and swings his fist again, planning to stab someone else, however, one of the lamps, which looks like a small alien ship, shoots down a laser from the ceiling as a warning against using violence, and the laser completely cuts off Taiga's right hand which leaves everyone in shock. He screams in agony as his blood pours from the wound, and the countdown starts beeping. With 23 seconds left, the rest of the players exchange "LIFE" cards and enter the shelters, leaving Taiga out. He tries to get into Himari's pod forcefully and almost succeeds, but the lasers start attacking him again, cutting through his left hand and making him fall on the ground. Himari quickly shuts the door on him, and the announcement voice states that an alien invasion is about to begin.
"I DON'T WANNA DIE!"
— Taiga's last words
As he yells out, all the alien-looking lamps shoot down the lasers, completely destroying the room and Taiga with it. When the remaining players get out of their shelters, they see Taiga's disintegrated body in the debris.
Hall 3-6 and the real world[]
Taiga appears briefly in flashbacks of him stabbing Yuzuru.
Taiga appears alongside Yuzuru and Onoue in flashbacks as the rest of the players discuss or lament about the unnecessary deaths which could have been prevented.
Back in the real world after the game is cleared, Taiga's body is briefly shown in the hospital where a nurse confirms his death.