Around 14 years ago, Brad and his little brother Luke were left by their father. They eventually found themselves in New York City, in the biggest slum in the world, The Five Points. There they met Gene McDowell, the founder of the Grave Diggers, a gang, who helped them. Now Brad is working for the Grave Diggers as their hitman known as "Grim Reaper" using a gunknife, while Luke don't know about his job and is searching information for his father Edward King.

The protagonist of Shamo. As a child he was considered a genius, until one day he snapped and stabbed his parents to death. After being sent to juvenile prison, he learns karate to defend himself.
Ryo Narushima is consistently depicted as being unrepentant for the murder of his parents and is shown repeatedly committing morally repugnant crimes such as assault and rape. Though capable of redemption (as evidenced by his care-taking of his sister and various small charitable acts shown throughout the manga) ultimately Narushima is depicted as a Byronic hero spiraling into darkness, his chances at reform slowly ebbing away as he gives in to more and more of his depraved and brutal tendencies.

Brad Burns