Heihachi Mishima is one of the main characters in the Tekken series. He debuted in the first game in the series and has returned for all subsequent titles. Though seen as the main protagonist and anti-villain of the second game, he is the main antagonist of the series as he is almost always responsible for the events. His impact on the story has seemed to decrease since Tekken 5 as he has become a minor character to the storyline, but in Tekken 7, Heihachi again became part of the main storyline and returned as the central antagonist, and the villainous protagonist of the game. Heihachi is the son of Jinpachi Mishima, the husband of Kazumi Mishima, the father of Kazuya Mishima and Lars Alexandersson, the adoptive father of Lee Chaolan, and the paternal grandfather of Jin Kazama.
Heihachi Mishima is the head of the Mishima Financial Group (MFG), sponsor of the tournament, and father to Kazuya Mishima. The MFG is the world's largest developer of military equipment. Heihachi is holding this tournament for the purpose of gathering the strongest soldiers for his own personal use. Heihachi Mishima is well versed in various forms of combat the world over.
Ever since his son, Kazuya Mishima took over the Mishima conglomerate, Heihachi has been training to regain what was once his. After he defeats his son and watches the death of Kazuya, Heihachi will gain back the Mishima Financial Empire.
Heihachi is seen walking while holding an unconscious Kazuya in his arms. This takes place after Heihachi has defeated Kazuya and won The King of Iron Fist Tournament 2. Heihachi drops Kazuya's body in a volcano. Heihachi is shown leaving by helicopter while holding onto a ladder. The volcano erupts, and then a closeup of Heihachi smiling is shown.
Family matters... Heihachi retrieved the Mishima Financial Empire by defeating his son.
Scheming to further develop the MFE, Heihachi organized "Tekken Force", the MFE's private corps, and dispatched them to settle disputes and bring wasteland under cultivation to feed the poor countries of the world, in order to gain the support of leaders worldwide.
Fifteen years later, a secret excavation of Central American ruins by the Tekken Forces unearths an unusual find. They were annihilated by a mysterious being. Heihachi realized that the mysterious being could be the legendary Ogre, and took action to realize his life's goal: to capture Ogre and therefore rule the world.
One day, Heihachi was visited by a 15-year-old boy named Jin Kazama. Being informed that Jin was his grandson and hearing what had happened to his mother, Jun, Heihachi reasoned that Ogre thrives on the "strong souls" of others. Heihachi trained Jin to use him as a decoy to lure Ogre.
In Jin's 19th year, Heihachi declared to the world that the third "King of the Iron Fist Tournament" was forthcoming. At the same time, he noticed that Jin, the youngest of Mishima bloodline, began to show the same dangerous power Kazuya had. Heihachi decided to dispose of Jin after he lures Ogre, in order to end the doomed destiny of the MFE.
Heihachi defeats True Ogre, and True Ogre dissolves into nothing. Heihachi takes a moment to rest. He notices Jin laying on the ground, unconscious. Next, some helicopters are shown flying in the sky. Heihachi and Jin, who is still unconscious, are aboard one of them. Jin is laying down on what appears to be a stretcher, and Heihachi is sitting next to him. A short while later, Heihachi notices that devil markings are appearing on Jin's forehead. After, Heihachi picks Jin's body up and throws it out of the helicopter then sadly watches Jin's body fall.
Two years ago, Heihachi failed to capture Ogre. He made his researchers collect blood and tissue left behind by Ogre and attempted to create a new life form by combining its genetic material with his own. The experiment failed, however, and Heihachi learned that he lacked the Devil Gene necessary to integrate Ogre's genome into his.
In order to obtain the Devil Gene, Heihachi searched for Jin, who transformed into a devil during the last Tournament. During the search, Heihachi learned that the body of his son, Kazuya - whom he killed 20 years ago - was stored at a cutting-edge biotech firm called G Corporation.
Heihachi ordered his Tekken Force to raid G Corporation in an attempt to obtain Kazuya's remains. They obliterated G Corporation's laboratory, and the mission appeared to be successful. That was until Kazuya, revived by G Corporation, retaliated and caused the mission to fail.
Heihachi needed Kazuya or Jin's body to create the new life form. After much deliberation, an evil smile crept onto Heihachi's lips.
The next day, an announcement was made for The King of Iron Fist Tournament 4, with the Mishima Zaibatsu as the prize.
At the seventh stage of the tournament, Heihachi had his Tekken Force abduct Jin, overwhelming him by force and subduing him with a chain that suppressed his Devil Gene. This gave Kazuya an automatic win and he went on to face Heihachi in the finals. Kazuya demanded to see his son, and Heihachi told him he would take him to Jin after they fought.
Heihachi did not kill Kazuya outright. "Come with me if you want to see your son," Heihachi said, and led Kazuya out of the arena. A few hours later, the two were deep within the Mishima Zaibatsu compound. A massive temple stood in the midst of a forest enshrouded in fog.
The two entered the building...
Heihachi and Kazuya entered Hon-Maru, a temple within the Mishima compound, where Jin was being held captive. Kazuya was initially surprised to see Jin chained up, but was then overpowered by his devil, who took control of his body. Heihachi was shocked and dismayed, and immediately realized that Kazuya was no longer in control of his body, asking the creature before him "Who are you?!". Devil explained who he was and that he lost half of himself when Kazuya was thrown into a volcano and that his other half now resides within Jin. Devil then knocked Heihachi out with a laser and unsuccessfully attempted to draw the Devil Gene from Jin. Devil speculated that it must be Jin's Kazama blood that was preventing the assimilation. While Devil was distracted, Kazuya was able to take back control of his body, fighting down Devil and then merging their power. Kazuya then called for Jin to awaken.
After Jin defeated Kazuya, Heihachi, who had regained consciousness, scoffed at his son's loss and promised to take the Devil's power for himself by killing Jin. Jin also defeated Heihachi, and was now in a semi-transformed devil state. He drew back his fist to kill his grandfather, but suddenly stopped as he saw a vision of his mother. He threw his grandfather to the floor and told him: "Thank my mother, Jun Kazama" before flying away. As he flew off, several black feathers fell to the ground, amongst which was a single white feather.
Heihachi and Kazuya enter Hon-Maru. Kazuya notices Jin Kazama chained up and gasps. Two chains wrap around Kazuya's arms, and then he is suspended in mid-air like Jin. Two more chains wrap around his legs while he struggles to get free. Kazuya says, "You think this'll stop me?". Heihachi replies, "Did you think I'd be dumb enough - to let you in here without - a leash to tie you down? That chain has the ability to neutralize your powers. An individual saturated with the Devil Gene, such as yourself - will lose consciousness in a matter of minutes!" Heihachi laughs. Then, he says, "Now, all the pieces are in position! Be thankful that the two of you will die - helping me achieve my objective!" Heihachi laughs again, and then he starts to walk out of the building. White text on a black screen says, "Thereafter, the world came to know an age of darkness..."
Head of the Mishima Zaibatsu and sponsor of the King of Iron Fist Tournament 4, Heihachi Mishima.
After losing to Jin Kazama, Heihachi was cornered by a group of Jack robots in Hon-Maru. Heihachi and Kazuya began to fight off the Jacks together but Kazuya fled and Heihachi was caught in the explosion when the Jacks detonated.
The tremendous explosion would have killed a normal man but Heihachi, no ordinary man, managed to survive.
A month later, Heihachi learned that someone had taken control of the Mishima Zaibatsu and planned to hold the King of Iron Fist Tournament 5. Heihachi, having fully recovered, was determined to enter the tournament.
"I don't know who's behind this but the Mishima Zaibatsu is mine!"
In Tekken 6, it is clarified that these events occurred after the King of Iron Fist Tournament 5 had ended, and that Heihachi did not participate in the 5th Iron Fist Tournament.
Raven and Heihachi meet, and Raven gasps "What?! You died in that explosion!". "Me, die? The Mishimas are invincible!" Heihachi replies. "That explosion blew me several miles... and I found myself in a base in the middle of the forest. I must have been on the verge of death for several weeks, but I don't have any recollection of anything that happened. After I recovered, I came here..."
Raven and Heihachi fight, but before a victor is decided, Raven is called back to headquarters with the outbreak of the world war that Jin Kazama has begun.
A rocket is shown while a female voice does a countdown, starting with thirty. The rocket is preparing to launch. Jinpachi awakens and wonders where he is, he tries to move but finds out he is strapped onto the rocket with chains by his wrists and ankles unable to move, Jinpachi desperately tries to break free but to no avail cannot seem to, it is then revealed Kazuya is also strapped to the rocket just like Jinpachi and cannot break free and finally Jin is revealed to be strapped, also unable to break free. As the countdown gets to ten seconds left. They all try to get free desperately and fast using but unable to break themselves free, as the countdown reaches five Kazuya realized his grandfather is also strapped and calls out to him, Jinpachi then hears Kazuya and realizes that he and his grandson plus great-grandson are all strapped. After the countdown is over, a female voice says, "Ignition!" The rocket is launched and all of them have failed to break free and they all scream. Heihachi looks at their faces with binoculars revealing them possibly bracing themselves and laughs until the ending video ends.
After being assaulted by the Jack force, Heihachi wakes up only to find out that the King of Iron Fist Tournament 5 has already ended. He goes back to Zaibatsu headquarters only to find the Tekken Force blocking his way. After the next Iron Fist Tournament is announced and Heihachi finds out that Jin Kazama is the new head of the Mishima Zaibatsu, he is enraged and declares that he will get everything back.
Located at a space station, Heihachi is seen, preparing to kick both Jin Kazama and Kazuya Mishima into space (all three wearing space suits, with Heihachi's additions of geta sandals on his own).
He proceeds to kick Jin into space... but Kazuya proved to be a REAL problem, as he begins to kick Heihachi twice (despite being bound), causing the latter to drift into space as well. All three Mishima were left burning as shooting stars upon re-entry. Ganryu can be seen whispering, "Julia".
In the Scenario Campaign, he is a boss at Mishima Estate. Lars and Alisa are led to him by Tougou, who tells Lars that he was planning to meet him before his amnesia. On their way there, they meet Wang who tells them to ask Heihachi about an epitaph he found in Central America, as Wang believes it might reveal what the Zaibatsu is planning to do next. At the estate, he is guarded by his personal security force called "Secret Service" that partly consists of former Tekken Force members. It is revealed that Heihachi has been following the rebel leader Lars for some time, and is impressed by his fighting capability and plans to have Lars join him. When Lars and Alisa reach him, they proceed to fight and defeat him, leading him to ponder how someone like Lars could match his fighting ability so well. They then have a conversation where Heihachi finally realizes that Lars is his illegitimate son, with Heihachi stating how he "always had [his] suspicions" (indeed, in Tekken 7, it is revealed that Heihachi knew of Lars being born). Lars then threatens his father at gunpoint and asks him where the epitaph is, leading to him realizing that Wang had helped them. He does not budge, however, and the situation gets more tense. After dispatching a few more of his guards, Lars is finally able to get a clear shot at his father and shoots him despite Alisa's objections. However, Heihachi manages to catch the bullet with his teeth, and spits it away, saying how a tiny "peashooter" like that can't hurt him. Lars then mocks him and tells him to join a circus, before getting a call from Tougou who informs him that the location of the epitaph has been found. Lars and Alisa then leave him be but not before Lars vows that his will be the last face Heihachi will ever see. When a guard then asks if they should let them go, Heihachi says not to bother since "in the end they will all be [his]" and laughs.
Heihachi is not seen in the story after this and the mysterious epitaph is never mentioned again either. It's likely that the epitaph was just something related to Ogre, and thus unrelated to Azazel, as it was stated to be found by Heihachi and related to a Tekken Force unit being wiped out while exploring ruins in Central America "a while ago", fitting Ogre's backstory.
As the first head of the Mishima Zaibatsu, Heihachi Mishima possessed overwhelming physical and economic power that had a severe impact on the world. He was the host of the tournament that later came to be known as the King of Iron Fist Tournament. He reigned as the head of the Mishima Zaibatsu for a long time and was also known as the King of Iron Fist. After the King of Iron Fist Tournament 4, it was said that he died in an explosion that took place at the Mishima family’s Hon Maru, but he miraculously survived. In order to regain the position of Zaibatsu head that he was robbed of by Jin Kazama, he takes action.
Heihachi is first seen in a flashback while fighting Kazuya as a child after murdering his wife, Kazumi. Heihachi easily knocked out Kazuya, and later threw his son off a cliff.
After Jin's presumed disappearance through supposed sacrifice of destroying Azazel, Heihachi infiltrates the Mishima Zaibatsu and defeats many Tekken Force soldiers. He then fights and defeats Nina, forcing her and the Tekken Force to work for him with his claim that he alone can restore the Mishima Zaibatsu to its former glory. Heihachi then launches a worldwide broadcast of his return and the announcement of the King of Iron Fist Tournament 7, with the intention of exposing Kazuya's devil form to the world.
His next step is to fly to the Archers of Sirius main base to get the organization on his side, despite their refusals in the past. After he and Nina dispose of several exorcists, Heihachi battles and defeats their leader Claudio Serafino, telling him that they are working for the same goal of bringing down the devil.
Later, Heihachi launches a worldwide search for Jin to use him to expose the devil to the world. But he then learns that his illegitimate son, Lars, has rescued Jin in the Middle East and is hiding him. After the Tekken Force fails to capture Jin, Alisa, and Lee, Heihachi warns Nina that he does not give second chances, prompting her to apprehend Jin herself.
Meditating at the Mishima dojo, Heihachi is suddenly attacked by an unknown assailant, who simply calls himself as "someone whose fists know no equal." The two of them battle, but their fight is interrupted by an army of Jack-6 sent by his son Kazuya to kill him. They form a temporary truce and take out the robots. Afterwards, Heihachi learns that his opponent's name is Akuma, and that he is repaying a debt to Kazumi by targeting both Heihachi and Kazuya. Startled by this revelation, Heihachi battles Akuma again, but ultimately loses the fight and is seemingly killed by his assailant.
However, Heihachi survives and returns to the Mishima Zaibatsu. With Akuma going after Kazuya and Jin still missing, he decides to take advantage of the situation. He orders the Tekken Force to announce his death and that the tournament is off. He then has the fight between Kazuya and Akuma broadcasted worldwide, exposing the former's devil form and turning public opinion against G Corporation. Afterwards, Heihachi launches a laser attack from a satellite, destroying G Corporation tower. Believing Kazuya to be dead, Heihachi laughs with his supposed victory. But when his satellite is suddenly destroyed by Kazuya, he is horrified to learn that his son had survived, and the Mishima Zaibatsu is under scrutiny once again for supposedly destroying its own satellite, which has fallen to earth and caused devastation.
In an unknown location, Heihachi meets with an investigative journalist who was looking into the Mishima Zaibatsu. Impressed by all that the journalist had already found, Heihachi decides to tell him about the dark secrets of the Mishima family.
Many years ago, Kazumi had arrived at Jinpachi's dojo when she was only a child, becoming his son's rival in training. Heihachi found himself attracted to her and the two of them fell in love. In time, Kazuya was born, and both parents were filled with joy. But all of this happiness soon faded away when Kazumi developed a fever one day. While Heihachi was nursing his wife back to health, Kazumi suddenly got up and attacked him. The following day, her fever subsided and she had no recollection of what she had done to Heihachi. As this continued on, Heihachi simply dismissed it as her having a split personality. But on one stormy night, while training at the dojo, he was confronted by his wife, who claimed that he would one day become a threat to the world. During the battle, Heihachi learned from Kazumi that she married into the Mishima family for the sole purpose of killing him on behalf of the Hachijo family. Despite her transformation into a devil, Heihachi defeated and seemingly killed Kazumi. When he turned to leave, he was attacked again by her devil form, but he held her up by the neck. As she pleaded for her life, Heihachi noticed it was a trap, and said that she was no longer the Kazumi that he loved and snapped her neck. Letting go, Heihachi looked down on the corpse of his wife and shed one single tear. Because of the Hachijo clan's sudden betrayal and their evil nature, Heihachi seems to have become paranoid for the rest of his life.
After telling the journalist of Kazumi's death, Heihachi reveals that he threw Kazuya off a cliff to see if his son was not human, since he had his mother's cursed blood. Regretting not killing Kazuya when he had the chance, Heihachi decides that it is time to expose the truth of the devil to the world and be judged. Taunting the journalist by claiming responsibility for the deaths of his family, Heihachi reveals that he knew all along that the journalist had joined forces with Lars. He has the journalist away, then has the Zaibatsu call his illegitimate son to pick up the journalist.
A few hours later, Heihachi confronts Kazuya for the final time at the mouth of a volcano. After a long exchange of blows at each other, Heihachi ends up fighting his son who transforms into the devil and loses. But even after being defeated, Heihachi musters all of his remaining strength and fights Kazuya again, who reverts back into his human form. Even though the two of them are worn out from the fight, they continue to exchange blows with one another until Kazuya delivers a final blow to Heihachi in the chest, defeating his father once and for all. Heihachi's body is then tossed into a river of magma by Kazuya.
Heihachi will return as a playable character, released as DLC in Autumn of 2024.
Heihachi makes several appearances via flashbacks seen by Jin Kazama and Kazuya Mishima. Jin first sees a vision of Heihachi while he is fighting Reina in the eighth King of the Iron Fist Tournament. Reina utilizes Mishima Style Fighting Karate during their match, even replicating Heihachi's Rage Art from Tekken 7. The familiarity of her strikes causes Jin to recall Heihachi.
Similarly, Kazuya sees a flashback of Heihachi during his battle with Lars Alexandersson on Yakushima. After Lars strikes him with a Headbutt, he refuses to fall to Kazuya's attacks, reminding Kazuya of his final battle with Heihachi in the volcano at the end of the Tekken 7 Mishima Saga.
Throughout the story mode, Reina's connection to Heihachi is briefly hinted at. It is finally revealed that she is Heihachi's daughter at the end of the Story Mode, when she declares on his name that she will achieve her ambitions.
After his defeat at the hands of his son, it is revealed that Heihachi miraculously survived the final fight against Kazuya after he was saved by a mysterious monk named Seiryu, who is a high priest of a group called the Tekken Monks. As the fight left Heihachi with amnesia, he was recruited in the Tekken Monks in order for him to learn the ultimate Mishima technique, which requires the user to have a pure heart.
After training with the monks and alongside Lidia Sobieska, Heihachi faces numerous tests and trials including fighting his inner demons which proves to be successful as Heihachi gains full control over his mind, body, and soul. Heihachi then prepares for the final trial set by the monks, the Star Crusher Trial; which involves a monk destroying a falling meteor that arrives every 200 years. Before his preparation, Heihachi starts to get glimpses of his past after Lidia recruits him to fight against Kazuya.
The trial commences and Heihachi manages to catch and headbutt the meteorite, but it is revealed that this meteorite was debris caused by Jin and Kazuya's fight in their Angel and evil forms in space. Heihachi not only passes the final trial but regains his memories in the process, returning him to the evil man he once was.
Heihachi proceeds to attack the Tekken Monks before Lidia, Eddy Gordo, and Yoshimitsu intervene to try and stop him. Heihachi, having mastered the new ultimate Mishima technique, proves to be too much for them, and defeats the three of them with ease. After knocking the trio out, Heihachi vows to get revenge on Kazuya and plans to make his next move once "their" blood awakens.
In the Legacy of Chris Thorndyke,
He is reprised by Jamieson Price in the English dub and he will be voiced by Taiten Kusunoki in the Japanese dub as a tribute for Unsho Ishizuka and Daisuke Gori respectively.