Tao Men

Tao Men is fictional character in the Shaman King manga and anime series and its sequel Shaman King Flowers. The son of Tao Ren and Iron Maiden Jeanne, Men is the main heir to the Tao Family.

Appearance
As an infant, Men greatly resembles his father, even sporting the same tongari hairstyle. However, he has silver hair and red eyes like his mother.

As a 7-year-old, Men wears the same school outfit as his father, complete with a golden blazer, a white shirt, and shorts, albeit with a ribbon-bow instead of a tie. He retains the tongari hairstyle, but his hair is now somewhat wavier, like his mother's.

Personality
In his debut, Men shows no distinct personality traits. However, he does manage to burp the word "Baka" to Horohoro, either by chance or by intent.

As he gets older, Men is every bit as impulsive, arrogant, and brash like his father. As he is being raised to be the heir of the Tao Family, he also looks down on people he views being below him. His superior attitude and manner of speaking though are reminiscent of his mother, acting serene when not in battle or being agitated. Alumi Niumbirch describes Men as extremely stubborn and obstinate but at the same time he has a tender heart. Despite his bloodlust in battle, Men adheres to an iron-clad rule taught by his parents not to kill anyone.

Before the death of his mother, Men appeared more cheerful and Ren even noted he had a tendency to cause mischief.

Abilities and Powers
As the child of Ren and Jeanne, Men possesses exceptional talent as a shaman and was already able to perform an Over Soul at the age of seven. Because of his ability to use an Over Soul and his mastery of both of his parents' spirits at such an early age, Alumi calls him a thoroughbred shaman. YVS also said that Men possesses the strongest Furyoku level on Team Hao.

Spirit

 * See More: Bason | Shamash

Men has inherited his father's and mother's Guardian Ghosts, Bason and Shamash, respectively. For the Over Soul with Bason, he uses the legendary guandao Basontou, which was once wielded by Bason in his lifetime. For his Over Souls with Shamash, Men uses a spike from Jeanne's Iron Maiden.

Funbari no Uta
Six years after the Shaman Fight, Tao Ren brings Men along to the reunion of the Five Elemental Warriors. As he and his father arrive at the train station in a chariot Men walks out first while Ren speaks from within the wagon, making it seem like Men is the one talking. This combined with Men's resemblance to his father causes everybody to momentarily mistake him for his father. Ren then steps out from behind Men and picks him up, introducing his son to the others.

As they all wait for Asakura Yoh and Asakura Anna, they go to a family restaurant, where Men eats from the kids' menu and becomes the subject of discussion as the others do not know who his mother is. As Horohoro is given hints by Lyserg about who the mother might be, Men somehow manages to look at Horohoro and even calls him a dummy. When Ryu arrives and tells that Yoh and Anna were delayed, Men imitated Ren, who stood up angry and shouted.

When Men is older, his parents sit him down, and all three promise to never kill anyone.

Flowers
After his mother was assassinated, Men flies into a rage and wants his father's help in finding and killing her assassins, but Ren refuses and reminds Men of the promise they made. When Men disparages the promise, Ren warns his son about perpetuating the cycle of hatred, and Bason and Shamash block Men's path. By sharing that he has the same feelings as his son, Ren convinces Men to keep the promise so that Jeanne will be smiling when they all reunite. Ren then comforts his son with stories about Jeanne.

Ahead of the Flower of Maize, Ren sends Men to Funbari Hill to meet up with the rest of Team Hao. After arriving in Japan, Men is walking through the city when he is stopped by two shamans, who both want revenge against him for his mother's actions of murdering their fathers during the Shaman Fight. Men apologizes in his mother's place and asks them to forgive her. When the two men refuse the offers twice, Men uses Bason and Shamash to defeat and restrain them.

Asakura Hana, who happened to be wandering past, shouts in shock at seeing Shamash's Over Soul, which draws Men's attention. Men deduces Hana's identity and decides to test Hana's capabilities. Ibuki Gakko and Asakura Yohane come to Hana's aid, but Men easily defeats both of them. Annoyed and out of options, Hana summons his onis, unleashing the Daidarabotchi. After Hana punches Shamash, Men sheds a tear over witnessing the power that will save his mother. However, the power is too much for Hana's body and he dies. The rest of Team Hao stand over Hana's body and question what to do with it. After Alumi Niumbirch introduces Men to the rest of the team, she assures Men that Hana was the right choice for team leader. They pack everything into the car, including Hana's corpse into the trunk, and have the two men who attacked Men drive them to Funbari Onsen.

While they are storing Hana's body in the freezer, Alumi explains to the rest of the team that Hana's soul is training in a Mini Asura Hell. As she leaves for school, she suggests that the others train together. Men requests to see his mother's iron maiden, which was stored in the Onsen's shed. When Umemiya Ryunosuke lets him in, Men identifies the iron maiden as a fake since it is not missing the spike he uses for his Over Soul. The Golem then attacks, and Ryu saves Men from getting hit. The ones controlling it are the Muntzer siblings, Redseb and Seyrarm, who have arrived with Black Maiden. Recognizing Black Maiden, Men lashes out in rage, but his attacks are blocked by "Jeanne Schwarz", an iron maiden-like Over Soul created with the ghost of his mother. Black Maiden takes advantage of Men's shock and has the Over Soul hug its spikes into him. Although gravely injured, Men is not killed him due to the Muntzer siblings' interference and Tamao's arrival. Tamao then orders the Hana-Gumi Waitresses to treat Men's injuries.

Trivia

 * Men's favorite food is spaghetti with meat sauce.
 * Men's hobby is intensive training.
 * His name is formed by taking the first kana from "maiden" (メイデン) and the last kana from Ren (レン). This is the same method of naming used for Asakura Hana.