Akitaru Ōbi

is the Battalion Commander of Tokyo's 8th Special Fire Brigade.

Appearance
Akitaru has short, somewhat unruly dark hair with shaved sideburns and small dark eyes. He is seen wearing bunker gear, which consists of a tank top buckled at the waist with a belt, which presses a middle part that's strapped to his shoulders, and dark colored pants. Those are later topped by a protective outer jacket and trousers, and finished with a helmet, which has a metal face shield, with three slots attached to it. While on missions, he carries different weapons with him, depending on the situation. He was later seen wearing a grey jumpsuit.

Personality
Akitaru is a brave individual, being able to face Flame Humans without fear, despite having no ignition powers. He was also shown being prone to exercise, as evident with him lifting weights during a meeting and doing pull-ups while having a casual conversation with Shinra. Akitaru is also a curious person, as he wanted to see Shinra's goofy grin with his own eyes and later asked the boy his reasons for joining the brigade. He is also confident in his team-mates, as evident with him telling Shinra that he'll be cheering for him in the sidelines during the boy's participation in the upcoming Fire Officer Newcomer Tournament. Akitaru is a very good-natured person, as Shinra noted that he has never seen him mad.

Abilities
Akitaru has a fit physique, which allows him to face Flame Humans without having ignition powers. In battle, he is seen using different weapons, suitable for the situation.
 * — A weapon, composed of a pneumatic or hydraulic piston, connected to a spiked shaft and recoil springs. When equipped to his right hand, Akitaru can use it to impale a Flame Being's core with low difficulty.
 * — Using his fire fighting ax, which is enveloped in white steam, Akitaru impales the Fire Human into their core.

Introduction arc
Akitaru, alongside the rest of the 8th Special Fire Brigade, arrives to save a train station from the Flame Human. Once there, the man orders Shinra to get back and asks Iris to begin the prayers. He then moves in for an attack, and with the help of Takehisa and Maki, impales the core of his opponent using his weapon. After the battle, when Shinra saves Iris, the man comments on the boy's "Demon's Footprints" to himself. When Shinra arrives at the 8th Special Fire Fighting Church, Akitaru formally meets the boy, whilst working out, and looks at the boy's resume picture, only to question the young man on his smile, to which Shinra replies it to be a natural face reaction. Akitaru then glares at Shinra, causing him to grin, then bursts out laughing, and later teases the boy when he gets aroused by Iris and Maki. Then, Akitaru delivers a speech about the Human Body Ignition Phenomenon. Later that night, when the siren notifies the brigade of an accident in a factory, Akitaru moves out with his brigade, encouraging Shinra to do his best while on the job.

When the brigade arrives at the scene, Akitaru informs them all of the situation. With the rest of the brigade, Akitaru fights the flame human, using Maki's abilities to keep himself from getting burned, using a fire fighting ax, but to no avail. After the mission, he was proud of Shinra and was happy to see him with a pleasant smile. After some time, Akitaru informs Shinra that a newcomer tournament will be held between the Special Fire Brigades and that their brigade will be sending both Shinra and a new member, who turns out to be Arthur, while he will be cheering the two on from the sidelines. While the rest of the brigade have a conversation on the roof, Akitaru, lifting weights in his privacy, wonders why it is taking so long for the newcomer to arrive, though he already had arrived unbeknownst to Akitaru.

Later, Akitaru treats Shinra and Arthur to some food at Ippudo Ramen and afterwards, he has a casual conversation with Arthur, which makes Shinra notice how nice a person Akitaru is. Back at the church's armory, the Battalion Commander complains that the brigade doesn't have a mechanic in their ranks, who would help with the maintenance. When the brigade is notified of a Flame Human spotted in Iriya District, they depart to the scene. While on route, Akitaru instructs Shinra and Arthur to conceal their weapons in public. After arriving, Akitaru feels pity for Mikako, but assures Iris to just leave her be. He then spots Shinra and Arthur wielding their weapons in public and pulls the two boys aside. Straight after, the conversation between the three is cut short, when a burst of flames emerges from the apartment.

Trivia

 * The mask Akitaru wears, greatly resembles Eibon's mask from the Soul Eater series.