Ryoutarou Tsuboi

A friendly player that meets Kirito at the start of the game and quickly befriends and learns from him. He and Kirito later separate because he has friends who were also new to the game so he couldn't leave them. He survives for the past two years and managed to protect his friends the whole time, something Kirito regretted not doing. He is a katana user and the leader of the small guild Fuurinkazan who participates in the boss battles. As one of the few people close to Kirito, he always keeps him in check and wants Kirito to survive the game. He chose the Salamader race in Alfheim Online.