In the dark seinen story Tokyo Ghoul, the gentle, bookish Kan Kaneki thought he would never make any real enemies as an ordinary college student, but all that brutally changed overnight. Ken is now a half-ghoul himself, a creature ravenous for human flesh, and this means he has more than a few enemies out there who want him dead.
Some of Ken's enemies are CCG investigators who make a career out of slaying ghouls, while others are Ken's fellow ghouls who have their own reasons to take him down. Ken's enemies are many, and some of them are much nastier or more threatening than others because of their combat prowess, their opposition to Ken Kaneki's goals, or any other factor that may come into play.
10 Nishiki Nishio Picked A Fight With Ken Early On
One of the first other ghouls Ken ever met was a student at his college, the seemingly ordinary Nishiki Nishio. When Ken and his human friend Hideyoshi met Nishiki on campus, Ken was almost certain that Nishiki was perfectly human, but then he learned the grim truth.
In a back alley, Nishiki showed his true colors with his ghoulish kagune, and Ken nearly got himself killed. At the last moment, Ken defeated him with his own kagune, and Nishiki soon became more neutral to Ken and — much later — a bit of an ally.
9 Nashiro & Kurona Yasuhisa Sometimes Got In Ken's Way
The sisters Nashiro and Kurona are very close as one-eyed ghouls, and they are also loyal to their boss, Dr. Kano the schemer. These powerful ghoul sisters appeared partway through Tokyo Ghoul's story after Ken had embraced his ghoul side, and the sisters did everything they could to stop him.
Nashiro and Kurona have formidable skill as a black/white-themed pair of ghouls, and they fought Ken's party more than once. However, compared to some of Ken's other enemies, they really aren't that strong, nor do they threaten Ken's ideology that much.
8 Matasaka Kamishiro Challenged Ken To Duels
The brawny ghoul called Matasaka Kamishiro feels like a villain from a cheesy martial arts movie from the 1970s, but he is not to be taken lightly or laughed at. Matasaka is Rize Kamishiro's foster father, hence their shared family name, and Matasaka is now determined to go after Ken with all his might.
In the long run, Matasaka's feud with Ken isn't that big a deal, but at the time, Matasaka was quite the challenge for Ken. He had superior strength and martial arts, which pushed Ken to the limit and forced Ken to brush up on elite martial arts before daring to face Matasaka again in a duel.
7 Kotaro Amon Is Ken's Most Persistent Enemy
Kotaro Amon the CCG investigator may not be Ken Kaneki's most powerful enemy, but he is the most persistent. In fact, this ongoing feud is personal for Kotaro, with Kotaro determined to take down that odd one-eyed ghoul boy and prove his worth as an investigator at all costs.
Kotaro has clashed with Ken a few times, and in their final fight, Kotaro donned a full suit of quinque kakuja armor to fight Ken on equal terms. Ken has tried to evangelize his message of peace and cooperation to Kotaro, but this CCG investigator is simply not interested.
6 Rize Kamishiro Attacked Ken First
The well-dressed, elegant Rize Kamishiro is also a brutal glutton, and she is the one who attacked Ken Kaneki first. This devious ghoul presented herself as a bookish, timid person with a good heart, which is what convinced Ken to ask her out. Their date went well... until Rize took a bite out of Ken.
Rize nearly killed Ken that night, and she enjoyed tormenting him, too. Ken was only saved when some steel beams fell on Rize and crushed her, which was Dr.Kano's opportunity to transplant some of her organs into Ken. Even now, Rize is still Ken's enemy, cursing him with his ghoul nature.
5 Shu Tsukiyama Kept Toying With Ken
Eventually, the pompous gourmet ghoul Shu Tsukiyama became an uneasy ally of Ken Kaneki's, but until then, he was a real problem for Ken the one-eyed ghoul. Shu took a liking to Ken as a potential meal, and he tricked Ken into a battle to the death in his restaurant's combat arena.
Shu also took Nishiki's girlfriend hostage and fought Ken, Nishiki, and Touka all at once in mortal combat before he was finally defeated. Shu has done many bad things, to be sure, but at least he is now fighting on Ken's side. Still, Ken is smart to remain wary of him.
4 Ayato Kirishima Helped Capture Ken
Ayato Kirishima is Touka's little brother. Unlike Touka, who is merely a moody rogue, Ayato is a proper villain and a scourge on human society as a ghoul who feasts on flesh. Ayato also belongs to the despicable Aogiri Tree gang, and he helped Yamori and Nico capture Ken in Anteiku.
Ayato cruelly mocked both Ken and his big sister the whole time, and when Ken fought his way free of the Aoigiri Tree compound, Ayato tried to stop him. He fought Ken and Touka with all his might, but alas, he was defeated.
3 Kisho Arima Is Ken's Strongest Foe Of All
While the genius CCG investigator Kisho Arima may not have a personal feud with Ken, he is far stronger than any of Ken's other enemies, which makes him one of Ken's most serious foes of all. Kisho can use his elite skills and unique quinque to slay any ghoul with ease. Eventually, Ken ran right into him.
Ken and Kisho fought, and it was a massacre. Ken went all out, but he failed to even scratch Kisho with his kakuja. Then, Kisho brutally tore Ken apart with a few of his favorite quinque, and Ken was reduced to a barely living, blubbering mess. At least Kisho didn't mock or torture him unnecessarily.
2 Dr. Kano Is Responsible For All This
Ken harldy ever came face to face with Dr. Kano the surgeon, but even so, Dr. Kano is definitely one of Ken Kaneki's worst enemies of all. It was Dr. Kano who transplanted Rize Kamishiro's organs into Ken, and he knew exactly what he was doing. Creating artificial ghouls is simply his thing.
Dr. Kano thinks this is all a game, experimenting on humans and ghouls to satisfy his curiosity and tinker with the society that he compares to a birdcage. Dr. Kano regrets none of it, and he cares nothing for the torment of his subjects like Ken — as long as he gets his results.
1 Yamori/Jason Tortured Ken Without Mercy
Ken's most terrifying, brutal, and twisted enemy of all is the masked ghoul calling himself Jason after the villain of the Friday the 13th movies. This huge, sadistic ghoul belongs to Aogiri Tree and was once tortured. Now he has become the torturer, so he can inflict that torment on other people instead.
Yamori helped Ayato capture Ken in Anteiku, and for many days, he tortured Ken in the Aogiri Tree hideout. Ken's hatred for Yamori steadily grew until he finally got a chance to break free and fight Yamori to the death. It was more than a little satisfying to watch Ken finally finish off his nightmarish tormentor like that.