Kiyo (Japanese: ノブヒコNobuhiko) is a Black Belt and the Master of Fighting Dojo who appeared in games and the anime. He is also referred to as the Karate Master in Generation I, while in Generation II he is known as the Karate King.
Black Belt Kiyo is a leader of Fighting Dojo in Saffron City. At one point, Kiyo was the Gym Leader of Saffron City until his Gym lost official privileges as a result of a duel between himself and Sabrina. It has since become a place where he and his students train Karate. The player obtains a Hitmonlee or a Hitmonchan as a reward for beating Kiyo. Later, in Generation II and their remakes, he is found training at Mt. Mortar. To reach him, the player much travel through a lengthy maze section within the mountain. Upon defeating him, Kiyo will give the player a Tyrogue if there is an empty slot in the party. His Karate Gym in Saffron is disbanded now, but one of Kiyo's students can still be found there.
His name wasn't revealed until Generation II. In Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen he is misnamed Koichi (Japanese: タケノリTakenori) due to an oversight by the original Japanese producers.
"Grunt! I am the Karate Master! I am the Leader here! You wish to challenge us? Expect no mercy! Fwaaa!"
When defeated
"Hwa! Arrgh! Beaten!"
After being defeated
"Indeed, I have lost! But I beseech you, do not take our emblem as your trophy! In return, I will give you a prized fighting Pokémon! Choose whichever you like!"
"Hey! I am the Karate King! I train alone here in the dark! You! Battle with me! Hwaaarggh!
When defeated
"Waaaarggh! I'm beaten!"
After being defeated
"I... I'm crushed... My training is still not enough... But a loss is a loss. I admit it. As proof that you defeated me, I'll give you a rare fighting Pokémon."
"Tyrogue is a fighting-type. It evolves into a tougher Pokémon. Keep up the hard work. I'll keep training too. Farewell!"
"Grunt! I am the Karate Master. I am the leader here! You wish to challenge us? Expect no mercy! Fwaaa!"
When defeated
"Hwa! Arrgh! Beaten!"
After being defeated
"Indeed, I have lost! But I beseech you, do not take our emblem as your trophy! In return, I will give you a prized fighting Pokémon! Choose whichever you like!"
"Hey! I am the Karate King! I train alone here in the cave! You! Battle with me! Hwaaarggh!
When defeated
"Waaaarggh! I'm beaten!"
After being defeated
"I... I'm crushed... My training is still not enough... But a loss is a loss. I admit it. As proof that you defeated me, I'll give you a rare fighting Pokémon."
"Tyrogue is a fighting type. It evolves into a tougher Pokémon. Keep up the hard work. I'll keep training too. Farewell!"
In the anime
Kiyo appeared as a character of the day in A Tyrogue Full of Trouble!. He is a former student of Chuck's and was in training to compete in the P1 Grand Prix. He desired to earn the trust of an abandoned Tyrogue near Mt. Mortar. Kiyo saved Tyrogue from a rock slide and later defeated him in human to Pokémon battle, earning his respect. Tyrogue and his wild Pokémon friends then joined Kiyo's team. In the anime Kiyo is not a Fighting Dojo Master, or at least it isn't mentioned.
Hitmonlee was called out to defend Ash and his friends from a boulder attack. After that, he battled against a Tyrogue that was causing mischief and was easily defeated by the Scuffle Pokémon.
Before joining Kiyo, Tyrogue was a Pokémon that would cause mischief to any human. Kiyo battled Tyrogue with his Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan; however, Tyrogue was able to take both of them out. Kiyo then battled Tyrogue himself and won, thus earning Tyrogue's respect.
Mankey and Primeape were originally wild Pokémon that were friends of Tyrogue, and they would often cause mischief together. After Tyrogue fought with Kiyo and decided to go with him, they became sad that they had lost their friend, but Kiyo offered to take them along as well.
When the roller coaster Red and the gang rode on got separated, it took him to an underground area containing an abandoned amusement park. When Red was about to leave, Kiyo reveals himself along with his Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan. He tells them to stay and to try out his amusement park instead of the one above ground. Kiyo controlled the rides that the four got on but all of them malfunctioned despite their best efforts. Later, he appeared as a hallucination of a mermaid. Kiyo's underground amusement park motivated Clefairy into making one of his own but stole the one that was above ground.
When Red was about to leave the underground area, Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan reveal themselves along with Kiyo. Later, they appear as hallucinations of mermaids.
Despite leaving to train, the Pokémon he uses in the Generation II and IV games are 3 levels lower than the ones he uses in the Generation I and III games.
However, it is shown as early as Generation I that he has multiple Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee.
