Ladd Russo

Ladd Russo is a violent hitman formerly affiliated with the Russo Family who is known for his bloodlust and obsession with killing anyone who believes themselves to be invincible or otherwise safe from death.

Appearance

Ladd has silver-blond hair (darker blond hair in the anime) that has bangs hanging on either side above his eyebrows and blue eyes. He is usually associated with the white formal attire he wears for the Flying Pussyfoot hijacking, which he chose since bloodstains are striking against white cloth.

Personality Ladd is a chatterbox sadist who finds genuine entertainment in killing others, acting on his bloodlust often whenever he pleases and living life however he pleases. He is always honest about who he is as a person, openly and intentionally reveling in his violent tendencies and forever content to wear his emotions on his sleeve in an over-the-top animated fashion. Whether he is dancing in the blood of his murdered friend, hugging his opponents as thanks for the entertainment, or melodramatically complaining about how he lost fair and square while standing on his head, his constant need to burn off his endless excess energy ensures that he does not just wear his emotions on his sleeve, he broadcasts them for all the world to hear.

Though some may dismiss him as 'crazed' or a 'brawn-over-brains' brutish thug, he is more intelligent than others give him credit for. He is a killer, but he is not a mindless killer; it's not that he cannot plan, he simply does not.

Above all else, Ladd takes the greatest pleasure in killing those who arrogantly believe themselves invincible or otherwise 'safe'. He doesn't even consider the possibility that they might die until he reminds them of their mortality. Meanwhile, he is most likely to befriend those who are constantly cognizant of their own mortality, as fear towards death is perfectly natural and deserving of respect. Others whom he either respects or appreciates are those who fight fearlessly, or enthusiastically subscribe to his personal philosophy.

Most troublesome of all for Ladd are people with lifeless eyes, those who are resigned to or actively seeking death. While he has no idea how to handle men with lifeless eyes, women who possess them are exactly his type. His fiancée Lua Klein is one such woman, and his genuine love for her manifests a softer, warmer side of him than one is used to. They both find the idea of her dying by his own hands honestly romantic. Though his caveat that he will only kill her after he has killed 'everyone else in the world' suggests that he does not intend to kill her for a long while yet.

Abilities

Ladd is a trained hitman and formidable fighter. He has demonstrated impressive marksmanship, wielding guns in an orthodox but deadly, effective manner, and is equally dangerous unarmed; as a fan of boxing, he delivers boxer-style punches with extraordinary power. Ladd can be manipulative and disarming when he needs and/or wants to be, as someone who is both a quick judge of character and a quick thinker. However, Ladd is not immune to emotional provocation and can be provoked into rashness.