Under his leadership, the Nura Clan's power reached its peak and he was responsible for stopping the actions of The String Assassin of Hitachi Province. During the Edo period, he took over as the Second Head of the Nura Clan. Historyīorn the son of Nurarihyon and Yōhime, he was often taken around on his father's patrols (much to his mother's dismay). Rihan chokes Setsura, after she tells him what happened to Yamabuki Otome, in the OVA. He is also slightly perverted as shown when he asked Kubinashi, "How're Kino's boobs doing?" instead of a simple greeting. Rihan has shown to be carefree man in a state of peace, but he can be aggressive and protective as seen when defending Yamabuki Otome from the Manba Centipede in a rage, and in the OVA, when Setsura reveals what happened to Yamabuki, he responds by screaming, and trying to choke her to death, before finally calming down and crying.
The hair on the front of his head also covers the right half of his face. Right before he exchanges sakazuki with Kurotabo, it is revealed that he has a human form where he retains all of his features except for one noticeable difference, his long hair no longer sticks up and instead falls down his back tied in a long ponytail. He is always seen wearing a kimono with green and black stripes and a white cloth draped over his shoulders and zōri. Rihan also has a ponytail and his eyes are an amber like color. Unlike Nurarihyon, however, his hair is purely black and more wavy. Since he is the son of Nurarihyon, he resembles him and he too has long hair that protrudes out the back of his head.