Kimahri Ronso is a twenty-five-year-old Ronso and Yuna's first and most faithful guardian. He has known and protected her since she was a seven-year-old child. Even though he is seven feet tall he was not well accepted by the other Ronso, who view him as inferior due to his shorter stature and broken horn. Kimahri doesn't speak much, and is extremely protective of Yuna. In Kimahri's fighting class, one can see echoes of the Dragon Knights of older Final Fantasy games (due to his choice of weaponry and his Jump attack, although his Jump attack hits instantly with only a slight increase in damage, unlike most other Jumps) and of the Blue Mage character class, as well (the Lancet ability allows him to learn enemy attacks). Kimahri's Spirit Lance is his ultimate weapon, and it can be noted that spear or lance weapons have been a staple of the dragoon class for some time. Kimahri is the only character without a pre-determined course on the Sphere Grid, allowing the player freedom to choose Kimahri's abilities from the time of his initial stat growth.
The game's backstory reveals that Kimahri's guardianship of Yuna began long before she officially decided to become a summoner. After departing from Mt. Gagazet in shame ten years before the current events depicted in Final Fantasy X began, Kimahri discovered a dying Auron—who had managed to crawl all the way from the Zanarkand Ruins while wounded—outside Bevelle. Auron told Kimahri about the daughter of High Summoner Braska, Yuna, and asked him to fulfill a promise Auron had made to Braska in his stead: to remove Yuna from Bevelle and transport her to the island of Besaid, where she may grow up peacefully. Kimahri honored Auron's request and made sure that Yuna arrived at Besaid safely. When his task was completed, he prepared to depart, yet Yuna pleaded with him to remain with her, and he complied.
Kimahri's main character growth occurs when he finally returns to Mount Gagazet and is confronted by Biran and Yenke, who challenge him—and thus the player—to a 2-on-1 combat sequence as an obstacle to the player's progression through the Mt. Gagazet location. If the game player successfully wins the battle, the story depicts that Kimahri has proven his worth as a Ronso in defeating the two, and Biran is proud to see that Kimahri surpassed him which represents a major resolution to his character arc. Unfortunately, Seymour informs the party shortly thereafter that he has personally slaughtered nearly the entire Ronso tribe, with Kimahri swearing to avenge his fallen clansmen's demise while fighting the villain.
In Final Fantasy X-2, Yuna's Eternal Calm began, and a year later the current events depicted in the game start, Kimahri is strictly a Non-player character and is depicted as the new Elder of the Ronso tribe. His character is responsible for the game's inciting incident—discovering a sphere that gives the player a mystery to solve as they progress through Final Fantasy X-2. Furthermore, Kimahri's difficulties as chief comprise several playable missions, most notably involving a disagreement he has with a new character, a young Ronso named Garik, who desires to seek vengeance upon the Guado for the events depicted in the previous game. This allows Garik to serve as a dramatic character foil to Kimahri who is depicted as wanting to make peace with the Guado. Another notable mission in the game involves the player repeatedly encountering two Ronso pups (children), Lian and Ayde, who had left the mountain in search of adventure and a way to fix Kimahri's broken horn. Kimahri was faced with the plight of deciding a new path for the Ronso's future, as their way of life changed once the mountain was no longer considered sacred Yevon ground and summoners were no longer passing through on pilgrimages to the Zanarkand Ruins. Eventually, Kimahri realizes that all Ronso should follow the example of Lian and Ayde in trying to find their own individual paths while working together to forge a better future for one another, and that he alone can not provide a single answer to what the future of the entire group should be. As a result, Garik and Kimahri reconcile and the Ronso craft a statue in Kimahri's image, representing his status as the hero of the tribe.
