Character model of Himura Kenshin, Kawakami was of the Shiranui Ryuu (he invented it himself)Hmm. Seems that his Battoujutsu pose is quite unique: something like Kenshin's, "the right leg is extended in front, knee slightly flexed, while the left leg is folded with the knee touching the ground. One slash with the right hand, and that's it." (Do I see all the people starting to imitate the pose? Ok I admit it, I tried it too. Really hard on my legs...)
According to documents, Kawakami was a man of short stature, kept his hair long, quiet, and was often mistaken for a female. In fact, something like Kenshin. (Baka, Tracy! He *is* the character model of Kenshin, isn't he!)
Kawakami was a supporter of the Jyoi movement, his most famous killing being that of Sakuma Shouzan, the great thinker who was the teacher of Yoshida Shoin, who in turn was the teacher of Kido Koin (Katsura Kogorou) and other Choshu shishis. Sakuma believed that in order to protect herself from foreign threat, it was essential for Japan to open up her self to Western influences and learn about all the technologies the West had to offer, so that Japan would have to ability to fight back against colonialism. Needless to say, this made him a target for radicals who believed that Japan musn't be contaminated by filthy gaijins. Kawakami was arrested after the assassination, and was thrown into jail. He was freed after the Restoration. However, the new Meiji government, comprising of young political blood, believed in Sakuma's views and was practising the concept of 'Western Technologies, Japanese Soul'. Kawakami disagreed strongly against this, for according to Watsuki, he didn't want to see the efforts of his comrades in the Jyoi movement who had since passed away, and also those who had died under his katana, to go to waste. In fact, it was based on this spirit that the character of Himura Kenshin is designed. In the end, he became such a nuisance to the Meiji government, that he was decapitated in the 4th year of Meiji, 1871.