Shotaro Kaneda (金田正太郎, Kaneda Shōtarō) was the leader of The Capsules and is the main protagonist of the manga and anime. Kaneda is childhood friends with Tetsuo Shima.

Kaneda is portrayed as the main symbol of defiance against traditional forms of authority, particularly Colonel Shikishima, being very rebellious and anarchic. His fellow bikers and classmates all describe him as "egotistical", as he likes to show off in everything that he does. He is known to act before thinking things through, which gets him in trouble several times. Despite his failings, Kaneda is brave, independent and has a heart of gold. Beneath his tough and cocky exterior, he looks out for the safety and well-being of the members of his biker gang (most notably Tetsuo Shima, his best friend), and becomes angry to the point of tears when he loses one of them. Kaneda is very trusting in his friends, but is vengeful when that trust is broken.

Kaneda is a young man standing at near average height, with short black hair and dark eyes. His most notable feature is his attire that consisted of a red biker jacket that had its sleeves pulled up, on it's back is a large design of a capsule. He wears biker jeans that are similar in color to the inside of his jacket and dark red biker boots. On his hands he wears red motorcycle gloves. Under his jacket he wears a yellow short-sleeved T-shirt.

As a child, Kaneda lived in the same orphanage as Tetsuo, whom he befriended shortly after his arrival there. In their teens, they become members of a bike gang called The Capsules, of which Kaneda is the leader.