Chizuru Kagura

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Chizuru Kagura
Chizuru in King Of Fighters '96
Game series	King of Fighters series
First game	King of Fighters '96
In-Universe Information
Birthplace	Japan
Blood type	AB
Fighting style	Kagura-style ancient martial arts

Chizuru Kagura (神楽ちづる, Kagura Chizuru^?) is a videogame character from the King of Fighters series. She made her character debut in KOF '96 as a mid-boss and the sponsor of the KoF tournament that year. Later, in KoF '97 she appeared as a normal participant and the teammate of King and Mai Shiranui. In the deadly bout with the Orochi clan, she accomplished her role supporting Kyo Kusanagi and Iori Yagami defeating Orochi to the very end.

1 History
2 Personality
3 Trivia
4 External links

[edit] History

Chizuru is the younger of the two heiresses of the Yata clan, the other being her older twin sister Maki Kagura. As the heiress of the Yata, she was raised as a Miko priestess and possesses extensive knowledge of the Japanese myths and traditions.

It was a cold night when an evil wind blew through the village of the Clan of the Yata. Chizuru woke up aware of the evil power at work in her village. Maki had felt that too, and she had come out to face the malignous entity. Suddenly, a man surged in the middle of the mist. A tall man, with very familiar clothes. Chizuru's sister called out for the Orochi messenger to come out. The man came out and introduced himself as Goenitz. He had come to destroy the seal that is imposed over the Orochi power. Maki refuses and challenges Goenitz to a battle.

Both engaged in a deadly battle, but Goenitz, being one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Orochi, wields immense power, and since the power of the Kagura can not fight the Orochi without the help of the other two clans, she lost. Goenitz laughed, and claimed that the seal over the Orochi power had been broken by him, but Orochi was still weak. So, there's no other thing to do than wait, and Goenitz leaves.

Chizuru ran to Maki's side, and With her dying breath, she assigned the task of sealing the Orochi power once again. If she failed, chaos and destruction will take over the world; Chizuru had to make the Kusanagi and Yagami clans unite once again so that the seal will be imposed again. With that, Maki died, and Chizuru has been both handling the Yata clan and the Kagura enterprises on her very own since then.

Ten years pass since the fateful incident. Chizuru has became a very successful business woman, and is a very prestigious woman in Japan. She has secretly followed the King of Fighters tournament since it began with Geese Howard, and after being aware of the supposed death of Rugal Bernstein, Chizuru takes his place as the new host of the tournament, in 1996. She sends invitations to several teams...including Kyo Kusanagi and Iori Yagami.

In the finals, Chizuru takes on the Hero Team, where Kyo is captain. In the middle of a bustling stadium, Chizuru fights the Hero Team, but is more interested in the skills of the Kusanagi. Using illusions to confuse the fighters, Chizuru manages to put Daimon and Benimaru away. But Kyo was different. Kyo uses his Kusanagi power to fight Chizuru, and finally wins. Chizuru is then happy, since she knows Kyo is ready to face the challenge in front of him.

However, soon enough, the same evil wind that blew ten years ago, now once again appears. Chizuru and the Hero Team are blown away, but Chizuru takes the worst part. She bids Kyo to join with Iori and help defeat the Orochi power. Then, she faints. When she regains consciousness, Goenitz is at the edge of defeat. Chizuru promises Goenitz that the Orochi power will be taken away once and for all. Goenitz then vanishes, and so does Chizuru.

Chizuru did not appear until days before the next tournament in 1997. Since many sponsors were in charge of the tournament, Chizuru's job was a lot easier. However, she needed a team to enter the tournament this year. She then knew that Kasumi Todoh, the third member of the Gorgeous Team of last year, had disappeared. Chizuru took this chance, and reunited Mai Shiranui and King, the remaining members. She then begins to fight in the tournament, never letting an eye away from Kyo and Iori.

As she perceived, Orochi was about to grow stronger and stronger, and the situation went critical with the rampage of Iori under the effect of the Riot of Blood, and the appearance of the other three Heavenly Kings of Orochi, in the form of the New Face Team. But fate lend it's lucky hand, and both Kyo and Iori were up and ready to face the faithful and final battle against the Orochi power. Chizuru wishes both Kyo and Iori good luck, and Chizuru begins developing the seal against Orochi. As the battle reached it's climax, Kyo prepared for the final punch as Iori held Orochi. Chizuru then invoked the seal, and Orochi was defeated.

Chizuru was not present during the NESTS crisis involving Kyo's clone K' from 99-2001, although she was fully aware about those events and his existence. She would eventually meet K' in the year 2003.

In KOF 2003, she hosted a King of Fighters tournament to make Kyo and Iori aware of certain personalities that were trying to break the Orochi seal. However, Mukai used the tournament to his own advantage. Chizuru was manipulated by one of those who hail from His Distant Land, a mysterious female puppeteer. Chizura momentarily lost control of her mind. Ironically, she ends up using her powers of the Yata mirrior for the benefit of the very force she was trying to combat. She fights alongside an illusion of her sister Maki as a sub-boss.

Chizuru and Maki are defeated and Mukai's gang relinquish their control over her as they no longer see her of any use. Maki sustains a serious injury and this reflects on Chizuru; however, she is still determined to protect her seal and rushes towards it. Ash Crimson appears, though; he knocks Chizuru out from behind and steals the mirror of Yata that's hidden within her body, and then knocks her aside as if she were a mere doll in a game of death. This enrages Kyo, who catches Chizuru's almost lifeless body and swears revenge.

Chizuru managed to survive, but as her power was stolen, she cannot fight aside Kyo and Iori any longer. Kyo's disciple Shingo Yabuki, who was visiting her at the hospital, promised Chizuru to make the not-so-friendly two to cooperate and make a team himself. And it succeeded - though not so much progress is seen in Kyo and Iori's off-courts relationship.

[edit] Personality

In the King of Fighters 96,Chizuru is a rather serious, wise, calm and apparently cold individual. She speaks in a didactive and pragmatic manner towards Kyo. Her cold manner is probably related to the death of her sister Maki; this changes when she's faced with her nemesis Goenitz, since she acts extremely scornful and sarcastic towards him.

In The King of Fighters 97 she noticeably loosens up in the presence of her close friends (like King, her brother Jan, and Mai). Their cheery, party attitude gives solace to her lonely soul.

[edit] Trivia

The name 'chizuru' literally means 'thousand crane'. Her elder sister 'maki' literally means 'ten thousand tortoise'. Both animals symbolize long life.

Chizuru's DM has the ability to 'seal' her opponent's moves for a short while.

The name of the "Three Sacred Treasures Team" she forms with Kyo and Iori in the King of Fighters 2003 is taken from the three treasures held by the Kusanagi, Yagami (Yasakani) and Kagura (Yata) families and are in turn based on the real life three sacred treasure of the imperial regalia of Japan.