Yuki (The King of Fighters)
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| Yuki | |
|---|---|
| Game series | King of Fighters series |
| First game | King of Fighters '97 |
| Voiced by | Tomoko Kojima |
| Information | |
| Birthplace |  Japan |
| Blood type | A |
| Fighting style | none |
| Likes | Pictures of the Athletics Games, eating Monjya Yaki |
| Dislikes | People who play games |
Yuki (ユキ Yuki) is a secondary character in SNK Playmore's King of Fighters videogame series; she was first introduced to the series The King of Fighters '97 and is further developed in The King of Fighters: Kyo. She is a normal school girl as well as Kyo Kusanagi's love interest. She is best known for her single audio line at end of the Three Sacred Treasures Team's ending: "Matteru kara ne, Kyo!" ("I'll wait for you, Kyo!").[1] She also appears as a playable fighter in the hand-held game, SNK Gals' Fighters.
The King of Fighters series roughly bases a majority of their protagonists around the Yamata no Orochi legend. Though her family name is never directly mentioned, Yuki is the sole descendant to Kushi-inada-hime, the last sacrificial maiden to the eight-headed snake. In The King of Fighters universe, Orochi was not slain; rather, he was sealed 1,800 years ago by three clans who each have one of the three renowned treasures in Japan. Kyo's ancestors also saved the princess from being devoured by the serpent.[2] When KOF '97 takes place, the seal surrounding Orochi broke and he was in the midst of awakening.
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[edit] Creation process
Originally, Yuki was not meant to be conceptualized, since her first mention ever in the KoF story was in Kyo's profile as one of his most cherished possessions. Her addition to his profile was added by one of the programmers mostly as a joke since Kyo was more popular with female gamers[3] (some of them being yaoi fans) than male ones. By 1996 and 1997, Yuki began to have cameos in several official illustrations alongside Kyo and his teammates, drawn by the series' main illustrator at the time, Shinkiro. Her character persona became more fleshed out in the spin-off manga, The King of Fighters: Kyo, illustrated by mangaka Masato Natsumoto and published in 1996~1997. A video game based on the manga was also created during the comic's publication, revealing another shade to her character. Since then, she began to appear as a recognizable character in officially sponsored fan dōjinshi.
On June 15, 1997, SNK held an open audition for Yuki's seiyu for her cameo in KOF '97, hoping to also use her in future drama CDs and other merchandise. A total of 1,534 young women participated, 400 of them being fans of the series and 16 of them also named Yuki. The development team for the game and the series' voice director were the judges and they asked the ladies to improvise their lines. Seiyū from the series were also there to open the ceremonies and to announce the progression of the event, with Kunihiko Yasui, Monster Maezuka, Yukina Kurisu (Athena's seiyu at the time), and Masahiro Nonaka there to inspire participants. Yuki's seiyu, Kojima, was chosen out of the four finalists.[4] Following her voice debut in The King of Fighters '97, Yuki went on to appear on the now debunked radio program, Neo Geo DJ Station, and continues to be mentioned in Kyo's back story to select games. By this point, what started as a joke on Kyo's popularity had, in SNK's words, grown "from a one-dimensional filler to a full-fledged character".[3]
[edit] Basic information
Physically, Yuki is a sweet-faced girl around Athena Asamiya's age or somewhat younger. She has short light brown hair (longer and messier in the KoF: Kyo), big dark brown eyes, a quite large chest (83 cm, just 2 cm smaller than Mai Shiranui's) and is usually clad in the typical white and blue sailor fuku, but isn't afraid of dressing up fancily and even rather sexy when she's given the chance. Apart of having good grades at school, Yuki is also a quite athletic young woman; her favorite sport is high jump and she's also proficient in tennis, according to the KoF: Kyo games.
Personality-wise, Yuki is pretty much the 'girl next door' type; she is quite sarcastic in an annoying way and has very limited patience towards Kyo, who in return treats her more as a sister than a proper girlfriend. They squabble rather frequently over petty things, but are still extremely loyal to each other if need arises. When Athena Asamiya transfers to their school to see Kyo's powers with her own eyes after being defeated by him in KoF' 95, Yuki does show some degree of jealousy and treats Athena as a child for a while, but become fast friends.
[edit] In-Game History
On her way to the last date she'd have with Kyo prior to KOF 97, Yashiro and his teammates Chris and Shermie (whom she briefly met some time ago in a TV station) kidnapped her with intentions of using her as a sacrifice for Orochi's resurrection. Her heritage as the last sacrificial maiden to their lord was a necessity for his physical body to come into being. The Three Sacred Treasures Team (Kyo, Iori, and Chizuru) foil this plan by interrupting the process early, forcing Orochi to possess the body of Chris. Yuki is left unaware of her involvement and is still ignorant of the history of her family line.
Despite fan theories of her death at the end of KOF '97, Yuki survived the ordeal and continues her life in Japan. During the NESTS saga, she remains unaware of NESTS involvement with Kyo or the reasons for his disappearance. She was ironically saved by Iori from being kidnapped by NESTS' minions.[5] Kyo's teammate and friend, Benimaru often chides Kyo for his negligence in contacting Yuki, though they both understand that it was needed to protect her.[6] In the alternate universe title to the series, KOF: Maximum Impact 2, Kyo tries to keep in touch with her through phone booths scattered around South Town.
[edit] The King of Fighters: Kyo
According to KoF: Kyo, Yuki didn't even know about the existence of the KoF tournament until she, Kyo, Athena and Sie Kensou (who had followed Athena to confront her over Kyo) are approached by Iori Yagami not too far from their school. At one point, tired of Iori's no-nosense attitude and fearing that other people may get hurt, Yuki hurls herself in between Iori and Kyo, telling him to leave the school grounds since Kyo doesn't want to fight him right then. Iori grabs Yuki by the neck and asks Kyo if he considers him as the type who'd injure a defenseless civilian, and then releases her. Later, he leaves without fighting Kyo. Yuki is quite disturbed upon the deal, as well as disappointed on Kyo since she resents being left behind in the KoF trials.
As Kyo loses his Kusanagi powers and distances himself from his friends prior to the KoF'97 tournament, Kyo's childhood friend and mentor Goro Daimon introduces Yuki and her friend Sanae to one of his students, Maeta, who has had a crush on Yuki from quite a while ago. Maeta defeats Kyo in an unnoficial judo match organized by Daimon, gaining a date with Yuki as a prize. After speaking to Sanae, Yuki goes out with Maeta despite her discomfort at being seen as a trophy of sorts; in the middle of the date, when she's gonna tell Maeta that she only sees him as a friend, she's kidnapped by a masked man in a motorcycle, who is somehow familiar to her.
The man ties Yuki up to a lamp post's top and challenges Kyo, who has followed him along with Benimaru Nikaido, Athena and Kensou. During the fight, Kyo progressively starts to be consumed by the Orochi aura, becoming a darker and more evil version of himself. However, the taunts from the stranger (whom Yuki recognizes as Saisyu Kusanagi, Kyo's father) finally get through him, and Kyo goes back to his senses. Saisyu then cuts the rope and Yuki falls from the post's top, and Kyo catches her in time as he realizes that the Kusanagi flame was given to his clan to protect people, and specially their loved ones. Almost immediately after this, Kyo fully gets his powers back.
From then on, Yuki remains as a constant but background-ish character in the KoF:Kyo manga and games as well as the other KoF games, until The King of Fighters '97. Yuki is kidnapped sometime during the KoF: Kyo games, but after Kyo tracks her down through several countries with the help of his fellow fighters, she's rescued and taken back to Japan by Chizuru Kagura.
In the epilogue of the King of Fighters: Kyo game, the recently-rescued Yuki tends to Kyo once he wakes up along with Shingo Yabuki and Chizuru Kagura.
[edit] References
- ^ Kitsune Sniper. Special Team Endings~Sacred Force Team (English). The Video Game Museum. Retrieved on March 31, 2008.
- ^ (September 20, 2005) in Akihiko Ureshino: The King of Fighters Perfect Reader (in Japanese). Nikkei Business Publications, Inc., 42. ISBN 4-8222-1711-6.
- ^ a b SNK Playmore. Yuki Official Profile (English). King of Fighters 10th Anniversary Official Website. Retrieved on February 24, 2008.
- ^ (2000) in Studio BentStuff: A.A. Game History Series Vol. 2 All About SNK Head-To-Head Fighting Game 1991-2000 (in Japanese). Studio BentStuff, 240. ISBN 4-88554-677-X.
- ^ SNK Playmore. Kyo Kusanagi and Iori Yagami Edit Entries ~ Official Story in KOF 2000. King of Fighters 10th Anniversary Official Website. Retrieved on March 31, 2008.
- ^ SNK Playmore. Japan Team Official Story in KOF 2001. King of Fighters 10th Anniversary Official Website. Retrieved on March 31, 2008.
[edit] External links
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