Okuni

Okuni (阿国) is a character who first appeared in Samurai Warriors. She is a traveling priestess seeking funds for her shrine. She is best known in history for founding the Japanese dance style, Kabuki.

In the first Samurai Warriors, she is 17 years old. Her height in the series is 172 cm (approximately 5'8").

Role in Games
"Never have I seen anyone enjoy dancing as much as you."
 * ―Diao Chan; Warriors Orochi 2

Samurai Warriors
Okuni unknowingly wanders onto battlefields, and being a priestess, usually tries to stop the violence or solicit money by putting on a dance. She begins her story by helping Goemon with a brawl in Kyoto. While in the city, she meets Keiji and falls in love. Leaving Kyoto, she resumes her mission to collect funds for the Izumo shrine. She arrives at Osaka only to find it under attack by Oda forces. In an effort to lift the people's spirits, she performs a dance which catches Magoichi's attention. With Goemon's help, she defeats the mercenary to rout the Oda army.

Scattering the forces at Osaka causes the pair to become fugitives as Mitsuhide pursues them to avenge the loss. They escape to Ise to flee across the Iga passage with Goemon eventually volunteering to stay behind and stall Mitsuhide. She continues on without him and reaches Kawanakajima to stumble upon Shingen and Kenshin. She dances to entertain the two warlords but ultimately does not stop them from fighting. After her performance, Okuni collects enough funds to repair the Izumo Shrine and decides to head home. Before returning however, she visits Azuchi Castle to reunite with Keiji much to a "rescuing" Goemon's chagrin.

Although she is infatuated by Keiji, throughout her story, Okuni wears her heart on her sleeve and can be fascinated with various men and women. She often wants the one she is infatuated with to return with her to Izumo. Because of this, she has the most alternate endings in Samurai Warriors.

In her movie ending, she entertains Keiji and Goemon with a dance. During her performance, the object of her affections walks out as he wants to return to the battlefield. When she's done, she goes with Goemon to look for the missing Keiji.

Okuni is a hidden character in Samurai Warriors 2 who can be unlocked after a winning play in the Suguroku minigame. Like Ranmaru, she lacks a personal Story Mode. She rarely appears in other character's story scenarios except for certain dream stages such as Mitsuhide's struggle, beauty competition of No, Oichi and later Gracia, and others. Her other appearances are mostly limited to Survival mode.

While she again lacks a personal story in Samurai Warriors 3, she does make an appearance at Kyoto during Mitsunari rescue scenario. She is also seen dancing at Osaka in Kunoichi's ending.

For her Xtreme Legends story, Okuni hops into battles which have the commander facing their imminent death. She appreciates both life and death, finding them beautiful and enjoyable in their own ways. As her duty as priestess, however, she wants to guide individuals who accept their deaths in order to grant them the peace they deserve. Since they are persistent in attending to their respective duties in the living plane, Okuni lends a helping hand for their release. She helps Nagamasa at Odani Castle and Motonari at Kizugawaguchi. During the latter conflict, she senses Hanbei's deathly illness and offers to take him as well. Terumoto refuses to hand his grandfather to her and orders for Okuni's death. Even with his protest, Okuni's offer to teach him history ultimately wins Motonari over. He helps her during her following collection of souls she feels need peace.

To sate Katsuie and Oichi's resolve, Okuni joins the Hashiba side at Shizugatake to let them fight to their fullest. She and Motonari tag along with the Eastern army to chase down the stubborn Mitsunari and Sakon at Sekigahara. Years later, the duo fight on the losing Toyotomi side at Osaka Castle. Since Ieyasu is focused on living, Okuni instead takes the one she first invited before the conflict, Yukimura, with her to Izumo. With the chaos of the age ended, Okuni leads the souls of the departed to their final resting place and disappears with them before glowing torii. Since her presence has been noted by those of the living yet she comfortably talks with those of the dead, Okuni's own existence in the spiritual plane -whether she is dead or alive throughout her story- is a true mystery and open for the player to decide.

During one of the Gaidens for Chronicles, she and Keiji celebrate Kyoto's riot with the protagonist, similar to the first title of the series.

Warriors Orochi
In Warriors Orochi, she, along with Xiao Qiao, Zhang Jiao, and Sakon Shima, joined forces at Kyushu to stop Nobunaga. Okuni, claiming to be the "Queen of Dance", helps to raise the army's morale and lure the enemy. Although the plot to stop Nobunaga's army failed, she and her defeated allies are pardoned. She and the others later join the Coalition force. She becomes close to some of the men while in the army, mostly Ling Tong and Guan Ping. She also appears in one of Shu's Gaiden stages, helping to delay Goemon from escaping with a treasure he stole from Wei Yan.

In Warriors Orochi 2, she follows Ling Tong to join the Wu forces. She assists Xiao Qiao and Zhou Yu's plot to lure Dong Zhuo out from hiding. When the tyrant sees Okuni's graceful movements, he praises her dance to be as pretty as Diao Chan's but claims that she lacks the latter's charms. Okuni responds by elegantly attacking him. She will also have beauty competitions with other beautiful female characters in the cast. If she meets Goemon or Keiji in game, she will quarrel with them. Her dream stage has her collect charity donations from people, along with Meng Huo and Goemon. She will appear in many other Dream Modes that focus exclusively on women including the new stage introduced in Warriors Orochi Z

Nobunaga's Ambition
Okuni is sometimes featured in Nobunaga's Ambition in a manner parallel to Diao Chan in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, appearing within printed media and promotional cinematics as a beautiful dancer. She appears as a bonus character within several titles and can be unlocked once players clear preset scenarios. Her stats for war are often poor throughout the series, and she lacks any impressive troop proficiencies. However, she does possess high intelligence ratings and might have an easier time recruiting people than other generals. Okuni might serve the player best as back up for domestic matters or strategies. Tendou breaks the trend for her stats since she gains A proficiencies with rifles and siege weapons and an impressive leadership rating. Her low war ranking still prevents her from being a noteworthy commander, but she can at least serve as decent intellectual support for long-ranged armies.

While players can't see Okuni herself in the online adaption, the player can meet and befriend characters roughly based on her. After they clear a set of quests for them, these priestesses of Izumo may aide players as fellow battle companions.

Development
Okuni's first design was made as the simplified priestess outfit found in Japan. Her alternate design was a race queen inspired outfit with priestess motifs. Her revamp design accentuates this concept by adding gold and the colors of the rainbow to her outfit.

Personality
Okuni is a flirty yet graceful maiden who is easily allured by the land's impressive generals. She strives to add a touch of elegance to the field, a feat which impresses most of her audience. In the Japanese dub, she speaks in an upbeat Kyoto dialect.

She is slightly more cynical in the second game and uses her coy attitude to hide her anger. Okuni cares more for her own personal beauty, wanting everyone to watch her dance. She is also more selective about who will impress her as she isn't charmed by Ieyasu's flirts. If the players use her in stages with Nagamasa and Oichi present, Okuni will tease the married couple and play with Nagamasa's loyalty. During Survival Mode, she breaks the fourth wall by saying that she was upset for not having a story mode in the game.

Character Symbolism
She's symbolized by the kanji for "dance" (舞) and "elegance" (麗) as well as peach blossom petals in the Samurai Warriors series.

During her ending cinematic for her latest story, Okuni recites an actual poem dating from the early sixteenth century. It is found within Kanginshu, a collection of kayo or rhythmic poetry. A rough translation of the poem she says is as follows:

"Deities must know of Kasuga And its double-flowering cherry blossom trees Blooming and scattering, scattering and blooming During the long years in Nara. To scatter is to invite them; to guide them, they are scattered Parting away like mist As if in a faraway dream. For but a short time Must they need to wait Before wind suddenly takes them. Imagine how painful the wait must be."

The poem symbolizes her story's theme of mutable life and death. Every life is part of an endless cycle of birth and death. Suffering at any point of the cycle is a part of natural inconstancies and changes in the mortal world. Within Japan, the Buddhist concept is strongly tied to the blooming and wilting of cherry blossom trees. The flowers are beautiful in bloom and remain lovely as their petals litter the ground below.

Okuni's third weapon -fourth in her debut- is originally named "Flowing Fountain Moonlight Flower". The flowing fountain could be a reference to one of three classic biwa songs learned from the legendary Chinese biwa player. A moonlit flower is a romantic image found in fiction, often referring to flowers that bloom once in the moonlight. Occasionally, the midnight blossom is comparable to an endearing woman of the night. Her variations of the weapon summons the day (Power) and poses as an apricot in the rain (Speed).

Amenouzume is a goddess within Japanese mythology who acts as the namesake for her fourth -fifth in her debut- and Unique weapon. The weapon's name remarks the goddess is bright and cheerful. In order to lure Amatersu out from her cave, Amenouzume stripped off her top and danced a comical dance on top of a barrel. Her audience roared with glee and loudly claimed that a goddess better than the hiding Amatersu had been found. Curious, Amatersu left her cave and the world regained its light. Amenouzume is thought to be a comedic goddess of laughter and one of strong character. She may also represent dawn, arts, entertainment, and inspiration.

In figurative terms, all of her rarest weapons may describe a flower which blooms to bring good fortune. Since a warehouse is mentioned in the weapons' names, it likely means to bring an abundance of treasure and wealth.

The original name of her personal item in Warriors Orochi is the Noh play, Kanjinchō. It is one of many famous plays to detail Benkei's fealty for Yoshitsune.

Voice Actors

 * Melissa Fahn - Samurai Warriors (English)
 * Erin Agostino - Samurai Warriors 2 (English)
 * Karen Strassman - Warriors Orochi series, Samurai Warriors 3 (English)
 * Wakana Yamazaki - Samurai Warriors and Warriors Orochi series (Japanese)

Quotes

 * See also: Okuni/Quotes


 * "Halt there! Are you the one spreading tomfoolery around?"
 * "Keiji's the name. Pleasure to meet you miss."
 * "Now don't you know that slandering Master Keiji's good name shall force a lady to teach you a lesson in manners?"
 * "Oh great..."
 * Okuni and Keiji; Samurai Warriors


 * "Ah, an ill-tempered boy; here to help me carry all this gold home!"
 * "Hey, I am an ill-tempered man! Wait, I mean...Argh!"
 * Okuni and Masumune; Samurai Warriors 2


 * "Hmm... You're trembling."
 * "I can play the role of seductress as well as anybody! Won't you come with me, young lady? We could have such fun together."
 * "I don't believe this. Everything just keeps getting more ridiculous!"
 * Nō, Okuni, and Oichi; Samurai Warriors 2


 * "Without Oichi, I am overcome with a vast longing, an emptiness... It's as though a part of my very soul were missing."
 * "Poor baby... You just come to mama... When this is all over, I'll make you forget you ever had anything to be sad about."
 * Nagamasa and Okuni; Samurai Warriors 2 Empires


 * "I am nothing but a rusted blade, waiting for the end of the ancient warriors' prime."
 * "A rusted blade is one that melts away, never to be used again. We can't have it fall apart like that. It's the same with you, Lord Katsuie. You shouldn't distance yourself with your emotions so easily."
 * "Even for a rusted blade, huh?"
 * Katsuie and Okuni‎; Samurai Warriors 3 Empires

Ground Moveset

 * undefined,(undefined),(undefined): Casts her umbrella towards to the enemy.
 * ,undefined,(undefined),(undefined),(undefined): Kicks her enemy into the air, attacks three times and rotates them on the top of her umbrella.
 * ,,undefined,(undefined),(undefined),(undefined): Taunts the enemy, the aura she creates around herself then hits the enemy.
 * ,,,undefined,(undefined),(undefined),(undefined): Rotates the enemy on the top of her umbrella and then casts her umbrella to spin around her.
 * ,,,,,,,: Attacks three times and spins before pushing the enemy away.
 * Running + :
 * ,: Uses her umbrella to float across the battlefield.
 * ,undefined: Jumps down to create a shockwave.
 * ,: Jumps and strikes.
 * Stands still to cast her umbrella to spin around her.

Mounted Moveset

 * ,undefined: Several hard swings that launch enemies into the air.
 * ,,undefined: Another hard swing which stuns enemies.
 * ,,,undefined: Throws her umbrella around the horse, hitting enemies a short distance away from her.
 * ,,,,,,,: Swings her weapon back and forth and ends with her holding it straight out and opening and closing her umbrella several times.
 * Swings rapidly towards the right and finishes with a downward swing.

Samurai Warriors 2
Moveset remains relatively the same except the damaging aura at the end of her C3 is omitted. Like the rest of the cast, her horse musou changes to a damaging stampede by her horse. She gains a Level 3 Musou, R1 skills, and a new charge attack in the Xtreme Legends expansion.
 * ,,,,undefined:(Xtreme Legends only) Shoots three fireballs at the same time which spread out.
 * Her musou actions remain the same. During the level 3 versions, various auras will emit around her, buffing nearby allies.
 * R1 + : Increases the abilities of allies.
 * R1 + undefined: Taunts enemies, lowers enemies's defense but raises their attack.
 * Personal Skill: (Recoil) Counters indirect attacks when guarding.

No C5 or Level 3 Musou. She has two new R1 abilities.
 * Warriors Orochi
 * R1: Increase the strength of team's attack.
 * R1 (counter): Push enemies away.

Samurai Warriors 3

 * (Ultimate/Kaiden): She throws her parasol in the air, which unleashes a powerful wind knocking back and/or killing enemies


 * Spirit Cancel:

Fighting Style
Okuni's moveset resembles the dances usually performed on hanamichi stages. In the Samurai Warriors series, she can use her umbrella to float across the battlefield each time she jumps.

She has deceptively decent reach and relatively good coverage in almost all attack directions. Offsetting this however, is her low attack strength and peculiar musou attack- this is arguably one of the harder ones to use properly due to its stationary position and very specific hitbox (as only contacting the umbrella itself will cause damage). Her attacks are also slightly delayed as she has to open and close her umbrella each time she hits.

Historical Information
Izumo no Okuni was born near a shrine in Izumo and was daughter to a blacksmith named Nakamura Sanemon. She became a priestess there and, as part of her duties to help support the shrine, she was often sent to Kyoto to perform dances and collect alms. While performing there, she became widely known for her sensuous nembutsu dance and various humorous skits involving lovers spats. The Tamoniniki writes that she was performing as early as eight or eleven years old in 1582. Various other accounts also confirm her presence at Kyoto though they each state different years and dances that she could have performed.

Around 1603, Okuni began to entertain on the dry riverbanks of Kamo river where she exclusively gathered female outcasts and prostitutes and taught them dancing, acting and singing to help form her trope. Their early performances consisted of the ladies reacting to Okuni dressing and acting as a men thus earning her the name, woman kabuki, due to her eccentricity and social daring. Many others, particularly brothels, emulated these shows to amuse wealthy clients and to gain marketable prostitutes. She later gained sponsoring from Ujisato Sanzaburō who helped her to develop kabuki into a more sophisticated art form and also said to be Okuni's lover, though they did not marry. After his death she continued without him, continuing to merge the drama with music and dance. Eventually, her fame and that of her kabuki troupe spread throughout Japan.

After she established kabuki in 1607, records of her performances dwindled and she disappeared from the public eye. A rumor says that she appeared once more to dance at the imperial palace with her team in 1612. Her death year has been speculated to be either 1613, 1644, or 1658. Others suggest that she spent the rest of her years at Izumo or Kyoto as a nun since a large grave marker was supposedly made near a shrine in the area.

In 1629, the Tokugawa shogunate forbade women from performing kabuki due to public moral protests. It was eventually ruled that only older men were allowed to perform in theaters.

Trivia

 * In the Sengoku Jidai themed comic, Sengoku Angelique, Mel acts as the Okuni of the cast. His full name is "Izumo Mel Okuni".

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