Hanzō Hattori

Hanzō Hattori (服部 半蔵) is one of the starting characters in Samurai Warriors. He is the leader of the Iga clan and is loyal to Ieyasu Tokugawa. Like his common portrayal in fiction, he is a ninja rather than the historically accurate general. In the first game, he's 28 years old. He's symbolized by the character for "sever" (断), the character for "exterminate" (滅), and green bamboo leaves.

Samurai Warriors
Hanzō is a gloomy and mysterious man who often compares himself to a shadow. He carries out his lord's will through covert activities. The first game emphasizes him assassinating Shingen during his lord's retreat at Mikatagahara. He shares a rivalry with Shingen's servants, Yukimura and Kunoichi; the latter is more of a competition to see who is the better ninja. He escorts his lord's escape through Iga and secretly infiltrates Ueda Castle for information. His final act is to assassinate Hideyori Toyotomi at Osaka. In his upper path ending, he kills Yukimura.

In Samurai Warriors 2, he remains relatively unchanged except that he shares a rivalry with Kotaro and, to a lesser extent, Nene. As opposed to ending the Toyotomi line with Hideyori, he is ordered to stop it earlier with Hideyoshi's death. His dream stage has him participate in the siege of Ueda Castle. When Masayuki signals for the flood attack, Hanzō has a chance to interrupt the plot and save the Tokugawa army. He faces Kotaro several times on the field and helps usher the offensive against Kanetsugu and Yukimura.

Warriors Orochi
During Orochi's scenario, Hanzō is one of Ieyasu's defenders at Edo Castle. He implements a ninja ambush within the castle halls and serves as one of the final guards for his lord against the Orochi army. When they suffer defeat, Hanzō follows his lord into the serpent king's service.

He continues to stay beside his lord in both games of the series. In Warriors Orochi, he helps Sun Ce later in the Wu story by covertly sabotaging Sun Jian and Sun Quan's public execution by the Orochi Army. During Warriors Orochi 2, Hanzō assists Wei Yan's fire attack and the two find respect in each other. During the course of the series, his devotion earns Sun Quan's trust.

Hanzō shares his dream stage with two other men who are close to their lords, Xu Zhu and Huang Gai. They work together to rescue Gracia from a large army. When the young maiden returns with reinforcements, Ieyasu praises his vassal's hard work. In Warriors Orochi Z, he additionally teams up with Kotarō and Nene to rescue his lord from Edo Castle.

Kessen
Although he is dead in the first Kessen (as the focus takes place after his death), his legacy continues in a young kunoichi named Okatsu. In the third game, he is a recruitable unit for Nobunaga's army if he is beaten at Ikeda. He is still a ninja and isn't affiliated with the Tokugawa clan. He leads the best ninja unit in the game.

Development
Since the creators were making the unconventional ninja archetype with Kunoichi, Hanzō was added to be the more familiar ninja type. His addition was considered to be one of more the essential characters for the cast. His charm point for both of his costumes in Samurai Warriors was his masked visage and the scar that ran over one of his eyes. These concepts were kept for his redesign in the sequel but was altered slightly to give a greater visual impact. The designer comments that he hasn't particularly changed much.

Voice Actors

 * Kim Strauss - Samurai Warriors (English)
 * David Walpole - Samurai Warriors 2 (English)
 * Takaya Kuroda - Samurai Warriors and Warriors Orochi series (Japanese)

Quotes

 * "All of Japan will dissolve within my grasp. My dark ambition shall never cease."
 * "Target... Eliminated."
 * "Vanish."
 * "Darkness made flesh..."
 * "Return to darkness."
 * "Return to darkness once more."
 * "Rin, Pyoh, Toh, Sha, Kai, Jin, Retsu, Sai, Zen..."
 * "Taste the sting of death!"
 * "A ninja knows when to seize his opportunities."
 * "The shadows are without form and thus, without weakness."
 * "How easily life can be taken over by shadow."
 * "When the shadow strikes... only death remains."
 * "I can't stand you ninjas. You guys just aren't right in the head."
 * "You shall vanish amongst the shadows"
 * "Shadow's never die forever"
 * "The shadows will consume your soul."
 * "See what I mean?"
 * Magoichi and Hanzō; Samurai Warriors 2


 * "Go tell your master to stop being so greedy! There's plenty of Japan to go around! Why can't he learn to share?"
 * "Crazy woman... "
 * Nene and Hanzō; Samurai Warriors 2"


 * "Rest assured, Hanzō, that my spear will protect those dear to me... From your stained blade of darkness."
 * "Attempt to stop me if you wish. You will fail."
 * Yukimura and Hanzō; Samurai Warriors 2: Empires


 * "You're in for a special treat. You get to fight me!"
 * "Even the strongest warrior cannot keep up with the shadow."
 * "Well you're a slippery monkey, aren't you?"
 * Sun Wukong and Hanzō; Warriors Orochi 2


 * "Hi Hanzō! This battle is our chance to see who's the better ninja. You? Or me!"
 * "Your very existence insults my profession."
 * Nene and Hanzō; Samurai Warriors 2: Empires


 * "I will live by my faith, straight and true! Like my lance, my faith is unbending to the last!"
 * "Foolish optimist... That which does not bend is all the easier to break."
 * Nagamasa and Hanzō; Samurai Warriors 2: Empires

Samurai Warriors
* All listed lengths are for the sickle part of his weapon.

Historical Information
Hattori Hanzo Masanari was the fifth son of Hattori Hanzo Yasunaga, born in the year 1542. He became the leader of Iga's Hattori Hanzo family. He was actually a samurai general but is often associated as being a ninja since he was often seen commanding them in battle.

Like his father before him, Masanari was loyal to the Matsudaira family's heir, Matsudaira Motoyasu (later known as Tokugawa Ieyasu). He distinguished himself in several campaigns, some of which include the battles at Kakegawa Castle, Anegawa, and Mikatagahara. His first battle was when he was 16 and he fought during the siege of Udo Castle. At the time, he commanded seventy Iga ninja. He eventually earned the nickname "Demon Hanzo" (鬼半蔵) for his fierce fighting style.

In 1579, Ieyasu's eldest son, Matsudaira Nobuyasu, was convicted of treason against Oda Nobunaga and ordered to commit seppuku. Masanari was ordered to be his second in the ritual (where he would mercifully decapitate the one cutting his stomach). However, once he was brought to the appointed site at Futamata Castle, Masanari burst into tears and cried, "I cannot turn my blade against my lord's own blood!" Once Ieyasu learned that Masanari was unable to bring his sword down on his son, he exclaimed, "Even Demon Hanzo is unable to strike the head of his master's child!"

After Akechi Mitsuhide slain Nobunaga at Honnoji in 1582, he set his sights on Ieyasu. At the time, Ieyasu was at a port in Osaka and was surrounded by only ten subordinates. He was forced to flee to his homeland but had to pass through Iga, which was known for its treacherous terrain. Masanari was principle for serving as Ieyasu's guide and commanded 500 ninja guards to ensure his lord's safe passage to Mikawa. For his distinguished service, he was awarded 8,000 koku and 200 vassals. Ieyasu also began to employ more Iga ninja with Masanari as their leader.

Masanari continued to serve his lord at Komaki-Nagakute and died on December 23, 1596 due to natural causes. He was buried near the Shinjiku Ward in Tokyo. Hanzo-mon in Tokyo is named after his family and they once prospered there.