| “ | Foolish woman... This is your reward for releasing me. I am allowing you to die at the hands of the man you love. Even though he is merely a puppet of the Hellspawn Lord, Aomizuchi! | „ |
| ~ Hiruko who finally summoned Aomizuchi with the sacrificed souls of Moritsune and Ageha. |
Aomizuchi (in Japanese: 蒼蛟龍) is one of the Four Hellspawn Lords and a villain in the 2002 videogame Shinobi. Initially he appears a white haired Ninja that relentlessly pursues Hotsuma throughout his sojourn of vengeance. It is later revealed that he is a demonic dragon and one of the Four Pillars; Hellspawn Lords summoned by the sorcerer Hiruko Ubusuna to wreak havoc, and that he is possessing the body of Hotsuma's deceased brother.
Appearance
Initially he appears a mysterious ninja with white hair and white ninja armor, his face concealed by a white helmet with a visor of four red glowing eyes. His true form is a demonic jade-green dragon, though a partial form of his true self is revealed when he continuously possessed Moritsune.
History
A dragon-like demon with the power over lightning, Aomizuchi is one of the Four Pillars who were summoned by Hiruko Ubusuna many years ago, to unleash an onslaught upon the human world. However, they were all defeated and banished at the hands of the Oboro Clan.
Upon returning to the modern-day world in spiritual form, he possesses the body of the long dead Moritsune, and indulges in the fallen shinobi's strong feelings towards Hotsuma early in the game. However, the shinobi's corpse has a wound on its neck that glows and causes pain to Aomizuchi, whenever the corpse gets near the cursed blade. The reason being is that Moritsune's head was severed by Hotsuma in his death at the Oboro ritual, along with the stong feelings that the fallen shinobi held towards both Hotsuma and Akujiki itself.
After the Golden Palace appeared in Tokyo, Aomizuchi summoned all his otherworldly powers to destroy the city. Some time afterwards, he would appear with a legion of demons, and wage an all out assault on the Oboro Village, killing all of its inhabitants. A month later, he returns to Hiruko Ubusuna's side, and proclaims that the Oboro clan are now under his control, and informs the heretic sorcerer that the Oboro's leader is on his way with the dead Oboro Jonin behind him as his puppets.
Akujiki is set free of its seal.
As Hotsuma and Aomizuchi battled for the first time, Aomizuchi deliberately allows Hotsuma to cut him and grabs Akujiki's blade, allowing his evil blood to wake the demon sword from its prolonged torpor. After this he would continue to relentlessly pursue Hotsuma. It is not until after they meet for the fourth time that Aomizuchi is revealed to be none other than Moritsune, or so Hotsuma initially thought.
Aomizuchi reveals himself.
It was when the sorcerer appeared at Kan'Ei Shrine that Aomizuchi's true colors are revealed, as he posed as the real Moritsune. Ageha was very happy after her betrayal to the Oboro Clan during Hiruko's return when the sorcerer resurrected her beloved, but she does not realize he was possessed the whole time by the Hellspawn Lord. She died at the hands of the Moritsune whose body was then mutated and warped into the demonic possessor's true form.
Aomizuchi is defeated.
Hotsuma then fought Aomizuchi, who was using his brother's strength and speed to kill him, and won the fight. Impaling the demon with the Akujiki, Aomizuchi cries in pain as the sword slowly devours his essence whole, allowing Moritsune to reclaim his body.
Powers and Abilities
As the Hellspawn Lord of the Heavens, Aomizuchi is an extremely powerful demon who commands lightning. Through the entirety of the game, Aomizuchi fights using Moritsune's corpse.
In his first bout with Hotsuma, his attacks are simplistic in nature, attacking solely with a thrust attack that he winds up, surrounded by a blue cone of energy similar to Hotsuma's Special Attack. He occasionally counters with a two hit slash when successfully blocking attacks. If he falls off the arena, he simply warps back from the air, landing with a field of energy that paralyzes the player if approached.
Upon having his full power restored, Aomizuchi exhibits the full of extent of his abilities and Moritsune's. The shinobi's swords are now wreathed in a green ethereal flame to enhance their cutting power. His fighting style is identical to Hotsuma's, employing the use of the Stealth Dash, a green version of the Ka'en spell and the Shuriken Burst. His kunai in particular are slightly more powerful and explode when in near proximity of the player as well his own version of Hotsuma's charge attack, signaled by the image of a dragon before he strikes. To aid him, he is able to summon small dragon-like creatures called Mizuchi that will try to tackle the player if near.
Gallery
Trivia
- Aomizuchi's name contains the kanji 蒼(blue) and 蛟龍 (mizuchi) which is a dragon like Japanese mythological beast that is said to ascend to the heavens through rain.
- Aomizuchi, like the other Four Pillars/Hellspawn Lords, is based on the Four Gods of Onmyodo lore.
- Aomizuchi is a demonic perversion of the Four Gods' Qinglong (in Japanese: Seiryu), the Azure Dragon of the East.
- Prior to the start of the game, Aomizuchi possessed Moritsune's corpse and manipulated it as a vessel form himself to act on Hiruko's behalf.
- Joe Musashi shares some of his quotes in Nightshade such as "Let your hatred flow!".