Asuka Kazama (風間 飛鳥 Kazama Asuka?) is a character in the Tekken series who was first introduced in Tekken 5 and has returned for every subsequent game in the series. While she was originally purported to be the cousin of Jin Kazama and the niece of Jun Kazama, it has later been stated by Katsuhiro Harada (see below) that their relationship is more complicated than that.
Biography
Personality
Asuka is surprisingly brash and arrogant. Although her profile states that she breaks up fights regularly, she seems to have no qualms about fighting and seemingly revels in it despite being beautiful. In her story mode, after defeating her target, Feng Wei, she decides to remain in the tournament in order to "have fun". Her pre and post-match quotes also demonstrate her confidence. As stated in her Tekken 5 / Dark Resurrection prologue, Asuka is also known as being a "nosy kid" who likes to solve other people's problems, "usually by knockout".
Asuka speaks in Kansai dialect (Kansai is a region of western Japan encompassing major cities such as Kyoto, Osaka, and Kobe).
Asuka is somehow related to Jun Kazama (Jin's mother) and is the rival of Emilie "Lili" De Rochefort.
Outfits
Story
Tekken 5
Tekken 5 Manual Version
Ever since she was a child, Asuka received training in Kazama Style Traditional Martial Arts from her father. One day, Asuka's father was roughed up and sent to the hospital. A police detective told Asuka the perpetrator was likely to enter the tournament, so she decided to enter as well.
Tekken 5 Asuka Interludes
Official Version
Ever since she was a child, Asuka had received training in Kazama Style Traditional Martial Arts from her father. Born with a strong sense of justice, Asuka was well known around Osaka for breaking up fights in the neighborhood.
Upon returning home one day, Asuka found pupils of her father had been roughed up. She learned from her father's pupils that an unknown Chinese man showed up at the dojo, severely beat them, and put Asuka's father in the hospital.
Several days later, an Interpol detective from Hong Kong came to investigate the incident, mentioning that the suspect is most likely planning to enter The King of Iron Fist Tournament. Upon hearing this, Asuka decides that she will also enter the tournament.
Tekken 5 Asuka Epilogue (Subtitled)
Ending Description: Asuka defeats Jinpachi Mishima, who dissolves into dust. Meanwhile, the advanced effects of Devil Jin's transformation disappear (the horns and wings are gone), leaving a half-transformed Jin. Asuka rushes to Jin and tries to revive him, wondering what she should do.
Though she is unaware of it, her touch undoes the final remnants of the Devil Jin transformation, and Jin awakes in his human state. Alarmed at his unfamiliar surroundings, Jin tries to stand up quickly, tripping over Asuka and landing face-first between her breasts, which make a "boing" sound. Enough time passes for a small rock to roll on the ground before Jin finally sits up. Asuka, embarrassed at first, immediately gets angry and demands Jin to explain himself. Jin, however, seems to be completely oblivious to the moment and continues to wonder where he is. Believing this to be a front, Asuka angrily power-punches Jin into a large rock, calling him a pervert and then stomping away angrily, leaving Jin asking, "What was that all about?" in utter confusion. Immediately after, a tiny rock ironically falls on top of his head and knocks him back out.
Tekken 6
Asuka entered The King of Iron Fist Tournament 5 in order to avenge her father, who was injured by Feng Wei, but to her dismay, he was nowhere to be found, and, as the tournament ended, she returned to her calm and normal life disappointed.
However, her life didn't stay peaceful for long, as Asuka discovered that Jin Kazama was the man responsible for the terrible war going on all over the world. She enters The King of Iron Fist Tournament 6 in order to capture Jin Kazama.
Tekken 6 - Asuka Kazama Ending
Ending Description: Asuka is hastily peddling her bike. She cries out that she's going to be late for school. As she is about to seemingly careen into the place (which may or may not be Mishima High), Lili's limousine appears out of nowhere. Asuka yells in surprise, and crashes her bike, making her lunch fall to the ground. Lili gets out of the limo in her school uniform, and states that her first day at school is completely ruined. Asuka angrily yells at her, "Are you some sort of idiot?!" Then the two of them engage in a fight, exchanging powerful blows with each other. Lili's driver quickly gets out of the limousine while this happens.
Tekken 7
TEKKEN 7 - Asuka Kazama Ending & Intro (TEKKEN 7 Character Endings)
Since they first fought at the King of Iron Fist Tournament, Asuka felt that Lili was taking the whole rivalry nonsense a little too seriously. Asuka recalled Lili's phone call out of the blue a few days earlier: "Hello, Asuka. I am sure you have heard the news that the King of Iron Fist Tournament is starting again soon. Worry not, I have already been gracious enough to register you for the competition. No trying to weasel out of it, you hear? I am ever so looking forward to fighting you."
As Asuka let her rage toward Lili's presumptuousness fly down the phone, Lili hung up. Fed up of being treated like a rich girl's plaything, Asuka thought that maybe if she beat Lili, the conceited little princess would leave her alone. Then again, maybe not...
Asuka wondered how she could resolve the situation but came up with nothing. Eventually, she decided to go along with Lili's plan and enter the tournament.
Ending Description: After defeating Lili, Asuka is shocked to find that her rival is planning on moving to her own home. As Asuka shouts at her to explain herself, Lili waltzes around saying that she will learn the Kazama Style Traditional Martial Arts and rebuild the dojo to its former glory. Asuka can only shout in protest, demanding an explanation, and chase after Lili as they leave the arena.
Other Appearances
Street Fighter X Tekken
Asuka appeared in the crossover game Street Fighter X Tekken as a playable character, her partner is Lili and their rivals are Chun-Li and Cammy. She is referred to as the "Kansai Peacemaker" in her character description.
Tekken Tag Tournament 2
Asuka is featured as a playable character in Tekken Tag Tournament 2. She has her original moveset from Tekken 6 with a few new ones added and a wide range of special team alliances.
Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Asuka's Ending
Ending Description: Two gangs are having a problem. They keep on bickering and babbling until Asuka comes and reconciles both sides of the argument. When Asuka encourages them to apologize to each other, she moves and her breasts shake accidentally. Both gangs leaders stare at them but Asuka yells at them and sends them flying. As she goes to leave, one of the members says "She is an annoying gang mediator!" When Asuka hears him, she kicks him in the face, saying "I don't appreciate being called annoying". She then hears another argument taking place nearby and runs to intervene while telling the gang members "Remember, make peace!" They immediately respond "Yes, ma'am!"
- Jin Kazama
- Feng Wei
- Lili
- Devil Jin
- Jun Kazama
- Unknown
- Ling Xiaoyu
- Alisa Bosconovitch
- Jaycee
- Sebastian
- Heihachi Mishima
- Kazuya Mishima / Devil
- Jinpachi Mishima
- Kuma
- Panda
Tekken Card Tournament
Asuka appears as a playable character in Tekken Card Tournament.
Tekken Revolution
Asuka appears in Tekken Revolution as a playable character.
Gameplay
Asuka is mostly a defensive character. She has one of the best keep-out games thanks to moves like ss2, d3+4 and many more, and her f2 is one of the best whiff punishers in Tekken. She also has the best reversal (arguably) that can reverse everything except lows, elbows, knees, heads, shoulders and 'jumping attacks' (such as a fff3) and has a larger active window for reversal than other characters with reversals who require much better timing, such as Dragunov or Paul. On the other hand, the other characters reversals don't leave them open for long if they miss the timing while Asuka's reversal leaves her open for a significant amount of time if it's poorly timed.
Her Rage Art has her performing both White Heron Dance and a Windmill Kick to knock her opponent in mid-air as Asuka rolls her right arm and immediately knocks her airborne opponent with a powerful punch before she puts both her hands on her hips afterwards.
Fighting Style
Asuka fights using the Kazama style martial arts.
Moves
Quotes
Character Relationships
- Mr. Kazama - Her father, for whom she enters the fifth Iron Fist Tournament solely to avenge. She was to seek out the one who assaulted him.
- Jin Kazama/Devil Jin - A presumed relative. With this believed knowledge, she entered the sixth Iron Fist Tournament in order to apprehend and capture him as the initial drive in her plot/story. It is unknown whether or not she is still searching for Jin.
- Jun Kazama - A presumed relative. They share the same Kazama Style martial arts background, but have opposite personalities. The most interesting part of their connection is the rare and mysterious, angelic-like power that she has possesses which can dispel the Devil's power. However, she is currently unaware of its presence.
- Emilie "Lili" De Rochefort - Her self-proclaimed rival after Asuka defeated her in Dark Resurrection, and they fight again in Tekken 7. Asuka cannot stand Lili's conceited and stuck-up personality as well as her whimsical attitude. The two seem to be polar opposites; Asuka coming from a rather poor family while Lili comes from a wealthy family, Asuka was trained in martial arts by her father since childhood while Lili was self-taught in street fighting, and Asuka has a more rash, yet selfless persona as she fights for justice while Lili has a rather graceful, yet spoiled persona as she fights for attention or personal interests. Lili is a rival and companion in Online Tekken Comic (non-canon), and also her partner in Street Fighter X Tekken.
- Feng Wei - Her arch-enemy and the culprit behind her father's hospitalization prior to the events of Tekken 5. Asuka holds a grudge against Feng Wei for destroying her father's dojo and putting him in the hospital.
- Lei Wulong - The cop who informed her of Feng Wei's participation in Tekken 5.
- Ling Xiaoyu - An acquaintance met in Tekken 6. Xiaoyu was unknowing of what Asuka's general intentions in finding Jin were, initially thinking of Asuka as a love rival.
- Raven - Her opponent in the Tekken 5 demo.
- Alisa Bosconovitch - Alisa tried to kill Asuka in the Online Tekken Comic, later she makes up with her and tells her the real purpose of her mission, cheerfully apologizing for the troubles she caused (non-canon).
- Bob - He saved her from being killed by Alisa in the Online Tekken Comic (non-canon).
- Leo Kliesen - Her friend in the Online Tekken Comic (non-canon).
Etymology
- The name Asuka means "to fly" (飛) (asu) and "bird" (鳥) (ka).
- It was named after the Asuka river in Nara prefecture of Japan and this is because Katsuhiro Harada's parents live near there [1].
- Asuka's surname Kazama means "wind" (風) (kaza) and "interval" (間) (ma).
Trivia
General:
- Before releasing the game in the arcades, franchise developer Namco released images of three new characters as part of their Tekken 5 promotions back in 2004. Amongst the new characters were Asuka, a Chinese martial arts master named Feng Wei and a mysterious ninja named Raven.
- Immediately afterwards, speculation began to spread about Asuka's role in the story and her possible relation to Jin Kazama.
- One bit of fan speculation addresses a potential romantic relationship between Jin and Asuka, which several fans have formulated after viewing the circumstances of the two relatives' first encounter. However, there so far is little to suggest that such a pairing may actually occur, despite the conditions of their meeting were often used as a setup for many romantic couples in several popular forms of Japanese and International media. There is also the belief that Asuka's special powers of subduing the Devil may lead to another encounter with Jin, friendly or not.
- Asuka's appearance bears a resemblance to Rena Hayami from R: Racing Evolution (a Ridge Racer spin-off also created by Namco).
- Asuka and Jun's ability to dispel the Devil Gene could be a reference to Japanese priestesses, this was reinforced as Asuka can be customized as a Miko warrior.
- Asuka's voice actress, Ryoko Shiraishi, is known for providing a console ending song for the second games of mainline and Tag tournaments.
- She speaks with an Osakan Kansai dialect. When she is annoyed she commonly uses the words ドアホ (Do-aho meaning "super idiot") and しばいたる (shibaitaru which in kansai dialect means "to beat-up").
- Until Tekken 7, Asuka was featured in the opening intro of every Tekken game since her debut and wore a different costume in all three openings.
- Asuka is similar and often compared to Sakura from the Street Fighter series.
- Sakura has also Asuka's school outfit as her Swap Costume in Street Fighter X Tekken.
- The two also have rivals very similar to each other; Asuka's rival Lili, and Sakura's rival Karin.
- It was revealed in Alisa's journal that she is a substitute teacher at her father's dojo.
- Asuka's anger mood resembles Tsubaki Yayoi from the BlazBlue series.
- In the Scenario Campaign mode, if playing as Alisa on Asuka's stage in said mode, Alisa will theorize that Jin and Asuka might be brother and sister.
- It is commonly said that Asuka is Jin's cousin especially in games such as Tekken 6/Bloodline Rebellion and Street Fighter X Tekken; however, according to Harada-san, "it's not that simple." [2]
- Asuka is also similar to Midori Himeno from the game Evil Zone.
- Both girls are Japanese Fighters.
- Both girls are trained by their fathers with their respective fighting styles. In Midori's case, her fighting style is Fuin Ancient Martial Arts.
- Both girls have a personality of being brash and arrogant although the latter is confident in fighting her opponents during her story.
- Both girls' primary outfit are light blue as the color of their top are different (Asuka's top is blue while Midori's midriff is purple).
- Both girls are wearing white headbands. In Asuka's case, she wears a white headband while wearing her Player 1 outfit.
- Asuka's primary outfit in Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection resembles Midori's alternate appearance as the color of her outfit is red and black.
- Asuka is the fourth character to appear as a student, and is the first one that isn't a student at Mishima High (though there is some debate over this).
- In Tekken the Pachislot 2nd, however, she and Lili are in Mishima High along with Ling Xiaoyu, this isn't canon, however.
- Asuka is said to resemble actress Airi Taira.
Tekken 5 and Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection:
- Asuka's sub-boss is Feng Wei, the unknown Chinese man that destroyed her father's dojo and injured him and his students.
- Asuka has two alternative costumes. Both of them are bought separately for 500,000 gold. One is a schoolgirl uniform, selectable by pressing the "Triangle" button, and the other is a geisha-like outfit, selectable by pressing the "Circle" button. In Dark Resurrection, these costumes are available from the start of the game, without having to purchase them.
- Asuka's geisha-like outfit also gives her a tattoo on her inner left thigh that says 通天閣 (Tsūtenkaku). "Tsuutenkaku" is the name of a famous tower in Osaka, Asuka's hometown, and it may have been the one that Asuka jumped off of during the Tekken 5 opening.
- Like several other characters, Asuka has a secret move. Asuka's secret move will only work against Jin and it is called "Asuka's Ultimate Tackle".
- In Dark Resurrection, one of Asuka's customization items is Jun Kazama's hairstyle. She also has knee-high socks that are very similar to the ones that Jun wears with her Player One costume, with the only difference being that Asuka's are navy blue, while Jun's are pale blue.
- It is implied that Asuka has the same ability as Jun to undo the devil gene as seen in her ending when she tries to wake Jin up and his devil markings disappear.
Tekken 6 and Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion:
- She retains her Player One and Player Two outfits from Tekken 5. Her schoolgirl outfit has also returned, but as a customization item. She also gains a Matsuri outfit that is traditionally worn at Japanese festivals as a customization item. It consists of a vest with cords tied on the sleeves and the back, with a bra top underneath, shorts, and knee-high, boot-like, open-toed sandals. Several customized versions of the vest have been seen with different colors and designs.
- Asuka's Item Moves are a giant white paper fan and a bow and arrow.
- Asuka is a boss at Kazama-Style Traditional Martial Arts Dojo.
- On the official North American Tekken 6 website, Asuka was incorrectly stated as being Jin's half-sister, despite them not sharing a biological parent. While they are related, at that time they were thought to be cousins. Harada revealed much later that they were not siblings of any sort, nor cousins. But in some manner, they are related, as they are part of the same clan, evidenced by the last name. This has since been corrected on the North American website, but the error is still present on the European website.
- In Tekken 6, Asuka can be customized to resemble Claire Redfield from Capcom's Resident Evil series, Yumi from the Cartoon Network/Warner Bros. Musical Comedy television series Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi, Gaz from Invader Zim (wearing a trendier outfit rather than a black dress with long grey sleeves and purple leggings), Kimberly Ann "Kim" Possible from the Disney television spy romantic comedy series Kim Possible, Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow and Jessica Drew/Spider-Woman from Marvel's Avengers franchise and Mizore Shirayuki from the manga/anime series Rosario+Vampire.
- She can also be customized to resemble Jun Kazama.
- In the Tekken 6 art book showing her 3P costume (the geisha-like outfit), she is seen choking Paul Phoenix with her scarf.
- Her Stage 1 and Stage 2 opponents in the Arena mode are Lei Wulong and Feng Wei.
- She is an opponent to Feng Wei (stage 2) and Ling Xiaoyu (stage 1) in the Arena mode.
- If the player plays as Jin Kazama in the Scenario Campaign mode and plays in her stage, Jin says: "Asuka Kazama? So, that would make you my cousin, and a particularly loud and annoying one at that". Nevertheless, this clearly does not prove their relationship.
- However, If Lars is played in Scenario Campaign on Asuka's stage, Alisa will state that a sibling of Jin's mother has opened the dojo. This means that Asuka or her father could be a sibling of Jun. Despite these facts, Harada has stated (as explained above) that they were not cousins but only relatives.
- If the player pairs up Asuka and Jin, a special win pose shows Asuka offering a kind of "good teamwork" hand but Jin, instead of answering with shaking her hand, does not respond to her and walks away. She then glares at him.
- Another win pose shows Asuka pointing at him accusingly but Jin walks past her. She, however, keeps glaring at him.
- Asuka also shares a win pose with Lili, where they high-five each other too hard and hurt each other. They also share a "Continue?" cut scene where both girls keep slapping each other until Asuka finally knocks her down.
- Asuka can be customized to resemble Kaname Chidori from the Full Metal Panic series.
- Asuka can be customized to resemble Hikage from the Senran Kagura series. Coincidentally, both are voiced by Ryoko Shiraishi in Japanese.
- Asuka's Tekken Tag Tournament 2 CG Art pose is similar to Chun-Li's Street Fighter IV pose.
- Asuka's partners in the Ghost Battle (in order from lowest to highest rank) are Feng Wei, Jun Kazama, Miharu Hirano, Emilie De Rochefort and Jin Kazama.
- Her ending is the first scene of the connected endings between, Lili, Miharu, Kuma, Panda, Alisa, and Xiaoyu.
- Asuka is portrayed by Vivian Nguyen in the "Girl Power" trailer.
Tekken 7 and Tekken 7: Fated Retribution:
- Asuka is the first character to have a new pre-fight animation to ride a bike. The other one is Hwoarang.
- One of her default win animations has been revamped as Asuka is shown to remove the dust from her hands while putting both hands on her hips before walking away satisfied as a close-up of her face is shown smiling while walking away on her defeated opponent.
Other:
- Asuka appeared in the Online Tekken Comic (along with Emilie De Rochefort, Leo Kliesen, and her unnamed father) as the main character.