Hokuto

Hokuto (ほくと), real name Shirase (訃, しらせ), is a video game character from the Street Fighter series, first appearing in the original Street Fighter EX. She is a noble practitioner of the ancient martial art kobudō, and sibling to Kairi and Nanase.

Appearance
Her initial outfit is that of a kyudo practitioner's uniform, being a pair of navy hakama and white tabi, with a red lacquered muneate breastplate, over a white hakamashita like gi over a black necklong form fitting undershirt of purple hue. She wears her forelocks up with a headband, that prominently displays her forehead. Her long hair is let down.

Her second outfit is a pink komon kimono, with small white pink cherry blossom patterns that run around her long, wide sleeves and the borders of her kimono's opening. Over a gold yellow obi, she wears a pair of verdant green hakama and white tabi. Her hair is tied in a high ponytail with a green band in two long and short fringes on each side, showing her forehead.

In Street Fighter V, her appearance is largely the same but her hakama and hair are black and she is equipped with a single brown glove on her right hand.

Personality
Hokuto is shown to be a very calm, noble and mature woman. Despite this, she has quite a temper, shown when Vega started taunting her with his womanizing ways during one of their matches. Because of the sorrow of losing Kairi, Hokuto is not a very open and expressive woman, otherwise she is sensitive of other people's family problems.

Concept
During the development of the original Street Fighter EX game, she was named Kobudo Onna (which translates to "kobudo woman" or "kobudo girl"), said name being likely a placeholder.

Hokuto's use of the naginata, combined with her noble and calm demeanor, is likely a reference to the concept of the Yamato Nadeshiko noble woman.

Street Fighter EX series
Hokuto was born to the Mizukami (水神) family, which has held a tradition in the art of Kobujutsu. Hokuto was born out of a tryst between a woman of the head Mizukami house and a man from a branch family, additionally inheriting ancestry from the main house of the Bushin clan as a result. Originally known as Shirase (訃) during her childhood, Hokuto was entrusted to the head house at an early age, raised as Kairi's sister by the head of the family in order to conceal the tryst. After her younger sister Nanase was born, the two trained together rigorously in the martial arts and were closely bonded as sisters. Hokuto trained in the martial arts since an early age, refining them into her personal style, eventually blooming her talent to become the "seiden" (正伝) of the ancient hand-to-hand martial arts of the Mizukami.

Inevitably, fate would unfortunately come to divide her family. Being born of the tryst, the branch families of the Mizugami had held deep enmity towards their progenitor clan due to years of mistreatment and abuse. In addition to this strong feeling of hatred and resentment rooted deeply in her genealogy, growing up, Hokuto would unknowingly be influenced to develop an alter ego under her childhood name that would come to end the Mizugami. On the day Hokuto turned 17, she learned of the existence of her older brother from her foster father, who disappeared when Hokuto was still an infant. Her brother was in fact, still alive and walking the path of the Shura (修羅). Hokuto sets off to a journey to stop him, which meant that she would have to face Kairi in a life or death confrontation. Eventually, Hokuto reached the end of her journey, and was reunited with her brother Kairi.

Endings
Street Fighter EX Ending (Japanese Version)

''"The cherry blossoms are scattering" She continued the fight for carnage, not knowing the true meaning of her blood-stained lineage. Will she keep fighting long enough to be reunited with her brother and mutually dye their fists red? Or else?''

Street Fighter EX Plus α Ending (Japanese Version)

''"Wait, and everything will eventually return to where it began." The adopted daughter who was taken in by the Mizugami family. She is fighting in the place of the father who sealed Kairi's memories.''

In her Street Fighter EX3 ending, she saw a image of Kairi as she wonders if that's her brother. Hokuto suddenly falls to the floor crying, she knows that there's nothing she can do but wait for the time that she will be free from the lost memory of Kairi.

Bloody Hokuto
However, Kairi's presence dispelled the Seal of Blood (血の封印) implanted into Hokuto, turning her into an assassin whose only purpose was the erasure of Kairi's existence. Unknown to Hokuto, she had been placed under a mental suggestion to locate Kairi and kill him. To prevent this, Hokuto was implanted with the Seal of Blood by the elders of the Mizukami clan, which would be unleashed whenever Hokuto would come into contact with Kairi.

This form, known as Bloody Hokuto (血の封印を解かれたほくと) is an alternate playable version of Hokuto that appears as a hidden character in Street Fighter EX Plus, Street Fighter EX Plus Alpha, and Street Fighter EX3. Bloody Hokuto can be distinguished from her regular counterpart by the red mark on her forehead and purple uniform.

Fighting EX Layer
Hokuto appears as one of the playable characters in Fighting EX Layer, the spiritual sequel to the Street Fighter EX games. Now freed from the Mizugami clan's seal, she goes by her real name Shirase. Her final act as "Hokuto" was to seal off her younger sister Nanase's memories of the Mizugami and their conflict so that she could live as an ordinary girl.

Fighting style
Naginatajutsu is one of the skills taught in kobudo, on which Hokuto's fighting style is based. Hokuto uses the naginata as part of her Meteor Combo, and is seen wielding hand fans as part of one of her Super Combos.

Moveset
Hokuto's attacks usually advance towards the opponent before striking, and can duck under mid- and high-aiming attacks; one of her challenges in Trial Mode in Street Fighter EX2 Plus is to duck under a Hadoken to hit with a Shinkyaku Geki. She can also cancel these moves to fake out an opponent; her move Shin is a cancel of a lone Shinku Geki or Shinkyaku Geki. Her Kiren Eki can be charged by holding down the punch button used in command input, making it a good move for juggling opponents. Hokuto can also perform short, two-hit combos (i.e. Chugeki Hoh -> Shougekiha/Shinku Geki/Shinkyaku Geki, depending on input) and can counter attacks.

Her Meteor Combo, Shirasegatana, varies in strength depending on how far away she is from her opponent. If the Shirasegatana hits the opponent with the blade, the ground is torn up and the single hit does the most damage possible, making it hard to optimize damage in a close range combo. Her version of Kairi's Kyouja Renbu is similar in the way that it is a grab attack.

Movelist
Normal throws Unique Attacks Special Attacks
 * Kyaku - neutral throw.
 * Keishukou - directional throw,
 * Chuuhou - An overhead spinning elbow attack.
 * Gaikyaku - Long range thrust kick. Can combo into supers.
 * Chuugeki Hou - an advancing elbow attack. Range depends on strength of punch button used. Can transition into another special attack:
 * Shougeki Ha - Double palm thrust. 2-hit combo.
 * Shinkuu Geki - does not combo, but she transitions into her backstep thrust kick.
 * Shinkyaku Geki - does not combo, but she transitions into her backstep sweep.

Super Combos Meteor Combo
 * Shinkuu Geki - Hokuto steps back and then advances with a thrust kick. One of her famous counter attacks. She can also feint this move.
 * Shin - feint. She will spin back. Used to trick the opponent.
 * Shinkyaku Geki - another counter move where she steps back and then follows up with a low kick. Forward and Heavy Kick versions will sweep the opponent and can combo with her supers.
 * Shin - feint. She will spin back. Used to trick the opponent.
 * Ryuusui - throw. Hokuto grabs the opponent and thrusts them forward to switch sides. Opponent momentarily has back exposed which allows Hokuto to quickly follow up with an attack.
 * Gokyaku Kou - counter attack. Hokuto will perform a stance and if opponent tries to connect with a high attack she will quickly perform a counter attack.
 * Kiren'Eki - a projectile attack which if you consider the sound effect, sounds like she's using a bow and arrow. Punch button can be held to delay the projectile and allow for more hits and damage.
 * Kyaku Hougi - Hokuto will yield her fans and proceed to attack the opponent.
 * Kakusei - In EX3 this is used to transform her into Bloody Hokuto, She will fire up and have glowing hands while in this state which lasts the entire round. Bloody Hokuto also has unique special attacks and super combos.
 * Shirase Gatana - yields the blade to strike down on her opponent.

Combos
Hokuto is not a huge combo character without meter. Her gameplay style is more focused around smart counter attacks.

Basic Special Combos: most of her combo enders involve her Chuugeki Hou > Shougeki Ha special attack. Ryuusui is used to start a combo with cr.LK and then Chuugeki Hou or Super. Basic Super Combos: some of Hokuto's normal attacks and her unique attacks (aside from her overhead) will combo into Super.
 * j.HP, cr.MK x Chuugeki Hou > Shougeki Ha
 * cr.MK or MP > Chuugeki Hou > Shougeki Ha
 * Ryuusui > cr.LK x Chuugeki Hou > Shougeki Ha
 * Gaikyaku x Kyaku Hougi or Kiren'Eki
 * Chuugeki Hou x Kyaku Hougi or Kiren'Eki
 * Ryuusui > cr.LK x Kyaku Hougi or Kiren'Eki
 * Shinkuu Geki x Kyaku Hougi or Kiren'Eki
 * Shinkyaku Geki x Kyaku Hougi or Kiren'Eki

Quotes
Hokuto/Quotes

Trivia

 * Her secret alternate costume of her "bloody" form in the console version of the first EX game, bears strong resemblance to that of early PC-98 designs of Reimu Hakurei, from the Touhou Project series.
 * The two main composers of the first EX game, Shinji Hosoe and Ayako Saso, are noted for their arrangements of various Touhou Project songs under their Sound Sepher label.


 * Hokuto has the skill in using some weapons; naginata practicing kobudo, bow and arrows as seen in her Kiren'Eki Super Combo and using tessen accompanied by her ability to control the winds.


 * Hokuto's ending in the first Street Fighter EX shows her defeating five warriors, maybe ninjas, during an attack at her. These warriors, wearing a green body suit and a demon like mask, look similar in appearance to Tekken fighter Kunimitsu as she appears in the original Tekken game.


 * Hokuto bears a strong resemblance to SNK's Kasumi Todoh from the Art of Fighting and The King of Fighters series of 2D fighting games.

Gallery
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Street Fighter EX series
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Street Fighter V
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