Kushinada, Mikumo
Summary
Kushinada Mikumo, a Sei and Satsujin Ken wielder associated with the Water symbol, serves as the Jujutsu Master for Yami’s One Shadow Nine Fists and acts as the mentor to Kushinada Chikage. She stands out as the sole female member of the Nine Fists. Although she appears to be a curvaceous woman in her mid-twenties to early thirties, she is actually over eighty years old, a longevity attributed to her family’s bodily experiments designed to retard aging. Her appearance features long, waist-length black hair and an open kimono that highlights her figure, often paired with a bead necklace and hakama. This contrasts with her youth, when her hair was chin-length, her physique less pronounced, and her height slightly shorter. She has been observed driving a sports car, a modern habit that clashes with her traditional attire, likely while searching for Diego following his transformation into the "Angry Steel Fist." Mikumo is characterized by an emotionless and serious demeanor, displaying little beyond surprise and a persistent melancholy. She maintains that emotional control is vital for combat, believing that losing one’s temper dulls one’s skills. This philosophy extends to her worldview, where she views empathy as a weakness and asserts that the strong must not allow their hearts to be shaken by the weak. She leveraged this mindset to encourage Ethan Stanley to fight more ruthlessly against Kenichi in order to save his sister. Despite her cold exterior, she treats Chikage with exceptional kindness, almost like a daughter, and spends her free time meditating. Her past reveals a complex history with Fuurinji Hayato, with whom she once fought against Yami. Flashbacks depict a younger Hayato and a slightly younger Mikumo on the battlefield, hinting at a deeper relationship that Hayato denies by claiming only the forts and tanks burned between them. Her reasons for joining Yami remain unclear, though it is suggested that the loss of a loved one drove her to this path. When recounting her past adventures with Hayato, she displays an oddly feminine side, chiding him for lacking charm and covering half her face with her hakama sleeve while describing their interactions as "the hot fires blazing between us."
