Kitsune is a street performer by day, and master thief by night—or day as the case may be. An anthropomorphic fox (who is named after the same creature), she is as cunning, quick, and agile as her profession demands. She considers herself a noble thief and only steals from people who can afford it, or who deserve it. She would never steal from the poor, not just because they have nothing worth stealing, but because she was once poor herself.
Her motto is: "A girl has to do what she can to get by."
History[]
Kitsune was the daughter of a wealthy fabric broker. However, her father was a spineless jellyfish of a man, and it was actually Kitsune's mother who was the brains of the outfit. When her mother died, her father remarried, hoping his new wife could continue the family business, but she had no business sense at all and little love for her new stepdaughter. When the business started to fail, her stepmother convinced her father to sell Kitsune to an inn to make some money and eliminate one extra mouth to feed. The innkeeper was tough on young Kitsune, but fair. It was possible that she'd spend the rest of her life there, but when she blossomed into a fine young woman, she caught the eye of the local brothel owner. When Kitsune overheard him buying her from the innkeeper, intent on making her a prostitute, she ran away.
Kitsune made her way to Edo, hoping that she could find work in the big city; but she found herself a street urchin, stealing what she needed to survive. She was a very poor excuse of a thief and was nearly caught for stealing but she was rescued by a street performer named Sachiko. Sachiko saw promise in the young girl and helped her evade the police, then brought her home where she made Kitsune a proposition; she revealed that she was also a master thief as well as a street performer and offered to teach the young girl everything she knew. Kitsune accepted, and with her new life, Sachiko gave her the name she is now known by: Kitsune. They also called each other sister. Sachiko was Onee-san, "Big Sister" and Kitsune was Imoto-chan "Little Sister".
Kitsune was a fast learner and soon became a skilled street performer and thief, and the pair started a crime wave in the city. After a while, the police started clamping down, so they switched from burglary to pick-pocketing where Sachiko would steal someone's purse and pass it off to Kitsune before anyone would catch them; if Sachiko was caught, she would no longer have the purse and could not be charged. Although the plan was effective, Kitsune eventually suggested that they move to another city to avoid suspicion. However, Sachiko was dismissive of the notion but eventually agreed to go to another city, after they got a little more "travel money".
Unfortunately, they picked the wrong mark when they decided to steal a coin purse from a samurai. The samurai had seen them in action earlier when they robbed a merchant of his coin purse and was well aware of how their scheme worked. Even though the samurai knew Sachiko didn't have his purse, he didn't care, he knew she took it, and that was enough cause for him to execute her in a back alley, as was the right of his social class. When Sachiko didn't return, Kitsune searched for her and was heartbroken when she found her big sister's body. After that, she left Edo and never returned.
Usagi first met Kitsune in the story titled "Kitsune" where she was working as a street performer. He made friends with her rather quickly due to his good nature, but later discovered that she picked his pocket when he found he couldn't pay for a meal and was forced to wash dishes to pay his debt. When they soon met again, Kitsune considered giving Usagi his purse back, only to find the ronin has already stolen it back. Since then, they have met many times, usually when Kitsune is plotting some scheme and Usagi helps out when things go wrong. She has also met Gen, who is initially smitten with the beauty, making him a perfect target. Despite that, the two become friends and temporary traveling companions in The Shrouded Moon. Near the end of the story Kitsune's Tale, it's hinted that there might be a romantic attraction between the thief and the bounty hunter. Aside from Usagi and Gen, Kitsune only had three friends in the world, each having a profound impact on her: Sachiko, Noodles, and Kiyoko
Personality[]
Kitsune is very clever and knows how to use her looks and charms to her advantage. Despite being a career criminal, she takes pride in being a "righteous thief", so she only takes from those who can afford it or from other criminals. She never steals from the poor, and, unlike Gen, she'd never stoop so low as to steal from the dead, not even a pile of gold coins. Kitsune also takes great pride in her profession as a thief, and takes her work seriously, having worked very hard for the skills she possesses. She possesses a carefree attitude towards life, and takes whatever opportunity comes her way, even when it lands her in trouble and Usagi has to come to her rescue. Even then, she's quick to put her trouble behind her, as long as everything turned out alright, and continues on with her same behavior. To her, there's no point in dwelling on the past.
While it may seem that Kitsune takes nothing seriously, her friendships are very dear to her. The loss of Sachiko and Noodles broke her heart, and even though she often takes advantage of Usagi, she does consider him a dear friend. She also takes her role as Kiyoko's big sister seriously and does her best to look after her.
Relationships[]
Sachiko[]
Sachiko saw Kitsune's potential as a thief and saved her from the police after she was caught stealing food. Not only was Sachiko the one who taught Kitsune everything she knew about being a thief, but also the one who gave her the name she lives by now. She was the only person who cared about Kitsune after her father sold her to the innkeeper, and after the innkeeper wanted to sell her to a brothel. The two shared a very close bond and were very much as sisters to each other.
Sadly, because Sachiko was the older of the two and the more experienced thief, she didn't listen to Kitsune's concern about drawing too much attention to themselves and wanting to move to a different city. Sachiko insisted on one last snatch before leaving Edo, unfortunately, the mark she chose was a samurai who had seen her before, and summarily executed her in a back alley. Her death was the first heartbreak Kitsune felt.
Noodles[]
Noodles was a soba (buckwheat noodles) vendor that Kitsune found half starving in a ditch with barely any clothes on him. He was physically huge but mentally handicapped, never spoke, and was apparently driven out of his village because they feared him. Kitsune felt sorry for the poor, childlike giant and took him under her care, and called him "Noodles", even though he made the worst soba anywhere. While she never taught him how to be a thief like she was, she used him as a cover by hiding in his soba stand after she stole something, and always gave him a cut of her profits.
When Usagi encountered them, there was a crime wave going through the city, and the magistrate was ordering his yoriki (police chief) to find the culprit. Unfortunately, Yoriki Masada was a gambling addict and owed a massive in debt to the local crooks and at the same time, the magistrate was pressing him to do something about this crime wave. In a desperate move, Masada framed and arrested Noodles for the thefts, seeing the mentally challenged mute as an easy target, and quickly had him sentenced to death. When Kitsune and Usagi heard what had happened, they both rushed to the execution grounds, and Kitsune desperately tried to save him by admitting that she was the thief, but her cries were drowned out by the jeering crowds, and she could only watch in horror as her friend was crucified and impaled by spears.
Shortly after, the gamblers started to pressure Masada for more of the money that he owed. Initially, he refused, knowing that the magistrate would come down hard on him if the crimes didn't subside for a while. So Masada came up with a plan to send the crooks after Usagi, hoping that he'd deal with them, stopping the crimes once and for all and freeing himself of the debt he owed. The gamblers confronted Usagi and Kitsune, thinking they had money, but Usagi quickly dispatched the lot of them. When the last gambler realized that they were tricked, he told Usagi that Masada had set them up, as well as framing Noodles. With that information, Kitsune swore vengeance on Yoriki Masada.
Kitsune started her own crime wave, robbing people at an astounding rate, which put Masada in an embarrassing spot. Not only for not stopping the crime wave, but for apparently executing the wrong man. His situation only got worse when the magistrate was robbed, and he summoned Masada to explain himself. On his way to meet the magistrate, Kitsune bumped into Masada, and he nabbed her, accusing her of being the thief. But once he realized that he still had his purse and her pockets were empty, he was forced to let her go. When Masada met with the magistrate, the magistrate's purse dropped from his coat. Upon seeing his own coin purse in Masada's possession, the Magistrate came to the conclusion that Masada was behind all the thefts and had him arrested.
As a result, Masada was ordered to commit seppuku. With her friend avenged, Kitsune used the rest of her money to have a gravestone erected for Noodles. As she never knew his real name, an image of a bowl of soba was etched upon it instead. His death crushed her. She had hoped to save enough money for the two of them to leave the city and find someplace quiet to live, but it simply wasn't their karma
Kiyoko[]
While travelling with Gen, Kitsune had a run in with a small girl named Kiyoko. She was a run-away who was living off the street, stealing what she needed to survive, not unlike Kitsune herself when she was a child. Kiyoko was easily caught by Gen when she tried to steal his purse, but Kitsune asked him to let her go. After telling Gen the story of her past, Kitsune left to go find Kiyoko with intent on taking her in and making her an apprentice as Sachiko did for her.
Since then, the two of them have become inseparable, and treat each other like sisters, even calling each other Onee-san "Big Sister" and Imoto-chan "Little Sister". Kitsune taught Kiyoko everything she knew, and Kiyoko has proven to be a natural at being a thief and has picked up many of Kitsune's traits, like picking someone's pocket on reflex. Kiyoko's safety is Kitsune's greatest concern, and she'll do anything to protect her adoptive younger sister from danger.
Kiyoko has proven to be such an adept apprentice, that there have been many instances where she impresses her Big Sister and picked up some of her bad habits. Such as when the two thieves encountered Usagi and Jotaro on their journey together while Kitsune and Kiyoko were plotting a blackmail scheme against a local gangster, and Kiyoko nicked Jotaro's coin purse without his knowledge. That's when Usagi started telling him about women, specifically women like Kitsune and Kiyoko.
Miyamoto Usagi[]
Kitsune and Usagi are as different as can possibly be, most particularly when it comes to matters of the law, yet they consider each other good friends. Kitsune loves to tease Usagi as much as possible, especially if it stops Usagi from interfering with her thievery. She's also not above using Usagi without his knowledge to pull off her crimes, mostly because she knows that he can handle himself in certain situations that she can't and considers his straight and narrow ways to be very boring and picks his pocket after their every encounter. Nonetheless, Kitsune does value Usagi's friendship, as he has saved her numerous times from the dangerous situations she usually puts herself in.
Murakami Gen[]
Whereas Kitsune prefers to tease Usagi, she has been shown to have some genuine feelings towards Gen. Once, during a conversation with Kiyoko, Kitsune said she'd actually prefer Gen over Usagi, much to Kiyoko's amusement. This preference most likely stems from their shared pragmatic view of the world as people who do what they must to survive, as well as their mutual love of money.
Kitsune first met Gen during "The Shrouded Moon" while he was traveling with Usagi, and she was instantly able to use her looks to fluster him and steal his money, which he didn't realize until after she was gone, much to his own anger. When she met the two ronin again later, Gen was much more wary of her and refused to lose sight of his coin purse. At the time, Kitsune was working a caper to undermine a local yakuza boss, and despite her assurances to Usagi that she could take of herself, Gen was actually the one to go after her to make sure she didn't get into trouble. Kitsune ended up being captured by the yakuza but was saved thanks to both Gen and Usagi. After she finished her caper, and was paid a handsome sum of money, Kitsune decided to travel with Gen for a while, who jokingly stated he was tired of Usagi's company.
It was during their travels together during "Kitsune's Tale" that Kitsune first met Kiyoko when the young girl tried stealing Gen's coin purse. Kitsune was able to convince Gen to let the little girl go and advised her to be more careful about what marks she picks. Later that night at an inn, Kitsune told Gen how that little girl reminded her of her own past, then regaled the bounty hunter the story of her life. When Kitsune was done, she decided to part ways with Gen to go find that little girl. Before she left, Kitsune returned Gen's coin purse; though it turned out that Gen was already aware that she took it but knew she wouldn't keep it. Kitsune said the Gen was sweet, then kissed his cheek and bade him farewell.
The romance between Kitsune and Gen was confirmed and expanded on in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Usagi Yojimbo WhereWhen No. 1 when, years later, the two of them were now husband and wife, and were described as having a very happy marriage.
Fighting Style[]
While Kitsune has no actual training in martial arts, she has proven time and again to be able to handle herself in a violent situation. When she has to fight, Kitsune uses a short sword and catches her enemies off guard with her astonishing speed and reflexes. She can also throw heavy battle tops with great accuracy as an improvised weapon. However, Kitsune is no match for any highly skilled combatant, like Chizu, and given the opportunity, she'd sooner run than fight.
Stories in which Kitsune has appeared[]
- "Kitsune"
- "The Return of Kitsune"
- "Noodles"
- "The Shrouded Moon"
- "Kitsune's Tale"
- "Komainu"
- "After the Rat"
- "The Thief and the Lotus Scroll"
- "Traitors of the Earth"
- "The Thief and the Kunoichi"