Ayane

Ayane (綾音, Ayane) is one of the main characters from the Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden video game series. Starting as a training dummy in the Saga Saturn port of the original Dead or Alive, Ayane became a playable character in the PlayStation port. As well as being a recurring character in the DOA franchise, Ayane also appears in the Ninja Gaiden series helping Ryu Hayabusa with hints and clues, as well as becoming a playable character in certain special editions.

The kanji in Ayane's name is literally translated as "Design Sound".

History
Ayane was conceived when her mother, Ayame, was raped by Raidou, the progenitor of the Mugen Tenshin's troubles. It was due to this that the village took a great dislike towards Ayane - naming for "the cursed child" - and turned her into an outcast, raised not by her mother but by Genra, the Mugen Tenshin Clan’s shadow ninja.

Unaware of the circumstances of her birth, she and Kasumi - the "princess" of the Mugen Tenshin village - played together as childhood friends, although neither of them knew that they were half-sister. When Genra proposed that Ayane assist him in his duties before the clan’s Masters, Ayane met Hayate for the first time and became a shadow ninja, helping the clan from afar.

It was during a village festival that Ayane learned the truth of her conception. She was taken to a private room where Ayame shamefully admitted everything to her; that she was an heir to the clan’s head family and the half-sister to both Hayate and Kasumi. Driven by her mother’s shame and her own anger at being outcast, Ayane devoted herself to honing her Hajin Mon abilities beyond any other ninja in the clan to prove that even she, the lowly "cursed child", could become something great.

Ninja Gaiden
At the age of 14, Ayane become highly skilled in the ninja arts and had come to be an important asset for the Master Ninja Murai of the Shadow Ninja Clan as an information courier.

It was during one of these trips that she noticed something amiss and discovered the Hayabusa Village under attack. Running to the Shadow Clan to inform Murai she encountered Ryu Hayabusa, who was also paying a visit to the Master Ninja. Informing the two of the attack resulted in Ryu rushing to his village and being slain by the Greater Fiend, Doku. After being restored by the clan’s animal spirit, Ryu embarked on a quest of vengeance for his clan and Ayane embarked to support him by providing Ryu with information, hints and items whenever possible.

Ninja Gaiden 2
Once again assisting Ryu in his adventures, Ayane is first seen assisting in the aftermath of the latest attack on the Hayabusa village. Eventually she is tasked with locating and retrieving the Eye of the Dragon jewel in order to empower the Dragon Sword, wielded by Ryu. To do this, she had to defeat the ressurected fiend and Black Spider clan leader, Obaba.

Dead or Alive
When Raidou, returned to the Mugen Tenshin village in search of the Torn Sky Blast, Ayane confronted him but was quickly defeated. After Raidou's rampage, Hayate was left grievously injured, inciting Kasumi to leave the clan on a quest for vengeance. Leaving the clan marked her as a runaway Shinobi, so Ayane was ordered to track down and kill Kasumi in order to secure their clan’s secrecy.



Dead or Alive 2
Having tracked Kasumi to the second DOA tournament, Ayane enters as a combatant in the hopes of confronting her half-sister in battle. Though she doesn’t manage to kill Kasumi, she does encounter an amnesiac but apparently healthy Hayate - who had been living by the name of Ein - and assists in his gradual regaining of memory. During the tournament, Ayane also is confronted by Helena Douglas, believing that the ninja was the one who assassinated her mother, Maria. Ayane neither confirms nor denies the accusation, choosing to simply taunt the woman instead.

Dead or Alive 3
Following the disappearance of her Master and foster parent, Genra, Ayane learns that he was taken by DOATEC and was converted in a monster known as Omega, as well as the purpose of the latest DOA tournament: to act as a proving ground for Omega’s abilities. Now the most powerful practitioner of Mugen Tenshin Clan, Ayane accompanied Hayate - now the 18th leader of the clan - and Ryu Hayabusa in defeating Genra in the tournament. After many battles, which included matches against both Hayate and Kasumi, Ayane emerged to defeat the monster Omega in hand to hand combat. As a tribute to Genra, she giving him a funeral pyre and kept his weapon, a double blade energy sword, as a memento.

Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball
Ayane was invited to Zack Island, believing that she will be taking part in the fourth DOA tournament. However, upon arrival, the tournament was discovered to be a hoax by Zack, and Ayane was stuck for two weeks in the island resort. To pass the time, she teamed up with other DOA girls and participated in volleyball contests, games and shopping.

Dead or Alive 4
The fourth DOA tournament served as an opportunity for vengeance by the Mugen Tenshin clan, who had suffered at the hands of DOATEC’s experiments, so Ayane once again accompanied Hayate and Ryu in embarking on DOATEC’s destruction. During the battle, Ayane acted to delay Kasumi in stopping Hayate from attacking DOATEC and engages Christie in combat in order to allow Ryu to go after his targets. Ayane was also primarily responsible for the destruction of the DOATEC Tritower, conjuring a powerful Art of the Raging Mountain God technique that resulted in the destruction of the complex’s middle floors. Despite being ordered to kill Kasumi, at the end she stops her half-sister from running into the burning tritower after Helena. It's unknown if Ayane did it to allow Helena to carry out her actions or to keep Kasumi from getting killed herself.

Dead or Alive Xtreme 2
Although the exact purpose is unknown, Ayane follows Kasumi to the resurrected Zack Island, and participates in the holiday activities. It is unclear whether she followed Kasumi in order to attempt another assassination, whether they were friends now, or if she too wished to see Hayate, following the rumour that he was staying on the island.

Personality
Mostly due to the way she was treated as a child, Ayane possesses a detached, cynical outlook on life and is completely driven by the desire to prove herself that she is better than those that condemned her. As a result, she turned into a determined, strong and secretive young woman, but she isn’t entirely cold. She does form working relationships with those around her and lolally follows the ninja code of her clan. She does have a tendency to talk down on people, acting antagonistic, possibly again due to her experiences growing up. It should be noted that she despises anything or anyone reminding her of the past.

Preferences
''Also see: Ayane Ninja Gaiden Items and Ayane/DOAX Swimsuits.

A fan of things dark purple and navy blue, Ayane also has a fondness for grape juice and s; a European type of glazed chestnut confectionary. Her favourite animal seems to be the, collecting and displaying various decorations on her outfits allouding to the Swallowtail.

As with any sixteen year old, Ayane is intrigued with beauty products and makeup, however, as she is also a ninja, the traditional weapons and items of her trade are also preferred by her over the more common, civilian variants - for example, she prefers shuriken over a gun). Her birthstone, the, is also a favoured item of hers. She also has formed a theme by tying a windmilling purple to the end of her kunai. This style of kunai has become associated with her.

Kasumi
Ayane and Kasumi are half-sisters; sharing the same biological mother. As children they were close friends, however after learning the circumstances of her birth, Ayane became jealous of Kasumi, because Ayane was treated like the demon child of the village while Kasumi was treated like a princess.

Ayane was able to express her deep hatred toward Kasumi when she was sent to kill her for leaving the village. She also tries to keep Kasumi away from Hayate as well. However, this envy and hatred may have abated now that their circumstances have changed; with Ayane the Hajin Mon Master of the Mugen Tenshin clan and Kasumi the runaway Shinobi desperate for attention. This can been why she stops Kasumi from entering the burning DOATEC building seconds before it explodes, despite her mission to kill her.

Hayate
Although Hayate and - of a time - Ayane didn't know that they were half-siblings, the connection between them is strong, albeit somewhat ambiguous. As children, Hayate was one of the few people who did not treat Ayane as a social pariah. This, combined with the man's skill, resolve and position in the clan, led Ayane to admire Hayate greatly.

Ayane's exact feelings for Hayate are a matter of debate. Her respect for him is obvious, and the friendship/familial bond the two share is apparent; however, whether or not Ayane secretly loves Hayate, as some have come to believe, is uncertain. Regardless of their exact relationship, the two remain at each other's side, looking out for and protecting each other's backs.

Genra
Since no one cared for Ayane, Genra took her in as if she was his own. As Master of the style, Genra trained Ayane in the Hajin Mon style of Mugen Tenshin ninjutsu. As a result Genra was both her father figure and Master in ninjutsu. After his capture and transformation into Omega, Ayane felt obligated to end her foster father’s suffering and embarked to defeat him. He was cremated in a funeral pyre preceded over by Ayane where she wept for the only person who cared enough to take her in.

Ryu Hayabusa
Ryu and Ayane have worked together on two separate occasions; five if counting the Tengu affair in the second DOA tournament, the Omega affair and the Mugen Tenshin clan’s attack on DOATEC. She regards Ryu with respect and has formed a working relationship with the super ninja.

Parents
Raidou, Ayane's biological father, raped Ayane’s biological mother Ayame, resulting in the girl's birth. Ayane shows deep hatred towards Raidou as he was the cause of her "cursed birth" and her life as an outcase. She failed to get revenge on Raidou, as Kasumi defeated and killed him in the first tournament in vengeance for Hayate, who Raidou had grievously injured.

Ayane also has a deep hatred for her mother, Ayame, for being ashamed of her daughter and making her an outcast, while treating Kasumi as a princess of the clan.

DOA
Throughout the DOA series, Ayane has been amongst the fastest characters in terms of move execution. While as fast as Kasumi, Ayane’s attacks do twice as much damage. However, although she is powerful, Ayane is a very hard character to master. This is mostly due to how her moves require practice to execute flawlessly and efficiently. One wrong move could leave her wide open to attack. As such, she is definitely not suited for beginners. Before using Ayane it is recommended to practice with Kasumi first, as she is a more balanced character while still pertaining the same speedy attack style. When she is mastered, however, Ayane’s spinning attacks can be a great asset in a duel, making her difficult to predict and be countered by the opponent. She is a deadly character in the right hands.

Ninja Gaiden
With a shorter attack range than Ryu, Ayane is equipped with a pair of Fuma Kodachi, explosive kunai and the Art of the Raging Mountain God technique, and as such is a fast and deadly opponent. Largely acting as a supporting character, she becomes playable in Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 where she possesses her own storyline, in which she must find and obtain the Eye of the Dragon jewel for Ryu Hayabusa's Dragon Sword. She also becomes available in the co-op and multiplayer modes.

She possesses much of the same moves as Ryu, including the Izuna Drop, however her weapon range is shorter due to her smaller swords.

DOA: Dead or Alive
In the film DOA: Dead or Alive - loosely based on the video game series - Ayane is portrayed by Natassia Malthe, and therefore appears much older than in the video game, not to mention possessing a complete change in ethnicity.

In this movie, Ayane is not Hayate’s half-sister but his lover, although she is still half-sister to Kasumi. She is assigned the task of killing Kasumi for abandoning the village and as a result follows her to the Dead or Alive Tournament where during the contest she finds Hayate, who was previously thought dead. At the end of the movie she saves Hayate from a potentially lethal fall. Her character was portrayed similarly to her video game self in the sense that they are both somewhat focused on their objective and avoid personal interaction.

Dead or Alive: Code Chronos
The announced game Dead or Alive: Code Chronos was said to feature both Ayane and Kasumi; acting as a prequel to the Dead or Alive series and detailing the history between the two sisters as they grew up within their clan. However due to Tomonobu Itagaki leaving Tecmo it is unclear whether the game will be produced.

Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce
Ayane makes a guest appearance in PS3 version of , offering quests to the player. If the player completes all of her challenges, they earn the right to wield her Fuma Kodachi in battle.

ZEN Pinball Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2
Ayane appears as part of this specialized pinball series for the PlayStation Network.

Outfit Usages
Ayane's signature purple butterfly dress is an unlockable costume in . The same dress also appears in  as an alternate costume for Mayu, one of the game’s two protagonists.

Musical Themes
The below themes are played during matches when playing as Ayane or when fighting against her:
 * Aya - Dead or Alive
 * TehuTehu - Dead or Alive 2
 * Prismatic Butterfly - Dead or Alive 3
 * Shade - Dead or Alive 4
 * Sense of Mission - Ninja Gaiden SIGMA II

Trivia

 * Ayane appears as a combatant in the fan-made CG movie series Dead Fantasy where cast members of the DOA series fight cast members from the Final Fantasy franchise. She fights with the dual-blade energy sword that belonged to Genra and utilizes her Hajinmon style and ninpo to battle the Final Fantasy cast.
 * The reason why Ayane, Kasumi and Kokoro do not have listed ages (16, 17 and 17 respectively) in the western versions of the DOA games is because they are under 18 years old. Tecmo decided to give them undefined ages to avoid the risk of a moral backlash from western audiences.
 * Tomonobu Itagaki ensured that those players selecting the Ninja Dog difficulty in Ninja Gaiden BLACK|Ninja Gaiden BLACK would be subjected to gentle mockery by the game; players on this difficulty setting would have Ryu demerited from Master Ninja to a station below Ayane. Ayane would then offer help in the way of stat increasing equipment, additional healing items, free items from Muramasa's shop and the games' title screen would change from an image of Ryu to an image of Ayane.
 * In Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2, one of Ayane's alternate costumes pays homage to Sun Shang Xiang from the Dynasty Warriors franchise.
 * Ayane’s 6th outfit in Dead or Alive Ultimate pays homage to Millenia from Kagero: Deception 2, another of Tecmo’s game series.
 * While she may be one of the youngest in the series along with Eliot - both being only 16 years old - Ayane possesses the second largest bust of the girls, falling just 2 centimeters behind Tina Armstrong.
 * In the Ninja Gaiden series, Ayane frequently announces herself with one of her purple iris kunai. She also seems to sometimes appear in a flurry of purple iris petals, much like Kasumi does with pink sakura petals.