Hayate

Hayate (ハヤテ, Hayate) is a shinobi and the eighteenth master of the Mugen Tenshin Ninja Clan. He is eldest child and only son of Shiden and Ayame, making him Kasumi's older brother, and Ayane's older half-brother. He is also friends and allies with Ryu Hayabusa.

Although he was first mentioned in the first Dead or Alive in 1996, Hayate's official debut appearance was in the 1999 title Dead or Alive 2 as Ein; a amnesiac Karate master. He regained his memory during the second game and finally appeared as himself in 2001 for Dead or Alive 3.

Early Life
Hayate is the eldest child and only son of Shiden, the now-former leader of the Mugen Tenshin Clan, and Ayame. He was born to be the next leader of the clan, to follow on from his father. He seemed to have a happy childhood, training in the art of the clan, Tenjin Mon-styled ninjutsu, with his younger sister Kasumi, who loved him dearly.

After Genra requested to Shiden for Ayane - the village's "cursed child" and his foster daughter - to begin her training, Hayate started to form a friendship with the girl, treating her with kindness, which most of the clan didn't give her.

The two formed a strong bond, but soon after, Ayame admitted to Ayane that she was her daughter, meaning that she was a half-sister to Hayate and Kasumi. Despite this life-changing revelation, and the falling-out between Ayane and Kasumi, Hayate reminded to have strong relationships with both of his sisters over the years.

During his early life, Hayate also became good friends with Ryu Hayabusa, who like him was next in line to be the master of his own clan, the Hayabusa Clan.

Raidou's Attack and the Aftermath
When Hayate was 23, Raidou, Shiden's traitorous brother who was banished from the clan, returned to their village and attacked the clan in an attempt to "steal" the Torn Sky Blast ninpō attack.

Hayate and Ayane were at the front line to defend the village. Ayane attacked Raidou to defend her brother, but was quickly defeated. Hayate ran to her aid, but when Raidou called him a "weakling" for hiding behind a woman, Hayate attacked him in rage. He used the Torn Sky Blast to fight Raidou, despite Ayane's protests, but he was overcome by his uncle's superior fighting skill, and the Torn Sky Blast was stolen from him. As both of their ninpō attacks collided, the resulting explosion threw Hayate into a tree, cracking his spine and sending him into a coma.

Despite Kasumi dutifully looked after him, Hayate's remained in his coma and seemed doomed to stay in that state, with some of the shinobi considering him to be "dead". Because of this, his entitlement to the title of clan master was past down to Kasumi. Soon after Kasumi learned the truth about the cause of Hayate's coma from Ayane, she fled the village to seek revenge against Raidou for Hayate's during the first Dead or Alive World Combat Championship, despite the fact that leaving the village without permission branded her as a runaway shinobi.

Project Epsilon and the Second Tournament
Shortly after the events of the first tournament, Hayate - still in his coma - was kidnapped by Kasumi Alpha, a clone of Kasumi, for the Dead or Alive Tournament Executive Committee and was taken to DOATEC Germany, one of their research labs located near the Black Forest.

While in their possession, Hayate was made to undergo various experiments as part of Project Epsilon, which was headed by Lisa Hamilton. It was unclear what DOATEC were planning to do to Hayate, but they were likely trying to turn him into a super-human weapon, just as they were using Kasumi's DNA around the time for the same purpose. They managed to repair his spine but did little else to him at the time.

Shortly before the second tournament began, Ryu attacked DOATEC Germany to save Kasumi (who was also being held in the same building) and caused the building to set alight. The DOATEC staff, along with Hayate, were taken onto helicopters to escape the blaze and continue their experiments at another building, but the helicopter Hayate was in had engine failure and crash-landed in the Black Forest.

Hayate got away from DOATEC and the crash alive and was lucky enough to run into Hitomi, a Karate student who was training in the forest, before collapsing. Due to the traumatic events he went through, Hayate began to suffer from amnesia, and he could not remember his past or even his name. He was taken in by Hitomi's family, and ended up going by the name of "Ein".

Hitomi's father, a master of a dojo, trained Ein in the art of Karate. Ein quickly picked up the style and was made an instructor in the dojo, but he soon left to join the second Dead or Alive Tournament, to find answers to his lost past. During the early rounds, Ein encountered both Ayane and Ryu. He defeated both of them, which caused Ein to regain some memories about the two of them.

Sometime after the tournament, he encountered Kasumi, whom he still didn't remember. Ryu encouraged them to fight each other, saying that when the blood of two siblings meet in battle, the very soul of a shinobi will awaken. Sure enough, after he defeated Kasumi and knocked her unconscious, Hayate's memories returned.

Shortly afterwards, Genra appeared before them and revealed himself to be the one who broke the barrier that separates the Spirit World from Earth, allowing Gohyakumine Bankotsubo to enter the human world and cause chaos. As the traitorous ninja made his leave Hayate and Ryu confront Ayane, who was under Genra's control, and Kasumi Alpha, Kasumi's clone. Together with Ryu, they were victorious.

After the fight, Ryu introduced Hayate to his friend, CIA agent Irene Lew who tells the men that the CIA have been watching DOATEC and their shady actions for some time. After Ayane regained consciousness, they soon realized that Kasumi disappeared, leaving Hayate in a highly worried state.

The Third Tournament
After Genra turned against the clan, Hayate requested his father to allow him to hunt down the traitor, which made Shiden believe that Hayate may be ready to take over as the leader of the clan. Hayate wanted to find Kasumi first, but Ayane spoke against it, calling Kasumi a traitor and suggesting that she might had been consorting with Genra. Enraged by her words, Hayate slapped Ayane.

Getting a lead on Kasumi's whearabouts in Kyoto, Hayate and Ayane join the third tournament. While on the Freedom Survivor, Hayate met up Hitomi again for the first time since he left her family's home when he was Ein. Hayate introduced Ayane to Hitomi, who assumed that Ayane was Kasumi, the girl who Hayate was mumbling about when they first met. Angered for being mistaken for Kasumi, Ayane fought Hitomi. After the fight, Hayate revealed to Hitomi the truth about his shinobi identity, much to her surprise.

The siblings also crossed paths with the legendary Gen Fu, and his student Eliot. Hayate paid respect to Gen Fu's skills and reputation, before they engaged in a tag-team fight. Although Ayane became annoyed with Eliot and his lack of self-confidence, Gen Fu admired her fiery spirit and Eliot thanked her greatly for the fight, which caused Ayane to walk off, leaving Hayate trying to keep up with her.

Some time later, Ayane and Hayate argued about who should take down Genra; Hayate felt that as leader of the clan, it was his duty to take down the former master, but Ayane too felt it was her task, being Genra's foster daughter and heir. After fighting about it, they both agree to work together to take down Genra.

During the rounds of the tournament, Hayate met with Helena Douglas, who recognised him as the subject of Project Epsilon. Hayate demanded to tell her why Genra joined DOATEC, but she claimed she didn't know, that Genra and even herself were just puppets that DOATEC controled. After defeating Helena in battle, he told her that he would defeat Genra, and she should leave DOATEC for her own safety.

A while later, Hayate and Ayane met up with Ryu and Irene, and the men engaged in battle to see who was the greater shinobi. The fight become extreme as the boys started a ninpo duel, but were stopped by Ayane as Irene was kidnapped by Christie. Ryu ran off to save Irene, but Hayate and Ayane realized that her kidnapping was just a distraction for Genra. The fallen master created a portal to Hellfire, and transformed into his powerful Omega form.

The two shinobi try to take him down, but Genra proved too strong and they were starting to become overpowered by him. When Ryu realized that Christie was just a decoy, he quickly ran to aid his friends, and ran Genra through with the Dragon Sword. Before the monster could regenerate, Ayane and Hayate performed a duel-spell together and struck the final blow, killing Genra.

The Fourth Tournament and The Fall of DOATEC
During the fourth tournament, the Mugen Tenshin Clan set out to defeat DOATEC once and for all. Before they left for go to the DOATEC Tritower, Hayate encountered Kasumi, who tried to convince him to simply return to the village and prevent all-out war against DOATEC. However, Ayane intervened and stopped her sister, asking Hayate to go ahead without her. He left Ayane and Kasumi to battle.

Hayate commanded his men to attack the Tritower, and with the assistance of Irene, he entered the building with Ayane and Ryu, fighting through DOATEC's private army. Part-way through the attack, he encountered Lisa (in her wrestling persona La Mariposa), who hinted that she had something to do with his vendetta against DOATEC. Hayate merely replied that she had done him a favored and repaid her with a fight.

Hayate encountered Hitomi once again, who pleaded for him to come back with him to the dojo, admitting that she did not know what to do without him. Hayate told her that he couldn't because he was no longer Ein, and the fourth tournament was no tournament at all, but a war. He then asked her to spar for a warm-up, for old time's sake, which she happily accepted. After the fight, they told each other to take care and Hitomi took her leave, obviously upset by the parting.

In the end, Hayate joined up with Ayane again, and they tried to fight their way out as Ayane's Art of the Raging Mountain God spell starts to burn down the building. As they tried to leave, they were set upon by Alpha-152, the now-enhanced, new form of Kasumi Alpha. Despite the clone's strength and super-power abilities, the two shinobi managed to escape it and the Tritower complex as it burnt to the ground.

Appearance
Also see: Hayate's Outfit Catalogues

Hayate is a young, muscular man, who has inherited his father's facial features, but mother's eye colour. In his original design, Hayate has slightly tanned skin, a slim face with a pointed chin, board shoulders, and narrow brown eyes. His hair is light brown, straight, and styled so it reaches his shoulders with a center parting. For Dead or Alive 5, he was re-vamped to have more harder-looking, mature features, including a squared chin and a lower brow. His hair has been given a small cut, so it is only as long as his jawline.

Hayate is typically seen in shinobi armor and body-suits, which could include shin and wrist guards, chainmail, and masks to cover the lower half of his face. To recurring elements to his costumes include his sword, the Jinran-Maru, and a headband which he will wear around his forehead. He will also wear some casual, everyday clothing from time to time, in order to blend in with normal people and hide his shinobi identity.

Personality
Hayate has a powerful sense of duty when it comes to his role as a leader, and as a shinobi of his clan. He is so devoted to the clan's rules and traditions that he would even hunt down his own runaway sister, albeit with much reluctance.

Although he could easily kill an enemy, Hayate is an honorable, caring soul when it comes to his family, friends, and allies. Hayate was close with both of his sisters, and despite the girls' rivalry between each other, he has tried to remain friends with them. He has also shown that he is a very protective older brother; when Brad Wong tried to hit on Ayane, Hayate was quick to use brute force to get the man away from her.

Hayate has also shown to have a competitive nature, with his friendly rivalry between his friend Ryu. While very serious when it comes to important matters, he isn't above having a bit of fun from time to time.

Etymology
The kanji used to spell Hayate's name (疾風) means "Gale", "Hurricane" or "Storms". This serves to distinguish Hayate's character in terms of his skills as a ninja and his wind like nature, being as gentle as a breeze to his friends and family, and as lethal and encompassing as an actual hurricane when enraged.

Kasumi
Kasumi is Hayate's younger sister. Hayate was a very protective brother to Kasumi, so they had a close sibling relationship. After Hayate was injured by Raidou, Kasumi sought revenge on Raidou for what he did to Hayate, seeking to restore her brother's honor.

They have a very close and strong bond, even as Hayate becomes the leader of the Mugen Tenshin clan and Kasumi becomes a runaway ninja. Hayate will never harm Kasumi himself, but he will not speak to her over the shame that he chooses the clan over Kasumi.

Ayane
The connection between Ayane and Hayate is strong, even though he dosen't care for her as much as Kasumi. Hayate is Ayane's half-brother, although he was unaware of this as Ayane's heritage was kept secret. When she was a child, Hayate was one of the few people who did not see Ayane as a "demon child". His kindness towards her, combined with his strength and resolve, led Ayane to admire Hayate greatly.

They remain at each other's side and look out and protect one another as partners-in-arms.

Ryu Hayabusa
It is unclear exactly when the two met but Hayate and Ryu have always been the best of friends, serving as an example of the close relations the two clans had with one another. Before his abduction by DOATEC, Hayate had Ryu promise to look over Kasumi; thusly when Kasumi was to appear in the Dead or Alive Tournaments, he agreed to participate as well. Ryu and Hayate also share similar techniques, probably due to them practicing together as kids. This is evidenced from during the 3rd tournament, as seen through Dead or Alive Dimensions, when Hayate and Ryu simultaneously executed a master ninja rank Ninpo on each other.

Hitomi
Hitomi’s family took Hayate in during his amnesiac episode in Germany. During his stay Hayate, known as Ein at the time, learnt karate in the family dojo alongside Hitomi; in the process becoming somewhat of a prodigy for the dojo. It is unknown whether she actually knows his real name - but when the family dojo came under financial troubles she sought out "Ein" for help. Hayate doesn't correct her when she calls him "Ein." It is obvious that she has strong feelings for Hayate, and she started crying when he tells her to leave in the fourth tournament.

Gameplay
Hayate's fighting skill focuses on power rather than withstanding. He can best be described as a merger between the styles of his alter-ego Ein and Kasumi, and has been lauded as the best fighter to use in Dead or Alive 4 for his high-end speed and power balance and ease of use.

Many of his attacks have extremely fast start-up and inflict decent amounts of damage. Despite all this, it should be noted that one move in particular, "Raijin", is known as the hardest command throw in the game in terms of execution despite not being the most powerful throw in the game, though it can still be very damaging.

Musical Themes

 * Reincarnate - Dead or Alive 3 and Dead or Alive: Dimensions
 * Goin' for Broke - Dead or Alive 3 Ending Theme
 * The Wind Is Howling - Dead or Alive 4
 * The Broken Arrows - Dead or Alive 4 Ending Theme

Dead or Alive Series

 * Dead or Alive (Mentioned, 1996 - 1998)
 * Dead or Alive 2 (Mentioned, 1999 - 2000)
 * Dead or Alive 3 (2001 - 2002)
 * Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball (Mentioned, 2003)
 * Dead or Alive Ultimate (2004 - 2005)
 * Dead or Alive 4 (2005 - 2006)
 * Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 (Mentioned, 2006)
 * Dead or Alive Paradise (Mentioned, 2010)
 * Dead or Alive: Dimensions (2011)

Dead or Alive 5
Hayate has been confirmed to be a playable character in Dead or Alive 5, which is set to be released in 2012 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. During Tokyo Game Show 2011, Team Ninja showed a pre-alpha trailer featuring Hayate and Ryu battling on the new stage, Scramble.

DOA: Dead or Alive
Hayate is portrayed by Collin Chou in DOA: Dead or Alive. In the movie, he is captured by DOATEC after winning that year's DOA competition rather than being captured by DOATEC in his home village. Also, he is meant to test Donovan's newest invention rather than being tested on Project Epsilon. He is also the reason for Kasumi's entrance in the tournament like in the first game. Donovan states that Hayate is stronger then Kasumi and that he has a "perfect blend of skill, timing and strength". Hayate and Ayane are also shown as lovers rather than half-siblings. The fighting style he used was.

Dead Fantasy
Also see: Hayate on Dead Fantasy Wiki

Hayate appears in the fan-made CG movie series Dead Fantasy, with his first appearence in the fifth episode. Although he did not fight, he sent his clan to defeat Final Fantasy's Tifa Lockhart. After Tifa's defeat, he awaits for Helena to pick her up and take her to DOATEC. His and Hitomi's links with Helena are suspicious and still unexplained.

Trivia

 * Hayate is the only ninja character that has yet to win a tournament.
 * Although Hayate did appear as a playable character in Dead or Alive 2 as his alter-ego Ein and was heavily mentioned, Hayate is still considered a brand new character in Dead or Alive 3, since it was the first time in the series to play as Hayate with a brand new fighting style.

Also See

 * Ein