Kirika Yuumura

Infobox animanga character
name = Kirika Yuumura
series = Noir


caption = Kirika's portrait
first = Episode 1
last = Episode 26
creator =
voiced by = Houko Kuwashima (Japanese)
Monica Rial (English)
nickname = Noir
Dummy (By Mireille)
alias =
age = 15
gender = Female
blood type = O
born = 1994-1995 (?)"Noir", episode 04: The profile of Rosaly Hammond.]
death =
occupation = Assassin
title =
relatives =
divider = yes
aux1 name = Theme music
aux1 = Canta Per Me (Italian for 'Sing for Me')
aux2 name = Weapons
aux2 = Beretta M1934

Kirika Yuumura (夕叢霧香"Yūmura Kirika") is one of the two protagonists in the 26-episode anime series Noir created by Bee Train studio. Her past clouded in obscurity due to amnesia, Kirika awoke with no memories except the word "Noir". Later, she sent a email to the renowned assassin Mireille Bouquet, eventually the two of them team up to uncover their past and also learn the history of Noir.

Appearance and Personality

Kirika is a black-haired, red/brown-eyed Japanese high school student. Kirika is contemplative, phlegmatic, quiet, and withdrawn, often seen staring off into space and rarely showing much expression. She wears simple and unassuming clothes, usually appearing in the series in a cerulean singlet with black trim, bright blue shorts, and a zippered white jacket with large outer pockets. She seems to like cats and ice cream. Mid-way through the series, she is shown to have a liking and natural talent for painting. She also displays empathy and caring for other people despite her profession, and perhaps ironically she is also skilled in first aid. Kirika's weapon of choice is a Beretta M1934 she has possessed since childhood.

Despite her young age and lack of explicit memories from her past, she retains a host of procedural memories and, consequently, skills related to combat and assassination. Her many abilities include excellent marksmanship, timing, agility, and heightened senses. She has significant knowledge in assassination techniques and martial arts, along with an accuracy that allows her to kill almost universally with one shot, while also able to use a variety of mundane objects as lethal weapons. Her skills are superior to those of her partner, Mireille, and Kirika executes them with a coldness which Mireille sometimes describes as 'vulgar'.

Of the three Noir "saplings", Mireille, Kirika, and Chloe, Kirika was singled out by Altena as particularly capable "Noir". Chloe considers her (along with herself and excluding Mireille) to be a 'True Noir', who kills ably and without any hesitation. It is revealed over the course of the series that she demonstrated this in early childhood, when she successfully carried out "numerous missions" including the assassination of Mireille's parents. At the story of Noir begins, Kirika seems to lost this ability, but it returns when she witnesses a village gunned down while protecting her.

Despite her coldness, she has a consuming desire to "feel sad" because of her many killings, an emotion she is incapable of feeling until late in the series. She also demonstrates empathy and caring for others, especially Mireille, even though Mireille states repeatedly that she will kill her after the truth is discovered, the possibility of which Kirika peacefully accepts. Her killing of Mireille's parents is an event especially distressful to her, and after remembering this with the assistance of Chloe, she begs Mireille to kill her and remains scarred by the incident. The burden of her many assassinations and incapacity of feeling sadness or remorse are thematic throughout the series.

Profile

Past

Kirika's birthplace is unknown, as is her real name. Chosen from infancy by a European conspiracy known as Soldats to be a legendary figure known as "Noir", she was trained as an assassin from a young age. Ordered by Altena to execute Mireille Bouquet's family, but her hesitation in killing Odette Bouquet (Mireille's mother) allowed the latter to ask Kirika to take care of Mireille.

Several years later, Kirika awoke in a bedroom in Japan with no memories of her past or concept of her existence save as "Noir". Nearby, she found a school uniform, her Beretta, a pocket watch with two women in profile engraved on it, and (in the shirt pocket of the uniform) a student ID card with her picture and the name "Kirika Yuumura". She becomes attached to this fictitious persona and attempts to live a normal life as a high school student while being targeted by Les Soldats.

Meeting Mireille

Kirika contacts Mireille through an email she sends her, inviting her to "make a pilgrimage for the past" with her. Mireille, sensing that Kirika may have knowledge of her parents' death, travels to Japan. Seeing that Kirika has her father's watch, she questions her on the subject, only to find that Kirika is suffering from amnesia and remembers nothing of her past life.

According to Mireille, the Yuumura family was a fictitious construct; someone was pretending to be her parents. Official records show her "parents" as moving overseas, leaving Kirika at school. Thus Kirika is left alone, pursued occasionally by Soldat agents.

With the connection of the watch, Mireille arranges Kirika to go Paris with her. Mireille agrees to team up with her to seek the truth, however, Mireille tells her when the truth is revealed, she will kill her. Kirika seems content to wait until that moment comes. Ironically, throughout the series, Kirika saves Mireille's life many times.

The truth

Kirika learns little about her self and her past through most of the series, nor does she come closer to realizing why she doesn't feel remorse. Her only clue is an enigmatic text which Kirika and Mireille later discover to be a Soldat document explaining Noir's existence. As they search for more pieces of the document, Chloe, the third "sapling" appears, and explains it to Kirika.

Shortly after this, Kirika's memories are reawakened by Chloe, and Chloe then tells Mireille the truth, and Kirika knowing that she cannot atone anymore, begs Mireille to fulfill their promise. However, Mireille rejects, saying she will kill her the next time they meet, and Kirika is left alone.

The battle at the Manor

After leaving Paris, Kirika starts a journey through France, and she ends up traveling to the border of France and Spain, and collapses. Kirika wakes up and finds out that she is in a Soldats village. Then, Soldats men show up, trying to abduct or kill her; the villagers oppose it, and engage with the Soldats men. Seeing all the villagers killed, Kirika turns into her other self, the "True Noir" and terminates all the Soldats men before she travels to the Manor where Altena and Chloe are.

For the final rituals, she is welcomed by Altena and Chloe. The former establishes herself as a maternal figure who also raised her when she was a child. Altena then reawakens further memories via the association of her Beretta, which she gave her on sending her on assassination missions in the past. While the assassination of the Bouquets remains a painful memory for Kirika, Altena offers her consolation by telling her that there is no reason to hesitate or atone.

Kirika's attachment with Chloe is deepened with the assistance of Altena, Chloe's having developed into a romantic attraction. Because of this and her renewed acceptance of herself as Noir, she rejects Mireille when Mireille arrives at the Manor to finally kill her. A lengthy dual ensues, but it is interrupted when Mireille throws the watch, breaking it, and thus giving Kirika back the final part of her lost memory - Odette's injunction to "look after Mireille". Chloe reappears and attacks Mireille, but the fight ends with Kirika's interruption. Angered by this, Chloe rushes to kill Mireille, but Kirika immediately stabs a fork into her heart. After burying Chloe, Mireille convinces Kirika to team up with her to put an end to Altena.

As soon as the pair enters the Manor, they were attacked by Soldats priestesses, and then they enter the dungeon where Altena will start the ritual. Altena injures Mireille, saying she was foolish like her mother, she tries to kill her. However, Kirika remembers Mireille's mother's last wish, and then shields Mireille from the bullet, Kirika then denies "Noir", realizing herself as "Kirika Yumura" and thus able to accept the burden of sin denied her as Noir. She pushes both Altena and herself to the lava, attempting suicide in the process, but Mireille saves her and impresses upon her the will to live. The series ends with a short conversation between them, and Mireille wants to have a cup of tea when they return home, and Kirika will probably make it.

Trivia

*Throughout the series, Kirika uses not only her Beretta but rifles as well.
*Kirika and Mireille are voted as two of the top ten female anime characters by Newtype Japan in 2001. [ [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2001-08-12/newtype-top-10-anime Newtype top 10 Anime - Anime News Network ] ]
*The red shoes Kirika wears are also appear in Madlax. cite web|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=3714&page=22|title="Madlax" trivia at "Anime News Network"|accessdate=2006-11-03]

References

External links

* [http://www.projectnoir.com/characters/kirika.shtml/ Kirika's profile] (ADV Films)