Kikunojo

Kikunojo of the Lingering Snow is a samurai from Wano Country and a retainer for the Kozuki Family, serving as one of Kozuki Oden's Nine Red Scabbards. She is also the younger sister of Izo, and the daughter of the dancing school head of the Hanayanagi School in Ringo.

After traveling 20 years forward in time, she donned the alias O-Kiku and worked as a tea house poster girl in Okobore Town.

Appearance
Although biologically male, Kikunojo has a feminine appearance and presents herself as a woman. She is very tall, easily towering over Luffy and Zoro at 287 cm. She has long dark violet (dark blue in the anime) hair that falls onto her back and indigo eyes. She also wears sandals and a yellow kimono with chrysanthemum floral patterns and a pink and cream and lavender obi.

When Kikunojo prepares for combat, she ties her hair into a ponytail with a red ribbon, and when heading towards Onigashima for the battle against the Beasts Pirates, she wore a full set of Japanese armor.

Before being transported to the future, Kiku dressed in more male-like clothing typical of a samurai. After arriving in the future, Kiku began showing a significantly more effeminate side, such as wearing red lipstick and dressing more in feminine clothing.

Personality
Kikunojo identifies herself as a "woman at heart", and thus presents herself in a traditionally feminine manner.​ She is a very upbeat and friendly person. To friends, she is helpful and nurturing, as seen when she treated Zoro's injuries and tended to Tama when she was being healed of her poisoning.​ Kiku is also quite affectionate toward Kin'emon, whom she seems to view similarly to a parent or older sibling. Kikunojo is shown to be a bit indecisive at times, as shown when she (despite being a trained samurai of the Kozuki clan) asked Zoro (whom she had just met) for guidance during the early stages of a confrontation with Kaido's subordinates. However, when the situation demands it of her, Kiku takes on a more courageous and confrontational persona befitting an experienced samurai. She is shown to be a confident, hardened warrior whose friendly nature translates into a strong sense of justice and desire to protect those around her. This is first demonstrated when Kikunojo served as an ally to Luffy in his mission to rescue Tama from the Beasts Pirates​. Kiku even went as far as to cut off Urashima's top-knot (a sign of great disrespect to someone of the samurai class) after hearing him use dehumanizing language toward a crowd of Bakura Town residents, regardless of the fact that just moments prior the same people had berated her due to low social standing.

Kikunojo takes pride in her role as a retainer of the Kozuki clan, and occasionally refers to herself using ​sessha (拙者 or せっしゃ, sessha)​, an archaic pronoun similar to "I" in the English language, which is used primarily by male samurai.​

Izo
Izo is Kikunojo's only brother. After their father was arrested and convicted, they stayed together to survive in the streets of Ringo and they both joined Kozuki Oden. When Oden, Inurashi, Nekomamushi, and Izo went missing, Kiku expressed worries as she could not find her brother and the others while crying. Later, when Nekomaushi and Inurashi returned to Wano and informed Kiku about Izo staying with the Whitebeard Pirates, Kiku expressed positivity, knowing that her brother will be happy.

Tsuru
As an employee under Tsuru, Kikunojo listens to her orders. Kikunojo already knew Tsuru twenty years ago as Kin'emon's wife, and while Tsuru recognized Kikunojo after she came forward through time, she kept this secret.

Tama
Kiku knew Tama and was worried for the girl when she drank out of the contaminated river water. When Tama was kidnapped, Kiku swiftly pursued the kidnappers, showing that she cared greatly for her.

Straw Hat Pirates
Kikunojo befriended Monkey D. Luffy and Roronoa Zoro when they came to the tea shop with Tsuru and Tama. Kikunojo tended to Zoro's wounds, while Zoro in return scared Urashima away for harassing her. The three of them later infiltrated Bakura Town to rescue Tama, where Kiku was impressed by Luffy's usage of Haoshoku Haki, and she in turn impressed them with her swordsmanship. However, she did find Luffy's casual greeting with Kozuki Momonosuke (referring to him as "Momo") as offensive.

Kin'emon
They seem to have a good relationship, as Kikunojo respectfully refers to Kin'emon as Kin-sama. She was so overjoyed at seeing him again after a long separation that she tightly hugged him on sight and blushed in his presence.

Ashura Doji
As fellow retainers of Kozuki Oden and as fellow members of the Nine Red Scabbards, Kikunojo and Ashura fought alongside each other. However, they seem to have some level of animosity toward each other as Ashura stated that their relationship has been like this since the beginning when meeting Kikunojo again after 20 years, though he spared her from his banditry. Kikunojo also expressed her disappointment at Ashura because he said that he only respected and was only loyal to Oden, not the rest of his family.

Urashima
Urashima is a nationally famous and arrogant sumo wrestler who is smitten by Kikunojo, unaware of her gender. While remaining polite with him, Kiku declined his constant proposals firmly and clearly, which Urashima could not comprehend nor accept. When the wrestler later snarled at the spectators for their lowly status in front of Kiku, the samurai expressed her disgust with Urashima and avoided his attempt to embrace, instead cutting off his chonmage. Filled with rage, Urashima then tried to kill Kiku, but he was stopped by Luffy.

Swordsmanship
As a samurai and a member of the Nine Red Scabbards, Kikunojo is an extremely skilled swordswoman. Her strength was acknowledged by Orochi himself. Kikunojo wields a katana with expert precision, as she was capable of swiftly cutting off Urashima's topknot and fought against several Gifters and samurai effortlessly.

Past
Kikunojo and Izo were born in Wano Country. During their childhood, they were raised in a dancing school, but their family was torn apart after their father was arrested. Afterwards, they had to survive on the streets in Ringo. When Kozuki Oden arrived about 39 years ago and gave them food, they joined him. After Oden became daimyo of Kuri, Kikunojo became one of his retainers. For the next few years, Kikunojo and the other retainers educated themselves and trained to become dignified warriors. 30 years ago, they visited the Flower Capital with Oden.

After meeting the Whitebeard Pirates, Oden and his retainers had a feast with them. After the Whitebeard Pirates left Wano two weeks later, the retainers discovered Oden, Izo, Inuarashi, and Nekomamushi to be missing. During Oden's absence, Kikunojo and her fellow retainers protected Kuri. When Oden and the two minks returned to Wano with the Roger Pirates, the retainers greeted Oden, but before they could say anymore, Toki stopped them from convincing Oden to stay in Wano so he could continue his journey with Roger.

Nekomamushi and Inuarashi told Kikunojo about Izo's stay with the Whitebeard Pirates. Around six months before Oden finished his voyage, Kikunojo and her fellow retainers were furious at Kurozumi Orochi for abusing his position as shogun. While Inuarashi and Kawamatsu stayed behind at Oden Castle, the other retainers marched to the Flower Capital to confront Orochi only to discover that a group of Beasts Pirates were in Kuri threatening Oden's family. When Oden returned to Wano after finishing his journey, the retainers (except Denjiro and Ashura, who were elsewhere at the time) welcomed him back and told him about Wano's situation. Oden then ordered his retainers to protect his family and Kuri before charging to the capital by himself.

After Oden failed to kill Orochi, the retainers remained loyal to him for the next five years despite Oden acting like a fool and losing the respect of most of Wano's people. 20 years ago, Oden finally had enough and decided to take down Kaido. The retainers eagerly followed him and marched with him to Onigashima. On the way to Onigashima, the group was confronted by Kaido and his crew in the Udon region. In the ensuing battle, the samurai were joined by Shinobu. Unfortunately, the samurai were overwhelmed in the end. Oden and the Scabbards were then imprisoned in the Flower Capital and sentenced to be boiled alive in three days.

All ten prisoners were later brought to the execution site, at which point Oden made a deal with Kaido. After Oden stepped into the pot of boiling oil, the retainers were about to join him, but Oden grabbed a plank and ordered them to stand on it as he held them over the pot. As Oden endured the hour, he explained to his retainers the reason Wano Country was isolated and requested them to open Wano's borders for him. Oden successfully survived the hour, but Orochi summoned a firing squad to execute Oden and his retainers. Oden once again told his retainers to open Wano's borders before throwing them far away from the pot. The Scabbards fled with tears as Oden met his demise. As they were chased by an army of pursuers, Shinobu gave the Scabbards their weapons. On the way back to Oden Castle, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi were captured by the shogun's forces and Denjiro and Ashura split from the group to fight their enemies. By the time the rest of the group reached Oden Castle, it was set ablaze by Kaido. The retainers went inside the castle and found Momonosuke as well as his sister and mother. Toki then sent Momonosuke, Kin'emon, Kanjuro, Raizo, and Kikunojo twenty years into the future.

After arriving at the future, they went around Wano and discovered how much it changed over the years. However, they discovered allies they could still count on and began forming a plan to take back Wano. While Momonosuke, Kin'emon, Kanjuro, and Raizo traveled to Zou, Kikunojo remained in Wano to gather intel. She started residing in Okobore Town in Kuri, where she worked as a poster girl for Kin'emon's wife Tsuru.

Wano Country Arc
One day, Kiku was being courted by Urashima, a yokozuna sumo wrestler from the Flower Capital. She rebuffed his advances as Tsuru came riding in with Tama, Monkey D. Luffy, and Roronoa Zoro. Tsuru revealed that Tama had drank the tainted river water, so Kiku immediately went to boil jagan grass to help her get better. When Kiku was taking Tama inside, Urashima invited her to come to his sumo tournament in Bakura Town later that day. As Tama recovered, Kiku tended to the wounds on Zoro's arms before watching Tama as she slept. However, the Gifter Batman then came and shot an arrow at Tsuru, and as Kiku went to check on her, another Gifter named Gazelleman kidnapped Tama and ran away. Kiku immediately mounted the komainu Komachiyo and started chasing after them, and Luffy and Zoro joined her. As they rode toward Bakura Town, the two pirates asked Kiku who she was, and she revealed that she was a samurai.



When the trio entered Bakura Town, Kiku had to stop Luffy from announcing their mission to the residents. They quickly came across the sumo ring where Urashima was competing, and the yokozuna was delighted that Kiku had come. He had his men carry her to him, but when he degraded the audience as vulgar commoners, Kiku responded by cutting off his topknot, saying the only vulgar thing was his heart. Kiku then became flustered that she had shown her samurai abilities in front of so many people, and an enraged Urashima attempted to attack her, but was stopped by Luffy. Kiku then watched as Luffy quickly launched Urashima out of the ring. Several Gifters then arrived to attack Kiku, Luffy, and Zoro, and Kiku fought alongside the two Straw Hats in order to save Tama.

The Headliner Holdem then arrived with Tama as his hostage, and Kiku warned Luffy and Zoro to avoid making him angry and attracting the wrath of the All-Star Jack. Holdem decided to have Kiku executed, but Luffy then saved Tama and defeated him, and Komachiyo grabbed Kiku to rescue her. Kiku rode Komachiyo as it pulled a cart full of clean food provisions out of Bakura Town, and she saw as Trafalgar Law joined Zoro aboard the cart. Kiku, Luffy, Zoro, Tama, and Law made it back to Bakura Town, where they gave the citizens the clean food and water they stole.

Soon afterward, Law took Luffy and Zoro to the ruins of Oden Castle, and Kiku went along with them to see what they intended to do there. When they reached the ruins, Kiku grew emotional and dismounted Komachiyo. However, she then spotted Kin'emon meeting with the pirates, and excitedly embraced him. She found out that the pirates had been recruited by Kin'emon, and was present as he explained to them that they had traveled 20 years forward in time and were now plotting to take down Kaido during the Fire Festival on Onigashima. As Kin'emon was assigning the pirates directives to recruit allies and obtain enemy intel, Kaido suddenly appeared in the sky to hunt down Luffy and Law. The two of them went to confront Kaido and distract him, but Kaido still ended up flying toward Oden Castle and blew it up with a blast of fire. However, Shinobu was present and saved everyone by sinking them into the ground with her Devil Fruit power, and in the aftermath, Kiku told the Straw Hats about the current situation in Wano.

Later, Kikunojo went with Kin'emon, Momonosuke, and Inuarashi to Mt. Atama to recruit Ashura Doji, who was now a thief by the name of Shutenmaru. However, Ashura refused to rejoin them and clashed with Inuarashi. Kikunojo expressed her disappointment with him, but Ashura said the Kozuki Family could not fill the 20-year gap left by their absence.

One night a few days later, Kikunojo, Momonosuke, Tama, and Tony Tony Chopper went to Kuri Beach and encountered the Yonko Big Mom, who had washed ashore and lost her memory. They took her to Okobore Town the next morning, and then got her to head to Udon in an effort to free Luffy from his imprisonment there. The group rode toward Udon on a wanizame tamed by Big Mom, and Tama's guardian Tenguyama Hitetsu called her to get her to come back, but Kiku assured him that she would be overseeing the expedition. She then explained to Big Mom how far away Udon was, and when Momonosuke shouted "Sunacchi" while practicing his swordsmanship, Kiku rebuked him, saying it was unfit for someone of his status to say. The group reached the Prisoner Mine after a day, and after Big Mom broke in, Kikunojo told Momonosuke and Tama to stay outside while she and Chopper snuck in to save Luffy.



Kiku and Chopper found that Luffy had attracted Big Mom's wrath, but in the ensuing chaos, the All-Star Queen managed to knock out Big Mom and leave to take her to Onigashima. Kikunojo then heard Kawamatsu's laugh coming from a nearby cell, and greeted him happily when he burst out of it. Kiku, Kawamatsu, Raizo, Hyogoro, Luffy, and Chopper then banded together to recruit the prisoners to their side and revolt against the Beasts Pirates guards. Their group easily overwhelmed the guards, and the prisoners were initially unwilling to join them, but were eventually swayed over by Luffy. Once this happened, the prison revolt quickly became a success. In the aftermath, Kiku, Raizo, and Kawamatsu had difficulty getting the prisoners to fully accept that the Kozuki Family had returned, but they started believing again once Momonosuke entered their presence.

The next day, Kikunojo watched as Tama tamed the prison warden Babanuki and had him report to Queen that everything was fine in the prison. Three to four days later, Kikunojo, Momonosuke, and Raizo went back to Amigasa Village in Kuri, where they met with the other Kozuki Family retainers and the Straw Hat Pirates to discuss the strategy for the final battle. While there, Kiku and her fellow Scabbards were delighted to hear from Kawamatsu that Kozuki Hiyori was alive. On the day before the planned raid, Kiku went with Kin'emon, Momonosuke, Kanjuro, Raizo, Inuarashi, Ashura Doji, Kawamatsu, and Shinobu to get to Port Tokage ahead of their allies.

The next day, however, the Kozuki group came to Port Tokage to find that none of their allies had arrived and the ships at the port had been destroyed. Since they could not put off the raid for another time, the Scabbards boarded a small rowboat to head for Onigashima despite Momonosuke's pleas and left him on the shore with Shinobu. As they rowed through the stormy waters, Kin'emon weighed the likely possibility of there being a spy in their ranks, and Kikunojo told him that they should find the spy immediately. Kanjuro then revealed that he was the spy, and the Scabbards found themselves confronted by three Beasts Pirates battleships. The Scabbards then discovered that Kanjuro had sent a clone he drew onto their boat, and the real Kanjuro had stayed behind and captured Momonosuke.

However, the Straw Hats, Heart Pirates, and Kid Pirates then arrived to attack the Beasts Pirates, and the Heart Pirates brought the Scabbards' boat onto their submarine. Soon afterwards, the Kyoshiro Family arrived, and the Scabbards were shocked as Kyoshiro revealed himself to be Denjiro. Denjiro revealed that the altered secret message had actually instructed the alliance to go to the Habu Port wharf, so thousands of samurai had made it there and were sailing behind him. Kanjuro took Momonosuke into the sky toward Onigashima, but Momonosuke told the alliance to keep going while he worked to free himself. Kin'emon then worked with the samurai and pirates to amend the invasion plan, and the Scabbards plotted to disembark at the back of the island on Law's submarine.

Major Battles

 * Kikunojo, Monkey D. Luffy, and Roronoa Zoro vs. Beasts Pirates and enemy samurai
 * Kikunojo, Monkey D. Luffy, Tony Tony Chopper, Hyogoro, Raizo, and Kawamatsu vs. Beasts Pirates (Udon Prisoner Mines)

Filler Battles

 * Kikunojo and Roronoa Zoro vs. Speed

Playable Appearances

 * One Piece Treasure Cruise

Trivia

 * The kiku (菊) in her name is the Japanese word for "chrysanthemum".
 * Her name may be from Segawa Kikunojo, a yagō used by at least three onnagata (male actors who played women's roles in Japanese Kabuki theatre).

SBS-Based Trivia

 * Kikunojo's favorite food is shirataki noodles. Fittingly enough, shirataki are one of the main ingredients in oden, just as Kikunojo was one of Kozuki Oden's main retainers.

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