Kurama Yashamaru

Yashamaru Kurama is a playable character in the Samurai Shodown series. He debuted in the 2019 reboot of the series as the main protagonist. Yashamaru is a young and fallen samurai who stalks the shadows as the phantom thief "Karasu Tengu." Brandishing an heirloom nagamaki, he fights using the ancestral tengu powers he has inherited. He loathes villains who exploit the weak for financial gain. Due to his father being executed on false charges in the past, he has developed a deep and unparalleled hatred for the corruption within the Tokugawa Shogunate, even proclaiming himself as Yoshitora Tokugawa’s rival. Aside from being a thief, he is also a ruthless vigilante who will stop corrupted crimes mercilessly, something which the remaining uncorrupted Bakufu members like Yoshitora cannot. Yashamaru fights with his nagamaki, a long-handled sword that nearly resembles a polearm or even a naginata, except that the blade occupies half of the overall length. His lunging attacks and powerful expansion moves make him formidable up close, but are quite laggy in comparison when it comes to pokes and sword bouncing. Because of his weapon, he has a better reach in comparison with the rest of the cast, though not as long as Gaoh's.