This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. (August 2009)

Sakura
Sakura Kasugano in Street Fighter Alpha 3, as illustrated by Bengus
Series	Street Fighter series
First game	Street Fighter Alpha 2
Voiced by (English)	Michelle Ruff (Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation, Street Fighter Alpha: Generations) Saffron Henderson (TV series) Brittney Harvey (Street Fighter IV)
Voiced by (Japanese)	Yūko Sasamoto (Street Fighter Alpha games, Marvel vs. Capcom games, Capcom vs. SNK games, Rival Schools: United By Fate, Street Fighter EX games) Misato Fukuen (Street Fighter IV) Chiaki Ōsawa (Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation) Mao Kawasaki (Street Fighter Alpha: Generation) Aya Hisakawa (Street Fighter Alpha 2 drama CD)
Information
Nationality	Japan
Blood type	A (Street Fighter Alpha series) O (Rival Schools series)
Fighting style	Self-taught imitation of Ryu's fighting style (リュウの見よう見まね, Ryū no miyōmimane?)

Sakura Kasugano (春日野 さくら , Kasugano Sakura^?), commonly known simply as Sakura, is a video game character in the Street Fighter series of fighting games. She is a Japanese schoolgirl and is 16 years old during the Street Fighter Alpha series. Sakura has an intense fascination with Ryu, and has managed to copy and learn some of Ryu's techniques, but really wants him to train her personally.

Sakura typically fights in her school uniform; a short-skirted sailor fuku (seifuku) with the collar popped and red bloomers underneath. She wears a red top under her uniform, sparring gloves, a white headband and a pair of red high-top sneakers.

Following her appearances in the Street Fighter Alpha series, Sakura has also appeared as a playable character in Rival Schools: United by Fate, the Street Fighter EX series (in Street Fighter EX Plus α and Street Fighter EX3), the Capcom vs. SNK series among other games. Sakura makes an appearance as a hidden character in the home version of Street Fighter IV.^[1]

Contents 1 Conception and design 2 Appearance 2.1 In video games 2.2 In printed adaptations 3 Promotion and reception 4 References 5 Bibliography

[edit] Conception and design

Created for Street Fighter Alpha 2, several developers at Capcom voiced their concern about the practicality of the character in contrast to those already in the Street Fighter series. Regardless, the group that had previous created Charlie Nash for Street Fighter Alpha and Spider-Man's appearance in Marvel Super Heroes worked heavily on her. An early design featured her in a kimono shirt and hakama pants,^[2] but was later abandoned in favor of a Japanese sailor outfit with red bloomers.

[edit] Appearance

[edit] In video games

Sakura first appeared in Street Fighter Alpha 2, where she had begun to participate in street fighting after watching Ryu win the first World Warrior tournament. She was searching for him and wished for him to train her to be a better fighter. She met up with many interesting people along the way, and eventually came across Ryu, who was still stressed over the Satsui no Hadou that had corrupted him—he told her he could not train her as he still had much to learn himself. He sparred with her for a bit and as he began to leave, she took a picture of him to remember him by.

In Street Fighter Alpha 3 Sakura decided to travel the world to find Ryu. She started off in her native Japan and fought the sumo wrestler E. Honda, who mentioned that Ryu went to India and Thailand. She also fought a rematch with her rival Karin Kanzuki, and though Karin won the fight, she admitted Sakura was better and she had learned winning was not everything. Thereafter traveling with her self-proclaimed sensei, Dan, she met his friend Blanka along the way and was promised a match with him. She continued to search the world for Ryu, eventually ditching Dan and finding Ryu's friend and rival Ken. She tells him how she loves to fight to better herself, and finding inspiration in those words himself, Ken joins her. Sakura eventually finds Ryu in Thailand, where he is actually being brainwashed by M. Bison. Sagat is also present and he fights Ryu while both Ken and Sakura take on Bison. Sakura is injured by Bison and this combined with Sagat's attempts to reach Ryu finally release him of his mind control. Ryu then attacks Bison who is now forced to retreat. Ryu tells Sakura that he is not ready to train her and fight a rematch with her yet, and walks off, with Sakura watching as he leaves.

In Street Fighter IV, the events of Street Fighter II's World Tournament have ended. Years have past since Sakura last saw Ryu, so she decides to find Ryu again for a match. She ends up joining the new World Tournament sponsored by S.I.N., an organization collecting street fighter data from around the world. In her ending after completing arcade mode, Sakura sees Ryu trying to stop the explosion of the machine holding all of the fighter's data and attempts to help him. Instead, she gets in the way, and Ryu must stop the machine with a Shoryuken since he is worried about Sakura causing the machine to explode and release energy all around. Sakura is engulfed by a red energy and faints, and Ryu carries her to safety.

Sakura has a brother named Tsukushi (つくし^?), and she has a friend named Kei Chitose (千歳ケイ^?) who attends the same high school and sometimes joins Sakura on her street fight tour as a cheerleader.

Rival Schools saw Sakura involved in the adventure between her school and various others in Aohura city. Fighting in the school tournament, she realizes how much it means to her to protect something she cares about.

[edit] In printed adaptations

In the manga adaptation, Sakura Ganbaru! ("Sakura Gives it Her Best!"), Sakura is under the teachings of Dan after Ryu saved her life in the manga "Street Fighter Alpha". Sakura began street fighting after that event.

Her first debut as a street fighter started when her brother's (Tsukushi's) video game was stolen by a huge, boxing-styled, con-artist. She had won that fight by releasing a 'Hadoken' on her first try. Sakura's rival, Karin Kanzuki challenged her after Karin carefully examined Sakura. They had fought inside their school gym consisting of a pyramid of students comprising of all the athletic championships she has mastered. After Karin defeat from Sakura's 'Shou-oh-ken' the tower topples down.

Karin, unhappy with the defeat, creates a tournament within Sakura's district. Sakura fought many foes, including Maki, the red female ninja from Final Fight 2 (who would later return in Capcom vs. SNK 2 and Street Fighter Alpha 3. In the final round, Sakura meets Ken Masters, Ryu's friend and sparring partner. Ken had entered in the tournament after going to his master Gouken's grave and had defeated Dan and Karin in the process.

When Sakura and Ken meet, Ken mistakenly thinks that Sakura is either Ryu's sister or daughter. After a long battle, Sakura was defeated by Ken, but Ken has sustained fatal damages by Sakura's blows. After the tournament, Sakura saved enough money to travel around the world to find Ryu. She flies off with Dan Hibiki to China. There, they go to an underground organization to find information about Ryu's whereabouts but, Sakura gets captured and Dan was left to fight Balrog. After Sakura woke up, she escaped from her prison cell and fought off to escape. In the attempt to escape, ICPO agent, Chun-Li and fought with Sakura to put down the crime organization (Dan allegedly too weak to fight).

After putting down the organization, Chun-Li helps out Sakura to find Ryu's whereabouts. This led them to a gigantic tree next to a harbor where Ryu once trained. Suddenly, Cammy, a rouge agent of Shadloo, was being chased by Gen, a Shadloo assassin. Chun-Li tries to protect Cammy and Sakura and was fatality wounded by Gen. Sakura, then protects Chun-Li. Gen was impressed by Sakura's "Fist of Light" and ended the fight by knocking out Sakura instead of killing her. After waking up from the hospital, Sakura, Dan, Chun-Li and Cammy all go to Russia to get information regarding Ryu's whereabouts. Arriving in a Russian ring, Zangief, The Red Cyclone, was pile-driving Jimmy (A.K.A Blanka).

Cammy was challenged by Zangief because she was a trainee under Zangeif until Zangeif found out about the true intent of Shadlaoo. Sakura also steps in to challenge Zangeif to help Cammy out. Here, Sakura gives Cammy her name, because Cammy did not remember her name and Cammy was named from a cat that Sakura knew once that had a scar like Cammy. After Cammy and Sakura battle against Zangief, Sakura fought Zangief herself and defeated him, telling Sakura that "Your Hadoken is pleasing to me" and told her the best person who knew him was in Thailand.

From Russia, Cammy, Chun-Li, and Jimmy part separate ways. Sakura and Dan travel to Thailand and met "The King" Sagat. Sagat told Sakura that Ryu was in Japan at his master's temple. Before Sakura departs, Dan challenges Sagat to revenge his father's death, leaving Sakura to find Ryu. Back at Japan, Sakura meets up with Ken and they travel to the forest of the temple. From here, Sakura rushes to Ryu before Ken asked if he can have a re-match. When reaching the temple, Sakura finally meet with Ryu. Ken and Karin watch from afar when they met.

Sakura challenges Ryu to a fight. The fight ends with Ryu and Sakura clashing with Hadokens. The fight does not depict who won or lost. It is suggested that either it ended in a tie or with Ryu winning. After the match Ryu says that it is his turn to seek Sakura out. Smiling in contempt, Sakura watches Ryu leave but before she takes a photo of him to remember him by. At the end, years pass by and Sakura ends up being a Physical Education teacher. There, Ryu and Ken are waiting for her. Ken comments "A Phys-Ed teacher, that's so like her, don't you think?" Here Ryu challenges Sakura into a fight. Ken comments that she doesn't not look like she street fights any more but Ryu disagrees. The manga ends with the starting of the fight, Sakura and Ryu clashing Hadokens with each other.

[edit] Promotion and reception

This section requires expansion.

IGN ranked Sakura at number twenty-one in their "Top 25 Street Fighter Characters" article, noting that while the Japanese schoolgirl design was "obvious", her attitude and funny moments offered a pleasant contrast.^[3] She additionally placed number thirteen in GameDaily's "Top 20 Street Fighter Characters of All Time" article.^[4] In the January 30, 1997 issue of Gamest magazine in Japan, Sakura ranked at No. 3 from the poll Top 50 Characters of 1996.^[5]

[edit] References

[edit] Bibliography

• Nakahira, Masahiko (in Japanese). Street Fighter ZERO. 1. ISBN 4881992201. 
• Nakahira, Masahiko (in Japanese). Street Fighter ZERO. 2. ISBN 4881992732. 
• Nakahira, Masahiko (in Japanese). Sakura Ganbaru!. 1. ISBN 4881993267. 
• Nakahira, Masahiko (in Japanese). Sakura Ganbaru!. 2. ISBN 4881993666. 
• Nakahira, Masahiko. Street Fighter Alpha. 1. ISBN 1897376502. 
• Nakahira, Masahiko. Street Fighter Alpha. 2. ISBN 1897376510. 
• Nakahira, Masahiko. Sakura Ganbaru!. 1. ISBN 1897376529. 
• Nakahira, Masahiko. Sakura Ganbaru!. 2. ISBN 1897376537. 

v • d • e Street Fighter characters Street Fighter series Akuma · Balrog · Blanka · Cammy · Chun-Li · Dan · Dhalsim · E. Honda · Gouken · Guile · Ken · M. Bison · Rufus · Ryu · Sakura · Vega · Zangief Final Fight series and related articles Mike Haggar · Poison · Sheng Long · Street Fighter characters