Sakura Kasugano

Sakura Kasugano
Street Fighter character
Sakura from Street Fighter Alpha Anthology
First appearance	Street Fighter Alpha 2 (1996)
Created by	Akira 'Akiman' Yasuda
Voiced by	English Saffron Henderson (Street Fighter cartoon) Michelle Ruff (Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation, Street Fighter Alpha: Generations) Hannah Church (Street Fighter motion comics) Brittney Lee Harvey (Street Fighter IV, Street Fighter X Tekken, Street Fighter V) Japanese Yuko Sasamoto (Street Fighter Alpha series, Street Fighter EX series, Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo, Marvel vs. Capcom series, Pocket Fighter, Rival Schools: United by Fate, Capcom vs. SNK series, Capcom Fighting Evolution, Namco × Capcom) Chiaki Osawa (Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation) Mao Kawasaki (Street Fighter Alpha: Generations) Misato Fukuen (Street Fighter IV, Street Fighter X Tekken, Street Fighter V) Aya Hisakawa (SFA2 drama CD)
In-universe information
Fighting style	Shotokan
Origin	Japan
Nationality	Japanese

Sakura Kasugano (春日野 さくら, Kasugano Sakura) is a fictional character in Capcom's Street Fighter series. She made her first appearance in Street Fighter Alpha 2 in 1996 and is a young Japanese fighter who idolizes the series' protagonist Ryu, by whom she wants to be trained. She has often appeared in other games, including many crossover titles. Sakura has quickly become a firm fan favorite in both Japan and the West.

Sakura was created by Akira 'Akiman' Yasuda, who said he expected Hideaki Itsuno and the Street Fighter Alpha team to dislike her as he felt "she was a character outside the game's narrow world view." He thought she was "interesting because she was so different - the sort of character that Alpha and the older Street Fighter games didn't have."^[1] Sakura nevertheless quickly became a favorite of the character artist Naoto 'Bengus' Kuroshima as he "could feel able to draw her freely, and to express myself, compared with the expectations that come with drawing Ryu or Chun-Li."^[1] Akiman said his choice of Sakura's character type was due to a popular archetype from the works such as Sailor Moon: "As characters, female high school students are all-powerful in Japan."^[2]

An early design for Street Fighter Alpha 2 featured her in a kimono shirt and hakama pants,^[3] but was later abandoned in favor of sailor fuku with red underwear, often seen during her kicks. One pose used by Sakura after winning a battle is to moonwalk. In the ending of Street Fighter IV, her hair is longer and she now sports a tracksuit top and a pair of athletic shorts. For her appearance in Street Fighter V, Sakura's development ideas resembling her previous games, however in the end she was given a complete redesign to signify her no longer being a high school student despite how "schoolgirl outfit may be the strongest image associated with Sakura" (it is still available as an alternate costume). Other ideas included Sakura working a part-time job at a Japanese bento shop or as an assistant and actor for a motion capture studio.^[4] Her new default outfit is based on those worn by Japanese idols^[5] and she is wearing a red headband out of respect for Ryu.^[4]

Sakura first appears in Street Fighter Alpha 2, where she participates in street fighting after watching Ryu win the first World Warrior tournament. She searches for him and wishes for him to train her to be a better fighter. She eventually comes across Ryu, who tells her he cannot train her as he still has much to learn himself shortly after a sparring match.

In Street Fighter Alpha 3, Sakura decides to travel the world to find Ryu. After Ryu saves her from M. Bison, he promises Sakura a rematch (at around the same time, she met and formed a rivalry with Karin Kanzuki).^[6]

Sakura is playable in the Street Fighter EX series' fighting games Street Fighter EX Plus α and Street Fighter EX3. She would also appear as the only non-Street Fighter II character in the proposed but never realized game Street Fighter IV: Flashback.^[7] She is featured in the spin-off games Street Fighter: Puzzle Spirits^[8] and Street Fighter Battle Combination.^[9]

In Street Fighter IV, years have passed since Sakura last saw Ryu, so she decides to find Ryu again for a match in the new worldwide tournament. In the introduction sequences of Super Street Fighter IV, she is often seen in a group of three with Dan Hibiki and Blanka. She eventually finds Ryu. After the tournament, they exchange goodbyes. In her ending, a slightly older-looking Sakura sees Ryu approaching.

In Street Fighter V, she is done with school and now works part-time at an arcade, but wonders what decisions she needs to make in order to be satisfied with her future. Her rivalry with Karin continues and when Karin notices Sakura's problem, she sends Ryu over to Sakura's house to spar with her friend.^[10]

Sakura is controlled in the same way as Ryu and Ken, but her special moves flow differently and are less powerful. Sakura's moveset contains many variants of their moves, including the Shouoken (a Shoryuken unleashed from a running start), the Shunpukyaku (a jumping Tatsumaki Senpukyaku), and a less-powerful Hadouken that she can charge, though at the cost of distance. In the Capcom-developed Capcom vs. SNK games, the Hadouken is replaced by the Hadoushou, a point-blank-range blast of energy. Her moves and combos have high potential to stun opponents and also provide many an opportunity for mix-ups. However, her somewhat low stamina and her lack of other available approaches (particularly her weak projectile) require a certain amount of finesse, leaving little room for error; this ultimately makes Sakura a high-risk, high-reward character. Sakura's combo-heavy playstyle, when supplemented by her normal and special attacks, makes her a devastating fighter once she gets an opening. Dark Sakura performs the Hadouken horizontally instead of diagonally and uses the techniques of Akuma.

Sakura makes a guest appearance in the fighting game Rival Schools: United by Fate, where she is involved in the adventure between her Tamagawa Minami High School and various other schools in Aoharu City. After helping her childhood friend Hinata and the others out from within the ordeal, she realizes how much it means to her to protect something she cares about.

Sakura has appeared in various crossover fighting games, including the Marvel vs. Capcom and Capcom vs. SNK series, as well as in Super Gem Fighter Mini Mix and Capcom Fighting Evolution. She has an alter-ego called "Dark Sakura" as a secret character in Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter. She also appears as DLC in Street Fighter X Tekken with Blanka as her official tag team partner.

Sakura is a playable unit in the tactical role-playing game Namco × Capcom. She is featured in the social game Onimusha Soul,^[11] where she appears in three different forms redesigned to fit its feudal Japan theme.^[12] In the mobile puzzle game Street Fighter: Puzzle Spirits, she appears as a super-deformed character.^[8] Her likeness appears in We Love Golf! as an unlockable cosplay outfit for the character Meg^[13] and her character costume can be unlocked in Crimson Tears.^[14]

Sakura is the titular character of the manga series Street Fighter: Sakura Ganbaru! by Masahiko Nakahira, where she becomes a fighter in order to fight Ryu. She starred in the comic book miniseries Street Fighter Legends: Sakura (and the one-shot Street Fighter: Sakura vs. Karin) by UDON, and appeared in UDON's other Street Fighter comic books and the Rival Schools comic. She also appears in the Super Street Fighter graphic novels^[15] (sequel to the previous UDON comics), in which she became Ryu's full-time apprentice and succumbed the power of the Dark Hadou before Ryu absorbed it out of her.

Sakura is a character in the anime films Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation and Street Fighter Alpha: Generations, and appears in the episode "Second to None" of the American cartoon series Street Fighter. She is a supporting character in Street Fighter IV: The Ties That Bind, assisting Ken in his efforts to locate Ryu.

Victor Entertainment released a drama CD Street Fighter Zero 2 Another Story in 1996, which had Sakura as the lead character. A sequel followed later that same year. Sakura's theme song, "Kono Omoi o Tsutaetai" sung by Yuko Sasamoto, her voice actress in Street Fighter Alpha 2 and other games following, was released commercially.

Many figures of Sakura were released by various manufacturers,^[16] such as one in two versions by Kotobukiya in 2015.^[17][18] "Sakura's bowl of stamina" meals were included in a restaurant menu during one promotional event.^[19] Sakura's card is included in the card games Street Fighter Deck-Building Game and Universal Fighting System.

A Sakura cosmetic outfit has also been added to Fortnite.^[20]

Sakura has been well received since her introduction. The staff of GamesRadar+ described her as one of Capcom's best characters, stating while the word "fanboy/fangirl" was often a negative, her idol worship of Ryu allowed her to develop into one of the best fighters in the Street Fighter setting. Noting Sakura's role as one of the few female characters introduced in the franchise at the point, of her introduction they felt her "spunky, can-do attitude" made her one of the most popular characters in the Street Fighter Alpha series.^[21] The staff of New Zealand Station magazine on the other hand were critical of her character, feeling she represented "dangerous new territory" for the depiction of women in gaming as they felt Capcom had shifted away from the "wholesome and strong-willed Chun Li into the cute but undeniably underaged Sakura".^[22]

IGN's D. F. Smith described Sakura as being at the start of Street Fighter becoming a multimedia phenomon through various media and merchandise, stating that she was "never just a video game character" due to her presence in the Sakura Ganbaru! comic strip. In terms of design, he argued that many depending on how one looked at her the emphasis on sex appeal may be too obvious and described her as a "teenage girl in a sailor uniform with a skirt that's a whole lot shorter than normal" and added "No prizes for guessing who that's meant to appeal to." Regardless, he felt this contrasted well with her demeanor, and that while she was often the subject of comic relief and her appearance might be "a little silly [...] her attitude is all business".^[23] Michael Colwander of Comic Book Resources stated that "Few characters have made as much of an impact on the SF series as Sakura when she debuted" due to how well her energetic personality resonated with the fan community. He further noted that while her schoolgirl uniform had defined her character for some time he appreciated how well her Street Fighter V attire represented a progression in time for the character, and served as a good start to illustrate the franchise moving forward narratively.^[24]

In terms of her character, Suriel Vazquez and Eric Van Allen of Paste stated they felt Sakura was sometimes "the only character who’s actually having fun with this whole street-fighting thing" in the franchise, praising her infectious "relentless optimism" and her relationships with the other characters in the franchise. They added while she wasn't the strongest character in the series, they still appreciated that she was self-taught and eager, and saw her as a reflection of how players should approach fighting games: "acknowledging weaknesses while taking them in stride".^[25] Gavin Jasper of Den of Geek meanwhile called her "one of the best characters in the series", stating that in many ways she added meaning to Ryu's life as a character and acted as the "angel" on his shoulder in contrast to his rivalry with Akuma and constantly believing him. He further called her a "plucky go-getter", appreciating how she managed to carve her own niche in the Street Fighter universe and illustrated visible growth as a character through her relationships with Dan, Karin and the Rival Schools cast.^[26]

Media related to Sakura Kasugano at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website (Street Fighter V)
• Sakura's profile at Street Fighter IV official website (in Japanese)