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Ukinami Yuzuha's Lore

Last updated 2026-09-10

OverviewLoreDialogueDMsVoice-OversFashionMedia
KOMANO MANATO
"Be careful with any drinks Yuzuha offers you. There was this time when she kept swapping all the cola she got me with veggie juice. But she meant well — I really couldn't afford vegetables back then."
A REFORMED STREET VENDOR
"If I hadn't seen her commanding that tanuki with my own eyes a year later, I would've really spent my whole life thinking I was cursed because I offended some tanuki deity!"
DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF FAILUME HEIGHTS RESIDENTS' COMMITTEE
"Uncle Baorong's got some really well-behaved kids, especially that Yuzuha. She's quite the smooth talker and helps out a lot with the store. Good things really do come to good people like Uncle Baorong..."
A "FORGOTTEN" PAST THAT'S GROWING CLEARER
"They can't be allowed to discover... I have to... get as far away from here as possible..."

Official Introduction

"Feeling down on your luck? Why not... ask the tanuki for some advice?"
Ukinami Yuzuha

"After all, you've been a regular at the Porcelume Market for over a decade..."
"As you should know, besides the quality of Porcelume, the 'story' behind these collectibles is what also drives their exceptional value."
"Wanna make a bet?"
"While you were busy hesitating, someone else has already offered a sweet price for this juicy bit of gossip~"

History

"Project New Leaf" was an infamous and inhumane experiment founded by Porcelumex co-CEO Ferox, who kept it a secret from Lucro and TOPS. Countless children were swept up from the streets of New Eridu and subjected to experiments with the hopes that corrupted antibodies found in their blood would host suitable catalysts for Porcelume purification and solve a bottleneck in the process the company was having. Due to the intensity of such experiments and the lab being located inside the Lemnian Hollow, every child-subject died, all except for ES-07.[1]

Originally an orphan found in the Faunus Quarter, ES-07 had no real name - except for the nickname "Little Candle," an alias given to her by a gang of street kids due to malnutrition-induced night blindness that led to her walking about with a candlestick. Lacking a real name, one of the low-level researchers assigned to her care decided to give her one, Yuzuha.[2] Yuzuha was lucky to have survived the experiments for so long and was theorised to have PTSD from becoming the sole survivor. However, this wouldn't be the case, as Yuzuha hid a playful personality from the employees of Porcelumex.

One day, after her final injection for the day, Yuzuha decided to partake in one of the new sources of joy she had found: climbing into a vent found in her cell to sneak into a showroom lab and eavesdrop on all sorts of interesting things. As fate would have it, she happened to witness Lionel of the prestigious Thymefield Family, who was touring the facility with his daughter: Alice. Yuzuha was able to catch one of Alice's Sailor Boo hairpins that had fallen off of her hair before it hit the floor, before then falling unconscious due to a higher than normal dosage administered earlier. When she awoke, she was found by Lionel, who had returned to find Alice's hairpin. Having learned Porcelumex was conducting human experiments, Lionel rescued Yuzuha and helped her escape via an underground river. He told her he'd be right behind her,[1] but instead got as far away as possible to make sure Porcelumex wouldn't find Yuzuha and eventually was shot multiple times by security and lost his life.[3]

Washing up on the shore of Sailume Bay, Yuzuha was found by Li Baorong, owner of Mystic Wares and a man who lost his wife and two daughters during the fall of the Old Capital. Though having adopted a boy prior, Baorong took the girl in. Despite her name being given to her by one of the researchers, she decided to introduce herself as Yuzuha to him, as she felt the name held a spark of life, said spark being part of her luck.[2] Having learned her name, Baorong noted how weird it would be to call her "Li Yuzuha," to the point he wouldn't be able to forgive himself for giving her such a ridiculous name, and thus decided to give her a new last name based on her story: Ukinami. [4][Note 1] The name Yuzuha would later inspire the tradition of Li naming his later adopted children after plants. [2]

Yuzuha would grow up and start attending a low-tuition company-affiliated school located in the city, being classmates with Komano Manato, and also help out at her father's store, Mystic Wares. She would also rescue a tanuki that was being drowned by a group of children, which would then help Yuzuha out during a struggle in a Hollow. The two became inseparable ever since, with the girl naming him Kamanosuke.[5] She also modified the Sailor Boo hairpin into a repair tool, considering it her good luck charm.[4]

Sometime prior to the events of Season 2, Yuzuha became a member of Spook Shack, an Inter-Knot subforum dedicated to supernatural stories and investigation. She would write up a story and forge a scam with the assistance of Kama to sell "Sacrifice Repellent" amulets in relation to the recent disappearance of Justin Bringer.[6] Yuzuha would later have a fateful reunion with Alice after she fell victim to one of Kama's pranks and asked members of Suibian Temple Phaethon for help.[7] This reunion led to Yuzuha confronting her past as a test subject, exposing the crimes of Ferox, and revealing she was indirectly responsible for the death of Alice's father.[1] She would later be saved by her new friends with the help of Yixuan and promised to live on together with Alice, her new best friend.[8]


Agent Trust

Requirements


Trust
Rank 		Rewards
Trust Rank Familiar
Familiar
  • Unlocks DMs from the Agent
  • Agent can be found around the neighborhood
 —
Trust Rank Friendly
Friendly
Polychrome
Polychrome
20
Advanced Physical Chip
Advanced Physical Chip
3
Denny
Denny
5,000
Trust Rank Close
Close
Polychrome
Polychrome
30
(Affinity) Lucky Plum Cookie
(Affinity) Lucky Plum Cookie
1
Denny
Denny
10,000
Trust Rank Trusted
Trusted
  • Unlock Agent Live Wallpaper
  • Complete the promotion event to receive the below rewards
Polychrome
Polychrome
30
Dynamic Wallpaper: Yuzuha
Dynamic Wallpaper: Yuzuha
1
Denny
Denny
15,000

Impressions

  • A master of mischief — but not for fun.
  • A dependable companion, though not without her moments of vulnerability.
  • May your life always be free and full of light.

Agent Intel

Agent Details

Ukinami Yuzuha, a resident of Waifei Peninsula's Failume Heights, currently attends a low-tuition company affiliated school in the city. Aside from being part of the Inter-Knot subforum Spook Shack, she's not affiliated with any other groups — though in New Eridu, such forums aren't typically seen as formal organizations, and are, instead, more like hobby clubs.
Yuzuha is the adopted daughter of Li Baorong, owner of the Mystic Wares Porcelume store. Word around Failume Heights is that Baorong lost his wife and two daughters when the old capital fell. In the years that followed, he took in five children. Yuzuha is the second oldest, with an older brother, a younger brother, and two younger sisters. The family lived on the second floor above the store, and with just two bedrooms, Yuzuha shared one with her sisters, while the boys stayed with Baorong. Now that her older brother has moved out and she mostly stays in the school dorm, the apartment feels a bit less crowded. But on weekends and holidays, Yuzuha usually returns from school to help her father at the store.
Even as a child, Yuzuha showed a surprising level of maturity. Her eloquence and cheerful nature have made her a favorite among neighbors — and a hit with the kids around Waifei Peninsula and Sailume Bay.
On the Spook Shack forum, Yuzuha goes by the username "Yuzupepper." In addition to her real-life friends Manato and Alice, she is also close with two other users known as "Night Emissary" and "Strawberry Parfait" on the forums.

Agent Intel 1

Trust Rank Close Trust Rank: Close

According to Yuzuha, she's been wandering the Faunus Quarter for as long as she can remember, living as part of a small gang of street kids. She didn't have a name back then. Due to malnutrition, she had night blindness and always carried a candlestick after dark, so the others nicknamed her "Little Candle."
Yuzuha was part of an experimental project called "Project New Leaf." Since she never had a proper name, one of the lower-level researchers assigned to care for the children gave her the name "Yuzuha." However, this name was never known to Ferox or the other higher-ups — they only ever referred to her as ES-07. Despite the name coming from the lab, Yuzuha has always felt the name carried a spark of life — and that spark was part of her luck.
Both of Yuzuha's younger sisters were adopted as infants, and when Baorong named them, he continued his tradition of using names inspired by plants.

Cooperation Notes

Agent Belle Circle Icon Belle
When I first met Yuzuha, she seemed cheerful on the surface, but I always felt like she kept a certain distance from people... but that's not the case anymore.
Agent Wise Circle Icon Wise
When I saw Yuzuha's younger sister Kaede the other day, she asked me if Yuzuha had aced her exams this term. She mentioned how Yuzuha's been noticeably happier lately.

Video Store Promotion

Promoter Unlock
Requirement 		Daily
Bonus 		Promotion Style Promotion Comment
Ukinami Yuzuha
SPhysicalSupport
Ukinami Yuzuha
Ukinami Yuzuha
I Am Tanuki
I Am Tanuki
I Am Tanuki
Basic Physical Chip
Basic Physical Chip
Basic Physical Chip x5
 "Master of Suspense"
No matter what type of movie, Yuzuha can always describe it with vivid detail, adding a layer of suspense that leaves customers itching to borrow the videotape and discover the mystery for themselves. 		If suspense and horror films are hard to sell, try pairing them with our protective charms!

Commission and Event Appearances

Phaethon's Story Episodes

Combat Commissions

Trust Commissions

Quality Time Commissions

Events

Hearsay Commissions

Trust Events

Character Mentions

Inter-Knot Posts

Dialogue

Trivia

  • Yuzuha's bloodtype is AB.[1]
  • Yuzuha's design has multiple references to Bake-danuki (Japanese: 化け狸 "shapeshifting raccoon dog") imagery.
    • The leaf patterns on Yuzuha's hair accessories are related to how the tanuki is often depicted with a leaf on its head, which is believed to be the source of its shapeshifting power, Yuzuha's knock-knock profile picture is another reference of the folklore.
  • The accessories on Yuzuha's head resemble cochlear implants, a form of hearing aid that consists of an external microphone and digital signal processors to send sound to an internal implant which stimulates the cochlear nerve, allowing a deaf person to perceive sound.
    • It's currently unclear if Yuzuha is deaf, but in her MV "Wonderland Trickery," she is shown putting an earbud in before listening to music, hinting that they may assist her in hearing; some cochlear implants also feature wireless connectivity, such as Bluetooth.

Etymology

  • Ukinami Yuzuha is a Japanese name, with the surname first and the given name second.
    • Her family name, 浮波 Ukinami, means "floating waves."
      • In-game, this name was given to her by her adoptive father Li Baorong, which reflects how she was found washed ashore at Sailume Bay.[9]
    • Her given name, 柚葉 Yuzuha, means "yuzu tree leaf." In Japanese folklore, yuzu is believed to bring good fortune and dispel ghosts and evil spirits, relating to Yuzuha's signature good luck and interest in ghost stories.
      • In Chinese, 柚叶 yòuyè means "pomelo leaf" instead.
  • The name of Yuzuha's companion tanuki, Kama, is a reference to the folklore tale Bunbuku Chagama (Japanese: 分福茶釜), in which a tanuki shapeshifts into a tea kettle.
    • This is further supported by its name being 阿釜 Ā Fǔ in Chinese and かまちー Kamachī (釜かま + ちー) in Japanese. In both languages, 釜 means "kettle."
    • This could also be a reference to Yuzuha selling fake goods that are actually shapeshifted tanuki, as hinted in the comments under the Inter-Knot post "[Intel] The death of Bringer."

HoYoverse Shared VA

Notes

  1. ↑ It can be assumed that Yuzuha told Baorong her name was that when he took her in, this fact is supported by how he felt about her being called "Li Yuzuha"

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Phaethon's Story, The Impending Crash of Waves, Episode 5: Secret Past
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Ukinami Yuzuha's Agent Intel: Agent Intel 1
  3. ↑ Phaethon's Story, The Impending Crash of Waves, Episode 6: A Bond Returned
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Phaethon's Story, The Impending Crash of Waves, Episode 4: Source of the Obscuras
  5. ↑ Trust Event Commission: A Miraculous Encounter
  6. ↑ (Intel) The death of Bringer
  7. ↑ Phaethon's Story, The Impending Crash of Waves, Episode 2: Prank Perpetrator
  8. ↑ Phaethon's Story, The Impending Crash of Waves, Episode 6: A Bond Returned
  9. ↑ Phaethon's Story, The Impending Crash of Waves, Episode 4: Source of the Obscuras

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