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The Sekirei Crest

Wagtail

Wagtail

Sekirei (セキレイ, lit. "Wagtail") are an extraterrestrial race of super-powered humanoids. They are physically indistinguishable from humans with similar genetic codes. Their name is taken from that of the Japanese wagtail.

History

Long ago, eight Sekirei spaceships (岩舟, Iwafune, lit. "Rock Ship"; the name of the ship used when the gods descend from the heavens to the surface world in Japanese mythology) reached Earth. Each ship contained 108 life-forms described as "One pillar and 107 baby birds"[1][2]. One crash-landed and suffered severe damage; only the "Pillar" and eight Sekirei survived[3]. Another, the one which carried the "modern" Sekirei of the current story, crashed in the sea near Japan[3]. The rest landed in various locations worldwide, and the Sekirei aboard them gave rise to the myths and legends of gods and heroes that have passed down through various cultures over the span of human history.

21 years prior to the current story, in 1999, an island emerged suddenly from the sea near Japan; it was quickly explored by two university students, Minaka Hiroto (future MBI chairman) and Takami Sahashi (future MBI head researcher and Minato's mother). They discovered ruins which were actually the eighth Sekirei spaceship. On board the spaceship they found 108 life-forms in suspended animation:

  • The first of them, the pillar, shown as #01[1] was an adult, and was not a Sekirei.
  • Eight (later known as #02-09) were embryos.
  • Ninety-nine others (later known as #10-108) were fertilized eggs.

Minaka used the high technology discovered on the Sekirei ship to amass the fortune required to found MBI, take possession of the island and have it declared an extraterritoriality. He then began the work that would eventually result in the Sekirei Plan.

Development

The adult and eight embryos are also known as the Single Numbers. It is hinted that unwinged Single Numbers are equal or even more powerful than winged others[4]. All Sekirei have undergone adjustments for the "Sekirei Plan", especially the Single Numbers, some of their adjustments being mischievous[5]. Adjustments to Sekirei are needed to control and stabilize their power. In this process however, MBI fitted all Sekirei with a limiter reducing their strength significantly[6]. Most Sekirei only knew about the world through TV because they were not allowed to leave Kamikura Island[7]. This would leave many Sekirei fairly naive, unprepared, and susceptible to humans with malicious intentions.

The first contact with the outside world they made was when they were sent out to find their Ashikabi. When a Sekirei's wings are released by an Ashikabi, the power of a Sekirei multiplies and he/she can use his/her true potential. Miya stated that Sekirei are interesting beings because ordinary training wouldn't do much for raising their abilities, but according to the state of their heart their soul manifests itself through their ability.

Anger, hatred, joy, sorrow and overall their feelings of love influences their abilities and let them get stronger[8]. This is further indicated by a statement of Musubi's explaining to Toyotama their difference in strength. According to her, she lost the fight simply because the lack of love in her relationship towards her Ashikabi. Thus implying love is a crucial element to gain strength for Sekirei.[9]

Battle, Abilities and Rules

Sekirei have a strong ability called a Norito, which is an incantation recited to provide a boost of power when needed. To utilize this, they need to confirm the bond they share with the Ashikabi through a kiss and recite their prayer. Each Sekirei has their own unique Norito. Multiple Sekirei under the same Ashikabi can also merge their techniques in order to create more powerful ones. This puts most Ashikabi at a disadvantage, as only a few possess more than one Sekirei.[10]

An important rule for every Sekirei is that the winner has to guard the corpse of a Sekirei that is terminated until MBI arrives and recovers the body[11]. In the manga, if a Sekirei does not follow this rule and refuses to show their respect to the loser, other Sekirei might try to punish them[12]. Musubi stated that the reward for the last remaining Sekirei of the game (the Sekirei Plan) is for them to be with their favorite person - their Ashikabi - forever[13].

Physiology

The physiology of a Sekirei is similar to humans. They have similar requirements such as the need to eat food, drink water, and breathe oxygen. They are also also capable of reproducing with the human species; thousands of years in the past, some Sekirei were able to conceive offspring with their Ashikabi. Due to this, the genes of Sekirei, while recessive, are still carried by nearly half of the world's population.[14]

However, they also have significant differences that set them apart: Sekirei have greater strength, speed, and stamina than is possible for humans. In addition, each Sekirei has a core that is the source of their power and very existence; Sekirei who lose their core cease to function.[15]

There are two ways to terminate a Sekirei: The first is through defeating them in physical combat by inflicting a sufficient amount and severity of damage; the second is for an opponent to touch the crest at the nape of their neck and recite their Norito. The crest then disappears, indicating termination. A Sekirei whose crest has disappeared cannot function. The severity of physical damage to a Sekirei is categorized in five levels of going from one to five, the former being the most benign and five being the most severe; Damage Level Five is effectively the actual death of the Sekirei.[16]

According to Ichinomiya Natsuo, as long as terminated Sekirei don't approach their 'Death' as living creatures, they can be put to sleep after special surgery depending on the level of termination. They are then taken to a specialized facility where their body is kept alive. But a living body does not mean the Sekirei isn't dead; the loss of their crest is equivalent to death for a Sekirei. There are two ways to fix these "broken bonds": one involves being the last remaining Ashikabi and using the assembled Jinki.[17] The second is a result of Kusano's Norito being activated and directed at a specified area.[18]

Ashikabi

Ashikabi are the individuals to whom Sekirei become attached to, in both a contractual and emotional sense. Ashikabi can be male or female, and there do exist instances of both partners being the same sex.

There are four main Ashikabi with power above that of others. There is one in each area of the city and are named for the area in which they reside. Originally there were three main Ashikabi: Higa Izumi in the East, Mikogami Hayato in the South, and Sanada Nishi in the West. There was no "Ashikabi of the North" (due to the presence of the "Hannya of the North") until Minato became the Ashikabi of the North after winging his fifth and sixth Sekirei. Most Ashikabi only have a single Sekirei, however, and thus these 'Big Four' are exceptions.

The winging of a Sekirei is done through an exchange of DNA through mucosal contact, usually via a mouth-to-mouth kiss. The main ability of an Ashikabi is empowering their Sekirei, both by the strength of their emotional bonds and assisting in the activation of the Sekirei's Norito. An Ashikabi's powers increase with the number of Sekirei they wing[19]; more powerful Sekirei such as the "single numbers" are more likely to respond to a more powerful Ashikabi. An important consequence of the binding relationship between Ashikabi and Sekirei is that the death of an Ashikabi results in the termination of all of their Sekirei. This is considered classified information by MBI, though most Sekirei and Ashikabi in the story seem to know about it anyway.

One part of the bond between Sekirei and Ashikabi is that they can feel each others' feelings. For example, when Musubi's crest disappeared and Minato mourned her loss, Tsukiumi and Kazehana - the latter of whom was not winged at the time - felt his pain. This even occurs over distances: Kusano, who was far off at Izumo Inn immediately knew what happened; and it is implied that Matsu also can feel Minato's feelings. The feelings of the Sekirei can also be felt in return by the Ashikabi. If their bond is particularly strong, the Sekirei and Ashikabi can communicate fully telepathically. With sufficient experience, this ability can be extended to telepathically communicate with multiple Sekirei simultaneously; this is very useful for coordinating actions in battle.

List of Sekirei

Sekirei No.

Name

Ashikabi

Status

0/1

Asama Miya

none (wife and formerly the widow of Asama Takehito)

alive, formerly incapacitated after her battle with Musubi

2

Matsu

Sahashi Minato

alive

3

Kazehana

Sahashi Minato

alive

4

Karasuba

Ichinomiya Natsuo

alive (incapacitated after being terminated by Musubi)

5

Mutsu

Mikogami Hayato

alive

6

Homura

Sahashi Minato

alive

7 Akitsu Mikogami Hayato alive, formerly self-terminated, then revived

8

Yume

Sahashi Minato (through Musubi)

alive (through Musubi)

9

Tsukiumi

Sahashi Minato

alive

10

Uzume

Hidaka Chiho

terminated by Sai, revived

11

Hikari

Seo Kaoru

alive

12

Hibiki

Seo Kaoru

alive

13

Amebane

Yashiro Itsuki

terminated by Shiina, revived

14

Chiyo

Sanada Nishi

terminated by Akitsu, revived

15

Himeko

Mikogami Hayato

alive

16

Toyotama

Higa Izumi

terminated by Musubi, revived

17

Yūna

Sanada Nishi

terminated by Akitsu, revived

18

Ichiya

Higa Izumi

alive

19

Ikki

unknown

terminated by Karasuba, presumed revived

20

Hatae

Sanada Nishi

terminated by Akitsu, revived

22

Kochō

Kakizaki

alive

27

Nina

Mutou

terminated, revived
28 Natsuka unknown

terminated, revived

31

Sai

Higa Izumi

terminated by Homura, revived

37 unknown unknown

terminated, presumed revived

38

Mitsuha

Mikogami Hayato

terminated by Karasuba, presumed revived

39

Mitsuki

Mikogami Hayato

terminated by Yuna, revived

40

Shi

Higa Izumi

terminated by Kazehana, revived

43

Yomi

Mikogami Hayato

terminated by Musubi, presumed revived

44

Yosuga

unknown

terminated, presumed revived

92 (misidentified as 48)

Kujika

Sanada Nishi

alive

54

Kuruse*

Reiji Koya

unknown, presumed alive

55

Saki none unknown, presumed alive

57

Yahan*

Reiji Koya

unknown, presumed alive

62 Kaie Higa Izumi terminated by Kazehana, revived

65

Taki

Mikogami Hayato

terminated by Hatae, revived

72

Natsu*

unknown

terminated by Uzume, presumed revived

73

Namiji

Takano Kouji

terminated by Shiina, revived

74

Narashino

Tsudanuma Osamu

alive

75 Niwa unknown terminated, revived

78

Nanami

Himura Youichi

terminated by Karasuba, presumed revived

79

unknown

Higa Izumi

terminated by Tsukiumi, presumed revived

82

Hari

Kunimitsu Hiroyuki‎

terminated by the Disciplinary Squad, presumed revived

84

Yashima

Tanigawa Junichi

terminated by Shiina, revived

34 (misidentified as 85)

Oshino

Higa Izumi

terminated by Benitsubasa, presumed revived

86

Katsuragi

Higa Izumi

terminated by Musubi, presumed revived

87

Kaho

Oosumi Orihiko

terminated by Karasuba, revived

88

Musubi

Sahashi Minato

alive

95

Kuno

Shigi Haruka

alive

100

Momo

Mikogami Hayato

terminated by Chiyo, Hatae, and Yuna, revived

101

Oriha

Higa Izumi

terminated by Tsukiumi, revived

103

Juusa

Mikogami Hayato

terminated by Chiyo, revived

104

Haihane

Ichinomiya Natsuo

alive

105

Benitsubasa

Ichinomiya Natsuo

alive

106

Shijime

Sanada Nishi

alive

107

Shiina

Sahashi Yukari

alive

108

Kusano

Sahashi Minato

alive

81

unknown

Higa Izumi

terminated by Tsukiumi, presumed revived

21 unknown unknown

terminated, presumed revived

66

Kaiha

Higa Izumi

alive

93

Kuzuri

Sanada Nishi

alive

94

Kujou

Higa Izumi

terminated by Homura, presumed revived

33

Mimi

Mutou

terminated by Nanami, presumed revived

68 Midorino unknown terminated by Hikari and Hibiki, presumed revived

Total: 64

!

Total: 24

!


*A Sekirei using throwing knives to fight, terminated by Uzume[11]. (In episode eight of the anime you can shortly see her data on one of Matsu's screens. Her name is Natsu, No #72. No information about her in the Manga) *Both Kuruse and Yahan are characters within the Japanese only-game Sekirei: Gifts from the Future. As such, their status in the manga's continuity is uncertain.

18 more Sekirei were terminated during the failed mass escape plan.[20]

Trivia

  • Sekirei, or wagtails, are important in Japanese mythology and folklore, as well as Shinto. They are held as sacred to the married creator gods Izanagi and Izanami (god of the land of the living and goddess of the realm of the dead respectively), for it was through these birds that these divinities first learned the "art" of love. Yume also refers to this myth in a flashback.[16]
  • Like most Japanese nouns, "Sekirei" has no plural form; this is because nouns in Japanese largely do not have them. Therefore, when referring to more than one Sekirei at a time, or the race as a whole, one only needs to say 'Sekirei', the same as they would when referring to a single Sekirei. Therefore an English speaker referring to two or more Sekirei as "Sekireis" would be incorrect from a Japanese perspective.
  • It should also be noted that as of the release of the Sekirei Endearment artbook in 2015, several Sekirei numbers are confirmed, including one of Higa's Sekirei, a minor Sekirei from the Third Stage, Kaiha, Momo (#100), Kuzuri, Kujou, Mimi, and Midorino. Kujika's number is confirmed to be #92 (as opposed to #48), and Oshino's #34 (as opposed to #85). Reiji is listed as Kuruse's Ashikabi, not Minato. Himeko's name is rendered as "Hihimeko." Niwa is listed as being Sekirei #28 (the Sekirei with blonde/white hair) and Natsuka Sekirei #75 (the Sekirei with brown/black hair), indicating that they were originally misidentified. Two Sekirei terminated by the Disciplinary Squad are confirmed to be #25 and #56.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Sekirei Manga chapter 69
  2. Sekirei Manga chapter 71
  3. 3.0 3.1 Sekirei Manga chapter 113
  4. Sekirei Manga chapter 72
  5. Sekirei Manga chapter 21
  6. Sekirei Manga chapter 115
  7. Sekirei Manga chapter 03
  8. Sekirei Manga chapter 66
  9. Sekirei Manga chapter 129
  10. Sekirei Manga chapter 87
  11. 11.0 11.1 Sekirei Manga chapter 28
  12. Sekirei Manga chapter 29
  13. Sekirei Manga chapter 12
  14. Sekirei Manga chapter 114
  15. Sekirei Manga chapter 09
  16. 16.0 16.1 Sekirei Manga chapter 53
  17. Sekirei Manga chapter 109
  18. Sekirei Manga chapter 171
  19. Sekirei Manga chapter 20
  20. Sekirei Manga chapter 102
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