Mukuro Ikusaba

"I mean, to be honest...whether or not a flower is pretty depends on the situation, right? It's like... One lone flower on the battlefield, or you almost step on one but pull back at the last second. I'm not sure what that's supposed to mean..." Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc

Mukuro Ikusaba (戦刃 むくろ Ikusaba Mukuro) is one of the characters in Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, as well as a secondary antagonist in the Hope's Peak Academy saga. She is the older twin sister of Junko Enoshima.

Mukuro is a student from Class 78th enrolled in Hope's Peak Academy as the Ultimate Soldier (超高校級の「軍人」chō kōkō kyū no “gunjin.” lit. Super High School Level Soldier). She is also an important member of Ultimate Despair, with her and her sister going by the name "Despair Sisters". However, they are not equals, as Mukuro is simply a very close follower and often a bodyguard for Junko.

During the Killing School Life, Mukuro is the mysterious sixteenth student, as she disguised herself as her twin sister. However, right after the first murder occurred, she was punished and murdered by Monokuma (under Junko's control) after breaking the school rules.

Mukuro has a more prominent role in the prequel novel, Danganronpa/Zero, and the alternate ending novel, Danganronpa IF. She appears as a cameo in the 30-minutes long OVA, Super Danganronpa 2.5: Nagito Komaeda and the Destroyer of the World as a part of Nagito Komaeda's imagination world.

Mukuro appeared in Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak Academy - Side: Despair as one of the Despair Sisters along with Junko. She also returns in the spinoff manga, Danganronpa Gaiden: Killer Killer as the source of inspiration behind Takumi Hijirihara's Killer Killer persona, and in the form of numerous clones of her.

Appearance

Mukuro is a young woman who is around 19 years old. (around 17 years in Danganronpa 3 - Side: Despair).

She and Junko share the same, average height. Her slim figure has been criticized by Monokuma in Danganronpa IF; he has specifically stated that she was "too skinny" (though it should be noted Junko tends to heavily exaggerate or even make up Mukuro's flaws). Despite being a soldier, her body does not appear particularly muscular, which could be explained by the fact that some parts of her talent have been shown to be more like a supernatural state. She is similar in appearance to her sister Junko, but there are some notable differences. Mukuro's eyes are less round, more slanted, and are also naturally blue; unlike her sister's. Her bust is also much smaller. She has short, layered, bobbed black hair and freckles across the bridge of her nose. She has a Fenrir tattoo on her right hand, which she covers up with foundation when disguised as Junko.

However, in later designs of her after Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, Mukuro's eye color is changed to purple and her hair is a little longer, reaching down to about shoulder length.

Personality

Being the Ultimate Soldier, Mukuro is ruthless and can kill and harm others with no remorse. She seems completely indifferent towards other people, unless it's her sister Junko or her crush Makoto. Unlike her sister, she doesn't take any sadistic pleasure in hurting or killing people, but at the same time she show little concern for other people's suffering. Despite being an incredible soldier, Mukuro is very out-of-touch with her own emotions. She has a notable lack of social-skills, acting emotionless and indifferent towards most people. She tends to have a cold, serious expression and a reserved personality. Despite this, she appears to portray her sister's very different personality rather well. She herself admits that she lacks skill in negotiating with others and planning tactics in advance, despite her renown as an excellent soldier. While she is completely fearless as a soldier, she is afraid of certain emotional situations.

Mukuro has been verbally and physically abused by her sister for years. She only knows how to take orders from Junko and obeys her even if she doesn't agree with her. Mukuro craves her sister's praise and acceptance and will do nearly anything to get it. Because of this, Mukuro allows herself to be constantly abused by Junko and takes her insults to heart. Mukuro believes she is the only one who truly understands her sister and she wants to make her happy, so she stays by Junko's side even when she insults her. She also finds pleasure in Junko's attempts to harm or even kill her, knowing that her sister will experience tremendous despair if she succeeds. She is sometimes portrayed even disturbingly obsessed with her sister, with her blushing and in a state of ecstasy.

According to her voice actress, Mukuro usually gives off a feminine, frail and even cute impression when in her sister's company, described with "a masochist who loves her little sister" kind of vibe. However, during fighting, her stern and grim personality comes out, and it's like she becomes a different person.

In Danganronpa IF, thanks to Makoto, Mukuro begins to have more interest in the world around her. While she is protective of Makoto and cares about him, she still doesn't show that much interest in other students. She decides to protect Makoto's hope and betrays Junko, though she is still very much motivated by the idea of causing her sister to feel despair. In the end, she doesn't know how to feel or what kind of future she would have.

Gallery

Disguised as Junko

"Junko Enoshima and Mukuro Ikusaba"