Hiruko

Hiruko (ひるこ^?) is one of the main antagonists of Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone and Double Dragon III: The Sacred Stones. She is a mysterious fortune teller who appears out of nowhere with the apparent intention of helping the heroes find the fabled Rosetta Stones while asking nothing in return.

History[]

An old and mysterious soothsayer who appears out of nowhere and helps the Lee brothers on their quest. Is she really taking them on a journey of enlightenment or is she merely using them for her own greedy gain?

She tells them about the world's strongest warrior, which they would be able to fight if they retrieve the Rosetta Stones and take them to Egypt. Seeking to improve their martial arts skills, the brothers follow Hiruko's advice and travel the world in order to collect the stones. Once they have acquired all of them, they go to Egypt, where Hiruko leads them into a pyramid and uses the stones to open its entrance. Once the brothers and their allies defeat all the guardians inside, Hiruko reveals her true intentions: that all she wanted was to find Cleopatra's treasure. She then reveals to be a powerful sorceress and attacks the heroes, so she can get all the treasure for herself. However, the heroes ultimately defeat her and she dies before she can enter the pyramid's inner chamber, where the treasure is hidden.

The NES version of the game changes the story a bit, as Marion mysteriously disappears and Hiruko tells the brothers they would be able to find her if they retrieved the stones. In this version, Hiruko is the person who killed the Lee brothers' friend Brett.

Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone[]

Near the end of the final mission, Egypt, Hiruko reveals herself to be a major enemy. Despite her aged appearance, she is very quick and agile, and is aided by several Stonemen during her boss fight. She mainly attacks with her staff, which she wields with great proficiency, and can also launch fireballs for ranged combat, with her small size allowing her to evade punches and other high attacks.

After sustaining enough damage, she attempts to flee and enter Cleopatra's burial chamber by herself, but due to her not being in possession of all three Rosetta Stones, she exits a few seconds later, utters some final words longing for the treasure, and then turns into dust.

Double Dragon III: The Sacred Stones[]

Hiruko reprises her role in this home console adaptation of the arcade game. She once again gives advice to our heroes on where in the world to go next in their search of the Sacred Stones of Power.

After completing Mission 3, Hiruko confesses she had been in possession of the third stone all along and leads the heroes to Egypt (although first doing a quick detour to Italy to prepare for the final battle), where they will face the ultimate enemy (and find Marion in the NES version).

Unlike the arcade version, she is not fought as a boss in this game; instead, she only attempts to enter the Princess's burial chamber all by herself to claim the power hidden within the pyramid and with it rule the world. In the NES version, she also confesses being the leader of the enemy forces and having been the one who "silenced" Brett. Unfortunately for her, she was unaware of the entire legend of the Sacred Stones of Power, which said:

And so, not knowing of the existence of a fourth stone, she enters the burial chamber while holding only three of them, only to exit a few seconds later and, as the legend predicted, turning into dust.

Other appearances[]

River City Girls 2[]

Hiruko makes a cameo appearance in this game, where she acts as the clerk of Jewel of the Vile in Flatirons, now fashioning a modernized look consisting of rounded shades and multicolored garments and hair, and wearing extravagant jewelry.

She was voiced by Mary Hanson in English and remains uncredited in the Japanese dub.

Quotes[]

• "Find the three Rosetta Stones, then go to Egypt. There you will find the world's strongest enemy, but beware, no one has come back alive." (attract introduction screen)
• "The first stone is in China. Your battle is waiting for you, Double Dragons." (Mission 1 ending)
• "I know it! You are real strong. I have the stone. From now you will need my help." (Mission 3 ending)
• "This door will never open, without the three Rosetta Stones. There is a secret hidden beneath. Hear, go! and find out what it is." (Mission 5 building entrance)
• "I'm impressed. You really have strength." (Mission 5 boss battle)
• "My... My... Treasure......" (Mission 5 death)

Gallery[]

Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone

Billy fighting Hiruko in the Commodore 64 version of Double Dragon 3.

Double Dragon III: The Sacred Stones

Hiruko artwork from the Double Dragon III Famicom manual.

In-game sprite.

Hiruko artwork from River City Girls 2.

Hiruko cameo in River City Girls 2.

Double Dragon Gaiden

External links[]

• Hiruko at the Kunio-kun Wiki