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Dark Dragon Blade
The Dark Dragon Blade
Statistics
Strength Very High
Speed Medium
Range Medium
Maximum Level 1
First Appearance
Debut Ninja Gaiden


The Dark Dragon Blade (魔刀 「黒龍丸」 Matou "Kokuryuumaru"?, Lit. Devil Sword Dark Dragon) was the sister blade to the Dragon Sword.

It was carved by the fiends out of the bones of the Dark Dragon. The power of the Dark Dragon Blade grows with each killing that occurs within its vicinity, which is infinite.

When a person breaks the seal of the Dark Dragon Blade, they become the "Devil Incarnate".[1]

History[]

After the defeat of the Dark Dragon by the ancestors of the Dragon Lineage, the Fiends, having witnessed the incredible power of the sacred True Dragon Sword, set out to create a sinister sister counterpart from the bones of the Dark Dragon, resulting in the Dark Dragon Blade.

This Blade containing the soul of the Dark Dragon and the souls of his vanquished Black Dragon spawn, plagued the ancient world and brought global scale deaths as it grew stronger, feeding it's unquenchable thirst for death and destruction.

Many generations later the blade recovered by the Dragon Lineage, however unable to destroy the indestructible evil blade, the Dragon Lineage did the next best thing, they sealed the power of the blade, and safeguarded it from falling into the hands of those eager to unleash it's dark power and become the Devil incarnate.

But as ages passed, history became ancient myth, and the Dark Dragon Blade became an ancient ceremonial relic passed on to be safeguarded generation by generation, with the Blade's full potential unknown to them.

Plot[]

Ninja Gaiden Sigma[]

The blade, under the guardianship of the Hayabusa Ninja Clan, descendants of the Dragon Lineage, is stolen by Doku, Lord of the Greater Fiends. Ryu Hayabusa attempts to stop Doku from departing with the malevolent weapon, but is struck down and Doku departs with it to the Vigoor Empire.

Pursued by a revived and vengeful Ryu, the blade is empowered by the death of every opponent Ryu cuts down in his search for it. Tracking the sword to the Holy Vigoor Emperor, Ryu has a vision of the Emperor unsealing the Dark Dragon Blade as he unleashes the True Dragon Sword by combining the Eye of the Dragon with the Dragon Sword. Ryu makes his way to the core under the Zarkhan Palace, into the Realm of Vigoor where he finds that the blade upon the Emperor, who has restored his power, becoming a terrible Deity of Destruction. The transformed Emperor confronts Ryu in his lair, a lava-filled cavern.

Defeating the Emperor, Ryu escapes the cavern with the Dark Dragon Blade and struggles to rendezvous with Rachel, a Vigoorian fiend hunter, who waits to rescue him. Ryu throws the blade up and out of the cavern to free his hands for the climb out of the fiery pit, and it lands at the feet of the Dark Disciple and his informant, Gamov. Gamov had been tracking the Dark Dragon Blade as well. The Disciple murders Gamov with the blade, and this treacherous killing unleashes the true ferocity and destructive potential of the weapon. The Disciple reveals himself to be Murai, Ryu's uncle and master of the Shadow ninja clan, who had orchestrated the attack on the Hayabusa clan village and the theft of the Dark Dragon Blade.

Murai then breaks the seal, which is the human head hilt of the Blade. Murai breaking the seal, turns him into the Devil Incarnate. Ryu and Murai fight each other, but the Dark Dragon cannot prevail against Ryu's True Dragon Sword. Murai is defeated and drops the Dark Dragon Blade, then falls to his doom into the blazing pit of the Emperor's lair. Ryu wedges the blade under his left foot and, with a swift motion, kicks the blade up and smashes it into tiny fragments with the True Dragon Sword, destroying its malevolent power once and for all..

Quotes[]

"The evil Dark Dragon Blade... a legendary sword carved out of the bones of a black dragon. It brought plague and death to the world during the age of ancient myth. It has been sealed by those of the Dragon Lineage since the dawn of history because of its incredible capacity for evil, made possible by the souls of the vanquished black dragons that dwell within it. It is said that if the Blade's seal were to be broken it would gather the hatred and evil of mankind and confer it on the one who wields it, transforming him into the Devil Incarnate." - Quoted directly from Ninja Gaiden

"Long ago, the Dark Dragon plunged the world into an era of chaos. Upon it's eventual defeat, an enchanted sword known as the Dark Dragon Blade was created from it's bones. This dangerously powerful weapon, infused with the malevolent spirit of the Dark Dragon itself, was entrusted to the care of a bloodline of humans known as the Dragon Lineage. However evil beings, enthralled by it's immense evil power stole the evil blade. And once again the world faced the threat of eternal darkness. A young Ninja named Ryu Hayabusa, survivor of the Hayabusa Clan and descendant of the Dragon Lineage, took up his family's legendary birthright, the Dragon Sword, to face this threat alone. At the end of an intense battle, Ryu shattered the evil Dark Dragon Blade into countless shards with a blow from his Dragon Sword. Six months have passed since what is now known as the Dark Dragon Blade Incident." - Quoted directly from Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword

Unlocking the Dark Dragon Blade[]

NGB Dark Dragon Blade

In game

The sealed Dark Dragon Blade is an unlockable item in Ninja Gaiden, obtainable by completing the story mode twice, the second time starting with the final save from the first, found in the Hayabusa Village in Chapter 13, on the second floor of the building with the Muramasa statue. In the Hurricane Pack, Ninja Gaiden Black and Ninja Gaiden Sigma, the weapon can be unlocked on hard or higher difficulties by finding all Golden Scarabs and giving them to Muramasa the blacksmith. He will give the weapon to you in return for bringing him all the scarabs.

Strengths and Weaknesses[]

Strengths

  • High damage, strongest weapon after the Unlabored Flawlessness at low health in the game.
  • Almost every move is a guard break.
  • Fast short combos in the hands of an expert.
  • More likely to cause a stun effect on enemies.
  • No Upgrades (except Unsealing storyline wise).

Weaknesses

  • Feels slow and clunky for new players.
  • Some moves put Ryu off balance, leaving him open to attacks.
  • Small move list.

Move List[]

Normal

  • Gleam of Heaven and Earth: X, Y
  • Flaming Hell Slash: X, X, Y
  • Dark Dragon Descending Fiends: Y
  • Dark Dragon Flaming Demon: Charge Y
  • Dark Dragon Cauterizing Slash: Charge Y (Ultimate Technique)
  • Dark Dragon Gates of Hell: Charge Y (Ultimate Technique, 2 Essences)
  • Hundred Demons' Bite: Right, X
  • Flaming Whirlwind: Right, Y
  • Earth Slide: While Running X
  • Thunderclap Kick: While Running Y
  • Hundred Man Slash: Circle, Y
  • Corpse Crusher: Down, Y
  • Reigning Spiral (Scroll): While Blocking, X or Y (Counter Attack)

While Jumping

  • Fool Crusher: X or Y
  • Guillotine Throw (Scroll): Near an Enemy Y (throw)

On Wall

  • Thunderous Blade: X or Y
  • Raging Thunderous Blade: During Flying Bird Flip X or Y

In Water

  • Aqua Thrust: On Surface X or Y
  • Water Formation Kick: Underwater X or Y

Trivia[]

  • The shape of the Dark Dragon Blade strongly resembles one of Japan's sacred artifact- the Seven-Branched Sword.
  • Strangely, in gameplay the Dark Dragon Blade is a heavy weapon, causing Ryu to put it on his back every time a combo string ends. However, in the last chapter, Ryu is able to hold it with only one hand, as though it was lightweight. Though when battle with Murai he swings it like it's heavy.
  • The Dark Dragon Blade has more moves to a person who breaks the seal, just like the True Dragon Sword. When Murai breaks the seal, (inserting the Eye of the Dragon into the hilt of the TDS) he can unleash the Dark Dragon within from on top of the cliff (The more fierce Ultimate Technique Essence x2 from the True Dragon Sword.)
  • Interestingly, the Dark Dragon Blade's Ultimate Techniques have the name 'Dark Dragon' in them. The attack animations are also different from other heavy weapons, as it unleashes around seven slashes as oppose to other heavy weapon's one-hit area attack.
  • It is unusable in the 16th chapter of Ninja Gaiden, although you can still retrieve it in the mountain like any other playthrough.

References[]

  1. "It would gather the hatred and evil of mankind and confer it on the one who wields it, transforming him into the Devil Incarnate."
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