Takuma Sakazaki
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Takuma-portrait.jpg
Takuma Sakazaki (タクマ・サカザキ) is a character from SNK Playmore's Art of Fighting and King of Fighters fighting game series.
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Vital Statistics
There are two birthdates of Takuma Sakazaki. By the Art of Fighting timeline, Takuma was born in Japan on February 4, 1933. By the King of Fighters timeline, Takuma was born in Japan on February 4, 1947. He stands 1.8 m (5 ft 9 in) and weighs 70 kg (154 lb). His blood type is O. His hobby is making soba noodles, he likes white rice and miso soup. He likes all martial arts, and he cherishes his children (Ryo and Yuri), his students, and Kyokugen-ryu (Extreme Style) karate. He dislikes snakes. His distinguishing feature is an X-scaped scar on his right pectoral. He is also somewhat eccentric, donning his tengu mask and insisting he's "Mr. Karate," and delivering speeches that are supposed to rally morale, but often make him look silly. Takuma is the only Kyokugenryu Karate practitioner who can make full use of the discipline's most difficult moves--namely the Shoran Kyaku, available only in the Shoran principle of Kyokugenryu Karate. Takuma Sakazaki and the SVC Chaos version of Mr. Karate was voiced by Eiji Tsuda in many of the games Takuma Sakazaki appeared in.
Background
Takuma's Beginnings
Takuma learned Kyokugen from his father. Upon being named the heir of Kyokugen, Takuma married an American woman named Ronnet, and they moved to the then-peaceful Southtown to raise a family. Both Takuma and Ronnet became parents of Ryo and Yuri, who were born respectively four years apart. Shortly after the birth of their children, Ronnet fell ill and died. This tragedy filled Takuma with grief, but he resolved to make his children the best fighters in the world.
Takuma trained Ryo exclusively at the beginning, as he felt Yuri was too young and that Ryo is to be the heir to the throne of Kyokugenryu Master. A friend of his, Alberto Garcia, sent his son Robert to Takuma for training in discipline. Takuma swore that he would teach Kyokugen not only to his children and Robert, but to as many as he could.
The Rise of Crime in Southtown
In the midst of Takuma's aim to spread the Kyokugenryu discipline, crime started infesting Southtown, and Geese Howard made himself the de facto boss of the city. Unwilling to live with it, Takuma fought his way through lackeys and stooges and confronted Geese himself, demanding that he put an end to the crime. Geese replied with threats against Takuma's children, knowing that they meant the world to him. Now with Takuma dancing at his fingertips, Geese forced him to work for him. In order to preserve his honour, Takuma donned a tengu mask and formed another persona: "Mr. Karate."
While Geese was out on business, Mr. Big was in charge. In order to keep Takuma firmly under his control, Mr. Big had Yuri kidnapped. Unfortunately, that move caused Ryo and Robert to tear up Southtown in search of her and Takuma. When Ryo got to Mr. Big and defeated him, Big called for Mr. Karate, and he came out to battle Ryo. Although Ryo won, he threatened to kill Mr. Karate if he didn't tell him where Takuma and Yuri were. Yuri stopped Ryo from killing their father, and they had a joyous reunion.
The King of Fighters Tournament
Takuma led Ryo and Robert as a team in the new King of Fighters for two years, until he retired and brought in Yuri as a replacement. He remained on the sideline until 1999, when he rejoined the team as their fourth man. In 2000, Takuma welcomed King onto the team, knowing that she and Ryo have a "special something" together. Unfortunately, King of Fighters 2000 climaxed with the Zero Cannon wiping out most of Southtown, including the Kyokugen-ryu dojo. He couldn't use the Garcia fortune to rebuild with, as a world financial crisis had virtually wiped it out. He entered the team into the 2001 tournament to win the prize money.