Youkai Army Corps

The fictional Youkai Army Corps (妖怪軍団 Yōkai Gundan, Apparition Army Corps) are the main antagonists in the 1994 Super Sentai series Ninja Sentai Kakuranger.

Background

The Youkai are embodiments of the darkness of humanity that are unable to be fully destroyed due to the darkness in human hearts reviving them over time. While normally independent, some Youkai rally under Daimaoh and then another Youkai of great power who possesses an amassed energy of human malice. But after their second leader was sealed away 400 years ago by the Kakurangers' ancestors, This forced the powerless Youkai to go into hiding and change their forms to keep up with the times. Most Youkai have a human form (sometimes distinguished with bizarre markings on their faces) and use the Ninja Arts themselves. It is stated that cowardice is the Youkai right. After Sasuke and Saizou undid the Door of Seals, the Youkai gain access to the cloud born from human misery and despair and use its lightning to enlarge. But after the Kakurangers destroyed the cloud with their positive emotions, Daimaoh became the only source of dark emotions left, prior to being resealed with the Yokai reconstituted yet trapped and powerless.

Daimaoh

Daimaoh (大魔王 Daimaō, Great Demon King, 23, 30-53) is a 1,199-year-old Youkai born from the amassed hatred of human who originally led the Youkai Army Corps before being sealed in the Demon Seal Gate long ago by the Sanshinshou in their original human forms. He also played a role in Ninjaman's sealing and exile a thousand years prior by tricking the hero into attacking humans. In present day, Daimaoh has his son Gashadokuro set up preparations for his coming into the human world by gathering children's souls to begin a ritual to resurrect him within a month's time. Though Super Kakure Daishogun destroyed it, the Seal reformed itself and Daimaoh emerges, turning the altar into his base of operations. When Ninjaman returns, Daimaoh employs Bakuki to capture the ninja to make him into his retainer for his own agenda. But as Kakurangers got to free Ninjaman, Daimaoh decides to let his target be at the moment though he briefly battles the Kakurangers when they ruined his 1,200th birthday party prior to falling back after being overwhelmed by Super Muteki Shogun.

After his 1,200th birthday, Daimaoh gained the power to spawn clones of himself as he created Daradara to aid him in wiping out the Sanshinshou by putting them in a predicament through Daradara siphoning the powers of Ninjaman and four of the Kakurangers. However, due to Hakamenrou giving Ninja Red the means to ruin his scheme with Junior's manor destroyed in the process and managing to escape after being wounded by a combination of Super Muteki Shogun's Muteki Cannon Full Discharge and Super Kakure Daishogun's Iron Fist Flying Finish, Daimaoh turns the human into stone before establishing himself in a new base of operations: The flying skull fortress Gaikotsu Castle (ガイコツ城 Gaikotsujō) with plans to build a Youkai kingdom on Earth and destroy the Kakurangers. After the death of younger brother Daidarabotchi, having severed his ties to him and their sister long ago so he can focus on establishing the Youkai kingdom, Daimaoh decide to employ his sister in a scheme to have Tsuruhime fall into despair. But when the plan failed, crashing Gaikotsu Castle on them, Daimaoh provokes the Kakurangers into killing him so the evil comprising his body would consume humanity to renew the Youkai. But when Sanshisho instructs the Kakurangers to capture him without transforming, Daimaoh ups the ante before the ninja realize the Door of Seals is the collective heart of humanity. Though he attempted to escape capture, Daimaoh is gravely weakened by the Sanshinsho and Ninjaman before being entombed behind the Door of Seals where the Youkai are reconstituted.

Daimaoh is voiced by Hidekatsu Shibata (柴田 秀勝 Shibata Hidekatsu).

Nurarihyon

Nurarihyon (ヌラリヒョン Nurarihyon, 1) is a Youkai who attempted to unite the Youkai army years ago after Daimaoh's sealing. However, Nurarihyon ended up being defeated by the ancestors of the Kakurangers and sealed away.Voiced by Yoshimasa Chida (千田 義正 Chida Yoshimasa).

Gashadokuro

Gashadokuro (ガシャドクロ, 14-31) is an infamous Youkai who is one of their race's leading figures, a brute who happily slaughters any human he comes across and loves to rock but plays the piano when he is in a bad mood. He normally appears to the Kakurangers in the guise of Young Noble Junior (貴公子ジュニア Kikōshi Junia), a bleached blonde leather punk, but can revert to his true militant skeleton form when pumped. Uniting the Youkai under him, Junior is bent on killing off most of the humans to create a Youkai paradise. He made first direct attack on the Kakurangers with the Shuten Douji brothers. He then made it personal for the Kakurangers by murdering Zashiki-warashi after failing to turn him evil. Though they almost got him during the trap he set up with Tsuchigumo, Junior escapes via a hot-air balloon. Junior eventually begins to carry out the ritual to summon his father Daimaoh back into the world, sending Umibozu to capture five children to begin the ritual and using his music to petrify the remaining ten to complete the ritual. As a result, Gashadokuro is infused with Daimaoh's power and is beyond the Kakurangers' ability to fight as he takes the skull-like altar he created on a building and the surrounding district into the sky beyond the Kakurangers' reach so Daimaoh's resurrection can be uninterrupted as he turn the humans trapped in the barrier to stone. While Gashadokuro appears to be completely heartless to even his lackeys and more relentless in combat, he does have some respect for the Kakuranger, as seen when he allowed his Dorodoros to give water to the Kappa-ized Seikai and Saizou to fight Nue.

Once all the Kakurangers had obtained the Shinobi Scrolls, Junior assumes his true form to battle the Chounin Beasts and stop them from destroying the Sealed Door. However, he is overpowered by them until Hakamenrou intervened. The fact that he had to be saved by the very human whom Daimaou prizes above him drove Junior to have Hakamenrou prove himself to him by killing the Kakurangers. But after mortally wounding Sandayuu when he aided Hakamenrou in saving the Kakurangers, Junior assumes his true form and overpowered the Kakurangers at first until Sasuke receives Hikarimaru to defeat Gashadokuro. But Gashadokuro refuse to accept defeat and enlarges, fighting the Chounin Beasts once again with the laser cannon he had Yugami commission for him. With this new gear, he gained an attack called "Crush Beam". But the tables turned when the team form Kakure Daishogun, and then Super Kakure Daishogun, stripping off his gear before killing him. Soon after, Daimaou states that Gashadokuro was no more than a fool to think he would be his heir though vowed to avenge him nonetheless. The mansion Gashadokuro had occupied served as his father's base of operations before it was eventually destroyed.

Prof. Yugami

Prof. Yugami (ユガミ博士 Yugami-hakase, Prof. Warp, 12-16, 30 & 31): A Youkai scientist who enjoys the suffering of children and develop various weapons to aid his kind. Originally under the employ of Tengu, Yugami used the boys that Tengu kidnapped to create the Youkai Replicas. But after Tengu's defeat, Yugami flees from the town and eventually enters the service of Junior, providing the Youkai prince with mechanical weapons and armor for the other Youkai serving him. He appeared to cheer Gasha Dokuro on during the final stages of their plan until he was horrified to see his master destroyed. He was killed by a slim piece of the Demon Sealing Door which was shattered by Super Kakure Dai Shogun in episode 31.

Nue

The Youkai Warrior Nue (妖怪戦士ヌエ Yōkai Senshi Nue, 27-29) is a legend among the Youkai who abandoned his "undignified" archaic appearance for a new form that combines elements of an eagle, a lion, and a snake with the power of tigers undiminished through the ages. The source of his power came from the tattoo on his left shoulder. During the 1980s, Nue founded an organization of assassins in Los Angeles and enlisted the services of Gali to eliminate Jiraiya's father when he stumbled upon his activities.

Seeing Gashadokuro unfit to lead the Youkai, Nue appears as an emissary of Daimaou to deal with Saizou and Sekai during their Shinobi Scroll search by turning them into Horo Kappa, the lowest form of Kappa. From there, Nue planned to have the two kill each other so the survivor can become human again. But they two overcame their plight and fight Nue, with the aid of the Dorodoro, to change them back. After killing the Dorodoro and defeating Muteki Shogun, an enlarged Nue battles Ninja Blue and Ninja Yellow as their obtain their Shinboi Scrolls and left the Youkai buried in the confrontation with their Chounin Beasts . However, Nue survived and sent his Gali, to handle Jiraiya for him. Once Gali died, Nue resurfaced with intend to kill Jiraiya personally. However, with Ninja Black gaining God Gammer, Nue is destroyed by the assembled Chounin Beasts attacked with Tsubasamaru supporting them.

Nue is voiced by Tesshō Genda (玄田 哲章 Genda Tesshō).

Yama-uba

Yama-uba (ヤマンバ Yamanba, 50-52): The younger sister of Daimaoh, Yama-uba lived in the mountains with their brother Daidarabotchi where she feeds on lost travelers she while in the guise of an innkeep name Grandmama. When the Kakurangers arrive to their domain after abducting five children that she disguised as chickens, Yama-uba attempts to ask Daimaoh to join her and Daidarabotchi in killing the ninjas. But when Daimaoh refuses, Yama-uba decides to handle the trap personally. But Ninja Red manages to save the children, with Yama-uba forced to retreat to Daimaoh after Daidarabotchi's death. Her hatred towards the Kakurangers allows Daimaoh to gives her a power boost that transforms her into a more combat-orienated form. In her new form, Yama-uba is sent by Daimaoh in a scheme to harvest the rage of sadness of people using the souless Hakamenro in a scheme to put Tsuruhime on the brink of despair. Yama-uba and the Flowery Kunoichi hold the male Kakurangers off, but Jiro and Taro intervene as they take out Hakamenro after she enlarged. While Yanuba uses the Yokai energy lightning from the storm to make herself invincible against Ninjaman and the Sanshinshou, Kakurangers' positive emotions dissolve the cloud with Yama-uba destroyed by Samuraiman, Super Muteki Shogun, and Kakure Daishogun.

Yama-uba is voiced by Haruko Kitahama (北浜晴子 Kitahama Haruko).

Daidarabotchi

Daidarabotchi (ダイダラボッチ Daidarabotchi, 50): A giant yeti-like youkai who is the younger brother of Daimaou, upset by his brother disowning him and his sister, who disguised himself as the mountain Yama-uba established her inn by. He also poses as the manager of his sister's inn when not needed to be her eyes and ears in the countryside. Daidarabotchi and Yama-uba planned to get rid of the Kakurangers one by one by replacing a member with fakes, but Ninja Red managed to use his shadow clones to destroy the fakes before Daidarabotchi surfaced to fight him in God Saruder. Luckily Ninjaman took over before becoming Samuriman as he, Muteki Shogun, and Super Kakure Daishogun destroy Daidarabotchi.

Daidarabotchi is voiced by Hisao Egawa (江川 央生 Egawa Hisao).

Flowery Kunoichi Team

The Flowery Kunoichi Team (花のくノ一組 Hana no Kunoichi Gumi, 15, 16 & 20-53) are Gashadokuro's personal ninja team he created from cats. They are cruel, skilled kunoichis armed with Ninja Magic, and are capable of disguise. They each transform by the command "Battle Change!" (バトル変化 Batoru Henge) and use various Ninpo like Flower Storm, Flower Illusion, Flower Bomb, Kunochi Missile, and Flower Fantasy. Before entering battle, they say, "The Flowery Kunoichi Team stands before you now!".

Outside of fighting, the kunoichi reside within their personal indoor swimming pool deck for leisure. The Flower Kunochi Team first make themselves known to the Kakurangers when Junior sends them to support the Shuten Douji Brothers. They later enact a scheme by Junior to take out the Kakurangers one-by-one starting with Sasuke. With Prof. Yugami providing radio silence to render the Kakuranger unable to contact his team, the Flower Kunochi trick Sasuke to discard his Doron Changer to easily kill him. However, Muteki Shogun intervened by giving Sasuke his Blazing Sword to force the Kunochi to retreat. After Junior's death, the Flower Kunochi serve under Daimaoh. The Sanshinshou turned them back into cats during the finale.

Dorodoros

The Dorodoros (ドロドロ Dorodoro) are lowest form of Youkai who serve mainly as grunts. Though they have warped, ghost-like faces and are clad in light-blue tights, Dorodoros can "mold" themselves into human form. The Dorodoros have a fear of Nue, as he would not hesitate to kill them if they get out of line with him yet a group of them sacrificed themselves to aid Saizou and Seikai while the two Kakurangers were turned into lesser Youkai like themselves.

Minor Youkai

Others

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