Kubi Akari

Kubi Akari (Flare Head) is Genma that first appear in Onimusha: Way of the Sword. They are floating Genma, whose skin has a pale-bluish hue. They consume the floating souls that Musashi needs for his gauntlet, and puff up before firing blasts of energy at their prey. Despite their diminutive size, they should not be underestimated.

Appearance

The Kubi Akari is a blue floating head measuring at around 2-3ft in diameter with large flat ears that almost appear to be flapping like wings, and long messy black hair. that extends behind it far below the head itself. A pair of two small yellow eyes can be seen on its face as well as a somewhat human-like mouth containing a row of uneven and unhealthy-looking teeth. Its skin appears to be too large for its skull as it can be seen slightly drooping down, though this is likely due to its ability to inflate itself when attacking or after having feed on either Souls or humans. When inflated, its skin below its mouth becomes around 2-3 times the size of its head and begins pulsating with blue light, its eyes also seeming to almost pop out of its head.

Its stronger "special" form is already around 1.5-2 times larger as its lower head already appears somewhat inflated, though its skin exhibits a far more lighter human color with pinkish lips, and a pair of purple eyes instead of yellow. Its black hair is also significantly shorter, no longer extending any further than the top of its head. When inflated, it similarly grows in size by around 2-3 times its usual size, though the pulsating lights within are red instead of blue.

Behavior

The Kubi Akari often find themselves drifting from area to area in search of humans to feed on, driven by an almost uncontrollable need to kill and eat them that becomes more and more unbearable should they take too long to find any. However, given their ability to effortlessly float in the air, it rarely takes very long for them to find a target to prey on. In battle, however, they rarely face foes alone should their opponent be of any real threat, instead opting to support other Genma from afar. While usually hanging back while its allies do most of the fighting, the Kubi Akari is capable of building up light energy from within its body and fire it in the form of small balls of energy. While these individually do little damage, they can prove useful to its allies in preventing foes from being able to take advantage of any lulls in combat.

While this can be done by other Genma, the Kubi Akari is the first Genma known to be capable of absorbing other Genma souls, doing so not only to prevent a foe from doing the same, but also to strengthen its own power, causing it to begin emanating a red glow and causing its balls of energy to also turn red, indicating an increase in power. However, should a foe prove too deft to fall victim to these ranged attacks, or should the Kubi Akari absorb enough Souls, it will resort to rushing at its target with the intent of destroying itself to significantly damage its target, half-swallowing the head of its foe before exploding its inflated body. While this does kill the Kubi Akari in the process, any Souls that it has absorbed will also be lost in the process if it is not stopped.

While its abilities remain the same, the "special" variant of Kubi Akari proves capable of dealing and resisting more damage, making it more difficult to efficiently deal with as it attempts to steal nearby Souls.

Strategy

As the only known Genma to be perpetually floating in the air, melee attacks are not always a viable option, something made even more true by its tendency to continuously maintain a certain amount of distance from threats. However, this distance is its only real defense, relying on keeping out of range instead of outright being able to resist or block incoming attacks. As such, it has no defense against any ranged attacks that can reach it regardless of distance, making the Oni Bow the primary method of defeating them. A single charged shot can deal significant damage, while 2 can almost guarantee its defeat. Given that its own ranged attack is the only attack it is capable of safely utilizing, its limited offense can easily be neutered by a target that doesn't stand still as its balls of energy will only move in a straight line. Should Musashi make any lateral movement, the Kubi Akari's attacks will harmlessly pass by, providing that it doesn't hit an object between itself and its target. While absorbing souls can strengthen this attack, it doesn't make it any less difficult to avoid.

However, should Musashi not be in a position to avoid the attacks, they can still be parried in order to mitigate any damage, though it is far more useful to deflect them instead, causing them to sent back into the Kubi Akari. The Kubi Akari's only other possible attack is its ability to destroy itself once inflated, dealing heavy damage to Musashi and causing all souls it has absorbed to be permanently lost. However, its attempt to rush towards Musashi is actually considered a grab attack, meaning that performing a Reflex Dodge just before it reaches him will cause him to catch the Kubi Akari and lob it away, not only causing the explosion to damage other nearby Genma, but also causing any Souls it absorbed to be released, allowing Musashi to retrieve any that it had stolen.

While this self-destructive attack could be considered its most dangerous ability, it also proves to be its greatest weakness. On top of Musashi's ability to intercept its attack and turn it on other Genma, the Kubi Akari also becomes extremely vulnerable to any and all forms of damage while fully inflated, so much so that a single attack is enough to destroy it like a single needle popping a balloon. This is yet another instance where the Oni Bow can prove vital, allowing Musashi to fire a shot at the Kubi Akari as it charges towards him and causing it to immediately explode, damaging all Genma caught in the blast and releasing all Souls that it had absorbed. At times, a Kubi Akari can even be found already inflated while hunting for or feeding on humans. As a result, a single arrow from a distance will be enough to safely destroy it, not only killing the Kubi Akari itself, but also damaging any nearby Genma before any of them even notice Musashi's presence.

Genma Note

Found South of the Kamo River – East Spirit Mirror in Eastern Kyoto after Kyoto, Corrupted has been completed.

A Genma resembling a human head that can fly freely through the sky. The "akari" in its name means "light," balls of which it emits from its mouth. When near death, it will swell up and explode, aiming to obliterate any nearby enemies. This can be turned to your advantage, by catching other Genma in the explosion

Trivia

The Kubi Akari plays a similar role to the Gyaran - existing as a blue floating Genma that attempts to absorb souls before the player has the chance.
- However, the Kubi Akari is not the only Genma capable of absorbing souls, as it can also be done by Kogai, Kogashira, Hirehime and all bosses other than Ganryu Sasaki (1st fight).