| “ | I am Okino. Rōnin of Terra Karana. No longer do I guide others on their adventures. Now... I seek my own adventure. | „ |
| ~ Okino in The Maze of the Red Dragon |
Okino is a supporting character in LEGO Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu, debuting in Season 12: Prime Empire, and serving as a minor character in both Season 14: Seabound and Season 15: Crystalized. He is a former NPC and a samurai that guided players to the purple Key-Tana in Terra Karana. After failing to lead dozens of players to victory, he eventually meets the ninja and promises them that he'll help them complete their quest.
He is voiced by Alessandro Juliani.
Story[]
Prime Empire[]
Okino trains himself while waiting for players to lead.
Okino is a serious, duty-bound Samurai warrior who is unaware that Prime Empire is a game, since he is part of it. His job is to lead players through the three dangers of Terra Karana - the Forest of Discontent, the Cliffs of Hysteria and the Maze of the Red Dragon where the first Key-tana is located. Unfortunately, the game is rigged to be nearly impossible and Okino quickly fails his masters, who are dematerialised into cubes of energy. As more and more masters are "cubed", Okino begins to lose faith in his abilities. One day, Okino meets another Samurai like himself who is more successful in keeping her master alive. Okino internalises this as a fault of his own so he trains and pushes himself as never before. Despite all his efforts, he loses more masters. Okino prepares to abandon his responsibilities when a final group of travellers arrive, seeking his help. It is the ninja.
Okino arrives to rescue the Ninja from the Red Visors.
In the next episode, Okino leads the ninja into the first of Terra Karana's deadly challenges: The Forest of Discontent, made up of deep, dark woods, filled with booby-traps. As the ninja fight their way through it, they begin losing lives, but with Okino's help, they survive and reach the middle of the forest. There, they are ambushed by the Whack Rats but the ninja are able to fight them off. Lloyd ties up the leader, a rat named Richie. In order to procure his release, Richie tells Lloyd that he knows about a "glitch" in the game, which will allow the ninja to bypass the rest of the booby-traps and reach the other side of the Forest. Okino soon realizes Prime Empire is not a real place, merely a simulation and he is part of it. Lloyd releases Richie, who guides the ninja to the glitch and into an ambush by Red Visors. Okino comes to their rescue and helps the ninja escape. Okino is sad to discover the true nature of his world and the ninja cheer him up saying he could be a friend of theirs, and they would need his help as they do not have many lives left.
In The Cliffs of Hysteria, Okino walks through Terra Karana with the ninja, depressed that his world is a lie and that he is just a pawn. He guides the ninja up the titular location. When the Red Visors ambush them, he hangs next to the cliffside depressed, and deflects one of Unagami's aerial drones' laser beams back at it. When the ninja reach the top of the cliff, Okino tells the ninja that since he was programmed by Unagami, that he can't be trusted and could betray them. The ninja tell him he does not serve Unagami, and that he makes his own choices. Okino chooses to follow the ninja through the maze.
Okino decides to aid the Ninja defeat the Red Dragon by attacking its weak point.
In the episode, The Maze of the Red Dragon, as the ninja and Okino approach the location of the same name, Unagami uses his control over Prime Empire to briefly "pause" all the players except Okino. He appears before Okino, urging Okino to betray the ninja and not help them against the fearsome Red Dragon that awaits the ninja at the heart of the maze. If Okino betrays them, Unagami promises to bring him with into the real world. He then disappears and restores the ninja back to normal. The ninja arrive at the heart of the maze and find themselves outmatched by the Red Dragon, and appeal to Okino for help. Okino struggles with his decision but cannot in good conscience betray the ninja. He defies Unagami, his creator, and helps the ninja defeat the Red Dragon by revealing its weakness: a scale on its chest. The ninja defeat the dragon and Jay delivers the final blow. The Red Dragon changes colour and vanishes into an amulet. Now named as the Rōnin of Terra Karana, Okino placed his sword with his fallen masters and head out to seek his own adventures.
Okino makes his next appearance in the episode, Game Over, where he protects two citizens from Ritchie and Richie.
Crystalized[]
In the episode, Public Enemies 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5!, Okino had just purchased some noodles from a ramen noodle cart when the van carried by Zane's plane flies by over him, nearly making him lose his noodles, but he swiftly caught them.
Okino saves Nya from The Mechanic by slicing the latter's mechanical arm off.
In Dragon Form, Okino was among those that assists the Resistance. He makes his presence known by saving Nya, who was about to be shot by The Mechanic, only for Okino to slice his mechanical arm off.
At the end of the series, he was among those assisting the Ninja in rebuilding their monastery.
Appearance[]
Okino wears a white samurai gi. He also has his black hair wrapped in a ponytail, and is seen carrying his katana on his back.
Personality[]
Okino has the stoic expression at first glance. After years of consistent failures, he became jaded in his duties as a guide. While he tries to retain his sense of guidance, it is shown that watching dozens of players fail has taken its toll on him. Eventually, he meets the ninja who explain the truth of his existence. Although he became depressed and realized everything he knew was false, Okino overcame his sadness and promise his new friends that he'll help them complete their quest. To that end, he betrayed Unagami and aided the ninja before he became a Rōnin to find a place for himself.
After he arrives in Ninjago through the Manifestation Gate, Okino retained his heroic nature by intending to help citizens under attack by the Red Visors and Whack Rats. Once the conflict ended, he decided to make a new life for himself. Okino retains loyalty to those who helped him, as he attended Nya's memorial to honor the loss of his good friend.
Gallery[]
Renders[]
Screenshots[]
Trivia[]
- After previously identifying as the "Samurai of Terra Karana", his adventure with the ninja inspired him to find his own path, now calling himself the "Rōnin of Terra Karana".
- This is a reference to the fact that Rōnin were samurai that served no master.
- He speaks with a Japanese accent.
- He and Unagami are the only known Prime Empire characters to appear before Prime Empire resurfaced.
