is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Dead or Alive fighting game series by Team Ninja and Tecmo (Koei Tecmo). Kasumi has served as the lead character of the Dead or Alive franchise since its premiere in 1996. She was a main character in the first, second and fifth games of the series and in the film DOA: Dead or Alive. In the games' canon, Kasumi, also known as "The Kunoichi of Destiny", is a teenage ninja princess of the Mugen Tenshin Ninja Clan. Kasumi abandoned her clan, becoming an outcast and is pursued by her younger half-sister Ayane. There are several Dead or Alive player and boss characters who are clones of her. She also guest appeared in various other games, including Team Ninja's other flagship series Ninja Gaiden where she and Ayane play much bigger roles. Kasumi has become a symbol of the Dead or Alive franchise and is the personal favourite of Team Ninja's founder and the series' creator Tomonobu Itagaki. She has been the subject of various merchandise and was used to promote the Xbox consoles in Japan. Kasumi is a popular sex symbol in video game culture and an iconic ninja character. Due to differences in cultural norms, she has attracted some controversy in the West involving eroticism and the use of underage female characters in video games. Appearances In video games Dead or Alive fighting games Kasumi is the main character, the protagonist in the first game, and a secondary character in the second game of the series. She and her older brother Hayate are the respected heirs apparent of their clan, the . In the series' backstory, she was destined to become the 18th Master of the Mugen Tenshin Ninja Clan, succeeding her father Shiden after Hayate was left comatose after an attack by their renegade uncle Raidou. In the first Dead or Alive, on a personal quest of revenge, Kasumi, highly skilled in the style ninjutsu, absconded on her own to enter the Dead or Alive tournament and defeat Raidou, breaking the clan rules by leaving without permission and is now outcasted as an outlaw. After winning the first DOA tournament, Kasumi kills Raidou and avenges not only the supposed death of Hayate, but also the rape of her mother Ayame. After the first Dead or Alive World Combat Championship, she is abducted by Dead or Alive Tournament Executive Committee