Detailed in the Suwa EngiWP, Yamata-no-Orochi placed a curse on Koga Saburo after Saburo committed the crime of trespassing on Mount IbukiWP and destroying a serpent's nest, passed down in the Koga Mochizuki bloodline.[4][5] He was cursed by the god of Mount Ibuki, Yamata-no-Orochi, and traveled through the underworld beneath the mountain, eventually returning to the surface as a demon.[6]Ibuki-douji was the one who rescued him and returned him to the human realm, and he refers to her as his elder sister because they are both connected to Yamata-no-Orochi.
Assassin likes his Master Dorothea. He sees his younger self in her. He often complements Dorothea's ability, though Dorothea admits that he sometimes overestimates her.[1]He is curt, arrogant and condescending in battle, gleefully laughing while attacking and appears to take pride in the power he is granted.
He claims to be the founder of the Koga school of ninjutsu and utilizes many strange jutsus. But despite being the ancestor of the Koga Mochizuki ninja clan, no legends actually call Koga Saburo himself a ninja. The reason he can use Ninjutsu-like abilities is he was born with divine powers and developed survival techniques necessary for traveling outside the World.[1] His long arms and legs flex like whips.[12]
Saburo easily defeated Li Shuwen, however, it should be noted that Li was a Stray Servant and weakened by Tsuchimikado Yasuhiro's mind control at the time.[11] Saburo has also been shown stalemating Arjuna, another Stray Servant. Saburo claims that Arjuna is awfully fast, to which Arjuna replies that he could say the same about him. As Arjuna realizes that their fight is going nowhere, he decides to charge his Noble Phantasm. Saburo retreats claiming he can't risk it, as he fears the legends saying that Arjuna's arrow can slay even gods.[2]
Saburo failed his assassination attempt on Zheng Chenggong, forcing them to fight face to face. While Zheng managed to escape, it was only by the skin of his teeth.[7]
Phantom Snakes[]
Koga Saburo summons his Phantom Snakes
Koga Saburo can summon and manipulate many serpents called Phantom Snakes as his subordinates.[12]Zheng Chenggong regards him as a dangerous Heroic Spirit, and claims that Zhou Yu and him were unable to take care of him alone. He says that his ability to control giant, venomous snakes complicates things considerably, so even ordinary methods like Zhou's "rain of arrows" wouldn't be enough to take him down. Yamato Takeru agrees that Saburo is really powerful and doubts whether they and Miyamoto Iori can handle him without Magical Energy from a Spirit Font. During the battle at the bay, the groups of snakes are so ferocious that they can match Takeru and Iori endlessly, making the former request permission to use their Noble Phantasm. Thanks to the arrival of Miyamoto Musashi, Zhou Yu, and Zheng, they eventually defeat the majority of the snakes.[7]
Giant Phantom Snake: A three-headed and slightly larger variant of the regular snakes. According to Miyamoto Musashi, one of these is powerful enough to wreck a town. It looks pretty strong, so Musashi deems it a good fight. After fighting it and other Phantom Snakes for a while, the giant one retreats.[8]
Koga Saburo summons Great Orochi, the Raging Tempest
Great Orochi, the Raging Tempest: An enormous eight-headed snake. Ushi Gozen was able to seize control of it and ride it herself. While Yamato Takeru initially claims that the Orochi cannot defeat them, they later say that it might actually be a contest. Eventually, Takeru laments that they can't slow it down at all because its regeneration is extremely fast. When Takeru and Iori leave to target Ushi Gozen, Miyamoto Musashi is tasked with fighting the Great Orochi on her own. While she succeeds in knocking it out, it is only incapacitated for a while, and eventually regains its strength. In the end, it is actually Takeru who kills it permanently with Special Technique - Eight-Current Raging Storm.[7]
Skills[]
Class Skills[]
Assassin emerges from his Presence Concealment.
Presence Concealment (A+ Rank): The highest rank of Presence Concealment. When used to the fullest, it places the user into an invisible state completely impervious to outside perception.[citation needed] Even Zhou Yu is unable to sense him. When Saburo tried to assassinate Zheng Chenggong, the latter didn't know he was there until he was right on top of him.[7]
Assassin morphs his hand into a snake and poisons Miyamoto Iori
Kouga-ryuu (At least A Rank): A style of ninja arts that uses special fighting techniques which he is the creator.
Ninjutsu (At least A+++ Rank): Dorothea Coyett claims that he is known for being the strongest.
Noble Phantasm[]
Koga Saburo's Noble Phantasm is Incarnation - Ibuki Daimyōjin Engi. It transforms him into a snake-human fusion optimized for battle. It greatly increases his physical capabilities, granting immense Strength, Agility, and Stamina with which to pulverize opponents. Furthermore, he is covered with the scales of Yamata-no-Orochi, which not only nullify any attacks without Divinity, but are also durable enough to easily shrug off attacks from Heroic Spirits of the Three Knight Classes.[citation needed]Yamato Takeru points out that this is a constant among Japanese Snake Gods, and that he already defeated one of them when he was alive. Due to this, he is confident that he can beat Saburo. However, while Yui Shousetsu states that Takeru's sword would certainly kill Saburo if it hit him, she claims that Saburo's abilities may also prove equally effective. Due to this, attacking him head-on would be a poor strategy.[10] In the end, they defeated Saburo by drawing him out with Dorothea Coyett's Magecraft and Miyamoto Iori's support, for Takeru to then kill it with Special Technique - Eight-Current Raging Storm when the timing was right.[10][6] When Miyamoto Musashi first saw Saburo's Noble Phantasm, she claimed that it had been a while since something made her tremble so much.[10]
Assassin and Dorothea became artist Rei Wataru's favorite team in Fate/Samurai Remnant. Assassin's design is very catered to his tastes, and he ended up drawing him a lot in his free time.[13]
Assassin
The Servant summoned by Dorothea Coyett. True Name: Kouga Saburou. Class: Assassin.
He claims himself to be the founder of what would later become the Kouga School of Ninjutsu and utilizes many strange jutsus. However, despite being the ancestor of the Kouga Mochizuki Clan, there are no legends describing Saburou as a ninja. Regardless, he can use abilities so similar to ninjutsu, and the reason for it is that he was born with multiple divine powers and accomplished the feat of developing the survival techniques necessary for traveling outside of the world.
He likes his Master Dorothea and sees his own past as a feudal lord in her.
However, he ultimately chose the path of betrayal and rampage. All so that she could evolve by overcoming him.
Gray-Clad Phantom
A masked, Assassin-class Heroic Spirit who can control snakes. He has a giant frame and spindly arms and legs. He often appears unexpectedly and even has a spell that can hold humans in thrall. Though his Master's name was revealed to be Dorothea Coyett, and their base was determined to be in Yokosuka, his true identity remains unknown.
Venomous Snake
Assassin, along with his Master Dorothea, engaged in battle with Miyamoto Iori and Saber at Yokosuka. Though he fought using several snakes of varying sizes, when Rider suddenly appeared and stole control of Great Orochi from him, Assassin and Dorothea readily fell back. As the two retreated, Assassin transformed his arm into a snake to leave Iori with a venomous bite as a parting gift.
A Test
Though hit with powerful magecraft that attempted to control him, Assassin is a Heroic Spirit associated with an ancient god. No simple spell would have been enough to control him. The reason he allowed himself to be controlled, then, was perhaps to test the caliber of his Master, Dorothea. Whatever the case, Assassin disappeared from view with a smile on his face.
True Form
Assassin transformed into a giant snake through his Noble Phantasm, Incarnation: Omen of the Great God Ibuki. Running on pure instinct, he attempted to devour the nearby residents, but Dorothea somehow managed to grab his attention. Assassin took the bait and gave chase.
Knowing that Assassin could potentially run rampant and damage the city when using his Noble Phantasm, Dorothea had devised a countermeasure. Specifically, she had used a Command Spell to make Assassin automatically target her if he ever lost control. As such, Assassin was compelled to follow after her.
Unbeknown
Even at the end, Miyamoto Iori never learned Assassin's true identity. According to Dorothea's attendant, Giovanni, Dorothea gave her life in order to vanquish the Servant.
Returned from the Underworld
Assassin's true identity was Kouga Saburou, the man cursed by the god Ibuki. A descendant of the Kouga clan, he was a mysterious man possessed of several strange abilities. He once traveled to the underworld beneath Mt. Ibuki and returned as a demon. He was summoned by Dorothea, who put confidence in his monstrous strength. Even so, he ultimately fell to a combination of Dorothea's magecraft, Iori's support, and Saber's Noble Phantasm.
