Hazama

Hazama is a captain of the Novus Orbis Librarium's Intelligence Department and the main antagonist of the series. In reality, he is Yūki Terumi, a former member of the Six Heroes and the creator of the Azure Grimoire and by extension the Black Beast. He originally appeared as a non-playable character in the story mode of BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger, but starting with BlazBlue: Continuum Shift, he became a playable character.

Information
Yūki Terumi was the original creator of the Azure Grimoire and, alongside Relius Clover and Shūichirō Ayatsuki, the Black Beast. After being brainwashed by Konoe, he was forced to serve as one of the Six Heroes who fought against the Black Beast in the First War of Ars Magus. After the beast was destroyed, he was freed from the spell by Trinity Glassfield, due to her affection towards his host body, and he in turn murdered her and Konoe.

He was the original owner of the Susano'o Unit armor (which now belongs to Hakumen), and it is assumed that, after realizing he was forever linked to the Master Unit while in the armor, he drove himself out of it - which is possibly why he now appears as a ghost. He was formerly sealed away in the Boundary after Hakumen sacrificed himself to pull him in, with help from Jubei. He was later released before the events of BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger by Takamagahara.

Years before the events of Calamity Trigger, Terumi had appeared at Celica A. Mercury's church, where Ragna the Bloodedge, Jin Kisaragi, and Saya lived. Upon arrival, he killed Celica. After possessing Jin, Terumi burned down the church, cut off Ragna's arm, and abducted Saya. For much the events of the first game, Ragna believed Jin to be responsible for this incident.

Calamity Trigger
During the majority of Calamity Trigger, Hazama is supervising Noel Vermillion's mission to return major Jin Kisaragi to his post, and attempts to avoid fighting anyone, claiming he "is not good with that sort of thing". However, during Rachel Alucard's story mode, he appears twice as Terumi, the first time mocking Valkenhayn R. Hellsing, and the second time mocking Rachel herself.

After the final fight of the True Ending in Calamity Trigger, he appears before Noel and Ragna, and after Rachel arrives, he loses his calm demeanor. His hair spikes up and his voice becomes much louder. Rachel and Ragna, having recognized Terumi from the attack on the church years before, attack him immediately, but he simply shrugs it off, and begins to taunt Ragna over the church attack before departing. After the credits roll at the end of the True Ending, he is shown issuing confidential verbal orders to Tsubaki Yayoi to kill Noel and Jin.

Continuum Shift
In BlazBlue: Continuum Shift, he appears as the main antagonist and a playable character, planning to destroy the core unit, Amaterasu, using Noel Vermillion, who becomes the Perfect Murakumo Unit, Kusanagi - Mu-12. He sacrificed many NOL members in order to temper her. When he and Ragna battle, the former overwhelms the latter and proceeds to take his life. But Nu-13's soul in Lambda-11's body sacrifices herself to protect Ragna and gives him her Idea Engine before dying. This allows him access to the True Azure and he defeats Hazama. However, Ragna does not kill him, and the latter calls the former a chicken before falling unconscious. During the ending it is revealed that Hazama and Relius Clover are working for Ragna and Jin's little sister Saya, who is now the Imperator of the Novus Orbis Librarium. In the post-credits sequence he is shown standing over a Cauldron containing the remains of Nu with Relius, commenting that it could be used to make the "Sword of the Imperator" (イザナミノツルギ, Izanami no Tsurugi, Sword of Izanami in the Japanese dub).

It is revealed that Terumi, like Hakumen and Rachel, will fade away without an Observer. Takamagahara, and later Mu (with the power of the Eye), with whom he shared a Life Link, observed him in BlazBlue. However, Mu lost her power after she turned back to Noel and Takamagahara was attacked by a magical virus from Phantom, losing its power. Terumi did not fade away, however, because he had awakened Saya, using her as his Observer and presumably turning her into the person she has become, much like he did with Noel/Mu. As an added measure, he is using Ragna's hatred as a force to bind him to this world, as well.

Personality
Hazama maintains a calm and quiet demeanor around most people, pretending to be harmless as a member of the Intelligence Department. He claims to hate fighting and prefers to avoid conflict. This, however, is simply a guise to his true nature. When people see through it, he shows his true colors as selfish and manipulative; destroying other people's lives and twisting their beliefs for his own gain. He has no qualms with killing those who get in his way, and does not seem to show any kind of remorse for his actions.

When he reveals his true self as Yūki Terumi, he becomes quite sadistic and insane in nature, relishing in others' misery and suffering. Terumi takes every opportunity to upset others by mocking them, deliberately provoking them, or even bringing up and prodding at a sensitive topic; all for his own enjoyment. However, he also harbors a cold and ruthless side and a foul temper when someone upsets or irritates him, in which case he starts torturing them excessively.

Appearance
Hazama's appearance is taken after the shady, creepy archetype. He is depicted with bright green hair and an ever-present smile with his eyes closed, belying a demonic nature. He wears a simple black suit with a white shirt underneath, short brown gloves, and brown steel-toed shoes. He dons a pair of black trousers held up by two brown belts. He completes the outfit with a black fedora hat to close the shady visage. Upon revealing himself as Terumi, he removes his hat and tie, his hair spikes upward, and he opens his eyes, which are gold with snake-like slits for pupils. His smile also becomes that of a psychopathic killer. In his ghost form, he appears as a black apparition with a vague humanoid outline and green veins. His facial features consist of a single beady green eye and a red mouth curled into an eerie, wide smile.

During the Dark War, Terumi wore a Magic Guild uniform shirt, a tattered orange cape with a hood, and long black ribbons across his arms. During Phase Shift 1, his hair is not shown, as he is always cloaked. However, concept art in later art-books has revealed that Terumi's hair remains the same as it is today: spiked-up and green-colored.

Powers and Abilities
In battle, Hazama wields the Nox Nyctores named Geminus Anguium: Ouroboros; a steel hook crafted in the shape of a snake that he summons in front of him, attached to a chain of green/black energy, which he can use to attack opponents from afar, or reel them in, as well as zip around the battlefield quickly, if not instantly, and close gaps between him and his foes. On the other hand, he also uses Balisong-style butterfly knives for close-range attacks. Most of his attacks are similarly based on summoning green/black energy and serpentine apparitions to attack his foes, with his Astral Finish being a gigantic cobra of green energy composed of many smaller snakes. Outside of his magical prowess, Hazama is incredibly nimble and flexible, his moves vaguely reminiscent of dance techniques.

Having been the original creator of the Azure Grimoire, he possesses his own imitation, activating it in an identical manner to mock Ragna. When activated, a large magical circle envelops him, slowly sapping away vitality of anyone who steps inside. Also, Ragna was unable to use his own Azure Grimoire until he absorbed Lambda's Idea Engine. In the Story Mode of the first game, Hazama's true form as Terumi depicts him as a black apparition with green glowing veins and aura, or alternatively, his facial features become psychotic and his hair spikes up.

According to dialogue, Hazama (at least in his true form) is able to erase memories by "eating" them, saying that they are delicious. He has used this ability twice so far, both of which were on Jin Kisaragi.

Hazama's drive is Ouroboros, utilizing his Nox Nyctores' namesake to soar around the battlefield using his weapon to pull him in, regardless of whether or not Ouroboros has made contact, in order to make up for his lack of long range or projectile attacks. Above his Heat is a counter for his Ouroboros that determines how many times he can pull himself in (2 at max). Though it usually recharges after two seconds, he can get some back by simply hitting the opponent with the weapon and allowing it to click a second after it lands.

Etymology
Hazama's name is unusual in the fact that it has no real point of origin. However, in Arabic, the word hazama means defeat, which is undoubtedly ironic considering Hazama's position as one of the most powerful individuals in the BlazBlue series. However, it is much more likely that he was named after the place in the Boundary - the Edge (挟間, Hazama) - where he and Hakumen were sent - or the Hazama train stations in Tokyo and Kagawa.

Trivia

 * During the extra scene from the Arcade Mode of Continuum Shift II where he unleashes Mu-12, he is briefly voiced by Spike Spencer.
 * In all new scenes in Continuum Shift Extend, he is voiced by Doug Erholtz.
 * His name "Hazama" (ハザマ) comes from the place in the Boundary - the Edge (挟間, Hazama) - where he and Hakumen were sent.
 * Hazama's birthday falls on the International Dance Day, a reference to the fact some of his sprite movements and one of his alternate color palettes are based off Michael Jackson.
 * Storywise, Hazama is possibly one of the strongest characters in the playable roster. This is reinforced by the fact that he is the only character with a Nox Nyctores and an imitation Azure Grimoire. While technically Noel has a Nox Nyctores and the true Azure, she cannot access both at the same time like he can. She does gain access to both the true Azure and a Nox Nyctores simultaneously after transforming into Mu-12. However, Ragna was able to severely wound Hazama when he absorbed Lambda's Idea Engine. He also has arguably one of the strongest Unlimited forms in the console version, on account of his entire moveset being amped up, two normal specials activating his Distortion Drives without the need for Heat (for instance, his Bloody Fangs will immediately activate the Eternal Coils of the Dragon Serpent attack portion), and a life stealing aura.
 * Hazama revels in taunting his enemies, Rachel included. This has caused fans to consider him a troll (a slang in internet community to refer to people who likes taunting and causing mischief for self-laughs) in BlazBlue. The website TV Tropes took this one step further in their "pantheon of media deities" by appointing him the God of Trolling (and Absolute Immorality). A lot of fans have giving Hazama the nickname Trollzama. TV Tropes also states that trolling is actually a survival tactic for Hazama, either intentional or forced as it is revealed that he must feed off of hate to be bound to his world, and that Ragna is his biggest contender.
 * On the other hand, Hazama has been described by the creator, Toshimichi Mori, as "Having no redeeming quality". He could be considered the definitive version of the trope Complete Monster, a villain who is devoid of redeeming quality and considered the worst of the worst.
 * Hazama does not have a human skeleton; what appears to be the imprint of his ghost form appears when he is electrocuted by.
 * Hazama's Drive name, Ouroboros, refers to either a serpent or a dragon. The Ouroboros is usually represented by a snake biting its own tail, symbolizing infinity or a never-ending cycle. This image is also shown in Hazama's crest.
 * Hazama is the one of two characters who enjoys Noel's cooking, as seen in her gag ending, the other being Mai Natsume. This leads to the assumption that Hazama has no taste in food.
 * Although Hazama gets his bad ending by losing to Jin, he must lose to Ragna to get his Help Me, Professor Kokonoe! section.
 * Relius had to "kill" Terumi to get him to appear in ghost form and later infiltrate Takamagahara. This can lead to the assumption that Terumi must be run out of his body by injury, or otherwise have it rendered inaccessible for him to appear in ghost form.
 * His fourth color scheme resembles Ragna's color-suit.
 * Hazama, who was recently released, is one of two of the characters that are playable in the English version of Lost Saga. The other character that is playable in the English version is Jin.
 * Noel commented that Hazama likes to swallow his hardboiled eggs whole rather than eating them. This is in line with Hazama's snake-like tendencies.
 * His Overdrive is called Jörmungandr, which references the Jörmungandr of Norse mythology that grew large enough to bite its own tail, signifying the worlds end if it ever let go. Coincidentally, the symbol of Jörmungandr looks somewhat similar to the top half of Hazama's crest.
 * Even more coincidentally, it reflects Terumi's relationship with Ragna, as Ragnar Lodbrok was a hero who slain the serpent Jörmungandr in some legends. Interestingly, the serpent itself is the symbol of Ouroboros in Norse Mythology.
 * Hazama in his body coincidentally resembles Gin Ichimaru from Bleach, of whom he shares qualities to such as a "snake-like" appearance and their captain stats. Both of them in their respective fighting games (the DS games in Gin's case) are high powered combo characters with ranged attacks (an extendable wakizashi for Gin and Hazama's Ouroboros), moves with a pull-in effect and powerful air combos. Both were also nerfed for the next revisions/versions of their games. Ironically, both (as of Continuum Shift Extend in Hazama's case) are also voiced in English by Doug Erholtz.
 * Many fans have often made nods to Hazama being a possible tribute to the late Michael Jackson, and even possesses possible palette swaps of his white suit outfit from the Smooth Criminal music video.
 * For unknown reasons, when matched against other Six Heroes members, Hazama only uses his Terumi voiceset for Valkenhayn.
 * TrolololHazamaTrolololHazama was a Zen United/Arc System Works Europe prank created for the European release of Continuum Shift II. Before the release there was a site with a Continuum Shift II News Countdown (the site is now offline) and in the Source Code of the site there was a ultimateblazbluenews.html link. Under the link can be found a YouTube video with a Trollface Hazama-styled and a flashing NICE TRY caption.
 * The background music is Zen United/Arc System Works Europe's version of the song I Am Glad, 'Cause I'm Finally Returning Back Home, which was originally performed by Eduard Khil. This version lacks vocals and the music is in a chiptune style.
 * A bug has been observed in the Challenge Mode where when Hazama finishes a mission and then removes his hat, he may start the next mission with no hat and then having it spontaneously appearing on his head.
 * This has been observed for his poses with hair down. It does not happen when he makes his pose with spiked up hair.
 * His Astral Finish's motion resembles the Raging/Rising/Raising Storm done by Geese Howard of SNK's Fatal Fury/King of Fighters series; a possible SNK nod left in by Arc System Works (referencing Ishiwatari's previous employment at SNK).