Hotaru Futaba

Hotaru Futaba ( ほたる, Futaba Hotaru) is a character who was introduced in Garou: Mark of the Wolves. She also makes an appearance in Neo Geo Battle Coliseum and in the PS2 version of The King of Fighters XI.

She is voiced by Yuki Horie.

Development
Around the time Garou was in development, the term “moe” started to be used. Some of the staff members were familiar with the term and with the teachings of those staff members, Hotaru was created.

Story
Hotaru is the daughter of a family of martial artists, but is not very fond of violence. She never wants to hurt others, which is the probable reason why her father taught her the lighter side of Chinese Kenpo; the Juu-kei style, which suits her easygoing personality. However, after her mother's death, both her father and her older brother were missing from her home. She enters the "King of Fighters: Maximum Mayhem" tournament based on rumors that her brother is there. In her ending, she finds Gato and claims that he's her older brother. She slaps him when he denies even knowing her. He then leaves her there, and Hotaru silently prays for her older brother to come back to her.

She participates in the Neo Geo Battle Coliseum tournament, since she heard that a man who looks like her brother may be there. She also appears in the Garou Team's ending for a similar reason, only to get humorously brushed aside by the celebrating Lillien Knights.

Personality
Hotaru is a calm and joyful girl, who was shaken by being abandoned by her family. She still has high hopes that her family will be united again.

Although it is highly implied that Gato is possibly her missing brother, nothing officially states that this claim is true. Itokatsu seems to warm up to him and Hotaru declares that he is based on woman's intuition. However, if this scenario is true, then Hotaru knows nothing about why Gato left their home or the real reason behind her mother's death.

Powers

 * Sense - Hotaru can sense the presence of others.
 * Gather Energy - Hotaru can gather energy from Gaia, the Mother Earth.
 * Energy Projectile - Hotaru can create a ball of energy and send it flying towards her enemy.
 * Energy Attacks - Hotaru's kicks can be infused with energy.
 * Energy Reflector - Hotaru can create a bubble of energy that reflects projectiles.
 * Energy Explosion - Hotaru can create a big explosion of energy with effort.

Fighting Style
Hotaru fights using internal Chinese martial arts, known for their soft motions. Many of her movements are graceful and she relies much more on ki-based attacks. She uses the styles of Taijiquan, Baguazhang and others, especially in later games where she games a variety of different stances.

Music

 * Fullmoon: Heartful - Garou: Mark of the Wolves
 * Flower Bell - Days of Memories (Sekai de Ichiban Atsui Fuyu)

Game Appearances

 * Garou: Mark of the Wolves
 * Neo Geo Battle Coliseum
 * The King of Fighters XI - PlayStation 2 Exclusive

Mobile Appearances

 * Days of Memories (second and ninth title) - unplayable
 * SNK Gals Island Candy Puzzle Hajimemashita
 * SNK Gals Island Jintori Puzzle Miseteagemasu
 * SNK Gals Rhythm Combo Yudanshinaide!
 * SNK Dream Battle
 * SNK High School Collection
 * KOF x Fatal Fury
 * Kimi wa Hero
 * The King Of Fighters All Star

Cameo Appearances

 * The King of Fighters 2003 - Mentioned by Geese Howard, in the Outlaw Team Story
 * The King of Fighters XI - during the Garou Team's ending
 * The King of Fighters XIII - cameo in cinematics and during the Women Fighters Team ending
 * The King of Fighters XIV - in the Women Fighters Team ending
 * KOF: Maximum Impact 2 - background cameo
 * The King of Fighters '94: Rebout - background cameo in the Japan Team and Kim Team stages
 * The King of Fighters 2002: Unlimited Match - background cameo in the Art of Fighting Team stage, from the 4th round
 * SNK Heroines: Tag Team Frenzy - in Luong's ending

Trivia

 * At the time of Garou's release, she was voted as the fourth favorite character at the time of debut with a total of 105 votes.