Yoru

## Main VALORANT wiki's article

Yoru is the 15th Agent to join the VALORANT Protocol. The Japanese Radiant uses rifts to walk through dimensions and surprise his enemies.

## Lore

Growing up in Tokyo, Japan, Yoru is the 15th Agent to join the VALORANT PROTOCOL. He has Radiant powers that allow him to open small rifts in the fabric of reality, which he can then go through, or teleport through as he pleases. This has earned him the nickname 'riftwalker' by several Agents including Omen, Cypher, and Skye. The mask he wears helps him see while in said rifts.

Yoru's personality is reminiscent of the "cool" teenagers depicted in Asian entertainment media. He is proud and arrogant, clearly exhibited by his frequent bragging and supreme confidence in his own skills. Yoru also lays a heavy focus on his appearance, and has a butterfly comb always close at hand to keep his hair perfectly styled.

Alongside his pride in himself, Yoru is scornful to the enemy, and at times to his teammates as well. Yoru is by nature a Lone Wolf, a stranger to the notion of teamwork, and averse to relying on and working with others. However, as hinted by Fade's dossier about him (see below), this inability to hold on to acquaintances and relationships is also one of his greatest personal flaws.

Yoru's abilities delve into an otherwise-unexplored space of Radiant possibility, dimensional manipulation. As he is the only example of this power that we know of, it is unclear what exactly this pertains to, and any analysis will include much speculation.

From the in-game description of his abilities, it is hinted they are connected with another dimension--or at least a space between dimensions--which Yoru has access to. He can use it to store items that he wishes to (such as his mask and his butterfly comb), and at need traverse into it himself (as he does when using *Dimensional Drift*). His other abilities, which are fashioned out of *dimensional fragments*, seem to be connected to this dimension in some way as well.

According to a voiceline from Omen, Yoru leaves 'pieces' of himself behind as he travels, implying that Riftwalking is harmful to Yoru in some way. The exact meaning of this remains unclear.

Yoru has a strong dislike for Kingdom, for reasons entirely unknown. He is not affiliated with Kingdom, nor has he ever worked for the Megacorp. He also has a great dislike for what they have done with Split, upturning the life in the peaceful city and replacing it with their sleek and idealized HQ. Given that Split is located in Tokyo, Yoru's hometown, it's possible he's been affected by their encroaching on the culture of the local population in his past. Split also has clear displays of anti-Kingdom sentiment, which may also have influenced Yoru.

Yoru's dossier (see below) hints at his past, with cryptic comments in the first paragraph about various events in which he has "left a trail of broken bones". However, since these comments are disconnected from everything else that we know about Yoru, it is hard to tell what exactly this pertains to.

Yoru has a hobby of collecting knives, and apparently has a large collection. This is hinted at by a voiceline with Jett, along with the MY TYPICAL DAY music video. The MV also showed that his favorite food is *zarusoba*, or cold soba noodles.

### Yoru's Ancestors, Feudal Japan, and Icebox

See also: Radianite § Radianite and Ancient Japan
One of Yoru's most defining points are his ancient samurai ancestors, who lived during the Edo Period of Japan (1603 - 1867). He is fascinated with them, and strives to uncover the secrets that they left behind.

Closely tied to this 'quest' of his is the Japanese Warship that can be found just outside of Icebox. The sailors of the ship, among whom were the lost ancestors that Yoru so desperately seeks, were well aware of Radianite and its properties - and had, at some point, developed rudimentary means to integrate Radianite into existing objects. The most prominent example of this would be the suits of armor found on the ship, which had Radianite present in them.

It is speculated to have come there by traversing through a dimensional rift, not unlike how Yoru travels himself, although it's unclear whether their trip through was intentional or not. Regardless, the ship ended up crashed in the Arctic Circle, to be discovered centuries later by the prying hands of Kingdom, and dissected for research.

A part of Yoru's quest has been documented in his teasers (see below). They show a series of anomalies popping up all over the world (such as mysterious footsteps and rifts), the aftereffects of him using various abilities. These curious events took place in or near various Kingdom Facilities, and they were Yoru's attempts to find the location of his lost ancestor.

These all culminated in, eventually, Yoru finding the secretive facility of Icebox, and with it what remained of his heritage. Yoru broke into Icebox, and from one of the suits of armor being studied he stole a mask (this being the same Radianite-filled mask that he uses whenever he activates *Dimensional Drift*). It was soon after this event that the VALORANT PROTOCOL caught up to Yoru, and recruited him into their ranks.

However, Yoru's misadventures with Icebox and his mission to discover the truth behind his ancestor is by no means over. In a set of two voicemails sent to Brimstone (audible in Brimstone's Office in Patches 4.0 and 4.02 respectively), Yoru documented his continued attempts to learn what happened there. These attempts centered on the warship, where he claims to have found 'Dimensional Scarring' that felt like it was from a past time period in the distant past, and at one point even fell through a rift, where he heard someone's voice calling to him.

  **Yoru**
It's me. I know you told me to leave S22 alone, but I went anyways. *[aside]* Shit, it's freezing! *[normal]* I searched the Warship again, and I found dimensional scarring on the sides. I'm telling you, this didn't sail here from Japan. And the armour - if Kingdom discovered Radianite 10 years ago, *why is my mask filled with it?* There's more to find here. I know we have other missions, but I won't turn my back on this place. YOU shouldn't either.

  **Yoru**
Brimstone... something happened at S22. I was walking the Warship again, when I felt something... *different*. The dimensional fabric was weaker there... older. I could feel seams that someone left a *long* time ago. And then... I fell, into a space that wasn't just 'A to B', it felt more like... '*now* to *then*'. I pushed forward as far as I could... and, Brimstone... I *heard* someone, calling to me. I didn't have time to answer before the rift closed, but I swear to you... I knew her voice.

### Dossier

Main article: Agent Dossiers § Yoru
Fade released a dossier about Yoru in Patch 4.07:

Yoru's Dossier is, compared to the others, relatively curt. As with all the others, it begins with an exploration into Yoru's past. It lists off several notable sites that Yoru has visited - Tokyo, Yokohama (a Japanese city, located to the south of Tokyo), and an unknown company named the 'Ito Conglomerate'.

She describes how Yoru's fierce nature is a mark of pride for him - his insistence on utterly shattering all his 'enemies'. However, when it comes to more personal relationships, it seems that he is unable to tone down his aggressive nature. This results in what is essentially abandonment by all those around him. The final words of the dossier pry on Yoru's doubts, contemplating the potential consequences this would have, that Yoru will have to deal with once his 'goals' have been achieved.

It is notable that the dossier does not explore any part of Yoru's 'current' lore, namely his quest to find his long-lost ancestor. Instead, it is more of a character study of his nature and feelings, describing more innate parts of his personality.

It talks about Yoru's ongoing quest to fight against his 'enemies, of his 'job' to destroy them all. Sadly, since the dossier is so disconnected from the rest of what we know of him, it is hard to draw any definitive conclusions as to who these 'enemies' are and why Yoru feels like he must fight against them. The only real hint we get is that his goal does, at some point, have an 'end', after which Yoru can proudly sit back and contemplate his success with admiration.

It does go into what is well-established in terms of Yoru's attitude and personality - his shrugging off of most relationships (even with other Agents in the PROTOCOL), his instinctive disapproval of teamwork and team-based strategies, his extreme confidence in his own abilities, his generally antagonistic attitude towards his teammates, and so on.

Even the little respect he gives out to other Agents (such as Reyna, or potentially Neon) is solely because he is thoroughly impressed by their skill, not because of an innate friendly nature.

## Appearance

Yoru's appearance is heavily based off of modern Japanese street punk. Several notable similarities can be found between it and his looks, including the bright colors, fancy cuts, hair dye, eye makeup, and studs.

The primary color in Yoru's theme is blue, matching that of his abilities. Yoru's jacket has several characterizing features, including studs, an Oni motif associated with him, Skull designs on each shoulder, and several bright orange straps and buckles. Aside from his jacket, Yoru wears fitted gray-brown pants with reinforced knees, high-topped soft sole shoes, and a pair of spiked 3/4 length gloves that match the Oni motif on his jacket.

A part in the front of his black hair is dyed blue, and there is a black spacer on his left ear. He also has a notable eyebrow slit over his left eye. Along his face and chest are several small, thin scars, suggesting Yoru has been in his fair share of physical fights, possibly with those involving knives.

## Relationships

  **Viper**
Viper's only Voiceline to Yoru is a comment that he should riftwalk away to a better world than their own. This does imply that Yoru's abilities may extend to cross-dimensional travel, to some extent.

  **Omen**
While Yoru shows some light camaraderie towards Omen, commenting on the similar nature of their abilities, Omen seems to have great respect and admiration for Yoru. Omen also seems to have some innate understanding of Yoru's powers, judging from his comment about how Yoru leaves 'pieces' of himself behind when he Riftwalks.

  **Phoenix**
Yoru throws banter at Phoenix as a friendly way to ascertain his status as the better duelist. The two Radiants seem to have a friendly rivalry and rarely miss an opportunity to jokingly challenge each other. Phoenix seems to reciprocate this, and the two are close friends.

  **Reyna**
Yoru has a great respect for Reyna, happy to have her at her side. She is one of the few Agents that Yoru has genuine admiration for, thanks to her skill and ruthlessness in battle.

  **Breach**
Yoru has a disdain for Breach's loud mouth and talkative manner, although he does recognize his achievements at times.

  **Skye**
Yoru has multiple flirtatious voicelines towards Skye, in which his flustered demeanor and unusually high-pitched voice (in contrast to his usual confidence) hint at deeper affection for the fellow Radiant.

  **Yoru**
Yoru uses his voicelines against his double as another outlet for his incredible arrogance, delighting at the opportunity to face some real competition.

## Cards

 ***VALORANT Yoru***
The *VALORANT Yoru* card is a generic portrait of Yoru.

 ***Yoru ID***
In the *Yoru ID* card is Yoru's VALORANT PROTOCOL identification card.

 ***Unmasked Lineage***
*Unmasked Lineage* shows a Japanese ship, possibly the one on Icebox, sailing in between mountains. The name suggests it is how Yoru or one of his ancestors came to Icebox

 ***Secret Lineage***
*Secret Lineage* portrays a stylized version of Yoru's mask.

 ***Bloodline***
*Bloodline* shows the left half of presumably Yoru's ancestor in samurai armor combined with Yoru's right half.

 ***Unearthed: The Mask***
*Unearthed: The Mask* shows Yoru's mask in an opened box, with the snow in the background hinting at a cold location, presumably Icebox.

## Teasers

Yoru has had several teasers, all of which are listed here.

### Early teasers

The first tease for Yoru was in the Episode 1: Act 3 battlepass in the form of the *Secret Lineage* card Go at tier 38, which introduced the emblem frequently used by him.

Yoru was also teased on Icebox, where it was possible to see his *Fakeout* ability. The steps had a very low probability of appearing in front of Defender Spawn.

### Johns Latte

Yoru was referred to as "Johns Latte" by various VALORANT accounts and in game files such as the *Fakeout* spikes before his release. John's Latte could also be rearranged to make "Jon Stealth" (omitting the apostrophe), with "Stealth" being Yoru's codename while in development (added to files in Episode 1 Act 2).

As of December 8th 2020 the WWFest website showcased an obscured version of the full body drawing of Yoru, this being the first time the Agent was seen. Three days later a series of desktop backgrounds Go appeared on playvalorant.com displaying the full body figure of Yoru, although it was still obscured.

Also on December 11th 2020 @playvalorantofficial tweeted Go an image for the first Night.Market. It revealed the location in which it took place, Japan, hinting at Yoru's origins.

* *Stealth Protocol* digital file
* First anomaly at a US Kingdom facility
* Exchanged messages between Raze and Brimstone
* Newspaper article featuring the second anomaly
* Transcription of the broadcast interview
* Fourth anomaly appears in Russia
* US Kingdom facility covered with graffiti
1/7
### Instagram campaign

Following this, a string of Instagram posts on January 8th 2021 showcased Yoru's abilities. Multiple regional VALORANT accounts were involved, with a new post every hour.

#### Starter story

The teaser campaign began with a story posted by @playvalorantofficial. In it a digital file titled *Stealth Protocol* displayed image of Yoru and detailed that he is a duelist. Amongst other obstructed information was a location, *Washington DC*.

#### First post

The first post showed either Yoru's *Fakeout* or *Gatecrash* ability, the first of a set of three anomalies, from the perspective of a camera at a Kingdom facility. The obelisk in the background together with the  Starter story reveal that this facility is *Washington DC*. The caption of the post reads:

#### Second post

@valorantbrasil posted a text exchange between Brimstone and Raze. The location in the background of the photo is the *Lacerda Elevator* in Raze's hometown *Bahía*. The image reads:

The post is captioned with:

#### Third post

@valorantlatam posted a newspaper article by *El Reino* depictining Yoru's *Blindside* ability as the front page. The newspaper is being looked at by Reyna, as we see one of her shoes at the corner of the frame. The article reads:

The caption says:

#### Fourth post

@valoranttr uploaded the recording of an interview between Cypher and a janitor in a radio broadcast about an anomaly in a Kingdom facility, the second of the set. This is the transcript:

The caption of the post reads:

#### Fifth post

@valorantru posted a stylized take on Yoru's *Dimensional Drift* ultimate, the third anomaly. It showcased a rift opened in the middle of a snowstorm, with a city on the other side. The photo takes place in Russia as evidenced by colors of the Russian flag in the car's decoration. There is a sign to the right of the road which reads -*град*, likely *Волгоград*, which translates to Volgograd.
The caption says:

#### Sixth post

@playvalorantofficial ended the campaign with a post in the same facility as the first one. It shows a graffiti of his emblem, linking back to the teaser card *Secret Lineage*. There is also a Japanese kanji painted on the ground which says "bad luck" in a sarcastic manner.
The caption says:

#### Spotify story

  The last teaser for Yoru came in the form of an animated version of the thumbnail of his Spotify playlist. It was posted by @playvalorantofficial and is now part of a story highlight reel. Besides Yoru's boots it is possible to see a Glitchpop advert in the building across the street.

## Notes

* Yoru's working name in the files is "Stealth".
* Yoru can only see through dimensions, he cannot travel through them.
* The visual behavior of Yoru's abilities are reminiscent of ferrofluid.
* Yoru's mask is from the Japanese Edo period.
* The word 'Yoru' roughly translates to 'Night' in English.
* Yoru was likely one of the Agents tasked with bringing in Harbor, along with Skye and Omen.
* Yoru is implied to be ambidextrous in the *RETAKE* cinematic.
* As with every Agent, Yoru has a Spotify playlist:

## Sources

* Yoru's Agent page Go
* Yoru's Voicelines Go
* *Fakeout* ability teaser Go
* Instagram campaign - Story Go
* Instagram campaign - First post Go
* Instagram campaign - Second post Go
* Instagram campaign - Third post Go
* Instagram campaign - Fourth post Go
* Instagram campaign - Fifth post Go
* Instagram campaign - Sixth post Go
* Desktop backgrounds Go
* Yoru's hometown Instagram story Go
* Yoru's mask ability Instagram story Go
* Yoru's ability inspiration Instagram story Go
* Yoru's search Instagram story Go
* Yoru's mask period Instagram story Go

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Omen's voicelines to Yoru, from Kingdom Archives Go
2. ↑ Yoru commenting on a his knife in the MY TYPICAL DAY music video Go
3. ↑ 'MY FAVOURITE ZARUSOBA' shown in Yoru's MY TYPICAL DAY music video Go
4. ↑ Wikipedia page on ferrofluidGo