Ishizu Ishtar

Ishizu Ishtar (イシズ・イシュタール) is a major supporting female character in the Yu-Gi-Oh! Duelist manga,

and in the Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters anime series. Her first name is sometimes rendered by hardcore fans as Isis Ishtar. As "Ishizu" is the pronunciation of the name "Isis" in Japanese. Her name supposedly derives from the Egyptian deity Isis, and the Mesopotamian deity Ishtar. She is also revealed to be the modern day incarnation of the late Priest Isis as well.

Background

Ishizu as an Infant.

Ishizu was born on the day of April 5th. Her family has guarded the tomb of the nameless Pharaoh for generations and 2 of the Millennium Items: the Millennium Rod and the Millennium Necklace, were passed down on to Ishizu and her little brother Marik. Marik, who was always forbidden to leave the Pharaoh's tomb was amaze by the outside world because of seeing stuff in magazines especially with motorbikes. Due to a distraction for him liking motorcycles because it might divert his attention away from his heritage, this in which convinced Ishizu to let him take a quick trip outside.

Due to this Marik no longer wanted to become a Tomb Keeper for the family, and when he was forced to take the initiation ritual to become a full time Tomb Keeper, he unwillingly unleashed Yami Marik, who had took the Millennium Rod for himself.

In the Japanese version, he had killed his father in order to stop him from killing Odion. In the English version, he had sent his father to the Shadow Realm instead. Regardless, Yami Marik was sealed away in Marik's own body by Odion. Ishizu attempts to stop Marik's quest of unlocking the power of the nameless Pharaoh for himself by taking the Egyptian God Card, "Obelisk the Tormentor" before Marik can take it all for himself.

She then confronted Marik by herself and saw that Odion even went with him which made her very sad. However she holds on to Obelisk the Tormentor and goes to Japan to give the card to Seto Kaiba.

Personality

Ishizu Ishtar is the kind, and loving sister of Marik and Odion. She keeps her feelings bottled up a lot, and doesn't always show a lot of emotion (similar to her adopted older brother), but it's very obvious how much she loves her little brother and adopted older brother very much. She is also cool and calm as she wasn't afraid when Marik threatened to kill her. When Odion was unconscious after dueling Joey, she looked out for him, and Mai when she lost to Marik in a duel. Ishizu also didn't mind encouraging Serenity when she refused to leave Joey's side.

Appearance

Her character design was overseen by Kazuki Takahashi. Ishizu Ishtar's straight black hair trails just below her shoulders, and features 2 locks wrapped in gold beads coming from behind her ears and continue in front, stopping at her neck. She is slender in build, has thick eyebrows and has light brown tanned skin. She wears the Millennium Necklace around her neck prior to giving it to Yugi.

Ishizu's first outfit consists of a long ankle length dress partially bearing her shoulders featuring gold patterns around the neck, and the rims of the sleeves. Her jewellery consists of a gold piece of headwear circling her head and featuring an emerald where it meets at the front.

During the Battle City tournament she wears a cream colored sleeveless one piece dress with the bottom similar to a sarong, a matching waist length veil which widens and spreads below her shoulders and gold sandals. Her jewellery consists of gold braclets, ankle braclets, armbands and brooch bearing the Eye of Wdjat on her veil. She initially wears a piece of cloth over her mouth to conceal her identity.

Yu-Gi-Oh! Duelist Manga

Ishizu Ishtar traveled to Japan to oversee the dynastic exhibit, The Art of Egypt. This took place in the Domino City Museum and showcased stone slabs, depicting ka battles, from which Duel Monsters originated. She invited Seto Kaiba to the museum and showed him the slabs. Kaiba was astonished to see that the depicted Nameless Pharaoh resembled his classmate, Yugi Muto. Although Ishizu claimed she did not need to know who Yugi was. She told Kaiba about the Egyptian God cards and tasked him with retrieving them from the Rare Hunters, through hosting a Duel Monsters tournament. To bait the Rare Hunters into coming, she gave him one of the God cards "The God of the Obelisk". Kaiba asked what if he acquired the three God cards, but refused to let them go, to which Ishizu replied that she trusted him.

With the Millennium Necklace, Ishizu predicted that Yugi would visit the museum. When Yami Yugi arrived, with Tea Gardner, and saw the slabs, she approached him. She told him that a great battle would soon be taking place and that he must gather the seven Millennium Items to regain his memories. Seeing Ishizu's own Millennium Item, Yami Yugi asked if she was an enemy. She denied being an enemy, but said that the enemy who was about to appear possessed the last Millennium Item, Yami Yugi was to encounter.

Ishizu took part in Kaiba's Battle City tournament and was the last to qualify as one of the eight finalists. She abstained from attending lottery selections determining the pairings for the quarterfinals, as she had already predicted their results.

She duels Kaiba. She predicts all of Kaiba's moves and foresees her victory, but a vision of Kisara compels Kaiba to summon "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" instead of The God of the Obelisk, hence avoiding his predicted defeat. Following her loss, Ishizu gives the Millennium Necklace to Yugi, claiming that it is no longer necessary as the future it predicts is not infallible and can be changed.

During the finals where Yugi faced Yami Marik, Odion convinces the real Marik to accept responsibility, freeing him from Yami Marik. Ishizu and Marik are then able to fulfill their duties as Tomb Keepers, by revealing the Pharaoh's memory which had been carved onto Marik's back. Ishizu, Marik and Odion then return to Egypt to start a new life.

Ishizu, Marik and Odion lead Yugi and his friends to the tomb of the Pharaoh in order for Pharaoh Atem, and Yugi to have a final duel in order to determine if the spirit will move on to the afterlife, or remain in the present for another 3,000 years.

When the duel is over and the tomb is destroyed, Ishizu states that her family's duties as the Pharaoh's Tomb Keepers are finally complete since his spirit has returned to the nether world and the Millennium Items have been sealed forever.

Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime)

Battle City arc

Ishizu Ishtar is the Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities. She became a museum curator in order to lure Yugi Muto and Seto Kaiba in order to save Marik from his darker alter ego, Yami Marik.

She gave Kaiba the "Obelisk The Tormentor" card in exchange for him starting the Battle City tournament, where he could acquire the remaining God Cards, but told him that regardless he would end up returning the card. She had predicted this using the power of her Millennium Necklace.

Ishizu qualifies to the Battle City quarter-finals, where she duels Kaiba. She predicts all of Kaiba's moves and foresees her victory, but a vision of Kisara compels Kaiba to summon "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" instead of Obelisk.

Kaiba claims to make his own future and tributes "Obelisk the Tormentor" and "Gadget Soldier" to summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon, hence avoiding his predicted defeat. Following her loss, Ishizu gives the Millennium Necklace to Yugi, while claiming that it is no longer necessary as the future it predicts is not infallible and can be changed.

Battle City Finals arc

During the finals where Yami Yugi faced Marik, Odion convinces Marik to accept his responsibility, freeing him from Yami Marik. Ishizu and Marik are then able to fulfill their duties as Tomb Keepers, by revealing the Pharaoh's memory which had been carved (Tattooed in the English version) onto Marik's back. Ishizu, Marik and Odion then return to Egypt to start a new life.

Dawn of the Duel arc

She guided Yami Yugi and the others to the Pharoah's tablet, so he can recover his long lost memory of the past. She then helped Kaiba go to where Yugi and the others were at, so he can help defeat Yami Bakura.

Ceremonial Battle arc

After the Pharaoh recovers his memories and his real name in the Dawn of the Duel arc, Ishizu, Marik and Odion lead Yugi and his friends to the tomb of the Pharaoh in order for Yami Yugi (aka Atem) and Yugi to have a final duel in order to determine if the spirit will move on to the afterlife or remain in the present for another 5,000 years (In the Japanese version, 3,000 years).

When the duel is over and the tomb is destroyed, Ishizu states that her family's duties as the Pharaoh's Tomb Keepers are finally complete since his spirit has returned to the nether world and the Millennium Items have been sealed forever.

Video Games

Ishizu Ishtar appears in the following video games:

• Yu-Gi-Oh! Capsule Monsters Coliseum
• Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links
• Yu-Gi-Oh! Legacy of the Duelist Link Evolution

Quotes

• You dear hurt your own flesh and blood?
• My was vision wrong?

Relationships

Yami Yugi/Atem

Being the member of the tombkeeper's family, Ishizu feels obliged to serve Yami Yugi to help him as only Yugi can help save her brother and the world. With her being the modern reincarnation of Priestess Isis, Ishizu still feels an inclination towards helping the Pharaoh as one of the members of Pharaoh's court. As Yami Yugi and Tea enter the museum in Ishizu's exhibition, hoping to find out something about the past of the former. Ishizu shows them the old tablets, revealing to Yami Yugi that he was a powerful Pharaoh who, five thousand years ago, saved the world from misfortune; the fate of the Egyptian sovereign.

As fate would have it the young Ishizu tells Yami Yugi that he is to prevent the destruction of humanity again by persuading Yami Yugi to enter the Battle City tournament in order to fulfill his destiny. After her loss at Battle City against Kaiba, Following her loss, Ishizu gives the Millennium Necklace to Yugi, claiming that it is no longer necessary as the future it predicts is not infallible and can be changed. Given the events of the past are to happen again in the present day, Yami Yugi felt he was destined to face Kaiba. After Yugi's victory at the Battle City tournament, Ishizu explains that millennia ago, the Pharaoh saved the world, but missed the memory that he needs to recover today; For this reason, he has entrusted his memories to a family. At the end of the anime, Ishizu with her brothers come to Pharaoh to take him to the tablet of the lost memory so Pharaoh can remember his name as well as his rest of the memory. After Pharaoh regains his memory, she leads him and the gang to the tomb of the Pharaoh to return the Millennium Items to the Tomb so that the Pharaoh can move on to the afterlife.

Seto Kaiba

In the anime, Ishizu first meets Kaiba at the Domino City Museum when she personally invites him for a private exhibition regarding the opening of her highly anticipated Egyptian exhibit through a televised press conference invitation. With her belief in the nature of fate, she felt that it be destined that the two would cross paths. Ishizu then gives Kaiba a private showcase of never seen before artifacts depicting the origin of Duel Monsters as well as the secret of the Egyptian God Cards. She then postulates to Kaiba of starting a Duel Monsters competition in order to help draw out the Rare Hunters in the open as well as offering him Obelisk the Tormentor to borrow during the duration of the tournament.

During the Battle City tournament, Ishizu attracts Kaiba's attention during her first and only duel against him as she flawlessly predicted Kaiba's every strategic move and causing him to squirm. During the duel, Yami Marik similarly parallels Kaiba's struggle against Ishizu with his own childhood experience of being stringed and taken down by Ishizu in the past with her Deck. Ishizu gracefully manipulated every move he made and foiled his strategies causing her to toy with Kaiba's mind nearly humiliating him with a loss. Though Ishizu lost the duel, the loss taught her a valuable lesson of the greater importance regarding the nature of destiny as it gave her hope for changing her brother's future relying on the wisdom and strength of the people around her, in particular for her concerns toward Kaiba for eventually helping her brother Marik eradicate his other evil half trapped within.

As the Battle City tournament drew to a close, Ishizu's selfless soliciting for the well-being of Kaiba through her desire to rescue her brother requests him to be present for the final duel of the Battle City tournament in order to assist Yami Yugi in fulfilling his dueling destiny by defeating Yami Marik. Anxious to cultivate his aid to help Yugi rescue her brother, the young Ishizu solicitously convinces the reluctant and selfish Kaiba to help Yami Yugi win the final duel, where the eventual outcome of it will depend on the salvation of the world and impact the future of mankind. She then explains to Kaiba that the destiny of the latter is to contribute to the triumph of light, and that, in antiquity, he was, indeed the Pharaoh's adversary, but also a friend who constantly challenged him to push him to improve. She warned Kaiba that walking away from the tournament is a huge mistake and forewarned that his entire future is at stake.

Concerned about Kaiba's reputation for his obstinacy, Ishizu scolds Kaiba for his selfishness and hesitance in helping Yami Yugi as well as denying his ancient Egyptian heritage by reasoning with him stating that he'll suffer the consequences and the fate of the entire world will suffer as a result of his obstinate stubbornness by turning back on mankind. She also lectures Kaiba that he was destined to organize the event guided by a force beyond his control and how his modern day rivalry with Yugi has been in existence for thousands of years. In addition, Ishizu also informs Kaiba about how his rivalry with Yugi as his past incarnation as as a skilled sorcerer who constantly challenged the Pharaoh and with the sorcerer's help, the Pharaoh was eventually able to save his own people. Much to Kaiba's consternation, Ishizu's solicitous coaxing to cultivate Kaiba's assistance eventually convinced him to give one card to help Yami Yugi take down Yami Marik's Winged Dragon of Ra.

Knownable Relatives

• Mr. Ishtar (Father/dead)
• Mrs. Ishtar (Mother/dead)
• Odion (Adopted Older Brother)
• Marik Ishtar (Little Brother)
• Isis (Past Incarnation/dead)

Trivia

• Her birthday is April 5, and her bloodtype is O.
• Her favorite food is Om Ali. While her least favorite food is a Meat dish.

Voice Actresses

• Japanese : Sumi Shimamoto (Older), Sakura Nogawa (Young)
• English : Karen Neill (Both)

all information on Ishizu Ishtar came from http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Ishizu_Ishtar

Gallery

Ishizu as a baby