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Players weren’t happy with her story in Kingdom Hearts 3and wished that she was in Melody of Memorymore than she was. Despite the disappointment, many still hope that she’ll have her chance to shine in future installments, based on her relationships with the other characters, being both a Princess of Heart and a Guardian of Light and the great lines she’s had throughout the games.
Updated November 26, 2022 by Justin Flynn: Though Kairi isn’t as strong of a protagonist when compared to Sora and Riku, her role in the Kingdom Hearts 3 Re Mind DLC saw her finally achieving a long-deserved moment in the spotlight. With Sora by her side, she gripped her Keyblade and lunged an attack at the main antagonist of the series, Master Xehanort.
Sora may be the more experienced Keyblade wielder, but Kairi doesn’t seem too far behind. Now that Tetsuya Nomura has deemed it time to showcase her true potential, it looks like Kairi will be getting a chance to show off exactly how powerful she is in Kingdom Hearts 4. The longer Kairi is onscreen, the more likely she is to deliver more of her iconic quotes.
15 “Please Work!”
A great deal of a video game character’s personality will shine through the words they say during battle. While playing Riku, Aqua, and Roxas in the Re Mind DLC, players will be permitted the chance to hear how they feel regarding the enemies they face through the words they use. These particular characters tend to approach each battle with a sense of aggression, but Kairi does not.
During her battle against Master Xehanort, Kairi can regularly be heard saying “Please work.” Unlike her peers, she lacks confidence in her fighting abilities, so it makes sense why her words would reflect this. That said, the way she says “Please work” before delivering a series of bafflingly powerful attacks makes it appear like she has no idea of how powerful she truly is.
14 “This Time…I’LL Fight.”
In Kingdom Hearts 1, Kairi was used to fill the role of damsel in distress. If not for her disappearance at the beginning of the game, Sora would never have ventured across the galaxy in search of her and would thus never have gained the power he needed to save her.
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Upon reuniting with Sora in Kingdom Hearts 2, Kairi states “This time…I’LL fight.” Not only is she willing to risk her life to protect the Worlds, she now has the means to do so thanks to her Keyblade. Though she doesn’t get the chance to combat the darkness until Kingdom Hearts 3, her “I’LL fight” line marked the beginning of her journey to do so.
13 “Starts With An ‘S.’ Right, Sora?”
After the events of Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, Kairi and many of Sora’s friends forgot Sora ever existed. Though their memories of him returned once he awoke, Kairi managed to regain them a few days beforehand.
Kairi knew she had ties with Sora, but she was unable to remember his name. She managed to speak to Roxas during the opening of Kingdom Hearts 2 and subsequently got the chance to speak to Sora. During this conversation, Sora informed her that his name “Starts with an ‘S!’” In response to Sora’s hint, Kairi said “Starts with an ‘S.’ Right, Sora?”
12 “Actually, I’d Like To Study Under Master Aqua.”
During the climax of Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory, Kairi returns to The Mysterious Tower to inform Yen Sid of her findings. She believes she has discovered a way to reconnect with Sora, but sadly, she does not yet hold the required power to save him. Yen Sid offers to continue training her, and though Kairi appreciates the offer, she asks to study under Master Aqua instead.
Yen Sid appears happy with the idea and encourages Kairi to pursue it. Aqua is an extremely capable Keyblade Master, so it is likely Kairi will also become one if Aqua accepts her as an apprentice. Though the “I’d like to study under Master Aqua” line isn’t the most renowned quote from the series, it offers a brief glimpse into Kairi’s future and the company she will keep in the upcoming sequel.
11 “You’re Home.”
Though Sora had the chance to return home during the climax of Kingdom Hearts 1, he could not bring himself to leave Riku behind in the Realm of Darkness. He spent the majority of Kingdom Hearts 2 searching for a way to reunite with his lost friend, and when he eventually found him, he also found a way back to Destiny Island.
Sora rushed to Kairi the moment he saw her standing on the shore. When he reached her, he said “We’re back!” Kairi responded by outstretching her hand toward him and saying “You’re home.” Having set out to rescue his friends in Kingdom Hearts 1, Sora finally achieved his goal and was able to return home to Kairi with Riku by his side.
10 “You Know, I Was Afraid At First, But Now I’m Ready. No Matter Where I Go Or What I See, I Know I Can Always Come Back Here.”
At the beginning of the first installment, Kairi, Sora, and Riku had planned on leaving Destiny Islands to explore other worlds with each other. When they were almost ready to embark on this adventure, Kairi had a conversation with Sora in which she said these words, to which he agreed that they could always go back home. Little did the two of them know that their world was about to be swallowed by the darkness.
9 “I Want To Go With You. But… I Know That I Can’t. I Need To Finish Training. I Need To Become Stronger. And When I Do, I’ll Be Right There Next To You And Sora.”
After Sora disappeared at the end of Kingdom Hearts 3, all of his friends tried to find him. In Melody of Memory, Kairi and Riku told each other about the clues that they found and went to the Final World with the Fairy Godmother. There, they met the Nameless Star who told them about Quadratum, where they believe Sora is. Despite wanting to go to Quadratum with Riku, Kairi knew that she had to get stronger and began training as Master Aqua’s student.
8 “This Is Real.”
Kairi waited for Sora and Riku to return to Destiny Islands after she went back in the original game. In Kingdom Hearts 2, she was kidnapped by Axel and brought to The World That Never Was. Sora and Riku were also there, and she finally got to see them again. When she and Sora met for the first time in a year, they hugged and she said these three simple and clean words.
7 “Don’t Hold Back, Lea. Promise?”
Even though Axel kidnapped Kairi, the two would eventually become friends when he turned back into Lea. In Kingdom Hearts 3, they were being trained by Merlin as the two newest keyblade wielders.
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When the two of them talked about fighting each other for practice against Organization XIII, she said these words to him. This caused him to remember Xion for a quick second, a friend of his who everyone forgot about. Having this memory caused him, as well as fans of Xion, to get a tear in his eye.
6 “This Time, I’ll Fight. You Know Sora’s Completely Hopeless Without Us. Come On, Riku.”
Before Kairi reunited with Sora in Kingdom Hearts 2, she met Riku. When she was attacked by a group of shadow heartless, he gave her the keyblade she wields and said these words as she ran towards the heartless, defeating them. Fans were shocked to find out that she could use a keyblade and that she simply got hers through Riku, but were happy to see her join in the action.
5 “Don’t Ever Forget. Wherever You Go, I’m Always With You.”
Toward the end of the first game, Kairi wanted to go with Sora when he defeated Ansem. However, he didn’t want to have to worry about her, which she understood. She gave him her lucky charm as she let him go.
After he fought Ansem and closed the Door to Darkness with Riku, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey, he saw her as the worlds that fell to darkness returned to the Realm of Light. He repeated her words and told her he’d come back, ending the game as she was forced to return home.
4 “Her Time Was Short, But She Lived It, And That Made It Hers. What Right Did I Have To Take Those Feelings And Experiences Back? They Don’t Belong To Me. Nothing’s As It Should Be.”
In Kingdom Hearts 2, Kairi and Sora’s nobodies, Namine and Roxas, returned to them. At the time, this seemed like the right thing to do, but both Kairi and Sora would later regret their actions, wanting their nobodies to be their own people.
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During her training with Axel in Kingdom Hearts 3, she told him that she wanted to find a way for Namine to come back. At the end of the game, Roxas and Namine became their own people and can now live however they please.
3 “You’re The One Who Keeps Messing With My Fate. If It Weren’t For Everything That You’ve Done, Then Sora And Everyone Would Be Safe. Even If You’re Not Really Here And This Is Just A Memory Or Illusion… I Won’t Let You Walk Away!”
In Melody of Memory, Kairi encountered a fake Xehanort in the Final World. Hating the dark seeker for the terrible things he did to her, she said these words to him and attacked him. However, he wasn’t there to fight.
He reminded her of how he brought her to Destiny Islands when she was a little kid, giving her a clue that Sora was at Quadratum. Despite how many lives he ruined, Xehanort never actually wanted to hurt Kairi and her friends and was the reason she even knew them in the first place.
2 “Tomorrow’s Fight Will Be Our Toughest Yet. I Want To Be A Part Of Your Life No Matter What. That’s All.”
It had been teased since the first installment that Sora and Kairi would share the paopu fruit, intertwining their destinies. Before they fought Organization XIII in Kingdom Hearts 3, they returned to Destiny Islands and shared the fruit with each other. Fans had waited for this to happen for seventeen years and were thrilled that it finally happened.
1 “Thinking Of You, Wherever You Are. We Pray For Our Sorrows To End, And Hope That Our Hearts Will Blend. Now I Will Step Forward To Realize This Wish. And Who Knows: Starting A New Journey May Not Be So Hard Or Maybe It’s Already Begun. There Are Many Worlds, But They Share The Same Sky- One Sky, One Destiny.”
These iconic words come from the letter that Kairi wrote to Sora at the beginning of Kingdom Hearts 2. At the end of the game, Sora and Riku defeated Xemnas and found themselves in the Realm of Darkness.
As they sat on the beach, they found the letter inside a bottle. As Sora read it, the Door to Light appeared, allowing them to finally go back home. Kairi, along with Mickey, Donald, and Goofy, were as thrilled as fans were that the two returned to Destiny Islands, with some even arguing that this was the best ending of all the games in the series.
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