Nazrin

ナズーリン nazɯːɽiɴ (♫) Nazrin Nasrin, Nazrin, Nesrin, Nazu-rin More Alternative Spellings
Nazrin in Unfinished Dream of All Living Ghost The Little Dowser General More Character Titles
Species	Mouse youkai
Abilities	Finding sought-for items
Age	At least 1000 years [citation needed]
Occupation	Dowser, said to be a leader of mice
Location	Myouren Temple, A little hut near Muenzuka[1]
Music Themes
Expand 小さな小さな賢将 (Undefined Fantastic Object) 春の湊に (Unfinished Dream of All Living Ghost)
Appearances
Official Games
Expand Undefined Fantastic Object (Stage 1 Midboss, Stage 1 Boss, Stage 5 Midboss) Double Spoiler (Scene 7-2, 7-4, 7-6 Boss) Hopeless Masquerade (Background Character) Unfinished Dream of All Living Ghost (Playable Character, Possible Opponent)
Print Works
Expand Oriental Sacred Place (Chapter 12 cameo) The Grimoire of Marisa Wild and Horned Hermit (Chapter 2 cameo, 20 cameo, 22 cameo, 36 cameo, 43 cameo) Symposium of Post-mysticism (Article) Forbidden Scrollery (Chapter 3 cameo, volume 1 omake cameo, 16 cameo, 40 cameo) The Grimoire of Usami (Section 1-6) Lotus Eaters (Chapter 17 cameo) Foul Detective Satori (Chapter 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 cameo, 37 cameo, 38 cameo, 47 cameo, 48, 49) Whispered Oracle of Hakurei Shrine (Fortune Slip No. 54)

"My mice do like the taste of human flesh. They say that cheese just can't compare to certain other red foods."
— Nazrin (Undefined Fantastic Object Stage 1)

Nazrin (ナズーリン, Nazūrin) is a mouse youkai who's a skilled dowser and the subordinate of Shou Toramaru. She leads many mice who she often employs them to search for things for her; though if she were to ask them to find food, it would most likely be gone by the time they returned. Nazrin first appeared as the midboss and boss of Stage 1 as well as the Stage 5 midboss in Undefined Fantastic Object. She first became a playable character in Unfinished Dream of All Living Ghost.

General Information

Personality

Symposium of Post-mysticism describes Nazrin as having a large ego – due to being backed by Bishamonten himself – but that she is also timid, and would run away as soon as she became frightened. She is described as cunning, and only pretends to work, living a easygoing and self-willed life.^[2] She also apparently eats quite a bit, and depending on how many mice are under her command at a given time, can put a serious dent in crop numbers.

Symposium of Post-mysticism also mentions that if one is firm and holds their ground while negotiating with her, they can get her to search for lost objects for them - while on the other hand, asking humbly and politely is likely only to inflate her ego.

Throughout the events of Undefined Fantastic Object, she is quite straightforward in speech.

Nazrin is fond of gathering treasures, and is shown to get excited just with the thought of finding one.^[3] Her love for finding treasures goes far to the point of stealing items from other people, even though the mention of Bishamonten or Shou is enough to scare her away.^[4][5]

Abilities

Finding sought-for items

As stated, Nazrin's ability is being able to find specific objects that are being looked for by someone. In order to effectively utilize the ability, she must have a clear, concrete image of what she is looking for.

Possessions

Dowsing Rods

She presumably uses a pair of dowsing rods to aid her in this effort, which she uses to find gold and treasure, and also is able to order the mice under her command to assist her. The mouse and the dowsing rods, freely using a pendulum, perform dowsing. It seems like the rod and the pendulum are utilised in battle, and are used as a shield and as a tool for firing danmaku. Furthermore, each end of the dowsing rods appears to have a letter. The left one has N (north) and W (west), while the right one has S (south) and E (east). Nazrin owns a pair of dowsing rods, which she uses to find gold and treasure. She employs the rods in Undefined Fantastic Object to search for the lost pagoda of Bishamonten, as well as the fragments of the Flying Storehouse.

The origin of this is probably due to a legend where a trial was ordered for Ookuninushi to marry Suserihime. There, a mouse came back with an arrow that Ookuninushi was searching for. However, for the method to be due to dowsing is not quite accurate, and the standard of searching at that time is unclear. Furthermore, as the ability itself is always ancillary, in the end, she searches at her feet. It also seems like for the sought-for food items, they are devoured by the mice before the food can come to hand.

Occupation

Nazrin acts as Shou Toramaru's faithful helper, but is also the leader of a great deal of ordinary mice. In Symposium of Post-mysticism, she is referred to as Shou's mouse familiar, but in reality she is a high-ranking youkai dispatched by Bishamonten. Because of this, she does not generally reside at the Myouren Temple, and will not visit unless Shou calls upon her.

She currently resides in a small self-built hut in Muenzuka, because of the treasure that floats in from the outside world.

Official Profiles

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Official Profiles

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Undefined Fantastic Object Demo - キャラ設定とエキストラストーリー.txt

○１面ボス　ダウザーの小さな大将 　　ナズーリン 　　Nazrin 　　種族：妖怪ネズミ 　　能力：探し物を探し当てる程度の能力 　　生粋のダウザー。無数の野鼠を操り、探し物を見つけるという。 　　ただし、食べ物の探し物は手元に来る前にネズミ達に食い荒らされて 　　しまう。 　　ずる賢く、相手に敵わないと見るやいなやすぐに逃げてしまう。 　　何者かに命令されて、何かを探しに来ているようだが果たして……。

Stage 1 boss The Little Dowser General Nazrin Race: Mouse youkai Ability: Finding sought-for items A natural-born dowser. They say she controls a great number of field mice to find what she's looking for. However, if it's food, the mice will eat it all up before they can get it to her. She is cunning and will flee from a fight as soon as she sees an enemy stronger than herself. It seems she was ordered to look for something by somebody, but what could it be...

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Undefined Fantastic Object - キャラ設定とエキストラストーリー.txt

○１面ボス　ダウザーの小さな大将 　　ナズーリン 　　Nazrin 　　種族：妖怪ネズミ 　　能力：探し物を探し当てる程度の能力 　　生粋のダウザー。無数の野鼠を操り、探し物を見つけるという。 　　ただし、食べ物の探し物は手元に来る前にネズミ達に食い荒らされてしまう。 　　ずる賢く、相手に敵わないと見るやいなやすぐに逃げてしまう。 　　星から二つの探し物を依頼されて地上を探し回っていた。 　　探し物の一つは、飛宝と呼ばれる飛倉の破片。 　　もう一つは、毘沙門天の宝塔である。

Stage 1 boss The Little Dowser General Nazrin Race: Mouse youkai Ability: Finding sought-for items A natural-born dowser. They say she controls a great number of field mice to find what she's looking for. However, if it's food, the mice will eat it all up before they can get it to her. She is cunning and will flee from a fight as soon as she sees an enemy stronger than herself. She went to and fro looking for the two things Shou entrusted her to find. One was the fragments of Flying Storehouse that were being called the flying treasure. The other was the jeweled pagoda of Bishamonten.

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Undefined Fantastic Object - キャラ設定とエキストラストーリー.txt (Stage 5 Midboss)

○５面中ボス　ダウザーの小さな大将 　　ナズーリン 　　Nazrin 　　やっと探し出せた宝塔。 　　実は宝塔を探していた事はムラサ達には内緒であった。 　　星も大切な宝塔を無くしていた事は、自分の手下以外には言えなかったのだろう。

Stage 5 mid-boss The Little Dowser General Nazrin She's finally found the jeweled pagoda. Actually, she kept it a secret from Murasa that she was looking for it. Shou probably didn't tell anyone but her own underlings she'd lost something so important.

Spell Cards

Backstory

Nazrin is a high-ranking youkai dispatched by the god Bishamonten. She was sent to the god's new disciple, Shou Toramaru, to be a helper and also to keep an eye on her.

Character Design

Nazrin as depicted in Symposium of Post-mysticism

Origin

Although Nazrin doesn't appear to be based on any one particular folkloric entity, it's possible that she takes some cues from the Japanese Buddhist conception of the Zodiac Rat/Mouse and its relationship to Bishamonten. As a protector of the northern direction, Bishamonten was linked to the Zodiac Rat in Japanese religion, which itself also symbolized the north and the beginning of the temporal cycle. At the Hie Shrine for instance, the god Daigyouji (大行事), who serves as a manifestation of Bishamonten, is associated with the Rat, with his shrine being referred to as the Nezumi no hokora (鼠の祠, lit. "Rat/Mouse shrine"). Additionally, in the Youtenki (耀天記), the deity of this hokora is called the spirit of the Day of the Rat, whose honji (本地) is noted to be Bishamonten.^[6] ZUN himself has also stated in an interview that it made sense to have a mouse be the envoy of the Bishamonten, because, in the Chinese zodiac, the Rat/Mouse represents north, as does Bishamonten.^[7]

Name

Her only known name is Nazrin (ナズーリン), which could be a reference to nezumi (鼠), the Japanese word for "mouse". Her name could also be derived from the Persian name Nasrin (نسرین‎) with the meaning "wild rose", a widely used name in the Islamic world; various different spellings include Nasrin, Nazrin and Nesrin. There's also "Nasulin" (Насулин), a real Russian surname, and it's also the name of a nasal insulin. In the data files for Hopeless Masquerade, her name was romanised as "nazu-rin".

Design

Nazrin has gray hair and red eyes. She wears a brownish-black one-piece with pink sleeves and a gray capelet. She also wears a necklace with a crystal pendant. She carries dowsing rods with the letters for the cardinal directions on the ends and also a mouse in a basket by her tail. When she appears as the Stage 5 midboss, she is carrying the jeweled pagoda of Bishamonten.
In her Unfinished Dream of All Living Ghost appearance, her dress is a more saturated yellowish-brown with holes on her capelet, and her ears appear to be slightly larger.

Appearances

Undefined Fantastic Object

Nazrin's sprite in UFO

She was asked by Shou Toramaru to look for the lost pagoda of Bishamonten. On Stage 1 of Undefined Fantastic Object, Nazrin descends from the flying ship after getting a treasure reading. Either by being provoked to or forced to, she attacks the player. After she loses the battle, she manages to flee the scene. Later she does find what she was looking for - the treasured pagoda, the other key to releasing Byakuren Hijiri - in a second-hand goods store (conceivably Kourindou).

Later, in the middle of Stage 5, she encounters the player once more. Seeing that her allies have brought the player with the treasure, she decides to test out the pagoda against her in the meantime. She loses once more, and escapes to return the pagoda to her master, Shou.

Unfinished Dream of All Living Ghost

Nazrin's back sprite in UDoALG

Nazrin's sprite in UDoALG

Main article: Unfinished Dream of All Living Ghost: Nazrin's Scenario

Because of the opening of the marketplace, ownership of the ancient land was lost. This has caused greedy animal spirits to attempt to claim ownership of the land. Nazrin has no interest in the incident at hand, but rather sees this as an opportunity to search for treasure.

After defeating Rin Kaenbyou in the Myouren Temple, the kasha tells her that there is a jewel that purifies life, so she exits the temple in search of it. Nazrin defeats Ran Yakumo and Seiran, with the moon rabbit asking Nazrin to search for her jewel. Then, Mamizou Futatsuiwa shares some of the information she had with her, and Nazrin arrives to the Forest of Magic. There, she fights Enoko Mitsugashira after seeing she had Seiran’s jewel, but she ends up in Hell and gets attacked by Yachie Kicchou.

At the end, Nazrin didn’t get the jewel and she decided to stop her investigation to stick to cleaning the graveyard and taking out the phantoms near the temple. ^[8]

Double Spoiler

Nazrin in HM

Main article: Double Spoiler: Level 7 Spell Cards

In Double Spoiler, Nazrin appeared as a stage 7 target, where she demonstrates her dowsing abilities to Aya Shameimaru and Hatate Himekaidou at their request to dig up a few old coins. Of course, she's actually using them as weapons in the spell card. She follows up on this by digging up some gold, fully demonstrating her dowsing abilities.

Hopeless Masquerade

Nazrin made a background cameo appearance in Hopeless Masquerade on the Palanquin Ship. She is seen standing on the ship waving her dowsing rods.

Symposium of Post-mysticism

Main article: Symposium of Post-mysticism: Nazrin

The Grimoire of Usami

Main article: The Grimoire of Usami: Nazrin

She was one of the contestants during the Hakurei Fireworks Festival and showcased some of her danmaku.

Whispered Oracle of Hakurei Shrine

Main article: Whispered Oracle of Hakurei Shrine: Nazrin

Reimu Hakurei writes a fortune slip about Nazrin as a way of cleaning up in the aftermath of an incident.

Relationships

Shou Toramaru

Nazrin, while being a mouse youkai leader herself, is also Shou Toramaru's only known underling. She went to search for the lost pagoda on Shou's command, further showing her loyalty by keeping it a secret from Minamitsu Murasa - she states in Marisa B's story that Shou was probably too embarrassed to admit having lost it in the first place. It is stated in Symposium of Post-mysticism that she only really comes to the temple when Shou calls her, and otherwise lives in a little house she built near Muenzuka for the purposes of finding treasure there.

Although Nazrin is loyal to Shou, she also tends to act arrogantly against her master.^[9] She respects her master to the point of following her orders, but complains about it and secretly intends to do the given job poorly.^[10]

Bishamonten

Originally, Nazrin had been placed as Shou's underling by Bishamonten in order to keep an eye on her, but as Shou exceeded all expectations, it eventually became unnecessary.

Minor relationships

Chiyari Tenkajin

Nazrin is called by the nickname "Naz" by Chiyari,^[11] both having lived in Former Hell at the same time before the events of Undefined Fantastic Object, it hints at a more informal relationship between the two of them.^[12]

Rin Kaenbyou

Based on their interchange in Unfinished Dream of All Living Ghost, it looks that they know each other since when Nazrin was in Former Hell, but Nazrin comments that she doesn't like cats, which matches her as a mouse youkai.

Gallery

Covers

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  Nazrin, on the demo CD of Undefined Fantastic Object

Illustrations

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  Nazrin artwork from Undefined Fantastic Object stage 1

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  Nazrin artwork from Undefined Fantastic Object stage 5

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  Nazrin with Shou from Who's Who of Humans & Youkai - Dusk Edition

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  Nazrin's fortune slip in Whispered Oracle of Hakurei Shrine

Screenshots

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  Nazrin's appearance in Oriental Sacred Place

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  Nazrin cameo with Shou in Wild and Horned Hermit

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  Nazrin's appearance in Lotus Eaters

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  Nazrin's appearance in Foul Detective Satori

Additional Information

• According to the game transcript (namely Reimu-A and Marisa-B), Nazrin is the only stage 1 boss in a Windows game to escape rather than actually be defeated by the heroine. She would also be one of two only stage 1 bosses to not been defeated; the other being Yuyuko Saigyouji.
• She is one of the few stage 1 bosses that actually have something to do with the plot, as opposed to "a pointless encounter with a pointless person", as Marisa Kirisame puts it. Another one is Seiran in Legacy of Lunatic Kingdom, who is involved in the lunarian invasion of Gensokyo.
• She is also the only Windows-era stage 1 boss who attacks the heroines out of necessity rather than aggression (like Rumia or Letty Whiterock), or irritation (like Yamame Kurodani or Minoriko Aki).
• She was featured on the cover of Undefined Fantastic Object demo CD.
• Her Hard-Lunatic mid-boss spell card looks almost exactly like Sara's last attack pattern.

Fandom

Official Sources

References

This page is part of Project Characters, a Touhou Wiki project that aims to write proper descriptions for all official characters of Touhou Project. Please keep the character page guidelines in mind when contributing.

Expand v t e Undefined Fantastic Object Story Main Scenario Prologue — Reimu A / B • Marisa A / B • Sanae A / B Extra Scenario Extra Story — Reimu A / B • Marisa A / B • Sanae A / B Characters Reimu Hakurei • Marisa Kirisame • Sanae Kochiya • Nazrin • Kogasa Tatara • Ichirin Kumoi • Unzan • Minamitsu Murasa • Shou Toramaru • Byakuren Hijiri • Nue Houjuu • (Bishamonten • Myouren Hijiri • Kanako Yasaka • Suwako Moriya) Enemies Fairy (Black) • Sunflower Fairy (Hellish) • Wheel Ghost Locations Hakurei Shrine • Road of Lingering Snow • Spring Clouds • Palanquin Ship/Myouren Temple • Makai (Hokkai) • The Night Sky Terms Buddhism • Shigisan Engi • Seed of Unknown Form Gameplay Strategy • High Scores • Tools and Patches • Vertical Play Spell Cards Stage 1 • Stage 2 • Stage 3 • Stage 4 • Stage 5 • Stage 6 • Extra Documentation Afterword • Music Comments • Other Translations

Expand v t e Double Spoiler Story Spell Cards Comments Level 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • EX • Spoiler Spoiler Level Characters Aya Shameimaru • Hatate Himekaidou • Aki Minoriko • Aki Shizuha • Parsee Mizuhashi • Hina Kagiyama • Yamame Kurodani • Kogasa Tatara • Kisume • Nitori Kawashiro • Momiji Inubashiri • Ichirin Kumoi • Minamitsu Murasa • Yuugi Hoshiguma • Suika Ibuki • Shou Toramaru • Nazrin • Rin Kaenbyou • Utsuho Reiuji • Satori Komeiji • Koishi Komeiji • Tenshi Hinanawi • Iku Nagae • Kanako Yasaka • Suwako Moriya • Byakuren Hijiri • Nue Houjuu • Reimu Hakurei • Marisa Kirisame • Sanae Kochiya Enemies Zombie Fairy Locations Youkai Mountain • Deep Road to Hell • Fantastic Blowhole • Untrodden Valley • Palanquin Ship • Former Capital • Makai • Remains of the Blazing Hell • Palace of the Earth Spirits • Spring Clouds • Wind God's Lake • Hokkai • Road of Lingering Snow • Waterfall of Nine Heavens Terms Tengu • Bunbunmaru Newspaper • Kakashi Spirit News Gameplay Strategy (Replays) • Tools Documentation Afterword • Music Comments • Other Translations

Expand v t e Hopeless Masquerade Story Main Scenario Prologue — Reimu • Marisa • Byakuren • Miko • Ichirin & Unzan • Futo • Nitori • Koishi • Mamizou • Kokoro VS Mode Reimu • Marisa • Ichirin & Unzan • Byakuren • Futo • Miko • Nitori • Koishi • Mamizou • Kokoro Playable characters Reimu Hakurei • Marisa Kirisame • Ichirin Kumoi & Unzan • Byakuren Hijiri • Mononobe no Futo • Toyosatomimi no Miko • Nitori Kawashiro • Koishi Komeiji • Mamizou Futatsuiwa • Hata no Kokoro Locations Stages — Hakurei Shrine • Human Village • Treasure Ship Above the Clouds • Myouren Temple • Hall of Dreams' Great Mausoleum • Divine Spirit Mausoleum • Genbu Ravine • Palace of the Earth Spirits • Youkai Tanuki Forest • Youkai Tanuki Forest (Night) • Human Village (Night) Terms Shinto • Buddhism • Taoism Gameplay Spell Cards Items Reimu • Marisa • Ichirin & Unzan • Byakuren • Futo • Miko • Nitori • Koishi • Mamizou • Kokoro Documentation Music • Original Soundtrack (ZUN's comments • Uni Akiyama's comments • Iruka Unabara's comments • Iwashi's comments) • Other Translations • Timeline

Expand v t e Unfinished Dream of All Living Ghost Story Main Scenario Prologue — Reimu (Demo) • Marisa (Demo) • Sanae • Ran • Aunn (Demo) • Nazrin (Demo) • Seiran (Demo) • Rin • Tsukasa • Mamizou • Yachie • Saki • Yuuma • Biten • Enoko • Chiyari • Hisami • Suika • Zanmu VS Mode Reimu • Marisa • Sanae • Ran • Aunn • Nazrin • Seiran • Rin • Tsukasa • Mamizou • Yachie • Saki • Yuuma • Suika • Biten • Enoko • Chiyari • Hisami • Zanmu Characters Reimu Hakurei • Marisa Kirisame • Sanae Kochiya • Ran Yakumo • Aunn Komano • Nazrin • Seiran • Rin Kaenbyou • Tsukasa Kudamaki • Mamizou Futatsuiwa • Yachie Kicchou • Saki Kurokoma • Yuuma Toutetsu • Suika Ibuki • Son Biten • Enoko Mitsugashira • Chiyari Tenkajin • Hisami Yomotsu • Zanmu Nippaku • (Chen • Yukari Yakumo) Enemies Fairy (Zombie) • Chief Fairy • Big Fairy • Sunflower Fairy • Wheel Ghost • Phantom • Animal Spirit Locations Canal of Willows • Misty Lake • Forest of Magic • Youkai Mountain (Untrodden Valley • Secret Heaven Cliff • Forest of Sanctuaries) • Moriya Shrine • Myouren Temple (Cemetery) • Underworld (Former Hell (Former Capital) • Remains of Blazing Hell • Hell of Blood Pools) • Sai no Kawara • Higan • Hell (Animal Realm) Terms Beast Youkai Gameplay Strategy • Netplay Spell Cards Reimu • Marisa • Sanae • Ran • Aunn • Nazrin • Seiran • Rin • Tsukasa • Mamizou • Yachie • Saki • Yuuma • Suika • Biten • Enoko • Chiyari • Hisami • Zanmu Documentation Afterword • Music Comments • Ability Cards • Other Translations • Achievements