TMNTPedia
Register
Advertisement
 YOU'RE NOT ON 
 NICKTOONS 
 ANYMORE! 

Some TMNT stuff really isn't for little kids.

In the IDW continuity, the Oroku Clan refers to members of the Oroku family, going at least as far back as Oroku Maji, and most notably the descendants of Maji's son Oroku Saki with Kitsune. Oroku Yori and Oroku Karai are also members of this clan.

The familial members of the Oroku Clan are related genetically to the Pantheon, which includes Kitsune's deceased father the Dragon and her living elder siblings Aka, Manmoth, Gothano, Chi-You, Toad Baron, Rat King and Jagwar. The Pantheon are gods, and this means all of Saki's children with Kitsune are demigods—overwhelmingly human in ancestor including through Saki, but also part "dragon" as Kitsune characterizes her mortal children.

The term Oroku Clan gained significance in IDW's version of the City at War arc, when Karai declared war on Splinter to wrest control of the Foot Clan, and dubbed her faction the "Oroku Clan", effectively making it a ninja clan independent of the Foot Clan to which she previously belonged.

The war and the Oroku Clan itself were formally declared after a breakdown in negotiations between Splinter and Karai to hand control of the Foot back to Karai so Splinter could retire with his own Clan Hamato. The breakdown was over an irreconcilable disagreement over the fate of the children of Saint Robert's Orphanage, who had recently been taken in as wards of Splinter's Foot Clan after Saint Robert's Orphanage in New York City was destroyed during the invasion of the Triceratons. Splinter had already previously settled an agreement with his son Michelangelo after a bitter dispute over the children had almost made enemies of father and son. Their agreement uaranteed the Foot would care for and educate the children, that Clan Hamato would be solely responsible for training them, and that when coming of age they would be given a free choice whether to formally join the Foot Clan or live as free people independent from the Foot. Karai considered this arrangement unacceptable because the children had already extensively seen the interior of the Foot Clan Headquarters and had witnessed too many Foot secrets for her liking, and demanded the children all either be forcibly conscripted as Foot Ninja or put to death. When Splinter refused, Karai challenged Splinter to another Gauntlet, a ritual he had previously fought and won a few years before against Oroku Saki, which resulted in Saki's surrender, reconciliation and honorable death at Splinter's hands, and in Karai willingly giving Splinter control of the Foot Clan. But this time, Splinter also refused to accept a Gauntlet challenge, unwilling to spill more blood to settle his dispute with Karai. But driven to rage by the corrupting power of the Kira no Ken in her possession, Karai still declared war against the Foot Clan with her forces fighting as the Oroku Clan.

The Oroku Clan has accumulated vassals since Karai's original self-imposed exile in Tōkyō. In addition to her long-time sensei and friend Toshiro and her personal companions Bludgeon, Koya, Natsu and Ocho, Karai has also seized the loyalty of Tōkyō's yakuza underworld and the renewed the service of former subordinates Bebop and Rocksteady. Since the Foot-Oroku war was declared, Karai has also recently conquered the forces of Antonio Puzorelli to seize control of his New York City mafia assets.

The Oroku Clan's current arch-enemy is Splinter, the 21st century mutant rat reincarnation of historic Foot Clan figure Hamato Yoshi, whose relationship with Oroku Saki oscillated between dearest friendship and mortal enmity before Saki's eventual death. Karai has also gone after Splinter's friends and allies, most recently critically injuring Foot chūnin Jennika and in the process also clashing with Splinter's sons the Turtles along with Casey Jones, Angel Bridge and Alopex.

Advertisement