- Name
- K9999
- Real name
- Gender
- Male
- Birthday
- Died
- Franchise
- The King of Fighters (Franchise)
- Aliases
- Khronen
K9999
The 9999th and "perfect" clone of Kyo Kusanagi in the King of Fighters series, K9999 (pronounced "kay-four-nine") was the NESTS cartel's last attempt at maintaining their control. Due to his controversial similarities with a well-known anime antagonist, he was often removed from official media before his resurgence two decades later.
Character Images Related Pages
Overview
K9999, pronounced Kay-Four-Nine, was an unstable agent of the NESTS cartel during the NESTS arc in the King of Fighters series, where he served as a minor antagonist in The King of Fighters 2001 (Game). He is notable for being constantly removed from official SNK (Company) resources, likely due to his very close resemblance to the main antagonist of the anime adaptation of Akira (Franchise), Tetsuo Shima (Character) (to the point where they share the same voice actor). This removal is played on for his return in The King of Fighters XV (Game) (under the pseudonym Khronen).
Like his rival, K', he was part of the Kusanagi Cloning Project and is the 9999th and "perfected" clone of martial artist Kyo Kusanagi (Character). During the conclusive chapter of the series's NESTS arc, K9999 was dispatched along with fellow agents Ángel and Kula Diamond (Character), along with Kula's guardian Foxy (Character), to depose of K'. Failing on that mission, both he and Ángel ended up betraying both Kula and Foxy (as they are potential traitors) and disappeared. Learning of his past as a clone, K9999 kept to the shadows to keep himself hidden from what's left of the NESTS cartel, later adopting a new matured appearance and pseudonym as "Kronen McDougall". During the the "New Age" arc, he partners with Ángel and temporarily "kidnaps" Kula to form Team Khronen in the King of Fighters tournament, as he wanted to settle the score with K'.
Powers
Like K', K9999 has pyrokinetic powers gained from the DNA of Kyo Kusanagi, and must wear a special glove to suppress his powers. However, he can mechanically transform his arm to see fit (whether it be a blade, drill, gun, or other weapon). In his original appearance, he can also project psychic barriers and remove his glove to unleash a mutated appendage (although these are likely retconned in his later appearance).
Controversy
Although several characters in the King of Fighters series are often seen as a tongue-in-cheek reference to characters from other anime and manga, K9999 has several direct references to Akira (Franchise) antagonist Tetsuo Shima (Character), including his overall resemblance and personality, several of his attacks and animations, and the names of his special attacks being quotes from the manga. He is even voiced by Nozomu Sasaki (Person), who voiced Tetsuo in the anime adaptation of Akira, a fact that is played on in The King of Fighters 2002 (as he has unique dialogue against Kusanagi, who is voiced by the VA who originally voiced Akira protagonist Kaneda Shotaro (Character)).
He is often edited out of official resources on the series and is only talked about officially in hushed tones, with the perceived myth being that it is due to avoiding legal action with the Akira creator and/or the anime's distributor. In the updated 2009 remake of The King of Fighters 2002, he was replaced with a new character, known as Nameless (Character), who shares some of his backstory and several of his attacks and fighting style but none of his resemblances to Tetsuo.
Nearly 20 years after The King of Fighters 2002, SNK brought K9999 back in The King of Fighters XV under the pseudonym Khronen, removing several references to Tetsuo along the way (including his mannerism and certain abilities). It is sometimes implied that his redactions throughout the years were intentionally building up to his redesign, although it is still uncertain whether it is truly that or if its due to possible legal issues.