Mariko Yashida
Mariko Yashida was the daughter of Japanese crime lord Lord Shingen, leader of Clan Yashida. She and Wolverine first met when the X-Men sought the help of her cousin, Sunfire. Although she was first scared of Wolverine, Mariko found herself attracted to him. Wolverine was charmed by her beauty and refined manner. The two spent a great deal of time together in Japan, and fell in love when she came to visit him in New York.
Mariko became a force in the Japanese criminal underworld; however, her authority was challenged by the leader of the Hand, Matsu'o Tsurayaba. Mariko's own half-brother, the Silver Samurai, also challenged her authority. Wolverine and his allies fought the Hand on her behalf, but when Mariko sought to make peace with the Hand, she was poisoned by Tsurayaba. Wishing to avoid prolonged suffering, she asked Wolverine to grant her a quick death, which he reluctantly did.
Years after her death, Gorgon resurrected Mariko and made her one of his enforcer, she was now known as the Scarlet Samurai. Gorgon then planned to kill the current leader of the Clan Yashida, Shingen Harada II a.k.a The Silver Samurai in order to replace him with Mariko which would have resulted in an abrupt takeover of the Yashida Corp by the Hand.
Later on, Mariko moved to Vancouver where she was tracked by Old Man Logan, she explained to the old man that she was now trying to live a normal life and as much it pained her she needed to stay away from people like him. Old Man Logan understood and only asked her a favor, he wanted her to take care of a little girl named Maureen Bouchard. He explained to her that 50 years in the future, Maureen was his wife and he was still blaming himself for her death, so to make amends of his past actions and to make sure that Maureen lived a peaceful life away from people like him in this reality, he put some money aside for her but he also needed someone to keep an eye on her. Mariko accepted, she then told him he was a good man with a good heart before saying her final goodbye to him.
Earliest Appearances[edit]
| Title | Year/Month |
|---|---|
| X-Men Vol 1 118 | 1979, February |
| X-Men Vol 1 119 | 1979, March |
| X-Men Vol 1 120 | 1979, April |
| X-Men Vol 1 123 | 1979, July |
| Uncanny X-Men #143 | 1981, March |
| Wolverine #1 | 1982, September |
| Wolverine #2 | 1982, October |
| Wolverine #4 | 1982, December |