Kurena Kukumila

Kurena Kukumila (クレナ・ククミラ,) is a primary supporting character in the 86 -Eighty Six- series.

Her Personal Name is Gunslinger (ガンスリンガー,).

She is a platoon leader of Eighty-Sixth Strike Package's Spearhead Squadron. She serves as the squadron's long-range specialist.

Appearance
Kurena has the chestnut hair of an Agate and the golden-catlike eyes of a Topaz. Her hair is cut into a short bob. As a member of the Spearhead Squadron, she wore a desert camouflage combat uniform over an olive drab tank top. She is described as the most well-endowed of the squadron.

After being rescued by the Federacy, she buys high-heeled boots, a hat, and a dress with a fur-trimmed cape. Once she returns to combat, she dons the steel-colored panzer jacket uniform of the Federacy.

While most female processor prefer long trousers, Kurena chooses to wear a skirt for her Federacy uniform.

Personality
She harbors an intense hatred for Alba because of the murder of her parents at the hands of Republican Alba soldiers. She was present alongside her sister when the soldiers shot her mother and father for entertainment. Shortly afterward, her sister was then conscripted as a Processor and never returned. Kurena's contempt causes her to speak harshly towards Lena, who Kurena thinks is pretentious and self-righteous. She tries to avoid Lena as much as possible.

Being exposed to overwhelming violence at the very young age without means of defending herself, had badly traumatized Kurena. When she encountered the Reverend, his large and burly physique reminded her of traumatic experience, causing Kurena to run away like a frightened rabbit.

During Spearhead's respite in the Federacy's capital, she demonstrated an interest in fashion and shopping. Despite that, her room remained spartan like the rest of the Spearhead survivors.

Background
As the youngest of the known Spearhead Squadron members, Kurena was born on May 6th RY 352 / SY 2133. She and her family lived in the Republic city of Charité before the war began.

After the announcement of Executive Order 6609 in RY 358, Kurena and her family were sent to a concentration camp. As the Eighty-Six were waiting to enter the camps, the soldiers on guard detail, mostly conscripted criminals and thugs due to the shortage of manpower, decide to have some target practice. The soldiers randomly selected Kurena's parents from the crowd and shot them repeatedly for amusement. Kurena and her older sister were forced to watch as their parents were cruelly murdered. Kurena's memories of that night developed into hatred of any Albas and was further reinforced by the conscription of her sister, her last remaining family member, dying during her service.

In 363 RY, Kurena was conscripted at the age of 11 and sent to the battlefront. She would join Shin's squadron two years later. While serving under Shin, she repeatedly saw Shin's mercy killings of mortally wounded squadron members. She was fascinated by his kindness, for his willingness to be taking on the responsibility of letting others have a quick death and for his tradition of carrying the names of the fallen in their memory. Kurena wished to be able to have the same strength and fortitude as Shin so as to be able to give the same kindness to him as he did others. This motivated her to hone her shooting to an exceptional level. However, she eventually realized that she could not match Shin's unique abilities and that she would likely die long before him. Thus, she gave up trying.

Combat Skill
Kurena's aim is exceptional among the Eighty-Six and her personal name reflects the recognition of her skill. While the Republic's Juggernauts were all standardized models, her Reginleif unit is specialized for sniping to account for her fighting style. It is equipped with a longer-barreled 88mm cannon designed to optimize ballistic stability, and its firearm-control and posture-control systems are also customized accordingly.

Trivia

 * Her rank in the novels (Ensign) would indicate that she is a platoon member. In the anime however, she has been made into the leader of Platoon 6, promoting her to Second Lieutenant
 * Her associated flower in the Blu-Ray & DVD Bonus Box Art is the Thistle.
 * In her opinion, Shin's blood red eyes was the most beautiful color in the world.