Yao

Yao is a character from Kingdom Hearts II. He is one of three aspiring warriors who joined the Imperial army of The Land of Dragons, alongside Chien Po and Ling. He is the shortest, both in stature and temper, among the three.

Kingdom Hearts II
Yao first appears shortly after Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Mulan (disguised as Ping) join the army. While waiting in the line for food, Yao cuts Sora which creates a fight. Yao is later seen at the Summit carrying a rocket with intentions of killing Shan-Yu. During Shan-Yu's invasion at the Palace Yao helps Li Shang and other soldiers protect the emperor. After Shan-Yu's defeat, Yao can be found outside at the entrance of the Village.

After Sora, Donald, and Goofy has returned to their home worlds, Yao is shown spying on Mulan and Li Shang along with Ling and Chien Po, but the three are discovered when they fall down, alerting the couple.

Appearance
Yao is a short, broad-shouldered, muscular man with a prominently left eye. He has thick, rectangular, black eyebrows and thick, black sideburns not unlike Xaldin's, as they hook around his cheeks and form a thin mustache on his upper lip. His chin is quite large and his nose is flat. Yao dresses in colored mostly in shades of grey and red. His helmet has a red tassel on its top and he carries a with a gold guard and pommel and a black hand grip.

Personality
Yao is very arrogant, aggressive, and short-tempered. He is often found yelling, and degrading others. Out of the trio, Yao is the unofficial leader. He is also the most aggressive out of the trio, being shown starting fights often. Despite his aggressive nature, Yao is kind to those he respects.

Origin
Yao originates from the Disney film "Mulan" and its sequel, Mulan II. At the start of the first film, Yao is, along with his friends Ling and Chien Po, a recruit in Li Shang's troops at training camp to prepare China from the upcoming war against the Huns and its leader, Shan-Yu. There, the trio meet Mulan (disguised as a man under the alias Ping). Mushu (Mulan's dragon guardian) gives her advice on how to act like a man, which proven initially helpful until Mushu insults Yao. Under the impression Mulan was the one that insulted him, he begins a fight between her, which escalates into a full-out brawl. As a result, the recruits are given a harsh punishment, causing Yao and his friends to take a dislike to Mulan and continually harass her. However, Mulan quickly earns the trio's respect once she completed a challenge Shang set up for the troops. On the night Yao and the others went to take a bath with Mulan (who was uncomfortable due to having to hide her gender), they reconcile with her and genially reintroduced themselves. Soon after, Yao and the other recruits completed their training, and are called to the war front (due to Mushu's meddling).

After a long march to a mountain summit, the troops were ambushed by the Huns and when Mulan runs with the last cannon in an attempt to destroy them, the trio follow. However, they swiftly hide behind a rock when a large avalanche begins to come down. Yao attempts to rescue Mulan and Shang with an arrow attached to a rope from falling off a cliff when they are swept away from by the avalanche, but the rope slips through his fingers. Fortunately, Mulan was able to catch it and shoot it back into his hands, allowing Yao and the troops to pull the pair to safety. When Mulan's identity as a female was exposed, the trio display visible shock and was sadly force to leave her behind on the summit to return to the Imperial City. When the Emperor was kidnapped by Shan-Yu, Shang and the trio choose to follow Mulan's plan to rescue him. By dressing up as concubines, they were able to sneak into the palace and knock out the guards. Once the Emperor was out of harm's way, Yao and the others leave, and are forced to look on as Mulan becomes trapped with Shan-Yu. After Shan-Yu's defeat, Yao and the others come to Mulan's defense from Chi-Fu's rantings. When Mulan was named a hero by the Emperor, Yao and everyone else present bow to Mulan in respect.

Yao's name means "one" (the number) in Mandarin Chinese, while Ling's name coincidentally means "zero".