Xehanort

Xehanort is the main antagonist of the eponymous "Xehanort Saga".

A Keyblade Master who once taught Ventus, Master Xehanort believes that darkness and light should be balanced throughout the universe, and so seeks to conquer Kingdom Hearts and rewrite the universe according to his wishes. He is responsible for almost every tragedy and force of darkness that operates throughout the series, having broken Ventus to create Vanitas and taken Terra as his vessel, Terra-Xehanort, then splitting into a Heartless, Ansem, and a Nobody, Xemnas, who led successive assaults on the Realm of Light. Despite each separate plan working as a ploy for Kingdom Hearts, even in failure they serve the goal of creating the True Organization XIII, made up of thirteen different incarnations of himself. As a boy, Young Xehanort acquired the ability to travel through time from his future self's Heartless, and used it to manipulate events so that the True Organization XIII would be completed.

Like the members of the original Organization XIII, Xehanort's name contains the letter "X", along with the anagrams "Another" and "No Heart".

Before Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep
Xehanort lives his early years on the Destiny Islands, desiring to travel to other worlds. Xehanort is paid a visit by his future Heartless, Ansem, who grants him the power to traverse time and tasks him with gathering twelve other incarnations of himself from across time.

After failing to induct Sora in the future, Young Xehanort returns to his original time and relinquishes his memories of the future. He eventually found another way to depart his home world and came across a Keyblade Master. He began training with this Master and his fellow pupil, Eraqus, in the Land of Departure. Xehanort eventually came to see Eraqus as a brother, though they disagreed on the role of Darkness and Light in the world. The Master taught the two the ways of the Keyblade and that their role as Keyblade wielders was to protect the worlds of light from darkness. However, this answer was unsatisfactory to Xehanort, and he often visited other worlds without permission from the Master to learn more. During his travels, Xehanort wore Keyblade Armor to protect himself from the darkness between worlds, but eventually he discarded it and sought to control the darkness, believing that if he succeeded, he would not need his armor for protection. Eventually, both Eraqus and Xehanort became Keyblade Masters, and Eraqus was chosen as the Master's successor to take over the Land of Departure. Xehanort was free to take on apprentices of his own to train, and travel the worlds as he wished.

As he journeyed, Xehanort obtained vast knowledge concerning Keyblade lore, the Heartless, and the mysteries of the Keyblade War and Kingdom Hearts. Xehanort came to believe that darkness and light should be held in balance, but the "tyranny" of light had destroyed much of the darkness and shifted that balance. Thus, Xehanort's goal became to be the first to open the door to Kingdom Hearts and tear down the barriers between worlds. This would begin another Keyblade War, blanketing the worlds in darkness, at which point Xehanort would use the power of Kingdom Hearts to remake the worlds in perfect balance of light and darkness. However, by this time Xehanort had grown very old, and he devised a plan to use his Keyblade to extract his own heart and transfer it to a younger body to prolong his life until his ambitions were filled. Xehanort discussed his plans with Eraqus, telling his old friend that he sought to create the χ-blade, a legendary Keyblade capable of unlocking Kingdom Hearts. Though Eraqus warned it could lead to another Keyblade War, Xehanort was undeterred. Eraqus attacked Xehanort, but Xehanort used the powers of darkness he had learned and struck him down, scarring his face before leaving.

Eventually, Xehanort would find Ventus and proceeded to condition him into fully embracing darkness. Though Ven's good-hearted nature made him of no use as a vessel, Xehanort instead extracted Ven's darkness to create Vanitas. However, Ven's heart was heavily damaged in the process and Xehanort decides to leave the boy to die on the Destiny Islands. But when Ven's heart healed upon it coming in contact with the newborn Sora's heart, Xehanort reconsidered and instead planned to use both him and Vanitas to create the χ-blade by combining their opposing hearts. However, seeing how Ven is currently weak from the separation and Vanitas's darkness could overwhelm the boy's light, Xehanort resolves to leave Ven with Eraqus, counting on his friend's zealous beliefs to enable the boy to become Vanitas's equal. Leaving Ven at the Land of Departure, Xehanort was surprised to be welcomed by Eraqus in spite of their last parting while meeting his friend's two apprentices, Aqua and Terra. Sensing a lust for power and a lingering darkness in Terra's heart, Xehanort saw a new potential vessel in him and formulates a scheme to ensure he succeeds in taking Terra's body for his own.

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep


With his bond with Eraqus repaired, Xehanort is called upon years later by Eraqus to witness Terra and Aqua's Mark of Mastery Exam. Xehanort uses this chance to see Terra's darkness as he spars with Aqua. Because of this darkness, Eraqus does not make Terra a Master. Afterwards, Xehanort speaks to Terra alone, telling him that Eraqus will never see him as a Master, and that he should learn to channel his darkness instead of repress it. Shortly after, Eraqus calls Terra and Aqua to speak to them about a new threat, the Unversed. Creatures of negativity, Eraqus worries they could endanger the Princesses of Heart. Eraqus sends the two to combat the Unversed. Meanwhile, though he was not ordered to assist the two, Ventus also leaves, spurred by the words of Vanitas, who warned Terra would be changed when they next met. Unknown to them, the Unversed were extensions of Vanitas born when he was created that were spread through the worlds to lure Terra and Ven away from Eraqus and each other.

During his travels, Master Xehanort speaks to the evil fairy Maleficent, and he tells her about the Princesses of Heart and Kingdom Hearts in exchange for her awakening Terra's darkness further. He later calls Terra to the Keyblade Graveyard and tells him an altered version of Vanitas's origins, that Ven was overtaken by his darkness and Xehanort extracted Vanitas to try and save him, but Vanitas left him and began spreading the Unversed. Xehanort asks for Terra's "assistance" in fighting his so-called rebellious apprentice and directs him to the Radiant Garden, the city of light, claiming Vanitas will be drawn to it. At the Radiant Garden, Xehanort strikes a deal with Braig, who wishes to wield a Keyblade of his own. Xehanort and Braig stage a kidnapping, and Braig battles Terra. Terra eventually scars Braig's face with dark energy, forcing him to flee, and Xehanort congratulates Terra on his victory. Though Terra is ashamed, Xehanort consoles him that because he is able to use darkness and sees that it is not evil, Terra shows the sign of the true Mark of Mastery that Eraqus refuses to accept. Telling Terra he can be his pupil now, Xehanort refers to him as "Master Terra" and encourages him to continue his journey to stop Vanitas using the darkness in his heart to his advantage.

Later, Master Xehanort has Vanitas abduct Mickey Mouse as bait to lure Ventus to the Keyblade Graveyard, where he reveals to Ventus the truth about his past and his plans to create the χ-blade, also stating that Master Eraqus knows about it. Sending Ven to see Eraqus, Xehanort then calls Terra to him, telling him that Ven went to see Eraqus on his own, and he fears for the safety of them both due to the "fury" in Ven's eyes as he left. Terra returns to Eraqus to find him preparing to destroy Ven to keep Xehanort from obtaining the χ-blade, and he intervenes and strikes down his master. Xehanort appears to deliver the final blow, and Eraqus dissolves into light in Terra's arms. Revealing his deceptions to Terra, Xehanort calls on him to return to the Keyblade Graveyard and learn the truth. He then covers the Land of Departure in darkness, completely destroying the world and leaving nothing but the castle's remains before departing.

When Terra, Aqua and Ventus travel to the Land of Departure again, they meet the time-displaced Young Xehanort, who hides his identity by keeping his hood up. After defeating him, he leaves through time.

Terra later arrives at the Keyblade Graveyard with Aqua and Ven, where Xehanort and Vanitas confront them. Eventually, Terra engages Xehanort in a one-on-one duel while Vanitas battles Aqua and Ven, the elder Keyblade wielder goading him with his deceptions and the looming destruction of his friends. Terra submits to his darkness as he loses control of his rage and is able to defeat Xehanort. At this time, Xehanort enacts his final scheme and stabs himself with his Keyblade, releasing his heart. With Terra temporarily caught off-guard due to witnessing the creation of the χ-blade, Xehanort transfers his heart and soul into Terra's body, possessing him and creating Terra-Xehanort, while his original body fades into darkness with a triumphant smile.

Despite the possession, Master Xehanort still lacks full control of Terra's body, and Terra's heart fights unceasingly against Master Xehanort's control. During Terra-Xehanort's battle with Aqua in the Radiant Garden, Terra momentarily regains control of his body. In response, Master Xehanort stabs their body with his Keyblade in a desperate attempt to rid himself of Terra's heart, but the technique fails, instead sealing away both their hearts and memories, leaving "Xehanort" with amnesia.

Blank Points


Within Terra's body, as Xehanort is at a stalemate with its original occupant while insisting that he will soon incorporate Terra's heart into his own, Terra remains confident that he will win over and eventually expel Xehanort. Realizing that Terra is harboring the heart of Master Eraqus, which may allow him to resist his darkness for longer than he expected, Xehanort shows no concern and points out that he has many other plans in the works should he lose control over Terra's body.

Between Blank Points and Kingdom Hearts
Master Xehanort also devised a series of back up plans should Ventus and Vanitas's reunion fail to create the χ-blade, which were entrusted to Braig. Following Xehanort's self-inflicted amnesia, Braig took his former co-conspirator under his wing to help him regain his memories while they used their role as Ansem's apprentices to put their plans in motion. When Xehanort finally regained his memories, he attacked his fellow apprentices with his newly returned Keyblade, removing their hearts and transforming them into Heartless and Nobodies. Xehanort then removed his own heart, which took form as a Heartless, Ansem, while his body and soul became the Nobody Xemnas. Each carried out part of Xehanort's plan; Ansem assisted Maleficent in gathering seven hearts of pure light, before usurping Riku's body to reach a Kingdom Hearts created from worlds ravaged by the Heartless, while Xemnas and Xigbar gathered eleven more vessels to bear pieces of Xehanort's heart, while creating a Kingdom Hearts from the hearts of slain Emblem Heartless.

Kingdom Hearts coded


After Mickey returns to the Mysterious Tower with the news that they have located Ventus's heart, Yen Sid explains that the revival of Xehanort following the destruction of Ansem and Xemnas will inevitably lead to the reconstruction of Master Xehanort. Yen Sid asserts to Mickey that Master Xehanort has indeed left many roads to victory open, and as he instructs Mickey to summon Sora and Riku to the tower for a Mark of Mastery test, he cryptically implies that there may be more than one of Xehanort to contend with.

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance
Young Xehanort continues to travel through time, eventually reappearing in the Sleeping Worlds during Sora and Riku's Mark of Mastery exam. He appears before them in several worlds, confronting each youth with a respective version of Master Xehanort they defeated in the past: Ansem for Riku and Xemnas for Sora. Through his encounters with Riku, Xehanort attempted to have him open his heart to darkness before realizing the youth devised a means to resist his inner darkness. This forces Xehanort to refocus his attentions on Sora, and he works to place the boy into doubt as to whether he is truly acting of his own free will. Eventually, he traps Sora inside an illusion at The World That Never Was, then reveals his true identity and purpose in order to fill Sora's heart with despair. As Sora falls into the darkness, Young Xehanort reveals that he and the rest of the True Organization XIII intend to make Sora their final vessel for Xehanort. He takes Sora's comatose body to the Castle, where he is found by Riku.

In the midst of Master Xehanort's revival, Mickey manages to freeze Young Xehanort with a Stopza spell, but Master Xehanort's consciousness simply possesses his younger self's body and engages Riku in battle. Although the proxy is defeated, Master Xehanort succeeds in holding off Riku long enough for his own body to finish reviving atop the lead throne, while Young Xehanort takes his seat on another. From his throne, Master Xehanort displays Sora's comatose body to Riku and Mickey, demonstrating that the boy's heart had faltered earlier while fighting Xemnas.

Master Xehanort admits his past endeavors and his failed attempt to create the χ-blade to Riku and Mickey, but also reveals that he has another way to create the χ-blade and restart the Keyblade War. Since the χ-blade was divided at the conclusion of the Keyblade War into thirteen darknesses and seven lights, he had orchestrated the events of previous conflicts: Maleficent capturing the seven Princesses of Heart and the creation of Organization XIII as the Vessels of Darkness, each meant to harbor a piece of his own heart. Due to Sora and Riku's interference and the unforeseen independence or weakness of a number of Organization members, the two-part plan had not yet succeeded.

However, with Young Xehanort's ability to manipulate time, Master Xehanort has created a new Organization XIII made up of himself, his other incarnations, and vessels that harbor pieces of his heart, which he intends to pit against the "Seven Lights". Master Xehanort reveals that Riku was originally meant to be the final vessel, but the youth's ability to resist darkness forced him to try for Sora instead. However, the arrival of Lea, Donald, and Goofy forces Xehanort to retreat with his incomplete Organization, who each return to their respective points in time, and he challenges his opponents to clash with him when the time comes. Though Yen Sid and Mickey resolve to gather seven Keyblade-wielding defenders of light, they fear that Master Xehanort may use that to his advantage.

A fragmentary passage
Master Xehanort, Young Xehanort, Ansem, Xemnas, and Sora appear as images on the beach on Destiny Islands.

Appearance
As an old man, Master Xehanort is bald except for thin eyebrows and a curled, silver goatee. His ears are pointed and his eyes are yellow. He has broad, hunched shoulders and a crooked back. He appears overall as a somewhat feeble old man, certainly deceiving given his immense power.

Master Xehanort's clothing is the same as that worn by his eventual Heartless, Ansem. It is composed of a white and black coat with a red inner lining, which is worn over a white shirt with two thin black belts, as well as white gloves and calf-high black boots. The major difference between the two outfits is that Ansem wears the shirt unbuttoned, exposing the Heartless emblem on his chest. However, there are a few minor changes as well; Ansem's coat has gold lining on its edges, where Xehanort's has black lining. Master Xehanort sometimes wears a Black Coat over this outfit.

In his youth, Xehanort had mildly tanned skin, golden eyes, and silver hair which both slightly spikes and falls past his shoulders in the back; it is styled similar to Terra-Xehanort's, albeit with four bangs framing his face, the back two thicker than the front two, and the two backwards spikes on the sides are absent, the topmost one slicked back. He wore the same style of white shirt, which only reaches to his thighs, a black vest with a high collar, long armbands which cover his forearms, and dark grey pants stuffed into his boots, similar to those worn by Organization XIII but without the silver lining on top, much like those worn by the guards of Radiant Garden. While traveling through time as Young Xehanort, he wears the Black Coat he will later pass on to the Organization XIII. When he first appears in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, he wears the hood up, similar to Xemnas in Kingdom Hearts Final Mix.

Interestingly, in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, Young Xehanort's body model is a copy of Saïx's, though it is likely that this is simply due to data recycling rather than any deeper significance.

Personality
Much like Ansem and Xemnas, Master Xehanort is shown to be a cunning, callous, and pragmatic being with the sole goal of merging with Kingdom Hearts and obtain ultimate knowledge, the lives of innocent people and even his closest friends meaning absolutely nothing to him. To this end, he is willing to put whatever he pleases on the line or destroy anything in his way, demonstrated when he manipulated several characters such as Terra, Aqua, Ventus, Braig, and even Maleficent, created Vanitas, a sentient being born for the sole purpose of forwarding his evil plan, and slew his old friend Master Eraqus in cold blood after tricking Terra into defeating him in battle. He even shrugged off ruining Terra, Ventus, and Aqua's lives by telling Mickey and Riku that it was simply their destiny to have fallen, and went as far as to refer to Sora as a "dull, ordinary boy", despite Sora having foiled several of Master Xehanort's plans. In the case of the latter, Xehanort tends to have a series of back-up plans to occur whenever his previous scheme fails. Yen Sid mentions this to Mickey while discussing Xehanort, and describes him as a brilliant strategist.

Despite his overweening malice, Xehanort has been shown to have some slight sympathy for his victims, such as when he takes pity on Ventus, following the rupture of his heart, and decides to leave him to perish peacefully on the Destiny Islands. All of Master Xehanort's other positive points are revealed to have sinister intentions behind them, demonstrated when he only took Ventus as an apprentice and cared for him solely with the intention of making the boy his vessel once he was strong enough, and when he only accepted Master Eraqus's invitation to witness the Mark of Mastery Exam to win back Eraqus's trust following their falling-out and sabotage the exam to put Terra on the path to darkness so as to make him his new vessel after deciding to instead use Ventus for the χ-blade.

Overall, Master Xehanort is the true catalyst of all the events in the series so far, effectively making him the true villain of the Xehanort Saga, having been responsible (either directly or indirectly) for converting Terra in the first of his many vessels, Young Xehanort's quest through time, the Disney villains' hunt for Kingdom Hearts, the creation of Vanitas, the Unversed, and the original Organization XIII, and the release of the Emblem Heartless and Nobodies. Though most of his personality traits are passed on to his later incarnations Terra-Xehanort, Ansem, and Xemnas, Terra's characteristics seem to have diluted them. Xehanort has a few unusual tendencies and quirks, however, such as turning away from the people he speaks to, or over-dramatizing his hand gestures when delivering a speech, even flexing his fingers in an unusual manner, as if itching to grab something.

Abilities
Master Xehanort is an extremely skilled Keyblade Master and magic user. Able to teleport if he is in danger, Master Xehanort strikes opponents with powerful, fast-paced combos. He also can bombard foes with Thunder, Blizzard, and Earth-based magic. His magic skills are some of the most advanced seen in the series so far, as he is able to create massive rock formations and pillars, encase Ventus's body in ice, project a gust of wind powerful enough to send Ventus and Mickey flying from his hand, block Braig's Arrowgun shots without raising his arms, and telekinetically control the Keyblades covering the Keyblade Graveyard to attack Terra and Aqua. He also possesses physical strength sufficient to grab a fully-armored Ventus by the back of the head and lift him into the air with one hand.

Master Xehanort shows a great deal of skill in utilizing the heart and its capabilities, able to create a living being, Vanitas, out of the darkness of Ventus's heart when he unlocks it, and even able to direct his heart into Terra's body to possess it after his defeat in the Keyblade Graveyard. Master Xehanort's greatest asset, however, is his intellect and capacity for manipulation. For over a decade, he has, directly or indirectly, influenced many of the hardships and suffering the worlds have gone through, and always has backup plans ready in the event his initial schemes fail.

Once he becomes the gestalt known as Terra-Xehanort through the possession of Terra's body, Master Xehanort proves to be the stronger of the two hearts residing within him, and is able to direct most of the behavior of their body.

Young Xehanort has the ability to control time with enough precision to manipulate the flow of battle, either by slowing the opponent while unleashing a multitude of swift, powerful strikes, or reversing the flow of time to recover from damage. He is also an extremely skilled magic user, and is able to cast powerful spells based on the elements of Fire and Blizzard, fire magical shots similar to those fired by Sora in Wisdom Form, or teleport himself around the battlefield.

Weapon
Master Xehanort is able to wield his Keyblade with great skill despite his age, and enough of his strength has remained over the years that he is able to use it in fast-paced physical combos. His battle pose is similar to that of both Vanitas and Riku, but he mainly allows the Keyblade to hang loosely at his side as he walks slowly towards opponents. Master Xehanort also uses his Keyblade to unlock countless hearts, including his own.

When Master Xehanort possesses Terra's body to become Terra-Xehanort, he abandons Terra's Keyblade and replaces it with his own. Terra-Xehanort wields the weapon with great skill, combining several of Terra and Master Xehanort's abilities to form his own deadly combos. As this Keyblade was gained by Terra-Xehanort through Master Xehanort's heart's more powerful influence, it is also used through Master Xehanort's influence to unlock Terra-Xehanort's heart.

Young Xehanort wields two weapons that bear a striking resemblance to Xemnas's Ethereal Blades. Unlike many of Xemnas's weapons, however, Xehanort's appear to have hilts. The blades are made of light blue energy, and the black handles are somewhat reminiscent of the Terminus and Ruination Ethereal Blades. The blades can be combined into a dual-blade or can extend to be lashed like a whip. Xehanort wields these weapons with a reverse grip. In his final battle with Riku at Where Nothing Gathers, while animated by his older self's consciousness, Xehanort wields Master Xehanort's Keyblade with a Keychain that incorporates elements of the No Name and Master Xehanort's Keyblade.