Anko Mitarashi

is the examiner for the second exam of the Chunin Selection Exams.

Personality
Anko is easygoing, tomboyish and sometimes hyperactive, making her very similar to Naruto in many ways. Despite portraying several Naruto-like habits, she has shown to be very intelligent and studious. She regularly makes sure to have at least basic knowledge of the landscape for which her next mission will take place. According to the official databook Anko's favorite foods are sweet bean soup and dango (dumplings). Mitarashi and anko are ingredients of dango. Her least favorite type of food is spicy-tasting food. Her hobby is tea ceremonies and her favorite phrase is "Arriving!".

Chunin Exams
Anko announced this during Ibiki Morino's speech, after she made a rather loud entrance into his class, annoying him since she was early. During the 2nd exam, Izumo Kamizuki, Kotetsu Hagane, and Mozuku notify her of three dead Grass Ninja. Anko sees that all of their faces have been stolen and she reconizes the face-stealing technique and demands the Grass Ninja's IDs. After seeing the IDs, Anko realizes that the Grass ninja called Shiore was Orochimaru in disguise during the intro of the 2nd exam. Later, she arrives at a confrontation with Orochimaru, and it is revealed that he used to be her sensei. Anko, along with nine others, were branded with Orochimaru's first ten Cursed Seals of Heaven. Of the ten, Anko was the only one to survive, establishing the one-in-ten chance of surviving the Cursed Seal. Orochimaru supposedly rejected Anko as a subordinate, believing she did not have the lust for power or vengeance needed to fuel the Cursed Seal. Orochimaru lost interest in her, though he believes there is some value in letting her live. Orochimaru was able to reawaken her cursed seal during their battle in the Forest of Death, thus incapacitating her with pain and ending their fight. She later talked over her encounter with the Third Hokage, but he reassured her, telling her it wasn't her fault that Orochimaru got away. When the Sound and Sand villages invaded Konohagakure, she did not take the front lines, and instead assisted bystanders in getting away from harm.

Sea Country
In the anime, Anko's past is explored during the Sea Country filler arc, in which she leads Naruto, Ino, and Shino on a mission to protect a shipping convoy. The Sea Country is where Anko was found after Orochimaru had branded her with his cursed seal and subsequently abandoned her. Orochimaru had also erased any memory Anko had of the event, so this was a chance for her to remember. After the mission, Anko finds her way back to the place where she received the curse mark from Orochimaru and remembers what happened. She discovered that she wasn't tossed away like trash, but chose to leave Orochimaru herself.

Part II
In Part II, during Naruto's dream, Anko made a cameo appearance in the hot spring with a couple of kunoichi while Naruto interrupted their relaxation. During a conversation between Kakashi Hatake and Jiraiya about the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, Anko can be seen walking past both of them, licking a brown-colored sweet. Also in the anime, she appears at Asuma's funeral along with Ebisu and several other characters not present at the funeral in the manga.

Abilities
As a child, Anko talent for ninja arts were presumably high, as shown from Orochimaru's initial interest in her. Anko knows several forbidden techniques taught to her by Orochimaru, the most notable of which is Twin Snakes Mutual Death, a murder-suicide technique she attempted to use to eliminate her former sensei in the Forest of Death for the sake of Konoha. She can also summon snakes like he can, though she only does so once during the Sea Country filler arc. She has also demonstrated to be a viscious battler, being able to take down several genetically altered beasts with only being mildly exhausted.

Trivia

 * Anko is Kishimoto's favorite female character due to her 'relationship with Orochimaru'.
 * Anko picked up a few behavioral habits from Orochimaru such as using her tongue to lick her kunai or lips before fighting.
 * Anko is quite popular for a side character, and even came in 11th place, right behind Hinata, in the first official character poll.

Appearances in Other Media
Anko has so far made 6 playable appearances in Naruto video games; 5 in Japan (Naruto Ultimate Ninja 3, Narutimate Hero Accel, Narutimate Hero Accel 2, Naruto Gekitou Ninja Taisen 3, and Naruto Gekitou Ninja Taisen 4), and 2 in the English-speaking markets (Naruto Ultimate Ninja 3 and Naruto Clash of Ninja Revolution 2). In the upcoming Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm, she is slated to appear as a support character available for download in early 2009. She also often makes non-playable appearances as a background character, a guide when navigating the main menu and various game modes, or a shopkeeper for purchasing unlockable items.