Nabooru


 * This article is about the character from Ocarina of Time. For the town in The Adventure of Link that goes by the same name, see Nabooru (Town).

Nabooru is a Gerudo introduced in. She is the second-in-command of the Gerudo, Ganondorf being her only superior. She has a second-in-command herself who is without name. Nabooru is highly respected by the other Gerudo, who are unaware of her rebellion against Ganondorf. During the events of Ocarina of Time, she becomes the new Sage of Spirit and aids Link in his battle against Ganon.

Ocarina of Time
Link meets Nabooru in the Spirit Temple as a child, having used a Warp song learned in the future to reach the Desert Colossus. At that time, Nabooru is already in opposition to Ganondorf's behavior. She intends to infiltrate Ganon's followers' headquarters there, but is unable to without the Silver Gauntlets, which are out of reach beyond a very small opening. She asks Link to get the gauntlets for her, promising to "do something great" for him in return. He succeeded in obtaining them but was not able to give them to Nabooru. Once Link acquires the Silver Gauntlets, Koume and Kotake discover and capture Nabooru.

When Link returns to the temple as an adult, Nabooru has been brainwashed. While brainwashed, Nabooru has been used to lead activities contrary to the values she previously held. During this intervening period Nabooru is apparently rumored to brainwash people herself.

Toward the end of the Spirit Temple, Link confronts Twinrova, apparently fussing over a strange Iron Knuckle. They command it to attack him and vanish. Upon its defeat, the Iron Knuckle's armor falls off to reveal Nabooru and the spell is lifted. Twinrova reappear and capture her a second time before retreating to the boss room ahead. Link's victory over Twinrova both frees Nabooru and causes her to awaken as the Sage of Spirit, giving Link the Spirit Medallion.

When Link defeats Ganon, Nabooru and the other Sages join their powers to seal away Ganon. During the ending, she can be seen overlooking a celebrating Hyrule on Death Mountain with the other Sages.

Manga
Her role in the is slightly different to in the game. She is under the influence of Koume and Kotake, but not transformed into an Iron Knuckle. She is sent to spy on Sheik which results in her combating Link. Link frees her from the influence which allows her to help release the other Gerudo. She also gives Link the Mirror Shield, which she claims she stole a while back.

The Wind Waker
While Nabooru does not appear in, one of the stained glass windows in Hyrule Castle's basement depicts her.

Nabooru's Promise
Just after Link promises to get her the Silver Gauntlets, she says that she'll "do something great" for Link. And when she awakens as a Sage seven years later, she remarks that if she had known that Link "would become such a handsome man", she would've kept her promise. There is a lot of speculation as to what Nabooru intended to reward Link with. Given that Nabooru pretty much states she is somewhat attracted to Link, theories range from a mere kiss to an arranged marriage. Others think that Nabooru might have intended to make Link her second-in-command. It is also possible that Nabooru, being a cunning and crafty thief, had no real reward in mind, possibly even believing that Link could never succeed in his assignment.

Trivia

 * Chronologically, Nabooru inspired a town in to be named after her (although technically, it was the town that inspired her name).
 * In, Linebeck's possession and transformation into a Phantom-like knight by Bellum can be compared to Nabooru's brainwashing as an Iron Knuckle by the Twinrova sisters.