Street Fighter’s Hadoken is one of the most iconic techniques in all of gaming. Both Ryu and Ken, the first Shotos of Capcom’s Street Fighter series, are able to perform the special attack though Ryu is generally supposed to have the more refined technique.
The Japanese word for Hadoken actually translates to “surge fist” or “wave motion fist.” However, it turns out that one might not even need a “fist” or even a hand to perform the iconic fireball of the Street Fighter franchise.
As showcased by the Nature is Amazing Twitter account, a fish can actually perform the legendary Hadoken in real life. All it requires is that they try to eat a ostracod.
An ostracod, a type of crustacean, will instinctively release bioluminescent chemicals as a defense against predators. The “Hadoken” that can be observed in the clip is actually the ostracod itself being spit out by the fish that tried to eat it.
It turns out that these bioluminescent chemicals don’t actually cause the fish direct harm. Being that the fish is the prey of even bigger fish, one can imagine why it would prefer to remain hidden in the darkest parts of the ocean.
Upon entering a fish’s mouth, the ostracod will begin glowing from inside the fish. This results in the fish instinctively spitting out the ostracod, in the appearance of a blue fireball, so that it can remain safe from any nearby predators.
Hadouken fish’s bioluminescent defense pic.twitter.com/wZSWixshJf
— Nature is Amazing (@AMAZlNGNATURE) March 26, 2024
You can learn more about ostracod with this video hosted by BBC.