Kick-Ass Female Characters in Manga: Shijima Kurookano
We don’t meet Shijima until many chapters into Nabari No Ou, but once you ascertain certain key things about her, you realize she has in fact been lurking about the story in a different form since early on. I won’t spoil it for you, but consider her weapon of choice: claws.
What else?
-she surprises people with how much she knows about them
-calmly observes people and draws conclusions about them, so she’s easy for an artist-observer type like me to relate to
-ruthless in a fight scene, and one of the few to hold her own and even dominate against some of the most dangerous ninja guys in the story
-earns the trust of a leader-type in the story and is given a certain thing that everyone else would die to get their hands on
Never underestimate someone just because they look like a wee little girl. Shijima rocks!