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Mint Leaf
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TheMint Leaf is an obscureKirby series item that first appeared inKirby's Dream Land. It letsKirby use hisAir Bullet attack in the air without falling afterwards, essentially allowing him to rapid-fire his enemies. The item's effect is a reference to real-life mint leaves giving better breath.
In the Japanese versions of the games, this item is not a leaf, but aSweet Potato,[1] in reference to real-life sweet potatoes often being the cause of hiccups; the reason for the name mismatch may be due to cultural differences, as the association between sweet potatoes and hiccups is not as strong outside of Japan. Regardless, the regional difference has been solidified inKirby: Triple Deluxe onwards by making the item distinctly different in appearance between versions.
Game appearances[edit]
Kirby's Dream Land[edit]
The Mint Leaf first appears inKirby's Dream Land, and can be found within theFloat Islands,Bubbly Clouds, andMt. Dedede stages. It is most notably used during the battle againstKaboola, where it does not run out until after the battle is over. When Kirby is under the effect of the Mint Leaf item, the "Shooting" theme plays, much like when he is using theSuperspicy Curry.
Kirby's Pinball Land[edit]
The Mint Leaf appears as one of the items which Kirby can eat in the bonus game forKracko Land. When a Mint Leaf is eaten, it confers 1000 points, and has no additional effects.
Kirby: Triple Deluxe,Kirby Fighters Deluxe, andKirby Fighters 2[edit]


| “ | This lets you attack with Air Bullets for a little while. | ” | — In-game tip fromKirby Fighters 2 |
InKirby: Triple Deluxe, the Mint Leaf appears as one of thekeychains, resembling its original sprite fromKirby's Dream Land.
In theKirby Fighters games, the Mint Leaf returns as an offensive item with a similar function, appearing at random during most battles. Notably, it now clearly resembles a sweet potato in the Japanese version and an actual mint leaf in international versions. After picking up this item, instead of puffing manually, the fighter shoots out Air Bullets automatically, pausing briefly after five puffs, with each bullet dealing 10 damage for the first hit and 5 thereafter. After firing 20 of these bullets (or enough time passes), the fighter puffs out one last giant Air Bullet which deals 24 damage. If the player holds the B button while under the effect of the Mint Leaf, the current direction they are facing will be locked, allowing them to move backwards while firing.
InStory Mode: The Destined Rivals, there is a story item called the Mint Leaf Sticker, which doubles the attack power of the Air Bullets the player's fighter fires after picking up a Mint Leaf.
Kirby's Dream Buffet[edit]
While the Mint Leaf does not appear directly inKirby's Dream Buffet, it is depicted on aCharacter Treat, using its sprite fromKirby's Dream Land.
InKirby: Right Back at Ya![edit]

InKirby: Right Back at Ya!, it appears in theDedede's Raw Deal episode in its original form as a baked sweet potato. However, its hiccuping powers come as a hindrance rather than a help to Kirby this time around. In the episode, Kirby eats it off of a sushi revolver. He is then attacked by an overgrownSquishy, and hisinhaling powers are prevented by the hiccups that result from eating the potato sushi. As such, he starts off on the losing side of the battle. However,Tiff scares his wits out by saying he'll starve if his hiccups don't cease, which makes Kirby (who is known for his gluttonous nature) jump in fear and release his hiccups.
Trivia[edit]
- Despite being based on a real-life food item, the Mint Leaf does not restore anyhealth when consumed. As such, it does not count asfood in theKirby series.
- However, like theInvincible Candy, it is technically considered food for the purposes ofFeed Me transferring.
- The Mint Leaf is only referred to as a sweet potato in the Japanese version of the series (and looks the part in Kirby Fighters); even the Korean and Chinese localizations, which normally are literal translations from the original Japanese version in many ways, refer to it as a Mint Leaf and have the item look like such in Kirby Fighters.
Gallery[edit]
- Kirby approaching a Mint Leaf inKirby's Dream Land
- Keychain fromKirby: Triple Deluxe
- Model of the Mint Leaf fromKirby Fighters
- Model of the Sweet Potato from the Japanese version of Kirby Fighters
- Screenshot of the Mint Leaf from Kirby Fighters
- The Mint Leaf Sticker fromKirby Fighters 2
- The Sweet Potato Sticker from the Japanese version ofKirby Fighters 2
- Screenshot of the Mint Leaf fromKirby Fighters 2
- In-game screenshot of Magolor firing the last Mint Leaf Air Bullet at an opponent inKirby Fighters 2
- Artwork from theKirby JP Twitter featuring Kirby and friends eating roasted sweet potatoes
- A basket of sweet potatoes in the bookFind Kirby!! Full of Kirby
- A basket of sweet potatoes in the bookFind Kirby!! Full of Kirby
- A basket of sweet potatoes in the bookFind Kirby!! Full of Kirby
- A basket of sweet potatoes in the bookFind Kirby!! Full of Kirby
- A Sweet Potato that the reader must find inFind Kirby!! Big Gathering at the Party!
- Kirby #26 from the Kirby 30th Anniversary site
- Plush of Kirby holding a Sweet Potato by San-ei, created for Kirby's 30th Anniversary
- Fifth set of mascot plushies of various Kirbys, created for Kirby's 30th Anniversary
- Miniature plushies fromLawson's Kirby's 30th Anniversary Campaign
- Kirby 30th Anniversary Edition Nendoroid holding a Sweet Potato
Names in other languages[edit]
Mint Leaf[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ミントリーフ[2] minto rīfu | Mint Leaf |
| Traditional Chinese | 薄荷葉 Bòhé yè | Mint Leaf |
| Simplified Chinese | 薄荷叶 Bòhé yè | |
| Dutch | Muntblaadje | Mint leaf |
| French | Feuille de menthe | Mint Leaf |
| German | Minzblatt | Mint Leaf |
| Italian | Foglia di Menta | Mint Leaf |
| Korean | 민트 잎 Minteu Ip | Mint Leaf |
| Portuguese | Folha de menta | Mint Leaf |
| Spanish | Hoja de menta | Mint Leaf |
Sweet Potato[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | さつまいも[2] Satsuma-imo やきいも[3] Yaki-imo | Sweet potato Roasted sweet potato |
| French | Patate douce[4] | Sweet potato |
| German | Süßkartoffel[5] | Sweet potato |
| Italian | Patata dolce[6] | Sweet potato |
| Korean | 고구마[7] goguma | Sweet Potato |
| Spanish | Batata[8] | Sweet potato |
References
- ↑"Sweet Potato/Mint Leaf in Kirby Fighters
Did you know that in the Japanese version of Kirby's Dream Land, the Mint Leaf item was a Sweet Potato? When we decided to bring this item back in Kirby Fighters, we had a lot of trouble creating a convincing 3D model of a Sweet Potato. Of course, it stayed as the Mint Leaf in the non-Japanese versions. I think it gives quite a nice image of Kirby puffing out gust after gust of minty-fresh breath!" –Tadashi Kamitake (Kirby: Triple DeluxeMiiverse) - ↑2.02.1"カービィファイターズのさつまいも
さつまいもは初代カービィで登場するアイテムです。3Dモデルにする際には、さつまいもにみえず苦労しました。ちなみに、海外版の初代カービィでは、「さつまいも」が「ミントリーフ」という名前に変わっています。空気弾を連続して吐くところが、ミントを食べたときのさわやかな息を吐くイメージだったのでしょうね。トリプルデラックスの海外版でも、「さつまいも」はもちろん「ミントリーフ」になっています。" –Tadashi Kamitake (Kirby: Triple DeluxeMiiverse) - ↑In the Japanese title for "Shooting", and the anime.
- ↑Kirby: Triple Deluxe French Miiverse
- ↑Kirby: Triple Deluxe German Miiverse
- ↑Kirby: Triple Deluxe Italian Miiverse
- ↑TCRF article documenting an early Korean translation forKirby: Triple Deluxe
- ↑Kirby: Triple Deluxe Spanish Miiverse
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