Hii-sama is the wise woman and shaman of the Emishi village in the Muromachi period of Japan. She is an elderly figure with white hair and gray eyes, respected as the village's spiritual guide and oracle. Her background is rooted in the traditions of the Emishi people, a group that lives apart from the growing industrial world. Hii-sama's personality is calm, authoritative, and deeply pragmatic. She does not offer false comfort; when Ashitaka returns from fighting the demon boar Nago, she immediately reads the situation and tells him plainly that his arm bears a curse that will spread and kill him. She speaks with measured gravity, accepting the harshness of fate while still pointing toward a path of action. Her motivation is to protect her village and to guide Ashitaka in fulfilling what destiny requires of him. She believes that fate cannot be changed, but that one can choose to rise to meet it. This philosophy drives her decision to exile Ashitaka rather than let him remain and endanger the village, and she sends him west to seek the source of the demon's hatred. In the story, Hii-sama appears only in the opening scenes, but her role is crucial: she interprets Nago's curse, reveals that the demon was corrupted by an iron ball, identifies the direction Ashitaka must travel, and performs a divination using stones to foretell what he will find. She also bestows upon him the departure ritual and the admonition to see with eyes unclouded by hate. Her key relationships are with Ashitaka, whom she treats with respect as a prince of the village, and with the village community, whose well-being she safeguards through her wisdom. There is no significant development of Hii-sama as a character over the course of the film, as she appears only at the beginning, but her words and actions set the entire journey in motion. Her notable abilities include spiritual foresight, shamanic divination, and deep knowledge of the gods and demons that inhabit the world. She is the keeper of the village's ancient lore and the one who can recognize the nature of curses and the will of the spirits. Hii-sama embodies the wisdom of a fading way of life, and her quiet authority stands in contrast to the violent conflicts that follow.