Chi-Yu is a fish-like Pokémon. It is composed of two pairs of curved jade beads, once believed to be sacred and commonly worn for religious rituals. Each of these pairs of beads circle a black orb coated by white around the sides; together, they make up the eyes of Chi-Yu, while the rest of its fish-shaped body is formed by a dark red and yellow flame. The beads sometimes glow red and yellow when it attacks.
Like the other Treasures of Ruin, Chi-Yu's true form is the beads forming its eyes, having been given life by the envy of those who desired them enough to start wars over them — while its body is a form it has constructed using its control over fire. Chi-Yu's flames burn at over 5,400 degrees Fahrenheit (3,000 degrees Celsius), allowing it to melt rock and sand into lava that it can swim through. Chi-Yu typically levitates and flies around in the air despite its fish-like appearance. It is known as the Beads of Ruin.
Chi-Yu and the other Treasures of Ruin are the only known Pokémon capable of learning the move Ruination. Chi-Yu is also the only known Pokémon that can have Beads of Ruin as an Ability.
- Chi-Yu and the other Treasures of Ruin are the first Pokémon whose base stats were adjusted via a patch to the game.
- Chi-Yu is significantly lighter than the other three Treasures of Ruin, likely due to its body being mostly made out of fire, which has no weight.
Origin
Chi-Yu may be modeled after members of the Cyprinidae family, specifically the goldfish. The beads around its eyes make it particularly similar to the telescope eye and celestial eye breeds. The curved beads by its eyes are based on the magatama, comma-shaped beads made of jade that served as ceremonial and religious objects. The coloration and location of the beads, together with Chi-Yu being borne from envy, may invoke the idea of the "green-eyed monster", a phrase coined in William Shakespeare's Othello to refer to jealousy. It may also be based off Hundun, a Chinese mythological creature said to be a manifestation of chaos and war, commonly depicted as an orange blob.
Name origin
Chi-Yu and Yiyui may be a combination of 鯽魚 / 鲫鱼 jìyú (Chinese for crucian carp) and 玉 yù (Chinese for jade). The English name is formatted in Wade–Giles, a romanization system used in the Anglosphere for most of the 20th century.