Mint Leaf

Mint Leaf
Name (JA)	さつまいも (Satsumaimo)
- Meaning	Sweet Potato さつまいも/薩摩芋 = Sweet Potato
In Games
Type	Power-up
Properties	Increases flight ability, allows Kirby to rapidly spit air bullets

“	This lets you attack with Air Bullets for a little while.”
	— Tip • Kirby Fighters 2

The Mint Leaf, known as the Sweet Potato in Japanese, is an item in the Kirby series.

Games

Kirby's Dream Land

Consumption of a Mint Leaf will improve Kirby's aerial game and allow him to spit an unlimited number of air bullets much faster and farther for a limited time. Originally, it was supposed to increase Kirby's "burping," as a sweet potato can. When it was localized as a mint leaf, it gave Kirby "minty fresh breath," as stated in the Super Game Boy guide.

When Kirby fights Kabula, he obtains a special Mint Leaf that lasts until the battle is over. When it is obtained anywhere else, it only lasts for a short time.

Kirby's Pinball Land

The Mint Leaf appears as an item in the Kracko Land Bonus Game. It is worth 1000 points when eaten.

Kirby: Triple Deluxe, Kirby Fighters Deluxe and Kirby Fighters 2

The Mint Leaf appears in the Kirby Fighters sub-game (as well as the downloadable Kirby Fighters Deluxe and its sequel, Kirby Fighters 2). It has similar effects as it did in Kirby's Dream Land. Kirby will automatically begin spitting air puffs once the item is obtained, pausing briefly after every few puffs. When the Mint Leaf is used up, Kirby will expel a giant air puff. The rate of fire of the air puffs is notably slower in  Kirby Fighters Deluxe compared to the original Kirby Fighters.

The Mint Leaf also appears in Kirby: Triple Deluxe as a collectible keychain. Although the Mint Leaf in Kirby Fighters resembles a leaf, the keychain reuses the sprite from Kirby's Dream Land which bears more of a resemblance to its Sweet Potato variant.

In Kirby: Right Back at Ya!

	This section contains information that does not coincide with the main series canon.	(Similar)

A Sweet Potato in the anime.

In the Kirby: Right Back at Ya! episode Dedede's Raw Deal, the sweet potato appears. King Dedede uses this on a potato sushi to give Kirby the hiccups, making it hard for him to battle a monster version of Squishy. It was not changed into a mint leaf in the English version.

Related Quotes

“	If I grab this big mint leaf, I can shoot a rapid stream of Air Pellets. This will definitely come in handy if there are a lot of enemies on screen!”
	— Kirby's Arsenal • Kirby's Dream Land Instruction Booklet

Trivia

• In the Japanese versions of Kirby Fighters and Kirby Fighters Deluxe, the Mint Leaf takes the appearance of a sweet potato, while in other languages, it takes the appearance of a leaf.
  • In Kirby Fighters 2, consuming a Mint Leaf tints the user's air puffs green. In the Japanese version, consuming the Sweet Potato does not tint the air puffs at all.
• An item that grants similar effects to Mint Leaf, called Balloon, appears in Kirby Tilt 'n' Tumble.
• A remix of the music while under the effects of the Mint Leaf has become Kabula's battle theme.
• The scripting engine utilized by every main-series Kirby title from Kirby's Return to Dream Land onward is known as Mint. This name may be a reference to the Mint Leaf, though it may simply be a coincidence. The Mint engine is also utilized by other HAL Laboratory games such as the BOXBOY! series and Part Time UFO.^{[citation needed]}

Artwork

Kirby 25th anniversary artwork (Sweet Potato)

Gallery

Kirby's Dream Land

Kirby battles Kabula under the Mint Leaf's effect.

Kirby: Triple Deluxe (Kirby Fighters)

Kirby: Triple Deluxe (keychain)

Kirby Fighters Deluxe

Kirby Fighters Deluxe (Japanese)

Kirby Fighters 2

Kirby Fighters 2

Sprites and Models

Kirby's Dream Land / Kirby's Pinball Land

Kirby Fighters 2 (Sweet Potato)