Zhao

Overview

Zhao is a playable agent in Zenless Zone Zero. Serving as a Judge within the Krampus Compliance Authority—an auditing division under the TOPS conglomerate—she monitors and neutralizes corporate misconduct. Despite her tiny size as a Rabbit Thiren, she holds a remarkable mission completion rate within the organization, relying on extreme pragmatic calculation and absolute combat mastery to enforce balanced transactions.

Appearance

Zhao is a exceptionally small Rabbit Thiren standing at a height of 118 cm. She features long pink hair styled in twin braids with a prominent ahoge, alongside large fluffy rabbit ears, red eyes with white pupils, and a short fluffy tail. Her attire consists of a blue-green and black China-style apron dress with long sleeves over dark patterned shorts. Her shorts feature small white rabbit embroidery on the front, red ribbons at the waist, and a tail opening. She wears leg straps engraved with the text 'ZHAOZHAO', a leg ring, and walks barefoot.

Personality

Shapes by a harsh childhood, Zhao is a strict realist who views all human relationships through the lens of equivalent exchange and tangible profit. She harbors a cynicism toward selfless actions and insists on strict reciprocity. To maintain an intimidating persona in her line of work, she pretends to be a dedicated meat-eater, though she secretly prefers eating vegetables. While initially detached and calculating, her exposure to genuine selflessness eventually cracks her self-imposed emotional barrier.

Abilities

Zhao is an Ice-attribute Defense agent who functions as a versatile team support. Armed with her folding broadsword 'Shuangchan', she delivers Ice-damage slash chains and charged heavy attacks. By accumulating Frost Values, she deploys an Ether Veil that boosts the attack power, maximum HP, and damage output of all squad members. Her special skills allow her to consume a portion of her own HP to provide continuous healing to teammates. In movement, her dynamic running style causes her to deal minor physical collision damage if she trips upon stopping abruptly.

Background

Born into a merciless group that abandoned the weak, Zhao was cast out in her childhood for being deemed valueless. After surviving as a worker, her sharp eye for contract fraud earned her a spot in TOPS' Krampus Compliance Authority. Assigned to investigate corporate corruption in the Weifei region, she took oversight of Hoer-Mex and cooperated with Phaethon during investigations into the Lemnian Hollow. When TOPS private forces ordered her to seize an asset by force, Zhao deliberately chose to betray corporate orders, severing her retreat to hold off an opposing army alone so her companions could reach the Hollow's core.

Relationships

Within the Krampus Compliance Authority, Zhao works alongside Ryune, Bangyue, and Promia. She accepted Ryune's recommendation to recruit Bangyue into their unit. She acts as a protector and senior authority over Damian Blackwood during the corporate fallout of Hoer-Mex. Through high-stakes operations in the Lemnian Hollow, she forms a deep bond of mutual trust with Phaethon and Ye Shunguang, ultimately valuing their lives over her corporate loyalties.

Trivia

Her character design, signature engine, and skill names draw heavy motif references from moon legends and jade rabbits. During dynamic combat dodges, she briefly displays an 'I love you' hand gesture. As of her release, she holds the distinction of being the shortest playable agent in the game.