[center][img=http://www.elfpack.com/stuff/anime-boy-61804695668.png?jpg=y]
[b]Name:[/b] 
Akio Kenjou
[b]Age:[/b] 
20
[b]Sex:[/b] 
Male
[b]Occupation:[/b] 
Merchant
[b]Sword:[/b] 
Hasaki
[b]Personality:[/b] 
Born into a merchant family, Akio has been pleasing customers all his life. As such, he has developed an agreeable personality that allows him to at least fake a smile for even the most rude and obnoxious people. In addition to his pleasant demeanor, he can also be very persuasive, especially when he actually knows what he is talking about. His agreeable demeanor has its limits, though, as he will not tolerate any kind of violence or vandalism. Of course, there is little he can do to prevent such things himself, but he will be the first person to call the guards and has a knack for accurately describing criminal’s faces. Akio is a stranger to danger and has never left the safety of the south, let alone faced an Oni. While the prospect of fighting monsters terrifies him, his courage has yet to be put to the test. 
[b]Background:[/b] 
Akio was the second son of Shugo and Amane Kenjou, and had lived in southern Japan all his life. The family has run a successful shop in the city that sells all kinds of miscellaneous goods from shoes to swords. His father would often leave for long periods of time with his older brother to peddle their goods to other cities, but Akio would stay behind with his mother to run the shop. One day, his father came home with a new blade in his hand. He said he got it from a broke old man who was desperate for some coin, so Shugo bought it from him for a ridiculously low price. Even if the blade was in poor condition, they could still turn a profit on it. The problem was that it seemed to be stuck in its hilt. Shugo took it to a swordsmith, but even he had no luck, so Hasaki became a mantelpiece displayed above the counter to get customers asking questions. 

One day when Akio was cleaning the store, the blade fell off the mantel. Akio picked it up by the sheath, and just like that the blade began to slip out. Curious, Akio drew the blade completely to see what kind of condition it was in, having been neglected for so long. Apparently, it was in great condition, but, alas, it was wood. It was worth more as a mantelpiece than as merchandise, so back on display it went. That was, until Yasushi Miyoshi arrived.

At first, Akio thought that Yasushi was simply entertaining some idle curiosity about the blade by inquiring about it; after all a renowned samurai like him was bound to have a blade ten times better than anything a lowly merchant could offer him. However, after hearing the story of the blade, Yasushi determined that it was a legendary blade. Akio thought it was a joke, but one was not to laugh at the seal of the emperor, so reluctantly, Akio bid his family goodbye and joined the samurai on his quest to save humanity.
[b]Skills:[/b] 
Charismatic and convincing salesman; great at various kinds of math, especially bookkeeping; having dealt with many kinds of goods, he has become clever and unusually educated for a commoner by devising practical uses for a wide variety of things; has a knack for games of strategy like Shogi, Mahjong, and Go. You could say he has a “sharp” mind.
[b]Equipment:[/b] 
Since he has never traveled before, Akio can only guess at what would be useful in the far north. He brings fifty feet of rope; a small knife (for cutting, not combat); a warm cloak, scarf, boots, and gloves; a blank notebook with ink and writing utensils to document their journey. 
[b]Notes:[/b] 
Akio has never been in a fight in his life, let alone practiced swordsmanship. He will have to learn how to save himself before he can save Japan.[/center]