I woke up and this was just here [b]Name:[/b] Noriaki Okamoto [b]Age:[/b] 27 [b]Job Class:[/b] Ronin Artisan [b]Weapon:[/b] [url=http://nihonzashi.com/daisho_pictures/orchid_daisho_800_3476.jpg]A pair of daisho, a matching pair of blades, short and long, which she uses at the same time in the Nitoken[/url]. [url=http://www.medievalcollectibles.com/images/Section/medium/61.png]A Kaiken, a small, but sharp, dagger.[/url] [url=http://onlynativejapan.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2013/02/makibishi.jpg]Makibishi, small, spiked trap items used for defensive fortifications and traps.[/url] [b]Clothing:[/b] Noriaki's choice of armor is the lighter karuta armor, in a unique blue-ish hue. Her armor is light but offers protection while allowing her to move - not swiftly, but she isn't limited to slow maneuvers in combat. The armor, while offering protection, also happens to show off her figure. This is by design. [b]Height:[/b] 5'8" [b]Appearance:[/b] [url=http://www.theanimegallery.com/data/thumbs/790px/0147/tAG_147087.jpg]Similar[/url] [url=http://www.theanimegallery.com/data/thumbs/370px/0147/tAG_147092.jpg]to[/url] [url=http://25.media.tumblr.com/fd41d55b42948c9a18f85dc1ff7c8af0/tumblr_mm33pgB5I41qg641po1_500.jpg]this[/url] [IMG]http://i58.tinypic.com/3026ur8.jpg[/IMG] [b]Personality:[/b] Noriaki is a flirt, and a bad one at that. Within moments of meeting someone, out comes the charm, the charisma, the comparison of physical appearance to the stars and the moon and the heavens above. It would mean more if she didn't do this to pretty much everyone she meets. She's an artisan at heart, with a keen eye and an appreciation for the aesthetically artistic and beautiful. Nothing is serious for Noriaki, least of all the problems of the world, the conflicts, the land disputes. The only thing Noriaki concerns herself with is whether or not her bed will be empty or not. It's almost always empty. Flirting only gets her so far, it's when the boasts about her ability come that people get turned off. It's less boasting and more arrogant and worst of all, she's unproven. It doesn't stop her from saying how she'll protect the adorable citizens and damsels in distress from harm. [b]History:[/b] Noriaki was a samurai, just one among many serving a lord of moderate reputation, Or so she claims. There's no record of her having ever served as a samurai under anyone and the only proof she has are the swords at her waist, the makibishi in her pouch, and the fantastical tales of her exploits as a samurai.And oh are the tales fantastical, heavily embellished tales of infiltrating castles, taking on literal armies by herself, scaling the tallest towers, rescuing the princess, and earning the praise of the nobility. What is true is that Noriaki is a poet and was at one point a samurai, or at least served a lord. Noriaki was born in a farming village to a rice farmer and his wife. The village was a key source of agriculture and produce for the nearby lord's castle and in exchange he offered the village protection in the form of his loyal few samurai. Noriaki idolized the warriors which soon blossomed into romanticizing them, creating this image of them as these heavenly guardians sent from the world above to watch over the lowly peasants. Naturally, Noriaki wanted to be like them, but the silly class and caste system meant that that was highly unlikely. Undeterred, Noriaki made an effort to start swinging her father's tools around like a sword, making sure to do so within eyesight of the lord's samurai. One of them, Mifune, took a liking to Noriaki's endearing antics and offered her pointers on her swing, her stance, and her grip. Noriaki was determined to make an impression, to impress the warriors so much that they would allow her into their ranks. It was because of Mifune that she was granted an audience with the lord. She thought it was to be offered a place among his samurai. It was instead because the lord wished for a mistress in place of his wife. Noriaki, still a teen, was quite alarmed, not wanting to be tied down and certainly not just some object of desire by a lecherous man like the lord. It was Mifune who put her fears at ease, telling her that so long as she was allowed into the castle, Mifune would teach her the ways of the samurai in secret. Noriaki agreed, and while she was groomed to be an appropriate mistress, she was also taught the lessons and customs of a samurai, inbetween her own free time where she wrote poems, mainly about the samurai and the lord's manor. Was it luck or fate that Noriaki was saved the indignity of laying with the lord? On the night she was to fulfill her role, the lord was killed by a silent assassin, poison in the sake caused the death of the lord at the dinner table. What followed was something Mifune left out of the lessons. In following the code, the lord's samurai took their own lives for their failure in ensuring the lord's safety. It was then that Mifune stole a kiss from Noriaki and outed herself as a woman. Mifune had acted as a man within the ranks of the samurai and no one was the wiser. Noriaki felt [i]something[/i] for Mifune, it was Mifune who taught her after all, but any feelings were put to rest after Mifune, bound by the code, joined her fellow samurai in death. Noriaki took Mifune's blades as her own and began referring to herself as a ronin. But she remained unproven in actual combat. She began making boasts of her abilities, using her poetic way with words to build a reputation for herself while having nothing to base it on. She knows how to use the swords on her waist, it's just a matter of how well she can use them. But until the day comes when she is made to use them, she is content to simply boast and flirt and make up stories of her abilities. [b]Strengths:[/b] - Noriaki is an accomplished poet which may not seem like a strength, but being a poet makes her quite charismatic and gifted at negotiation. Her way with words is the stuff of legends. Legends she made up, but legends all the same. - Noriaki does know how to use two blades at once, a difficult style to use, and though she hasn't had much experience against living opponents, she has shown she knows how to use them as she has given demonstrations with logs and the like. - A photographic memory. Because she spends her times flirting with others, if she mixed up the targets of her affection it could be bad. To that end, she never forgets a face, or a name, and can recall things down to the specific details. - Stamina. Plenty of it. It comes in handy. Mostly for running away but for other...pursuits. [b]Weakness:[/b] - The sight of visually pleasing things, from people to landscape to paintings, distract her more often than not. Her mind is easily sidetracked by beauty. - Danger, actual danger, is unknown to her and though she can use her swords she would rather not, causing her to freeze up in the face of danger, often wanting to run away and live another day if the danger gets too...well...dangerous. - She's not especially strong. Strong enough to wield her blades, but that's about the extent. - She possesses no sense of direction, having to rely on visual cues (if she's been there before) or on constant directions to prevent herself from getting lost. - In keeping with her love of beauty, she refuses to harm or even kill someone she finds beautiful, as the loss of such things would do the world more harm. -Due to her lack of experience, Noriaki injures easily and is often more a liability in battle than an asset, despite her best efforts. -Not exactly a team player in the sense that Noriaki has gone solo for so long that that's just how she operates. [b]Likes:[/b] Poetry, Beauty, Sake, Tapestries, The Biwa (a short-necked lute), Calligraphy [b]Dislikes:[/b] Mangy Animals, Blood, Clouds, unless they are fluffy and white, Ugliness, both in terms of personality and appearances [b]Dream:[/b] She dreams of being a true samurai, like Mifune, and serving under a kind, but fair lord, with a partner like Mifune by her side. She also dreams of creating a collection of her poems and having them read throughout the country. [b]Fear:[/b] She fears that her constant flirting and general cowardice will leave her alone and forgotten, taking her to the grave as a forgotten, unloved corpse. Her fear is that she won't be taken seriously in any of her pursuits, and that it is her own fault.