[@The 42nd Gecko] Cool. In that case, I'll just leave this here.

[hider=Hikari Kiyoshi, Master of Blades]
[center][h1][b]Hikari Kiyoshi[/b][/h1]
[img]https://i.pinimg.com/736x/f6/4d/19/f64d1992b70074593cdef48c38660dcd.jpg[/img]
"You can never defeat another if you know not how to defeat yourself."[/center]

[center][h3][b]-Story-[/b][/h3][/center]
[i]Something other characters versed in lore would know about you:[/i] He is very well-composed, with an elfin grace to complement an oddly pretty figure. Additionally, he seems to have somehow trained with just about every weapon in existence, including items such as paintbrushes or hats which would not normally be perceived as weapons, which perhaps explains how he seemingly blurs with sheer speed when he's fighting.

[i]One specific way in which the character wishes to change the world:[/i] Kiyoshi sees the world in its current state, and considers that the people in charge of it are far too unjust; often, these people are the rich, those who tread on the poor without fear of retribution. If he can mete out justice to those who deserve it yet are denied it, and perhaps teach those who need it how to maintain a just society in their own right, he will be most pleased... he also has a vague sense of wanting to beat somebody in a fair fight, but he's not sure who.

[i]How do you wish your character to grow:[/i] Whilst he holds sympathies with both the Ascendant Knot and Crimson Veins, Kiyoshi is not directly part of either subfaction or any other, as each has their merits and their flaws. Ultimately, it shall be realised that each source of power, each path to enlightenment, and ultimately each and every existing House are not so different from one another - each has its merits, but each also has its flaws, crippling or not. Once this is realised, reconciling these differences to push for a truly enlightened future for all might just be possible.

[center][h3][b]-Equipment-[/b][/h3][/center]
[i]Holy Ghost (a.k.a. Seirei)[/i] - A nodachi around 180cm long, this is a weapon that is very well-forged, yet bears an odd dark blue colour to its steel. It also seems to be as resistant to harm as Kiyoshi himself, even without any use of his techniques.
[i]Shuriken[/i] - Though they are not often used, given that Kiyoshi mostly lacks techniques that synchronise very well with their use, he can nonetheless throw them with reasonable skill, and if he's lucky, perhaps they will give him an opening to get in close with his blade.
[i]Tea-making kit[/i] - Kiyoshi enjoys many sorts of tea, and usually the ceremonies associated with its creation. It is thus only natural that he has a kit ready to make some at any given time, even out of wild plants such as nettles.

[center][h3][b]-Stats-[/b][/h3]
[i]Strength:[/i] 4
[i]Speed:[/i] 5
[i]Endurance:[/i] 2
[i]Ki:[/i] 1
[i]Mana:[/i] 3[/center]


[center][h3][b]-Techniques-[/b][/h3][/center]
[b]Shell of a Ghost:[/b] [i]Arete/Mana Style - Cloning Discipline - Beginner.[/i] The basis of most of Kiyoshi's other techniques, Kiyoshi has the capacity to create semi-solid mana constructs that are clones of himself and/or Holy Ghost, and through precise Arete-derived micromotions during creation allow them to bear a variety of bizarre properties, most notably their capacity to superimpose upon themselves and their creator whilst still interacting normally with other forms of matter. More accurately, they [i]must[/i] be created with at least a bit of superposition over Kiyoshi or another clone, even if it's just a toe, and then not inside any other solid or liquid matter or supernatural constructs. Even then, without constant mana upkeep, each clone will only last a split second before vanishing as the mana disperses back into the atmosphere, though for most techniques, this is desirable, as controlling separate bodies is very taxing on one's concentration, and to some extent the mana used to create each clone can be reharvested for use in further cloning and etcetera (not solely by Kiyoshi, alas). It is also worth noting that any given clone's properties can be modified slightly, for instance bearing slightly less damage than the original has taken from attacks or seeming to be slightly younger than before.
[b]Manifold Edge:[/b] [i]Arete/Mana Style - Cloning Technique - Beginner.[/i] The most basic use of Kiyoshi's cloning, Seirei is cloned on top of itself many times the moment before the blade makes contact with a foe. This gives the impression of providing a much sharper and harder cut, but is instead more akin to many regular cuts made simultaneously, though the effect is ultimately the same.
[b]Afterimage Flashstep:[/b] [i]Arete/Mana Style - Pseudo-Flashstep Technique - Beginner/Intermediate.[/i] Kiyoshi's interpretation of the Flashstep technique, albeit technically not a flashstep at all - by rapidly generating clones and using a little extra mana to simulate the micromotions that Arete would otherwise demand of him, he can seemingly rush forward at blinding speeds, at the same time able to have his clones pose in bizarre fashions that are otherwise impossible to achieve, up to and including blocking or making strikes from apparently-impossible directions. The benefit over regular flashstepping would be that, since no path technically needs to be designated, he is able to move practically freely with each "step", complete with very little windup or cooldown; yet for the same reason, the flashstep itself requires a disproportionate amount of concentration to pull off (albeit not effort), and is not especially faster than a standard Arete flashstep, making it impractical for some situations compared to more basic flashstep techniques (which, for the sake of convenience, he has also taught himself to some extent).
[b]Sword Spectre Slash:[/b] [i]Arete/Mana Style - Cloning Technique - Intermediate.[/i] Blade clashes are likely in a duel; ergo, the best way to get around them is the creation of new blades. By creating a clone of himself in a nearly-identical position, save that his weapon is located behind the foe's, he can not only keep the enemy bladelocked, but also deal out a strike that is now essentially unblockable as if the sword had phased through the blocking weapon, if perhaps a tad weaker for it. The nature of his cloning ability means that this is much harder to pull off on bulkier defenses such as shields, and impossible against all-round protection such as hemispherical mana barriers, but it is nonetheless extremely hard to defend against as far as techniques go, and to some extent can also work to protect against similar phasing techniques by creating a blade further back, or even against multiple blocking weapons by repeating the technique.
[b]Mind Displacement Proclamation:[/b] [i]Arete Style - Bodyswap Discipline - Intermediate.[/i] Partially the reason why some of Kiyoshi's techniques work as intended, specifically his Afterimage Flashstep, this allows Kiyoshi to essentially "swap places" with one of his clones by moving a finger in their direction very precisely, the clone body solidifying into his real self whilst his former body transforms into a mere clone. The nature of Kiyoshi's clone constructs is such that damage to them does not transfer to him, giving him a reasonable means of avoiding harm in a pinch, and since their properties can be modified enough to undo some damage, repeated use of this technique can cause what seems to be minor to moderate regeneration over time. That said, since the technique still requires mana and effort to utilise, even erasing all damage will not restore any energy he has already used up, nor is it 100% mana efficient in its own right.
[b]Superpositional Amplification:[/b] [i]Arete/Mana Style - Power Boost Discipline - Intermediate/Master.[/i] As described, controlling multiple clones is a very mentally intensive task, but it becomes far less so if each moving clone is doing the same thing as the main body. By performing a specific ritual at the beginning of each day, Kiyoshi can layer one or more clones on to his real body at any given moment in order to provide a boost to all of his physical statistics, specifically Strength, Speed, and Endurance, equivalent to +0.8 in each category per layered clone. Naturally, a larger number of clones will provide increasing overall power, but the effort needed to control each clone still persists, making it increasingly more difficult to control additional layers beyond the first, on top of ongoing maintenance costs that can quickly drain the area of mana at higher numbers. Even so, even a very brief physical boost can be extremely beneficial, letting him dish out, avoid, or tank hits far above his nominal scope given a moment of preparation.
[b]Secret Sword - Divine Reversal:[/b] [i]Arete/Mana Style Style - Cloning Technique - Master.[/i] Kiyoshi's ultimate attack, and one that requires disproportionate amounts of mana to pull off. Its execution involves the creation of a very large number of clones of both Kiyoshi himself and Holy Ghost, created surrounding the opponent in a way that traps them in a practically inescapable cage of sword strikes. Whilst an effective match-ender if it hits, it can also be foreseen (though not necessarily predicted) by the majority of Mana users due to how much mana it requires, and for the time being, it does not enhance Kiyoshi's ability to strike incorporeal targets, allowing Arete users in particular to dodge it if they wind up their baseline flashstep to use in time with the attack's would-be strike.

[center][h3][b]-Secret Style-[/b][/h3]
[i]Inanimate Echo[/i][/center]
Every living, sentient being has a mind, and perhaps even a soul. These conscious minds are the end result of millions upon millions of particles interacting with one another in specific patterns compliant with the laws of physics as mere mortals know them. This is, in truth, the same with objects that nominally lack a mind of their own - though they do not have thoughts, or even so much as awareness of the world around them, the atoms nonetheless interact with each other, producing a much weaker "echo" of a true mind in each one. Weaker, and yet far more readily tapped into and moulded to one's will as a result.

[b]Artifice Control Mastery:[/b] [i]Arete Style - Mastery Discipline - Intermediate.[/i] Kiyoshi has spent a very long time training to master the sword, and is able to manipulate his weapon in particular as though it were an extension of his very body. As it happens, it's not so difficult to force the echoes of other inanimate objects to act in tandem with this notion - by temporarily sacrificing his skill with wielding a sword, he can instead gain that much skill manipulating [i]any[/i] object, be it an axe, a bow, a knife, a stick, a paintbrush, a person's body (but [i]not[/i] their mind, which is far more complex than any object's interactions) or a leaf. Better yet, while this does nominally include "combat uses", it actually extends to manipulation of the item in general, meaning that any skill applying to the object in question will also be amplified to this degree, letting him paint fine works of art with a paintbrush as easily as embedding the handle in a foe's eye, to give just one notable example.
[b]Spiritual Imbuement:[/b] [i]Arete Style - Imbuement Discipline - Master.[/i] It is worth noting that most of Kiyoshi's items will not clone along with him. Though his clothing, surrounding most of his body, will be generated atop any given clone, his teaset will not, and nor will his shuriken, though they will also not vanish with a clone body if Mind Displacement Proclamation is put into effect. Holy Ghost is different. Through this ritual, any given object can be imbued with a small portion of Kiyoshi's own mind, or soul, or some other part of his innate being, turning some aspect of the item a queer deep blue shade in the process, presently Holy Ghost itself. This allows the item to act as though it is in fact a part of his body, and thus lets him clone it, handle it, and otherwise treat it as if it truly is just another part of himself. This is quite key to the functionality of many of his abilities, because without this imbuement upon Holy Ghost, techniques such as Manifold Edge and Sword Spectre Slash simply cannot be utilised by Kiyoshi. To wit, this ritual can be performed on another object to grant it the same benefits, but the aspect of Kiyoshi's person within the currently imbued item must first be withdrawn, removing this power from the item in question before it is reimbued into the new item.
[/hider]