[hider=Gekko Mayumi] [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/KKAuSiJ.jpg[/img] [i][color=lightblue]"I can sharpen your weapons for you if you want? It's as grandpa said: the best knives are the ones that don't even know they need honing until somebody offers. Or at least, I think that's what he said. I could be wrong though."[/color][/i] [/center] [h3]Character Fields[/h3] [u][b]Name|Aliases[/b][/u] Gekko Mayumi | Mayu [b][u]Age|Gender[/u][/b] 12 | Female [u][b]Clan|Rank[/b][/u] Gekko | Academy Student [u][b]Affiliations[/b][/u] Konohagakure [u][b]Characterization & Prestige[/b][/u] Mayumi is well known to be the kind of girl that lets curiosity get the better of her. Due to a shut-in lifestyle, she feels she has a lot of catching up to do in the world and will jump at the chance to experience something new. She has a heart that believes everyone has some shred of goodness in them, and is forgiving to a fault in that she is willing to give those who've wronged her more than their fair share of second, third, or fourth chances. Despite trying to become a ninja, a life that is very likely to involve violence, she believes in trying to find a nonlethal solution. Criminals can't exactly repent or understand what they've done wrong if they're dead, after all. Due to a phobia of blood, this also extends to her simply fearing mortality. Whenever she feels particularly scared due to her phobia or due to an otherwise tense situation, she'll mentally retreat in the form of hiding her face with the white-red cat mask she carries on her. A memento of her grandfather, she feels stronger while wearing it and will calm down even the slightest bit needed to do what needs to be done. A strange and more uncommon quirk she'd prefer to keep secret is her fascination with samurai. Considering the history between ninja and samurai, it's much more like an admiration out of respect than supporting their cause against the ninja. She's very self conscious and reserved, as well, when not preoccupied by the desire to learn. Preferring to dress conservatively most days, she gets by wearing elegant yet practical family kimonos. She dreams of one day dressing as a noble ronin, robed and wandering as a woman of mystery with fiery confidence. "Fastest blade in the Land of Fire," she'd like to call herself. In regards to this, the aesthetic aspect of being a ninja is a massive part of it for her. In addition to doing her part for society she wants to feel like the heroes she looked up to and read about when she was younger, and still does to this day. She's known for being below average in most skills required to succeed as a ninja, and doesn't yet know how to even bring forth her element, with the exception of her skill and accuracy with weapons which far exceeds her years. [u][b]Origin Story[/b][/u] Mayumi was born to the Gekko clan one among many climbing atop each other for the privilege of being taught the special moonlight swordsmanship that clan heads have been known to cultivate and pass on to the brightest among the next generation. She spent her time mostly as a spectator, watching in-house tournaments and taking notes of the winner's tactics. From a young age she was passionate about learning swordsmanship but would never be permitted to pick one up. "It's not your time yet," the adults would say. And so she spent day in and day out stuck indoors, reading and studying rather than practicing. Her only prolonged interactions with the outside world were during classes at the academy, but even then she was always picked up and brought home by her parents virtually from the moment her daily studies were concluded. She never understood, and there was more than a few screaming matches the older she got. It was around this time she truly began to feel that something was strange about the way she was being treated by her family. More like an object than a person, in her extremely dramatic preteen mind. When the students were finally trusted with weapon training at the academy, her reputation as being a below average meek student flipped. Her hands steady, she could quickly adapt to hitting targets with her kunai and shuriken from various angles, and far exceeded expectations as it concerned swordsmanship. A bokken in hand was like dancing with an old friend, her mind appearing focused as if her sparring partner was a candlelight in a dark room. She quickly gained a reputation among her class as a weapon prodigy, which sparked both admiration in some students and jealousy in others. It's primarily through her ability with weapons that she might earn a scholarship to continue her studies at the academy. [u][b]Character Development & Conceptualization[/b][/u] OOC Goals: I want to flesh out the Gekko clan, their place in the world and most importantly, the moonlight sword/afterimage kenjutsu style that got disgustingly little play in the actual series with only one real move ever shown from it. On top of that, I want to see what the dangers of ninja life can do to change Mayumi as well as all the other genin on a journey not reliant on Sharingan eye hax. For that purpose I've tried to tone her down from typical Naruto "prodigy" characters by giving her a slew of negatives as well. IC Goals: Mayumi wants to become the "Fastest blade in the Land of Fire" like something out of an old school samurai movie. With the twist of her having moonlight powers and ninjutsu, of course. She'd either like to become a Special Jonin specializing in bukijutsu, or improve on her faults enough to become a regular Jonin or ANBU. More ambitious than that she's always looked up to the Hokage and would revel at the chance to gain that position some day; at the same time however, she dreads the paperwork and bureaucracy associated with the position, as well as the implication that she'd have to spend even more time tied to the village rather than exploring. In addition to wanting to serve her people however, she also wants to become a ninja for superficial reasons such as the aesthetic of being a mysterious guardian. In that regard her ideals would come into conflict quite well with the traditionalists of the Haibara, I think.. [h3]Triple T's[/h3] [u][b]Talents[/b][/u] [b]Weapon Prodigy:[/b] Mayumi is well beyond her years as it relates to weapons and ninja tools. Quick and accurate with kunai and shuriken, elegant and reactive with swords, tactical and mindful with polearms, destructive and powerful with hammers and axes, and so on. All conventional weaponry comes naturally to her, and though ineligible to train with more complex weapons yet, it's likely the same for those as well. [b]Observant:[/b] Spending a lot of her life as an observer, she is quick to pick up and learn things visually. This could be something basic, or something more complex like how posture correlates to how hostile a suspicious individual is, how confident they are, any physical weaknesses to be taken advantage of, and so forth. She also does her best to use this talent to mimic the forms and styles of those more powerful than her, taking it all in as inspiration for her own fighting style. [b]Instinctual:[/b] Though most of the time she exhibits more symptoms of the typical bookworm type, she's terrible at formulating complex plans. Rather, once somebody else has laid out the groundwork for her, with weapons in hand her movements are practically on autopilot. Her every move is not calculated, but rather something she feels out from second to second. In this way there is a negative to be taken out of it, in that she's relying on her natural talent to get by, but it hasn't failed her yet. [b]Fast:[/b] A trait that goes hand in hand with accuracy, Mayumi has trained herself to focus more on agility than endurance or raw power. To this end her goal is to end battles quickly, or retreat and recover for a second wave if she begins to feel tired. This also allows her the advantage of more acrobatics, adapting to verticality in the environment quite well and taking advantage of her surroundings. [b]Flute Player:[/b] While not the biggest music connoisseur, Mayumi loves the flute as a convenient and compact instrument to be played for her own enjoyment whenever. It's a huge factor as well in the "aesthetic" of a noble shinobi that she holds so dearly. Music also has the powerful ability to lift spirits in dark times, so she treasures how something so simple can bring joy. Above all, she simply enjoys the sounds a flute makes. [u][b]Tools[/b][/u] x1 Bokken x1 Kunai x1 Flute 20m of Wire Strings [u][b]Techniques[/b][/u] [hider=D Rank] [url=http://naruto.wikia.com/wiki/Body_Flicker_Technique]Body Flicker Technique[/url] [url=http://naruto.wikia.com/wiki/Manipulated_Shuriken_Technique]Manipulated Shuriken Technique[/url] [url=http://naruto.wikia.com/wiki/Chakra_Threads]Chakra Threads[/url] [/hider] [hider=Custom D Rank] [b]Name:[/b] Gekko Style: New Moon [b]Description:[/b] A less complex variant of the Hazy Moon Night Jutsu, in which Mayumi takes advantage of an afterimage to make it look as if her off-hand is also carrying a weapon, and rushes the opponent quickly in an effort to confuse them, feinting with the afterimage weapon while striking with the real weapon. [/hider] [hider=C Rank] [url=http://naruto.wikia.com/wiki/Manipulating_Attack_Blades]Manipulating Attack Blades[/url] [/hider] [hider=Custom C Rank] [b]Name:[/b] Gekko Style: Counterslash [b]Description:[/b] In the blink of an eye, Mayumi conjures an afterimage clone in front of her taking up a perfect defensive stance, while she hides behind it mimicking the exact same stance, convincingly enough that only those more perceptive or with a Dojutsu would be able to easily figure out the ruse while approaching from directly in front. Should the afterimage be struck, the real Mayumi behind the afterimage slashes while the attacker is still wide open from their swing. [/hider] [h3]Miscs[/h3] I suppose if it qualifies, Mayumi would count as one of the three "prodigies" as per the quota? Also, if we're each going to have a unique dialogue color, I call dibs on the light blue used in my character quote. Also, [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Cd9t5u504Q]character theme song![/url] [/hider]