There is a stat system and how it works is simple, it’s a guideline. A higher number will not necessarily equate to a win, especially if the numbers are quite close. However they have other uses, and that is increasing the power of your use of Arts (Hakuda, Zanjutsu, Kido, Hoho), and during writing, can be leveraged to creatively use your strengths to make up for your weaknesses.

As an example, a character who has good Skill but low Strength can make use of a two handed technique using their second hand on their blade to leverage their zanpakuto to cut through thicker targets, is essentially using their Skill in place of a Strength check. Things like this are key.

Gaining stats is also easy and fairly constant as you play. To that end I urge you to keep track of your character’s activities to inform me what you’re doing. Stats are gained in denominations of 25, so the smallest amount that can be obtained at a time is 25. Do bear in mind however there's many ways to become stronger, and different types of play will be rewarded, not just stat dogs who want to become the strongest. I urge you think about what matters most to your character's development. This is after all a roleplay.


It is of course expected that Shinigami Arts will also eventually include Quincy Arts and Arrancar Arts. This generally shows your mastery and knowledge of each art. Everything at 4 and above is considered Captain level. As you can imagine, reaching mastery levels in these are more difficult and more eventful. As a final note, uniquely every player is able to reach level 6 in only ONE art.


Reiryoku or spiritual power is the total amount of spiritual energy your character possesses. There are two ways to become incapacitated in this RP, one is being defeated and succumbing to wounds, and the other is running out of Reiryoku. Reiryoku can be expended to boost Strength for singular actions, and is used for particularly powerful techniques and Kido (not all techniques and Kido spells require reiryoku usage).

Reiatsu is your general aura, and spiritual pressure, the amount of pressure your reiryoku puts out. The more reiryoku you possess, the more of it spills out of you constantly as reiatsu. It can also be actively boosted by focusing entirely on its output (this does not spend reiryoku).

One big benefit of Reiatsu is that the value of your Reiatsu is how much you can spend on Reiryoku actions for free. For example, if your Reiatsu is 50, then you can use 50 Reiryoku for free granted the action does not exceed it. If it does exceed your Reiatsu, you will pay the cost minus your Reiatsu.



Throughout the RP there will be techniques that players can learn, these are conventional (or unconventional) sword, weapon, or hand to hand techniques or special moves. The original show didn’t have very many of these if at all, but this really includes special moves that don’t require special abilities from a Shikai or anything of that nature.


The way Kido works in this is there won’t be a numbered system of 1-99, there can be more than that. Players will even be able to make their own at certain mastery levels. However, the category system still exists, Bakudo, Hado, and Kaido still exist as categories. Generally meaning barrier, destruction and recovery.


A unique system, generally for highlighting unique aspects of a character, whether it’s something they’ve learned to do, or something innate to them. There’s not much else to explain other than they must be earned or revealed through play. If there’s some sort of development you want with your character I’ll inform you if it equates to a feat or not too.

Name: Mikazuki Nakajima
Age: 16
Gender: Male

Personality: Kind, understanding, and possessed of a humane curiosity that examines all angles of a situation, Mikazuki knows the difference between fiction and reality and refuses to assume the presence of a cliche without being certain that the reason why the cliche exists in books is valid. In short, Mikazuki can better distinguish between fiction and reality than many average people. When told the official story of a given backstory or event, Mika tries to refrain from assuming that it's the gospel truth or untrustworthy propaganda, to preserve a strategic skepticism that does not veer to cynicism.

Of course, when someone reveals themselves to be worthy of his trust and even friendship, Mikazuki is willing to return every positive emotion; after all, he is training himself to help others.

Backstory: Mikazuki loved books of all kinds since he was small; even the ones without pictures. When others devoured Anime, Manga, and Western Movies, Mikazuki read novels, biographies, and science books. He was happy, spending his spare change, and later on, doing part-time work at his family's kendo dojo to earn more money for books; he was seen as an oddball for that, but not to the point where he got bullied. He didn't notice girls much, but there were a few he liked; strong, mature women who could kick his ass but were still elegant and kind (as for boys, he managed to hide the fact that they made him go gaga over them).

All in all, he was happy, he was kind, and people either liked him or were indifferent to his existence while he and his family deeply loved each other. Then... He met an old man, a Westerner broken by a war he thought was relegated to history books and subtly censored by the authorities. This old man had suffered due to the actions of Mikazuki's nation and spent decades struggling to find the will to forgive. Now, he was dying and hoped to find some sort of closure, to confront a person who had inflicted unspeakable horrors on him and his squad, dead in some Southeast Asian Jungle.

And the boy saw that the world was darker than he thought, for he knew exactly who had done that - His Grandfather, who was on the verge of death. Mikazuki struggled with whether to tell his new friend about this, knew full well the consequences and the heartbreak that might result. But he decided to do the right thing and tell the Westerner, and even engineer a meeting between the two - He was not naive enough to expect a moment of reconciliation.

All in all, he could count himself lucky that his Grandfather and the Westerner didn't kill each other when they met. This led to a vital lesson for him; hatred can be controlled and one can face people they viscerally hate and even work with them because it was the right thing to do.

His Grandfather died the next month, followed by the Westerner the month after; the latter promised to drag his Grandfather's soul to hell.

And so Mikazuki's life resumed, but he resolved to know more than he could find in books, to train his body and mind so he could help people while withstanding the horror and tragedy that the world held, while not being desensitized to the beauty, hope, and wonder that it still held. He wanted to bring hope to others, to one day wander the earth building friends, positively influencing people, and despite the Japanese aversion towards guns, even defend himself with a trusty pistol or two.

Then, his life changed again when he was hit by a truck... And this was not an Isekai story.

Why did you become a Substitute Shinigami: To live. To find out more. To see his Grandfather and The Westerner again. To gain power he can discreetly use it for his goals as an adult.

::COMBAT:: (You have 2000 points among all the below stats. All stats are required to be minimum 50, distributed in denominations of 25, Reiryoku minimum is 100)

• Strength: 350
• Skill: 300
• Speed: 300
• Focus: 375
• Constitution: 200
• Reiryoku: 500
• Reiatsu: (this is equal to one fifth your Reiryoku. This is filled at the end)

::Shinigami Arts:: (You will start with 2 points to distribute here. NOTE: This will represent what training courses your character picked as soon as they became a substitute shinigami)

• Zanjutsu: 1/5
• Hakuda: 0/5
• Hoho: 0/5
• Kido: 1/5

Feats: (This will start empty. Generally these are unique skills and abilities that you can gain through training in specific styles, a result of some anomaly in your character, or blessings)

Zanpakuto: A plain Katana in a black lacquered sheath.
Shikai: (this will remain empty. When the time comes, depending on how you’ve built your character and what they’re good at, your shikai will lean certain ways.)

Techniques:

Miraculous Parry - A defensive technique where Mika strengthens his blade with his Reiatsu to block blows that should have gotten through and struck his flesh.

Counter - An offensive technique where Mika, after parrying an attack, cuts or thrusts just a split-second after.

Memorized Kido:

Kaidō - Healing Arts, which do not need names, incantations, or numbers to cast, but simply heal the user and others.

Barrier (Concealment) - A Barrier-type Kido that masks Mika's Spiritual Energy.

Barrier (Physical) - A Barrier-type Kido that acts as an energy shield; Mika's takes on the form of a round barrier that can deflect bullets or the equivalent.

Name: Anthony Adams-Himura
Age: 19
Gender: Male

Personality: Tony is usually laidback and a close-mouthed, yet that depends, for things of his interest, as it could be cooking or playing video games, he loves it and can talk all day about his knowledge or facts about those themes, he particularly acts chill when he is around a lot of people, to – in his words – even things out, he also kinda gets lost pretty easily… don’t blame the guy.

His fashion is mostly composed of red clothes as he likes that color. He usually dyes his hair white; he is, in fact, light blonde, but he likes the look that the white locks give him.

He likes spicy food or strong food in general, even going out to experiment sometimes with spicy sauces or peppers.

Backstory:


Why did you become a Substitute Shinigami:


::Combat::

• Strength: 200
• Skill: 150 200
• Speed: 150 200
• Focus: 100 150
• Constitution: 600
• Reiryoku: 900
• Reiatsu: 180

::Shinigami Arts::

• Zanjutsu: 2/5 (Since a kid, Tony has played swinging sticks like swords, he went all the way to view videos of swordsmanship to swing the stick as a sword, though it is very different to do it with an actual sword)
• Hakuda: 0/5
• Hoho: 0/5
• Kido: 0/5

Feats: None Yet

Zanpakuto: A Katana with a slightly longer and thicker blade, It's hilt is decorated with red (Tony’s favorite color), it has a little sachet tied onto the very end of the hilt, inside there are pepper dust pellets for “Flavor” during battles.

Shikai: Not Unlocked Yet

Techniques:
[Zanjutsu]

• Tripl- I Mean, Double Spicy Slash Tsubame Gaeshi - A skill-minded technique where the user strikes three times in quick succession to appear as two strikes. A missing or unread third strike was intended to be the true attack. A difficult technique to avoid, unless it's from someone like Tony, because he sometimes confuses double with triple...

Memorized Kido: None yet

Name: Mitsuaki Suzuma (光明)
Age: 20
Gender: Male

Personality: Mitsuaki has always been one to keep his true feelings to himself. On the outside he displays an aggressive, don’t touch me attitude - the years spent in an orphanage doing wonders to destroy any sort of self-love and niceties. When someone gets to know him, however, they will find the most loyal companion who has a hard time expressing his thoughts and feelings.

Even with the young man being dismissive and almost rude sometimes, he’ll stop to help those that need it, and ask nothing in return. He’s particularly weak for the elderly grandmas that will occasionally give him candy.

Backstory:

—

Why did you become a Substitute Shinigami:
Mitsuaki reversed completely once Juno died. He has been growing, had been expressing himself more, but once he lost that driving force he began to go backwards. When Juno popped up again, albeit dead, Mitsuaki didn't know what to do, since Juno brought a whole new world of souls with him.

With the pulses of the dead, though, came Hollows.

It descended from the sky one night, the chilling moon casting red shadows around the town. Mitsuaki could feel it, the presence terrifying him. Juno did his best to protect his brother, but there was only so much a ghost could do. Yeah sure, his soul was the one that it wanted, but a chance to eat a human? No Hollow would give that delicacy up.

Time seemed to stop as Mitsuaki was flung, bleeding, against a wall. Juno diverted its attention, but the damage had been done. Mitsuaki was once more at death's door, and thought that this was finally it. Twenty years gone to waste, at the hands of some…some monsters. He watched as Juno poured every ounce he could to save his little brother, his soul almost being devoured by the Hollow that was dead set on Mitsuaki being his next meal. He was going to die. He was going. To. Die.

He was given a third chance, though, when the Shinigami descended to stand in front of him. He had the strength, they said, to be saved, but only if he still had the will to fight. He didn't care about the double life, or the new responsibility. He only wanted to save his brother.

In the end, the hollow fell to Mitsuaki’s hand. Mitsuaki had done it. After he recovered and mourned Juno's true death, he was ready to pour what he could into his new life as a Substitute Shinigami. No one he loved would ever die again. Not on his watch.

::COMBAT::

• Strength: 350
• Skill: 275
• Speed: 200
• Focus: 200
• Constitution: 300
• Reiryoku: 700
• Reiatsu: 140

::Shinigami Arts::

• Zanjutsu: 1/5
• Hakuda: 0/5
• Hoho: 1/5
• Kido: 0/5

Feats:
Empty for now.

Zanpakuto:
Mitsuaki's Zanpakuto sits in a plain black sheath. The sword itself is very unassuming, as if the sheath. The only adornment that it has is two small wooden carvings tied to the hilt with vibrant red string. The two figures are of a Koi, painted Pink, and a shiba Inu painted Blue.
Shikai:
Empty for now.

Techniques:
[Zanjutsu]

• Cut of the Rising Sun - Rushing the enemy, the Shinigami utilizes their speed and precision to twist their blade to face the sky, raising it to the heavens in a sweeping upwards slashing attack.
• Hirazuki - A basic technique taught in a dojo run by the Civil Corp in Rukongai. It is simple a thrusting strike, that transitions into a horizontal swing. As the horizontal swing comes out almost immediately after the thrust, it can be difficult to avoid, and of course should one have the strength, a successful thrust can transition into a brutal killing stroke.

[Hoho]

• Flight step - An evasive maneuver, the practitioner utilizes their speed and skill to practically fly through the air, closing the distance between them and their destination quickly. Cannot be used over long periods of time.
• Jiho - "Two-step", a rather simple but practical movement technique. The user essentially moves a short distance quickly, twice, in whatever direction they desire. It can be out of harm's way, and then back into the advantageous position, or used to get behind the opponent by going around them.

Memorized Kido: None yet.

Name:
Bakuto Hokori
Age:
21
Gender:
male
Personality:
Bakuto is a jokester kind of person. Try to keep light of most situations or try to look on the bright side of things. Often enough he is on the grounds near to insubordination at times, he likes to make jokes based on many things

Bakuto loves a good fight, sparing, taking on anyone or anything in a fight. Before becoming a soul reaper Bakuto liked to scrap with anyone with simple fist fights, now he has swords, new skills and new enemies and plenty of other things to fight. While fighting though Bakuto does often get lost in the thrill of the fight, and often likes to play with those he is fighting with.

Backstory:
Bakuto's background. he is a and was a bit of a vagabond/ruffian. Bakuto was a man who 'collected' debts for a loan shark that he once owed money to. Be got this job after beating up the previous 'collector'. Bakuto was relatively good at his job but he owed the loan shark a lot of money. He had a heart of gold and often lent people money after borrowing it from the loan shark. Being the middleman, but kept whoever he gave money to but being the fall guy having to get the money back.
This also led him down the path which led to his demise, taking a job that he couldn't finish. His loan shark was ready to collect his debts out of Bakuto's own hide So in the end Bakuto went and got beaten nearly to death. To the point that his soul left his body. With the soul chain still intact.

Why did you become a Substitute Shinigami:
Why did Bakuto become a soul reaper? After he died, he was hunted by a hollow. It was a blessing in disguise, as it stopped him from fully dying. His fallen debt collectors that were beating him to death were the first things the Hollow attacked. It tore them apart
His first hollow, it looked like a pigman monster kind of thing or at least that is how Bakuto remembers this. A normal person's reaction to seeing a monster is to run, he did not punch
Bakuto fought this monster, with no powers and freshly dead this went as one can expect, he nearly died while he was already dead. The hollow nearly consumed him if it wasn't for the Shinigami that saved him. Because he had no chance in beating the Hollow. It was more less hitting a grizzly bear with a spit wad. His fists did nothing. His only saving grace was that Hollow was already being hunted. That and Hollow toyed with him, playing with its food before going for the final kill. The Shinigami killed the hollow with ease.

After the Shinigami saved him he then yelled at him for trying to fight the hollow with his bare hands. Bakuto had made a joke somewhere around saying "Should have kicked more right?' Something about Bakuto and his bravado saw him as a choice for becoming a substitute Shinigami then was given the offer. Bakuto had laughed it was at this point he was now jobless and did not have much going for him so he said yes to this whole deal. After a bit of healing and quick first aid to prevent Bakuto from fully dying the deal was made So he became Substitute Shinigami /soul reaper because he had no other choice. Giving his life a better meaning other than shaking people down for money now he can fight monsters like the hollow that attacked him.

::COMBAT::

• Strength: 300
• Skill: 300
• Speed: 1050
• Focus: 150
• Constitution: 150
• Reiryoku: 300
• Reiatsu: 60?

::Shinigami Arts::

• Zanjutsu: 1/5
• Hakuda: 0/5
• Hoho: 1/5
• Kido: -1(joke actually 0)/5

Feats: N/A

Zanpakuto:
Bakuto’s Zanpakuto is a rather lengthy katana, black and silver in design is the hilt and guard. The blade is plan and ordinary looking.

Shikai: N/A

Techniques:

• Onibi- The zanjutsu Technique that stabs the air forward to hit a fast and sudden longer range impact.
• Youho- Jump Step
• Jiho - "Two-step", a rather simple but practical movement technique. The user essentially moves a short distance quickly, twice, in whatever direction they desire. It can be out of harm's way, and then back into the advantageous position, or used to get behind the opponent by going around them.

Memorized Kido: None

Name(s):
First Sword-
Ame no Habakiri
Call:

Bare your fangs Ame No habakiri!
–
Appearance:
Appearance Pictures for reference


First sword ame no habakiri appearance-

The initial appearance of the weapon once released is that of a long sear with a special grip in the middle making this a kudayari spear allowing the grip to hold the spear in place as it spins or rotates the spear based on technique and skill.

It is a two part staff that is connected by a chain that can extend out Bakuto’s reach when he attacks with it with a big of range, The range is nearly equal two his own reastsu if now half of what it is in.
–
Y
Ability: (what is the ability? What can it do?)

ame no habakiri
It is a lighting spear/blade. Its ability is subtle at first, every time Bakuto strikes with it, it builds up energy and gets faster. With the kudayari grip he can use leverage to make the blade spin or ‘dance’ in a circle as he strikes. As it gets faster the energy build up becomes visible along the point and edges of the blade like electricity at full speed. It looks like a circle laser-like ring but it is only an optical illusion as its speed makes it look like a circle or ring of light/lightning. Burning and cutting through things as it speeds up more and more after each strike.

Zanpakuto Spirit: (describe their appearance and their personality. Most zanpakuto have goals and unique relationships with their wielders)

There are currently three spirits that reside within Bakuto’s zanpakuto. One current has no name or at least one Bakuto can hear. This spirit has almost no form other then it is a silhouette, a shadowy human figure. This is the main spirit of Bakuto’s zanpakuto and its will and personality dominate the other two zanpakuto spirits to shape Bakuto to the way to make Bakuto a more worthy master.

The unnamed spirit creates the other two. First is Ame no Habakiri, the white serpent like dragon. A dragon that is as fast as lightning, that lights up the sky, Reflecting Bakuto’s it has a narrow-minded personality, but its main job is to open up Bakuto’s creativity using what he has to its fullest power. The other is still unknown by name. Bigger and much bulker a black dragon. It is big, strong and lacking in speed. Yet it has killing intent. This one acts like an executioner and when its being used there should be no holding back. No regrets, think about the attack before attacking.

The main driving force of the spirits is to get Bakuto to become worthy to unlock his true zanpakuto. Not wanting to be used by a novice but used by a master that can understand and use the weapon to its fullest potential. Refusing bowing to Bakuto until he can prove to be a worthy master of him. Thus creating two others to teach and aid Bakuto to guide him into becoming potentially able to wield the true form of the zanpakuto.

Inner World:
Bakuto's inner world is a group of samurai temples on top of a mountain surrounded by a giant storm where the mountain sits in the eye of the storm. The main building in the middle is surrounded by a storm, winds, rain, and lightning preventing anything from entering. Each spirit has their own temple while the one for the mystery shadow cant be seen through the storm the other two are visible. They become more visible as Bakuto gets to using the weapons more often.

Name: Sara Nicholson
Age: 17
Gender: Female

Personality: Sara is quiet and reserved. When faced with new situations her unspoken motto is to mind her own business. She is typically daydreaming or sketching. She doesn’t make friends easily, but when she does, she proves incredibly loyal almost to a fault. She works and studies hard and makes sure to schedule time to relax and unwind, which for her includes gymnastics, dancing, and roller skating. Her outwardly cool demeanor betrays an underlying anxiety at having been thrown into more new circumstances than she knows what to do with it.

Backstory: Sara child of a one-night stand between and American tourist and Japanese businessman. It took her mom a few years after returning to the States to find her father online and tell him of the development. Sara’s mother did not press, but her father still helped with financial responsibilities. He was still largely absent from Sara’s life. Her mother has recently passed due to a drunk driving incident. With no other living relatives Sara has recently moved to Sagamiyama to finish high school and live with her father for the first time in her life. It is there that her strange drawings are seen as more than just strange drawings.

Why did you become a Substitute Shinigami: Sara has always had, well, she wouldn’t call them visions … imaginings, yeah, imaginings is a good word of strange worlds. White desserts under an endless night and hollowed chested monsters. Tall white pillars over a massive Japanese town and people in black kimonos. In between words filled with white cloaked figures and pointed red hats. She couldn’t help but cast them onto paper. A Shinigami saw them and when she was found dying (She fell off a bridge. It is unclear if she was pushed or if she jumped) she was offered a chance to get to know those worlds, to fight the monsters, to keep the peace. Knowledge that these strange worlds weren’t just imaginings caught Sara off guard and she took the offer, hoping to learn more, and willing to do her part.

::COMBAT::

• Strength: 150
• Skill: 150 175
• Speed: 400 425
• Focus: 400 425 525 575
• Constitution: 300 325
• Reiryoku: 600 625 650
• Reiatsu: 120 125 130

::Shinigami Arts::

• Zanjutsu: 0/5
• Hakuda: 0/5
• Hoho: 1/5
• Kido: 1/5

Feats:

Zanpakuto: Sara keeps her Zanpaktuo strapped to her back because she honestly has no idea what to do with it. She has attempted, on multiple occasions, to change the color of the sheath and as a result it is now a mishmash of multiple colors and dyes. She doesn’t hate it, but at this point she’s fully committed to the tie dye look and one day she will get it right. She has hung a shark (her favorite animal) hand sanitizer holder to the hilt. Does that help with the balance? No. Does it help when she’s covered in monster blood? Also no. But it makes her feel better and that’s what matters. The guard is a heptagon (her favorite shape, so far her sword at least makes her happy to look at) and solid with no pattern or design.
Shikai:

Techniques:

• Enhanced Gymnastics – Sara can use her Hoho to slightly amplify her natural skill at gymnastics to leap and flip out of the way, barely dodging attacks. This plays into her basic fighting style: staying out of the range of attacks and avoiding blows to send her own attacks off from a distance.
• In Progress - Graceful Slide - Sara is in the process of mastering this. A simple slide maneuver, able to low profile a lot of things. It can get a lot of distance with a running start. What actually makes this though is the recovery at the end, where the user should be able to stand up instantly, otherwise it's just a normal, clumsy 'slide'. (Technique written/crafted by Sho Minazuki)

Memorized Kido: Sara knows Bakudo Hainawa, Hado Byakurai, and Hado Shakkaho. She recently learned Hado Sōkatsui (I don’t want to give her too high power spells since she just starting out. I would like to aim to make her a Kido master and capable of blending and combining Kido however she wants, and being only limited by her creativity.)

Name:
Darius Stone

Age:
28

Gender:
Male

Personality:
Darius Stone is a fairly simple man, who has lived his life by an equally simple ideology- Those who can protect, should. With this core aim, and the morals built up around it, he has been content to live his life a day at a time, offering aid and kindness where he can, and maintaining the strengths he believes necessary to be a bastion for others to shelter behind.

While one would be in considerable error to call him a gentle or peaceful man, there is no denying that he is kind hearted, with a particular soft spot towards the troubled and the young. He is, for such people, endlessly patient, and fiercely protective, though he will push them to be their best selves with equal intensity.

Beyond this, he is an honest man, gruff and outspoken, a strong presence, and respectful.

Backstory:
Born and raised in a small Midwestern town in the United States, Darius' life followed a path that was, perhaps, predictable, or even cliche, by many standards. His father was a factory worker, his mother a veteran- and to hear Darius tell it, they were as different as two people could be, sharing only their love for each other, and the good sense to raise a boy of Darius' size with the discipline and respect to become a guardian, rather than a bully. His school life and home life were, otherwise, quite unremarkable, save those things that are common place in such a community- Schoolyard fights, highschool parties, and a small string of youthful romances that taught him where to stand up for himself, where to relax, and to guard his heart as carefully as he guarded his friends.

It was entirely unsurprising to those who knew him that, the moment he was able, Darius enlisted with the Army, sent away to training no more than a month after he graduated highschool. Here, too, his life went on as most would expect, the youth standing out as a guardian and a leader- though never, he would insist, as a hero. So far as he was concerned, his role in life was to make sure the real heros got where they were going- to protect and train them until they surpassed him by miles.

He spent ten years in service in this manner, progressing no further than Sergeant First Class, and spending the bulk of his career training others- his final years spent in a joint training unit with the JSDF, a posting that would lead him to what he believed would be his future. Here, he met the woman who would become his fiance, and make a permanent home with her in her home town, Sagamiyama...

Why did you become a Substitute Shinigami:
A mere two months after his retirement from the Army and the beginning of his new life in Japan, Darius met what he believed would be his demise. While out purchasing groceries for an evening meal with his fiance, he was struck in passing by what he thought, at first, was a vehicle, thrown into an alley and badly concussed. His vision hazy, he saw a young man sprint past him- one he could have sworn had a golden chain hanging from his chest. Then, came the monster. A vast and powerful creature, masked in white and bearing a gaping hole of black through its chest. He acted before he could process the horrors he was witnessing, springing to the defense of the youth. They escaped from sight, leaving Darius to fend off the monstrosity. It seemed as if nothing he did could harm it, and before he could think to run, it rent open his belly with a swipe of claws he never saw coming.

He saw a flash of silver, and the world faded to black.

Days later, he woke in the hospital, an unfamiliar man with a comical Pompadour introducing himself as Tatsuha Ouga. The information he revealed to Darius there came with a choice. He could die there in the hospital, as sepsis ravaged his wound... Or he could once again live his life in service and protection of others, and be saved. It was not a difficult choice, for Darius.

::COMBAT::

• Strength: 400
• Skill: 300
• Speed: 100
• Focus: 350
• Constitution: 400
• Reiryoku: 525
• Reiatsu: 105

::Shinigami Arts::

• Zanjutsu: 0/5
• Hakuda: 1/5
• Hoho: 0/5
• Kido: 1/5

Feats:
Undiscovered

Zanpakuto:
Darius' Zanpakuto is a surprisingly short weapon, about the length of a kodachi. It's tsuba is shaped like a filigreed heater shield, with silver hardware and a deep green wrap, with a matching tassel hanging from the pommel.

Shikai:
Kengouou, the Unyielding King



Techniques:
Hakuda-

• Handoburēdo - "The Ol' Knife Hand". By focusing his Riatasu in his fingers and palm, Darius has made an old military joke into reality- Able to deliver a fierce slash or thrust with his open hand, sharp as any blade.
• Gahou - "Fang Blast", a focused punch that upon impact, the user would release a burst of reiatsu, exploding and doing concussive damage. If correctly applied, is quite effective at pushing through barriers and breaking defenses.
• Shoushouho - "Twin Palm Canon", a carefully timed, heavy palm strike that delivers a powerful blast of reiatsu. Heavier than Gahou, it is used for devastating defenses or throwing enemies great distances.

Memorized Kido:

• Bakudo: Kōshi - "Lattice". By laying a lattice of reishi over the skin, the wielder may make their body more resilient to slashes of any kind, so long as they maintain focus.
• Bakudo: Fūsa - "Barricade". A broad, rectangular barrier used for access denial... or to have something to put somebody's back to.
• Hado: Tamahou - "Soul Cannon". A small, intense, and fast moving blast of reishi, as effective as a bullet.

Name: Enishi Rei
Age: 21
Gender: Female

Personality: Rei is soft-spoken, keeping things to herself than pry to sip the tea as most people would these days. She responds based on the given treatment of the situation, on how others treat her, she reflects the same respect level. Lest Rei see that person or being without dignity, then they're gladly undeserving of her time, ignoring them in the process.

While it seemed that Rei is a stickler for the rules, coupled with her bookwormlite stature, this isn't 100% true. Rei selfishly will reconsider the situation and even the person that assures her survival, as despicable as it seem, Rei only looks after her interests and will only stand up for those, whom she's indebted to. Others will be damned if they cannot sway her interests. Even so, Rei maintains a questionable moral compass, she knows what to take and whatnot.

Her philosophy and mentality even from childhood remains as ones strength over another.

Backstory: Like every elitist Japanese Household, eternal glory was something that mattered in all aspects of doing. This ranged from grades, chores, socializing and even the profession they ought to hold, Rei spent a good deal of her life, being a massive doormat to these people. The very people in her social circle that's not just her immediately family, but also friends and colleagues, she lived a life of eternal and abusive servitude.

Even when she was honors student in High School, having top grades meant nothing when she dropped out at her second year, from all the pent up stress that a Doomer like her had confidancy. Even after leaving her homestay and became a Career Woman, nothing changed, the adult life of independence was not only the beginning but also her undoing. She gave in to despair and lived a life of corporate servitude, forces to suck it up and do what she's expected of.

Nothing was interesting in her life nor thrilling except the weekends, where she could sleep soundly and have the money to buy the video games, she once couldn't afford and was restricted to play as a child.

Why did you become a Substitute Shinigami: Rei was a college dropout and your everyday career woman, her death was from overworking and for once on that day and every cubicle, she had the strong spark to rebel against her untimely demise & took the very chance to be given a second wind in life, the Shinigami who took her in, explained that the monster he killed, were draining the life out of everyone, including hers.

The Shinigami mentioned something about her eyes, reddening during that time but immediately scoffed it as the idea sounded too vague and the conversation's leading nowhere.

However, her Great Grandfather digressed, after hearing of her awakening, seeing as Shinigami and Quincy are often at each other's throats.

::COMBAT::

• Strength: 200
• Skill: 200 250
• Speed: 200
• Focus: 200
• Constitution: 300
• Reiryoku: 750 800
• Reiatsu: 150 200

::Shinigami Arts::

• Zanjutsu: 1/5
• Hakuda: 0/5
• Hoho: 0/5
• Kido: 1/5

Feats: Empty.

Zanpakuto: Rei's Zanpakuto is that of a Wakizashi, it's all plain in design and all black.

Shikai: Sealed

Techniques:

[Zanjutsu]
Kenobi – Blade Wrap
This swordplay's core is energy preservation, outlasting the enemy on attrition of defense while taking opportune strikes when their guard is down.
• High Ground - Maintaining a stationary foothold, especially having the eight pivot, Rei strikes her opponents to disarm what's described as near their vital points.

Memorized Kido: Sho • Byakurai • Horin

Name: Nina Tohsaka
Stage Name: Exilon
Age: 34
Gender: Female

Appearance:Standing at 5'4"/162cm, with the pale skin of someone steeped in nightlife, Nina is the type to put every effort into standing out from her average-heighted peers. Her short, shaggy cyan hair, which reaches to around her jawline, with its bangs tipped lime green and spiked toward her right ear, give her a neon-fueled manic pixie dream girl vibe. A vibe which is only heightened by her scarlet eyebrows and two-tone eyes, the right being yellow and the left blue. Of course, none of these colors are natural.

Nina's penchant for standing out extends to her shihakusho, which she purposely cuts short at the leg to show off everything below the mid-thigh. Which both means her well-built and powerful dancer's legs and the rainbow-color stockings that she clothes them in. These stockings have all the colors of the rainbow arranged in thick horizontal bars, starting with red at the mouth of the sock and progressing through the rest of OY G BIV down the length of her legs, repeating the pattern where shin meets ankle in thinner bars down toward her toes.

Personality:Despite being completely mute, owing to a birth defect, Nina cannot be described as "quiet". With oodles of energy that she seldom bothers attempting to contain, Nina uses all avenues available to express herself at every opportunity, including when people would prefer she not. Boisterous and opinionated, seeing her engaged in arguments is just as common as seeing her cheer others on. If anything, the rarest sight is seeing her not in the company of another person.

This energy extends to subjects that catch her interest, be they field of study, a unique character fictional or non, a culinary experience, or anything else that strikes her as something worth learning more about. That said, with music being an exception, these interests have a tendency to be fleeting, lasting a few weeks at most. Equal are the number of people who are relieved by her sudden absence and the number of people confused by their new friend seemingly moving on from them. Her longest lasting relationships tend to be those who are either capable of offering continued surprises, and those who become obsessive of her in turn. The biggest barrier, however, is whether the person in question can stomach her general disregard for boundaries both physical and social. She is already becoming well known in the Seireitei for the kinds of invasive questioning and oversharing she will engage in if given a text-based communication tool.

Given her excess of energy, it isn't a wonder that she'll eagerly attempt to overcome any challenge placed in front of her, regardless of the desires of that challenge. There are more than a few shinagami who have found themselves unwitting participants in a rivalry with Nina, though it's mostly the ones that reciprocate that find themselves unable to rid themselves of her.

Backstory:Half-Japanese on her father's side, half-Canadian on her mother's side, Nina grew up as a frequent flier between the two countries due to the requirements of both her parents' white-collar jobs infrequently allowing them to be in the same place. Born with a medical defect affecting her larynx, Nina has never been able to speak with words, and with constant travel, often found herself alone, with the handful of relationships she did form being difficult to maintain even in the age of social media. However, when she discovered the power music had to not only draw people to her, but allow her to express herself to them in a way text-based mediums could not, she obtained a lifelong passion that blossomed into a successful career as an instrumentalist on stages in both Canada and Japan.

It was the combination of past loneliness and overeager curiosity that led to her failing to develop the ability to judge character well, itself resulting in her falling into the kind of crowd that would encourage the use of recreational drugs without properly educating her on safe usage. With fame finding her at the relatively early age of 20, so do did the sort of people eager to take advantage of famous youth. Though her fame wasn't ever going to be earth-shattering due to her niche in non-vocal music (even with collaborations with other artists helping gain her a fair periphery demographic), it was this quality that made her an even bigger mark. Travelling down this path led to as many ups as it did downs, as those in the biz were happy to help her raise her star power, being that she seemed qualmless about letting them get everything they wanted out of doing so.

Ultimately, it would have been a short, sweet life.

Why did you become a Substitute Shinigami:It was while on tour in Japan, which took her to the town of Sagamiyama, that Nina got her first taste of death. It was after the encore performance at that night's show, exhausted from giving more than her all, as usual, that she took once again to illicit substances to give her the energy to get through the rest of the night without sleep. She had an after-party to enjoy, after all, with all the elbow-rubbing and shared congratulating it entailed.

As it turned out, her body could not push any further past its limits. And in her attempts to force it to do so, Nina exposed herself to a far higher dosage than what the human body was capable of processing. It ceased to function properly, alone in her dressing room. As her soul separated from flesh, chains bound her to the venue - the concert hall she had given was would have been her final performance a. Her spirit clung to the desire to entertain, to help others enjoy their lives as much as she was striving to enjoy her own.

Which in a way, turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as a Shinigami happened to be in the audience that night, and sensed the creation of a Jibakurei occurring in the vicinity. It was both out of respect for the tenacity that was necessary for a Jibakurei to bind itself to the world of the living, and out of the self-interest of wanting to continue enjoying Exilon's musical performances, that Substitute Shinigami recruiter Shouko Hayasegawa offered Nina the position. It was both out of curiosity about life after death, and out of the self-interest of wanting to continue putting on musical performances, that Substitute Shinigami Nina Tosaka was given her power.

::COMBAT::

• Strength: 50
• Skill: 300 400
• Speed: 150 200
• Focus: 75 100
• Constitution: 225 300
• Reiryoku: 1300 1325
• Reiatsu: 265

::Shinigami Arts::

• Zanjutsu: 0/5
• Hakuda: 1/5
• Hoho: 1/5
• Kido: 1/5

Feats: N/A

Zanpakuto:
A kodachi-length asauchi with a white line on its backside, running the length of the black spine. The sheath also has white lines running the length of its left side, six of them.

Shikai: N/A

Techniques:

• Hakuda
  • Ikioiho - "Momentum Step" is a fledgling combat style designed to transfer Nina's dance skills into hand-to-hand combat ability, oriented on skillful footwork. Performed to a rhythm, it incorporates spins, acrobatics, and dance moves to turn momentum into force while making Nina difficult to hit. The precise moves and footwork make use of her high Skill, while the constant motion and exertion use could only be maintained by someone with her energy levels.
• Hoho
  • Youho - "Jump Step", as the name implies, it's a kind of flash step where the user jumps up into the air. Also quite practical, and can be used to escape harm quickly. It emphasises' Hoho's need for leg strength as without enough, one might not be able to bound over their opponent, let alone Hollow who are typically larger.
  • Niseyouho - "False Jump Step", as the name implies, is a kind of flash step where the user attempts to trick a target into thinking they have jumped up into the air. Effectiveness increases with closeness of range, as an increase in the need to tilt one's head back to follow the user's assumed upward trajectory decreases the likeliness of noticing the user crouched down beneath one's line of sight.

Memorized Kido:

• Hado
  • Sho - "Thrust", produces a small amount of energy enough force to thrust a considerable amount of kinetic force at a target, which is pushed back a few feet from the practitioner.
• Bakudo
  • Seki - "Repulse", generates an orb/disk of light blue energy which repels whatever strikes it.
  • Otokabe - "Sound Wall", manipulates airborne Reishi via the user's Reiryoku carried on sound waves, forming a multilayered wall of kinetic force that is carried forward by the wake of the waveform. The speed and distance the wall travels is dictated by the volume of the sound the user created, and is generally a thousandth of the speed and distance the actual sound wave travels.

Name: Kael Arashiro (Kai-el Ah-rah-shee-roh)

Age: 19

Gender: Male

Personality:

Kael remains calm, attentive, and hard to upset, even in dangerous situations. He exudes easy confidence and maintains a polite, composed demeanor that puts others at ease. Instead of dominating conversations, he prefers listening first, reading the room before speaking.

Despite his polished appearance, Kael isn't distant or cold. He enjoys socializing, values sincerity, and often treats others with patience, sometimes seeming older than he is. He invites friends to his family home, checks on people when something feels off, and naturally keeps groups grounded during tense moments. His mother often complains that he forgets to reply to texts when he disappears for training.

Kael also has a competitive streak, especially in combat. When fighting, he becomes intensely focused, controlling exchanges through movement, positioning, and timing rather than brute strength.

At his core, Kael fears helplessness and chaos more than pain. He believes that panic makes difficult situations worse and that remaining calm and collected is crucial to handling crises.

Backstory:

Kael grew up in Sagamiyama with his parents, spending much of his childhood between the city and a nearby coastal town where much of his extended family still lives. Weekends near the ocean became a regular part of his life, surrounded by warehouses, machinery, shoreline roads, hiking trails, and bustling streets filled with noise and activity.

Unlike many of his peers, Kael was raised in a stable and supportive home. His parents emphasized discipline, honesty, and responsibility without placing excessive expectations on him. Over time, he became a reliable presence in difficult situations, quietly stepping in whenever things became unstable.

Throughout his life, Kael has encountered strange phenomena: reflections moving oddly, shadows appearing without cause, and persistent pressure in empty areas. Instead of fearing these experiences, he has gradually come to accept them as part of his world.

Recently, during a fierce storm while helping evacuate civilians near a roadside warehouse district outside the city, Kael was caught in a Hollow attack. Despite sustaining serious injuries, he stayed behind to lure the Hollow away from trapped civilians.
His bravery caught the attention of Shouko Hayasegawa, who intervened before the Hollow could kill him. On the verge of death, Kael was offered the chance to become a Substitute Shinigami.

Kael accepted without asking many questions.

Since becoming a Substitute Shinigami, Kael has found it increasingly difficult to explain his injuries, disappearances, and exhaustion to those around him. Although he remains close to his family, he now carries parts of his life he can no longer fully share.

Why did you become a Substitute Shinigami:

Kael never viewed becoming a Substitute Shinigami as heroic. After witnessing the hidden dangers surrounding ordinary people firsthand, he realized he could no longer look away once he understood what existed around them.

: :COMBAT::

• Strength: 200
• Skill: 375
• Speed: 325
• Focus: 325
• Constitution: 225
• Reiryoku: 550
• Reiatsu: 110

::Shinigami Arts::

• Zanjutsu: 0/5
• Hakuda: 1/5
• Hoho: 1/5
• Kido: 0/5

Feats:

None currently.

Zanpakuto:

A simple wakizashi without a tsuba, kept in a matte-black sheath engraved with faint spiral patterns visible only under direct light. The hilt is wrapped in dark blue cloth with loose weaving near the base. Though unremarkable outwardly, the blade feels unusually well-balanced, lighter in movement than at rest.

Shikai:

Unavailable.

Techniques:

[Hakuda]

Nagare Sen (流れ閃, Flowing Flash)

Kael deflects attacks quickly and slips in close to counterattack while still moving. It's more about timing and positioning than hitting hard.

Suiren Kōsa (水蓮交差, Crossing Water Lotus)

A close-range fighting style with layered strikes and shifting angles. Kael constantly moves during exchanges, making it hard to predict where his next hit will come from.

[Hoho]

Kaze Ayumi (風歩み, Wind Step)

A movement technique emphasizing smooth footwork and momentum over speed bursts. He uses it to stay mobile and avoid being locked into direct exchanges.

Engetsu Kaiki (円月回帰, Returning Crescent)

After attacking, Kael repositions with circling movements instead of resetting his stance, maintaining pressure without losing momentum.

Memorized Kido:

None.

⊰❖ B I O ❖⊱
❖ Name: Kashimori(flourishing oak), Yūen(elegant/grand).
❖ Age: 27.
❖ Gender: Male.
❖ Personality:


❖ Physical Details: Yūen stands at 6'1" (185.42cm) with a lean sort of sleeper build. There's muscle definition, most certainly, but it's often concealed beneath clothing. He moves with a natural grace that is neither predatory nor unassuming. Short, fairly neat, brown hair with somewhat messy bangs that fall just short of his exceptionally dark blue eyes–which are often mistaken for black in low light. There is a quiet confidence about him and a gentle sort of authority that screams "I have younger siblings!" His more casual clothes tend to consist of jackets, often in blue tones (his favorite color) and button-up dress shirts beneath, with slacks, often black in color. On occasion he'll wear rings or a necklace.

When acting as a substitute shinigami, Yūen wears a standard shihakusho with no modifications. His zanpakuto sits sheathed on his left hip.

❖ Backstory: He’d never call it a tragedy. That was a fact, but so too was it true that Yūen hadn’t had it easy. On the one hand, he was fortunate enough to have both his parents, a reliable older brother and three younger siblings to make the house rowdy and energetic as the years passed by, but on the other. Well…his father–Tetsuo– was present, sure, but only just. The man woke early, ate, went to work, came home and then buried himself in his study. Tetsuo paid the bills, sure, but everything else? He’d rather hide behind a newspaper or a closed study door. So, naturally, their mother–Kairi–did her best to pick up the slack, and where she couldn’t…there was Yūen’s older brother: Junkei. When she was run ragged, Junkei took up the slack while Tetsuo moved among the five children like he was nothing more than furniture: solid, present, but utterly without warmth.

Where their mother frayed, Junkei held the seams together. Only three years his senior, somehow it was Junkei who was always there. He was the one who broke up fights, who noticed when their sister went quiet, who sat with Yūen on the back steps after a bad day and said nothing because nothing when he just needed silence and the knowledge someone cared. Perhaps, had he stayed, things could’ve been different, but he didn’t, even if it wasn’t of his own accord.

Because, when Yūen was eleven, Junkei died. No warning, no bad feeling. Just a bad accident and a sudden emptiness where once he’d been. Yet, life went on, even if everything felt twisted and out of place, even if every load Junkei had carried suddenly fell on Yūen’s shoulders. Silently, he took on the mantle, not because he wanted to, but because there was no one else to do it. It wasn’t noble, it wasn’t fair, but it was how things were. So, he carried it and moved in the way his older brother once had–without complaining, without asking for anything in return, and with as much dignity as he could manage. It wasn’t easy. His grades suffered, he lost friends because he was ‘never around’ anymore, and as high school came around…milestones passed him by. First girlfriend? Who had the time when brothers needed homework and sisters needed chaperones? First night on the town when he was old enough to drink? There was no one to go with and who’d prefer a lonely night of drinks over time spent with his dear brothers playing ball, or shopping with his sister and watching her eyes light up when she saw the ‘perfect’ outfit come together.

Yet, there was one place that Yūen just got to be himself: the dojo. He’d started at thirteen, not because it’d seemed interesting, but because the guidance counselor had suggested it. To Yūen it was practical–the discipline helped him focus and keep things together for his family–and realistic. After all, the world was a dangerous place, Junkei’s accident had proven that much, but there were other things that could be fought, could be defended against, so he trained.

He was still there, every day and every night…for his mother…for his siblings, but he had one place where the world went quiet except for the sound of bodies moving and voices rising with every strike. As time went on he moved out, found his own apartment–nearby home of course–and he kept helping. He packed lunches, checked homework, and for the youngest, his brother Kei, he sat by the bed when the nightmares were worst and Kei just needed to know he’d wake up not alone.

Yūen carried that structure further, but eventually siblings blossomed beyond needing their older brother all the time, even little Kei. Yet, it seemed that life wasn’t done playing tragedy with their lives, as one night, during a family dinner…perhaps attracted to the repressed emotions of his mother, something he couldn’t even see attacked.

A hollow.

That was when things really changed. For the better? Well, only time will tell.

❖ Why did you become a Substitute Shinigami: Duty. Desperation. Instinct. When he was confronted with death he accepted the pact not to save himself, but because he felt that if he did not, his family would perish, both in the moment or that they would hurt in his absence.

❖ Recent Events: Though he'd done his initial work and 'training' as a substitute shinigami for some time after he became one, Yūen–roughly two months ago–had to cease his 'normal' patrols and duties as a substitute shinigami due to real life responsibilities. Specifically, one of his rarely visiting high profile clients showed up, a certain Don Kanonji, and he had to attend to the man in order to pay the bills. Only recently has Yūen finished his work with Don Kanonji, thus allowing him to return to his work as a Substitute Shinigami, and now with the assurance that the bills will be paid for awhile!

⊰❖ C O M B A T ❖⊱

• Strength: 100 (Physicality - Zanjutsu)
• Skill: 300 (Technique/Precision - Zanjutsu/Hakuda)
• Speed: 300 (Athletecism - Hoho)
• Focus: 500 (Rei control - Hoho/Kido)
• Constitution: 150 (Durability/Resilience)
• Reiryoku: 1000
• Reiatsu: 200

⊰❖ S H I N I G A M I A R T S ❖⊱

• Zanjutsu: 1/5
• Hakuda: 0/5
• Hoho: 0/5
• Kido: 2/5

❖Feats: N/A

⊰❖ Z A N P A K U T O ❖⊱

❖ Sealed Appearance: White sheath with a standard silver-bladed Asauchi. The hilt is composed of four diamond-shaped sections. The grip itself is wrapped with black and white blue fabric, the blue fabric trails off the end two feet.

❖ Techniques:


❖ Memorized Kido: