[SC 7 | HR D] Isamu Hagane

○ Name: Isamu Hagane ○ Aliases: ▕ Thousand-Fold Hagane ▕ The Kudo-Kai's Corpse Piler ▕ Globe-Trotting Garrote ○ Age: 29 ○ Birthday: March 31st ○ Gender: Male ○ Race: Human ○ Affiliation: Himself, whoever pays most ○ Alignment: ??? ○ Marital Status: Single ○ Nationality: Japanese ○ Special Skill: Chopping ○ Ideal Mate: Big Heart, Bigger Breasts ○ Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual ○ Height: 6'5 ○ Hair Color: Black ○ Eye Color: Black

When it comes to interacting with others, Isamu is a fairly relaxed individual at his core, a man who commonly carries himself with an air of playful nonchalance. He makes it a habit to approach everyone equally, displaying a welcoming aura that is both charming and amicable. Always abiding by the golden rule of treating others the way you would wish to be treated, he is a man who rarely seeks to make enemies of others. His sole aim is always to enjoy the pleasures of life. To adhere to his own somewhat respectable standards.

That isn’t to make it sound as if he’s some happy-go-lucky guy(spoiler alert: he’s not) who just wants to glide by in life, he just reasonably avoids tying himself into anything that would compromise his status quo. A self-proclaimed hedonist by nature, he is often the type to engage in any and everything that he views as worthwhile entertainment. Whether a well-fought battle against a formidable opponent, a fine drink with good company, or frequently sharing his time with beautiful women, Isamu will surely indulge himself in it to the fullest.

His philosophy is simple. A life without complication is a life lived well. Of course, the only exception he makes to the rule is typically when he intends on filling his own pockets, where he has to carry out a mission as somebody’s hitman since that equals the quickest route to the quickest profit in the shortest amount of time. He is not bereft of a moral compass, however. At no time will he hurt anyone he views as an innocent party, nor does he expect others to tag along whenever he has to dirty his hands to put food on the table. His life is his to command, and so he prefers following it on his terms, avoiding growing close to too many people in fear of losing them to a situation they had no prior connection to or endangering their lives over his particular brand of issues.

Which brings us to the last trait that defines him most. Honor. Isamu maintains a sense of honor above all else in his life. What does honor mean to him? To be certain, it is quite simply the act of always ensuring that he did the right thing to the best of his natural ability. He may go against a lot to earn a living in life, but he will never go against his word. He’s no modern-day bushido by any stretch, but he sincerely adheres to the philosophy that some of those moral codes embody. Sincerity, responsibility, loyalty, tranquility, and enjoying one’s life to the fullest, leaving behind no regrets when you pass on. There is no greater fulfillment than staying true to his word. After all, if a man isn’t sincere, then what does he stand for, really?




“If you were to give me a sword
I would stand up and fight for you.”

From the moment he was born, Isamu was burdened with a life of poverty and misfortune. He was the product of a progenitor who wanted nothing to do with him or his mother - the very woman he slept with. Luck was so elusive that it felt as if it might well be nonexistent. As a newborn, the concept of home was nonexistent. Needless to say, that didn’t change even when he could walk on his own two legs and utter a few words of intelligible speech. He was viewed as trash by the world, and so too was his mother, and anyone who passed them by on the streets spared no effort at reminding them of how useless they were to the world. Yet, Isamu thought otherwise. For a woman who still chose to give birth to him despite the weight she would be burdened with, she still gave birth to him. She still nurtured him.

To her, he was no lost cause, far from a wasted effort, far from a mistake. He was her one true joy in this world. She was a gentlewoman at heart. She never blamed him for their lot in life, and though one could always discern a worn countenance, she remained vibrant in spirit. Moving from home to home, he rarely occupied a stable household for long. A stable household required a stable income, and there was no real sense of stability in his life. Even so, if one were to ask him, it wasn’t entirely a tragedy. What he lacked in being able to socialize with other kids, he gained in interacting with spirits. In a way, those spirits, ephemeral and short-lived, were the closest thing he knew to friends.

Of course, that spiritual awareness was a double-edged sword. With the influx of spirits in the living realm, hollows were never far behind. Time and again, he and his mother were always running for their lives, praying that a Shinigami was always within the area and that they might be saved another day. It was a common routine. Both of them quickly grew accustomed to it before long.

Honestly, as insane as it may sound, even as a child, Isamu believed he and his mother would die one day, and that a Shinigami would not be there to save them. In his mind, death was indeed a foregone conclusion. And yet, even for all the misfortune he had experienced until now, he finally chanced upon a stroke of luck. A metaphorical jackpot. One night, when they could no longer run away from a hollow, a swordsman stepped between them and the mindless beast.

He could barely make out his form, but the image he saw that night had been imprinted into his memory forever. A wandering swordsman with peerless technique; such was the physical image of their savior. From his form to the way he moved his blade, the flawless essence of his prowess, every single minute detail had been burned into his mind. To Isamu, it was as though he were witnessing the prowess of a modern-day samurai. The battle had hardly been anything close to an arduously drawn-out affair, but it didn’t need to be. His life’s vision had already been captured. His symbol of aspiration had been decided at that moment. Then, it clicked.

Ah, if I could wield a blade just like that man, then I could protect her. I could turn our life around with a single blade.

From that moment on, his mind continued to relive that single moment, mapping it out as his turning point even as a young child. He would wield his sword to protect those he cared for. But he needed a sword first to make his dream a reality. He would wander out of the shelter in search of anyone who would teach him how to fight. Doing so unannounced, made his mother uneasy. Still, he was determined to see it through. If he could find one person who would take him under his wing, he would achieve his first step. He could make her understand his intentions.

To his surprise, he would cross paths with a decidedly supernatural human. Whose talents went well beyond mere spiritual awareness; a swordsman with an array of specialized techniques, tailored around a weapon or object of choice. The man referred to it as mediumship. The ability to affect one’s surroundings with spirit energy. He was an older man with a gray beard and wrinkled skin, his features a telltale sign of a man in the declining age of his sixties.

Yet, in contrast to his age, his personality was exceedingly lively. Age bothered him little. He could move as well as any young man or woman. Furthermore, he was nothing like the man he saw that night. He was unabashedly quirky, hardly the image of a stern swordsman. His name was Daido. At the start, Daido takes advantage of the young man by making him run his errands as a way of testing his mettle, testing his patience to see if he is truly serious about taking up a sword. After several months, the eccentric swordsman had finally brought him under his wing.

No, more than that, he gave Isamu and his mother a home in the Hagane Household. For the first time in both of their lives, they had finally come to know what stability felt like. Daido’s decision was initially met with opposition from his family, but since he was the patriarch, no one questioned him. In his words, he had high hopes for the young boy, and his mother was respectful enough that he felt more than justified in his decision to welcome them in.

This marked a significant shift in Isamu’s life. There was no longer any fear of imminent death around the corner. There was a warm bed. A supportive household. A happy mother. Before long, Daido discerned that Isamu possessed supernatural capabilities. It went beyond commonly seeing spirits to being able to cultivate a specialized ability tailored to his form of combat. Since that was a requirement to master the Hagane’s unique style of swordsmanship, he took to training the young boy with a madman’s zeal.

Grueling though it may have been at first, Isamu issued no complaint and voiced no dissatisfaction. For the man who had decidedly changed his life for the better, he would gladly go to war with Daido if he so asked. His hard work bore fruit by the time he was a teenager. His body filled out well with noticeable musculature, he hit an early growth spurt, and he was capable of winning his fair share of duels. By all accounts, Isamu’s life was truly trending upward. A turn for the better in every sense. And yet, as though fate saw fit to test his mettle again, he encountered a worst-case scenario when he reached his years as a young adult. His mother had developed a chronic illness that required extensive treatment.

The Hagane family was able to pay for her treatments, but it was far from easy. They often had to collect and save money to provide, and though none of them had ever approached him, Isamu had felt himself a burden on these people. Part of him told himself that they were family, that this was no burden to them at all. None of their expressions or faces led him to believe otherwise, but his doubts grew. The stress of his mother slowly dying, unsure of whether she would live to see another day. The guilt he felt at feeling that they were a burden to a family that extended nothing but the utmost kindness and instruction. Eventually, Isamu grew desperate. Behind closed doors, away from their watchful eyes, he pursued ways of earning money through the quickest routes available. His initial efforts in this pursuit proved fruitless, but if he persisted long enough, then surely he chance upon something, no?

The month-long search had left him with nothing, and his already troubled state of mind grew worse still. He was spiraling. Even so, he persisted. His persistence made him desperate. And that is when he found himself crossing paths with the Kudo-Kai. To say he would have expected himself to be here after leading a fairly uneventful life would have been a statement worthy of laughter, something that would have made him laugh so hard it hurt.

But reality was a cruel master, and this unforeseen scenario was very real. Initially, Isamu was turned away at the door without so much as a consideration. But he was desperate, persistent. To inherit the burden, to place everything on his shoulders, he would do anything they required. Thus, he waited. He continued to train until he was prepared to dirty his hands. When he returned, he handled an enemy that crossed them with such relative ease that the subsidiary group that was tasked with handling him was stunned. Isamu had crossed a line that felt entirely alien to him, but there was nothing to lament on his part. He had killed a man, cut his head, and brought it back to the head of their group.

“I’ll lease myself out to you guys as a hitman. I don’t care. I need the money. Do you want someone dead? I’ll bring back a head.”

Those words were expressed boldly, with absolute clarity. There was no going back, but that was fine. He would do anything to keep his mother alive. During his time there, he experienced several exploits, each no less grisly than the last. Whoever they desired to eliminate, he learned to assassinate and kill without allowing anything to be traced back to the Kudo Kai. Isamu had become an efficient killer worth his weight in gold.

Due to his abilities, he was an ideal combatant who could handle almost anyone - mundane or spiritual. At first, he didn’t interact with anyone there. To him, it was a job. It was better to avoid connecting to anyone or anything, but it was precisely because of that avoidance that he found himself led toward meeting a man he would come to regard as his sworn brother. At first, they seemed like polar opposites. He was always on edge. Isamu was the type who believed in approaching things with a casual air of nonchalance.

Like water and oil, they offset one another. Eventually, they formed a friendship that honestly kept Isamu from truly losing his wit. Whereas before, he was distant and reticent toward the idea of interacting with his fellow men in the Kudo-Kai, now he was interacting and picking up habits that he never imagined he would have indulged in before.

He consumed alcohol in heavy amounts, he danced with the women that surrounded him and fell into a realm of pleasure to ease the stress that haunted him for a long time. Although he had never lost sight of the family that took him in, the men he met during that time were like brothers to him. They picked each other up, rebelled, and fought against anyone who dared to disrespect their pride.

He had found a second family, he had earned enough money to pay for his mother’s treatments, and everything felt as if it was coming back together. However, it was not to last, as, one day, the clan fell apart. A set-up from a rival family targeting the entire Kudo-kai in exchange for their territory and business, as well as cooperating with the Japanese police. Like that, everything he had built unraveled before his eyes.

Their group promptly disbanded thereafter. Those who spearheaded the group - the heads and family of the clan - were arrested, bearing the crimes on their shoulder alone. This allowed those who had no direct ties to disband or turn themselves in. For a moment, Isamu contemplated if that was the ideal choice. To atone for dishonoring the people he took him in, but then he thought about how that might reflect on them and simply decided to pursue the route of a hitman entirely. It had become a unique talent of his, after all. Why return to the family that would disown them if he revealed what he had done? It felt like a comical idea, one he had no desire to indulge. The life of a murderer, a man who used the blade to kill rather than protect.

When everything died down in the aftermath, Isamu decided to truly abandon the Hagane household. His topmost priority was his mother, and he devoted his life to becoming a highly-specialized hitman. He transitioned into the field of taking on higher paying bounties from the rich and influenced, and even various government officials across the world to receive payment that would allow him to treat his mother. Occasionally, he’d fail a mission and end up in prison, but his reputation and rapport allowed him to emerge with relative ease.

His talents over the years had improved to such a degree that he could certainly take on a range of difficult enemies that the average hitman wouldn’t dare. Each year up until the current day, he simply trained his body, cultivated his skill in mediumship and power control, and tempered his sword skill, repeating this routine pattern all while living life in his own hedonistic way. Living life to the fullest until he died was the only thing that mattered to him now. He certainly missed the initial dream he had fostered, wielding a sword to protect, and by his own metric, Isamu felt he was maintaining that ideal in his own warped way, even if it meant going against what he had been taught. In any case, all of that seemed to be in the past now. His life as a hitman continues to be the only life he knows outside of being the life of the party elsewhere, and if you asked him personally, he’s quite alright with that. All’s well that ends, right?



○ Charisma: Though it may serve no particular use on the field of battle, save, perhaps for invoking a boost in morale in the hearts of those with a lesser will, charisma is the trait wherein one can build a network of beneficial relationships in life, where one can ease their mind as well as those of others. Those with a level head are those who command the pace in life or battle. Isamu has a natural aura about him that never intends to impose ego, and never intends to draw himself into needless battles to save his pride. He is always composed, never fazed, and rarely angered by anything that falls into his lap. A strong warrior can inspire devotion by reminding those below him that everything will be alright, no matter how dire the circumstances are. One who will rarely lose his cool when he feels as though he’s been slighted. One might view him on a battlefield and misinterpret his casually playful air as sheer nonchalance, but once he is truly set into action, they will clearly see that there is always a purpose to his poise.

○ Peak Condition: Possessing a body that has been honed and tempered for nearly his entire life, Isamu’s body is, without any hyperbole or exaggeration, an instrument of war-given physical form. It was as if his entire physical composition was built with the sole purpose of battle. He stands at the highest pinnacle a human can reach concerning sheer physical condition, each part of his body developed to its utmost limit. Every corded muscle dances hand in hand with his nimble reflex and his ability to shift and twitch his body at inhuman angles without suffering any noticeable injury whatsoever. The blade is certainly his ideal weapon of choice, but what is a sword without a proper catalyst to execute its variable degrees of motion properly? His superhuman body is such that even if he were bereft of supernatural skill, it wouldn’t be entirely false to claim that he could effortlessly fight without the need of such boons. Indeed, he would be wholly capable - with proper tools and preparation - of facing any number of threats for hours until he has been properly exhausted. That he boasts such a frame, along with his supernatural skill, only makes him all the more dangerous as an opponent. Strength, speed, stamina, senses, agility, reflexes, accuracy. All of it has been trained to withstand the rigors of battle without a misstep in his charge.

○ Martial Prowess: Descending from a household housing several warriors who excel at the art of swordsmanship, Isamu is a prodigy with a blade. There are certainly several other weapons he can wield effortlessly and with relative ease if he studied hard enough, but none of them reach the sheer level of artistry displayed when he wields the katana. There are times when this man will rarely take anything seriously, but one undeniable truth remains. His swordsmanship is his symbol of honor, his symbol of the effort he poured in day in and day out to reach the realm of martial prowess that is only spoken of in myth and legend. Whether executing an array of strikes or a single stroke, it is rare to see any technique employed in acts of impatience. Each swing of his blade is always executed with the intent of achieving the ideal result.

A single cut that can kill his enemy. One sword gives rise to ten thousand, ten thousand gives rise to one. He is far from foolish to assume a single stroke can subdue any opponent, of course - let alone the vast number of spiritual entities that define the realms, and he is almost assuredly prepared to implement as many cuts, as many techniques, and as many stances as possible to ensure with utmost certainty that he achieves the intended result. In battle, his style can commonly be described as “one who effortlessly soars from one place to another - moving impeccably as he does ominously - like a predator in the wild biding its time until the moment of opportunity is at hand. When he strikes, it is as if he is attacking with the force of lightning behind every swing, ruthlessly cleaving through those who lie in the path of his steel.” Grace and might, seamless fluidity, and ruthless aggression. He is a combatant who thrives in the art of killing.

○ Flow - Energy Efficiency: Quite simply, it is a skill cultivated over the years to handle the rigors of a difficult battle. By and large, some express their energy emission in destructive bursts, and those who regulate it with careful precision, administer a decisive attack when a moment of opportunity presents itself. Of these two, Isamu falls unequivocally into the latter. Technique is important, maintaining mindful awareness of how one’s energy is being released is crucial in deciding victory or loss. Through years of trial and error, Isamu has refined his reiryoku to such a degree that he can at times appear as though he has no spiritual pressure whatsoever, muddying his emission of energy to such an extent that it’s hard to pinpoint him without a concerted effort on his opponent’s part. In addition to cloaking his spiritual pressure, this efficient ability to manage his spiritual flow allows him to effortlessly maintain his endurance in a battle for long periods. In a battle of attrition, he can undoubtedly hold his own, and he can control the pace of his energy until he views an opportunity to employ greater techniques.



○ Mediumship: Among the array of versatile skills that are granted to a human with supernatural capability, Isamu commonly displays an affinity for the art of mediumship. After all, this, too, was common practice among his peers who adhered to the way of the sword. Studying and adapting the principle for countless years, cultivating the skill to the most reasonable pinnacle he could achieve so far in his lifetime, Isamu has reached a level where even should he find himself without a blade, the terrain itself will become his ally—his blade. His primary blade already encompasses a category that is on par with a spirit weapon or zanpakuto, but that does little justice in laying out the overall scope of his mediumship.

An all-rounder by nature, anything that graces Isamu’s hand can and will be employed as a weapon if it leads to efficiently eliminating his target. Firearms can be amplified to such a degree that a single bullet will feel more akin to an explosive being set off against one’s body. A grenade can encompass the range of a small bomb. The shape of handheld weapons can be shifted to suit his affinity for the battle at hand. Furthermore, with enough preparation, the area itself can become a domain where he thrives best as a fighter, misdirecting his opponent’s sense of direction with elusive subterfuge and overwhelming offense.

When focusing the entirety of his spiritual energy onto a single area, Isamu can achieve incredible feats that defy the laws of common thought, expanding his influence to invoke phenomena such as turning the ground beneath his enemy into a sea of blades - turning weeds, reeds, or blades of grass into weapons that can impale his targets from below. Fiercer swings of his blade can unleash sword strikes that can enable him to cut almost anything within the range of his vision with invisible blades, each equivalent to a powerful gust of sharp-cutting wind. Additionally, even the enemy happens to avoid the initial strikes, so as long as the blades are still within his general area, Isamu can manipulate them from a distance, drawing them back in to cut a target unawares.

○ Three Mind Principle: The Three Mind Principle is the act of assuming three mental states of mind in battle to achieve an intended effect. One must commonly fight from a tranquil realm of thought, adhering to a Zenlike focus where the mind is stripped of all distractions. When settling into any state of mind, the primary adherence is to always act with purpose. There isn’t anything inherently complicated about the process, and it is entirely possible to achieve results even without a stern degree of focus, but there must be concentration. Whether playful or intense, there must always be a focus on a single goal and commitment. Otherwise, it’s all pointless. It should be noted that he cannot employ all three simultaneously at the same time. Each requires a specific concentration and a transition period before he can move into the next. For the sake of ease, this is expressed through one post cooldown between each transition.

• Mushin: “No Mind.” The state of intense focus. By calmly releasing a breath of fresh air and halting his body so that it is still for a few moments, Isamu can lock onto a single target in his general area, tracking them, sensing them, deducing the overall scope of their spiritual power, isolating any other potential distractions short of someone employing an illusory ability to throw his mind off balance. Like a moving radar with a mind of its own, Isamu can track his enemy from long distances, well beyond his general area, allowing him to operate with the calm and lackadaisical poise that befits his disposition. At maximum, he can track an opponent up to 200 meters before he loses track of them entirely.
  
  
• Zanshin: Remaining mind. Zanshin: Remaining mind. The state of relaxed awareness. By expanding his Reikaku around him, Isamu can maintain a poised alertness about him, expanding his overall perception of his immediate radius, and maintaining an acute awareness of his enemy’s movement. Expanding his spiritual pressure allows him to build on this ability by creating a sphere of spiritual energy that allows him to pinpoint his opponent’s steps, executing a quick and decisive strike whenever they step within his space. The maximum radius of the sphere extends to thirty meters. For comparison, these quick strikes are likened to a Shinigami's Shunpo in nature.
  
  
• Fudoshin: The immovable mind. The state of equanimity. Fudoshin is an ability that scales off of Isamu’s physical augmentation. By achieving a state of absolute stillness, he can receive a passive enhancement where he reinforces his body, elevating his physical constitution slightly beyond its normal scope. He can still certainly be damaged to a degree, but one will find that his durability and physical fortitude make both endeavors an exercise in grueling difficulty without a concerted effort on the attacker’s part. Of course, it is only employed for defensive purposes, since he can’t move from a single spot when activated. When in a state of absolute stillness, his physical capabilities are increased by 200%. If he is taken or forced out of this concentration the ability is rendered null. As a result, he has to endure a one post cooldown before he can utilize the ability again.

○ Senbazuru(千羽鶴, Thousand Paper Cranes): The fundamental form of swordsmanship taught to him by his grandfather, Senbazuru is a martial art that focuses primarily on the connection between the body and the soul. It is the expression of the Hagane family's swordsmanship, a group of highly specialized humans who studied and employed mediumship to better equip themselves and fight against supernatural threats. Any practitioner who raises a sword to study this versatile art ought to be ever mindful of their spiritual pressure and their physical faculty. On account of this being a sword art that specializes in cutting through the supernatural, their body should be equivalent to a container that can effortlessly consume and release energy in one decisive stroke, embodying an element wholly similar to that of Itto-ryu’s famed technique - Kiri-Otoshi. One strike gives rise to a thousand, a thousand gives rise to ten thousand - if the first strike proves insufficient, execute another to achieve the result intended with the first. Control the pace of battle, force the enemy into your realm of offense and defense, redirecting and misdirecting the flow of their blows until they stand vulnerable before your blade. Thus achieved, punish them for their error and cut them down in passing. This is Senbazuru. Senbazaru denotes the original sword style taught to him by his father. Taniori and Yamaori are a family of techniques that are more related to the original style rather than something he invented himself. Chisaku Hito'uchi is a modification of the original style, an extension created by Isamu to branch into the realm of spiritual energy emission.

Senbazaru: Sword Style

Taniori and Yamori: Branch

Chisaku Hito'uchi: Spiritual expression through mediumship, especially his main weapon Kotetsu.

• Senbazuru - Taniori(千羽鶴 - 谷折, Thousand Paper Cranes - Valley Fold): Techniques denoted as Taniori are those that function on the theme of misdirection. The purpose of Taniori is to achieve a level of mastery over several techniques that allow the practitioner to direct the flow of battle through subterfuge and the ability to act on an enemy’s weakness in the scant moment of opportunity that presents itself in battle. Oppositional in nature, it thrives on the underlying notion that all enemies are those who are supernatural in nature, those who require a level of cunning that goes beyond the scope of merely subduing the enemy, transcending into the realm of rendering their offense inert with calculated strikes of the blade, countering and overpowering their attack equally with tremendous force. Furthermore, it is the act of constant subtlety, the effortless ability to avoid rousing one’s suspicion until it is far too late for them to recover. Hiding in plain sight to strike where the target least suspects it. Like a stream of water contained within a valley, the practitioner must operate within a fluid state of tranquility. Once accomplished, like a roaring tsunami that portends great calamity, strike with thunderous force until the opponent can no longer reasonably continue.
  
  
• Senbazuru - Yamaori(千羽鶴 - 山折, Thousand Paper Cranes - Mountain Fold): Techniques denoted as Yamaori are those that are primarily offensive-minded in nature. If Taniori is that which prides itself on directing the flow of an opponent’s offensive through exploiting their weakness and constantly redirecting the force of their attack, Yamaori embodies the concept of approaching the battle with lightning-quick reflex and destructive strikes from the moment the enemy enters your radius; several techniques allow a practitioner to continuously pressure their opponent with their spiritually-infused attacks, cutting through any hindrance that obviates the path of their blade. Much like Valley Fold, it accounts for the enemy whose talents lie solely in the realm of the supernatural. Since the style, much like everything else that encompasses Senbazaru, embodies the notion of ending a conflict before it ever truly begins, it is considered the act of controlled aggression - unequivocally relentless. Each stroke of the blade is shot forth with the overwhelming intent of ending the battle in one decisive blow. When coupled with Isamu’s capabilities as a whole, it is surely a killing art to be admired.
  
  
• Chisaku Hito'uchi(千割一打, Thousand Rendings, One Strike): The spiritual manifestation of Senbazuru, Chisaku Hito’uchi is generally viewed as the all-encompassing offensive spirit technique in Isamu’s repertoire. Spirit technique is the term applied here, but it would be far more appropriate to call it the art of cultivated energy emission. There are several techniques Isamu employs with his blade, and all of them are ultimately empowered by Chisaku Hito’uchi. Through generating a degree of his spiritual energy through a weapon of his choosing - which is, to no surprise, commonly a blade by choice - Isamu can collect energy along his blade until he has gained a sufficient amount for the battle at hand. At the zenith of storing those particles of spirit energy, with a resounding swing of both arm and blade, he unleashes a destructive energy wave that can encompass a wide radius of damage. Reversely, if he decides to maintain the energy stored within his blade, his blade strikes with a force equal to that of a thousand blades being swung down on you at once, like a mountainous object had been thrown down from above. Indeed, there are several techniques, but few alone rival the energy he can exert through this spirit art.

○ Kōtetsu [甲鉄, Ironclad]: Kōtetsu is a sword bestowed by Isamu’s master. Constructed by the family’s blacksmith for him alone, it is by all accounts the weapon that holds a timeless meaning to him. It is proof of his exploits and the accolades he earned under the household of the family that adopted him without a second thought. Therefore, the blade is treasured more than anything else in his possession. He shares such a significant bond with the weapon that his body resonates with its movement to an effortless degree; wherever his body moves, so too does his blade, and both act in such unique tandem that his techniques come as naturally as breathing. No spirit occupies his sword, but he genuinely treats the weapon as though it were akin to a Zanpakuto. Several of his finest techniques are performed using this blade alone, and newer techniques are created using Kotetsu as a catalyst. Of course, there is nothing profoundly unique about the sword at first glance. Assuming it is a simple blade at first glance would be genuinely forgivable. Outside of its construction, nothing particularly remarkable stands out about it. Therein lies the deception. The true nature of the blade is a sword specifically built to handle the rigors of battle against the supernatural and to function as a sword that can be manipulated to absorb the reiryoku within its surroundings. It functions as a catalyst to release considerable waves of highly pressurized spirit energy that can cut through a variety of targets that stand on the receiving end of its blade.

○ Koketsu [虎穴, Jaws of Death]: A weapon acquired during his time as a member of the Kudo-Kai, Koketsu is a blade that holds honorably symbolic meaning to Isamu. It is a relatively durable sword that has tasted its fair share of blood over the years, a sword built solely for assassination. Through his ingenuity in mediumship, Isamu has honed this bloodstained blade into an impeccable work of art. Embodying its name, when utilizing any of his spiritual skills, Koketsu’s overall sharpness can be increased to an exceptional degree, empowering the overall cutting power of the blade to such an extent that each strike is equivalent to a ferocious shark tearing away flesh and bone with their jaws; on contact, the impact of the blade feels as though it is doubled in terms of overall striking power and sharpness, tearing into more flesh than should be feasibly capable at first glance. If one could imagine what it feels like to have several anvils with sharpened edges making contact with their skin from above, that would be an apt descriptor to confer to the overall scope of this blade.

○ Firearms: Isamu knows the type of work he dabbles in, and makes no qualms about the resources he employs when he’s called upon to do his job. As such, firearms are a pretty self-explanatory thing here. A hitman for hire ought to have a few tools beyond swords, especially when they want to avoid making a mess and leaving behind any incriminating evidence. Aware of that cardinal - at least in the context of his perspective - rule, Isamu usually makes a concerted effort to carry around a pair of firearms constructed for specialized use by those who transcend the realm of common sense. He can probably kill the average human easily enough, but when it comes to facing those who can’t die with simple bullets, that’s usually where Isamu has to dabble in acquiring guns reserved specifically for allowing his more difficult targets to taste lead. By applying his mediumship technique, he can increase the overall firepower and effectiveness of the bullets within his firearms chambers. Bullets meant to pierce can explode on impact, and those meant to explode on impact, can pierce the enemy and explode while caught within a specific part of their body. That last method can be pretty messy in particular, but it gets the job done. And Isamu is all about finishing the job… most of the time.

○ Explosive Weapons: Isamu thrives on deception and subterfuge in a battle. His typical aim is to always test his targets, gauging whether or not they can maintain a decidedly intense focus on him as he zips across the battlefield, wearing them down by applying opportunistic distractions that throw them off balance. His most favored method of doing so is tossing explosive objects in their general direction. If it can be lit with a fuse, has a trigger that can be pushed, or simply be something that creates a booming distraction, it probably occupies a spot in Isamu’s detailed collection of items. Power control and Mediumship allow him to manipulate the explosives in question. Grenades and bombs of his creation are usually his go-to, but if he finds the right firecracker he can play around with, he won’t hesitate to use those, either. As they say, all’s fair in love and war.



General Skills

• Durability:Adept
  
• General Speed:Adept
  
• Strength:Adept
  
• Martial Skill:Advanced
  

Human Skills

• Power Control:Advanced
  
• Physical Augmentation:Adept
  
• Spiritual Adaptation:Adept
  
• Mediumship:Elite
  

Will Skills

• Willpower:Adept
  
• Mental Deduction:Advanced
  
• Focus:Advanced