[Spirit Class 4] Rangiku Matsumoto [Frost_Rei]

○ Name: Rangiku Matsumoto ○ Alias: Professor Matsumoto ○ Age: 200~ ○ Gender: Female ○ Race: Shinigami ○ Affiliation: Gotei United, 8th Division ○ Birthday: September 29th ○ Marital Status: Single ○ Sexual Orientation: heterosexual ○ Height: 5'7 ○ Weight: 126 lbs ○ Hair Colour: Strawberry Blonde ○ Eye Colour: Blue

An easygoing presence within the Gotei, Rangiku proves herself to be friendly and confident, albeit rather immodest in how she dresses and presents herself. She often has a casual air to her, being rather laid back and sociable with others, perhaps being a little too overfamiliar. Though over time she’s grown out of it, she still has her shows of laziness when it comes to low-stakes work and diligence.

To the untrained eye she may appear to be self-centered and inattentive of things, she in fact is extremely sensitive of others’ feelings and is capable of reading others and giving good judgment or advice for more emotional matters. Though it isn’t apparent in her casual day-to-day, Rangiku is in fact very capable in investigative and combative situations, often using manipulative tactics in order to get the upper hand in a tough situation.



Nothing but a small girl dwelling in the poorer districts of the Rukongai, fate would not turn it’s head until she was rendered weakened from a part of her soul being taken by Aizen and his men. Left to die alone, it wasn’t expected that someone would come across her and save her - a silver-haired boy about her age with an armful of dried persimmons, introducing himself as Gin.

Having been fed and allowed to regain her strength, Rangiku and Gin had decided to live together, quickly becoming friends, though the boy would often leave without telling her, causing upset and confusion as to what he could be up to. Despite this, since their meeting she had begun to keep track of time, and when she revealed she did not remember her birthday when asked, Gin declared the day they met to be it.

Though she finally managed to catch Gin before he slipped off without saying a word one night, but this time he was dressed differently, garbed in the black and white of a shinigami shihakusho. She called out to him, but he wouldn’t face her, his only response being that he was to become a Shinigami, to change things, so she wouldn’t have to cry again.

She would go on to join Shin’o not too long after his departure, though Rangiku never truly had the same connection with the boy again, completely unaware of his aims or what was stolen from her.

Her growth into a proper Shinigami came with time, eventually graduating and joining the 10th division, fulfilling her duties, even if she had a few streaks of laziness in such fulfillment. An occurrence with a young boy at the market had turned into her telling him to become a Shinigami, having noticed his rampant potential and the accidental harm being dealt to his loved one because of it.

Years later, her original captain had vanished, succeeded by Toshiro, the very boy she had encountered. Times had become far too interesting all of a sudden; the appearance of invaders in the Seireitei, as well as the supposed murder of a captain. It was a time of chaos, having been confronted with what looked to be the horrid true nature of her old friend as he betrayed the Gotei, and later dying betraying the one whom he appeared to side with. Even with the atrocities he had committed, she still could not help but cry for him, and mourn. She decided to move on, having nothing left to tether her to him, though she hadn’t long before more tragedy would strike.

World War Three; she was involved in the final assault of Karakura Town by the demonic, their forces falling apart bit by bit until she herself was struck down after a long, intensive conflict, once again pushed to her deathbed, though she miraculously made it back to Soul Society and was immediately taken for treatment. Her wounds were grave, but she didn’t relent, she didn’t let death take her - she had to live on for whoever was left.

Though she came out the other side of the treatment, she decided to resign from her position - her injuries were too severe for proper service anytime soon, remaining hospitalized for a good few months of recovery before she was able to push through and be out and about again, not once through such a harrowing experience did she lose her lighthearted attitude or compassion.

Her role in the Gotei was mostly for assisting with smaller things like paperwork and the like for a while, though having spent a significant amount of time doing nothing but healing, she decided to expand her horizons into a more supportive role, acting as a therapist for a good while, especially being a support to any who were involved in the war.

After a few years, Rangiku entirely focused on studies, having grown an interest in helping out the younger people training in the academy, and thus wished to become a professor. Though her typically lazy attitude seeped in at points, she was dedicated to honing her skills and even bettering her Shikai when Bankai still appeared to be out of reach, later going on to teach full time at the academy for several years, being well liked and comfortable in her role.

Though not long after the succession of Kagayaku no Murasaki, she heard of the event that occurred within the City of Lights - Ichigo Kurosaki, the kid she knew so long ago, had done the unimaginable. She was approached to join the new 8th Division, accepting such without hesitation.



High Reiryuko
Despite having a part of her soul robbed from her as a child, Rangiku still has managed to become a formidable power, her spiritual energy growing significantly over time, even if her latent potential was stunted by the theft. Even with such an event, she carried on life just fine, unaffected after recovering. With time, further training, and maturation of her abilities, it could be confidently said she’s surpassed her prior level.

Naturally High Strength
Even after her terrible wounding from the war, Rangiku possesses an abnormal amount of strength, being able to take or block blows from beings much bigger or stronger than her. She easily stops heavy attacks with a single hand with no visible struggle, and has been known to knock people out with a kick or punch even when holding back.

Tactician
Rangiku presents herself with a remarkable amount of competence when navigating a battle situation, able to manipulate things to her favor be it through feigning injury or riling her opponents up. She’s able to get a read on her opposition rather quickly and know how to react in turn, such a skill never waning even during her years out of combat.

Expert Swordsman
Overall her most pronounced skill, Rangiku has consistently proven herself extremely adept in swordsmanship, primarily using her Zanpakuto in combat situations. Especially with plenty of time to train after her recovery, her skill in the sword has only improved over time, able to hold her own without even needing to release Shikai as readily as prior unless things become rough or her opponents have become too numerous.

Hakuda Aptitude
Though not her go-to in combat, it’s definitely a strong second skill set for her. Paired with her incredible natural strength and additional training and studying throughout the years, while she hasn’t much in the way of specific technique she can deliver a competent performance in bare-handed combat if it’s required of her, using her strength to her advantage to dispose of enemies.

Kido User
While not her go-to in combat situations, Rangiku has further expanded her studies and practice of Kido in order to aid in teaching, being able to comfortably use higher leveled spells without incantation and manipulate them to a degree. She doesn’t show talent in creating novel spells, but her usage of kido is plenty competent.



Zanpakuto Name | 灰猫 Haineko (Ash Cat)

Appearance Haineko takes the form of a straight bladed katana, the blade bordered by a tsubasa with two points, resembling a cat’s head and ears, the sheath and handle both being a dark red.



Release Phrase | Growl, Haineko.

Appearance
The blade of Haineko dissolves into a fine, dark gray ash, Rangiku being able to control how much of her blade dissolves at a given time.

Shikai Ability
Haineko’s blade turns into thousands of tiny blades, able to disperse into a cloud of ash that Rangiku can manipulate the direction and density of at will, unable to be harmed by touching them herself. By coalescing and directing these blades with a swipe of the hilt, Rangiku can deliver sudden, difficult to predict attacks unto her opponents. The reach of the ash is directly proportional to her tier’s level of influence.

Techniques

猫輪舞 Neko Rinbu (Cat Round Dance)
When the Shikai is released, Rangiku can direct a giant cloud of ash in the direction of her opponent, and once they are engulfed, can trap them inside by motioning her hands, creating a tornado that is difficult to escape from without getting shredded. However, significantly powerful blasts of energy such as multiple or a single high-powered cero can disperse the tornado.

猫竜巻舞 Neko Ryuukenbu (Cat Tornado Dance)
Though orchestrated much like it’s parent ability, Rangiku is able to increase the speed and density of the tornado for any trapped inside, turning the prison into a deadly storm, swirling blades tearing apart any who reside within the trap. It is expelled in the same way Neko Rinbu is.

猫仮寝 - Neko Kashin (Cat Siesta)

By thrusting her hilt in a given direction, Rangiku can create a solidified barrier of ash to block an attack. The size and shape of the barrier is up to Rangiku and however much ash she has free. The barrier only stays up for as long as Rangiku is focused on it. Significantly powerful direct hits can break the barrier down.

猫飛爪斬 Neko Hisouzan (Cat Leaping Claw Slash)
By thrusting her hilt downward, Rangiku can send a condensed, wave-like torrent of ash to barrage her opponent in a sea of blades. She is unable to redirect the wave of ash once it has been unleashed, only disperse it if she wishes to stop it’s advancement. The maximum stretch of the ash is proportional to the amount available for Rangiku to draw from in addition to her tier’s level of influence.

猫荒撃 Neko Kougeki (Cat Savage Attack)
By rapidly swinging her hilt, Rangiku can send a flurry of blades constructed from the ash cloud flying toward her opponent, able to redirect the attack with a hand as long as it has not struck anything and remains within a 50 meter range.



General Skills

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

Shinigami Skills

• Zanjutsu: Advanced
  
• Kido: Adept
  
• Hoho: Adept
  
• Hakuda: Advanced
  

Will Skills

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

SAMPLE

A series of 'aww's came from a class of disappointed students, the red-headed professor having broken the news that she had arranged to return to working for the Gotei proper, ending her teaching days for the next while. She'd sigh, clapping her hands together and smiling,

"Alright everybody, even if i'm not gonna be your teacher anymore, you better keep up with your lessons and be good to your other instructors, kay? I'll still be around, and i'll know if you've been rude or lazy. I wanna hear nothing but good things!"

She'd cross her arms, straightening up, and looking at her class with a somewhat stern look as they'd all answer back with a series of 'yes's and 'okay's, smirking in turn, "Okay then, good luck everybody! We're dismissed."

Though on her way to leave, several of her students stopped her, saying goodbyes, giving her hugs, overall being very upset that she wasn't going to be teaching anymore. It warmed her heart to see how much those kids cared, even if she had to be tough on them at times. She was gonna miss them and her instructor work plenty herself, but there was no way she was going to turn down a request to return, especially at a time like this. She was well and able; there was no staving it off.

Ichigo, Her thoughts turned to that boy she knew so long ago - he and his friends - and it seemed he was back to doing what he specialized in; making a huge ruckus from what happened to the City of Lights, What're you doing?

She had thought he along with many others had perished in the war, so to hear his name come back up was rather unexpected, then again it seemed even obscurity didn't stick on him. How much could he have changed in so much time, especially to go attack a city? Rather, she felt like his reasoning for that was hardly different than his reasoning for his invasion on the Seireitei, at least that was what she hoped, for some reason to it.

It'd all get figured out eventually, she decided it wasn't a great idea to stress over it. There was plenty of new and old faces in the Gotei to get acquainted with first.