[Spirit Class 5+ | Hazard C] Kokoro Kuchiki

» Name: Kokoro Kuchiki (formerly Shihoin)
» Alias: Kokocchi
» Age: 27, as of 2422
» Gender: Female

» Association:
-Gotei United, 3rd Seat of 6th Division
-Kuchiki Family
-Shihoin Family (Formerly)

» Appearance:



To put it as simply as possible, Kokoro is not a hard girl to understand. She says what she means, rarely minces her words, and does what she wants to (within reason, of course). She takes the most direct course of action, seeing anything else as being a waste of time, too hard, or possibly just not thinking of any other course of action in the first place. Kokoro doesn’t like particularly complicated things, and if you present her with some sort of brainteaser, she’s more likely to ask why you’re doing something so boring rather than actually trying to answer the question. Of course, this simplicity does not come without its positives. Rarely does Kokoro hold much of a grudge toward anyone, and there is a level of almost childlike kindness that permeates everything she does. She holds her family and friends dear, and hates her enemies with a fire that can scarcely be quenched. Seeing things in a fairly clear way, her perception is rarely clouded by preconceived notions of what is and is not.

Everything that Kokoro does, she does with all her heart and soul. Anything she thinks is worth doing, she considers worth her full attention, and she will throw herself into any goal she sets with what borders on a reckless abandon. Of course, that is not to say that she puts no thought into the goals she sets for herself. If anything, she puts perhaps too much thought into them, dedicating herself to her original course of action and almost never willing to deviate once that has been set in place. Kokoro is someone who refuses to back down from any challenge made, and is wholly unwilling to allow others to see her as someone who cannot give it her all.

Of course, nothing makes Kokoro more angry than being underestimated. She has grown up in the shadow of an exceptional lineage, made all the worse by her visibly obvious status as an illegitimate child. Though she presses on, to call attention to her failings is to invite immediate and extreme ire from her, and if one pushes her she will resort to violence without any remorse. Even worse than calling attention to her failings, however, is to insult her family, or even worse, to suggest she is not a true Shihoin. To say Kokoro is defensive of both of these things would be a massive understatement, and she will resort to an almost uncharacteristically cold and brutal violence with very little buildup if subjected to such taunts.


» Papa Shihoin: While by and large Kokoro is seen as an outsider by the Shihoin family, Papa has always treated her not only as a respected member of the family, but as if she were one of his own children, and his kindness has left a lasting impression upon the girl. It would be no exaggeration to say that he is her greatest role model in life.



Born to Chishiki Shihoin and a Suika father she has never met, Kokoro’s upbringing is one which could best be described as “very good considering the circumstances.” Chishiki Shihoin, while not an especially noteworthy member of the family, was always a genuinely hardworking and proud Shihoin. She was strong of will, very skilled in the traditional arts of the Shinigami, and by and large was seen as an exemplar of what the Shihoin always strove to be. Yet, she had taken a lover outside of wedlock, and far more egregiously, borne a child from him. Such an act earned her disapproval and quiet scorn from many in the family, but she would never let such a thing influence her little girl.

Despite Kokoro's obvious physical differences, Chishiki never acted as though anything was different about Kokoro when compared to any other child. Kokoro was just the same as them, a proud Shihoin. She could be whatever she desired, whatever she tried to be, and Kokoro took those words deeply to heart. The young girl pursued the arts of the Shihoin with perhaps a reckless abandon, outright demanding of her mother (and others) that they teach her as much as she could possibly learn, until she ended each and every day bruised, battered, and barely able to stand. When other children of the family excluded her or mocked her, she simply ignored them, pushing herself ever further in pursuit of greatness. Such passion caught the eye of Yushiro, and while many saw Kokoro only as a half-breed, he saw instead what she was; a noble girl who sought to embody the Shihoin.

This recognition only reinforced her desires, and soon it became apparent that even those who would teach her among the family would not be able to sate the girl's outright unquenchable desire to learn. Kokoro was sent away to Shino Academy, and within those walls she finally found...companionship. It was true that her family had shown her recognition, but always among them she was still an outsider, a half-breed, a girl aiming far too high for her own good. But at the Academy, she was just any other student. She took well enough to her classes, and her understanding of each subject was impressive compared to the typical student. This was, of course, mostly simply by merit of the time she had spent in her youth already learning such things, rather than any particular talent for it. She returned home within 4 years, and though only her mother came to see her graduation, it was still surely the proudest day of her life.

As it stands, Kokoro now still lives among the Shihoin, training herself day in and day out with no particular goal in mind other than to prove that she can do anything she puts her mind to. Her confidence is remarkable, and for her age, she has developed a fairly impressive mastery of multiple techniques that most might find difficult. She has been asked to return to the Gotei, considering her prowess, but she does not consider herself ready. After all, Yoruichi Shihoin was far more accomplished than herself. It wouldn't do particularly well if Kokoro joined and made such a poor impression of the family by comparison. So she waits, and she trains, and she enjoys her life to its absolute fullest. For now, she still sees her journey as only just beginning.


» Purse: It’s a purse. Has all her stuff in it. Lip gloss, snacks, money.



» Kyunpo (Smooch Step): The Shihoin name is one decidedly associated with a profound mastery over Hoho. Despite Kokoro's demeanor, laziness, and general low intellectual ability, even she has developed an application of Hoho which suits her. Of course, this was not originally designed as a combat technique, but perhaps that only speaks as to Kokoro's instinctive grasp of these techniques. Rather than Shunpo's intention of moving as quickly as possible in as few steps as possible, Kyunpo has a somewhat distinct aim; to place the user as close to their target as possible in as few steps as possible.

Originally invented by Kokoro purely as a method of actually hugging her family members before they avoided her embrace, at some point the technique was commented on as being a rather impressive grappling technique...which Kokoro, of course, has ever since claimed to be her true intent all along. Beginning as simply a step not unlike any other application of Shunpo, creating a foothold of spiritual energy, the true deviation in Kyunpo (and the aspect of it which makes the name a tad suspect) comes into play shortly after. Upon setting her foot into place, the step created is launched forward, channeled by spiritual energy in a manner not unlike the firing of a railgun. Each further step taken is treated in much the same way, pushing the user forward far faster than they might with simply their legs.

The chief downside of this technique is the rather obvious drawback that it can only push the user forward in a straight line. While an exceptionally useful ability for offense, it is in fact nearly useless defensively, as it cannot be reliably used in any other direction than directly ahead.

» Hoyoda (Hug Hits): While her Kyunpo allows Kokoro to catch a great many people off guard, it is her Hoyoda which allows her to hold them in a proper embrace. Hoyoda is a technique which allows Kokoro to use her natural strength to her advantage, making the art of grappling far easier than it perhaps realistically should be. Of course, having come up with such an idea is a level of simplicity that could only ever come from the mind of a genius...or from a child. Which one Kokoro's mind more resembles is better left unsaid, for her sake.

While at a glance Hoyoda resembles a peculiar hybrid of judo and traditional Greco-Roman wrestling, the actual truth of the matter is that the greatest strength of this martial art has nothing to do with its forms or techniques. The actual greatest power of Hoyoda is one which could perhaps only have come from someone as removed from classical technique as Kokoro is. Put simply, Hoyoda is nothing more than an application of the principles of Hoho, the creation of footholds and well-placed steps, to one’s hands. By creating handholds through her reishi after beginning a hold, Kokoro does not need to worry about the usual dilemma of having to find a good grip. No matter the situation, her grip will be as ideal as it could be.




» Zanpakutô Name: Hanabi

» Zanpakutô Spirit Appearance: Rather peculiar for any zanpakuto, Kokoro’s zanpakuto spirit seems to be in a state of constant exterior manifestation, taking the form of several small boar-like creatures which can often be seen at her side. Despite their manifestation, damaging them does not in fact significantly harm Kokoro or her zanpakuto, suggesting they may not, in fact, be the true spirit of her zanpakuto. Either way, they are the only ones she is aware of.

» Inner World: The Inner World of Hanabi takes the form of what seems to be a small town built inside of a crater, a beautiful night sky always overhead, a large tree and a waterfall both sitting on the crater’s edge, and a festival forever taking place. The town is inhabited by an assortment of people, though they do not respond to any interaction, and are completely incorporeal if one tries to touch them.


» Zanpakutô Appearance: N/A

» Sealed Zanpakutô Power: N/A



» Shikai Release Phrase: While now unnecessary due to Hanabi’s constant release shikai, its release command is, “Alight.”

» Shikai Appearance: Hanabi takes the form of what looks to be an immense, hollow nail, crafted seemingly from a single immense bamboo shoot and given an assortment of intricate golden carvings for decoration.

» Shikai Abilities:

» S.Y.H.: When activating S.Y.H., Kokoro stabs Hanabi directly into her opponent, typically punching it at the head of its nail-like formation. This does not in fact damage the opponent like normally being stabbed by the nail, and in fact it does not hinder them in any direct physical way. The up side of this is that, since the nail is not actually harming them, it is exponentially easier to stab into them than if she were out and out impaling them.

Should an opponent be stabbed by S.Y.H., they will find that any energy-based attacks they make are reduced in their effectiveness by 10%. One might consider that this is rather negligible for a shikai, to only reduce one person's effectiveness by 10%, but this is not the true power of Hanabi. This 10% reduction is not simply a cut to effectiveness, but rather, this 10% of energy is siphoned directly into Hanabi, stored within its inner world and made more volatile. There is, in theory, no upper limit to the amount of energy that Hanabi can hold, but rather obviously an excess of high-level energy would force Kokoro to either expel the energy or be torn apart by the sheer amount.

S.Y.H. has no limit to its duration, but there is also nothing that actually stops someone from pulling the nail out. This does take some effort, naturally, approximately the same amount of effort that it would take to actually pull a nail of its size from their body, and Kokoro tries to simply keep up an offense overwhelming enough that the opponent never actually has the time to take advantage of this rather glaring weakness. If S.Y.H. is, in fact, pulled from one's body, the energy it has stored quickly pours out in a harmless rush, within a single post.

(In case you’re wondering, it stands for Steal Your Heart.)

» Bang!: The energy within Hanabi must, after all, go somewhere. By snapping her fingers, all of the energy Hanabi has stored is released in a single detonation, centered on the nail itself. The size, speed, destructive power, and even elemental alignment of this detonation is dictated by the person Hanabi has been siphoning power from, though as it has been made far more volatile within Hanabi's workings, one cannot simply absorb the energy as it detonates. Kokoro can only achieve this explosion once per thread, on account of the obvious risk that exploding one's zanpakuto actually has.



Skill Sheet

General Skills

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

Shinigami Skills

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

Will Skills

• Willpower: Advanced
  
• Mental Deduction: Beginner
  
• Focus: Advanced