Kabuto Itagaki, Vizard [3-5, Hazard Rank D]

» Name: Itagaki, Kabuto
» Titles: ----
» Appearance Age: Early - Mid 30's
» True Age: 416 years
» Gender: Male
» Affiliation/Rank: Formerly 3rd Seat, Gotei 13

» Appearance Description: Nearly as wide as he is tall, with ashen skin and pointed ears - Kabuto is unaccustomed to his own appearance as strangers. Scars line the distance between his wrists and elbows, with a noticeable line down the majority of the right of his torso. Faded tattoos appear across his shoulders and back, although with his current appearance they are nigh indistinguishable from skin.

Long and unkempt hair is swept back against a deep brow, dark brown in the brightest light, and all but black in the faintest sliver of shadow. Thick eyebrows hide the glimmer of bright blue eyes, where a stare across from a jagged tearing of flesh can be easily seen. From the left side of his nose down to his bottom right cheek, skin is haphazardly scarred over and less than capably set, leaving a rather twisted face in its wake.

With large and pointed ears, his sharper-than-average canines peeking beyond thin lips are little of surprise, if only particularly visible in the short windows where he smiles. This lack of general expressiveness had led to a lack of laugh lines, or general aging across the wrinkles or edges of his face - making up for his supposed youthfulness with heavy bags underneath his eyes.

Currently not of many possessions, Kabuto's wardrobe tends towards limited on a good day. A black, well worn leather cloak is generally bound across the majority of his body. This red strands tie it together, similar in color to his zankpakuto's binding.

» Appearance Picture:




» Personality: Kabuto could be most easily described as concerned. Currently under the experience of memory loss, bits and pieces of emotions choose to stick around and leave as they choose. Either as a byproduct, or perhaps the cause of some of his issues, a deep anxiety guides his current actions. A fear of what he has become versus the memories of what he once was, and whatever made him what he is.

This can result with brief flashes of anger, mostly directed inwards. Yet as they mount in frequency, they become less brief, leading to outbursts at heights of emotional instability and difficult obstacles in life. With such an unstable outward expression, his grips of morality are surprisingly stable, being a rather pacifistic soul.

Unfortunately, with this volatility, Kabuto has come to experience great difficulty at forming long lasting relationships, be they deep or shallow. Yet faint memories of ease and confidence reside in the farthest reaches of his actions, it rarely surfaces in any meaningful way. In a forgotten life, this confidence was bordering on arrogance.

The idea of swagger and self importance leave faint traces in his actions. The bluntest of phrases, a reactionary sneer at a plus, lapses of attention dragging through 'lesser' conversations - but still, no true malice. This generally gives the appearance of him being constantly irritated, yet somehow calm about it. In time, less favorable parts of who he once was will come back to him, perverting the majority of these traits.

» Likes: Feeling correct is incredibly important to him, saying that "Being right is true happiness" in a former life. He enjoys to push boundaries, understand the little things that poke out in reality, oddities, and trinkets. Big fan of Breaking Bad, and other vintage television shows.

» Dislikes: The left over vegetables in a bowl of soup, blatant acts of arrogance and bullies. Not particularly a fan of bitter foods, but has a bad habit for sour candies. Uncomfortable with the overall power structure of society, but not fully negative in opinion.



» THE EARLY YEARS are hazy - time spent before Soul Society dredging at the cornerstones of his mind. A lifetime that has been multiplied ad infimum in the afterlife, the earliest perhaps some of the brightest. The barren walls of a massive home, dim lights flickering with neglect, a lone soul walking the halls. Then blackness, for the longest time - a lone man with a sword, and then the crest of a rising sun. The dawn of a new life, one that still remains.

A Plus, the realization of a new life granted to him apparent from the start - and yet a paralyzing fear. The unknown, the idea of what could be if this was possible, primal, but welling up loudly. It would take a hundred years before he would accumulate enough strength to be recognized, and admitted, to Shin'so academy.

"Yuben'na came easily when I called...""

The eventual graduation would take another stretch of his new life, the graduation and acquisition of his asauchi burning bright among the faint strokes of history. Early laws of kido construction, reiatsu control, and a piss poor record for hakudo and hoho. But what a frame!

His physical endurance made for a large portion of his aptitude, and would lead to his joining of the Gotei 13's 10th division. Another hundred years, the stretching of an ego to fit his own size. Martial prowess would never become his strength, but an immovable wall would lead him to the position of fourth seat in his tenure.

While his position within the 10th division was fairly uncontested due to his sheer physicality, there was no satisfaction left for him. His goals had shifted, traces of a long term encounter tattooed in the recesses of his mind, but no memory of a why. This unnamed desire would bring him towards the 12th division, in part due to modifications that were being done to his Zankpakuto.

"...took to the process easily. Evolution. ... If only I could remember why..."

The process had taken years at that point, his own abilities having turned from ingenuity to straw-grasping. Having spent such time developing an alternate 'strength', the opportunity for research too shifted. A historian of some sort, he'd begrudgingly remember. A short career, with a bitter taste, and then nothing. He personally assumes this gap is the study of vizards, or in some way hollows.

"...all of it's gone. None of my research, none of the questions I was asking. Faces are blurry, names..."

The emotions remain. A great high, beyond one's imagination - completion. Then utter despair, a deep, unending longing. It aches to think about, as if part of himself is missing. This stretches into a period of twenty or so odd years of his life, the faint emotional thread the only thing keeping it all held together. When and where are suggestions, scars less likely to tell the truth than to heal.

The dazed waking, the stumbling of a giant who was stripped of his higher functions and lay bare to the world.

"...I accomplished something great, but lost knowledge of what it even was.."

The man had awoken in a massive crater, the side of a mountain having all but been collapsed on top of him. His skin dyed to ash, body aching with fractures and scars - a massive chunk of his face removed. To awake and not see someone familiar, for a name to call out back to him, the shouting of a blade.

And the mocking of an iron mask.

"...to find out who I am."

» Natural Abilities:

» Behemoth: Large. From birth till now, Kabuto has always been excessively large compared to those around him. Something in the drinking water or genetics - either way, he has been granted an imposing body, capable of withstanding massive amounts of punishment. As a mirror to this, he also possesses somewhat capable strength without the need for training.

» Deja Vu: Kabuto's memories are poorly kept in place at best, and taken hostage at worst. Mentiroso and Yuben'na have both sequestered certain memories for their own bargaining, along with their own knowledge of his actions. While not practical, in times of extreme duress, Kabuto can attempt to exchange or bargain for memories of Kido chants, or potentially drawing on more of the Zankpakuto or Hollow's power. These restorations of memory are permanent, although often done through deals one would rather be able to forget.

» Taint of Acid: In the process that turned Kabuto from Shinigami to Vizard, his reiatsu was inexplicably changed. Not any stronger or more vacuous, but different. While the taint of one's inner Hollow can be exposed with the use of their mask, Kabuto is - to his knowledge - permanently irradiated with the Hollow's 'stench', as he describes it.



» Multi-Caster: While Kido's propensity for melding and versatility is fairly well known, Kabuto seems to have an innate ability for juggling the actions of mixing multiple Kido rather easily. A form of muscle memory more than trained skill, this is often sloppy, and cannot combine or individually control more than a few at a time. Notably, the potency of any Kido becomes weaker in turn with the number he casts.

» Bakudō Specialist: The chants of a swathe of defensive Kido are sharp in Kabuto's skull. although anything past a level-forty spell is lost to him. Any combination of these techniques is not particularly clean either, with a somewhat noticeable 'lag' by any more experienced Kido practitioners.

» Hadō Novice: Early Hadō spells linger, in irregularity. Past level-ten, his knowledge is blank, unsure if anything was even there before.



» Overflowing Reiatsu: Not possessing the most reiatsu, nor the strongest reiryoku, the ebb and flow of his reiatsu is wild. In times of emotional concern or distress this exemplifies itself, causing it to form a visible aura pouring off his shoulders.

» Mask Summon: Kabuto is not particularly capable of summoning his vizard mask naturally, in fact often summoning it by accident or inopportune moments. The temperament of this is worse the more warped his own mental state is.



» Zanpakutō Name: Yuben'na (lit. Silver Tongue)

» Zanpakutō Spirit Appearance: Yuben'na takes the appearance of an older man, caught eternally somewhere between the valleys of decrepit and mountains of wisdom. A tightly tailored black suit hugs wide shoulders, an everchanging variety of ties decorating his neck. In his breast pocket, a silver chain runs loosely into his suit jacket, often noted for a 'bell-chime' sound.

Grey is pulled tightly back against his head, faint streaks of a thick black mane left in the tangles of hair. With a heavily furrowed brow and creased lines carved into his forehead, bright blue eyes still show a lust for life - a disturbing amount of energy. While his face is rather plain, a smile of solid gold hides behind rather loose lips, as to be expected for someone who rarely shuts up. Unsurprisingly, as his name might suggest, behind his glimmering teeth is a tongue of silver, pointed and sharp.

» Zanpakutō Spirit Personality: Yuben'na is a 'smooth talker', or would like you to think so. A constant whisper in the ear, an ambitious, conniving, power hungry spirit - self described as a mover and shaker. More than willing to con and viciously aware of being conned, ambitious would be an understatement. Currently, Yuben'na is incredibly frustrated, if not pithily upset, with Kabuto. A wall for most communication, he takes it out on his wielder through purposely vague explanations, and at times forcing Kabuto to chant extra apologies or promises to him in order to cast kido.

Being so single minded leaves Yuben'na in a unique situation, where anything could present itself as an opportunity - so long as it's taken correctly.

» Inner World: Narrow streets dart wildly, tall narrow buildings dwindling beyond the limits of existence and into the sky. Varying in style, age, and more often that not without any interior, Yuben'na lies around every corner. Taking a variety of appearances that vary wildly from his general suit and tie, street beggars, fish salesmen, drug dealers - anyone or anything involved with money. These appearances tend to coordinate with the design of whatever cropping of buildings the Zankpakuto has decided on, although whenever he wants to make a "point" this rule is often broken.

» Sealed Zanpakutō Appearance: Yuben'na is a guard-less katana, with a dark red cotton bound handle. The blade has a noticeable sheen, and a black stone-hewn sheath to carry it. No particular decorations or adornments, giving it a somewhat naked appearance.



» Shikai Release Phrase: "Skin them raw, Yuben'na."

» Shikai Release Actions: Currently none.

» Shikai Appearance: A long segmented blade, reiatsu visibly glows between the joints of each separate blade of Yuben'na. Each end of the blade is pointed, oftentimes being seen as coiled around Kabuto's body in some fashion when being used.


» Shikai Abilities:

» Kido Catalyst: While the ability to draw into his Shikai and Bankai are tied to Kabuto's Zanjutsu, his Kido ability is where it's actual power is derived. Originally a stiff blade that could be empowered with its user's reiatsu, it was slowly modified into a new form. Having no practical striking power in this form, Yuben'na exists mostly as a core of reiatsu, fueled in combination by itself and Kabuto. All chants must still be recited to the level of proficiency.

» Hainawa Focum: The shape and strength of Yuben'na is mostly formed by the Kido #4. Hainawa. While its resilience is bolstered by being that of a Zankpakuto, its power is maintained by the spell. This allows it to be controlled and manipulated easily, even without the guiding hand of Kabuto's direct influence. This form, as a result, can become destabilized under the strain of multiple Kido, causing it to shatter and reform into its sealed form. This does not require a chant.

» Mutable Form: The bladed pieces of Yuben'na can replicate themselves, or absorb one another, to increase or decrease the size of the whip, drawing upon more reiatsu the longer it becomes. The durability of the whip can also come into question in extremes, although the drain of energy would become an issue easily before then. The growth is fairly fast, but reducing the length takes far longer, being more efficient to cancel the shikai.

» Binding Strength: Fully resulting from its less-than-lethal transformation, Yuben'na is incredible at restraining targets. In some part due to its natural constitution as a Zankpakuto, and the channeling of Hainawa, it can hold anything equivalent with it's holders own raw strength. This pairs noticeably well with other sealing Kido, such as Rikujōkōrō. This scales with Kabuto's Strength.



» Bankai Name: Yuben'na: Akui (lit. Silver Tongue: Bad Faith)

» Bankai Release Phrase: -----

» Bankai Release Actions: Cannot actively release Bankai.



» Inner Hollow Name: Mentiroso

» Inner Hollow Description: Form comes loosely, if not erratically, to Mentiroso. Oftentimes impossible to discern in the inner world, Mentiroso lets himself most often be seen solely as his mask. Even under incredible emotional stress, this does not change - the only showing of his true form is by his own will. Yet, an obscured form is not his only truth.

Roughly of average height, Mentiroso has the visual identifiers of an Adjuchas-class Hollow. Bleach white skin pulls taught across his figure, thick black fingers sprouting from dangling arms. A massive scar seems to cross his chest in an imitation of Kabuto's, giving way to the hole in his throat.

When speaking, his mask does not falter, nor does he seem to have a mouth. A black pair of sack-pants cover him from the waist down, secured by thick fisherman's rope, Not particularly defined muscularly, his stature is fairly minimal, not helped by poor hunched posturing.

» Inner Hollow Personality: Mentiroso does not care for much if anything. A cynic in life, twisted further by the transformation to hollow and drowned in the bitterness of his newly found station. Critical, despondent, and filled with jealousy - a compulsive liar that is terrified of dying again. As a result, he often acts as the loudest voice of dissent in Kabuto's head, naysaying anything that would put them into danger, or even slightly inconvenience them. Despite this, Mentiroso does not seek to actively consume and take over his host's body, seeing it as more trouble than it'd be worth.

If the correct opportunity would provide itself, this easily changes - the orchestration of which is a favored past time of the spirit whenever Kabuto manages to sandbag his consistent whispers. These degrees of separation often seem arbitrary for whatever the hollow decides for the day, further edging onto any emotional imbalance his host expresses. Surprisingly, Mentiroso is not inherently violent, preferring to avoid all out brawls for guerilla like encounters, or simply run and hide.

This temperament is easily influenced, notably by Yuben'na. Mentiroso is susceptible to any and all influence of the Zankpakuto, much in the way a dog might do tricks for it's master, although veiled in slightly more pageantry. Guised as a variety of favors, IOUs, or co-opted pranks, Yuben'na's own flavor of aggression readily bleeds into Mentiroso whenever they can work together.

» Inner Hollow Powers:

» Regenerative: Mentiroso's single most defining ability is that of its regeneration. Capable of restoring itself from severe blows incredibly quickly, limbs can be restored through focus and reiatsu rather than time. Even more long-damaging, or organ rending blows, heal with relative ease and enough time.

» Cero: Capable of forming and firing a Cero, the resulting blast is deadly but not particularly capable - markedly average at best. If pushed to absolute limits, Mentiroso may be able to form a second within a day. His Cero blasts are vertical, often charged on the edge of fingertips, or the brow of his mask.

» Mártir: Mentiroso has the uncanny ability to 'relocate' damage inflicted to him, for example, turning what would behead him into losing a hand or arm. The more drastic the attack relocated, the more reiatsu it consumes.

» Hollow Mask Appearance: A wide, iron panel - a bridge made for a nose sliding down its center, with fluted channels along either side. The forehead resides heavily, the cheeks and jawline of the mask leading with thinner partitions. When the mask is donned, Kabuto's eyes shift from blue to green.



» Vizard Powers:

» El Escudo: lit. "The Shield" comes subconsciously to Kabuto, long as he has his mask summoned. By focusing his Reiatsu into a wall, he can conjure a light green barrier to protect from attacks in a short range around his body. This does not require a chant, but requires a gesture with the first two fingers of a hand.

» Brutal Impact: A shift in personality as much as a shift in power, Kabuto becomes far more aggressive with his mask donned. His physicality does not increase by much, but combined with his natural abilities, he can tank most hits and dish out damage in return.

» Acidic Aura: With his mask donned, Kabuto's reiatsu evolves, gaining the acidic properties of his inner hollow. Destructive kido increase in potency, with barrier techniques leaving lasting damage with contact. This is noticeable with his zankpakuto, causing it to flare up and start melting through whatever it touches. Fortunately, Kabuto's own durability makes this a non concern for himself.



» Resurrección Release Phrase: -----

» Resurrección Release Actions: Cannot actively release Ressurección.



» Equipment:

None



General Skills

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

Shinigami Skills

• Hoho: Beginner
  
• Kidō: Advanced
  
• Zanjutsu: Adept
  
• Hakuda: Untrained

Vizard Skills

• Power Augmentation Adept
  
• Cero: Untrained
  
• Mask Protection: Advanced
  
• Hollow Control: Beginner

Hollow Skills

• Acid Skill: Advanced
  
• Garganta : Untrained
  
• Cero/Bala: Adept
  
• Regeneration: Elite

Will Skills

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

» Role Play Sample:

The cold shrieked to life, plumes of breath dancing in the air as pained gasps rattled from the man's chest. The crumble of stone echoing in a massive cavern, pebbles falling away as a shoulder slowly rotated, fingers pushing against deep indentations in the rock. Deeply embedded into the earth, a dazed gawk spread across barely cognizant eyes as Kabuto awoke - sore at best, crippled at worst.

A head full of cotton and barbed wire couldn't make rhyme or reason of his bedding, fingers tapping lightly on the edges of the brow with twinges of pain. "Holy shit." the faint curse reverberated, calling back to him in mockery. Another twinge, the curling of a leg as dirt fell away in a - very slow - attempt to stand up. The ache in his joints spread like fire, stinging pinpricks across his back, inside his bones.

The lake of fire under his face.

Another utterance, pained groans echoing loudly, yet he stood. The slow turn of a stiff neck, the faint pitter patter of pebbles and dust rolling off bare skin, and crescendo of a cracking spine. A symphony for a man who did not know where he was, or how he got there; a one man audience that was well deserved.

Did I deserve this? was pushing from behind his eyes, hands sliding around a body bereft of cloth in some matter of charades. Nothing of use was found in the pockets, tired seams peeking open into the world beyond. A shake of his head as footsteps carried him forward, into the light.

"Guess I'll find out." Frustration drawn against his brow, dissapearing quietly beneath the dark metal's sheen, the glint of green eyes.