[Spirit Class 8] Hijiri Aramaki

THE SHINIGAMI APPLICATION

» Name: Hijiri Aramaki (荒巻 聖)
» Age: ~150 (give or take 10 years to either side)
» Gender: Male

» Association: Shin'ō Academy Dropout, Vandenreich Hopeful

» Appearance Written: Hijiri has one of "those faces" which makes people forget him easily. He's almost-meek in appearance, slight of frame and with no strong features. He carries his Zanpakutō around in a cloth bag much like if he were a modern-day high school student going to an after-school Kendō club. What truly makes people remember him is the vacant and dull look he gets when he stares and focuses. There's an eeriness to it.

» Appearance Image:


» Personality: There are 4 stated goals of the modern criminal justice system, specifically in the sentencing process: retribution, rehabilitation, deterrence, and incapacitation. Hijiri believes that these goals are not equal—and some are needing a return to the heavy-handed days of long ago. To Hijiri, the existence of the Soul Cycle inherently weakens the deterrence of injustices. Why be deterred from committing a crime if you can do it over again? Thus, enter his philosophy of Finality Under Law—that some people deserve to be removed from the cycle, as their very existence damages all forms of society and that the existence of such a punishment would act as a deterrent.

However, Hijiri's existence as a Shinigami makes him a contradiction. He cannot do the things he wishes to do. Destruction on that level is simply impossible for him. Had he been allowed to continue his schooling and joined the Gotei, he would have committed war crimes and treason in order to fulfill this philosophy. He's the type to force a soul he has deemed as truly unredeemable into Hollowfying and leaking the location to a Quincy to deal with. There's an emptiness to him—and it's apparent behind his smiles and laughs.

Hijiri isn't an unfeeling, uncaring stoic machine of a person. He openly enjoys many things about life and living. He may not be the one to usually approach to make friends, but he's reciprocal on returning those advances from others. He's easily able to sympathize and empathize with others. It's perhaps that same empathy that has driven him to the edge...


» History:
"Why?! Why does he get to take the easy way and not face punishment?!"

Simply, stated, until his days in the academy, Hijiri had perhaps the most boring and uneventful life. Loving parents and a stable home life led to nothing exactly exciting. Neither parent did anything interesting either. His father was an accountant and his mother was a housewife. The most interesting person in Hijiri's early life was his neighbor, a dying Shinigami whose wounds from a Hollow were the cause of his slow death. Hijiri's philosphy on life initially started with a combination of his father's by-the-books black-and-white attitude and admiration for this Shinigami and what he stood for.

Out of this same admiration, Hijiri eventually applied to Shin'ō Academy. Denied the first time for, as his instructor put it, "making a beanstalk look thick." A few years later, he tried again. This time his rejection was simply because there were too many applicants that year. After one of the various incidents which saw a drastic decrease of Shinigami in the mid-2000s, he was finally allowed in—if only because there was desperation within the Gotei for new members.

In the academy, Hijiri was nothing too spectacular. Those that were in the same class as him would later recall "That guy was always a little off, but he seemed like he had a good heart. We were wrong on that one..." On his eighth year (two repeats of previous years almost had him expelled), Hijiri's life finally took the turn it sure as hell didn't need.

Kotojirō Imbeikotto, a double-digit seated officer of the 3rd Division, was never someone who would amount to anything. He wanted to—his ego was beyond measure—but without a drive to improve and the natural capacity he wouldn't. It is unknown what caused his change, but it is speculated both a pass-over for a promotion and the Captain of that time forgetting who he was caused a psychotic break. Kotojirō murdered about two-dozen citizens of the Rukongai before being captured by members of the Onmitsukidō. Among the victims were both Hijiri's parents and the neighbor he admired so.

Hijiri took time off from the academy mostly to focus on the upcoming trial. It kept getting postponed. First by months, soon by years. Hijiri grew more and more frustrated while his desire for retribution grew. The night before the judgement was to be given, Kotojirō slammed his head against a wall multiple times, killing himself. This broke Hijiri. The one thing he was looking forward to so he could move on was suddenly replaced with nothing. There was a void. Hatred filled it.

Hijiri was soon imprisoned for a few months for punching one of the guards at the facility while the guard was off-duty. Hijiri did research—as much as the equivalent of a local library could allow—on how souls were removed from the Soul Cycle. There was only one word that came up in relation to this: Quincy. Not having a way to get out of the Soul Society to seek out a Quincy, Hijiri began formulating a plan.

During a rather busy year at the academy, Hijiri carefully snuck back into the Seireitei under the guise of returning his once-"lost" Asauchi he was given during his initial time in the academy. In actuality, he had timed this. He slipped in as a late student during the trip to the World of the Living that was more of a training mission than anything else. Once through the Dangai, he slipped away. After finally finding where the Quincy are most concentrated and learning of their organization—the Vandenreich—he now has aspirations to join if only to learn how he, too, might do the unthinkable.


» Natural Abilities: Overall, Hijiri has about as good of physicality as anyone who was about to graduate the academy.

Willpower: The only skill of note he has, Hijiri does not like giving up. If he knew of a way, he'd find the reincarnation of the Shinigami who killed his parents and make sure he was removed from the cycle... somehow. Perhaps that is where his Willpower truly becomes a problem—sometimes his impulses put him ahead of his capabilities.


» Racial Abilities: Overall, Hijiri has about as good of a grasp of the standard Zankensōki skills as anyone who was about to graduate the academy.

Zanjutsu: The only skill of note Hijiri has because of his overall lack of training otherwise. Hijiri claimed he "lost" his Asauchi sometime after he left the academy. He only was allowed to keep it because he intended to return. In truth, he kept it hidden away and meditated with it night after night. His bond with his Zanpakutō is a tenuous one at best currently, but there definitely is one there.


» Zanpakutō Name: Taigi no Shisane (大義の四真実; Four Truths of Justice)

» Zanpakutō Spirit: Taigi no Shisane appears as a black mass almost in the shape of a manta ray. It does not walk and instead hovers. Instead of legs, it has something akin to the "scales of justice." There are four white blotches evenly spaced along the "front" of the mass. These are vaguely oval-shaped and spread like "4" on a six-sided die. One of these blotches has cracked at the bottom, revealing a wide row of narrow, gnashing teeth. Taigi no Shisane is usually very quiet towards Hijiri, but his occasional "words of wisdom" are morbid and unusually violent.

» Inner World: Hijiri's inner world appears to be a large circular platform suspended by four great chains. Below the platform is a pit that extends farther than Hijiri can see. Taigi no Shisane has, more than once, told Hijiri to see just how far down it is.

» Sealed Zanpakutō Appearance: Taigi no Shisane is a normal katana with a dark teal wrapping around the hilt. It has a roughly-rectangular undecorated gold tsuba. It is carried in a black scabbard. Truly, it is unremarkable.

» Sealed Zanpakutō Power:
Unnamed Aura: This appears like a flame-like aura that extends about one foot from the blade in all directions—but it does not extend past the tsuba. Although the aura does exist around the blade once it is drawn, it is not until he calls out the "release phrase" of his Zanpakutō that it expands into its full size. When it is not at full-size, it is approximately 1mm away from the blade and its effectiveness is reduced tenfold. The basic ability of this aura is that projectile and energy-based ranged attacks are slowed down by 15% if they pass through the aura. Because of the amount of speed most objects have when they're being thrown or launched, this is usually negligible.


» Shikai Release Phrase: Bind (結わえる; Yuwaeru)

» Shikai Appearance: (See below)

» Shikai Abilities: The fact is, Hijiri does not actually have his Shikai. He may have the name, but he's incapable of activating any potential abilities—as he does not have the proper release phrase. What he thinks he is activating are the sealed abilities mentioned above.

I. Bankai

» Bankai Name: [What is your zanpakutō's release phrase?]

» Bankai Release Action: [Does your shinigami do any physical action to release their bankai? Feel free to remove this if not.]

» Bankai Appearance: [What does your shinigami's bankai look like?]

» Bankai Abilities: [What abilities does your shinigami gain in bankai?]


(To Find Out about what these skills are for, please READ THIS THREAD before you try doing anything to it)

General Skills
» Durability: Beginner
» Speed: Beginner
» Strength: Beginner
» Martial Skill: Beginner

Will Skills
» Willpower: Adept
» Deduction: Adept
» Focus: Adept

Shinigami Skills
» Hoho: Beginner
» Kidō: Beginner
» Zanjutsu: Adept
» Hakuda: Beginner


» Roleplay Sample:

"Ah..." Hijiri stood at the busiest cross-road he'd ever seen. No one quite paid attention to him—he still didn't stand out even in the World of the Living. Even the parades for Captains visiting the academy didn't have this many people. There was a problem with a population so dense—it was sometimes hard to find the people you're looking for. Hijiri tried poking his head over the crowd, but the overall international average height increase made that difficult.

It took some time, but eventually Hijiri saw it—a tiny booth with enough room for a new-average man, a worn-out and uncomfortable stool, and an under-the-counter filing cabinet. "Paperless" still exists as an inside joke even in this day and age. The banner of the Vandenreich stood tall and proud above the empty booth. The only thing inside (aside from the stool) was a placard saying "Out to Lunch." Hijiri stared at it. With a sigh, he turned away and began to walk with the crowd again. "Might as well be saying 'don't have an emergency here.'"

An older man who could be mistaken for nothing else but a salaryman snickered at the comment. He tapped Hijiri's shoulder with a wrinkled hand. "If you want to have an emergency, there's a larger booth three blocks north." Hijiri's harsh eyes whipped towards the man at the first tap—the man was taken aback for the briefest of seconds. Hijiri's demeanor deflated and whatever tension had built up vanished as quickly as it appeared. He bowed a little too deeply. "Thank you, sir!" And without another word between them, Hijiri took off in a direction he hoped was north.

By luck (and perhaps a mild intuition), Hijiri was right. The old man's directions were a little generous (it was actually about four blocks), but he made it anyhow. This booth was capable of holding four people. This was most likely because it was near a transportation cross-over. There were a few people in line, but it was mostly empty. Hijiri darted towards the booth. "Kid, watch out!" A voice called out as Hijiri stepped into what appeared to be an empty section of street. He did not see the tram-bus speeding towards him. With barely a second to spare, Hijiri used the rudimentary Shunpō he was taught in the Academy to propel himself forward—straight into the plexiglass window.

Hijiri slid off almost cartoonishly and stood up immediately. Out of breath and his nose bloody, he could not be happier to have finally found the right spot to go. "One... application to join the... Vahn-dEn-rieK." He hesitated after butchering the German. He was at least trying. "Please."

END OF CHARACTER APPLICATION