[Spirit Class 6] Kei Saionji

THE SHINIGAMI APPLICATION

» Name: Kei Saionji (犲恩治 桂)
» Alias: [Any nicknames or titles?]
» Age: 289
» Gender: Female

» Association: Gotei United; Former Kidōshū Member; Saionji Clan Member

» Appearance Written: You'd think Kei had a height complex with a 2-inch heel on top of three-inch okobo. Thankfully, she doesn't. Standing unshod at about 5'3, she's around the average height. Her Shihakushō has been modified to have shorter sleeves and to be more akin to a furisode. She also wears a large red obi over her hakama-himo. The most distinct part of her attire is her hairpin. Although not as expensive as certain other hairpieces, Kei's is a golden comb with that almost matches her Zanpakutō's tsuba in shape. She attaches two or three preserved morning glories picked from her own flower garden at the Saionji manor to finish its refined look.

» Appearance Image:


» Personality: Kei has the pride one would expect of a high-ranking noble woman. Most would expect this to turn her into a cold, haughty bitch. It'd make her the standard holier-than-thou noble. She is far from it. There are things Kei is far above doing, and she freely admits when she is. However, she still does it anyway. Her philosophy is that her station allows her the utmost freedom within the law. Others of her class would not be caught dead playing handball or attending crass rakugo performances—and yet Kei will get just as sweaty and laugh just as loud as any other attendant.

Kei rarely uses her positions to strong-arm anyone, but she does use it to put lesser nobles in their place. Neither of the Saionji siblings can stand nobles who use their nobility for nefarious means. Selfish means? She can deal with that. But if you're running a brothel, she'll make sure that it's being ran Right. Unlike her older brother, however, she is more the type to actively call out a member of the nobility without hesitation. The first time is with tact. Any time after is not. This does not just apply to the nobility, as she also calls out her fellow equivalent-positioned members of the Gotei as well.

Kei has no attraction to the male sex. She's a hopeless romantic with a weak spot for soft lips and huge tits. She freely courts any woman she fancies—save for anyone in the Great Noble Houses. Social status doesn't matter. Race is only mildly a concern. She's the type to flirt with her superiors. Kei is not the type to pursue after being rebuffed. She despises playing hard-to-get. This does not mean she is above teasing—she just doesn't expect anything in return.

The trait that Kei admires most in people is when they "practice what they preach." Deceitful and duplicitous people are people she feels cannot be relied on. She'd praise the man who said he'd stab you over the one who stabs you in the midst of an embrace. This is why people like her brother and Byakuya Kuchiki are well-regarded in her mind.

With all of that in mind, it is important to know that Kei does have a coldness about her. She has a certain "look" that her brother will attest to. It's a far-off, yet piercing gaze. It's as if she's looking so hard through someone that her gaze has circumnavigated the globe only to look at them afterward. It is vacant of everything, yet it is almost like what it definitely does not exude emphasizes what it is meant to be. It is hatred, disappointment, and a desire for violence. It is the face of a woman who will set a poisoned cup of tea in front of her prey, tell them to drink, and if they ask if it is poisoned, she'll say yes—and still be expecting them to drink it. It is the look of a true blue-blooded noble.

» Likes: The female form, peaches, dedication

» Dislikes: Cherries, too-toned bodies, spies


» History:

Part One:

Part Two:

Part Three:

Part Four:

» Durability: Kei's durability is only so high because of how many times her Kidō experiments have gone awry. She's been electrocuted, exploded, set on fire, and been trapped in her own netting more than once. Even through all of that, she still gets up and goes right back to it.
» Speed: For the same reason her durability is high, so is her speed. She's above average for a graduate, but a frontline soldier still likely beats her. But that's fine. Kei's not a true fighter. Like other members of the old Kidōshū, Kei was trained that the best place for the mage is away from the frontlines. Therefore, escape was a mandatory skill to be trained for.
» Strength: Kei graduated the Shin'ō Academy. She's at the bottom end of that skill level due to her training swinging more into a Kidō focus.
» Martial Skill: Kei graduated the Shin'ō Academy. The difference in shape between her Shikai and sealed state have caused her setbacks in her training.

» Deduction: Kei's deduction is only at this level for Kidō and related topics. For any other effect, she is treated as one step lower. Because of both her innate skill and time spent studying, Kei has trained herself to identify things about Kidō that many others do not. Although she is not at the point currently of writing a thesis on a groundbreaking discovery in the field, she's well on her way to being able to see the things that would allow for that. Some of her theories on incantations have been particularly thought-provoking.
» Focus: Kei can notice small variations, especially in Kidō and other energy-based attacks. Combined with her knowledge, it allows her to accurately and quickly react to them—even though her body may not be able to keep up.
» Willpower: As mentioned above, Kei has injured herself many a time trying to perfect her own talents. She may not be able to push beyond her limits much, but her skill is that, no matter what, she'll go back to whatever she's failed at even if takes her time to regroup and reassess the situation.



» Kidō: Kei is something akin to a prodigy when it comes to Kidō. However, to call her a prodigy doesn't do all of the training she's done justice. As a "prominent" (this was mostly an insular prominence; as it's hard to determine Hooded Shinigami #345 from Hooded Shinigami #20 to people outside the organization) member of the Kidōshū before its merger with the 5th Division of the former Gotei 13 in the early 2000s, Kei had ample time to practice and experiment. Kei has modified and created a few Kidō, which are listed below in spoiler tags. Kei is a fan of Eishōhaki, but her unique twist on it has given her a slight edge.

• Eishōryakki: (詠唱略記; Incantation Abbreviation) Simply put, this halves the penalty to Eishōhaki by speaking half of a Kidō's Incantation. Why isn't this more common? It's because you have to know which halves to forgo and which to keep.
  
• Eishōten'i: (詠唱転移; Incantation Transference) Kei has been developing a way to pre-speak an Incantation or to perform an Incantation when the user is unable to speak. So far, she has not been successful.
  

Modified Kidō:

Custom Kidō:

» Zanjutsu: Mostly thanks to her brother, Kei has undergone a lot of training with her Zanpakutō. It may require her to be closer than she would like, but her Zanpakutō is still a tool worth using. Kei's understanding and training of Zanjutsu has given her a solid foundation of a Shikai at the cost of unbalanced costs of her abilities.

» Hohō: As part of the Kidōshū, Kei was trained on how to escape bad situations. Her Hohō was never the best, but the extra training during the sixty-or-so years of peace helped shore up this weakness somewhat. She doesn't like using Hohō—she'd rather use Kidō to replicate the effects if she can.

» Hakuda: Kei graduated from Shin'ō Academy, but this was her lowest-graded subject at all times. Kei knows little more than the fundamentals of Hakuda in practice, but she does have a decent grasp of its theory.


» Zanpakutō Name: Senkō Zensen (閃光前芟; Flash Before the Harvest)

» Zanpakutō Spirit:
Senkō Zensen is a Zanpakutō that enjoys a show. She never stops calling out for an encore, even after the play is long-gone. She does not usually interact directly with her owner, but instead from the empty audience in front of the stage. Senkō Zensen is quicker-witted than her master, and any challenge or criticism from Kei is instantly rebuffed. Senkō Zensen usually sits with a bored expression and only truly gets interested when Kei does. This is because Kei neglected her Zanjutsu training for so long that the spirit is jealous of her Kidō training. Senkō Zensen understands that Kei is perhaps better suited for Kidō, but it doesn't change the fact that she feels ignored. In truth, it's more that she wishes she could be a better help to her master, but their expressions of power end up being almost at cross purposes.

» Inner World: Senkō Zensen's inner world is that of a stage. The floor on the stage moves and extends as Kei moves so that she is always on the stage and never off of it. She can approach yet never reach the audience. She can never retreat from the stage. If more actors appear, the stage extends. The background scenery is printed on a repeating roll, and as the "scene" changes, the background will fade into the correct one for that scene. The scene changes depend on three things: Kei's mood, the purpose of the conversation, and how many actors are present. For example, a hot-blooded fight between Kei and a representation of Senkō Zensen might have the look of a burning forest, whereas a heart-to-heart may be that of a moonlit forest.

» Sealed Zanpakutō Appearance: Senkō Zensen takes the form of a purple naginata. The handle can fold into itself to allow for easier storage.


» Shikai Release Phrase: Shine down (照付ける [てりつける]; teritsukeru)

» Shikai Release Action: Kei adjusts the grip on her polearm to have one hand near the edge of the guard. As she calls the release phrase, her other hand passes over the hilt and over the blade. When her hand finishes passing over, the blade is now a full-length katana.

» Shikai Appearance:

» Shikai Abilities:
Senkō Zensen is similar to Sogyo no Kotowari in that it converts an opponent's energy into energy blasts of its own. The difference is what kind of energy it takes in. Senkō Zensen converts kinetic energy into stored Reiryoku. This does not negate the kinetic energy coming in—Kei is still pushed around and back by incoming attacks. Each strike fills up a portion of a "gauge" Kei has.

The "gauge" is not visible on the blade, but behind Kei in a dimly-glowing ring of small lightning-like balls of energy. The balls of energy are barely present and do not have much energy on their own—simply just enough to stay visible and hold their position behind Kei. Filling the gauge is simple. Each strike she successfully parries, blocks, or just intercepts with her blade lights a single sphere. Kei currently has a maximum of 10 spheres, split into two sections of five with a mitsudomoe separating the zones. When each section is filled, a mitsudomoe lights up. As she advances the strength and understanding of her Zanpakutō, the amount of sections of five increase by 1 per level (for example, going up to Advanced would increase her to 3 sections total while Elite would be 4 sections total) to a maximum of six sections. When all sections are filled, new mitsudomoe appears at the top-center of the ring, opening like an eye.

The closer the gauge gets to full, the more unstable the blade seems to be. Purple lightning crackles around the blade at about 5 spheres and increases in size and visibility until it reaches capacity. The electricity doesn't do much damage on its own—at most it's a small zap. Absorbing past fill is also problematic, as if she goes a full five strikes over, she loses her current stacks and her Shikai releases the energy in an uncontrolled burst around her—most likely harming herself in the process.

Kei currently has three ways of expending the energy. Currently, each ability uses the entirety of the storage. As with the amount of spheres she can use, increasing her Zanjutsu skill will likely affect the consumption. Once it's been used, it has to be filled back up once again.

Senjō: (扇状; Fan-shaped) The basic version of the energy release. This takes the shape of a wide crescent about 1 foot thick at the thick end and 3 yards tall. Every 5 spheres increases this by 3 yards. This is also the fastest of the three releases, travelling at a similar speed to a Shakkahō. It has been called "a cheap knockoff" of Ichigo Kurosaki's Getsuga Tenshō—much to Kei's chagrin and repeated explanations that it's different.

Hashira: (柱; Pillar) The complicated version of the energy release. Kei stabs her sword into a surface. From any point within 150 yards around her that is connected to that surface, she can create a glowing circle that, after a short delay, sends a 10ft-to-100yd-long pillar of Reiryoku.

Sōbana: (総花; All-Around) This is Kei's most "expressive" version, and it requires 10 spheres. Simply put, this blasts the Reiryoku away from the blade in all directions (save for the Tsuba). It's a brief pulse that sends the energy in a very compacted form not very far away. This turns it more into a Reiatsu-like ability, but it is still Reiryoku doing all of the work and is affected like other Reiryoku. The ability is especially effective in areas that do not allow for much expansion, such as underwater or within a surface. Kei has used this to kill a Hollow by stabbing them with her Shikai and then effectively setting off a concussion grenade inside of their body.

VIII: 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?]


» Equipment: [If your shinigami has any equipment? Put it here. If they don't, skip this section.]


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

General Skills (1 Unspent)
» Durability: D
» Speed: D
» Strength: E
» Soul: A

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

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


8/14: Skill System Update

END THE SHINIGAMI APPLICATION