Entry tags:
back in the head where i see red
☞ Player Information;
Name: Tekky.
Player Journal:![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
crawly
Age: Older than 17.
Contact: PM this journal.
Other characters currently played at Ryan's Gulch: N/A.
☞ Character Information;
Character Name: Shijima Kurookano
Canon: Nabari no Ou
OU or AU?: OU
Canon point: Chapter 38, before turning back into a cat.
Setting: Nabari no Ou is set in what is essentially a normal 21st century world, except with NINJA. Ninja permeate most of Japan, but they spend most if their time in the shadowy ninja world called Nabari. They use weapons and seemingly supernatural abilities in inter-group wars that often span hundreds of years. Their abilities are based around harmony with the elements, and have effects such as producing blasts of flame or teleportation with an abrupt gust of wind. Ninja usually stay in behind the scenes, but a few of them use their powers and abilities to obtain positions of influence in the 'normal' world.
But even with all these abilities, the greatest ability is one that is given by an unknown power. Called the Shinrabansho, it's a conglomerate of 'the world's knowledge'. As such, whoever possesses the Shinrabansho can do whatever they desire: kill an enemy, bring people back to life, or erase a person's existence entirely.
So obviously, everyone wants the Shinrabansho. The problem is is that the Shinrabansho has a sentience, and it chooses a host with her own interests in mind. It can't be extracted without destroying the host, but that doesn't mean that there aren't ninja who want to try.
History: More than two hundred years before the series begins a host of the Shinrabansho used his abilities to carry out scientific experiments — 'scientific' for a certain value of the word, of course. One of these experiments was his attempt to give animals human hearts. Shijima was one of these animals, a small white cat. Another animal that underwent the experiment (the only other one that survived) was an owl who later took the name Kouichi Aizawa. Once that host of the Shinrabansho died, Shijima and Kouichi went on with their semi-human consciousnesses and immortality, gifts from the man who had changed them.
However, it was not until they met the ninja Koutarou Fuuma, future leader of the Iga ninja, that they learned tenpenka. They had human minds, but no ability to communicate with humans until Fuuma helped them gain the skill to change their forms. Once Shijima could change, she eventually allied with the Koga ninja. Still, she could never be fully human or fully cat. Feeling out of place, she traveled with Aizawa to Banten in cat form, where she was taken in by Akatsuki Rokujou, a ninja with an affinity for animals. He saw through her form — at least partway — and noted her hidden humanity. Still Shijima stayed a housecat in the Rokujou family called Shiratama, even after both Akatsuki and his wife Asahi died. Asahi had been the host of the Shinrabansho, and Shijima stayed for only one reason: the Shinrabansho and its host had the power to end her immortal life. Shijima was tired. She remained at least half cat, and cats aren't meant to live for more than fifteen years. Shijima was already almost two hundred when she found Asahi, and she and Aizawa both hoped to have their lives ended by the Shinrabanshou.
But it was not to be. In an incident that the Shinrabansho wipes from everyone's memory ten years before the series begins, Asahi and Akatsuki are killed, and the Shinrabansho is passed on to their son, Miharu. The incident involved an attempt to separate the Shinrabansho from Asahi's body. However, other ninja attacked, and a very young Miharu is killed in the crossfire by a hooded figure. Asahi, driven to madness by the overwhelming power of the Shinrabansho, resurrects Miharu before the Shinrabansho is torn from her body and vested in his.
The Shinrabansho and perhaps Asahi's lingering desires erased all memories of the incident except for those of a man named Thobari Kumohira, a friend of the Rokujou family and only a teenager at the time. After the incident, Shijima returns to live as the Rokujou housecat with a growing Miharu at his grandmother's home. She watches him grow from a child to a teenager ignorant of the world of Nabari until the series begins.
Her first appearance in canon as a human is at the Alya School, where children trained to gain the skills necessary for their future jobs as ninja. Due to the Koga ninja leader's perceptiveness, she's given a lot of leeway and respect; the leader recognizes her as not a child at all, though he's still unable to discern her true identity. Shijima attributes this perceptiveness to the Koga leader's terminal illness and resulting closeness to death.
Shijima introduces the current host of the Shinrabansho, Miharu, and his allies during a meeting of representatives from Kairoshuu, Banten, and Koga ninja. Eventually, it becomes clear that a small group of Koga ninja plan to use a forbidden technique (called 'Daya') that requires the use of human brains to cure their beloved leader's illness, without his approval. However, even with their planning, a betrayal within the Koga leads to a fight that ends with the leader dying. While the Koga ninja regroup and grieve, Shijima approaches Miharu, and his allies the Kairoshuu. She explains that the leader entrusted her with the secret technique. Without elaborating much further, she hands the technique over to them, saying that she looks forward to what Miharu will do with his power. Miharu doesn't seem to recognize her as his pet cat, and she slips off.
After she disappears into the woods, Miharu and his friends are left confused but bolstered by her gift. Shijima meets Aizawa in the woods to discuss current events, and she comments on her permanent status as an 'onlooker'. During their conversation, she's pulled from her world.
Personality:
First and foremost, Shijima is an onlooker. She has spent years as part cat and part human, unable to fit into either role. Because of that, she has never felt like she belonged in either world. She knows how humans are, and while she doesn't like them any more than cats, she finds their actions and motivations interesting. For example, while at Alya Academy, Shijima stayed almost entirely out of the action until she felt the need to get closer to Miharu, the son of her past owners. Shijima doesn't like being part of conflicts unless it truly interests her.
That said, her interests are extremely limited. Not long after she discovered her immortality and the host of the Shinrabansho who had given it to her had died, Shijima found herself wanting to die as well. Her 'soul' wasn't meant to live for thirty years, let alone two hundred. Besides, in her place between cat and human, she finds it very difficult to relate to others. The only one Shijima is fond of Aizawa, who is the only constant in her almost two centuries of life. Even Asahi and Akatsuki were more acquaintances than friends. She respected them and tried to help them, but those actions were partially due to the fact that Asahi could have fulfilled her wish.
And Shijima's actions are all about her wish. What she wants most desparately is to die. She remains morally gray for the entire series, aloof and stoic though she's very unhappy. She'll do anything to fulfill her wish, including murder, torture, and betray allies. Ninja aren't known for their honor, anyway, and cats aren't symbols of loyalty for a reason. Shijima remains almost grimly detached, keeping contact with only Aizawa until the situation becomes dire. Aizawa (whom she refers to almost constantly as 'Bird' in reference to his original form) is the only one who can understand her wish and her pain, and although she mocks him relentlessly, he is the only one that she would never consider betraying.
So maybe she has loyalty, after all. Still, Shijima's honor is mostly limited to Aizawa, because he shares her fate. Besides, after two hundred years together, people learn something about each other.
Though her backstory isn't the happiest of tales, Shijima often acts as comic relief. This is largely due to the fact that despite having human form, she's still at least half cat. Shijima doesn't bother hiding it, and it's a large part of her personality. The way she moves is animal, her posture is more her leaning towards walking on four legs than a slouch. When she loses interest in proceedings, she tosses her head and disappears until something interesting to her happens again. She takes enjoyment from making fun of others, insulting them until they snap angrily, and from other people's suffering. Shijima is old and bitter and she takes her amusement where she can get it. She's extremely self-centered, and has a tendency to show up only when she can benefit from it. Like a cat, she can be moody and contradictory. Even though her wish is for death, she's not above stepping into various situations in order to see the aftermath firsthand, even if it might not help her directly, despite what she often says. She likes to be amused because it takes up the time between birth and death.
Besides, she's had a lot of time already. Shijima's outlook on life isn't bleak, but it is realistic. Though she's seen great kindnesses, she recognizes the patterns of war, death and peace for what they are. She's old and stubbornly bitter, complaining about other ninja even though she considers it a normal human reaction. Shijima can be cruel in speech and action, but she very rarely lies. She never denies that she's strange even before Aizawa explains the truth about their origin, and when asked about her past, she's more likely to say something cryptic and true rather than false. None of her actions look wholly human (she has a habit of lying down and curling up even in human form), and being lied to is an offense she never takes lightly. Though she would like to expect honor from others, she's aware that it's unlikely to be given. That doesn't mean that she won't be vengeful and hold a grudge — any offense against her will be repaid in kind.
Though she's old, Shijima has almost childish traits that come from a lifetime of never really being human and relying on the cat part of herself. She takes a young form for a reason, looking about ten. Though her speech is more similar to that of someone much, much older, Shijima lacks the patience and maturity of someone her age. Like a cat, she demands satisfaction immediately, and becomes irritable when she doesn't get it (and it's been over a hundred years since she began to want death). She's grumpy and sour, and almost spitefully jealous when other people can obtain death before she can.
Shijima is moody and bitter, but there are parts to her that are better. Those that she respects keep her respect, and she'll stay a helpful ally — at least until she finds a better opportunity to reach her goal, at least. She doesn't usually lie, and when she does, it's to make one of her poor jokes or in such an obviously facetious manner that it dissuades attempts at further conversation. She can get along with people if she tries or if she wants to, even though she usually doesn't feel like it (very much like a cat, in that aspect). Though the idea of being fully a part of the human world is alien to her, she finds it undesirable. She doesn't want to have friends or 'family' because she knows that they'll die before she does, so her relationship with Akatsuki and Asahi is outside of this decision. They were an exception, and one that ended in a way she expected. They died, and she moved on. But she remembers them with fondness, though she adamantly denies the very thought that she liked them. Even if Shijima doesn't like being what she is (alive), she doesn't mind being neither cat nor human. She prefers to be the onlooker, aloof and watching, until something or someone catches her eye.
Abilities:
IMMORTALITY Shijima is immortal due to the actions of a former keeper of the Shinrabansho. She can either heal or simply use tenpenka (mentioned below) to recover from injuries, and simply cannot die.
TENPENKA Tenpenka is a learned ability that allows the user to rearrange their cells to change their form and thus appearance. It's extremely difficult and requires a great amount of concentration; if it's used too many times, the user will inevitably lose control and disintegrate painfully into bits and pieces. Since Shijima is immortal, though, all she gets is the pain.
STRENGTH AND AGILITY Possibly as a result of her use of tenpenka, Shijima's strength is far beyond what is suggested by her appearance. She can throw two grown men across a room and is skilled enough to hold her own against several opponents at the same time. She's fast, too, and able to jump all over the place.
MISC. AND CAT-THINGS She's been around for over two hundred years, and spent most of that time working with ninjas. She's capable of using many elements to attack and defend in combat. In addition, she knows many things that she simply picked up over the years.
And, cat-things: she's neither cat nor human, but she usually seems more cat-like than human. Shijima can understand and communicate with animals, though she also enjoys eating them. She still moves like a cat, and she has senses that are more on a cat's level than a human's no matter what form she's in.
Most of the time, her abilities are used for her position as an ally of the Koga ninja or to amuse herself. She has very little regard for her own body due to her immortality. It's rare for her to meddle in other people's affairs, but when she does, she's useful.
Name: Tekky.
Player Journal:
crawlyAge: Older than 17.
Contact: PM this journal.
Other characters currently played at Ryan's Gulch: N/A.
☞ Character Information;
Character Name: Shijima Kurookano
Canon: Nabari no Ou
OU or AU?: OU
Canon point: Chapter 38, before turning back into a cat.
Setting: Nabari no Ou is set in what is essentially a normal 21st century world, except with NINJA. Ninja permeate most of Japan, but they spend most if their time in the shadowy ninja world called Nabari. They use weapons and seemingly supernatural abilities in inter-group wars that often span hundreds of years. Their abilities are based around harmony with the elements, and have effects such as producing blasts of flame or teleportation with an abrupt gust of wind. Ninja usually stay in behind the scenes, but a few of them use their powers and abilities to obtain positions of influence in the 'normal' world.
But even with all these abilities, the greatest ability is one that is given by an unknown power. Called the Shinrabansho, it's a conglomerate of 'the world's knowledge'. As such, whoever possesses the Shinrabansho can do whatever they desire: kill an enemy, bring people back to life, or erase a person's existence entirely.
So obviously, everyone wants the Shinrabansho. The problem is is that the Shinrabansho has a sentience, and it chooses a host with her own interests in mind. It can't be extracted without destroying the host, but that doesn't mean that there aren't ninja who want to try.
History: More than two hundred years before the series begins a host of the Shinrabansho used his abilities to carry out scientific experiments — 'scientific' for a certain value of the word, of course. One of these experiments was his attempt to give animals human hearts. Shijima was one of these animals, a small white cat. Another animal that underwent the experiment (the only other one that survived) was an owl who later took the name Kouichi Aizawa. Once that host of the Shinrabansho died, Shijima and Kouichi went on with their semi-human consciousnesses and immortality, gifts from the man who had changed them.
However, it was not until they met the ninja Koutarou Fuuma, future leader of the Iga ninja, that they learned tenpenka. They had human minds, but no ability to communicate with humans until Fuuma helped them gain the skill to change their forms. Once Shijima could change, she eventually allied with the Koga ninja. Still, she could never be fully human or fully cat. Feeling out of place, she traveled with Aizawa to Banten in cat form, where she was taken in by Akatsuki Rokujou, a ninja with an affinity for animals. He saw through her form — at least partway — and noted her hidden humanity. Still Shijima stayed a housecat in the Rokujou family called Shiratama, even after both Akatsuki and his wife Asahi died. Asahi had been the host of the Shinrabansho, and Shijima stayed for only one reason: the Shinrabansho and its host had the power to end her immortal life. Shijima was tired. She remained at least half cat, and cats aren't meant to live for more than fifteen years. Shijima was already almost two hundred when she found Asahi, and she and Aizawa both hoped to have their lives ended by the Shinrabanshou.
But it was not to be. In an incident that the Shinrabansho wipes from everyone's memory ten years before the series begins, Asahi and Akatsuki are killed, and the Shinrabansho is passed on to their son, Miharu. The incident involved an attempt to separate the Shinrabansho from Asahi's body. However, other ninja attacked, and a very young Miharu is killed in the crossfire by a hooded figure. Asahi, driven to madness by the overwhelming power of the Shinrabansho, resurrects Miharu before the Shinrabansho is torn from her body and vested in his.
The Shinrabansho and perhaps Asahi's lingering desires erased all memories of the incident except for those of a man named Thobari Kumohira, a friend of the Rokujou family and only a teenager at the time. After the incident, Shijima returns to live as the Rokujou housecat with a growing Miharu at his grandmother's home. She watches him grow from a child to a teenager ignorant of the world of Nabari until the series begins.
Her first appearance in canon as a human is at the Alya School, where children trained to gain the skills necessary for their future jobs as ninja. Due to the Koga ninja leader's perceptiveness, she's given a lot of leeway and respect; the leader recognizes her as not a child at all, though he's still unable to discern her true identity. Shijima attributes this perceptiveness to the Koga leader's terminal illness and resulting closeness to death.
Shijima introduces the current host of the Shinrabansho, Miharu, and his allies during a meeting of representatives from Kairoshuu, Banten, and Koga ninja. Eventually, it becomes clear that a small group of Koga ninja plan to use a forbidden technique (called 'Daya') that requires the use of human brains to cure their beloved leader's illness, without his approval. However, even with their planning, a betrayal within the Koga leads to a fight that ends with the leader dying. While the Koga ninja regroup and grieve, Shijima approaches Miharu, and his allies the Kairoshuu. She explains that the leader entrusted her with the secret technique. Without elaborating much further, she hands the technique over to them, saying that she looks forward to what Miharu will do with his power. Miharu doesn't seem to recognize her as his pet cat, and she slips off.
After she disappears into the woods, Miharu and his friends are left confused but bolstered by her gift. Shijima meets Aizawa in the woods to discuss current events, and she comments on her permanent status as an 'onlooker'. During their conversation, she's pulled from her world.
Personality:
First and foremost, Shijima is an onlooker. She has spent years as part cat and part human, unable to fit into either role. Because of that, she has never felt like she belonged in either world. She knows how humans are, and while she doesn't like them any more than cats, she finds their actions and motivations interesting. For example, while at Alya Academy, Shijima stayed almost entirely out of the action until she felt the need to get closer to Miharu, the son of her past owners. Shijima doesn't like being part of conflicts unless it truly interests her.
That said, her interests are extremely limited. Not long after she discovered her immortality and the host of the Shinrabansho who had given it to her had died, Shijima found herself wanting to die as well. Her 'soul' wasn't meant to live for thirty years, let alone two hundred. Besides, in her place between cat and human, she finds it very difficult to relate to others. The only one Shijima is fond of Aizawa, who is the only constant in her almost two centuries of life. Even Asahi and Akatsuki were more acquaintances than friends. She respected them and tried to help them, but those actions were partially due to the fact that Asahi could have fulfilled her wish.
And Shijima's actions are all about her wish. What she wants most desparately is to die. She remains morally gray for the entire series, aloof and stoic though she's very unhappy. She'll do anything to fulfill her wish, including murder, torture, and betray allies. Ninja aren't known for their honor, anyway, and cats aren't symbols of loyalty for a reason. Shijima remains almost grimly detached, keeping contact with only Aizawa until the situation becomes dire. Aizawa (whom she refers to almost constantly as 'Bird' in reference to his original form) is the only one who can understand her wish and her pain, and although she mocks him relentlessly, he is the only one that she would never consider betraying.
So maybe she has loyalty, after all. Still, Shijima's honor is mostly limited to Aizawa, because he shares her fate. Besides, after two hundred years together, people learn something about each other.
Though her backstory isn't the happiest of tales, Shijima often acts as comic relief. This is largely due to the fact that despite having human form, she's still at least half cat. Shijima doesn't bother hiding it, and it's a large part of her personality. The way she moves is animal, her posture is more her leaning towards walking on four legs than a slouch. When she loses interest in proceedings, she tosses her head and disappears until something interesting to her happens again. She takes enjoyment from making fun of others, insulting them until they snap angrily, and from other people's suffering. Shijima is old and bitter and she takes her amusement where she can get it. She's extremely self-centered, and has a tendency to show up only when she can benefit from it. Like a cat, she can be moody and contradictory. Even though her wish is for death, she's not above stepping into various situations in order to see the aftermath firsthand, even if it might not help her directly, despite what she often says. She likes to be amused because it takes up the time between birth and death.
Besides, she's had a lot of time already. Shijima's outlook on life isn't bleak, but it is realistic. Though she's seen great kindnesses, she recognizes the patterns of war, death and peace for what they are. She's old and stubbornly bitter, complaining about other ninja even though she considers it a normal human reaction. Shijima can be cruel in speech and action, but she very rarely lies. She never denies that she's strange even before Aizawa explains the truth about their origin, and when asked about her past, she's more likely to say something cryptic and true rather than false. None of her actions look wholly human (she has a habit of lying down and curling up even in human form), and being lied to is an offense she never takes lightly. Though she would like to expect honor from others, she's aware that it's unlikely to be given. That doesn't mean that she won't be vengeful and hold a grudge — any offense against her will be repaid in kind.
Though she's old, Shijima has almost childish traits that come from a lifetime of never really being human and relying on the cat part of herself. She takes a young form for a reason, looking about ten. Though her speech is more similar to that of someone much, much older, Shijima lacks the patience and maturity of someone her age. Like a cat, she demands satisfaction immediately, and becomes irritable when she doesn't get it (and it's been over a hundred years since she began to want death). She's grumpy and sour, and almost spitefully jealous when other people can obtain death before she can.
Shijima is moody and bitter, but there are parts to her that are better. Those that she respects keep her respect, and she'll stay a helpful ally — at least until she finds a better opportunity to reach her goal, at least. She doesn't usually lie, and when she does, it's to make one of her poor jokes or in such an obviously facetious manner that it dissuades attempts at further conversation. She can get along with people if she tries or if she wants to, even though she usually doesn't feel like it (very much like a cat, in that aspect). Though the idea of being fully a part of the human world is alien to her, she finds it undesirable. She doesn't want to have friends or 'family' because she knows that they'll die before she does, so her relationship with Akatsuki and Asahi is outside of this decision. They were an exception, and one that ended in a way she expected. They died, and she moved on. But she remembers them with fondness, though she adamantly denies the very thought that she liked them. Even if Shijima doesn't like being what she is (alive), she doesn't mind being neither cat nor human. She prefers to be the onlooker, aloof and watching, until something or someone catches her eye.
Abilities:
IMMORTALITY Shijima is immortal due to the actions of a former keeper of the Shinrabansho. She can either heal or simply use tenpenka (mentioned below) to recover from injuries, and simply cannot die.
TENPENKA Tenpenka is a learned ability that allows the user to rearrange their cells to change their form and thus appearance. It's extremely difficult and requires a great amount of concentration; if it's used too many times, the user will inevitably lose control and disintegrate painfully into bits and pieces. Since Shijima is immortal, though, all she gets is the pain.
STRENGTH AND AGILITY Possibly as a result of her use of tenpenka, Shijima's strength is far beyond what is suggested by her appearance. She can throw two grown men across a room and is skilled enough to hold her own against several opponents at the same time. She's fast, too, and able to jump all over the place.
MISC. AND CAT-THINGS She's been around for over two hundred years, and spent most of that time working with ninjas. She's capable of using many elements to attack and defend in combat. In addition, she knows many things that she simply picked up over the years.
And, cat-things: she's neither cat nor human, but she usually seems more cat-like than human. Shijima can understand and communicate with animals, though she also enjoys eating them. She still moves like a cat, and she has senses that are more on a cat's level than a human's no matter what form she's in.
Most of the time, her abilities are used for her position as an ally of the Koga ninja or to amuse herself. She has very little regard for her own body due to her immortality. It's rare for her to meddle in other people's affairs, but when she does, she's useful.
SEE ALSO:
canon info sheet
