So um. Saving two weeks of manga comments for tomorrow. Just came to drop off a profile. You guys can probably guess who it is. So um. Yeah. Cranked it out in about four hours. Will probably fix typos and things later on as they're pointed out. So um. Yeah.
Disclaimer: This profile represents a Captain of my non-canon Bleach world. The power scales represented in its text are only in relation to the personal stories and the fiction which I write. So, while he may seem overpowered by your scale, don't get up in an uproar.
This will be posted with all OCs I post from now on. Don't thinks it's just a cop out to make an OP character without consequence.
[spoil]"You just don’t get it, man. I’m not unmotivated, you’re just not interesting enough to make me give a shit.”
Name: Yasuo Shimizudani
Epithets: The Sultan of Shikai (self-given); Yasuo of the Rusted Blade; Lazy Bastard (given by the Captain-Commander); Yasu-chan (given and used derogatorily by Captain Inugiri and Lieutenant Isobe)
Age: 364 (Appears to be in his late-twenties)
Sex: Male
Sexual Preference: Heterosexual
Species: Shinigami
Alliance: Captain, Division 13
Theme: Feeding Frenzy – Within The Ruins
Appearance: The appearance of Captain Shimizudani fall very well in line with the attitude of mild apathy his name has come to be associated with over the years. His overall frame is gaunt and lanky to a degree, despite the fact that he is as well muscled as any other person in his position. The aforementioned body stands at a height of six feet, two inches, though there are a few small clicks of centimeter length that some debate brings him to a mark of three inches over six feet. Viewed in a silhouetted form, his body would look similar to a standard anatomical model. That is, while he does have a bit of fat, Yasuo’s body shape is largely standard for a fit man his size, having little to no protruding areas, be they muscle or fat. Despite the noticeable lack of protrusions, Yasuo is still fairly muscular, having definition and tone one would expect of a man in his position. The skin draped over these muscles is mostly devoid of blemishes excepting occasional scars which are located mostly on his arms and back. A fair amount of the scars are, against most common thought, not from battle, however. The original wounds came from his time in the Rukongai under the servitude of one of the minor noble families, primarily inflicted when he would steal things from the family.
Yasuo’s, what could generally be referred to as, “beauty features” are perhaps the best reflection of his trademark personality. From his head, a mane of black hair falls, reaching a length not seen too often on men. The black locks fall to the base of his neck in the rear, brush his shoulders on the sides and hang just a bit past his eyes in the front. The hair is, more often than not, left ungroomed and sticking wildly out in some places while falling in a mussy straightness in others. The eyes normally hidden by these dark strands are tinted a shade of blue that is a bit of an oddity for even those with the bluest eyes. The irises are colored a stunning cobalt hue, with small flecks of a slate color that appear only in the right light. These highly regarded rings of color are inlaid like gemstones on a face that could easily fit into a human advertisement catalogue (and has, at times, been known to appear in the catalogues of Seireitei when the captain is strapped for cash). Upon the perfectly proportioned ears of the captain exist three piercings. Upon each helix there are two half-inch long metal bands; one on the upper curve and the other placed to stop just before the beginning of the ear lobe. Stuck into each lobe is a small, pale gray, spherical stud, originally used as a placeholder for another piercing that quickly became such a staple that they were never removed.
Attire: In terms of his shihakusho, Yasuo prefers to keep things fairly traditional, with only a few alterations to suit his preferences. Since he first joined the Gotei Divisions, Yasuo has chosen to wear the sleeveless version of the kosode offered, on the grounds that flowing sleeves are far too annoying when trying to fight an enemy. This philosophy carries over to his hakama which were let in considerably, not tight enough to be considered sweatpants or jeans yet still loose enough to allow the captain incredibly fluid movement. As far as footwear are concerned, Yasuo has completely abandoned the practice of wearing tabi, insisting that they blister his feet too much for his comfort. His waraji are standard fair. While some keep their zanpakuto tied to their waist, Yasuo prefers to carry it loose in his hand.
When it comes to custom wear, Yasuo’s individuality and the changes it brings about are more easily seen. Much of his haori has been cut down, in line with the “too much cloth is bad” mantra. Much like the kosode, the haori is completely sleeveless, enabling the fullest, unimpeded mobility. In the back, the white coat has been cut so it reaches down just to the top of Yasuo’s thighs, enabling him to utilize his feet as much as his hands. The inner lining of the haori is an odd brownish orange tint, looking similar in hue to oxidized metal.
Personality: As stated way back in the first paragraph of the appearance section, Yasuo’s personality is colored by his mildly apathetic traits. While he is far from the level of apathy in which one totally gives up, Yasuo still acts indifferent to many events that happen around him. Very few stimuli will actually get him to break his trend of passing on most things. Other than that, he can be counted on to pretty much blow everything off with a vast amount of casualty8. During these times, Yasuo is incredibly snarky, constantly taking friendly jabs at his fellow shinigami or making a snide, smartass remark about the day-to-day life in Seireitei.
When encountering the few things that manage to rouse him, Yasuo will instantly take on a mentality of full notice. The events that most often spark these moments normally involve his lesser squad members, be it the accessing of their shikai, a successful transfer, or even something as simple as them asking him for training. At heart, the lazy beast just wants to see his pupils succeed.
Abilities:
Zanjutsu Master: While not quite up to the level of fighters the likes of the Kenpachi, Yasuo is regarded as one of the premier of zanjutsu combatants among the Gotei. While he would be unable to best the more advanced practitioners of the art, Yasuo has shown little trouble in dealing with lieutenant-class fighters and is quite capable of holding his own against many of his fellow captains. According to him, refining of this skill was needed to compensate for his zanpakuto’s lack of directly offensive abilities. The consensus seems to be that this is the truth, as no better explanation has been offered.
Gensui Tansen (Rotted Edge): A zanjutsu technique Yasuo created in tandem with the captain of the Eleventh Division. The move entails the shinigami forming a hardened sheath of spirit energy along the cutting edge of his blade. Then, just before the blade makes contact, the strict hold over the sheath that keeps it solid is partially released, allowing the force to surge a bit. This act causes the sword to cut as if the edge of the blade was serrated, having results predictable of that style of blade.
Hakuda Expert: Much like the refining of his zanjutsu skills, Yasuo honed up his hand-to-hand skills as an aid for his lack of offensive zanpakuto abilities. His proficiency allows Yasuo to stand above lieutenants in the art and on par with a small majority of his fellow captains.
Shunpo Expert: While regarded as an ‘expert’, Yasuo’s shunpo abilities do leave something to be desired. Many times, he will find himself out sped by the other captains. Despite this, he can hold his own with the lieutenants and those below them.
Kido Practitioner: Yasuo’s Kido abilities are far inferior to most of his skills. While not as bad as some members of the Eleventh Division, he sees Kido as fairly useless in his battle style. Because of the tiny emphasis he places on it, Yasuo is limited to Hado numbered 40 and below and Bakudo of only 30 and below.
Advanced Acrobatics Practioner: Originally taken as a joke extracurricular class during his Academy days, acrobatics became one of Yasuo’s favorite unorthodox battle strategies. While he mainly uses it for avoiding attacks and striking from odd angles, the thirteenth captain has shown a fair proficiency in the art for semi-practical uses and he practices it in his free time.
Enhanced Strength: Yasuo’s physical strength is slightly about average for a captain. While not up to par with the most physically gifted of his race and rank, the thirteenth captain is still able to heft various weights with the best.
Peak Endurance: Perhaps Yasuo’s best trait and the ability that makes him a nightmare to fight is his endurance. Even without his zanpakuto augmenting them, Yasuo has shown himself quite capable of fighting harder for longer than most soldiers in the Gotei. Tests have yielded a bit of an oddity in his genetic makeup that causes a series of biological imperfections that come together in a positive way. The assorted defects cause his tissues to remove lactic acid from his muscles more quickly than normal which, in turn, causes his rate of fatigue to be slower than most.
Zanpakutou: Aika (Dirge)
Inner World: The inner world of Yasuo’s zanpakuto is far from a pleasant one. Many people, upon seeing how the captain acts, believe that his world would be one of tranquility and peace. This perception is…. the farthest from the truth. The world in which Aika dwells is a terrible place. The sky above is constantly cloud-covered and bathed is a vile light, a color that can only be described as rotting gold. The world beneath the sickly-colored sky is nearly as bad, if not worse that its canopy. Every structure in the world, from the widest mountain to the tallest tree to the smallest blade of grass features a myriad of grotesque faces, twisted into looks of what can only be described as a look of eternal torment. Making it all the worse, is the material that all these constructs are made of. While the exact composition is unknown, everything seems to be made of horribly discolored and rusted metal. The color of this most disgusting material is nearly as sickly a brow,-gold as the sky that hangs overhead. Perhaps the worst feature of the natural world is the sound. Everything in the world can move slightly and because of it, the entire world is constantly permeated with a symphony that is a discordant mix of tortured human screams and the grinding of rusted metal.
In the direct center of the world is a castle of-sorts. The building is circular and sixty feet in height, however, the castle has no spires. The only things that can be seen from the outside is a series of gears and mechanisms that make up the upper fifty two feat of the castle. The castle is where Aika calls home and is made of a stone colored similarly to the rest of the constructs in the world. Upon entering the castle, looking up will reveal the mechanisms seen from the outside in their full form. A mass of grinding gears powering a machine that is never seen. The biggest secret of the castle is its relation to the world’s natural sound. The inside of the palace is the only place currently known to be a safe haven from the wretched symphony that the rest of the world is subject to. The inside is essentially featureless, excepting the aforementioned gears and a rusted throne upon which Aika spends her days.
Zanpakutou Spirit: Contrary to the world in which she dwells, the spirit bearing the name Aika is almost always a joy to be around with her unflappable energy and general joviality. Rarely venturing outside the castle for fear of the aural assault waiting just beyond the threshold, Aika finds her own entertainment, mainly through making up vivid stories that she delights in telling Yasuo when he visits. On top of that, her connection to her master allows her to partially manifest to talk over his shoulder whenever she chooses, much to Yasuo’s chagrin. Amongst all of the horror in her world, Aika is a beam of light constantly smiling, both figuratively and literally, for Yasuo.
Physically, Aika appears to be a young girl in her mid-to-late teens. She stands at a height of five feet, two inches decking every inch of it out in a fairly simplistic, though definitely regal, dress that covers every bit of her pale skin from her shoulders to her ankles. The hair that cascades from her head and flows all the way to her waist is colored much like the rest of the world: a dull, corrupted gold, the same color as her eyes. The dress is colored similarly, varying lightly between the two layers on the skirt area.
Shikai: To activate his shikai Yasuo first makes sure that his zanpakuto is in his right hand and raises it to eye level. When ready, he whispers, almost inaudibly, Scream for me. Upon the ending of this command, Aika’s transformation begins taking place. The entirety of the sword instantly changes. Every part of the sword, including non-metallic pieces, begins rusting, turning the familiar brown-red color of rust while non-metal parts become the sickly color of his inner world. Once the change reaches the hilt, a multitude of small spikes eject from Aika’s hilt and into Yasuo’s hand. This action serves two purposes, the first prevents Aika from becoming dislodged from the captain’s grasp during combat. The second enables the next phase of the release to take place. The spikes now implanted in Yasuo’s hand begin to cause a skin of rust to creep up Yasuo’s right arm. The coating continues onto his shoulder at which point only a thin strip keeps extending up to Yasuo’s right eye. The rust then forms a border around his eye then flows into the socket, creating vein-like patterns across the sclera and to the center of the organ. Upon reaching the distinctive colored ring, the rust turns the stunning blue iris a familiar shade of noxious gold. Once he realizes this has finished, Yasuo swings his sword to the side, letting any excess rust dust fall away before declaring the zanpakuto’s name, “Aika”.
Kisei no Kaisekiryouri (The Parasite’s Feast): Kisei no Kaisekiryouri is the sole ability of Yasuo Shimizudani’s zanpakuto. Despite this, it is one of the single most feared techniques produced by any shinigami’s weapon. Upon striking a foe, a small fragment (measuring only a few centimeters) of Aika’s rusted form will splinter off, planting itself within the enemy’s flesh. From this point, the sliver passively drains away a bit of spirit energy as the battle draws on. The draining of the energy causes fatigue of the body part hosting the piece as well as lessened potency of reishi based attacks. Due to the piece’s link to its original form, the collect energy is, in a sense, “broadcast” back to the blade where it is fed into Yasuo, restoring his own stores ever so slightly. On top of reishi restoration, the stolen energy also replenishes Yasuo's physical condition, increasing his already monstrous endurance to massive levels. The true danger of the ability comes from repeated strikes, due to the stacking effect of the fragments: the more within a body, the quicker energy is drained. As the parasitic pieces drain away reishi, they let off a small glow visible only to Yasuo’s now-rusted eye, allowing him to keep track of how many fragments are in a target and which parts of the body they are in.
Bankai: Gokyu Nageku: Sekai Kusatta no Aika (Wailing Lamentations: Dirge of a World Long Since Decayed)
Activation of Aika’s Bankai requires a fair bit of space to be fully performed. Due to this, Yasuo begins the action by letting off a small burst of spirit energy to force those surrounding him to a distance. Once sure everything is set, the captain uses his left hand to grip the blade of his sword directly where it meets the tsuba and, with a forceful tug, snaps the rusted piece from the rest of its form. In one fluid motion from the break, the now freed blade is thrust into the ground and the hand that once held it moves to a position on the hilt. Simultaneously, the two pieces of the sword begin to spread their oxidized coating. The hilt and tsuba dissolve and begin a process on his left arm, identical to the one done on his right arm during shikai. While this is happening, the rusted blade dissolves into a cloud of rust flakes that act much like the seeds of a dandelion in the wind. These “spores” spread out, covering an area of 50 square feet before falling to the ground and melting and expanding to join together. Within a few seconds, everything in the area, be it trees, rocks, grass, etc. (but not people), is encased in a thick though flexible shell of rust. At points in this plain, pointed spires force their way up to heights between 3 and 6 feet. The activation culminates as two strips of metal, resembling the blade of Aika’s shikai sword, emerge at Yasuo’s feet. With the swiftness used to tear the original blade from its hilt, the captain breaks the blades from the ground, one in each hand. Yasuo’s expression turns grave as he looks towards the enemy with hollow eyes. In a voice fitting of a man giving a eulogy, he states “Bankai. Gokyu Nageku: Sekai Kusatta no Aika ”.
Seken, Homurareru Sabi (A World, Entombed in Rust): This ability is, in essence, only a magnified form of the Kisei no Kaisekiryouri. In the same vein that the fragments drain spirit energy in shikai, once Aika enters bankai, the entire rusted plain drains from any enemy within its bounds, though at a greater rate than in shikai. (Again, like the shikai ability, drained energy is transferred back to Yasuo to replenish his own stockpile.) While the effect is passive over time, it grows stronger the closer one draws to one of the thin spires that litter the area.
Fukyuu Kami no Kyofu (Dread of the Rotting God): Fukyuu Kami no Kyofu is a fairly simplistic ability when compared to Aika’s other techniques (and that’s saying something). Initiation of the skill is equally simple. All it requires in the striking or scraping of something (be it a weapon, rock, body, etc.) against one of the spires rising from the rusted plain. Upon contact, a cacophony consisting of the screams of people in severe pain and the ear-splitting grinding, screechy noise that normally accompanies the scraping of two pieces of rusted metal against one another. The vile sound lasts only a few seconds but is easily able to disrupt anyone not used to hearing it. Sadly, even Yasuo himself isn’t completely used to the pure horror of the aural assault and has found himself flinching on a few occasions. The high volume and pitch of the Fukyuu Kami no Kyofu has been known to cause burst eardrums and, in rare times, bleeding from the ear canal.[/spoil]