Tsukaima Heiki || Chūnin

[Tsukaima Heiki]

YOU CAME ON LIKE A VISION IN THE DARK

Ace of Spades, Jack of Clubs, King of Hearts and Queen of Diamonds. The Queen of Diamonds, perhaps, is the worst card in the deck. It signifies superficiality of women. The Jack of Clubs is no better, signifying the flippant tendencies of men. Not that I'm like that of course. If I had to pick, I’d prefer to be the Ace of Spades. A master at deception, cool, collected. Never caught unawares. And then there's Heart, the most idealistic symbol of all…

TSUKAIMA HEIKI
~ Gwisin Byeolgok || Yacha ~

Alias: Goat Boy
Age & DOB: 18 & May 28
Gender: Male
Sexuality: Heterosexual
Village: Kumogakure no Sato

Rank & Position: Chūnin
Chakra Nature:
^{Katon | Fire}
Chakra Manipulations:
^{Katon | Fire
Raiton | Lightning}

OOC Name: Yuu (Yes, really.)
Other Characters: Kamizuru Yuu | Namame Kashii
Rules Password: I didn't have to do this for Yuu or Kashii, so Taco Tuesday. ♥

Appearance

Weighing in at 144lbs and standing at 5'8'' without his horns, there is nothing really imposing about Heiki. His eyes and hair aren't particularly outlandish; his eyes are catlike and such a deep chocolate brown that they could appear black, and his hair is a deep maroon-red. He keeps his hair at a medium length, reaching his shoulders all the way around, parted down the middle. What you would notice immediately is that he is not human. Curving out from his head are two reddish-black horns, the left being seven inches long, curling at the end, and the right only three inches, filed flat. The asymmetry of his horns is due to the right being broken off many years ago, and he simply chose to keep it filed versus allowing it to grow back strangely.

If he smiled, you would see the irregular teeth that line his mouth. He has four pointed canines, sharp teeth behind them. His molars are flat, however. His ears come to a point, and his skintone is fair. From the base of his spine sprouts a four foot, leathery tail. Along the bottom of the tail is ribbed, with a ridge of fur starting from the small of his back down the base of the top of the tail. The tip of his tail has a sharp-edged spade head, which can cut if whipped at an aggressor. The tail is not prehensile, but he does have full control over it. His legs are perhaps his most noticeable feature. They are faun-like, curving back at the knee and a long foot attached to a strong ankle. In place of toes he has cloven hooves, well cared for and black. Starting from the thigh downward, the skin on his legs becomes leathery like his tail, a layer of fur appearing near the ankle and the hoof starts, the same color as his hair.

Classy in some ways, obscene in others, Heiki enjoys dressing in strange clothes and suits. When traveling he normally dons a hooded sweatshirt and fitted pants, often buckled just above his hooves to keep them in place. All of his clothes have been tailored to allow his unusual appendages free movement, always buckled at the hoof. He generally wears his Kumo headband around his neck, but he can wear it in other places, the metal plate always visible. Occasionally he will wear his Chūnin vest and uniform. His legs are never bare.

Personality

While he may come off as cold, a more accurate description would be indifferent. He cares little for the affairs of humans because of how he was treated when he was young. When speaking directly to someone, he's rather monotone. He's wildly independent, acting how he likes with little care to what others will think about him. He often likes to play pranks on others for his own personal amusement when bored at home. Despite his distaste for most people, he is subservient to higher-ranking officials, an ingrained need-to-please set deep in his genes. It is not impossible to become friends with him.

Despite seeming downright deviant at times, Heiki will follow orders down to the letter to the best of his ability. Though it's obvious he intends to serve with utmost seriousness for a commanding officer, should a friend or someone else ask him for something, he's much more subtle, doing what is asked of him without appearing to have cared at all. Should a companion be in trouble and need help, he'll do what it takes to get the job done, never mentioning the troubles later, no matter how difficult it may be.

Convenience is a must for him. He'd rather buy food than cook it himself, but then his constitution is different from a human's; he doesn't need to cook his food. When traveling, he won't waste time packing food, as it would be just a burden to him. He is an excellent forager, familiar to all kinds of edible and medicinal plants. He prefers red meat but isn't adverse to fish or fowl, and doesn't need to cook it to eat it.

While sometimes appearing selective, Heiki is surprisingly pure, oblivious to many social things around him that most people just know. For instance, he doesn't understand perversion, and should someone strip for purposes other than bathing or changing, he'll merely assume that person was hot and trying to cool off. Most metaphors, save for the most common of them, are lost on him, and he takes them literally. He doesn't recognize attraction, nor does he feel it (it's not that he's incapable, he's just not interested). Small animals are viewed as food sources, though he's come to understand that it is socially unacceptable to eat cats, small dogs, koi fish, or animals that he is aware is labeled as a “pet.”

Heiki enjoys playing cards, usually having a few on him. Occasionally, he'll play tricks on people, small pranks, to keep himself amused, and with those few he calls “friend” he will often play card tricks with. When trying to encourage someone he will often use metaphors relating to cards, often ones he made up himself. Likes to see if he can touch his tongue to the tip of his nose. Just barely can, but usually ends up poking it on his teeth. He also tends to pluck leaves from trees and shrubs as he passes, chewing on them to see if they're edible or not, or just to give him something to chew on.

History

Born just before noon on a warm spring day, Heiki was a healthy addition to the Tsukaima clan. The Tsukaima were the main population of that small village, and the young child loved to go exploring through it. A safe community, it wasn't uncommon to see children wandering around without their parents, even at young ages, but they were never unsupervised. So, by the time he could walk on his unsteady hooves, he was already out in the streets, usually accompanied by his dad, but by the time he was four, he could trot about on his own, following other adults and very conspicuously eavesdropping on their conversations.

Many of the older individuals were shinobi, a surprisingly new occupation that the Tsukaima had begun applying for. The shiny bands and the pointy weapons fascinated him, and after tripping up enough people to overhear stories as time went on, someone finally plucked the child off his feet to try and explain to the five-year-old mind what a shinobi was. The descriptions scared many of the children, true, it wasn't a way of life fit for some of the beasts here, not all of them, even in the old days, were suited to fight. But others were. And Heiki was fascinated by the stories. His own parents weren't shinobi, but they could fight, and he'd seen them spar when he followed them, absolutely fascinated.

So, when he went home that night to ask his parents in that sweet child-like voice if he could do it too, they were torn. He'd go off to be on his own in the nearby shinobi village, and it wouldn't be until he was big enough to travel alone that they could see him again, unless they were the ones to come visit. But the children were surprisingly independent. He'd be okay. Heiki rarely got that excited over anything. They'd let him go. But, he was only five, and the academy accepted six-year-olds on up. This gave them time to find a foster home for him in the village. The closeness meant it only took a couple hours to travel the distance from here to there, and it wasn't hard for them to personally find a family for him to stay with, an elderly civilian couple who didn't mind the odd looks of the Tsukaima. After all, no matter what he looked like, he was still a young child, right? Well, that's what they thought...

When he turned six, he was given a bag of things that he'd insisted on carrying himself, and traveled with the older shinobi of his village back to the massive city of Kumo. Heiki's young mind was in awe. He'd never seen so many people, nor so many different colors. And they were all so funny looking! … And... they looked at him strangely too. How odd. He'd been informed of the people he'd stay with, the Sakurai. He called them “Granpa” and “Gramma,” as well as their granson, Ichirou, Ichi. and were intrigued to learn that they were funny looking too. And, of course, it was their job to explain to him that it was not they that were funny looking, but that his looks were confined to his clan alone. And so, his education began.

When he'd arrived, school was on break, and he joined at the second semester. He was the only Tsukaima of this particular age group enrolled, thus, he was an oddity. If he wasn't teased for his horns, they were being tugged. If he wasn't teased for his tail, it was pulled. If he wasn't teased for his hooves, they were poked. Touching, stroking, pulling. Complimented or ostracized, he got much more attention than he ever could of wanted, and grew to hate being touched. These people... no, most humans. He'd learned early on that they had problems with creatures that did not look like them. Or worse, ones that looked partially like them. He'd also learned that headbutting, while it had been perfectly acceptable in his home village, was an unacceptable form of greeting to humans, especially after giving concussions to several children he'd intended to play with. Intense scolding had learned him to be gentler, and he tapped his foot on the ground to distract him from the urge, merely bowing instead of conking heads.

When Heiki was eight, he learned another important lesson. While his guardians had had a problem with rats, and it was only his natural instinct to do so, small animals were not to be labeled as “food.” Sure, it was okay when it was the rats. But small dogs and cats? Absolutely not. Birds in cages? They're not on display to eat. “Pets” were a difficult concept, but he eventually became able to discern the difference between “pets” and “prey.” So many things to learn to blend in to this society. But, he was eager to learn. He was smart, he caught on quickly. He wasn't top by far, but when it came to book studies, he was one of the better students.

Nine years old and finally able to keep up, Heiki began following and trying to hang out with senpais from his village, a small handful of shinobi that hung around Kumogakure. The particular group he chose to follow, however, were a mischievous pair. Under their “guidance,” Heiki became inclined to practical jokes, finally giving him something akin to a weak revenge to those who picked on him. Also due to the senpais's influence, he became more interested in television, and began a hobby of dressing like some characters on TV, often by buying, rather than making, clothes that matched, and adding some trim himself to finish it off. It was a silly thing, and something he did at home when at play, and the Sakurai couple found the dressing up to be cute, never bearing witness to the pranks he pulled. Heiki was kind to this couple, after all. He was willing to do nigh anything they asked of him.

That also applied to their grandson, who was a manipulative little brat. To Heiki's face he was nice, but let the younger boy around by his nose, convincing him to do all sorts of minor things that would get him scolded, and always wanted to mess with him. Inviting him out for a playdate with another friend, they took Heiki to a park where a haunted house was being held. An attraction for a festival, they took Heiki through. Ichi and his friend were a few yeqrs older than Heiki, and had been through before, therefor unafraid and knew what to expect. Heiki, however, was terrifed. The strange sounds, the dark, the fog, the blinking lights. There were scary dolls, people in masks, monsters. Yelling and jumping out, he was absolutely terrified, and merely pushed away when he tried clinging to Ichirou. When tey finally reached the exit, he'd been crying, and the older boy patted his head for comfort, the way he always did after upsetting him. As usual, it calmed him some, but the experience had imprinted on Heiki. He was terrified of occult things. Dark didn't scare him, but sounds he couldn't identify coming from the dark did.

Of course, now, Heiki was also old enough to travel on his own. After being away for three years, he could now visit home whenever he liked, provided he didn't miss classes. He was old enough to learn his clan techniques, and practiced them alongside the things he learned while in the academy. He started studying harder, and practicing more. He wanted to be smarter, wanted to be stronger. He wanted to be useful, above all else. Heiki had excellent chakra control, he was best at ninjutsu. He was undoubtedly fast, and arguably strong, but wasn't good in a physical fight. Preferring ninjutsu, he didn't want to use his hands for fear of injuring them and becoming incapable of performing ninjutsu.

Around this same time, that shithead started making himself known. He wasn't a new character, he'd always been there, but he'd suddenly grown bigger balls, and would just short of harass Heiki. His name was Tawagoto Atama, a fitting name indeed. For the most part Heiki ignored him, hating in silence, not giving the bully the satisfaction of seeing his words have effect. As time wore on, he'd get more aggressive, yanking and pushing Heiki around, again met with the same indifference. And then, graduation came. A one-on-one with another student, winner passes, loser only passes if the winner decides they were good enough. And it was Heiki versus Atama. The Tsukaima usually preferred saving his hands, but it felt really good to sink his fists into that other boy. The strikes hurt, but they were satisfying. Hooves here harder than feet, a swift kick sent the larger boy flying. Sure, Atama had a hard hit of his own, and he'd gotten plenty in, but Heiki was the victorious one. And sure, he might have broken a knuckle on that kid's face, but it was a really great feeling. He'd decided that Atama had been good enough after all, and they'd passed him as well, and Heiki got medical treatment for his hand, unable to use it properly for a few weeks.

But, all good things must come to an end. Once it came time to be assigned to their three-man cells, Heiki learned that he was placed in the same team as Tawagoto Atama, as well as a girl called Tsuruki Raiken. Welp, at least he knew how to get along with others when he needed to. After his utter defeat, Atama was surprisingly nicer to Heiki. The defeat had caused him to learn some new things about Heiki, and he stopped picking on him, and they eventually were able to come to something resembling a friendship. The girl, however... the best way Heiki could ever describe Raiken would be to call her a saint. So likable she was unlikable, the exact opposite of him, he didn't know what to think about her. Her predictability was unpredictable, and he found himself slapping his forehead many a time, mumbling, “I should have known...”

But, as fate would have it, she liked touching him. She seemed fascinated, and it was annoying, but she was not truly distasteful, and he eventually learned to put up with her. Being able to work with these two and their sensei, Sakigawa Shinnousuke, would be important. So, he was resolute that it would be easy working with these two, regardless of how they acted. It was the best way to get to the top, after all.

It would be a few months of low-ranking missions before they finally got assigned something more dangerous. The four of them were to protect a VIP who was being targeted, the destination being his home village in the northernmost part of the country. Unsurprisingly, they were ambushed while traveling. There were about six in total to their four fighters, easy enough with a Jōnin at their side. Even so, it didn't stop Heiki from screwing up. Unable to move away quick enough for his long-range ninjutsu, the only thing that stopped him from losing a piece of his head was the enemy's sword embedding into his right horn, scoring it close to the head, and he got away safely, the appendage bleeding but still safely attached. However, the attack left him dazed, and left him wide open to get hit again. His opponent took advantage of that, corralling him so he could not escape. A blow to the head had snapped his horn completely off, connecting with his head, and hard enough to put him out. He doesn't know what happened until he woke up, but aside from his sorry excuse for failure, the overall mission was a success.

In order to not grow back oddly, Heiki took to filing that horn as it grew back, the edges slowly flattening out. He also trained harder. He was the weak link of the team. He needed to work harder, was his goal not to be useful? What a farce, he told himself. Asking his sensei for help more often, getting help at his home village, asking other mentors, he did what he could to learn new things and practice during his free time, and the Sakurai saw less and less of him as he worked his damnedest to at least be on-par. And, finally, it all paid off.

Thirteen years old, going on fourteen, the team was enrolled into the Chūnin exams, which were being held locally that summer in Kumo. Three portions of the exam, wisdom, survival, and strength, Heiki had an excellent time with the first two rounds, finding difficulty in the third, where he was pit against a Kusa kunoichi who also specialized in long-range ninjutsu. It was more luck than anything that got him through the battle, knowledge of his clan jutsu helping him through along with his other attacks.

After becoming a Chūnin, Heiki took the liberty to apply for more missions that required traveling. He enjoyed travel, seeing the different sights, eating different things, seeing if the people were different. It was always a relief to come home afterward, but there was always that tiny lingering regret that he couldn't stay a little longer. But, he was content. He wanted to be stronger, to have purpose. He didn't want to always be the weakest link anymore.

COMBAT STATS

Paths of the Shinobi:

Primary: Path of Soul
Secondary: Path of Mind
Weakest: Path of Body

Equipment:

• Thigh Holster: x10 Kunai
• Thigh Holster: x5 Paperbombs
• Hip Pouch: x12 Smokebombs
• Hip Pouch: x10 Shuriken
• Hip Pouch: x3 Soldier Pills
• Hip Pouch: x1 Finger Mirror
• Hip Pouch: x1 Steel File
• Bag: x1 Hunting Dagger (Not used for combat)
• Bag: x1 Whittling Knife
• Bag: x1 Thermal Blanket
• Pocket: x1 Pocket Field Notebook
• Pocket: x1 Ballpoint Ink Pen

Special Abilities:

i. Expertise Training – Fuuingenjutsu: An overall skill of the Tsukaima clan, Heiki is able to combine fuuinjutsu with genjutsu to create powerful illusion techniques that, at higher levels, can have physical effects on the target's body. The genjutsu can only be broken if released by a mind-specialist of same or higher rank, or if the sealing circle—which remains visible after casting—is disrupted. When cast on the ground, if the dirt it is on gets moved, it will smear like a drawing and dispel. If cast on an object, the object need only to be broken. If cast in the air, it cannot be harmed by a physical attack but can be dispelled with any equal or higher-ranking ninjutsu that carries chakra. One the genjutsu is broken, the seal cannot be reused and disappears.

ii. Sensory Techniques : Heiki has a heightened sense of awareness, able to sense chakra signatures up to 600 yards away. Even if someone is suppressing their chakra, unless they are Jōnin or above, he will sense them if they come within 50 yards of him.

iii. Physical Traits of Tsukaima: Tsukaima members are naturally apt at taijutsu, thanks to their physical features, even if they possess no actual skill in fighting hand-to-hand. A thick skull with sharp horns attached provides the ability for a spearing headbutt. Flexible tails with sharp-edged spades can be whipped to slice, or hand-held to stab if they choose. Powerful legs with hard feet can give devastating kicks that can break bones. However, because of the nature of their legs, Tsukaima are incapable of molding chakra on their feet, making them unable to walk on walls or water. They counter this by having impeccable balance, strong jumping ability, and good footing on small surfaces for climbing, as well as swimming ability to cross water. They are incapable of going up flat surfaces that are too high to jump.

Tsukaima have a different constitution than humans. They are able to eat raw meat easily, and most don't come off as picky, capable of eating almost anything. Toxic plants affect them differently, too. Most things considered deadly to a human would have varying effects from little response to considerably ill, rarely resulting in death unless a large amount was consumed. They are not, however, immune to man-made poisons. Many human medicines don't work properly and need to be obtained by the Tsukaima healers.

Known techniques

S Rank

 ^None.

A Rank

 ^None.

B Rank

^{Akuma no Henkan [Demonic Conversion]
Katon: Karyū Endan [Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet]}

C Rank

^{Gujin Odori [Puppet Dance]
Hikō Tamashī [Flying Souls]
Ibukuro Suppai Houmen [Stomach Acid Release]
Kai [Release]
Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu[Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique]
Raiton: Kangekiha [Lightning Release: Inspiration Wave]
Raiton: Kusari Raikou [Lightning Release: Chain Lightning]}

D Rank

^{Katon: Houka Hira no Jutsu [Fire Release: Flaming Palm Technique]
Goukan Sakusou [Five Senses Confusion Disorder]
Ryouba No Yubi [Edged Fingers]
Shunshin [Body Flicker]
Wakai Kemono [Young Beast]}

E Rank

^{Bunshin no Jutsu [Clone Skill]
Henge no Jutsu [Transformation Technique]
Kakuremino no Jutsu [Magic Cloak of Invisibility Skill]
Kawarimi no Jutsu [Body Replacement Skill]
Nawanuke no Jutsu [Rope Untying Skill]
Ningyō no Odori [Dance of Dolls]}

[Rambles]

I was 99% convinced this was a chick from the pictures. Anyway everything seems good to me. 1/2

[theREAPER]

Hun I apologize, I know I told you I'd look this over and I tried, but I don't have the attention span at the moment the wholly grade this. However....

-His personal tailor must either be a relative or really hate him, cause having pants that fits perfect is damn near impossible.

[theREAPER]

Not too bad hun. Have to say I'm sorry I didn't read this sooner, it was a nice read.