Kuma Matoke

Kuma Matoke (馬心付け隈, Matoke Kuma) is a Shinigami and currently a seventh year student at the Shinō Academy. He is also the best friend of Jiyūjin Shinkirō and Ami Okano who he both met during his time in the academy. Like both of his friends he was ranked at the very bottom of their graduating class.

Appearance
Kuma's natural appearance is that of a teenage boy of average height and weight with a slender body build.He stands at around five feet and three inches and weighs around one hundred and ten pounds. Kuma has smooth fair skin and jet black hair which goes down to his neck in length. Kuma's eyes are blue and are often compared to the ocean in coloration.

Kuma's average attire is typical of a Shinigami. While in the academy he attire consists of a white shirt, a blue undershirt, and blue trousers. This is the standard outfit for male students in the academy. A unique characteristic about Kuma's outfit is that he wears a green scarf around his neck. Kuma can almost never be seen without his scarf. Kuma's Zanpakutō is always carried on his right hip.

Personality
Kuma is more timid and less courageous when compared to the likes of his friend Jiyūjin. He isn't at all optimistic as he can always be seen analyzing the ups and downs of every situation that he finds himself in. It is a natural tactic of his that is used to ensure that he doesn't get himself into any dire trouble. When it comes to his friends Kuma can easily be identified as the most reasonable and level headed one out of the three of them. Although Kuma's timid nature has set him back at times he has proven to not be afraid to defend himself.

Other words which can be used to describe Kuma are shy and quiet. Kuma isn't a loud guy and doesn't complain too much. His inability to speak up for himself has often led to his struggling in the academy as he wasn't able to get the help that he needed for himself. Kuma can also appear to be withdrawn due to his shyness when he really isn't. A tendency that Kuma has is that he won't speak others first due to an inferior complex that he possesses about himself. However, out of usually hidden respect for others he will always speak when spoken to.

Kuma also aims to please others, especially his higher ups. To feel important is something that he has always wanted. Even while being stuck in the remedial classes in the academy Kuma has always wanted to be recognized for something. This also helps with his self-esteem as being deemed significant by others is something that Kuma greatly wishes to achieve. This also means that Kuma can be easily flattered and that he will usually take any compliment (or insult) to the heart.

Similar to his friend Jiyūjin, Kuma tends to hold friendship very dear. Although he hasn't made too many friends in his life Kuma believes that he should hold close to him the ones that he has. Kuma often takes it upon himself to try to protect his friends from harm when he feels like they are in danger. Kuma also takes it upon himself to act as a voice of reason and will try his best to settle arguments. Due to his passive nature his attempts rarely work however.

History
Kuma was born to a wealthy family in the first district of the Rukongai and therefore never had to put up with the hardships that good friend Jiyūjin Shinkirō had to endure. Instead Kuma was sheltered by his loving mother and father who absolutely spoiled him and gave him everything he wanted. At one time Kuma was a very rotten and nasty child who threw temper tandrums when he did not get what he wanted. Eventually his parents began to see him as a menace due to his bad behavior and they threw him out of the house.

Now with no family Kuma wandered through the streets of the Rukongai aimlessly and eventually found himself lost. Soon enough Kuma had wandered very far from the first district of the Rukongai and had found himself as far the fiftieth. Kuma immediately noticed the declining conditions of the Rukongai as he progressed through it's many districts. He was finally beginning to experience a life that he had never lived before. Rather quickly Kuma found himself a new appreciation for life as he began to starve as a result of having not eaten in awhile.

Kuma was on the verge of death when he came across Munenori Hasimoto who was traveling through the Rukongai. Muneori picked up a fallen Kuma and immediately picked up spiritual energy within the boy. Munenori returned Kuma home to his parents who weren't to glad to have him back. Kuma's stay with his family was short lived however. Munenori saw how his parents no longer wanted him around their home and advised Kuma to become a Shinigami due to the spiritual energy he withheld inside of him. Kuma heeded the words his words and left home to enroll Shinō Academy as soon as possible.

Managing to barely pass the entrance exam to the Shinō Academy, Kuma was immediately placed in remedial classes due to his lack of ability. Kuma was often bullied and picked on by other students at the academy due to his low level of performance. Fortunately for Kuma he eventually met fellow dead last student Jiyūjin Shinkirō who wasn't afraid to stand up for himself and Kuma. The two became good friends from that moment onward.

Powers and Abilities
Spiritual Energy: After encountering Munemori Hasimoto in the Rukongai, Kuma's spiritual energy was discovered. Munemori advised Kuma to join the academy. The first time Kuma ever demonstrated the energy he possessed was during the entrance exam to the Shinō Academy. It is widely speculated that he barely managed to pass the exam on his inital attempt. During his time in the academy Kuma, much like Jiyūjin, had trouble manipulating his energy. At the time the amount of spiritual energy Kuma possessed was too much for him to actual handle. This left him to be marked as one of the bottom ranked students in the academy within his graduating class. Kuma's spiritual energy is known to take a yellow coloration.

Kidō Expert: While pratically failing at all other areas in the Shinō Academy's cirriculum, Kuma has shown a great propensity in Kidō. Despite his being a young Shinigami he is shown to maintain a good amount of knowledge about the different types of Kidō there are. He is also able to recognize many of different spells despite not being able to perform many of them himself. While in the academy his scores in his Kidō courses are the highest out of all of his classes.