Kenshin Yagami (Spirit)

"The Wavering Mirage of the Sun, Under the Midnight Moon." - Illuminate Void

Yagami Nagato (長門夜神, Nagato Yagami, lit. "long-lasting gate of the night god") is a Shinigami in Squad Six of the Royal Guard Shinsengumi Subdivision, and former Captain of the Second Division and Onmitsukidoof the Gotei 13. Within Soul Society and to his enemies he is known simply as Tenken (天剣, "heavens sword"), due to his unique swordplay, and mastery of battoujutsu, which ironically is the only indication that he is the ever the same person. His history is shrouded in mystery, facts concerning his life, age, personality even appearance differ depending on who one talks to. What is known however is that he served in the 2nd Division for the majority of his career as a Shinigami, before he was promoted to the Royal Guard, and subsequently the Shinsengumi. Few are aware that he is unable to use Bankai, and fewer still understand the abilities of his Shikai.

Appearance
Yagami appears as a tall pale skinned young man, with long dark hair and two distinct bangs in front his face. His appearance is of that of a 17 year old, with, heterochromia, possessing one red eye and the other violet, his face always composed in a serious expression. He wears the typical Shinsengumi uniform, with a headband tied around his forehead to keep the bangs out of his face.

Personality
Yagami is an enigma, and given his mastery as a beguiler, it can be quite hard to pin down exactly what personality traits he has at any one time. However there are traits that can be associated with him, evident by his fighting style, and those that have known him for a long time. They believe these core traits makeup the real Yagami and are likely the reason he is so easily able to change his persona.

Above all, Yagami is patient, not only with himself but to others as well. He can be known to fade into the background, quietly watching and observing those around him. Even in converstation he'll nod and interject when appropiate, but he is always patiently learning the mannerisms, characteristics, and motives of those around him. After which he'll carefully construct the most appropiate persona for which to interact with them. Others generally view this as being shy, before warming up to others, but only to the apparent observer. While it seems that Yagami yearns to please, this is not the case. He gives people what they want letting their assumptions, and perceptions become the truth. If others are too blind to see the reality before their eyes, then he is quite content to let them continue on living in a world filled with lies.

Ruthlessness is another characteristic attributed to Yagami. Evident by his impressive record, high success rate on missions, and his method of combat, Yagami is willing to use whatever means necessary to complete his objective without any regard to moral ethics. He is willing to even cut down a commanding officer if he firmly believes they are jeopordizing the mission. Although it does bring into question, why is Yagami so dedicated to the mission itself? He has a level of dedication that far exceeds those around him, even in the Shinsengumi, a group acknowledge for putting the interests of Soul Society far above their own, that they are willing to be branded as traitors for the missions they could be tasked to do. Yagami's motivations remain unclear, as do his ambitions, not even the brightest of minds have been able to figure out exactly why Yagami does what he does, but they do know that he performs whatever tasks set before him with the efficiency of a cold and ruthless machine.

Despite the many persona that Yagami adopts he does have a few choice ones that he seems to favor.

Naito Ozuki Persona: He can be rather loud, and overbearing, but he is relaxed, humorous, and witty. He can be seen with a constant smirk on his face, indicating his confident nature, and will tend to make lewd comments to tease his friends, and unrattle his opponents. He's impatient, but perceptive to others. Although he doesnt appear to have much booksmarts, he is very wise, and tends to enjoy the simple things in life.

In combat, Ozuki prefers an ambidexterous sword style, using the katana and sheath to attack combined with hand-to-hand combat techniques. It is an unorthodox style, more akin to a rampaging berserker. He rarely makes use of Kido, although he is notorious for his innovative Bakudo combinations, and trapmaking skills prior to combat. His strategy in combat involves insulting his opponents, flustering them as he uses his fox-like cunning to confuse and disorient them, using flamboyant strategies.

Purpose: Naito Ozuki was developed to appeal to the others, as being warm and friendly, while at the same time, possessing the slew of male characteristics, that make him likable despite his flaws. Ideally Ozuki personifies someone that motivates others, but isnt necessarily going to lead them (similar to how Ichigo).

Imagawa Ryōshun Persona: He is regarded as one of Soul Society's greatest strategic commanders. In person he is calm, polite and soft-spoken, despite the fact that his voice sounds like ash churning through gravel, he is quite impressionable. Possessed by a regal bearing, he commands the respect of his subordinates, and those around him. His eyes shone with the age of a seasoned warrior, and his face perpetually set in solemn expression. He is remarkably intelligent, having knowledge of a variety of subjects, relating from history, to current events in contemporary times, and is philosophical professing the need to apply all aspects of military training to one's life as a whole. He is quite fond of tea ceremonies, and enjoys painting. But there is some discrepency regarding his past. No one knows exactly how old he truly is, some say that he supposedly died many centuries ago. Yet has reappeared numerous times, according to various accounts to provide aid to Soul Society whenever it was in danger. It was said that during the Winter War, Imagawa Ryōshun appeared in Soul Society and prevented an invasion of Hollows whilst the Gotei 13 were battling Aizen and his Arrancar army.

In battle, Imagawa Ryōshun is an elegant combatant, utilizing graceful, flowing movements to fight against his opponents. Despite the armor he wears into combat, it doesnt appear to impede his range of motion whatsoever. His Zanpakutou takes the form of a chinese straight sword, and his fighting style resembles the sword forms found in Xingyiquan, making use of aggressive linear movements with explosive power. While his footwork resembles that of Baguazhang, with its circular movements, counters and defenses. He is quite formidable as a warrior, able to battle against hordes of Hollows without sustaining a single injury. Aside from his exemplary combat prowess, as stated earlier Imagawa Ryōshun is a brilliant strategist, able to outmaneuver enemies in nearly any setting, exploiting their weaknesses, and countering their strongest abilities. He is most renown for his ability to defeat enemy forces even when they outnumber his own by three to one.

Purpose: Imagawa Ryōshun was designed to appeal for the need to demonstrate proper leadership amoungst the Gotei 13. He exemplifies the nobility, yet due to his humble yet confident nature is able to interact with his subordinates. This persona is best often used for diplomatic missions, and times when a "face" is necessary.

Lastly the persona he is most renown for is, Nagato Yagami. Whether this is his real name or not, or even his true identity is up for debate. But it is known however that he has portrayed himself as Nagato Yagami for the longest, decades. Perhaps the very mask he wore has become the face.

Nagato Yagami Persona: Yagami is often described as a soft-spoken, polite mannered individual. He has a handsome man with long dark hair, heterochromia eyes, and a tall but lithe frame. He is calm, witty and at times a bit sarcastic, and is always shone with a smile on his face. But like all things he too possesses a dark side. Although his outward mannerisms don't change in battle, he is particularly ruthless, merciless even. He'll continue to politely address his opponent, as though they were having a pleasant conversation whilst cutting them down as though they were but grass to the scythe. To onlookers it can appear quite unnerving, perhaps even sadistic or even arrogant. He adhere's to a structure of beliefs based around Bushido, and is quite philosophical in and out of battle. He's extremely perceptive and keen on minor details often referencing them in some sort of sarcastic remark to his allies, though its generally to make them aware of otherwise critical or important information.

He is most well known for his impressive skill in the sword and his remarkable ability to adopt any disguise he chooses to, first witnessed by Aizen, then by Soifon. He has an equally impressive mission record, completing dangerous often suicidal missions with speed and efficiency. His methods are questionable but there is no denying the result - Yagami will complete whatever objective or mission handed to him, going above and beyond the call of duty to see it through to the end. This trait is what attracted Soifon to his abilities, eventually leading to his transfer into the 2nd Division.

History
Not Yet Revealed.

Powers & Abilities
"Good lies are the ones told with a sliver a truth to them. The best lies however, are the ones that become the truth."

- Nagato Yagami

Immense Spiritual Power: As the former Captain of the 2nd Division, Yagami boasts a considerable amount of spiritual power. His reiatsu is rather unique, in that unlike others which often crush or inspire despair into their opponents Yagami's reiatsu is described as "like the calm before the storm". Since he has become a member of the Shisengumi, he has learned and mastered a great deal of control over his spiritual power, augmenting his physical attributes, and enhancing his ability to regulate his energy expenditure during combat, conserving every ounce of power when necessary. He is able to fight for prolonged periods of time, and quickly hide his presence whenever necessary in or out of battle. Yagami's spiritual energy is white in color, with a faint bluish outline. Whenever he releases his spiritual it forms a large sphere around him reminiscent of a white blazing sun.


 * Enhanced Strength: Yagami is deceptively strong given his build, able to cause massive wide area destruction, capable of collapsing an entire building with a single strike. This is due to the immense level of control he has over his spiritual energy, by channeling it throughout his body, releasing it in explosive bursts upon impact. Extended use of this ability has allowed him to perfect its energy expenditure and steadily increase his reserves.


 * Enhanced Durability: Shinigami are known for their ability to withstand otherwise lethal blows for a human yet still continue fighting. Yagami has demonstrated this to levels beyond his peers, suffering multiple blows that would fell Shinigami several times over yet still continue fighting. The source of this ability seems to stem from Yagami's incrediable willpower, allowing him to push himself to the limits of his ability and beyond, a trait he says taught to him by his Zanpakutou spirit.
 * Enhanced Speed: As a former member Commander of the Onmitsukido, Yagami has trained his speed to incrediable levels, a necessity given his mastery of assassination techniques, and the the legendary technique Shunko, both requiring an immense level of speed and concentration. He is an exceptionally agile fighter, using his agility to his advantage, and when combined with his mastery of Shunpo allows him to fight hordes of opponents single-handedly.
 * Enhanced Spiritual Awareness: Most Shinigami possess some measure of ability in detecting reiryoku, however Yagami has shown to be particularly impressive with this skill. He can sense spiritual beings from vast distances, and from a single glance can accurately tell how powerful an opponent is. He describes the nature of sensing spiritual energy as though it were similar to temperature. Plus's and Shinigami tend to have a "warmer" reiryoku signatures, with more powerful shinigami having proportional levels to their strength ie the more reiatsu present the hotter and greater the distance they can be felt away from. Hollows however have "colder" reiryoku signatures with the same proportions to their strength. Individual reiryoku differ based on other factors; flow, intensity (humid or dry), centralized or wider areas of concentration, each characteristic having its own unique variations that he is easily able to sort through individual signatures. Before he increased his skills as a Captain, Yagami had trouble sorting through multiple reiryoku signature's, especially if there was a powerful one nearby, which would mask any nearby presence. But he has since refined this technique by detecting the subtle differences as though noting the "blots" and "fluctuations" indicating another presence. Yagami has become quite skilled at this that he is able to analyze such small changes in their reiatsu, that he can read his opponents emotions, and on a rudimentary level predict their actions. This aspect is especially useful in the field of battle, where it allows him to more easily recognize their attack patterns, movements and abilities.

Master Swordsmanship Specialist: Yagami is demonstrates masterful percision in executing extremely quick, devastating attacks, he is one of Soul Society's most proficient sword users. He is capable of killing hordes of hollow's instantly with his swordsmanship, and is noted to have an extremely fast attack speed, due to his mastery in battoujutsu, arguably making him the highest skilled practitioner of said art in all of Soul Society. As a master beguiler, Yagami learned a variety of sword styles to compliment the various persona he used, and has since incorporated many techniques into a unique style of combat. Since he has joined the Shinsengumi Yagami's skill has increased to such heights that he is capable of fighting several captain-level Shinigami simultaneously, and his swordsmanshp has been shown to be powerful enough to take down opponents with a single strike.


 * Shuntensatsu (瞬天殺, "Instant Heaven Kill"): A technique that combines the hyper-speed achieved by Shunko, with battoujutsu refined to the highest level of skill. The sheer force created by this technique is in a sweeping arc that can kill anything within close to mid range. It is named because the speed behind the attack is so swift the opponent is killed before they are even aware of the blow.

Hakuda Expert: Although Yagami is highly proficient in Hand-to-Hand combat techniques, he is not considered a true master like the Onmitsukido captains before him. Due to the wide range of hakuda combat styles, Yagami learned to better compliment the various persona's he adopted, he was never able to attain a level of mastery. However because of the wide range of hakuda techniques he has learned, he is an extremely unpredictable and adaptable opponent whether it is with a sword or empty hand.

Shunpo Master: Yagami is highly skilled and experienced in the art of Shunpo, a skill that was further developed during his time in the Omnitsukido and as its Captain. He is able to easily keep up with other masters of the art, and still remain undetected. Combined with his mastery in stealth and deception to compliment his speed, Yagami is considered a prodigy in the art, often compared to Soifon and her mentor Yoruichi.


 * Senka (閃花, Flash Blossom): a special Shunpo technique where one moves to their opponent's back, directly attacking and sealing one's "Saketsu" and "Hakusui" in one strike (effectively cutting them off of their spiritual energy flow).

Master Assassin: As the former Commander-in-Chief of the Onmitsukidō, Yagami is one of the foremost masters of the art of assassination, his skill often being compared to the likes of Yoruichi, with some whispers that he's surpassed her. He is intimately familiar with the anatomy of humans, and spiritual entities, that he is able to deliever precision based strikes dealing massive amounts of damage. Combined with this swordsmanship and hand-to-hand techniques, Yagami is considered one of the most lethal assassins in all of Soul Society. He already possessed an innate talent and skill in subterfuge, which only increased since his time in the Onmitsukido. He's developed several stealth based Kido to maximize his ability to infiltrate and disguise his presence, further augmenting his already fearsome stealth capabilities.
 * Utsusemi (空蝉; Cicada, referencing their molting): Way of Onmitsu, 3rd of the Shihou. It allows for a movement at great speed, leaving at least one tangible after-image behind.

Master Beguiler and Manipulator: Arguably Yagami's greatest skill and the basis for nearly all of his abilities, is his mastery in the arts of beguile and subterfuge. Ever since his time in the Academy Yagami has demonstrated a remarkable level of skill, crafting various persona's to suit his needs and those around him. His genius-level understanding of human nature was such that he gained the interest of both Captain Aizen and later Soifon before he became Lieutenant. He is extremely skilled at manipulating those around him, utilizing truths, half-truths and carefully placed lies to confuse, misdirect and change the very perceptions of reality of those around him. His ability has allowed him to gain great insights into the inner workings of both the Human World, Soul Society, and Hueco Mundo. He is also known to be privy to knowledge that is otherwise unknown, such as the existence of other Soul Society's and how to gain access them.

Master Strategist and Tactician: As both former Commander-in-Chief of the 2nd Division, and possessing a wealth of knowledge in human psychology, history, tactics and strategy, Yagami is able to quickly create simple to complex strategies to defeat his opponents. With a vast array of skills available forto him, he is an extremely adaptable opponent, able to analyze, predict and counteract the attacks and movements of his opponents with efficient ease, exploiting their weaknesses when necessary. His knowledge is further demonstrated by use of some of the more basic concepts to augment his own abilities. Yagami is one of the few to use his Zanpakutou and its Sheath, both as a focus for his power and as a means of regulating his spiritual energy. By using his Sheath to control and regulate the flow of reiryoku, he learned that he could bypass the incantation for high-level Kido despite not having the requisite skill to do so normally. Furthermore he makes use of his Zanpakutou to absorb any released spiritual energy not compressed by his version of Shunko, thereby increasing the power of his attacks. The sheath once again plays its role as a conduit to aid in the control and regulation of his spiritual energy so that it doesn't crush him from the pressure.

Expert Kido Practitioner: As former captain of the 2nd Division and the Commander-in-Chief of the Onmitsukidō, Yagami is an accomplished master in Kido. Though he relies mostly on Shunpo, and his Swordsmanship and Hakuda combat techniques, he is highly skilled in using Kido to augment his abilities, creating layered incantations of Bakudo to trap his opponents. He has has demonstrated skill in mixing his combat skills together with Kido in a deadly array of forbidden martial arts techniques. Yagami has been shown using mid to high-level (up to #70) binding and destruction spells with no incantation with an expert level of skill. Although there have been instances where Yagami has used high-level kido (#80 or higher) with no incantations. But it was later revealed by Yagami that he used his Zanpakutou's sheath to bypass the incantation. This led others to believe that Shōgetsu Yojitsu special ability was tied to Kido, but in a surprising act of honesty he refuted this claim with, ''"The Zanpakutou acts as the focus of a Shinigami's spiritual energy. And the sheath, by its very nature contains and controls that power. Given that...why wouldnt I use it as a foci for my magic as well?" ''Although many have yet to use their Zanpakutou in this fashion it is reasonable to assume this can be learned by any Shinigami.
 * Shunkō (瞬閧, "Flash Cry"): Like most previous commanders of the 2nd Division, Yagami has learned and mastered the use of this special technique. However, unlike his fellow brethren who were content to use a technique designed for its creator, Yagami adapted and modified this technique into his own style. Normally Shunko pressurizes Kido along the back which is directed to the limbs to increase their speed and power, however Yagami instead compresses the Kido inside his core - the center of his body, enhancing his body as a whole. While its effects aren't as pronounced as the standard Shunko in terms of raw destructive power, it enables him to perform at significantly higher levels on the physical level. The technique also seems to creates a secondary circuit through his body, giving him superhuman reflexes, and greatly enhances his control/manipulation of spiritual energy within the body. Thanks to his superhuman reflexes, and enhanced manipulation of spiritual energy, he can release extremely powerful destructive bursts of reiatsu with his attacks. Yagami refers to this version as his Shunko, calling it Hiryuusen (飛龍閃, "Soaring Dragon Flash").


 * Hyper-Speed Combat: While using Hiryuusen, Yagami is able to move so swiftly that his raw unenhanced speed is equal to that of Flash Step. By combining Shunpo with Hiryuusen, his speed becomes great enough that even Captain-level Shinigami have difficulty keeping track of his movements.


 * Immense Strength: Due to the compression of his spiritual power, Yagami's already enhanced strength increases to immense levels, which are further augmented by the release of reiatsu to further increase his damage output.


 * Immense Durability: The excess Kido that would normally be visible around his body is instead compressed around him, into skin tight secondary layer, that prevents the emission of his spiritual energy, thereby erasing his spiritual energy signature. As a byproduct he gains exceptional durability similar to the Hierro of Arrancar, allowing him to block Zanpakutou or other attacks barehanded.


 * Weaknesses: Because of the nature of this technique Yagami is unable to effectively use other Kido due to the compression of his spiritual energy. The process makes it very easy to release Kido upon impact, but ranged attacks beyond five meters are impossible. While powerful in its own right, his method of attacks become limited to his Swordsmanship, and Hakuda, as he is unable to use Kido in any effective manner. However while activated this technique makes Yagami perhaps one of the most dangerous assassins in all of Soul Society.

Zanpakutou
Shōgetsu Yojitsu '(朝月泊日, "rising moon, night sun"''): In a sealed form it resembles a normal katana with a simple cross guard, in the shape of a octagon. It has a black handle and a black sheath.'''

Appearance: Shōgetsu Yojitsu, has no real fixed appearance. Given that its power is the ability to "alter perception", Shōgetsu Yojitsu can appear in whatever form it wants to Yagami. It does seem to hold a preference towards females however, and will often take the forms of people it finds interesting. Its current form is that of Shihouin Yoruichi, having found her personality and flair to be rather refreshing. Although the only pictures it has seen are those before her defection from Soul Society, so the "persona" is seen wearing formal robes.

Personality: (under construction)

History: (under construction)

Shikai: It's release command, "Waver" (揺らめく, "yurameku") and is used to both activate and deactivate it. The name hints at its illusionary properties; the moon rising at dawn and the sun in the night sky are things that can only be imagined or appear in ones dreams.

Shikai Special Ability: Shōgetsu Yojitsu power is the ability to alter perception. Technically this would classify it as an Illusionary-type Zanpakutou, but Shōgetsu Yojitsu neither confirms nor denies this claim. Shōgetsu Yojitsu's power has evolved with Yagami's understanding of its true nature, claiming that Yagami has only tapped but a fraction of its full potential. Shōgetsu Yojitsu has hinted that its current abilities are only what Yagami believes them to be, although the more limitations placed on a specific instance of his power the more potent and prominent it becomes. This eventually manifested in the Noble Phantasm ability that is often used, although even Shōgetsu Yojitsu shows its surprise at Yagami's ingenious. For even it didnt know that it could set contingent conditions for the Noble Phantasms, something it is very proud of Yagami for discovering.


 * Limited Function: Yagami has yet to fully realize the full extent of the abilities of his Zanpakutou. Hence the reason he had to do battle against another Captain to obtain Captaincy of the 2nd Division once his predecessor stepped down to join the Royal Guard. At his current level of understanding Yagami is only able to create specific illusions through the use of Noble Phantasms as described below, and change his appearance.

Weaknesses: For all of its power the Noble Phantasm has a number of limitations and restrictions towards its use. A target can only be under the effect of one illusion at any given time, doing so a second time violates the rule of "one mind, one perception" a principle based on the rule that if a target was affected by an optical illusion, you cannot create another optical illusion on top of the original, because then there is a contest of illusions, with one attempting to overpower the other, ultimately resulting in both being dispelled. No illusions duration can last beyond 1 hour, and if a target is physically injured while under the effects of a Noble Phantasm the illusion immediately dissipates.
 * Noble Phantasm (宝具, "hougu", "precious tool"): A prescripted illusion thats projected onto its target by meeting their gaze. The illusion in question can be anything of Yagami's design; he can control all of an opponents senses to create hallucinations, induce subtle suggestions or cause the target to feel false emotions such as rage or lust. The illusions are deceptively subtle, and hard to discern, although the more grandiose the illusion the easier it becomes for a target to disbelieve and thus dispel (for example having them attacked by a horde of bunnies isnt very believable). Despite the limitations of this ability he is able to create contingent conditions upon which the illusion will trigger which can last until years later. Even if Shōgetsu Yojitsu is resealed any Noble Phantasm currently in use or set onto a target will last until the illusion takes effect.


 * Water Moon (水月, "suigetsu"): Another power of Shōgetsu Yojitsu is the ability to change Yagami's appearance at will. He can appear as anything he wishes to, although for unknown reasons Yagami has restricted use of this ability to only other humanoids. This illusion is very potent, and cannot be dispelled or disbelieved unless an opponent is physically touching Shōgetsu Yojitsu.

Bankai: Not yet Achieved.

Trivia

 * Despite his mastery of strategy, tactics, and manipulation, Yagami is a horrible at shogi (japanese chess), while Shōgetsu Yojitsu happens to be quite skilled at it. Both find the irony rather humorous.
 * Yagami respects every opponent he has ever faced. Battle is more than just a testament of skill. It is a stage where one weaves their life history through each blow, struggling to uncover the depths of their power. And it is only through combat can individuals, those who live by the sword, and die by the sword truly understand and discover the truths of one another. Doesn't mean he won't crush them without a shred of mercy, when he delivers the killing strike.
 * Yagami is completely and utterly fearless, it is not because of his lack of emotions nor is it arrogance. He simply believes there is nothing to be feared, only things to be understood.
 * Yagami's fighting style is inspired by Seta Sojiro from Rurouni Kenshin, even having the same moniker.

Behind the Scenes

 * Nagato Yagami's theme song is Bleach Movie 2 OST - Treachery. It was chosen due to the lyrics complimenting Yagami's mastery of deception.