Rōnin Shiba

Rōnin Shiba (浪人芝, Shiba Ronin), who is better known by the name of Kenji Hiroshi (健児博, Hiroshi Kenji), is a of the  in the. He is the 4th Seated officer of his Division and was formerly the 7th Seated officer of the.

Appearance
As a child Kenji was a malnourished boy who more often than not went to sleep hungry. Even at a very young age he sported a silvery-colored tinge throughout his predominately black hair, which he would often keep in whichever fashion it was in when he awoke. This trait never lessened even when he was accepted first into the Shin'ō Academy and later the 13th Division, giving him a reputation for being somewhat through-other. As he grew he developed into a tall, handsome and broad-shouldered young man who eventually styled his hair into a series of short spikes. He is generally noted for the sharpness of his features. If his isolation is somehow disturbed by another person approaching him or by making a ruckus, Kenji is infamous for his withering red-eyed stare and disapproving scowls. He has a small but pointed nose that has been broken no less than seven times; due to this he cannot breathe through his nostrils anymore, and when he attempts it all one hears is a raspy-like sound. He admits he doesn't sleep well anymore because of this. In addition he does not shave regularly, and at times he is known to go without a shower unless pressed. All these traits combine to make Kenji an unapproachable individual with a poor reputation amongst his colleagues for being unkempt.

His typical attire consisted of classic Shinigami garb, colored black, though he did personalize his outfit with a hood and bell attachments on the lapel. In addition his kosode was sleeveless and he wore no shitagi underneath, with black hakama and straw waraji. His clothing, in a similar vein to the man himself, was disheveled, though aside from that it was well-looked after and cleaned regularly; the only exception was that it had been patched or mended crudely in a few places. Outside his formal Shinigami attire Kenji favors a loose dark blue-colored  without patterns, preferring the duller and simpler garb often worn by older men. Whilst in his Gigai he is partial to T-shirts and denim jeans and on cooler days wears a denim jacket as well, which, according to Maya, looks awful as a man should never wear double-denim. Due to his tendency of transforming into his Gwylllgi-like state Kenji has gained a reputation as a streaker as well; the transformation sheds whichever clothing he had been wearing and when he returns to his normal state he returns as naked as the day he was born.

Personality
Kenji tends to think only of himself and rarely looks to the needs of others, leading many to consider him a loner. He is determined not to forge bonds with others as he prefers the isolation he has known since childhood, and has gone to great lengths in the past to ensure his isolation. His survival as a child hinged on his ability to stay one-step-ahead of the others, especially the other children and merchants; a trait of his that had barely diminished throughout his six-year academy stint or his tenure within the Gotei 13, only he was now looking to keep ahead of his fellow Shinigami. His unkempt appearance and usual habit of going for periods without a shower is an extension of this attitude and wholly intentional on his part. Kenji figures if people find him repulsive or unapproachable then they'll leave him alone, which is how he prefers things. His loner attitude also extends to his own Zanpakutō. Kenji has never attempted to forge a bond with the blade's inner avatar and when asked why by his fellow Shinigami, who noted it strange for a seated officer not to have access to their, Kenji responded by saying that his Zanpakutō "was a tool and what he decided to do with his tools was completely up to him and that everyone else was to mind their own business". However, one person Kenji has nevertheless bonded with despite his best efforts, is Maya Zhijun of the 13th Division. By his own admission her interest in his development and in his wellbeing confuses Kenji; he simply cannot fathom why anyone would take an interest in his life nor can he figure out what she gets out of it. It has never occurred to him that she doesn't get anything out of it all. He has repeatedly told her to mind her own business and to leave him to his own devices, but because she is the one person he can tolerate being around and can actually work somewhat effectively with in a team-environment they are often grouped together on missions. A prime example of this was Kenji's first prolonged deployment to the World of the Living. He and Maya where required to operate in Gigai when not out on patrol and while Kenji found the whole situation akin to his personal Hell-on-Earth, he nevertheless put up with it because she had to put up with him. This reasoning marked the first time Kenji thought of someone other than himself.

It could be argued that Kenji possesses a self-criticizing attitude. Prior to his successful entry into the Shin'ō Academy he failed the entrance exam twice and was ready to pack in his dream of becoming a Shinigami on account of this, putting himself down in the process and beating himself up over his own perceived inadequacy. It took Maya's goading to enrage him into a third attempt before he was successful. Maya would later state that all she saw reflected in his red eyes was grief but Kenji quickly discounted this. In a rare demonstration of trust Kenji told her all he ever felt since he was a child was anger; anger at the world, anger at those around him, and anger at how his life was being repeated by thousands of children throughout the Rukongai. He went on to say that he had never been given a proper chance to make anything of his life and that his attitude (which he admitted was lousy) was a result of his childhood circumstances. In addition to this he is also victim of his own high-standards; he knows his strengths well and plays to them, whilst ignoring his weaknesses and gets annoyed at himself when he cannot perform something he knows he is good at; such as Zanjutsu techniques that deal with the handling of a sword. As a student Kenji advanced on his own terms at his own pace, regardless of the intervention of his instructors; to the point he stayed on after class-hours to practice alone after the other students had already long-since departed, which is how he developed his skills. He did receive some respect from his instructors for this dedication but he always greeted anyone attempting to help him with the harshest word in his mouth, which did nothing to endear him to anyone.

In his free time Kenji enjoys satisfying his vices. He is an impulsive gambler, a chain-smoker of cigarettes and border-line alcoholic; these three things combined ensure he rarely has any money left to show for his hard work. He loves games of chance, detests s (thinking them cumbersome) and drinks alcoholic spirits on-the-rocks without a mixer of any kind; the type he prefers is expensive and has to be gotten from the World of the Living. One of the only times Kenji will break his normal isolation is when he is gambling, for he drinks alone as well. His preferred game is poker but he is known to turn his hand to any card-game and quickly understand its many intricacies. In fact the only reason Kenji works so hard to rise through the ranks is to increase his pay-packet: more money equals more drink, gambling and cigarettes in Kenji's mind.

History
Kenji spent his childhood in the vast that surrounded the, specifically one of the harsher Northern districts. He had few memories of his earliest years and maintains one day he had a mother and the next he was alone in a dirt-filled hovel. The only link he had to his past was a picture of a woman he had been told was his biological mother. He spent his days battling for survival in a world that neither cared nor offered help, which served to embitter him at an early age. Kenji would later look back and remark: "Everyday was a struggle; split between life and death." One particular day Kenji was sizing up a market stall for food when its owner discovered him and accused him of thievery. Kenji received a harsh beating and was left lying in the middle of the street. He drifted in and out of consciousness for quite some time but when he finally came to he found himself in a small room occupied by a woman wearing the tell-tale clothing of a Shinigami, who explained she had found him unconscious during her rounds. She detailed to him the extent of his injuries and assured him that the concussion he had suffered had been treated successfully, but stressed his need for rest. Kenji retorted that if he spent all his time resting then he wouldn't be able to get anything to eat. The woman introduced herself as Maya Zhijun of the. When she again insisted that Kenji rest she subsequently knocked him unconscious via, leaving him in a peaceful slumber. This time when he awoke he was alone but a generous quantity of food had been left behind, along with a note that red: "From your friend -- Maya." It was this event that was the driving force behind Kenji's decision to become a Shinigami. He figured if Maya had enough loose money on-hand to buy him food then Shinigami must've been paid pretty well.

Kenji applied to the in hopes of escaping the barbaric Rukongai, but failed not only on his first attempt but also on his second. He was ready to pack it all in and resign himself to a sorry life scraping a living in the Rukongai, only he was again found by Maya. She berated him for his lackluster showings during both of his examinations and reasoned that he was merely wasting his time, and that his dream of becoming a Shinigami was nothing but a pipe-dream. Her words had the desired affect for an enraged Kenji passed his exam on the third attempt and was admitted into the academy. When asked by Maya afterwards how he managed to do it the third time he responded: "If only to prove you wrong." During his studies Kenji proved himself a loner. He rarely interacted with his peers or sought their help. Any progress he made was on his own terms; an attitude which vexed his instructors and alienated him from his fellow students. He performed poorest in the classes that required teamwork and was also notorious amongst the staff for having no skill (or interest) in interacting with his. He performed well in both and  but was nevertheless criticized for his overly-vicious combat-style that tended to result in the injury of his sparring partners. He was also the laughing stock of the academy for his lackluster Kidō skills; his attempts to gain any mastery of the art was met with disastrous results, as the spells tended to backfire and explode in his face. He did, however, progress to the point he could use at least one spell without mishap. One day during one of his practice Kidō sessions he burned a hole clean through a fellow students shoulder with this very spell, which was the  spell, on purpose in response to his taunts; an act which earned him further ire from his instructors.

When he graduated Kenji struggled to gain admission to any of the squads or institutions he applied to join. His attitude played a large role in this. The Kidō Corps rejected him due to his below-average marks in his Kidō classes, though Kenji doubted his suitability to the organization in the first place. He finally managed to secure a position in the 13th Division due to the glowing reference he received from Maya, which is where Kenji stayed for a great deal of his Shinigami career. During this time he gained a reputation for volunteering himself for dangerous assignments; to the point Maya thought he was deliberately putting himself in harms way. Kenji told her that it did not concern her, though Maya countered that he was merely trying to demonstrate his worth by throwing himself into the vipers pit. She left him wondering how she could determine his thoughts and motivations so easily. It was decided that he would be sent to the in the  alongside Maya to monitor an unprecedented increase in  activity. Although he objected by stating he preferred to work alone Kenji was nevertheless overruled and put under Maya's direct command for the duration of their mission, which was odd considering a time-limit had not been imposed on their stay; they would only return when word arrived from their Captain.

Due to the nature of this mission the two where required to operate in so they where not causing unnecessary influence to the native s. They where provided with the funds necessary to rent a small house in, , and concocted the cover story that they where travelers looking to see the sights of the big city. One night during a solitary patrol outside the city Kenji was attacked by a large Hollow easily double the size of a typical two-story house but he successfully defeated it. Immediately following the battle Kenji noted that the Hollow had been quite strong. He was, however, distracted from further thought by a strange apparition that appeared in the distance. It appeared like a large, misty dog-like creature with eyes that shone like torches and a coat that moved strangely in the night. He reported this occurrence to Maya upon his return who discounted it out of-hand as having anything to do with the increase in Hollow activity, and went on to say she too had had a run-in with Hollow; though nothing close to the size reported by Kenji. Nevertheless Kenji returned to the site of his battle the next evening but the apparition failed to reappear. Putting it down to mere delusion Kenji returned to the city where he and Maya investigated the south-side for Hollow activity. For the second night in a row the two where attacked by Hollow. Kenji noted it was strange for them to be working in groups, a view Maya shared. They resolved to find the source of the Hollow's strange behavior.

During a routine patrol through a local park Kenji encountered a female Human battling Hollow with. Although he internally noted that he would have rather left the woman to her own devices (despite being duty-bound to protect Humans) the fact she was struggling against the large number of Hollow present forced Kenji's hand and he intervened. In the chaos of the ensuing battle Kenji lost track of the woman and when he turned to see if she where in trouble she had subsequently vanished, leaving him to deal with the remaining four Hollow alone. Although he put up a spirited effort the remaining Hollow almost overpowered him and he was only saved by the timely intervention of Maya. As she healed his wounds Kenji reported on the woman he had seen and the power she had used, but Maya knew as little as he did. They concluded she may have had something to do with the Hollow activity and made finding her a priority. Unbeknown to Kenji and Maya however was the fact the woman they now sought had overheard their entire conversation. Later that night Maya stumbled upon a photo in Kenji's belongings that depicted a woman with black-as-night hair and deep red eyes. When she returned it to Kenji he explained it was a picture of his mother and the only link he had to his past, but went onto say that he had found no joy in his past and was hesitant to see if the woman it showed was still alive. Maya urged him to follow-up the lead when he returned to Soul Society, saying he could finally gain some closure either way, but Kenji was doubtful. Regardless though he told her he'd sleep on it.

Throughout the course of their investigation Kenji and Maya came to the conclusion that the land in and around southern London was situated on the current jūreichi (重霊地, Important Spirit Ground), which explained the great surge in Hollow activity in the region. They used Kenji's report of the woman with mysterious powers as well as a few other examples of spiritually aware Humans they had encountered as evidence upon their return to the Soul Society. With their mission complete Kenji sought some much-needed isolation and even took some holiday leave, citing he had a personal matter to deal with. Maya asked him if he wanted company but he told her he intended to research the matter they discussed in the World of the Living and that whatever he discovered, for good or ill, would be his alone to deal with. He holed himself up in the library for days sieving through old registry information for the Shin'ō Academy. He narrowed his search down to a handful of woman who resembled the woman in the picture he had held since childhood, and eventually discovered that his mother had been a member of the 10th Division of the Gotei 13 and that she had married into the Shiba clan, at which point she joined the 13th Division. Kenji was furious as the information sank in. He roared at the walls that he should have been raised in luxury instead of the dirt-filled hovel of his Rukongai home. Despite his anger however he red on and discovered that his mother, prior to her death during childbirth, had successfully given birth to a child in northern Rukongai; though the child had mysteriously vanished. Realizing the child had never been found Kenji came to the conclusion that the child was himself and discovered also that his birth name was Rōnin Shiba. He quickly denounced the name however and declared that he was Kenji Hiroshi. He subsequently cut his leave-of-absence short and returned to active duty. He was promoted upon his return to 7th Seat of the 13th Division despite his profuse refusal.

During a month-long follow-up investigation in London Kenji discovered the identity of the girl who had earlier left him to fend for himself against the Hollow he decided to face on her behalf: Sheila Smith. When asked if he was going to shout at her for this Kenji replied that he wasn't before then replying that he would probably have done the same thing if he had been in her shoes. He promptly told the girl to get lost and returned to his patrol. Later that night Kenji again encountered Sheila who accused him of stalking her. Declaring he had better things to do with his time Kenji sparked a cigarette. His free-time however was shattered by the arrival of a strange sight: a large Hollow twice the size of a typical two-story house descended upon the. Kenji rose to the challenge but was batted aside by one of its large talon-like hands and he drifted briefly into unconsciousness. When he came to he discovered Sheila too had been knocked unconscious and that the Hollow was engaged in battle with something. He immediately rejoined the fray. He quickly found that the two entities fighting against the Hollow where Gwyllgi; a form of spiritual animal in the form of a dog that liked to trick Humans with their illusionary talents. Kenji seized upon an opening which left one of the two Gwyllgi severely injured. He sliced first through its torso before then turning swiftly and leaping to cut through the back of its head. The Hollow's body impacting the water caused the river to flood and Kenji was forced to retrieve Sheila's body before she was washed away. He left her in a nearby park before returning to the dying Gwyllgi. He reached out to aid the creature but was bitten by it instead and suddenly engulfed in a flash of light. When it receded Kenji found himself facing the surviving Gwyllgi who remarked that he had received an "unnatural gift". The Gwyllgi introduced himself as Jet and revealed that his partner had imbued Kenji with the last of its power as a form of thanks, and further detailed that he would now, through mere conscious thought, be able to transform himself into a dog-like creature not unlike the Gwyllgi. Kenji spent the remainder of his time in the World of the Living learning to control his newfound powers prior to his return to the Soul Society.

Upon his return Kenji omitted having been bitten by the Gwyllgi but mentioned their presence, which shocked his Captain who stated receiving help from one was truly rare. Immediately following this Kenji was requested to join the 10th Division in the capacity of 4th Seated officer, which he accepted. Before he left he begrudgingly thanked Maya for all her help but said that since he knew she would visit him regardless of how he felt about it, she was to keep her visits to a minimum.

Synopsis

 * Main Article -- Bleach: Tower of Night.

Part I

 * Tower of Night: Course of Action
 * Tower of Night: Forming the Squad
 * Tower of Night: The Beginning
 * Tower of Night: Complications

Powers and Abilities
However the strength of his spiritual power and his skills in Zanjutsu and Hakuda, combined with his dedication to his various strengths, have nevertheless enabled Kenji to advance through the ranks as a seated officer in the. His spiritual power is violet and is noted to be feel "depressing".

Gwyllgi Transformation: During a prolonged mission in the World of the Living, Kenji encountered a dog-like spiritual race known as the Gwyllgi, two of which he saved from a large. One of the creatures subsequently bit Kenji before succumbing to its wounds and passing on. This occurrence enabled Kenji to assume the form of a large mastiff-like dog with a coat the same color as Kenji's hair: predominately black with a silvery tinge throughout, which gave him an appearance almost identical to the Gwyllgi, as well as some of their powers. In this form he sported a black mask, a dark brown head, his tell-tale coat and brown paws. His eyes, like the Gwyllgi who bit him, where noted to "burn like torchlight". Due to his dislike of interacting with others Kenji spent more time in his animal form than he did in his normal state, using the transformation to escape from society and maintain his preferred isolation. Jet, the second Gwyllgi Kenji saved that night, also noted that, upon assuming this form, Kenji became what could only be considered a form of Gwyllgi-hybrid. Within the this transformation is known only to Maya. This secrecy is aided also by the fact his spiritual power between both forms feels completely different.


 * Illusionary Control: Whilst transformed Kenji can trick three of the five senses which include sight, sound and smell via a series of illusionary techniques. His most used application is merely to make it appear as though he is not there, ensuring that no one can bother him. However he has demonstrated a number of uses during battle that allow him to compensate for the fact he cannot (or will not) build a relationship with his Zanpakutō, preventing his use of Shikai. His uses include but are not limited to; creating copies of himself to fool his opposition and launch surprise attacks; to enlarge his physical form to intimidate others; to conceal his location; to instill doubt in his opponents heart, and to waylay his opponents in order to buy time.


 * Enhanced Speed: Whilst transformed Kenji's speed is comparable to the Gwyllgi, which is typically on-par with a developed Shunpo. As such he demonstrates much more mobility whilst transformed than he does in his normal form, which is another advantage.


 * Weakness: Jet would refer to Kenji's transformation as unnatural. Perhaps because of this Kenji often tires himself out if he prolongs the transformation; the rate of fatigue increases under the stresses of battle. He once hospitalized himself by staying in the form for too long and subsequently baffled the of the Gotei 13, who could not identify what had been draining his reiryoku to such a degree.

His skill and understanding of the art was notably high even during his studies and he was known particularly for his aggressive offense and strong defense, though he was often ridiculed by his instructors for willingly causing injuries to his fellow students. Upon entering the Gotei 13 he found his skills where mediocre at best but dedication to his strengths paid off and Kenji was soon besting his fellow Shinigami in swordplay. For himself Kenji is a known iaidoka as he practices. His skills, whilst still rudimentary, are noted to have promise and he is currently training his skills in this particular field to disable his opponents by directly striking them before they can unleash the spell or get out their incantations.


 * Jūsei (獣性, Brutality): a vicious Zanjutsu technique Kenji first employed with a wooden sword, but even then his instructors noted that if he had used his Zanpakutō he would have completely destroyed his opponent. Kenji strikes low at his opponents legs and then circles the blade upwards to not only deprive them of their vital limbs but also their sword arm; effectively ending the engagement should it connect.

His form was brutal and focused almost completely on crippling his opponent in order to quickly bring them down; this particular focus brought down on Kenji the anger of his academy instructors, who considered his approach to the martial arts unnecessarily forceful. When he entered the Gotei 13 his Hakuda skills where the only combat form he practiced that wasn't eclipsed by his fellow Shinigami; in fact, Kenji was fit to hold his own with a good majority of his fellow division members. He favors kicks, throws and joint-locks and once offered an opening he exploits it almost immediately.

He instead relies on his physical strength to move his body, though he is noticeably slower when compared against his fellow division members.

The only spell he was ever capable of performing perfectly without mishap was. Any other spell he attempted -- no matter the school -- often violently backfired upon him. He abandoned the skill almost completely upon entering the Gotei 13 with the exception of the one spell he was capable of performing, which became his sole long-range option during battle. Due to this singular focus Kenji's skill-level with the Byakurai spell is much higher than it should rightly be, as he has developed a slew of techniques derived from its overall form and function. His was also of sufficient strength to burn through the body of a fellow student when Kenji himself was still in the academy. Another example of the ease at which he commands the Byakurai is the fact he can rapid-fire the spell without a name or incantation and still retain more than half of its overall power with name and incantation declared.

Zanpakutō
The name of Kenji's Zanpakutō is unknown. During his studies he demonstrated no skill (or interest) in interacting with the swords inner avatar. As such it has yet to unveil its true power. Its form is that of a with a circular guard and yellow hilt-wrapping.


 * : Not yet achieved.


 * : Not achieved.

Behind the Scenes

 * This article, , is not only a variation of the author's main character of the same name on the sister site TBF, but also a combination of several of the authors characters:


 * The main source of his violent tendencies come from Rosuto, who is known primarily for his heavy-handed combat-style.


 * His isolationist personality is an extreme take on Garian's personality, who lives alone atop a mountain in the World of the Living.


 * His past is actually a scrapped back-story for antagonistic Shinigami Kagura, known also as the Illusive Man.