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Canon: D.Gray-Man
Character: Yuu Kanda
Timeline: chapter 200, after Alma dies (spoilers in white)
Personality: At first glance, Kanda is an indifferent young man with a strict personality, often bordering rude. He can be labeled as a grump, anti-social, perpetually angry, and sometimes a complete pain in the ass to deal with, often times with questinable mental stability.
His attitude towards unfamiliar people is curt and short, but in a polite manner; he doesn't care about them enough to be pleasant, nor does he have any immediate interest to bother them in any way. When he addresses Exorcists, it's usually in the same fashion. Depending on who it is, though, he may be less willing to indulge in extended small talk. Finders receive the most bluntness, as Kanda mostly views them as little more than cannon fodder, hardly thinking of them as very useful on the battlefield.
Though Kanda is generally not one to say much, he is entirely capable of carrying on a conversation, or at least able to speak in a civil manner, such as when he explains the strange occurrences of the Innocence to Allen and when he obtains the release code from a dying Finder. However, he also has the habit of throwing back what is given to him, in terms of attitude and treatment. During the Thief Ghost G arc, he approaches Inspector Galmar calmly at first, but when presented with misplaced irritation, Kanda starts showing a bit of anger himself. Contrary to this, attempts to be overly friendly with him result in irritation as well
In the past, he wasn't as cold and ill-tempered. As a 'child', his only friend that was relatively his age was Alma Karma, and even then Kanda wasn't exactly what you'd call a 'good friend'. He and Alma fought and argued and threw insults, but they ultimately were 'friends' (though Kanda would never admit it), able to understand each others' pain of the testing they were forced to go through. This, added to the truth that he eventually learned about the Project, gave him a rather cynical view on the Order.
During this time, he reacted to most of Alma's friendly gestures with scowls and frowns and irritated glares. All this carries over, in a sense, even to after he has 'grown up'. Any attempts to become his friend or curry favor are generally met with a cold shoulder. Those that persist, however, do manage to gain a small place in Kanda's heart-- or something to that degree. Lenalee, for example, has earned Kanda's grudging respect, and he treats her with more politeness than he does others. People like Komui and Lavi receive Kanda's version of 'tough love'.. without the actual love. He cares, but it's never shown in a way that says it outright. It's through snappish remarks intended hurt as much as help. Frequent death threats are the norm whenever either of them does something stupid, though they're rarely ever fully carried out. Otherwise, as mentioned above, Kanda treats most everyone in the Order with the same blase temperament unless provoked into something else.
At his core, Kanda is aware that Exorcists are viewed by the Church as no more than tools of war, and he will treat them as such. He takes his job as strictly what it is: to destroy Akuma, collect Innocence, and get rid of any other enemies. He tells Allen on their first mission together that "I don't care if you're on the verge of being killed, if I find that you're a nuisance, I'll leave you behind. In war there are always sacrifices, so don't think of us as partners." Comradeship and saving people are not in the contract. Hypocritically, however, he ends up protecting Allen on their first mission from what could've been a fatal attack while he himself was badly injured with the reasoning of hating people who break their promises more than he hates naive people (like Allen).
From the moment he was created in the underground Sixth Asia Research Facility, he was spoonfed (likely biased) information and explanations about the Akuma, Dark Matter, Innocence, Noahs, the purpose of the Exorcists and the Order, the goal of the Earl, things that construct the mindset he bears on his shoulders.
Akuma, Noahs, and the Earl are the enemies. Innocence and the Innocence-compatibles are to be rounded up and collected for the Order to use (he is shown demonstrating his knowledge of Innocence at times, and does not hesitate to suggest removing a 9 years old boy from the orphanage to become an Exorcist). Exorcists are tools of war; destroyers, not saviors. He will carry out the orders given to him, because that's what he is-- an Exorcist, a tool, a weapon. He will not add his own opinion, because he knows it doesn't matter. In fact, he hardly cares about the War or the Order itself. During the flashback chapters, after he finds Marie and starts looking for Alma, Kanda's thoughts are clearly displayed as "I've got to get [Alma] and get out of this place. I don't care about the Order or this war. Anger, grudges, I'll just swallow it all, so long as we're together."
It's to be noted that most of Kanda's acts of indifference and unkindness are actually a front. He wound up saving the life of a Finder he pretended (and claimed) to not care about in the first D.Gray-Reverse novel. The Finder, Goz, even says to Kanda that "If you really were a cold-blooded person, you'd have left me to die. I'm really sorry for saying that about you." Kanda protects Allen on their first mission from what could've been a fatal attack while he himself was badly injured, with the reasoning of hating people who break their promises (Allen, if he died) more than he hates naive people (like Allen in general).
It could be said that the harsher his treatment, the more he actually cares. That, or you're just being particularly annoying (like Lavi, Allen, or.. Komui). Women, however, may be exempt from this clause; there aren't enough females in DGM to really make a solid point. Lenalee he treats neutrally enough both out of respect of her strength as one of the few female Exorcists, and because her brother can get dangerously scary, but he is not shown interacting much beyond a line or two with Miranda, Klaud Nyne, the Head Nurse, or others.
All in all, Kanda is not a flat, constantly annoyed man. His initial approach on things is to be distant and not let anyone close. Being an Exorcist with constant missions that keep him far away from others is rather helpful in this case. Even so, after being in the same field for 9 years and living with other Exorcists in the same tower, it's impossible not to grow attached to them in one way or another. An example of this is with Alma, whom he appeared to harbor a great dislike/disgust for. Kanda simply did not like the way Alma could remain so optimistic and happy in a place as harsh as where they were. Near the end of the flashback chapters, though, it's shown that he does see Alma as a sort of friend (in fact, he is even seen laughing with Alma at one point). After the incident with killing Alma, however, he seems to be even more reluctant than ever to let people get close, albeit in a somewhat calmer manner.
And despite how much he pretends that everything is fine and dandy (in his own gruff, scowl-at-the-world way), there is, more often than not, a lot going on underneath. For example, when Kanda is with Asia Branch Chief Bak while waiting for Zhu, he remarks on how "brilliant" it is that the Order is now turning people into half-Akuma to feed on other Akuma. Bak, knowing Kanda's past and being the son of the two scientists who were at the head of the Second Exorcist Project, tries to apologize on behalf of the Order for having potentially hurt Kanda's feelings by making the Third Exorcists. Though Kanda denies being hurt and even punches Bak for 'misunderstanding', stating that he doesn't care what the Order does, it's still clear by his expression afterward that he's more affected than he claims to be. He doesn't like seeing people being used by the Order this way.
With Kanda coming from chapter 200, he has already found the woman he was looking for, even if she is now an Akuma who was once known as Alma Karma. Before he knew who she was, he treated Alma like any other Akuma and tried relentlessly to destroy him. After overhearing Alma's words about being the one Kanda was looking for, however, Kanda went so far as to ask Allen (whom he claimed intense dislike for) to make a gate for him and Alma to Martel so they can escape from the Order for good. He left his Innocence, Mugen, behind with Allen, effectively abandoning his duty as an Exorcist.
Background: The world of D.Gray-Man is set in a fictional end of the 19th century (the exact year is unknown-- I tend to play it off as around 1890-1899-ish). There is a war going on; a Holy War. It is between those who use Innocence (the Apostles of God), and the Noahs, who claim to be Apostles of the 'True God'.
In a desperate war such as this where the Innocence is picky about who it will let wield it, the Black Religious Organization (aka the Black Order) takes desperate measures to find victory. It has been, for the past 90 years.
And so, Kanda crawled out of a hole. Underneath the Black Order's Asia Branch research institute in China was where the Second Exorcists were 'born', or 'created'. Upon waking up and crawling out of the hole with the appearance of a 9-10 year old, Kanda was given clothes and, only a little while later, began to undergo testing to become an accomodator for the Innocence. In the process, he has 'died' several times, each one as painful as the first, and each time he would regenerate/revive and was made to stand up to try-- or die --again.
A fellow Second Exorcist was Alma Karma, who had woken before Kanda did. Alma was the only reason why Kanda was able to endure living life outside of his hole. It was hard to breathe above water, as he claimed. But with Alma there, living was a little easier, surviving the tests wasn't as bad, remaining calm and not lashing out at everyone was something he could manage. Losing an arm or leg or two was bearable, because Alma knew his pain, because Alma went through the same thing.
But then Kanda's old memories started resurfacing; he was seeing hallucinations of a woman from his previous life, a woman he thought was real at first, but soon learned to dismiss her as an illusion. Central HQ's Assassin division (CROW) was sent to capture him and Alma, not wanting his best friend to be terminated, tried to escape with Kanda. Alma ended up tossing Kanda into the sewage system, telling Kanda to swim and get away, but that failed. Kanda was found by Noise Marie and Bak Chan. A CROW demanded that he be handed over. And he was handed over.
When Kanda woke up on the operating table, he recalled his dream, his memories, from his past life. He was now aware of what the Second Exorcist project was; that he was really 'dead', and that his 'mind' had been taken from its original body and put into an artificially created one. But before even this, it had already been decided that he should be terminated before his past memories came back entirely and drove him insane, just like what happened to the Second Exorcists before him. And so he was.
However, he didn't say dead. The regeneration charm in his chest was not fully deactivated or destroyed, so it brought him back to life. In the process of this, and due to the spell that was supposed to kill him to begin with, any memories of his past that he had gained were destroyed. The only ones that he is still aware of are that he's dead, killed by Akuma, that there's a woman he once knew, a woman who promised she'd wait for him. Another Exorcist. He found himself wondering why he was still alive, even though he'd died, why he couldn't stop clinging to life, why he couldn't stop this feeling of longing. He realized that he wanted to live-- not for the war, not for the Church, not for the Order, but just to see that one person.
In doing so, he managed to finally synchronize with his previous existence's Innocence, causing it to break out of the chamber it was kept in and emerge from Kanda's hand. Kanda used this to break out of the room he was confined to and found Noise Marie in critical condition from a wound to the head by an Akuma. Kanda accidentally dripped some of his blood onto the wound, causing it to miraculously heal and bring Marie back from the brink of death. Kanda then proceeded to drag Marie through the ventilation shafts to find a way out.
What he found, however, was the underground chamber where the Second Exorcists were 'born'. It was there that Alma found out the truth while Kanda was being killed. What resulted was a massacre of a good majority of the staff members at Asia Branch. This was the scene that Kanda stumbled upon while carrying one blind and temporarily incapacitated Noise Marie on his back. Alma, though glad that Kanda is alive, said that he must kill him.
Thus ensued a fight for survival in which Kanda is 'killed' by Alma. But Kanda doesn't blame Alma, no. He blames the people of the Order for creating them, he believes that maybe Alma only wanted to protect his special person. Kanda, however, is also striving to live so he can find that person of his, and he cuts down his self-proclaimed and perhaps first genuine best friend. It's not explained what happens after Kanda kills Alma, but it's probably that someone from the Order was sent to pick him up..
A year later, Kanda becomes the pupil of General Froi Tiedoll. Kanda also reunites with Noise Marie and meets Lenalee Lee (who thought he was a girl; he proceeded to teach her about zen meditation) in this timeframe. Two years later, Daisya Barry joins the Order (and eventually becomes Tiedoll's pupil as well?). Kanda also eats soba for the first time, cooked by Jerry the resident chef, and is touched by its taste. Ever since then, he has had soba for his three daily meals. (During missions, though, he'll eat what's available.)
at 16 (physically-- it's only been 7 years since he left the Research Facility), Lavi joins the Order and calls Kanda by his first name "Yuu-chan". Ticked off, Kanda tries to kill him, only to be stopped by Lenalee.
2 years later, canon starts. In the first D.Gray-Reverse novel, Kanda is sent on a mission to a village in Germany before the first chapter of DGM. Along the way, he meets up with Goz, one of the Finders that had been sent to the village of Dankelm (sp?). When first attacked by Akuma, one of them takes Goz hostage and threatens to kill him; Kanda dismisses this with a nonchalant "Do whatever you want."
Later, however, when they are attacked by Sophia, the Level 2 Akuma who had been ordering the others to kill those who came to the village, Kanda tells Goz to go run and hide for his own safety. He disguises it as saying Goz will get in the way otherwise (which is also true). When Goz is about to be struck down by another Akuma, Kanda shoves him out of the way and takes the attack himself instead of simply letting Goz die. After destroying the Akuma minions, Kanda is caught in the Sophia's special ability, forcing him into a dream-like state while still standing. It's an illusion of his deepest desires, showing the lotus in the hourglass in his room rotting away, wilting, and dying. It's Goz's voice calling his name that helps pull Kanda out of that illusion so he can destroy Sophia.
When they return to the Order, Goz insists that Kanda go to the infirmary and thanks him along the way, apologizing for calling Kanda cold-hearted. Kanda brushes him off by saying his apology is meaningless, as he never had any hope for Finders to do anything. They proceed in silence to the infirmary where Kanda gets his wound bandaged. Not long after, the Black Order HQ's Gate Keeper shouts out an alarm for an Akuma sighting.
..It's Allen, whose curse on his left eye has been mistaken for the mark of an Akuma. Kanda, not wasting a single moment, immediately attacks, claiming that the only way to know if Allen is an Akuma is to cut him open. His attempt is foiled by Lenalee's clipboard.
Kanda's first mission with Allen was to find the Ghost of Martel in the city of Martel, Italy. Their goal was to retrieve the Ghost of Martel whose existence is thought to be related to a piece of Innocence. The Ghost, as it turns out, is a doll in whom a piece of Innocence was placed to give it life. The first thing Kanda tells Allen when they arrive at Martel is that he won't bother to save him if Allen is a nuisance, whether or not he is on the verge of being killed. While Allen rushes ahead to take on the Level 2 by himself "without thinking it over", Kanda decides to destroy the Level 1s and retrieve the doll rather than help Allen.
After he manages to get the doll and its companion away from the Akuma, Kanda tells the Finder, Toma, to meet up with them and bring Timcanpy along so they can make use of the golem's recording abilities. While waiting for Toma so they can all head underground, Kanda attempts to reason taking Guzol's "heart" to cut down on the need to carry him around. The girl, Lala, protests this, saying that Guzol is the only one who knows the way around the underground passages. In the end, Kanda states that they can't let the "heart" (the Innocence) fall into the hands of the Akuma, that Guzol can keep it for now, but in the end they will still take it. He also tells Lala "Sorry for dragging you into this."
While Kanda is distracted watching the recording from Tim and studying the Level 2, Guzol and Lala make their escape. As Kanda and Toma wander through the tunnels, they are approached by "Allen"-- execpt all of his features are reversed. Kanda instinctively attacks him with his First Illusion Insects, thinking the reserved Allen to be the Akuma in disguise. However, before the attack reaches him, the real Allen crawls out of a nearby air shaft and deflects it. Not understand, Kanda demands to know why Allen is protecting the Akuma. Allen explains that his eye can see Akuma, and that this reversed Allen isn't an Akuma. He finds a tear in the skin and peels it off to find that it is a fake skin created by the Akuma and placed onto the real Toma.
The Toma that Kanda had been traveling around with turns out to be the Akuma. The revelation comes too late, however, and the Akuma attacks, slamming Kanda into the nearby stone wall. The Akuma taunts him, explaining how he managed to fool Kanda, but Kanda simply laughs him off. He receives another deep slash across his chest yet refuses to go down. After stating that he won't die until he finds "that person", he loses consciousness while still standing.
Allen carries both Kanda and Toma along while looking for a way out, but instead happens upon Lala and Guzol again. He finds out that Lala is actually the doll and Guzol is just a normal human. Kanda regains consciousness in the middle of Lala saying that she wants to stay "alive" at least until Guzol dies. Kanda claims that they can't grant this wish, and that they have to take the doll's "heart" to protect the Innocence (this coming from someone who let the doll keep its heart for a while longer. Granted, Kanda had the reasoning of being fooled into thinking Guzol was the doll and that they also needed his knowledge to navigate the undergound). He calls Allen naive for sacrificing himself to help strangers, and while they're arguing, the Level 2 Akuma attacks and spears both Lala and Guzol, removing the Innocence at the same time.
Still injured and unable to fight, Kanda watches Allen take on the Akuma on his own once more. However, Allen's body is unable to keep up with his newly evolved Innocence weapon for long, and Kanda has to jump in and stop the Akuma's attack before it strikes Allen, despite stating early on that he wouldn't help. Even though he's still injured, he manages to cut off the Akuma's hand using only one arm, and then combines his attack with Allen's to ultimately destroy it.
Kanda injuries heal three days later, but Lala still hasn't stopped singing yet from when Allen put the Innocence back into the doll. Over the phone, Komui tells Kanda that because his injury took some time to heal, he shouldn't misgauge his life reserve any more. Kanda is silent, then accuses Komui of making prank calls and hangs up, then heads over to where Allen is waiting outside the cave that Lala and the late Guzol are. Not long after, the singing stops. Allen goes in to see what's wrong, and Lala thanks him for letting her keep her promise. Kanda asks what's wrong, and Allen tells him that even though he is an indeed an Exorcist, a destroyer, he still wants to be a destroyer who can save.
Kanda is sent off another another mission immediately following this one while Allen takes the Innocence back to HQ. It's not shown what the mission is, but he's later shown (in a bad mood) being in a group, consisting of Exorcists Daisya Barry and Noise Marie, with the goal of looking for their General, Froi Tiedoll. They're continuously hounded by Akuma, at and one point are separated in a city. In the midst of destroying Akuma before meeting up again, Daisya is killed by the Noah Tyki Mikk, though no one knows this yet. Daisya is found hanging upside-down from a streetlamp. Marie and Kanda continue on and meet up with Tiedoll not long after. Because Tiedoll refuses to return to the Order, Kanda and Marie accompany him on his journey to find new Exorcists.
Then comes the Epic Battle in Edo, Japan of approximately 8 Exorcists (9, because Allen shows up belatedly to tip the scale a bit) against 5 Noahs, a shitton of Akuma, and the Millennium Earl himself. While the group is hiding away and taking a breather, Lenalee Lee is abducted by the Earl via a door to the Ark due to suspicions that she could be conformer for the Innocence Heart. Allen, Krory, Kanda, Lavi, and Chaoji jump in through the door as well before it closes in order to save Lenalee. They find that there is only one way out, and that is to make it to the central tower where the exit door is waiting at the top. Kanda is separated from the group early on to fight Skinn Boric, the Noah of Rage. He displays his extremely calm fighting attitude, able to take high-voltage burns to his hands with only a bit of flinching, and still continue swinging the damn sword.
Just before the Final Epic Showdown with Skinn, Kanda tells the seemingly-dying Noah that "anyone can die, as long as they remain human". This is later reflected after the Ark is secured and a Noah infiltrates HQ by disguising herself as one of the branch heads and opens a door to the Ark within the Order. Tapp, a scientist, was turned into a Skull (a minion of the Earl), but was stopped from leaving. After the Level 4 was defeated and the whole invasion fiasco ended, Kanda is shown overhearing people saying, about Tapp, "I can't believe that's a human," "does that look human?" "it's a monster," "it must be human or they wouldn't be acting like that." In the end, Kanda turns and leaves, but not without a borderline sympathetic frown.
The next arc is when Allen, Kanda, and Marie are assigned to investigate the case of the Phantom Ghost G in France. When they finally manage to find the culprit (who turns out to be a 9 year old boy with Innocence in his forehead, possessing bodies to steal valuable items in order to give money to the orphanage he's living in), they're attacked by a Level 4 and several other Level 3s. In order to finally defeat the Level Four, Allen makes his sword rise up and stab the Akuma-- and consequently himself. This starts to awaken the Noah inside him, and Kanda is visibly affected by this. He stabs the Akuma, nearly hits Allen, they defeat the Akuma, and everything seems to be okay again.
At least, until some new people arrive at HQ. Third Exorcists; humans who have been biologically modified with Akuma cells. Kanda does not particularly get to meet them up close, as he is soon called to the Black Order's Asia Branch to speak to the blacksmith/chef, Zhu. While waiting for the old man to be found and towed over, he kicks back with Bak Chan for a bit. Bak mistakes Kanda's mentioning of the Third Exorcists as him being upset by their appearance, which Kanda claims is false. Kanda then reflects on the time when Zhu told him that flower he'd been seeing is just an illusion. It's shown that Kanda, instead seeing just that single lotus, now sees a world where just about every visible inch is covered with flowers.
Meanwhile, we skip forward in time not to Istanbul where Kanda, Allen, and Lenalee were supposed to go for a mission, but to Jordon instead. Noahs are appearing all over the world, and while Allen is dealing with Tyki, Cyril, and a new Noah, Kanda encounters Wisely, another new Noah, back at the base camp with Tevak, a Third Exorcist. Wisely uses his telepathic abilities to go through Kanda's mind for information about Alma Karma, and then proceeds to, for lack of a better term, make Kanda's brains explode.
Once unconscious, Kanda is transported via Noah's Ark to the North American branch of the Order where, 30 minutes prior, a meeting is being held to showcase the 'Womb' for the Third Exorcists-- namely, Alma Karma. During the meeting, it's stated that the Second Exorcists (i.e. Kanda and Alma) are artificial bodies who were made because normal human bodies could not withstand the energy of the Akuma egg nucleus. It's also stated, however, that even the Second Exorcists, with their higher rate of regeneration, can only 'endure much longer' than a normal human. Not long after, the Noah Cyril uses his abilities to control the movements of every single person in the Branch building and has them all move into the room where Alma Karma is kept.
There, Kanda is shown lying on the floor in front of Wisely, unconscious, with dried blood at his ears, mouth, and eyes. And it's only when the other scientists notice him that he starts waking up. He finds Alma Karma, the boy he believed he killed 9 years ago, comatose and in a teenage body sealed under the glass panel of the floor. Allen arrives, and Kanda remains immobile for a while. When he does move, he grabs Rhode, who is currently in the form of a doll, in order to use her ribbon as a hair tie. He attemps to attack the Earl, but is stopped by Tyki.
Failing that, he and Allen try to escape from the chamber room, but are stopped when Cyril manipulates the water pipes from Alma's tank in the floor to plug up the exit. The pipes are then used to pull the still comatose Alma Karma out from the tank and held up in an almost crucifix position. The Earl states that the Noahs intend to make it so that Allen will abandon the Order himself. Tokusa, one of the Third Exorcists, tells Allen that Alma is the First Womb of the Third Exorcists, the one from whom they borrowed the cells to make themselves half-Akuma. Tokusa also mentions that Alma was used as a test subject to create an artificial apostle, just like Kanda, thus being the first ever canon confirmation that Kanda is not a normal human being.
Kanda appears to not remember Alma. When pressured by Rhode, however, he very calmly (with barely suppressed rage) insists that Alma is dead. When she continues talking, Kanda ends up squashing her (doll-- or.. not a doll?) head with his bare hand. Rhode suggests that the reason for Kanda killing Alma was because of a woman Kanda knew, and Kanda flips out and tries to stab the doll Rhode, only to be stopped by Allen. Wisely uses this chance to pull both Allen and Kanda, and incidentally Rhode, into Kanda's past and force him to replay/relive his ‘childhood’.
Thus, Kanda's memories of his childhood at dug out and presented on a silver platter-- memories of how the Second Exorcists (including Kanda and Alma) were "birthed" by crawling out of the.. pond.. that they were created in, located in the underground part of the Order's "Sixth Asia Research Facility". It ends when Allen, after seeing everything and watching Kanda kill Alma, manages to break Wisely's hold on their minds and punches Kanda in the forehead, thus causing Wisely to break his concentration as well.
Unfortunately, it's already too late. The present Alma, having been awakened by sharing Kanda's memories, turns into an Akuma and annihilates the North American branch building in his transformation. Kanda emerges from the rubble, regenerating from the damage caused by the Akuma virus that was in the light being emitted during the transformation.
Alma blames Kanda for the fact that he turned into an Akuma, hating that Kanda only killed Alma and didn't die with him 9 years ago. He attacks Kanda, and they fight until the Earl claims to be able to eradicate the Dark Matter within Alma and the Third Exorcists. Alma doesn't care, believing that his hatred won't disappear even if he was returned to his original body, and attacks Kanda again with an electric-shock kind of attack, followed up with sharpened rods formed out of Dark Matter from his mouth.
Still plagued by hallucinations of lotuses, Kanda pulls the rods out and activates Mugen's Fifth Illusion Style, and cuts off Alma's arm and leg. In return, Alma fires an energy blast that takes off Kanda's left arm. This puts Kanda in a sort of rage in which the only thing he's focused on is destroying Alma. Just when he's about to deliver the blow, though, Allen intervenes and blocks Kanda's attack.
Enraged, Kanda uses the newly-named Fifth Illusion "Ripping Flash Claw" (in Japanese, Gogen: Ressensou) to knock Allen away and then stabs Alma. Kanda's attack leaves a gash in Allen's shoulder, and it's noted that Kanda's hair has become a light purple. Zhu believes that Kanda is using too much of his soul for his attacks and will eventually kill himself. Meanwhile, Alma uses another energy blast to blow a hole in Kanda's abdomen, then proceeds to continue the blast until the flesh on Kanda's face (as well as other parts of his body) start.. melting off.
Allen yet again interrupts and stops the attack before Kanda is completely melted away. When Kanda gets up after regenerating his missing flesh, his first action is to continue trying to destroy Alma. When questioned about it, Kanda states that he is simply "destroying it (Alma)" and for Allen to "hand it (Alma) over". Allen continues pressing Kanda for answers to why he's trying to destroy Alma, and Kanda responds by activating Mugen again, this time making wing-like projections come out from the hilt.
Alma fires a blast at Allen's back, and in the attack that follows, Kanda stabs Allen in the abdomen with Mugen. This action, however, seems to snap Kanda out of his blind rage, and he realizes exactly what he's just done. But by then, Allen has already collapsed on the ground with his skin turned gray, not too different from a Noah's. Stunned, Kanda is unable to do anything as Alma attempts to fire another blast to kill him, except--
--Except Allen interrupts them again. Only this time, he does it because the Fourteenth is making his appearance. Kanda catches Alma who is thrown back from the shockwave. The Earl informs Kanda that the more he injured Allen with Mugen, the closer Allen got to losing to the Fourteenth. Fortunately, Allen manages to fight back the Noah with a little help in time after the barrier around the North American Branch to be broken. His left eye immediately zooms towards Kanda who is still holding Alma.
Unbeknownst to Kanda, Alma was really the woman he had been looking for all along. A female Exorcist trapped in a male artificial body-turned-Akuma. He doesn't find out right away and is nearly killed yet again when Alma self-destructs in an attempt to hide his (her) secret. Unfortunately, it doesn't quite work. Kanda has received enough of the Akuma virus to turn his entire body into stone, causing it to crumble. Both arms and his left leg have fallen off once the dust settles, and going by the Earl's words and Allen's reaction, Kanda has "died" for the time being.
Alma, as a former Second Exorcist, unintentionally regenerates everything from the top half of his torso up. Not knowing that Kanda is conscious and listening, Alma admits that he is the woman that Kanda made a promise to look for. Allen carries Alma over to where Kanda is, but never makes it because the Dark Matter in Alma never fully went away and is making reappearance. When Kanda regains consciousness, Allen opens a gate to Matera, Italy for them to escape through. By then, though, Alma has already almost completely turned to stone.
After Allen destroys the gate, Alma states that, as an Akuma, he can sense that Allen is a Noah. He says he doesn't want to be killed/have his soul saved by the Innocence (but Kanda left Mugen behind with Allen) and wants his (her) soul to be devoured by the Dark Matter and not saved, because he still despises the Order.
After Alma has died, Kanda 'sees' Alma (both the little boy he killed 9 years ago and the woman Alma was before they became Second Exorcists) walking away into a swamp-like terrain with lotuses and being swallowed by the mud. Alma's last 'words' are "I love you, Yuu". Kanda acknowledges her words, in spite of the fact that he's probably aware that it's a hallucination and not really real.
Abilities/Additional Notes: Kanda's main weapon is his Innocence which in the form of a katana. It can release various attacks, as well as use his life-force for stronger attacks.
Even without all these abilities, Kanda is still capable of slicing a steel/iron/metal chandelier into 8 pieces moments before it falls on top of someone. Kanda also has regenerative abilities; it's been stated that his healing has been slowing down (taking three days to heal from a deep gash in his chest), though this seems to be contradicted as the recent chapters have him regrowing a severed arm in mere seconds.
It is believed that the lotus in his room is connected to his life-force by the tattoo/curse mark on his chest, and that his life will end once the lotus wilts (or vice versa-- the lotus will die when he dies). This may also be the cause of his insanely high pain tolerance, seeing as he can take two sharp rods to the chest and still be alive/conscious while yanking them out, and then immediately going back into battle mode.
His blood also seems to be able to heal otherwise fatal injuries, though he found this out accidentally and would probably never share this bit of info voluntarily.
Sample Journal Post:
[the screen flickers from black to light and color, focusing immediately on the face hovering above it. oriental features twist and frown. Kanda lifts a hand to rub at his eyes before looking around with a hint of concern.]
...Alma?
[with the lack of reply, he shoulders drop and he turns his attention back to the device on the ground. it takes him a moment to realize it's recording, and he immediately moves a hand to cover up the screen. but by then the shallow cracks on the surface of his skin may have already drawn some attention. if not that, then may the fact that he's lacking a shirt is more eye-catching. or, maybe his.. uncommonly long hair.
the screen shakes as he fumbles with the device, and then it blips out, switching to plain audio. there's silence for a few seconds as he surveys the unrecognizable surroundings.]
Hey. Can anyone hear this? [pause. another glance around.]
..I'm guessing this isn't Italy anymore, is it?
Sample RP:
Motivation. It's something that drives us as humans. The want to live, the dream to improve, to conquer, to be the best.. it keeps us alive.
Ha. The only thing that's ever kept Yuu Kanda alive is the regeneration orb in his chest. Is this what it's like to live? Something that's crossed his mind so often, the same way others ponder the meaning of life. He knows the purpose of his existence-- to be a tool of the Order. It may come as a surprise to those who think they know Kanda, that he does what he wants, that he's headstrong, that he's crude, rude, cruel, heartless, cold, so stone cold.
He doesn't care. Yuu Kanda doesn't exist to make friends with everyone in the Order. He doesn't exist to lighten up the mood. Anyone he may have known before, any friends he may have had, people he may have loved, they're probably dead. He doesn't even know. He can't even remember who they were, what they look like, their names, nothing--
Except her. One single person. One woman. As cliché and soft and sappy as it sounds, Kanda clings to her. She's nice to him, in his memories. They're smiling. She's happy. Whatever he can remember, they're good ones. How long has it been since then? Since the day he died. Since the day she died.
..Brought back to fight a war he should have been finished fighting. For the sake of the Holy War, for the sake of the world, for the sake of your fucking righteousness. There is no rest for the weary, no peace for the dead.
No light at the end of the road for soldiers like us.
This is close enough, though. The city of Martel, the Land Forsaken by God. Good enough. Adequate, for creatures like him and Alma. They don't need God. They don't need the Innocence, the Noahs, or the Order. He exists to fight against the Millennium Earl, that's what he was created and brought back to life to do.
Fuck duty. He never cared about the war anyway. Damn people thinking they can do whatever they want because it's helping the world, everyone else not having the strength to go against them. Unable to do anything more than follow along when his leash is tugged.
But he found a tear, he found a break, a chance to tear his way out of his bindings. A chance to escape with the boy he killed 9 years ago, the woman he may have loved perhaps decades ago. They're here. With him. It's okay now. He found her.
Even if she's an Akuma. Even if she's no longer human-- hilarious, that, because they stopped being human 9 years ago. Even if she's--
Dead.
"I love you, Yuu," she says as she walks away. Hand in hand, her and the boy. Leaving. Life is cruel and love is harsh, to take her away to a place he can't go to. She waited for him. He's here now.
She sinks into the mud that isn't there, and is gone. Forever.
If he could sink, too, he would. Into the mud, where all Exorcists go. That's what it means to fight in this war. One day he'll follow her. One day. She is, after all, the reason why he chose to live, instead of dying with Alma. Instead of dying with her the first time around.
One day.
"Yeah.."
I love you. Forever.
Livejournal: thescarlet
Contact: email: uchiha-scarlet@hotmail.com ; AIM: crowned walker ; plurk: theScarlet
Other Characters Played: N/A
Are you 18 or over? I am indeed!
Canon: D.Gray-Man
Character: Yuu Kanda
Timeline: chapter 200, after Alma dies (spoilers in white)
Personality: At first glance, Kanda is an indifferent young man with a strict personality, often bordering rude. He can be labeled as a grump, anti-social, perpetually angry, and sometimes a complete pain in the ass to deal with, often times with questinable mental stability.
His attitude towards unfamiliar people is curt and short, but in a polite manner; he doesn't care about them enough to be pleasant, nor does he have any immediate interest to bother them in any way. When he addresses Exorcists, it's usually in the same fashion. Depending on who it is, though, he may be less willing to indulge in extended small talk. Finders receive the most bluntness, as Kanda mostly views them as little more than cannon fodder, hardly thinking of them as very useful on the battlefield.
Though Kanda is generally not one to say much, he is entirely capable of carrying on a conversation, or at least able to speak in a civil manner, such as when he explains the strange occurrences of the Innocence to Allen and when he obtains the release code from a dying Finder. However, he also has the habit of throwing back what is given to him, in terms of attitude and treatment. During the Thief Ghost G arc, he approaches Inspector Galmar calmly at first, but when presented with misplaced irritation, Kanda starts showing a bit of anger himself. Contrary to this, attempts to be overly friendly with him result in irritation as well
In the past, he wasn't as cold and ill-tempered. As a 'child', his only friend that was relatively his age was Alma Karma, and even then Kanda wasn't exactly what you'd call a 'good friend'. He and Alma fought and argued and threw insults, but they ultimately were 'friends' (though Kanda would never admit it), able to understand each others' pain of the testing they were forced to go through. This, added to the truth that he eventually learned about the Project, gave him a rather cynical view on the Order.
During this time, he reacted to most of Alma's friendly gestures with scowls and frowns and irritated glares. All this carries over, in a sense, even to after he has 'grown up'. Any attempts to become his friend or curry favor are generally met with a cold shoulder. Those that persist, however, do manage to gain a small place in Kanda's heart-- or something to that degree. Lenalee, for example, has earned Kanda's grudging respect, and he treats her with more politeness than he does others. People like Komui and Lavi receive Kanda's version of 'tough love'.. without the actual love. He cares, but it's never shown in a way that says it outright. It's through snappish remarks intended hurt as much as help. Frequent death threats are the norm whenever either of them does something stupid, though they're rarely ever fully carried out. Otherwise, as mentioned above, Kanda treats most everyone in the Order with the same blase temperament unless provoked into something else.
At his core, Kanda is aware that Exorcists are viewed by the Church as no more than tools of war, and he will treat them as such. He takes his job as strictly what it is: to destroy Akuma, collect Innocence, and get rid of any other enemies. He tells Allen on their first mission together that "I don't care if you're on the verge of being killed, if I find that you're a nuisance, I'll leave you behind. In war there are always sacrifices, so don't think of us as partners." Comradeship and saving people are not in the contract. Hypocritically, however, he ends up protecting Allen on their first mission from what could've been a fatal attack while he himself was badly injured with the reasoning of hating people who break their promises more than he hates naive people (like Allen).
From the moment he was created in the underground Sixth Asia Research Facility, he was spoonfed (likely biased) information and explanations about the Akuma, Dark Matter, Innocence, Noahs, the purpose of the Exorcists and the Order, the goal of the Earl, things that construct the mindset he bears on his shoulders.
Akuma, Noahs, and the Earl are the enemies. Innocence and the Innocence-compatibles are to be rounded up and collected for the Order to use (he is shown demonstrating his knowledge of Innocence at times, and does not hesitate to suggest removing a 9 years old boy from the orphanage to become an Exorcist). Exorcists are tools of war; destroyers, not saviors. He will carry out the orders given to him, because that's what he is-- an Exorcist, a tool, a weapon. He will not add his own opinion, because he knows it doesn't matter. In fact, he hardly cares about the War or the Order itself. During the flashback chapters, after he finds Marie and starts looking for Alma, Kanda's thoughts are clearly displayed as "I've got to get [Alma] and get out of this place. I don't care about the Order or this war. Anger, grudges, I'll just swallow it all, so long as we're together."
It's to be noted that most of Kanda's acts of indifference and unkindness are actually a front. He wound up saving the life of a Finder he pretended (and claimed) to not care about in the first D.Gray-Reverse novel. The Finder, Goz, even says to Kanda that "If you really were a cold-blooded person, you'd have left me to die. I'm really sorry for saying that about you." Kanda protects Allen on their first mission from what could've been a fatal attack while he himself was badly injured, with the reasoning of hating people who break their promises (Allen, if he died) more than he hates naive people (like Allen in general).
It could be said that the harsher his treatment, the more he actually cares. That, or you're just being particularly annoying (like Lavi, Allen, or.. Komui). Women, however, may be exempt from this clause; there aren't enough females in DGM to really make a solid point. Lenalee he treats neutrally enough both out of respect of her strength as one of the few female Exorcists, and because her brother can get dangerously scary, but he is not shown interacting much beyond a line or two with Miranda, Klaud Nyne, the Head Nurse, or others.
All in all, Kanda is not a flat, constantly annoyed man. His initial approach on things is to be distant and not let anyone close. Being an Exorcist with constant missions that keep him far away from others is rather helpful in this case. Even so, after being in the same field for 9 years and living with other Exorcists in the same tower, it's impossible not to grow attached to them in one way or another. An example of this is with Alma, whom he appeared to harbor a great dislike/disgust for. Kanda simply did not like the way Alma could remain so optimistic and happy in a place as harsh as where they were. Near the end of the flashback chapters, though, it's shown that he does see Alma as a sort of friend (in fact, he is even seen laughing with Alma at one point). After the incident with killing Alma, however, he seems to be even more reluctant than ever to let people get close, albeit in a somewhat calmer manner.
And despite how much he pretends that everything is fine and dandy (in his own gruff, scowl-at-the-world way), there is, more often than not, a lot going on underneath. For example, when Kanda is with Asia Branch Chief Bak while waiting for Zhu, he remarks on how "brilliant" it is that the Order is now turning people into half-Akuma to feed on other Akuma. Bak, knowing Kanda's past and being the son of the two scientists who were at the head of the Second Exorcist Project, tries to apologize on behalf of the Order for having potentially hurt Kanda's feelings by making the Third Exorcists. Though Kanda denies being hurt and even punches Bak for 'misunderstanding', stating that he doesn't care what the Order does, it's still clear by his expression afterward that he's more affected than he claims to be. He doesn't like seeing people being used by the Order this way.
With Kanda coming from chapter 200, he has already found the woman he was looking for, even if she is now an Akuma who was once known as Alma Karma. Before he knew who she was, he treated Alma like any other Akuma and tried relentlessly to destroy him. After overhearing Alma's words about being the one Kanda was looking for, however, Kanda went so far as to ask Allen (whom he claimed intense dislike for) to make a gate for him and Alma to Martel so they can escape from the Order for good. He left his Innocence, Mugen, behind with Allen, effectively abandoning his duty as an Exorcist.
Background: The world of D.Gray-Man is set in a fictional end of the 19th century (the exact year is unknown-- I tend to play it off as around 1890-1899-ish). There is a war going on; a Holy War. It is between those who use Innocence (the Apostles of God), and the Noahs, who claim to be Apostles of the 'True God'.
In a desperate war such as this where the Innocence is picky about who it will let wield it, the Black Religious Organization (aka the Black Order) takes desperate measures to find victory. It has been, for the past 90 years.
And so, Kanda crawled out of a hole. Underneath the Black Order's Asia Branch research institute in China was where the Second Exorcists were 'born', or 'created'. Upon waking up and crawling out of the hole with the appearance of a 9-10 year old, Kanda was given clothes and, only a little while later, began to undergo testing to become an accomodator for the Innocence. In the process, he has 'died' several times, each one as painful as the first, and each time he would regenerate/revive and was made to stand up to try-- or die --again.
A fellow Second Exorcist was Alma Karma, who had woken before Kanda did. Alma was the only reason why Kanda was able to endure living life outside of his hole. It was hard to breathe above water, as he claimed. But with Alma there, living was a little easier, surviving the tests wasn't as bad, remaining calm and not lashing out at everyone was something he could manage. Losing an arm or leg or two was bearable, because Alma knew his pain, because Alma went through the same thing.
But then Kanda's old memories started resurfacing; he was seeing hallucinations of a woman from his previous life, a woman he thought was real at first, but soon learned to dismiss her as an illusion. Central HQ's Assassin division (CROW) was sent to capture him and Alma, not wanting his best friend to be terminated, tried to escape with Kanda. Alma ended up tossing Kanda into the sewage system, telling Kanda to swim and get away, but that failed. Kanda was found by Noise Marie and Bak Chan. A CROW demanded that he be handed over. And he was handed over.
When Kanda woke up on the operating table, he recalled his dream, his memories, from his past life. He was now aware of what the Second Exorcist project was; that he was really 'dead', and that his 'mind' had been taken from its original body and put into an artificially created one. But before even this, it had already been decided that he should be terminated before his past memories came back entirely and drove him insane, just like what happened to the Second Exorcists before him. And so he was.
However, he didn't say dead. The regeneration charm in his chest was not fully deactivated or destroyed, so it brought him back to life. In the process of this, and due to the spell that was supposed to kill him to begin with, any memories of his past that he had gained were destroyed. The only ones that he is still aware of are that he's dead, killed by Akuma, that there's a woman he once knew, a woman who promised she'd wait for him. Another Exorcist. He found himself wondering why he was still alive, even though he'd died, why he couldn't stop clinging to life, why he couldn't stop this feeling of longing. He realized that he wanted to live-- not for the war, not for the Church, not for the Order, but just to see that one person.
In doing so, he managed to finally synchronize with his previous existence's Innocence, causing it to break out of the chamber it was kept in and emerge from Kanda's hand. Kanda used this to break out of the room he was confined to and found Noise Marie in critical condition from a wound to the head by an Akuma. Kanda accidentally dripped some of his blood onto the wound, causing it to miraculously heal and bring Marie back from the brink of death. Kanda then proceeded to drag Marie through the ventilation shafts to find a way out.
What he found, however, was the underground chamber where the Second Exorcists were 'born'. It was there that Alma found out the truth while Kanda was being killed. What resulted was a massacre of a good majority of the staff members at Asia Branch. This was the scene that Kanda stumbled upon while carrying one blind and temporarily incapacitated Noise Marie on his back. Alma, though glad that Kanda is alive, said that he must kill him.
Thus ensued a fight for survival in which Kanda is 'killed' by Alma. But Kanda doesn't blame Alma, no. He blames the people of the Order for creating them, he believes that maybe Alma only wanted to protect his special person. Kanda, however, is also striving to live so he can find that person of his, and he cuts down his self-proclaimed and perhaps first genuine best friend. It's not explained what happens after Kanda kills Alma, but it's probably that someone from the Order was sent to pick him up..
A year later, Kanda becomes the pupil of General Froi Tiedoll. Kanda also reunites with Noise Marie and meets Lenalee Lee (who thought he was a girl; he proceeded to teach her about zen meditation) in this timeframe. Two years later, Daisya Barry joins the Order (and eventually becomes Tiedoll's pupil as well?). Kanda also eats soba for the first time, cooked by Jerry the resident chef, and is touched by its taste. Ever since then, he has had soba for his three daily meals. (During missions, though, he'll eat what's available.)
at 16 (physically-- it's only been 7 years since he left the Research Facility), Lavi joins the Order and calls Kanda by his first name "Yuu-chan". Ticked off, Kanda tries to kill him, only to be stopped by Lenalee.
2 years later, canon starts. In the first D.Gray-Reverse novel, Kanda is sent on a mission to a village in Germany before the first chapter of DGM. Along the way, he meets up with Goz, one of the Finders that had been sent to the village of Dankelm (sp?). When first attacked by Akuma, one of them takes Goz hostage and threatens to kill him; Kanda dismisses this with a nonchalant "Do whatever you want."
Later, however, when they are attacked by Sophia, the Level 2 Akuma who had been ordering the others to kill those who came to the village, Kanda tells Goz to go run and hide for his own safety. He disguises it as saying Goz will get in the way otherwise (which is also true). When Goz is about to be struck down by another Akuma, Kanda shoves him out of the way and takes the attack himself instead of simply letting Goz die. After destroying the Akuma minions, Kanda is caught in the Sophia's special ability, forcing him into a dream-like state while still standing. It's an illusion of his deepest desires, showing the lotus in the hourglass in his room rotting away, wilting, and dying. It's Goz's voice calling his name that helps pull Kanda out of that illusion so he can destroy Sophia.
When they return to the Order, Goz insists that Kanda go to the infirmary and thanks him along the way, apologizing for calling Kanda cold-hearted. Kanda brushes him off by saying his apology is meaningless, as he never had any hope for Finders to do anything. They proceed in silence to the infirmary where Kanda gets his wound bandaged. Not long after, the Black Order HQ's Gate Keeper shouts out an alarm for an Akuma sighting.
..It's Allen, whose curse on his left eye has been mistaken for the mark of an Akuma. Kanda, not wasting a single moment, immediately attacks, claiming that the only way to know if Allen is an Akuma is to cut him open. His attempt is foiled by Lenalee's clipboard.
Kanda's first mission with Allen was to find the Ghost of Martel in the city of Martel, Italy. Their goal was to retrieve the Ghost of Martel whose existence is thought to be related to a piece of Innocence. The Ghost, as it turns out, is a doll in whom a piece of Innocence was placed to give it life. The first thing Kanda tells Allen when they arrive at Martel is that he won't bother to save him if Allen is a nuisance, whether or not he is on the verge of being killed. While Allen rushes ahead to take on the Level 2 by himself "without thinking it over", Kanda decides to destroy the Level 1s and retrieve the doll rather than help Allen.
After he manages to get the doll and its companion away from the Akuma, Kanda tells the Finder, Toma, to meet up with them and bring Timcanpy along so they can make use of the golem's recording abilities. While waiting for Toma so they can all head underground, Kanda attempts to reason taking Guzol's "heart" to cut down on the need to carry him around. The girl, Lala, protests this, saying that Guzol is the only one who knows the way around the underground passages. In the end, Kanda states that they can't let the "heart" (the Innocence) fall into the hands of the Akuma, that Guzol can keep it for now, but in the end they will still take it. He also tells Lala "Sorry for dragging you into this."
While Kanda is distracted watching the recording from Tim and studying the Level 2, Guzol and Lala make their escape. As Kanda and Toma wander through the tunnels, they are approached by "Allen"-- execpt all of his features are reversed. Kanda instinctively attacks him with his First Illusion Insects, thinking the reserved Allen to be the Akuma in disguise. However, before the attack reaches him, the real Allen crawls out of a nearby air shaft and deflects it. Not understand, Kanda demands to know why Allen is protecting the Akuma. Allen explains that his eye can see Akuma, and that this reversed Allen isn't an Akuma. He finds a tear in the skin and peels it off to find that it is a fake skin created by the Akuma and placed onto the real Toma.
The Toma that Kanda had been traveling around with turns out to be the Akuma. The revelation comes too late, however, and the Akuma attacks, slamming Kanda into the nearby stone wall. The Akuma taunts him, explaining how he managed to fool Kanda, but Kanda simply laughs him off. He receives another deep slash across his chest yet refuses to go down. After stating that he won't die until he finds "that person", he loses consciousness while still standing.
Allen carries both Kanda and Toma along while looking for a way out, but instead happens upon Lala and Guzol again. He finds out that Lala is actually the doll and Guzol is just a normal human. Kanda regains consciousness in the middle of Lala saying that she wants to stay "alive" at least until Guzol dies. Kanda claims that they can't grant this wish, and that they have to take the doll's "heart" to protect the Innocence (this coming from someone who let the doll keep its heart for a while longer. Granted, Kanda had the reasoning of being fooled into thinking Guzol was the doll and that they also needed his knowledge to navigate the undergound). He calls Allen naive for sacrificing himself to help strangers, and while they're arguing, the Level 2 Akuma attacks and spears both Lala and Guzol, removing the Innocence at the same time.
Still injured and unable to fight, Kanda watches Allen take on the Akuma on his own once more. However, Allen's body is unable to keep up with his newly evolved Innocence weapon for long, and Kanda has to jump in and stop the Akuma's attack before it strikes Allen, despite stating early on that he wouldn't help. Even though he's still injured, he manages to cut off the Akuma's hand using only one arm, and then combines his attack with Allen's to ultimately destroy it.
Kanda injuries heal three days later, but Lala still hasn't stopped singing yet from when Allen put the Innocence back into the doll. Over the phone, Komui tells Kanda that because his injury took some time to heal, he shouldn't misgauge his life reserve any more. Kanda is silent, then accuses Komui of making prank calls and hangs up, then heads over to where Allen is waiting outside the cave that Lala and the late Guzol are. Not long after, the singing stops. Allen goes in to see what's wrong, and Lala thanks him for letting her keep her promise. Kanda asks what's wrong, and Allen tells him that even though he is an indeed an Exorcist, a destroyer, he still wants to be a destroyer who can save.
Kanda is sent off another another mission immediately following this one while Allen takes the Innocence back to HQ. It's not shown what the mission is, but he's later shown (in a bad mood) being in a group, consisting of Exorcists Daisya Barry and Noise Marie, with the goal of looking for their General, Froi Tiedoll. They're continuously hounded by Akuma, at and one point are separated in a city. In the midst of destroying Akuma before meeting up again, Daisya is killed by the Noah Tyki Mikk, though no one knows this yet. Daisya is found hanging upside-down from a streetlamp. Marie and Kanda continue on and meet up with Tiedoll not long after. Because Tiedoll refuses to return to the Order, Kanda and Marie accompany him on his journey to find new Exorcists.
Then comes the Epic Battle in Edo, Japan of approximately 8 Exorcists (9, because Allen shows up belatedly to tip the scale a bit) against 5 Noahs, a shitton of Akuma, and the Millennium Earl himself. While the group is hiding away and taking a breather, Lenalee Lee is abducted by the Earl via a door to the Ark due to suspicions that she could be conformer for the Innocence Heart. Allen, Krory, Kanda, Lavi, and Chaoji jump in through the door as well before it closes in order to save Lenalee. They find that there is only one way out, and that is to make it to the central tower where the exit door is waiting at the top. Kanda is separated from the group early on to fight Skinn Boric, the Noah of Rage. He displays his extremely calm fighting attitude, able to take high-voltage burns to his hands with only a bit of flinching, and still continue swinging the damn sword.
Just before the Final Epic Showdown with Skinn, Kanda tells the seemingly-dying Noah that "anyone can die, as long as they remain human". This is later reflected after the Ark is secured and a Noah infiltrates HQ by disguising herself as one of the branch heads and opens a door to the Ark within the Order. Tapp, a scientist, was turned into a Skull (a minion of the Earl), but was stopped from leaving. After the Level 4 was defeated and the whole invasion fiasco ended, Kanda is shown overhearing people saying, about Tapp, "I can't believe that's a human," "does that look human?" "it's a monster," "it must be human or they wouldn't be acting like that." In the end, Kanda turns and leaves, but not without a borderline sympathetic frown.
The next arc is when Allen, Kanda, and Marie are assigned to investigate the case of the Phantom Ghost G in France. When they finally manage to find the culprit (who turns out to be a 9 year old boy with Innocence in his forehead, possessing bodies to steal valuable items in order to give money to the orphanage he's living in), they're attacked by a Level 4 and several other Level 3s. In order to finally defeat the Level Four, Allen makes his sword rise up and stab the Akuma-- and consequently himself. This starts to awaken the Noah inside him, and Kanda is visibly affected by this. He stabs the Akuma, nearly hits Allen, they defeat the Akuma, and everything seems to be okay again.
At least, until some new people arrive at HQ. Third Exorcists; humans who have been biologically modified with Akuma cells. Kanda does not particularly get to meet them up close, as he is soon called to the Black Order's Asia Branch to speak to the blacksmith/chef, Zhu. While waiting for the old man to be found and towed over, he kicks back with Bak Chan for a bit. Bak mistakes Kanda's mentioning of the Third Exorcists as him being upset by their appearance, which Kanda claims is false. Kanda then reflects on the time when Zhu told him that flower he'd been seeing is just an illusion. It's shown that Kanda, instead seeing just that single lotus, now sees a world where just about every visible inch is covered with flowers.
Meanwhile, we skip forward in time not to Istanbul where Kanda, Allen, and Lenalee were supposed to go for a mission, but to Jordon instead. Noahs are appearing all over the world, and while Allen is dealing with Tyki, Cyril, and a new Noah, Kanda encounters Wisely, another new Noah, back at the base camp with Tevak, a Third Exorcist. Wisely uses his telepathic abilities to go through Kanda's mind for information about Alma Karma, and then proceeds to, for lack of a better term, make Kanda's brains explode.
Once unconscious, Kanda is transported via Noah's Ark to the North American branch of the Order where, 30 minutes prior, a meeting is being held to showcase the 'Womb' for the Third Exorcists-- namely, Alma Karma. During the meeting, it's stated that the Second Exorcists (i.e. Kanda and Alma) are artificial bodies who were made because normal human bodies could not withstand the energy of the Akuma egg nucleus. It's also stated, however, that even the Second Exorcists, with their higher rate of regeneration, can only 'endure much longer' than a normal human. Not long after, the Noah Cyril uses his abilities to control the movements of every single person in the Branch building and has them all move into the room where Alma Karma is kept.
There, Kanda is shown lying on the floor in front of Wisely, unconscious, with dried blood at his ears, mouth, and eyes. And it's only when the other scientists notice him that he starts waking up. He finds Alma Karma, the boy he believed he killed 9 years ago, comatose and in a teenage body sealed under the glass panel of the floor. Allen arrives, and Kanda remains immobile for a while. When he does move, he grabs Rhode, who is currently in the form of a doll, in order to use her ribbon as a hair tie. He attemps to attack the Earl, but is stopped by Tyki.
Failing that, he and Allen try to escape from the chamber room, but are stopped when Cyril manipulates the water pipes from Alma's tank in the floor to plug up the exit. The pipes are then used to pull the still comatose Alma Karma out from the tank and held up in an almost crucifix position. The Earl states that the Noahs intend to make it so that Allen will abandon the Order himself. Tokusa, one of the Third Exorcists, tells Allen that Alma is the First Womb of the Third Exorcists, the one from whom they borrowed the cells to make themselves half-Akuma. Tokusa also mentions that Alma was used as a test subject to create an artificial apostle, just like Kanda, thus being the first ever canon confirmation that Kanda is not a normal human being.
Kanda appears to not remember Alma. When pressured by Rhode, however, he very calmly (with barely suppressed rage) insists that Alma is dead. When she continues talking, Kanda ends up squashing her (doll-- or.. not a doll?) head with his bare hand. Rhode suggests that the reason for Kanda killing Alma was because of a woman Kanda knew, and Kanda flips out and tries to stab the doll Rhode, only to be stopped by Allen. Wisely uses this chance to pull both Allen and Kanda, and incidentally Rhode, into Kanda's past and force him to replay/relive his ‘childhood’.
Thus, Kanda's memories of his childhood at dug out and presented on a silver platter-- memories of how the Second Exorcists (including Kanda and Alma) were "birthed" by crawling out of the.. pond.. that they were created in, located in the underground part of the Order's "Sixth Asia Research Facility". It ends when Allen, after seeing everything and watching Kanda kill Alma, manages to break Wisely's hold on their minds and punches Kanda in the forehead, thus causing Wisely to break his concentration as well.
Unfortunately, it's already too late. The present Alma, having been awakened by sharing Kanda's memories, turns into an Akuma and annihilates the North American branch building in his transformation. Kanda emerges from the rubble, regenerating from the damage caused by the Akuma virus that was in the light being emitted during the transformation.
Alma blames Kanda for the fact that he turned into an Akuma, hating that Kanda only killed Alma and didn't die with him 9 years ago. He attacks Kanda, and they fight until the Earl claims to be able to eradicate the Dark Matter within Alma and the Third Exorcists. Alma doesn't care, believing that his hatred won't disappear even if he was returned to his original body, and attacks Kanda again with an electric-shock kind of attack, followed up with sharpened rods formed out of Dark Matter from his mouth.
Still plagued by hallucinations of lotuses, Kanda pulls the rods out and activates Mugen's Fifth Illusion Style, and cuts off Alma's arm and leg. In return, Alma fires an energy blast that takes off Kanda's left arm. This puts Kanda in a sort of rage in which the only thing he's focused on is destroying Alma. Just when he's about to deliver the blow, though, Allen intervenes and blocks Kanda's attack.
Enraged, Kanda uses the newly-named Fifth Illusion "Ripping Flash Claw" (in Japanese, Gogen: Ressensou) to knock Allen away and then stabs Alma. Kanda's attack leaves a gash in Allen's shoulder, and it's noted that Kanda's hair has become a light purple. Zhu believes that Kanda is using too much of his soul for his attacks and will eventually kill himself. Meanwhile, Alma uses another energy blast to blow a hole in Kanda's abdomen, then proceeds to continue the blast until the flesh on Kanda's face (as well as other parts of his body) start.. melting off.
Allen yet again interrupts and stops the attack before Kanda is completely melted away. When Kanda gets up after regenerating his missing flesh, his first action is to continue trying to destroy Alma. When questioned about it, Kanda states that he is simply "destroying it (Alma)" and for Allen to "hand it (Alma) over". Allen continues pressing Kanda for answers to why he's trying to destroy Alma, and Kanda responds by activating Mugen again, this time making wing-like projections come out from the hilt.
Alma fires a blast at Allen's back, and in the attack that follows, Kanda stabs Allen in the abdomen with Mugen. This action, however, seems to snap Kanda out of his blind rage, and he realizes exactly what he's just done. But by then, Allen has already collapsed on the ground with his skin turned gray, not too different from a Noah's. Stunned, Kanda is unable to do anything as Alma attempts to fire another blast to kill him, except--
--Except Allen interrupts them again. Only this time, he does it because the Fourteenth is making his appearance. Kanda catches Alma who is thrown back from the shockwave. The Earl informs Kanda that the more he injured Allen with Mugen, the closer Allen got to losing to the Fourteenth. Fortunately, Allen manages to fight back the Noah with a little help in time after the barrier around the North American Branch to be broken. His left eye immediately zooms towards Kanda who is still holding Alma.
Unbeknownst to Kanda, Alma was really the woman he had been looking for all along. A female Exorcist trapped in a male artificial body-turned-Akuma. He doesn't find out right away and is nearly killed yet again when Alma self-destructs in an attempt to hide his (her) secret. Unfortunately, it doesn't quite work. Kanda has received enough of the Akuma virus to turn his entire body into stone, causing it to crumble. Both arms and his left leg have fallen off once the dust settles, and going by the Earl's words and Allen's reaction, Kanda has "died" for the time being.
Alma, as a former Second Exorcist, unintentionally regenerates everything from the top half of his torso up. Not knowing that Kanda is conscious and listening, Alma admits that he is the woman that Kanda made a promise to look for. Allen carries Alma over to where Kanda is, but never makes it because the Dark Matter in Alma never fully went away and is making reappearance. When Kanda regains consciousness, Allen opens a gate to Matera, Italy for them to escape through. By then, though, Alma has already almost completely turned to stone.
After Allen destroys the gate, Alma states that, as an Akuma, he can sense that Allen is a Noah. He says he doesn't want to be killed/have his soul saved by the Innocence (but Kanda left Mugen behind with Allen) and wants his (her) soul to be devoured by the Dark Matter and not saved, because he still despises the Order.
After Alma has died, Kanda 'sees' Alma (both the little boy he killed 9 years ago and the woman Alma was before they became Second Exorcists) walking away into a swamp-like terrain with lotuses and being swallowed by the mud. Alma's last 'words' are "I love you, Yuu". Kanda acknowledges her words, in spite of the fact that he's probably aware that it's a hallucination and not really real.
Abilities/Additional Notes: Kanda's main weapon is his Innocence which in the form of a katana. It can release various attacks, as well as use his life-force for stronger attacks.
- Kaichuu: Ichigen releases a swarm of supernatural underworld insects/creatures to devour the opponent.
- Nigentou coats his sword with a shining blue/green energy, and that energy can be used to either make another sword on its own, or to coat the scabbard and turn that into a second sword.
- Hakka Tourou requires Nigentou to be activated. Kanda slashes the enemy eight times in quick succession that collectively resemble a flower.
- Shouka: Sangenshiki must be activate at the same time to activate two other attacks. Shouka activates the power of Kanda's tattoo and changes his pupil to three dots (not three commas like Sharingan, just dots), while Sangenshiki increases his speed and strength while decreasing his healing time.
- Consume is a move that allowed Kanda to temporarily reconstruct Mugen after it was shattered by the Noah Skinn Boric. It falls apart again shortly afterward.
- Bakuhakuzan makes a slash that seems to create explosions, and is able to effectively damage a Level 4 Akuma.
- Consume is a move that allowed Kanda to temporarily reconstruct Mugen after it was shattered by the Noah Skinn Boric. It falls apart again shortly afterward.
- Fourth Illusion changes the previously three dots to four (surprise surprise), giving Kanda another increase in speed and power.
- Fifth Illusion changes the glow of Mugen's blade and causes it to emit a sort of electricity. It uses a large amount of kanda's life force and also seems to give him a need for destruction while sealing up the rest of his emotions. At maximum power, Mugen takes on the form of a small butcher blade with small wings at the hilt, similar to how it looked 9 years ago.
- Ripping Flash Claw is an attack that unleashes seven sharp energy beams, able to reach the target from a distance.
Even without all these abilities, Kanda is still capable of slicing a steel/iron/metal chandelier into 8 pieces moments before it falls on top of someone. Kanda also has regenerative abilities; it's been stated that his healing has been slowing down (taking three days to heal from a deep gash in his chest), though this seems to be contradicted as the recent chapters have him regrowing a severed arm in mere seconds.
It is believed that the lotus in his room is connected to his life-force by the tattoo/curse mark on his chest, and that his life will end once the lotus wilts (or vice versa-- the lotus will die when he dies). This may also be the cause of his insanely high pain tolerance, seeing as he can take two sharp rods to the chest and still be alive/conscious while yanking them out, and then immediately going back into battle mode.
His blood also seems to be able to heal otherwise fatal injuries, though he found this out accidentally and would probably never share this bit of info voluntarily.
Sample Journal Post:
[the screen flickers from black to light and color, focusing immediately on the face hovering above it. oriental features twist and frown. Kanda lifts a hand to rub at his eyes before looking around with a hint of concern.]
...Alma?
[with the lack of reply, he shoulders drop and he turns his attention back to the device on the ground. it takes him a moment to realize it's recording, and he immediately moves a hand to cover up the screen. but by then the shallow cracks on the surface of his skin may have already drawn some attention. if not that, then may the fact that he's lacking a shirt is more eye-catching. or, maybe his.. uncommonly long hair.
the screen shakes as he fumbles with the device, and then it blips out, switching to plain audio. there's silence for a few seconds as he surveys the unrecognizable surroundings.]
Hey. Can anyone hear this? [pause. another glance around.]
..I'm guessing this isn't Italy anymore, is it?
Sample RP:
Motivation. It's something that drives us as humans. The want to live, the dream to improve, to conquer, to be the best.. it keeps us alive.
Ha. The only thing that's ever kept Yuu Kanda alive is the regeneration orb in his chest. Is this what it's like to live? Something that's crossed his mind so often, the same way others ponder the meaning of life. He knows the purpose of his existence-- to be a tool of the Order. It may come as a surprise to those who think they know Kanda, that he does what he wants, that he's headstrong, that he's crude, rude, cruel, heartless, cold, so stone cold.
He doesn't care. Yuu Kanda doesn't exist to make friends with everyone in the Order. He doesn't exist to lighten up the mood. Anyone he may have known before, any friends he may have had, people he may have loved, they're probably dead. He doesn't even know. He can't even remember who they were, what they look like, their names, nothing--
Except her. One single person. One woman. As cliché and soft and sappy as it sounds, Kanda clings to her. She's nice to him, in his memories. They're smiling. She's happy. Whatever he can remember, they're good ones. How long has it been since then? Since the day he died. Since the day she died.
..Brought back to fight a war he should have been finished fighting. For the sake of the Holy War, for the sake of the world, for the sake of your fucking righteousness. There is no rest for the weary, no peace for the dead.
No light at the end of the road for soldiers like us.
This is close enough, though. The city of Martel, the Land Forsaken by God. Good enough. Adequate, for creatures like him and Alma. They don't need God. They don't need the Innocence, the Noahs, or the Order. He exists to fight against the Millennium Earl, that's what he was created and brought back to life to do.
Fuck duty. He never cared about the war anyway. Damn people thinking they can do whatever they want because it's helping the world, everyone else not having the strength to go against them. Unable to do anything more than follow along when his leash is tugged.
But he found a tear, he found a break, a chance to tear his way out of his bindings. A chance to escape with the boy he killed 9 years ago, the woman he may have loved perhaps decades ago. They're here. With him. It's okay now. He found her.
Even if she's an Akuma. Even if she's no longer human-- hilarious, that, because they stopped being human 9 years ago. Even if she's--
Dead.
"I love you, Yuu," she says as she walks away. Hand in hand, her and the boy. Leaving. Life is cruel and love is harsh, to take her away to a place he can't go to. She waited for him. He's here now.
She sinks into the mud that isn't there, and is gone. Forever.
If he could sink, too, he would. Into the mud, where all Exorcists go. That's what it means to fight in this war. One day he'll follow her. One day. She is, after all, the reason why he chose to live, instead of dying with Alma. Instead of dying with her the first time around.
One day.
"Yeah.."
I love you. Forever.