OOC: character information

[bellcricket]

character name: Kaname Tousen
Fandom: BLEACH (no large differences in regards to his character between versions, but more of his past is shown in the manga, so he's manga-based, I suppose!)
Timeline: I'd place him somewhere berfore The Fearless Child, early-to-mid-Winter War.
character's age: Well over a hundred years old, although the exact age is not given. The lifespan of a soul reaper is much longer than the average human and much slower-paced. He appears no older than thirty.

He was born on November 13.

powers, skills, pets and equipment: Tousen is completely blind in both eyes, apparent by the opaque white cataracts. He has no light perception either, so he can't even tell dark from light.

He used to rely on a cane to get around and his perception of the world was heavily based on what he could hear and touch. However, after becoming a soul reaper, he refined his ability to sense spiritual energy to the extent that he can draw a vague outline of those who exhibit it (everyone has spiritual energy, although it varies in strength from one indivual to another), which aids him in battle by acting in place of vision, although it isn't flawless or a perfect substitute.

An advantage this gives him is that he is also the only person immune to Aizen’s shikai. As he cannot witness the breaking, he cannot be caught in the illusion.

For example, Komamura spent a period of time near Tousen while he was training years ago, with the other never sensing him until he revealed himself because he had masked his spiritual energy so well. It surprised Tousen because he can usually sense anyone's spiritual energy.

In addition, he has excellent swordsmanship skills (although he doesn't display his skills often). He can also use Flash Steps very efficiently, allowing him to move and attack with great speed.

He is also very good at using Kido spells, which are performed by focusing a soul reaper's spiritual energy and manipulating it to various ends such as healing or even attacks, requiring a spoken chant (which can get rather long and wordy sometimes), although Tousen is capable of performing the spells without the spoken chants and still get them to work.

His zanpakutou's name is Suzumushi (the bell cricket) appears to be a regular katana (samurai sword), although it has a small odd ring that hangs off of the guard, which can be released using two different commands. The first is "Cry". Suzumushi will vibrate and release a high-pitched sound strong enough that anyone who hears it will be rendered unconscious, as it overloads the sense of hearing. If the initial release is a sensory overload, his bankai (final release; the most powerful form a Zanpakuto can take) is an experiment in sensory deprivation.

But before the bankai, there is his second phrase for initial release, which is Suzumushi Nishiki: Benihikou (Cricket 2nd Movement: Crimson Flying Locusts). When Tousen turns the blade in a circle, trailing in its wake will be several more blades. Once he finishes the circle, the hundreds of blades will rain down on his opponent.

To put Suzumushi into its final release, Tsuishiki: Enma Kourogi (Cricket Final Form: Devil Cricket), Tousen spins Suzumushi's ring against the palm of his left hand. The ring spins faster and faster until it grows large enough to encircle him. Then, similarly to how multiple blades fall away from the sword's path in his second initial release, multiple rings will roll out from the shadow of the first.

These glowing rings will be cast out to different corners of any area, then releasing a dark energy that quickly plunges the area trapped within their borders into darkness, robbing all within it of their sight and hearing, along with their sense of smell, leaving only their sense of touch. He refers to it as a pitch-black hell.

The only way to escape is by gripping the hilt of Suzumushi, which Tousen keeps in his hand. As he is blind to begin with, it doesn't have much effect on him.

After undergoing the Hollowfication process and summoning his Hollow mask, Tousen also has improved agility, strength, and incredibly fast regeneration (his arm was completely mangled and broken by Komamura's Bankai, and perfectly fine and up to full capability only a moment later).

He also has a Resurrección, much like an Arrancar (a powerful Hollow that has had its mask, to some extent, removed and assumed a more humanoid shape). An Arrancar's Resurrección is usually sealed in their sword, like a soul reaper's zanpakutou, but when released, they assume their original Hollow forms- Tousen is the only known Vizard with one.

Once he releases his Resurrección, he can also generate twin Cero, a sort of focused energy, in front of his eyes which he can blast at the opponent. His other technique shown is Los Nueve Aspectos (Spanish for The Nine Aspects, the kanji romanized as Nine Pagoda Finials Kill). Like Suzumushi's cry, it is sound-based. Tousen draws circles in the air with his claws, which then release a sonic blast that easily dealt great damage to Komamura's Bankai.

He can also confuse just about everyone with his convoluted logic and long rants about peace and justice. Also, he shares with his Vice Captain a penchant for cooking and is quite good at it.

He also makes good tea, although one wonders where he gets the water in the desert of Hueco Mundo.

Does Wonderweiss qualify as a pet? Alright, now, that was mean. But he does have Wonderweiss' trust and Wonderweiss does try to protect Tousen from any danger he detects, even holding back Gin, but Wonderweiss has enough personality and unique skills to be considered as a seperate character, rather than an extension of Tousen's.

Their relationship is more like an affectionate father and son, really.

Aside from birds, random animals, and his pet Hollow Fuura, Tousen seems to be the only person Wonderweiss is interested in and attached to (in a way that doesn't boil down to "killing you is so much fun").

Tousen is also one of the few who sees Wonderweiss' potential, telling Gin that Wonderweiss' words have meaning and his patiently trying to teach Wonderweiss about the world around him.

According to the newly released character book, Tousen often plays games with Wonderweiss in their spare time, so it can be surmised that Tousen is rather good with children.

canon history: Tousen's biggest drive is the memory of his dead friend. When Tousen was young, he was poor and, having been born blind, used a cane to get around. He would often sit next to his female friend, who called him by name very often (despite his shyness and reticence, he says that her voice put him at ease), and she would talk to him. Although he never saw her, he believed she was beautiful.

She loved the night sky, she told him one day, because it was like their world; dark, but filled with small, twinkling lights. Every now and then, the clouds will try to hide them.

She told him that she wanted to be the one to wipe away those clouds, so that none of the lights will disappear again. He was too shy to tell her he actually liked the clouds, so he simply smiled and told her that that was nice.

Then, to his shock, she told him she was getting married. The man was a soul reaper. She also told him that she was accepted into the soul reaper academy and so she was going to become one too. Afterwards, she wanted to fight Hollows, create and maintain peace and that she wanted him to be the first to know about this.

Although he was saddened, he smiled and congratulated her, offering his help should she ever need it.
She thanked him, but told him to simply be himself, and just come and stay there, like before, so that whenever she found the time, she could come back and he could listen to her speak again.
She sounded very happy when she said, then it's a promise!"

But after that day, she never came back.

Her husband had killed a comrade over some petty argument, and when his wife scolded him for it, he killed her too.

It confused Tousen. She had a powerful sense of justice and wanted a peaceful world more than anyone else, even going so far as to fight for her beliefs, but died before she could even start. This prompted him to wonder if she was lacking something. That maybe it wasn't enough to a have a strong will, so he decided he wanted strength. The strength needed to fight for peace.

If it wasn't enough to believe in justice, he would have to become strong enough to become it himself.

Over her grave, he took hold of Suzumushi (as it was lying in the flowers along with her body, it's unclear whether this zanpakutou is truely his- of his own soul- or her own, but this was never cleared up) and vowed to wipe out evil, like the clouds in the sky.

Although he screamed, asking why his friend's murderer wasn't being put to death and begged to speak with Central 46, nobody would listen to him. After all, they were from the Rukongai and of little concern to them.

So Tousen was ignored, his friend was dead, and her murderer went unpunished.

He entered the academy sometime later and began training to become a soul reaper and find a way to avenge his friend.

One day while training with his sword in a forest of some sort, he was surprised to find he wasn't alone. Komamura (who would later become captain of the Seventh Division); he was a shy, but large man who often wore scarves or helmets to hide his head was in the area. The reason for that being that he resembled more a wolf than a man, although he walked upright, spoke, and behaved like any other soul reaper.

Tousen spoke up, apologizing, as he did not know there was someone else there at the time, only to find when Komamura responded, that he had been speaking in the wrong direction.

He smiled apologetically while scratching the back of his head, commenting to himself on how unusual this was, and was impressed, because nobody had ever managed to hide their prescence from him, and complimented Komamura on his skill. This simple praise and Tousen's following friendly introduction touched Komamura, who had always been an outcast, and they became close friends.

Although Tousen often spoke about wanting to protect "the world she loved", Komamura sensed some insincerity in Tousen's words, as he never once spoke about wanting to protect the world he loved. He knew Tousen probably hated the world for robbing him of his closest friend, but Komamura never held it against him, nor did he ever want to tell Tousen to stop hating the world.

He only wanted to be his friend so they could share their pain and their joy, but Tousen would not know of all of this for a very long time.

Later, Tousen had become the captain of the Ninth Division and appointed Hisagi Shuuhei as one of his officers. When Hisagi cried the day after his first task, begging that he be removed from his position, Tousen declined, telling him that everyone made mistakes.

But Hisagi explained that he did not fail because he made a mistake, but because he was too afraid to make a move. Because of his fear, he had failed. A long time ago, he went to the human world on a mission, and lost his right eye there. Ever since then, whenever Hisagi drew his sword, he felt like pulling back.

Tousen explained to him that was exactly why Hisagi should be an officer. The most important thing for a soldier to have is not strength, but a fear of battle. When one fears battle, they are also able to raise their sword to protect others who are also afraid.

"He who does not fear his own sword is not worthy to hold it. Hisagi, if you truely fear battle with all your heart... as a soldier, you already have something irreplaceable."

Hisagi later became his lieutenant.

Tousen claims that the only path his eyes do see is that of least bloodshed.

Tousen's hatred of senseless violence is shown in his way of dealing with Kenpachi Zaraki.

Zaraki recieved the title of captain through the bloodiest method (killing the former captain) and although he claimed to have no personal vendetta against Zaraki, the fact that he was helping out ryoka (those not affiliated with Soul Society; namely, Ichigo and his friends) and generally disrupting the peace of Soul Society meant he had to fight him. Tousen had been wary of Zaraki from the time he became captain. He believes he is a demon who thrives on violence and breathes blood, so he disliked him from the very beginning, knowing he would threaten the peace they all worked so hard to maintain.

As for Grimmjow, when he had allowed so many of his comrades to die pointlessly, Tousen was angry with him. Although his tone and expression didn't change by much (his tone was harsher than usual, though), he spoke in a ruder fashion and seemed almost desperate to punish him. Grimmjow stood before Aizen without saying anything, so Tousen prompted him by asking if he had anything to say. Grimmjow gave a non-challant "not really," to which Tousen responded with kisama (a rude way of addressing someone), then quickly turned to Aizen, beseeching him, but Aizen believed that Grimmjow's actions were a misguided attempt to please him.

Grimmjow agreed to that after a pause, and Tousen grabbed his collar, and asked for permission to execute him. Grimmjow shoved his hand away and smirked, saying that Tousen just couldn't stand him and wondered if it was alright for a commanding officer to behave in such a manner.

Tousen reaffirmed that his belief is that those who disturb the peace should not be forgiven and that that was all.

When Grimmjow mocks him for always acting based on his morals, Tousen claims that without a higher cause behind it, justice is nothing more than slaughter.

He begins to draw his blade while he continued to explain. But, slaughter in the name of that higher cause is justice.

And quickly proceeded to cut off Grimmjow's arm.

Another example of his peaceful nature is the way he took care of Ishida Uryuu, one of the ryoka intruders, during his time as a captain. He simply used Suzumushi's non-damaging attack to knock Uryuu unconscious to prevent him from going any further, despite the fact that Uryuu was already so badly beaten he would have been easily taken care of by other means. He first informs him that he holds no grudge against him, then after the sound knocks him unconscious, asks for Uryuu's forgiveness, telling him that this is the end to a meaningless fight and that he should sleep, for their fight will soon be over.

While Tousen did not reveal his loyalty to Aizen until the betrayal and seemed to go about his goal of protecting the world that stole his closest friend half-hatingly (though he never complained about it), he almost paradoxically does not like those who hide their true intentions and hide behind niceties and false pretenses. Gin's general light-hearted attitude and approach towards, er, everything in general does grate on Tousen's nerves.

He claims this is the reason Wonderweiss is drawn to him ("pure spirits attract one another") and, likewise, seems to have an affinity towards the Arrancar.

Such as when Tousen was observing a fight and Gin came up behind him telling him that spying was a nasty habit. Tousen responded that Gin was being hypocritical, as he had come to the room for the same purpose.
Gin claims he was only joking and proceeds to walk into the room when he is stopped by Wonderweiss.

Wonderweiss had grabbed onto Gin's leg, so Gin asked Tousen to do something about the brat.

Tousen only calmly called Wonderweiss' name, but that was enough for Wonderweiss to let go. When Gin commented on how Wonderweiss seemed to be really fond of him, Tousen claimed that pure beings are attracted to one another, although he's uncertain as of yet what Wonderweiss' pure intentions are.

Gin said that if that were the case, it was understandable that Wonderweiss didn't like him. Tousen responded that anyone intelligent enough would be wary of Gin.

He is highly respectful to Sousuke Aizen in his time in Hueco Mundo (although Tousen is in general respectful and fairly polite, he is especially so to Aizen, which makes sense as he was more or less loyal to him), but does not get along nearly as well with Ichimaru Gin.

Unlike Gin and Yammy, Tousen does not look down on Wonderweiss and does not consider him entirely lacking in intelligence. When Gin complains about Wonderweiss' howling and calls him a noisy brat, Tousen claims that Wonderweiss' words have meaning.

A short while after Tousen had Wonderweiss let go of Gin, Gin commented that the intruders were passing through the Den of Tres Cifras. Wonderweiss slowly sounded out the word "Tres Cifras", so Tousen turned to face him and explained that since Wonderweiss hasn't been here long enough, he didn't know about it. He proceeded to explain that it meant three-digits. If he met an Arrancar with a three-digit number, it meant that the Arrancar had been stripped of its rank and demoted.

At some point during his alliance with Aizen, Tousen underwent Hollowfication and revealed it in his final fight against his former friend Komamura and vice-captain Hisagi, while Aizen was busy with a fight of his own. Of course, that transpired after the point at which I'm taking him from, so I'll spare you the details.

personality: Tousen by nature detests violence and senseless killing, but he will maintain civility when dealing with the violent sort. However, this doesn't mean he will like them. He will remain wary, though he will not readily show it unprovoked (possibly due to his vow to become justice itself; justice should not be partial).

Although his desire for justice and revenge threaten to consume his being, he retains some kindness, empathy, and shows other interests. For example, he enjoys cooking in his free time and is quite good at it. Aside from being the Editor-In-Chief of the Seireitei Communication, he also writes a series of articles called the Path of Justice and has published a cookbook.

This can also be attributed to his reticence. Tousen does not speak very often. He does speak when spoken to or when someone requires an explanation (whether or not they ask for one explicitly) in a calm, rather dettached manner. He is not entirely humorless, however, and can make the odd quip.

However, if an act of violence is necessary to prevent more violence and further disturbance of peace, he is swift to act- even taking extreme measures- and should not be taken lightly.

The end justifies the means to Tousen. Aizen plans for the falling of Seireitei, which Tousen believes failed him and his friend, so anything that would bring Aizen closer to reaching his goals would bring Seireitei closer to its fall and bring him closer to carrying out his revenge, which he believes is just.

This includes carrying out any orders given to him by Aizen.

But does he believe what he is doing is good? Not quite. He understands he has done unforgivable things and asks no one's forgiveness. What he believes is that what he is doing is just.

It is good to forgive a criminal. What could be more beautiful than forgiving one who wronged you? But it is not just to let the wicked go unpunished.

To him, living a peaceful life in Soul Society and not avenging his friend would be evil.

He does not seek anyone's forgiveness. On the contrary, it seems that being forgiven would disturb him. He would rather be hated than forgiven.

In general, Tousen has never been one to ask anything of others. Much like most captains, while he would help a subordinate with their troubles, he would not burden them with his own, no matter how much trouble he was having.

It's also likely because he realizes he does not walk along the lighted path, to say the least, and has long accepted that. To him, the strictly-defined paths of good and evil are meaningless. He has already accepted that he will be seen as unforgivable by their standards and he would not mind it.

Tousen himself cannot forgive so easily.

But unless ordered or forced to take extreme measures, he will by nature take the most peaceful route. If an enemy is just as easily taken care of as putting them to sleep, he will simply use Suzumushi to render the enemy unconscious.

While Tousen did not reveal his loyalty to Aizen until the betrayal and seemed to go about his goal of protecting the world that stole his closest friend half-hatingly (but never complained about it), he almost paradoxically does not like those who hide their true intentions and hide behind niceties and false pretenses. Gin's general light-hearted attitude and approach towards, er, just about everything does grate on Tousen's nerves.

why do you feel this character would be appropriate to the setting?

Writing Samples

Network Post Sample:
I've been told to keep a journal.

... truthfully, I don't see the purpose of this.

Talk about anything?

[Another pause as if wondering whether what he has said so far constituted "anything", at least enough to post and leave it at that.

A small sigh.]

The Seireitei Communication will be out later than usual this month due to unforeseen circumstances. Forgive the delay.

[Another pause. It's not as if he hadn't already mentioned this elsewhere, but, anything to make this less of a waste of time and more like a journal. Mention something personal?]

I went for a walk. The air was somewhat cold, so I made sukiyaki afterwards.

[Satisfied, he stopped the recording.]

Third Person Sample:
With his division’s paperwork cleared out, editorial duties taken care of, and receiving no instructions from Aizen for quite a while (he didn’t question why; it was not his place), Tousen was left with a rare bit of free time.

He decided to go for a walk, although “decided” makes it seem more formal and planned a decision than it really was. Perhaps “he somehow ended up” going for a walk would have been a more accurate description.

The air was cooler than it had been yesterday, the transition from summer to autumn just as well heralded by the bell cricket’s songs, and Seireitei was peaceful in the unbroken calm.

Entertaining idle thoughts, he found himself leaving the peaceful, but lively confines of Seireitei and venturing out into the Rukongai.

The grass did not break or crack under the weight of his white boots and the branches snapped back just as easily after he released them, but the leaves already felt drier.

He briefly wondered how long before the leaves would fall, slowing to a stop and resting a hand on the rough peeling bark of a nearby tree, lifting his head upwards at the sound of rustling leaves, which filtered into a flutter of wings as a bird took flight, preparing for the autumn migration.

Quietly stepping back out from under the tree, he stopped when he felt moisture hit his forehead. Another drop was followed by two more and soon enough, it was raining.

He subconsciously took a step back, eyes widening.

The fingers of his right hand curled, clutching desperately for the long thin fingers of his only friend, but only caught air. Whether that was better or worse than feeling her hand cold, lifeless and limp as it never was, he couldn’t decide.

It was a cruel trick to play on him, he thought; the sky wept as furiously as it did on that day, the day the light died, the day he wielded Suzumushi and vowed to make her dream come true.

In Seireitei’s unbroken peace, that false façade of purity and light that shielded the wicked- the murderers- for something so insignificant as status, he had forgotten her.

However short a moment it was, for that one moment, he had forgotten her. With each day that passed in which Aizen-sama gave no commands, he was becoming more and more a soul reaper like the rest, indoctrinate to believe the lies they fed him so discretely each passing day. He let the anger fade. He lost sight of his goal.

Suzumushi slipped out of its sheath with a short metallic sound, and he raised it to slice. Slice at what? At nothing, bringing it down in front of him, imbedding the blade into the ground, to support him as he was brought to his knees, grief overtaking him.

No, not nothing. He will break those untruths, slash the wicked in half, and bring the world to justice. His blade would fulfill his friend’s desire and carry out Aizen-sama’s will, but for now, would only serve as a crutch for one quiet and frightened outcast who had lost his only friend, to lean onto while sobbing in the rain.

The accursed rain that would never let him forget. Blessed rain, that brought him to his senses.

If questioned, what would he miss- if he indeed would miss anything- about Seireitei, Tousen would simply respond, "I will miss the rain" and nothing more.

Anything else? My back hurts. I'm gonna go lie for a bit.