Post by jestercarr13 on Mar 15, 2021 12:32:47 GMT
Name: Kinoshita Kazumasu
Alias:
Kazumasu
AKAs: The Shadow, Kazu
Physical Description
Hair:
None
Eyes: Cybernetic, red and dark metallic grey
Ethnicity: Japanese
Age: 117 (18th February 1904)
Build: Kazumasu's body is, at this point, almost entirely cybernetic. His build appears to be athletically strong, his attire disguising the sharp angles of his cybernetic components. 5' 8''. In his base form, not especially heavy, as his composites are very advanced; around 370lbs. With loadouts, this can vary from 400 to 1000lbs.
Uniform:
Kazumasu wears combat dress and armour that takes influence from both traditional and modern influences in both samurai and ninja attire. He wears armoured greaves, gauntlets, chest-plate and shoulder plating with stylised design and adornments, over a black ballistic fibre-scale gi. He wears a cowl and scarf of the same material and colour. His face is concealed behind an ugly, angular Oni mask; white with red detailing (including small horns).
Personal Style: Kazumasu has no particular personal style. It is rare for him to leave his home if not on mission, and so in public is mostly only ever seen in his combat attire. On the rare occasions he does venture out, he wears long, thick robes to cover his whole appearance, appearing as an elderly invalid to attract as little attention as possible. While at home, Kazumasu remains 'naked', though that is a relative term. His configuration is made up of sharp, angular parts that can be built upon to achieve the necessary combat specifications, and so when unequipped there are parts of his cybernetic form that appear almost skeletal. His parts are almost all a dark metallic grey or black. His face, mask-less, is also entirely cybernetic, an almost flat scape of metallic grey with glowing red eyes.
Psychological Description
Personality: Kazumasu is as stoic as they come. He has lived a long, hard life in service to many masters his honour has been beholden to. It is only in recent times that he has found himself master-less. He is instead now in the fair employ of the Japanese "Special Police", a government agency specialising in unusual circumstances. He is a man of honour, but little mercy. He can be as equally ruthless as he can be gentle. He cannot speak, but has mastered multiple forms of sign language over his years. As even large parts of his brain are now replaced or supplemented by cybernetic components, Kazumasu can appear rather robotic in his communication and demeanour.
Relationships:
Kazumasu's family line died long ago. He did have a wife and daughter, in the '40s, but they died in Nagasaki when the bomb was dropped. Formerly, he had been the property of the government, and in unquestionable servitude to various masters as he owed them his life and continued existence. It was only in the first decade of the 21st century that his independence was recognised, and he was released from servitude, and instead offered fair employ. He now has colleagues, employers, and even subordinates. He has many allies within the Special Police, including other agents, specialists, officers, researchers, technicians, and the engineers that help with the upkeep of his body. Key individuals include:
- Kubo Nobuyuki (m); Department Chief of Special Police, headquartered in Nagasaki
- Sano Aiko (f); Operative Technician (espionage and interrogation)
- Taniguchi Yori (m); Junior Officer (acts as a 'partner' and assistant to Kazumasu)
- Maruyama Taigen (m); Tactical Agent (enforcement and security) and his team
- Fujii Teru (m) & Shimizu Takako (f); Research and Logistics (techie types, operative support from main-base)
- Ohno Saburo (m), Sakurai Suzuki (f) & Taniguchi Ryuji (m); the team of engineers that support Kazumasu with his body's upkeep and equipment etc.
Powers & Abilities:
Kazumasu's cybernetic body, in its base form, is incredibly fast, agile, strong and durable. His max running speed is 60mph; is able to leap up to 30 feet; he can lift and relatively easily toss around 10 tonnes, and able to move, with more effort, up to around 20 tonnes, and has been known to at least partially shift objects up to 30 tonnes; he can survive being directly hit by trucks going upward of 60mph, though he may be knocked down or away. His body is bullet proof, though armour piercing rounds can damage him, and a .50 calibre may well punch a hole in him. His senses are acutely honed, processed by incredibly advanced sensor technology, and he can isolate and identify scents and sounds, as well as see in various visual spectrums. His other "powers and abilities" depend on his particular load-out.
Weaknesses:
Kazumasu is almost entirely cybernetic at this point, even large parts of his brain. As such, he appears distinctly inhuman. His personality can come across as sometimes cold and robotic. He requires regular maintenance and upgrades, which he can complete some basic aspects of himself, but relies upon a team of specialist engineers for his holistic upkeep. Kazumasu cannot speak; a hold-over from his first forms where this technology was not available, and he has requested continue to be the case. Kazumasu is not as heavy as you might expect, though this depends on his particular loadout, but is still at minimum twice the weight of an average man.
Skills:
Kazumasu was a special service soldier before the Second World War broke out, well versed and trained in new and traditional tactical, strategic and combat disciplines. Since then, his skill and knowledge has improved exponentially. He is a master swordsman, archer and hand-to-hand combatant in multiple styles. He is also quite skilled with an array of other weapons such as nun-chaku, spears, axes, etc. He is well-versed in a degree of technological fields, due to his current existence, but is by no means an expert.
Equipment:
Besides his own body, Kazumasu has access to an array of other attachable, equip-able and carriable equipment. He typically always carries a pair of samurai swords (katana and tanto), and a collapsible bow and arrow with accompanying quiver. He has also been known to carry other close combat weapons, as well as other thrown weapons such as shuriken. He does not object to carrying and employing firearms, sometimes being equipped with advanced handguns and rifles. His attachable components are primarily the base layers of armour and tactical technology needed on missions, but can also include specific loadouts to assist in stealth missions, heavy armoured combat, missions in particular climates, or with particular operational needs (e.g. underwater, scaling cliffs or buildings, etc. etc.)
Background: Kinoshita Kazumasu, or Kazu, was born in 1904 to a traditional Shinto family. They lived in the country, not far from Nagasaki. They had their believes and faith in nature and the polytheistic gods and spirits that existed in all things, but were acceptant of the ever changing world around them, not shying away from the growing towns and cities. As such, a young Kazu attended school in the city, and though he did respect his families beliefs and had his own faith in the Shinto religion, he did grow up with more modern ideals all the same.
His father had been a soldier and trained Kazu from a young age, not in just combat, but in honour and respect. Unfortunately, his father died of a heart attack when Kazu was 16. Kazu had to provide for his family, doing all he could to live off of their land (a farm, of sorts), but it was not enough. Kazu joined the army at 18, sending money back to further subsidise what his mother and 3 sisters earned from the farm. He would return when he could, to see his family and help out. It was on one such trip home that he met his future wife, Emiko. She was a school friend of one of his sisters, and they quickly fell in love. They had their first and only child in 1928, while Kazu was stationed permanently in Nagasaki as a Gocho (Corporal) in the Imperial Japanese Army. He had in fact been recruited into a specialist branch of the army and receiving special training in tactical and operative strategy. By the time the Second World War broke out, Kazumasu was at the rank of Socho (Sergeant Major), the highest enlisted rank, and actively in charge of the field operations of a platoon that completed special projects around the country, the kind the public didn't always need to know about.
In July 1945, Kazu had been completing operations in an unspecified area of northern Japan, unrelated to the events of the Second World War. When the initial U.S. air raids of Nagasaki continued into August, he requested upon completion of their mission, that he be able to return home and serve to help protect its citizens, including his wife and 17 year old daughter. He was granted this permission. His convoy entered the outer boundaries of Nagasaki just as the Fat Man detonated.
He should have died. His wife and daughter did, the only mercy being that they did so immediately, without knowing what had happened. Kazu suffered injuries and radiation poisoning that ultimately killed many, but survived due to the ready involvement of his superiors in the JIA. Using technology discovered and appropriated during their secretive activities, they were able to stave off Kazu's death, and ultimately rebuild him. In a way.
Kazu's first new body was still at least 60% himself (he had lost the majority of his limbs, and a large proportion of his body mass to injury and degradation from radiation poisoning), but the rest was an essentially clockwork mechanisation that allowed him to still serve his country. The War with America was over, by the time he was ready, but their branch of the JIA had been fighting an altogether different war for decades already.
His superiors, mistrusting of what had been use to keep him alive, and seeing him as property, treated Kazu as an indentured servant, a piece of equipment like a jeep or tank, rather than a person. He could not speak, having lost that faculty to the bomb, and the technology not able to return it, but even if he could have spoken up about his lot, he would not have. He owed them his life, and he was after all a soldier... with nothing else to live for anyway.
Over the decades, his physical body continued to deteriorate with age and long-term side effects of his condition. But the technology that supported him continued to develop and advance also. He served to protect his country, and his people, in secrecy, never questioning his mission, but willing to find his own solutions if his orders put innocents at risk. Where he could, at least. In the first decade of the 21st century, his particular branch of the JIA was reconfigured. Its tenets and ideals had become outdated long ago, and under new governmental leadership had to change to suit the new world.
As such, Kazumasu's status was changed. He was no longer property, a simple (if advanced) tool of the empire, but instead was reinstated as a living citizen, with rights, and a rank. He, of course, was asked to respect certain limitations to maintain his anonymity, and the secrecy of their new division that fell under the "Special Police", and his rank was not officially recorded, or even named, technically. And though the technology had long since come about to give him a voice, he had never before been offered the option. When he was, by his new colleagues and superiors, he refused. He had already become accustomed to not having a voice, having learned multiple forms of sign languages and other voiceless forms of communication, and wished to continue on that way, out of respect for the man he had been, who had died with his family, and the man he had become. A shadow.
Alias:
Kazumasu
AKAs: The Shadow, Kazu
Physical Description
Hair:
None
Eyes: Cybernetic, red and dark metallic grey
Ethnicity: Japanese
Age: 117 (18th February 1904)
Build: Kazumasu's body is, at this point, almost entirely cybernetic. His build appears to be athletically strong, his attire disguising the sharp angles of his cybernetic components. 5' 8''. In his base form, not especially heavy, as his composites are very advanced; around 370lbs. With loadouts, this can vary from 400 to 1000lbs.
Uniform:
Kazumasu wears combat dress and armour that takes influence from both traditional and modern influences in both samurai and ninja attire. He wears armoured greaves, gauntlets, chest-plate and shoulder plating with stylised design and adornments, over a black ballistic fibre-scale gi. He wears a cowl and scarf of the same material and colour. His face is concealed behind an ugly, angular Oni mask; white with red detailing (including small horns).
Personal Style: Kazumasu has no particular personal style. It is rare for him to leave his home if not on mission, and so in public is mostly only ever seen in his combat attire. On the rare occasions he does venture out, he wears long, thick robes to cover his whole appearance, appearing as an elderly invalid to attract as little attention as possible. While at home, Kazumasu remains 'naked', though that is a relative term. His configuration is made up of sharp, angular parts that can be built upon to achieve the necessary combat specifications, and so when unequipped there are parts of his cybernetic form that appear almost skeletal. His parts are almost all a dark metallic grey or black. His face, mask-less, is also entirely cybernetic, an almost flat scape of metallic grey with glowing red eyes.
Psychological Description
Personality: Kazumasu is as stoic as they come. He has lived a long, hard life in service to many masters his honour has been beholden to. It is only in recent times that he has found himself master-less. He is instead now in the fair employ of the Japanese "Special Police", a government agency specialising in unusual circumstances. He is a man of honour, but little mercy. He can be as equally ruthless as he can be gentle. He cannot speak, but has mastered multiple forms of sign language over his years. As even large parts of his brain are now replaced or supplemented by cybernetic components, Kazumasu can appear rather robotic in his communication and demeanour.
Relationships:
Kazumasu's family line died long ago. He did have a wife and daughter, in the '40s, but they died in Nagasaki when the bomb was dropped. Formerly, he had been the property of the government, and in unquestionable servitude to various masters as he owed them his life and continued existence. It was only in the first decade of the 21st century that his independence was recognised, and he was released from servitude, and instead offered fair employ. He now has colleagues, employers, and even subordinates. He has many allies within the Special Police, including other agents, specialists, officers, researchers, technicians, and the engineers that help with the upkeep of his body. Key individuals include:
- Kubo Nobuyuki (m); Department Chief of Special Police, headquartered in Nagasaki
- Sano Aiko (f); Operative Technician (espionage and interrogation)
- Taniguchi Yori (m); Junior Officer (acts as a 'partner' and assistant to Kazumasu)
- Maruyama Taigen (m); Tactical Agent (enforcement and security) and his team
- Fujii Teru (m) & Shimizu Takako (f); Research and Logistics (techie types, operative support from main-base)
- Ohno Saburo (m), Sakurai Suzuki (f) & Taniguchi Ryuji (m); the team of engineers that support Kazumasu with his body's upkeep and equipment etc.
Powers & Abilities:
Kazumasu's cybernetic body, in its base form, is incredibly fast, agile, strong and durable. His max running speed is 60mph; is able to leap up to 30 feet; he can lift and relatively easily toss around 10 tonnes, and able to move, with more effort, up to around 20 tonnes, and has been known to at least partially shift objects up to 30 tonnes; he can survive being directly hit by trucks going upward of 60mph, though he may be knocked down or away. His body is bullet proof, though armour piercing rounds can damage him, and a .50 calibre may well punch a hole in him. His senses are acutely honed, processed by incredibly advanced sensor technology, and he can isolate and identify scents and sounds, as well as see in various visual spectrums. His other "powers and abilities" depend on his particular load-out.
Weaknesses:
Kazumasu is almost entirely cybernetic at this point, even large parts of his brain. As such, he appears distinctly inhuman. His personality can come across as sometimes cold and robotic. He requires regular maintenance and upgrades, which he can complete some basic aspects of himself, but relies upon a team of specialist engineers for his holistic upkeep. Kazumasu cannot speak; a hold-over from his first forms where this technology was not available, and he has requested continue to be the case. Kazumasu is not as heavy as you might expect, though this depends on his particular loadout, but is still at minimum twice the weight of an average man.
Skills:
Kazumasu was a special service soldier before the Second World War broke out, well versed and trained in new and traditional tactical, strategic and combat disciplines. Since then, his skill and knowledge has improved exponentially. He is a master swordsman, archer and hand-to-hand combatant in multiple styles. He is also quite skilled with an array of other weapons such as nun-chaku, spears, axes, etc. He is well-versed in a degree of technological fields, due to his current existence, but is by no means an expert.
Equipment:
Besides his own body, Kazumasu has access to an array of other attachable, equip-able and carriable equipment. He typically always carries a pair of samurai swords (katana and tanto), and a collapsible bow and arrow with accompanying quiver. He has also been known to carry other close combat weapons, as well as other thrown weapons such as shuriken. He does not object to carrying and employing firearms, sometimes being equipped with advanced handguns and rifles. His attachable components are primarily the base layers of armour and tactical technology needed on missions, but can also include specific loadouts to assist in stealth missions, heavy armoured combat, missions in particular climates, or with particular operational needs (e.g. underwater, scaling cliffs or buildings, etc. etc.)
Background: Kinoshita Kazumasu, or Kazu, was born in 1904 to a traditional Shinto family. They lived in the country, not far from Nagasaki. They had their believes and faith in nature and the polytheistic gods and spirits that existed in all things, but were acceptant of the ever changing world around them, not shying away from the growing towns and cities. As such, a young Kazu attended school in the city, and though he did respect his families beliefs and had his own faith in the Shinto religion, he did grow up with more modern ideals all the same.
His father had been a soldier and trained Kazu from a young age, not in just combat, but in honour and respect. Unfortunately, his father died of a heart attack when Kazu was 16. Kazu had to provide for his family, doing all he could to live off of their land (a farm, of sorts), but it was not enough. Kazu joined the army at 18, sending money back to further subsidise what his mother and 3 sisters earned from the farm. He would return when he could, to see his family and help out. It was on one such trip home that he met his future wife, Emiko. She was a school friend of one of his sisters, and they quickly fell in love. They had their first and only child in 1928, while Kazu was stationed permanently in Nagasaki as a Gocho (Corporal) in the Imperial Japanese Army. He had in fact been recruited into a specialist branch of the army and receiving special training in tactical and operative strategy. By the time the Second World War broke out, Kazumasu was at the rank of Socho (Sergeant Major), the highest enlisted rank, and actively in charge of the field operations of a platoon that completed special projects around the country, the kind the public didn't always need to know about.
In July 1945, Kazu had been completing operations in an unspecified area of northern Japan, unrelated to the events of the Second World War. When the initial U.S. air raids of Nagasaki continued into August, he requested upon completion of their mission, that he be able to return home and serve to help protect its citizens, including his wife and 17 year old daughter. He was granted this permission. His convoy entered the outer boundaries of Nagasaki just as the Fat Man detonated.
He should have died. His wife and daughter did, the only mercy being that they did so immediately, without knowing what had happened. Kazu suffered injuries and radiation poisoning that ultimately killed many, but survived due to the ready involvement of his superiors in the JIA. Using technology discovered and appropriated during their secretive activities, they were able to stave off Kazu's death, and ultimately rebuild him. In a way.
Kazu's first new body was still at least 60% himself (he had lost the majority of his limbs, and a large proportion of his body mass to injury and degradation from radiation poisoning), but the rest was an essentially clockwork mechanisation that allowed him to still serve his country. The War with America was over, by the time he was ready, but their branch of the JIA had been fighting an altogether different war for decades already.
His superiors, mistrusting of what had been use to keep him alive, and seeing him as property, treated Kazu as an indentured servant, a piece of equipment like a jeep or tank, rather than a person. He could not speak, having lost that faculty to the bomb, and the technology not able to return it, but even if he could have spoken up about his lot, he would not have. He owed them his life, and he was after all a soldier... with nothing else to live for anyway.
Over the decades, his physical body continued to deteriorate with age and long-term side effects of his condition. But the technology that supported him continued to develop and advance also. He served to protect his country, and his people, in secrecy, never questioning his mission, but willing to find his own solutions if his orders put innocents at risk. Where he could, at least. In the first decade of the 21st century, his particular branch of the JIA was reconfigured. Its tenets and ideals had become outdated long ago, and under new governmental leadership had to change to suit the new world.
As such, Kazumasu's status was changed. He was no longer property, a simple (if advanced) tool of the empire, but instead was reinstated as a living citizen, with rights, and a rank. He, of course, was asked to respect certain limitations to maintain his anonymity, and the secrecy of their new division that fell under the "Special Police", and his rank was not officially recorded, or even named, technically. And though the technology had long since come about to give him a voice, he had never before been offered the option. When he was, by his new colleagues and superiors, he refused. He had already become accustomed to not having a voice, having learned multiple forms of sign languages and other voiceless forms of communication, and wished to continue on that way, out of respect for the man he had been, who had died with his family, and the man he had become. A shadow.
