Name: Nikumu Itami
Age: 332
Visual Age: 29
Years since Entrance into the Gotei 13: 300
Gender: Male
Division: 5
Rank: Captain
Appearance: Nikumu wears a traditional Shinigami robe, along with the 5th division's Captains Haksho, with one noticeable difference. All over his Haksho, are faint, but visible stains red, in splotches, lines, and all sorts of formations. This is because throughout all his battles, Nikumu has never once replaced his Haksho. He has had it repaired, and washed, but has made a point to leave visible signs of where blood once was, from both himself and his enemies. Physically, Nikumu's most notable trait is the fact that he is an albino. His skin is completely pale, from head to toe. Because this, he prefers not to be out in the sun terribly much, as he burns easily. His hair, in accordance with his genetic disorder, is a pale-whitish blonde, and is kept short, and smooth. His eyes are one of the most shocking parts of his appearance, as the irises are bright red, which has caused many to become nervous in his prescence. He has a fat nose, and seemingly permanently passive mouth. His body is well toned and muscled, and were one to see underneath his shihaksho, they would see the scars of numerous battles lining his pale skin.
Personality: Nikumishi's personality varies drastically. Normally he is a calm, somewhat aloof individual. He is a pragmatic thinker: knowing when it is a good idea to cut ones losses, and how best to use sacrificial pawns- this callousness makes him an enormous asset as a captain, as his is willing to obey orders without being bound heavily by a moral code, and thus often finds effective solutions to problems. However- despite this cold level of strategic thinking, this is not to say he is a cruel individual. He always maintains a pleasantness, if not quite a warmth with other shinigami, and is willing to make small talk, assist in training, and otherwise engage himself personally with others. He can be exceptionally charismatic when he chooses to be, but rarely chooses to utilize this unique talent- believing that blood and iron possesses far more real world application than sweet-talking. And, personally, he views all of his subordinates much like chess pieces; while some are more valuable than others. He is not welcoming, but nor is he an intimidating persona other than his appearance- just a detached one. In combat he chooses not to risk himself unnecessarily- but will assist if it will mitigate the losses, simply to conserve the Seireitei's resources. While fighting, he never gets emotionally involved in the fight- he simply does what must be done.
However, once he releases his Zanpakutou, this cool demeanor evaporates. The Zanpakutou's released state infects him with an insatiable love of fighting and a deep bloodlust. Over time, he has been able to establish some level of restraint over himself while in shikai, but at bankai his control over his wanton desire to kill and slaughter takes over to the point where it's almost not even he himself fighting anymore- it's his zanpakutou.
Fighting Style: When in battle Nikumu will often approach his opponents cautiously despite specializing in melee combat. His skill in kido is only average for an officer, and is certainly worse than most captains, only being able to perform up to high level 30's of bakudo and hado. However, despite this, he will often try to force the enemy to wear themselves out, and consume a vast majority of their reaitsu, while he attempts to conserve his through measured dodging, and rare, well placed attacks, and using his excellent speed to keep them a good distance After he has become familiar with their fighting style and commonly employed techniques, Nikumu will then try to surprise enemies by viciously attacking when he feels he has gained a sufficient upper hand, often seeking to end the battle in a single strike.
However, as his personality changes upon the release of his zanpakutou, so too does his fighting style. Any measured, dodging and occasional attacking is overwhelmed by nearly uncontrollable aggression. When he is pushed to release his zanpakutou, he almost always takes a relentless offensive, charging opponents head on. While in shikai through years of training he has managed to gain a greater degree of control over himself, enabling him to focus enough to be more cautious, and more capable of fighting alongside allies, as well as timing his attacks. However, in bankai, all semblance of control is lost, and he will savagely strike out at almost anyone nearby, friend or foe. He becomes what is akin to a mindless beast of violence, which does not stop until its enemies are slain, which is why he is very hesitant to unleash it. His thought process is sped up, and his combat reflexes are dramatically increased- to the point where it almost seems like he's foreseeing an opponent's moves a split second before they're even made. Because of this something of a loss of control over his own mind, he rarely, if ever chooses to use bankai.
Background: Born in feudal Japan in the late 1600's, Nikumu was abandoned by his parents as an abomination due to his freakish appearance. He was unceremoniously dumped into a nearby river. He drifted down this river for a few hundred meters before being recovered by an old fisherman. This fisherman raised him for the next 5 years, but never named Nikumu, simply calling him 'Boy' However, when Nikumu was five, the old man was forced to sell him into slavery to pay off his debts. From this point onward, Nikumu's life only spiraled downhill. His master made him very aware of his 'monstrous' appearance, and worked him like an animal. He was beaten regularly to make sure he knew his place, and worked to the point where he often collapsed from exhaustion. Nevertheless, though he was only little, he was able to keep going because he had a place to focus all of his suffering: on the man who now owned him. For years, he toiled relentlessly, never shown a smile, or told a kind word, looked upon with fear and hate. As he grew older, the beatings became more severe, as his body was able to endure more pain. All the while his hatred, and bitterness grew. Finally at age 16, his hatred overwhelmed him, and in the middle of the night, he stole his masters katana, and killed every member of the household, down to the youngest son, only 5 at the time. From there, Nikumu fled into the wilderness, thinking that he would at long last be freed from the hatred and rage which had consumed him over the past few years. However, he found that without that hatred, without that rage, that all-guiding purpose which had ruled his life for 11 years, his life was empty. So, having abandoned all hope, he turned the katana on himself, and let death take him.
In the Rukongai, he was sorted into district 42. However, despite the myraid of souls of different races that surrounded him, he found that even in death he was still looked upon with fear, and hate, and misunderstanding- though it may not have been as severe as it was in life. However, instead of turning spiteful, he decided that he wanted their fear, but he wanted to be feared -- and respected -- for a different reason than his strange appearance.
His solution to attaining this came quickly when a shinigami recruiter came to the district. Though even by this man, who encouraged all with above-average reaitsu to apply, looked on him oddly, he didn't hesitate to sign up. At the academy, while he was not the smartest of the recruits he was an exceptionally hard worker, almost desperate to make himself stand out. Due to this dedication, and his natural talent with swordsmanship, upon his graduation, he was given a low-level officer position in squad 5.
Since joining his squad, he quickly came to realize the nature of his shikai, and how his zanpakutou was almost eager for him to release it, prodding at him while he was in battle to do so from the start. He managed to supress these urges however- because he quickly became aware of the dark nature of it when, in his blood lust, he accidentally cut down a member of his patrol in a fight with some hollows.
He rose to captain very suddenly, when, after a 100 years of being a member of squad 5, and rising to third seat, he challenged the captain of the squad. No one had expected it, nor knew why he wanted the position so badly. Though Nikumu could lead, he was certainly not a terribly charismatic individual, certainly not like the captain at the time, furthermore, most believed there was no way he could triumph. However, the captain was forced to accept, and so the day of the battle came near. That battle was the only time Nikumu ever released his bankai. But when the fight was over, and he saw the looks of horror, and fear stricken on the faces of the squad members as he stood over the captains corpse, he could tell that once had been enough to earn what he had sought since arriving in this place.
Wed Jan 02, 2013 5:26 am by 
