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Name: Aotsuki Ranmaru (Ran) Date of Birth: 1st of February 1847 Height: 170 cm / 5’8” Weight: 123 lbs / 56 kg Appearance: Ranmaru seems to be years younger from his true age as well as overly fragile because of his small size. True, he is a tad over the average height, but he is of slender built with sinewy muscles and long limbs. His skin is slightly tanned and quite smooth – excluding his calloused, effeminate hands and the scars around his mid-section. Ranmaru has sharp, somewhat delicate features, which accentuate his slanty, deep purple eyes. There is one peculiar characteristic about his eyes: they turn crimson whenever Ran gets angry. His hair is long and raven black, though he has a few grey strands on his temples, and he keeps it often on a low ponytail, leaving only a few short strands to shade the left side of his face. Ran wears usually light grey hakamas with a white keikogi and either a dark grey or dark blue gi. Whenever on missions Ran wears bracers (remember Nuriko from FY? Like the ones he got from Taitsukun) to protect his arms. He also wears white linen bandages around his waist to hide the scars there. Ran is often seen with one of his umbrellas. Background Info: Found in an abandoned temple in the age of five, Ranmaru was raised by two siblings, Aotsuki Masato and Minami, in their household near Nara. The boy was silent and shy to begin with, but surprisingly obedient and eager to please his new family. Officially the boy was recorded as the adopted son of Masato, but in real life he was more like a little brother to the twenty-year-old Minami and twenty-seven-year-old Masato. Because his good relationship with the siblings, Ranmaru began to receive kenjutsu lessons from Masato as soon as it was possible. Masato was a skilled swordsman and his forte was nitou kenjutsu, so eventually he began to teach Ranmaru – Ran – the style he had learned years ago; Kamaitachi Ryuu. The elder man wasn’t very kind in his teachings, but he was thorough and thanks to that and Ran’s innate talent with a sword, the boy learned swiftly. In addition to his kenjutsu training, Ranmaru was taught Hayagakejutsu, a talent that was usually part of a ninja’s training, but he learned it because it was one of the basic skills he needed to learn so that he could learn Kamaitachi Ryuu. He was also taught some jujutsu, at those times a very common martial art among the samurai class. Although Ranmaru showed a minor skill in jujutsu, he never really got any further training in it – at least, not from Masato. Despite the fact that Ran spent most of his childhood with a shinai in his hands, he had a nice, if not happy, life with the Aotsukis: Minami taught the boy to write, read, cook and paint, and Masato taught him to make umbrellas – a skill with which Masato earned their living. Besides these skills Minami and Masato taught their philosophy of life to Ran: one had to be strong in all ways so that one would to survive. If one was weak, one would perish. To this Minami often added her own philosophy: be strong, but not so strong that you break. When Ranmaru turned fifteen, Masato decided it was time to leave Nara and move to Kyoto. There they moved to the Morioka estate, where Ran’s life was turned upside down. When he met the owner of the estate, a rich but low-ranking samurai Morioka Tsunetaro, it turned out that Ran was his nephew. Morioka’s sister, Sumiyo, had in her youth made the mistake of running away with her bodyguard and the result of that was Ranmaru. Now she was married to a rich merchant named Kawakami Giichi. And as to top the shock which this information had caused to Ran, Morioka made him and Masato the bodyguards of Kawakami and Sumiyo, just to remind his sister of her past mistakes and to insure that she was protected – she was his sister, no matter what. And Kawakami was a rich man. So Morioka felt like they needed a good bodyguard. After all, who’d be a better bodyguard than one’s own son? This all hurt Ranmaru deeply, wounding the boy’s gentle nature. But what hurt most was the knowledge that Minami and Masato had known this all along, and it was the final hit in Ran’s face. Two years or so passed by. Ran became known as “Bastard” to the other men working and living in the Morioka estate, but after a few... accidents no one called him that, at least not when he was present. Although Ran’s life was good, in a way, something changed completely in the boy. Being deceived by his family and getting treated like dirt by Kawakami and his mother, Ran began to withdraw into himself, putting on a facade of an icy cold, emotionless man. Despite this Ran did his job and guarded both Kawakami and Sumiyo no matter what he felt, just like he had been taught. In the late summer of 1864 something happened that changed Ran’s life even more. After a trip to the shopping area of Kyoto Ranmaru and Sumiyo were ambushed by a bunch of unaffiliated ronin. The reason was unknown, but it didn’t stop Ran from trying to protect his mother. Unfortunately he was outnumbered and while he was fending off two men, one of the group managed to get his hands on Sumiyo and kill her. Although he had shoved his emotions aside this angered Ran beyond all common sense and he practically slaughtered a little over half of the men involved. This didn’t stop Morioka, however, from kicking him out of his estate and sending his men after the boy’s head, for he and Kawakami blamed Ran of Sumiyo’s death. But sometime between August and October Ran disappeared from Morioka’s sight, figuratively speaking. The reason to his disappearance was that he met a man who was about to change his life into a better one. That man was Hayakawa Kinsuke. Hayakawa found Ran hiding near his house in the outskirts of Kyoto, starved and haggard. The man took the boy in his house out of pity and fed him. When Ran told him what was going on Hayakawa promised him a shelter in his house if the boy would work for him as a jack-of-all-trades, to which the boy agreed without any hesitation. Hayakawa also promised to teach the boy more about the nitou kenjutsu, for the man was a master of Kamaitachi Ryuu, and, as Ran found out later on, Masato’s teacher. This led to Ran improving his sword skills significantly. Hayakawa also taught Ran the meaning of swordmanship, how to use his skills only when necessary and not to let his emotions affect the way he fought. Soon after settling to the household Ran met Hayakawa’s daughter, Kiyoki, and eventually fell in love with her. Hayakawa noticed with a small amount of amusement that his daughter shared Ran’s feelings, and he was delighted that Kiyoki melted slowly the ice that had formed around the boy’s heart. Hayakawa was also pleased of Kiyoki teaching Ran some medical skills since they helped Ran to realise what it meant to wound someone with his swords. It only took a year before Ran asked the permission to engage Kiyoki from Hayakawa, and another year for them to get married. This was a time of happiness for Ran. He had a beautiful wife, a house where to live, a job – actually two, since he had started making umbrellas – and a father-in-law/teacher who to respect. This brought out the silent passion inside the boy, no, young man as well as the gentleness. And when Kiyoki got pregnant a year after their wedding Ran’s happiness was full. Unfortunately this happiness didn’t last long, for Hayakawa was killed in a fight near the former Ikeda inn when Kiyoki was on third month and it broke her heart. The event also brought Ran down, though he tried to keep the house running. Then, on 3rd of September 1867, Kiyoki gave birth to their daughter, Kasumi. The birth was very difficult, for Kiyoki lost a lot of blood. She became very fragile, even so fragile that she couldn’t arise from her futon and finally, only a week after Kasumi’s birth, Kiyoki passed away. The very same day when Kiyoki died a group of men from the Morioka household came to the Hayakawa house. Morioka had found out that Ran was living there. Both Morioka and Kawakami still yearned revenge so they had ordered Morioka’s men to kill Ran and everyone who were with him. This was too much for the young man and he simply snapped, attacking without any warning the men that had come to get him, killing many of them, letting those who were lucky flee before he lost his consciousness right after the fight. When he woke up he was in a bare room, lying on a futon next to the small cradle in which Kasumi was sleeping. Later on, after he had woken completely a man in a Shinsengumi uniform came to the room. The man was none other than Saitou Hajime. Saitou, who had come to the Hayakawa house with his squad just a little after the fight, had seen the corpses of the men Ran had killed as well as the man himself and had decided to take the man and the baby they had found from the house with him – mostly out of pity but also out of curiousity. Saitou informed Ran that he and his daughter couldn’t stay in Kyoto – at least, not safely – and offered him a refuge in Nara in exchange of Ran’s services. Saitou said that he needed an informant at that direction as well as someone to keep a sanctuary in there for his men. This alarmed Ran a bit and he questioned Saitou for the reason he was doing this. The only answer was that anyone who had lived under Hayakawa Kinsuke’s roof was worth his trust. Saitou also told that Hayakawa had been loyal to shogunate and had helped the Shinsengumi financially. These news got Ran thinking and after considering thoroughly Ran accepted Saitou’s offer and was sent to Nara with Kasumi, though not before burying his wife. In Nara was waiting a quite spacious house, which was namely in Uyehara Makoto’s possession, but in truth owned by the Aizu han, the sponsor of the Shinsengumi. Ran settled there with Kasumi, opening first a kasaya in there and later on a small, high-class inn. During the years Saitou often sent requests for information, as well as those members of the kagetai who needed to get out of Kyoto or needed to heal in peace. This way Ran became more or less a part of the kagetai, staying mostly in the back as a supporting and helping force. This all changed almost completely during the early autumn of 1874. Various incidents casted a suspicious shade over the inn Ran was keeping, and over the inn’s customers. The customers got fewer and finally an unfortunate accident caused the inn to burn down and forced Ranmaru and Kasumi leave from Nara as soon as they could. In a few months they ended up in Kyoto, where Ran contacted Saitou, informing about what had happened and offering to repay the house – after all, it was Saitou’s house. This lead to an agreement between the two men, of which resulted Ran’s appearance on various missions as a back-up or an informant. Eventually Ran got the house repayed, but for some odd reason he stayed with the kagetai. When asked about his answer is usually very evasive: he just says he wants make sure that his daughter’s life won’t be like his. Fighting style, weapons, techniques: Despite his fragile looks Ranmaru is quite fast (he almost reaches the Tenken speed) and has a very good stamina, though he isn’t physically as strong as most men. He is quite skilled with a sword, but his forté is nitou kenjutsu. He almost mastered Kamaitachi Ryuu before Hayakawa’s death; he never learned the ougi of his style. He is regarded as a good and reliable swordsman by kagetai’s standards – by all means, he’s not great like Saitou or Himura and he will never be, but when it comes to nitou kenjutsu, there aren’t many who can defeat him. This is the direct result from his resolve to stay alive in order to take care of his daughter, as well as from the philosophies he’s been taught. Ranmaru usually uses two katanas, but he is no stranger to other kind of swords. Sometimes he uses two swords which are shorter and curvier than the normal katana. He also has a hidden sword in one of his umbrellas, which he also can use as weapons ^__^. He also has some skill in non-weapon fighting. Techniques: Tsumujikaze (whirlwind): Done while circling around the opponent, the attacker strikes three time with both swords in a diagonal fashion. Nanpuu (breeze or southerly wind): Done in complete silence and in full speed, the attacker slashes once with both swords through the opponent’s side while passing him. Menwakusai (gust of wind cutting the face ^_^*): A quick slash over the eyes, while the other sword is used to strike through the opponent’s mid-section. Ookaze (gale, strong winds): Executed from full speed, one strong, swift cut is executed with the both swords in a shape-of-cross diagram first from the right shoulder to the left hip and nearly simultaneously with the other sword from the left shoulder to the right hip. Yokokaze (crosswind): A high jump up in the air, the attacker strikes when coming down in a shape-of-cross diagram, cutting from neck to abdomen and across the chest. Bakufuu (blast of wind, blast): The attacker runs with full speed towards the opponent, drawing the blades out and stops on his tracks just before delivering two horizontal strikes, thus increasing the power of the strikes and practically cleaving the opponent in three pieces. Hyakurai (hundred thunderclaps): The strongest technique Ran ever learned. The attacker first slashes downwards with his swords, thrusts them forward diagonally almost simultaneously only to slash down again. This technique is nearly impossible to block because of the speed the strikes are executed. Personality: The best word to describe Ranmaru is wistful. He is taciturn and calm, almost annoyingly so. Despite being very kind and gentle to his daughter and children, he is very straightforward with his words, sometimes even harsh. If he feels something is wrong, then he says it. Ran has patience and he isn’t easy to anger. Even angering Saitou is easier than angering Ranmaru; the only way to do it is to threaten his daughter. There is only one drawback to this: all hell breaks loose when Ran gets angry… Thanks to his years as an innkeeper and an informant, Ran hides his emotions effectively, sometimes even too effectively. He is pretty much indifferent about what happens around him, which annoys some of the kagetai and his opponents to no end. He is also capable of impersonating various roles when necessary, which has proven to be a valuable trait for him and the kagetai. He is also very perceptive and quite smart, though he doesn’t flaunt it. The wistfulness in him comes from the fact that he has lost his family and his wife. Especially his wife’s death left very deep scars in his heart and a sorrow that has never been let out. He has never had the opportunity to grieve for he had to take care of Kasumi. Sometimes Ran looks anguished and on the brink of losing his mind, but thanks to some strange source of strength he seems to hang there. His few joys of life come from being with his daughter, painting and making umbrellas and cooking. He also likes to help people, be it with children, cooking or taking care of their wounds since he has some medical knowledge. Ran doesn’t fight unless it is necessary. He enjoys sparring, but never fighting. Like he so often says, the only reason he fights is to make the world a better place for his daughter. Kasumi is the reason why he is living and why he wants to keep on living. And because of her he kept practicing everyday during their time in Nara, and because of her he has become stronger during the years. Likes: Kasumi, the kagetai, his umbrellas, painting, his swords, children, good literature, spring and summer, bright days, cooking (he is really good at it) and looooong, hooooooot baths ^_______^. He has also developed a kind of friendship with Saitou. Dislikes: Chilly weather (his joints hurt like hell), flirty women, anybody who tries to hurt his daughter, people who judge his skills by his looks and fighting when unnecessary. Disabilities: Ranmaru has two great disabilities: because of his slender built and the extertion his speed and fighting style brings to him, his joints and limbs hurt like hell whenever it’s chilly. Winter doesn’t bother him, only dampness does. The other disability is that after using high speed when fighting Ran limps around for a few days for he needs time to recover from the extertion his style of kenjutsu causes. Rivals: Kawakami Giichi, who - as far as Ran knows - is still alive and pretty much wants Ranmaru dead. Every living member of the Morioka household wants him dead, also. Nobody else has showed up, yet. Current Info: In the beginning of RK (1878) Ranmaru is living with his eleven-year-old daughter Kasumi in a quite spacious house in Kyoto, keeping a kasaya to earn some extra money.