(NOTE: All of the below is taken from an old app; it's still accurate, but needs touch-ups.)

Your Name: Ashlee
OOC Journal: bushyeyebrows
Email: ashtraydentist@aol.com
Plurk: simpledog


Name: Takeshi 
Canon: Gantz
Original or Alternate Universe: original
Canon Point:  After the apartment is destroyed and Nishi leaves.
Appearance: A young Japanese boy with messy black hair and dark brown eyes. He's very well-built for a child, having trained with Kaze. He's not very strong or muscular until he puts on the suit, which shapes surprisingly lean muscles. He's typically a little disheveled by nature and nurture, his clothes not quite the right size and his shoes sometimes MIA. He's shown playing outside in chapter 189, and sometimes makes a mess of himself in the process. His LA PB is Kimino Yuma when used!
Age: 5

Setting: A quick summary of things here!

History (WARNING FOR CHILD ABUSE AND DEATH): 

Introduced late into the comic (chapter 189, about halfway through the story) Takeshi led a very short and unfair life, prior to dying and being revived in the apartment. His biological father died and all he can really remember is that he loved him, but unfortunately he doesn't hold the same feelings for his own mother. After his father's death she took to self-destructive tendencies and tended to either lay around sleeping or going out and leaving Takeshi by himself. And even worse, Takeshi was subjected to her bad taste in men--her latest boyfriend was particularly physically and verbally abusive, and Takeshi often took some of the brunt of the man's anger. He tells Kaze, his adoptive father later on, that her boyfriend used to hit him on the head often.

On a particular day when he was hungry he returned to the apartment and asked if he could eat the pudding cup in the fridge. Unfortunately, it was her boyfriend's, and when he found out the child had taken his food he beat him violently. Left on the floor severely injured while his 'parents' left to a bar, he drew his hero 'Muscle Rider' and called for his help before passing away on the floor with his sketch pad. This is where Gantz revives him and transfers him into the apartment. a place where all participants of Gantz's missions are placed. It's here that he sees Kaze, a large and stoic man, and confuses him for Muscle Rider--Kaze tells him to get lost. But he's nervous and clings to the panda in the room, even when the mission is about to start.

The mission this time: destroy the Oni in the city of Tokyo, where the missions have thus far taken place.

As the transfer starts, Reika and the old man try to convince Takeshi to put on his Gantz suit, a bodysuit which ultimately powers up the wearer's body and endurance, strengthening them and making it harder to be killed by usual means. When he refuses to put on the suit, scared and confused, Kaze tells him to wear it--and what Muscle Rider says goes. Only Takeshi transfers out of the room before they can dress him in it, something that worries Kaze greatly. The boy wanders around the town and is eventually attacked as he's trying to put his suit on--fortunately Kaze intercepts the monsters and kicks some ass. Takeshi yells that he can't be Muscle Rider and that he must be bad because of the carnage left, but Kaze convinces him he most certainly is! 

Now, he's the problem with Gantz: there can be 20+ chapters of fights, some of which hardly center around Takeshi. I'll try to be brief and just go into more detail when the scene focuses on him. He roots on Kaze and eventually they defeat the aliens they'd been sent to kill. When he and the others return to the room, they decide to go separate ways until the next fight they're forced into. Kaze takes Takeshi as his own, and during this time he learns of Takeshi's sad life; he's determined to do good by the child, since he'd had no one to love him in his past life. When everyone's called back they go on the Nurarihyon Alien Mission. Takeshi's transported and has to fight on his own, as the others take longer to transfer; he runs into a frightening monster woman and has to run until she catches him and he has no choice but to throw her down and kill her.

When he runs into a larger monster that emerges from over the bridge, he's aided by Kaze before it can kill him. It's here that Kaze sees Takeshi perform his very throw in order to toss the creature aside. When the beast is finally killed, they all unite and take on the big bad for the mission. Takeshi is injured badly and it sends Kaze into a rage, as he takes on the creature. While he doesn't kill it, he helps the other members succeed in doing so, which transfers them all back alive and well. Takeshi is returned entirely healed and, fortunately, in good spirits despite the scary situation. The team go on one last mission (which is actually addressed as such), but Takeshi isn't particularly involved in it. It's only important in that, afterward, they're all released. They're free. He leaves with Kaze and presumably has a content life for a while as his son. 

Aaaand then Earth is violently attacked by aliens from another planet. Great.

Takeshi is left behind with Nishi at the apartment for his own safety as the others are transferred to the alien planet to save captured humans and stop said aliens. Strangely enough, Takeshi seems to have a fondness for Nishi, who is infamously known for being a major asshole in the series. The apartment is suddenly attacked by—robot spiders. Really. Well, it's attacked, and though they do their best, the whole room gets blown sky-high by their self-destruct mechanisms. Takeshi would have died in all likelihood, as his Gantz suit gave out, but Nishi grabs him and leaps from the window, saving them both. The small Gantz member follows him and tells him he's a good guy, and Nishi doesn't seem to enjoy the company much. With the man inside the black ball dead in the aftermath of the explosion, there's no way to send anyone back and forth. Kaze calls for Gantz to transport Takeshi to him, but there is no reply.

Takeshi is last seen in an apartment he and Nishi sneaks into; Nishi uses the computer and hacks the system, making it transfer him to the alien home and leaving Takeshi by himself there.

Personality: At the start of his appearance in the manga, Takeshi is clearly a nervous child troubled by the life he'd led before he arrived in front of Gantz. No matter what age you are, trauma can follow like a heavy blanket, and because of it he was hesitant to speak to any of the adults in the room, nonetheless listen to them. Despite this, though, he's managed to retain his child-like wonder and imagination, going so far as to magic himself a hero that he daydreams can sweep in and save him from his poor living situation. When he meets Kaze, who looks so similar to his imaginary hero, he literally sparkles at the man.

His fixation on heroic characters follows through the Osaka mission, up until he sees Kaze killing yokai (which often disguised themselves as human). His vision of his hero is shattered and he actually has a tantrum, screaming that Kaze was a fake, that he wasn't really Muscle Rider. He's young and people leave an impression on him very quickly, so when they don't meet the pedestal he's made for them he's severely disappointed and crushed. But on the plus side, it inspires him often to be stronger and brave, just like many of the people he'd look up to (as always, Kaze is his prime inspiration, to the point where he even uses the man's fighting moves).

As time goes by in the manga he starts to form opinions of people relatively quickly, cutting into the heart of the matter. When Nishi, typically cold and calculating, saves Takeshi from a gruesome fate when the apartment explodes, he immediately says that Nishi 'is a good guy', and is sure of this even when Nishi threatens to kill him afterward. While that assessment is probably not the best one (come on, he's five, it doesn't take much for him to think you're 'good'), it's a sign that he's growing, even thinking for himself. He's also shown to be taking after his adoptive father and can hold his own to a degree against the monsters/aliens in the series. He uses Kaze's back throw in the mission after the Osaka mission to fling a womanly monster off him. He very clearly gains a competitive streak during all of this and celebrates when he and Kaze make points. He also expresses extreme disappointment when he doesn't earn any points during the final mission, whining when his show up as 0 pts.

That's the unfortunate thing for him--he's surrounded by death and has to evolve to fit the situation, which means forfeiting some of his childhood sooner. Kaze clearly tries to shield him from a lot of the carnage, but when the world is invaded and attacked later on (and even earlier on when he was in controlled missions), he saw a lot of death. And had to make connections when a lot of the people in their groups would go to a mission and don't come back. This combined with his past life with his mother have made him had to become very self-reliant. He's had, at times, to fight and protect himself when no one else is there. For his age, he is surprisingly bright and good at familiarizing himself with the situation. When the story began he was also less than social, preferring to stay alone and play with his toys; after the events leading up to chapter 310 and up, he starts to become more out-going with more people he's been around. And he's definitely been very watchful, using them as examples to better himself, even at an age where he doesn't realize he's doing it. He actively trains with Kaze without the other even telling him.

He's still polite and kind, of course. When he kills a monster during the Nurarihyon Alien mission he actually apologizes to the body and puts his hands together to pray for it. He has a big heart, and it goes a long way, even with all the chaos that goes on around him. He knows pain, and life has been hard with little love in his life, so being taken to Gantz is a strange, awful blessing and curse. He's developed a deep bond with his father figure Kaze, and he puts his complete faith in him, even to the point where if people badmouth him he loses some of his temper: when Nishi comments that Kaze will die with everyone else, Takeshi throws the boy over his shoulder with a surprise attack. He's got a strong head on his shoulders by the later chapters, in comparison to Chapter 189. For what little time he's had to change from his old life, he's made a lot from it. He wants to be like his father, to strive and be a good hero, to be something 'Muscle Rider' would be proud of. He still relies on Kaze, calling for him when things get rough, but isn't that what a kid's allowed to do?

Because yeah, he's still very much a kid. And very much needs a decent group of people in his life that, unlike back then, will love him. And he's found that very thing in the apartment. Hopefully he gets to keep that, once the missions are over and the truth is unleashed.

Did I mention he's good at being moral? Yeah. When he and Nishi sneak into the apartment, he asks if they should be there, suggesting they're doing wrong. Wrooong!!

Abilities, Weaknesses and Power Limitations:

Abilities: None without his suit, per se, but he is surprisingly self-sufficient for a child his age. I guess it's a strength in its own right. Prior to arriving in the Gantz apartment, he wandered around the neighborhood unsupervised, as his mother didn't bother keeping an eye on him. He's used to being cautious and street smart, even when he wasn't even in school yet; he's seen getting his own food as well, and it can be pretty much certain that he often if not more-than-often dresses himself. Another strength he has is purely mental, in that he's much more resilient than most children his age. When facing monsters, he's clearly afraid, but he fights back.

Though he can only do that with his suit. Which is yet another strength. Wearing this suit (which forms to muscle and enhances them), blades don't cut through him, explosions only throw him off and stun him, and being punched or kicked isn't that effective from a normal person without a suit. They're not INVINCIBLE suits, but if the character he's facing isn't supernatural or lacks a more extraordinary weapon, he'll probably not get damaged, or damaged very heavily.

Here's a little more on the suit:

"These suits provide the wearer with incredible strength, speed, endurance, and the ability to jump very high, as well as land without problems thanks to the shoes which are seen to release a white smoke to cushion one returning from a high jump. The suit also provides the hunter with an almost impenetrable protection to his/her body, even to the head, which is fully exposed. Large caliber bullet rounds to the face do not leave so much as a bruise. It should be noted, however, that the suit only seems to protect from conventional attacks such as bullets and punches as well as normal swords and the Gantz swords, but does not seem to do anything for other slicing attacks like from a laser or certain acids. When in full use, the suits' artificial muscles expand, making the Hunter appear larger.

The suits also allow the wearer to easily lift over fifty times their weight and jump well over thirty feet high. However, the amount of damage it can sustain is limited. Should the suit receive too many powerful impacts without time to recover, the "caps" along the suit will break, releasing the essential substance that powers it, rendering it as useful as ordinary clothes. . . The suit limit of power also varies on the user, the stronger the person the stronger the suit. Also emotional stress can damage the suit."

Takeshi isn't as strong as the other members of his team, obviously, but he's pretty damn strong wearing the suit. He often mimics attack moves as well, as seen with his adoptive father.

Weaknesses: He's tiny.

... Okay, well, that's not all there is to it, no. But because he's not grown, his power is pretty limited (since the suit power is different for him). Without the suit? He's just a little kid. That's unfortunately a weakness all on it's own, and it goes without saying, he can't hold his own against a normal man, let alone a monster or supernatural being. He's too short to reach anything, too! Do you know how frustrating that is?? He's gonna have to wear his Gantz suit so he can get to the cabinets in the kitchen! And while he's not totally trustworthy, he might not put his trust overtime to the right people. Or he'll have warped young impressions of them.

Inventory:
- A sketch pad with markers/crayons.
- his usual attire of a sweater, underwear, pants, socks, slip-on shoes.
- A full body Gantz suit designed for him.

SHARING FEELINGS:

Mostly feelings of contentment, fears of being alone, playfulness, gentleness, a desire to punch bags and train hard and be strong. Sometimes feelings of sleepy disappointment or near-temper tantrums.

MEMORIES TO CHOOSE FROM, MAN (tw/cw: child abuse, child neglect, gore, violence, death)


... Also just assume none of these are safe for work. Especially because they put random pictures of sexy Japanese ladies in there for no reason.

1.) Starting alone, man. 

Takeshi with his mostly neglectful mother. This is just sad shit, okay. Dressing himself, feeding himself, going out to play alone. 

Like I said. Sad shit.

Pages to look at; note that this one is a headcanon earlier memory, but these show an idea of what his life is like:

1, 2

2.) Takeshi's death.

More sad shit. Takeshi eats his mother's boyfriends food from the fridge and gets beaten so badly that, hours after the couple leaves, Takeshi dies from the blunt trauma on his form.

Start here and read to page 15. Warning for graphic child death/abuse.

[Seen by Netherlands.]

3.) Takeshi's first kill.

Takeshi is shown wandering a town all by himself, when a creepy as hell monster attacks him. Just as its about to feast on his little cranium, Takeshi throws the creature so hard that it kills her. He's seen bowing and apologizing to it for killing it.

Start here, read until page 3 of the next chapter.

4.) Takeshi gets shot.

A monster shoots off hundreds of beaded bullets and one hits Takeshi in the arm, causing excessive bleeding as he lays there in pain. His adoptive father Kaze screams and has a meltdown holding him, but inevitably hands him over to Reika and steps up to face the horrible monster, so that they can win and spare Takeshi's life.

Read from here until the end of the next chapter. Also this page for Reika helping Takeshi. Warning for gore and titties. Yeah, titties. This is Gantz. Just to note, Takeshi's vision isn't so good in most of this, and most of the fight is generally not seen by him. Use your discretion with his POV.

5.) Takeshi's happy memory with dad.

Eats ice-cream and spends time with his father Kaze. A happy memory jesus christ.

This is mostly just headcanon based off two pages in the comic. 

[Seen by Heather.]

6.) Catastrophe. 

The sky is red. Giant alien ships appear, and mecha begin to systematically destroy Japan. On floor level, Takeshi is in Kaze's arms being shielded as giant razors cut through the air and half and behead frantic fleeing citizens. There are untold body counts, collapsing wreckage, and is just about as awful as you'd expect.

Lots of this, this, this, this.

And the sky is red as shit.

The person viewing the memories will note Takeshi is surprisingly calm on the outside, despite how scared he is. :|

7.) Throwing Nishi / the apartment fight.

Nishi and Takeshi are left alone, and when Nishi says something bad in regards to Takeshi's father he throws him into the wall. Not longer after, spider robots attack the apartment, and it's blown up. Nishi, however, saves Takeshi by carrying him as he jumps floors above out the window in his super-powered suit, after Takeshi's used up its power. Takeshi follows him and calls him a good person, despite what a dick Nishi is. Eventually, though, Nishi gets himself transferred and Takeshi is left alone in the apartment they broke into. He wanders out into the wartorn land and that's where it ends.

First, this page and this page for Takeshi kicking Nishi's ass. Then read this, the next chapter, and the following chapter until page 13. Then this happens.

[Seen by Netherlands.]

8.) School time with Heather / reading Miffy with Netherlands.

Some good ol' fashioned bonding time with his adoptive space parents. :')

Looks like this and this. But without talks of dying. Yes.




Recieving:

Netherlands and Isolationist Japan which happened in 1852-to-1854.
His first trip on a trading vessel in the Baltic, on one of these suckers, 1300s. Notable not only because boats!!! oceans!!! but because it's the first time he'd ever left his land/people for any significant amount of time/distance.
Battle of the Downs. 1639 MORE BOATS but Spain vs. Netherlands. Ned won, it was kind of a big deal.

 Playing a kid can be a little tough at times, especially one with circumstances like Takeshi's,  so lemme know how I'm doing!