[TheDude]
"I'm infected with you."
Name:
Tezuka Matsushima (Teh-Zoo-Kah Maht-Soo-She-Mah)
Aliases/ Nicknames:
Tezu, The Punk Vizard, Galaxy Boy (Stage Name) and Tezunami (By the ladies -winkwink-)
Themes:
Bloodlust/Battle Ready Mood - The Faceless - An Autopsy, Armana Reign - Far Too Long
Normal Mood/Relaxed - Steve Conte - Diggin', Nujabes - Aruarian Dance
Party time/Onstage Attitude - Girugamesh - Break Down, Bulb - Insomnia
Age:
Physical Age: Appears to be in his mid to late twenties, possibly around 26 or 27 depending.
Real age: Unknown (******** if he remembers!)
Ranks Held:
Former: Squad 3, 3rd seat (Ancient History)
Current: Class A-Vizard
Reiatsu Color: Light Sky Blue
Physical Description:
153lbs, standing in at a minimal 5’10” of pure muscle, Tezuka looks rather scrawny for a guy his age and weight-class. Short black hair that never really saw the touch of a hairbrush, just ruffled to perfection with his hands. Somewhat of a tan, but all natural. Brilliant blue eyes. For some reason his right eye is a little lighter. It is a little duller shade of blue, but the subtly of its color makes it hard to recognize immediately unless you looked deep into his eyes. A small mole can be seen clearly under his left eye. He has his ears gauged, being the only major piercing seen on his body aside from the twin studs (2 piercings placed one in front of the other a 1/4 inch apart) on his tongue.
He is usually seen in his gigai, an older, or younger, version of himself with varying features. Unlike his normal appearance his older self is clean and devoid of all piercings. This form is usually seen in business suits or semi-casual clothing covering the blues, blacks and whites. His favorite outfit to been seen in usually consists of a blue undershirt, white blazer, khaki pants, and black shoes of any make or style. His younger form is the most similar to his original form, having all of his piercings as well as a large tattoo of an active jetpack on his back.
When in his normal form Tezuka's attire is that akin to a captain of the Gotei 13. The hakama over his kimono are worn umanori-style with the legs divided at the inseam like pants. His haori is worn sleeveless over his kimono with a thin, border of light blue-ish material running around the hem, this color added in the lining inside. The haori is opened nearly to the bottom of his abs in a 'V' cut, the kimono cutting in a 'V' as well, but stopping a few inches above the haori's break. The kimono is closed around the waist with the haori being open from there to his ankles. The insignia for 3rd Squad can be seen faintly on the back with only the outlining diamond still bold and visible.
Special Accessories:
Tezuka has a pair of Double 0-gauge, midnight Pyrex glass, custom, flesh tunnels. If you look closely at the gauges you can see what appear to be little white speckles inside that resemble stars in a galaxy. The tongue piercings are flattened stainless-steel studs. Tezuka also has a Victorian-era pendent which he wears at all times in conjunction with a ring of similar style on his right ring finger.
Tezuka holds possession over three gigais, each being the spitting image of himself except with a span of possibly 20 years or more between them. These gigais are used as public figures, presenting grandfather (original Tezu), father (current Tezu/Zanza), and son (future Tezu/Zanza). His father gigai and son gigai are usually switched off with Zanza (his mod-soul) when the time calls for it as they switch regularly. Whenever Tezuka is in one, Zanza is in the other and is usually at home guarding the place for Tezuka. It's complicated to say the least.
Personality:
Tezuka has a very rebellious streak to him, always disobeying or arguing with authoritarian figures that can’t physically put him in his place. He is usually seen as the person that doesn’t care, but he secretly is quite conscious of the things going on around him and the consequences of most of his actions. He enjoys a good laugh, but whenever a person senior to him makes a comment similar to his he always says it ruins his status. He has an odd habit of lightly scratching the tip of his nose when he’s annoyed, accompanied with a slight smirk and sigh. When he becomes excited, especially onstage, he jumps around and pumps his fists into the air, or beats his chest with his fists in rhythm with the song’s tempo that is currently playing.
During battles though, he becomes quite enamored with trying to kill his opponent in ways as flashy as possible, usually seen laughing and taunting even if he is on the defensive and losing ground. His majority style is coupled around psychologically rattling his opponents, making them doubt themselves at every turn possible. Very flexible in most combat situations, both physically and psychologically, but very maniacal at times.
Biography/History:
Tezuka was born into a world that was torn by political reform and war as tradition and the new age clashed head on in an attempted to hold sway over the control of the country. This was about 10 years after the first outsiders were allowed to come to their shores and tensions both politically and racially were very open and vocal.
Tezuka was the youngest child of a family of 5 and born to a mother that was not of the same culture as his father. Indeed his father had fallen for a member outside of their race and conceived several children with her. Growing he was teased and bullied, namely being made fun of and called "Half-blood" or "Dirty-blood" by the other children who had heard from their parents about his mother's other worldly lineage. It was hard, but he stuck through it because his father always trusted he would be destined for greatness and paid extra money for him to be able to attend the same class as the other children so he could grow up to be a successful man.
The years rolled by, but racial bigotry and strife between the government and the warring factions trying to keep the old world in power started to become a countrywide dilemma as attacks against people of impure heritage were seen as targets and murdered on a weekly basis, even within the capitol city. Tezuka's father and mother were scared for their children's sake and quickly set about having them scattered throughput the mountainous regions in the north with relatives who still loved them dearly.
The transaction was to be during the day, as the murders occurred strictly at night when large numbers of people were not roaming the streets and it was easy to pick off the "Dirty-bloods". Tezuka found himself staring down a packed marketplace as he weeded his way through to get to a horse salesman that was gracious enough to sell him a steed so he could make his escape into the mountains. It was extremely hard to navigate within the noisy, jam-packed area, but slowly he made his way to the man's stall. Their transaction of goods was short and to the point, the two about to reach a settlement on the price of a particularly wonderful beast when Tezuka felt the cold sting of a blade pierce his body.
Eyes wandered to and fro as he tried to figure out what the hell was going on when a small smirk appeared on the horse salesman's face, the man still holding onto his hand as the blade was extracted and withdrawn out f sight. His lips moved, "It's only business, boy."
Tezuka found himself unable to grip the reality of being dead, rebelling against several shinigami that came to send him safely into the afterlife. Eventually, this act became old and he submitted to their will, but not for long. After being freed of his soul chain, Tezuka fled and hid out in the outskirts of the Rukongai District, fending for himself by way of fighting. It was all he had and knew.
Eventually members of the Soul Society found him and persuaded him to come to the Academy, sensing the potential in his spiritual abilities after accidentally running into him and having to fend him off when they were making their rounds in that district of Rukongai. He was always apprehensive of the idea, but they promised him he would become even more powerful than he was now, and that alone was enough to compel him to join.
It was odd; conforming into a group again after so much turmoil raked his life a giant blur. Things went by as they always did though. He couldn’t get along with many of the instructors, often not performing the lessons taught or skipping to go do his own thing. He was a gifted student nonetheless, especially with his sparring teachers, getting high marks with them every time and building a decent reputation as a reputable student among their classes even though he was usually never to be seen in other classes. His education in the ways of becoming a shinigami were not hindered though as he was always seen practicing late into the night the lessons that were to be taught the next day for the classes he skipped out on. Somehow he managed to even graduate a whole year earlier than people thought he would, gaining access to a seated position in squad 3.
He was rather low on the totem pole at first, holding the 10th seat for some time, but things slowly began to take a turn for the better as he was included in earthbound missions more frequently. He seemed to have a great knack for being placed behind enemy lines for days on end with only a few squad members to back him up as they lay in wait for hollows, eventually taking on a permanent seat on the roster for further incursions in the world of the living. As time went on he continued to be promoted, reaching the rank of 3rd seat near the end of his time as a shinigami. He and his captain didn’t really see eye to eye on certain matters and codes of conduct, this being the true reason for his sustained position as 3rd seat instead of becoming the squad’s Vice Captain after the previous was promoted to another squad and later slain. He had the ability, personality, and power to become the new Vice Captain, but it was never to be. The captain always held him at arm’s length.
Around this time he came into contact with a certain Yomiko Shihouin who had come to earth for reasons unknown to Tezuka. He figured she was there for observational purposes, but he was the acting ranked member in charge of worldly affairs in that district, so he felt like he was being audited. Somehow, they found common ground, sort of a silent bound at first, but eventually it became more outspoken in its intent; both of them seeking to become stronger by any means. He always seemed to vent his frustrations to her, and although she usually didn’t seem to care, she understood his distress in the matter, being held back by a system of bureaucracy, not being able to pursue the things he wanted most. Sure the daily fighting seemed to amuse him somewhat, but he wanted so much more. He felt so confined by his duties that it was suffocating. He had to find a way to liberate himself of this thirst for more.
And then one day Yomiko told him of this legend that seemed to fascinate him to no end, a man tormented by his inner hollow who eventually rose up and tried to take over the man’s body. Granted this was what was taught at the academy, that every shinigami had an inner hollow that was waiting to devour their souls, but he had never heard or read this story in any textbook before. A man who triumphed over his inner hollow and became so much more than just a shinigami. A whole new entity was born, and with it a power that was unfathomable to his mind. Tezuka hounded her for months about this legend, asking if it were true or not, but she always brushed off his advances as if he were a simple house pest.
Eventually his nagging paid off, but she didn’t tell him anything new. Instead she directed him to her husband, Kazi, a shinigami working in conjunction with Squad 12’s inner most R&D team at the time. He humored Tezuka by listening to his story, but laughed at his request to find any more information on the subject. “Why would you need to know any more than you already do? The man it speaks of was me.” Tezuka was taken aback by this sudden revelation, but found it more understandable as Kazi explained the process to him. “There will be some, experiments I need to run on you for this to work. Pain will be a very prevalent factor as this transformation occurs.” But nothing could dissuade Tezu at this point. He wanted the power of his inner hollow, the power of the Vizard.
It was long and brutal, and at times Tezuka felt as if he couldn’t go on any longer. But somehow he found the will power to fight on through it all, eventually gaining what he had desired for so long. It took almost a whole month of recovery before he could return to active duty, but he felt it was worth the wait. All he wanted to do was test his powers out on something, big.
And finally the day came when he was released from Squad 4’s infirmary, refreshed and replenished. He felt like a whole new person, just like the legend. A new entity. A Vizard. At the time things were heating up with increased attacks in the human realm. Bigger enemies and in greater numbers were performing hit-and-run attacks against the 2nd squad’s advanced barracks there, and he immediately requested to join the task force that was in charge of hunting down the hollows responsible for these attacks.
The day drew near, an attack imminent. Tezuka could feel it in his bones. There hadn’t been any hollow activity in almost a week and that had even Central 46 on their toes now, fearing an attack on the Seireitei itself. Tezuka could only imagine the cabinet members squirming in their seats, but it still made him laugh like a kid at the thought. They were such pansies. Hiding behind their positions as the Seireitei’s legislative/ dual-held executive branch. As if that meant anything to hollows. What a bunch of morons. They could all die today and the world would keep on spinning. Or, at least, that’s what Tezuka thought.
The attack eventually surfaced, being totally underestimated by the Seireitei in its bulk and strength. The members Tezuka had taken with him were all, but wiped out, leaving a few scattered elements of resistance here and there in their jurisdiction with no sign of reinforcements in the near future. He tried desperately to gather the remainder of his forces together, but they were quickly overrun at every turn by the sheer mass of hollows. There were broken reports that several captains were coming earth side to assist in the eradication of the threat, but Tezuka knew it wouldn’t be in time for them to be rescued. Lambs left to die in the slaughterhouse. Yeah, that sounded about right.
In a last ditched effort to save what was left of his units, he opened a gate back to the Seireitei, commanding that they flee while defended their retreat. Many of them argued otherwise, but he would have none of that, not now, or ever. The last thing most of those few survivors would remember of their 3rd seat was a bloody mess slicing at everything that came near their portal to escape.
As it closed, Tezuka smiled. Now he could finally test out his Vizard powers he had gained from Kazi’s experimentation of his inner hollow, his hand coming to pull down on an unseen force above his head, revealing the mask of what was to be his hollow. He suddenly like he could conquer the world, his blows and attacks ripping through the mass of hollows like nobody’s business. And suddenly a great static energy began to form on the northern and southern horns of his masks, recoiling something awful as a cero blast exited from his mouth. Now things were getting interesting.
All was going well, until the mask suddenly disappeared, leaving him filled with the immediate onset of fatigue and double-vision from moving at such high speeds and with such veracity for such a long time. His body felt like it weighed a ton, dragging him to the earth as hollows swarmed around him. His time was up. He knew it. All in a matter of seconds he was going to be ripped limb from limb by their hungry teeth. It sickened him. All he wanted to do was kill more of them before he went out, but there was no point in arguing now. He couldn’t do anything to stop them.
He hit the ground hard, coughing up blood as fresh wounds appeared on his face and ligaments from the fall. Blood was slowly pouring out of him at this point. He could feel the end. Especially when a rather large hollow appeared and proceeded to stomp him into the ground. It hurt. A LOT. He quietly laughed to himself now before saying goodbye to the world one last time.
But the finally blow never came. In fact it sounded as if the hollows were retreating or were being killed off entirely. Reinforcements had arrived! He found himself weeping joyfully as he attempted to stand up, but failed. His body was a wreck of broken bones and lacerations. He wasn’t going anywhere. So he did the next best thing and tried to twist his head as far up to the side as he could.
“You twist yourself any further and you’re gonna break your on damn neck, ya’ moron.” A familiar voice. But whose? Whose voice called out to him? He squinted his eyes as a blurred figure drew near and squatted in front of him, hands on their knees with their head tilted. Eventually she came into view, and Tezuka found himself staring at the annoyed face of Yomiko. “I see you fail at using the Vizard powers Kazi gave you.” He laughed at her words, coughing up more blood, hearing her sigh as hands came forward to lift him up and carry him away. “You’re such a pain in my a**. I swear sometimes, I just don’t know what to think of this.” And at this moment he seemed to black out.
Yomiko had saved his life that night and he could never live that down now the way she always bragged about it whenever he saw her. She had apparently healed his wounds and left him to shack up in some old house that belonged to someone neither of them knew, but no longer wanted the place by the state it was in. Yomiko had told him that the Seireitei had proclaimed him KIA, but that suited him at this point. He was a little too ashamed to return their now considering how he had his a** handed to him yet again. He would stay here for now. And Yomiko was even kind enough to sneak him a gigai from the Seireitei’s newer stock, giving him the freedom to roam about after his injuries healed up.
The house wasn’t actually that far away from a growing city, maybe a 30 minute drive if traffic was acting up, but nothing too bad. He eventually set about fixing up and even expanding the size of the house, getting a job at a recording studio as a sound technician to help stimulate his ever growing lifestyle and habits. The way of life on earth was slowly beginning to rub off on him and he liked it. Currently he is the lead singer for a local band called “The Space Cadets”.
Skills/Powers:
Enhanced Constitution: Tezuka has an extremely high constitution. This is a result of spending ages within the Patrol Squad and Earthbound Squad of Squad 3. He can take multiple deep tissue wounds without even blinking an eye and can even stay on the offensive and moving with multiple fractures. This is a skill that comes with a major fault as he goes into a state of numbness that can be life-threatening if sustained for too long with heavy injury.
Immense Spiritual Pressure:
He may not look it, but Tezuka has an abundant amount of reiatsu. He doesn't particularly show it off, but it does seem to just suddenly erupt greatly when he is pissed off or extremely jubilant in a fight. When this occurs reiatsu seems to drip off his skin like sweat and float upwards, looking like water drops floating in zero gravity.
Jian Mastery:
Considered the “Gentleman of Weapons”, it is one of the four great weapons of Chinese folklore. Being a straight-short sword it is quite odd to handle for the inexperienced wielder. Tezuka seems to have a knack for bringing out the oddities and turning them into a beautiful dance of chaotic malice and tenacity.
Zanjustu:
Tezuka’s style stems from a mixture of Xingyiquan and Chen style- Tai Chi Chuan, holding the fluid motions of both forms as well as the explosive nature behind Xingyiquan to make him a rather deadly opponent when coupled with his shikai.
Hakudou:
His style of Hakudou is purely lower body based, complimenting his use of bladed weapons. An odd combination of Capoeira and Savate, he is usually seen moving about in an oddly timed dance as he fights.
Hohō Master:
Tezuka didn't encounter the ability to train with shunpo until later in his career as a shinigami, thus not being very adept at the ability. However, he prefers and embraces his hollow abilities, being a master at the technique of sonido. He can traverse large areas in just a few steps and uses it constantly in battle as a confusion and deterrent tactic to upset and put his opponent off-balance. Most of his fighting style is made with sonido, or shunpo, in mind.
Kido: Isn't a real big fan of using them, preferring his hollow powers over his shinigami powers.
Other:
“Metroid Scream” - Can perform a kind of sound-based shockwave emitted from the mouth that can stop most opponents in their tracks with a “Wall of Sound”. Similar sounding to a hardcore scream, except elongated. The scream can only be heard when it first starts up, becoming a frequency human ears cannot register, but can still feel like a tick in their heads.
"I'm infected with you."
Name:
Tezuka Matsushima (Teh-Zoo-Kah Maht-Soo-She-Mah)
Aliases/ Nicknames:
Tezu, The Punk Vizard, Galaxy Boy (Stage Name) and Tezunami (By the ladies -winkwink-)
Themes:
Bloodlust/Battle Ready Mood - The Faceless - An Autopsy, Armana Reign - Far Too Long
Normal Mood/Relaxed - Steve Conte - Diggin', Nujabes - Aruarian Dance
Party time/Onstage Attitude - Girugamesh - Break Down, Bulb - Insomnia
Age:
Physical Age: Appears to be in his mid to late twenties, possibly around 26 or 27 depending.
Real age: Unknown (******** if he remembers!)
Ranks Held:
Former: Squad 3, 3rd seat (Ancient History)
Current: Class A-Vizard
Reiatsu Color: Light Sky Blue
Physical Description:
153lbs, standing in at a minimal 5’10” of pure muscle, Tezuka looks rather scrawny for a guy his age and weight-class. Short black hair that never really saw the touch of a hairbrush, just ruffled to perfection with his hands. Somewhat of a tan, but all natural. Brilliant blue eyes. For some reason his right eye is a little lighter. It is a little duller shade of blue, but the subtly of its color makes it hard to recognize immediately unless you looked deep into his eyes. A small mole can be seen clearly under his left eye. He has his ears gauged, being the only major piercing seen on his body aside from the twin studs (2 piercings placed one in front of the other a 1/4 inch apart) on his tongue.
He is usually seen in his gigai, an older, or younger, version of himself with varying features. Unlike his normal appearance his older self is clean and devoid of all piercings. This form is usually seen in business suits or semi-casual clothing covering the blues, blacks and whites. His favorite outfit to been seen in usually consists of a blue undershirt, white blazer, khaki pants, and black shoes of any make or style. His younger form is the most similar to his original form, having all of his piercings as well as a large tattoo of an active jetpack on his back.
When in his normal form Tezuka's attire is that akin to a captain of the Gotei 13. The hakama over his kimono are worn umanori-style with the legs divided at the inseam like pants. His haori is worn sleeveless over his kimono with a thin, border of light blue-ish material running around the hem, this color added in the lining inside. The haori is opened nearly to the bottom of his abs in a 'V' cut, the kimono cutting in a 'V' as well, but stopping a few inches above the haori's break. The kimono is closed around the waist with the haori being open from there to his ankles. The insignia for 3rd Squad can be seen faintly on the back with only the outlining diamond still bold and visible.
Special Accessories:
Tezuka has a pair of Double 0-gauge, midnight Pyrex glass, custom, flesh tunnels. If you look closely at the gauges you can see what appear to be little white speckles inside that resemble stars in a galaxy. The tongue piercings are flattened stainless-steel studs. Tezuka also has a Victorian-era pendent which he wears at all times in conjunction with a ring of similar style on his right ring finger.
Tezuka holds possession over three gigais, each being the spitting image of himself except with a span of possibly 20 years or more between them. These gigais are used as public figures, presenting grandfather (original Tezu), father (current Tezu/Zanza), and son (future Tezu/Zanza). His father gigai and son gigai are usually switched off with Zanza (his mod-soul) when the time calls for it as they switch regularly. Whenever Tezuka is in one, Zanza is in the other and is usually at home guarding the place for Tezuka. It's complicated to say the least.
Personality:
Tezuka has a very rebellious streak to him, always disobeying or arguing with authoritarian figures that can’t physically put him in his place. He is usually seen as the person that doesn’t care, but he secretly is quite conscious of the things going on around him and the consequences of most of his actions. He enjoys a good laugh, but whenever a person senior to him makes a comment similar to his he always says it ruins his status. He has an odd habit of lightly scratching the tip of his nose when he’s annoyed, accompanied with a slight smirk and sigh. When he becomes excited, especially onstage, he jumps around and pumps his fists into the air, or beats his chest with his fists in rhythm with the song’s tempo that is currently playing.
During battles though, he becomes quite enamored with trying to kill his opponent in ways as flashy as possible, usually seen laughing and taunting even if he is on the defensive and losing ground. His majority style is coupled around psychologically rattling his opponents, making them doubt themselves at every turn possible. Very flexible in most combat situations, both physically and psychologically, but very maniacal at times.
Biography/History:
Tezuka was born into a world that was torn by political reform and war as tradition and the new age clashed head on in an attempted to hold sway over the control of the country. This was about 10 years after the first outsiders were allowed to come to their shores and tensions both politically and racially were very open and vocal.
Tezuka was the youngest child of a family of 5 and born to a mother that was not of the same culture as his father. Indeed his father had fallen for a member outside of their race and conceived several children with her. Growing he was teased and bullied, namely being made fun of and called "Half-blood" or "Dirty-blood" by the other children who had heard from their parents about his mother's other worldly lineage. It was hard, but he stuck through it because his father always trusted he would be destined for greatness and paid extra money for him to be able to attend the same class as the other children so he could grow up to be a successful man.
The years rolled by, but racial bigotry and strife between the government and the warring factions trying to keep the old world in power started to become a countrywide dilemma as attacks against people of impure heritage were seen as targets and murdered on a weekly basis, even within the capitol city. Tezuka's father and mother were scared for their children's sake and quickly set about having them scattered throughput the mountainous regions in the north with relatives who still loved them dearly.
The transaction was to be during the day, as the murders occurred strictly at night when large numbers of people were not roaming the streets and it was easy to pick off the "Dirty-bloods". Tezuka found himself staring down a packed marketplace as he weeded his way through to get to a horse salesman that was gracious enough to sell him a steed so he could make his escape into the mountains. It was extremely hard to navigate within the noisy, jam-packed area, but slowly he made his way to the man's stall. Their transaction of goods was short and to the point, the two about to reach a settlement on the price of a particularly wonderful beast when Tezuka felt the cold sting of a blade pierce his body.
Eyes wandered to and fro as he tried to figure out what the hell was going on when a small smirk appeared on the horse salesman's face, the man still holding onto his hand as the blade was extracted and withdrawn out f sight. His lips moved, "It's only business, boy."
Tezuka found himself unable to grip the reality of being dead, rebelling against several shinigami that came to send him safely into the afterlife. Eventually, this act became old and he submitted to their will, but not for long. After being freed of his soul chain, Tezuka fled and hid out in the outskirts of the Rukongai District, fending for himself by way of fighting. It was all he had and knew.
Eventually members of the Soul Society found him and persuaded him to come to the Academy, sensing the potential in his spiritual abilities after accidentally running into him and having to fend him off when they were making their rounds in that district of Rukongai. He was always apprehensive of the idea, but they promised him he would become even more powerful than he was now, and that alone was enough to compel him to join.
It was odd; conforming into a group again after so much turmoil raked his life a giant blur. Things went by as they always did though. He couldn’t get along with many of the instructors, often not performing the lessons taught or skipping to go do his own thing. He was a gifted student nonetheless, especially with his sparring teachers, getting high marks with them every time and building a decent reputation as a reputable student among their classes even though he was usually never to be seen in other classes. His education in the ways of becoming a shinigami were not hindered though as he was always seen practicing late into the night the lessons that were to be taught the next day for the classes he skipped out on. Somehow he managed to even graduate a whole year earlier than people thought he would, gaining access to a seated position in squad 3.
He was rather low on the totem pole at first, holding the 10th seat for some time, but things slowly began to take a turn for the better as he was included in earthbound missions more frequently. He seemed to have a great knack for being placed behind enemy lines for days on end with only a few squad members to back him up as they lay in wait for hollows, eventually taking on a permanent seat on the roster for further incursions in the world of the living. As time went on he continued to be promoted, reaching the rank of 3rd seat near the end of his time as a shinigami. He and his captain didn’t really see eye to eye on certain matters and codes of conduct, this being the true reason for his sustained position as 3rd seat instead of becoming the squad’s Vice Captain after the previous was promoted to another squad and later slain. He had the ability, personality, and power to become the new Vice Captain, but it was never to be. The captain always held him at arm’s length.
Around this time he came into contact with a certain Yomiko Shihouin who had come to earth for reasons unknown to Tezuka. He figured she was there for observational purposes, but he was the acting ranked member in charge of worldly affairs in that district, so he felt like he was being audited. Somehow, they found common ground, sort of a silent bound at first, but eventually it became more outspoken in its intent; both of them seeking to become stronger by any means. He always seemed to vent his frustrations to her, and although she usually didn’t seem to care, she understood his distress in the matter, being held back by a system of bureaucracy, not being able to pursue the things he wanted most. Sure the daily fighting seemed to amuse him somewhat, but he wanted so much more. He felt so confined by his duties that it was suffocating. He had to find a way to liberate himself of this thirst for more.
And then one day Yomiko told him of this legend that seemed to fascinate him to no end, a man tormented by his inner hollow who eventually rose up and tried to take over the man’s body. Granted this was what was taught at the academy, that every shinigami had an inner hollow that was waiting to devour their souls, but he had never heard or read this story in any textbook before. A man who triumphed over his inner hollow and became so much more than just a shinigami. A whole new entity was born, and with it a power that was unfathomable to his mind. Tezuka hounded her for months about this legend, asking if it were true or not, but she always brushed off his advances as if he were a simple house pest.
Eventually his nagging paid off, but she didn’t tell him anything new. Instead she directed him to her husband, Kazi, a shinigami working in conjunction with Squad 12’s inner most R&D team at the time. He humored Tezuka by listening to his story, but laughed at his request to find any more information on the subject. “Why would you need to know any more than you already do? The man it speaks of was me.” Tezuka was taken aback by this sudden revelation, but found it more understandable as Kazi explained the process to him. “There will be some, experiments I need to run on you for this to work. Pain will be a very prevalent factor as this transformation occurs.” But nothing could dissuade Tezu at this point. He wanted the power of his inner hollow, the power of the Vizard.
It was long and brutal, and at times Tezuka felt as if he couldn’t go on any longer. But somehow he found the will power to fight on through it all, eventually gaining what he had desired for so long. It took almost a whole month of recovery before he could return to active duty, but he felt it was worth the wait. All he wanted to do was test his powers out on something, big.
And finally the day came when he was released from Squad 4’s infirmary, refreshed and replenished. He felt like a whole new person, just like the legend. A new entity. A Vizard. At the time things were heating up with increased attacks in the human realm. Bigger enemies and in greater numbers were performing hit-and-run attacks against the 2nd squad’s advanced barracks there, and he immediately requested to join the task force that was in charge of hunting down the hollows responsible for these attacks.
The day drew near, an attack imminent. Tezuka could feel it in his bones. There hadn’t been any hollow activity in almost a week and that had even Central 46 on their toes now, fearing an attack on the Seireitei itself. Tezuka could only imagine the cabinet members squirming in their seats, but it still made him laugh like a kid at the thought. They were such pansies. Hiding behind their positions as the Seireitei’s legislative/ dual-held executive branch. As if that meant anything to hollows. What a bunch of morons. They could all die today and the world would keep on spinning. Or, at least, that’s what Tezuka thought.
The attack eventually surfaced, being totally underestimated by the Seireitei in its bulk and strength. The members Tezuka had taken with him were all, but wiped out, leaving a few scattered elements of resistance here and there in their jurisdiction with no sign of reinforcements in the near future. He tried desperately to gather the remainder of his forces together, but they were quickly overrun at every turn by the sheer mass of hollows. There were broken reports that several captains were coming earth side to assist in the eradication of the threat, but Tezuka knew it wouldn’t be in time for them to be rescued. Lambs left to die in the slaughterhouse. Yeah, that sounded about right.
In a last ditched effort to save what was left of his units, he opened a gate back to the Seireitei, commanding that they flee while defended their retreat. Many of them argued otherwise, but he would have none of that, not now, or ever. The last thing most of those few survivors would remember of their 3rd seat was a bloody mess slicing at everything that came near their portal to escape.
As it closed, Tezuka smiled. Now he could finally test out his Vizard powers he had gained from Kazi’s experimentation of his inner hollow, his hand coming to pull down on an unseen force above his head, revealing the mask of what was to be his hollow. He suddenly like he could conquer the world, his blows and attacks ripping through the mass of hollows like nobody’s business. And suddenly a great static energy began to form on the northern and southern horns of his masks, recoiling something awful as a cero blast exited from his mouth. Now things were getting interesting.
All was going well, until the mask suddenly disappeared, leaving him filled with the immediate onset of fatigue and double-vision from moving at such high speeds and with such veracity for such a long time. His body felt like it weighed a ton, dragging him to the earth as hollows swarmed around him. His time was up. He knew it. All in a matter of seconds he was going to be ripped limb from limb by their hungry teeth. It sickened him. All he wanted to do was kill more of them before he went out, but there was no point in arguing now. He couldn’t do anything to stop them.
He hit the ground hard, coughing up blood as fresh wounds appeared on his face and ligaments from the fall. Blood was slowly pouring out of him at this point. He could feel the end. Especially when a rather large hollow appeared and proceeded to stomp him into the ground. It hurt. A LOT. He quietly laughed to himself now before saying goodbye to the world one last time.
But the finally blow never came. In fact it sounded as if the hollows were retreating or were being killed off entirely. Reinforcements had arrived! He found himself weeping joyfully as he attempted to stand up, but failed. His body was a wreck of broken bones and lacerations. He wasn’t going anywhere. So he did the next best thing and tried to twist his head as far up to the side as he could.
“You twist yourself any further and you’re gonna break your on damn neck, ya’ moron.” A familiar voice. But whose? Whose voice called out to him? He squinted his eyes as a blurred figure drew near and squatted in front of him, hands on their knees with their head tilted. Eventually she came into view, and Tezuka found himself staring at the annoyed face of Yomiko. “I see you fail at using the Vizard powers Kazi gave you.” He laughed at her words, coughing up more blood, hearing her sigh as hands came forward to lift him up and carry him away. “You’re such a pain in my a**. I swear sometimes, I just don’t know what to think of this.” And at this moment he seemed to black out.
Yomiko had saved his life that night and he could never live that down now the way she always bragged about it whenever he saw her. She had apparently healed his wounds and left him to shack up in some old house that belonged to someone neither of them knew, but no longer wanted the place by the state it was in. Yomiko had told him that the Seireitei had proclaimed him KIA, but that suited him at this point. He was a little too ashamed to return their now considering how he had his a** handed to him yet again. He would stay here for now. And Yomiko was even kind enough to sneak him a gigai from the Seireitei’s newer stock, giving him the freedom to roam about after his injuries healed up.
The house wasn’t actually that far away from a growing city, maybe a 30 minute drive if traffic was acting up, but nothing too bad. He eventually set about fixing up and even expanding the size of the house, getting a job at a recording studio as a sound technician to help stimulate his ever growing lifestyle and habits. The way of life on earth was slowly beginning to rub off on him and he liked it. Currently he is the lead singer for a local band called “The Space Cadets”.
Skills/Powers:
Enhanced Constitution: Tezuka has an extremely high constitution. This is a result of spending ages within the Patrol Squad and Earthbound Squad of Squad 3. He can take multiple deep tissue wounds without even blinking an eye and can even stay on the offensive and moving with multiple fractures. This is a skill that comes with a major fault as he goes into a state of numbness that can be life-threatening if sustained for too long with heavy injury.
Immense Spiritual Pressure:
He may not look it, but Tezuka has an abundant amount of reiatsu. He doesn't particularly show it off, but it does seem to just suddenly erupt greatly when he is pissed off or extremely jubilant in a fight. When this occurs reiatsu seems to drip off his skin like sweat and float upwards, looking like water drops floating in zero gravity.
Jian Mastery:
Considered the “Gentleman of Weapons”, it is one of the four great weapons of Chinese folklore. Being a straight-short sword it is quite odd to handle for the inexperienced wielder. Tezuka seems to have a knack for bringing out the oddities and turning them into a beautiful dance of chaotic malice and tenacity.
Zanjustu:
Tezuka’s style stems from a mixture of Xingyiquan and Chen style- Tai Chi Chuan, holding the fluid motions of both forms as well as the explosive nature behind Xingyiquan to make him a rather deadly opponent when coupled with his shikai.
Hakudou:
His style of Hakudou is purely lower body based, complimenting his use of bladed weapons. An odd combination of Capoeira and Savate, he is usually seen moving about in an oddly timed dance as he fights.
Hohō Master:
Tezuka didn't encounter the ability to train with shunpo until later in his career as a shinigami, thus not being very adept at the ability. However, he prefers and embraces his hollow abilities, being a master at the technique of sonido. He can traverse large areas in just a few steps and uses it constantly in battle as a confusion and deterrent tactic to upset and put his opponent off-balance. Most of his fighting style is made with sonido, or shunpo, in mind.
Kido: Isn't a real big fan of using them, preferring his hollow powers over his shinigami powers.
Other:
“Metroid Scream” - Can perform a kind of sound-based shockwave emitted from the mouth that can stop most opponents in their tracks with a “Wall of Sound”. Similar sounding to a hardcore scream, except elongated. The scream can only be heard when it first starts up, becoming a frequency human ears cannot register, but can still feel like a tick in their heads.
