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Applicant Info

◎ Name: Valentino
◎ Journal: borja
◎ Contact: valtiel
◎ Current Character(s): N/A

Character Info

◎ Character's Name: Iwatooshi
◎ Character's Canon: Touken Ranbu
◎ Character's Age: 1000+ years old, at the time of the game's events.
◎ Character's PB: Himself!
◎ Canon Point: after map 5-4, Atsukashiyama (including the recollection between Iwatooshi and Imanotsurugi)

◎ Background/History:

brief write-up of Iwatooshi and his original master, More on Benkei
Touken Ranbu wikia, Iwatooshi @ the Tourabu wikia

Basically, you play the game in the role of a Saniwa sage, using famous swords from Japanese history to battle monsters that are trying to destroy said history. The swords are personified as spirits who all happen to be pretty boys. Iwatooshi is the only naginata at this time, and he originally served as the warrior monk Benkei's weapon.

◎ Is the character a hacker and/or do they have a sixth-sense? Not a hacker, but like other swords from Touken Ranbu, he is a tsukumogami, a sentient spirit of an item. As such, he can detect other spirits, such as other swords, whether they be "good," (i.e., the other swords available in Tourabu), or "bad" (the monster swords that you fight in Tourabu).

◎ Personality:

"It's impossible for an ordinary human to wield me! Master, I wonder if you'll amuse me!?"

Iwatooshi is... unique, to say the least. Not only is he the only naginata currently in game, he also has quite a striking appearance and power. He is a sight to be seen, both from the Saniwa's point of view, and the enemies'; upon crafting or finding Iwatooshi, many Saniwa are taken aback, due to his size and rarity, and the potential he has once he has been trained to his maximum. On the opposite side, Iwatooshi himself is highly entertained when he meets the Saniwa for the first time, laughing loudly and introducing himself by saying, "Ooh, I didn't notice you since you're too small." Right off the bat, we see that Iwatooshi is extremely confident and radiates strength, to a frightening degree- something that he delights in.

Enemies are of no significance to Iwatooshi, he sees a battle as a fun game, something to triumph in and collect trophies from.

"Even though I'm a monk, I reek of blood? Hahaha! Sorry sorry. It must be my former master's influence."

Iwatooshi's original master, Musashibou Benkei was a warrior monk who is said to have had an ogre-like appearance, due to his huge size and scarring on his body, i.e., a smallpox infection that caused him to "darken," and thus become "terrifying." As such, Benkei is said to have a violent nature since he was young, and after becoming a yamabushi and positioning himself at Gojō Bridge in Kyoto, his personal mission was to collect as many katanas from men that tried to cross the bridge- the final total before Benkei was bested was 999 katanas.

Iwatooshi mimics the tale of his master very closely- represented in the way he is also clad as a monk, as well as having a brutal and bloodthirsty style of fighting. Iwatooshi references the 999 kills he and Benkei racked up together, asking, "I wonder if you'll amuse me?!" after explaining who he is and what he has completed. This shows that Iwatooshi is not easily worn out, and is always hungry for a fight. In many of his in-game lines, Iwatooshi is often asking or demanding to be amused by his Saniwa, suggesting that he seeks stimulation, almost to the extent of "looking for trouble."

When he is stationed as a member of the team to be sent to the front lines, he remarks, "This will be enjoyable," showing how eager he is to fight, even as a follower. When stationing him as the captain, he enthusiastically agrees and promises to personally hunt the enemies one after another. He lives for the fight, to rack up kills and victories; after all, he and his first master were a man and a sword on a mission, to best as many men in battle as possible.

"Hahahaha! Am I terrifying?!"

In addition to being a frightening sight just to see in passing, Iwatooshi is even more vicious in combat. Many of his lines of dialogue lines include statements referencing the ever-coming "hunt." He lives for the kill and the fight, and goes far enough to taunt the enemies he encounters ("Come! Entertain me!"). He is reckless enough to not even notice pain when he endures it ("Feels like a mosquito bite.") and laughing off heavy injuries, to the point of asking for more ("Hahaha! That's more like it! Let me have more fun!").

While in battle, Iwatooshi is merciless. His range is wide and his attacks hit hard, making enemies nothing more to him than opponents in a fun game, and trophies to collect. In gameplay, Iwatooshi is able to strike all six of his opponents in one fell swoop, easily killing a few, if not all of them on the first hit. Injury doesn't bother him greatly; it only seems to either annoy or spurn him on further. Even when suffering severe damage and entering his Awakened state, he shouts, "Playtime's over!" as if he will be taking the fight more seriously, though all of his critical hits while in said state still come with taunts of "Am I terrifying?!" This, along with the wicked grin he sports while Awakened, shows just how much he enjoys the brutality of a battle, even when he is the one suffering.

Though not as damaging as the oodachi swords, Iwatooshi still packs a strong punch, so to speak. His range and ability to hit the whole enemy team in one strike makes him a very valuable asset to the Saniwa's team, effectively speeding up battles to save time and progress through the game much faster, whether it be battles, leveling other swords, or hunting for rare swords on the front lines.

"Good, good, don't be scared!"

On the contrary to how he is in battle, Iwatooshi is a fiercely loyal and very obediant sword, reflecting the personality of his former master. After Benkei had collected 999 katanas, he was bested in his 1000th fight by a young samurai named Minamoto no Yoshitsune, wielder of the tantou sword Imanotsurugi (another sword available to collect in Touken Ranbu). Benkei then pledged his life to Yoshitsune. Ultimately, Yoshitsune was betrayed by his elder brother, which resulted in the Battle of Koromo River. During this battle, Benkei stationed himself on the main bridge outside of the Koromogawa castle, to protect Yoshitsune as he committed seppuku inside. Benkei is said to have fought off more than 300 soldiers, keeping the enemies at a very far range, as they were too afraid to approach him to cross the bridge. Instead, arrows were fired at Benkei, ultimately causing his death, however, long after he should have been dead, Benkei still remained standing, riddled with arrows and wounds. Once the soldiers did risk crossing the bridge, they saw that Benkei had died standing straight up, concluding his tale with what is called the "Standing Death of Benkei."

Iwatooshi was present for this entire timeline, he has picked up the honorable loyalty that Benkei had. Upon first meeting the Saniwa, Iwatooshi instantly calls them "Master," and offers his aid in any and all fights. It shows that Iwatooshi would defend the life of his master until his death, and he is grateful for the Saniwa choosing to use him. He doesn't even mind doing chores or other work for the Saniwa, such as tending to the horses or working in the fields to harvest crops. He is rather cheerful in all of these aspects, eagerly lending his body to other swords who would like to spar, and happily using all of his strength to bring back items for the Saniwa, shouting, "Ooh! Leave the luggage to me." He knows that he has power, and intends to use it in whatever way his master wishes. In this regard, we see that Iwatooshi is extremely obedient, taking orders with no fight or question.

Iwatooshi is, in general, a rather upbeat character. He is very energetic, shouting almost all of the time, and laughing without any restraint. He is also a very teasing man, often remarking how small everyone is compared to him, and confidently bragging about his size and stature. When viewing the Saniwa's battle records, he playfully asks, "Master, I wonder how many enemies have you defeated up till now?" It can be assumed that he is friendly to other swords as well, eagerly greeting teams returning to the citadel from expeditions and cooperating with other swords while doing internal tasks and chores, and even out on the battlefield. Iwatooshi is definitely not shy in the least bit, and appears to be happy to meet new friends and allies.

In the means of sword to sword relations, we can see he has a strong bond with Imanotsurugi, just as Benkei had with Yoshitsune. When the two are brought back to fight the Battle of Koromo River again, Imanotsurugi sadly hopes that perhaps he could save his former master, to which Iwatooshi chides him that he can not change what has already been set in history. He remarks, "…Even through sad times, we must continue onward," and empathizes with the tantou when he notes how hard it is to keep pressing forward. Beneath all of his bravado, Iwatooshi can be serious, and he does have emotions besides the ones he displays on the outside.

"Gahahaha! I had a good time!"

Overall, Iwatooshi is a very loyal (if a bit overconfident), and helpful sword. Though he has had his share of frightening moments as most swords do, he knows he is a tool for battle, and must look onward to protect his master. He is always looking forwards, to next battle, to the next task, and to the future.

◎ Powers/Abilities: Being a tsukumogami, Iwatooshi possesses strength and stamina that could be called superhuman by some. Wounds are easily shrugged off, if he takes much damage at all to his humanized form. However, the drawback lies in the fact that his true form is that of the naginata. If harm were to come to this weapon, Iwatooshi's body would suffer it, and if he breaks, Iwatooshi would die.

Being a naginata makes Iwatooshi proficient in using said weapon. As of right now, Iwatooshi is the only naginata in the game, making him highly valuable for his long and wide range. He is able to hit multiple enemies in one swing, and though he may not do much damage when first obtained, he is able to take out most of- if not all- of an enemy team at higher levels. He's incredibly useful to speed up battles and to help train other swords, i.e., 'babysitting' them as a speedy, high level sword that can grind maps much faster than those with smaller ranges. His highest stats are his Survival (HP) and his Impact (attack power).

Finally, like all other swords in Touken Ranbu, Iwatooshi has the ability to "awaken" if he suffers enough damage. It's almost like a berserker mode- he is able to attack more times that he would originally, and each hit is a critical one.

◎ Weapons & Other Special Inventory: his original form (the naginata), his original clothing, and a change of clothes.

CEREALIA-Specific

◎ Element: Earth
◎ Sense: Sight; both in the way that he is a shocking and intimidating sight to see, and that he sees everything through to the very end.

◎ Seven Character Traits:

( + Loyal, Steadfast, Confident ) | ( - Brutal, Reckless, Frightening ) | = Dynamic

Samples

◎ First-Person Sample: TDM top-level comment!

◎ Third-Person Sample:

The beginning was a blur, somewhere lying between the trauma of the past (arrows and piercing and blood and sadness,) and that of his present (prevention, painful memories, and new comrades). But this time, those comrades were dead at his side, in his arms, and those arrows buried themselves into his body, more painful than he remembered. But hazy as his vision was, frantic as his mind raced, he did what he knew best; he fought. To what seemed to be his last breath, he fought, until it was... over?

Iwatooshi had seen some of the future, being pulled from his place in history to aid his Saniwa in restoring said history. He knows about technology, but still believes in hard work and magic more than science-after all, it was some sort of magic that summoned him to meet his new Master. He had his past in one hand and his current in the other, and the two were pretty easy to balance. But this, well, this was something completely foreign to him.

It wasn't easy 'waking up' (they said he didn't wake up from anything right?), first of all, just where was his Master? The thought ran through his head- perhaps that battlefield he was just on was the end, and he was summoned once again to save history. The cause of the organization was noble enough, in fact, it seemed similar to the battle he, among other swords and Saniwa, were fighting back home. Something big and bad was trying to destroy pretty much everything, and Iwatooshi was one of the many that happened to be useful enough to fight it. It wasn't too far-fetched to think it may be the same enemies from before.

But when the realization set in that he wasn't summoned by a Saniwa, so did the slight fear- just who would he answer to now?

Needless to say, his hand raised a few times during the arrival presentation to ask, "But where's my Master?" Also needless to say, he got no clear answers, which was stupid. What good is a sword if there was no one to handle it? He wasn't about to be made into some pretty sword just for show. Iwatooshi was made for fighting, has been fighting, and was not going to stop fighting any time soon.

The concept of ViViD was explained, and even though the people running the presentation made it clear that the jarring fight before 'waking up' wasn't really real, Iwatooshi didn't think it was for him. What good would fighting imaginary stuff be? Plus, if all sessions were anything like that first one... he definitely didn't want to slip into that again, if he had the choice. To fight was one thing, but to voluntarily watch your friends and allies die? No, that wouldn't do. Iwatooshi was built to strike, defend, and above all, win.

So win he would, however he could while in this place. For now, he would talk to as many people as possible- if there were so many people "restored" here, maybe he would find a familiar face.

◎ Is your character retaining any previous game memories? Nope!