Anemone, Mizuko

Name: Mizuko Anemone
Age: 25
Birthdate: January 5th
Gender: Female
Sexuality: Pansexual
Rank: Jounin (S)

Village: Umigakure no Sato
Clan: Anemone
Element(s): Suiton || Fuuton || Sound
Specialties: Ninjutsu || Taijutsu || Medical Ninjutsu
Special Characteristics:

Poison/Toxin Immunity:

Poison/Toxin Creation:

Height: 6'0
Weight: 165lbs
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Brown
General Description: Lithe and toned, Mizuko is not your typical idea of a hard hitting attacker. What she sacrifices in overall offensive power is more then made up for by her anemone toxins and boosted speed. She is rather typical for a resident of Umigakure; pale skin and moderately dark hair would normally let her blend in with the crowds. However, the anemone growths that mark her as a member of her clan make sure that no one can confuse who and what she is. Her personal anemones are pale blue in color, similar to the clothing she prefers to wear when off duty. On duty she wears a modified version of the classic Umigakure ninja outfit; sleeveless tunic and high cut shorts allowing her freedom of movement and not interfering with her anemone.



Personality: While not the most outgoing person in the world, Mizuko is still very friendly; and more then willing to talk to just about anyone. She doesn't see herself as anything different then normal; as far as she is concerned her anemone are nothing more then a birth mark, something she has always had. She's more then accustomed to small children running up to her and asking about them; and while not the most knowledgeable member of her clan, she is still able to explain them well enough to make most people happy enough. Most days you can find Mizuko either walking the streets and looking for the next interesting thing to happen, or off in a training room working out some new attack she's thought up. Difficult to anger normally; she can be the calm head that makes the difference in a fight; punching an enemy's face into liquid pulp and laughing the entire time. While normally a happy enough person, when she is angry you had better watch out. Her tounge is as sharp and painful as the sting of her anemone, and she is not above punching allies just as hard and fast as foes; although an ally would likely come out of the attack with a less severe case of toxic shock.
Likes: The usual pastimes of the village are shared by Mizuko; she is an amazing swimmer; more so because of the anemone on her legs. She loves to explore the coral reefs in the sea surrounding the village; nothing makes her happier then to stumble across a new fish she hadn't seen before, or a strange formation of coral. Training is a favored hobby as well; her adaptations and the shifting forms her anemone can take make training in the odd physics of the Dome slightly easier for her; and the exercise is always welcomed. Otherwise, she just really enjoys swimming through the warm seas; more so then most her clan is able to, and very much so, thrives in the water; they are able to breath the water perfectly well via the anemone growths; allowing them to live under the waves permanently, if they so chose.
Dislikes: Oddly enough, she is not a fan of being dry; although this can easily be explained via her anemone. While only the growths need to be kept damn, she just prefers that her entire body be as well. Spicy foods, in the sense of being blisteringly spicy, those she dislikes. That's not to say all spicy is bad; done properly she lives for a good blackened fish or spicy stew; but she has little tolerance for the burning sensation once it's gone beyond her comfort zone. While completely comfortable in the water; she has issues once you move beyond a certain depth; the cold water and darkness bother her in ways she cannot explain properly. This is likely again due to her anemone; which are creatures of the light and warmth, and require both to survive. Even though the anemone is in no danger in the depths of the sea while fused to her body; the creature is not sophisticated enough to recognize this, and sends the danger signals to her brain regardless.
Motivations: Proper motivation is rare in Umigakure; the people have all they could ever want and then some, there is little reason or need to do much more then enjoy the world. Mizuko is much the same in many ways; her motivation comes solely from an inner drive to be better then she was the day before. Learn something new, perfect, or at least improve on a technique; assimilate a new toxin for her anemone; that's what keeps her going. Training is fun, which helps keep her motivated to work on it. A lust for knowledge, that keeps her out in the seas and always looking for more, for the new and unknown and always aiming for something she can't find. Her clan more then most of the village still remembers; even if unconsciously; the lands from which they came. A drive to find that world again still exists deep in her subconscious mind.
Fears: Mizuko has few fears; in her world there is little to fear that they do not understand. They know the dangerous marine life; what parts of the seas to avoid and how to read the currents to be sure they won't be swept into the vortex from the outside. There was little for the people to worry about, really. So what fears she does have, they are less her own and more a product of the fusion between herself and the anemone. The fusion brings with it the instinctual fears of the anemone; the fear of the dark, cold places where they quickly starve and die; the depths where the warm light doesn't reach. She has no fear of the dark in the context of a dark room, or the night; but she has a deep seated fear of the dark depths of the ocean itself; where the anemone normally cannot survive. She avoids the place at the far edge of the warm sea where the bottom seems to drop away from the world and the water grows dark and cold.

History: Childhood:

Mizuko was born the middle child of a rather large family; at least by her clan's standards. She had enough older and younger siblings to get lost in; so it was really was a good thing that her mother chose such brightly colored anemone for her; the bright blue of her arms and legs was about all that let her stand out from the crowd as a very young child. Like nearly all of her clan for more generations then they cared to count; she was placed in the special chakra netting gloves and boots as a young child and fused with thousands of anemone buds that would eventually grow to mark her forever as part of her clan. As she was too young to ever know anything else; the growing anemone on her hands and feet where never seen as anything but perfectly normal to her; even as she lost her hands and feet to the creatures. Everyone around her had experienced the same transformations, so why should she be any different?

Always a happy child, she thrived in the hidden oasis of Umigakure. Her anemone made her perfectly adapted to the thick, wet air; more so then many children. It wasn't uncommon for the youngest children to have problems breathing at first; before their bodies began to grow the adaptations that had become normal for the villagers; rudimentary gills where almost universal among the people by the time she was born. Her clan's anemone served much the same functions; through the anemone they could extract oxygen from the water and super-wet air without issues; granting them a reprieve from the problems other's had.

From an early age she showed much promise; while never the most brilliant child, she had a natural affinity for her clan's anemone on a physical, intuitive level. She couldn't sit there and spurt out the scientific and biological information her siblings could; but she could coax the creatures to do things no amount of science could do. Her natural abilities with the clan's toxins and poisons were also far above normal; by the age of 6 she had already inoculated herself against every single anemone the clan cultivated, as well as dozens of native species outside of the village. She was even working on creating her own variants before most of her clan would have even been exposed to their first toxins. Her motivations and inner drive keep her moving ahead of the pack; as it were; and had her leaping beyond her siblings and cousins in physical abilities.

However, her clan was one of intellectuals; her drive to obtain the physical rewards left her slightly ostracised; she had to put in five times the amount of work to receive the same level of recognition. That mattered little to Mizuko; she just kept on moving on without bothering to care that her family treated her differently. She was having too much fun doing what she did; and not lacking in the friend department helped to keep her from feeling alone and unloved.  

Academy:

Like most children of the age; she entered the ninja academy at the age of eight. Mizuko excelled in the physical classes; rarely was she not the top ranked student in the classes that involved swimming or physical exertion. While not the smartest student, she was consistently scored in the higher percentile of her class; enough for the teachers to like her and keep her family happy. She was never one to miss extra circular classes, nor did she skimp on sports. In a village where everyone was an expert swimmer, she shined above the rest; the ability to change the shape of her anemone to maximize her swimming ability on top of being able to shoot jets of water from them for extra boosts of speed made her one of the fastest in the academy. Only the few Hoshikage children could keep up with an Anemone in the water; and there where a few in her class that were able to beat her and her cousins.

It was during her time in the academy that she discovered a love for one of the less known fighting styles in Umigakure. A small clan, barely a few dozen strong, they maintained a tradition of using martial arts based around music in various forms. From the youngest child of the clan; a boy only a year older then herself; she learned the basics of Capoeira. An ancient form, it combined fluid movements with a strong rhythm; encouraging the practitioner to find their own beat and style once they learned the basics. At first, her family and the teachers tried to discourage her from learning the style; it relies heavily on balance and the use of hands for support; and given that by then she had no true hands left thanks to the growth of the anemones; they believed she would just end up hurting herself. The fragile structure of the growing anemone was also a danger; if the support structure was damaged she could end up crippled for life.

Mizuko, understanding the dangers, politely told them to go away and kept right on working. It was painful; the soft anemone was little support and she suffered many falls and near disasters. No amount of want was going to help her; it seemed. The anemone bodies where no replacement for the solid bones of the human hands; and what bone structure was left below the level of the anemone growth was too soft and spongy to support her. One day she was just sitting beside the practice mats that she and the boy teaching her used; watching his older brother practice when she noticed something. While the very first thing you are taught in Capoeira is to not balance on your fingers; she noticed his brother doing just that when he was working on advanced techniques. Inquiring about this, she learned that when he was their age he had sliced open his hand on some sharp rocks; and the stitching made it impossible to place his hands flat like he normally would have. He didn't want to loose out on several months of training; so he took the risk of balancing on his fingers; after a week or two of working on strengthening them via various exercises of course. He found that so long as he was smart about which technique he used his fingers for; he was able to easily perform by balancing on them; although he was quick to say that it was not something for everyone. He held up his hands to show how his fingers had grown stiff and bent from the stresses of his practicing; enough to keep his brother from trying the same thing.

Well, Mizuko didn't actually have fingers; what she did have where very strong, and extremely flexible anemone tentacles. Instead of trying to balance on the entire anemone; why not just use the tentacles; spread wide for balance? It was worth a shot, anyway; nothing to really be lost by the attempt. The change was instantly noticeable. No more pain; her balance was almost flawless; with the wide base to work off of, she didn't have to focus so hard on not falling and was able to just move; exactly how a person using Capoeira was supposed to. Don't think; just feel the music and move. Within weeks she was flying through her training; always improving and always pushing harder. The danger factor was almost gone; by using the wide tentacle base her weight was so evenly distributed that the stress on the anemone structure was nearly gone; reduced to a level that wouldn't damage her unless something went catastrophically wrong.

Genin:

Her time in the academy came and went quickly enough; she managed to graduate a year early thanks to all the extracurricular classes she had taken. Her first squad was nothing special; an older cousin and a boy from a clan that had plenty of average ninja but little else to celebrate. They spent that first year together much as any other squad; taking the little odd jobs and almost slave labor work that all young teams dealt with. Their sensei was a Rikka Special Jounin of no real importance; she was distant and never really connected with them. They worked well enough together; but there was never that sense of family that most squads had. When the chance for promotions (and not incidentally a shot as getting assigned to different squads) appeared; all three jumped at the chance; and their sensei was kind enough to recommend them for the testing.

Chunnin:

It was unfairly easy for Mizuko and her cousin to pass the exams. Really... send two Anemone out into the coral sea to find a set of hidden scrolls. Pathetically easy; they where the first to finish by nearly a day. Combined with their above average mission outputs; both liked to take jobs outside of their squad; they where quickly promoted to Chuunin and assigned to new squads to fill in the vacancies left by Jounin promotions several weeks prior. Her new squad was different, to say the least. A Kaguya tank and a Hoshigaki medic; strange combinations both for squads and their own clans.

However, this was not a bad thing; medics drooled over the chance to work with Anemone because of the Anemone's poison resistances and recreation abilities. The Kaguya turned out to be a blessing in disguise; like her, he was a fan of less popular styles of fighting. In his case, he loved to grapple; having learned both grappling and jujitsu at an early age, along with his clan's famous dances. From him she learned the art of jujitsu; something that her natural and Capoeira trained agility and flexibility lent well to; as well as her anemone's shock toxins and the insane grip granted by the tentacles. Once she grabbed hold of you; you where done. There was no escape. The mix of the two style was lethally effective; within two years she was able to mix the two style flawlessly; making her a dangerous opponent at close ranges. Combined with her natural Suiton abilities and a penchant for ranged Fuuton attacks; and it was painfully clear that Mizuko was setting up to be one of Umigakure's best fighters.

Special Jounin:

She spent the better part of 5 years as a Chuunin, finally qualifying for a promotion when she was 17. The test was simple enough; challenge a Jounin and survive. If the judges where impressed, you would be promoted. If not? Well, better hope you survived, at least. Her opponent? The very Rikka that had once been her sensei. Whether this was a random pick; or someone's attempt to psychologically mess with her head she has yet to discover; however in the end it really didn't matter. A Rikka might be supernaturally talented with Suiton; but that meant nothing to an Anemone that is and always will be a creature of the seas. No amount of water could really hurt her; and even a Rikka can't match the speed of an Anemone underwater. It took the better part of an hour to get close enough; but the instant her target was in range she had her shocked, stunned, and in a headlock so tight that it was a miracle nothing was broken. Her determination and strange skills did the job; the judges were sufficiently impressed and she was promoted to Special Jounin.

Jounin (A):

Her time as a Special Jounin was simple and easy, really; times where peaceful for the most part, and outside of the odd natural disaster, there wasn't much call for warriors in the their world. That wasn't to say weakness was tolerated; the sea could be a cruel home, and only those worthy of her could survive. Promotions beyond Special Jounin could be a rare thing, so only those blessed with exemplary skills or fanatical determination ever made it beyond that point. It was a mix of both that allowed Mizuko to progress. Her clan gifted abilities made her stand out above the rest as it was; even within her clan she was known for having one of the widest selections of poisons and toxins stored within her anemone; which made her extremely popular with the medical community in general, as they loved to come to her asking for samples of various reef toxins and to test antidotes on her.

Her skills in Taijutsu and Ninjutsu where a rarity in the village as well; there where plenty of basic fighters, and the typical hard fist style of attack was pretty well established; but there where few, if any, fighter that focused on defensive, countering, or other styles of fighting. Her ability to utilize several different fighting styles effectively, as well as mix and matching them, made her a versatile warrior that was useful on and off the battlefield.

Her skills and talents lent themselves well to one of the rare natural disasters that occasionally plagued the village; while out on the reefs exploring, a group of students was trapped in a small cave by a coral collapse; they happened every so often, but where rarely a problem; the foundation under the coral base would collapse for whatever reason and the entire area would sink into a hole. However, this time it happened over a cave that was popular with the local teachers and trainers; it was full of a rare type of fish and coral that only grew in the dark, cold waters found there. The coral collapse was a bad one; the entire cave entrance and much of the main tunnel where gone; making it extremely difficult for anyone to free the survivors. It was Mizuko and her clansmen, along with a small team of dedicated friends and family of the trapped kids; that managed to clear an opening. The very nature of her anemone made clearing debris possible; her clansmen where able to recreate the very cement that wild anemone use to stick to rock, and with access to the material, they where able to lift away entire layers of rock without having to worry about secondary collapse; as there was nothing left to cave in once the rest was cleared away. Having access to the various medicines and such that an Anemone could recreate on the spot meant that they never had to worry about running out of medicine at the excavation site.

It was this, combined with her years of excellent records, high mission numbers, and the sheer value of her skill set allowed her to be promoted to Jounin by the time she was 20.


Jounin (S)

Oddly enough, it was pretty easy for her to rank up a final time; although it did take a few year. She was 24 when word made it down the grapevine that she was being promoted again; but there was no actual reasoning given as to why she was promoted. She isn't the type to look a gift horse in the mouth, as the saying goes; so she accepted this promotion and the added responsibilities happily.



RP Sample: Bag dropping to the floor, Mizuko gave the large room a quick once over. Lots of open space, the usual training dummies stacked neatly against the wall; everything safely strapped down just in case... a typical training room under the dome. The way the gravity and physics in these rooms could spazz out at anytime; nothing was left to chance. Her bag was shove in a locker the moment she was done with it; a simple headband to hold her hair back and a large bottle of water poured over her face, arms, and legs. She was starting to feel a tad to dry for her own personal tastes; and given the room she was using was a dry room; she was going to need to hydrate before she started.

To the center of the room she moved now; taking her time and trying to feel out the effects the room was under at that moment. Nothing seemed off; although it was a tad colder then she would have liked. Must have been one of those ice-users in here before her; or else just a weak effect of the Vortex. No matter, she could live with it. For now, it was time to train. Her body seemed to relax; all tension leaving before she began to move. Her form almost began to slouch; looking as though she was going to drop to a knee before lifting back up; following an exaggerated "U" pattern. It was the ginga, the most basic and fundamental movement of Capoeira. From here, she would work through the movements; warming up and never stopping for an instant. It was like a dance of martial beauty across the floor; her body moving to a beat only she could hear; only she could feel.

Around and around she went; hours past like minutes and she never stopped. It wasn't until the room had begun to ice over that she finally had to give up; the freezing air was extremely painful to her because of the anemone; they couldn't tolerate it any longer, even with warm blood and chakra flowing though them. It was time to stop for the night; she would return in the morning and destroy a few training dolls working on her jujitsu holds. For now, it was time to find a warm shower and some food.

Faceclaim: Asuka Kazama - Tekken Series