Okita Souji

Name: Okita Soji

Gender: Male

Age: 29

Appearance:
Souji is tall and has a short cropped goatee. His jet black hair is knotted at the back into a ponytail or queue in the style of the traditional Edo Era Samurai. Over a light gray hakama (the flowing pants), a light blue kimono (shirt-robe), and a simple white obi sash, Souji wears a short Haori (over coat) with a light blue diamond pattern at the bottom, which is always worn by all Shinsengumi. Over his hair he wears a short sash or head band which is also customary. On his feet he wears tabi socks which are parted at the middle, as well as sandals when outside.

Personality: Souji is a rather imposing person to most, as he is seen as one of the greatest swordsmen who fought in the Bakumatsu. With those he can trust and those he deems friends, he is a down-to-earth individual. However, as a former Shinsengumi, he strays away from drinking too much, as it will come in conflict with his old belief system of "Aku Soku Zan" (lit. meaning "Bring Death to Evil Immediately"). In battle he is seen to be as a demon and can be rather brutal, only affirming his old reputation as a great swordsmen and assassin.

History: Okita Souji was the Captain of the 1st Unit of the Shinsengumi. He is still seen to have been one of the greatest swordsmen of the Shinsengumi and the Bakumatsu, being on par with revolutionaries and counter-revolutionaries such as another famous Shinsengumi of the time: Hajime Saito or Nagakura Shinpachi. He fought in the major battles of the Boshin Wars, such as Toba-Fushimi, earning his reputation for having quite the bloodlust. As he survived the Revolution, and surprisingly with the majority of his old 1st Unit, he continues to fight against the new Meiji Government as avengers of the old Tokugawa Dynasty.

Early in his life around age 18, Souji attained the Menkyo Kaiden scroll after having mastered every technique of the Tennen Rishin-Ryu style of swordsmanship, becoming a prodigy of sorts. His mastery of the school seemed to be enough to earn him a place amongst the Shinsengumi as a co-founder of the group.

Weapon: Katana (Kikuichi-monji), and a short unnamed Kodachi.

Fighting Style: Tennen Rishin-ryu

The style focuses on three different practices, those being Kenjutsu (Swordsmenship), Bojutsu (Art of the Staff), and Jujutsu (Unarmed grappling. However, as humane as the latter practice is seen in modern day, it was actually quite deadly during this period as a style that was renowned for its lethality. Even unarmed combat was a fight to the death, learned quite well by those, like Souji, who fought in Kyoto, the "bloodbath" of the Boshin Wars. Souji would choose to forgo the bojutsu and focus primarily on the kenjutsu and jujutsu, although he did choose to master bojutsu before entering the Boshin Wars.

Tennen Rishin-Ryu is a style used primarily by the Samurai and Assassins alike, which is a telltale sign of why the Shinsengumi chose to use this method of warfare. The techniques in the style are all made for killing blows to the opponent, and thus are perfect for the battlefield. All swordsmanship within the style is made to be fast and to the point; which may include or be influenced from other styles such as bato-jutsu (the art of sword-drawing). A famuous technique, which primarily includes extremely fast stabbing thrusts would be the variations of the Gatotsu, mastered firstly by Hajime Saito, a squad member under Souji.

Looks good. I'd prefer details on the style, but otherwise...

Ap-pa-pa-proved!

I can add those actually.. I myself don't know too much on the style.. because that is the actual swordstyle that Souji used. I will search up on it though and just add some details at some point.