✖ character information.
Mun
Name: Yami.
Livejournal Username: mural
E-mail: rendmyheart @ gmail
AIM/MSN: turntechs (aim)
Current Characters at Luceti: Axel - flared
Character
Name: Neku Sakuraba.
Fandom: The World Ends With You.
Gender: Male.
Age: 15.
Time Period: Post-game.
Wing Color: White.
History: I am not a... a spicy tuna roll!
Personality:
Neku could have easily been considered the worst person in his hometown of Shibuya, Japan at one time. He was cold and distant to everyone around him, completely closing himself off from the world. The headphones he always wore made sure of that. He shunned any kind of friendship, considering people to only be baggage that would slow him down and get in his way. To him, people were a waste of time and only worth their meager value, and he made sure people knew that by giving off a nasty attitude toward everyone. Without friends there would be nothing expected of him and he could do what he wanted, when he wanted. "Do what you want, when you want, where you want" was a motto he followed, inspired by his favorite graffiti artist, CAT. CAT was the only one Neku looked up to and respected, and the graffiti artwork that CAT made was the only thing that made Neku happy.
The antisocial attitude Neku carried with him could have easily been influenced by a past trauma in his life. When Neku was partnered with Beat in week 3, it's implied that he had experienced the loss of someone in the past. This implication is elaborated on by Hanekoma, who mentioned in the Secret Reports some past trauma in Neku's life that has hindered his growth. Neku reflects on how Beat and Rhyme's death (they were both struck by a car) was just "like that one time" and it made him feel like crap. Furthermore, in the Another Day AU chapter, it's learned that Neku had a friend who he would meet everyday in front of the mural done by CAT in Udagawa. That friend was involved in an accident on his way to meet Neku one day and never made it. Neku blamed himself for his friend's death, saying that if it wasn't for them being friends the other boy never would have died. Due to such a traumatic experience and this way of thinking, it's easy to see how these actions affected the way Neku acted and how they contributed to his issues connecting with people and even understanding them.
It wasn't until facing life and death that Neku started to look at the world differently. He was forced into a Game that meant either trusting your partner or being Erased for good. He strongly resisted at first, but as he met new people, interacted with them, got to know them and saw into their own little worlds, he started to open himself up more. He made real friends for the first time ever, friends who pushed at his boundaries and wouldn't take any of his crap. He learned to trust and he learned what it was like to have that trust broken. The Game taught Neku that the world is only as big as you make it, and the world he knew wasn't as suffocating and dull as he once thought. The people that inhabited it weren't as terrible as he thought, either. The people he met, the Players that were lost, they all struck a chord with him. In time, they all became what was most important to him and a reason why he wanted another chance.
After being given another chance, Neku is still learning what it's like to be an average teenage boy, one with friends and a new outlook on life. One who's able to laugh and joke around and enjoy life for once. At the core he's still the same Neku, but he's more toned down with much less attitude and a new ability to trust people. He's able to open up to people more easily, but he's still not exactly a chatterbox. At times he'll still even try to close himself off to protect himself. However, the large difference in his personality from then and now is that he's more willing to ask/accept help from those around him. Prior to the Game, Neku was incredibly stubborn and refused to let anyone help him out, but after the final fight in the Game he realized he needed that support and he's willing to accept help in his everyday life. Even though he's got friends and has learned how to talk to people, he can still be very awkward at times. Neku is not the type to really do small talk, but instead he's more content to listen. Shiki taught him to listen to people, telling him that sometimes people really just need a good listener, and now Neku does what he can to lend an ear, even if there's not much else he can do to help. It's easy to get a rise out of him and it's also easy to make him flustered, causing him to sometimes stutter on his words. He's not overly cocky but there can be a competitiveness to him, especially when it comes to a game of Tin Pin Slammer. What hasn't changed since his time in the Game is his ability to be reasonable and level-headed most of the time, but he can get annoyed at people easily.
Despite how much Neku protested against getting involved with people, it's shown that it's pretty easy to get Neku to do what you want even if he'll still put up a bit of a fight. Shiki was able to strip him down to his underwear in week 1 to fix a button on his shorts. Joshua was able to pretty much drag Neku around Shibuya during week 2 and manipulate him into fulfilling his actions. The Reapers even seemed to be able to talk Neku into doing things for them a few times. For instance, 777 and the others were able to get Neku to help them out a few times, either by fixing a fuse or finding out what happened to a stolen mic . Even if it's not his idea in the first place, if you can talk Neku into doing something for you, he'll still come through and do it. He doesn't half-ass anything, whether it be important missions or silly tasks given by Reapers. This is even more prominent with his friends, the biggest instance being when Beat dropped Rhyme's pendant. Knowing that the object was vitally important to the other boy, Neku went out of his way to make sure the pendant was given back to the skater. If Neku considers you a friend, it's best that you know that you're held in the highest regards and he's even willing to bend backwards to help out, if only because his friends were willing to bend backwards to help him first.
The important thing to remember about Neku is that even though he's changed and he's more willing to give people a chance, he's nothing like some of his friends; he's not nearly as sociable as Shiki or Beat, and it can still be hard for him to strike up a conversation with a random stranger. The difference now though is that he's willing to try, which is really all anyone can ask of him.
Strengths:
One of Neku's biggest strengths is his imagination. In the TWEWY universe, if a person has a strong imagination it's them that shapes and creates the world and influences it for the better. Neku is one of those with enough imagination to do just that. It's his strong imagination that allows him to control almost every Psych there is, a talent that is highly unusual for Players. He was even able to use Rhyme's Noise pin, a feat which is unheard of for a Player.
Neku is determined to win and finish anything, where it's the Reaper's Game or even just a simple match of Tin Pin. He's up for any sort of challenge, even if it's a Reaper making him dress in silly outfits to get past a wall, or going and getting a Reaper some ramen. He's the type to go big or go home. Mentally, Neku is pretty sharp and able to solve problems with relative ease. He seems to have a good memory as well, as in week 2 he was able to come up with the square root of 3 with no problem.
He's not much in the way of physical strength, seeing as how he's a scrawny human teenage boy. But he's still a capable fighter and seems to be in good physical health with enough endurance and stamina to fight. He's also quick on his feet.
Weaknesses:
Again, scrawny human teenage boy, so of course he's going to be vulnerable to physical attacks and can be easily hurt. He still gets frustrated and annoyed quickly, and can sometimes be very hostile on the inside, even if he's not showing it on the outside. Heck, a lot of times in the game he's thinking of some sarcastic comment to himself in response to some people.
Despite all his changes it will take some time to work out all the kinks. He'll still have the bout of antisocial in him, and will probably try to close himself off at times. He does this by ducking his head and hiding behind his bangs. The headphones are gone now, at least. Neku finally removed those at the end of the game, and they're staying off. He can be a little dense at time relating to social situations and may still have a hard time relating to people, but hey, he's a work in progress.
Name: Yami.
Livejournal Username: mural
E-mail: rendmyheart @ gmail
AIM/MSN: turntechs (aim)
Current Characters at Luceti: Axel - flared
Character
Name: Neku Sakuraba.
Fandom: The World Ends With You.
Gender: Male.
Age: 15.
Time Period: Post-game.
Wing Color: White.
History: I am not a... a spicy tuna roll!
Personality:
Neku could have easily been considered the worst person in his hometown of Shibuya, Japan at one time. He was cold and distant to everyone around him, completely closing himself off from the world. The headphones he always wore made sure of that. He shunned any kind of friendship, considering people to only be baggage that would slow him down and get in his way. To him, people were a waste of time and only worth their meager value, and he made sure people knew that by giving off a nasty attitude toward everyone. Without friends there would be nothing expected of him and he could do what he wanted, when he wanted. "Do what you want, when you want, where you want" was a motto he followed, inspired by his favorite graffiti artist, CAT. CAT was the only one Neku looked up to and respected, and the graffiti artwork that CAT made was the only thing that made Neku happy.
The antisocial attitude Neku carried with him could have easily been influenced by a past trauma in his life. When Neku was partnered with Beat in week 3, it's implied that he had experienced the loss of someone in the past. This implication is elaborated on by Hanekoma, who mentioned in the Secret Reports some past trauma in Neku's life that has hindered his growth. Neku reflects on how Beat and Rhyme's death (they were both struck by a car) was just "like that one time" and it made him feel like crap. Furthermore, in the Another Day AU chapter, it's learned that Neku had a friend who he would meet everyday in front of the mural done by CAT in Udagawa. That friend was involved in an accident on his way to meet Neku one day and never made it. Neku blamed himself for his friend's death, saying that if it wasn't for them being friends the other boy never would have died. Due to such a traumatic experience and this way of thinking, it's easy to see how these actions affected the way Neku acted and how they contributed to his issues connecting with people and even understanding them.
It wasn't until facing life and death that Neku started to look at the world differently. He was forced into a Game that meant either trusting your partner or being Erased for good. He strongly resisted at first, but as he met new people, interacted with them, got to know them and saw into their own little worlds, he started to open himself up more. He made real friends for the first time ever, friends who pushed at his boundaries and wouldn't take any of his crap. He learned to trust and he learned what it was like to have that trust broken. The Game taught Neku that the world is only as big as you make it, and the world he knew wasn't as suffocating and dull as he once thought. The people that inhabited it weren't as terrible as he thought, either. The people he met, the Players that were lost, they all struck a chord with him. In time, they all became what was most important to him and a reason why he wanted another chance.
After being given another chance, Neku is still learning what it's like to be an average teenage boy, one with friends and a new outlook on life. One who's able to laugh and joke around and enjoy life for once. At the core he's still the same Neku, but he's more toned down with much less attitude and a new ability to trust people. He's able to open up to people more easily, but he's still not exactly a chatterbox. At times he'll still even try to close himself off to protect himself. However, the large difference in his personality from then and now is that he's more willing to ask/accept help from those around him. Prior to the Game, Neku was incredibly stubborn and refused to let anyone help him out, but after the final fight in the Game he realized he needed that support and he's willing to accept help in his everyday life. Even though he's got friends and has learned how to talk to people, he can still be very awkward at times. Neku is not the type to really do small talk, but instead he's more content to listen. Shiki taught him to listen to people, telling him that sometimes people really just need a good listener, and now Neku does what he can to lend an ear, even if there's not much else he can do to help. It's easy to get a rise out of him and it's also easy to make him flustered, causing him to sometimes stutter on his words. He's not overly cocky but there can be a competitiveness to him, especially when it comes to a game of Tin Pin Slammer. What hasn't changed since his time in the Game is his ability to be reasonable and level-headed most of the time, but he can get annoyed at people easily.
Despite how much Neku protested against getting involved with people, it's shown that it's pretty easy to get Neku to do what you want even if he'll still put up a bit of a fight. Shiki was able to strip him down to his underwear in week 1 to fix a button on his shorts. Joshua was able to pretty much drag Neku around Shibuya during week 2 and manipulate him into fulfilling his actions. The Reapers even seemed to be able to talk Neku into doing things for them a few times. For instance, 777 and the others were able to get Neku to help them out a few times, either by fixing a fuse or finding out what happened to a stolen mic . Even if it's not his idea in the first place, if you can talk Neku into doing something for you, he'll still come through and do it. He doesn't half-ass anything, whether it be important missions or silly tasks given by Reapers. This is even more prominent with his friends, the biggest instance being when Beat dropped Rhyme's pendant. Knowing that the object was vitally important to the other boy, Neku went out of his way to make sure the pendant was given back to the skater. If Neku considers you a friend, it's best that you know that you're held in the highest regards and he's even willing to bend backwards to help out, if only because his friends were willing to bend backwards to help him first.
The important thing to remember about Neku is that even though he's changed and he's more willing to give people a chance, he's nothing like some of his friends; he's not nearly as sociable as Shiki or Beat, and it can still be hard for him to strike up a conversation with a random stranger. The difference now though is that he's willing to try, which is really all anyone can ask of him.
Strengths:
One of Neku's biggest strengths is his imagination. In the TWEWY universe, if a person has a strong imagination it's them that shapes and creates the world and influences it for the better. Neku is one of those with enough imagination to do just that. It's his strong imagination that allows him to control almost every Psych there is, a talent that is highly unusual for Players. He was even able to use Rhyme's Noise pin, a feat which is unheard of for a Player.
Neku is determined to win and finish anything, where it's the Reaper's Game or even just a simple match of Tin Pin. He's up for any sort of challenge, even if it's a Reaper making him dress in silly outfits to get past a wall, or going and getting a Reaper some ramen. He's the type to go big or go home. Mentally, Neku is pretty sharp and able to solve problems with relative ease. He seems to have a good memory as well, as in week 2 he was able to come up with the square root of 3 with no problem.
He's not much in the way of physical strength, seeing as how he's a scrawny human teenage boy. But he's still a capable fighter and seems to be in good physical health with enough endurance and stamina to fight. He's also quick on his feet.
Weaknesses:
Again, scrawny human teenage boy, so of course he's going to be vulnerable to physical attacks and can be easily hurt. He still gets frustrated and annoyed quickly, and can sometimes be very hostile on the inside, even if he's not showing it on the outside. Heck, a lot of times in the game he's thinking of some sarcastic comment to himself in response to some people.
Despite all his changes it will take some time to work out all the kinks. He'll still have the bout of antisocial in him, and will probably try to close himself off at times. He does this by ducking his head and hiding behind his bangs. The headphones are gone now, at least. Neku finally removed those at the end of the game, and they're staying off. He can be a little dense at time relating to social situations and may still have a hard time relating to people, but hey, he's a work in progress.