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TRIGGER WARNING: implied child abuse, incest, issues of consent, and suicide. (It's a Minekura series, what do you expect?)
Character
Name: Nataku
Fandom: Saiyuki Gaiden
Gender: Male
Age: ~14
Time Period: Saiyuki Gaiden Chapter 15
Wing Color: White
History: After many failed attempts that only yielded monsters, Nataku was born from the mixed blood of youkai and gods. He he would come to understand later that he was a heretical being, scorned in heaven but still a necessary tool of the gods. The gods were forbidden to kill, lest they become impure themselves, but Nataku was born impure - and incredibly powerful - so he was trained to kill in the name of Heaven and given the title of War Prince. In other words, he was the murder puppet of the gods.
Nataku's will was bound to his father, Li Touten, a man who aspired to raise his social standing far above the nobles who scorned him. As Heaven and the world below became more chaotic, it became clear that the armies of heaven would not be effective without the power of the War Prince - and by extension, the backing of Li Touten.
Unbeknownst to the nobles, Li Touten himself engineered these circumstances and the circumstances of Nataku's birth through a pact with the youkai who were conspiring against Heaven. Li Touten was only a pawn to them, but he didn't know that. He used his son as his ace he put pressure on the nobles to raise his standing and comply with his wishes. Nataku was sent out in campaign after campaign, fighting alone despite the other officers who were sent there 'under his command'. They were mostly for show while Nataku did their dirty work and his father received praise for it. All of them could call his existence distasteful while they profited and pretended the bloody work of killing had nothing to do with them.
Nataku understood this. He acted arrogantly towards the men in his unit and loathed the gods and his father for their ways. He vowed to never grow into an adult like that but, as his father said, he was a very obedient child. He would not even lift an arm against Li Touten's wishes. Though his father viewed Nataku as a tool in his rise to power, he did show him some twisted form of love...especially when they were alone together. It was more than anyone else gave him.
Nataku still maintained the spirit of a child outside his father's view, getting into trouble and exploring the heavens for secret places he could visit. He showed these places only to Shien, one of the few people he knew well enough to trust a little bit. One of his more ambitious pranks even involved drawing nose hairs on the Jade Emperor while he slept. He had just made a clean getaway when he ran into another golden-eyed boy his age - one with a similar sense of humor and golden eyes that marked him as a heretical being as well. Though the other boy didn't know his own name, the two of them became fast friends, and when the servants discovered Nataku, the boy asked if they could play again soon.
Nataku couldn't be happier to agree. He'd made a friend, maybe one of his first.
However, he was summoned soon after and sent out to fight the Dai Youkai, Gyumaou, who had been eating humans and threatening war. Gyumaou was sealed, but Nataku was seriously injured in the battle. When he returned to the Heavens, he was able to stand long enough to refuse treatment - until he saw the boy from before. The last thing he remembered was collapsing into his arms.
He would wake up again later, bandaged, and with the boy still at his side. While Nataku was certain that nobody would care if anything happened to him, the boy assured him of the opposite: he came just to see Nataku after all. Nataku promised to show him all over the heavens, to the secret places where tall trees and berries grew. He asked the boy to stay with him, and the two of them ended up talking until they fell asleep together on his bed.
Later in the week he attended a festival, where his father told him to pay close attention to the Jade Emperor who was speaking - soon, Li Touten said, he would claim that position. Nataku could care less about the whole event, and only wished it would end sooner. But as he watched, a fight broke out down below. He recognized his friend fighting with some others, but he was unable to act with Li Touten still watching him.
Once he healed enough to walk around, he was summoned once again to the Jade Emperor's court where his father received formal praise for Nataku's battle with the youkai. His friend was there again, but Nataku's pleasure at seeing the other boy was soon to fade with a simple order. His father rested a hand on his shoulder and said that the boy was the heretical being from the underworld, and that Nataku was to kill him. Heaven didn't need two heretical beings, and Nataku didn't need the competition. Though the boy yelled after him, Nataku walked away saying nothing.
Nataku didn't see the boy again before he was summoned once more. This time, he and his company were to subdue people who were "causing a disturbance that would jeopardize heaven's authority". Though Nataku had not fully healed yet, he agreed to go without question. He had no real option anyway.
Unexpectedly, one of the men from the fight at the festival stepped forward and offered to go in his place. It was General Kenren, not highly ranked enough to come before the emperor so boldly and incur anything but a beating. He must have known, too. Nataku's father assured the emperor that Nataku was eager to die in battle for the Heavens, and Nataku said it was so. On the way past, he thanked Kenren... and punched him hard enough that he would know there was nothing to worry about. Nataku would survive the battle. Kenren was an idiot and a virtual stranger besides, but he appreciated the gesture. Taking a beating for someone like Nataku wasn't a small thing.
Though he told Shien of the other boy, and Li Touten's orders to kill him, he didn't see his friend again until he was once more in the Jade Emperor's court to be sent out for another campaign. The boy broke in, asking Nataku if he would really kill him, and before Nataku could respond Li Touten ordered just that.
The boy tried to punch his father, and in response Nataku attempted to kill him, only to be blocked by Kenren. He might have killed them as ordered if Tenpou had not tried to attack his father as well. After striking him down, Nataku finally went after the boy again - and stopped with the sword at his throat, unable to kill him. The boy finally told him his name: Goku.
Simple as that, Nataku's whole world crumbled. He would not kill Goku, his closest friend, and could not disobey his father. Seeing no other option, he made his choice. He turned his sword on himself and cut his strings for good.
Personality: Nataku is a smart kid, naturally curious and highly perceptive. He has a cold, arrogant attitude towards people he dislikes and no problem playing childish pranks on lazy, pig-headed gods. Suffice to say, he's not terribly respectful towards anyone he deems undeserving. When he can, he'll escape his caretakers to go exploring in the forest and while he behaves when absolutely necessary, in general he can be adventurous and playful. However, any disregard for the rules and the gods who made them ends at his father.
Li Touten literally created him to fill the role of War Prince, and they both know it. So while he silently resents the gods and promises himself he won't be like them, what he will be is something he lets his father decide. He never even considers arguing, let alone outright disobedience.
The reason for this is fairly complex. Li Touten viewed Nataku as a very valuable tool to be sure, but there was a thread of something like 'affection' in him, twisted as it might have been. It's heavily implied that Nataku was molested by his father. Behind closed doors, Li Touten praised and adored him. Nataku had no friends and his mother (along with most of the heavens) loathed and feared him because he was an abomination, and a powerful one besides. But he was a lonely little kid. For his own sake, Nataku pretended it was love, and disobedience meant losing even that. He couldn't betray the man who had given him life, 'love', and the closest thing to freedom available to a heretical being in the heavens.
It's possible that he was also genetically programmed to obey Li Touten, but a large part of his obedience is Nataku's decision. Despite the manipulation and abuse, he was, and still is, extremely loyal to his father. This is a man he would kill and die for without a single thought, and his first act of defiance wasn't to make a move against him or refuse the order, but to turn his sword on himself. He was caught between two things he couldn't do: refuse his father, and kill his only friend.
Friendship, as you can imagine, was no small thing to Nataku. Goku accepted him and simply offered affection, closeness and laughter without expectations. He honestly cared about Nataku in a way no one else had before, and the two of them became close friends during their infrequent meetings. Nataku promised to show him his favourite places, and in canon still waits for him to one day return to the heavens.
Nataku has plenty of room to grow. He's still at the point where he lets his relationships with other people define him to an extent, but now that he's cut his ties he has the chance to carve a new path for himself and begin to find his own way.
Strengths: Nataku is easily one of the most powerful beings in the heavens and, of course, a trained and seasoned fighter. He's incredibly strong, fast and agile to an extent that is almost impossible to scale. His weapon of choice is the sword, which he can draw from thin air, but he's also versed in chi magic and other forms of attack. He can subdue the most powerful kind of demon single-handedly, but will still take on some serious damage for something on that scale.
He resents the gods, but he also realizes that petty revenge and cruelty will only succeed in making him just like them. Instead, Nataku is loyal and responsible to a fault. He claims his own actions and puts others before himself. He's fairly self-aware, and usually sees both the good and bad in people around him.
He's often fairly upbeat and kind, even if he does have a strong mischievous streak.
Weaknesses: Nataku actually doesn't have any physical weaknesses that we know of. Obviously he can be overpowered by other incredibly powerful beings but other than that he's...yeah, godling. But he paid a steep price for all his power and skill. He's like a weapon, dependant on the hand that wields him, and changing that would be a slow and difficult process. He's never lived without some kind of guidance and while he shows the desire for freedom (constantly running off to play by himself) ultimately his loyalty and friendship can manifest in very unhealthy ways. At full potential, he's single-minded to the point of losing himself, and canon very thoroughly proves he can be manipulated by small acts of kindness, even if he's aware.
Suffice to say, many of his strengths can easily become weaknesses. He has more than a few emotional scars from.... well, everything I've already covered. He's not reckless but he doesn't really value his own life.
Character
Name: Nataku
Fandom: Saiyuki Gaiden
Gender: Male
Age: ~14
Time Period: Saiyuki Gaiden Chapter 15
Wing Color: White
History: After many failed attempts that only yielded monsters, Nataku was born from the mixed blood of youkai and gods. He he would come to understand later that he was a heretical being, scorned in heaven but still a necessary tool of the gods. The gods were forbidden to kill, lest they become impure themselves, but Nataku was born impure - and incredibly powerful - so he was trained to kill in the name of Heaven and given the title of War Prince. In other words, he was the murder puppet of the gods.
Nataku's will was bound to his father, Li Touten, a man who aspired to raise his social standing far above the nobles who scorned him. As Heaven and the world below became more chaotic, it became clear that the armies of heaven would not be effective without the power of the War Prince - and by extension, the backing of Li Touten.
Unbeknownst to the nobles, Li Touten himself engineered these circumstances and the circumstances of Nataku's birth through a pact with the youkai who were conspiring against Heaven. Li Touten was only a pawn to them, but he didn't know that. He used his son as his ace he put pressure on the nobles to raise his standing and comply with his wishes. Nataku was sent out in campaign after campaign, fighting alone despite the other officers who were sent there 'under his command'. They were mostly for show while Nataku did their dirty work and his father received praise for it. All of them could call his existence distasteful while they profited and pretended the bloody work of killing had nothing to do with them.
Nataku understood this. He acted arrogantly towards the men in his unit and loathed the gods and his father for their ways. He vowed to never grow into an adult like that but, as his father said, he was a very obedient child. He would not even lift an arm against Li Touten's wishes. Though his father viewed Nataku as a tool in his rise to power, he did show him some twisted form of love...especially when they were alone together. It was more than anyone else gave him.
Nataku still maintained the spirit of a child outside his father's view, getting into trouble and exploring the heavens for secret places he could visit. He showed these places only to Shien, one of the few people he knew well enough to trust a little bit. One of his more ambitious pranks even involved drawing nose hairs on the Jade Emperor while he slept. He had just made a clean getaway when he ran into another golden-eyed boy his age - one with a similar sense of humor and golden eyes that marked him as a heretical being as well. Though the other boy didn't know his own name, the two of them became fast friends, and when the servants discovered Nataku, the boy asked if they could play again soon.
Nataku couldn't be happier to agree. He'd made a friend, maybe one of his first.
However, he was summoned soon after and sent out to fight the Dai Youkai, Gyumaou, who had been eating humans and threatening war. Gyumaou was sealed, but Nataku was seriously injured in the battle. When he returned to the Heavens, he was able to stand long enough to refuse treatment - until he saw the boy from before. The last thing he remembered was collapsing into his arms.
He would wake up again later, bandaged, and with the boy still at his side. While Nataku was certain that nobody would care if anything happened to him, the boy assured him of the opposite: he came just to see Nataku after all. Nataku promised to show him all over the heavens, to the secret places where tall trees and berries grew. He asked the boy to stay with him, and the two of them ended up talking until they fell asleep together on his bed.
Later in the week he attended a festival, where his father told him to pay close attention to the Jade Emperor who was speaking - soon, Li Touten said, he would claim that position. Nataku could care less about the whole event, and only wished it would end sooner. But as he watched, a fight broke out down below. He recognized his friend fighting with some others, but he was unable to act with Li Touten still watching him.
Once he healed enough to walk around, he was summoned once again to the Jade Emperor's court where his father received formal praise for Nataku's battle with the youkai. His friend was there again, but Nataku's pleasure at seeing the other boy was soon to fade with a simple order. His father rested a hand on his shoulder and said that the boy was the heretical being from the underworld, and that Nataku was to kill him. Heaven didn't need two heretical beings, and Nataku didn't need the competition. Though the boy yelled after him, Nataku walked away saying nothing.
Nataku didn't see the boy again before he was summoned once more. This time, he and his company were to subdue people who were "causing a disturbance that would jeopardize heaven's authority". Though Nataku had not fully healed yet, he agreed to go without question. He had no real option anyway.
Unexpectedly, one of the men from the fight at the festival stepped forward and offered to go in his place. It was General Kenren, not highly ranked enough to come before the emperor so boldly and incur anything but a beating. He must have known, too. Nataku's father assured the emperor that Nataku was eager to die in battle for the Heavens, and Nataku said it was so. On the way past, he thanked Kenren... and punched him hard enough that he would know there was nothing to worry about. Nataku would survive the battle. Kenren was an idiot and a virtual stranger besides, but he appreciated the gesture. Taking a beating for someone like Nataku wasn't a small thing.
Though he told Shien of the other boy, and Li Touten's orders to kill him, he didn't see his friend again until he was once more in the Jade Emperor's court to be sent out for another campaign. The boy broke in, asking Nataku if he would really kill him, and before Nataku could respond Li Touten ordered just that.
The boy tried to punch his father, and in response Nataku attempted to kill him, only to be blocked by Kenren. He might have killed them as ordered if Tenpou had not tried to attack his father as well. After striking him down, Nataku finally went after the boy again - and stopped with the sword at his throat, unable to kill him. The boy finally told him his name: Goku.
Simple as that, Nataku's whole world crumbled. He would not kill Goku, his closest friend, and could not disobey his father. Seeing no other option, he made his choice. He turned his sword on himself and cut his strings for good.
Personality: Nataku is a smart kid, naturally curious and highly perceptive. He has a cold, arrogant attitude towards people he dislikes and no problem playing childish pranks on lazy, pig-headed gods. Suffice to say, he's not terribly respectful towards anyone he deems undeserving. When he can, he'll escape his caretakers to go exploring in the forest and while he behaves when absolutely necessary, in general he can be adventurous and playful. However, any disregard for the rules and the gods who made them ends at his father.
Li Touten literally created him to fill the role of War Prince, and they both know it. So while he silently resents the gods and promises himself he won't be like them, what he will be is something he lets his father decide. He never even considers arguing, let alone outright disobedience.
The reason for this is fairly complex. Li Touten viewed Nataku as a very valuable tool to be sure, but there was a thread of something like 'affection' in him, twisted as it might have been. It's heavily implied that Nataku was molested by his father. Behind closed doors, Li Touten praised and adored him. Nataku had no friends and his mother (along with most of the heavens) loathed and feared him because he was an abomination, and a powerful one besides. But he was a lonely little kid. For his own sake, Nataku pretended it was love, and disobedience meant losing even that. He couldn't betray the man who had given him life, 'love', and the closest thing to freedom available to a heretical being in the heavens.
It's possible that he was also genetically programmed to obey Li Touten, but a large part of his obedience is Nataku's decision. Despite the manipulation and abuse, he was, and still is, extremely loyal to his father. This is a man he would kill and die for without a single thought, and his first act of defiance wasn't to make a move against him or refuse the order, but to turn his sword on himself. He was caught between two things he couldn't do: refuse his father, and kill his only friend.
Friendship, as you can imagine, was no small thing to Nataku. Goku accepted him and simply offered affection, closeness and laughter without expectations. He honestly cared about Nataku in a way no one else had before, and the two of them became close friends during their infrequent meetings. Nataku promised to show him his favourite places, and in canon still waits for him to one day return to the heavens.
Nataku has plenty of room to grow. He's still at the point where he lets his relationships with other people define him to an extent, but now that he's cut his ties he has the chance to carve a new path for himself and begin to find his own way.
Strengths: Nataku is easily one of the most powerful beings in the heavens and, of course, a trained and seasoned fighter. He's incredibly strong, fast and agile to an extent that is almost impossible to scale. His weapon of choice is the sword, which he can draw from thin air, but he's also versed in chi magic and other forms of attack. He can subdue the most powerful kind of demon single-handedly, but will still take on some serious damage for something on that scale.
He resents the gods, but he also realizes that petty revenge and cruelty will only succeed in making him just like them. Instead, Nataku is loyal and responsible to a fault. He claims his own actions and puts others before himself. He's fairly self-aware, and usually sees both the good and bad in people around him.
He's often fairly upbeat and kind, even if he does have a strong mischievous streak.
Weaknesses: Nataku actually doesn't have any physical weaknesses that we know of. Obviously he can be overpowered by other incredibly powerful beings but other than that he's...yeah, godling. But he paid a steep price for all his power and skill. He's like a weapon, dependant on the hand that wields him, and changing that would be a slow and difficult process. He's never lived without some kind of guidance and while he shows the desire for freedom (constantly running off to play by himself) ultimately his loyalty and friendship can manifest in very unhealthy ways. At full potential, he's single-minded to the point of losing himself, and canon very thoroughly proves he can be manipulated by small acts of kindness, even if he's aware.
Suffice to say, many of his strengths can easily become weaknesses. He has more than a few emotional scars from.... well, everything I've already covered. He's not reckless but he doesn't really value his own life.