Akiko Yamaguchi, or 'Aki' to her friends, always knew that her family as different from those of other children. Her Jiichan, or grandfather, took care of her from the time she was very young. Her father was a man that was very important, and her mother, who had been an American, was with the Ancestors. Her Jiichan was very kind to her, but often seemed very sad, and she figured out, in course of her earlier years, that he had once held the same position that her father now did. Whatever her father did, it was dangerous, because they were surrounded all the time by people that had guns, and that were supposed to keep her safe. She had very few friends and was rarely allowed out of the few protected areas that she knew were homes and businesses that were owned and controlled by her father and his friends.
As she aged, Aki began to put the pieces together. She saw enough about the Yakuza on the television that before she was ten she realized that was her family's secret. Her Jiichan went out of his way to protect her from the harsher realities of the dangerous life of their family, while, at the same time, did what he could to prepare her for it. She was tutored in many subjects, including buisness and martial arts, and, by the time she was a teen, she had begun to show promise in those fields. Her Jiichan and her father rarely spent time together, and when they did, they faught, mostly about her. Though she loved her father, and she believed he loved her, they spent very little time together, and she felt that there was something dangerous about him. Her Jiichan, on the other hand, was comforting and always present. He was her truest friend.
As many teenagers do, Aki rebelled against the controls of her life. She began to find ways to sneak out of the sheltered surroundings that she began to feel were a cage, and take forrays into the outside world of Tokyo. She tried to make friends, and even to run away, but her father always found her, and dragged her back to her home, telling her of the shame she had caused him and vowing to punish her. Her Jiichan would then show up after he had left, telling her that he was only angry because she had placed herself in danger, and it was out of love that he had been so harsh.
For her safety or not, Aki was tired of her imprisonment, and, when she was sixteen, put her mind to finding a way to escape it until she decided to come back. She purchased plane and bus tickets so that it would be difficult to track her, and rented three apartments in Tokyo and two in other cities, all to act as a smoke screen to here real plan to live in hotels and perhaps travel abroad. She had stashed a great deal of cash over the time she was making her plan, money her father thought she had spent on clothes and other trivialities, so that she had the means to live on her own for some time. The only thing she regretted was lying to her Jiichan. She wanted to tell him the truth, but she knew he would never let her escape. On the eve of lauching her plan, she kissed him on the forehead, told him that she would see him tomorrow, and tried not to cry.
Determined despite her difficulties, she escaped out into Tokyo. Her plans hid her from her own family well, but, unfortunately for her, her own family were not the only people looking for her. Rival yakuza gangs learned that she had escaped, and were able to track her down more quickly than her father's men. She was kidnapped less than a week after her escape, in a plan to make her father surrender his power in exchange for her life. What came to happen in the aftermath would change her life forever.
Her father was distraught when he learned what had happened to her, but he was a stern man with no intention of allowing his enemies to take his power away. He set a trap for them in the guise of bowing to their demands. Her Jiichan learned of this plan, and, knowing there was no way to talk his son out of the course of action he was set on, made his own plan and secretly went to the site of the meeting himself. He snuck into the building early, and was able to locate Aki before anything violent took place. He moved like a trained ninja, shooting from shadow to shadow and dispatched her guards quickly and silently. By the time he had freed her from the vehicle that she was being held in, the shooting had started, and the two of them managed to escape together, only moments before the whole building was destroyed from a bomb planted there by the men that kidnapped her. Her father and many of his most loyal followers were killed in the blast, and, unknown to her at the time, her Jiichan was seriously wounded by it as well.
He ushered her a secret place, where a woman that she had never met before greeted her with open arms, claiming that she was her Baachan, or grandmother. Her Baachan and Jiichan hadn't spoken in many years, but he had no where else to turn. He knew that, with her father dead, his enemies would seek to kill her so that she would never return to interfere with their business. It was also then when she learned that her Jiichan was hurt, maybe dying. Aki broke down, her entire life had burned down around her, and she blaimed herself.
Her Baachan was a priest of Shinto now, having attoned for the sins of her younger life through religion much as her Jiichan had tried to attone for his through raising Aki. She was a member of a sect that sought to allow others to purify the deeds of their pasts through service to the Shinto spirits, and to their ancestors. As she tried to care for Aki's Jiichan, she also tried to help Aki deal with the horrible events of her recent days, urging her to look to Shinto as a bridge. Aki was distrought enough to embrace just about anything to lessen her suffering, and she found some of the message of the sect spoke to her. It was in this period of time that she first met Osuma, the leader of the sect and a man with a great many secrets in his own past.
Osuma was once a criminal, a smuggler of religious artifacts, and had made a great deal of money in his youth through his lack of respect for the spirits and ancestors of his people. He was resourceful, coming up with many mechanical devices that aided him in the smuggling and security of such items, and sold some of his devices to other criminals for great profit. He also lost a great deal because of those choices, his own family were killed by men that wanted to take artifacts and gadgets from his private collection without paying for them. In the aftermath of that tragedy, he had come to Shinto, eventually becoming a priest and learning some deep and ancient secrets in the process.
Osuma was touched by Aki's growing dedication to Shinto, and by the tragedy of her life. As he Jiichan neared his death, and with enemies still seeking her life, he offered her an opportunity to keep a portion of her Jiichan with her, to help to guide and protect her. It required a ceremony at the time of his death, and she reluctantly agreed, but only after her Jiichan himself finally made her accept that his time had come. The Shinto ceremony involved a ritual tattooing with a sacred Kanji, or word, that bound the Kami, or spirit, of her Jiichan to her. While not like a traditional western ghost or guardian angel, her Jiichan's spirit lent her strength and temperance, qualities he had helped to teach her in life. It also gave her the strength to persevere after his death.
But that wasn't all. The ceremony also left her with visions of her Jiichan's life and experiences which came to her in dreams. It left her with vistages of his skills in life, not least of which was a prowess with the martial arts that he had taught her far beyond her own skills. The girl in her desired vengance for her family, while the spirit bound to her urged temperance. Together, they helped her to form a plan rather than blindly lashing out against the men that had killed her family and were now after her. As the former head of the Yakuza family that her father died in charge of, her Jiichan knew a great deal about the orginization, and, in dreams, she learned of storehouses and safehouses that still existed, though under 'new management.' She forged a plan to attack these places, and slipped out in the night to engage in a silent battle against her foes.
She worked from the shadows, calling the police to investigate some while setting fires at others, and felt that she was doing some good. Her luck didn't hold out for long, however, and she was caught on one of her escapades and forced to defend her self and escape. In the process, she nearly lost her left eye, the experience leaving a deep and permanent scar across that side of her face. Given the injury, she wasn't able to hide what she was doing from Osuma or her Baachan anymore, and confessed to them. Her Baachan was horrified, but Osuma understood better, having such losses as she did in his past. While her Baachan focused on planning to move her to her mother's family in America, Osuma determined to help her on her chosen path.
He conducted another ceremonial tattooing, this time binding other Kami to her with elemental powers. He also gifted her with a bracer that he had designed, which was not only bullet-proof, but had a strong grappling line that could be used to swing, climb, and disable foes. He bundled up some of her Jiichan's things along with the rest of her packing, some of the weapons he had trained with as a younger man, and wished her well on her journey to the west.
Her mother's family had known about her all of her life, but were like strangers, none the less. America was a strange place to her, but, as she had never had any freedoms in her life up to that time, she embraced an open life with a whole heart. Feeling that she would one day return home and defeat the forces that had destroyed her family, she used her time in the streets of Los Angles to fight with minor criminals and perfect her skills and talents, as the vigilante Shintai. It was at that time that she first encounted Avanteguard, and was recruited to the team for a short time.
She found herself well liked among the other heroes, and respected despite her youth, but, eventually, her family troubles followed her across the ocean, and she felt that she was endangering her comrades by staying a part of the team. She went back to Tokyo to deal with her family roots once and for all, and, after a couple of years, finally brought down the Yakuza organization that had hounded her and cost her so much. This didn't leave her on good terms with the remaining Yakuza in Japan, however, and she was again forced back to America, where she sought to rejoin members of the now broken up Avanteguard. When she learned that AfterShock and Blastar had taken up in Miami, she decided to join them, and has been an asset to them ever since.
AfterShock has always thought of her as a little sister, and does what he can to make her life simplier. He feels bad for the girl, knowing that she has had a hard life, but respects her enough not to patronize her. Blastar likes having another girl around she can spar with, but, admittedly, has some trouble with her youth. Overall, she gets along well with them all, but still yearns for more normal family life, and sometimes finds herself getting into trouble in an attempt reclaim a childhood cut short.
Appearance:
Aki Yamaguchi is a very fit young woman of nearly 20, about 5'7" and a good mix of Japanese and American features. She is very attractive, aside from an obvious scar across her face, with long, black hair and large, light brown eyes. Her skin, once quite alibaster, is beginning to show a bit of a tan from her stays on the Miami beaches.
As Shintai, she wears a noh mask with a light half and a dark half, which bears a scar like she does. She wears a jumpsuit with concealed armor, and the bracer that Osuma gave her before leaving Japan. She is often armed with a wakazashi sword and a kisari-gama, in addition to some tricks and gadgets she's picked up along the way.
Shintai
Akiko (Aki) Yamaguchi
PL 10, 160 PP
Abilities: [24 PP]
STR 10 [0 PP]/ 12 w/ Blessings of the Kami
DEX 16 [6 PP]/ 20 w/ Blessings of the Kami
CON 14 [4 PP]/ 16 w/ Blessings of the Kami
INT 14 [4 PP]
WIS 16 [6 PP]/ 18 w/ Blessings of the Kami
CHA 14 [4 PP]
Combat: [32 PP]
Attack +6 [12 PP]/ +10 Melee
Defense +5 [10 PP]/ +12 w/ Dodge Focus (+3 Flat-Footed)
Toughness +2 [0 PP]/ +8 w/ Defensive Roll, Armored Bracer, and Blessings of the Kami
Fortitude +6 [4 PP]/ +7 w/ Blessings of the Kami
Reflex +8 [5 PP]/ +10 w/ Blessings of the Kami (+12 w/ Savage Speed of the Leopard; +2 more vs. AoE w/ Defensive Roll)
Will +6 [3 PP]/ +7 w/ Blessings of the Kami
Feats: [42 PP]
Acrobatic Bluff
Attack Focus (Melee) 4 [4 PP]
Attractive
Blind-Fight
Defensive Roll 2 [2 PP]
Dodge Focus 7 [7 PP]
Equipment 6 [6 PP]
Evasion
Grappling Finesse
Hide in Plain Sight
Improved Critical (Unarmed)
Improved Disarm 2 [2 PP]
Improved Initiative
Luck
Martial Strike 5 [5 PP]
Monkey-Climber
Move-By Action
Power Attack
Quick Draw
Sneak Attack
Takedown Attack
Uncanny Dodge (Hearing)
Skills: [20 PP] 80 ranks
Acrobatics +10 (+13/+15)
Bluff +4 (+6)
Computers +1 (+3)
Concentration +2 (+5/+6)
Craft (Artistic) +2 (+4)
Drive +4 (+7/+9)
Escape Artist +4 (+7/+9)
Gather Information +2 (+4)
Investigate +2 (+4)
Knowledge: Arcane Lore +2 (+4)
Knowledge: Art +2 (+4)
Knowledge: History +1 (+3)
Knowledge: Pop-Culture +6 (+8)
Knowledge: Streetwise +4 (+6)
Knowledge: Technology +1 (+3)
Knowledge: Theology and Philosophy +4 (+6)
Language 2 (English and Spanish, Native is Japanese)
Notice +6 (+9/+10)
Search +2 (+4)
Sense Motive +6 (+9/+10)
Sleight of Hand +2 (+5/+7)
Stealth +10 (+13/+15)
Swim +1 (+1/+2)
Powers: [42 PP]
Blessings of the Kami: [10 PP]
-Enhanced Strength 2 {2 PP}
-Enhanced Dexterity 4 {4 PP}
-Enhanced Constitution 2 {2 PP}
-Enhanced Wisdom 2 {2 PP}
Invoking the Kami: Array 10 (AP 2) [22 PP]
-Hand of Raging Ki: Strike 2 (Incurable, Mighty; Penetrating {up to Rank 8}; Secondary Effect {up to Rank 8}; Considered an Unarmed Strike) [Initial Power]
-Visage of Amaterasu: Dazzle 10 (Visual; Perception Area, Selective; Touch Range) [AP]
-Savage Speed of the Leopard: Enhanced Reflex 2 (Linked, Sustained Duration) AND Enhanced Feats 4 (Evasion, Follow Up Attack, Improved Initiative, Takedown Attack; Linked, Sustained Duration) AND Leaping 3 (Linked) AND Speed 3 (Linked) AND Strike 2 (Mighty, Linked; Autofire {up to rank 8}; Considered an Unarmed Strike) [AP]
Osuma's Bracer: Device 3 (Hard to Lose) [12 PP]
-Swingline: Array 5 (AP 3) {13}
--Swingline Travel: Strike 2 (Knockback 2, Mighty; Only for Slam Attacks) AND Speed 2 (Linked) AND Super-Movement 2 (Slow-Fall, Swinging; Linked) [Initial Power]
--Swingline Entangle: Snare 8 (Accurate 2, Reversible, Tether; Entangle; Power Loss {Cannot Maintain More Than One Snare at a Time}) [AP]
--Swingline Trip: Trip 7 (Accurate 2, Improved Trip) [AP]
-Armored Bracer: Protection 3 (Weak Point) {2 PP}
Totals: Abilities [24 PP] + Combat [32 PP] + Feats [42 PP] + Skills [20 PP] + Powers [42 PP] = [160 PP]
Equipment: {30 EP}
Kisari-Gama (Damage 2, Critical 19-20, Type Bludgeoning or Slashing, Range 15 ft, Small Size, +2 to Disarm and Trip rolls; Built as a Whip with more Damage and Improved Critical) {8 EP}
Wakazashi (Damage 3, Critical 19-20, Type Slashing, Range Melee, Medium Size) {5 EP}
Smoke Grenades (Obscure {Visual}, 10 ft Radius, Small Size) {4 EP}
Commlink {1 EP}
Slap-Cuffs (Handcuffs) {1 EP}
Lock Release Gun {1 EP}
Motorcycle (Standard, but +1 Speed) {10 EP}
Complications:
Addiction (Adrenaline): Aki often takes unreasonable risks in the name of the adrenaline rush she will receive. As such, she prefers to be right in front of a fight, trading blow for blow with foes that are usually much larger than she is.
Enemy (Yakuza Families): Having already caused havok for a powerful Yakuza syndicate, the remaining Yakuza see Shintai as a thread, and have put a substantial price on her head.
Reputation (Family History): Being from a Yakuza family can sometimes have it's own drawbacks, especially when dealing with law enforcement or other people with Japanese ancestory.
Poor Impulse Control (Rebellious): Since entering her late teens, Aki has had a strong rebellious streak that she often has a hard time controlling. She has a distaste for conventional authority and tends to develop childish bad habits as a result.
Other Notes:
Another member of the Mean Street team, Shintai is part martial artist, part costumed adventurer, and part street fighter video game. She was a short term character in the game that these characters were originally part of, ultimately unable to adapt to the rigidness of a strait-laced super-hero group, but in Mean Street she fits in much better.
