Saiteki Misumi

Misumi Saiteki (最適ミスミ) is a Jōnin in Kirigakure no Sato, and currently the Vanguard member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist.

History
Many, many years ago, in the barren mountains in the land that would come be known as the Land of Earth, there lived a man, and his wife. Saiteki Ōjuro and his young bride, Miyami, lived in a stone house built by the man's own blood and sweat, and they were truly happy in their solitude. When she became pregnant, their joy increased a hundredfold. However, it would not last, even the duration of her pregnancy. In her eighth month, Miyami took seriously ill; a complication with her child. Days from a doctor of any kind, Ōjuro found his options limited. Should he try to induce her labor early, and hope she was strong enough to survive the birth, or attempt to cut the baby from her and risk losing it in the process? For days he wrestled with this, having never felt so helpless in his life. Finally, it was Miyami that gave him direction. There was a plant that grew less than a day's journey, that would induce labor in her. Reluctant to leave her, Ōjuro eventually gave in, and set off to find the plant, running as fast as his strong legs could carry him. Upon his return home, he was greeted by tragedy; the door to his home was broken in. Rushing inside, he found his wife, lying dead, her throat torn out by some sort of animal. Suddenly overcome by despair, Ōjuro readied to take his own life to rejoin his love, only to be stopped by the sound of crying. In his grief, he'd forgotten about the child completely. Beneath a blanket beside the bed, he found not one, but two, newborn baby girls.

Ōjuro raised the girls, named Miyuu and Misumi after their mother, in the mountains. Despite the tragic circumstances of their birth, he remained in the home he'd built for his wife. For twelve years he raised them as best he could, teaching them everything he knew of the world and how to survive within it. And then history repeated itself. One evening, the twins came home to find the door shattered inwards. However, all the found inside was a house full of broken furniture and some splatters of fresh blood. After a month of waiting, the two reached the conclusion that their father wasn't coming home, and that they weren't going to wait around for whatever took him. Packing what belongings they could take with them, the two decided to head east, following the rising sun.

After what seemed like endless walking and hardships, and more than a few boat rides, the girls arrived at the gates of a village known as Kirigakure no Sato, on a large, cold island. Tired of traveling, this seemed as good a place as any to stop. Applying for citizenship, the girls were introduced to the current and second Mizukage, a man named Shigeo. The twins immediately enrolled in the Ninja Academy, and began the life of a shinobi. Misumi advanced through her training quickly, showing a natural affinity for Kenjutsu. In only a few months she graduated to the rank of Genin, and six months later passed her Chuunin Exam at the age of 14. A year and a half after she was promoted to Jounin; continuing to dedicate most of her free time to training.

Misumi opted to stay in Kirigakure for some time after her sister left, and in a relatively short time found herself serving as a member of the Village Council. As time passed, Misumi's ambitions continued to grow, and it wasn't long before she felt that Kirigakure had little more to teach her. At this point, she easily decided to leave, in order to perfect herself, but promised she would once she achieved her apex.

Vanguard of Destruction
Upon returning to Kirigakure, Misumi learned of an organization that had formed in her absence; The Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. Highly intrigued by the concept of an elite group of Kenjutsu Masters, and learing that the group had an opening, Misumi had barely settled back into village life before she submitted an application. It didn't take long before she was contacted by the then Auxiliary of the group, Gitsune, and her tests were arranged. Misumi almost lost interest in the group upon discovery that the first two tests were written exams, but managed to focus herself enough force through them. The final exam, thankfully, was a live match against one of the other members, Hachiman. Using her newly forged Twin-Sharks, Misumi passed the test, having expected no less. Upon her formal induction, she was granted the third seat, and rank of Vanguard within the organization. Some time after, she was also given the role of Sword Keeper, tasked with protecting the groups legendary swords when not in use.

A Brush with Darkness
Preferring to train away from other people, Misumi often left the village, and traveled to other islands for solitude. It was upon one of these training trips that she met a young man by the name of Jaevon. Shortly afterwards, the two were attacked by what appeared to be a group of animated dead, several of them bearing obvious wounds of what killed them. Fighting alongside the man, the two of them defeated the group of undead. It was during the fight that Misumi's Tomoe Rinnegan activated for the first time, saving her. It wasn't until after the battle that Misumi learned the truth; the dead had been possessed by an evil entity who had also recently possessed the young man she had fought beside. Recognizing the danger, as well as the opportunity, Misumi took two of the bodies back to Kirigakure for research.

The Midst of the Mist
She didn't know it then, but she would encounter the entity Serean multiple times in the months following. The next encounter came when the unnatural darkness enveloped the village. Moving into the streets to investigate the cause, Misumi was cornered by a spectral version of herself. The body double taunted and mocked her with promises of power and immortality, goading Misumi into attacking it. It was at that point that Serean was able to take control of her body, subduing her mind temporarily. With her in his thrall, he used her body to attack Kirigakure. Luckily, before too much damage could be done, the swordsman Enshi intervened. After a battle against Misumi and her path bodies, she was able to reclaim control enough to allow him to knock her out and purge Serean's control.

Attack on Titan
Scant minutes after recovering from her possession, Misumi learned that the Auxiliary of the Seven Swordsman had gone with a former Hokage to the Land of Lightning to combat the source of the darkness. After taking a few hours to digest this information, as well as rest and repair her damaged paths, Misumi decided that her best bet for answers lay with them. Riding on the back of a summoned Rinne-Bird, she was able to make good time, and catch the two shortly after they arrived, in time to witness the final bouts of a man attempted to go toe-to-toe with an enormous Titan. As the Hokage, Nathan, and the other man, Genesis, battled against the titan, Misumi and Gitsune combated a young girl possessed by Serean, Maya. The fight ended with the defeat of both the Titan as well as the youth. Believing the girl to be the cause of a great many problems, Gitsune called for her death. Offering an alternate solution, Misumi suggested the girl be cast in the King of Hell.

Training
During her time away from her village, Misumi continued to train and develop her Kenjutsu, both with the assistance of Masters and on her own, fighting bandits for money. This lead to a somewhat unique, and at times very unorthodox method of swordsmanship, but one that certainly helped to keep her opponents on their heels. She also vested a great deal of time into her Suiton Ninjutsu, always looking for new angles or tactics that would give her an upper hand.

However, as the years passed and she continued to grow and improve, she continued to age as well. While this was a normal phenomenon to almost every individual, she quickly realized that her body would pass its prime long before her journey to perfection was complete. She shifted focus, and began to scour the continent for a means to combat this seeming design flaw.

Eventually, her search brought her to the existence of the Fushi Tensei, and she realized that not only was it possible to extend her life, but to improve her body as well. Many years later, now past middle-age and the prime of her youth, Misumi was able to obtain the Kinjutsu, and wasted no time in finding herself a new body. Several years later, she jumped again, and a number of years after that. Through luck, and her own design, Misumi's current body was possessed of abilities her younger self had never dreamed of.

Bloodline Hunter
In Misumi's lifelong quest for complete superiority, she has studied every Kekkei Genkai she has come across as much as she could. However, she found that introducing too many new bloodlines into a body proved to be more than they could take, and so she was forced to take ones that worked together within the body.

This changed, though, one day after she Human Path'd a bandit leader whom had been kidnapping travelers. Upon absorbing his soul, she learned his knowledge of the Chimera Technique. With that information came the realization that she could have all the bloodline abilities she wanted. There was only one problem: being a creature of vanity, the price was too high, even with such power on the line.

Immediately Misumi set to work on refining the technique, and shortly developed a variation. She could take a partial sample of the Kekkei in question through surgical removal, and assimilate it within herself.

While not as powerful as the full version, it would allow her access to the abilities without needing to absorb the body into her own, and therefore retain her appearance.

To date, Misumi has data and samples of 7 bloodline traits:
 * Sharingan
 * Rinnegan
 * Ketsuryūgan
 * Steel Release
 * Wood Release
 * Crystal Release
 * Ice Release

Six Paths
Optimal Six Paths [Rikudō Saiteki 六道仙最適] refers to Misumi's use of six path bodies through which to channel her Rinnegan abilities. While it obviously directly relates to her family name, it is also used to suggest that Misumi's use is best, or optimal.



Asura
Name: Asaka Hidori

Age: 27

A former Jōnin of Kusagakure. Misumi cut down this woman after learning that she planned to double cross her in a deal.



Preta
Name: Fumiko Odashi

Age: 22

A former Jōnin of Konohagakure, Misumi once considered this woman as a potential candidate for Fushi Tensei. However, she quickly decided the woman wasn't up to her standards and found another use for her.



Deva
Name: Kuromo Sanada

Age: 30

Formerly an ANBU of Kirigakure, after this man went rogue and tried to steal village secrets, Misumi was tasked with stopping him.



Naraka
Name: Unknown

Age: Unknown

This path was once a corpse reanimated by the entity Serean, only to die again at the end of Misumi's blades.



Animal
Name: Unknown

Age: Unknown

Like Naraka, this path was dead before Misumi found it, and used by Serean to attack her.



Human
Name: Vagabond

Age: Unknown

This path was not killed by Misumi, but did contain the Mangekyō she implanted into herself. Not wanting to waste the body, she turned it into her final path, using a pair of spare eyes.

Weapons and Equipment
Aside from the standard Shinobi tools, Misumi carries a variety of other weapons and gear as well.

Nami Kurībā [Wave Cleaver 波クリーバー]
A massive Odaichi usually carried on her back, Nami Kurībā is capable of creating water when chakra is channeled through the hilt, allowing the wielding to perform Suiton techniques without hand seals.



Futago no Kōshō [Double Biting Sharks 双子の咬傷]
Twin short-swords typically worn on Misumi's right hip, these cleaver-style weapons are capable of not only cutting through, but also absorbing chakra. Additionally, the two are connected by a length of seal-sealing chain. This allows to the user to control the exact length of chain at any given time with minimal effort.

Batā & Batāde Wanai [Butter & I can't believe it's not Butter バターバターではない]
Duel Katana worn on Misumi's left hip, these blades are used primarily for Iaidō strikes. However, the user can also store chakra in the blades, that can then be released in a burst of Fūton. Furthermore, the hilts can detach from the blades, and be used to create a Fūton-infused chakra sword.



Shark Mask
Despite no longer being a member of Kirigakure's ANBU, Misumi still frequently wears her custom mask.