Hozuki Mangetsu

• Name: Hozuki Mangetsu (aka Kijin no Sairai – Second Coming of the Demon)
• Gender: Male
• Height: 172 cm; 5’7”
• Weight: 54.7 kg
• Blood Type: AB
• Birth date: February 15 [Aquarius]
• Affiliation: Kirigakure
• Team: Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist
• Rank: Jonin [Genin: 8, Chuunin: 10, Jonin: 12]
• Clan: Hozuki Clan

Mangetsu was born into the Hozuki clan, a notable clan in the village that produced a Mizukage at one point in the history of Kirigakure (Gengetsu Hozuki, Nidaime Mizukage). Eight years later, he would become the older brother to Suigetsu. With a natural talent for kenjutsu, Mangetsu would gravitate towards learning swordsmanship since a very young age.

A few years later, owing to constant infighting and general instability of Kirigakure thanks to the bloody reign of the new Mizukage, the numbers of the Hozuki clan dwindle, leaving very few behind. Orphaned at the age of thirteen, Mangetsu takes up a parental role in addition to that of older sibling to Suigetsu. Mostly self-taught (with a lot of initial raining by his father) and with the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist as role models, Mangetsu would push himself towards training to become one of the strongest shinobi of Kirigakure, his dream being that of becoming a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist along with his little brother. It’s a dream that he comes to share with Suigetsu, and one towards which they both work hard. Hard work also entails ruthless missions and massacre, and each cruel act is seen merely as another step towards his goal. However, Mangetsu has additional motives for joining the highest ranks of elite ninja: a chance at restoring political stability to his village. These goals, however, are never voiced.

Mangetsu eventually qualifies for the position and lands himself a spot on the team. He proves himself an exceptionally skilled swordsman, managing what no one else in the history of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist was able to accomplish when he is able to wield all seven swords, including the very picky Great Sword Samehada. Mangetsu joins the Seven Ninja Swordsmen during the reign of the Yondaime Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi. Yagura had a zero-tolerance policy when it came to traitors, so the incident with Juzo Biwa and Fuguki Suikazaan results in him entrusting all seven swords to Mangetsu to carry with him when the Seven would go into battle, bringing out all seven only when ready to battle. However, Samehada would always be in Kisame’s possession.

Somewhere along the lines, Mangetsu bumps into Choujuro, whom he reluctantly takes on as a sort of mentee during his time with the Seven. Choujuro would be the only surviving person to witness Mangetsu’s horrific death, something that scars him and stays his hand with Hiramekarei when he inherits it later. Mangetsu’s death is a direct result of betrayal, with every intention to a) crush the people’s morale by wiping out a symbol, and also to b) weaken Terumi Mei’s faction by taking out one of its strongest supporters. Whoever was behind his death wanted absolutely no part in helping Kirigakure come out of its dark age and prosper into what Mei and later, Choujuro, would help it become.

Mangetsu dies loyal to the village he served, with Hiramekarei being the only sword ultimately in Kiri’s possession during the Fourth War.

Mangetsu is first and foremost a swordsman—a man who lives by the sword, and one that ultimately dies by it, too.

Mangetsu is not afraid to shoulder the burden of his mistakes and to take complete responsibility for his actions. He does not believe in salvation coming from an outside source, or that it is made available only to those that believe in a particular deity. Having grown up during some of Kirigakure’s most turbulent times and having witnessed too much to not be able to turn a blind eye, he is fully aware that things are as they are because of a messed up system created by men to serve men—or at least a select group of men.

Mangetsu lives by his version of kendo—the way of the sword. He practices quite a bit of Zen principles, seeing as how kendo and Zen are connected. So there is a lot of focus on meditation (either sitting still or being very aware during training), self-reflection and intuition. He’s learned to always see the ‘complete picture’ and never really focus on just a small part while ignoring the rest—so just as he would not focus on a singular part of his opponent or the situation at hand, Mangetsu extends this view into the way he sees the world as well.

There is always the constant drive to achieve perfection when perfection is nigh impossible. In a sense, this pursuit of perfection is what drives him to constantly better himself, and is a core part of him that allows him to get to where he is and be able to wield all seven legendary swords. Perfection would be mastering each and every one of them. Perfection would be using this mastery to develop something cohesive and whole with all seven. Perfection never ceases. Passion never ceases.

His personality mirrors his unique body modification technique (the ability to liquefy), and this in turn mirrors the way in which he wields his swords. Mangetsu is both fluid as well as detached. He is constantly in motion, yet calm at the very center. This is also perhaps why Hiramekarei is the first sword he happens to master of the Seven, it being an extremely versatile weapon, able to change form and length at will and to either function as one or two—fluid, dynamic, adaptable. At times this fluidity is such that he can consider his sword as an extension of himself.

At the same time, Mangetsu is also quite detached. He is able to detach himself from his swords to be able to accept that they are, at their very core, merely tools for killing. He is also so detached that when he cuts down people, there is no moral obligation or a sense of justice attached to it. What goes on in his mind then is the mere thought that he needs to cut his opponent down. And with each strike, he gets better at what he does, because each stroke is a new opportunity for learning—and Mangetsu is constantly learning. Mangetsu accepts death as a natural part of life and is of the opinion that he needs not spare any consideration for his opponents’ feelings because they ought to be aware of the fact that death was a very real risk in their profession. This detachment also makes it easy for him to dive right into a melee and fight unshackled, like he has nothing to lose.

Mangetsu is ever the believer that there is no better time than the present. His focus is on the here and now, having understood that the past cannot be undone but that whatever is done today is where your feet may ultimately take you to in the future. There is no destiny apart from the one you carve out for yourself. There is no purpose besides the one you find along the way. There is no end until you breathe your dying breath.

But behind the detached, calm and level-headed swordsman is a devoted and loving brother who would go to every length to ensure his little brother’s happiness. Orphaned at the age of thirteen, Mangetsu fills in the role of brother, mother and father to a five year old Suigetsu. Having been bought up in a household that valued balance and healthy relationships, and also owing to his philosophy and approach to life in general, balance plays a great role in his relationship with Suigetsu. As much as he loves him, as precious as Suigetsu is to him (perhaps even more than life itself), Mangetsu never attempts to shield the world from him: the good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly, victory and defeat, the duality of nature and the impermanence of it. There is never empty praise, nor is there unnecessary reprimand. Being the older brother, Mangetsu also takes up the role of mentor and leads by example. He teaches with an open fist with nothing to hide, with encouragement to think outside the box and suggestion to encourage self-discovery instead of flat out explaining the facts right away. And when he loves, he loves openly and unconditionally and finds ways to reassure Suigetsu of this fact so much so that their relationship and their trust in their relationship is secure. However, as much as he loves his little brother, there is no intention to try and control his brother’s decisions. Mangetsu sees this as undermining his brother and is something he steers clear away from. They may both be prodigies that share the same dreams, but he is a staunch believer that it gives neither one the right to be overprotective of the other to the point that they would cripple each other’s development.

He is also Hozuki, and if there’s one thing a Hozui has in spades, it’s their mordant or satirical humor, which Mangetsu inherits a good heaping of. Also like most Hozuki, he isn’t shy about dishing it out. He is, however, a lot more reserved than most of them, and generally quiet unlike his little brother, sort of feeding into the stereotypical genius personality.