application : expiation [SPOILERS]

[overtid]

Player: Jules
Contact: PM, idiotequed#3937 @ discord
Age: 30+
Current Characters: N/A.
Link to Reserve: Here.

Character Name: Nanami Kento
Character Canon: Jujutsu Kaisen
Canon Point: Chapter 120
Age: 28

Crime: Desertion, with tints of irresolution.

The exact timing is unclear, but my interpretation is that after his good (only) friend and (only) classmate Haibara's death, he finished out his high school education at Jujutsu High School (another 1.5 years) and left the world of sorcery, eventually working as a salaryman. He characterizes this as quitting and "running away," because sorcery/shamanism is shit — (i) "at times you have to force onto your comrades the resolve to throw their lives away for someone else’s sake". Between that, (ii) the fact he almost certainly quit because of what happened to Haibara (see (v) below), (iii) his line immediately after Haibara's death, upon learning that Gojo Satoru was easily dispatching the curse that he and Haibara should never have been assigned (being a higher grade than identified, systematic and human indifference), that "isn't that guy [Gojo] enough by himself", and (iv) his belief as a salaryman that he's a human without a purpose in life, someone who would never do anything worthwhile — it's never directly said, but it's reasonable to infer that Haibara in some way sacrificed his life for Nanami.

Anyway, after quitting/running away from sorcery, he perceives himself as (and intends to be) utterly disconnected from both people and curses, seeking to half-heartedly make money and retire quickly. This may have largely been a bout of depressed self-dishonesty, but he nonetheless ran, turned his back on the shit of sorcery, and despite seeming to gain resolve/purpose enough to return by exorcising a curse plaguing a a bakery employee — in his last moments, he still wonders what the hell he was trying to do, whether he'd done enough, characterizing the purpose of his return as "the vague reason of doing something worthwhile". (And, (v) hallucinates or truly sees Haibara pointing at an answer — Itadori Yuji, i.e., the younger generation(s).)

There could be some argument that his philosophy of self-control to the point of suppressing emotion and restricting his own desires and impulses is another form of desertion, in the sort of way that might work nicely in this kind of environment. Another arguable form: [spoiler]dying[/spoiler] when he did and leaving all the bullshit to the kids.

Background: Wiki. The wiki hilariously describes him as "sociable" in the personality section, but telling a cursed spirit you don't hate the act of talking depending on who you're talking to (the citation) =/= sociable??? You'd think the matter-of-fact synopsis should be safe, but lol @ describing the reason Nanami quit sorcery as "he found it to be a pain". See above, "Crime". All of which is to say... I'm linking to the wiki in the interest of having some illusion of brevity, but take anything characterization-wise with a grain of salt? On my part, sorry for the 799 word personality section.

Personality: “Adapting to the facts [in front of you] and managing yourself accordingly. That’s who I am. There was a time where I mistakenly believed society operated on the same basis.”

The 7:3 sorcerer, an ex-salaryman (designed by the mangaka with the "corporate dropout" in mind), and the "adult of adults", Nanami Kento's initial impression is one of severity, stoicism and by-the-bookness. Deliberate in thought, action, feeling, everything.

One might expect such a man, professional and professing adherence to rules of society (sorcerer and civilian alike), to be unquestioningly devoted to that society and to respect the work they do. Nanami hates it. In one breath insisting on formal introductions and denouncing Gojo’s flagrant disregard for the rules, in the next bluntly stating that work is shit and sorcery is shit, Nanami is a man both polite and coarse, rigorous and casual. Impatient, prone to lecture, yet non-judgmental and considerate. For Nanami, following the rules and doing the job doesn’t mean throwing yourself headlong — he advises Itadori not to try to save everyone, to do so in moderation so as to not himself die (or be crushed by failure). When Itadori earlier enthuses, “Let’s go all out!” Nanami retorts, “No, if moderate’s enough, let’s do it moderately.”

Yet, when Itadori is horrified by the transfigured humans, Nanami takes it back, subtly reassuring in the process: it can’t be done moderately, let’s go all out. His attempts to keep himself unattached and only professionally involved are often undermined. He tells Itadori to prove himself a capable sorcerer beyond the curse within him, but just to the higher ups, because he doesn’t care — but is the one to acknowledge Itadori as a sorcerer while comforting him. Confronted with a transfigured human in agony and remembering Ieiri stating that they can’t be helped — only death — he tells the curse responsible that he isn’t upset, because he doesn’t bring his personal feelings into work. But, the curse giddily accuses him of lying, because his soul is wavering. Before, in an act of striking tenderness for an impersonal guy, he wipes a tear from the “human’s” eye.

He’s furious then, and furious in Shibuya when finding Ijichi (his junior and noncombatant manager) bleeding out, viewing his attack as unforgivable as Haibara’s death. His intense self-regulation may be, at least in part, a means against how deeply he’d otherwise feel. He claims in that moment that he’s never been and never will be frustrated by his own uselessness, but that’s plainly untrue — because he’d been useless when Haibara died, frustrated (and eventually ran away) when Gojo could so handily exorcise the curse.

Nanami doesn’t intend to lie to himself, as deliberate in his honesty as everything else. It may be a disconnect from feeling, rigorous in suppressing. He believes himself disconnected, perhaps to continue while endlessly grappling with that human question of why. As funny as the “I do not dream of labor” memes are, look to his words to the bakery clerk for why work is shit: his job, which made rich people richer and exploited most, was disconnected from human life. No one would miss him if he disappeared, but they’d miss bakeries. Purpose, which he could not acknowledge (running from it, frustrated by his uselessness), could be to help others in whatever way he could. When he tells Itadori he returned to sorcery because, if both are shit, he might as well do what he has more aptitude for — it’s ultimately honest, because with aptitude, he might help others.

When Itadori, whom the higher-ups tried to get killed, survives, Gojo entrusts Nanami with that secret and his emotional well-being, recognizing Nanami’s compassion as a man who understands the suffering of others. (Funnily, the mangaka gave Nanami a Danish grandfather because he has he impression that Danes are particularly considerate of others?) While looking after Itadori, Nanami stresses that death-defying encounters don’t make someone an adult — little despairs do (hairs on your pillow, local konbini no longer carrying your favorite bread). As an adult, it’s his duty to prioritize Itadori over himself. When trying to shield Itadori from the worst of it, he later emphasizes: being a child isn’t a sin. Unlike his generation, kids should be protected as much as possible. When he questions his reason for returning and Haibara points to Itadori, Nanami keeps compassionate and self-denying to his last — realizing that the weight of his truth might curse Itadori, he instead tells him that he’s got it from there. We never learn what he would have said, what he understood, but it’s not hard to guess.

Databook asides: foodie, loves bread, hobbies include drinking (second heaviest of the cast!) and cooking for himself, after work he goes home and reads by himself. Would never consider marriage while a sorcerer. #TiredMillennial

Abilities: As a Grade 1 Sorcerer, Nanami had reached the highest rank a sorcerer could through the natural progression (special grades being a whole "special" thing). With Grade 1 comes extremely dangerous missions, high levels of confidentiality, and emblematic leadership. While as much (if not more?) due to personality, Nanami is strong enough that the strongest-sorcerer Gojo trusts him with his precious students, considering him more reliable than most, and Ino Takuma conducts himself while working by asking himself what Nanami would do. Though he doesn't think of himself with any real regard or pride, he knows his own strength, forbidding Kugisaki from accompanying him into the depths of Shibuya, as only a Grade 1 Sorcerer or above could assist without getting in the way.

Nanami demonstrates strong tactical intellect, sharp and swift assessments, and physical strength and flexibility that do not seem dependent on his considerable cursed energy. By using both a wrapped blade and his fists while fighting, Nanami is shown to be a strong combarant, skilled in hand-to-hand and with the sword. He also does some frankly ridiculous acrobatics while wearing a suit. However much intrinsic to his ratio technique, given that it's his innate technique and everything about Nanami is 7:3 to a pretty silly degree, it's fair to ascribe to him extreme precision.

As for the fantastical:

Cursed Energy: Nanami possesses a high amount of cursed energy that he, true to form, has exceptional (and at times subconscious) control over. While clearly a physically sturdy guy, he also reinforces and greatly amplifies his durability such that, when attacked by the curse user who'd been killing the auxillary managers (and wounded Ijichi), he isn't cut, and seems to the user like hitting a brick wall. Approaching that curse user after finding Ijichi, in his fury his cursed energy is so immense that it briefly staggered both Kugisaki and the user. When Mahito (the curse behind the transfigured humans) strikes at his soul, meaning to transfigure him, Nanami subconsciously protected himself with cursed energy. Most notably, of course —

Overtime: A Binding Vow made with himself, by which Nanami limits the amount of cursed energy he uses during the time he's officially "on the clock" (working a standard eight hour "shift"). Once he goes beyond that "shift", overtime begins, and his cursed energy is released and increased a significant amount. The Binding Vow suppresses his cursed energy to roughly 80-90%, and during Overtime, his cursed energy rises to 110-120%. Though he can break the Binding Vow to use 100% of his cursed energy outside of those conditions, Overtime then would only get him to 101%-ish.

Ratio Technique: His "innate technique" by which Nanami divides his target with ten lines and forcibly create a weak spot at the ratio point of seven to three. This ratio can be created at any point or part of the target, not its entire body — e.g., he could ratio and create a weak point on the head, torso, arms, and legs. He can also use this technique on non-living objects, as with his use of Collapse, where he created a weak point in the sewer wall and caused the entire tunnel to collapse and crush Mahito. Additionally, Nanami frequently uses the Binding Vow/techique Revealing One's Hand — by divulging how the ratio technique works, that is, putting himself at a seeming disadvantage by giving the opponent that information, he maximizes the output of cursed energy in his next attack.

Nanami has also used Black Flash, a technique that creates spatial distortion when the user connects with an impact of cursed energy within a span of 0.000001 seconds of a physical hit. This causes the cursed energy to flash black, creating an attack equal to a normal hit to the power of 2.5. Not only has Nanami used Black Flash, but before Itadori broke his record, he held the record for the most consecutive uses of Black Flash. Accomplished during the Night Parade of 100 Demons while protecting students, Nanami nonetheless after the fact said (when interviewed by Ino in max fanboy mode) that he just got lucky.

Finally, as evidenced by his nata and use of his tie wrapped around his fist, Nanami uses cursed tools and can presumably infuse his cursed energy into objects to then utilize for his ratio technique.

Inventory: Given the condition he was in before his final moment in chapter 120, I throw myself on the mercy of the mods and ask that he nonetheless show up in his standard Nanami-Kento-ex-Salaryman-Sorcerer garb — suit, complete with bland jacket and bizarrely ugly tie, wrapped nata blade strapped to his back, stupid expensive watch given his job, cell phone, and I suppose realistically a wallet.

Samples: These may not be five... even with obnoxious 2-week late tags I'm doing after I submit this... Hurt my back and basically died everyday after work.

top-level | tagging | around

Questions: N/A, unless just confirming I can wiggle around what he actually had on him in his canon point versus what I'd very much like for him to have. Sorry I cheated by entirely unsubtly shoving personality stuff under Crime and Background?