The Branching Paths: The Pilgrimage (Interest Check/OOC)

In Feudal Japan, a former Buddhist temple stands in serene elegance. The complex is modest and grand all at the same time, housing a well-kept main temple, a courtyard for physical training and lectures, beautiful gardens interspersed between the different living quarters, and a farm that the inhabitants sustain themselves with. A man-made stream diverted from a nearby river runs through the grounds and when the sun sits high in the sky, the whole school is gently shaded by a mountain range only a short distance away. A large village is a few days' journey away but the grounds already has the facilities to make supply runs far and few between, allowing students to fully focus on their training and different works. The buildings are maintained and populated by a well-respected master and his devoted followers. The monks here train themselves to become better people in mind, body, and spirit under the firm, yet gentle teachings of Master Natsu Katsuhira.

Katsuhira himself is of low upbringing. After a childhood, which extended into young adulthood, of thievery and senseless violence, he had a child. The realization that his lifestyle would put his child on the same hellish path as him struck, and so he forsook his old ways and ran off on his own. A kind Buddhist monk took him in at the age of twenty-five, with his newborn baby named Shu, and taught him to seek the inner truths within himself under his guidance and the teachings of Buddha. Over eight years, Katsuhira progressed well in his training and found the love of his master's daughter, bearing a second son, Hiro. Soon after Hiro's birth, the teacher passed away along with his daughter, and the other followers left to settle elsewhere, leaving Katsuhira the temple grounds with which to honor his former master's memory. He made the decision to re-open the monastery. However, instead of as a strict Buddhist environment, he opened it to troubled youths like he once was. His vision was to give them a chance to better themselves in a environment that encouraged introspection, spiritual awareness, and the ideal of being kind toward your fellow man. The School of Branching Paths.

The monastery has functioned in relative peace since it's rebirth as an alternative school of sorts, eighteen years ago. Given the social climate of the time period, bandits and the occasional stray soldiers turned raiders were the brunt of opposition they faced. To offer self-defense, Katsuhira taught his students the same style of martial arts his teacher taught him, an unorthodox discipline dubbed "Bonsai Style". The namesake comes from the style's openness to change and personal interpretation, meant to represent the many different paths the branches of a Bonsai tree can take.

Students have come and gone and Katsuhira has aged to 50. Shu and Hiro have advanced to leader roles of the disciples and have begun shouldering the load of managing the school. Though old, Master Katsuhira still engages with his pupils with the same vigor he always has. However, he knows he doesn't have many years left and seeks to teach his students their final lesson before his death.
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This RP is what I plan to be the first part in a trilogy. It deals with Master Katsuhira taking his sons+students on a pilgrimage that will advance them to the level of their training from which they won't need his guidance. It will be a Historical Fantasy Action/Adventure RP.

Bearing the genre of Historical Fantasy, things will be period-based. Characters will do a lot of walking on dirt paths and things of that nature. The fantasy comes more from the spiritual aspect of the story and some of the enemies characters will encounter. Content-wise, things won't get grimdark or anything but the storyline will delve into mature, realistic situations.

Spoiler: What To Expect/What I Would Like In This RP

With this being an RP about monks (technically, troubled youths turned monk-like students) going on a journey, I encourage characters to have lots of interaction with each other. Think of how it would be to come from hard beginnings, having difficulty trusting anyone, then transitioning to a lifestyle of reliance on your "brothers" and "sisters". Don't be afraid to question! I embrace users to get immersed in the world that I'll attempt to make as rich and inviting as I can, and I'm open to suggestions on different places to take the story. There will be combat and yes, some of it will be armed (more in Weapons/Combat) since in real life Buddhist monks trained and traveled with weaponry. However, I also encourage hand-to-hand combat when the situation's stakes aren't that high. I'll try to use in-character cues as to when students should draw their weapons. Lastly, on the more technical side, I'd like for this to be a descriptive RP. In my opinion, a decent post would be at least two paragraphs but I won't nitpick if all you can manage is one (not to sound condescending).

Spoiler: Weapons/Combat

Given the setting of Feudal Japan, the monks in this story would definitely need to know martial arts and carry weapons to defend themselves. That being said, to prevent extravagance, try to keep things practical and period-correct on the weapons side and only have your character carry 1. As for the combat itself, think of the tone as similar to a historical fantasy martial arts movie. To put it into words, think of how in these movies the more a character trains, the more nonsensical things they can do. So don't think of it as crazy if Master Katsuhira kicks a horse cart down a hill and it kills 20 bandits, because he's trained...really hard. Things like manipulating fire or other elements are a little too much, but things like exaggerated force/speed are fine.

Spoiler: Character Skeleton

Name:
Gender:
Age: (Adults are welcome, Master Katsuhira wouldn't turn anybody away. But I would like the focus to be on youths because of them naturally being at the age of finding themselves/questioning/etc.)
Background: (What were they doing before they joined Master Katsuhira's school, how did they find it, etc?
Personality: (What are they like? Interests/Morals? Try to flesh this out. The RP deals with themes of soul-searching and growth and it's more interesting if your character isn't static and has flaws that get tackled over the course of the story.)
Weapon:
Appearance: (Picture or text description, either is fine.)
Fighting Style: (In either straight description or a simulated fight, detail how your character fights. Highlight strengths and weaknesses or techniques they employ.)
Personal Goal of Joining School: (What did your character hope to gain within themselves by joining Katushira's school? Closeness with nature? Sated bloodlust? Be creative!)

[DOUBLEPOST=1428282365][/DOUBLEPOST]This is where I'll edit in everybody who I've accepted into the RP. If by chance things start to move and you don't think I'll see your sheet, just PM it to me and I'll let you know.

-Accepted Character Sheets-
Barakon-King

Spoiler: Natsu Katsuhira

Name: Natsu Katsuhira
Gender: Male
Age: 50
Background: Now the calm and seemingly at-peace Master Katsuhira, Natsu has a violent background of robbery and extortion. Born of a small-time pimp and one of his workers, his father only kept him around for a few years before sending him and his mother out into the world. They lived as nomads for many years with the mother continuing her former trade to provide for herself and a young Natsu. A fever took his mother at 12 and he settled as a street rat in a larger city.

He belonged to a street gang up until his first son’s birth at 19, after which he decided to seek better circumstances. After escaping the death penalty of leaving the gang he traveled the wilderness hunting, foraging, and stealing. He came upon the monastery after wandering the countryside and found the teacher who offered him a different path in life.

Natsu fell in love with his master’s daughter and the two bore a child, though both Natsu’s lover and his master passed away simultaneously from the same fever that took his mother. He dedicated himself to meditation and physical training, and was left the grounds that would become The School of Branching Paths. Now, he takes in those who ask for his guidance and attempts to put young people filled with doubt and inner struggle onto a better path as was done for him.

Personality: Master Katsuhira has a warm presence. Without wearing a smile, he exudes an air that makes people seem to drop their guard, making him a wonderful teacher for those with rougher upbringings. He is not a quiet teacher and will often have intimate conversations with his students to establish a personal connection. He is typically gentle, but takes his devotions quite seriously and isn’t slow to provide a scolding.

His past no longer haunts him like it did during his early days at the monastery. He has accepted the violence that rests within him long ago and treats it instead as a dormant energy, used to protect and educate that which he cares about. This is brought to life in many of his stories and lectures to students and he encourages them to find ways to accept shortcomings.

Weapon: Master Katsuhira has trained in using the Bonsai Style to the point where a physical weapon would only slow him down. Through channeling the murderous energy that once ruled him, he can perform deadly blows with his bare hands, though he prefers to fight seriously as little as possible.

Appearance:

Fighting Style: When training with his disciples, Master Katsuhira takes a crouched stance and makes strong, deliberate attacks. There is little flexibility on display and each motion is rigid, though fluid. When serious, he stands at full height and keeps his hands poised in front of his midsection. He strikes quickly and purposefully and is seen as moving supernaturally fast by a non-experienced fighter’s eye. Defensively, he tapers around most blows and guards with his hands.

His extensive training gives him the strength of many men and when provoked, his knowledge of murder offers him insight on where to perform death strikes.

Personal Goal of Joining School: Natsu, before becoming Master Katsuhira, sought retribution for all the lives he took and wanted find a positive outlet for his talent of combat.

Spoiler: Shu

Name: Shu
Gender: Male
Age: 26
Background: Shu was born during Natsu’s stint as a gangster but grew up on the monastery. Monk life was imposed on Shu and his father took great care in what he was taught, though he shared tales of his past regularly as part of his teachings. Shu has been naturally rebellious as the first child, however, and has taken many trips to the city to see what he was missing. The worldly environments enticed him for a moment, but he felt more fulfilled at the school.

As of now, Shu serves as a leader for the older students while continuing his own studies. Tensions with his father have become tight and the two say little outside of matters of maintaining the monastery.
Personality: Shu is the more latently aggressive of the two brothers. He maintains tactful behavior as often as he can, but harbors a temper, something he knows his father is displeased by. He doesn’t say unkind words but is sensitive and easy to anger, something that has prevalence in his offensive fighting style.

Shu feels as though his existence is just an idol of a sinful past to his father. A constant reminder of how unenlightened he used to be. Because of this, he disciplines himself harder than his father would and is often self-depreciative over his worldly ideals and disciples. He takes his meditating seriously, but can’t shake the sense that his energy is weighted with a darkness.
Weapon: A solid wood staff about seven feet long. The staff has weighted steel rings on either end as an added offensive measure.

Appearance:

Fighting Style: Shu prefers distance. He has a 6 foot wingspan and uses it to his advantage through maintaining a “cushion” between him and his opponent. This is brought out in armed combat by way of his staff which he operates in wide, strong swipes rather than deliberate pokes.

Shu is a heavy stepper and, consequently, can’t close space gracefully. He stutters in close quarters combat and breaks stance in an effort to keep his feet underneath him to guard against sweeps. His fighting relies on his steadily building anger to carry him through. He gains more control and focused attacks, outputting much more intense impact. Fighting this emotionally is draining however.
Personal Goal of Joining School: Though he was born into the school, Shu meditates in hope to gain inner balance between his life on the monastery and the life in the city he admonishes himself for fantasizing about. Though he fears with his age, it may be too late.

Spoiler: Hiro

Name: Hiro
Gender: Male
Age: 18
Background: Hiro is Master Katsuhira’s second son, representative of the ultimate turning point in his life. Hiro was raised on the monastery completely just like Shu, but never cared for learning of the outside world. He disciplines himself through extensive training of his Bonsai Style and studying of sacred texts left behind by the former monks that lived there. Hiro cares for his father and brother deeply and holds them both in admiration, despite the shortcomings Shu has in dedication to the school along with father’s violent past.

He plays an important role in the youths of the school and takes after his father in his attempts to gain personal relationships with students in his age group. He usually spends time offering guided meditations as a therapeutic way to introduce newcomers. In-between personal reflection times, he conducts sparring and combat training with his brother.

Personality: Hiro is a quiet force, yet possibly too quiet. He often holds his tongue in attempts to maintain a neutral position and keep balance. He prefers to answer personal questions through studying and meditation and as a result, spends a lot of time in the nature surrounding the temple grounds.
When prompted by a fellow student, Hiro is a deft conversationalist. He enjoys hearing the different ideas and points of view others have to offer. However, Hiro considers himself a blank slate, and at times wonders if the school is holding him back from creating his own path.

Weapon: A pair of fluted steel nunchaku. They are usually hanging at his side or dangling from a branch as he meditates. He likes the wind-chime sound they make during a breeze.

Appearance:

Fighting Style: Hiro is about speed. Constantly dashing in and out, he prefers to tag his opponent and spread the damage to gradually immobilize them. Singular, powerful blows are rare with Hiro and he strikes with his nunchaku in rapid succession. Thin statured, he dances around attacks to counter his body’s poor absorbance of impact with blocks. Stamina can become a problem in an extended bout.

Personal Goal of Joining School: Though born into the school, Hiro plans to find a new path different from his father or brother. He’s found a connection with nature and plans to find just how deep it runs within him.