B11: TANAKA, KEIJI [DECEASED]

#1

DECEASED

Name: Keiji Tanaka
Gender: Male
Age: 18
School: P.J. Hobbs Senior High School (Denton, New Jersey)
Hobbies and Interests: Basketball, Fitness, Iaidō, Japanese culture, J-rock

Appearance: Keiji is, much to his chagrin, just under 6'3" tall, weighing a hair over 170 lbs. He is in fantastic athletic condition, fit and well-muscled. He shows off his physique by wearing a-shirts and sleeveless sports jerseys as often as he can get away with, usually going with track pants or baggy trousers to make sure he has a full range of movement.

Keiji's background is Japanese, and his ethnicity shows through strongly in his appearance. His skin stubbornly refuses to tan from its pale hue. His eyes are brown, large, bright, and expressive. His hair is jet black and floppy, falling to chin length left unchecked. However, he often either ties it back into a tail or sweeps it back with an alice band. When feeling especially adventurous, he has been known to put it into a topknot. He has a tattoo on the inside of his right forearm, an abstract black shape with alternating pointed 'branches'. When questioned about it, Keiji simply says that he thinks it looks cool, and it has no deeper meaning.

On the day of the abduction, Keiji was wearing a torn pair of jeans, running shoes, and a long red a-shirt.

Biography: Keiji is the eldest child of Naomasa and Jillian, two second-generation Japanese-Americans who met working for the same bank. His two younger brothers are Kazuhika (14) and Tomoichi (10), nicknamed Kaz and Tommy respectively. His upbringing was shared between his parents and grandparents, and being decently well-off meant there was no financial hardship in the family. Keiji became fascinated with Japanese culture very young due his quite traditional paternal grandparents, and would pester his grandma for hours with questions about the country. Naomasa was happy to indulge this interest too, and Keiji grew up surrounded by elements of his heritage, in a bilingual household.

Keiji was always an energetic, active child, and as the years started coming and he progressed into school, this manifested as being distractable and almost hyperactive. His grades were weak, and although he made friends, his complete lack of indoor voice or filter were frequently off-putting to others. Already aware that he was unruly, Keiji's parents were made aware of his behaviour at school through teacher conferences. Concerned, they attempted to direct his energy elsewhere, presenting him with options for various hobbies he could enrol in. He ran through several; soccer, swimming, skating, before hitting upon one that he really liked, which was basketball. The frantic pace and high scoring games appealed to him, and soon enough he fell in love.

This outlet did help Keiji out to be a bit less hyper, but he remained buoyant and energetic. His grades stablised, though they were still on the low side of average. Just entering middle school, Keiji had also found himself a big brother twice over, a role he took to with gusto. He was and is highly protective of his younger brothers, and loves that both siblings look up to him. This doesn't, however, stop him from roughhousing with them, and delights in being the fun big brother.

At around thirteen, Keiji developed a fascination with swords and action, specifically due to watching some Japanese movies and western samurai films. Exuberantly bringing this to his parents, his enthusiasm was tempered by some realism, but Jillian eventually agreed to let him visit an Iaidō academy for a taster. Expecting Keiji's interest to burn out quickly, as he tended to pick up and discard hobbies in the space of weeks, his parents were surprised that Keiji not only stuck with the art but became even more involved. Keiji still practices Iaidō to this day, although he has not progressed through too many ranks as he struggles with the concentration and discipline needed for the kata.

As Keiji grew older and his involvement with sports deepened, he became more invested in making sure he was in good physical condition. He started to look into athletics and training regimes in more depth, and would look up performance plans and diets online. The work-outs stuck, although the diets usually didn't, although he does make an effort to eat healthily and keep his diet balanced. Keiji also kept up with basketball, joining his school team and becoming a starter at the power forward position. Although he has aspirations of playing college basketball and perhaps even beyond—his dream is to become an All Star—Keiji has grown anxious that he is undersized for the position he plays.

Keiji is still very interested in Japan, and has visited the country twice with his family. Whilst away, he became infatuated with the musical scene over there, and although most elements of this interest died off, he does still maintain a great appreciation for J-rock. He will often sing tunes in Japanese during free and study periods at school, jokingly claiming that he will not only be an all-star, but a rockstar too. Fortunately he has by now developed some friends who will put up with his relentless energy and goofy behaviour, so the reactions are only a little exasperated. He tends to hang out with the other gym rats and sportspeople, and is well known for being an encouraging training partner. Overall Keiji is fairly well liked, although not charismatic enough to be on top of the social pile.

Keiji's grades are still a source of worry; he struggles academically and although his parents do help him study, his grades never really pick up too much. This does not adversely affect their relationship, as both Naomasa and Jillian appreciate that Keiji is trying hard, he's just not well suited to school. Keiji is both aware of and highly sensitive to this, and any indication that he's perhaps not the sharpest tool in the shed usually prompts a bristly reaction.

Advantages: Keiji is energetic, active, and in fantastic shape. His stamina is boundless and his reflexes and agility are very good thanks to his sporting endeavours. Although his iaidō does not teach combat techniques or involve sparring, Keiji is familiar with swords and how to wield them.
Disadvantages: Keiji is gullible, naive, and really not all that bright. He's willing to take people's honesty at face value, and always tries to think the best of everyone, even if evidence would suggest otherwise. Keiji also lacks the ability to be serious or get his game face on, and it's likely he will struggle to come to terms with the gravity of the SOTF scenario.

Original Profile: Keiji Tanaka (V3)

Designated Number: Male Student No. 11

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Designated Weapon: Claw Hammer
Conclusion: You know something's wrong with a class when the goofy idiot is one of the guys who seems most likely to make it past the starting gate. I actually think the fact that half his classmates don't hate him may carry him a good ways, but if not, at least he seems destined for an amusing death. We'll see if Mr. Tanaka figures out the gravity of the situation when someone slips a knife into his guts.

DECEASED