Application For Voidtreckers

[smithandwesson]

Player Information

Name: Cat
Age: 34
Contact details: chohakkaifan -or- Discord: chohakkaifan#5971
Other characters: N/A

Character Information

Name: Genjo Sanzo
Canon: Saiyuki
Canon Point: Saiyuki Reload Blast Shot-5 The Beginning of the Training Arc with God-Envoy Sai Tai Sai
OU/AU/CRAU/OC: Original Universe
Age: 25

World Information:

"Shangri-La.
A Chaotic World
Where Man And Demon
Science And Magic
All Coexist
It's Balance Decayed Unexpectedly
Experiments To Revive Gyu-Ma-Oh
A Great Youkai Banished 500 Years Ago
Is Said To Be Rousing A Negative Aura
Youkai Affected By This Aura Have Gone Berserk
Thus A Group Comprised Of Four Youths Were Compelled To Take A Journey To The Far Western Regions Of India
Their Purpose Being To Halt The Experiments To Revive Gyu-Ma-Oh
The One Believed To Be The Route Of This Instability
And To Return This World To Peace..."

Shangri-La is a world like ours while still being quite different. A sub-continent that consists of most of Asia, it is a sacred place where humans and spiritual beasts, 'youkai' coexist. As a spiritual utopia, it's closed off from most of the outside world, remaining focused on its climate instead.

At least, that was the case for some time. But no utopia lasts forever. A strange miasmic aura of negative energy seemed to spread across the land one day. Having a deeper spiritual connection with the planet, Youkai could feel this dramatic shift in atmosphere and ultimately grow feral. This shift and the drastic changes to the environment began to take caused a calamity. Youkai, moderately even-tempered and integrated with humans, grew angry and saw humans as inferior. Craving human flesh while seeing them as nothing more than cattle to be wrangled, a war erupted spontaneously between the two species.

Now, nearly six years since the beginning of the minus-wave, Shangri-La is a far cry from the utopia it once was. Most signs of higher society are non-existent, and the land is divided between the territories where either youkai or humans prevail. Most towns and villages are left to fend for themselves in a constant need for survival. And the toll that this war takes now depends on the actions of a select few.

Besides the turbulent climate of the world, there are a few other key differences between the earth where Shangri-la resides and our own. It is a "schizotech" society, where history and human advancement occur differently from our world. Although most of the community in Shangri-La seems to represent an era in the early Tang Dynasty (600-900 AD), its technology is more on par with something of the mid-1990s. Among great temples and an era of cultural and spiritual enlightenment with the beginning expansion of the silk road, they have large computers, occasional motor vehicles, modern firearms, and familiar brand cigarettes such as Marlboro Reds. Outside of Shangri-La, countries such as the United States seem to be in the early days of existence with the beginnings of its colonist expansion era.

Their history and world is a wonky mashup of many of our world's periods put together at once. While at the same time, magical elements seem to be a natural and efficient thing. Various forms of occult knowledge have surfaced in their world. The main focus in Saiyuki is the natural magical skills that all youkai are capable of to some degree called "youqi" and magic that is harnessed; through intense spiritual training by humans through spell casting or casting "mantras." The strange mashup of technological advancement and mysticism brought the world of Shangri-La as we know it into the chaos that the series now faces. Considered a forbidden practice, a youkai settlement far in India started experimenting between crossing the two mediums to revive their king, a fearsome man-eating bull-youkai named Gyu-Ma-Oh who had been sealed away by the goods 500 years ago. And it was this forbidden mashup that presumably caused the Minus Wave, the miasmic aura, that placed the entire world out of sync.

Personal History: Here You Go!

Personality:

The 31st of China Toah Genjo Sanzo is a stoic, stubborn, and surprisingly extreme individual for someone who holds the position of one of the highest-ranking Buddhist monks in his world. He is a man who goes through temperaments as quickly as the wind changes. Intense and fiery, he hides behind a sullen exterior due to his emotional reservations. He is a man who constantly keeps up a guarded presence due to the harsh life he was forced to live.

Sanzo comes off as a quiet yet intense young man by initial appearance. Rarely talking, what he does say usually tends to be short and demanding. Sanzo is not one for social niceties, nor does Sanzo care about the responses or opinions of others. Most people are generally surprised by the realization that he is a priest because of such behaviors.

But behind the direct interactions, he is surprisingly intelligent regarding the subject he preaches. Having spent the entirety of his life growing up between different monasteries, Buddhism is what he knows best. And when he does decide to hold a sermon, his demeanor becomes surprisingly resolute and his voice clear and cleansing with its teachings. The monk with hair as gold as the sun is a master in his teachings.

But just as much as he understands the teachings, he most certainly does not adhere to them. Despite initially having a reserved upbringing, Sanzo dealt with many rough hardships, making him today's fierce, forward, and bloodthirsty man. Many traumas had influenced Sanzo's path in life, with a great deal of them affecting how he reacts to most situations now.

He has a hard time growing attached to people, for deep down, Genjo Sanzo has an inherent fear of loss. Having lost his father figure and only family at the early age of 12, Sanzo had learned the hard life lesson that with attachment came the pain of losing someone close to him. But, despite his outward appearance, that does not mean that Sanzo is void of emotion. He is a man whose feelings run deep. Sanzo chases away others, fearing the pain that would come with loss. He knows the dangerous lifestyle he lives in and refuses to have anyone else die unnecessarily because of him. But he is not incapable of forming relations, more so that he worries about how those relations would be affected by him.

He has friends, allowing people to get close to him, but he is picky. For he no longer wishes to feel responsible for those who stay by his side—instead deciding that those he keeps close would be strong enough to survive through it with him. No longer does he wish to fight for others, instead choosing to fight for himself and hoping that those who keep up are capable of very much doing the same.

Easy to say that Genjo Sanzo is not the best of team players. And yet, despite himself, he makes for a surprisingly good leader. His level-headed wit, along with his perceptive and analytical nature, makes it so that Sanzo knows how to keep calm in even the most chaotic of situations. He assesses the capabilities of those around him and thinks of ways to utilize them best to make sure they all get out as alive as possible.

He is the type who will threaten to kill you as a way of caring while still attempting to kill you in the process. A monk who knows and understands the highest tiers of the teachings he preaches while actively ignoring all the rudimentary rules. Smoking, cursing, eating meat, drinking, and killing with barely any question, Sanzo is an enigma that leaves others baffle upon first glance. But he has wisdom beyond his years and makes them known in his broader actions and decisions.

Despite his violent tendencies, he does not pick fights unless necessary. His usually lackadaisical, laid-back, and outright lazy nature often makes it so that he prefers not to put much effort into much of anything if he doesn't have to. He would like to stand aside and have others do the work when they don't need his involvement. Sanzo is not violent for violence's sake, more so that he is a man who accepted the need to take drastic measures after a life in which he constantly had to do so to survive. The world he grew up in was challenging, where walking the subjectively moral path would most often lead to your death.

And yet, despite his many defenses and barriers, it does not mean that Sanzo is utterly immune to having moments in which he will display warmth. He is shown to display intimate situations where he cares for those close to him in his way. Sanzo has quiet moments, such as when looking over and watching after Son Goku, the boy Sanzo raised from an early age, or offering freedom to Cho Hakkai, the man Sanzo swore to look over. Sanzo respects others no matter what their path in life has brought them—sympathizing for those lives he had taken while still understanding the necessity that comes with getting out alive. Sanzo has a deep-rooted respect for living his life to the fullest. After years of trauma, self-harm, depression, and anxiety, he had learned to grow and live his life respecting every moment he had.

Genjo Sanzo is a complex character with deeply rooted intentions and an outwardly cold and single-minded sense of ambition. Direct, cunning, and holds back no bars, he shoots first and asks questions later for the single-driven mindest of survival. Guarded and cold at first glance, Sanzo uses it as a means to protect himself in a world that would otherwise cruelly chew you up and spit you out. But deep down, he is a man simply looking to hold close all the little things that remind him of what is essential in his life. A scripture by his father, a pack of cigarettes by his mentor, a gun that was given to him by the temple he grew up in, and the three friends he knows will not die on him no matter what, even when he refuses to admit what they mean to him outwardly.

He will hold these things close and do everything he can to preach the words of living that he had learned along his journey. A man who is forever moving forward while using what he knows on his travels as lessons to learn and grow.

For this reason, I look forward to exploring the depths of his character within the various new and unexplored worlds throughout Voidtreckers. I wish to see how new situations that he's not quite accustomed to will explore facets of his character that his series otherwise wouldn't hit upon. And I look forward to seeing how he develops emotionally throughout his time in the game.

Key themes:

Appreciation For Life- Genjo Sanzo started off as a character traumatized by his past. He went through many hardships dealing with loss, abuse, and seclusion throughout his childhood. But as the series progresses, he grows into a character who realizes the importance of living and appreciating the life he's been given.

The Importance Of Living For Yourself- One of the key things Sanzo preaches throughout the series is, surprisingly, the importance of self-care. He grew to learn how before you can take care of or carry the burdens of anyone else, one must be able to take care of themselves first and foremost. And continues to teach that very lesson to those he encounters.

Breaking From Tradition- Genjo Sanzo is not a traditional monk by any means, and often his unusual methods leave others to question his capabilities. But there's a method to his madness. And frequently, it is his untraditional methods and outside-the-norm thinking that end up saving many people through the series, both physically and spiritually.

Main Motivation: Preserving His Masters Teachings - Sanzo is someone who is single-mindedly driven by carrying the lessons he had been taught by those he cares about most. One of those people is his master, The 30th of China Koumyou Sanzo. He spent a significant portion of his life looking for his masters' scripture, which had been lost upon his death. From when he was twelve to the current canon, acquiring that memory of his father figure had been a single-minded goal. And he will do everything in his power to reattain what he feels is rightfully his.

Skills:

Martial Master- Genjo Sanzo was shown to be ridiculously skilled in most forms of martial fighting from an early age. A flashback showed him physically taking down most adults while still a child, and he was one of the most talented martial fighters within the Buddhist monasteries. When taking part in a tournament later in the series, he made it to the semi-finals, only losing in part due to his temperament and knowledge of the ridiculous prize he would obtain from winning. He is shown to be especially adept at hand-to-hand combat and sword-fighting and is often compared as one of the strongest human characters in their world.

Skilled Sharpshooter- As good as Sanzo may be at hand-to-hand combat, his true specialty lies in ranged attacks. Having carried his trusted Smith & Wesson revolver from an early age, the gun is known never to leave his side. His targets seldom miss their mark, and he is shown to take out small armies worth of men with his gun alone.

Survival Tactics- Genjo Sanzo had spent a greater portion of his life traveling alone outside of society. He knows how to hunt, foredge, keep warm, and create shelter for himself in even the most unbearable situations. He has survived life in forests, deserts, and mountains for long periods. Often preferring the "roughing it" lifestyle over the luxury society usually provides.

Divinity Summoning- Although not skilled in most traditional mantra magic that the monks in his world are capable of, he has shown one divine power that makes him stand out from most. Harnessing a great amount of energy with a burst of emotion, he can manifest divine artifacts into existence. The one time it happened so far in canon was when he created a power-limiting diadem to control the out-of-control Son Goku when he was going on a demonic rampage.

Maten Sutra- The other skill he had inherited through his time in the monastery was his control of the Maten Sutra, one of the five scriptures believed to have the power to create his very world. Of course, the sutra is one small part of many, and it is only capable of so much. His sutra specifically carries the power of light and divinity. As the scripture expands and reaches out to his foes, speaking out certain incantations can form a large burst of light around him. Anything its light touches in turn 'brings things to light.' Most (but not all) of his targets often immediately being spirited to the afterlife.

Spiritual Perception- Multiple Times throughout the series Sanzo has been shown to pick up on people's spiritual energy and capabilities and even differentiate things about the person depending on that energy. Some things he had been able to gauge were a person's species, intentions, as well as overall spiritual power.

Empathy- Implied but not entirely confirmed canon, there have been multiple times throughout the series that Genjo Sanzo seemed to have an almost emotional sixth sense. One example was when he was ten and took on a bear that had broken into the temple grounds, managing to stare it down and talk it into leaving without harming anyone. Another time was when he was found as an infant, in which his father, Koumyou Sanzo, mentions having heard 'a voice' crying out to him from the direction of the rivers. And it happens once more when he is in his teens when he hears a similar 'voice' himself—following it without question over many miles and through mountain ranges only to find Son Goku, who had been locked away in an imprisoned state for nearly 500 years.

Item: Maten Sutra - The Prized Scripture That Sanzo holds most dear. He inherited one out of the two scriptures from his master, the late Koumyou Sanzo. Its powers and capabilities are listed above. Able to be rolled up and fit into a bag with ease, it is most often seen draped over his shoulders.

Sample:
Here Are A Bunch Of Threads From The Last Test Drive! :D

Notes:

In Saiyuki, Genjo Sanzo is the reincarnation of a God known as Konzen Douji, nephew to the Buddhavista of Mercy in the Buddhist tradition.

Saiyuki is a modern retake on the famous Chinese novel "Journey To The West," which follows the same premise but takes a few liberties on its characters. Genjo Sanzo himself is a real-life historical figure who existed around 400 AD and is known for opening the cultural trade routes along the silk road between China and India and spreading many Buddhist teachings throughout eastern Asia.


He may also sparkle like a magical girl when he casts his sutra.