Genji
源氏

Genji Shimada
島田源氏

35

Human-Cyborg

Japanese

Truly a different man than his past iterations, Genji has gone through multiple changes through his life - evolution intended for survival, in these cases. In the end, despite still looking down a long, narrow road, Genji surpassed the trials intended to break him down and ultimately destroyed him. In doing so, he achieved a piece of both mind and body; in doing so, he became whole, once more. Even if parts of him come in mismatched metal and skin and sinew, the heart of a man still beats true beneath his ribs.

[雀] Young, fast, fleeting; the sparrow harbors diligence and joy, surmounted only by its vigilance and protectiveness. Genji Shimada never truly embraced such aspects. Instead, he represented a materialistic lifestyle, full of fleeting youth and an abundance of careless nature. As his brother would put it, Genji never deserved the title of Shimada. His acts ranged from frivolous to embarrassing, knowing full well his father's favor would cease to drain completely. Even in the dutiful eye of his brother, Genji approached life without care and while he took his ninja training seriously, everything else fell by the wayside. The young sparrow took up the mantle of playboy heir like it would have gone out of style without his intervention. Unpressed by the burden of the Shimada-gumi's illicit dealings, Genji found many friends, many drugs, and many willing bodies. That joyful nature still rests inside him, a young sparrow at heart. The blade of his own brother taught him hatred, however, and snuffed out the boy still chained within him.

[刀] Pierced through the heart and left burned in rubble, the sparrow fell to close to the wolf. Trapped in his jaws, he let the wolf guide him to the ground, where the rough ground burned holes through his chest and the wolf's teeth shred his body piece by piece. All that laid in tact came rising up in burning hatred, allowing his body to piece together in whatever way made him bolder, faster, stronger. In those days, Genji warred with his own conscious. His heart still beat heavy in his chest, but his mind urged him to deafen his ears to the steady rhythm. Genji Shimada allowed himself to be swallowed in the gaping maw of his rage and in doing so, he tore down what was once his kingdom until only ashes left in its place. Vengeance destroyed him further until all he saw was the stitched, broken glass of himself in the mirror. This anger and self-hatred buried itself deep within Genji and compelled him in search for something of meaning. But it only further drove a purposelessness into Genji's still beating heart, turning the iron casing around it cold.

[鯉] Tranquility symbolized an impossibility for Genji. From a weapon to a harmless carp - a whiskered koi in mottled flesh, unaware of the jeweled vision the sun shone upon his new skin. It felt easy going with the flow of things, letting his feet carry him forward. An emptiness presided within him and it felt only natural that he let that take a hold of his feet. The steady rhythm of his heart pounding against metal in steady beat to the clank of his feet. Desert hills, haunting tundra, the dark crunch of leaves in a dank forest, all of it passed him by - the weapon sheathed, the koi hidden from the sun. And then, suddenly, with mountain in his sights, he found his peace. The koi suddenly turned toward the current, faced with a decision: "You are welcome to listen as a student, and face the judgment clouding your vision; you are welcome to listen as vessel, standing still in the wake of an ocean; and you are welcome to listen with your back turned. But come, listen." And the gradual stand still, and the turn, and finally the embrace. Genji allowed the words to fill the empty cavities of his broken pieces and fill the gaps with a bright golden hue. The koi allowed himself to swim upstream, against the current, with his mottled skin a jewel in the sunlight and a pearl in the moon.

[龍] It is said that a group of koi glistened in the Yellow River, swimming upstream. A waterfall barred their progress, yet some swam on in persistence. Even in spite of the obstacles, the chiding of Oni and their meddling, one koi pushed itself beyond its limits. It conquered the waterfall and in doing so the Gods granted it unimaginable power - and thus a golden dragon broke through the skies, its scales glistening like jewels in the perpetual sunlight of the heavens. It found its peace and thus the youngest Shimada prince, a broken and mottled koi, turned its curse into a gift - faced the obstacles in his course and conquered it. Now he sees the world in a new light. Some semblance of the young sparrow shines through the green of his visor, a mischievous glint. But, the young Shimada allowed his mind to age into his body and a great respect for the world shines through most of all. Not only an appreciation for himself but for the world around him. Genji takes nothing for granted, and the respect that runs deep into Japanese tradition also guides his actions. Though, a symbol of wisdom and tranquility, a dragon is still a dragon and with a purpose behind its piercing gaze, he drives himself to seek justice and balance overall. With the resurgence of Overwatch, Genji now knows his place in the works - the entire scheme is but a machine to him and machines are much like puzzles in that the pieces fit perfectly. And he fits perfectly within this cog, driven by his honor and sacrifice; years have given Genji a clue into responsibility and it is heavily swayed by his own moral compass. No longer a machine for vengeance, but both man and machine intertwined in harmony.

Unfortunately for genetics, they didn't quite add Genji in the height department, as he stands roughly 5'4" at full height. Well, it depends on the perspective as Genji's own occupation tends to require a great deal of stealth and his compact form tends to aid in his sneaking capacity. Most of Genji is completely covered in armor and a synthetic fabric that's quite tough which covers most of his body. It's a smooth material, made completely of carbon fiber nanotubes, allowing for an unbelievable flexibility, but also incredibly difficult to pierce or damage. Which is a good thing, since it acts as skin for him. It feels like a mix between leather and fabric to simulate the texture of skin - it's a bit... on the synthetic side, but it's a decent replica. Over this layer of synthetic skin, Genji keeps himself well armored and padded up with an off-white armor. It's all very skin tight and most of it's made of tough material specifically designed to both protect and allow for a complete 100% range of flexibility.

Beneath all of this, the layer of synthetic skin mainly, can be considered Genji's skeleton. Or, well, chassis. It's difficult to explain as most of Genji comes complete in cybernetics encasing all of his vital organs. Some of it, like parts of his chest and shoulder, as well as the entirety of his head, is all scarred and burned flesh - a lot of it has been moderately repaired, yet it didn't come out as a great success. If Genji ever comes out of his armor, it's mostly just his helmet removed with his layer of synthetic skin still covering him, though a lot of his skull and side of his head have various cybernetics that aid in keeping everything above the shoulder in working order, as well as an entire spinal column attached to his back that keep him both aligned and pump needed fluid into his body. Though shame doesn't come to his mind, Genji understands the scarring, as well as the combination of man and machine tend to rub people the wrong way - he refuses to make guests uncomfortable and he tends to treat everyone he knows as an honored guest, anyways.

Formerly


Currently

Beneath Mount Fuji, surrounded in cherry blossoms and temples dedicated to various Shinto and Buddhist gods, lays the Shimada-gumi palace. A respected clan of wealthy business men, the Shimada runs deep with corruption. Akin to the Yakuza clans that ruled Japan in the 21st century, the Shimada-gumi held present day Japan within a tight grip. Aided by dragons it seeks only further power to fill its ranks and it does so in illicit business deals and various crimes hidden beneath the radar of most governments. In fact, the Shimada held so much power, it became virtually untouchable.

Within the clan's waning days (unknown to most), the head of the clan sired two boys: Hanzo and Genji. A wolf and a sparrow. They cared for each other, especially in their early days. Genji looked up to his brother, a shining example of Shimada glory, yet ceaseless energy took Genji beyond most people's grasps, aside from his father. Unlike Hanzo, the youngest Shimada had no responsibilities and the head of the clan, his father, often doted on young Genji. In fact, Genji experienced childhood with little to no knowledge of most of the Shimada's illicit activity. He'd often run through the temple grounds swinging his bokken (木剣; training sword) and throwing lopsided, self-made, wooden shuriken at the idling birds huddled under the shade of cherry blossoms. His brother hadn't thought much of it, already steeped in his own duty in his studies to potentially take over the family business - though still young, he mostly studied for his exams and work for school.

Knowledge and wisdom came with age and as Genji grew older, he took advantage of his status and wealth even in spite of his own knowledge of his family's activity. Though stricken with the guilt of this knowledge, Genji often brushed off his own moral compass in favor of drowning himself in drinks, company, and sex or allowing himself to fully focus on his ninja training. This carelessness often ran holes in the family's budget, but no consequence came of it. His father still doted on Genji, treated him like the prince he seemed to think he was. This infuriated many Shimada-gumi members and even earned the ire of his brother. Hanzo's urging never reached Genji's ears, however, and the younger Shimada only ever further leaned on their father for support. He became a nuisance, mostly, though both Hanzo and their father loved Genji dearly.

Until, of course, their father passed away. Many mourned the death of Shimada's master for days afterwards. Both brothers split a part, with Hanzo tasked with the burden of acting as the clan's pillar until he could rightfully take his father's place. Urged by many of the higher ups in the clan, as well as quite a bit of the goons that made up the Shimada-gumi agents, Hanzo made to convince his brother to assist him and take up duty as an agent for the Shimada clan. The exchange went as expected, with Hanzo screaming for his brother to grow up, learn responsibility, and take up the mantle father prepared for them both - they could hold the world within their hands if they wanted to. Genji refused, his already burning guilt and morality bubbling to the surface. He didn't want the world; they didn't deserve it; the Shimada-gumi does nothing but spread a seed of corruption through the world. He would have no part in it. Though Genji also refused to fight his brother, Hanzo took up arms in his rage and the wolf became a dragon, swallowing the sparrow whole in burning flames. Hanamura suffered for it, the workshop erupting into flames and consuming more lives than just the young Shimada prince.

Fortunately, an a group of Overwatch agents tasked with monitoring Shimada activity in the neighboring area took to saving as many lives from the wreckage as they could. Genji had been among them and the young Shimada, despite the burns mottling his face, was immediately recognized and brought to Overwatch's Swiss headquarters. There, Angela Ziegler did as much as she could under official orders and despite her protests and urging, Genji was denied any more procedures. He was stable for the time being, that was all that mattered. Thus, they gave Genji a choice: they save him, rebuild his body, and aid Overwatch in taking down the Shimada Clan or he can die a criminal on the operating table, consumed by the flames that killed hundreds. Driven by desperation and a simmering rage, Genji gave his assent and Dr. Ziegler went to work.

After weeks of repairs to his tissue, reconstruction and stabilization of as much of his human body as possible, as well as the implementation of cybernetics to replace faulty body parts and repair his spinal cord, Genji came out the perfect weapon. Overwatch first enlisted his aid as an informant and once he could be trusted further, Genji became a full member of Overwatch and assigned to a team designated with uprooting Shimada from not only Japan but the entire world. Fueled by self-loathing and a selfish desire to see his family's empire burned to the ground, Genji did as ordered. It took months of hard, back breaking work, but the mission had been deemed mostly a success. The Shimada-gumi erupted from the inside out and with Hanzo burdened by the weight of his murder, they had no guidance. They had yet to truly destroy the organization, but they had crippled it enough that it would take years to rebuild their once glorious empire, especially without a Shiamda to guide them.

Once the mission finished, Genji had nothing to distract his mind from the crippling pain of that wracked his body. They cybernetics, the reconstruction, everything had gone seamlessly and without an issue, so the pain couldn't possibly be physical. But it shook him so violently to his core that it felt physical; it at least drained him dry of any want or desire. It drove him into an emotional overdrive and the once carefree Genji turned into an empty vessel. He looked upon himself in disgust - neither machine nor man. So what could he possibly be? How could anyone trust a man comprised of 80% metal. His heart still beat in his chest, pumping fluid through his body still, yet bone and flesh had been replaced with a metal chassis.

This wandering continued aimlessly for quite a few years. Genji didn't stop to look up until sand turned to grass and grass turned to the hard rock and the crunch of snow beneath his metallic feet - he no longer felt the cold. The mountain trail he found himself on lead him through the treacherous Himalayas and eventually into the compound build by the omnic Shambali. Tired and hungry, Genji allowed the robot monks to take him in, shelter him, clothe him, and feed him. One particular monk took a liking to Genji and he'd introduced himself as Tekhartha Zenyatta. The turmoil in the young man struck a cord within the Shambali monk, wracked with the recent mourning of Mondatta's passing. He tasked himself with aiding Genji in whatever way he could and even if the cyborg refused to listen to his teachings, Genji always came back to the compound. He always sat within sight of the monk during meditation. The questions that came would be inevitable and eventually, Genji allowed Zenyatta's words to mean something to him.

Though Zenyatta eventually moved on from the Shambali, seeking to unite both human and omnic through action rather than dogma, Genji followed close behind. He took Zenyatta's teachings to heart and allowed the words to mend the cracks in his own mind. Meditation soothed his worries and quieted the voices screaming in his head. They pieced together every bit of Genji that he rejected and made him whole again. And though he thanked his master profusely, Zenyatta always reminded him: "It is neither the tool nor the merchant, but the individual with the devices in their grasp that takes the credit. You only need thank your self, Genji."

Now, with the recall in progress, Genji sought first his brother then his master before allowing himself to aid the newly formed Overwatch. He comes no longer a weapon, but the man who wields it.

Offense

Flanker

◈ Cyber ⥊ Agility [Passive]


◈ Deflect [Ability]


◈ Swift Strike [Ability]


◈ Shuriken [Primary Fire]


◈ Fan of Blades [Secondary Fire]


◈ Wakizashi [Melee Attack]


◈ Dragon Blade [Ultimate Ability]

Genji excels in breaking through enemy lines, going completely unnoticed through flank points and targeting the enemy's back line. He bypasses those hulking tanks in front and the meaty skirmishers in order to eliminate artillery, glass cannon opponents, and supports that think their range keeps them from harm. Close range, Genji is a nearly unstoppable force simply because he packs a mean punch and is nearly impossible to hit. As well, his disengage can become a nuisance as he disappears back into the shadows and bides his time to strike again. When unleashing the force of his Shimada dragon, Genji can turn from flanker to a complete tidal wave of force as he mows down the opposition.

In spite of his agility, speed, and strength, Genji's fragile and once the attention of more than a few enemy forces turns on him, it's quite easy bring him to his knees. Not even Genji can dodge the hail of bullets from a hoard of enemies. As well, without support and a reasonable distraction, it can be very difficult for Genji to cut off any enemies from the bigger group in order to take them down one-by-one. Use a giant flyswatter to swat the fly - a lot more surface to utilize that way.