Kaien Kuragane

This character, Kaien Kuragane, is property of Depestilokio.

“	"I'm not here to save anyone... I'm just trying to stop anyone else from dying like him."	„
	~ Kaien Kuragane

Kaien Kuragane
SAO ALO GGO RL Kurozanmai
Personal Info
Name	Kaien Kuragane
Kanji	ハセオ イシ
Birthday	April 14, 2004
Age	19 (SAO) 20 (ALO) 21 (GGO)
Gender	Male
Height	5'7"
Weight	130 lbs
Eyes	Black
Hair	Black
Family	Ren (Brother)
Player Profile
VRMMORPGs Played	(SAO) (ALO) (GGO)
Affiliation	(SAO): None
Status	Alive
Skills
Primary Skill	SAO: Shadow Dance ALO: Zankai no Tsubasa
Unique Skill	SAO: "Tenblade Asura" (Ashura of the Ten Blades)
Unique Weapon	SAO: Kuragami, Raijinken, Kōrinken, Hōrinken, Tenseiken, Yūmeiken, Shinketsuken, Kumoriken, Tsuranuken, Saihateken ALO: Kuroken
Media

Kaien Kuragane (影炎・クラガネ) was a young gamer with a passion for adventure who joined Sword Art Online alongside his younger brother, Ren, with whom he shared the dream of exploring worlds together. Kaien was a fast warrior, a master of sword combat, while Ren acted as magical support, forming a near-perfect duo. However, after Kayaba Akihiko's deadly announcement, Kaien swore to protect his brother - a promise he broke days later, when Ren died in an ambush inside a dungeon, leaving Kaien consumed by guilt. From that day on, the gentle warrior disappeared, giving way to the shadowy figure known as Kurozanmai (黒三昧 –"Black Banquet"). Rejecting all ties, Kaien began to hunt monsters and assassins alone, fighting not for glory, but to punish himself. He developed a combat style of his own, brutal and precise, wielding two black swords obtained from hidden areas of Aincrad. Over time, he became a living legend, a silent vigilante who emerged from the shadows to save groups in danger—only to disappear without a word. His fame as Kurozanmai grew, somewhere between fear and respect, not as a hero or a villain, but as a broken spirit caught between the pain of the past and the will to keep fighting, even without knowing why.

Appearance

Sword Art Online (SAO)

In "Sword Art Online," now known as Kaien Kuragane, he adopts a dark and imposing appearance that reflects his role as a skilled and determined swordsman. Dressed in black tactical armor with red highlights, his attire is enhanced by a long black cape with metallic details and a fur collar, which flutters in the wind as he moves quickly. The red lines that run across his chest and legs create a menacing yet elegant look, evoking power and precision. His armored boots and reinforced gloves suggest that he is always ready for combat. With his focused eyes and serious expression, Kaien conveys the image of a lone warrior who carries both a burden and a mission.

Sword Art Online (ALO)

In ALfheim Online, Kaien Kuragane, codenamed Yamihana, takes the form of a dark and imposing Spriggan with long black hair that falls over a hooded cloak of ethereal fabric decorated with silver runes that glow softly in the night. His eyes glow with shades of deep amethyst, giving him a mysterious and piercing gaze. His lightweight, reinforced armor is made of dark scales of magical obsidian, allowing him agility and high magical defense, ideal for his specialization in stealth, shadow manipulation, and illusion magic. On his back, he carries a black longsword with a pulsating purple core—the Kurozanmai—which is said to absorb light from its surroundings when drawn. Yamihana is known among players as the “Twilight Hunter,” disappearing into the shadows before his enemies even notice him.

Sword Art Online (GGO)

Now in Gun Gale Online, Kaien Kuragane is introduced as Kurozensei, a striking and enigmatic figure, wrapped in a long black tactical coat with a matte finish, adorned with specific pockets, unique belts and subtle details that reflect his practicality and precision. His silver hair frames a young face, but with a firm and introspective expression, while his red eyes emit a quiet intensity, evidencing a history of unspoken pain. The reinforced boots and fingerless gloves indicate his readiness for combat, while the dark fur-lined collar adds a touch of dark sophistication. The look is functional and intimidating, designed for Gun Gale Online, but it also carries the symbolic weight of someone who has faced many internal battles - and who now projects them into the digital realm with clarity and purpose.

Real Life

In real life, Kaien Kuragane would have a young and urban look, with a style that combines practicality and attitude. He would wear a beige bomber jacket with subtle details, perfect for colder days, combined with a dark gray cotton t-shirt, simple but elegant. His navy blue jeans would be well-fitted, giving him a modern and organized look, while black sneakers would complete the look with comfort and discretion, ideal for the rush of everyday life. His black hair, slightly messy, and serious expression would convey maturity and focus, suggesting an introspective and determined personality, someone who prefers to act silently but firmly.

Background

Sword Art Online (SAO)

Kaien and his younger brother Ren have always been inseparable. Since they were little, they shared everything: toys, dreams, fears, and ambitions. Raised in a simple but close-knit family, the two found refuge in online games, a way to experience adventures that the real world could not offer. When Sword Art Online, with its revolutionary full virtual reality technology, was announced, Kaien and Ren went crazy. They saved up together, shared tasks, and made sacrifices to ensure that they both had access to NerveGear on launch day. For them, SAO was not just a game—it was the promise of a new world where they could live as heroes, side by side. Ren, with his calmer spirit and analytical mind, chose a magical support role, specializing in rare buffs and skills for analyzing enemies and terrain. Kaien, on the other hand, chose to be a fast warrior, wielding a unique sword of chaos, shaped based on his choices and quick reflexes. They made complementary characters, not only to win together, but to protect each other. During their first few days in the game, everything seemed magical. The vastness of Aincrad filled them with wonder—the floating cities, the pixelated forests bathed in golden light, the mysterious dungeons hidden in ancient ruins. They fought monsters, explored caves, and laughed like old times. It was as if they were finally living the life they had always imagined. But this euphoria crumbled the moment Kayaba Akihiko made his cruel announcement: no one could leave SAO, and any death there would result in real death. Terror struck thousands of players, but for Kaien, only one thing mattered: Ren. He held his brother tightly in that moment, his eyes steady despite his fear, and made a solemn oath. He said that nothing would happen to them, that they would get through this together, that he would protect Ren at any cost. And for a time, he kept that promise. The pair advanced through the early floors like legends in the making, earning respect for their synchronicity and courage. Kaien always led the way, cutting with precision; Ren was right behind him, guiding and supporting him with spells and the right strategies.

But fate is cruel, especially to those who believe they are beginning to win. In a secondary dungeon, on one of the intermediate floors — an area still little explored — the two investigated rumors about a legendary piece of equipment. The place was silent and strange, with walls covered in digital moss and doors that let in life. In the middle of the exploration, a trap was activated without warning. The floor beneath Kaien's feet gave way, throwing him into an isolated room, locked by black spikes that alter life itself. From the other side, I heard only Ren's screams, muffled, desperate. Kaien spoke back, punching the barriers with his sword, but nothing gave way. Then silence came — and, soon after, a sequence of guttural roars and battle cries. The battle had begun... and Ren was alone. Kaien only managed to break through the barrier minutes later. But in the game, the minutes could be an evolution. When he arrived, the scene left a lasting impression on him: Ren fell, his body torn apart by deep cuts. The system wouldn't allow blood, but the faint glow that was fading from him seemed much worse. Even so, Ren transmitted. He smiled as if he were still that boy who believed his brother was invincible. He murmured apologies for not having been strong or strong enough, for having gotten in the way. Kaien held him, crying, screaming for help that would not come. And there, in that moment frozen in time, something inside him died.

Since that day, the name Kaien has disappeared from the player records. In his place appeared Kurozanmai, a somber-looking swordsman, wrapped in dark clothes, with eyes devoid of emotion and a silent fury that chilled even the most experienced warriors. He began to wander Aincrad not in search of adventure, but of redemption. He no longer trusted anyone, and refused to form groups. He became a lone wolf, a hunter of monsters and dungeon bosses, known for clearing entire areas by himself, facing absurd risks with relentless coldness. His sword, once a symbol of power and protection, now seemed like an extension of his pain. Some said he had gone mad. Others swore they had seen Kurozanmai eliminate players who tried to have the newbies satisfied like a judge in the shadows. But no one dared to get too close. The gentle smile that once charmed everyone was gone, replaced by a silent expression full of suffering. In the heart of Aincrad, where dreams were buried under the cruel reality of a deadly game, a legend was born, marked not by glory, but by loss. And behind it, the echo of a brother's promise—a promise that could not be fulfilled.

After Ren’s death, Kaien’s world lost all color. The sounds of laughter, the melodies of the cities, the golden reflections of the Aincrad sky—it all seemed like cruel mockery to him. Ren was his reason, his anchor, his lighter and more hopeful half. Without him, Kaien saw no point in maintaining the ties he still had with other players. He rejected guild invitations, ignored private messages, blocked friend requests, and even refused friendly exchanges of supplies. He avoided the big cities and their noisy plazas, preferring to camp in desolate areas, where the digital cold was biting and the sounds came only from hungry monsters prowling in the shadows. If he met anyone along the way, he barely responded. He spoke little, and when he did, his words carried the weight of a grave. Little by little, the name Kaien became a forgotten whisper among the players—and the name Kurozanmai, a legend with empty eyes, came to life in the shadowy corridors of the tower. He took refuge in the highest and most dangerous layers of Aincrad, where monsters required entire teams, strategies, and optimized equipment to survive. But Kurozanmai faced them alone. Not for glory, not for challenge. He sought punishment. Each encounter was an attempt to hurt himself, to pay with pain the guilt that devoured him inside. He threw himself against titanic creatures without a plan, only with his speed, instinct, and a latent hatred for himself. He did not celebrate victories, because no victory brought Ren back. Each battle was a silent prayer for the end to come — and when it did not, he simply got up and went to the next confrontation, more wounded, colder.

Over time, his skills transcended the limitations of the game. Kurozanmai developed a unique combat style, something that no other player could replicate. A hybrid of perfect parries, instinctive counterattacks, and raw speed that confused even the most intelligent monsters. His movements did not follow predictable patterns; It was as if he danced on the edge of death, using every attack he received as an opportunity to retaliate with surgical precision. His weapons—two thin, lethal black swords with scarlet details like pulsing veins—were forged from materials no one knew how he obtained. Some said he had defeated a hidden boss that appeared only to those who had lost someone close to them in the game. Others swore he had simply snatched them from the hands of a player killer, in a fight no one witnessed and from which only he emerged alive. The truth was a mystery. Just like him. Over time, rumors began to spread. Players began to whisper about a shadowy figure who appeared only when hope was about to run out. When entire teams were about to be massacred by dungeon bosses, he appeared. Kurozanmai. A dark silhouette, eyes like red slits, moving between enemy attacks with superhuman precision. His blades danced like a cutting wind, eliminating the bosses in moments, without a single word, without waiting for thanks. And as quickly as he appeared... he disappeared. Some tried to follow him, hoping to understand who he was or where he was hiding. But no one could. It was as if the game itself protected him, as if the shadows were complicit in his pain. Although his level was notoriously high — rumors said he was among the five strongest in Aincrad — he never participated in the main raids, never appeared on the councils of the major guilds. He sought neither leadership nor progress. He had no desire to leave the game. For him, Sword Art Online had ceased to be a game or a prison. It was now a purgatory, a place between life and death where he continued to exist out of obligation. His presence was a dark reminder to the other players: while many fought for freedom and to reunite with their families in the real world, there were those who had already lost everything. Who were not trying to escape... just survive. And sometimes, not even that.

Kaien avoided even the “frontliners,” those players who formed the vanguard of Aincrad’s hope. He saw something in them that deeply irritated him: faith. Persistence. Motivations that he had buried alongside Ren’s pixelated body in that cursed dungeon. Kirito was, for Kaien, the personification of this. A solitary swordsman, yes, but still guided by an inner light, by a reason — to protect, to help, to resist. Kaien watched him from afar sometimes, not out of admiration, but out of contrast. He respected his strength and technique, recognized his talent and presence on the field, but he despised his hope. That which still made him human. Kaien was no longer. He fought not for anyone. Not even for himself. He fought against himself. Against the guilt, against the silence of the nights when he still heard Ren’s last “apology” echoing in his mind like a cruel bug that the system would never fix. Over time, the pain and hatred became poison. Kaien began to deliberately enter PvP zones, where players faced each other for personal challenges or out of pure malice. But he didn’t participate in these games. He hunted. He took upon himself the dark purpose of exterminating members of the Laughing Coffin, the assassins’ guild that killed players for fun. But Kaien didn’t hunt them for justice, or to protect the innocent. He did it for dark pleasure, for blind revenge, for a cruel satisfaction that he only felt when he saw the assassins’ screams of despair being silenced by his black blades. He began to develop specific tactics to deal with ambushes, often allowing himself to be surrounded on purpose, only to turn the trap into a silent massacre. He rarely said anything. When he did speak, it was only to ask a question that would become his sinister catchphrase: “Have you ever lost someone who trusted you?” In the eyes of the other players, Kurozanmai became an indefinable figure. An antihero? An insane vigilante? A vengeful spirit that emerged from the darkness of the tower? His fame spread like wildfire. He was feared by assassins and respected by those who knew of his efficiency—but he was also avoided by many. Legend has it that anyone who approached him insistently was ignored on the first attempt, stared at the second, and killed on the third. It didn’t matter if it was a child asking for help or a veteran trying to recruit him: if they crossed an invisible line, Kaien reacted with fury. His aura, even to the most experienced, seemed cold, cutting, like an emotional glitch. He wasn’t there. He was just an echo, a shadow cast by an incurable trauma. The Knights of the Blood Oath itself, the most powerful guild in Aincrad, tried to recruit him after hearing reports of his exploits. One of the lieutenants even went so far as to personally seek him out in one of the most dangerous areas of the tower. He found him surrounded by monster corpses and PK players, sitting on a bloody stone pillar, sharpening his sword with a unique-looking item. The conversation was short. “I have no loyalty to give,” he said, without looking the emissary in the eye. “My only companion is already dead.” The refusal was definitive. Later, reports emerged that other guilds had sent spies to observe his build, hoping to replicate his techniques and understand his abnormal level growth. None of the spies were successful. Those who did return, returned in shock. Some abandoned the game in terror, even knowing that it could mean death. Others... never returned.

During the brutal assault on the 60th floor—one of the bloodiest and most desperate battles on the frontline to date—Kaien appeared. The boss had defeated almost half of the frontliners’ force, even with optimized tactics. He was a colossal monster, with absurd regeneration and unpredictable patterns, who seemed to feed on the emotional weakness of the players. As the screams of despair echoed and the leaders tried to maintain their morale, a shadowy figure crossed the shadows of the hall. He did not announce his arrival. He did not ask for position. He simply advanced, cutting through the air with an attack so fast and precise that it made the boss's HP bar plummet in seconds. His movements did not obey the common logic of the systems. It was as if he fought with concentrated rage, with poisoned memories, as if each blow carried the weight of an irreparable loss. And when the creature finally fell, and the stunned survivors tried to thank him, he had already disappeared. Only bloody footprints and deep silence remained. From that moment on, his existence became something between myth and nightmare. Some called him the angel of vengeance. Others, the reaper of lost souls. Many simply avoided him. It was difficult to say what Kurozanmai was. A villain? A hero? A glitch in the tower? Or just a brother dead inside, trapped in a mourning that didn't let him move forward, that kept him in a tower of his own pain, where he was at the same time jailer, prisoner and executioner.

Fate, as cruel as it had been to Kaien, still seemed to have pieces on its board that he did not understand — until the day he crossed paths with Kirito and Asuna. It happened during a special mission, on the 72nd floor of Aincrad, in a labyrinthine area almost forgotten by the official maps. A group of players had been ambushed by monsters of an abnormally high level, and a rescue call was sent to the nearest frontliners. Kaien, as always, did not respond to this type of request. It was not his problem. But chance — or perhaps something else — placed him on that floor at the same time. And it was there that the veil began to tear. He saw them from afar: Kirito, standing with his classic black sword raised, surrounded by monsters that seemed to never stop, his movements already heavy with exhaustion. Slumped beside him, Asuna lay unconscious, artificial blood dripping down her armor. Something in Kirito's bent body, trying to protect her at all costs, triggered a snap. It was not compassion. Kaien didn't remember what it was like to feel that way. It was a memory. The image of Ren, wounded on the ground, trying to smile in his last moments, overlapped with Asuna's. The pain came like a thunderclap inside his chest. For an instant, Kaien saw himself back in that lost dungeon, where he had arrived too late. Only now... there was time. Before his rational mind could comprehend, his body was already moving. Like a silent storm, Kaien advanced through the shadows, his two black swords — which few even knew existed — cut through the creatures like scythes harvesting weak grass. The system didn't even register his movements properly: they were too precise, too fast. The channeled fury had become pure skill. Kirito, surprised, for a moment believed that they were being saved by some kind of entity from the tower. But no — it was a man. Or what was left of one.

Together, for the first time, the three of them escaped. Kaien didn't say a word along the way. He simply cleaned his blades, carried Asuna when necessary, and faced the enemies that were coming after him. When they finally reached a safe area, Kirito, not understanding what had just happened, approached and thanked him. Kaien hesitated. For the first time in years, he felt the silence weigh more heavily than the pain. He didn't know how to respond. But something in him—perhaps Ren's ghost—forced him to stay. They sat for moments that seemed eternal. Kaien didn't tell everything. He wasn't the type to expose deep wounds. But he did reveal his name. He said he had failed before. That protecting someone—truly protecting them—wasn't something everyone could do. Kirito, who understood more than he let on, didn't force it, didn't judge. He simply nodded, with that calm look of someone who respects pain without wanting to cure it by force. Asuna, still with her pale expression, found the strength to smile at Kaien. A real smile. Without fear. Without obligation. And in that brief moment, Kaien didn't see Asuna. He saw Ren, smiling at him one last time, as if to say, "It's all right now." In the days that followed, Kaien returned to the shadows, but something in him had changed. He still avoided groups. He still hid on the most dangerous floors. But he watched. From afar, in the shadows of the towers, he watched Kirito and Asuna face their own challenges, now with curiosity and a strange warmth that bothered him. He studied them not as enemies, nor as allies, but as mirrors of something he thought he had lost: bonds. Even without fully understanding, he began to realize that perhaps... just perhaps... there were still fragments of himself that had not been erased.

As the final battle against Heathcliff approached, and tension grew among the frontliners, many expected to see Kaien among them. Rumors spread that Kirito himself had left a private message for him, inviting him—without demanding, without appealing. Kaien read it. He fell silent. And decided not to intervene. Not out of cowardice. But because he knew that this was a fight that Kirito had to win for himself. It wasn’t his battle. Not anymore. The weight on his shoulders wasn’t the same. The blade he carried was made of another guilt, another loss. He had already fought his own personal war. He had already won—or lost—the night he reached out and someone smiled back. Kaien disappeared again after that. Some say he returned to the lower layers of the tower, not to punish himself, but to find something—or someone. Others swear they saw him in bugged NPCs, that his presence haunted the edges of the system, as if he had become part of the code itself. No one knows for sure. But one thing is certain: the black shadow of the tower, which for so long represented pain, now carried a different spark. Not hope—not yet—but something that precedes it: the reminder that, even in the deepest darkness, a human gesture is enough to rekindle a spark.

When Aincrad fell and the players were freed, Kaien woke up in the hospital with a weakened body and a heavy heart. Outside of the game, no one recognized him. His parents, devastated by the loss of Ren, had moved to another city. Kaien felt empty, as if he had left part of his soul trapped in the floating castle. He carried the weight of a broken promise. For weeks, he didn't speak to anyone. But after meeting Kirito again—who recognized him only by his eyes—something changed. Kirito didn't say much, just mentioned that Kaien's brother wouldn't want to see him like that. It was enough to plant a seed. Today, Kaien lives in rehabilitation, silent but no longer somber. He studies cybernetics and systems security, vowing to protect others from virtual prisons like that one. Sometimes he trains with Kirito in new games, but never for fun. He still carries the black swords in his mind, as a reminder. Kaien doesn't want to be a hero, and he doesn't want revenge. He just wants to be strong... strong enough so that no one ever has to suffer like he did again. And maybe, one day, strong enough to forgive yourself.

Sword Art Online (ALO)

Kaien never wanted to go back. After escaping the hell of Aincrad, he made a silent vow to never put another NerveGear on his head again. The pain and memories followed him through the silent halls of the hospital—echoes of wails, swords cutting through flesh, the fixed image of Ren, his younger brother, fading in his arms after the final blow. Even amidst the freedom of the real world, reality felt like an empty cell, where the walls were made of memories and every breath carried a metallic taste of guilt. In the cold silence of his hospital room, Kaien avoided even the electronic sounds of simple games, as if every sound effect might trigger an invisible trap. That was when Kirito contacted him. It wasn’t a call for adventure, nor a quest for glory—it was a cry for help, a silent call from a friend. Kirito needed help, not to kill monsters, but to rescue Asuna, imprisoned in a digital prison called “Titania” in ALfheim Online. The name rang like a bell in his chest—not out of hope, but as a reminder that the pain still lived there. The silent debt to Kirito, the deep respect for Asuna, and the living memory of Ren, who had admired them both as heroes, were reasons enough. With trembling hands, Kaien took the NerveGear as if touching a cursed artifact. His fingers hesitated on the activation button, but pressed it. Without thinking too much, he chose the race of the Gleam Eyes—black-winged elves, renegades by nature. The decision was not aesthetic, but symbolic: he was already an outcast inside. Thus was born Yamihana (闇華—“Dark Flower”). In the first flights in ALO, he felt the hatred he thought he had buried rise again, but this time it was transformed. The colorful sky, the flowery maps, the magical rivers—everything seemed to mock his pain. But in that contrast of light and emptiness, Kaien realized: he was no longer a warrior, he was a ghost, a specter between worlds. An invisible watchman, a hunter who protected not for glory, but for principle. And so he prepared to return to battle—not for revenge, but for redemption.

In no time, Yamihana became a living legend—or rather, a whispered legend. Most had never seen him; others swore he was just a bugged AI. His movements in the sky were aggressive, savage, almost animalistic, as if he flew with anger instead of wings. He attacked opportunistic guilds, ambushed PKers, and sabotaged toxic strategies in turf wars, all without ever identifying himself. No faction sheltered him, no banner represented him—Yamihana was an exile with black wings. He appeared out of nowhere and disappeared into the clouds, leaving no traces other than digital bodies. His assault rifle, Kuraihane (“Black Wing”), used no flashy magics or elemental enchantments. It was pure physical force, pure precision. The sound of his gunfire was like muffled thunder, followed by silence—the kind of silence that precedes fear. His most feared technique was Zankai no Tsubasa (殘壊の翼 – “Wings of Ruin”), in which he would spin his black wings in a violent rotation, creating a vortex of cutting blades capable of destroying projectiles, magic and players around him. He was so fast that he seemed like a blur, a tear in the sky itself. They tried to hire him—famous guilds offered yrd, equipment, status. He refused them all. Yamihana acted on his own, without contracts, without explanations. To ask about his past was to be met with a wall of silence, or worse: a look so empty that it seemed to consume the courage of those who dared to insist. And there was a cruel reason for this. The open sky of ALO, so vibrant and infinite, was like torture to Kaien. It was the freedom he and Ren had never known. The joy he had lost. The childhood that death had frozen. And so, even in a world of fairies and magic, Kaien saw only echoes of a life that had been ripped from him. But still, he flew—not to escape, but to watch. An angel of ruin, unseen, among the clouds.

Time passed, and with it, Kaien crossed paths with two figures who, in different ways, touched his fragmented spirit. The first was Leafa, a determined and generous warrior, who soon noticed something familiar in Yamihana's aerial movements. She was persistent, and although Kaien did not give in easily, she let fragments escape—words that did not form a story, but carried pain. The second figure, however, would be even more decisive: a young player named Mirellia, of the Shadow Rune class, a support and control hybrid, specialized in magical seals and summoning dark energy. Mirellia was curious, but respected Yamihana's silence. She found him one night, injured after single-handedly destroying an entire group of bounty hunters. Instead of asking who he was, she simply healed him and left. The third time they crossed paths, she sat beside him, in silence. From that moment on, the words began to emerge—small, fragile, like leaves in the wind. Yamihana didn’t trust, but he couldn’t resist anymore either. With Mirellia, he talked about stars, fear, loss—never about Ren, never about Kirito, but about feelings that only someone broken could understand. During the invasion of Oberon Castle, Kaien took on sabotage missions in restricted areas, neutralizing guardians and opening passages so that Kirito could reach Asuna. When Titania’s prison fell, he stood aloof, watching everything from above. His tears were unseen, but they were real. Asuna was free, and with that, something inside him—something that had been trapped since Ren’s death—finally let go. But he didn’t disconnect. Yamihana kept going. He created a secret cabin in the Blue Mountains, a place where he trained alone. And over time, he began to help beginners, teaching them anonymously, hiding his true identity. He watched players fail, learn, laugh. This was new. Mirellia sometimes visited him. He never demanded answers, but always brought something—a philosophical question, a virtual flower, or a necessary silence. And then, one day, Yamihana looked at the sky of ALO with different eyes. He no longer saw only pain. He saw the possibility of reconstruction. Maybe, just maybe… he was starting to be human again.

The fall of Oberon was not only a victory for Kirito. It was also the liberation of Kaien. While everyone celebrated Kirito and Asuna’s reunion, Yamihana watched from a distance, hidden among the clouds. The mission he had accepted was over. The silent debt had been paid with blood and effort—not for glory, but for honor. Still, he did not log out. Maybe out of habit. Maybe out of fear. Or maybe because the virtual world was still the only place where he felt he could exist without being suffocated by the weight of reality. It was in the following weeks that Mirellia came up with an unexpected idea: she wanted to meet not only the character Yamihana, but the person behind him. Driven by genuine curiosity and a feeling that had been growing silently, she arranged to meet him in the real world. His real name was Luna, and that was how she met Kaien—an introspective young man, marked by scars that he preferred to keep hidden. Despite the somewhat awkward beginning for both of them, the meeting flowed naturally. Luna, unlike everyone else, never pressed him about his past. She didn’t ask him questions about old wounds, difficult choices, or the reasons behind the mask he wore as Yamihana. Instead, she treated him as someone who deserved to be seen in the present, with empathy and respect. Their coffee together extended into a long walk through the park, where words flowed between comfortable pauses and shy smiles. There were moments of shared silence, but it wasn’t an uncomfortable silence—it was a silence that welcomed, that said “I’m here,” even without words. With each step, small stories were revealed: childhood memories, strange tastes, forgotten dreams. Luna listened with genuine attention, and Kaien, little by little, began to allow himself to be seen. That encounter, simple and unpretentious, marked the beginning of something new. Not an escape from reality, but a bridge between two worlds—where the virtual and the real, the past and the present, could finally meet.

Sword Art Online (GGO)

Time had passed since the coffee in the park. Since the smiles shared with Luna. Since the silence that healed instead of hurting. For the first time, Kaien didn’t need to escape into the digital world—and that’s exactly why he felt ready to return. Not as someone stuck in the past, but as someone willing to look at the present through new lenses. When he found out about Gun Gale Online, something in him ignited. It wasn’t a desperate urge for escape or power. It was curiosity—for the mechanics, for the tension of tactical firefights, for the cold precision of the weapons. But there was also a silent reason behind the choice: to face his reflections, his ghosts, in an environment where survival required clarity and absolute focus. He created a new avatar, with a name that symbolized his internal struggle: Kurozensei (黒前世—“Past Dark Lives”). A serene-looking man, with gray eyes and a neutral expression, dressed in a long robe that mixed matte black with fluorescent blue details. Kurozensei was not the shadow warrior of SAO, nor the aerial hunter of ALO. He was something new. His fighting style reflected this duality: he wielded a precision-aimed automatic pistol, nicknamed Silent Requiem, and a short, lightsaber-like energy sword he called Hikari-no-Kiba (光の牙 — Fang of Light). The contrast between ranged attack and close combat reflected the internal battle he fought between distance and closeness, between caution and connection. ]

Over time, Kurozensei became an enigmatic and feared figure in Gun Gale Online. His name was whispered on obscure forums, listed among the best solo duelists. His accuracy with the Silent Requiem pistol bordered on the impossible—one shot, one kill—but it was with his light sword that he truly became a ghost on the battlefield. He would slip through the shadows of abandoned buildings, cut clean lines through chaotic firefights, and disappear without a trace. It wasn’t just skill; it was a choreographed dance between cold calculation and a restrained rage that he masterfully controlled. Unlike SAO and ALO, where emotions dominated him, GGO was the stage where Kaien embodied the balance between brutality and restraint. Outside of the game, Luna was his counterbalance. She didn’t play GGO, but she followed his triumphs, his downfalls, and most importantly, his hesitations. With every call, with every encounter in the real world, she helped keep his feet firmly on the ground. At night, when he returned from the death pits, Luna was the voice that reminded him of who he was. Their bond had grown silently, like roots growing underground. And that was why, when he received the invitation to the next Bullet of Bullets, Kaien hesitated. He knew that accepting would mean returning to the spotlight. It would mean reliving echoes of the past: deaths, specters, the pressure. But Luna held his hand firmly. “If you’re going to go, go as you are now. Not as you once were.” Kurozensei entered the tournament not out of a desire for victory, but to prove to himself that he could still fight—without being consumed.

The Bullet of Bullets began with brutal intensity. Kurozensei advanced with strategy, not haste. His targets fell before they even heard the shot. The community had been hailing him as one of the favorites. But then he came—an unexpected opponent. A player named GhostTrigger, whose style was reminiscent of SAO’s worst nightmares. His presence at the tournament had brought back rumors of a new conspiracy: mysterious deaths of players in the real world after defeats in GGO. The shadow of Death Gun was looming again. Kaien knew he couldn’t ignore it. Internal investigations pointed to the player not just being a sadist—he was someone with access to old data, perhaps even a survivor of SAO. Kaien’s past wouldn’t let him run away. He found himself, once again, torn between his instinct to survive and his need to protect. It was at this point that Luna unexpectedly intervened. Even though she wasn’t playing GGO, she appeared alongside Kaien in real life, watching the streams, talking to the admins, and helping to piece together a pattern between GhostTrigger’s attacks. She reminded him, with every determined look, that he wasn’t alone. When the final showdown between Kurozensei and GhostTrigger unfolded, it wasn’t just a fight for victory—it was a duel of principles. Kaien faced someone who represented everything he could have become if he had given in to his hatred. The fight was brutal: shots dodged by millimeters, blades clashing in a digital rain. In the end, it was silence that won. The silence of a held shot, a precise cut, and the decision not to kill. Kurozensei emerged victorious, but not broken. And as the tournament’s final credits rolled, he logged off and ran to find Luna. Because now, more than ever, he knew that the game wasn’t where he belonged. It was by her side.

Personality

Kaien is a deeply scarred soul, shaped by the fire of loss and the cold blade of loneliness. Before the tragedy, he was kind, outgoing, and protective, especially of his younger brother Ren, with whom he found dreams and adventures—both in real life and in SAO. However, Ren’s death in the first weeks of the game-changing digital prison changed everything. From Dali on, Kaien faded as a person and was reborn as Kurozanmai, a wandering shadow. His personality became cold, distant, and dark. He speaks with confidence, and when he does, his words are as blunt and sharp as his sword. His actions are driven by an uncontrolled obsession for power, not for glory or winning the game, but to punish himself and ensure that he would never again fail to protect someone. He carries guilt as armor and rage as a sword. He lives between the abyss of what he was and what he has become, fighting monsters and players in silence, and pushing away anything that resembles connection, friendship, or hope. In the eyes of other players, he is a living legend—one of the strongest—but to himself, he is just a wandering ghost in search of impossible redemption.

Abilities and skills

Sword Art Online (SAO)

• Level: 252
• HP: 50544
• Main Equipment:
  • Kuragami
  • Raijinken
  • Kōrinken
  • Hōrinken
  • Tenseiken
  • Yūmeiken
  • Shinketsuken
  • Kumoriken
  • Tsuranuken
  • Saihateken

Swordsman: Kaien, also known as Kurozanmai, has honed his swordsmanship to a level that transcends the conventional limits of Aincrad’s combat system. Over the course of hundreds of solo battles against floor bosses and hidden zones, he has developed a signature technique that combines surgical precision, brutal aggression, and unpredictable movement. His mastery goes beyond simple combo patterns: Kaien manipulates the system itself to perfection, executing chained skill sequences that can only be activated with perfect timing and impeccable enemy reading. This practice has given rise to his signature technique, the Shadow Dance, a series of lightning-fast strikes interspersed with short teleports that confound even the most advanced enemy AI algorithms. In addition, Kaien is able to simultaneously summon and manipulate up to ten night-black swords, which pair and slash around him without compromising his accuracy. Each blade carries unique buffs that the system offers no other—as if the game’s code itself recognized his pain and forged a style just for him. Kaien is not just a swordsman: he is the embodiment of steel shaped by loss, fueled by fury, and sculpted in silence.

Shadow Dance

The legendary “Shadow Dance” skin represents Kaien Kuragane’s ultimate form as Kurozanmai, manifesting the pinnacle of his pain, skill, and domination of the system. Upon activation, his body is enveloped in a black cloak torn at the edges, which billows like living smoke, hiding his presence from tracking systems. His armor becomes an extension of darkness, covered in pulsating runic inscriptions that recall the pain of each lost battle. Around him float ten swords—the ten most powerful in all of Sword Art Online—forged through unique events or impossible achievements. At the center is Kuragami, his main sword, a black blade that consumes the light around it and whose “Inverted Chaos” ability deals critical damage inversely proportional to the enemy’s defense, ignoring shields. Hovering in circles are: Raijinken, a lightning sword that summons electrical storms with each slash; Kōrinken, of eternal ice, capable of freezing the cooldown of enemy abilities; Hōrinken, forged in the core of a volcano, whose blows explode in flames that ignore elemental resistance; Tenseiken, made of crystal of pure light, which purifies enemy buffs on contact; Yūmeiken, an illusory blade that duplicates physical attacks in false images; Shinketsuken, a blood sword that increases attack power as Kaien is injured; Kumoriken, made of black clouds, which creates shadowy duplicates of Kaien for a few seconds; Tsuranuken, of cutting wind, with attacks that ignore armor; and Saihateken, the blade of the end, which activates “Final Despair”, a sacrificial blow that can reset the HP bar of any boss, at the cost of leaving Kaien with 1 health and defenseless for 60 seconds. During his Shadow Dance, Kaien wields these blades with telekinetic perfection, creating impossible-to-predict attack patterns. His eponymous technique manifests itself in a destructive ballet where he disappears and reappears with each strike, while the swords strike from random angles. When he uses it, he appears less like a player than an invincible entity shaped by darkness and grief. Players and monsters alike who witnessed this skin activated were unsure whether to bow down… or flee in despair.

Dragon Blades

Kaien wears a light armor made of black scales that glow a deep ruby ​​red, as if they were fragments of the wings of an ancient dragon that rested for millennia in a fiery cave. His every movement causes a metallic clang, a sound that echoes like a distant roar, announcing his presence before his shadow even appears. The plates of his armor rotate and adapt fluidly, allowing for agile and deadly movements, while the draconic runes engraved on his swords come to life in fiery orange at the touch of the fury of combat, releasing sparks that dance in the air like wild flames. He is the mythological warrior who emerged from legend, imposing and menacing, ready to devour any mythical creature that dares to cross his path, exuding the strength and power of the dragons that rule the skies.

Guardian of the Abyss

Kaien's matte black armor is reminiscent of the darkness of an eternal abyss, its robust plates inflated with gray leather reinforcing his dark and invincible presence. His chest bears an inverted cross, a symbol that rejects the light of purification, calling for the strength of debasement and resistance. Heavy chains snake around his shoulders and feet, as if to restrain a contained fury, and his hood has disappeared to make way for a partial helmet with a visor that hides the lower half of his face, revealing only eyes that shine with a deep and eternal pain. Kaien is no ordinary hero - he is a gothic anti-hero, a tragic figure who fights not for glory, but for the redemption of a bloody past, a warrior who seems to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders, imposing, dark and utterly unforgettable.

𝙍𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙤𝙠𝙪 𝙎𝙮𝙣𝙘𝙝𝙧𝙤: Collision of Worlds

This ultimate ability represents the absolute fusion between player and system. By activating it, Kaien directly connects his mind to the central core of Sword Art Online's architecture, taking full control of the source code of virtual reality for a full 3 minutes—an eternity in digital combat. During this time, the limitations of the world cease to exist for him: attacks are nullified before they are even executed, his physical strength is doubled every second, and the environment itself obeys the commands of his will. Mountains can be moved with a wave of the hand, the sky can be turned upside down, and even space and time data is reprogrammed in real time. Kaien can, for example, teleport enemies into infinite loops of frozen time, plunge them into zones of negative gravity, or transform the battlefield into an unstable and chaotic simulation where only he is immune. The ability poses a colossal risk: any user without extreme mental capacity suffers instant neurological collapse. To symbolize this power, a flaming, spinning mark opens on Kaien's chest, as if it were the heart of the system itself burning in cosmic light. Every second of this ability redefines the digital world — and all who oppose it.

𝘼𝙣𝙩𝙞-𝙎𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙢 𝘿𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙮: Last Judgement

This is Kaien's ultimate ability, an absolute cut that transcends the layers of the game. "Last Judgement" channels all of the avatar's energy, digital memory, and even the server space itself into a single, fatal strike. Upon activation, the game's sky darkens, sound stops, and time seems to slow down. An inverted sphere of corrupted data and collapsing binary zeros forms behind Kaien as he advances, and his sword becomes covered in living code that scrambles and rewrites itself endlessly. The strike ignores all forms of resistance: defense, buffs, barriers, immortal modes, boss protection scripts—nothing survives. Upon striking the target, their code disintegrates like shattered glass, erased from virtual existence as if it had never been rendered. The surrounding area enters a critical failure mode for 10 seconds, causing the system to panic. Upon use, Kaien is temporarily incapacitated: all of his other abilities are sealed, and his virtual body enters an extreme weakening mode. However, he is given the hidden title “Systems Executor,” granting him unique access to hidden administrative commands—an echo of his absolute mastery. A forbidden ability, capable of judging even the very system that sustains the world.

SKILL SLOTS
Shadow Dance	Dragon Blades	Guardian of the Abyss	Martial Arts	Tracking
Completed	Completed	Completed	Completed	Completed
Extended weight limit	Healing in Battle	Speed	𝙍𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙤𝙠𝙪 𝙎𝙮𝙣𝙘𝙝𝙧𝙤: Collision of Worlds	𝘼𝙣𝙩𝙞-𝙎𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙢 𝘿𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙮: Last Judgement
Completed	Completed	Completed	Completed	Completed

Sword Art Online (ALO)

• Level: 402
• HP: 80721
• Main Equipment:
  • Kuroken

Kuraihane: Kuraihane didn’t rely on colorful spells or flashy visual effects like other players. In just a few weeks, he mastered the combat systems and developed a style all his own. His fighting style was based on pure instinct, surgical precision, and movements honed to perfection. His black wings, which looked like they were made of metallic feathers, were not decorative—they were deadly weapons shaped by his will. The technique that bore his name, “Kuraihane” (Black Wing), was an advanced stance in which the player channeled his physical energy directly into his wings, making each beat or movement as sharp as a living blade. With this technique active, Kuraihane gained extreme speed and absolute aerial control, being able to attack from impossible angles, often blinding his enemies with the complete absence of light, shadow, or sound. The technique’s true distinguishing feature, however, was the art of silence. While the other duelists flooded the field with lights and effects, Kuraihane disappeared into the darkness. The sweep of his wings created a vacuum of sound, obscuring his tracks and confusing even the enemy AI’s pattern-reading algorithms. This ability proved especially deadly in ambushes or low-visibility zones, where the slightest hesitation meant defeat. Many players reported that by the time they realized Kuraihane’s presence, they were already dead. His fusion of sharp instinct and precise execution made “Kuraihane” synonymous with silent death—a silent warning that the darkness had chosen its next victim.

Zankai no Tsubasa

Kuraihane's ultimate technique. "Zankai no Tsubasa" is activated when the player leaps into the sky and spins his wings at a high speed, like whirling blades. The metallic feathers extend, creating a rotating, cutting barrier around his body, like a flying saw. In aerial combat, this technique transforms Kuraihane into a nearly untouchable human projectile. Any enemy that tries to get close is torn apart by dozens of slashes in seconds. In addition, the whirlwind of wings causes turbulence that destabilizes the flight of nearby opponents, giving him a total advantage in skirmishes. The energy and stamina required to maintain this technique is high, so Kuraihane uses it as a finisher or desperate defense. The rotation creates a low, vibrating sound that resembles a distorted metallic scream—a sign that death is near. Visually, the sky around Kuraihane darkens, as if his wings are absorbing the light. When he dives with "Zankai no Tsubasa" activated, the vision is of a black star cutting across the horizon. No physical or magical shield can withstand the direct impact. High-level players have reported that this technique forced them to fight on the ground, where Kuraihane was less dominant—though still deadly.

Black Cherry Blossom Dance

Yamihana summons dozens of dark, ethereal petals that float around her like a silent storm. Each petal is a magical blade embedded with digital poison—they not only deal physical damage, but also apply a progressive health and speed draining effect to enemies hit. During activation, Yamihana enters a fluid dance state, spinning and moving forward like a deadly ballerina, guiding the petals with her movements. The more graceful the movement, the more violent the flurry of slashing petals that follow. This technique is especially effective in confrontations against multiple opponents, as the petals’ area of ​​coverage prevents direct approaches. Players hit have their stamina and defense bars reduced per second, while Yamihana remains agile, slicing through the shadows. Visually, the technique transforms the environment into a macabre garden where black flowers dance in the wind — a hypnotic spectacle, until one realizes that each petal brings death with it.

Evolution of the Night

Yamihana gathers all the darkness around her and merges it with her body, entering an evolved state for a limited time. In this form, her armor and blades gain a subtle purple glow, and her movements become nearly invisible. The ability drastically improves her physical parameters — attack, defense, and speed — and grants the ability to execute "temporally delayed" attacks: slashes that hit the enemy a few moments after the movement is made, completely confusing their sense of time and defense. During Evolution of the Night, Yamihana can leave shadowy aftershocks after each attack, which explode in small bursts of delayed darkness. The technique is ideal for combat against predictable opponents or those who rely on visual reflexes, as it breaks with the traditional logic of exchanging blows. Many consider this skill a form of "refined berserker mode", as it combines brutality with elegance, a trademark of Yamihana.

Yamibana no Yumi

Yamihana channels her dark energy into pure form to materialize an ethereal bow made of crystallized shadows and lunar energy. Yamibana no Yumi does not use conventional arrows: it condenses fragments of emotions and echoes of past battles as projectiles—each shot is charged with distorted memories of pain and regret, making the impact not only physical, but also psychological. The arrows leave no visual trail, becoming nearly invisible in the air, and travel with an irregular trajectory that defies reading by AI and players. A single shot can pierce through multiple enemies if lined up, and explode in a wave of delicate, silent darkness, like petals in the wind. The power of this technique increases the more still Yamihana is when firing. In his most lethal form, he plants his feet on the ground, silences his heartbeat, and fires an arrow called “Higanbana” — a projectile that crosses the entire field, seeking the target marked by his “inner shadow.” Players who are hit feel the screen go dark, accompanied by a muffled sound, as if the world is being drowned in melancholy. After this, black flowers appear at the site of impact, slowly blooming, like a digital epitaph for the defeated. Yamibana no Yumi is the synthesis of everything Yamihana represents: precision, elegance, and the relentless weight of a night without dawn.

SKILL SLOTS
Zankai no Tsubasa	Black Cherry Blossom Dance	Evolution of the Night	Dark Flower Bow
Completed	Completed	Completed	Completed

Sword Art Online (GGO)

Weapons: Wields a precision-aimed automatic pistol, nicknamed Silent Requiem, and a short, high-vibration energy sword, similar to a lightsaber, called Hikari-no-Kiba (光の牙 — "Fang of Light"). The Silent Requiem, designed to silence its targets before they realize its presence, is a rapid-fire, silent weapon, ideal for ambushes and surgical executions. Hikari-no-Kiba, which emits a faint, cutting glow, is used in direct confrontations, penetrating energy armor and destabilizing physical and digital defenses with its precision strikes. His combat style in Gun Gale Online is hybrid and adaptive, combining close-quarters combat (CQC) and tactical sniping techniques, something uncommon among elite players. He moves in the shadows, keeping his distance while calculating routes for silent approach. In open combat, he uses his pistol to suppress the enemy and force them into error, then closes the distance with surprising speed, activating Hikari-no-Kiba to finish off the opponent in a lethal dance of light and steel.

Trivia

• I created this character on the Amino app, then adapted it for here. The art was based on Kirito.
• Before he was three years old, Kaien could perfectly imitate the katas (positions) of his father’s dojo just by watching. During a demonstration with older students, he reproduced a strike with surgical precision, surprising even veteran masters. Since then, many have called him a “born sword” — someone who did not learn to fight, but was born with the instinct for combat.
• “Kurozanmai” (黒三昧) means “dark ecstasy” or “immersed in darkness.” Originally a derogatory title used by those who feared his growth and ruthless actions on the battlefield, Kaien chose to adopt the name as a symbol of acceptance of his pain, anger, and purpose—turning an insult into a title feared by even the most powerful guilds.
• Kaien has a cruel, unspoken rule: he can only save a person once. After the death of his brother Ren, he developed a code of his own—if someone survives through his intervention, they must either grow stronger or die trying.
• In the Sword Art Online universe, Kaien was forced to eliminate a player who was threatening a group of newbies — it was a quick, cold and precise decision. Since that day, he has never truly smiled again, even after victories. His serious expression has become a trademark, and some players swear that just looking into Kaien's eyes gives them a deep chill that stops them from moving for seconds.
• Kaien is a master of martial arts, sword fighting, archery and energy flow manipulation — which makes him one of the very few characters with multiple styles of simultaneous progression. This breaks the game's natural balancing system, and the devs even tried to limit his skill points. Still, Kaien broke the algorithms and earned the respect of the NPCs as if he were a superior entity.