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“ | My guild's name is «Brightscale». I'll let you think about its abbreviation -- but I suppose I can give you one small hint! You're talkin' an awful lot of it right now. | „ |
~ Kenji to a fellow player. |
Kenji Hiroshi | |
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Personal Info | |
Real Name | Kenji Hiroshi |
Kanji | 健児博 |
Birthday | 22nd February |
Age | 26 |
Gender | Male |
Height | 183 cm (6'0") |
Weight | 68 kg (150 lbs) |
Occupation | Professional gamer |
Player Profile | |
Display Name | Kishi |
Kanji (Display) | 輝士 |
Epithet | Reaper (former) |
VR Played | «Sword Art Online» |
Occupation | Guild leader, Clearer |
Status | Alive |
Media | |
Appears In | «Sword Art Online (Kenji)» |
Kenji Hiroshi (健児博), known by the username Kishi (輝士) in various online games, was one of the original beta testers for «Sword Art Online», and he subsequently became one of the 10,000 players trapped within the game. He led a Clearer guild called «Brightscale» (BS). During the beta test Kenji gained the title of Reaper (刈り手) amongst the community, both in recognition of his dueling skills and player killing, which became a title he vehemently attempted to distance himself from in the official release. Prior to his imprisonment in the game Kenji was a professional gamer in real-life with an avid fan-base.
Appearance
Kenji was a fair-featured man in his mid-twenties during the SAO Incident, but was generally taken at face-value to be in his teens. His initial avatar was slightly taller and more muscular than his real-life appearance, with shoulder-length black hair. In real-life -- and the official release of SAO -- Kenji stood at 6ft tall and sported a muscled physique. The only constant between his avatars where hair colour and length: Kenji preferred his natural style, which was several messy-looking spikes atop his head, whilst the back reached roughly to shoulder-length.
Personality
Kenji is generally laid-back and non-confrontational and is noted to be calmer and relaxed than his guild-mate Kusaka.[1] He tends to leave the more difficult decisions up to his friend and Second-in-Command Kusaka, but is noted to be incredibly stubborn when he does set his mind on something -- and in such cases even Kusaka cannot budge him. In social settings he is generally seen as an older-brother type by other players, has been described as "the soul of the party", and is generally approachable.[2] He enjoys poking fun but has quickly learned not to push his antics too far with Asuka, who often reprimands him with a quick stomp.[3]
When dueling Kenji becomes quiet and distant with his guild-mates describing him as "cold" and "calculating".
History
SAO Beta test
Kenji was part of the beta test for Sword Art Online. During his adventures on the 1st Floor he discovered an alpha Dire Wolf mob near Tolbana that dropped a set of claws.[2] He was also one of very few beta testers who discovered the existence of the «Martial Arts» Extra Skill and it took him close to four days to complete it.[3]
Synopsis
- Main article -- Sword Art Online (Kenji).
Aincard arc
Stats
Stat | Value | Time |
---|---|---|
Level | 12.[2] |
December 4, 2022.[2][Notes 1] |
Equipment
Name | Type | Acquisition | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
«Unnamed curved sword» | One-Handed Curved Sword | Initial Equipment | Eventually replaced by a Scimitar before December 4, 2022.[2] |
«Scimitar» | One-Handed Curved Sword | Received as a rare monster drop on the 1st Floor sometime before December 4, 2022.[2] | Upgraded to +4 before December 4, 2022.[2] |
Skills
Kenji uses an attack-focused build and prefers the use of the «One-handed Curved Sword».[2] As such he fills the role of party DPS.[1] Upon reaching the 2nd Floor he acquired the Extra Skill «Martial Arts» and immediately slotted it to his third skill slot.[3]
During the beta he was renowned amongst the community for his dueling skills and surprise PK's. He has admitted to Asuka that he heavily experimented in this aspect of the game during the beta.[3] Whilst he has attempted to distance himself from the title he earned due to the PKing he performed in the beta, it is no exaggeration that his duelling skills remained formidable even in the official release. Despite the act of dueling being incredibly dangerous in the official release Kenji frequently engaged in both Half Loss Mode and First Strike Mode, and is the recognised "Dueler" of «Brightscale».[4]
Despite his status as a Guild leader Kenji does, on occasion, operate as a solo player for heightened EXP gains and undivided loot.[3]
Sword Art Online
SAO SKILL SLOTS | ||||||||||||||||||||
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One-handed Curved Sword | Hiding | Martial Arts | ||||||||||||||||||
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Sword Skills
One-handed Curved Sword
Martial Arts
- Flash Blow.[3]
- Crescent Moon
Outside System Skills
- Hypersense -- The act of sensing the "killing intent" of another player. According to Kenji he learned this particular skill during the beta around the time the beta testers arrived on the 5th Floor, where a great deal of PKing was done.
Relationships
Brightscale
«Brightscale» was formed by Kenji and Kusaka on the 3rd Floor of Aincrad. Despite a slower start than some of the other clearers «Brightscale» eventually joined the front-line group.
Airi Natsume
Kenji first met Airi when she suffered the tumble status when met with a particularly large Dire Wolf. He defeated the wolf with the Sword Skill Reaver and subsequently suggested that she join Kusaka and he on the path to Tolbana for safety.[2] This ultimately led to Airi joining the two as a founding member of Brightscale.
The two evidently grew quite close. Kenji noted that Airi and he eventually revealed various details about their real-life self to one another, one example being their actual names.[2]
Quotes
- My guild's name is «Brightscale». I'll let you think about its abbreviation -- but I suppose I can give you one small hint! You're talkin' an awful lot of it right now.
Author's notes
Behind the scenes
- Kenji's in-game name is created from letters found in his own name: Kenji Hiroshi, creating Kishi. The kanji chosen for Kishi translates to bright samurai. This likewise plays into the name of the guild: Brightscale.
- Kenji's height and weight measurements, including physical appearance, is modelled on Kaien Shiba from Bleach.
Trivia
- Due to his achievements in the beta -- namely committing the most PK's -- Kenji was the eventual owner of the «Darkness Blade» Unique Skill.
References & notes
- ↑ Events depicted in SAOK: Unexpected Meetings are stated to occur four weeks into the official release of SAO. This would coincide with the fight against the 1st Floor boss Illfang the Kobold Lord.