Leo Kliesen

Leo Kliesen (レオ, Reo) is a character in the Tekken franchise. They are one of the four characters first introduced in Tekken 6, which was released to Arcades in Japan on November 26, 2007. Leo is from Germany, and fights with the art of Hakkyoku-ken (Bajiquan).
==Character Looks==
They have light blue eyes and short, blonde hair. Their first outfit consists of a buckled shirt, along with a red, white and black jacket. They wear a red scarf with an anchor-like pendant, with matching red gloves. They wear a pair of blue jeans and brown boots. Their P2 outfit contains of something much more formal, which consists of a white, long-sleeved shirt with matching white pants and white gloves.
Bājíquán is a Chinese martial art that features explosive, short-range power and is famous for its elbow strikes. The style focuses on being more direct, culminating in powerful, fast strikes that will render its opponent unable to continue.
== Story ==
=== Tekken 6 ===
Leo was born to Niklas Kliesen, a world-famous spelunker and archaeologist, and Emma Kliesen, a geneticist who worked first for the Mishima Zaibatsu, and then for G Corporation as a researcher and an executive. Leo’s father disappeared on an expedition when Leo was still a child, but this did not deter Leo from wishing to become a spelunker as well. As well as passing a passion for caving on to Leo, Niklas also taught Leo some fighting.
After their father's disappearance, Leo was raised by their mother, and had a pleasant and uneventful childhood. Leo grew to have a strong sense of justice and became an accomplished martial artist, learning the art of Baji Quan, and also a spelunker as they always dreamed.
Tragedy struck again though when Leo was around 19 years old. Their mother, Emma, was killed by an unknown assailant. Leo was grief-sticken by the murder, but sadness turned to anger when the police ceased their investigation without explanation. Leo began to look into the case alone, and identified Kazuya Mishima as the most likely suspect. Leo made attempts to meet with Kazuya, but his position as leader of G Corporation made it difficult to get an audience with him. Leo discovered that Kazuya would be appearing at the sixth King of Iron Fist Tournament, and attended the tournament with the intention of taking revenge against him. Despite this, Leo was unable to confront Kazuya at the tournament.
=== Tekken 7 ===
Leo began delving further into their mother’s past. At some point, they were able to infiltrate a train and discover a computer file detailing work Emma Kliesen had conducted for the Mishima Zaibatsu. Prior to this, Leo had been unaware that their mother had worked for the Zaibatsu, so was surprised by this information. When the opportunity arose, Leo entered the seventh King of Iron Fist Tournament with the intention of learning more about the work Emma had done for the Mishima Zaibatsu.
=== Tekken 8 ===
Leo was able to acquire confidential information from G Corporation about Emma's work. Emma had been researching the Devil Gene, and, according to the data Leo found, Kazuya Mishima had sent out orders that key researchers who were no longer needed were to be "taken care of." When the Zaibatsu broadcasted Kazuya in his devil form, Leo surmised that Kazuya must have started the research to try and gain control over this devil power, and then ordered the deaths of all researchers involved when they were no longer of use to him. Leo was enraged by these findings, and close to a breakdown, but remembered their father's patience. Taking heed of that memory, Leo calmed themselves and set out to find more concrete answers.
Leo, alongside their father, Niklas, was requested by Lee Chaolan to aid in Jin's quest to regain his Devil abilities. Once aboard Yggdrasil's flying boat, Leo requested to spar with Jin in order to understand his current circumstances. Later, Leo and their father met with Lee, Jin, Lars Alexandersson, Alisa Bosconovitch, and Reina to discuss Niklas' findings in regards to Azazel and the Devil Gene. Niklas shares that it is a strong emotion that allows Devil Gene wielders to access the powers initially granted to them by Azazel, and while Kazuya's desire for power is what gave him the ability to hone his own Devil Gene, Leo expresses that they felt none of this desire from Jin. Instead, they felt a warmth from Jin, and saw no reason to lump him in with Kazuya.
Leo later joined Niklas, Lars, Alisa, Lee, and Reina to discuss Kazuya's new strength after he had defeated and absorbed Azazel. They surmise that if Jin could attain a power to purify or control the Devil Gene, then he would be able to defeat Kazuya. Leo then joined Yggdrasil's forces in defending Yakushima against G Corporation's assault on the island as Kazuya attempted to find Jin. They met with Azucena on the battlefield, who was currently working alongside Kazuya, and recognized her as the owner of Ortiz Farm. Azucena explained that she intended to achieve world peace via extending the sales of her coffee brand while working for G Corp before attacking a confused Leo.
After Leo and Azucena battle, Azucena asked Leo how they knew of her. Leo responded that there "isn't a single coffee lover out there who hasn't heard of [Azucena]", to which Azucena responded with joy that she had successfully found another coffee enthusiast. Azucena then correctly guessed that Leo was from Germany, and decided to ship her newest product directly to them before jogging off into the fray. Leo remained where they were, wondering what it was Azucena was truly after.
In the good ending, Leo is shown exploring a cave, following behind their father.
==Trivia==
*Leo's gender is left ambiguous.
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