Hei (Darker than Black)

Hei is the main protagonist of the anime and manga series, Darker than Black. He is a human who gained contractor powers, particularly the ability to manipulate electricity or molecules, and a member of the assassin group known only as The Syndicate. He is also the older brother of Bai.
He is voiced by Hidenobu Kiuchi in the Japanese version of the anime, and by Jason Liebrecht in the English version of the anime.
==Appearance==
Hei is a man of slender build with black hair and dark blue eyes. When in his Li Shengshun persona, he wears the casual attire of an exchange student. When operating as a Contractor, Hei dons a bullet-proof trench coat and a white pierrot-inspired mask that fully conceals his face.
After the events that transpire at Hell's Gate, Hei lets his hair grow out and neglects shaving. His trenchcoat has become worn and he mostly wears a ski jacket.
Shortly after learning that Yin is still alive and in danger, Hei cuts his hair back to normal length, shaves, and returns to his "Black Reaper" attire.
==Personality==
As a member of the Syndicate, Hei regularly takes on false identities and personas for his missions and day to day life, such as Li Shengshun (李生舜 (リ・シェンシュン), Ri Shengshun): a good-natured, timid Chinese exchange student who tries to help others but otherwise generally keeps to himself.
Hei is a calculating assassin. Unusually for a Contractor, Hei exhibits and sometimes acts upon emotions. Hei also has a huge appetite, often surprising people with the amount he can eat. The Black Contractor, Episode 2. Despite having the power of a Contractor, Hei still has his human emotions. He deeply cares for his sister, Bai, and searches for her after her disappearance. The Black Contractor, Episode 6.
After Yin's disappearance, a drastic change came upon Hei's personality. He takes up drinking, becomes more ruthless, gets angry easily and would often lash out at Suou, slapping her across the face whenever she said something that angered him. He rarely showed such behavior prior to this, but after learning of Yin's whereabouts, Hei reverts back to his previous attitude showing his care for Yin, while also developing feelings of care toward Suou.
==Background==
Before he became a Contractor, Hei was a caring older brother who looked after his little sister Bai. Despite his age Hei was like a guardian to Bai. During a meteor shower his sister became a Contractor, with the ability to control and change matter on a molecular level, causing her to become the original BK-201. Soon after, Bai was recruited into the Syndicate. Although Hei hated killing, he became a mercenary in order to watch over and be with his sister. Due to his exceptional combat capabilities (martial arts, usage of improvised weaponry, and speed) he became feared even amongst contractors, earning the title of "Black Reaper. However as "Heaven's War" went on Hei became appalled by Bai's actions and began to have thoughts of killing her, however his love for his sister prevented him from doing this.
During the "Heaven's War", Bai went missing with the rest of Hei's team. Unknowingly to him Bai had merged her being with Hei, giving him her powers and the star BK-201. He continued to serve the Syndicate in hopes of finding out what happened in South America's Heaven's Gate, and more importantly what happened to his sister. Hei also has a past history with the leader of the Evening Primrose and former Syndicate co-worker, Amber and hopes to find her in order to discover the truth.
==Abilities==
Peak Human Condition: Hei's contract powers are especially useful because of his amazing agility, speed, endurance, dexterity, and natural strength.
Expert Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Hei is obviously extremely skilled in martial arts and is an accomplished acrobat easily able to do backflips and mid-air cartwheels with little effort in terms of physical strain. Hei's natural abilities are so impressive that even without his contractor powers Hei is easily able to take on other contractors. A combination of these physical attributes coupled with what appears to be the most powerful contractor power as well as a lack of obeisance arguably makes Hei the strongest character in the series.
Tactician: Not unlike many Contractors, Hei possesses a very pragmatic and resourceful intellect; demonstrating a knack for improvisation during the heat of combat. Since Hei's contractor ability can only kill once in direct contact with the intended target, Hei often relies on taking his opponents by surprise in order to gain the advantage (as evidenced by his gambit during his first fight with Wei). His tactical unpredictability and resourcefulness coupled with his almost bullet-time speed makes him a daring foe.
===Contractor Power===
Molecular/Electricity Manipulation: Hei possesses the ability to generate and discharge electricity through conductive media (i.e. he cannot discharge it through air or concrete) at sufficiently high amounts to kill grown men or short out a building's electrical systems. The power is more than simple electric shocks, as he can alter matter on the quantum level. He has shown the ability to transform integral particles on the quantum level. He is capable of special particle luminance, meaning he is able to change molecules similar to how humans are changed into contractors. This ability is also one of the most, if not the most, powerful and coveted powers known as it is the only one capable of altering gate particles at will. This ability is not actually his as he is really only human, but it was granted to him when his sister fused with him. While in possession of the Meteor Fragment, Hei's powers were amplified to the extent that he was able to destroy a large portion of South America almost effortlessly.
:Obeisance: None. This inheritance means that, unlike other contractors, Hei doesn't have an Obeisance. The reason behind this is that he is actually a human who has fused with his sister, a Contractor, therefore he has no price to pay.
==Equipment==
*Mask: Hei wears a white mask with a purple lightning symbol over the right eye. It also has a thin red slit across the mouth.
*Knife: Hei's trademark weapon is a knife on a metal wire, which he uses as an offensive weapon, a grappling hook, or as a conduit through which to discharge his electricity.
*Wire: In addition to using it with his knife, Hei also uses his wire with a carabiner attached to the end, which allows the wire to anchor to any object that it wraps around. This is also used to wrap around enemies necks and allows Hei to deliver lethal shocks.
*Black Trench Coat: Hei's long black trench coat is bullet proof (often used as a shield), and works only with his powers.
*Crossbow: To aid in infiltrating a building, Hei has made use of a collapsible crossbow to fire a rope large distances. He keeps the crossbow in a satchel.
*Lie Detector Sticker: Hei wears a transparent sticker on the back of his neck to pass a lie detector test and conceal his identity as a Contractor while inside PANDORA.
==Part in the Story==
In the anime Darker than Black, Hei is first shown as an assassin who moves to Tokyo while taking a new persona. As a civilian he is Li Shenshun, a good-natured Chinese exchange student who lives in an old apartment complex for foreigners and gets by with temporary part-time jobs. Hei is said to be a Contractor, a man with supernatural powers with Hei's ability being to generate electricity in deadly concentrations. Li's part-time jobs are related to Hei's current mission as a member of a secret organization known as the Syndicate. Despite the Contractors' fame for being coldhearted, Hei also demonstrates compassion and sorrow, much to the surprise of others. He is aided by Yin, an emotionless human known as a Doll, and Mao, a contractor trapped in a cat's body and overseen by the agent Huang. Hei began working with the Syndicate as a child assassin to protect his sister Bai in South America during the Heaven's Gate war, and his goal is to find her again.
Hei is linked with Amber, a former Syndicate agent who leads the Evening Primrose Contractor group and whom Hei blames for Bai's disappearance. During the climax, Hei is persuaded by his allies to work individually and focus on Amber rather than fight her. Hei learns that his abilities are inherited from Bai, who can manipulate molecules at the quantum level. Due to her molecular control, Bai resides in Hei's body. Although he has Contractor abilities, Hei is not a true Contractor because he can express a range of emotions. When the Syndicate reveals a weapon to cause genocide within Contractors, Hei must make a decisive choice. Hei's decision stops the Syndicate from eliminating the Contractors with Amber's help. Following Amber's death, Hei escapes with Yin from Tokyo.
==Trivia==
*The number 201 appears frequently throughout the series.
**Hei's apartment room number is 201, as in BK-201
**In the first season, second opening, 0201 can be seen in the pane of glass Hei walks past.
**In episode 11, 201 can be seen twice on Hei's passport, once under his picture (No018-00201). and again under his nationality (AR201).
**In episode 19, Hei is asked to read the page 201 from the Black Book.
**In episode 2 of Darker Than Black: Gemini of the Meteor, the number 201 can be seen in Souo's camera as she's taking photographs of her brother walking for the first time.
==Gallery==
Hei.png|link=https://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/p__/images/0/01/Hei.png/revision/latest?cb=20131227163134&path-prefix=protagonist
DTBG 001- Hei.gif|Hei's info sheet.|link=https://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/d__/images/9/9e/DTBG_001-_Hei.gif/revision/latest?cb=20100825160413&path-prefix=darkerthanblack
Hei's Power.png|Hei using his power.|link=https://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/d__/images/c/c1/Hei%27s_Power.PNG/revision/latest?cb=20090818063950&path-prefix=darkerthanblack
Contractor's Using Power.png|Hei uses his power.|link=https://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/d__/images/7/77/Contractor%27s_Using_Power.PNG/revision/latest?cb=20090606194515&path-prefix=darkerthanblack
Heis apartment.gif|Hei arrives at his apartment.|link=https://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/d__/images/7/70/Heis_apartment.gif/revision/latest?cb=20101208164508&path-prefix=darkerthanblack
S1E1 Jean uses power to appear beside Hei.png|Jean appearing beside Hei using his ability.|link=https://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/d__/images/7/7b/S1E1_Jean_uses_power_to_appear_beside_Hei.png/revision/latest?cb=20160304161223&path-prefix=darkerthanblack
The Black Reaper Hei.png|Hei in episode 2.|link=https://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/d__/images/9/94/The_Black_Reaper_Hei.png/revision/latest?cb=20140326235051&path-prefix=darkerthanblack
S1E2 Hei is saved by Shinoda Chiaki.png|Hei is saved by Shinoda Chiaki.|link=https://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/d__/images/4/49/S1E2_Hei_is_saved_by_Shinoda_Chiaki.png/revision/latest?cb=20160304163244&path-prefix=darkerthanblack
S1E4 Tahara and Hei.png|Hei and Tahara.|link=https://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/d__/images/a/aa/S1E4_Tahara_and_Hei.png/revision/latest?cb=20160308153015&path-prefix=darkerthanblack
S1E4 Tahara grabs Hei.png|Hei is pinned against wall by Tahara.|link=https://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/d__/images/c/cc/S1E4_Tahara_grabs_Hei.png/revision/latest?cb=20160308152635&path-prefix=darkerthanblack
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