Ling Yao

**Ling Yao** *(リン・ヤオ, Rin Yao)*, also spelled as **Lin Yao**, is a shinobi and the twelfth crown prince of an eastern nation between Kiri and Konoha and the liege of the Yao clan. Seeking a way to ensure his path to the throne amidst deadly inter-house competition, Ling has ventured from the nation to Kirigakure in order to divine the secret of immortality.

## Personality

On the surface, Ling comes off as a rather silly and lighthearted person, frequently engaging in comical behavior and retaining his oft-present grin even while making threats. He displays a childlike amusement for new situations whether or not they prove adverse or even potentially fatal, has a penchant for wandering off on his own only to collapse in the middle of a street, and is infamous for having a voracious appetite despite never carrying enough cash to feed himself. Even with all these idiosyncrasies, he is extremely personable and his particularly complimentary nature easily gains him the friendship and trust of those surrounding him.

Of course, these aspects belie the complex and determined young man underneath. On the reverse side of his frivolous nature is his considerable shrewdness, which makes him quite capable of reading people and situations in order to manipulate them to his liking. He is particularly observant, taking into consideration even the smallest details of his surroundings in order to better understand and deal with challenges and, despite his lofty position, is not above using cheap tricks or questionable tactics to ensure his own survival. Being singularly ambitious, Ling also has a remarkably tenacious will that allows him to overcome virtually insurmountable obstacles and accept inhuman burdens for the sake of his ultimate goal. He has considerable pride that will not stand for having his humanity insulted or condemned by his enemies, but he is also capable of shelving his pride if it becomes something that will stand in the way of his objective.

This is largely due to a sense of duty that Ling holds at the center of his being. As liege of the Yao clan, he strongly believes that his primary responsibility is the protection and advancement of his kinsmen. He understands that a king's right to rule is granted willingly by the people and strongly takes to heart the idea that the people are served by their liege, rather than the other way around. In keeping with this sense of "noblesse oblige", Ling is very protective of his kinsmen and comrades, refusing to allow any harm to come to them and often deeming their safety more important than his own in spite of his own personal ambitions and goals. He has to be reminded several times that his own safety is something upon which many people depend and uses his loved ones as his primary motivation when all hope seems lost. As such, he becomes furious when observing those who willingly or remorselessly cast aside their own comrades or brethren and is sickened by the idea of superiors who reject their duty to those who trust them.

## Abilities

Ling is a highly skilled combatant, well-versed in eastern nation styles of martial arts. He is also an expert swordsman, and was able to hold his own for a short time against the likes of King Bradley, a homunculus with arguably the greatest martial capabilities of anyone in the series. He has displayed significant agility and remarkable strength - even going so far as to lift the behemoth Gluttony by himself. Like many other eastern nation royal martial artists, Ling is able to read the flow of the Dragon's Pulse, which gives him the ability to sense, locate and track the Qi of living beings around him, such as animals, allies and foes. Additionally, it allows him to sense spiritual anomalies like Philosopher's Stones, and concordantly any Homunculus besides Wrath (who contains only a single soul and therefore normal Qi).

Aside from his prodigious physical skills, Ling is a crafty and capable tactician, able to think several moves ahead of the enemy the big picture as well as incorporate his surroundings, various skills and unique tools to his advantage in a battle. His natural charm and intelligence make him a model leader on and off the battlefield.

Ling is also proficient in Water, Wind, And Fire Release

His ancestry lies in the Momoshi Clan which makes him able to transform into a Shark Man

## Background

Born the twelfth son of the eastern nation Emperor and the scion of the well-to-do Yao clan, young Ling lived a childhood of privilege and mortal danger, as the shaky succession situation in the eastern nation meant that he lived under constant threat of assassination from each of the other clans hoping to attain the throne. As such, he became rather crafty and skilled in combat, but unable to take proper care of himself. When the Emperor's health began declining in Ling's teens, the competition for the crown became notably more severe and Ling began to look towards other ways of surviving and rising to the monarchy. At the age of fifteen his studies led him to the legendary Philosopher's Stone - an item reported to bestow immortality upon those who held it - and, hoping to earn his father's favor with such a prize, began his journey westward across the Great Desert with two of his family's vassals, the young bellatrix Lan Fan and her grandfather Fu. After taking special care to visit the abandoned ruins - Ling and his bodyguards made their way into Kirigakure.

## Battles

* Ling Yao vs Kisame
* Ling Yao vs Kisame and Josurin
* Ling Yao vs Hakaru
* Ling Yao vs Eigon