Tatsumi (A Different Path)

**Tatsumi** is the main protagonist of the first part of *A Different Path*. A young fighter who, alongside his two best friends had set out to make a name for themselves and send money back to their village, Tatsumi is a kindhearted person who cares deeply for his friends and wants everyone to be happy, but has no qualms with being violent if either his friends or his ideals are threatened.

After his friends are tortured and killed by a seemingly hospitable and caring family he kills the daughter out of revenge and joins the assassin guild Night Raid, a sub-division of the Revolutionary Army who is currently at war with the Empire. He is the current owner of the Teigu **Demon Dragon's Flesh: Tyrannous**, formerly named **Demon Armor: Incursio**, after its former owner and big-brother figure to Tatsumi, Bulat, was killed by his own former superior Liver, then a member of the Three Beasts.

When he returned to the Jaegers HQ and gets caught by Esdeath when he was spying on her, he becomes aware of the feelings he has developed her her despite his shaky meeting with her a few days prior and ends up staying with the Jaegers. The next day these feelings grow even stronger and the two form a permanent relationship after having sex. However their bond is put to the test when Tatsumi, who was wanting to say hello to her while she was at the Reconditioning Department, saw for himself her sadistic and torturous side and, as a result, he took her to the house where his friends had been murdered and told her that she had to make a choice between staying with him and giving up torture or leaving without him.

As time went on and they grew closer and closer he was able to change her attitude about the Empire and she told him after their fight with Night Raid that she would help him kill the Prime Minister. When Esdeath receives an order to head out and meet up with her army to combat the Western Nations' Army in a week's time, they quickly get their preparations underway to assassinate the Prime Minister the night before she leaves. On the fourth day they reveal their plot to the other Jaegers and through some convincing they recruit their assistance. Tatsumi then decides that now would be the perfect time to say what's been on his mind for a while and, to everyone's shock, he proposes to Esdeath and she agrees, with the pair getting married the very next day.

The next night, they assault the Imperial Palace and Tatsumi attempts to kill the Prime Minister in his office, only he instead finds Great General Budo, whom they thought had left earlier on, and he is forced to retreat until he his ultimately captured. For a week he is questioned by the Great General, who was suspicious and doubted that he was the only one who attempted the assassination, but when he wouldn't reveal any information he was sentenced to public execution. Esdeath meets him in his cell and they share a moment before, as she is leaving, he tells her that when they do have their daughter she would name her Lucena. At the time of his execution he is risen up into the coliseum arena whilst strapped to a wooden cross and he discovers that Budo has forced Esdeath to be the one to kill him in order to prove to him that she was still loyal to the Empire. To their shock, she instead frees him and fights alongside him against the Great General both in the arena and at the wall protecting the capital when they tried to make their escape.

From there they travel towards the east where, upon finding the flaming ruins of the Imperial City of Kyoroch, Esdeath receives a message from a friend of hers within the Imperial Intelligence Agency that informs them of all of the events that have occurred since their defection, which includes the almost total destruction of the Revolutionary Army, Path of Peace and the takeover of the Western Nations. They are then met by Night Raid, whom after he speaks with them and convinces them to listen to him and their words, he ends the hostilities between the two groups so that they can join forces.

He fights alongside his old friends against the Danger Beast Hunter Copra, who was sent to hunt them down by the Empire's new Great General, and once he is driven off, he leaves with them and the Jaegers to try and make their way to the eastern coast of the Empire. Once they are close they are tracked down by Copra, who informs him and the others of the two people chasing him before dying of his wounds, wand after sprinting through a forest to try and escape, they are cut off by Kahfka and the new Great General herself, a former subordinate of Esdeath's named Jacqueline.

After telling the others to make their way to Caern without them, he and Esdeath team up against Jacqueline and quickly learn that she is a tough opponent to deal with due to Devil's Heart and are forced to retreat when Esdeath is injured, with Gazia appearing to cover their escape. They arrive at the city later and when Esdeath is healed, they depart for the Eastern Nation with the other Jaegers minus Kurome and remain there for seven months in order for their daughter, Lucena, to be born. After her birth, he is almost assassinated by Anton alongside Esdeath and Lucena in their sleep, but thanks to the timely arrival of Solomon and Camilla they escape this fate and go to find Wilhelm when the two go after the traitorous doctor.

After his death they entrust Lucena with Wilhelm in order to protect her return to the Empire with Camilla and the entire military of the Kingdom of Straelka, the Eastern Nation's true name, with them and proceed to follow Leone when she meets with them to where she and the rest of Night Raid have holed up. He and Esdeath learn about Susanoo's death and offer their apologies before they make a plan to go and free the Western Nations from the Empire's control with everyone. Along the way they encounter the Inquisitor and Dreivas, but they are saved by Excalibur and the infamous Arius Magress, who after informing them of the origin story of his Teigu challenge him and Wave to a duel, which he wins and manages to actually damage the armor and later on cause him to reveal himself to be a young woman named Maya Gleipnir.

## Appearance

Tatsumi is a young man, at age 19, of average height with green eyes and medium length with a cowlick that falls with its weight. He is usually seen wearing a white, high collar jacket over a tan sweater vest, a pair of black pants and combat boots. On his back, he carries Incursio's key, a short sword with a chain link tassel at the hilt, in its sheath.

Upon activating his Teigu, Tatsumi is covered in armor similar to the one of which his late teacher used to wear. Tatsumi's armor is far lighter to suit his fighting style, although the long cape has not changed. He's also able to manifest the auxiliary armament, Neuntote, to assist him in battle.

After fusing with Incursio and eventually Tyrannus, his height increases to 5'10" and his eyes change from the normal green color to that of Tyrant's, with a red color and a cross-slit pupil.

## Personality

Tatsumi is a kind person at heart and is often level-headed, always giving off a friendly vibe. He used to be a little arrogant and naive when he first arrived in the Imperial capital, but after experiencing first hand the corruption that ran rampant throughout the Empire as a result of the Prime Minister, he quickly wizened up and after joining Night Raid he became accustomed to being an assassin and having to kill in order to protect himself and his friends.

His personality remains somewhat the same after returning to the Jaegers, with the only changes becoming evident when he reciprocates the feelings Esdeath has for him. These feeling slater grow into a mutual attraction and love that results in the pair marrying and becoming husband and wife, solidifying their bond in which they would both risk their life to protect one another from harm.

## Equipment / Skills

When Tatsumi was first brought on into Night Raid he did not possess a Teigu, but was trained in the art of the sword by a former Imperial soldier who had lived in his village. After meeting Bulat he was put through rigorous training that increased his strength and speed, enabling him to fight on par for a time with one of the Three Beasts, Nyau. After inheriting Incursio from Bulat, this strength is doubled and he becomes even more of a force to be reckoned with, especially after he was able to manifest the armor's auxiliary armament, a spear named Neuntote.

After he defeats the Danger Beast Tyrant within his psyche, the dragon grants Incursio with an evolution that changes its appearance to a more savage and reptilian look and boosts his abilities to the point he can easily match Susanoo in strength and speed. Neuntote also gets an appearance change, with the spear becoming larger then its previous form.

The armor again gains a new form when Tyrant fuses himself to Tatsumi when the latter demands he give him as much power as he possibly could at that moment so he could protect his wife and friends from further harm, instigating an evolution in which the armor gains a dragon tail and its appearance looks even more like the Danger Beast it was crafted from. As a result of the new evolution, Tatsumi renames the Teigu from Incursio to Demon Dragon's Flesh: Tyrannus, out of respect and memory for the Danger Beast.

Tyrannus later on goes through another evolution during Tatsumi's fight with the Shikoutazer where the armor gains a bulkier appearance and a likeness even closer to that of Tyrant while also its attack power goes through the roof.

## Trivia

**(Starred Information Courtesy of Akame ga Kill Wiki)**

* Tatsumi's name means "Sleeping Dragon", which seems to be a reference to his hidden potential, which has been noted by many different characters in the series. The first creature he was shown fighting was an Earth Dragon, and he later obtained the "Demon Dragon" Teigu.\*
* His parallel in the Jaegers is Wave.\*
* How he "dies" when protecting Esdeath is a reference to Nartuo Shippuden, in which Obito and Kakashi protect the fallen Sasuke and Nartuo in a similar fashion.