those who have tasted the bottom

tba

Player Information

Name/Alias: dai
Player Journal: daichiis
Contact: disarmingly
Timezone: cst
HMD: here
Already In-game: sousuke yamazaki jinbeizame

Character Information

Name: Juichi Fukutomi
Fandom: Yowamushi Pedal
Canonpoint: 2x23 - "The Promised Road"
Gender: Please note if you prefer an unidentified approach to gender
Age: 17
Physical Description: link

Juichi Fukutomi, at 17 years of age, stands at an average height of 5'11", and an about average weight for cyclists at 145 lbs. He is toned, and built, but his structure is much thinner than what one would normally expect for an athlete - though it is exactly expected for a professional cyclist, or at the very least a cyclist of his caliber. He has short, spiky blond hair (that he dyes, because he thinks blond is a very strong color) and large, prominent black eyebrows. He is not the most expressive character, and his general emotive state has been called "stone face", and has a tendency to seem slightly displeased, no matter what his actual emotions may be. In fact, common emotions (like smiling and laughing) seem, at times, a little misplaced when he tries to force them, despite how he has no ill-regard or ill-feelings towards just about anyone or anything.

History: wiki link
Personality:

Juichi Fukutomi is the captain of a team of aces- the champions, Hakone Academy.

On the surface, he appears to be exactly that. Fukutomi is a domineering personality - strong and intimidating, serious and steadfast. He has the appearance of someone always displeased, with very large, dark eyebrows and a resting expression of being unimpressed and slightly displeased. He earns the nickname “Stone-face” from one of his teammates, Arakita, He looks serious, strong and intimidating, and these are relatively true. Relatively, only because while he definitely has a serious personality, and is constantly working to prove his strength (you could even call it an obsession with being strong - either himself or his team), and he comes across as rather intimidating for these reasons - he really isn’t. Or at least, those who know him better would argue that he isn’t, exactly, all of those things.

In order to get to that point, though, you have to get through the more apparent traits of the Hakugaku captain. Traits like his apparent ease in leadership - he has been raised by a prominent family, a father who started the club and a brother who, most likely, was captain and ace for his own cycling team. Judging from how Fukutomi’s general reaction towards situations is with a serious acceptance of responsibility. It can be assumed, in that way, that he was nearly bred to be a leader - entering high school with the understanding that he was there to build a team. To create the best opportunity to win. As a child with extreme expectations placed upon him, Fukutomi Juichi is used to this pressure, and does not react to extremely stressful situations. In fact, Fukutomi rarely reacts to much at all, able to face any goal, any issue, and any mountain (metaphorical or literal) with what appears to be a calming ease. He expects perfection out of himself, and will be sure of is ability to produce it.

Where many people could be misled, however, is that they take his lack of reaction as a lack of caring - which couldn’t be further from the truth. Fukutomi, above all else, expects perfection. From himself, and from his team, not because he is setting them up for failure but because he honestly believes his friends, his team, can reach those heights. He believes in his team completely and entirely, and he can see the potential in those around him even when they can’t see it in themselves. As a captain and leader, he can be seen as being tough with them, pushing them above and beyond their limits, but it is only because he does believe in them, and knows that they are much stronger, and much more talented, than they might believe. He even goes as far as to find people who may not even want to know their own potential, and changing their minds, giving them a chance to view their own self-worth, going as far as to give a fellow student his very expensive bike just for the sake of giving him a chance to be believed in.

He is a strategist, and that is a very important aspect of his personality. He weighs, he prioritizes, he understands, and then he applies to his possible plans. He knows, to an exact extent, how useful he and everyone around him will be, and where he needs to set his team up to fulfill that challenge. He plans out to a T, even when, in the end, it comes to hurt him - like with unexplainable, unplanned variables (a.k.a. Onoda).

Fukutomi Juichi is not without his fears, of course. Fear of failure, fear of his own inabilities, fear of falling short of the expectations he’s set up for himself, and of course, the fear of failing at his own part of the plan. He’s only human, he has his doubts, but as long as he is able to work beyond those, train harder, he can be strong enough to face those. However, he is definitely harder on himself than he needs to be, or anyone else is. During his second year, he grievously injured Kinjou by reaching out and causing him to crash. Afterwards, even after Kinjou has expressed his forgiveness, Fukutomi refused to believe him - formally apologizing twice and going all the way to Sohoku and allowing Tadakoro to punch him all because of his own inability to forgive himself.

In the end, though, Fukutomi is just a teenage boy. He is fairly simple-minded, enjoying his time he spends cycling with very little else given in canon as other hobbies. He is straightforward as well, to the point where he can sometimes be a little dense. He is easily embarrassed and flustered in situations where he might seem ridiculous, and is a lot of the times totally unaware of how he comes off to people. He is easily confused, but also easily excited, and enjoys playing games - pun games with Manami, being one. He also has a turtle named turtle, that he picked up from the side of the road while he was biking because he thought it was a very strong animal. This is the side of Fukutomi that his closest friends tend to see, and is the side of Fukutomi that can’t really ignore - a reason why, despite how he does appear intimidating at first, he really isn’t.

Abilities: Fukutomi does not have any kind of supernatural ability or strength, but he is, physically, the epitome of training, stamina and strength as expected from a determined high school student. he has spent his years since middle school training his mind and body for the extensive, treacherous course that is the three day cycling interhigh. He has an extreme mental determination, bodily stamina, and strategic ability - with regards to biking, at the very least. He has an incredible amount of physical strength as well, though it is by no means supernatural. He is also one of those natural athletes, and would excel at just about anything he put his mind to.Character Information
First Person Sample: one and two
Third Person Sample: one and two

He feels himself stand, and when he comes to - though he doesn’t remember closing his eyes, doesn’t remember passing out - it’s with a hard, solid mass settling in his stomach. The understanding that, no matter what he tries, he cannot control a thing. Not his legs, not his eyes, not his voice. The students around him are murmuring, though he can’t understand what, and no matter what he tries he can’t help but follow along.

Right up until they sit, and he’s left still standing, along with the few other students left around him.

Fukutomi assesses, but even as he does so, the mass in his stomach doesn’t fade. Something is wrong about where he is and why he’s here, something is wrong about how he got here and why, but no matter how long he stands, how long the students stay seated, nothing comes to him. He watches the other students left standing start to move, some commenting about how weird this all is, where they are, but slowly they all start to file away. Fukutomi, on the other stand, remains standing at his desk.

For a second, he wonders if this is supposed to be a dream. Something fever-induced, possibly. Brought on from the exhaustion of the inter high. He’s heard of stories of things like this happening, of athletes who have pushed their bodies beyond their limit and their brain works to repair the damage. This could be that, he reasons, so as he continues to stand in the midst of the classroom, he closes his eyes again.

Wake up he repeats to himself, over and over. If this is a dream, I will just wake up. Wake up. Wake up.

When his eyes open once more, the disappointment is momentarily hard to handle. But he is Fukutomi Juichi, the youngest son of the Fukutomi family, and he will not let a dream crush him. Which is why, finally, after his other likeminded students have already left the classroom, Fukutomi decides to follow suit. He checks his desk, the surrounding area. It’s a habit he has from school, a habit he doesn’t seem to be able to break even in this dream - it has to be a dream, even if he can’t wake himself up it has to be a dream… - but that doesn’t matter.

He’s leaving. There has to be something else happening. He has noticed the slow cold creeping down his neck, but he’s chosen to ignore it. Chosen to approach the rest of this problem with a confidence that he can get out. So when he does look back up, and the class is still in session, he takes a breath.

“I am strong!”

Nothing. No response, not even a look. It was all Fukutomi needed to start moving, giving a nod before stepping out from behind his desk. If he can’t wake up here, maybe somewhere else? Maybe outside? If this is a dream he reasons, stepping out into the hall. I should find my road-racer. Which is why he begins to head toward the courtyard.

First his bike, then a way home.