Yukine

Yukine (, Yukine), whose real name is Haruki Tajima ( Tajima Haruki), is one of the three main protagonists of the ノラガミ Noragami series. He is Yato's shinki and guidepost, and a shinki of Father under the name Hagusa (, Hagusa).

Appearance
In his human form, Yukine appears as a young teenager with short, messy hair. His hair is colored gold both in the anime and manga. However, his eyes are reddish-orange in the anime and a yellow-amber in the manga. The name given to him by Yato is located on his left collarbone, and the one given to him by Father  is located on his upper right arm.

He is shorter than both Yato and Hiyori. His height is 147.4cm (or 4'10") according to the Animation Visual Book released for the anime. Despite being physically 14, it seems that Yukine appears even younger than his age. This can be noted from his small stature, Hiyori's shock when she realized he was only a year below her in school, and his previous neighbor's remark that he was small for his age in middle school. This is likely due to malnutrition and stress resulting from his father's abusive treatment.

Upon his first summoning, Yukine wears a simple white robe, resembling a Japanese shinishozoku (に). He is later depicted with a blue hoodie, loose grey jeans, and teal patterned knit cap.

Later on, he changes his attire to a white T-shirt, dark blue jeans, and a green knee-length jacket with a fur-trimmed hood. While as the manga progresses, his outfits are not always consistent and vary to all sorts given to whatever he is depicted with.

Personality
Yukine speaks his mind freely and has a biting sense of humor. He is rather outgoing, making friends easily when given the opportunity.

He possesses a strong sense of right and wrong, and diligently works to improve himself after past mistakes. Over time, he also gains a sense of pride and responsibility toward guiding Yato as his lead shinki, becoming attached to the point that he is insecure of Yato relying on other shinki. Yukine is quite easily led by his emotions, sometimes acting impulsively without realizing the consequences– particularly when the matter concerns people who are important to him. He has a tendency to lock others out or lash out in anger when he feels betrayed, but normally demonstrates a deep sense of loyalty and protectiveness over the people he cares about.

Spells

 * Borderline (, Kyoukaisen): Using his fingers, Yukine can draw a line and create a boundary that prevents ayakashi from crossing through. By extension, Yukine is able to use Lance (, Hoko) as an offensive skill and Shield (, Tate) as a defensive skill.
 * Bakufu (, Bakufu): Yukine has the ability to cast a binding restraint on a target, rendering them immobile.

Songs

 * Counter-songs (, Juka): Through training with Kazuma, Yukine is able construct counter-incantations that cancel out of the effects of another caster's song.
 * Firefighting Incantation (せの, Hifuse no juka): Yukine is able to douse flames created by ayakashi or shinki.

Vessel Techniques
As Yato's shinki, Yukine's vessel name is Sekki.
 * Vessel Transformation: Sekki takes the form a chokutō with a bandaged hilt. As a blessed vessel, he transforms into two chokutō (one of standard katana length and one of wakizashi length).
 * Rend ( Zan): As Yato's divine weapon, Yukine is able to exterminate ayakashi. Although it exists in the manga, the technique is only named in the anime.
 * Sunder ( Zetsu): Yukine gains this skill as Yato's divine weapon. When Yato uses Sunder, he is able to sever emotional ties between people. Although it exists in the manga, the technique is only named in the anime.

As Father's shinki, Yukine's human name is Hagusa and his vessel name is Yuuki.
 * Vessel Transformation: As a divine weapon, Yuuki can change between two forms. One form is a black staff with a twisted blade end. The second form is that of a completely mobile human (albeit with black hair instead of Yukine's regular blonde). This is said to be extremely unusual for a shinki, to the point that Kazuma at first believes it's impossible. Yuuki maintains free control over his Goodness Net, and appears to have increased mobility in this form compared to his normal status as Hagusa/Yukine.
 * Goodness Net (, Zenmō): As a vessel, Yuuki is able to create a net that can be used for a variety of purposes, including offensive and defensive maneuvers, entrapment, and influence over humans.
 * Flight: In his staff form, Yuuki can serve as a mode of flight for his master.
 * Ayakashi Transformation: As a shinki named by the Word, Hagusa is able to take on an ayakashi-like form without blighting his masters. In this form, Hagusa gains more feline-like features, seen particularly in his ears and extremities. He also gains pronounced claws and canine teeth, which can be used offensively.

Trivia

 * Yukine's name, Yuki, means "snow" while  Yukine means "the sound of snow".
 * Yukine is afraid of the dark, probably due to having his final moments being suffocated in a refrigerator in his human life.
 * It is possible that the bandages on Sekki's hilt are associated with Yukine's past life, as in the anime, Yato witnesses an arm partially wrapped in bandages in Yukine's memories.
 * Yukine is one of three known blessed vessels, the others being Kazuma and Nana.
 * His character song is called "Catch Ball" and was sung by his Japanese voice actor, Yuki Kaji.
 * Hiyori guesses based on his education level that he died during his second year of middle school.
 * Daikoku pays him 500 yen an hour for helping out part-time at Kofuku's.
 * The name given to him by Father, Hagusa, refers to a type of weed that resembles rice. Figuratively, the word is sometimes used to refer to something which appears good but is actually bad.

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