Naoya Zenin

Naoya is a tall, toned man with piercing amber eyes and short, blonde hair with distinctly dark green roots. He also has fair skin. A haughty smirk is almost always present on his face. He has three piercings in his left ear: one in the lobe and two along the upper cartilage. He is 180 centimeters tall and 28 years old.

Naoya is dressed in the traditional attire of his clan. Under a dark turquoise kimono, he wears a white, long-sleeved button-down shirt. Light gray hakama pants and waraji sandals complete his look.

Naoya himself was convinced that he had the appearance befitting the head of the clan, and considered himself much more attractive than other members, such as Jinichi.

From a young age, Naoya was showered with praise, constantly told he was a genius. As Naobito's youngest and most promising son, he was spoiled beyond belief. Raised from childhood with the firm belief that he was his father's rightful successor, Naoya's arrogance reached unimaginable, uncontrollable heights even in childhood. He despised anyone he considered weaker than himself, which, incidentally, included the vast majority of people he encountered. The only person Naoya felt any respect for was Toji. As a child, he visited him to mock him as a pathetic outcast from the clan, one who didn't even possess cursed energy. But upon seeing him, he instantly froze, realizing Toji was incredibly powerful. This prompted Naoya to embrace the ideology that the sin of insignificance lies in ignorance of true strength. Naoya felt he was one of the few who truly understood Toji, and he aspired to be as exceptional as him. For this reason, with unwavering confidence, Naoya relentlessly pursued a single goal: the attainment of strength.

He dismissed the talents of others with disdain, calling his elders, Jinichi and Ogi, nothing more than pathetic weaklings despite their long years of service to the clan.

He showed no sympathy for his father, Naobito, on his deathbed; on the contrary, he was delighted with the news and the new opportunity to take his rightful place in the hierarchy. Naoya viewed women merely as marriage tools and coldly informed Maki and Mai's mother that a woman who couldn't walk three steps behind a man was to be stabbed in the back.

Egoism and narcissism. Naoya sincerely believed in his own invincibility and exceptionalism. He believed his appearance was more suitable for the clan head than that of other family members.

Sociopathic tendencies. He felt no empathy whatsoever.

Misogyny. He openly declared that women were merely tools for marriage and expressed extremely cruel views.

Intolerance of dissent. He dismissed the talents of others, even experienced clan members (Jinichi, Ogi), calling them weaklings.

A quest for power. When Megumi Fushiguro was declared the heir, Naoya became enraged and plotted to kill him to reclaim his position.

Magician

First

The Zenin family
Naobito Zenin (father) †
Unnamed older brothers †
Zenin Ogi (uncle) †
Jinichi Zenin (cousin) †
Fushiguro Toji (cousin) †
Zenin Maki (cousin) †
Zenin May (cousin) †
Fushiguro Megumi (cousin)
Irori Okkotsu (cousin nephew)
Tsurugi Okkotsu (great-grandnephew)
Yuka Okkotsu (great-niece)

Projection Sorcery is an innate cursed technique Naoya Zenin inherited from his father, Naobito. It allows the user to divide one second into 24 frames, similar to standard animation, and pre-program a sequence of movements within that timeframe. Naoya executes the entire programmed sequence of actions within a single second, creating the illusion of unnaturally high speed—so fast that even special-class cursed spirits cannot keep up.

How the technology works
Operating principle:
The user mentally breaks down their movement into 24 stages and determines the actions in each frame in advance.

In one second, it manages to go through all 24 frames, performing the programmed sequence.

At the same time, movements must obey the laws of physics; technology does not allow them to be violated.

If the user deviates from the programmed plan (for example, due to an unexpected attack), he himself is frozen in one of the frames for a full second.

A key limitation: anything Naoya's palm touches while activating the technique must also adhere to the 24 frames per second rule. If an object fails to keep up, it too is "frozen" in the frame for a second. This works even against inorganic matter (such as water).

Limitations and risks
The technology has serious drawbacks:
No correction possible. The programmed course of movements cannot be changed once they have been started.
Risk to the user. If the trajectory of movement or the laws of physics are ignored excessively, the user will also be captured on camera.
Requires high sensitivity and agility. You need to accurately predict your opponent's moves and, based on that, devise a counterattack in a split second.
Dependence on physical strength. The technique itself doesn't cause damage—attacks still require powerful physical skills.

Naoya Zenin also mastered a Territory Expansion called the "Moon Palace Temporal Cell." This space creates a guaranteed-hit effect: it literally "injects" animated frames into the target, affecting them on a cellular level. Anyone moving within the domain must maintain a 24-frame-per-second rule, otherwise they suffer multiple bloody wounds with every movement. Forced movement can result in the severing of body parts.

Incredible physical prowess enhanced by a cursed technique: Naoya is a master of various hand-to-hand combat techniques, combining them with his cursed technique for maximum effect. He delivers lightning-fast strikes, such as sharp uppercuts and rapid series of punches, then instantly disappears, only to reappear and attack before the opponent can react. His defense is also impeccable, anticipating his opponent's attacks with pinpoint accuracy.

Intelligence. Insight and calculation: Naoya demonstrates exceptional strategic planning abilities.

Likes:
Strength and superiority.
Your projection technique.
Respect for Toji.

Hates:
Weakness and those whom he considers inferior to himself.
Women.
Competitors for power.
Failure and obstacles on the way to the goal.
Techniques he can't control.