Quote
Oh. But that's enough about me. How about /you/...?
Moves
Art
Field & Pokémon
- Water
| Stat | Lv. 2 |
|---|---|
| HP | 16 |
| Attack | 7 |
| Defense | 8 |
| Sp. Atk | 9 |
| Sp. Def | 11 |
| Speed | 7 |
Info
Personality
Many know the name "Tengo" even before they place it to an immaculate face. "Tengo the Nakōdo," "Tengo the Matchmaker."
"Tengo the annoying, meddling, conniving, nosy bastard."
Yep, that's him. ♡
...A rather effusive, sociable man. Tengo is polarizing for good reason- he's a bringer of great joy for some, and great annoyance for others. Tengo is a man who prides himself on knowing everything there is to know about everyone, and being that level of omnipotent means talking to everyone, prying in every nook and cranny, eavesdropping on every conversation. Some might call it intrusive. He simply considers himself thorough. He likes to keep tabs. Your auntie loves him. Your grandma wishes he'd find you someone to marry already. Your boss begrudgingly acknowledges his existence. And he's friends with all your friends, somehow.
Although his reputation tends to precede him, Tengo himself is otherwise a genial and elegant man. He considers himself "well-liked" because he works for it. He's always poised and acts with deliberate, graceful movements. He takes meticulous care over his appearance. Although he may seem superficial, he tries his best to come off as sincere, even if it's wrapped up in a flamboyant and overbearing package. He tends to have others' best interests in mind, feeling sympathetic to others' plights to the point of offering assistance even when it's not required. He'll put others' needs above his own, and has a surprisingly down-to-earth outlook of the world.
He just has a tendency to go overboard with how meticulous he is. He can sometimes be overbearing or overreaching when he involves himself in others' business- which feeds back into his busybody reputation.
Despite his elegant appearance and demeanor, Tengo has a rougher edge he keeps under the wraps of his refined appearance. Having grown up in poverty and seen both the best and worst in people- although it's easy to assume he's a wimp because of his prissy attitude, he's not above being dirty or petty when he's scorned. He can be masterfully condescending and passive aggressive when he wants to be, and he seems to get a kick out of annoying people who he thinks deserve it.
History
The child of a courtesan born out of wedlock, Tengo grew up having, or feeling as if he had, several mothers.
He was raised in a red-light district brothel where he was doted on by his single mother and the other ladies interchangeably, privy to both the community that was born from hardship, as well as the darker parts of society. The management staff and performers were aunts, uncles, older brothers and sisters to him- and while not all of them were necessarily "good" people, being a child in a less-than-stellar environment seemed to bring out the best in a lot of the people who had him under their care.
He particularly developed a unique perspective on love and family, witnessing all sorts of tangled, messed up relationships that came to be between performer and client. His own mother found herself in many entanglements over the years, none of which provided a sense of stability for Tengo to fall back on. Nevertheless, he loved his mother. He just learned to grow amidst dysfunction.
As a youth, Tengo voraciously consumed the words of others- both in the form of whisperings caught while scrubbing down floors from behind thin paper doors, and face to face over drinks. Not only did he find entertainment and inspiration from the vivid stories travelers would tell upon their visits to the seedy establishments he considered his home- he learned that knowledge- of others and of the world- was a form of currency. This love of stories and knack for collecting information and connections fueled his original passion- to become a rakugo storyteller.
That never ended up coming to fruition. How he became a nakōdo instead was simply a string of conveniences leading to the present (or as Tengo would say, isn't that fate?) One of the ladies working at the brothels was sick and tired of working, and happened to have decent pedigree that was above the sort of work she was involved in altogether. He connected her with an unmarried man he knew of, and they hit it off. Seeing that the pairing turned out well, another friend asked. Then another. Then a neighbor. And then it became a business.
He was deeply familiar with how loneliness fueled the red-light district from a young age. He just didn't realize that there was an "above-board" industry that preyed on- er. ...resolved the same issue.
Over the years, Tengo has developed a reputation as not only an extremely successful, but PERSISTENT matchmaker. Although it wasn't his original dream job, he's found similarities between it and his current goals. It's also compatible with is personality. He's stubborn. He never gives up on a client no matter how fruitless their search may be, and he doesn't rest or eat until his client has found their match.
...Sometimes, his "clients" don't even know they're his clients until he's prepared dates for them way into the next several weeks.
You're always welcome, by the way.
Additional
Tengo: 天 (heaven) 吾 (self)
Identifies as male but doesn't care about what pronouns are used for him.
Calls almost everyone -dono.
Takes meticulous care of his appearance. His eyebrows are painted on with pigment every morning. He scrapes his natural ones off with a blade.
Didn't actually want to be a matchmaker growing up. He just finds he has a knack for it.
Despite being extremely invested in other peoples' romantic lives, he suddenly runs away when it comes to talking about his own.
He tends to speak in a higher register than what's natural for him.
Village quests
This rotation (October 2026 (October 1 – October 31))
Q00003 Work Clothes · In progress
No approved village quests on file for this character yet.
Combat record
Wild battles
Duels
Care & recovery
Application
