Megumi Kitaniji
From The World Ends With You
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| Name | Megumi Kitaniji |
| Age | 26 |
| Noise Form | Anguis Cantus (first form), Draco Cantus (final form) |
| Classification | Conductor of the Games, Player |
| Nicknames | Megs, Shades |
Contents |
[edit] Main Information
Kitaniji is the Conductor of the Reaper's Game. He is the direct superior of Game Masters Yodai Higashizawa, Sho Minamimoto, and Mitsuki Konishi. In turn, he is the direct subordinate of the Composer. On the surface, his job is to ensure that the Game is played exactly to the Composer's specifics.
[edit] Personality
Never seen without his sunglasses or large red headphones, Megumi Kitaniji cuts a surprisingly imposing figure as the Conductor of the game. He's sinister without being over the top, and keeps a level head as his subordinates disobey him and attempt to break the rules of the Game. At the same time, his attitude toward the players is that "nothing is sacred". He typically takes a "wait-and-see" stance with the other Reapers, being more the type to lead from the shadows rather than take charge from the front lines, though he will do so if necessary.
[edit] Story
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
Due to the absence of the Composer in the recent string of games, he has acted mostly as the prime authority. There is never any question of his loyalty to the Composer or his rules, however, and most everything is handled exactly by-the-book.
Neku meets Kitaniji face to face only at the end of each week and at the very end. The two fight three times. First, Kitaniji uses a possessed Shiki against him - while Neku fights Kitaniji personally, Beat is left to fight Shiki in the other zone. In the second fight, Kitaniji assumes his Noise form, Anguis Cantus, to better battle Neku. After being defeated, Joshua appears. The two apparently fuse, and capture Shiki and Beat. Neku is left to battle the resulting Draco Cantus alone. After the battle, two key points are revealed: One, Joshua is the Composer. Two, Kitaniji has been involved in a "game" with Joshua the entire time. He was given thirty days to defeat Joshua's pick and "save" Shibuya. He failed to do so, and as Joshua congratulates him for "one of his more enjoyable games", and then he is erased. Just before the second fight, it is revealed to Neku that the red skull pin epidemic that has brainwashed Shibuya was his doing. In an attempt to "save" Shibuya, Kitaniji tried to remove the individuality from the people living there, hoping to erase all of Shibuya's "ills".
[edit] In Battle
As Conductor, Kitaniji has an array of attacks at his fingertips. When Neku battles him at Dead God's Pad, he fights similar to a Reaper, in that he will try and keep his distance from Neku and attack at range. However, his powers are far stronger. He can fire an immense spiral of energy projectiles similar to the ones Minamimoto uses, and can also create orbs with the Reaper emblem on them which can also fire on Neku. In addition, he traces out a red line across the stage which acts as a path for a small, but very powerful laser. If Neku attacks Kitaniji at close range, he yells "Submit!!!" and projects a bizzare red snake shape from his arm. This attack is very powerful, and has a fairly long reach; Neku should avoid this attack by dashing behind Kitaniji. The Conductor's final, and most impressive skill is his ability to stop time. Once Neku is frozen in time, Kitaniji darts away to peform his ranged attacks, before coming in close to use his biting attack. Neku must quickly dask away once the time freeze ends.
Despite his impressive power, Kitaniji is lacking in the speed department. He cannot teleport like Minamimoto can and moves as fast as a regular Reaper.
[edit] Name
"Megumi" is a unisex name, just like "Makoto", though the name "Megumi" is more typically used as a female's name than as a male's. Megumi is sometimes referred to as "Shades", thanks to his distinctive sunglasses, or "Megs", a shortened nickname for "Megumi". In the manga, when Minamimoto refers to Megumi as "Megs", Konishi snaps at him, saying that Megumi should not be addressed as "Megs" because it could bring back to him childhood memories of being teased for having a girl's name. Megumi verifies it by stating that Konishi's statement was "salt on wounds," and was correct. If what she did say was true though, his traumatising childhood memories of being picked on could offer some insight as to why he sees the people of Shibuya as its problem, and the fact that he was teased because of his being different from others in that he had a girl's name might explain why a world of absolute conformity appeals to him so. This means that all of his plans involving the O-pin might have a direct connection to his name. Note, however, that the manga is not canon to the game.
