Shikigami removing Gen's damaged door
Shikigami (式身), commonly referred to as Shiki for short, are paper dolls that follow the commands of their creator.[1] They are commonly used as clones, messengers, and workers, especially by kekkaishi, but other ability users have been known to use them as well.
Shikigami Forms
Paper
Unactivated shikigami usually appear as simple slips of paper with an identifying mark of the creator on them.[1] In the case of kekkaishi, the Houin Mark appears on their paper and basic paper dolls. A shikigami is activated once its creator applies a certain amount of power to its paper and provides a desired shape. It is possible (but rare) to create a shikigami without an identifying mark (or at least a design that provides little or no clue as to the creator).[2] A shikigami returns to its paper form if one or more of the following conditions is met: 1) the shikigami's intended purpose is accomplished, 2) the shikigami uses up its allotted power, 3) the shikigami takes too much damage or is destroyed (in which case a portion of its paper will be damaged[3]), 4) the shikigami is captured, and either cuts off its own power to avoid questioning, or reverts to paper form on command.[2]
Yoshimori's paper dolls
Paper Dolls
The simplest form of a shikigami is that of a featureless, humanoid doll. Their main purpose is manual labor, and in large enough numbers, they can accomplish a great deal of work in a short period (overnight in the case of kekkaishi). The paper doll's overall size and shape seems to indicate the user's experience level: the more advanced the user, the more human the doll appears.
Tokine's bird
Birds
Shikigami birds are used both for delivering messages and for overhead observation. Among kekkaishi, merely seeing a bird shikigami is usually enough to identify the sender.
Clones
Yoshimori's lazy clone
The preference of most ability users are shikigami clones, which either take the shape of the creator or other people. Most clones are simply temporary distractions with no more power than is necessary,[3] but advanced clones can be capable of entering combat and using some, if not all of their creator's techniques. Some of them just stay as white figures, but others can appear to look exactly like their creator.
Known Shikigami Users & Skill Levels
- Kekkaishi
- Tokiko Yukimura - Clones & Birds: Expert
- Shigemori Sumimura - Paper Dolls, Birds, Clones: Expert
- Sumiko Sumimura - Birds & Clones: Expert
- Masamori Sumimura - Paper Dolls & Clones: Advanced
- Tokine Yukimura - Paper Dolls & Birds: Above Average
- Yoshimori Sumimura - Paper Dolls, Birds, Clones: Average
- Toshimori Sumimura - Birds: Below Average
- Kokuboro - Birds: Advanced
- Okuni's Majinaishi - Flying Dolls: Advanced
- Juho - Clones: Advanced
- Saikaku Enjouji - Clones: Advanced
References