"One of the consequences of globalism is an increase in the illegal arms trade. The fall of Communism effectively deregulated the market, leading to an unprecedented increase in the supply of weapons. Over 1,000 companies in 100 countries now manufacture small arms. The legal trade is worth $4 billion a year, with an additional $1 billion worth traded illegally." -Ohio State University
Name: Ken
Nicknames: The Traveling Writer, packer, barfly
Gender: "Neutral", they/he
Age: 22
Height: 5'2
Species: Human
Universe: Yakuza 0
Location: Kamurocho
About
warning: spoilers for Yakuza 0 beyond the second paragraph and drug and alcohol abuse mentions in the second paragraph.
Ken, codenamed The Traveling Writer, is an American gun runner who got stranded in Japan by their employers after they had been busted. They currently reside in Kamurocho, where they've made nice with the local yakuza by proofreading their English translations in exchange for protection from deportation and arrest. They're currently living off of the money made through selling their remaining stock of handguns and other weapons, as well as the conditional kindness of the yakuza they've befriended.
After being stranded in Kamurocho, their dangerous penchant for heavy drinking and oxycodone abuse began to morph into an addiction. They hopped from bar to bar, only finding any sense of stability at Serena. By virtue of their limited Japanese and lack of bias towards any given family, they managed to maintain a neutral civilian status.
After Kiryu's framing, Ken panicked and fled Kamurocho, thinking their friendly relationship with him and Nishiki would result in them getting roped into the infighting. There in Sotenbori, their condition worsened, coming to a head one night in Cabaret Odyssey, where they had their first encounter with Nishitani. This encounter started with Ken being annoyed by the crime boss's existence, and ended in them receiving the scar extending from the corner of their mouth. Over the course of their stay in Osaka, they slowly weaned off of their substance-based vices, replacing them entirely with the high of a fight.
Some time later, they returned to Kamurocho to provide support for the brothers they abandoned, but they were never quite the same. They would continue to find a fascination and a relief in senseless violence—something that would later be exacerbated.
Maybe there is honor amongst thieves...
Return to timeline selection
warning: this page contains Yakuza 0 spoilers
Kazuma Kiryu
Platonic, awkward friends
Prior to the events of 0, Kiryu and Ken were somewhat friends. Communication proved difficult due to the language barrier, but Kiryu's slow speech and flat dialect allowed Ken to interpret him easier than anyone else. After their return from Sotenbori, communication proved easier, and they began helping him with his predicament by acting as an arms dealer for him.
Akira Nishkiyama
Romantic, open relationship
warning: suicide mention in the second paragraph.
From the moment these two met, Ken fell hard and reluctantly for Nishiki. They could tell right away that his confidence was a front, having experience with fronting themself, and used this knowledge to catch him in times of vulnerability, building trust by just being there for him. Eventually, the feelings became mutual. Due to Nishiki's social standing, however, they agreed to keep the relationship secret and open in order to keep his reputation intact. Despite the secrecy, Nishiki had no qualms giving Ken a spare house key, giving them safety from the streets
During their stay in Sotenbori, they were nearly driven to suicide and fled to the woods beyond the city limits to end their life. There, they found Nishiki, alone and broken down after threatening to shoot Kiryu. Regaining a sense of purpose, they brought him back to reality and drove him back to Kamurocho. While they didn't return with him, they promised they would come back someday, when the time was right.
After their return, they began dating Nishiki again, their bond closer than ever due to their hardships. He became their anchor after they became more violent, preventing them from going completely over the edge and taking a life.
Osamu Kashiwagi
Familial, uncle figure
Ken has only spoken with Kashiwagi outside of business matters a few times, but they regard him as being wise, albeit overcautious. They mainly came to him for help learning Japanese prior to the incident, and learned many of the intricacies of the yakuza through him. They both share the same crux of stress-eating.
Tetsu Tachibana
Platonic, hospital buddies
During Ken's stay in Osaka, they tended to get hospitalized quite often in brawls against Nishitani. Paranoia prevented them from going to any accredited hospitals, so they went underground, learning of a doctor in Little Asia. During one of their stays, they met Tachibana, who had been receiving dialysis as they came in looking to get stitched up. They were initially very cautious of each other—Tachibana being at his most vulnerable and Ken technically trying to lay low. Over time, though, conversation did arise. They bonded over the few similarities they shared: lost family, foreigner status, and their shared connection to Kiryu.
Though they never became close friends, Ken still mourned his passing when they heard of it, leaving a spool of medical suture at the site of the Empty Lot as tribute. They regret the circumstances being so poor when they met, and often think about how different things could have been had they met under different conditions.
Goro Majima
Platonic, help from the shadows
After everyone else they cared for in Sotenbori had died, gotten arrested, or gotten abducted, Ken followed the two men seemingly at the epicenter of the madness: Majima and Sagawa. After eavesdropping on the torture Sagawa inflicted, Ken decided to aid Majima from the shadows, attempting to loosen his binds by attacking Sagawa's plants around town. They wanted to see him unravel the yakuza's plans to use Makoto for her ties to the Empty Lot, recover her safely, and make it possible for her to live a life of peace.
Though they only spoke twice—once during Makoto and Lee's hiding period in Sotenbori and once just prior to Majima's "arrest"—Ken felt a strong connection to him, and would continue to provide aid from the shadows up until his final showdown with the Dojima family. After his freedom from Sagawa's chains, they began to actually speak as friends, both of them carrying a touch of madness from Nishitani that would warp them into something more later on.
Makoto Makimura
Familial, little sister
Shortly after their fights with Nishitani began, Ken began making regular visits to Lee for therapeutic massages. They met Makoto there as well, and began to grow very protective over her. While their protection was hardly needed with Lee around, they still regularly checked in on her well-being, their own experiences with poor mental health and trauma helping them understand her behavior.
After Lee was killed and Makoto was kidnapped, they focused their efforts on helping Majima, hoping he could track her down.
Wen Hai Lee
Familial, older brother figure
Shortly after the fighting with Nishitani began, Ken joined the ranks of Lee's clientele. The massages became an alternative way for them to relieve pain, keeping their head clear enough to gain an upper hand later. Due to the nature of the massages, Lee learned of Ken's trans identity early on. He respected them and kept them away from prying eyes while they were receiving treatment, earning him a fair amount of trust from them as a result. They quickly grew attached to him due to his kind and protective demeanor, and took to sheltering themself in the massage parlor when times got rough. Seeing as they got along with Makoto and didn't lead any yakuza there, he let them stay.
After Lee's death, their anger became more wild and uncontrolled. Upon learning who planted the car bombs, they began to harbor a hatred for the Omi Alliance. They swore to break their neutrality towards the infighting from then on, and began to actively impede the Omi's progress towards the Empty Lot by disrupting their racketeering ventures around Sotenbori.
Homare Nishitani
Platonic, mentor figure
warning: drug and alcohol abuse ahead
During Ken's low point in Sotenbori, they spent a lot of time at various drinking spots around the district. One night, while delirious off of a mixture of opiates and rum, they caught eye of Nishitani at one of the tables. In that moment, they had one clear and sober thought: they hated him. Everything from his overly sexual behavior to his wanton spending and flashy suit drove them up the wall, and they made the decision to challenge him to a fight. In their intoxicated state, Nishitani wiped the floor with them. Still, he saw something in their wanton approach to danger, the barely-restrained rage in their eyes. He split the left side of their mouth open and left them to bleed and writhe. He wanted them to remember him.
Remember him they did. Ken began a journey towards sobriety fueled entirely by a desire to best Nishitani in battle. Every time they encountered each other—whether it was on the streets or in a cabaret—they fought until one of them couldn't move. With each fight, Ken grew more merciless, modifying their fighting style to match Nishitani's bloodthirst. They came closer and closer to beating him with each encounter until, one day, they finally won by disarming him and beating him senseless. Despite their prior hatred for him though, they couldn't bring themself to inflict any knockout or fatal blows on Nishitani. It had become something similar to admiration, maybe even gratitude. They continued to fight until he was jailed, but instead of anger being the driving force, it was a determination to grow even stronger.
After Nishitani's death, they attended the funeral, leaving a knife wrapped in bloody bandages at the grave as tribute. With everyone they ever cared for in Sotenbori either presumed dead or missing, they returned to Kamurocho, carrying Nishitani's strength and madness with them.
