Skins

Skins
Also known as	Tsugi (presumed to be real name)
Japanese Name	ツギハギ
Romaji	Tsugihagi
First Appearance	Shin Megami Tensei IV
Affiliation	Counter-Demon Force (Formerly) Hunter Association
Alignment	Neutral
Age	55
Japanese VA	Kazuhiro Yamaji (SMT4) Masaki Terasoma (SMT4A)
English VA	Jamieson Price

Skins is a character from Shin Megami Tensei IV.

Appearances

• Shin Megami Tensei IV: Supporting Character
• Shin Megami Tensei IV Apocalypse: Supporting Character

Design

Skins wears a military outfit with full armor, a hood attached, and like his name is covered in scars with his face looking like it has been stapled back on.

Profile

Skins appears in Tokyo. He is a former member of the Counter-Demon Force, and is a battle-hardened man, both in features and demeanor. His face was cut apart by the angels and has been patched together.

He's never seen without Masakado's Katana, a weapon he obtained when he was on a mission with a younger comrade to slay its former owner. However, he cannot unsheathe it. Along with Hikaru and Fujiwara he tells the Samurai of their desire to emigrate to the Eastern Kingdom of Mikado and warns them that Midtown is protected by a powerful demon.

Despite insisting that he doesn't want to add to his already numerous facial scars, Skins is still an active Hunter and has a consistent high showing in the Hunter Rank Listings to prove it.

If Flynn remains neutral throughout the game, Skins relinquishes Masakado's Katana to him after being able to unsheathe it, in hopes that he may resurrect Masakado to lift the ceiling over Tokyo.

Returning to the Counter-Demon Force Base in Blasted Tokyo on the Neutral and Chaos routes has an Undine reveal that he faced Pluto. It is implied that he is the one who got the intel on Pluto Castle and Pluto, but eventually died after returning with the info thanks to his wounds. In Infernal Tokyo, he faces Kenji and is implied to have died.

During the Neutral Route, he will freak out when he hears Burroughs mention the guardian of Tokyo, asking if they know his name. Once Flynn tells him it's Masakado he gives the katana to Flynn to have him unsheathe it, which he does. Thankful that the time for someone to wield the power of Masakado against the angels and demons has come, though saddened it wasn't a member of the Counter-Demon Force to be the one to do it, he and Fujiwara reminisce on the past and identify Flynn as the reborn form of the youngest member of the Counter-Demon Force who sacrificed himself to Masakado to create the dome over Tokyo. Talking to him in general will have him mention that he used to see a young girl with a wheel when he was young and out on missions. Once both Merkabah and Lucifer have been defeated, he is found waiting in Cafe Florida with Fujiwara, Isabeau, Hope, Hugo and K where he celebrates with the others over their victory and states how he looks forward to their new future with the dome removed as a free united Tokyo.

On the Chaos route, he realizes Flynn opened the path to the Expanse. All memories he has of Hikaru vanish later on in the story, where he's unable to figure out who she is and mistakes her for Isabeau.

Etymology

Skins' name in Japan, Tsugihagi, is translated to "patchwork" (継接ぎ) in Japanese, most likely referencing the fact that his face is held in place by staples. In flashbacks of Akira's life in Shin Megami Tensei IV Apocalypse, he is referred to as 'Tsugi,' and is only nicknamed 'Tsugihagi' after receiving more scars on his face. As Skins himself refers to that as only a nickname, it is assumed that 'Tsugi' is at least in some way his real name.