Random thought: when I was Spice (first one, actually) he was deemed a transformer, as he is Makyo-jin, the same race as Garlic Jr. Kakashi's image was used for his appearance by a previous one, but I didn't think that changed him from what he was. No problem, really, it just confused me.
Truly, there's very little I think you're lacking in. Your description is amazing, and you can put a coherent sentence together with what seems like little effort. You employ several aspects of writing without totally fucking it up. It's nice to see my former character done justice. Few things (there's always something), however: your dialogue is kinda of...wrong.
Quote:Example A
?I think I?ll be alright.? Replied Spice.
Fixededededed
?I think I?ll be alright,? replied Spice.
Example B
?If you would like, I can buy you a refreshment.? Said a man on the path in front of Spice.
Fixededededed
?If you would like, I can buy you a refreshment,? said a man on the path in front of Spice.
Check
this under the dialogue section.
Quote:Originally written by Spice
?I can see that.? Replied the voice from the Shadows.
"Shadows" isn't capitalized.
That's really what I got for ya. You don't seem to have problems doing anything else. His personality is well-defined, and you go for the "acceptance" angle. It's a breath of fresh air.
One plot nitpick though: did the deaf girl go deaf after developing full speech capablities, or was she born deaf? Even if she had the ability to phonetically pronounce words before she went deaf, that ability would slowly deteriorate over time because she can no longer hear what she is saying. If she was born deaf, she wouldn't know how to speak words without severely mangling them. I only know because a good friend of mind signs fluent ASL and takes care of a deaf man. I did like that you incorporated a handicap, though, especially since it is so detrimental to a fighter, who would have to work extra hard to compensate for a lost sense.