Chizuru is a very kind hearted, polite young lady who finds herself thrown into a situation that is far greater than her, and far, far beyond her power to even dream of controlling. She's gentle by nature, and openly admits that, while she has basic knowledge of self-defence and knows which end of a sword to hold, she fears battle and the thought of harming other people greatly.
Compared to the company she keeps, Chizuru can seem almost painfully innocent and naïve about the world around her and the people who inhabit it. In reality though, Chizuru is not an idiot by any stretch of the word. She truly wants to believe the best in people, and holds tightly onto their good qualities even in their darkest moments: for example, she whole heartedly wants to believe that, after her father Koudou's betrayal, there is still some of the man who raised her left in him. In some routes, her faith is rewarded, and in others not, but the point stands that she truly believes in him, and does the same for a lot of characters in the series. She continually looks for the best qualities of the people around her, even if she ends up hurt in the end.
Chizuru is also fairly self-aware, and perceptive about some things. Not necessarily everything, as the other characters find her very easy to wind up and tease due to her more innocent nature, but she has enough common sense to take care of herself in more everyday situations. She explains that her father often took trips away from home, prior to his disappearance, which implies she took care of both herself and her home for semi-long periods of time while he was gone. She also had enough foresight to realise that a girl her age making a trip alone from Edo to Kyoto was guaranteed to run into trouble, and made the decision to disguise herself as a man in order to avoid unwanted attention.
The fact she took it upon herself to make such a long and dangerous journey by herself says a fair bit about her kind-hearted nature: she loves the people close to her dearly and unreservedly, and her sense of right and wrong is very strong. She's more than willing to do what's right over what would keep her safe, and it certainly isn't because she has a lack of self-preservation. Chizuru will put herself in the firing line to help someone in need with barely a second thought if she has to, even when in other situations she may be more level-headed about the danger she's in. When it comes to people in danger, or the people she loves, Chizuru will do whatever she can to help.
This side of her; the desire to do whatever she can to help the people she cares about can lead to her being very stubborn, and sometimes to hurting herself – usually emotionally. Chizuru is acutely aware of just how much she owes the Shinsengumi, and just how little she can actually do to repay them for their kindness. They put a roof over her head, help her to smile when she's feeling down, and took it upon themselves to protect her even after they learned she wasn't human. In contrast, Chizuru isn't a warrior, and isn't strong enough to help on the battle field; knows little of battlefield politics and her opinion of what is best for the members of the Shinsengumi (such as Sannan being alive, even if his dominant arm has been rendered near useless) often conflicts with their opinions on what's best, and their sense of pride (the realisation that if Sannan cannot fight, he has essentially died anyway, as he will never be a warrior again). The most she can do is run minor errands and make tea, and this fact frustrates her endlessly and in a lot of routes leads to damaging her sense of self-worth.
So, when she can do something to help, Chizuru will dig her heels in and refuse to budge until she's been allowed to do so. A good example crops up in Sanosuke's route, where he tells her to run away from a battle while he keeps Shiranui occupied in battle. In order to avoid a bad ending, Chizuru has to outright refuse to run when Sanosuke tells her to, choosing instead to stay and help. Chizuru realised that, while she has a lot of issues with abilities as a Oni, she realises she has more of a chance surviving a hit from Shiranui's gun than Sanosuke does, and she uses that to her advantage by choosing to act as (essentially) a meat shield for him. Although it drags her insecurities about being so different to everyone else right out into the open, the alternative – Sano getting injured, or possibly even dying – is completely out of the question for her.
What Chizuru isn't aware of is the fact she does help out the members of the Shinsengumi. She doesn't always get to directly help out in a battle, or help the Shinsengumi's cause. What she does help, though, is the Shinsengumi individually. Possibly due to her general compassion and empathy, she sees beyond their roles as captains of the Shinsengumi, and sees them directly as people, specifically people she trusts and loves, first and foremost. Over the different routes in the game her presence and nature, her natural resolve and just by being a constant presence in their lives slowly gets the others to consider themselves, and their roles in and outside of the Shinsengumi. She helps Saitou realise they're more to him that just his swordsmanship, and more importantly that she isn't the only person who sees him as Saitou before Saitou-the-swordsman; she unknowingly prompts Sanosuke to consider what he really wants out of life, and helps him realise that wanting to settle down and protect someone you love is just as important as wanting to fight for the country you love; helps Heisuke solidify his own resolve and come to terms with the fact that even though he's a Rasetsu he's still Heisuke, and he's still important to her; helps Okita realise there's more to him than just an extension of Kondou's will and a means to helping achieve his dreams through the Shinsengumi, giving him new purpose out of the life he has left; and she becomes the one constant Hijikata has left in his life during the ending stages of the war, by stubbornly refusing to leave him when he demands she does so.
This, of course, brings up a major flaw in Chizuru's kind hearted nature. She puts all her compassion into worrying about others, but buries her own feelings deep down inside. Small things, such as feeling a little down or helpless aren't such a big issue – she brings these issues up in her own way, and works through them. But in order to avoid becoming even more of a burden to the people around her, as Chizuru truly believes she is, she smothers her bigger issues to the point that they can overwhelm her. Sanosuke points out she spends so much time thinking about other people that she misses the things right in front of her; the little things she can do to make people feel better, the ways in which she does help other people, and the things she really wants out of life. It often takes her a long time, for example, to realise that she's in love with one of the potential suitors, mostly because the things going on around her command her attention first and foremost. Luckily, the people around her are more than willing to point these things out to her if given the chance, but she is good at hiding her really big issues and not letting on how she feels until prompted. For example, Chizuru puts her foot down rather firmly with Okita in one scene, where he tries to reiterate the fact he's a dangerous person and Chizuru would probably be better off not hanging around him all the time. Chizuru's response essentially boils down to “No. Stop being stupid.”. When she's forced to think about an option - does she want to be with this person, does she want to take this path – her decisions are sound and she sticks to them wholeheartedly... but she often needs that initial push to get her to truly consider them.
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Chizuru is a very kind hearted, polite young lady who finds herself thrown into a situation that is far greater than her, and far, far beyond her power to even dream of controlling. She's gentle by nature, and openly admits that, while she has basic knowledge of self-defence and knows which end of a sword to hold, she fears battle and the thought of harming other people greatly.
Compared to the company she keeps, Chizuru can seem almost painfully innocent and naïve about the world around her and the people who inhabit it. In reality though, Chizuru is not an idiot by any stretch of the word. She truly wants to believe the best in people, and holds tightly onto their good qualities even in their darkest moments: for example, she whole heartedly wants to believe that, after her father Koudou's betrayal, there is still some of the man who raised her left in him. In some routes, her faith is rewarded, and in others not, but the point stands that she truly believes in him, and does the same for a lot of characters in the series. She continually looks for the best qualities of the people around her, even if she ends up hurt in the end.
Chizuru is also fairly self-aware, and perceptive about some things. Not necessarily everything, as the other characters find her very easy to wind up and tease due to her more innocent nature, but she has enough common sense to take care of herself in more everyday situations. She explains that her father often took trips away from home, prior to his disappearance, which implies she took care of both herself and her home for semi-long periods of time while he was gone. She also had enough foresight to realise that a girl her age making a trip alone from Edo to Kyoto was guaranteed to run into trouble, and made the decision to disguise herself as a man in order to avoid unwanted attention.
The fact she took it upon herself to make such a long and dangerous journey by herself says a fair bit about her kind-hearted nature: she loves the people close to her dearly and unreservedly, and her sense of right and wrong is very strong. She's more than willing to do what's right over what would keep her safe, and it certainly isn't because she has a lack of self-preservation. Chizuru will put herself in the firing line to help someone in need with barely a second thought if she has to, even when in other situations she may be more level-headed about the danger she's in. When it comes to people in danger, or the people she loves, Chizuru will do whatever she can to help.
This side of her; the desire to do whatever she can to help the people she cares about can lead to her being very stubborn, and sometimes to hurting herself – usually emotionally. Chizuru is acutely aware of just how much she owes the Shinsengumi, and just how little she can actually do to repay them for their kindness. They put a roof over her head, help her to smile when she's feeling down, and took it upon themselves to protect her even after they learned she wasn't human. In contrast, Chizuru isn't a warrior, and isn't strong enough to help on the battle field; knows little of battlefield politics and her opinion of what is best for the members of the Shinsengumi (such as Sannan being alive, even if his dominant arm has been rendered near useless) often conflicts with their opinions on what's best, and their sense of pride (the realisation that if Sannan cannot fight, he has essentially died anyway, as he will never be a warrior again). The most she can do is run minor errands and make tea, and this fact frustrates her endlessly and in a lot of routes leads to damaging her sense of self-worth.
So, when she can do something to help, Chizuru will dig her heels in and refuse to budge until she's been allowed to do so. A good example crops up in Sanosuke's route, where he tells her to run away from a battle while he keeps Shiranui occupied in battle. In order to avoid a bad ending, Chizuru has to outright refuse to run when Sanosuke tells her to, choosing instead to stay and help. Chizuru realised that, while she has a lot of issues with abilities as a Oni, she realises she has more of a chance surviving a hit from Shiranui's gun than Sanosuke does, and she uses that to her advantage by choosing to act as (essentially) a meat shield for him. Although it drags her insecurities about being so different to everyone else right out into the open, the alternative – Sano getting injured, or possibly even dying – is completely out of the question for her.
What Chizuru isn't aware of is the fact she does help out the members of the Shinsengumi. She doesn't always get to directly help out in a battle, or help the Shinsengumi's cause. What she does help, though, is the Shinsengumi individually. Possibly due to her general compassion and empathy, she sees beyond their roles as captains of the Shinsengumi, and sees them directly as people, specifically people she trusts and loves, first and foremost. Over the different routes in the game her presence and nature, her natural resolve and just by being a constant presence in their lives slowly gets the others to consider themselves, and their roles in and outside of the Shinsengumi. She helps Saitou realise they're more to him that just his swordsmanship, and more importantly that she isn't the only person who sees him as Saitou before Saitou-the-swordsman; she unknowingly prompts Sanosuke to consider what he really wants out of life, and helps him realise that wanting to settle down and protect someone you love is just as important as wanting to fight for the country you love; helps Heisuke solidify his own resolve and come to terms with the fact that even though he's a Rasetsu he's still Heisuke, and he's still important to her; helps Okita realise there's more to him than just an extension of Kondou's will and a means to helping achieve his dreams through the Shinsengumi, giving him new purpose out of the life he has left; and she becomes the one constant Hijikata has left in his life during the ending stages of the war, by stubbornly refusing to leave him when he demands she does so.
This, of course, brings up a major flaw in Chizuru's kind hearted nature. She puts all her compassion into worrying about others, but buries her own feelings deep down inside. Small things, such as feeling a little down or helpless aren't such a big issue – she brings these issues up in her own way, and works through them. But in order to avoid becoming even more of a burden to the people around her, as Chizuru truly believes she is, she smothers her bigger issues to the point that they can overwhelm her. Sanosuke points out she spends so much time thinking about other people that she misses the things right in front of her; the little things she can do to make people feel better, the ways in which she does help other people, and the things she really wants out of life. It often takes her a long time, for example, to realise that she's in love with one of the potential suitors, mostly because the things going on around her command her attention first and foremost. Luckily, the people around her are more than willing to point these things out to her if given the chance, but she is good at hiding her really big issues and not letting on how she feels until prompted. For example, Chizuru puts her foot down rather firmly with Okita in one scene, where he tries to reiterate the fact he's a dangerous person and Chizuru would probably be better off not hanging around him all the time. Chizuru's response essentially boils down to “No. Stop being stupid.”. When she's forced to think about an option - does she want to be with this person, does she want to take this path – her decisions are sound and she sticks to them wholeheartedly... but she often needs that initial push to get her to truly consider them.