Yata

Yata (八咫, Yata) is a male Macabre Dancer and System Administrator dispatched to solve the problems plaguing The World R:2. He is also the Epitaph User titled "The Prophet" and has the ability to call forth Avatar Fidchell.

Appearance
Yata appears as a dark-skinned and powerfully built man. He is dressed in an extravagant outfit, most notably his Buddhist kasaya like robe, which leaves his lower legs and most of his chest bare. Most of his body, including his face is decorated with various wave tattoos and his appearance is topped off with a pair of red tinted sunglasses. When forced to fight he wields a pair of fans, attacking with the strange dancestyle unique to his class.

Personality
As a system administrator and leader of G.U., Yata spends little time dealing with the players of The World R:2. Instead he can usually be found in his base, the Serpent of Lore scouring the system for irregularities, and monitoring the users of the game, the eight Epitaph Users in particular. He rarely ventures out of his base himself, preferring to have his subordinates Pi and Kuhn carry out his orders while he monitors. His idol was Ovan for a short while after they met, though he soon began to resent Ovan because AIDA and Aura chose him. Yata is a man who keeps his secrets, and it is almost impossible to tell exactly how much he does, or does not know. Despite being an administrator, his consideration for the average user is also questionable, and he seems to have no qualms with activities that recklessly endanger innocent PCs. His subordinates generally act more ethically, however.

Basic Info
Takumi Hino (火野拓海) is the same player behind Wiseman, Nala, and Naobi. He lives in a high-rise apartment in Tokyo. The name "Yata" is probably partially derived from his love of soccer (the mythical three-legged raven Yata no Karasu is the symbol of the Japan Football Association). Based on his experience as an information broker and one of the .hackers, and later as a hacker, he was hired by CC Corporation to investigate and exterminate the AIDA once they first appeared. Like Pi, he lives in Tokyo.

Near the end of the G.U. Games, as Masato Indou was fleeing from the law, Yata appeared anonymously in a Conto TV interview denouncing CC Corp, revealing that the company was scapegoating Indou for its own wrongdoings. Due to his intervention, charges on his old friend were dropped.

Hobbies
Takumi still enjoys trading cards, but he is mainly into Internet stock trading. He is rather successful in this and notes that while he was in school he was often surrounded by girls that were after his money. Apparently, he is also the majority private stockholder of CC Corp stocks.

Takumi enjoyed playing soccer, but suffered a broken knee in middle school, ending his hopes of going pro.

He also states to follow a very balanced diet according to complete his calculated calories, as well getting nutrition from iron and calcium supplements. He also goes to the gym at least three times a week, with a focus on hypoxic exercises. According to Takumi, his body fat percentage is 8%.

He hopes to one day take a vacation and cast off his material possessions for a while to keep in check with his humanity.

Project .hack

 * See Wiseman



.hack//Roots
Yata first appeared in Roots disguised as the PC Naobi. Following his successful capture of Ovan he abandoned that PC and returned to his form as the Administrator Yata. He began studying the data inside of Ovan, but when he tried to unlock Ovan's left arm there was a system malfunction which gave Ovan the opportunity to escape. Wanting to keep tabs on all those close to Ovan, Yata had his assistant Pi use some of her agents to pursue leads related to him. The most notable of which were the PCs Haseo and Tabby. Yata himself began pursuing those who had been close to Ovan, including Phyllo but met with little success.

He encountered a small problem when his old friend Tawaraya returned to The World as the character Tohta. But rather than seeking revenge, Tohta only asked that Yata help him remove some RMT (real money traders) from the game. Yata helped Tohta with his plan, and told him that any debts owed to Tawaraya by Naobi were now paid.

Yata continued to monitor the system for irregularities. He soon became aware that Haseo was an Epitaph User after he encountered a strange data anamoly in the Forest of Pain. Wanting Haseo's Epitaph to awaken he had Pi send her agent Saburou to fight against Haseo. However the powers Haseo had gained inside the forest put him on a level far above any normal player, and Saburou was easily defeated. Keeping a close eye on Haseo Yata watched as he stumbled into all sorts of dangerous situations, yet none of them were enough to awaken his Epitaph.

After Kuhn's Epitaph suddenly awoke Yata had Pi contact him and invite him into Raven, the guild he had created specifically for Epitaph Users. After being shown an AIDA Kuhn realized that his skills were needed and left his role as Guildmaster of Canard to join Raven.

Without warning Ovan returned to The World. Making contact with Haseo he ordered him to travel to Hulle Granz Cathedral. As Yata, Pi, and Kuhn watched Haseo traveled to the Cathedral where he encountered Tri-Edge. Haseo attempted to fight Tri-Edge but was defeated and data drained. While the experience sent him back to first level, it also awoke his Epitaph. Realizing that Haseo's Avatar would soon be released Yata began making plans to bring him into Raven.

.hack//Alcor
After becoming aware of the Epitaph User named Endrance, Yata orders Pi and Kuhn to keep tabs on his progress in the arena.



.hack//G.U. Games
A system administrator for CC Corp, Yata spends most of his time in the "Serpent of Lore", monitoring The World and acting as a leader to Haseo and the rest of G.U. He provides Haseo with information on Azure Kite as Haseo continues to complete missions with G.U. At the same time, he conducts espionage within Moon Tree under the guise of Nala. Later in the game, after a brief chat with Ovan about how he loved the world and couldn't understand why Aura didn't choose him, Yata released Fidchell in a state of rage and jealousy. After Ovan activates Corbenik's "Rebirth" ability, Yata shows Haseo the anti-existence Cubia. At this point Yata says he wants to protect the world and gives Haseo his member address.



.hack//GU+
After Haseo is PKed by Tri-Edge, Yata brings his unconscious PC to his base the "Serpent of Lore". There he tells him about the AIDA, and Tri-Edge's true nature. He asks Haseo to help him, an offer that Haseo eventually accepts, joining his GU Organization. In this manga, he tends to show slightly maniac expressions, sometimes, compared to his game incarnation.

.hack//G.U. Trilogy
Yata was first seen at the Serpent of Lore after Haseo was data drained by Azure Kite. Yata greeted and told him about the AIDA, the incident of Shino, and other victims that became comatose by the mysterious Tri-edge. He later helped Haseo to find Atoli of her sudden disappearance and again trying to save her from the AIDA that was infecting her body as Haseo enters into Atoli's conscience.

Gameplay
Yata is a Macabre Dancer, a class focused on buffing allies and debuffing enemies, in a similar fashion to the bard class in traditional RPGs. Yata is the only Macabre Dancer to join Haseo's party.

Being an Epitaph User, Yata has access to a Lost Weapon upon joining the party in Volume 3: a rare Fan called "Voice Usurper" (which is renamed to "Voice Cleanser" once evolved to its final form), which makes all normal attacks as "weapon critical" hits.

Stat-wise, Yata has the second highest magic attack in the game after Shino, and tied with Gaspard. For a magical user he also has respectable physical attack, being somewhat a hybrid of a spellcaster and a close combat fighter.

Trivia

 * Yata's Japanese voice actor, Takumi Yamazaki, also does the voices of Harald Hoerwick and Wiseman. His English voice actor is Steven Jay Blum, who also does the voice of Wiseman, Sanjuro, and IYOTEN.
 * Yata has named his admin area, which he shares with Pi, "The Serpent of Lore". The reason for this is unknown.
 * Yata's character is 6'10" (210 cm) tall.
 * "The Serpent of Lore" is perhaps in reference to the Serpent Jormungandr of Norse legend, who encircled the world, and guarded Yggdrasil, the Tree of Life. He is often depicted as an ouroboros.
 * Yata is the only Macabre Dancer who joins Haseo.
 * When Yata joins the party, he already has his Lost Weapon.
 * However, it's necessary to confront the Guardian in the Lost Ground to have the final level of the weapon.
 * Yata's starting weapon is Dark Crow, a rare level 126 Fan.
 * Yata is one of the two (Kuhn is the other) whose Avatar were never seemly possessed by AIDA. Fidchell appears due to Yata's desperation and frustration for the will of Aura and AIDA, as well as his jealousy towards Ovan.