Name: Sonoda Hattori

Age: 19

Race: Human



Equipment: The only weapon that Sonoda carries is his personally forged blade, the last remaining piece of the Hattori legacy that is currently still in the hands of their rightful bloodline, not even having time to reclaim his or his father's armor. The blade bears no name or honorifics, but is a masterpiece forged by the retained forgemaster of the Hattori clan, many moons of effort and time put into making the finest blade possible for the young man. Since he could not reclaim any armor, he is wearing the same robes he was forced to fight in, lacking a sleeve to cover his possessed arm and shackles and offering practically no defense against any sort of aggression or weather, for that matter.

The only other notable piece of equipment are the two large shackles attached to his sickly white arm. These are blessed by a monk to prevent the spread of the Oni that was cursed into the arm of Sonoda, which are equal parts spirit blessed and special forgework. They help prevent the influence of the Oni upon Sonoda, however, they are only as strong as the will of their wearer, and Sonoda can always simply choose to release the Oni, although, for now, there is certainly no reason why he would dare lose himself over to such a beast of questionable loyalty.

Skills: Daimyo Hattori saw fit to see his son trained in the arts of war first, due to the perceived danger he saw from the Southern part of the province, over political manoeuvrings to ensure his protection should the worst happen. Constant wargames with his father and senior advisers in tactics honed the young man's tactical thinking while resident blademasters trained him in the art of Kenjutsu (Method of the Sword), specifically focusing on Battōjutsu (The craft of drawing out the Sword).

Beyond this, he has cursory training in most traditional weapons, enough to be able to safely handle them but not enough to be overly effective in combat. The one exception would be his introduction to the Tanegashima (Matchlock), a weapon his family and most their retainers did not approve of but Sonoda found an odd fascination with, part of him convinced they would change the face of warfare forever, and has studied the weapon construction when able.

Sonoda is fairly reliant on his surviving retainers and guards for most other things beyond rudimentary survival and dealings with others in a formal sense, his training in the wider arts cut tragically short with the attack upon Hattori Castle and the death of his family.

History: When Sonoda Hattori was born, his father and mother prayed that he would be able to see a diplomatic solution to the increasing tension between North and South. However, while his mother was optimistic, Daimyo Hattori was realistic and knew that he would have to raise a warrior as much as a son to survive the coming times. He spoke of his concerns to no one except his own son, in the rare moments of privacy they were able to have, of the Southern Daimyo Shimazuma Sadayu and his cruelties and increasingly clear determination to take the Hattori land by force. With no allies outside the province willing to aid them openly, out of fear of the newly christened Oni Daiymyo Sadayu, the two quietly knew they were almost completely alone.

Sonoda was raised with warfare in mind, the usual times that would be spent in relaxation, jest, and peaceful pursuits were put to use in training and preperation. Daimyo Hattori secretly confided in his personal guards his shame in forging his own son into a vengeance weapon, a last fail safe to protect the Hattori lineage against the oncoming storm should their walls fail. For most his life Sonoda would know very little of the peaceful world, and grew to see a fatalistic outlook of the world, that it was far darker than it really was. Upon his 18th birthday, an Oni was summoned upon the unsuspecting young man during his coming of age celebration, and shortly after being gifted his sword, blood red flames sprouted from his left hand and left inhuman white flesh behind as they traveled up his arm. Only the fast actions of the retained monk were able to save him, but he was condemned to bear heavy shackles to prevent the Oni's influence spreading further. This was the tipping point that would eventually bring ruin to the Hattori clan.

When the siege upon Hattori castle came, starting upon the young man's 19th birthday, he defied his father's wishes and stood upon the castle ramparts, rallying loyal men and women to the defense of the walls. The sight of the young lord was inspiring, and between Sonoda's on the fly tactics and the carefully planned contingencies, the castle held for far longer than anticipated. But as the assassin's blade claimed his father's life, ranks upon ranks of archers let fly from hidden screens, arrows of flame igniting much of the castle and the gate was forced as it was confirmed Daimyo Hattori was dead. Last stands were made against the Oni and soldiers of Daimyo Sadayu, buying the last heir of the Hattori line, Sonoda, time to flee into the castle.

Sonoda found his father dead, and barely was able to survive the attempt on his life by the very same assassin who fled rather than die to the enraged young man. His mother was missing and his father, dying in his arms. Daimyo Hattori's last breath was charging his son with avenging their clan and stopping the mad reign of the Oni Daimyo, and forced him away into the escape tunnels prepared for this occassion. Mustering the last of his strength, Daimyo Hattori fell protecting his son's retreat, dying in combat as the life blood poured from an assassin made wound. This left the 19 year old Sonoda Hattori apparently alone, but unaware was he of the few retainers and guards, loyal to his cause, pursuing him to aid and protect the orphaned and sole survivor of the lineage.