Susano Hidari
L'impact de l'atterrissage massif si près de la caravane d'approvisionnement a ébranlé la chose en bois rickety comme une vague farouche et blanc-crestée claquant contre la coque d'un petit bateau sans défense, en envoyant ces pauvres âmes à bord stupéfiant pour l'équilibre. Il pourrait être difficile, voire nauséabonde, de ne plus pouvoir compter sur la solidité, la stabilité, la bonne terre sous vos pieds. Être un marin, c'était apprendre à s'adapter, mais être un grand marin, c'était faire de l'instabilité une partie de votre moi, en faire l'environnement dans lequel vous étiez le plus à l'aise. Ce qui est très fantaisiste et philosophique, mais c'est essentiellement pourquoi Hidari a pu continuer à fumer sa pipe quand il a frappé l'oni dans l'œil avec un couteau. Ce n'était rien d'étonnant, juste un couteau d'utilitaire kozuka gardé dans la petite rainure du garde-main tsuba de son épée, mais il a fait le travail admirablement. Hidari se levait alors que sa main gauche s'emparait de la gaine de sa lame et que sa droite descendait comme pour dessiner, puis se brouillait comme dans une frappe de tir rapide iajutsu - mais quand c'était assez lent pour être vu, c'était vide. L'épée était toujours là où elle était. Le couteau, celui qu'il utilisait pour éplucher les pommes, scintillait maintenant un globe oculaire oni bien au milieu.
"Hoi, t'es une grosse bête, in'cha?" La voix d'Hidari n'a jamais été la plus douce, la plus sophistiquée, mais apparemment tout ce qu'il disait avant était son idée de "parler haut". Aiguë, nasale, perçante. Il retournait à l'intérieur de la caravane d'approvisionnement non pas en retraite, mais pour revenir brandir un arc et une flèche. Alors que la magie de la geisha tirait la caravane vers la sécurité, Hidari roulait avec le mouvement, déposait le chariot mobile et frappait la terre juste avant la frappe de rétorsion de l'ogre à demi-aveugle. "Gorra fait betta que ça, espèce de puant. Viens me voir, mon frère! Haha!"
Il a giflé le yumi contre le croupion de l'ogre comme une courtisane flirte alors qu'il se balançait dans son angle mort, braquant et criant des obscénités pour l'éloigner. C'était énorme, inhumainement puissant - et en bas de l'œil. C'était tout ce dont Hidari avait besoin. "Ne t'inquiète pas, j'ai celui-là, hein!" Il a appelé Chiyoe - et à l'ogre, pour lui dire où il était. Alors qu'il s'éloignait de l'aveugle, il braquait et gardait l'aveugle qu'il portait. "Thissun n'est pas si féroce, n'est-ce pas, mon garçon? Mebbe al' pop une laisse autour du cou et vous apprendre à pisser 'contre les arbres! Allez, mon garçon!" Hidari a dansé en arrière, tirant un coup infuriant dans la viande plus douce à l'aisselle de la bête quand il a levé un bras pour frapper. Il s'enfuit à nouveau, conduisant l'ogre vers lui avec une intention claire de tuer. C'est vrai, mon garçon, tous les yeux sur moi. Tous les yeux. Montre-moi la beauté, hein?
Name: Susano Hidari, "White Bolt Mikaboshi"
Age: 28
Race: Human
Gender: Male
Appearance:

Weapon(s): Daisho, Daikyu longbow, throwing knives
Class: Archer
Bio:
Send a thief to catch a thief.
Hidari was born out of wedlock, his father an impetuous and impulsive member of the wealthy Susano line and his mother a simple serving maid. His father denied the child and his mother was rejected from service in the castle when it was found she was with child. Thus the young Hidari grew up in the port city of Hofuna. His mother supported the two of them through seamstressing and "entertaining" sailors, but never let her son forget his heritage, his Susano blood. Hidari grew to resent the absent, useless bushi who ruled in their castles and collected taxes but did little in return for all they took. This bitterness soon grew to become hatred at the world as a whole and turned the youth down a dark path.
He went from getting into fights with other street youths to running with gangs. From there it was a short hop to larger crime organisations and before long Hidari had signed up with a pirate crew that terrified the local merchants. The crew - called the Sons of Mikaboshi - stalked the trade routes between Susano and Raiden, making their money either from raiding cargo or taking protection money instead. (And sometimes they raided merchants who paid them protection money anyway, just to keep the fear up.) Young, nimble Hidari was first assigned as a lookout, high up away from the fighting on the raids, to call if Imperial ships were coming to hunt pirates. But he found lookout duty boring and one lucky raid put a bow and arrow in his hands. From then on he was happy up in the crow's nest, raining arrows down on the hapless merchants and bushi overwhelmed by his savage crewmates.
Over the years, his skill with the bow and the reputation of the Sons of Mikaboshi grew. As he learned to adjust for the motion of the sea, Hidari soon mastered marksmanship and almost immediately was taking the first kill of any raid by sniping the lookout, or the merchant captain. He got the name "White Bolt" for his reputation of suddenly striking out of nowhere, like a bolt of lightning, raining down death. It didn't matter if the skies were clear or if they lashed the seas with rain; it didn't matter if the waters were placid or boiling with waves. White Bolt always found his mark. Of course, such success and reputation soon brought rivals and contenders, bounty hunters and bushi eager for glory. The Sons welcomed this competition, but of course it is a different matter to fight trained soldiers than it is flabby merchants and civilian seamen.
The campaign against the Sons was long and gruelling, lasting well past the death of the captain Mikaboshi, and Hidari taking the name as captain of the Sons, becoming the next Mikaboshi. What brought the bloodshed to an end was when the Sons captured a Susano flagship, the Emperor's Grace. Hidari ordered his men to take the bushi prisoners, to command a ransom and humiliate the bushi but also to ease hostilities; the Sons had suffered too many casualties to risk a full-blown war with the Susano family. When inventorying the hostages, Hidari realised he recognised the face of one of the older bushi - his father, Susano Tenjin. Hidari made Tenjin an offer. In order for the Sons to cease their piratical raiding of the traders, all Tenjin had to do was formally acknowledge Hidari as his legitimate son and heir. Then the Sons would stop being raiders and become a feared party of the Susano navy.
It was meant as a mockery, at least in part. A token gesture, just twisting the knife some. Hidari didn't really expect his father to do it. For all his other heirs had died and Hidari was all the family Tenjin had left to carry on his branch of the Susano family. Hidari was presented with a name, with a formal daisho and with a mission to protect the seas - no longer a pirate but a corsair, a privateer. But, of course, the high-minded Susano elders resent being known as the clan that employs pirates and has volunteered Hidari's services towards any dirty, dangerous job they hope will cleanse the stain he represents on the clan's reputation; either he succeeds, bringing glory on the clan, or he dies and they are rid of him.
Special Ability: Hidari is merely human and so lacks any magical ability, but has excellent balance, accuracy and agility born from a life at sea. He can jump, leap, flip and climb like a trained acrobat and has excellent physical strength and stamina. He maintains his astonishing accuracy despite any adverse conditions in weather or environment, able to target his opponent despite wind or rain, or unsure ground. He also has command of a small pirate fleet of about half a dozen frigates, with a crew of around one hundred and fifty men.
Misc: Despite nominally being the heir to a branch of the vaunted and extremely high-ranked Susano family, Hidari has lived most of his entire life among criminals and ronin. As such he lacks much of the honour and philosophy of other bushi, as well as much of their classical education in the arts and classics. He is considered a bushi for legal, social and political purposes and has all the rights and responsibilities of a bushi. However, he has a plethora of skills and experience bushi typically lack from his time among the commoners and the criminals; sleight of hand, deception, the use of poisons...