Itachi Tracker - v2

Weasel Clan - They find cursed items, rely on knowledge of the spirit realm, and fight those who wield sacred/cursed weapons along side temple dogs.

The Itachi Family are feared to bring ill-omen due to their purpose: retrieving cursed nemurenai and cataloging nemurenai in general on behalf of the Jade Magistrate's Office. They work alongside the Kitsune in the cataloging of items found within the Shinomen Mori, and after the Destroyer War they work alongside the Kasuga for the purpose of determining Destroyer relics which have been left behind in the wreckage.

They are on bad terms with the Unicorn Clan due to them causing a kerfuffle over a caravan of crystal that was being brought in without official jurisdiction and both clans come to odds in matters of determining the origins of items. They also aren't on the best terms with anyone who trades with non-humans because Nezumi and Naga artifacts are disconcerting.

They were founded by Bayushi Itachi, a Jade Magistrate who was born in a set of triplets. He was cursed by Sakkaku at an early age and never once had a set of robes that fit him. He was able to appease a group of mujina by finding an artifact they had lost, and as a result the yokai stopped bothering both him and several important Imperial Family members. They praised Itachi's name, and the Imperial Family determined it might be in everyone's best interest to have a small clan that they can dispatch to deal with trickster spirits and anything that might draw them to ningen-do. Over time, this became a job that had more to do with cataloging but the spiritual component is still present within any shugenja born into the family.

The Itachi are on decent terms with the Witch Hunters, though they dislike their jurisdiction often being given to the Kuni. Good terms with the Toritaka after an incident with a Hidarugami that saw both families working in tandem for the good of the people.

The Itachi hand over tainted items and often report them to the Crab in general so as to avoid having to collect them altogether. The Crab have in turn found the Itachi useful in finding Shadowland counterfeits of their own numenerai that had been constructed for insidious purposes of infiltration and corruption in plain sight.

The Itachi travel in threes and often make use of dogs and kamas (so as to bring in the mythological Sickle Weasel connection). They are bushi for the most part, bowing to any shugenja within the family proper.

They are disliked by a lot of artisan schools for their intense scrutiny of potential tsukumogami. Likely caused by the implication that items are not being properly cared for and likely to be possessed by the kami in a few decades to make an example of the samurai who didn't care for their "glorious artworks" they had commissioned.

The Tsi don't like the Itachi on principle. The Itachi treat all items as things that could potentially become a threat, while the Tsi treat whatever they create as artwork first. They rarely come into contact with one another,but a pillowbook of a romance about a Tsi and an Itachi caused a generation long grudge between the two houses.
And despite their origins, the whole "threes" and traveling in threes thing makes the Scorpion find the lot of them to be repugnant. The Yogo can appreciate them in practice, but on the whole they're snoops and record-keepers who want the facts trying to get their nose into the Clan famous for their secrets.

And nobody wants them to denounce an item that was allegedly blessed by ones ancestors as not really being as magical and blessed as it was claimed. Nobody likes being the nude Emperor after all.

The Itachi have to worry about the balance of their duty and how many enemies they can afford to make. They likely have two bases, one on the border of the Shinomen Mori and one in the capital city. Most samurai for the clan wander between both following rumors and working for someone of a greater office. Peasants in the Shinomen Mori base live relatively free of harassment by spirits save for times when the Itachi are actively foiling some plot by another realm.

Itachi Tracker [Bushi]
Benefit: + 1 Intellect
Skills: Animal Handling, Investigation, Defense, Lore: Theology, Kenjutsu, Knives (Kama), any 1 Artisan Skill
Honor: 3.5
Outfit: Light Armor, Sturdy Clothing, Daisho, any 1 weapon, Traveling Pack, 4 koku

Techniques
Rank 1: Pursuit of Mystery
You have trained among the Itachi's Dojo of Artifice in the art of pursuing the cursed and mysterious. As a parting gift you were granted a temple-bred inu, allegedly skilled in sensing the forces of the supernatural. This dog will accompany you wherever you go and follow basic commands without question. You may direct your dog to Attack as a Complex Action. Both you and your dog gain a bonus to Hit equal to your Lore:Theology Skill Rank when knowingly fighting nonhumans, the wielders of numenerai, or individuals you know to be cursed.

Rank 2: Burden of the Heavens
Your training has seen you able to notice the burdens placed on those undergoing a curse, subtle as it may be. After spending a few moments in observation of an individual, you can roll Investigation (Notice)/Perception against their Etiquette/Awareness. On a success you are able to discern if an individual has a curse placed upon them and from where it manifests (the Taint manifests from the Shadowlands, Cursed by Benten would manifest from the Heavens, Cursed by Sakkaku would manifest from Sakkaku, a Cursed Item would manifest its curse from the item). You do not learn the specifics of their curse. When acting against these individuals socially, you gain a +3 bonus to Social Rolls per Curse they might possess.

Rank 3: Sickle of the Night Parade
When it comes time to liberate an item from an individual, they are not always willing. When wielding a samurai weapon or a peasant weapon, you may make melee attacks as a Simple Action. Additionally when fighting with peasant weapons or in tandem with your dog, you gain a Free Raise on Disarm Actions against your opponent.

Rank 4: Riddle of the Hungry Gods
Possession by spiritual entities or becoming cursed by the items you seek to reclaim is always a risk the Itachi must consider; as such research and knowledge are the best defense. You may add your Lore: Theology or Lore: Elements to your TN to be hit when attacked by curses, spells, or supernatural powers. If you possess an Emphasis related to the spell being cast against you [i.e. Lore: Elements (Fire) when being hit by a Fire Spell], you may spend a Void Point to turn the spell into a contested roll against your Lore:Theology/Willpower or Lore:Elements/Willpower.

In addition, the Itachi Tracker may also order his dog to attack as a Simple Action.

Rank 5: Fracturing the Tie
The last lesson an Itachi Tracker must learn is how to destroy a numenerai should it fall into the wrong hands or be of a profane nature. You and your dog gain a +1k0 bonus to all attack rolls or +0k1 to all damage rolls made against any cursed or blessed enemy or spiritual entity. If you successfully perform a Disarm Maneuver or strike an unheld numenerai you may expend all your Void Points (a minimum of one point must be spent) to destroy the spiritual tie to the item and render it inert and shattered. If the item has the Unbreakable quality, the item now becomes breakable and any further magical enhancements become inert for a number of days equal to your Earth Ring. Performing this technique renders you unable to recover Void Points for one week.