Katsuo

Katsuo was the third son of Daimyo Awachi Hideaki, behind two brothers - Kiyoshi and Yuuma - and a single sister, Chou. He was the last of Hideaki's legitimate children, as his birth involved multiple complications that eventually killed his mother and left him terribly sickly, though the Daimyo would later recognize (without legitimizing) a younger brother for Katuso in Daichi and another sister in Izumi. Katsuo was born not only sickly, but also frail and small, unlike the healthy and strong Yuuma or the friendly and charismatic Kiyoshi. He was expected to not survive infancy and Hideaki, partially blaming the child for the death of his wife, refused Katsuo medical care, claiming any child of his would survive such an ordeal or be a worthless disgrace. By some miracle, Katsuo survived his first years of life, though his body would be forever wracked by disease and fragility. Growing up terribly thin, awkwardly lanky, and with an unpleasant, harsh demeanor, the only advantage Katsuo held came from his dangerously sharp mind.

Only offhandedly trained in courtship, the mannerisms of a Daimyo and Iaijutsu, Katsuo found himself with a surplus of free time, which he spent every moment of in feverish study. Unlike most third children with bright minds, Katsuo found no joy in poetry or philosophy, unable to bind himself to impractical concerns or postulations on the proper manner to show respect (of which he was capable of forcing little out of himself). Instead, the young boy filled entire scrolls with architectural designs and theoretical methods of swinging a katana and holding a formation. He much liked to watch the castle's soldiers train and staged mock battles every so often. The sergeants liked him; the soldiers did not. Yuuma grew to be a rowdy sort, intent on starting a fight with his newfound skills over slights both perceived and real. It was remarkable he held back from the disrespectful and reclusive Katsuo as long as he did, but eventually the heirling challenged his brother to a duel over his unwillingness to show the proper respect to his betters. Katsuo, reluctantly accepting, was left so terribly scarred that, after being released from the castle's hospital, he was forced to fashion a full-facial mask to cover his disgustingly scarred and ruined face. His first mask was handcrafted wood; the one he wears today is of fine red metal. Though he was never intended to hold the seat of Daimyo, he does today, as Yuuma met his death in a friendly duel with the heir of the declining Inaba, and Kiyoshi simply vanished one day after Yuuma's death, his belongings and person missing the next morning. Hideaki gave his final true son no words of comfort or forgiveness upon his deathbed as the masked figure stood by his side, joined only by his older sister. It was clear that he would have preferred Yuuma or Kiyoshi in Katsuo's place, but they were not there, and he was. Katsuo had wanted nothing more desperately than to feel as he watched his father die, but found himself unable to. His singular, burning desire left no room for pity or grief, and as he left Hideaki's corpse, the gears of his mind were already turning for new strategies, new plans, new methods of keeping men awake on the march and the roads strong under their feet. Now was not the time for reflection. Not when so much was on the line.

Katsuo was named Daimyo the next day. The day after, a peasant village took up arms in response to the news, furious at the court's refusal to wait for Kiyoshi's return. The rebellion was over by the end of the week.