#asai clan

[neobrogrippa]

Why Azai Nagamasa?

Someone from Final Fantasy XIV asked me yesterday about why I like the Azai and particularly Azai Nagamasa so much.

To me the event that says so much about Nagamasa's character is at the fall of Odani castle, funny enough when the Azai are destroyed.

If you look at the fall of Odawara (the Hojo), or the fall of Osaka (The Toyotomi), entire clans getting destroyed and mass sepuku weren't uncommon. Nagamasa, however, insists on sending his wife and children to Nobunaga. Ultimately it is Nagamasa, and the Azai retainers, who commit sepuku in the castle.

To me that act speaks volumes both about his concern for his family but also about who he was as a person.

[yamayuandadu]

Do you know why Abe-no-Seimei became so popular compared to any other onmyoji in folklore and literature? Is it because of who wrote his stories or something else?

There is no single clear answer. It seems safe to say there are multiple interconnected factors at play. 

Seimei’s real career was genuinely extraordinary in some regards. To begin with, it was unusually long. He was around 85 years old when he passed away, and historical sources would indicate that he was still fairly active in old age (in fact, most references to him which are fully verifiable come from the second half of his life). Shin’ichi Shigeta actually argues here that Seimei's longevity in no small part contributed to cementing his legend.

However, it’s hard to argue that the times when Seimei lived were not a factor in its own right too. Institutional backing was no longer the sole reason behind the relevance of individual onmyōji. As I discussed in my recent article, by the middle of the tenth century their clientele expanded. And to find new clients, personal charisma was necessary. The shift started slightly earlier already but it doesn’t seem like the likes of Shigeoka no Kawahito or Kamo no Tadayuki left quite as much of an impression as Seimei and his contemporary Kamo no Yasunori in the long run. Legends do deal with earlier onmyōji at times, or rather reinvent earlier figures, especially Kibi no Makibi, as onmyōji, but this is often merely a way to make Seimei’s or Yasunori’s deeds appear even more amazing by making them a part of centuries old legacies (granted, standalone tales of Makibi appear for example in Konjaku Monogatari already).

Seimei’s personal influence is evident in the fact that he seemingly was responsible for popularizing formerly obscure Taizan Fukun no sai as one of the main onmyōdō rituals (check Shigeta’s article above for more specific evidence). Note that this was a performance so popular the early medieval reinterpretation of Amaterasu was in no small part driven by efforts to make her fit into rituals similar to it and Enmaten-ku. There’s also evidence that Seimei had an impact on the popularity of tsuina, a ceremony originally held only in the court but later also in private houses of nobles which served as a forerunner of modern setsubun. 

The Abe clan remained influential in official onmyōdō circles long after Seimei’s death, and his heirs obviously invoked his fame to validate their own influence. There are texts only compiled after the Heian period which were attributed to him, such as Hoki Naiden. This obviously further contributed to the spread of his legend, making him relevant even as onmyōdō changed.

I don’t think it matters who wrote down the legends though, at least not before the Edo period. However, there are at least some individual elements which absolutely became such a mainstay of modern portrayals of Seimei because of the fame of specific authors who introduced and/or popularized them. A good example would be the Kuzunoha story, which was only invented in the 1600s and attained popularity because of Ryōi Asai’s Abe no Seimei Monogatari (I am not aware of any older legend claiming Seimei was not fully human, unless you want to count the Shuten Dōji variants presenting him as a manifestation of Kannon or Nagarjuna).  Another thing which comes to mind as an example of influence of specific works of fiction is portraying Dōman as older than Seimei, which is a convention started by Edo period theatrical performances as far as I know. Dōman's historical counterpart was pretty obviously younger (granted, there's also no evidence he interacts with Seimei). He was still active three years after Seimei’s death, and there’s no indication he was somehow 90+ years old. 

Bit of a digression but it’s worth noting Dōman isn’t Seimei’s only rival in the early stories, in Konjaku Monogatari he also faces a certain “fearsome fellow” named Chitoku who does seem to be older than him. He is an unlicensed onmyōji and comes from Harima, so it's easy to draw parallels with Dōman. However, they aren’t really similar characters; while Dōman is pretty firmly portrayed as a shady figure - a curse specialist first and foremost - Chitoku actually seems to utilize his skills to deal with pirates troubling his area. He just learns he’s a big fish in a small pond after unsuccessfully challenging Seimei. Still, I wonder if the two may have merged at some point in popular imagination.

[tetsuro-wulf]

Members of NightRaid were called upon to aid Muika Kanda and her struggles to live up to her name as Kugane's "weather girl". She could utilize divination to predict the weather and let the people know daily first thing in the morning or the day before. Yet one unfortunate series of mispredictions lost the people's trust. Little did they know, it was attached to her clan and their rival's unrelenting strife.

The NightRaid Network was invited by the head of the Muika Clan, Muika Kazuhiro, to aid in the rivalry which messed with Kanda's predictions. The Asai clan made an adamant attempt out of bitterness and spite manifested by a long-sealed Mononoke which fueled their negativity over rivalry to continuously ruin Kanda's reputation. Raidan, the Asai Clan head, ultimately succumbed to possession of the escaped Mononoke having lost the challenge thrown against NightRaid, and began to destroy his own people.

Thanks to NightRaid's quick thinking, meddling, and persistent investigations within both bakufu clans, they successfully quelled the fires of rivalry, leading to a resolution between the Muika and the Asai.

[dangermd]

Assortment of OCs #2

Made in June 2022

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4

Hisame & Fujihashi

Hisame is a loner who really loves rain, to the point of only leaving her house on rainy days. Her love attracted (alleged) cloud spirit Fujihashi. Intending to make her his romantic partner, he immediately backed out after seeing how young she was. He felt attached to the girl anyway, deciding to grant her the happiness and safety she yearns for

Anzu (& Ami)

Anzu is a professional volleyball player. Serious and contemplative, she is not a fan of the spotlight. She remains as the strategist of the team, and uses her  experience to adapt to many situations. At home, she takes good care of her pet, Ami, who greatly resembles her.

Asai

Asai is a high ranking member of the Ikehara clan. A ruffian with a great affinity for poison, he’s known as a loose cannon, unafraid to get his hands dirty. However, some say he is far more insightful and responsible than he seems.

Oume

A student from an upper class school, Oume is also an officer in a special unit designed to dispel gang threats in her area. Her versatile rapier skills, as well as her cold and precise approach, are recognized beyond the walls of her school.

Although she puts a serious front, Oume often wonders if this is the right way to spend these years of her youth.

[ben-the-hyena]

Also with these posts I think I've made my mind with what to HC about the reason why the Lyre is in the witch's cottage and allying it with how he is a super proud father and how my dream established 6 OC daughters 5 them constantly bodyslamming him in excitement when he comes home

Years ago he went there because he was sterile. Yep. Sure he didn't admit it because it's a man's ego destruction especially as a clan leader but he suspected it was him and not his wife and felt guilt as well as emptiness at the idea it would end with him. So one day he was practicing with the Clan's Lyre he followed the wisps to her cottage, and after the initial confusion he did see too the wood carver was also a witch and so asked her for a spell in exchange for his clan's relic... AND her carving him a new one to bring hime so nobody would suspect a thing both about his infertility and business and how he fucking sold asay the family heirloom for that. For once somebody was asking for one her carvings, she eagerly accepted and made him a spell as well as a new lyre that sounded EXACTLY the same which amazed him, she did take creative liberties but he would pretend he himself had added those, it did happen in the past from some of his predecessors. But because she is tricky and unpredictable she also added some strong temporary aphrodisiac in it so that "her customer could see immediate results" which had him RUN HOME FROM DUNBROCH BY FEET LIFTING UP HIS HORSE and conceive Young MacIntosh with his wife as soon as he kicked the bedroom door open

And that's because he is so so happy he got a son while he had accepted he would never have one he adores him and shows him off that much and because the spell was effective he got 7 children in total according to my dream (he seemed to have a strong X chromosome though lol). Nobody but him and the witch know the real Lyre is in her home now, he just hopes his son and heir won't ever find out that he plays and treasures a copy he owes his existence to

[tiredspirals]

I haven't touched the Asai in a long time since it's lore was a bit cringe. To explain, the Asai would attack other clans who were allied with the beastclan, and for a while I was always on the fence of if I should REALLY commit to being realistic to lore since I like working within the confines set by the creators of a world. So I largely ignored them. But I think now I can change them to a more generic evil empire that was at first just trying to be as strong as possible for survival, but a demon I got from a hatchery a zillion years ago rose to power and made them a well oiled war machine

Instead of the Fantasy Racism I can just throw that shit away and have being near their borders a danger to everyone. Though perhaps that is still too much?

[samuraifacts]

The Azai Ruled Omi? Right?

  Hey everyone! It has been a while! As I said previously I’ve been double checking my words and doing research before continuing to post on here. Today I’m back and want to start by talking about my favorite clan of the Sengoku Era. The famous Azai (or Asai) clan of Omi! The famous rulers of Omi right?   Well, not quite. In a lot of modern media it is common to say that the Azai ruled over Omi Province. Unfortunately, this isn’t quite true. Today I’d like to talk about the Azai and what land they did and didn’t rule over. I’m also going to be including brief history lessons on the Azai clan’s three rulers.    First let’s talk about Grandpa Azai, Mr. Azai Sukemasa. Before Sukemasa the Azai had no land to call their own and weren’t what one would consider rulers. However, due to an internal power struggle of the clan he was in he would end up gaining forces and build a castle in the Northeastern part of Omi called “Odani”. Unfortunately, he would soon find himself locked in conflict with the rulers of South Eastern Omi, the Rokkaku. The Rokkaku would prove so powerful in fact that the Azai would be forced out of Omi and seek refuge in Echizen to the North. WIth the help of the Asakura clan, Echizen’s rulers, the Azai would then move back South into Omi and pushed back the Rokkaku. Owing a large debt to the Asakura they re-established themselves at Odani, reinforcing their position and becoming the rulers of Northeastern Omi. So at this point they control only Northeastern Omi, and would also claim ownership of Lake Biwa.   Next came the second ruler of the Azai, Hisemasa. During and after the death of his father Hisemasa was locked into a seemingly endless conflict with the Rokkaku. In spite of Asakura assistance the Rokkaku clan was powerful and Hisemasa was considered a fairly weak fighter and general. Under his leadership the Azai would lose several forts and quite a bit of land to the Rokkaku forces. Fearing complete destruction and not wishing to flee to Echizen like his father before him HIsemasa would beg the Rokkaku to let the Azai become their vassal. While the Azai kept their castle, at this point we could say that all Azai lands actually belong to the Rokkaku. So, leaving this section, the Azai own one castle and clearly don’t own all of Omi.    Finally we have the most famous Azai, Azai Nagamasa. It is not exaggeration to say that leadership skipped a generation of the Azai family line. At a young age, bearing the grudge of his father and grandfather before him, Nagamasa would move the Azai’s forces South with the help of the Asakura. While the Azai didn’t take over much land they did regain all of the land they had previously lost to the Rokkaku forces. The Azai retainers asked Hisemasa to retire, and Nagamasa was made the Azai’s new Lord. This was the absolute peak of Azai land ownership. As most people know the Azai later fell to the Oda and lost all territory when their clan was destroyed but that is a conversation for another time.    The point I wanted to make with this post is that while a lot of video games and anime say the Azai ruled all of Omi, because splitting up Omi is difficult admittedly, this is in fact false. The Azai never ruled more than the Northeastern part of the province.    

[cosplayclans]

Anime Call of the Night Akira Asai JK Uniform Cosplay Costumes

[itsmarjudgelove]

Saito Tatsuoki was killed on this day, August 14, 1573 Saito Tatsuoki was the third generation Daimyo of Mino, following his grandfather, Saito Dosan, and father, Saito Yoshitasu. He was also a nephew of Oda Nobunaga, as Nobunaga’s first wife, Nohime, was Saito Dosan’s daughter. Tatsuoki was born in 1548, and succeeded his father, aged 14, in 1561. The following year he developed a rivalry with Mino based warlord, Akechi Mitsuhide of nearby Kani. Mitsuhide had sided with Tatsuoki’s grandfather, Dosan, when Saito Yoshitatsu had turned against Dosan and ousted him. In 1564, Tatsuoki’s forces and those of the Akechi clashed. The Saito samurai were soundly defeated, and the loss effectively removed the Saito clan from being a viable player on the Sengoku period stage. Gifu Castle, originally known as Inabayama Castle, was said to have been one of the strongest, most impregnable castles in Japan, yet there was a time when it fell to Takenaka Hanbei and just 16 of his samurai! Takenaka Hanbei was a military advisor to the lord of Gifu Castle, Saito Tatsuoki and his father, Saito Yoshitatsu before him. Hanbei was a brilliant tactician, although a sickly, and effeminate man. Once, a samurai of Gifu Castle gravely insulted the strategist by urinating on him as he passed below one of the castles’ defensive turrets. His complaints to the lord of the castle, Tatsuoki, to have the perpetrator punished went unheeded, and so some time later, Hanbei entered the castle with his band of 16 samurai on the pretext of visiting his sick brother, and used the entrance to make an faux-attempt on the life of Saito Tatsuoki. The confused Tatsuoki, thinking a much larger army of attackers had entered the castle, fled for his life, abandoning the castle and his men. Hanbei took the castle easily. Having heard of the coup, Oda Nobunaga then requested Hanbei give the castle to him, however Hanbei refused, instead returning the property to Tatsuoki, and then left the service of the Saito clan. The greatly embarrassed Tatsuoki, who had lost a great deal of reputation and honor from the cowardly retreat would not keep the castle for long. When Oda Nobunaga attacked the castle in 1567, many of the troops under Tatsuoki remembered his cowardice and either fled themselves, (just like Tatsuoki did when he heard Nobunaga's forces were approaching) or defected to the Oda forces. Nobunaga then relocated his headquarters from Komaki Castle to the centrally located fortress and renamed it “Gifu.” Saito Tatsuoki would remain in exile, occasionally taking part in a number of battles against Nobunaga under the banners of the Asakura and Asai clans until his death on August 14, 1573, aged just 26. Tatsuoki was apparently cut down during the Battle of Tonezaka, also known as the Siege of Ichijodani Castle.

[odaclan]

Oichi and Shibata Katsuie

There’s two interesting theories that I’ve known for a while, but finally managed to get ahold of citations: 1) “Oichi was already married to Shibata once, but got divorced so that she could marry Nagamasa” 2) “Actually it was Hideyoshi who arranged for Oichi and Shibata to marry, not Nobutaka”

Some years ago I came across a certain website, which is mostly about swords. However, it has a section giving a quick run down of the Sengoku, and it made the bold claim that Oichi's “true love” is Shibata Katsuie: “ODANI no KATA received her name after being parted from KATSUIYE, her first husband and true love, and given by brother, NOBUNAGA to ASAI NAGAMASA as cement for an alliance, becoming then the Lady of the ASAI family’s OMI strong-hold, ODANI Castle, 1568.”

And according to the same website, she was allowed to remarry Shibata upon Azai’s death, instead of the more commonly known post-Honnouji date. 

In the Samurai Archives forums, members provided two citations, one to Stephen Turnbull, and one to Edmond Papinot. Sadly there are no quotes from Papinot’s writing, but a member kindly took the effort to provide the quote from Turnbull’s book: 

“But no example of the plotical manipulation of women can quite compare with Nobunaga's use of his sister O-ichi, and her daughters. She was first married to Shibata Katsuie, Nobunaga's most senior retainer, but Nobunaga desperately needed a marriage alliance with the Asai family of Omi, so O-ichi was divorced from Katsuie and married to Asai Nagamasa, the heir of the family, in 1568. The alliance did not hold, and Nobunaga went to war against the Asai clan in 1570. When Nobunaga burned Nagamasa's castle of Odani in 1573, Nagamasa and his father commited suicide, having first returned O-ichi and her three daughters to Nubunaga. Nobunaga thereupon made O-ichi remarry her former husband, Shibata Katsuie.” [Samurai Warlords: The Book of the Daimyo, page 105]

http://www.samurai-archives.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=2046&sid=4507fe066d880060db1549a2a156e4ea

It sounds like the site that waxed on about true love had gotten the information from the same Turnbull book, since the elements of the narrative sounds similar. Though without Papinot’s book to compare, I don’t know.

Disclaimer: I am not saying this is valid, just that the theory does actually have a source. Not some sort of fantasy dreamed up by novelists/fiction writers. 

On to the second subject. 

I tried to find just where the “traditional” story of Nobutaka arranging the marriage came from. It was apparently “just so”. It was even referenced by Minakata Kumagusu, all the way back in the early decade of 1900s, so it’s been around for a while. I just can’t find which specific texts says it.

The first time I saw the new story was in an online history website called Rekijin. It was only a brief reference, saying that “According to new theory, the arrangement was made by Hideyoshi”.

The more specific citation comes from Wikipedia. Supposedly, there was a letter from Shibata Katsuie addressed to Hori Hidemasa, which says: 秀吉と申し合わせ… 主筋の者との結婚へ皆の承諾を得た ("I’ve made an arrangement with Hideyoshi... I obtained the blessings to marry a relative of our lord from everyone”). The text cites Nankou Zatsuroku 南行雑録 as its source. This is a compilation of various documents put together by the Mito domain. I can’t find the date for this collection, or whether the actual letter artifact was part of this collection.

So there’s that. This kind of leads into a messy question about what really goes down in the Kiyosu meeting. I will separate it in a new opinion post, because it’s irrelevant here. 

[neobrogrippa]

Shiga prefecture (Omi Province) in Japan had a large festival marking the 450th anniversary of the death of my favorite samurai Azai Nagamasa. At the celebration they had limited edition Azai merchandise. Thankfully I found a sale online and I am so incredibly happy to have these.

[daeva-agas]

Ooh, interesting. He says the Amago clan descendants says that the proper reading for the clan name is “Amako”, and they had no idea how the “g” sound came from. Wellp, whether the reading is the “default” or the “heavy” reading is always a problem, huh. It’s like Azai vs Asai, which one do you use???

Also Motonari becoming clan head by total coincidence because the legitimate heirs unexpectedly dropping down dead is like… morbidly funny. 

[kw-warriors-innuendos-blog]

Nobunaga's Ambition: LOD Update.

*playing as the Asai clan*

I've thoroughly pissed off the Hatano clan. I assisted them in defeating the Ashikaga clan, however, stabbed them in the back once the Miyoshi attacked the Hatano and even stole a retainer.

As expected, I got my counteruppance...said Hatano retainer killed Nagamasa.

RIP Naggy.

[scoobydoojedi]

Matsunaga Clan

The Matsunaga were allied to a branch of the Miyoshi clan and later came to serve the Miyoshi. Matsunaga Hisahide was known as infamous schemer and worked hard to undermine the efforts of the Ashikaga shogunate. The schemes of the Matsunaga resulted in numerous murders and assassinations. They proved useful allies for the Oda and helped the Oda subdue the Asai and the Asakura, but ultimately were mistrusted by the Oda. Their fate was sealed when the Oda clan invaded their territory.

*Prominent People*

*Matsunaga Hisahide* (1510-1577) Matsunaga Hisahide stands out in Japanese history as an infamous schemer and a out-right villain.Hisahide first notably appears in 1549, when he assisted Chokei in the defeat of Miyoshi Masanagaand acted as his spokesman in Kyôto (he first appears as a Miyoshi retainer in documents dated1541). During the 1550’s Matsunaga acted as the Miyoshi’s governor of the capital, and stayed close to the shôgun, Ashikaga Yoshiteru. Hisahide was later tasked with the conquest of Yamato province, an endeavor that made him, by 1564, essentially an independent daimyo. Already, Matsunaga was working to undermine his former masters; between1561 and 1564, three of Chokei’s brothers and his heir died.��Matsunaga Kazunari (1561) andMatsunaga Jikkyu (1562) passed on under what may be considered mysterious circumstances while Atagi Fuyuyasu (1564) was murdered. In 1563 Chokei’s son and heir Yoshioki also died what was probably unnatural death. The extent to which Hisahide had a hand in all of this will never be known, but he was rumored to have poisoned Yoshioki. Furthermore, some said that he framed Fuyuyasu and goaded Chokei into having him killed. Regardless of how bloody his hands may have been, Matsunaga was essentially the heir to Chokei’s domain when the latter died in August of 1564. In point of fact Chokei had adopted the young Miyoshi Yoshitsugu as heir after Yoshioki’s death, and this young man was presently under the guardianship of the so-calledMiyoshi triumvirate: Miyoshi Nagayuki, Miyoshi Masayasu, and Iwanari Tomomichi, who held Sakai, the Miyoshi’s Settsu headquarters. While animosity existed between the triumvirate and Hisahide, for the time being they acted in unison. Shôgun Yoshiteru had lately attempted to rid himself of the pervasive Miyoshi influence he had been saddled with for years; his efforts at independence cost him his life. On 17 June 1565 troops sent by Matsunaga and the Miyoshi closed on the shogun’s palace and forced Yoshiteru to commit suicide after a heroic struggle. In his place the infant Yoshihide was installed, an act that prompted Yoshiteru’s brother Yoshiaki to flee and seek out a patron. In the meantime Matsunaga and the Miyoshi came to a parting of ways and began fighting. In 1566 Matsunaga’s warriors were defeated outside Sakai, and Hisahide himself failed in attempts some time later to reduce the Miyoshi presence in Kwatchi. A truce was arranged that allowed Matsunaga to leave the Sakai area, and fighting continued further inland. In the course of the conflict, Matsunaga is reputed to have burned down the Great Buddha Hall of the Todaiji (Nara), to this day considered a needless act of near-villainy.

In 1568 Yoshiaki secured the services of Oda Nobunaga, the up-and-coming lord of Mino andOwari; in November of 1568 Nobunaga marched on Kyôto. Faced with this unexpected danger, Matsunaga cannily decided to submit and was allowed to keep his lands in Yamato. Most likely Nobunaga was him as a useful tool both against the Miyoshi and to expand Oda influence into Yamato. In addition, Matsunaga had sent, as a token of his sincerity, a renowned tea item known asTsukumogami, a gesture which no doubt effected Nobunaga (a bit of a tea enthusiast himself). Matsunaga did prove useful over the next few years, serving Nobunaga in his wars with the Asai andAsakura and against, of course, the Miyoshi.

By 1573, however, Matsunaga was conspiring against Nobunaga with, of all people, Miyoshi Yoshitsugu. This arrangement did not last long, and soon Matsunaga was back on Nobunaga’s side, helping to destroy Yoshitsugu and the remaining Miyoshi. Hisahide then became involved in the siege of the Ishiyama Honganji. In 1577 Hisahide rebelled once again; he and his son Hisamichi abandoned their positions around the Honganji and returned to Yamato, possibly hoping that other Yamato daimyo, such as Tsutsui Junkei would follow. This proved not the case, and Tsutsui and Oda Nobutada soon surrounded Matsunaga in Shigi castle. Word came that Oda sought two things from Matsunaga - his head and a certain valuable tea item, ‘Hiragumo’, which Matusnaga defiantly smashed before killing himself. Hisamichi was captured alive and taken to Kyôto, where he was executed.

At once a habitual schemer and a cultured man of tea, Matsunaga Hisahide came in some ways to embody the spirit of the 16th Century - albeit largely the worst qualities. His plots and the manner of his dying (in addition to the smashing of the tea item, it is said that he ordered his head be blown up to deny that to Oda as well) became the stuff of Edo dramas. An ardent Nichiren adherent, Matsunaga was also vilified in contemporary western accounts of the day, especially after he banned the Jesuits from Kyôto in1565.

*Matsunaga Hisamichi* (????-1577) Hisamichi was the son of Matsunaga Hisahide and assisted in the murder of shôgun Ashikaga Yoshiteru in 1565. He joined his father in rebelling against Oda Nobunaga in 1577 but was captured and later executed in Kyoto.

[tiredspirals]

Shadowbinder

Shadowbinder - Do you have any lore about how your dragons view exalting? If so what is it?

Since I’m an exalting lair, I have a pretty good view of exalting so I reflect that in my lore to some extent. B)

The Asai

This plague clan works closely with the exalted armies to repel beastclan attacks, so they have high opinions of those chosen to serve their goddess. Any of their own picked to serve are celebrated before sent on their way, with their names carved into a monument found in the center of the Asai home base.

Fairy Kingdom and Brambled Ruins

The fair folk don’t care for the dragons beyond their boarders and their petty battles. They have no opinion. The 3 priests stationed near their kingdom boarder, however, are themselves members of the shadowbinder’s exalted army and serve her faithfully. Thus they’re pretty keen on bringing more into their hidden folds.

Winding Refuge

This group of waywards and rejects don’t hold anything against those who leave to join the exalted, but don’t really appreciate the active recruitment the priests in the Brambled Ruins will try to do from time to time…

Anticant

Tali pays tribute to Shadowbinder by sending fresh faces to the exalted armies, among other things. How willing these recruits were to join is a matter best left not discussed.

The Three Spires

They’re sort of outlaws so they’re probably not gonna throw any parties if an officer sent from Stormcatcher comes walking into their facilities. They don’t hold active resentment for the exalted as individuals, but the army is still something of a threat to them.

And of course there’s my independent dragons, who I don’t think I can cover all of. Though I will say most of my coli dragons sell their services to train young dragons for the exalted.

[hcavensarrow]

This was supposed to just be a quick post about whether or not Hiroko uses “Tsukishita” as her surname in modern verse because it was on my mind, but it wound up getting absolutely out of hand. So here’s. Something.

I was thinking about this last night - most of the Tsukishita clan do still have their own family names when it comes to legal identification in modern verse; Hiroko and Ryouta’s family name is “Asai”, which is the name Hiroko is enrolled in her high school under. In their main verse, I think it’s worth noting that it’s still kind of relevant, but... to a lesser extent. 

While the Tsukishita all use their clan name as their surname out of loyalty and whatnot, there is still some hierarchy within the clan as far as individual families stand, with the head of their clan and family being (naturally) at the highest standing. Following this is the longest-serving families in the clan (which includes the Asai, though they aren’t exactly “second in command”). So in a highly formal situation, Hiroko wouldn’t be “Tsukishita Hiroko” but probably something more along the lines of “Tsukishita no Asai Hiroko”. You can imagine why she doesn’t introduce herself as such. 

I’m inclined to say that in mainverse the Tsukishita also practice genpuku coming-of-age ceremonies, wherein a person receives their “adult” name. Of course, from what I’m reading, ‘Ryouta’ really doesn’t fit the naming conventions for childhood names (and he most certainly wouldn’t have received his adult name yet from what I’ve established). To resolve that - “Ryoutamaru” could probably pass (though I think I might be pushing it a little), so we’ll say that’s his full given name, (he’s still just Ryouta in modern verse, though, and I’m not going to bother changing his tag). I would imagine most still call him “Ryouta” simply as a shortened name - especially when they’re dealing with foreigners in their travels, as it’s a much shorter and simpler name to remember - with “Ryoumaru” being used by his family as an affectionate nickname. He or Hiroko would only introduce him(self) as “Ryoutamaru” to other Japanese speakers.

and after ironing that out a completely useless fun fact would be that Hiroko’s childhood name was O-Ume. also, I should probably add another character to Katsu’s name. Katsumichi, maybe?