Shinjo Shono

Shinjo Shono was the second eldest son of Shinjo Yokatsu, brother to Shinjo Yasamura. Shono was very loved by his father, who named him his successor as Unicorn Clan Champion upon his gempukku. He then became the Shinjo family daimyo.

He was known as the Master of the Wind.

Family
Shono was the son of the Unicorn Clan Champion Shinjo Yokatsu. He had two siblings, a brother Yasamura and a sister Haruko.

He also had a cousin, Shinjo Sanraku.

Married
A very young Shono was married to a barbarian, Suren and she and their children were lost supposely in an accident. Shono and his sister thought the kolat took their lives as vengeance against the Shinjo Daimyo.

Shono would be married a second time to Moto Genki, with whom he had a daughter, Shinjo Min-Hee.

His Father and the Kolat
From this post he was one of the first Unicorn to witness Shinjo's return to Rokugan. Shono returned to Shiro Shinjo at the end of the war, and found Shinjo slaughtering Shono's kin, claiming they were Kolat. Shono could not believe this and nearly attacked the Kami, but his hand was stayed by his sister, Shinjo Haruko. When Shono realized the truth in Shinjo's words vowed to serve Shinjo loyally and atone the sins of his family. The newly appointed Unicorn Champion, Moto Gaheris, advised to kill him, but Shinjo spared his life accepting his vow, and Shono became the Shinjo Daimyo. Shinjo and the Unicorn prepared the Assault of Otosan Uchi against the maddened Emperor Toturi I alongside with Gaheris, leaving Unicorn lands under the care of Shono.

Hunting his father
Shinjo became outrage and rode with his friend, Shinjo Huang, to find his father and bring him to justice for his role in the Kolat. After months of riding Shono found Yokatsu and challenged him to a duel. Yokatsu would not raise his blade against his son and Shono slew him in a fit of rage. Afterwards, Shono dwelt on his father's death and came to see himself as a murderer, slaying the man who had shown him nothing but love and compassion. This caused Shono's rage to grow and fueled his vendetta against the Kolat.

War against the Shadow
Shono served with much distinction during the War Against Shadow, during which he served as commander of Exile's Tower.

March to Volturnum
In 1133 Shono marched toward Volturnum to stop the slaughtering of the Empire ancestors by the Goju, while the Moto were riding toward the Twilight Mountains to destroy the Dark Moto.

Battle of Oblivion's Gate
Shono was at the Battle of Oblivion's Gate, fighting faceless minions of the Shadows.

Legacy of the Naga
Shono was present in Moto Gaheris' court in 1135 when the Naga delegation gifted the Unicorn with the golden pearl known as the Legacy of the Naga. After several years Akasha was hatched from this pearl.

The City of Night and Shono's Eye
Shono made a deal with Moto Vordu in 1157 where Vordu would supply Shono with the secrets of the City of Night to help Shono fight the Kolat. Shono's part of the deal was that he would allow himself to be the subjects of Vordu's experiments in the city. Shono awoke after making the deal to find that Vordu had replaced his left eye with Night Crystal. Shono fled Vordu and the city in terror. Since that time Shono came to be more associated with his special eye than anything else.

Shono returned to the city with Hantei Naseru and others to further investigate the city. They found that Vordu had become a pawn of the Tsuno, who intended to use Naseru to unleash the power of an ancient Kitsu artifact as a weapon. After destroying the Tsuno and Vordu, Shono reported the incident to Moto Chagatai, who promoted Shono the command the Junghar following Moto Chen's disgrace at the hands of the Kolat.

Shinjo Maku
Shono was the closest thing to a friend his cousin Shinjo Maku had, and they would often meet to share stories or simply relax. Even though Maku saw Shono as too foolhardy and irresponsible he would constantly encourage Shono to take up a position of instructor at the dojo. Shono always refused.

Trading with the Gaijin
Shono and Shinjo Huang were traveling north, crossing Exile's Road leading a merchant caravan to Senpet. They heard the sounds of an attack, and as both investigated they came upon a Scorpion being attacked by a Tsuno pack. After the Shinjo defeated the beasts, they had to choose between kill the Scorpion, Bayushi Shixiang to maintain their secretive and forbidden gaijin trade, or to let him live and risk being exposed to the Imperial edict's consequences for such unlawful activity; death.

The two spared his life, though Shono immediately went to Kyuden Bayushi to make a trade with the Masters of Secrets, Bayushi Yojiro. In exchange for their silence on the matter, the Scorpion would receive some benefits from the gaijin trade.

Bayushi Yojiro, having initially ordered Shixiang to deliver a chest to an Ashalan, Hojyn, had secretely intended for Shixiang to uncover such illegal trading.

Station in Ryoko Owari
After Toturi Tsudao proclamated herself as Empress Toturi II in 1159 with capital in Kyuden Seppun, the rest of the heirs planned to declare their own claim upon the Imperial Throne, but in different cities. Hantei Naseru elected Ryoko Owari as his headquarters, and many clans had begun relocating their most skilled and influential courtiers and ambassadors to the city. For the Unicorn came Ide Michisuna, his yojimbo Moto Genki, Moto Chen. After a recent adventure in the Way of Night Shono was appointed as second in command to Chen.

Chen Dishonored
One day Chen in the Naseru's Court accused the Imperial Chancellor, Bayushi Kaukatsu, of sponsoring an illegal and dishonorable act without any proof. Kaukatsu ordered left to leave the City of Lies, and requested an Unicorn restituon for the insult. Upon Shono's request, Kaukatsu let the Khan could resolve satisfactorily the incident and got the Shinjo family's favor. Shono made Moto Chaozhu one of his lieutenants, and commanded a large number of troops.

Junghar Commander
Chen, Shono and Genki came back to Shiro Moto. Chen swore he was not the man who accused Kaukatsu, but without evidences. Moto Chagatai dismissed Chen of his duties to compensate the insult to the Scorpion and appointed Shono as Junghar Commander. Shono made Moto Chaozhu his lieutenant and they were stationed in the Shinomen Mori to patrol the slumber of the naga race.

Kaede's Return
In 1160 the Empress and Oracle of Void, Toturi Kaede had returned to the Mortal Realm at Kyuden Seppun. She comanded to gather the Four Winds at the city to defeat Daigotsu and to destroy the City of the Lost with its Temple of the Ninth Kami, channel of the Shadowlands worship to Fu Leng. Shono was present as one of the most prominent and powerful samurai in the Empire when the Winds were gathered and prepared the Four Winds March.

Married with Genki
Moto Genki was a good friend of Shinjo Haruko and served alongside Haruko and her brother Shono. Genki once took a poisoned arrow meant for Shono, and spent several weeks recovering from the injury with Shono, who was also injured. Haruko knew a good thing when she saw it and arranged for Genki and Shono to marry. They were betrothed to be married during the summer of 1160, and married the following spring in 1161. Genki bore Shono a daughter, Shinjo Min-Hee, within the year.

War of the Rich Frog
Shono and most of his Junghar were called in by the Khan to help secure their claim over the City of the Rich Frog and he left Moto Chaozhu in charge of the remaining forces. He also received a letter from Emperor Toturi III requesting for his advice on how to end the Lion/Unicorn war with as little bloodshed as possible. While he and his forces were on their way to the city Shono's troops he was accosted by Mirumoto Kyuzo, a taisa of the Imperial Legions sent by the Emperor to help end the conflict between the Lion and the Unicorn. Kyuzo attempted to goad and insult Shono into challenging him to a duel, which Kyuzo would most likely win, but Shono instead shot him from a distance with an arrow, killing him. This prompted the hidden Dragon forces to ambush Shono's soldiers, and the ensuing conflict would have turned badly for Shono and his men if not for the timely arrival of Moto Ogedei and the White Guard. This turned into a massacre for the Dragon, but despite this he reprimanded some of the White Guard who had been disrespectful towards one of the Dragon's corpses.

Shono achieved victories during the war, his men having managed to rout Mirumoto Kei's Dragon army at a box canyon. Leaving his forces in the charge of Shinjo Huang, he met with the Khan at Sukoshi Zutsu to discuss their tactics. He also passed on to Chagatai a portent he received, possibly due to his jade eye - that the conflict will escalate in the next few days, and that it may possibly kill Chagatai. He offered to take Chagatai's place as commander of the soldiers at the village, which would be under assault from Lion forces attempting to reclaim it, but Chagatai refused to, saying that it would demoralize the Unicorns if they did that. So instead Shono returned to his men, hoping that Chagatai would survive Nimuro's fury.

Bayushi Atsuki and the Ashalan
In 1166 Naseru sent Shono to monitor his brother Kaneka, who had gone from the Imperial City. The Shogun camped near the ruined Naga city of Iyotisha in the Shinomen Forest. Shono detected on top of a tree Bayushi Sunetra, who had banished from the public see after she stepped down as Scorpion Clan Champion, becoming the Underhand of the Emperor. She also had been sent by Naseru to investigate the relation between the Fires of Toshi Ranbo, the Gozoku, the supposedly dead Bayushi Atsuki, and the immortal race of the Burning Sands, the Ashalan. Sunetra had come to the forest to talk with the Naga, the ancestral enemies of the Ashalan, to know more of them. Shono offered himself to ask the Naga, because he was able to be admitted in the city. Sunetra waited his return.

Atsuki's Death
Shono joined Kaneka, Shiba Danjuro, and Akasha to see Orumash, a Naga Jakla guardian of Iyotisha. Orumash guided the Shogun's Imperial Legions to the Ashalan hideout in the Plains Above Evil where Atsuki was hidden. The Empire army defeated the defenders and Kaneka killed the Gozoku leader in personal combat.

Shono's Daughter
In 1167 Akasha saved Shono's daughter to be kidnapped at Shiro Shinjo. A Ninube entered the chamber where the infant was sleeping, but it did not found the child. Akasha somehow had sensed the danger and had hidden her. The Naga made the Ninube fled after it was wounded by her crystal knife. It was not know if Akasha was aware that the child was the reincarnation of the Kami Shinjo.

Fighting the Ninube
Shono marched to Northern Hub Village with Chen, Iuchi Najato, Shinjo Loruko, Shinjo Xie, and few more volunteers. Somewhere to the south were the ones responsible for trying to kidnap his daughter. There the Unicorn retrieved a map Tfrom men who all shares the same tattoo, a skull. They met Hokatsu, a ronin mercenary at the command of the Tortoise and leader of the East Wind. He told the tattoeed men were members of a gang bandit, the Sons of Shadow. Shono offered a bounty if the East Wind helped the Unicorn group. They reached a buildign where they killed the bandits, aided by Mirumoto Ryosaki, Isawa Angai, and Agasha Miyoshi. Xei died in the combat. Later in another fight in the nearby ruins of Otosan Uchi the kidnapper instigator, Ninube Chochu, was confronted by the Jade Legions led by Asahina Sekawa, and eventually killed by Ryoseki, after Chochu killed the Dragon's father, Doji Reju.

The March to Toshi Ranbo
When Chagatai decided to launch an attempt at taking the throne in the winter of 1168-1169, he left Shono and the Junghar in charge of the defense of the Unicorn lands. Shono was not convinced by the plan, doubting the rice sent to the Dragon and Scorpion would buy them allies. Chagatai was defeated and his Khol legions lost one-half or more of their number while the Baraunghar lost ninety percent of its unit. Upon returning, Chagatai placed Shono in command of the defense against Matsu Yoshino's coming invasion in 1170.

Defense of the Unicorn
Shono devised several ingenious and daring defenses against the Lion. Near the end of Yoshino's march Shono was killed in personal combat with Akodo Shigetoshi.