Shiotome-do

Shiotome-do was a minor martial art devised by the Ki-Rin Clan during their wanderings outside Rokugan. It was a variant of jiujutsu, which evolved in a different art during the Ki-Rin's Exodus.

Style
Shiotome-do was a crisp, precise art with exact movement and carefully measured strikes an even balance between patient counterattacks and naked aggression. When an opponent attacks, the artist cought their arm or leg and used the leverage to place them in an immobilizing hold, exerting terrible pressure until their opponent submitted or lose consciousness.

Purpose
The art was used against opponents who were larger and weigh more, ranking it ideal for Utaku Battle Maidens. Shiotome-do proved female fighting prowess to easily equal, or surpassed, that of men.

Training
Utaku women were taught the basics of Shiotome-do for self-defense, early in a bushi's career. It was regarded as a pivotal step in the development of a proper Battle Maidens outlook on life and death. Male members of the Utaku family taught how to defend themselves so that they could protect Utaku interests at home while the Battle Maidens were away.


 * Novices were taught to find the weaknesses in an opponent's defense and strike at their nerve clusters, disorienting them and leaving them vulnerable to follow-up attacks.
 * The intermediate student learned to force a grappled opponent to the ground with ease.
 * The great practitioners mastered the merciless holds that characterized the art.