Tsuruchi Shimiko

Tsuruchi Shimiko was a samurai-ko of the Mantis Clan.

Student
Shimiko was a gifted student of Tozuken at Dancing Steel Dojo, where she learned the Tsuruchi Kenkyaku school. The small dojo was overtaken with younger members of the Tsuruchi family that wished to learn the Yoritomo combat styles the sensei had learned, as these students were dissatisfied with the status of the Tsuruchi family. The dojo became the headquarters of a new philosophical faction among the younger generation, who favored the Code of Bushido over the Wasp Code.

Sensei
Tozuken, realizing what was taking place, retired to a monastery, and Shimiko became the new sensei. Shimiko bore no ill will toward the elder Tsuruchi. She was a skilled archer who had wished to study other forms of martial combat. Shimiko would not rest until she had mastered every weapon in the Empire. Even yet, many of the younger generation saw her as a symbol, an example of what a Tsuruchi could become when not bound by the "artificial" traditions inspired by their family's founder.