Toturi III

Toturi Naseru was the third child of Toturi and Toturi Kaede was born shortly after the beginning of the War of Spirits, Naseru was easily the most intellectual and serious of the Emperor's children.

The Steel Chrysanthemum
The Fourth child of Toturi I, Toturi Naseru was used as a bargaining chip to end the War of Spirits. One of the conditions for the end of the war was that one of Toturi's children would be tutored by Hantei XVI. Naseru changed his name to Hantei Naseru, officially to honor his teacher - this was a condition of the treaty as well, by which the Steel Chrysanthemum planned to restore the Hantei Dynasty. Naseru became known as The Anvil, a name that accurately described both his resolve and the role he often fulfilled in the conflicts of the era. After several years learning from Hantei XVI, Hantei Naseru's childhood sweetheart Otomo Hoketuhime finally killed the Steel Chrysanthemum as he beat young Naseru, it was in this event that Naseru lost his eye, though he does not speak of it.

Kaneka's Lineage
In 1159 Naseru joined the magistrate Kitsuki Remata to investigate the lineage of Akodo Kaneka. Remata revealed that Kaneka was more closely related to the Yasuki family line than Yasuki Hachi. With the support of the Scorpion Kaneka led an army to seize the Yasuki lands himself. The Crab were allowed to draw upon the resources of the land, while the Crane Yasuki were ordered to leave. Both Hachi and Remata suspected foul play regarding the discovery of Kaneka's lineage.

The Four Winds struggle
During the Four Winds struggle for the Throne, he sent many assassin to Kaneka, in order to remind him that he was leading the game, and not Kaneka, more than to kill him. Eventually, after the Fall of Otosan Uchi, Kaneka leads his Shogun army against Ryoko Owari Toshi, where Naseru is installed. During the siege, Kaneka understands that Naseru's purpose is to be killed by Kaneka, in order to made him apperas as a violent opportunist, and not a Toturi's son. Kaneka stayed his blade, and the enemy brothers made a deal : to stop to waste their energy one against the other, and focus their strength against the real foe, Daigotsu. Here begins the Four Winds March. The Naseru would be Emperor, and Kaneka Shogun.

The Righteous Emperor
In 1160 after the Four Winds March and the return of the remaining Winds, the three brothers agreed between them that Naseru should lead the Empire. Kaede returns to the Celestial Heavens, and Naseru is declared Emperor. After his ascension to the Steel Throne, he renounced his ties to the Hantei dynasty, giving himself the name Toturi III. He thereby honored his sister Tsudao, announcing that she had been the second emperor to bear that name. Sezaru swears fealty to his mother's clan, the Phoenix and the clan is declared the Voice of the Emperor, and Sezaru is the first representative of that title. Kaneka is made the Shogun, but in an attempt to curtail his ambitions Naseru orders him abandon his current army and all ties to former allies and swear fealty to the Phoenix. Kaneka grudgingly agrees.

Marriage
He married Akodo Kurako in a secret ceremony at the spur of the moment before the unveiling of the shrine to Toku, the Fortune of Virtue.

The Lost
At Imperial Court in Toshi Ranbo, Daigotsu Soetsu, an emissary of the Lost, was brought to court to approach Toturi III. Soetsu put forth Daigotsu's demand to form a Great Clan from his followers in the City of the Lost to fulfill ultimate destiny of Fu Leng: to be just as his brothers and sisters and have a clan of his own. He also claimed that Fu Leng's centuries of aggression towards Rokugan was the result of brainwashing by the forces of Jigoku, and that the honor of Daigotsu was beginning to overcome that and would allow the Empire and the Lost to co-exist as peacefully as any of the other clans.

Soetsu was made a guest of the Scorpion Clan, and the Emperor retired to his private chambers, to meditate upon the mysteries of Enlightenment and cast a final judgment over Soetsu's petition. Empress Toturi Kurako oversaw the court in his absence.

Enlightenment and Death
Toturi III decided that he must seek Enlightenment, as it had become apparent that many others have found it. He became a nameless wanderer, anonymously seeking the wisdom of those who had become enlightened throughout the Empire. Naseru's travels finally brought him to the Shadowlands. While there, Naseru wore the Porcelain Mask of Fu Leng, which Daigotsu Soetsu had promised would not corrupt its wearer as a protection from the Taint. As a wise caution against deceit, however, Togashi Satsu gave Naseru a tattoo, a false eye over his wound to serve as a protection from the mask as well as a further disguise. In the Shadowlands Naseru found the Tomb of the Seven Thunders, the pure final resting place of the original seven heroes who sealed Fu Leng away on the First Day of Thunder, built by Hida after he defeated his fallen son, Atarasi.

When the Great Clans learned that the Emperor had entered the Shadowlands they began massing a small army to go and protect him. The army arrived at the tomb, and were shortly after attacked by an army of oni sent by Kyoso no Oni. Naseru died outside the Tomb in the Shadowlands during the Battle of the Tomb in 1168. He used the Porcelain Mask of Fu Leng to melt all the Shadowlands creatures into a liquid and burn all the remains of the humans that had fought there so they could not be returned as zombies.

Allies
Despite his reputation as a malicious villain, Naseru actually had some very loyal allies, most of whom joined his side before he ascended the throne and used to be his fierce enemies. His wife, Kurako, was an excellent match, as she was cool and objective as well as a skilled tactician, formed both by the Ikoma and the Akodo families.

His ronin bodyguard, Yotsu Irie, at first wanted to kill Naseru, but after assisting him in thwarting Moto Vordu's plans in the Path of the Night, she became a lifelong friend. Irie was present with Naseru in the battle at the Tomb of the Seven Thunders and died protecting him.

Bayushi Sunetra, Naseru's Underhand, joined his staff initially as a Scorpion agent, but her fascination with him lead her to transfer her loyalties to him. Thankfully, Naseru's and the Scorpion Clan's interests have remained mostly aligned. She even gave up the Clan Championship in order to serve him and the Empire better.

The Emerald Champion Yasuki Hachi secured the position thanks to Naseru's manipulations, but Hachi detested this as it resulted in his allegiances and capability being questioned. However, the two were forced to cooperate during the Fall of Otosan Uchi, and their grudging respect for one another's abilities later turned into a real friendship. Hachi gave his life in defense of his Emperor at the Tomb of the Seven Thunders.

Shinjo Shono, daimyo of the Shinjo family, has a lot in common with Naseru and is also a long-time friend. He, along with Sunetra and Irie, helped Naseru survive the Path of Night. Their careers have also experienced similar trajectories, going from maligned sons obligated by their father's deeds to leaders of their people.

Otomo Hoketuhime, daimyo of the Otomo family, is fiercely loyal to him and is rumored to still harbor feelings for him. However, she is now married to a husband her father selected for her, so that is a moot point.

Seppun Kiharu, the daimyo of the Seppun family and Keeper of the Ten Thousand Temples, is also Naseru's loyal friend and his confident for spiritual matters.

Yamainu is a violent ronin who served him since long before his rise on the throne. He is a scout, a spy and an assassin. Naseru sent him into the Shadowlands to find the City of the Lost, in order to prepare the Four Winds March. Naseru used Yamainu for the dirty work ; Sunetra and Irie despise Yamainu, but Naseru sees him as a "useful tool, ready to kill, if not to die, for me".