Hida Reiha

Hida Reiha of House Kakeguchi was an officer and advisor for Crab Clan Champion Hida Kuroda, and then for Hida Kuon. She eventually married Kuon, and the couple had two children; Hida Kisada and Hida Ren. Reiha became the Crab Champion in 1171, following the death of Kuon. She would hold the position until her eldest son, now Hida Kisada, was old enough to assume the position.

Childhood
Born to the Kakeguchi family, Reiha had grown up serving the Hida family. She was the niece to the Kakeguchi daimyo and was trained at the Sunda Mizu Dojo. It was traditional for at least one Kakeguchi child each generation to be raised with the Hida daimyo's heirs, and she was invited to live with the Crab Champion's household, alongside Hida Kuroda and Hida Kuon.

Military Service
Reiha was a student of Toritaka Tatsune. Her sensei recommended her for a position on the Kaiu Wall under Kuroda's command, which she eagerly accepted. Reiha undertook raiding parties into the Shadowlands and was ever vigilant upon the wall. She performed exceptionally and was promoted to be Kuroda's second-in-command.

Hida Kuroda
When Hida O-Ushi was killed, and Kuroda became the Crab Champion, she served as one of his military advisors. She saw that while Kuroda was overcome with grief, Kuon was as unmoved as stone. She confronted him privately, and found him grieving alone. He was being strong for his brother. She apologized to Kuon and spoke of it to no one.

Reiha was shattered when Kuroda fought Kyofu under the wall and collapsed the Kaiu tunnel upon them both. It was Reiha who took the shards of Yuruginai to the Kaiu forge and she brought the news of Kuroda's death to Kuon. She continued as a advisor to Kuon.

Kuon's Advisor
Kuon was an expert warrior, but sometimes the subtleties of politics and human nature escaped him. He called Reiha to serve him as one of his advisors. Kuon was greatly impressed by Reiha's temper, similar than of Kuon's mother, during hot discussions about how to retake the fallen towers of the Wall.

After a crushing defeat in retaking the fallen Kaiu Towers, Kuon retreated from his advisors in frustration and refused to speak to anyone. Reiha disobeyed his orders, confronted him and insisted that he persevere. Kuon took her admonition to heart, and the samurai-ko was never far from his side since.

Shinsei's Last Hope
Reiha, was among Kuon's advisors present in Kaiu Shiro in 1160, when it was learned that there would be an imminent attack on Shinsei's Last Hope. Kuon ordered his advisors to send reinforcements in the hopes that Yasuki Hachi and his two hundred men would buy them enough time to reach the village.

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. Reiha 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
Kuon was married with Reiha and together they had two children, Ichiro in 1161, and Hida Ren in 1165.

Kisada's Return
In 1166 Reiha met Kisada at Kyuden Hida, after the Great Bear returned to Ningen-do through Oblivion's Gate. Reiha gifted the grandfather of his husband with a horse, Koman.

Ambassador of the Empire to the Shadowlands
In 1168 Mirumoto Taishuu traveled to Crab lands to meet Kuon, and asked for permission to travel into the Shadowlands to become the ambassador to the City of the Lost, as Togashi Satsu had ordered him. He explained that the Mirumoto Daimyo, Mirumoto Rosanjin, had authorized him to offer Kuon the release of their hostage, Kaiu Sumata, and that Kuon could still retain custody of the Dragon hostage. Kuon remained reluctant, so Taishuu added that Rosanjin promised no Dragon would fight the Crab for the Scorpion Clan in the Crab-Scorpion War for any reason. Reiha lobbied to her husban to permit to intervene another emissary, Moto Akikazu, a Unicorn Death Priest. Akikazu told Kuon that he would watch over Taishuu in the Shadowlands that Kuon relented. He offered a full chest of jade in recognition of the honor given to the Unicorn when Kuon sent his son, Ichiro, to be trained amongst them.

Investigating the Spider
Reiha became a trusted confidant of her husband, and he would seek her advice about a variety of topics. When rumors of the Spider Clan started surfacing, he consulted with her to figure out who should lead the investigations. Reiha suggested Toritaka Kaiketsu. Kuon initially dismissed the idea because of Kaiketsu's youth, but Reiha wisely pointed out that everyone needs their first chance to prove themselves.

Ichiro's Gempukku
Ichiro, a prodigy with the blade and, underwent his gempukku in the spring of 1171, a full year ahead of his contemporaries despite being small for his age. He took the name of his great-grandfather Hida Kisada, and had since served alongside warriors older, larger and stronger than him.

Kuon's Death: Becaming Crab Clan Champion
In 1171, following the fall of the Kaiu Kabe to the forces of the Destroyer, Hida Kuon was made to answer for the failings of the Crab Clan by Empress Iweko I. Kuon offered to seppuku to cleanse the shame from the Crab, and his request was accepted. He was however allowed to die a Crab's death, leading a hundred volunteers in an attack on an occupied section of the Carpenter Wall. Koun passed leadership of the Crab Clan to his wife Reiha, until such a time as Kisada would be old enough to assume leadership, and marched upon the wall. Reports returned to the Imperial City of Kuon's valiant stand and death on the 17th day of the Month of the Rooster.