Kuni Yori

No man has ever been spoken of with more fear than Kuni Yori. Those who met him never forgot his piercing eyes, eerie voice and his sarcastic smile when he talked. Other shugenja whispered his soul had been taken by the Shadowlands.

A Tainted Soul
In his younger years he studied under his uncle to become a shugenja. He became the daimyo of the Kuni after his father and brother were killed during a ritual in winter of 1109. It is not generally known that he and his late brother were in fact fighting their father, who had become leader of a bloodspeaker cell. It was then when Yajinden revealed himself, and tempted him as he had done with his father. Yori then became Yajinden's apprentice.

The Kuni Daimyo
When he became Daimyo he would keep tabs on other shugenja to know what work they were doing. He would often enter other Kuni residences unannounced. His knowledge of the Shadowlands was extensive and he wrote numerous treaties on the biology and magical nature of Shadowlands denizens. He was the sole caretaker of the works of Kuni Mokuna. Some said his interests had gone too far and it was rumored the Shadowlands denizens knew his name and feared him. He had the ear of the Crab Clan Champion Hida Kisada and would advise him in times of emergencies. Kisada would not believe that Yori had been compromised by the Shadowlands. Yori never spoke to someone unless he wanted something from them and few could tolerate his presence for longer than a few minutes.

The Henshin Exposed
In 1126, during Winter Court at Kyuden Asako, Kuni Yori manipulated the families of the Phoenix Clan to fight amongst themselves by using the insane Asako Oyo as a pawn to demonstrate the secrets of immortality held by the Asako to the Isawa. This ensured that the Phoenix spent the next several months occupied with their ancient rivalry and oblivious to the machinations of the Crab.

Clan War
Early in the Clan War Yori helped seal a dark alliance with the Shadowlands, sanctioned by the Crab Clan Champion Hida Kisada. Kisada wished to forge a new, strong dynasty, instead the weak Hantei Emperor on the throne. The Crab army marched towards Beiden Pass, and Yori crossed the Kaiu Wall to met the Oni who was later named Yakamo no Oni.

Opening a Black Scroll
After a particularly brutal battle against the Crane Clan Yori visited Hida Amoro to offer the Berserker a way to fight without having to worry about his own men being killed and Amoro accepted. The Shugenja opened a Black Scroll and raised all of the fallen on the battlefield as zombies, who were commanded by an amulet given to Amoro.

Yakamo's Claw
Shortly before the Battle of Beiden Pass Mirumoto Hitomi cut off Yakamo's right hand. Yakamo was rushed back to Crab lands where Yori manipulated Hida Kisada into allowing a large claw to replace Yakamo's lost hand. Yakamo in turn gave his name to the oni that the claw had come from, Yakamo no Oni, and an alliance was forged between the Shadowlands and the Crab Clan.

Sukune Sacrified to Fu Leng


After initial failures at the Battle of Beiden Pass, Hida Kisada unwittingly allowed Yori to sacrifice his son, Hida Sukune, to Fu Leng in an attempt to turn the tide. After a dark ritual Sukune was nailed to the war banner known as the Terrible Standard of Fu Leng.

Reading the Black Scrolls
Yori researched two of the black scrolls. One of them was A Terrible Oath.

Assaulting Otosan Uchi
By the time the Crab launched their attack on Otosan Uchi, Yori had already fully joined the shadowlands. he stood at the gates of the Imperial Palace while Hida Kisada's assault failed.

Second Day of the Thunder
Yori survived the battle on the Second Day of Thunder at Otosan Uchi in 1128.

After the fight was over, he entered the Imperial Palace and stole the head of the dead Emperor, Hantei XXXIX, from the funeral pyre.

Writings of Kuni Yori
In the Shadowlands, after the Second Day of Thunder, Kuni Yori wrote Oaths and Betrayals and began to build himself a following among the vile creatures he had grown to understand.

Hiruma Castle
Yori besieged Kyuden Hiruma against his former Crab Clan brothers in 1132. With the skull of Fu Leng Yori enacted a ritual and restored Moto Tsume to unlife. Tsume immediately swore fealty to Yori. Yori captured Hida Yakamo and tortured him to death in the Sepulcher of Bone.

Hidden Emperor and the Shadow
This year in the ruins of the Hiruma Castle Jama Suru convinced Yori to send him to the Morikage Mori, to search the Shadows. Yori did not trust his servant and Suru was scorted by Kyoso no Oni.

War in the Shadowlands
The same year Goju Adorai contacted Yori, revealing the confusion the Lying Darkness provoked between Ikoma Tsanuri and the Crab, which was instrumental in the delay of Hida O-Ushi's arrival at Shiro Hiruma. Adorai requested Yori's aid to defence Oblivion's Gate while the Darkness infested Yomi, in return with his help against the only power that could defy Yori in the Shadowlands supremacy, Kyoso no Oni. Yori agreed and Tsume guided by Adorai hunted down the rogue Oni Lord.

Burning Words
Yori somehow had the Burning Words and he wanted to pass them to other individuals that willingly could accept it, believing it would draw the entire Moto family into the Shadowlands. Yori sensed the power of Iuchi Shahai and met her in Unicorn lands. In 1132 the ruined form of Kuni Yori gave Shahai the Burning Words, a written account of a bargain between Fu Leng and the Shi-Tien Yen-Wang, gaijin Lords of the Dead. Inside the written account was a prophecy, which told of a True Moto who would strike down his bethren. The bloodspeaker willingly accepted the quest to find the Unicorn hero.

The Doomseeker
The Dark Moto were betrayed by Kamoko and destroyed, being Yori bound into a Naga Pearl along with the soul of his former friend, the shugenja Iuchi Karasu.

Released
Iuchiban's rampage through Gisei Toshi freed both Karasu and Yori.

Legion Of Blood
Kuni Yori Joined the Legion of Blood.