Biography
Haruka Fujiyama was the eldest daughter of the Fujiyama Karate dojo, and was raised up as an obedient, hard-working practitioner of martial arts. Having no need to read or write, she stayed illiterate for the better part of her life, and was expected to inherit the dojo after her father retired. In those early, childhood years, she was a simple soul, praised for her perfect form and her self-discipline. Though weaker than the boys her age, Haruka surpassed them in skill and speed. It appeared that her path in life was set then, and she was fine with that.
Then, her little brother was born, and, as it was proper for a male to inherit the dojo, Haruka lost that path of hers. Her father gave her freedom, and for the first few weeks, she didn’t exactly know what to do with it. It was, funnily enough, in the seedier parts of town, that Haruka found a job. After her martial arts prowess was demonstrated by taking down a grown man with her bare hands, she was hired as a bodyguard of sorts in the pleasure districts, ensuring that customers didn’t make any trouble, and that all the geisha and maiko were undisturbed by drunk proles. It was there that she met a special lady that taught her the value of grace and kindness, lessons that the young woman carries with her to this day. During her years working amongst the geisha, she learned aikido, how to defeat others without injuring them.
But, in the end, Haruka grew tired of being surrounded by luxuries.
And, when the Emperor offered a job, she couldn’t help but to take such an offer. Bidding farewell to her friends and family, the martial artist strode off, to join a new group of companions.
Skills
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Years spent dealing with suspicious folks and preventing possible attacks has given Haruka a rather fine instinct. Underhanded tricks or surprise attacks rarely surprise her.
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While not a master, Haruka is skilled enough at both of these martial arts that she could teach them to others. Her fighting style is mainly opportunistic though, always allowing her opponent to take initiative first, before snatching it away from them.
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Her time spent in the quarters of geishas have given Haruka an extensive knowledge of the arts of dance and song. Though she’d be hard-pressed to understand the official terms that accompany these forms of entertainment, her mimicry of dancing and singing is rather on-point.
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She is accustomed to fighting those who greatly outpace her in terms of raw physical strength, speed, endurance, or size. In order to deal with this, her reaction speed and the fluidity of her motions are absolutely exquisite.
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Haruka is very skiled at melting in and out of large gatherings of people, allowing her to move quickly, as well as to follow others closely when in a mosh pit of sweaty peasants. The same applies for difficult terrain, such as thick brush.
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Perhaps due to her earlier days of accidentally breaking bones with her joint-locks, Haruka’s rather good at resetting or relocating bones.
Weapons
Nothing at all.
Equipment
Three purses with varying amounts of money, because she has no intention on looting…and because she doesn’t trust banks.
A medium-sized gourd containing water, with a leather strap to sling around her shoulder.
A roll of cloth bandages.
A fire-starting kit.
A small sewing kit.
A hunter's knife.
An ornate hairpin made of jade and gold, with a swallow motif. She keeps it inside her clothes, and has never worn it.