Matsumaru Atoi
Raised in a small Ainu community in Hokkaido, Atoi did not enjoy the comforts of modern Japanese life until he was in his late teens. While the actions of prolific figures like Toyohara Sipporera had done much to further Ainu rights, the lifestyle of the northerners often clashed with that of the main island, and many communities preferred to remain in a more traditional environment, albeit with some of the conveniences of Japan’s technological revolution. Many local hunters tinkered with unique trapping techniques, as the bitter cold rewarded the patient, not persistent. Atoi’s uncle, who he shared a name with, was quite good at trapmaking, which eventually led to him landing some work for wildlife researchers on Ebisu. As his young nephew had been left an orphan the year prior, he decided that he’d only accept their offer if he could drag the teenager along with him.
The two Atoi arrived on Ebisu in 1923, where the uncle went right to work designing specialized traps for the local wildlife. The researchers organized a special tutoring regiment for the young stowaway, giving a hyper-focused education on the basics of the natural sciences, all while the boy still struggled with the common script. By the time he was 18, the young Atoi had caught up with his general education, and had become his uncle’s assistant. He learned many of his mentor’s special designs, and applied his own ingenuity to efforts to hunt the local hakujira. He found local hunters were too inefficient, and often overcompensated their design’s weak-points by featuring redundancies, or using ordnance in excess.
His uncle tragically died in a hunting accident in 1931, after which the now 24 year old returned to Hokkaido. He worked a series of odd jobs, earning money for his projects when he wasn’t supporting his village. He would later be approached by representatives of the Imperial Navy, who sought his expertise in improving the equipment of the naval landing forces, the Jōriku Sentai. Seeing an opportunity to properly support his village, Atoi relented, joining the navy as a Junior Warrant Officer in 1934. His early prototypes were utilized by the ground forces of the IJN deployed to Indochina in 1936, where they proved just as efficient as factory-made designs with a reduction in resources used.
Through distinguished service, Matsumaru Atoi rose to the rank of Lieutenant, standing out as one of very few Ainu officers in the Japanese armed forces. In late 1938, he was transferred to the Northeast Area Fleet after some brief shore leave. His traps and special mines had proven invaluable to Japan’s efforts at keeping their troop counts in Indochina low, allowing them to divert more resources to the Joseon front.. Many questioned if he would one day aim for a higher position, though the few who know him personally insist he is too focused in his craft to care about actual command. As of this moment he remains on standby in Hakodate, preparing his stockpile of instruments of death for his next assignment…
Children
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