Hanazono Miu

In a distant age, there once existed a feared assassin in the lands of Sanguine capable of wielding hellfire and the force of a blizzard at her fingertips. When the fall of night comes, she would slaughter weary travelers and warriors alike with the efficiency of a viper's venom, often leaving survivors to tell tales of their encounters, striking fear into the hearts of those who harken to the stories.

Biography

Found just barely clinging to life on the streets of a disaster-ridden Kai Province, the infant Miu would find solace within the Shirokuro clan after being adopted by Hanazono Takeda as his daughter giving her the name of Miu. She would live alongside her bubbly step-sister, Hanazono Rika, and caring mother, Shirokuro Chie. Miu underwent meticulous training to uphold their clan's traditions, shaping her into a warrior, not to a serious extent as per her father's wishes, but just enough for her to be ready for the unforgiving life outside their home.   At around five years of age, Miu was transported to Xyto along with the rest of the Edokage clans during the 1495 AFL mass exodus through a rift going to Xyto. This wouldn't disturb much of their family's serenity as they would continue living a quiet life in this new world. However, that serenity will shatter four years later on a day when a mission that claimed their father's life and their mother mysteriously vanishes, casting them once again into the cruel grip of orphanhood. In the aftermath, Miu had an intense feeling of resentment towards the clan's superiors for assigning their father such a task coupled with their mother's disappearance. Her indignation towards the grandmaster nearly resulted in the sisters' expulsion from the only home they knew. Yet, recognizing Miu's potential as an asset to the clan, a superior proposed a pact: she would step into her deceased father's role and partake in perilous missions for the clan. Faced with the grim prospect of exile and its unforgiving hardships, Miu reluctantly acquiesced, forging an unspoken oath to shield her last semblance of family—Hanazono Rika.   Thus began Miu's journey, navigating the shadows with an unwavering determination to safeguard the sisterhood that had become her anchor in a world of uncertainty. She was a highly trained assassin for the Shirokuro clan, sent out to kill targets that would pose a threat to the clan's campaign. At age 15, she would get rid of her old ways and join the Brilliance Accord to right her wrongs, and then becoming a Brilliance Catalyst at age 17.

Features

Her long sleek ponytail sways with the wind as she stands victorious after a battle, her smile giving off confidence in her combat prowess, and her slender form adorned with armor as radiant as the rising sun. But, when the duty of night calls to her, gone is the glorious samurai as she transforms into a raging tempest of hellfire and frost, where her shadow casts a veil of fear, and a single glance of her blade can wither the strongest of wills.

Arsenal

Kaijin

"Hearken thy call, he who starts fires, lend me your finest inferno."

— Miu

Through thick and thin, a decorative sword turned trusted weapon for bloodshed that is always strapped to Miu's back. Has been used in numerous ceremonies and assassinations, and was the first weapon that Miu could channel frostfire arcana with. Has 灰燼 engraved on its silver pommel.

This shit's quite the pain... eat this!

— Miu after getting the chain of the kusarigama unstuck from a tree branch

A metal chained sickle with a heavy iron weight at the end used by Sanguinian farmers to defend their lands against demons known as Oni where they would kill and chain them with the weapon to banish them to Hiyashin Pas. This version of the weapon is used by Miu to hunt down rogue Onikage or other targets.

Art

Yataijutsu

Shatter his entire body and soul, make him regret fighting the Hisan.

— A command given my Miu's jōnin

The strength of the body, a form of martial arts practiced by Onikage assassins for unarmed lethal combat and often associated with striking weak points, cracking bones and armor, and exploiting vulnerabilities of opponents which are intended to deal absolute damage by just using the body without showing as much as a hint of leniency. This was taught at an early age for the Hisan which Miu was a part of.

Isshin-ryū Kusarigamajutsu

Miu practices the art of using the chain and scythe, also known as a kusarigama, which is commonly used in the banishment rituals for demons. Its origins date back to the Old World of the Edokage clans and was used to harvest crops or hack away at foliage in dense forests. Practitioners of this art intend to slash or deal damage, most often towards necks and joints, to an opponent at a range and the chain could be used to ensnare or render the opponent's weapon. However the practice had been highly debated as the weapon would often require open areas for it to be viable, making it useless in close quarters but skilled practitioners have circumvented it with skill and some elbow grease.

Arcana

Frostfire (Hellish)

Miu has the power to manipulate and shape both fire and frost due to her Onikage origins. Commonly wielded by the monks of Tourmaline and mercenaries of the Frostfire Ring but has managed to find its way to the lands of Sanguine, using fires created from Oni magicks and melding it with the blizzards of the west.

Kōri keitai

As a practitioner of Frostfire, Miu can conjure objects made of pure ice and even transform herself into ice. She creates everything from defenses to tools, and can fashion ice sculptures of herself. Additionally, she has the ability to teleport between her sculptures.

Kagutsuchi's Force

Through using her body as a medium, Miu is able to harness hellfire, manipulating and bending it to her will.