Masaru

:This article is about the Fire Nation captain. For the Earth Kingdom technologist, see Masaru (technologist).
Masaru was a Fire Army officer during the last stages of the Hundred Year War. In late 99 AG, he led his forces to besiege the Earth Kingdom stronghold of Shen Guan. Though the success of his operation was temporarily delayed by Team Avatar's intervention, he ultimately succeeded in capturing the fortress. Afterward, Masaru attempted to capture various valuable books and scrolls by Earth Kingdom authors whom he suspected of being useful for the Fire Nation war effort.
== History ==
=== First assault on Shen Guan ===
By 99 AG, Masaru had risen to Captain in the Fire Army. At this point, his force was ordered to capture the fortress town of Shen Guan as part of a wider Fire Nation campaign, ordered by Fire Lord Ozai, which aimed at the conquest of Omashu.Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game. Core Book, Version 1.0, 2022, p. 62.Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game. Wan Shi Tong's Adventure Guide, Version 1.0, 2022, p. 124.
He led his troops to first encircle Shen Guan's main garrison, led by Captain Boqin. Then, he urged his opponent to willingly surrender, pointing out that the stronghold had been cut off and that the Earth Kingdom defenders were much weaker than his forces. Boqin initially refused, claiming that his demands were based on empty threats. However, Masaru then ordered his troops to also attack the surrounding Earth Kingdom camps, threatening Boqin that he had to give up or have his soldiers "pay the price for your arrogance".
Unbeknownst to both officers, Team Avatar also arrived in the area and began to intervene. The group repulsed the Fire Nation attacks on the camps. By the time they had secured the outlying areas for the Earth Kingdom, however, Masaru had ordered a full assault on Shen Guan's main garrison. The Fire Nation forces came close to capturing the stronghold, but Boqin was timely reinforced by Aang, Katara, and Sokka. This allowed the allies to organize a counterattack, eventually facing Masaru and his retinue personally. Though upset at the unexpected turn of fortunes, Masaru tried to reason with his opponents. He pointed out that whatever Boqin and his comrades did, the Fire Nation would win eventually. As the Earth Kingdom officer again refused to yield, Masaru declared that he would break the cycle of violence by personally defeating Boqin. However, the Fire Army commander was bested and forced to order a retreat, though vowed to return.
=== Capture of Shen Guan and expedition to Razor Reef ===
Soon after his failed first assault, the Avatar departed from Shen Guan, while Masaru received reinforcements in form of a team of elite soldiers. He thus resumed his siege, using his main force to block incoming Earth Kingdom forces from Omashu as the newly arrived troops retook the outposts around Shen Guan. After successfully encircling the fortress town once more, Masaru ordered another direct attack on the stronghold. However, the Fire Army Captain almost fell victim to an ambush set up by Boqin; after overcoming the trap, Masaru furiously battled the stronghold's remaining defenders. The Fire Nation soldiers eventually defeated the garrison, but Boqin was able to flee. Angry and frustrated at his main opponent's escape, Masaru ordered his soldiers to quickly secure Shen Guan before thanking the reinforcements for their great support of his operation.
Masaru subsequently set up his office in occupied Shen Guan. Despite his victory, he felt frustrated, as the war seemed to endlessly continue, knowing that Boqin would soon counter-attack. As he mused his situation, the elite team arrived at his office. He once gain thanked them for their hard work, and outlined that Boqin had begun to resort to guerrilla tactics using a tunnel network he and his earthbenders had dug in the region. He then asked the elite soldiers to help secure the area and the flow of ammunition as well as supplies.
Later, Masaru and some of his troops were dispatched on a Fire Nation cruiser to Razor Reef in the Mo Ce Sea to search for Tidao, a master who had "humiliated" the Fire Nation once. The captain encountered an archaeologist, Wen, and some adventurers at the reef. The latter bested Masaru's men, and to avoid any deaths on his own side, the commander reluctantly ordered a retreat.
=== Struggles at Hegemon's Folly ===
After his failure at Razor Reef, Masaru launched another operation aimed at aquiring knowledge potentially useful for the Fire Nation war effort. He moved his unit to Hegemon's Folly, a grave site at the Mo Ce Sea's coast. There, he tried to enter the mausoleum of General Wei. Masaru believed that the tomb contained the Earth Kingdom general's writings on strategy and martial arts, and hoped that the Fire Nation could profit from studying these texts. However, his forces struggled to open the mausoleum without damaging it, while a superior Fire Nation officer, Commander Mamushi, regarded the entire operation as a waste. Hoping to speed up his excavations, Masaru hired various criminals and collaborators, hoping they would succeed where his soldiers had failed.
Mamushi eventually traveled to Masaru's camp at Hegemon's Folly, where she warned the captain to either produce results by the next day or leave the area; if he refused, she would report him to Fire Lord Ozai. Masaru attempted to reason with Mamushi, but she rebuffed him. After the commander had left, the captain introduced himself to a new arrival, Jiang, a pirate who was considered a highly capable safe cracker. He outlined his issue regarding the tomb, before requesting her service in return for any sellable treasures among the grave goods. He only conditioned that the Fire Nation troops would have to keep any writings. The pirate agreed to the deal.
However, the new attempt at entering the tomb quickly derailed. There were considerable tensions among the mixed group of Fire Nation soldiers and collaborators, with Jiang and a few others eventually revolting and breaking the alliance. Once he was informed of this development back at his camp, Masaru gathered many of his troops and rushed to the mausoleum. Upon his arrival, he saw that the pirate and her comrades had actually managed to open the tomb. He confronted Jiang's party inside the mausoleum, but his troops were beaten back. Fearing for his soldiers' lives, the captain ordered a retreat.
Returning to his camp, Masaru rallied his unit and the remaining loyal collaborators. He then prepared for another attack on the tomb. Before this attack could take place, a contingent of ex-collaborators who had sided with Jiang assaulted the camp. Masaru ordered his force to kill the attackers, concluding that they had probably taken the valuable pieces of writing from the tomb. Despite the captain's personal involvement in the battle and attempts to motivate his followers with an "extra bowl of rice for each soldier that downs an enemy", his unit was defeated.
== Personality ==
Masaru was a determined man and competent strategist. At his heart, he was a man of peace and genuinely believed that the Fire Nation's ultimate aim in the Great War was to provide prosperity and order across the world. He also concluded that the Hundred Year War's outcome was a foregone conclusion by 99 AG due to the Fire Nation's massive advantages. Accordingly, Masaru saw it as his duty to speed up his own nation's victory so that peace could return. He was frustrated by the constant fighting, and hoped to limit the number of casualties on both sides by imploring his enemies to surrender. Though his statements were interpreted by his main opponent, Boqin, as typical xenophobic pride exhibited by Fire Nation soldiers, Masaru actually treated his enemies respectfully. Though not above limited gloating, Masaru usually reacted calmly instead of angrily whenever his enemies responded to his surrender demands with insults. He was also convinced that the Fire Nation could learn from the other nations, and was interested in the writings of various Earth Kingdom authors.
He was an approachable and respectful leader to his own soldiers, and willing to risk his own career rather than send them to their death. He also exhibited more respect toward Earth Kingdom civilians than was common in the Fire Nation military.
Despite his calm and logical side, Masaru was also unwilling to recognize that he as well as his nation were ultimately responsible for the suffering in the Earth Kingdom, not the country's defenders. He never exhibited any doubts as to the alleged righteousness of the Fire Nation's war of conquest. He could also be callous on occasion, such as when he ruthlessly ordered his troops to kill a group of adventurers, as he believed them to be Tidao's disciples, and when he ordered the death of Jiang as well as her allies after the latter had betrayed their alliance.
== Trivia ==
* Masaru was originally called "Katsu" upon the release of the Shen Guan update, but his name was later changed to Masaru in patch 1.9 of Avatar: Generations.
== References ==
Category:A to Z
Category:Avatar: Generations characters
Category:Fire Nation characters
Category:Firebenders
Category:Soldiers