Tsuruchi Etsui

Tsuruchi Etsui was the head guard of the Mantis Clan estates in Toshi Ranbo, and was a member of the Kolat. He was the leader of the Sixth Imperial Legion. After the Kolat were assaulted and almost wiped out by the Scorpion Clan, Etsui helped them to rebuild.
== Pirate ==
Etsui began his career in the Mantis as many other of his fellows, as a pirate. Tsuruchi Etsui (Web of Lies boxtext) Some said he was son of Yoritomo Aramasu. Yoritomo Kazuma (Emerald And Jade Championship flavor)
== Kolat ==
Etsui was a Kolat member of the Coin Sect. Virtue, by Brian Yoon
== Battle of the Tomb ==
He prepared a group of guards under the command of Yoritomo Katoa to find and protect the Emperor in his travel to the Shadowlands, seeking the Tomb of the Seven Thunders. He also made a deal with Yasuki Jinn-Kuen for travel arrangements. To Defend the Emperor, Part 3, by Shawn Carman
=== Naseru's Last Words ===
During the Battle of the Tomb the Emperor's bodyguard, Yotsu Irie, was overwhelmed by an oni. Etsui fired a jade arrow, killing the monster but only delayed Naseru's death. Naseru asked the Mantis to lean closer, and Etsui became the last person to speak with Emperor Toturi III before his death. Etsui run away to save his life The Battle at the Tomb, Part 4, by Shawn Carman & Nancy Sauer but later regreted he could not do more to save the Emperor. Tsuruchi Etsui (Khan's Defiance flavor)
=== Candle of Shadows ===
Tsuruchi Etsui had retrieved a candle from the Artifacts of the Tomb of the Seven Thunders. Etsui brought the candle back to the Embassy of the Mantis in Toshi Ranbo and presented it to Yoritomo Yoyonagi. Distant Thunder, by Shawn Carman On his journey to the capital Etsui had studied the candle with Moshi Amika Prayers and Treasurers, p. 141 which revealed the inscription along the candle read; "An extinguished candle offers no light, a lit candle casts no shadow." The candle was later revealed to be the Candle of Shadows. Candle of Shadows (Tomorrow Title)
=== Etsui's Knives ===
Etsui also brought back a small silver baton which he was able to conceal from the others in the group. Etsui met up with Shiba Yoma later in a darker part of the capital where he revealed the existance of the baton to his fellow Kolat. Etsui told that the baton would separate into two short knives, but would only do so for him. 
== Naseru's Last Words ==
To Yoma alone he also shared that the now-dead Toturi III revealed to him how to find the information about his wishes on the sucessor to the throne. 
=== Emperor desired Heir ===
Etsui later travelled to Ryoko Owari Toshi, and he had an incident with Temple Road Firemen in the Temple Quarter, which was resolved quickly. Etsui met the Silk Kolat Master Kakita Kyruko at the Temple of Daikoku . Together they came and searched inside Toku's Shrine, the Fortune of Virtue, discovering that Toturi III had named Kaneka his heir as Toturi IV. Kyruko revealed to Etsui that the Kolat planned to make changes to the last will of Toturi Naseru, but that Kaneka would still be revealed as the heir. Etsui was forced by Kyruko to become an agent of the Silk sect, to pass along information about the Coin Sect. Etsui guessed if he would be able to betray Kyruko before she betrayed him. 
Kaneka was killed during the Khan's assault upon the capital this year, and it was unknown if the Kolat had in any way released the information contained in the Last Will of Emperor Toturi III.
== Winter Court - 1169 ==
Etsui spent Winter Court at Kyuden Kumiko in winter 1169-1170, where he again met up with Shiba Yoma. The two were discussing possible kolat contacts and recruits, but were interrupted by Yoritomo Yashinko. Honor’s Veil, Part II, by Nancy Sauer
== Candidate for Emperor ==
Jinn-kuen summoned Etsui who met Kakita Kyruko. She told him, to Etsui's surprise, that the Mantis clan was already planning to present him as a candidate in the Race for the Throne. The Mantis thought they could control Etsui, so once they approached him Etsui made sure that they would continue to think that. At the same time the Kolat were trying to convince the people of Rokugan that any daimyo would not be able to sever ties with their original clan and that the conflict of interest would be too deep, favoring a non-Champion candidate. On Land and On Sea (The Race for the Throne Book), by Rusty Priske
== Secret Aid to the Unicorn and Crab ==
Etsui was one of the leaders behind the Mantis Clan plot to aid the Crab Clan against the Crane Clan and the Unicorn Clan against the Lion Clan. In both instances, they would undercharge one side and give them the highest quality of goods while they would overcharge the other side and give them vastly inferior goods. He tasked Yoritomo Utemaro and Yoritomo Buntaro, who performed the mission. Economic Matters, by Rusty Priske
=== Spider bargain ===
The Mantis Clan Champion Yoritomo Naizen offered some measure of support to the Emerald Champion Shosuro Jimen in hopes of deflecting his interest. He sent Tsuruchi Kazushi to hunt down and eradicate any pirates operating along the coast in the Emerald Champion's name. Etsui guessed it would not be enough, and bargained with Susumu to divert Jimen's attention away from the Mantis. 
== Fall of the Hidden Temple ==
Etsui and Kyruko were travelling to the Hidden Temple when she told Etsui that Master Cloud had informed her that the Temple was being attacked by the Scorpion Clan. Kyruko was not concerned, insistant that she could rebuild the Kolat, and revealed to him she was planning on using his position as possible Emperor to her own advantage. Etsui quickly came to his decision and used the pair of knives he had obtained in the Tomb of the Seven Thunders to kill Kyruko. Sun and Moon, Part III, by Nancy Sauer
== Fall of Lady Moon ==
Shortly thereafter, he encountered in the Dragon Heart Plain the dying Hitomi, who had been cast down from Tengoku by the Obsidian Dragon. She tasked him with bringing her last words to the Dragon Clan. The Dragon were no-longer beholden to anyone and must stop their inaction. She also said that the Dragon must build a wall to the north, and advice about the incoming War of Dark Fire.
== Sixth Imperial Legion Command ==
As part of the rebuilding process in the aftermath of the War of Dark Fire, Etsui was appointed to head the Sixth Imperial Legion at the behest of Emerald Champion Shosuro Jimen. Commanders of the Legions (Gencon Fiction), by Brian Yoon
=== Destroyer War ===
In 1173 during the Destroyer War Etsui was inside the Frost Village to accomplish a kolat mission, when Kali-Ma's forces came. The Mantis wanted to retrieve a scroll with important information that he couldn't allow to fall into false hands. He had to see the scroll get burned, but Etsui survived the battle. The fire arrows he used to escape burned the village to the ground. The Destroyer War, Part 2, by Shawn Carman & Lucas Twyman
=== Ashio ===
In 1173 Etsui led his Imperial Legion in the defense of Ashio. The forces of the sculptor Yasuki Otsuka were merged with Etsui's, and raised him to his command staff. Otsuka with his artist's eye could find the flaws of the Destroyers, to quickly kill them. The sculptor was appointed at the head of a Tsuruchi unit. He had to find a flaw anywhere on a Destroyer's body, and the archers could hit that spot. The outcome was a rapid attrition in the enemy ranks. The Destroyer War, Part 9, by Shawn Carman
=== Kyuden Ashinagabachi ===
Etsui and his legion fought in the Battle of Kyuden Ashinagabachi. Goddesses, Part 3, by Shawn Carman
== Death ==
Participating in the Age of Exploration, in 1198, initiated by the Colonies Governor Otomo Suikihime, Etsui died after falling in a depression in the thick jungle of the islands. After writing a parchment of notes for his patrol and his family, he was ultimately killed by a young orochi. Age of Exploration, Part 1, by Shawn Carman The area would be later known as the Spawning Pool. 2012 Kotei: The Age of Exploration
== See also ==
* Tsuruchi Etsui/Meta
== External Links ==
* Tsuruchi Etsui (Web of Lies)
* Tsuruchi Etsui Exp (Khan's Defiance)
* Tsuruchi Etsui Exp2 (Emerald and Jade Championship)
Category:Mantis Clan Members
Category:Kolat Members