Kuni Fujiko

Please note: This article is about the courtier and shugenja. For other uses of the term, please see Fujiko (disambiguation).
Kuni Fujiko was a courtier and shugenja of the Crab Clan.
== Family ==
Fujiko was the unacknowledged daughter of the Kuni Daimyo Kuni Yori. Otosan Uchi: The Scorpion's Sting, p. 11
== Early Years ==
A fifteen-year-old Fujiko passed her gempukku in 1114. She studied in the Kuni Shugenja school, but also learned on the ways of the court. Fujiko had an infectious smile and a bright demeanor, which easily gained the attention of those she talked. Otosan Uchi:Book 2, p. 74
== Imperial Court ==
In 1123 the young woman was appointed in the Imperial Court as the resident ambassador in the Crab embassy. Fujiko quickly was cherised by the Imperial society and she was called the "darling of the Imperial Court" when got the attention of Hantei XXXVIII, who granted Fujiko an standing offer to accompany him to winter court. 
=== Inexperienced ===
Fujiko naiveté extended also to matters of her own family; she defended the Kuni Daimyo Kuni Yori against charges of maho on more than one occasion. Fujiko was assigned an assistant, Hiruma Maroke, to train Fujiko to handle her position alone. Maroke accompanied her every time she visited the Forbidden City. 
=== Fouled ===
Maroke was a guise of Bayushi Sozui, a Scorpion infiltrator and servant of the Living Shadow. Otosan Uchi:Book 2, p. 71 Since Maroke's first appearance in the Imperial Court, tension had spiraled out of control, and violent debates frequently happened. One of the worst topics was the potential for another peasant uprising in the Karada district. 
== Scorpion Coup ==
After Bayushi Shoju beheaded the Emperor Hantei XXXVIII, beginning the Scorpion Coup, the ambassadors were held in the Imperial Throne Room. Fujiko and Yasuki Taka were the only Crab present. Otosan Uchi: The Scorpion's Sting, p. 16
== Death ==
In the fourth day of the Coup Fujiko and the rest of Crab hostages were taken in front of a funeral pyre. Shoju, self-proclamated Emperor Shoju I, requested obedience or seppuku. Fujiko in defiance leaped to death, and her entourage followed. Otosan Uchi: The Scorpion's Sting, p. 25 Her suitor, Doji Hatsue, unaware of the event, had sneaked into the city disguised as a heimin servant. He had hoped to rescue his beloved using the sewers beneath the Imperial Palace as escape route. Otosan Uchi: The Scorpion's Sting, p. 46
== See also ==
* Kuni Fujiko/Meta
Category:Crab Clan Members