Kurokuin

The **Kurokuin** family ("Black Queen") is a major clan of shinobi and the sworn enemies of the Shirokishi clan. They appeared during the 1270s and rose to notoriety during the Sengoku Period and the Boshin War on the Emperor's side, and ruled over the Shinobi Council before the Second World War.

The Kurokuin are legendary firearm masters, crafting and using firearms as weapons of choice since they exist in Japan, making them part of their identity. By opposition to the Shirokishi, they promoted a modern society without classes or classes with low distinction, universal kindness and fairness, and wise and pragmatic consideration of weapons.

They are considered neutral shinobi due to their complex relation with the government, and after a series of assassinations organized by the Council ruled by the Shirokishi, the only Kurokuin members left were Ryōki, Ryōna and Ryōbi.

## Description

### Generalities

Initially founded in the 1270s when the Teppō was invented, the Kurokuin family known today appeared after 1543 when the Western style and culture appeared in Japan and influenced the family. They are masters at making and using firearms who have monopoly on coal, saltpeter, sulfur, and since the XIXth century on cotton and acid, and on foundries. They also are mostly a matriarchal family valuing kindness, love, generosity and tolerance as well as having their own brand of honor, influenced by the Yōma. They're a modern-styled family opposing the medieval-styled Shirokishi.

Their unequaled expertise in crafting and handling firearms of better quality than military-grade weapons goes in pair with their famous Princesses, Dragon and Skirmishers, skilled sweet, charming and powerful maiden formed to the family's skills and values, sought as ideal spouses by the highest nobility. Their making skills are thus that they analyze and reproduce any weapon they find, invent their own mostly antique-styled ones that are the best firearms among shinobi, and ways to help resist or upgrade them. They already invented automatic and volley weapons as well as ballistic shields and cuirasses. <br/> As the only major major family wielding firearms, a weapon rare among shinobi, the advantages of such weapons in term of psychological effects, efficiency, armor piercing and range have made them unmatched to most.

They also are the host family for Judge Sapphire and her powers, artifacts and Arts transmitted each generation to all daughters in different fashions, as well as Ammunition, Reginae Arma, and Ultima Ratio Reginae, the family's fundamental Arts and Artifacts created, held and kept secret within the family.

Usually, each generation among the Kurokuin comport three daughters that are tiered into the Princess, the Dragon and the Skirmisher, trained differently for 3 different styles of firearms and to collaborate with each other. The Princess, the elder, is usually the future family master trained to the use of all firearms, taught the family's know-hows and Arts ; the Dragon, the middle, is trained for mobility, volley fire or automatic weapons; the Skirmisher, the younger, is trained for range and accuracy as well as stealth.

### Family Branches

#### **Taihō Branch**

The Taihō branch, or Artillery branch, is the first and oldest branch of the family. It is specialized in hand cannons and cannons, as well as any form of artillery, and is the origin of the Princess's Ultimate Art Ultima Ratio Reginae. Until the apparition of the Gatoringu branch, it was the main and most powerful branch of the family.

#### **Masuketto Branch**

The Masuketto branch, or Rifle branch, is the second branch. It is specialized in single-shot long small arms, including muskets and wall rifles, and created the Skirmisher's Ultimate Arts, and the Princess's Ultimate Art Reginae Arma while upgrading Ultima Ratio Reginae with the Budōdan branch. They also invented grey powder.

#### **Budōdan Branch**

The Budōdan branch, or Grapeshot branch, is the third branch. It is specialized in short single-shot small arms, including blunderbusses and shotguns, and created the Dragon's Ultimate Art Draco Spinam, and the Princess's Ultimate Art Reginae Arma while upgrading Ultima Ratio Reginae with the Masuketto branch.

#### **Kikan Branch**

The Kikan branch, or Machine branch, is the fourth branch and shortest branch, existing between 1818 and 1860 before becoming the Gatoringu branch. It specialized in machine guns and created the Dragon's Ultimate Art Draco Tempestas with the firm objective to flashily counter the sword. They were in advance for their times, and even created light machine guns.

#### **Gatoringu Branch**

The Gatoringu branch, or Gatling branch, is the fifth and last branch formed from the Kikan Branch in 1860, and stands today as the most powerful and only remaining branch of the Kurokuin family. It synthesizes all the other branches while specializing in rotary weapons, like the Gatling machine gun and Hotchkiss revolving cannon, and has improved all of the family's Arts and weapons and made them compatible with each other.

##### Known Members

* Ryōki : Elder sister and Princess of the current generation. Killed but revived.
* Ryōna : Middle sister and Dragon of the current generation.
* Ryōbi : Young sister and Skirmisher of the current generation.
* Kisaki : Mother of the current generation and Princess of the previous.
* Hōheihō : Father of the current generation.
* Yūreiki : Daughter of Ryōki and Yomi, Princess of the new generation and alliance of the Kurokuin with the Karusuten.
* Yuaku : Daughter of Ryōki and Henry, Dragon of the new generation and alliance of the Kurokuin with the Sakura Boulton.
* Yuri : Daughter of Ryōki and Catherine, Skirmisher of the new generation and alliance of the Kurokuin with the Jajjihanmā.

### Arts

* Vengée : Judge Sapphire's Art.
* Sapphire Arts : The Arts going with Sapphire.
* Ammunition  : The Art allowing to generate ammunition during combat.
* Kurokuin' Ultimate Arts : The Kurokuin' masterworks.

### Objects

* Bonaparte / Ginyotei : Judge Sapphire's sword. Emperor sword that was taken from Napoleon after Waterloo.

## Background

### Teppōtome Precursor

Aiko Tetsuotome, said the Precursor, was a shinobi armed with a Teppō as her main weapon despite its weakness and bulk but which proper use granted her major advantage against any shinobi or samurai preferring traditional weapons. She was forced into hiding as conservative opponents harassed her, and hid near Yōma settlements, becoming friends with settlers and marrying with another exiled shinobi. She is recognized as the founding mother of the Teppōtome family, the ancestors of the Kurokuin, who followed her manners and defended her causes

### Founding and Rise

Upon acquiring and assimilating the arquebus in 1543, the Teppōtome gave place to the Kurokuin founded by Emi. This is the start of their firearms crafting ship where they create their own black powder and firearms, gaining an expertise and going out of hiding. Secretly supported by the Yōma, they appeared in the shinobi world and shook it as the traditional shinobi progressively became eternal losers. The Sengoku period was their time to shine by serving the Nobunaga and Tokugawa clans, and met with the Sakura Boulton to become allied with them. The Kurokuin were recognized as a major shinobi clan at the reunification of Japan.

During the Edo Period, the Kurokuin grew conflicted with the ruling Tokugawa clan which opposed to their two fundamental principles. By controlling firearms and forcing Japan back into a kind of medieval era, and rejecting the stranger and giving to xenophobia in order to emphasize on tradition, the allied Tokugawa gave credit to the Shirokishi and had its decisions felt as betrayal by the Kurokuin who served them officially but secretly smuggled Western technologies in Japan. In 1810s, the princess of the family, Kishi, found and saved a french Napoleonic officer in exile who arrived in Japan. His service in both the Revolution and Empire, as well as his kindness and nobleness, made him a very appreciated guest hidden by the family and taken care of by Kishi, becoming her lover and husband later.

### Evolution and creation of the branches

The technologies the man brought as well as his knowledge cause a major evolution of the family : each of the three daughters of the family founded a new major branch, totaling three : the Artillery branch, the Rifle branch, and the Congreve branch. Later, the princesses of the Rifle branch founds the Machine branch. Each branch was specialized in a certain kind of firearm to develop, create Arts for, and use while sharing their progress, ensuring an independent yet efficient evolution of the arsenal in every types possible at the same time. In 1860, a princess of the Machine branch creates a prototype flintlock Gatling gun, grey powder and founds the Gatling branch of the family. <br/> It's during this evolution that the family's ultimate arts, as well as Judge Sapphire and her Arts and Artifacts, are created and upgraded progressively, as well as their style. The french officer introduced them to European modern style they fused with Japanese style to create a mix where they wore fancy dresses and accessories and lived in palaces and bastion forts. Such evolution forged their identity.

### Ending the Edo Period

The forced re-opening of Japan in 1854 by the American, the re-introducing of firearms, and the Boshin War brought the Kurokuin an unique occasion to rise again. The Emperor willing to undo the feudal society of the Edo period and to modernize the country faces the conservationist Shogunate and Samurai as an opposition led by the Shirokishi. The Kurokuin supported the Emperor and fought the Shogunate, and gained the most notoriety as their new power outmatched both who they already were and the Shogunate's. Becoming legends, they updated their armory and practices thanks to the re-opening while destroying the Shogunate Samurai, a single princess of the Gatling branch even took over one of the Shogun's castles all by herself and captured the defenders. <br/> They led the Shirokishi to its downfall as a samurai family as not only were they petty to them, but also the Kurokuin were more popular : They treated war prisoners and civilians well, were kind and generous, and even engaged loyal fights with those who asked. As well, they performed multiple actual feats whereas the Shirokishi is none of this and invent feats and lies.

By defeating the Shogunate and supporting the Emperor, they buried the traditions that led the family to clandestinity, and had Japan enter a new age where they worked with the Government and the Sakura Boulton family. Even if as shinobi they never hinted of it, they secretly always supported the Yōma whereas every shinobi hunted the latter, and they took command of the Shinobi Council right after their victory. Somewhere during the XXth century, a coup d'état organized by the Shirokishi has put the Japanese generals into rule while keeping Hirohito, and kicked the Kurokuin out of both the state and the Shinobi Council in favor of the Shirokishi while assassinating or condemning the Sakura Boulton Mono Branch, and organizing unit 731, comfort women, as well as multiple other war crimes for long-term shenanigans during the Second World War. The nuclear strikes didn't effect the Kurokuin directly but shocked them and led to inner questioning.

### Today's Kurokuin

After World War II, nothing happened and evolution was negligible while they were considered as the "Monolith gunpowder queens" as they always kept Western and Japanese traditional looks and rejected the contemporary style. At the 21th century, the near totality of the family succumbed mysteriously, leaving behind and on their own who are now called the Ryōsis. Their education incomplete, the family princess became meaningless and the family mostly forgotten.

## Trivia

* In the family, blue eyes as well as black, silver or brown hair, and generous complexion with G cup chests at least are traits all members usually share. Rarely, hair and eyes can be purple or blue.