Shimazu Saito
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He who increaseth knowledge, increaseth sorrow. This article contains spoilers, meaning it has information and facts concerning Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple. If you do not want to know about these events, it is recommended to read on with caution, or not at all. |
Shimazu Saito was a member of both the Shimazu clan and the Japanese Rite of the Templar Order during the early 18th century. She is an ancestor to the 21st-century Abstergo Industries doctor and Templar Shimazu Sei.[1]
The illegitimate daughter of the Shimazu clan's leader, Saito was brought to Japan following her father's death and was raised and trained in the clan's ways alongside her friends, all of whom were of mixed heritage. Looked down upon by the pure-blooded Japanese members of the clan, Saito and her subordinates were eventually given a chance to prove themselves in 1725, when they were tasked to search for the lost city of Angkor, an alleged Precursor site.
While looking for leads in Portuguese Macau, Saito and her ninja followers attempted to eliminate anyone else who knew about Angkor to conceal the site's existence. One of those people was the British Assassin Edward Kenway, who was also on Angkor's trail and who ended up clashing with Saito and her ninja several times while in the city.
During her mission, Saito allied herself with the Macau-based businessman Sun, but earned the wrath of the pure-blooded Japanese ninja serving under her, who believed they were treated unfairly. Led by Saito's former mentor Fuma Sukuna, the Japanese ninja ultimately deserted and formed their own faction, seeking to eliminate Saito for the perceived dishonor she had brought to the Shimazu clan.
Despite their initial conflict, Saito later striked a partnership with Edward after they both realized they needed each other to find Angkor. With the loss of her men due to the war against the Japanese ninja, Saito believed she had no choice but to work with Edward towards their common goal, though she remained skeptical of his intentions.
Biography
Early life
- "I had been spirited away to my father's homeland without knowing why... only to suffer an upbringing that seemed altogether cruel and unusual. And yet I was capable to endure my captive years... thanks to my childhood friends, who had accompanied me to the seat of the Shimazu clan. Without their help, I daresay I would not have persevered."
- ―Saito reflecting on her training with the Shimazu clan, 1725.[src]-[m]
The illegitimate daughter of the Shimazu clan's leader, the girl who would become known as Shimazu Saito was born and raised by her mother outside of Japan. Growing up in the countryside, she enjoyed a relatively normal childhood and was initially unaware of her heritage except for the occasional stories her mother would tell her about Japan. However, this changed when Saito's father passed away without leaving an heir, making her the closest claimant to his legacy.[2]
Brought to Japan by the Shimazu clan, Saito was given a new name and responsibility as the last remaining member of the clan's bloodline. Over the following years, she was taught her family's history, traditions and culture and was trained by several masters, including Fuma Sukuna,[3] to become a living weapon for the clan. Despite the hardships she faced, she was able to carry on thanks to her childhood friends, who had accompanied her to Japan and supported her throughout their training together. However, despite all the victories they brought to the clan, Saito and her friends continued to be seen as outsiders due to their mixed heritage.[2]
Eventually, Saito was made aware of the clan's Templar affiliations and was inducted into the Order before being tasked to locate an ancient site belonging to the Isu. In exchange for retrieving its treasure and restoring the clan's might, Saito was promised that she and her mixed-blood subordinates would be accepted as full-fledged members of the clan. With no other choice, Saito and her ninja followers, including her friends, embarked on a journey to Macau to search for leads to the site's location.[2]
Investigation in Macau
Arriving in Macau in February 1725, Saito and her followers immediately attempted to silence anyone else who knew about the site: the lost Khmer city of Angkor. Their first targets were the Dutch explorer Hendrik, who had stumbled upon Angkor during his travels, and his friend and fellow navigator John Young, who had stolen Hendrik's story and was boasting about his alleged discovery.[4]
Saito dispatched three of her ninja to kill Young, but the navigator was protected by the British Assassin Edward Kenway, who was also on Angkor's trail and had approached Young after hearing about his story. Hendrik was not as lucky, as he was attacked by Saito's ninja in his room at the Dutch East India Company's dormitories in Macau and succumbed to his wounds shortly after being found by Edward.[5]
Saito encountered Edward for the first time while the latter was trying to hide in an alley from Hendrik's company mates, who had mistaken him for Hendrik's killer. Unaware of his identity or Assassin affiliations, Saito ordered her ninja to capture Edward alive and they ended up chasing him to Macau's port, where Saito watched from afar as Edward effortlessly fought off many of her men. Impressed by the stranger's skills, she ordered her men to find out everything they could about him.[6] After Edward was saved by Young and his ship, Saito loosed an arrow at the pair as they sailed away, which Edward dodged.[7]
Attack on the Mandarin's House
After Hendrik's sea log was acquired by the businesswoman Lee Huiyin upon his death and she refused to hand it over to the Templars,[8] Saito led her ninja in an attack on Lee's private residence, the Mandarin's House, in order to retrieve the book. There, Saito once again ran into Edward, who had also come for the log and had managed to grab it shortly before the attack.[9]
Edward helped Lee's guards fend off some of the ninja before realizing Saito was their leader and attempting to kill her to quickly end the battle. The two engaged in a duel, with Saito coming out on top and managing to break the Assassin's sword. As one of her ninja arrived to pick her up on horseback, Saito revealed her name to Edward and asked for his in return. After the latter complied, Saito told him that she would remember his name before she and her ninja retreated, their mission seemingly a failure. Upon making it to safety, however, Saito revealed to one of her followers that she had successfully acquired Hendrik's log, having taken it from Edward during their duel.[10] After inspecting the log, Saito discovered that the information the Templars sought was encrypted. Deducing that Edward had the cipher needed to decode it, she ordered her men to find and capture the Assassin.[8]
Alliance with Sun
During her time in Macau, Saito formed an alliance with Sun, the head of the Hualien Trading Company, who offered his protection to the Templar and her followers in exchange for their loyalty and Hendrik's log.[11] After an opium shipment belonging to the Far East Company, whom Sun had allied himself with against Lee, was confiscated by the Dutch Navy, Sun reached out to Saito in order to recover it. Meeting at a temple in Macau, Sun gave Saito permission to kill anyone who got in her way, and reminded her that once Lee and the Europeans foreigners had been driven out of Macau, his merchants would dominate the market, greatly benefiting the Shimazu clan.[12]
As Saito escorted Sun out of the temple, she became suspicious of one of her men, who was actually Edward in disguise, having taken the outfit of a ninja he had killed. Nevertheless, Saito mobilized her followers to attack the Far East Company ship which held the opium. When one of her men expressed concern regarding the mission's risks, Saito told him that it was in fact an opportunity to purge the clan's weak links.[12]
Making their move at midnight, Saito and her ninja attacked the guards protecting the ship, though Saito quickly noticed one of her men sneaking away from the fight and into the ship. Deciding to follow the suspicious ninja, she confronted him in the gunpowder storage room, where the ninja attempted to ignite the gunpowder with a candle. Saito stopped him and recognized the ninja to be Edward, threatening him with her sword.[12]
Following a failed attempt to interrogate Edward about the cipher needed to decode Hendrik's log, Saito caught the Assassin's candle with her sword after the latter had dropped it, leaving her vulnerable for an attack. This was Edward's intention, as he quickly turned around to disarm Saito and managed to punch her in the face, knocking off her mask. Edward then pinned Saito to a wall to try and interrogate her, but was interrupted by the arrival of two of her ninja who had come to check on their master.[1]
Managing to free herself from Edward's grasp, Saito fought him, but the Assassin escaped after grabbing one of the two ninja present and tossing him into the other. As Saito moved to retrieve her mask, she vowed to make Edward pay for the humiliation he had made her endure, to which the Assassin told her she was welcome to try.[1]
Saito subsequently questioned one of her ninja about the situation on the ship's deck. He informed her that the mainland Japanese ninja had deserted out of discontent towards their treatment and that Lee had arrived with armed men to seize the opium shipment. Outnumbered and outgunned, Saito deemed the battle lost and ordered a retreat.[1]
Shimazu clan civil war
In time, the conflict between Saito's mixed-blood ninja and the Japanese deserters, led by Fuma Sukuna, escalated into a bloody civil war. The Japanese sought to eliminate Saito, viewing her as a traitor of the Shimazu clan, and frequently attacked her men in the streets of Macau to draw her out.[13] During one such attack, Sun went to protect Saito's men, albeit only after the fight had already been broken up by Edward. After Lee, who had allied herself with the Japanese ninja, and the Dutch East India Company, now working with Edward, both joined the confrontation, resulting in a three-way standoff, Sun decided to retreat.[14]
As Saito walked with Sun following the standoff, the latter talked about their alliance and reminded the Templar that she owed him her loyalty because he had protected her subordinates. However, Saito had not failed to notice that Sun had only intervened in the fight when her men were close to defeat, and deduced that Sun was using their partnership to acquire Angkor's treasure for himself. Despite this, she believed that she had no choice but to follow Sun's lead until they deciphered Hendrik's log.[14]
Later, Saito acted as Sun's chief bodyguard aboard his floating gambling hall while they waited for the arrival of Sun's nephew Xiao Han, who could decode the log. After being informed by one of her ninja that Edward had been allegedly spotted in the casino, Saito wanted to investigate, but was forbidden from doing so by Sun, who did not want any bloodshed in his establishment. However, the Templar secretly went against Sun's orders and decided to search for Edward, having deduced that the Assassin was using a decoy to deceive them.[15]
Finding him atop the mast of a ship outside the casino, Saito confronted Edward alongside her ninja and claimed that she would retrieve the cipher to the log from him, one way or another. Edward challenged her to come and get it, initiating a duel between the Assassin and Templar.[15] Although Edward managed to throw her ninja to their deaths, Saito eventually cornered the Assassin and offered him a chance to surrender. However, Edward, knowing Saito had no intention to spare him, jumped from the mast just as the latter was about to strike him with her sword.[16]
Saito believed the Assassin to be dead and as such was caught off-guard when Edward suddenly appeared behind her, having used a rope to launch himself back up, and tackled her. After they both fell into the water below, Saito's mask fell off and she struggled to stay afloat. Taking notice of this, Edward attempted to drown her and, despite trying to fight him off, Saito was ultimately overpowered and lost consciousness as she was pulled into the depths.[16]
Once she regained consciousness, Saito found herself on the deck of a ship with Edward across from her. The Assassin greeted her and explained that he had saved her from drowning because she was more useful to him alive. A furious Saito immediately tried to attack him, but the Assassin stopped and threatened her with his Hidden Blade before claiming he had no intention to kill her. Saito believed Edward had only shown her mercy because she was a woman and again attacked him, threatening the Assassin with her sword while demanding the real reason he had spared her.[11]
After Edward explained that Saito reminded him of an old friend and that he admired her dedication to her cause, he proposed an alliance, claiming they needed each other. Briefly taken aback, Saito questioned Edward's sudden willingless to work with her, but nonetheless agreed to the partnership, at least until they found Angkor and retrieved its treasure. However, she still threatened to kill the Assassin if he planned on using or betraying her.[11]
Working with Edward Kenway
- Saito: "Given the circumstances... it seems doubtful there are any better alternatives. Very well. I accept your proposal. But only until we locate the forgotten temple and its treasure."
- Edward: "Excellent. We'll figure out the rest when the time comes."
- —Saito agreeing to an alliance with Edward, 1725.[src]-[m]
Having decided to join forces, Saito and Edward made their way to Sun's ship after realizing that the Japanese ninja were attacking it and Hendrik's log was in jeopardy. En route, Saito witnessed many of her men fall to the blades of the ninja and was sent into a frenzy, viciously killing any enemy in her path to avenge the deaths of her subordinates.[17]
Once she and Edward reached Sun's ship, they witnessed his guards and Saito's remaining men fighting against Xiao Han and his fellow Assassins, Liu Qing and Xue Yan. Saito immediately rushed to protect her second-in-command, only to witness him meet his end at the hands of Liu Qing.[17] A furious Saito attacked the Assassin, but he eventually overpowered her and destroyed her sword with his guandao. Left at her opponent's mercy, Saito was saved by Edward, who forced Liu Qing back. After both Liu Qing and Xue Yan were called by Xiao Han to help pursue Sun, who had fled with the sea log, Saito was left alone with Edward and the bodies of all of her dead subordinates.[18]
Personality and traits
Originally growing up unaware of her destiny as the heir of the Shimazu clan, Saito enjoyed her simple life in the countryside and greatly valued the friends she made there. After being forcefully taken away from her home and given a new identity, Saito became a loyal servant of the clan and, over the course of her harsh training, was turned into an effective killing machine. Despite this, she managed to retain her humane side thanks to her friends, who accompanied and trained alongside her. Saito hoped she and her friends could one day be seen as official members of the clan, but because of their mixed heritage, they were constantly looked down upon by the clan's Japanese members.[2]
During her mission in Macau, Saito cared about her subordinates' well-being, knowing when to order a retreat after they were overwhelmed[1] and surrendering Hendrik's sea log to Sun in exchange for her men's protection.[11] However, her preferential treatment of the mixed-blood ninja, some of whom were her close friends, over the Japanese ninja led the latter to abandon Saito and brand her a traitor to the Shimazu clan.[1] After witnessing the deaths of her subordinates at the hands of the Japanese ninja, Saito was sent into a frenzy and sought to kill every last one of them to avenge her men.[17]
Through her training, Saito learned to be very observant of her surroundings and the people she came into contact with, and as such could not be easily deceived. She quickly saw through Edward Kenway's disguise when the latter tried to infiltrate her ranks using a ninja uniform,[12] and later realized that the Assassin was using a decoy to infiltrate Sun's gambling den.[15] Saito was also aware of Sun's true intentions and the fact that he was using their alliance to further his own ambitions, but believed she had no choice but to rely on him for her subordinates' protection.[14]
Despite their initial position as adversaries, Saito and Edward became unlikely allies after the Assassin saved Saito from drowning. Though she was confused and angry at first, believing Edward had only done so because of her womanhood, she agreed to team up with him, at least temporarily, after the Assassin explained that Saito reminded him of an old friend he had admired greatly.[11] Following the loss of all of her men, Saito lost her will to live, believing she had nothing left to fight for, but Edward told her she owed it to the dead to find a reason to keep living. This caused Saito to regain her resolve and develop a newfound respect for the Assassin.[2]
Equipment and skills
Trained by the Shimazu clan, Saito had mastered every aspect of her family's techniques, including swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat, stealth and freerunning. As a samurai, she wielded a variety of weapons, including a katana, a naginata, a bow, and shuriken.[17] During her time in Macau, she wore a metallic oni mask both for protection and to conceal her identity, though she later ended up abandoning it.[2]
Saito's swordsmanship training allowed her to overpower powerful opponents like Edward Kenway,[10] as well as defeat multiple Shimazu ninja at once with just a few strikes.[17] However, she could be defeated by a warrior who relied on brute strength rather than agility, such as Liu Qing, whose superior strength allowed him to overpower Saito and break her sword.[18] Additionally, Saito was not a strong swimmer, a weakness which Edward exploited to gain the upper hand during their confrontation at Sun's gambling den.[16]
Behind the scenes
Shimazu Saito is a character introduced in Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple. In Episode 37, she is revealed to be the illegitimate daughter of the head of the Shimazu clan, who passed away during Saito's childhood. Although her father's name is not mentioned, going by the webtoon's timeframe, he was most likely Shimazu Tsunataka, who led the clan from 1687 until his death in 1704.[19]
Saito's life shares a few similarities with the Levantine Templar Maria Thorpe's encounters with the Levantine Assassin Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad in the 2007 video game Assassin's Creed and its 2009 follow-up, Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines. They are both women Templars who wore masks to conceal their identities and were mistaken for a man by an Assassin until being unmasked, following which they were eventually disowned by the organizations they served and were forced into an alliance with the Assassin who had unmasked them.
Gallery
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A masked Saito with one of her ninja followers -
Close-up of Saito's mask -
Saito and her ninja followers -
Saito unmasked by Edward -
Saito donning her mask -
Saito serving as Sun's bodyguard -
Saito fighting Edward at Sun's gambling den -
Saito agreeing to an alliance with Edward
Appearances
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 20
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 37
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 38
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 2
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 3
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 4
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 5
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 12
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 10
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 11
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 34
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 19
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 30
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 31
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 32
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 33
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 35
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 36
- ↑
Shimazu clan on Wikipedia