Let the Shimuras of the world keep records and manage councils..
We are the lighting in the storm...
The avalanche that topples a mountain.
That is Clan Sakai.
― Kazumasa Sakai
Lord Kazumasa Sakai (境井 正; Sakai Tadashi) was Jin Sakai's father and the former Samurai lord of Clan Sakai. He was killed in a raider ambush during the final days of the pacification of Iki Island. Before he was struck down he plead for help from Jin, who was helplessly frozen in fear, a moment which would define much of Jin's life as he struggled with the regret of his inaction. His blade, the Sakai Katana, was passed down to Jin at his funeral by Lord Shimura. The Guiding Wind is a personification of Kazumasa Sakai.
Biography[]
Kazumasa was the head of Clan Sakai, preceding his son, Jin Sakai. He was married to Lord Shimura's younger sister, Chiyoko Sakai, who passed away seven years after the birth of their son. He lived in the Sakai's household in Omi Village, Toyotama region, which also became Jin's childhood home. When Kazumasa was a child, he was sent to Iki island by his mother and spent the most of his time there until later on, when he return to Omi village to become the next leader of the Sakai clan after hearing of his father's passing in battle on the mainland.
Iki Island[]
When Kazumasa returned to Iki for a second time he was confronted by a man named "The Viper" who was wanted by Lord Shimura, but instead of taking him in Kazumasa and the viper had a chat and even shared drinks with each other and whilst during his time there he and his samurai confronted a pirate named Black Hand Riku, whom he fought and was able to defeat, unfortunately, he escaped.
After the death of his wife, Kazumasa struggled with parenthood and chose mostly to throw himself into his duty as Samurai. Among these duties was the violent campaign ordered by the Jito to pacify Iki Island, which at that time was under control of several bands of raiders and pirates. Knowing that he could never be the kind of parent to Jin that Chiyoko was and instead hoping to set an example for him on the battlefield, Kazumasa brought young Jin into this invasion, making it among his son's earliest direct involvement in warfare. As conflict with criminal bands on the island ultimately escalated to widespread devastation and displacement of innocents, Kazumasa became known as the Butcher of Iki, tarnishing his clan's reputation as well as that of samurai in general on the island, even long after his passing. Eventually, Kazumasa and his soldiers were led into an ambush in Senjo Gorge, where Kazumasa was slayed in battle by Tenzo with his son witnessing said act.
Legacy[]
Jin was haunted by guilt and regret of allowing his father's demise to occur for years afterward. As a result of this, he refused to wear his father's armor to the Battle of Komoda Beach, instead opting to wear Clan Shimura's Samurai Armor. After rescuing Lord Shimura from Castle Kaneda, leading him to overcome his guilt to a certain extent, Jin was encouraged by his uncle to leave his past behind him, which spurred him to reclaim the armor set in his childhood home as he and Lord Shimura's men pushed north into the Toyotama region. At an undetermined time around the Mongol Invasion, Jin would make a return to Iki Island and finally fight for closure in regards to his father's legacy.
Kazumasa's spirit lives on as the Guiding Wind.
Abilities[]
How did someone so worthless defeat Kazumasa Sakai?
I don't know...Luck!
He slaughtered dozens of us before we brought him down. Broke his leg, I think.
― Jin confronts Tenzo about how he murdered his father
As the head of Clan Sakai, Kazumasa was both a highly skilled military leader and warrior who was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of raiders on Iki Island. According to his samurai soldiers, he was able to secure victories in the face of "overwhelming odds" by swiftly assessing unfamiliar terrain through diversion tactics and flanking enemies from behind, which he demonstrated both on Iki Island and Chikuzen. These victories earned him the title of "The Butcher," due to the sheer number of enemies he was able to cut down.
Kazumasa displayed terrifying strength as a warrior, once breaking an opponent's blade in a duel, which shocked the Chikuzen rebels so harshly they immediately surrendered. During his final battle at Senjo Gorge, he was able to cut down dozens of raiders by himself before his leg was assumed to be broken and he fell victim to the force of the ambush.
Along with his martial abilities, Kazumasa was portrayed as having great horsemanship skills, riding into battle with a horse donning fearsome armor. He inspired such fear among the people of Iki Island that the storyteller Jiro believed that the threat posed by the fearsome Eagle Tribe paled in comparison to the samurai invasion led by Kazumasa.
Trivia[]
- He shares the same exact name with a real-life Japanese badminton player. This is likely a coincidence.
- According to Yuriko in The Proud Do Not Endure, Kazumasa was a creative person that might have even been okay with the concept of "The Ghost", since he 'had imagination'. In addition, he thought of Lord Shimura as too rigid and "willfully blind to possibilities".
- Assuming that the Guiding Wind is literally Kasumasa's spirit guiding Jin, this idea can be further supported by the fact that when Jin assumes the Ghost Stance the Guiding Wind directs him towards the nearest enemy. This same argument can be made about several instances where the context of mission objectives guided by wind favor the actions of the Ghost over those of the Jito's samurai.
- In The Conspirator Tale, it is said by Masako that Lord Shimura hunted down the man who killed Kazumasa and cut off his head. However, as seen in the Iki Island expansion, this appears to have been either a lie by Lord Shimura or an oversight by the developers as several other retcons were made since Iki's release to match the story up with the events of Iki Island.
- Considering that cover-up stories to embellish the fate of prominent members of the five great clans of Tsushima do happen in the game (as with Hironori Nagao), the idea that such story was made up to make it seem that the Sakai clan was avenged is still completely plausible, though not confirmed.
- Another possibility is that Shimura was under the impression that he had slayed the one who killed his brother-in-law but as Tenzo confessed he was the one who committed the deed, Shimura likely ended up killing another raider without knowing the truth.
- In the Japanese dialogue, his name is instead pronounced 'Tadashi,' though written with the same character.
Notes[]
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