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| Shinja Clan | |
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| Name | Shinja Clan |
| Kanji | 信者一族 |
| Kekkei Genkai |  Sūnyagan Zen Sūnyagan Han'nya Sūnyagan
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The Shinja Clan (信者一族, Shinja Ichizoku) once existed as a political entity native to the Land of Lightning. However, following the events of the Great Enlightenment, the remaining kinsmen relocated to the Land of Stone and exist as a congregation of gifted shinobi. They are currently the ruling family of the region, with their leader existing as the Stone Daimyō and Kage of Ishigakure respectively.
History[]
Origins[]
Long ago, many generations prior to the formation of shinobi villages, there existed a certain priest and his two sons. Following his passing from the world, and his selection of his youngest son as heir, the eldest son removed himself from the presence of his only kinsmen and started his family many miles away. To him was borne three sons, each of whom he reared with absolute hatred for his brother. As time cycled forward, the hatred he instilled within his sons spanned generations, manifesting within the hearts of each of his descendants to this day. This was, however, not the only "gift" which manifested within his heirs; for the eldest son was the wielder of his father's "eyes". Through time and the mingling of blood, the strength and form of the priest's "eyes" changed, ultimately appearing as two major forms and countless minors. Of these minorities, the "empty eyes" first appeared within the world and in time their wielders unified under a single name: Shinja.
The Rise of Kumogakure[]
Generations passed, and soon the Shinja clan existed as any other within the turbulent times immediately preceeding the birth of shinobi villages. They were a congregation of skilled mercenaries, unified by common blood and led by the strength of those bearing the "empty eyes". They viewed the bloodline limit as a divine gift bestowed upon their kinsmen from the heavens and therefore offered to those select few dominion over the clan; with the strongest given absolute control and leadership. So began the reign of Hisoka Shinja, the first to unlock the fullest potential of his clan's blessing. Under his reign, the Shinja became a tame entity and existed more peacefully then their war-driven cousins. However, they were no stranger to the hatred borne within them, and whenever the Uchiha went into battle, the Shinja were only steps behind. From this, a rivalry was struck with the descendants of the priest's youngest son, cousins to the Uchiha's own enemy the Senju: the Uzumaki.
In time, peace came in the form of a shaky alliance between the Senju and Uchiha, giving rise to the Hidden Leaf Village. When Madara Uchiha, a close friend and ally to Hisoka, was denied the position of Kage it was the Shinja whom enlightened him to the devious intentions of the Senju. They harbored him upon his defection, relocating their entire midst to the Land of Lightning in order to distance themselves from this new threat. There, the Shinja conquered and allied; forming bonds that would ultimately give rise to the Hidden Cloud Village: Kumogakure. When the time came to select a leader, Hisoka was first considered to take the mantle, however he declined; admitting his own personal bias would lead the village into immediate conflict with the Hidden Leaf, therefore endangering his kin and compatriots. Instead, he founded a unit composed of each and every wielder of the "empty eyes" within the Shinja Clan's midst: twenty-four strong united as the Kinkaku Force. Though publicly, the Kinkaku Force did nothing more than conduct legitimate missions to help maintain the peace of the Land, they actually often ventured into the Land of Fire and had a massive hand in the destruction of Uzushiogakure.
The First Shinobi World War[]
Despite the efforts of the Senju, and by extension the Hidden Leaf Village, peace became nothing more than a fleeting dream in the eyes of the world. Conflict sparked, and the Five Great Nations rose up to meet one another in war. During this conflict, Hisoka led the Kinkaku Force into battle against the forces of the Hidden Leaf, hunting down the team of the Second Hokage and pinning them down. It was then that the Second Hokage sacrificed himself in order to allow his teammates escape and he was promptly cut down by Hisoka's blade. An armistice treaty led to the end of the war, but the bitter hatred that the Shinja felt for the Senju and Uzumaki was then reciprocated by the entire Hidden Leaf. It became the village's primary objective to exact revenge against the unit whom had claimed the life of their esteemed leader, and one by one they hunted down each member of the Kinkaku Force. Being one of the last to fall, Hisoka recorded every shred of knowledge he possessed regarding the clan's abilities and placed the resulting scroll in the care of the reigning Raikage. Along with his blade, these became valued treasures of the Hidden Lightning Kageship and were then passed down from Kage to Kage thenceforth. Years later, Hisoka was the last to be hunted down. He ultimate meet his end at the hands of the Third Hokage's own students, whom following exposure to the clan's eyes, began to diligently seek out the power of dōjutsu.
Following his death, the Shinja clan made a drastic transition in structure and behavior; turning from their warring days and making the accumulation of wealth their central goal. Using their influence as a clan of influence within the Land of Lightning, they installed themselves as the ruling clan of the entire region; placing Hisoka's widow at the helm as Lightning Daimyō. An edict was set into place regarding the future generations: those whom demonstrate possession of the clan's eyes will immediately be placed within the care of the Hidden Cloud Village in order to be trained under the writings of Hisoka themself. These Shinja would make up the next Kinkaku Force, though instead of acting as a frontline engine it would conduct missions of espionage and other underhanded acts for the good of the village. Otherwise, the entirety of the clan would revel in lives of absolute luxury at the expense of the Land of Lightning.
The End of an Era[]
Just over a decade prior to the events of the Third Shinobi World War, the last of the Kinkaku Force would be born. Upon demonstrating the possession of the clan's eyes, as mandated by the generations' old edict, they were placed under the care of the Hidden Cloud and began their hellish training in order to become living weapons. This they did without question, until Hisashi Shinja, second eldest of the Kinkaku Force, was ordered to end the life of a child. He simply could not bring himself to end the child's life and instead spared her life; defying his orders for the first time. Though outcast amongst his kinsmen for his rebellion, he soon came to be a beacon of hope for them; as his first defiance soon led to many and his strength prompted tolerance. At age twelve, he and his elder sibling led the Kinkaku Force into battle within the Third Shinobi World War. There, he and his sibling accompanied the Raikage into battle and beheld Konoha's Yellow Flash and his student's signature technique and began to replicate the tactics they beheld on the field of battle.
Following the war, the Kinkaku Force was reduced to settling skirmishes that broke out on the Land of Lightning's borders. This caused Hisashi to rebel even further, as he refused time and time again to end the lives of the helpless whom simply wanted to protect their families and homes. After a few years, he and Zennou became an official thorn in the Kageship's side, and at the threat of execution for treason, the brothers defected. They ventured to the Land of Sound and were welcomed with open eyes by the White Snake himself; for he had kept a close watch on the Shinja Clan since he slew Hisoka. He tutored them for a brief span of time, favoring Zennou over his hot-headed sibling. However, before he could seize an opportunity to get his hands on the brother's eyes or bodies, Zennou caught on and wrested himself and his brother free from the Snake's clutches. They split up thenceforth, for Zennou blamed himself for endangering his younger brother and placed himself in self-imposed exile within the Land of Water. Hisashi then returned to the Land of Lightning in order to see his kinsmen. The complacence on the side of the ungifted Shinja and the suffering of his Kinkaku-brethren set him into a blind fury. Under the guise of a simple bandit, he eradicated the unblessed Shinja whilst they traversed from the Land of Lightning to the Land of Hot Water for their routine vacation, sparing only his younger sibling Toshihiro. Toshihiro never knew that it was his own elder brother whom slayed his parents before his eyes, and on the morrow when Hisashi came to collect him, he ran into his waiting embrace.
Hisashi then led his Kinkaku kinsmen away from the Hidden Cloud: a mass defection that spurned the relentless hunting of the village. Many fell in the resulting battles, yet in time the Hidden Cloud became convinced that they had wiped the Kinkaku Force from the face of the world. They covered up the existence of the unit, making it seem as though the only Kinkaku Force that existed was the team which slayed the Second Hokage and that there were no Shinja involved at all. When Hisashi caught wind of this, he made a personal voyage to the Hidden Cloud and attempted to assassinate the Raikage. Though he failed, he claimed his grandfather's sword and writings as the ultimate prize and escaped the village for the last time. The Shinja then fell off the face of the earth, falling into the shadows. They relied heavily upon the illegitimate contacts made through years of underground activities in the name of amassing coin in order to remain hidden, and remain hidden they did.
Shodai Yamakage[]
The Shinja stayed relatively anonymous during the events of the Fourth Shinobi World War, though they did enter the fray on the side of the Allied Forces briefly. During the peaceful era following the conflict, the global economy as far as shinobi went was in shambles; for any and all jobs that required usage of shinobi went to the now-allied Great Nations. Even so, the immense number of casualties in the conflict caused a strain on the Great Nations significantly, so much so that the minor countries soon became overrun with bandits and missing-nin. The Shinja clan, now residing in the Land of Stone, moved to protect the denizens of the region which had welcomed them with open arms; effortlessly cutting down the rifraff and installing themselves as the ruling power of the Land of Stone. They overhauled the Hidden Village of the region, Ishigakure, and opened its doors to any and all whom sought a home free of prior judgements. For this cause, many of the underground contacts, mercenary-nin, and missing-nin whom had befriended the Shinja over the years became loyal members of the new Village; starting out with a clean slate in the new world power. Though it was in no means a Great Nation, it's strength was enough that its neighbors, Sunagakure and Iwagakure, kept their political pressure light and ultimately left the Land be. At present, Hisashi Shinja stands as the Shodai Yamakage (初代山影, First Mountain Shadow).
Kekkei Genkai[]
Main Article: Sūnyagan
The Shinja Clan Kekkei Genkai: Sūnyagan
The Sūnyagan (空眼; Literally meaning "Empty Eye") is the bloodline limit of the Shinja Clan: an exceptionally rare eye technique which manifests itself within few of the clan's members. Like most others classified under the title "dōjutsu", the Sūnyagan is a descendant of the legendary Rinnegan; a by-product of generations of natural evolution and genetic mutation. Due to the rarity of it's appearance, members of the Shinja whom carry this trait are said to be divinely favored.
Trivia[]
- The Clan Theme Song is: United We Stand, Divided We Fall.