Masanori Fukushima

Masanori Fukushima is a loyal general of the Toyotomi clan and one of the Seven Spears of Shizugatake. He is one of the many generals who join the Eastern Army prior to Sekigahara.

Samurai Warriors
In Samurai Warriors 2, Masanori is usually seen alongside Kiyomasa. They act as Nene's closest "children" and are very loyal to her. They address her as "Lady Nene" at all times. However, he can't stand Mitsunari and often berates him. When Sekigahara takes place, he is one of the closest units to the Western camp on the battlefield. After his defeat, Mitsunari scornfully calls him a traitor. During Nene's dream stage, he apologizes for his rash behavior.

Masanori is also one of the generals to switch his allegiance back to the Toyotomi family in Masamune's dream stage and joins forces with Yoshihiro during Ginchiyo's story.

Samurai Warriors 3 presents Masanori as a tough-talking punk whose relationships remain the same as before, except that he is closer to Mitsunari. Easily moved, he is also known to cry or throw a tantrum when embarrassed. Compared to his friends, Masanori is a little more scattered-brain and acts as the comic relief of the trio, with his blunders humorously being related to wooden objects (ex: dodging random tree stumps, tripping on wooden planks). Sakon fondly addresses him, Kiyomasa and Mitsunari as the "three idiots", jokingly naming Masanori the dumbest of the group. After Hideyoshi's death, he follows Kiyomasa to join the Tokugawa family. His fate depends on the story, as he lives in Kiyomasa's ending but varies in others. He and Aya may be saved by Takamaru early in the Murasamejo Mode.

Kessen
Masanori is a general who serves Ieyasu in Kessen. Naga Kuroda convinces him that joining Ieyasu's army will be rewarding. Although he is a Toyotomi loyalist, he passionately despises Mitsunari. He will boldly charge for his camp at Sekigahara. Should Ieyasu try to order him to do otherwise, Masanori will refuse to comply. He's Kiyomasa's childhood friend and won't fight him if they're on opposing sides. He leads a very speedy cavalry and is one of the faster units in the game. He can defect back to the Toyotomi side if Mitsunari is dead.

Masanori can be recruited into Nobunaga's army in Kessen III. If Hideyoshi survives as the rear guard at Echizen, Masanori will appear after the battle. He has a high cavalry proficiency and can serve as a good spear unit. If he is put in an unit with Kiyomasa, their morale will rise and they will perform well. He also gets along with Saizo Kani.

Saihai no Yukue
He also appears as a general for the Eastern Army in Saihai no Yukue. When Toshiie passed away, both he and Nagamasa gather men to kill the fleeing Mitsunari. Though he misses his chance, he volunteers to join Ieyasu's troops to put an end to the object of his hatred. He is a strong braggart who is prideful of his capabilities. His nicknamed "pig-head" by some of the Western officers.

During one of their encounters, the clueless Mitsunari gets a glimpse of Masanori's memories. In these fragmented images, Masanori pleads Hideyoshi to get of rid of his young aid as he cannot see why Mitsunari is a valuable asset. Seeing the aloof Mitsunari get more respect, he dwells in envy and refuses to follow Hideyoshi's request to understand him. He often has a string of curses when he's defeated. In the final battle, Hidemoto tells him to stop relying on his false bravado and learn to overcome his weaknesses.

Voice Actors

 * Jason Moran - Samurai Warriors 2 (English)
 * Jim Crescenzo - Kessen (English)
 * Takeshi Kusao - Samurai Warriors 2 (Japanese)
 * Takahiro Fujimoto - Samurai Warriors 3 (Japanese)
 * Yuusaku Yara - Kessen (Japanese)

Quotes

 * "I despise Mitsunari! Given the chance, I would tear his beating heart from his breast! He stole what rightfully belonged to the Toyotomi family! My men and I shall attack immediately, with or without your approval!"
 * Fukushima before Sekigahara; Kessen


 * "Agh! My loyalties are torn! Argh! I'm sick of thinking! I shall follow my heart, as I once did for Lord Toyotomi! I shall unleash my fiery wrath!"
 * "Fukushima! You repay me with deception!"
 * Fukushima defecting and Ieyasu's reaction; Kessen

Historical Info
A samurai of Owari, Fukushima served Toyotomi Hideyoshi in the Shizugatake Campaign (1583) and gained recognition as one of that battle's 'Seven Spears' alongside Kato Kyomasa, Kato Yoshiaki, ect.., being rewarded for his bravery with land worth 5,000 koku. During the Kanto Campaign (1590) Fukushima took part in the attack on Nirayama, though the Tokugawa forces he was assigned to failed to reduce it.

When the Korean Campaign began (1592) Masanori was the Lord of Imaharu in Iyo, (Shikoku), and was called upon to lead some 4,800 troops in the so-called Fifth Division, which also included the forces of Chosokabe and Hachisuka Iemasa. During the course of the campaign, Fukushima, like the majority of samurai serving on the peninsula, was to be tied down fighting guerillas, in his case those of Chungchong Province.

After the abortive overseas adventure was called off, Fukushima was given a sizable piece of land in his native Owari worth some 200,000 koku freed up by the execution in 1595 of Toyotomi Hidetsugu. Following Hideyoshi's death, Tokugawa Ieyasu courted Masanori's freindship, and gave him an adopted daughter in marriage. Fukushima had no particular love for Ishida Mitsunari, and so when the Sekigahara Campaign began, he lend his support to the Tokugawa forces. With the assistance of Ikeda Terumasa, Masanori captured Gifu-jo in Mino. In the later stages of the assualt, Masanori and Terumasa very nearly came to blows over who would have the honor of leading the final attack. A compromise was hastily struck - Ikeda would attack the rear of the castle, and Fukushima would assualt the front.

Fukushima's troops joined Tokugawa's main army, and stood in the vanguard in the the Battle of Sekigahara. This time, Masanori was cheated out of first blood by Ii Naomasa, who decided the place of honor should go to an old Tokugawa hand and rushed out in front and initiated the action. However appalled Fukushima might have felt at this snub, his men did good work in the battle, holding the Ukita men and, with other Eastern troops, finally breaking them. Praised for his preformance, Masanori was given the fief of Hiroshima in Aki (worth 498,000 K). Ieyasu never fully trusted Masanori, however, and ordered him to rebuild Nagoya Castle as a way of liquidating some of that 498,000 koju income. Masanori asked to be allowed to join the seige of Osaka Castle in 1614-15, but was detained in Edo. The new Shogun, Hidetada, seems to have trusted Masanori even less than his father, and once Ieyasu died, Hidetada accused him of poor governance and transferred him to a 45,000 koku fief at Kawanakajima (Shinano). His younger brother Masayori had already been deprived of his 30,000 koku fief in Yamato in 1615.