They study archery and the art of
the sickle and chain (kusari-gama), a weapon designed
specifically to disarm sword fighters. The purpose of the Samurai
Squad is to deal with rebellious, unruly or drunk samurai.
Consequently, they are assigned almost exclusively to the Noble
and Licensed Quarters.
Acceptance into the Samurai Squad is as much a matter of
political influence and judicious application of hand gifts as
it is a question of ability. Members of the Samurai Squad are
generally regarded as having an better job (patrolling the more
luxurious areas of town) but also a more dangerous one (since
they're expected to be the first on the scene to fight rowdy
samurai).The Samurai Squad is full of bushi whose first loyalty
is to Jocho and Hyobu, even to the exclusion of Imperial authority.
When someone angers Hyobu or Jocho, and an example is to be made, it's the Samurai Squad who do the work. There are
between seventy and eighty men on this squad.
