Twice-Told-Tales: Priceless Japanese Folk Art

Persepctive plays a role in how one perceives art, in its value among different pairs of eyes. Such is the case with a vase and sculpture from ancient Japanese culture, now in America.

The vase had been stolen from the museum it was donated to, leading the Japanese sword-weilding heroine Katana into tracking it down and return it to its current rightful owners. Museum owners are more noble than common crooks who stole it for profit. And Katana's law-abiding disposition was what led her to being a member of Batman's Outsiders of Earth-One.

The scultpure in the possession of a wealthy art dealer led to the Japanese sword-weilding assassin Nightingale into tracking it down in order to retrieve it. After a couple confrontations with the Huntress of Earth-Two, Nightingale was finally defeated, after which she exposed the sculpture as a fake, leading to the arrest of the "owner" as well as Nightingale.

Initially, Katana and Batman were at odds with one another, as the former wished to seek vengeance on those who caused the deaths of her husband and children. Skilled in the martial arts and in swords-play, Tatsu Yamashiro adopted the masked alter ego of Katana and first encountered the Caped Crusader and his allies Black Lightning and Metamorpho in the country of Markovia. 

When they along with young amnesiac Halo and the Markovian Prince Brion aka Geo-Force teamed up to defeat that land's current dictator and liberate the rightful rulers, they decided to remain together as the Outsiders. Moving into businessman Bruce Wayne's Gotham City penthouse, Tatsu would become a guardian of the Halo, and help the former Violet Harper in regaining her life after losing her memory. Katana would also finally track down her brother-in-law, who caused the deaths of her family. She remained a heroine.

The backstory of Seiji Kato was more a mystery. A professional onnagata performer, who was touring America with his troupe when he learned of the supposed stolen sculpture, Kato made his first appearance as Nightingale. Appearing to be a female assassin, in reality Kato was motivated by vengeance upon those whom her perceived had stolen from his native culture, and sought to recover precious items. At first meeting Helena Wayne on a few occasions, once while costumed, Kato proved adept in both the martial arts and swords-play. Unlike her "Uncle" Bruce and Tatsu amiable relationship, Helena and Seiji remained opponents, including when Kato adopted the alias of Sonia Sato... who as Judomaster pretended to join Huntress' Justice Society in order to seek vengeance upon the heroine herself.