Saiful

"He was a capable warrior, unafraid to kill for pay. A mercenary who swore loyalty as long as the wages were good. When you got right down to it, there was really no difference between him and a daofei. But lying was something he needed more practice at."

— Jianzhu thinking about Saiful's character as he realizes he works for Hui.[1]

Saiful was a guard at Jianzhu's estate and a double-agent working for Hui.^[1]

History

Saiful stemmed from the Earth Kingdom's Eastern Peninsula. He was eventually recruited by Hui and sent to infiltrate Jianzhu's household and find out what happened to the Avatar. He was appointed as one of the two guards who would accompany Jianzhu north on a herd of eel hounds. When his counterpart was killed in an ambush, he proved his talent to the Earth Sages by holding his own in the attack. The earthbender complimented the guard on his skill, before the pair discovered a hidden passage to Hujiang through the mountains.

Once the guard and sage reached the abandoned daofei outpost, Saiful pointed out the dead shirshu in the street. Saiful warned Jianzhu as he approached an inhabited building, but the other man ignored his advice, ordering him to patrol the street. In the interim, Saiful sent a messenger hawk to Hui.

After a short amount of time, Saiful approached his master, asking him if he found anything inside, but was told that there was "just a corpse". Jianzhu reminded Saiful that he had not asked him to send a messenger hawk. Although the mercenary lied that he was relaying ahead for supplies, Jianzhu made an educated guess that Saiful had written to Hui due to the chamberlain's business in the Eastern Peninsula. The mention of Hui's name let loose a flood of tells in Saiful's body language, and while Jianzhu continued to voice his suspicions about Saiful's true motives, Saiful began to raise his dao to attack Jianzhu, but he was defeated by the sage,^[1][2] who would later claim that Saiful had been killed in a daofei ambush. However, the young swordsman managed to cut Jianzhu on the underside of his chin, causing him a minor injury.^[2]

Personality

Saiful was a skilled warrior and did not shy away from killing for money. He was a mercenary who swore loyalty to anyone as long as the money was right, and was willing to follow his orders without arguing. Saiful radiated a youthful optimism, which could also be mistaken for naivety. It meant a lot to him to receive praise and recognition from someone, but he was more reserved and polite than arrogant. Saiful was an enthusiastic young man who lacked the skill of persuasion and was prone to becoming nervous when asked. When there was a sign of danger, he tended to reach for his dao to arm himself.^[2]

Abilities

Saiful was a swordsman who fought with a single-edged Dao sword and could defeat three opponents single-handedly and dodge various weapons. Saiful refused to give up in defeat and relied on his youthful reflexes and martial arts to get him through. He was also a skilled eel hound rider.^[1]

Appearances

Chronicles of the Avatar

The Rise of Kyoshi

• 122. "Conclusions"

Trivia

• Saiful had the strong brow of Eastern Peninsula ancestry.^[1]
• Saiful's name stems from the word "sword" in Arabic,^[3] befitting his profession as hired guard.

References