The youngest child of the Kansaki oyabun, Shimada lived a life of relative freedom among the higher echelons of Night City society, a life supported by the sweeping business interests of the Yakuza in Night City. While she was born in Night City, when she was 16 she was sent to study in Japan, an opportunity only open to her due to the connections of her family and clan. While a deeper understanding of her native culture was surely an important aspect of this to her family, it was not its principle aim. While back in the home nation of the clans, Shimada was fully integrated into the workings of the Arasaka Corporation, the principle partner of the Kansaki clan in Night City. The majority of her time was truly spent studying (with the usual distractions of any student body) however it was during these years that she was first ingratiated with the Taka faction of Arasaka, and eventually it's leading voice in Yorinobu Arasaka. While several decades older than her in the purest sense of time, the more dynamic, tradition shirking, man was far more appealing in sensibilities than the same voices who had done such damage to the world a short time before. When Shimada returned to Night City following a string of qualifications ending in her Masters degree in Business and Public Policy, she did so with the intention of aligning the Kansaki as best she could with the Taka faction.

Small time crime in Japantown might have been the work of a dime a dozen gangs, most recently the Tyger Claws, but anything worth any real amount of eddies worked through the Yakuza and their fixers and the Kansaki were the first among equals, working directly with representatives of Arasaka to turn Japantown into one of the most economically successful and safe districts of Night City outside of Corpo Plaza. Shimada was present for this, taking on an official role with the local Night City civil service to better facilitate the work of her family, and by extension, Arasaka. In truth, her work did more than simply facilitate business, actually benefitting the denizens of Japantown in many ways, albeit simply to further establish the clan under the false pretence of philanthropy. Aside from this, Shimada lived a comfortable life, attending parties, conferences (sometimes the difference between these are merely academic) and enjoying the best that Night City has to offer a young and successful person. This was not to say she was entirely removed from the violence of her family's work, she was still suitably augmented for her own defence, and trained by the finest instructors Arasaka could provide her family, but it was rare this had to put into practice beyond making a point of someone who had underestimate her. Not everything was simply business as usual for Shimada, as Yorinobu began to put in place his final plan to bring about the end of his father's version of Arasaka, he began to reach out to his allies in Night City. This included Shimada, who's role in the plot was rather simple, use the Kansaki network to move those loyal to Taka into the city without drawing the notice of the rest of Arasaka. It was this action that would bring about the fall of the Kansaki.

When the murder of Saburo took place, the initial reaction from Arasaka was swift and retributive. Despite promises made to the contrary, the involvement of the Kansaki was revealed to the wider corporation, one of many scapegoats Yorinobu was willing to provide to secure his own position as he worked to bring an end to the corporation. Falsely accused of being bribed by outside actors (even rumoured to be Militech), the Kansaki were set upon by loyalist Arasaka Yakuza, or more truthfully, those who looked to gain the Corp's favour to replace the Kansaki as their primary point of contact with the Yakuza. Shimada's family were slaughtered, along with their closest friends and confidents, in a series of brutal retaliatory attacks. Shimada only survived by apparent coincidence, a change to her schedule placing her away from her intended duties that day and thus avoiding a bomb attack which destroyed her office. She has suspected this was more due to some last favour from her previous ally in Yorinobu, and act that does not come close to brushing away the cost of betrayal. It mattered not that she had physically survived, Shimada Kansaki would have to remain dead. Thankfully as with any family rooted in crime, the Kansaki were not so integrated into the Arasaka mould that they had not planned for such and so Shimada still had access to at least some of the resources her family had stockpiled over the years, bounced through so many transfers and accounts as to be utterly removed from her identity.

Thankfully for Shimada she was, in many ways, already prepared for a life of solo survival. With combat training from Arasaka’s tutors, the same individuals who had developed the Troy Exterminator program and possessed substantial self defence augmentations. While the Kansaki had previously looked down on the ‘small time’ criminals of the Tyger Claws, Shimada was quick to reach out to Wakako Okada as the most capable fixer she was aware of, and to who they now shared an emnity towards Arasaka. There were no favours done for free, but Wakako had little compunction putting Shimada’s skill set to good use, and to the embittered woman, Shimada’s history with Arasaka was a benefit rather than a risk.

Shimada had little involvement in the diasterous (for Arasaka) events of the recent past, but still very much took personal satisfaction in the crippling of Arasaka’s presence in the city. Shortly afterwards, however, Shimada was approached by representatives from Night Corp, using her well hidden family name with ease. The offer was simple, to make Arasaka’s downfall in the city permanent. With the eddies on offer and a chance at a personal revenge, there really was no reason to turn it down. The risk of having her identity exposed and the bounties that would come with it remained an unspoken, unnecessary threat.

Despite being born in Night City, Shimada’s appearance aligns more with the neo-future Japan of her family’s homeland. This would hardly be considered subdued by modern standards, but it lacks some of the riot of colour that the Tyger Claws have made famous across Night City. The most ostentatious aspect of Shimada’s appearance comes in the form of of a sweeping dragon and lotus tattoo which rises from the foot of her right leg up to her right shoulder. While often dulled, the interactive ink can shine or alter colouration at her will. Shimada’s cybernetics are subtle in appearnce, most being subdermal. Exceptions come in the form of her hands and feet, the digits, palms and soles of which are marked out in jade. While certainly capable of brutal force when neccesary, Shimada’s outward appearance tends not to give this away, soft and elegant, she moves with the poise taught to her by her tutors in Japan. Despite avoiding the garish clashing of colour many in Japantown favour, Shimada is hardly conservative, her corpo-esque attire often doing much to show off and enhance the fairness of her features and curves of her form. Once this had simply been a preference of style, now it is a trap to ensnare the kill. While she changes her look with as much whim as any individual of fashion, Shimada’s hair is usually kept it’s natural brown, and her eyes hazel, she can certainly be spotted with alterations to both on occassion, however. As with anyone trained in the art of Japanese courtly behaviour, Shimada is quite used to expressing herself through gestures and facial expressions as much as she is words, a trend that can make her seem higly emotive at times, or incredibly stoic at others.

Shimada’s goals are for the short term rather simple. While originally her aims had little to do with Night Corp itself and everything to do with retribution she has since become emotively tied to the success of the plan to ensure Night City’s indendence from either Arasaka or Militech. Whether she truely believes Night Corp is the means to achieve this remains to be seen, but for the meantime, it is her best chance at both.