Although he possesses acupuncture needles, he only uses them for killing enemies in stealth. He also wields acupuncture needles in many of his stealth kills. His attacks resemble to aggressive jujutsu techniques, utilizing crippling strikes, headbutts, and vicious bone-breaking twists. Tesshu uses brute force, and pure strength in battle and uses his fists as his weapons. A village doctor by day and a vigilante assassin by night however, he is not a ninja and is not serving under Lord Gohda but instead, he serves in an underground organization of assassins known as Muzen that murders only if it serves justice and is led by Zennosuke. Tesshu Fujioka (鉄舟藤岡) is a new character introduced in Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven.She uses a pair of Kodachi as her weapon and kills enemies with acrobatic stealth moves. She later paired up with the real Rikimaru when she encountered Onikage in the Amagai Castle. She is tasked to search for Rikimaru's body following the events of Tenchu: Stealth Assassins. She is the remaining Azuma Ninja in the care of Lord Gohda with Rikimaru's disappearance. Ayame (彩女) is an agile young kunoichi.He uses his one-hand sword as his weapon and uses it mainly in his stealth kills. While the real Rikimaru is still trying to find a way to return to his time, he is trapped in the 20th century. Despite being reported as "missing" following the events of Tenchu: Stealth Assassins, he later reveals and surprised Lord Gohda with his return although technically he is only a shadow of the real Rikimaru who traveled without their notice. Rikimaru (力丸) is a physically strong and powerful ninja.If he can be defeated, peace will be returned to Gohda's land. Rikimaru and Ayame follow Tenrai into his fortress to stop him from destroying the world using the power gained from two of the Jewels. One of the men in Tenrai's arsenal is Onikage, who only serves him to pursue his plan of reviving Mei-Oh (his former master) and Tatsumaru (the former leader of the Azuma Ninja Clan whom Tenrai revived). Rikimaru refuses, and he and Ayame face each one of them.
However, upon encountering Rikimaru, he seems interested in his power and attempts convincing him to join his men. Tenrai, an evil wizard who wants to get his hands on them, commands a band of his men to take the Jewels from whoever possesses them. These are the Jewels of Heaven, Earth, and Virtue. The story revolves mainly around Rikimaru's return and the struggle for the Three Jewels, which are said to give power to those who possess them. The game's plot plays differently depending on the character chosen, but connects at certain points. A year later, Rikimaru reports to Lord Gohda that he has managed to survive this near-death experience unbeknownst to them, the real Rikimaru is trapped in the 20th century trying to find a way back to their time. Ayame stuck Rikimaru's sword, "Izayoi" (he is seen drawing this sword in the opening CG of Wrath of Heaven) in snow as a monument for her fellow ninja, now considered dead. He appears to be trapped and left for dead. After Lord Mei-Oh was defeated in Tenchu: Stealth Assassins, Rikimaru was left in Lord Mei-Oh's fortress carrying a giant boulder to provide an escape route for Ayame and Princess Kiku.