Greetings, Honorable Mandarin Jade Carp. My name is Sinaromo Yamato. You asked this humble gaki to share with you what I know of the Kin-jin, as I seem to be regarded as something of an expert on the subject. But before I tell what I know of Western vampires, I must also tell you of my shame.

My Corruption and Disgrace
I am a Tokyo native, but I lived in the United States for two decades of my mortal life before returning to my homeland. While overseas, I had attended Harvard and became a successful businessman, specializing in negotiating purchases of American companies by Japanese ones. Even in life I was a dead thing, without passion or purpose, a slave to my work. Such is the fate of many in modern Japan.
During this time I unwittingly crossed paths with the strange vampires native to the West, known by the name "Kin-jin" and others; however, throughout this letter, I shall refer to them as they refer to themselves: the Kindred. I ended up becoming enslaved to one of them, a Michael Herrington, through an effect he created with his blood. In my years of service to him, I used my own knowledge of my country's corporations to give aggressive Americans leverage against them. Once my utility had been exhausted, once I had become so infamous that Japanese would no longer deal with companies that employed me, Herrington no longer needed me and exiled me. I had nowhere to go but home, to Japan, only to return to a family that knew of my dishonor and had disowned me. I committed sepuka that very night.

Rebirth and Redemption
I was discovered not even a week after I climbed howling out of the Wicked City, and I was civilized by the Most Honorable Gakahi Sawanoo, Thousand Whispers jina of House Bishamon. I quickly adapted to my Dharma, throwing myself into the vibrant life energies I had denied myself while I was alive. By the time I was seven months out of the grave, I had mastered enough courtly skills and etiquette, Disciplines, and the tenants of the Laughing Rainbows to impress my teachers enough to petition Ancestor Heaven Fist of House Bishamon to declare me shen and assign me a uji. My existence was now my own. The house astrologers informed me I chose a most fortuitous time to take my Second Breath.
To make right the wrongs I had committed against my people in my breathing days, I returned to America to take vengeance on Herrington. To my surprise, I still had contacts among mortal investors and the Kindred; my death, rebirth and instruction had all taken less than a year. Herrington and his ilk assumed (incorrectly) I was still a mortal bound to him as a ghul, and they treated me like a wayward child returning to seek the favor of his father. Though initially enraged, I had a sudden moment of insight. My perspective changed, and I greeted my white "master" warmly, begging him to let me serve him once again.
Debasing myself in front of Herrington once again and drinking his cold blood was humiliating, and my P'o raged for his heart, but these were small prices to pay for the greater goal I was working toward. As I was (and am) strongly attuned to Yang, I could simulate the functions of the living well enough to fool the Kindred, especially since a lowly and obedient Jap ghul was mostly beneath their notice. Miraculously, and through force of will, I managed to avoid succumbing to Shadow Soul in front of my "masters." A more fortuitous situation than this perpetual disgrace I could not have hoped for, because it allowed me to pass within the Camaria Court, overlooked. I suffered more than one Moment of Blindness in my debasement, but even as I felt my dharmic progress suffer, I pressed on, knowing I could never achieve enlightenment until I corrected my previous behavior.
In two years of servitude, I memorized the routines of the Kindred and gained detailed information on them. Before the urges of my humiliated Demon could overwhelm me and force me into a murderous rampage, I shared my knowledge with the Sabbat, deadly Kindred rivals of Herrington and his ilk. However, I did so with the condition that Herrington was to be mine. The next night, I accompanied these Sabbat as they killed several of Herrington's vampire cohorts and their ghuls. I took Herrington by surprise in an alleyway after he left one of his restaurants, screaming into his cellular phone, obviously aware of, and incensed at, the death of all his allies. As Herrington's body was consumed by my scarlet goblin-flames, and as I drew the life from his his inadequate ghul protectors, the vengeful screaming of my P'o finally quieted and a moment of den descended upon me, easing the sting of my previous dharmic shortcomings. I fled the scene, laughing, avenged and whole.
(Forgive this brief digression, Mandarin, but I feel it necessary to explain myself. Yes, I killed Herrington and his ghuls, and my actions are responsible for the deaths of several other Kindred. However, I did this to claim vengeance on one who had dishonored me and my nation, and so that I might progress toward the Hundred Clouds without my hate and humilation holding me back. I did not murder them out of arrogance or for the love of killing.)
I immediately left America, and I imagine I will never be able to pass among its Kindred again. However, I learned much in the years I spent among them. I will pass this information on to you, and you may do with it as you will. My critics have accused me of being too forgiving of Kindred, and that my years among them has corrupted me. This is not true, as I hate these evil undead beasts in ways that few can understand. But this accusation stands because I do not write in the manner of gaki propaganda, which to disparage the Kin-jin as being inferior in every way and dismiss them out of hand. This is a potentially fatal oversight, as Western vampires are formidable opponents. I simply report what I have seen, as impartially as I can. Even as I condemn them, I will give our foes commendation and respect when they deserve it. To do otherwise is to indulge in hubris and self-delusion, and endanger those who rely on me for accurate information. Blame my Southern nature, if you wish, but I will not repeat the anti-Western drivel that is already repeated too often.

Courts and Clans
The Kindred do not have true Dharmas, insofar as I can tell. They seem to cling to those values and morals they held in life; there are exceptions to this rule, and these are callous monsters, denying the man and reveling in their evil. This is what happens when vampires are not given instruction in the finer points of their conditions; without proper direction, they grasp at their mortal selves as a drowning man might grasp for reeds, or reject the same to prove their vampiric natures. They deny themselves the opportunity to understand their natures and evolve. The way of Kindred is a myopic one, without guidance or focus. Even the oldest Kindred must still drink blood to sustain themselves, like Running Monkeys. The Kindred condition is an arbitrary curse, inflicted upon mortals whom the Kindred take a shining to; little good can come from such inauspicious beginnings. (But one can also say the same of those who have already gone to Hell, only to disregard Heaven's judgment by coming back to the Middle Kingdom.) And as they are thinking beings, it would be foolish to say that they gain no wisdom of any sort from centuries of unlife. We should not be so quick to say they have no insight, nor underestimate the cunning and knowledge born of such long existences.
Kindred organize themselves by clan. Members of a clan appear to have similar points of view, qualities and traits. Members of the clans trace their lineage back to a common founder, for whom the clans are named, and ultimately to the most ancient Kindred: the Cain spoken of in the Christian Bible. Here is what I know of these clans. No doubt, there are more than what follows, but I know little or nothing of them.
The Camaria is not actually a clan, but a court formed from a confederation of loosely allied Kindred. The Camaria Court controls North America; I do not know if this Court has a presence in Europe, though it is likely that it, or a very similar group, does. The known clans that comprise the Camaria Court are Malkavians, Nosferatu, Ventrue, Toreador and Tremere. They seem interested in accumulating power and money, and play political games with one another like power-mad politicians. Or for an analogy closer to home, much like our own gaki courts. How the Camaria interacts with the mortal populace in intriguing. They are dreadfully afraid of what might happen if the mortals discovered their existence and rose up against them. They do not maintain an "understanding" with their mortals as do we in the Middle Kingdom. However, the existence of Kindred is a very big secret, one the Camaria have managed to keep for a long time. One has to respect their ability to organize and to control information.
I will briefly discuss the clans of Camaria Court. I know only that the Nosferatu vampires are information brokers in service to the Camaria, and they are considered distasteful by other Kindred for some reason. I have never seen or met one. I have only met a few Toreador, and if the individuals I have met are any indication of the clan as a whole, it mystifies me how these socialites and snobs can be taken seriously by their fellow Kindred. The Toreador are rich and attractive, and have a flair for the aesthetic and artistic pursuits, though only seem to serve as the butt of jokes among their fellow Kindred. But no doubt, I have not seen all there is to them.
The Kindred of the Malkavian clan are feared, for it is believed that they are insane. I had only met one, an associate of Herrington's named Miriam. She was the most polite and pleasant Kindred I had met... other than her tendency to stare at me and occasionally grin. She looked and acted much like a kindergarten teacher, even using the same soothing voice. But I soon discovered why the Malkavians are so feared. Miriam took me aside one night after Herrington left her in his office, and whispered to me that she knew my secret. My mind screamed, "I have been found out!" I barely fought back Wave Soul, and I considered escape. But Miriam smiled and winked at me in a conspiratorial fashion, and told me to not worry, that the Devil speaks to her too and we should discuss such things sometime. I agreed, still terrified and not knowing what else to do. I wondered when or if she would tell the other Kindred my secret. (In retrospect, I ask myself if Miriam was indeed insightful enough to see through my charade, or was her revelation merely the babbling of a madwoman? I will never know, now.)
If Miriam did knew of my nature and had plotted to use that knowledge against me, she never had the chance. She was sentenced to "Final Death" not two weeks before I declared the same on Herrington. I overheard discussion of her crimes; she had kidnapped many children babies, and had transformed them into ghuls and Kindred. She would feed them her blood through her breasts as if they were suckling children -- which, after a fashion, I suppose they were and would always be, so long as she fed them blood. Miriam and her revolting "children" were put to death by her own Camaria brothers and sisters because she was a threat to their masquerade, though at no point did I hear them condemn the grotesque immorality of her actions. But Herrington was unusually quiet after that incident, and particularly abusive of me and his ghuls; perhaps he mourned his lost friend.
I have seen a few Tremere from afar, and they seem studious and unremarkable; the Ventrue and Toreador tend not to mix with the Tremere very much, and their gossip and snide remarks suggests they do not like them. However, the Tremere are valuable to their Court because they are wizards, able to command magic with great skill. This has disturbing implications; can Kindred create vampires of their own Lightning People, with their magical skills intact? We know little of Western vampires, and as they are obviously very different from us we must be prepared to accept this possibility as fact. Before we assume too much, however, we should study the Tremere and learn what we can of them. These Kindred are also said to possess remarkable insight, which is why I took special care to avoid their scrutiny.
The Ventrue also deserve special attention. Herrington, my former master, was of this clan. The amount of control these vampires can exert over mortals and other Kindred is impressive. Rarely do they have to rely on vulgar Discipline effects to command others, and when they do use their version of Obligation, their aptitude in it is unparalleled; minds and emotions are as clay on a potter's wheel to them. One might expect them to be frail physically, but Herrington himself easily absorbed most of my blows, and took at least a minute to burn to death after I set him ablaze. The Ventrue surround themselves with blood-enslaved ghuls, such as what I once was. The three Ventrue of San Diego controlled much of the city's money (gained through both legal and criminal enterprises), and to hear them speak among themselves, the Ventrue clan ruled of the Camaria Court. I imagine these Kindred will prove to be most dangerous opponents, if we ever must face them.
There are several clans that do not seem to have ties to the Camaria Court: the Brujah, the Anarchists, the Sabbat, and the Giovanni. The Brujah and Anarchist clans are warriors who would give the most savage Devil-Tiger pause; they run the streets like wild dogs, ruling them as the Ventrue and Toreador rule the businesses and high-rises. They do not bend knee to the Camaria Court, and often commit acts of violence. Both clans have connections to the rabble and gangs that populate the streets -- another strong correspondence to the Devil-Tigers. (The Brujah and Anarchists are often spoken of together, and seem very similar to one another; perhaps they are actually one clan?)
The Sabbat is another rebellious clan that holds itself in opposition to the Camaria Court. Most of these creatures are wicked and violent, even more so than the Brujah and Anarchists, driven by the demon-urges of most Kindred attempt to restrain. But they dealt with me honorably enough, if condescendingly, believing me to be no more than a ghul betraying his master. I have seen them display a wide variety of abilities, including great strength, darkness-summoning and flesh-shaping.
I have only heard rumors of the Giovanni. I do know that Kindred of the Camaria fear them, and that they maintain ties with the Western Yin World. The accounts I have overheard suggests they are wicked and perverse, and do not seem to have much respect for the dead with whom they interact. My research into the matter leads me to believe there is a connection between they and the della Passaglia of China, and perhaps they are the very same clan.

Abilities
I have little to report, here. I spent most of my time spying on Kindred as they interacted with each other, not fighting them, and like us, they generally do not use Discipline arts (or the Kindred equivalents thereof) unless a drastic situation warrants it. For a more detailed description of their combat capabilities, perhaps you would do better to talk to the countless bands of Running Monkeys who so thoughtlessly attack and kill all Kindred they come across. Please do not take my tone as being disrespectful to you, Honorable Mandarin.
Like us, Kindred are death given life, and have the same resistances to mundane forms of injury. All Kindred appear aspected to Yin, insofar as being paralyzed by wood; also, their blood has strong Yin qualities. Kindred speak of "the Beast" in hushed tones, and I have seen them in the throes of Fire Soul and Wave Soul, so obviously they have a P'o analogue. I do not know if they are susceptible to Shadow Soul, though considering Herrington's random cruelty, kind Miriam's monstrous actions and the nature of the Sabbat, I imagine this could be the case. It is interesting to note that the Kindred who have held onto their human sides with the most conviction are the most lifelike, as if they were aspected to Yang. Conversely, the most inhuman and monstrous of them tend to display the traits of Yin-cycled gaki, and are cold and pale. For them, it seems Hun and Yang are intertwined, as are P'o and Yin. Intriguing.
I have witnessed Toreador and Ventrue using Obligation-like powers. Herrington had unnatural resistance to pain and injury, similar to Iron Mountain and certain applications of Bone Shintai; it's a fair assumption other Kindred possess this quality. Brujah and Sabbat display enhanced speed and strength, like that granted by Black Wind. I have also seen Sabbat create pools of impenetrable darkness, and manipulate flesh in ways eerily similar to Flesh Shintai, though they are able to use their powers to flesh-mold others. Certain Kindred are also capable of moving about invisibly, spiritual perception, and controlling animals. And as previously mentioned, the Tremere are attributed with great sorcerous might, though I have not witnessed this power.
It's interesting how certain powers are associated with specific clans. For example, all Ventrue I have seen have some ability to control others, while I have seen none of this clan display the strength attributed to Brujah and Sabbat. Perhaps like us, tradition and convention play a large role in determining an individual's abilities. Ventrue are not as aggressive or strong as Brujah, but then again, I cannot imagine a Ventrue lowering himself to instigating brawls in the streets.

Ghuls
I must speak briefly of the ghuls, the pitiful slaves of the Kindred. I am intimately familiar with these blood-addicted wretches, as you know, because I myself existed as one for several years. The blood of Kindred seems cold and dead, but has some intrinsic quality that our supposedly "more refined" ki dies not. Only a few drinks of Kindred drought is enough to bind one's mind and spirit to the will of the donor, and henceforth a ghul will do anything to please and protect his new master. The blood also arrests the aging process, and grants great strength and resilience to injury. A ghul can use Kindred blood to heal wounds or improve physical performance. Once I had drawn my Second Breath, the blood of Herrington had none of its previous effects on me; it seems only mortals can gain the left-handed benefits of -- or be enslaved by -- Kindred blood.
While ghuls are definitely weaker than gaki or Kindred, they are still formidable, as I discovered when I killed Herrington; the interference of his two ghuls nearly allowed his escape. Once, I assumed only the Ventrue were able to create this bond, in keeping with their nature as manipulators, but Kindred of all clans can and do create these slaves.
Kindred do not treat their hapless slaves with respect; ghuls are tools, nothing more, and they are continually subjected to harsh punishments, arbitrary debasement and endless toil. This, more than anything else, I hold against the Kindred. They come to the Middle Kingdom to exploit us; but then, the Quincunx sends war wu to California's coasts for the same reason. Their society is insular, barbaric, secretive, and rife with paranoia and treachery -- so much so that one might think they took inspiration from our own squabbling wu and courts! Their different avenues to understanding vampirism, the maddening refusal of visiting Kindred to follow protocol, even their habit of spreading their condition to "deserving" mortals inspire our contempt but are excusable. But this blood-enslavement is unforgivable, is in direct opposition to the humane qualities they pretend to cultivate, and is just as abhorrent as the practice of keeping chih mei as slaves (which I have spoken against publicly). Of course, I admit that at least on this issue, my objectivity is compromised.

In Closing
The Kindred are not like us, and yet they are. Their culture, abilities and origins are alien, but they too are cursed to continue living after nature declares them dead, living off the ki of other creatures to exist. They are not all akuma, as they knowingly serve no Yama King, and are slaves to naught but their greed and fear.
I do not think there is a place for many Kindred in the Middle Kingdom, but I am not so intolerant as to say that none should live here. In fact, I believe we should tolerate a small number of Kindred "delegates" in the major cities of the Middle Kingdom; they may in turn make the same offer to us, so as to learn of us. If our courts carry Heaven's Mandate, despite the Western ideals many of us embrace, what possible threat could they be to us? What can we learn of them, of ourselves, only by exercising only a little hospitality or willingness to teach? We have the numbers to force them out, if they prove to be loutish and obstinate guests. But how can the Kindred learn our customs and ways, how can they respect our territory and traditions, how can they become enlightened, how can they be anything but expansionist gaijin if we kill them whenever we meet? The bloodshed between our people and the Kindred is harmful and unnecessary, and should stop. We have a responsibility to educate these barbarians, and an opportunity to learn of them. We should not let this opportunity slip away.
Thank you for considering my words, Honorable Mandarin, and may blessings be upon our great House Bishamon.

-- In highest regards, Sinaromo Yamato, Laughing Rainbows Disciple

Dear Honorable Mandarin Jade Carp; Thank you for bringing this traitor's heretical views to our attention, and for quashing spread of this document to others. While there is a wealth of information in his letter that will no doubt prove valuable to us, such seditious and Western-influenced propaganda cannot be allowed to disseminate among our already divided and confused gaki. Mister Sinaromo Yamato brings dishonor on himself and his family once again, and for that he will make amends. Your honorable conduct is noted, and your uji and yourself shall be recognized. -- Hayama Yellow Hands, adviser to Information General Saki Toho of House Bishamon