Explanation: When the African man Yasuke (birth name uncertain) was brought to the court of the Japanese warlord Oda Nobunaga by Portuguese missionaries, none of the Japanese nobility there had ever seen an African man before. So Nobunaga ordered Yasuke to strip, and then had him scrubbed clean, thinking that would wash the paint off and show the Portuguese up for trying to play him for a fool!

When said vigorous scrubbing revealed that it was not paint and that Black people do, in fact, exist, Nobunaga took on Yasuke as a personal retainer. Nobunaga appeared to place some amount of trust in Yasuke, bestowing him with a sword and servants, discussing matters with him, eating meals with him (a rare honor from a high-ranking lord like Nobunaga), and being accompanied by him both at home and on campaign.

Yasuke was present as one of Nobunaga’s defenders at the ambush which took Nobunaga’s life; after Nobunaga’s assassination in that incident, Yasuke escaped the ambush and joined Nobunaga’s son, who was also subsequently defeated by those same forces. Yasuke’s life was spared after being captured at this second battle, by some accounts according to the xenophobia of the traitorous lord who orchestrated the ambush and attempted coup, preferring to send him away with the Portuguese rather than execute him as a soldier.

After this, Yasuke fades from the historical record, unfortunately.