Zuko

Zuko is a firebending master, born as a prince in the Fire Nation Royal Family, who reigned as Fire Lord from 100 AG until his abdication in 167 AG. Originally the primary enemy of Team Avatar, Zuko devoted three years to trying to capture the long-lost Avatar to end his banishment and regain his honor as Crown Prince of the Fire Nation. He is recognizable by the distinctive burn scar on the left side of his face from his eyebrow to his cheek, which was given to him by his father, Fire Lord Ozai, shortly before his banishment as a result of an incident in which he unintentionally disrespected his father by speaking out of turn and refusing to duel him.
With support from his paternal uncle, General Iroh, and after much internal struggle and turmoil, Zuko rejected Ozai and his model of the Fire Nation. He instead joined the Avatar's group to become Aang's lifelong friend and firebending mentor and was determined to end the war and restore both his and the Fire Nation's honor. While Aang defeated Ozai, Zuko, with the help of Katara, defeated his younger sister, Princess Azula, and took his place as Fire Lord, declaring the end of the Hundred Year War and the start of an era of love and peace.
At the beginning of his reign, Zuko had to overcome great difficulties and solve several crises, especially those caused by the Harmony Restoration Movement and the New Ozai Society. Nevertheless, he succeeded in maintaining peace and eventually became one of the founders of the United Republic of Nations. Zuko stepped down from his position as Fire Lord in 167 AG and became an ambassador of peace, relinquishing the throne to his daughter, Izumi.
Born in 83 AG, Zuko was the firstborn child of Prince Ozai and Princess Ursa. From a young age, he was disdained by his father, an animosity that began shortly after the prince's birth. As the infant seemed to lack the "spark in eyes" that is typical for most firebenders, the royal family was unsure if Zuko was a bender at all. Ozai, viewing a nonbender as firstborn as "shame", planned to cast his son over the palace walls. Only when Ursa and the Fire Sages intervened did the Fire Prince give his newborn son a chance. Later on, it turned out that Zuko was a firebender, and peace returned to the young family.
Zuko's family made frequent vacations to Ember Island in the following years, and Zuko would later consider this time the only one when his family was "actually happy". When he was three, Zuko saw an eagle hawk attacking a turtle crab while playing at the beach. The little prince immediately rushed to rescue the crab, feeling the urge to help the weak. However, when he had the animal safely in his arms, Zuko realized that the hawk would die of hunger without its prey. Unsure which side he should take, the prince was eventually surprised by a wave and carried out into the ocean. Zuko almost drowned before he was saved by his father. The little prince spent the remainder of the day in the care of his mother, recovering from the experience while vomiting sea-water. Zuko and his family also often watched the play Love amongst the Dragons at the Ember Island Theater. Afterward, the prince and Azula usually reenacted the final duel of the play at the beach. To his frustration, Zuko normally had to take the role of the Dark Water Spirit, the evil antagonist. Nevertheless, Zuko happily recalled these memories many years later.
However, as they got older, Zuko and Azula eventually grew apart, and he became the object of his sister Azula's manipulation, ridicule, and deception. Their mother, however, loved both but favored him over his sister, especially when Azula let her brother feel her increasing animosity, as apparent when Ursa, Zuko, and Azula would walk in the royal garden around 94 AG. Zuko happily talked with his mother until the prince saw his sister burning a flower in the garden. He promptly told on her to their mother, as he thought that Azula's action was wrong. When Ursa scolded the princess due to this, Azula burned Zuko's bottom in retaliation. After sending Azula to her room, Zuko was consoled by his mother. Zuko tearfully lamented that he did not understand why Azula had "to be so mean", as he had just done what he thought was the right thing to do.
A few months later, Zuko and his family were eating together at the palace dining hall, when Azula soon began to brag about opposing their firebending teacher, Kunyo, calling his techniques "the dumb way" to firebend. After hearing this, Ozai agreed with Azula that the teacher seemed to be incapable and declared to send him to the colonies as punishment. When the princess expressed her satisfaction at his dismissal, Zuko objected, stating that Kunyo was not "a dummy" and merely believed that good firebending began with proper forms. However, he was promptly silenced by his father, who was outraged by his son's behavior and scolded Zuko for daring to lecture his sister on firebending. When his father angrily asked Zuko how many more firebending forms his sister had already mastered than him, the intimidated prince meekly answered that his sister had mastered fourteen more forms. Ozai continued to recount how he would have almost discarded Zuko because he thought that he was a nonbender when the prince was born. Finally, Ozai told Zuko that Azula had been born lucky, while he had been lucky to be born, leaving his son completely devastated.
When Zuko was eleven years old, his cousin, Lu Ten, was killed in battle. General Iroh, devastated by the loss of his only child, abandoned his 600-day siege of the Earth Kingdom capital city, Ba Sing Se. During an audience with Fire Lord Azulon, Ozai showed off Azula's prodigious firebending skill and knowledge of military strategy, both exceeding Zuko's. Azulon, however, was unimpressed by these exercises, and he demanded Ursa and her children leave and that Ozai be frank about his reasons for wanting the audience. Azula and Zuko eavesdropped on their conversation as Ozai voiced his desire to be made heir in Iroh's place, justifying this course of action by pointing out that Iroh's overwhelming grief and subsequent erratic behavior made the date of his return from war uncertain, and that he now had no remaining heirs to carry on his line. Azulon, however, was outraged and declared angrily that Iroh had suffered enough, but Ozai's suffering had just begun.
Frightened, Zuko ran away while Azula stayed to watch. Later, he was in his room trying to sleep when Azula came in and mockingly told him that Azulon's punishment for Ozai is that Ozai must kill Zuko, as he wanted him to know what it felt like to lose a first-born child. Ursa, hearing the commotion, came in and took Azula away, declaring it was time that they talked. Zuko left behind, chanted quietly to himself, "Azula always lies." Later, he was awakened again, but this time by his mother. She told her sleepy son that everything she had done, she had done to protect him, and instructed him not to forget who he was no matter how much things may change. The next morning, he immediately remembered what transpired the night before and ran frantically through the halls, searching for his mother. He found Azula, who blithely told him that Azulon died the previous night and their mother was missing. As she played with his pearl dagger (a gift from his Uncle Iroh), she mocked him and noted their mother was not there to make her give it back. Eventually, he found Ozai in the gardens of the palace and demanded to know where his mother was. Ozai did not answer, and he hung his head in sorrow. At Azulon's funeral, the Fire Sage conducting the ceremony named Ozai the new Fire Lord upon Azulon's apparent dying request.
Two years later, Iroh allowed a persistent, thirteen-year-old Zuko into a war council with Ozai and some of his generals. The young prince was instructed by his uncle not to speak during the meeting; however, when one general outlined a plan to sacrifice an entire division of new recruits in a diversionary maneuver, Zuko fiercely spoke out against the general's suggestion, seeing it as a betrayal of the recruits' patriotism. The insubordinate outburst was seen as a grave insult, and Ozai demanded the prince participate in an Agni Kai. He agreed, unaware that it was not the general whom he had insulted, but his father. Zuko was confident in his firebending abilities to face the insulted general but was surprised to discover his father was his opponent. He immediately became penitent and fell to his knees, refusing to fight, and tearfully begged for his father's forgiveness. Ozai declared his refusal a sign of cowardice and another display of disrespect, affirming that "[he] will learn respect, and suffering will be [his] teacher."
Ozai burned Zuko by permanently scarring the left side of his face, stripped him of his birthright, and exiled him from his beloved homeland, declaring that he could return only after having found and captured the Avatar, who had disappeared nearly one hundred years prior. It was a fool's errand by all accounts, but one to which Zuko clung desperately as his only hope of regaining his honor and everything he had lost.
Zuko spent the next two years at sea, fruitlessly and desperately searching for the Avatar. He searched the four air temples, beginning with the Western Air Temple, and scoured the world, searching even the most remote locations for his prize. Iroh accompanied Zuko during his exile, and the pair spent more than two years at sea with a small ship and crew. They were not royal guards or special forces and may well have been banished themselves or were foolishly intent on serving under the popular General Iroh. They were often unhappy under Zuko but obeyed his orders. Iroh often considered the search an extended vacation.
While traversing the Southern Water Tribe, Zuko and his crew saw a flare of an old Fire Nation cruiser, which itself had been shipwrecked a long time ago, light up the sky, and after seeing the Avatar flee toward a nearby village, Zuko ordered his crew to pursuit. Zuko's ship quickly arrived at the Water Tribe village. The exiled prince descended, accompanied by a small number of soldiers. Sokka charged at him; however, possessing more fighting experience, Zuko required only his bare hands to counter Sokka's primitive weaponry and swiftly dealt with him. After being initially struck by the Avatar who came at him riding a Penguin, a short brawl between the two ensued, but Aang ultimately surrendered in order to protect the villagers. On Zuko's ship, the Avatar was locked in the brig before eventually escaping with the help of Sokka and Katara, much to Zuko's dismay and anger. Soon afterward, Zuko docked at a Fire Nation controlled harbor off the coast of the southwest Earth Kingdom, his ship needing substantial repairs after his encounter with Aang. Zuko wanted the repairs done quickly so they would not lose the Avatar's trail and warned Iroh not to mention the Avatar during their stay so no other firebender would start looking for him. The commander of the harbor, Zhao, quickly found out the truth, and in a fit of rage, Zuko challenged him to an Agni Kai, which he eventually won thanks to the firebending advice from his uncle. A bitter rivalry erupted between Zhao and Zuko, both wishing to capture the Avatar and deliver him to the Fire Lord.
During the course of several weeks, Zuko pursued the Avatar and his friends through several parts of the either occupied or war-torn Earth Kingdom, finding and almost capturing him on Kyoshi Island. Later, Zuko saved his Uncle Iroh from earthbending soldiers, who had locked him up and were planning to transport him to Ba Sing Se to stand trial for his actions in the Siege of Ba Sing Se. During his pursuit of the Avatar, Zuko and the rest of his crew ventured into Fire Nation waters and tried to capture the Avatar in the Fire Temple of the Fire Sages on Crescent Island, a mission in which Zuko only barely evaded the prospect capture by Commander Zhao and being sent home as a traitor. Later, Zuko unsuccessfully tried to capture the Avatar with the help of pirates. Zuko's poor relationship with his crew started to improve when when he displayed a show of camaraderie and respect by saving the helmsman of his ship from falling to death during a dangerous lightning storm. In a risky move, Zuko donned the persona of the Blue Spirit and infiltrated the Pohuai Stronghold in order to save the Avatar from the clutches of Zhao. This was not to save Aang, but so that he could personally be the one to deliver the Avatar to the Fire Lord. After Aang fled when Zuko tried to attack, he planned to capture the Avatar utilizing the help of June and her Shirshu Nyla after watching her catch a stowaway on his ship, but Aang and his friends managed to evade capture. Zhao eventually found out that Zuko was behind the Avatar's rescue in Pohuai and exacted his revenge by blowing up Zuko's ship while it had been docked in a harbor. The explosion destroyed the ship and grievously wounding Zuko, who was now presumed dead. When Zuko reunited with Iroh, he stowed away aboard Zhao's ship when his uncle accepted the offer to be Zhao's adviser out of grief.
During the Siege of the North, Zuko managed to sneak off Zhao's ship and eventually made his way into the innermost part of Agna Qel'a, where he managed to kidnap Aang, who had meditated into the Spirit World. After trudging through a raging blizzard, Zuko found a cave and took shelter. Soon after, Aang's spirit returned to his body. After the Avatar woke up, the airbender tried to escape, but failed due to his restraints. Zuko taunted the Avatar; however, Katara, Sokka, and Yue arrived on Appa, having followed Zuko through the snowstorm. Katara defeated Zuko, and prepared to leave with Aang. The young Avatar saved Zuko's life for a second time, insisting that Zuko must be brought along instead of being left unconscious in the snow, where he would surely die. Upon returning to Agna Qel'a, Zuko eventually managed to escape and attacked Zhao for trying to kill him. After the battle had been won by the Northern Water Tribe with the help of the ocean spirit, La, acting through Aang, Zuko and Iroh escaped the North Pole and traveled on a driftwood raft for three weeks until they reached land.
For their actions in the Siege of the North, both Iroh and Zuko were branded as traitors by Fire Lord Ozai, who sent Azula to track the fugitives and bring them to justice. After being adrift for weeks, Zuko and Iroh reached a village resort, where Azula unexpectedly greeted them and informed them that their banishment was at an end and that they could finally return home. Zuko believed his sister, and was ecstatic at the prospect of going home. Iroh, however, remained skeptical, as he had never known Ozai to forgive anyone. The next morning, the duo nearly boarded Azula's royal sloop when Azula's ship captain referred to them as prisoners, revealing the plan and enabling them to escape after a brief showdown. Zuko and Iroh, now fugitives, sliced off their topknots with Zuko's dagger, symbolizing their alienation from the Fire Nation. As they lived as fugitives, they struggled to live off the land, with Iroh starting to panhandle for money, and Zuko stealing from others disguised as the Blue Spirit. Zuko and Iroh started to drift apart, until Zuko eventually decided that they no longer had anything to gain by traveling together and parted ways with Iroh. Zuko wandered through the Earth Kingdom, passing through forbidding and uninhabited areas. Despite his worsening hunger and lack of supplies, he decided not to rob a young couple when he noticed that the woman was pregnant. While riding and slipping in and out of consciousness, Zuko saw visions of who appeared to be his mother, Ursa. On the brink of utter starvation and dehydration, Zuko made his way into a quiet Earth Kingdom town, where he befriended a young boy named Lee, without revealing his true identity. When Gow, a ruthless Earth Kingdom mercenary, and his men bullied Lee's family, Zuko defended the family that had taken him in. During the battle, Zuko became overpowered and resorted to his firebending, revealing his identity. Shocked and horrified, the citizens of the town quickly turned on Zuko, and even Lee refused to thank him for his actions. The ostracized prince then mounted his ostrich horse and left the town.
Zuko secretly followed his sister Azula while she had been tracking the Avatar with the tank train and eventually revealed himself in a deserted town where she and Aang were about to face off. The face-off soon escalated into a full-blown brawl, with Team Avatar, Iroh, and Zuko acting, albeit unwillingly, against Azula. All six cornered Azula, who feigned surrender, only to attack and badly wound Iroh with her lightning generation in a moment of distraction. Zuko, Aang, Katara, and Toph each launched an elemental attack, but Azula disappeared, utilizing a clever firebending move, whilst Zuko ran to his wounded uncle. When Aang and his companions approached, he angrily demanded that they leave, spraying fire at them. Zuko tended for his uncle's wounds, and Iroh slowly began to teach him how to redirect lightning attacks in the future. When Iroh praised him, Zuko eagerly asked to try it out with real lightning, but Iroh refused, not risking the chance of him killing his nephew. Zuko, seeing a thunderstorm in the distance, told his uncle he would find his own lightning. He climbed up a mountain in the middle of the storm, intent on accomplishing the task. He raged at the storm and the world, lamenting how it had never held back before in hurting him. No lightning came close enough, and, finally exhausted and emotionally spent, he broke down bitterly in tears, screaming into the sky. Zuko and Iroh eventually arrived at the walled city of Ba Sing Se, meeting Jet in the process, who saw through their ruse and identified them as firebenders. Iroh and Zuko found employment at a tea shop in the outer ring of the city, where Jet accused them of being firebenders and attacked Zuko before being arrested by the Dai Li. Zuko reluctantly adapted to his new life, even going on an awkward date with Jin, until he learned of Aang's presence in Ba Sing Se and attempted to steal the bison from Long Feng's captivity. However, Iroh convinced Zuko to abandon his quest and let Appa go, a move that caused him to develop a fever and experience hallucinations, signifying his metamorphosis. Zuko was captured and placed in the Crystal Catacombs following Azula's coup, where he encountered Katara. Although Zuko and Katara shared a brief moment of compassion, Azula convinced Zuko to betray his uncle and the Avatar in a desperate attempt to regain his honor. Zuko ultimately chose to ally himself with Azula and fought against Aang and Katara. In the ensuing fight, Aang was killed before later being revived with spirit water, and Iroh was arrested. While Azula reassured Zuko that he had restored his own honor, the prince still appeared conflicted and somewhat regretful about his decision.
Returning to his country as a hero, Zuko learned that had Azula lied and told Fire Lord Ozai that he personally killed the Avatar. Zuko suspected that Aang survived due to Katara's spirit water, and hired an assassin to ensure Aang's death, fearing his father's wrath. In the Fire Nation, Zuko's only real friend proved to be his girlfriend Mai, with whom he went on a vacation onto Ember Island along with his sister and Ty Lee. However, the trip proved to be an emotional journey for all, though despite its unpleasantness, it was also enriching. Iroh, while imprisoned, managed to lead Zuko to learn that his maternal great-grandfather was Avatar Roku, Aang's previous incarnation, which partly explained Zuko's inner struggle. Prior to the Day of Black Sun, Zuko inadvertently catalyzed his father's plan to destroy the Earth Kingdom with Sozin's Comet when he mentioned the resolve of the people of the Earth Kingdom. Zuko became ever more guilt-ridden over his betrayal of Iroh and contributing to the planned burning of the entire Earth Kingdom, leading him to confront Ozai during the eclipse. Zuko openly berated his father and stated his intention to help Aang, using his uncle's teachings to redirect his father's lightning. Zuko left the Fire Nation and attempted to join the Team Avatar, but was largely rejected by Aang and his allies, with only Appa and Toph trusting the prince until he proved himself to them by defeating the assassin he had hired. However, Katara still remained bitter and apprehensive after his previous betrayal in the Crystal Catacombs, stating that she would kill Zuko with no second thought if he tried to hurt Aang again. Zuko's change in temperament led to his firebending weakening when he started to teach Aang, though he managed to overcome the block in his firebending by visiting the Sun Warriors and the dragons and discovering that fire was a source of life and light, and not just hatred.
After helping Sokka free Suki and Hakoda from the Boiling Rock prison, Zuko amended with Katara by locating her mother's killer, Yon Rha. It was after this manhunt when Katara finally accepted Zuko as an ally and as a friend. In the days before Sozin's Comet, Zuko and the rest of Team Avatar stayed on Ember Island, where they saw a play performed by the Ember Island Players, leaving them embarrassed and uneasy. When Aang disappeared shortly before Sozin's Comet, Zuko led the effort to track down the Avatar, leading him to June in the Earth Kingdom. Although she could not locate Aang, she was able to bring them to Iroh and the Order of the White Lotus. Zuko tearfully apologized to his uncle, who easily forgave him, stating that he was never angry with Zuko, only sad because he had thought he had lost his way. Later, Iroh suggested that Zuko become the next Fire Lord, citing Zuko's "unquestionable honor". Arriving at the Fire Nation capital with Katara, Zuko dueled Azula for the throne in a Comet-Enhanced Agni Kai. When Azula faced defeat, she aimed a lightning strike at Katara that Zuko leapt forward to save her from, leaving him wounded and immobile. Katara eventually defeated Azula due to her waterbending skills and quick thinking, and managed to heal Zuko. After Aang stripped Ozai of his bending and ended the war, Zuko was crowned as the new Fire Lord, giving a speech promising world order and harmony with the aid of the Avatar at his coronation.
Reign as Fire Lord (100 AG - 167 AG)
After Zuko's coronation, he began to send out search parties for his mother, but their efforts were fruitless. He also started his efforts to end the Fire Nation's imperialistic tendencies by removing most Ozai loyalists from government and supporting the removal of the Fire Nation colonies in the Harmony Restoration Movement. Worried that he would turn to the same imperialist tendencies of his ancestors, he had Aang promise to end Zuko's life if he ended up like his father.
Zuko's efforts were met with resistance from nationalists, leading to six assassination attempts within his first year as Fire Lord. The last of these assassins was Kori Morishita, the daughter of the mayor of Yu Dao. When Zuko came to the colony to confront Kori's father, he was surprised to learn that the mayor's wife and daughter were earthbenders, and that the residents of the city included people of Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom heritage living alongside each other for generations. Realizing that it was unfair to uproot the inhabitants of the oldest colonies, the Fire Lord changed his approach to the Harmony Restoration Movement and ordered the Fire Army to secure Yu Dao. This led to brief a confrontation with Aang and Katara, though it ended when the Fire Lord agreed to the Avatar informing the Earth King about the situation and trying to convince him to change his mind. As Zuko suffered from insomnia due to fears about assassination attempts, Mai arranged for the Kyoshi Warriors to become his bodyguards. Still suffering from the pressures of being Fire Lord, Zuko started secretly seeing his father in prison, but this led to Mai ending their relationship when she found out. When he was told that the Earth King was intending to invade Yu Dao, Zuko ordered his army to defend the city. Zuko traveled to the colony for the Battle for Yu Dao, where he led his forces against the Earth Kingdom army. Aang intervened in the Avatar State, and although he asked Aang to reconsider, he came to believe that his death would be for the best. At that very moment, he was saved from falling into a chasm by Aang, and heard that the Avatar was able to reason with the Earth King. Zuko later acknowledged that the colonies could neither be Earth Kingdom nor Fire Nation, and worked with the Earth Kingdom to form new coalition governments.
With Ozai still refusing to speak about his mother's whereabouts, Zuko turned to Azula for help. After Zuko released her from a mental health facility, she spoke to her father in prison and later found and burned a collection of Ursa's letters at the palace. Azula promised to tell Zuko what was in the letters, in exchange for being allowed to travel with Zuko unbound. Azula, Zuko, and his friends set off to Ursa's hometown of Hira'a despite the skepticism of Team Avatar. Azula suffered a psychotic episode during the journey and had to be restrained. As the group camped, Zuko found a shocking letter that Azula had saved, which implied that he was the son of Ursa's childhood love, Ikem. In spite of Zuko's doubts and another fight with Azula, the group reached Hira'a, where they were welcomed by a man named Noren, his wife Noriko, and their daughter Kiyi. After hearing that Ikem had gone to the dangerous Forgetful Valley, Zuko and the others made their way to the area, where they were confronted by the waterbenders Rafa and Misu. Afterward, the valley's ancient spirit, the Mother of Faces, appeared before them, and revealed to Zuko that she had given Ursa a new identity and memories as Noriko. Zuko returned to Noren's house, ready to accept his new family, but at that moment, Azula attacked. After Zuko confronted his sister, she fled the house and ran into the wild, leaving behind the letter. Afterward, the Mother of Faces asked Ursa if she wanted to regain her original face and memories, and she accepted. Ursa was overjoyed to see Zuko, apologized for leaving, and told him that the letter about his paternity was a lie to fool Ozai. She promised to tell everything about her life to Zuko, starting at the beginning.
Zuko searched for Azula in the Forgetful Valley for weeks, but to no avail. Some time later, Ursa, Noren, and Kiyi were ready to come to the capital despite his mother's reservations about returning. Cautious to make a safe return to the capital, Zuko and his family were nonetheless ambushed by the New Ozai Society, intent on Zuko relinquishing the throne. Although Zuko and the Kyoshi Warriors were defeated, reinforcements arrived and fought back against the attackers. One month later, Mai's brother Tom-Tom was kidnapped, supposedly by the mythical Kemurikage spirits. Zuko went to the High Temple with Aang, Mai, and Kei Lo to research the spirits, where Aang learned from a true Kemurikage that they had not returned to the human world in millennia, indicating that the kidnappers were imposters. Zuko discovered that a militia called the Safe Nation Society had been formed in response to the kidnappings, and ordered the group to be disbanded or be imprisoned. The false Kemurikage ended up kidnapping Kiyi and, in response, Zuko locked down the city and ordered the homes of the Safe Nation Society to be searched, which concerned Aang. When the orders were carried out, the Safe Nation Society instigated a riot in the city that led to their imprisonment. At the palace, Ty Lee discovered a passageway where Azula was hiding. As the siblings confronted one another, Zuko told her that the throne would never be hers, but his sister responded that her plan had been to mold Zuko into a ruthless and authoritarian Fire Lord. However, at that moment, Zuko learned that his friends had been able to save Kiyi and the other children. After the end of the crisis, Zuko apologized to his people for his poor conduct and vowed to be a better Fire Lord worthy of their trust.
Head Chieftain Hakoda invited the Fire Lord and the Earth King to a conference in the South Pole, where the world leaders discussed the Southern Reconstruction Project to advance the development of the Southern Water Tribe. Zuko was quick to offer his support to fund the endeavor, but the Earth King was more hesitant. However, Kuei was kidnapped during the conference by Gilak and his band of Southern nationalists. Zuko aided in the rescue of the Earth King, coming to the Bridge of No Return, where he avoided Thod's chi blocking by wearing heavy armor under his winter clothing. Aang managed to save both Hakoda and Malina in the battle, but Gilak fell to his demise. With the crisis over, Zuko joined Kanna and Pakku in their igloo to share a meal with his friends.
Zuko's commitment to allow the older Fire Nation colonies to remain in the Earth Kingdom and regulate the balance of power between them, rather than to forcefully remove them, eventually led to the creation of the United Republic of Nations with Republic City as its capital. Zuko subsequently aided Aang in making the United Republic a prosperous and safe country, which included combating the surging activities of bending criminals in Republic City.
At some point in his life, he married and had a daughter named Izumi. He also became a grandfather to Iroh, who grew up to serve as a general of the first division of the United Forces. Zuko and Aang remained lifelong best friends, with Aang regularly turning to Zuko for advice. Zuko, in turn, would always trust the Avatar's instinct. According to his grandson, Zuko also remained a good friend and an important ally of the Southern Water Tribe. At some point in his life, Zuko also adopted and trained a dragon, whom he named Druk.
In 158 AG, Zuko joined forces with Southern chief Sokka, Tenzin, and Tonraq to deal with Zaheer, Ghazan, Ming-Hua, and P'Li, four criminals who desired to kidnap the new Avatar, Korra. The group was able to defeat the four and send them to specially-constructed White Lotus prisons, which would serve to neutralize their bending abilities. Zuko collaborated with Northern chief Unalaq and ordered the construction of a top-secret prison in the western tundra of the North Pole, specially designed to hold the firebender P'Li.
Zuko continued to remain in power until he abdicated the throne of the Fire Nation in 167 AG to his daughter, Izumi, at which point he chose to leave the Fire Nation Capital in favor of living on Ember Island. He retained his formal title of "Lord" and became an ambassador for world balance, albeit, in an unofficial capacity, all the while making sure the new Avatar's safety was not compromised.