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Born in 1564 as the heir of Mizuno Tadashige, lord of Kariya Castle in Mikawa Province, Katsunari was a cousin of Tokugawa Ieyasu. His temperament was fierce from the start — in his first battle at age 16, he killed 15 enemies. At the Battle of Komaki-Nagakute he slew the feared Mori Nagayoshi ("Oni Musashi"). At 20, he killed one of his father's retainers and was disowned, beginning 15 years of wandering in which he served and abandoned famous lords including Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Kuroda Kanbei, and Kato Kiyomasa. In 1600 he returned to Ieyasu's service, reconciled with his father, and earned the nickname "Oni Hyuga" (Demon of Hyuga) for his ferocious fighting at Sekigahara. At 52 he dominated the Osaka Summer Campaign of 1615, slaying Goto Matabei. Granted 100,000 koku in Bingo Province, he built Fukuyama Castle and transformed into a beloved administrator — "Hotoke no Mizuno" (Buddha Mizuno). At 75 he marched to suppress the Shimabara Rebellion. He died in 1651 at the age of 88.

In his youth he was utterly uncontrollable — even his own father could not manage him. On the battlefield he was feared as a demon, yet as a domain lord he governed with surprising compassion. Free-spirited and unconventional to the core, he nonetheless carried a warrior's pride and genuine love for his people — the ultimate maverick of the Sengoku era.

As the first lord of Fukuyama Domain, he built Fukuyama Castle and established the foundations of the castle town. He devoted himself to land reclamation, flood control, and road building, earning the title "Hotoke no Mizuno" (Buddha Mizuno). His life was summed up as "Ringai Fuki" — a man too extraordinary to be bound by ordinary standards.