Takato Saionji/Story

Profile
He is one of the youngest participants alongside Gai. Although the smallest of the participants, he is an aikido practitioner with many diverse receive and return techniques and is considered one of the strongest defensive players in the tournament.

Background
He is always polite, calm and collected, but can come across as unfriendly to others. Although he has no bad intentions, he often says or does things that do not take the feelings of others into account. His grandfather, Takayuki, is said to have mastered aikido, and has been training Takato in aikido since he was a child. At the age of 17, he is already said to be more skilled than his grandfather. He has no interest in competing in tournaments, but at Takayuki's insistence, he is persuaded to participate in the regional qualifying rounds. He made the most of his aikido, which is not considered to be very aggressive, with his natural calmness, and easily made it to the second round of the tournament, defying most expectations. Raised by his grandparents, he has an old-fashioned way of thinking, and it is said that he cannot disobey his elders. He is a high school student in Kyoto Prefecture. His favorite subjects are classical and Chinese literature.

Fan Q&A
Question 1

Q. Are you rich?

A. No, just normal, I guess.

Question 2

Q. What kind of clothes do you usually wear?

Q. Um, what kind of clothes do you usually wear? Japanese?

A. Shirts, pants, the like.

Question 3

Q. I heard that you are planning to go on to higher education. Would you like to come to my university?

A. I have already decided which university I will go to.

Question 4

Q. Was Saionji-kun’s name taken from Furuhata Ninzaburo?

A. Unfortunately, it was not.

(Development Staff)

Question 5

Q. How many kilos do you get on a punching machine?

A. I don’t know, I’ve never used one.

Question 6

Q. Which do you think is stronger, Taekwondo or Aikido?

A. I’d say Aikido.

Question 7

Q. How do you feel when you see your namesake, Saionji-kun on TV's Furuhata Ninzaburo?

A. I haven't seen it, I’m afraid.

Question 8

Q. The world is in the midst of high school baseball, but how do you feel about seeing people your age playing an active role?

A. I don't feel anything one way or another.

Question 9

Q. I'm listening to the interview and it’s very standard Japanese... Next time, please speak in Kyoto the dialect. (Laughs)

A. I’m not conscious of the way I speak.

Question 10

Q. Isn’t there a possibility you could step on the hem of your hakama?

A. No, there isn’t.

Question 11

Q. Have you decided where you want to go to school? What are your hopes for the future?

A. I have decided. In the future, I plan to take over my grandfather's dojo.

Question 12

Q. How do you feel about being called 'cute like a woman' and so on?

A. I don't particularly care.

Question 13

Q. Is your school a boys' school or co-ed? Is it private?

Q. Do you participate in any club activities? What kind of uniform does your school wear? Is the school co-ed? Or is it a boys' school?

A. Kendo club. The uniform is blazer, and the school is both private and co-ed.

Question 14

Q. I know it's impossible, but I have to ask. I need the name of your high school!!

A. I can’t disclose my school’s name, as they prohibited it.

Question 15

Q. What dish is your speciality?

A. Cooking isn’t really my thing, but I often make ankake.

Question 16

Q. Please come to my house to be my son-in-law and feed me homemade food every day. (Laughs)

A. Since I’m my family’s only son, I don’t think that’s possible.

Question 17

Q. What are the names, ages, and occupations of your parents/family members?

A. According to the information provided, Saionji’s family consists of his grandfather, Takayuki, a dojo owner, his grandmother, Yukari, a flower arrangement instructor, his father, Mitsuo, an office worker, his mother Katsura is a housewife, his older sister, Midori is a university student, and his younger sister Satsuki is a junior high student. (Honorifics Omitted)

(Tournament Headquarters)

Question 18

Q. What rank Dan are you in Aikido and Kendo, respectively?

A. 2nd Dan for both.

Question 19

Q. Which is your dominant hand?

A. Left.

Question 20

Q. You don’t seem to be interested in attending these competitions again, but I'm sure your grandfather will 'strongly encourage' you to attend again.... (Or rather, please do) (Laughs)

A. This is a one-time commitment.

Question 21

Q. Why do you hate pickled plums and uiro-mochi?

A. Because they don't suit my palate.

Question 22

Q. Their face looks pretty sleepy up-close...

A. It certainly may look that way, depending on the angle.

(Development Staff)

Question 23

Q. Why are you so pretty? (Laughs)

A. I’m not interested in my appearance.

Question 24

Q. How many Valentine's Day chocolates do you receive each year?

A. About 10 or so.

Question 25

Q. Do you have any friends?

A. I do.

Question 26

Q. I wanna be 20cm taller, how about you, Saionji?

A. I can’t say I’ve thought much about my height.

Question 27

Q. Are you in love?

A. No, I’m not.

Question 28

Q. How does it feel to have endured the joint techniques of professional wrestling and other martial arts? Does it hurt?

A. They hurt, yes.

Question 29

Q. Do you have a fiancé or anything like that?

A. No, I don’t.

Question 30

Q. Is there a reason you wear footwear in your 1P outfit (and not in 2P)?

A. None in particular, no.

Question 31

Q. You said you’re 2nd Dan in Aikido? When did you start?

A. 2nd Dan, yes. I’ve been doing Aikido as long as I can remember.

Question 32

Q. Have you made any good friends among the tournament participants?

A. No, I have not.

Question 33

Q. Singing...are you good at it......? Do you keep up to date with trends?

A. I’m not really into singing.

Question 34

Q. ...You’re pretty quiet. Do you know exactly how popular you are?

A. Well, I’m just not really interested.

Question 35

Q. What are your personal treasures?

A. Nothing in particular.

Question 36

Q. Do you look anything like your parents? Does your sister give you beauty tips?

A. I’m told I look like my mother. My sister has never given me any tips, no.

Question 37

Q. My question to you, Takato Saionji, is what do you wear under your hakama in aikido?

A. I wear a cotton dogi.

Question 38

Q. Do you have any parents or siblings?

A. I have parents, an older sister, and a younger sister.

Question 39

Q. Saionji, what do you think of Tono-san, the Buriki Girl?

A. I don't know much about her as we’ve never spoken to each other.

Question 40

Q. You are participating because your grandfather told you to, but are you afraid of him by any chance?

A. I respect him. I’m not afraid of him.

Question 41

Q. Any tips for using Atemi？

A. Watch your opponent's movements carefully.

Question 42

Q. Why didn’t you change your facial expression at all during the interview?

A. I had no reason to change it.

Question 43

Q. You live in Kyoto, but you use Kansai dialect?

A. Why don't you use Kyoto dialect? (Laughs)

A. I have been told that my accent is Kansai.

Question 44

Q. How do you refer to yourself in the first person?

A. Staff members surveyed indicate that they use “myself” for elders and “I” for friends.

(Tournament Headquarters)

Question 45

Q. I'm disappointed that there are no pictures in the secret photos section. I'll have to take some hidden photos. (Laughs)

A. I ask that you do not post pictures of students, as the school forbids it.

Question 46

Q. Why don't they use Shihonage or Sumiotoshi techniques? And why don't they even try to use pinning moves?

A. This is the result of balance between the characters and the expedience of lever operation.

(Development Staff)

Question 47

Q. What kind of path do you want to take in the future to promote the martial art of aikido?

A. I am not particularly interested in promoting aikido.

Question 48

Q. You were born in March 1982, which means... you’re a senior in high school, right? Do you have any plans for your career after graduation?

A. I plan to go on to higher education.

Question 49

Q. What is your favourite type of woman?!

Q. What is Takato Saionji's favourite type of the opposite sex?

A. None in particular.

Question 50

Q. What do you "feel" about Aiki? I would love to hear about the philosophical aspects and how to apply the power of aiki. (Aiki is a martial arts principle regarding redirection of an opponent’s own power against them)

A. I believe that martial arts is a way of life.

Question 51

Q. In this competition, do you think the road to victory will be difficult? And if you win, will your life be different from what it was before?

A. I don't know. I don't think there will be any real change even if I win.

Question 52

Q. Do you have a girlfriend...? (Shy)

A. No, I don’t.

Question 53

Q. You always carry out heavy kicks attacking the lower region without hesitation, do you ever feel sorry for your opponents as a fellow man?

A. It's a fight.

Question 54

Q. Sorry for my prejudice against your appearance, but are you seriously interested in women?

A. I haven’t really thought about it. But I think that’s normal.

Question 55

Q. I heard that you were educated not to disobey your elders, but Takato is the youngest competitor in this tournament. If you were asked to lose by another competitor, would you lose?

A. My grandfather told me to win.

Question 56

Q. The eyebrows are very well defined, are they perhaps drawn on?

A. They aren’t.

Question 57

Q. You haven't published any photos, you' re actually a woman, aren't you?

A. No, I’m not.

Question 58

Q. Why are you so indifferent? (Laughs)

A. I’m not sure. I don't think of myself as particularly indifferent.

Question 59

Q. Can you really take a punch with a body like that?

A. I think I’ll manage.

Question 60

Q. Who did you model Saionji after? And to what extent have you studied aikido?

A. Takato has no specific model. We studied aikido by collecting many materials, from technical books to manga. There are also some original techniques. Did you like them?