Saki

Saki (咲希, lit. Blossom of Hope) is a female Daiyou as well as the main female protagonist of the fanfiction Soul Mate, currently being rewritten by Nixie the Bloody Pixie. She was in secret the ward of Sōsuke Aizen before his betrayal to the Gotei 13. She was located and found by Rukia Kuchiki, sent by the Seireitei to investigate what happened earlier to a patrolling Shinigami. Shortly after having been brought to the World of the Living, Saki is found by the demonic Yonaka Clan and, after being adopted into the Clan, is chosen as the 66th Yahan Hime (夜半, litt. Midnight Princess) of the Yonaka Clan. Currently Saki is one of the leading candidates in the fight over who is chosen to become the next Matriarch of the Yonaka Clan, partially because of Tsubaki's position as the current head of the Clan, but also because of her desire to show that just because she's a Daiyou it doesn't mean that she won't be able to rise to the top. Because of her lineage she is known as the Monster Princess (化物 姫, Bakemono Hime) among those of high social status in the Yonaka Clan. Claiming Karakura Town as her personal territory, Saki has become a representative of the Yonaka Clan in Karakura and has therefore been tasked with upholding a relationship with the Shinigami, and through them the Soul Society, in the hope that both sides can partially support the other if the need should ever arise. Despite having secured an alliance between the Soul Society and the Yonaka Clan it is rather fragile seeing as both sides has great doubt in relatively the other side's military, structure and leadership. She has an alternate counterpart going by the same name.

Following her escape from the demonic prison of Gehenna, Saki has taken a much more active role within her Clan and has begun preparing for the possible outcome of Rakuen coming back to the World of the Living in order to try and fuse the two words together.

Appearance
Saki appears as a young teenage girl between the age of 17-19 years despite being over five centuries old, a feat that is possible only because of her demonic blood combined with the slow aging within the Soul Society. She has a rather short and slim figure without big curves, nor is she especially muscular. Saki's cheeks color very easily when outside, causing her to have almost permanent rosy cheeks, although her general skintone is a tad pale. Saki's hair is a deep, chestnut brown with a few lighter strands mixed in. Her hair tends to curl wildly and reaches her lower back while her bangs are rather shaggy, barely covering her slim eyebrows. Before she was brought back to life, Saki's hair was only about shoulder-length, but due to the artificial ageing that Tsubaki Yonaka forced her body through, Saki's hair grew out without restraints. Saki's eyes are a dark reddish brown, bordering red, making a rather stark contrast between her pale skin-tone and dark hair as well as her eyes. She has a scar, a remnant from her death, running across her left ribs which at times causes her distinct discomfort in the form of small bursts of pain.

Saki's appearance after being brought back to life can only be described as sickly. Her cheeks were hollow from not having nourished her child-body for over five centuries and then having her body age artificially to accommodate her now much more mature spirit. The rest of her body was dangerously thin as well, resulting in her getting quarantined from any interaction for two to three weeks after regaining her physical body.

Before coming to the World of the Living Saki dressed in simple, and at times ragged, yukatas, often in red or brown colors, nor did she wear any form of footwear. After Saki has been inducted into the Yonaka Clan, she wears the uniform that the females within the Yonaka Clan's personal army wears, claiming that if she is to participate in any feuds the Clan may come across, she needs to be prepared and have no problems moving around. The outfit that she wears has been customized so that the uniform's color is changed from black to white, as well as changing the length of the skirt a bit to accomodate Saki's wishes. The uniform consists of a white, tightfitting jacket with red strips along the edges, and a red skirt that reaches down a few inches above her knees. white separate sleeves with red strips as decoration dons her arms, and reaches down to cover her carpus. From just above her kneecaps white stockings cover her legs, and she wears dark brown travelling boots that are also decorated with red strips.



It is revealed by Tsubaki at some point that when she was alive as a child Saki had shoulder length dark hair that reached just above her shoulders and her eyes were a light chocolate brown color instead of their current much darker hue. Why she lost her former eye color after her death is unknown, although both Tsubaki and Kisuke Urahara has suggested that it was her demonic blood that acted up in an attempt to protect Saki's body and therefore triggered a limited awakening of her demonic blood. Several theories have been thought out by both Saki and Tsubaki although no one has been able to explain the phenomenon. After Saki is brought to the realm of Gehenna her demonic blood reacts with the atmosphere, and because of this genetic reaction changes her appearance slightly. Her ears become more pointy, like that of a full-blooded demon's, both of her eyes turn notably darker—almost black—while her nails on fingers and toes lengthen slightly. Her hair grows in length as well. Her usual white uniform is also replaced by a more revealing outfit that consists of a long white skirt, a tube-top showing most of her belly, and a red ribbon that wraps around the upper part of her tube-top to form a bow. She walks around barefooted, and has a strap of white cloth wrapped around both of her ankles. Saki is greatly embarrassed by the clothes she wear while imprisoned in Gehenna as it displays the scar she obtained when killed.

Following her imprisonment in Gehenna, Saki's physical traits undergo quite the change. Her face gains a more mature look, leaning more towards being around 18-20 years physically, and her body begins filling out at a slightly faster rate than most teenage girls. Saki's hair changes from its former dark brown to a nearly black color, not unlike that of coffee, and looses the small lighter strands mixed into the hair as well. Her eyes also undergo a change of color and instead turns into a dark shade of crimson red without their former brown undertone.

Personality
For the better part of five centuries Saki has been isolated from the other residents of the Rukongai District she lives in, only going into the small villages when it was necessary or sometimes conversing with the villagers shortly, and therefore lacks several social skills such as knowing how to normally keep a conversation going. An example of this is when she rather awkwardly introduces her to several of the Yonaka Clan's court-women, as well as when she introduces herself to other people in general. One of the signs signalling that she is either uncomfortable or embarrassed is when she starts playing her hair, such as swirling it around her fingers.

When Saki first is introduced in Soul Mate she appears mysterious, not to mention vague, around the injured Shinigami Takashi Suzumu. Although annoyed and rather cold towards him at first, Saki still heals him with basic Kido after his encounter with a pack of poisonous Hollows, showing that she is not without mercy for a soul in need of help. Saki has created barriers around her heart after being alone with limited contact to the rest of the world for five centuries, and has a hard time bonding with others, especially outsiders of the Rukongai District she lives in, and can act rather aggressive if those under her suspicion has yet to prove their worth to her. She also has a rather short fuse, preferring to have things done as quickly as possible. Saki's driving force throughout the entirety of Soul Mate is her unlimited adoration and love for the deceased Shinigami known as Kakyoku, her former caretaker in the early days of the beginning of Saki's afterlife. Kakyoku's brutal death haunts Saki relentlessly throughout the story and has influenced her general view on Shinigami quite negatively,.

After Saki has been allowed stay in Karakura Town, she is extremely amazed by how far the World of the Living, spending most of her time exploring the city along with one of the Shinigami assigned to keep an eye on her. Especially rubric-cubes fascinate her and she can spend hours on trying to solve them if she is left to entertain herself.



After Saki has been inducted into the Yonaka Clan she is immediately isolated, the other demons in the Clan not wanting to be seen with "a filthy hybrid" which quickly earns Saki the title Monster Princess (化物 姫, Bakemono Hime) among those in the Clan with high social status. While shocked over their outright refusal of her presence in the Clan Saki refuses to let them get to her and continues trying to please both the Matriarch and those closest related to her within the Clan's hierarchy, ignoring the vile words and rumors that starts circling within the Yonaka Compounds. After revealing that she remembers bits and pieces about her past before being sent to the Soul Society, Saki begins to cherish said memories to the point of being fanatical, and lashes out of everyone who disrespects either her mother or father.



After becoming the representative of the Yonaka Clan in both Karakura Town and the Soul Society Saki begins thinking more with her brain than her brawn, and starts handling several pressing situations far more efficiently than before, due to her studying Soul Society's history and culture, attending strategic meetings with her uncle Yakusatsu and his generals, as well as learning from several of her clansmen who have been involved in conflicts throughout their time spent in the Yonaka Council. Several people also take notice that her manner of speech is much more formal than before, giving off a more reserved feeling instead of her former insecure manner.

Before Soul Society
Five hundred years before Soul Mate ever began, Saki lived with her mother, a local noble's daughter named Kinu, in a small village near the western shore of Honshu. Saki was the result of a short-lived romance between Kinu and a local gardener from the mansion that her mother lived in, therefore being a bastard child.

Due to the extreme amount of prejudice and hatred both Kinu and Saki were surrounded with daily she and her mother fled from their extravagant home to a faraway, poor village not long after Saki had turned six, with Kinu never telling her daughter the reason why the two of them left their old home. Three years after Saki and her mother had moved to the village they were sought out by the gardener from their old home and even though Kinu at first was against her daughter knowing about her father she later allowed Saki to learn about who her father was. Shortly after having learned about her father Saki, her mother and her father were killed by an unknown entity. Immediately becoming a ghost, Saki was met by the sight of her mother and father horribly slaughtered. This caused Saki to panic, and she fled from the scene without thinking.

For many days Saki wandered around Japan, unable to find closure due to her parents' brutal deaths, and no one except a few spiritual gifted people were able to see her. She took refuge in a small shrine near the base of Mt. Fuji where she stayed for several days, hiding in the forest whenever priests or priestesses tried exorcising her from the premises. After having stayed at the shrine for a month, Saki was found by a band of travelling monks who all tried to exorcise her, believing that she is an evil spirit that has made the local village's wells poisonous. While fleeing from the monks, Saki was met by a man clad in black robes and with a katana by his hip. The man introduced himself as a Shinigami, and calmly explained to Saki why she needed to find peace and go to the Soul Society before it was too late. The Shinigami then performed Konso on her before the monks chasing her found the two of them, sending her off to the Soul Society.

After Soul Society
After Saki was sent to the Soul Society she was met by a woman clad in the same robes as the Shinigami she met back at the Shrine near Mt. Fuji. The woman explained where Saki currently were, and then introduced herself as Kakyoku. After introducing herself, the two of them departed for Rukongai's 80th Eastern District. After arriving in a small abandoned hut near the very edge of the 80th District, Kakyoku revealed that it was her superior's intentions that she and Kakyoku would stay in the hut together until Saki was old enough to care for herself. Saki, who at that point had forgotten all about her life before coming to the Soul Society, soon began seeing Kakyoku as her surrogate mother, despite the woman's best attempts to remain distant from the girl. Not long after Kakyoku has been given responsibility for Saki she was sought out by another Shinigami from her own Division, Inori Arisawa, who immediately took to liking Saki. Despite Kakyoku's attempts to keep from being attached to Saki it happens, resulting in Kakyoku and Saki's long lasting friendship throughout the next many years.

As Saki and Kakyoku grew closer her unknown superior requested that Kakyoku should return to the Fifth Division in the Seireitei. Saki and Kakyoku did not have much contact in the following years, with Saki receiving letters every now and then from her former guardian who told her about her life in the Seireitei. Ten years after Kakyoku left, Saki was contacted via letter by Kakyoku who announced that she had made it to 5th Seat within the last ten years of absence and had been granted temporary leave by her superior, who had made it to Lieutenant. Overjoyed with both Kakyoku's success in her carrier, Saki's before so gloomy and depressed behavior brightened considerably. Not long after Kakyoku came to visit Saki, staying with her for a few days in order to spend some time with her old surrogate daughter. During the last day of Kakyoku's stay at Saki's hut, however, the village nearby was attacked by several strange, mutated, Hollows. Despite Saki pleading for her to stay where she wouldn't be in danger, Kakyoku decided to help the village. While waiting for Kakyoku to return Saki spent the night along with the other escaped villagers until daybreak where she, despite not knowing if the Hollows had disappeared yet, ran out in search of Kakyoku. After hours of searching Saki found Kakyoku gravely injured. Demanding that Saki should live her life to the fullest Kakyoku died, leaving behind a grief stricken Saki who from then on created walls around her heart.

Hiō
Hiō ( 緋桜 , litt. Scarlet Cherry) is the name of the sword Saki receives after being inducted into the Yonaka Clan, shortly after she retrieves her body from the Underworld. The sword is a long, slightly curved, katana with red wrapping around the hilt and a red sheath with intricate golden patterns painted around the top of the sheath. Her sword is the symbol of the Yonaka Clan, showing the world around her that she is likely to be the next Matriarch of the Yonaka Clan. After Saki is brought to Gehenna, and experimented on by those ruling the dimension, her demonic blood is awakened and, very much like in Akira Yoshida's case, the only way for her to access the demonic abilities granted to her because of the blood-related experiments is by releasing them from within Hiō. The phrase needed to release her demonic powers is "Burn forever" ( やけど永遠,  Yakedo eien), causing several of Saki's features to change. Her ears become longer and more elf-like, her canines lengthen slightly, as does both her finger- and toe-nails. The demonic energy within her also manifests around her when released, appearing as small red embers floating in the air around her. Saki relies heavily on her skills with her sword, Hiō. So much that at times she takes the need for help or backup for granted and instead fighting on her own, hating to be dependent on those around her despite their either good or bad intentions towards herself.
 * Shinju Jigoku (真紅地獄, litt. Crimson Hell): Not much is known about this technique, only by Hiō himself who has expressed more than once that he does not intend to allow Saki having the knowledge of this skill yet. Hiō justifies this with his desire to be certain that Saki can handle both the physical and mental strain that this ability requires. All the information that Hiō has revealed is that whoever is chosen as the carrier of the sword, and Yahan Hime of the Yonaka Clan, is brought to the Matriarch's private study in the Yonaka Palace where she is told the release phrase needed to activate this ability. Saki has yet to mastering the requirements for Shinju Jigoku, something that agitates her to no end, seeing as she is determined to show that she has what it takes to become the next Matriarch of the Yonaka Clan. It also makes her, more often than not, dive head first into danger, especially against foes much greater than her in terms of power.

Learned Abilities

 * Expert Swordsmanship: Having been mercilessly trained by her uncle, Yakusatsu, in the arts of the sword ever since she had regained strength enough to do so, Saki has become a fierce warrior with her blade and relies heavily on this set of skills. She wields her sword Hiō with grace, the result of many battles between her and her uncle who trained her, as well as meditating to obtain a perfect connection between her own soul and Hiō's existing form within her soul. Saki's mastery of the sword has lead her to become somewhat arrogant at times, not seeing the need for help or backup as something she would need, given her "clearly superior strength" as she says at times. Especially since learning about the technique "Shinju Jigoku" Saki has striven to learn much more, believing that if she succeeds in mastering it she will surely become the next Matriarch of the Yonaka Clan.
 * Adequate Martial Arts: Because of the rather rough conditions for living in the outer Districts of the Rukongai where violence and disorder happens almost every day, it was necessary for Saki to learn how to handle herself if she ever happened to be stuck in a dire situation with weapons involved. While not a flawless master at the martial arts, she knows how to handle a quarterstaff and has often used this weapon throughout the entirety of her stay in the Rukongai.
 * Advanced Diplomacy: Seeing as Saki has been tasked with being the communication link between the Soul Society and the Yonaka Clan, she has needed to learn how to effectively manipulate those around her without them noticing, how to ensnare her opponents both on the battlefield and also how to turn favors in her direction when meeting politicians from all over the Demon World. Her abilities as a diplomat are far from perfect, especially with her rather short temperament more often than not getting in the way of things but still Saki won't give up, striving to be accepted by those opposing her within the Clan.
 * Basic Kido: Kakyoku at one point taught Saki the basics of healing Kido in case she would get hurt while her guardian was away. This ability was later used by Saki after she by sheer coincidence found and healed the Shinigami Takashi Suzumu. Saki's interest for Kido is rather small, seeing the ability as nothing more than a neat, little "last resort"-ability if she is unable to heal a wound over a long period of time, or if the wound is severe enough to threaten her life immediately after gaining it. She has hidden this ability from most her clansmen in the Yonaka Palace, believing that she will be even more alienated than before because of her obtaining a power normally only used by the Shinigami residing within the Soul Society.

Rakutan
After Saki's demonic powers were awakened, and then promptly sealed within her sword by Dissidia, Saki developed a suppressed being within her Inner World, causing her to take extreme measures in order to conceal its existence. Dead set on dominating Saki's personality, the entity within her mind has named itself "Rakutan" (落胆, litt. Dejection) as opposed to Saki's name that means "Blossom of Hope". Within Saki's Inner World her demonic counterpart takes the form of a white rabbit with one of its ears halfway broken and sewed back on, clad in a dirty white robe with a blue cover and with large, empty eyes. It usually appears floating in midair, effectively making both Saki and Hiō rather uneasy. Rakutan is dependent on Saki's negative emotions, such as the grieve that Saki still feels for Kakyoku's death, although it has been several years since it happened, and enjoys tormenting Saki mentally about her feelings about that particular incident. The few times that Rakutan has taken over Saki's consciousness her appearance changed drastically. Her pupils disappears, leaving only her brown sclera behind, and chunks of a strange, unidentified, material appears on parts of her face, growing rapidly until they cover most of her cheeks and chin.



The few times that Rakutan has succeeded in taking over Saki's mind her personality changes drastically, becoming downright sadistic and rather carefree in terms of conversing with others. Rakutan has a soft spot for riddles, and therefore only replies to questions as if everything around her is one big game. Rakutan also has a tendency to be somewhat reckless during fights, taking great risks and describing in great detail how the rush of adrenaline is like the sweetest thing she has ever tasted before. In that manner she is very similar to Hiō who also, many times, has stated how much he loves the thrill of war.

Natural Abilities

 * Longevity : Saki has been aging rather slowly ever since reaching the appearance of a mortal 16-17 year old teenage girl. Given that her demonic blood has been extremely diluted by the majority of human blood within her veins, it would normally not have been possible for Saki to live for as long as she has, had she been alive. However, since her soul lived on after her body's death and because of the slow aging within the Soul Society, she was able to reach an extremely high age, even for spirits, without changing her youthful appearance or reincarnating.
 * Adequate Spiritual Energy: Saki's spiritual power is a little higher than most of the inhabitants of the Rukongai, ranking just about high enough to be classified as a low-level seated officer and being strong enough for her to require food on a daily basis in order to keep up her strength. It is a soft blue and usually only manifests whenever her sword, Hiō, releases her normally dormant demonic abilities. Tsubaki has noted that her energy acts "like a soaked blanket", enveloping those around her with in coldness.

Kakyoku
From the start of Saki's relationship with Kakyoku she has always thought of herself as a surrogate daughter to the much older woman, seeing as her own parents became nothing more than a blur after coming to the Soul Society. Despite Kakyoku's attempts to distance herself from Saki when she was younger, the girl remained stubborn and eventually grew on Kakyoku to the point where the female Shinigami at times referred to Saki as her own daughter while on duty. Kakyoku's untimely demise affected Saki greatly, causing her to create walls around her heart and making her take distance from almost anything even slightly related to the Seireitei. Saki's respect and admiration for Kakyoku is unwavering, and she has showed more than once that she will not allow Kakyoku's name to be sullied by anyone, be they friend or foe.

Akira Yoshida
Despite their rather rough introduction to one another both Akira and Saki has come to terms with each other, allowing Akira to become both her bodyguard and one of her most trusted friends. During her imprisonment in Gehenna, Saki developed a shaky relationship with Akira, beginning to trust him more and more, seeing as he was one of the reasons why Saki wasn't killed by the many demons dwelling within Dissidia's keep. Akira also frequently refers to Saki as his "Gaki-chan" (Gaki, がき, litt. brat). All of these things has lead to many jokes from both Saki's family and friends that she has a minor case of Stockholm Syndrome regarding Akira, something that Saki has shot down time and time again.

Tsubaki Yonaka
Saki's loyalty and respect for Tsubaki is absolute, seeing as she was the one who made it possible for Saki to live once again. Their mutual hate for Dissidia is another thing that binds them together, creating a feeling of understanding between the two of them that not even Saki's relationship with Akira can replicate. Saki has shown more than once that she is willing to do almost anything for her adopted grandmother in regards to Tsubaki's safety. All of these feelings, however, begins to deteriorate over time after Saki learns about Tsubaki's ambitions to overthrow the Demon Council, and take control of the Demon World through the usage of the entity known as Rakuen.

Trivia

 * Saki's appearance was inspired by Lacie from the anime and manga series Pandora Hearts
 * A running gag in the story is that as a child Saki terrorized both the former and current Espada, often making them do extremely humiliating things such as taking the blame for pranking Aizen, or letting her use them as her "horsie" for the day. More information about this can be found in the occasional omakes that will be released along with the rewritten Soul Mate
 * She is horrible at dancing
 * Saki adores sweets beyond many other foods, especially after returning permanently to the World of the Living where she gained almost infinite access to them
 * Saki's least favorite food is sushi, while her favorite food is dumplings
 * Saki's theme song, as chosen by the author, is an instrumental version of Sakura Nagashi, a soundtrack from Evangelion 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo
 * The voice actress for Saki is Amanda Winn-Lee in the English dub while her seiyuu is Ayako Kawasumi

Quotes

 * "I didn't ask for a demonstration, you dimwit."
 * "I won't give a damn about the things you say about me, be they good or bad, but don't you dare bring my mother or father into this!" (Saki arguing with Dissidia)
 * "She was the one who raised me, fed me, taught me everything I know... I guess you could say that she was the mother I don't remember." (Saki speaking about Kakyoku)
 * "Don't do this to me. Stop making me feel secure within this cage you call my home. Gehenna is not meant to be a place where warm feelings can flourish. So, please, stop making me depend on you!" (Saki yelling at Akira)
 * "This scar is my shame... it's... it's ugly, not something that you should show just anybody. It serves to remind me of what I lost, and what I have to obtain once again." (Saki explaining her scar to Rangiku Matsumoto)