, known as Hajime Saito in the English-language

anime is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...

dubs, is a

fictional character In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life perso ...

from the ''

Rurouni Kenshin is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Nobuhiro Watsuki. The story begins during the 11th year of the Meiji period in Japan (1878) and follows a former assassin from the Bakumatsu, known as Hitokiri Battosai. After his wor ...

'' manga and

series created by

Nobuhiro Watsuki , better known by his pen name , is a Japanese manga artist. He is best known for his samurai-themed series '' Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Swordsman Romantic Story'' (1994–1999), which has over 70 million copies in circulation and a sequel he is c ...

. Being a fan of the

Shinsengumi The was a special police force organized by the (military government) during Japan's Bakumatsu period (late Tokugawa shogunate) in 1863. It was active until 1869. It was founded to protect the shogunate representatives in Kyoto at a time wh ...

, Watsuki created Saitō as an

anti-hero An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who may lack conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform action ...

ic and a

foil Foil may refer to: Materials * Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine * Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal * Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food * Tin foil, metal foil ...

Himura Kenshin , known as Kenshin Himura in the English-language anime dubs, is a fictional character and the protagonist of the manga '' Rurouni Kenshin'' created by Nobuhiro Watsuki. Kenshin's story is set in a fictional version of Japan during the Meiji p ...

, the main character of the story, while basing him on the real life Shinsengumi member of the same name. Set during a fictional version of Japan in the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

, Saitō, known as the , is the former third squad captain of the

, a pro- shogunate force. During the

Bakumatsu was the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate ended. Between 1853 and 1867, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as and changed from a feudal Tokugawa shogunate to the modern empire of the Meiji governm ...

, he had a long time rivalry with Himura Kenshin, an assassin of the

Imperialist Imperialism is the state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas, often through employing hard power (economic and ...

cause. In the series, he is initially introduced as an antagonist who encounters and once again duels with Kenshin. It is later revealed that Saitō, who had only been testing Kenshin's strength, is now a

spy Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...

agent Agent may refer to: Espionage, investigation, and law *, spies or intelligence officers * Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another ** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuranc ...

working for the

Meiji Government The was the government that was formed by politicians of the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain in the 1860s. The Meiji government was the early government of the Empire of Japan. Politicians of the Meiji government were known as the Meiji o ...

. After the reveal, Saitō becomes one of the main

protagonists A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

of the series, forming an uneasy alliance with Kenshin. Saitō appears in the featured movies of the series, as well as the original video animation (OVA) series and other media relating to the

franchise Franchise may refer to: Business and law * Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business to franchisees * Franchise, a privilege to operate a type of business such as a cable television p ...

, including a wide range of electronic games. He has also been one of the most popular characters of the ''Rurouni Kenshin'' series, ranking near the top of the series' popularity polls. His character is featured in various types of merchandising developed for the series, such as

figurines A figurine A figurine (a diminutive form of the word ''figure'') or statuette is a small, three-dimensional sculpture that represents a human, deity or animal, or, in practice, a pair or small group of them. Figurines have been made in many medi ...

and key-chains. Several anime and manga publications have commented on Saitō's character.

Creation and conception

Nobuhiro Watsuki based Saitō Hajime on the actual historic figure of the same name who was the captain of the third squad of the

in the Meiji era. Watsuki altered the character to a higher degree than the other historic figures who appear in ''Rurouni Kenshin'' since the character Saitō has a greater role in the story than the other characters. In the development of ''Rurouni Kenshin'' Watsuki planned for Saitō to be a "dirty" hero who maintains his "Swift Death to Evil" policy and does not become friendly with Kenshin's group, being rather aloof to them. Hajime has no specific model for his design. Since Watsuki intended for the character Saitō to be a villain, he made the character's face "villain-ish." Watsuki considers Saitō as the "curse" of the villains in the series since he defeats the enemies who consider themselves the strongest. Watsuki came up with the idea of the sword technique that Saitō uses in the series from the fact that the historical figure's favorite move was the "left single-handed thrust," or , a technique mainly for slashing downward, stabbing, and thrusts. Watsuki gave Saitō's left-handed technique the name "Gatotsu" to fit with the action comic theme. In July 2006, the Japanese publishers of ''Rurouni Kenshin'' released the '' kanzenban'' edition. In the sixth ''kanzenban'' volume, Watsuki included a draft page featuring a redesigned appearance of Saitō's character. In the anime adaptation of ''Rurouni Kenshin'', Watsuki's designs of Saitō were combined with the talents of voice actor

Hirotaka Suzuoki was a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator from Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture who graduated from Tokyo Keizai University. His best known roles include '' Mobile Suit Gundam'' ( Bright Noa), '' Captain Tsubasa'' ( Kojirou Hyuga), '' Saint Seiya ...

, who also voiced Saitō in the original video animations and ''Rurouni Kenshin: The Motion Picture''. However, due to Suzuoki's death in 2006, he was replaced by

Ken Narita is a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator. His real name is . He is currently a freelancer. He played Sesshomaru in ''Inuyasha'', and after Hirotaka Suzuoki's death, he took over the roles of Bright Noa and Saitō Hajime. Filmography Te ...

as the new voice actor for Saitō in the two-part '' Rurouni Kenshin: New Kyoto Arc'' movies.

Appearances

In ''Rurouni Kenshin''

Saitō Hajime, known as the , is the former captain of the third squad of the

, a loyalist force of the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

. A powerful and ruthless swordsman, Saitō lives by the code , and frequently fights using the ''Gatotsu'', a special

left-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subject ...

stab variant of the ''Hirazuki'' technique of the Shinsengumi, and its different stances. During his time in the Shinsengumi, he was a close associate of fellow Shinsengumi member and first squad captain

Okita Sōji was the captain of the first unit of the Shinsengumi, a special police force in Kyoto during the late shogunate period. He was one of the best swordsmen of the Shinsengumi. Background He was born in 1842 or 1844 from a samurai family in the ...

, and also developed a rivalry with the pro-

. Kenshin said that he and Saito, and Okita, and Shinpachi, had fought with each other 3 times, but none had never finished At the end of the

, the pro-shogunate forces were ultimately defeated and Saitō was forced to go into hiding. He later changed his name to and started working for the

as a

. Saitō is also married to a woman named , who does not appear in the story. In his introduction to the series, Saitō attacks and injures

Sagara Sanosuke is a Character (arts), fictional character from the ''Rurouni Kenshin'' manga and anime series created by Nobuhiro Watsuki. In the English anime adaptations he is known as Sanosuke Sagara and nicknamed Sano. Watsuki, being a fan of the Shinsengu ...

. Saitō has been hired by Shibumi, a corrupt politician, to kill Kenshin; thus, his attack on Sanosuke serving as a warning to Kenshin. While Kenshin is dueling Shibumi's assassin Akamatsu Arundo, Saitō appears at the Kamiya dojo, using his alias "Fujita Gorō", and poses as a police officer who urgently needs to speak with Kenshin. When Kenshin returns, upon recognizing Saitō, he reveals Saitō's true identity as the former Shinsengumi third squad captain. They fight, and just as they are about to kill each other,

Ōkubo Toshimichi was a Japanese statesman and one of the Three Great Nobles regarded as the main founders of modern Japan. Ōkubo was a ''samurai'' of the Satsuma Domain and joined the movement to overthrow the ruling Tokugawa Shogunate during the '' Bak ...

appears and stops the duel, revealing that Saitō was only testing Kenshin's abilities to see if he was skilled enough to face

Shishio Makoto , known in the English anime in Western order as Makoto Shishio, is a fictional character from the ''Rurouni Kenshin'' manga series created by Nobuhiro Watsuki and the main antagonist of the ''Kyoto Arc'', the second arc of the series. Shishio i ...

. Having revealed his true allegiance with Ōkubo, Saitō postpones the duel, and leaves to kill Shibumi and Arundo. Saitō then travels to

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...

to fight Shishio under government orders. Along with Kenshin and Sanosuke, he assaults Shishio's battleship, the Purgatory. Accepting Shishio's challenge to fight on

Mount Hiei is a mountain to the northeast of Kyoto, lying on the border between the Kyoto and Shiga Prefectures, Japan. The temple of Enryaku-ji, the first outpost of the Japanese Tendai (Chin. Tiantai) sect of Buddhism, was founded atop Mount Hiei b ...

, Saitō kills Uonuma Usui, one of the Ten Swords, and later ambushes Shishio, almost, but failing to kill him as Shishio had been wearing a ''hachigane'' (iron headband). Months later, Saitō is sent to arrest Yukishiro Enishi and he helps Kenshin fight against The Six Comrades, defeating Yatsume Mumyōi. He also fights against the first of the four Sū-shin guards of Woo Heishin, Enishi's second-in-command, and defeats him. Afterwards, Saitō is transferred to work in another location after rejecting the continuation of his duel with Kenshin. Five years after the end of series, it is revealed that Saitō continues to work for the government.

In other media

In the movie '' Rurouni Kenshin: The Motion Picture'', Saitō is assigned by the government to stop the

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

Takimi Shigure from overthrowing the Meiji Government as an act of revenge. He also receives assistance from Himura Kenshin to protect a foreign minister from the rebels. Saitō makes an appearance in the two-part ''New Kyoto Arc'' movies, where some of his scenes and fights from the manga series are altered and removed. Saitō also appears in both of the original video animation (OVA) series. In '' Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal'', his role and activities as a Shinsengumi captain during the Bakumatsu are depicted. As a result of his involvement in the Ikedaya Affair, he and his Shinsengumi comrades successfully prevent the burning of Kyoto by an extremist faction of the Ishin Shishi. His interactions with Okita Sōji as well as his first encounter with Himura Kenshin are also shown. Saitō has very brief

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...

in a flashback scene of '' Rurouni Kenshin: Reflection''. Saitō is also a

playable character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not contr ...

in the ''Rurouni Kenshin'' video games. He also appears in ''

Jump Super Stars ''Jump Super Stars'' is a 2D crossover fighting game for the Nintendo DS, based on ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' characters. It was developed by Ganbarion and published by Nintendo. The game was released on August 8, 2005, in Japan and accompanied th ...

'' and ''

Jump Ultimate Stars Jumping is a form of locomotion or movement in which an organism or non-living (e.g., robotic) mechanical system propels itself through the air along a ballistic trajectory. Jump or Jumping also may refer to: Places * Jump, Kentucky or Jump S ...

'', but not as a playable character.

Reception

The character of Saitō has been well received by manga readers and as the series continued he went on to become one of the most popular characters among the ''Rurouni Kenshin'' reader base, having consistently placed near the top of the ''

Weekly Shōnen Jump is a weekly ''shōnen'' manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the ''Jump'' line of magazines. The manga series within the magazine consist of many action scenes and a fair amount of comedy. The chapters of the series that run ...

'' character popularity polls of the series, ranking third in the last two. He has also ranked second in the "Who is Kenshin's Biggest Rival?" poll featuring all of Kenshin's opponents. Two polls by the official ''Rurouni Kenshin'' anime featured Saitō as one of the series' most popular characters. In the "Favorite Character ''Then''" poll, Saitō was ranked third, while in the "Favorite Character ''Now''" he was also placed third. Saitō's design initially received negative feedback from Shinsengumi fans who believed that Saitō had a more handsome face than the face Watsuki used. The author also recalled that one of the complaints criticized Saitō's selling of "Ishida powdered medicine" made by the

Hijikata Hijikata (written: 土方) is a Japanese surname, and may refer to: * Hisaakira Hijikata (1870–1942), Japanese businessman * Kensuke Hijikata (born 1922), Japanese photographer * Rinky Hijikata (born 2001), Australian tennis player * Ryuji Hijika ...

family, which Watsuki revealed he included as a joke. Later, Watsuki was pleased with the fact that Saitō's popularity with fans increased as the story progressed. A plethora of merchandise have been released in Saitō's likeness including figurines, keychains and wall scroll posters. Several anime and manga publications have provided praise for Saitō. His fight scenes in the series, in particular, have also been acclaimed. While reviewing the volume 7 from the manga, Mania Entertainment writer Megan Lavey applauded the fight between Himura Kenshin and Saito Hajime at the Kamiya Dojo as the "high spot of the yoto Archigh spot". In the volume 14 review for the manga, Lavey described the end of the fight between Saitō and Usui as "very gruesome and not for the faint of heart". In the

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

volume 7 review for the anime, Mania Entertainment's Chris Beveridge described the fight scene between Saitō and Kenshin as "definitely choreographed well". He praised "the viciousness in the attacks, masked under their cold calculating facade" as being "wonderfully done, providing a real feel for these ultimate killers". His appearance in the OVAs has also received praise. Mike Crandol of Anime News Network states that during the character's brief appearances in the '' Rurouni Kenshin: Reflection'' OVA series, he appears to be "truly menacing." Mark A. Grey of Anime News Network said that the song "''Hoeru Miburo'' (''Howling Wolf of Mibu'')" in the anime series "perfectly" represents the character. Reviewing the manga ''Restoration'', Rebecca Silverman from Anime News Network felt Saitō's was interesting in regards to his philosophy as it contrasted Kenshin's but lamented his lack of appearances in this version. Daryl Surat from '' Otaku USA'' considers him as the greatest character from the series based on the impact he brings to the series during his introduction. Nick Creamer from Anime News Network referred to Saitō as a "kind of tempter for Kenshin" due to his role in the series' first liveaction film.

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...

writer Clarence Sui praised Eguchi's work as Saitō during the ''Kyoto Inferno'' film during its opening scene as he confronts Shishio Makoto. For the live-action film '' Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends'', David West from '' Neo'' criticized how the character's philosophies never contrasts Kenshin's as while Saitō kills enemies, Kenshin refuses to do it and instead leaves them unconscious.

References

External links

Saitō Hajime
at the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

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