Chihaya Saori

Saori Chihaya


Saori Chihaya
Japanese Name	千早沙保里
First appearance:
Manga	Arpeggio Special Book 2009-2011
Anime	n/a
General information:
Gender	female
Alive	yes
Current occupation	Ornithologist
Appearance:
Eye color	dark
Hair color	dark
Notable details	Always surrounded by birds
Voice Actors:
Japanese	Unknown

German	Unknown

Chihaya Saori (千早沙保里) is an expert ornithologist living under the house arrest in the Northern Region. She is Shouzou Chihaya's wife and Gunzou Chihaya's mother.

Appearance[]

Saori has pretty long dark hair and big dark eyes. And because her taking care of birds has her doing tasks like climbing the trees, she is often seen with a band-aid here or there. Also, from time to time, a large white parrot is seen riding on her shoulder.

Even though she hasn't had that much of screen time, Saori has seen wearing a great number of various clothes, though she seems to prefer casual ones that allow her the greatest range of movement - mostly because she needs to climb trees, etc..

Personality[]

Saori Chihaya is a very intelligent woman, though she is a too centered around her work. She can't really understand why boys prefer ships and other tech stuff and finds them so boring, secretly wishing for a daughter that would share her interest in birds.

There are no depictions of her before she placed under the house arrest (supposedly for her own protection), but right now she doesn't seem to actually mind it all that much. Though she is still quite lonely as was shown when she quickly proclaimed Takao as her guest, even though the Mental Model came into the mansion uninvited.

Saori might actually be a bit selfish as once she found her 'daughter' in the design child Makie Osakabe, who was placed under her protection following the attack on Osakabe mansion, she didn't really want Makie to reestablish contact with Haruna. In the end, in order to keep her promise, Haruna had to infiltrate the mansion.

While Saori has at least one maid to help her with the mansion, she still remembers how to sew, cook and do other house work. She had even taught a number of those things to Takao, while the Mental Model was visiting her.

Family members[]

While Saori has a husband and a son, both of whom are still alive, their family is essentially no more. Neither of them had even contacted her in the last couple of years.

Husband[]

Shouzou Chihaya is Saori's husband. At one time he was a hero of Japan for successfully capturing a "Fleet of Fog" submarine, I-401. He then was made the captain of I-401 and commanded her during her maiden manned voyage. Since there are no history about Saori depicting her reaction to the news about her husband going missing in action, it is impossible to say anything about her feelings about that... When that was discovered that Shouzou had sided with the "Fleet of Fog" in 2054, Saori was placed under the house arrest.

While they do have a son, it doesn't really look like they had been especially close as neither has a great interest in the others' professional field and since their son, Gunzou, had decided that he wanted to be a captain like his father early in his childhood.

Son[]

Gunzou Chihaya is Saori's only known child. Since Gunzou seems to have always been wanting to become a captain, he was never really all that close with his mother. And the situation didn't improve when the treachery of Shouzou was discovered as Gunzou had sworn that he would find his father and demand the answers about why he had done what he did.

And even though Gunzou had never contacted her even once after he ran from Yokosuka with I-401, even after he was cleared of all charges against him, Saori will still support him.

And truth to be said, even though Saori thinks that boys are boring - likely because they don't share her love for birds - she is still quite lonely because he had apparently forgotten about her.

While Gunzou is away in the seas, Saori had found him a girlfriend who just had to be the Mental Model of the heavy cruiser Takao.

Daughters[]

While not technically related, Saori has come to view and unofficially adopt both Takao and Makie Osakabe as her daughters. To Takao, she gave her blessing to become Gunzou's girlfriend, the other - Makie Osakabe has taken up residence with her in her home. They are both close to her much more so than either her son or husband who pay her little mind. They are quite possible the only people in the world who genuinely care about her.

Role[]

Chiahaya mansion — Takao finds the orangery where Saori keeps her birds

Saori Chihaya is a rather minor character. Her first appearance happens in the "Aoki Hagane no Arpeggio special book 2009-2011" when she catches Takao sneaking around the mansion. And even though Takao herself points it out that she's a trespasser, Saori is quick to proclaim her to be her guest.

Takao decided that she doesn't mind and starts hanging around, learning about the human ways of life. Saori, likely already suspecting that Takao Kirino was a Mental Model, still allowed her to continue visiting her as she taught her a lot of things ranging from ornithology to cooking, sewing and doing house work.

Saori-and-takao — Saori Chihaya and Takao

Saori had confessed to Takao that she finds boys to be boring and that she wanted a daughter. On the last day when Takao visited her, Saori gave her a hug and a blessing to become Gunzou's girlfriend.

Saori is next seen when Makie Osakabe was placed in her care following the attack on the Osakabe mansion. Saori did everything she could in order to get the design child interested in ornithology, however, she also passively tried to keep Makie from re-establishing contact with Haruna.

Though, when Haruna infiltrates the mansion, Saori doesn't seem to be too concerned as the now-rogue battleship had shown that she's devoted to the girl rather than to the "Fleet of Fog".

It is hinted that she may have committed suicide in the Ars Nova anime.

Relationships[]

Shouzou Chihaya - Saori's husband, currently the commander of the "Scarlet Fleet" division of the "Fleet of Fog". He's considered to be #1 enemy of humanity, at least in Japan.
Gunzou Chihaya - Saori's son. Even though he seems to have forgotten about her, she still loves and supports him.
Takao - Saori all but adopted the 'tsundere heavy cruiser' into her family, and wouldn't mind to have her as her daughter-in-law.
Makie Osakabe - The girl was placed in Saori's care following the attack on the Osakabe mansion.
Makoto Osakabe - Leader of the Northern region. He's the one who order he house arrest after her husband defection. Even thaw he had already left her quite some time ago. Its really unclear why he has it out for her this way. Since she could not possibly be considered at heart nor could he possibly believe he husband or son still have any meaning full attachments to her. Really there doesn't seem to really be any logical reason for this and if any thing it's a huge abyss of power. At last he lets her keep her birds.
this is especially disturbing in the anime where it's implied she killed herself to escape him.

Etymology[]

Chihaya means "thousand" (千) (chi) and "already, now, fast, early" (早) (haya).
Saori means "sand" (沙) (sa), "protect, maintain, guarantee" (保) (o) and "village" (里) (ri).