zodion
✖ PLAYER:
Name & LJ: Kai | profagonist
Birthdate & Age: January 1, 1992 | 19
Characters played in Zodion: N/A
✖ CHARACTER:
Name: Sawako Kuronuma
Canon: Kimi ni Todoke
PB/Image: o1 | o2 | o3
Info links: Wikipedia | Wikia | Myanimelist
Canon Point: Post Chapter 51: Always Yearning For You
Gender: Female
Age: 16
Birthdate/Sign: December 31st | Capricorn
Tattoo: Sawako will have the sign of the Capricorn near her left shoulder, specifically below the acromion region. I’ve included this image as a reference source.
Suitability: When it comes to the concept of sex, that may still be unfamiliar to Sawako due to her naive personality. However, coming into Zodion, Sawako will eventually learn about sex and what it is like to experience such an intimate act. Despite how she may easily be embarrassed and shy to even think about doing such things, she would still learn and try to convince herself throughout the weeks that it is something necessary here. If Kazehaya happens to also come into Zodion, she will feel much more comfortable in performing such an intimate act with him specifically because not only are they in a relationship during this canon point, but she also has experienced many "first times" with him. Now that Sawako is in a relationship with Kazehaya, that has also allowed her to expand on her own personal experiences. For example, when Sawako wasn’t even familiar with the idea of kissing, but was brought up by her friend Ayane, that same night she had a dream of Kazehaya kissing her. Although it was embarrassing, the next day the two were close to actually kiss, as Sawako didn’t do anything to push him off or say no. If Kazehaya doesn’t happen to be there by her side as well, then despite how it will be very difficult for her to accept the terms with anyone else, she still knows that she can’t give up and will continue to do her very best in helping anyone that needs assistance. This scene specifically depicts how Sawako doesn’t falter despite the harsh circumstances and pressure she goes through, for example. Despite how there will be the pressure in worshiping, Sawako will not falter and do what she's determined to do by the end.
Something else that will help Sawako fend for herself in sex is knowing that in worshiping to the gods through sex, the world will continue to live, nourish, and thrive. She may take her time to do it eventually and may even be nervous and terrified, but she knows that if it’s helping someone or something in return, it can’t be all that bad at all. Rather she will feel good to a certain extent that she had helped somehow. After all, Sawako is able to adapt under circumstances because of her caring and understanding personality, as well as not having as much experience as others to learn from. Just how high school has been a learning experience for her in what it means to be a friend, and even a girlfriend, Zodion will become an environment where she can continue to grow and learn more about different relationships with people from different worlds.
Finally, what makes Sawako also suitable to be aged up, is due to her maturity and responsibility. She is known to be good at cleaning and cooking as her own father comments on her amazing cooking abilities and even makes a comment that she’s ready to be a housewife. During school, Sawako takes in charge of watering the school gardens by herself as well as doing any paperwork that the professor need assistance on. Throughout the years that she has done this, Sawako has never even minded as she actually finds it to be a nice and entertaining hobby. And so in learning that she has to have sex in Zodion in order to nourish the lands, it will take her some time to actually do it, but she knows that she will be responsible for it in order to help and make the gods happy.
Power: After much consideration, I would like Sawako to have the power of growth, which will allow her to make plants, wood, etc. grow a bit faster. Why I believe this power is the most appropriate for her is because she has been responsible for the school gardens since entering high school. Most importantly, no one had given her the job as she herself deliberately took responsibility to water the gardens almost every day, as well as watch them grow after time. This page is a good example of her love for the earth as one of her classmates even goes as far as to recommend her as an environmental officer due to her taking good care of the flowers. Also in this page, it shows how Sawako knows very much about specific plants and what cures they're able to offer if someone, for example, has diarrhea or even constipation. Not only can she offer to make plants grow a bit faster in Zodion, but she can also offer some knowledge as to what natural cures are available.
Personality: In the opening lines of the series, Kimi ni Todoke, Sawako Kuronuma is described as having “pitch black hair and skin that’s pale even in the midst of summer.” Her frightening image has given her the nickname "Sadako", from the Japanese horror film “Ring”, since elementary school. However, it was not until high school that the rumors grew worse as everyone who knew of Sawako constantly claimed that she can see ghosts, and whoever looks straight into her eyes for more than ten seconds will receive the worst of luck possible. In the very opening pages of the series, Sawako is seen doing many kind things for her classmates, however, they completely misunderstand her intentions and become frightened, avoiding her along the way. These same rumors that have been spreading throughout high school have made it difficult for Sawako to interact with others. For the most part, she has spent her high school days to herself, unable to form any friendships of sorts.
Despite her plain and ordinary appearance, Sawako is a kind-hearted person who follows her favorite motto: “One good deed a day”. She is truly gentle and means no harm to anyone, despite her appearance. All she really wishes is to do one thing that would benefit others and to see their smiling expressions in gratitude. Despite how Sawako achieves in doing a good deed a day, she doesn’t acknowledge it upon herself that she’s doing something extraordinary, because she sincerely believes that anyone can do what she does. Someone who she immediately acknowledges and holds her respects for is her classmate, Shouta Kazehaya. Like Kazehaya, Sawako admits that she wants to become a person who doesn’t scare or intimidate others. For example, Kazehaya is someone who is immediately surrounded by almost everyone in the classroom. She can see it in their expression that they all truly admire him and see him as an amazing being. Sawako, on the other hand, is completely the opposite of him, but she believes that if she can learn how to be just as approaching and welcoming, someday, she too can have friends.
Despite how everyone seems to be quite intimidated by Sawako as no one talks to her or even approaches her, Kazehaya was the very first person who would confidently approach her and greet her with a “good morning”, and a sincere and bright smile. At that very moment, Sawako realized that Kazehaya was the ideal person she wished to be, someone who was such a good person and was liked by everyone else. She wanted to be just like Kazehaya who always had a bright smile and seemed to be confident in who he was as a person. It was obvious that Sawako would have a long way to go, seeing as her monotone voice and “scary” appearance made it all the more difficult to communicate with others. However, one of the most positive aspects of Sawako is that despite the harsh challenges that are up ahead for her, she would never give up on what she set her mind to do. Even if everyone else saw her as a frightening girl who was capable of hurting someone, only she knew herself best and hoped that soon, everyone would see her for who she is.
From the very beginning, something that Sawako always wanted to have was friends. Throughout her previous years in school, she didn’t have many friends at all, occasionally just one or two. In the beginning chapters, they also go on to show one of her childhood friends that attends the same school, but they only appeared to be more like acquaintances. Even then, they never really lasted long in their conversation and Sawako be by herself again, hoping that perhaps someday she would have the true friends that she has always wanted. Even though high school has allowed her to see just how devastating rumors can be and how it can ruin one’s life, it has also brought her what she always wanted with the support and help of Kazehaya himself. When everyone ignored her and avoided her, Kazehaya was the very first person who approached her without any problems. Since then, as the two of them talked to one another, even by exchanging greetings of “good morning”, it allowed for others to slowly realize that perhaps Sawako wasn’t such a harmful and scary person after all. What began as Kazehaya being her idol and the person who she wished to be, turned into something much greater.
Sawako constantly explained that if it hadn’t been for Kazehaya, she would have never made any wonderful friends. Since the moment where Kazehaya was welcoming, Sawako had been given the opportunity to meet two more people that evidently become her best friends, Ayane Yano and Chizuru Yoshida. Sawako was happy upon realizing that both Ayane and Chizuru were two very good people to her. This is seen when the classroom was about to have their new seating arrangement. When Sawako is given the choice of picking first, which ends up to be near the back of the classroom, none of her classmates wished to sit next to her at all, thinking that they’d be cursed by her. However, the four people who decided to sit next to her, and not by choice but by their own will, are Kazehaya, Ayane, Chizuru and Kazehaya’s best friend, Ryu Sanada. Given this opportunity, the whole group is able to get to know Sawako much better as they all begin to share fond memories with one another. When rumors began to spread about how Chizuru used to be a gang member and how Ayane is someone who dated hundreds of guys before, as well as Kazehaya’s reputation going down all because of Sawako, she believed that this was her fault for associating with them in the first place, causing her to suddenly start avoiding them. Her intentions aren’t cruel however, as she only wished for them to be happy, even if it meant not being her friend anymore. Even when asked if she considered any of them her friends, she has a hard time admitting to it because she believes that it’s quite selfish of her to assume so quickly that they’re friends so soon.
When Sawako begins to doubt herself, the first person who reassures her is Kazehaya. By explaining to her how she would feel if everyone of them began to ignore her, Sawako soon realizes how she must have hurt her friends by avoiding them all this time because of misleading rumors. Thanks to the supporting words of Kazehaya, Sawako gains the strength to confront those who were spreading the rumors in the first place, explaining that everything has been a misunderstanding and that she truly loves her friends. It was that type of feeling that was even unknown to her, but she finally understands what it means to have such special friends who are kind to her and never gave up on her as well. Finally, these same friends that remain true to her throughout the series are the same ones who continue to motivate her, to grow as a strong and open person who will surely shine and become better at communicating with everyone else.
Another motivational goal for Sawako is to help others and see them succeed. Sawako is generally a very selfless person who always wishes to do a good deed everyday. She’s very thoughtful and caring in that aspect and if anyone ever appeared to be troubled, she’d want to be right there to help and support them along the way (although many of the people who she has tried to help misunderstand her intentions and flee away from her). When it comes to school, Sawako is always the first person to raise her hand up and volunteer to help the teacher with the classroom after school. Whether it’s collecting books or simply organizing all of the paperwork that needs to be done, Sawakos takes great enjoyment in doing just that and never takes “No” for an answer. Another example is when the class is about to prepare for a test and no one seems to understand the material that the teacher has been going over. Kazehaya is the first one to ask her for help and she is able to quickly explain to him the problem and even show him how to work it out in the simplest way. When everyone in the class overhears him say that he really understands, that brings the class to ask her for help and sure enough, she helps each one by one and in the end, they all get improving scores.
Another aspect of her personality is having motivation and always doing her best even when she isn’t good at doing something. This is seen when the school is beginning to get ready for a sports festival. Despite how Sawako has never played a sport before, and it would be her first time playing soccer, she is constantly wanting to improve her ability. Her friends even motivate her to continue tying and help her along the way, but she feels bad when they set aside their plans in order to help her. In the end with the help of Kazehaya, she begins to improve more and more until the day of the soccer match where she is able to properly kick the ball and help her teammate score a goal. All of the fond memories that she shares with everyone allows for her to be grateful of all the people in her life and how she will continue doing her best no matter what.
As we explore the deeper regions of Sawako’s personality, she really is someone who is very understanding and cares for others first before herself. She’s very nice and reasonable, as well as open-minded and responsible; all of these positive aspects make her a very likeable person. Even if her classmates are careful around her because of her appearance, she doesn’t mind the fact that they ignore her. Sawako is known to empathize with those who aren’t as respectful and kind to her as well. A huge example of this is when Kurumi comes into her life and pretends to be her friend in order to get her away from Kazehaya, because she also has very deep feelings for him. Despite discovering Kurumi’s true intentions and how she was cruel to Sawako to the point of saying that she hated her and she never treated her as a friend, Sawako still manages to forgive her in the end and doesn’t allow her friends to tell Kazehaya what she did to her. To Sawako, even if Kurumi was simply pretending to be her friend, she still found the emotions that she felt and the memories she spent with her to be meaningful.
Since Sawako is a very understanding person who is always considerate of others, she happens to become very involved with her friends’ problems to the point where she gets quite emotional and finds it difficult to say just the right words of comfort. Despite how she wishes to be a very good and loyal friend, she hasn’t really experienced having friends so it’s quite difficult for her. When Chizuru is completely shocked by the news that her long time crush is going to get married, Sawako becomes deeply concerned for her, but finds it really difficult to find the right words to say at the given situation. This constantly begins to bother her and Ayane, and as time goes on, Chizuru appears to be completely fine, when in reality, the news was something that surely was bothering her as well. These concerns are brought to Kazehaya’s attention as he encourages both Sawako and Ayane, and even reassures them that as friends, it’s not always the right words that are the best solution, but simply being there as a friend.
When it comes to the quirks and mannerisms of Sawako, she is portrayed as someone who is serious and very polite. She definitely speaks much more formal than most classmates, but at the same time she has many things that make her a bit more of a humorous character that is completely oblivious to the surroundings around her. As the series progresses, Sawako’s feelings of admiration towards Kazehaya slowly begin to change to feelings of love, which takes time for Sawako to realize in the beginning. Upon realizing these feelings for him, it makes it even more difficult for her to talk to him and approach him. Nonetheless, the moments that they have together by themselves are one of the most meaningful ones and special to her. When she is approached by him however, she is easily startled as her speech is in a much more stuttering motion. Sawako ultimately cannot lie either, as she has always been the kind of person who is straight-forward and always says what her emotions tell her to say, even though it may be something that is completely different for her.
Finally, the last things to explore through Sawako’s personality are her flaws and personality traits. Since Sawako has constantly been surrounded by negative comments about herself because of her appearance and nickname, she is used to being ignored as she has no self-respect for herself. Right away, there is an immediate lack of confidence as she even begins to put herself down and sometimes even believes that what she does for others isn’t necessarily good enough. Her feelings for Kazehaya begin to make Sawako feel more self-conscious about herself where she even begins to question whether it’s alright for her to feel this way towards him and if she honestly deserves him. An example of this behavior from her is seen when she meets Kurumi who is helping her pick up her fallen books. Sawako immediately comments that she appears very beautiful and radiant just like the sun as well as appearing to be like a doll. Sawako wishes to become just like that as well, where she can be pretty and also as open and lovely as Kurumi herself.
Sawako is rather dense and oblivious. There have been many events in the series where she happens to be oblivious to the fact that Kazehaya may have a special interest to her. Other examples have even involved her believing the rumor on how Kazehaya's reputation will go down if she continued to be around him that had been spreading around the school and have also caused problems between her and her friends. In the end, Sawako manages to make these misunderstandings come to an end, although her obliviousness made her avoid her friends for a few days instead of allowing herself to speak properly to them first.
Finally, something important to take note of is that Sawako has really bad social skills despite how she really wishes to try to greet others and to be as welcoming, encouraging and as nice as she can be. Instead of trying to express herself through her facial expressions that she is happy and welcoming, her tone of voice and expression come out the complete opposite which causes her to be easily misunderstood and for the rumors to continue spreading constantly. She may not mean to appear in such an intimidating way, but even so by the time that she tries to explain herself, everyone has disappeared and ran away. On a more comical side of things, despite how Sawako is really good at sewing, she is terrible at drawing. This is seen when Chizuru goes over the notes that Sawako hand made for her as she analyzed the drawing and commented on how bad of a drawing it was. Despite these minor setbacks, what she does for others, especially her friends, is something that is so admirable about Sawako’s personality. As the series continues to progress, Sawako’s personality continues to grow and beautifully shine into someone who is more confident in herself and believes in everything that she is able to do.
✖ SAMPLES:
"Zodion" First-Person Network Entry:
[As the screen monitor suddenly turned on, much to her surprise, it slowly faded in to pitch black hair and skin that’s pale even in the midst of summer. To many she is known as “Sadako”, for her similar appearance to the horror movie character in “The Ring”, however her name is in fact Sawako Kuronuma, who is one the most generous, kind, and noble people you’ll ever meet.
Having arrived to Zodion in a blink of an eye, it was natural for Sawako to possess many questions; about Zodion, about the vague note, and even about the strange tattoo that is now permanently on her skin. Sure enough if her father were to see such a sight, he would most definitely worry and panic. As she continued to gaze towards the communication device, she quickly bowed her head and began to speak in a soft and slight shaky voice:]
U,um, excuse me...
My name is Sawako Kuronuma and I appear to be slightly lost.
[Brief pause since she’s rather nervous and she’s not even sure whether anyone can really see her recording.]
I’ve also received a very kind letter from “the Twelve”, though I don’t know who they are exactly. They’ve entrusted a task from me, but... I---
I’m sorry, I can’t. I don’t think I can do it. I can’t support this with all of my heart because I have my family and my friends back home that I miss, and surely are wondering where I am right now.
[And because she is misunderstanding “worship” to be a form of prayer and best wishes in this note...]
A-ah! I can still “worship” by sending my best wishes to "the Twelve" for the “fate of the cosmos”, but afterwards I’d like to ask if I can go back home... and ah, if I can also have this tattoo removed from me. I,It looks nice, but I don't think I'm ready to have one right now.
"Zodionlogs" Third-Person Prose Entry:
Sawako was unable to have much sleep that night as she found herself excited, yet nervous, due to the fact that she would be spending her day with her boyfriend, Kazehaya. As soon as morning came by, she had spent some time preparing herself for the exciting day, as she was now ready to walk out to meet with him. However, the instant she had stepped through the doorway of her door entrance, she found herself in a completely different environment in the blink of an eye. Clearly this was something completely unexpected as she found herself to be confused and surprised even. “?!? W-where am I?... T-this... this isn’t my house anymore.” Perhaps she was still dreaming, she thought to herself, as she gazed up at the sky that dimly lit her surroundings. And just to make sure that she was still dreaming, she placed her fingers upon her arm as she readied to pinch herself.
However, before doing such thing, she suddenly saw before her a stoned alter, as she couldn’t help but to walk towards it, completely forgetting that she was about to pinch herself to make sure that none of this was a strange dream. Taking the first step upon the stoned alter, she suddenly felt a sharp sting near the back of her shoulder, as she couldn’t help but to put her hand on the spot as a reaction.
“H-huh? … W,what… what was that?” She softly asked herself as suddenly the waters surrounding the alter rose up. What was even more surprising was her own reflection as it reflected back her same image, but without any of her casual clothing on; she was completely nude. Sawako quickly looked down upon her own body only to see the same clothes on her still, yet the reflection showed a different picture. She simply couldn’t help but to cover the most exposed parts of her body, despite still being clothed, as someone could be watching her at the moment. The mere thought of it made her embarrassed as a soft pink color rose upon her cheeks. At that point, as she continued to cover herself, did she see a mark on her left shoulder; a mark that glowed, which was the same spot that she had felt the sharp sting.
“A…a tattoo?!” She remarked as she approached the reflection closer only to see the sign of the Capricorn on her. Just what exactly did this mean? Even she couldn’t comprehend and sure enough because she could still feel the slight sting, this surely was not just any dream. This was in fact happening to her as the sudden thought of Kazehaya came to her mind, thinking that perhaps he was still waiting for her near his home. However, judging by her current circumstances, she could not be able to make it after all. If only she carried her own cellphone to tell him this, instead of making him wait for her. And what about her own parents and friends? They surely will begin to question her current whereabouts and wonder what happened to her.
To worry everyone like this was something that Sawako would much rather want to avoid as she didn’t wish for them to feel troubled because of her. After all, surely they had other things to worry about or to think about when she was in fact fine. The sudden thought of everyone’s sadness... Sawako simply couldn’t help but to become sad as well as her eyes began to tear up. If she had the opportunity to just talk to them one more time or to give them any kind of sign that she’s alright, she surely would do it, but there was nothing that she can do except explore the small box that was now resting before her.
Reaching down towards the box and opening it to reveal its contents, she found herself holding an unknown device as it appeared to be almost like a cellular phone. Perhaps this was the one thing that can help her give a sign that she was alright after all. However, before rushing into things, she also noted a small note inside as she began to unfold it and read its contents. As soon as she had finished reading it, she knew three things:
That wherever she was, they knew of her name.
That she was cordially invited her by “the Twelve”, whoever they were.
And finally, that they have asked her for a task, perhaps even a favor.
This, she understood although she still did not feel right about this. She felt honored that someone actually went through the trouble to bring her to a completely unfamiliar area, but she still couldn’t accept such invitation. Not when she had family and friends back home that she must go back home to, because sure enough they would worry about her. Perhaps if she had the chance to speak with "the Twelve", she can ask to return home. Yeah, that may be the solution, she thought to herself as she knew that in such a situation like this, she must think rather positively. Surely it would be something that even Kazehaya would want from her. He may not exactly be with her at the moment, but that didn’t mean that his optimistic words still couldn’t reach her. Because instead of being sad over what was going on, she could perhaps see it in a different light where she could be more positive and do something about her situation.
Finally wiping the tears from her eyes and recomposing herself, Sawako took a hold of both the device and note as the waters went back to how they were originally; calm and quiet. She knew that she had to find a way out of here before exploring the unfamiliar environment that now surrounded her. Who knows, perhaps the device she carried now would prove to be of use and very helpful to her by finding anyone who can help her reach home, where she rightfully belonged in.
Name & LJ: Kai | profagonist
Birthdate & Age: January 1, 1992 | 19
Characters played in Zodion: N/A
✖ CHARACTER:
Name: Sawako Kuronuma
Canon: Kimi ni Todoke
PB/Image: o1 | o2 | o3
Info links: Wikipedia | Wikia | Myanimelist
Canon Point: Post Chapter 51: Always Yearning For You
Gender: Female
Age: 16
Birthdate/Sign: December 31st | Capricorn
Tattoo: Sawako will have the sign of the Capricorn near her left shoulder, specifically below the acromion region. I’ve included this image as a reference source.
Suitability: When it comes to the concept of sex, that may still be unfamiliar to Sawako due to her naive personality. However, coming into Zodion, Sawako will eventually learn about sex and what it is like to experience such an intimate act. Despite how she may easily be embarrassed and shy to even think about doing such things, she would still learn and try to convince herself throughout the weeks that it is something necessary here. If Kazehaya happens to also come into Zodion, she will feel much more comfortable in performing such an intimate act with him specifically because not only are they in a relationship during this canon point, but she also has experienced many "first times" with him. Now that Sawako is in a relationship with Kazehaya, that has also allowed her to expand on her own personal experiences. For example, when Sawako wasn’t even familiar with the idea of kissing, but was brought up by her friend Ayane, that same night she had a dream of Kazehaya kissing her. Although it was embarrassing, the next day the two were close to actually kiss, as Sawako didn’t do anything to push him off or say no. If Kazehaya doesn’t happen to be there by her side as well, then despite how it will be very difficult for her to accept the terms with anyone else, she still knows that she can’t give up and will continue to do her very best in helping anyone that needs assistance. This scene specifically depicts how Sawako doesn’t falter despite the harsh circumstances and pressure she goes through, for example. Despite how there will be the pressure in worshiping, Sawako will not falter and do what she's determined to do by the end.
Something else that will help Sawako fend for herself in sex is knowing that in worshiping to the gods through sex, the world will continue to live, nourish, and thrive. She may take her time to do it eventually and may even be nervous and terrified, but she knows that if it’s helping someone or something in return, it can’t be all that bad at all. Rather she will feel good to a certain extent that she had helped somehow. After all, Sawako is able to adapt under circumstances because of her caring and understanding personality, as well as not having as much experience as others to learn from. Just how high school has been a learning experience for her in what it means to be a friend, and even a girlfriend, Zodion will become an environment where she can continue to grow and learn more about different relationships with people from different worlds.
Finally, what makes Sawako also suitable to be aged up, is due to her maturity and responsibility. She is known to be good at cleaning and cooking as her own father comments on her amazing cooking abilities and even makes a comment that she’s ready to be a housewife. During school, Sawako takes in charge of watering the school gardens by herself as well as doing any paperwork that the professor need assistance on. Throughout the years that she has done this, Sawako has never even minded as she actually finds it to be a nice and entertaining hobby. And so in learning that she has to have sex in Zodion in order to nourish the lands, it will take her some time to actually do it, but she knows that she will be responsible for it in order to help and make the gods happy.
Power: After much consideration, I would like Sawako to have the power of growth, which will allow her to make plants, wood, etc. grow a bit faster. Why I believe this power is the most appropriate for her is because she has been responsible for the school gardens since entering high school. Most importantly, no one had given her the job as she herself deliberately took responsibility to water the gardens almost every day, as well as watch them grow after time. This page is a good example of her love for the earth as one of her classmates even goes as far as to recommend her as an environmental officer due to her taking good care of the flowers. Also in this page, it shows how Sawako knows very much about specific plants and what cures they're able to offer if someone, for example, has diarrhea or even constipation. Not only can she offer to make plants grow a bit faster in Zodion, but she can also offer some knowledge as to what natural cures are available.
Personality: In the opening lines of the series, Kimi ni Todoke, Sawako Kuronuma is described as having “pitch black hair and skin that’s pale even in the midst of summer.” Her frightening image has given her the nickname "Sadako", from the Japanese horror film “Ring”, since elementary school. However, it was not until high school that the rumors grew worse as everyone who knew of Sawako constantly claimed that she can see ghosts, and whoever looks straight into her eyes for more than ten seconds will receive the worst of luck possible. In the very opening pages of the series, Sawako is seen doing many kind things for her classmates, however, they completely misunderstand her intentions and become frightened, avoiding her along the way. These same rumors that have been spreading throughout high school have made it difficult for Sawako to interact with others. For the most part, she has spent her high school days to herself, unable to form any friendships of sorts.
Despite her plain and ordinary appearance, Sawako is a kind-hearted person who follows her favorite motto: “One good deed a day”. She is truly gentle and means no harm to anyone, despite her appearance. All she really wishes is to do one thing that would benefit others and to see their smiling expressions in gratitude. Despite how Sawako achieves in doing a good deed a day, she doesn’t acknowledge it upon herself that she’s doing something extraordinary, because she sincerely believes that anyone can do what she does. Someone who she immediately acknowledges and holds her respects for is her classmate, Shouta Kazehaya. Like Kazehaya, Sawako admits that she wants to become a person who doesn’t scare or intimidate others. For example, Kazehaya is someone who is immediately surrounded by almost everyone in the classroom. She can see it in their expression that they all truly admire him and see him as an amazing being. Sawako, on the other hand, is completely the opposite of him, but she believes that if she can learn how to be just as approaching and welcoming, someday, she too can have friends.
Despite how everyone seems to be quite intimidated by Sawako as no one talks to her or even approaches her, Kazehaya was the very first person who would confidently approach her and greet her with a “good morning”, and a sincere and bright smile. At that very moment, Sawako realized that Kazehaya was the ideal person she wished to be, someone who was such a good person and was liked by everyone else. She wanted to be just like Kazehaya who always had a bright smile and seemed to be confident in who he was as a person. It was obvious that Sawako would have a long way to go, seeing as her monotone voice and “scary” appearance made it all the more difficult to communicate with others. However, one of the most positive aspects of Sawako is that despite the harsh challenges that are up ahead for her, she would never give up on what she set her mind to do. Even if everyone else saw her as a frightening girl who was capable of hurting someone, only she knew herself best and hoped that soon, everyone would see her for who she is.
From the very beginning, something that Sawako always wanted to have was friends. Throughout her previous years in school, she didn’t have many friends at all, occasionally just one or two. In the beginning chapters, they also go on to show one of her childhood friends that attends the same school, but they only appeared to be more like acquaintances. Even then, they never really lasted long in their conversation and Sawako be by herself again, hoping that perhaps someday she would have the true friends that she has always wanted. Even though high school has allowed her to see just how devastating rumors can be and how it can ruin one’s life, it has also brought her what she always wanted with the support and help of Kazehaya himself. When everyone ignored her and avoided her, Kazehaya was the very first person who approached her without any problems. Since then, as the two of them talked to one another, even by exchanging greetings of “good morning”, it allowed for others to slowly realize that perhaps Sawako wasn’t such a harmful and scary person after all. What began as Kazehaya being her idol and the person who she wished to be, turned into something much greater.
Sawako constantly explained that if it hadn’t been for Kazehaya, she would have never made any wonderful friends. Since the moment where Kazehaya was welcoming, Sawako had been given the opportunity to meet two more people that evidently become her best friends, Ayane Yano and Chizuru Yoshida. Sawako was happy upon realizing that both Ayane and Chizuru were two very good people to her. This is seen when the classroom was about to have their new seating arrangement. When Sawako is given the choice of picking first, which ends up to be near the back of the classroom, none of her classmates wished to sit next to her at all, thinking that they’d be cursed by her. However, the four people who decided to sit next to her, and not by choice but by their own will, are Kazehaya, Ayane, Chizuru and Kazehaya’s best friend, Ryu Sanada. Given this opportunity, the whole group is able to get to know Sawako much better as they all begin to share fond memories with one another. When rumors began to spread about how Chizuru used to be a gang member and how Ayane is someone who dated hundreds of guys before, as well as Kazehaya’s reputation going down all because of Sawako, she believed that this was her fault for associating with them in the first place, causing her to suddenly start avoiding them. Her intentions aren’t cruel however, as she only wished for them to be happy, even if it meant not being her friend anymore. Even when asked if she considered any of them her friends, she has a hard time admitting to it because she believes that it’s quite selfish of her to assume so quickly that they’re friends so soon.
When Sawako begins to doubt herself, the first person who reassures her is Kazehaya. By explaining to her how she would feel if everyone of them began to ignore her, Sawako soon realizes how she must have hurt her friends by avoiding them all this time because of misleading rumors. Thanks to the supporting words of Kazehaya, Sawako gains the strength to confront those who were spreading the rumors in the first place, explaining that everything has been a misunderstanding and that she truly loves her friends. It was that type of feeling that was even unknown to her, but she finally understands what it means to have such special friends who are kind to her and never gave up on her as well. Finally, these same friends that remain true to her throughout the series are the same ones who continue to motivate her, to grow as a strong and open person who will surely shine and become better at communicating with everyone else.
Another motivational goal for Sawako is to help others and see them succeed. Sawako is generally a very selfless person who always wishes to do a good deed everyday. She’s very thoughtful and caring in that aspect and if anyone ever appeared to be troubled, she’d want to be right there to help and support them along the way (although many of the people who she has tried to help misunderstand her intentions and flee away from her). When it comes to school, Sawako is always the first person to raise her hand up and volunteer to help the teacher with the classroom after school. Whether it’s collecting books or simply organizing all of the paperwork that needs to be done, Sawakos takes great enjoyment in doing just that and never takes “No” for an answer. Another example is when the class is about to prepare for a test and no one seems to understand the material that the teacher has been going over. Kazehaya is the first one to ask her for help and she is able to quickly explain to him the problem and even show him how to work it out in the simplest way. When everyone in the class overhears him say that he really understands, that brings the class to ask her for help and sure enough, she helps each one by one and in the end, they all get improving scores.
Another aspect of her personality is having motivation and always doing her best even when she isn’t good at doing something. This is seen when the school is beginning to get ready for a sports festival. Despite how Sawako has never played a sport before, and it would be her first time playing soccer, she is constantly wanting to improve her ability. Her friends even motivate her to continue tying and help her along the way, but she feels bad when they set aside their plans in order to help her. In the end with the help of Kazehaya, she begins to improve more and more until the day of the soccer match where she is able to properly kick the ball and help her teammate score a goal. All of the fond memories that she shares with everyone allows for her to be grateful of all the people in her life and how she will continue doing her best no matter what.
As we explore the deeper regions of Sawako’s personality, she really is someone who is very understanding and cares for others first before herself. She’s very nice and reasonable, as well as open-minded and responsible; all of these positive aspects make her a very likeable person. Even if her classmates are careful around her because of her appearance, she doesn’t mind the fact that they ignore her. Sawako is known to empathize with those who aren’t as respectful and kind to her as well. A huge example of this is when Kurumi comes into her life and pretends to be her friend in order to get her away from Kazehaya, because she also has very deep feelings for him. Despite discovering Kurumi’s true intentions and how she was cruel to Sawako to the point of saying that she hated her and she never treated her as a friend, Sawako still manages to forgive her in the end and doesn’t allow her friends to tell Kazehaya what she did to her. To Sawako, even if Kurumi was simply pretending to be her friend, she still found the emotions that she felt and the memories she spent with her to be meaningful.
Since Sawako is a very understanding person who is always considerate of others, she happens to become very involved with her friends’ problems to the point where she gets quite emotional and finds it difficult to say just the right words of comfort. Despite how she wishes to be a very good and loyal friend, she hasn’t really experienced having friends so it’s quite difficult for her. When Chizuru is completely shocked by the news that her long time crush is going to get married, Sawako becomes deeply concerned for her, but finds it really difficult to find the right words to say at the given situation. This constantly begins to bother her and Ayane, and as time goes on, Chizuru appears to be completely fine, when in reality, the news was something that surely was bothering her as well. These concerns are brought to Kazehaya’s attention as he encourages both Sawako and Ayane, and even reassures them that as friends, it’s not always the right words that are the best solution, but simply being there as a friend.
When it comes to the quirks and mannerisms of Sawako, she is portrayed as someone who is serious and very polite. She definitely speaks much more formal than most classmates, but at the same time she has many things that make her a bit more of a humorous character that is completely oblivious to the surroundings around her. As the series progresses, Sawako’s feelings of admiration towards Kazehaya slowly begin to change to feelings of love, which takes time for Sawako to realize in the beginning. Upon realizing these feelings for him, it makes it even more difficult for her to talk to him and approach him. Nonetheless, the moments that they have together by themselves are one of the most meaningful ones and special to her. When she is approached by him however, she is easily startled as her speech is in a much more stuttering motion. Sawako ultimately cannot lie either, as she has always been the kind of person who is straight-forward and always says what her emotions tell her to say, even though it may be something that is completely different for her.
Finally, the last things to explore through Sawako’s personality are her flaws and personality traits. Since Sawako has constantly been surrounded by negative comments about herself because of her appearance and nickname, she is used to being ignored as she has no self-respect for herself. Right away, there is an immediate lack of confidence as she even begins to put herself down and sometimes even believes that what she does for others isn’t necessarily good enough. Her feelings for Kazehaya begin to make Sawako feel more self-conscious about herself where she even begins to question whether it’s alright for her to feel this way towards him and if she honestly deserves him. An example of this behavior from her is seen when she meets Kurumi who is helping her pick up her fallen books. Sawako immediately comments that she appears very beautiful and radiant just like the sun as well as appearing to be like a doll. Sawako wishes to become just like that as well, where she can be pretty and also as open and lovely as Kurumi herself.
Sawako is rather dense and oblivious. There have been many events in the series where she happens to be oblivious to the fact that Kazehaya may have a special interest to her. Other examples have even involved her believing the rumor on how Kazehaya's reputation will go down if she continued to be around him that had been spreading around the school and have also caused problems between her and her friends. In the end, Sawako manages to make these misunderstandings come to an end, although her obliviousness made her avoid her friends for a few days instead of allowing herself to speak properly to them first.
Finally, something important to take note of is that Sawako has really bad social skills despite how she really wishes to try to greet others and to be as welcoming, encouraging and as nice as she can be. Instead of trying to express herself through her facial expressions that she is happy and welcoming, her tone of voice and expression come out the complete opposite which causes her to be easily misunderstood and for the rumors to continue spreading constantly. She may not mean to appear in such an intimidating way, but even so by the time that she tries to explain herself, everyone has disappeared and ran away. On a more comical side of things, despite how Sawako is really good at sewing, she is terrible at drawing. This is seen when Chizuru goes over the notes that Sawako hand made for her as she analyzed the drawing and commented on how bad of a drawing it was. Despite these minor setbacks, what she does for others, especially her friends, is something that is so admirable about Sawako’s personality. As the series continues to progress, Sawako’s personality continues to grow and beautifully shine into someone who is more confident in herself and believes in everything that she is able to do.
✖ SAMPLES:
"Zodion" First-Person Network Entry:
[As the screen monitor suddenly turned on, much to her surprise, it slowly faded in to pitch black hair and skin that’s pale even in the midst of summer. To many she is known as “Sadako”, for her similar appearance to the horror movie character in “The Ring”, however her name is in fact Sawako Kuronuma, who is one the most generous, kind, and noble people you’ll ever meet.
Having arrived to Zodion in a blink of an eye, it was natural for Sawako to possess many questions; about Zodion, about the vague note, and even about the strange tattoo that is now permanently on her skin. Sure enough if her father were to see such a sight, he would most definitely worry and panic. As she continued to gaze towards the communication device, she quickly bowed her head and began to speak in a soft and slight shaky voice:]
U,um, excuse me...
My name is Sawako Kuronuma and I appear to be slightly lost.
[Brief pause since she’s rather nervous and she’s not even sure whether anyone can really see her recording.]
I’ve also received a very kind letter from “the Twelve”, though I don’t know who they are exactly. They’ve entrusted a task from me, but... I---
I’m sorry, I can’t. I don’t think I can do it. I can’t support this with all of my heart because I have my family and my friends back home that I miss, and surely are wondering where I am right now.
[And because she is misunderstanding “worship” to be a form of prayer and best wishes in this note...]
A-ah! I can still “worship” by sending my best wishes to "the Twelve" for the “fate of the cosmos”, but afterwards I’d like to ask if I can go back home... and ah, if I can also have this tattoo removed from me. I,It looks nice, but I don't think I'm ready to have one right now.
"Zodionlogs" Third-Person Prose Entry:
Sawako was unable to have much sleep that night as she found herself excited, yet nervous, due to the fact that she would be spending her day with her boyfriend, Kazehaya. As soon as morning came by, she had spent some time preparing herself for the exciting day, as she was now ready to walk out to meet with him. However, the instant she had stepped through the doorway of her door entrance, she found herself in a completely different environment in the blink of an eye. Clearly this was something completely unexpected as she found herself to be confused and surprised even. “?!? W-where am I?... T-this... this isn’t my house anymore.” Perhaps she was still dreaming, she thought to herself, as she gazed up at the sky that dimly lit her surroundings. And just to make sure that she was still dreaming, she placed her fingers upon her arm as she readied to pinch herself.
However, before doing such thing, she suddenly saw before her a stoned alter, as she couldn’t help but to walk towards it, completely forgetting that she was about to pinch herself to make sure that none of this was a strange dream. Taking the first step upon the stoned alter, she suddenly felt a sharp sting near the back of her shoulder, as she couldn’t help but to put her hand on the spot as a reaction.
“H-huh? … W,what… what was that?” She softly asked herself as suddenly the waters surrounding the alter rose up. What was even more surprising was her own reflection as it reflected back her same image, but without any of her casual clothing on; she was completely nude. Sawako quickly looked down upon her own body only to see the same clothes on her still, yet the reflection showed a different picture. She simply couldn’t help but to cover the most exposed parts of her body, despite still being clothed, as someone could be watching her at the moment. The mere thought of it made her embarrassed as a soft pink color rose upon her cheeks. At that point, as she continued to cover herself, did she see a mark on her left shoulder; a mark that glowed, which was the same spot that she had felt the sharp sting.
“A…a tattoo?!” She remarked as she approached the reflection closer only to see the sign of the Capricorn on her. Just what exactly did this mean? Even she couldn’t comprehend and sure enough because she could still feel the slight sting, this surely was not just any dream. This was in fact happening to her as the sudden thought of Kazehaya came to her mind, thinking that perhaps he was still waiting for her near his home. However, judging by her current circumstances, she could not be able to make it after all. If only she carried her own cellphone to tell him this, instead of making him wait for her. And what about her own parents and friends? They surely will begin to question her current whereabouts and wonder what happened to her.
To worry everyone like this was something that Sawako would much rather want to avoid as she didn’t wish for them to feel troubled because of her. After all, surely they had other things to worry about or to think about when she was in fact fine. The sudden thought of everyone’s sadness... Sawako simply couldn’t help but to become sad as well as her eyes began to tear up. If she had the opportunity to just talk to them one more time or to give them any kind of sign that she’s alright, she surely would do it, but there was nothing that she can do except explore the small box that was now resting before her.
Reaching down towards the box and opening it to reveal its contents, she found herself holding an unknown device as it appeared to be almost like a cellular phone. Perhaps this was the one thing that can help her give a sign that she was alright after all. However, before rushing into things, she also noted a small note inside as she began to unfold it and read its contents. As soon as she had finished reading it, she knew three things:
That wherever she was, they knew of her name.
That she was cordially invited her by “the Twelve”, whoever they were.
And finally, that they have asked her for a task, perhaps even a favor.
This, she understood although she still did not feel right about this. She felt honored that someone actually went through the trouble to bring her to a completely unfamiliar area, but she still couldn’t accept such invitation. Not when she had family and friends back home that she must go back home to, because sure enough they would worry about her. Perhaps if she had the chance to speak with "the Twelve", she can ask to return home. Yeah, that may be the solution, she thought to herself as she knew that in such a situation like this, she must think rather positively. Surely it would be something that even Kazehaya would want from her. He may not exactly be with her at the moment, but that didn’t mean that his optimistic words still couldn’t reach her. Because instead of being sad over what was going on, she could perhaps see it in a different light where she could be more positive and do something about her situation.
Finally wiping the tears from her eyes and recomposing herself, Sawako took a hold of both the device and note as the waters went back to how they were originally; calm and quiet. She knew that she had to find a way out of here before exploring the unfamiliar environment that now surrounded her. Who knows, perhaps the device she carried now would prove to be of use and very helpful to her by finding anyone who can help her reach home, where she rightfully belonged in.