Seiryuu no Miko: Yui Hongo
Birthdate: October 26, 1977
Birthplace: Tokyo
Age: 15
Height: 162 cm (5’4")
Weight: 49 kg (107 lbs)
Measurements: 81-56-83 (32-22-33)
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Blue
Blood Type: AB
School: Toritsu Daisan Junior High, Ninth grade, classroom 4
Family: Two working parents, an only child
Interests: Music, reading, and Tamahome
Flaws: follows her head and not her heart, feels betrayed by Miaka
Seiyuu: Touma Yumi

Yui Hongo is Miaka’s best friend who was the one who suggested they go to the National Library in the first place. There, they discover the “Shi Jin Ten Chi Sho” and are both sucked into the book. When they are both rescued by Tamahome, we don’t realize it until later, but Yui thinks she fell in love with him at that moment. However, she is sent out of the book and returned to the library alone. She picks up the book and begins to read about what is happening to Miaka. Their school uniforms serve as a link between them so whatever happened to Miaka would happen to her as well, such as blood stains on her clothes and a high fever. Through their strong bond and the aid of the first three Suzaku Seishi, Miaka is sent home to her world. But somehow, in exchange, Yui is taken into the book.

She ends up in Kutou where she is assaulted by a group of thugs. She faints and when she reawakens, finds herself in the care of Nakago, the Kutou Shogun and the first of the Seiryuu Seishi. She believes that the men had raped her and she tries to kill herself. Within the three months that she is there without Miaka, Nakago instills in her fear and doubt about Miaka’s loyalty, slowly breaking down her will and making Yui believe that Miaka had left her there to die. When Miaka does finally return for Yui, she overhears her telling Tamahome that he was the reason she came back and at that moment, Yui’s heart is broken and she turns against Miaka, becoming the Seiryuu no Miko.

Yui tends to think more with her head than her heart. She justifies her actions with logical, clear-cut explanations. As long as she has an excuse with rational support and evidence, then she believes it is the right path to take, despite her inner doubts telling her to do something else. This made her susceptible to Nakago’s manipulation, especially since she only heard his side of the story and eventually began to believe that there could be no other side. Yui has an authoritative side as well, but her weakness is that once she makes a decision, she refuses to back down. Even if she feels she may be doing the wrong thing, she carries out her actions to the end, feeling that a decision made cannot be unmade. Due to this flaw, she is prone to making mistakes. She fears that if she backs down, she will become vulnerable and vulnerability is a weakness even though she relies on the strength of others to fortify her own.

Seiryuu Seishi:

+Nakago:
Real Name: Gi Ayuru
Star Pattern: Scorpius
Symbol: "shin" or "kokoro" - Heart
Birthdate: 11/17
Birthplace: Unknown
Age: 25
Height: 193cm ~6'4"
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Blue
Blood Type: Unknown
Family: Mother - Matuta (deceased); Father - Koyuu (deceased)
Seishi Power: Unknown, numerous (able to use chi energy in many ways)
Location of Character: Forehead
Interests: Using others to reach his own ends
Flaws: can't show emotions, complete hatred of the world
Seiyuu: Furusawa Tohru

Nakago is the first of he Seiryuu Seishi to appear. He is drawn to Yui’s presence in the book world, and is able to save her from her assailants before they do any real harm. But because he does everything only for his own purposes, he manipulates Yui into believing she was raped and that all her pain is Miaka’s fault, turning Yui against Miaka so she would agree to become the Seiryuu no Miko. Nakago is ruthless and cruel, but deals with his enemies with an icy calmness. He is an expert manipulator, planning his strategies far ahead of time and playing everyone into his game to reach his ultimate ends.

He is incredibly insightful to others’ behaviors and emotions despite his lack of closeness with anyone. He knows just which strings to pull to get what he wants from people and doesn’t care what method it takes to do it. When those around him become useless, he disposes of them without care, even his fellow Seiryuu Seishi.

Nakago’s hatred of everyone and everything is rooted in his horrific past. He was born to the Hin tribe, a race of people with blonde hair and blue eyes. Their rare coloring was why his people were hated and considered substandard. Young Nakago did not understand their blind hatred though and questioned their discrimination. Kutou sent an army to destroy them when he was ten, and he had to witness the brutal rape of his mother. It was then that his powers were awakened and in an instant, he burned five soldiers and his mother to death. Nakago was taken to the emperor who decided to keep him as he was destined to become one of the Seiryuu Seishi. The emperor was a sadistic man who had a special interest in Nakago, and even took the boy to bed. Nakago grew up with hatred and revenge in his heart and he swore to the heavens that he would have his vengeance. He increased his powers and perfected his control of them until the day when the Seiryuu no Miko would appear and he could take one of her wishes for his own, becoming a god so that he would be the one to deliver death and judgment to all.

You hate him at first but in the end, can’t help but feel empathy at why he became the man he was (although all his actions were still deplorable).

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+Amiboshi:
Real Name: Bu Koutoku
Star Pattern: Virgo
Alias: Chiriko or Aniki (by Suboshi), later Kaika
Symbol: "ko" - high spirits
Birthdate: 8/26
Birthplace: Kutou Country, Sanun-shou, Tenryou-shi
Age: 15
Height: 168cm ~ 5'6"
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Blue
Blood Type: A
Family: Younger twin brother (Suboshi). Both parents dead.
Seishi power: Able to focus chi through the mouth aided by flute
Location of character: Right shoulder
Interests: Composing music
Flaws: too nice to be a Seiryuu seishi ^_^
Seiyuu: Ueda Yuji

Amiboshi first appears impersonating Chiriko and making Miaka and the others believe he is their final member. He ruins the summoning ceremony and then almost kills the Suzaku no Miko and the Seishi with the power projected from his flute. They are rescued by the real Chiriko, and Amiboshi makes a run for it. He is cornered by Tasuki and Tamahome with his back to the flooded river. His foot slips and he falls backward, but Miaka grabs onto his flute, clinging to it and pleading with Amiboshi, believing him to have a good spirit, believing that no one who played such beautiful music could be bad. Her belief in him must have touched him somehow, but he lets go and falls head first into the river.

He is believed to be dead until he shows up much later, rescuing Miaka from a giant weasel. He was found on the bank by an old couple who adopted him as their son; he became known as Kaika. He pretended amnesia so he could stay in the village and live in peace. He felt since he had ruined the Suzaku ceremony and the Seiryuu no Miko could not perform the ceremony without him, he could prevent the war between countries from ever happening. He hated war because he and Suboshi’s parents had been killed in one, and he questioned the motivations of such conflicts. But when he rescues Miaka, he eventually comes clean and admits he remembers everything that happened.

Amiboshi is a kind-hearted boy who is actually quite averse to death and killing. After meeting Miaka and spending time with the Suzaku Seishi, he wishes that he could have been born one of the Suzaku Seishi rather than a Seiryuu Seishi. He is gentle and sensitive to the emotions of those around him, playing his flute to ease their minds and lift their spirits. Amiboshi protects Miaka as if she were his Miko and his good heart leads him in the right paths. Amiboshi may favor peace, but he does not hesitate to fight in order to uphold what he believes in. He is also very brave for his young age, willing to fight against his fellow Seishi to protect Miaka.

Amiboshi first impersonated Chiriko because Nakago manipulated his peace-loving nature by telling him that the Suzaku Seishi were standing in the way of peace for Kutou. He eventually realizes Nakago’s evil intentions though, and joins with the Suzaku Seishi.

Amiboshi has a younger twin brother, Suboshi, who is also a Seiryuu Seishi. He loves his brother very much as he was the one who cared for him after their parents were killed, being the older of the two. They share a very strong mental and physical bond, being twins. Amiboshi is definitely the gentler of the two, wishing he could have shared in the destiny of the Suzaku Seishi.

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+Suboshi:
Real Name: Bu Shunkaku
Star Pattern: Virgo
Symbol: "kaku" - angle or horns
Birthdate: 8/26
Birthplace: Kutou Country, Sanun-shou, Tenryou-shi
Age: 15
Height: 168cm ~ 5'6"
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Blue
Blood Type: A
Family: Older twin brother (Amiboshi). Both parents dead.
Seishi power: Using telekinesis to control the ryuuseisui
Location of character: Left shoulder
Interests: Exercising
Flaws: acts without thinking things through
Seiyuu: Ueda Yuuji

Suboshi is Amiboshi’s younger twin, but the two are starkly different. Instead of learning to abhor war when their parents were killed as Amiboshi did, Suboshi learned that the strong survive. He is the third of the Seiryuu Seishi to appear in the story. He remains in Kutou while Amiboshi is masquerading as Chiriko in Konan. However, when Amiboshi falls into the raging river, Suboshi senses the loss of his twin’s life force. He is devastated and deals with the pain through revenge.

Suboshi is a brave warrior but also very immature and not yet a master of his powers. He is often reckless, acting on impulse rather than thinking his actions through. He becomes overwhelmed by his emotions and acts out blindly. Suboshi’s short temper often ends up in him retaliating without thought to the consequences. He can be incredibly cold-hearted and cruel, but at the same time, his capacity for love is also immense. After Yui shows him kindness after his brother’s death, he clings to her, protecting her with a fierce sense of loyalty. His deep love for his brother also motivates his actions, even driving him to kill to protect his older brother.

Suboshi falls in love with Yui, forcing him to leave his brother’s side to stay at Yui’s side. He harbors a twinge of jealousy over Yui’s feelings for Tamahome but hates Miaka, believing Yui’s story that Miaka is at fault for all her suffering. Unlike Amiboshi, Suboshi is dedicated to his Seishi duties and protects Seiryuu no Miko, Yui, with his life.

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+Soi:
Real Name: Haku Kaen
Star Pattern: Scorpius
Symbol:"bo" - tassel
Birthdate: 10/30
Birthplace: Western Kutou Country, Nei clan, Gen village
Age: 19
Height: 170cm ~ 5'7"
Measurements: 89-56-85cm ~ 35-22-33in.
Hair color: Reddish-Brown
Eye color: Blue
Blood Type: O
Seishi power: Ablility to control weather and electromagentism, also master of many sexual techniques
Location of character: Left upper thigh
Interests: Using make-up
Flaws: Doesn't speak up when she feels something is wrong
Seiyuu: Tanaka Atsuko

Soi is the fourth of the Seiryuu Seishi. She saves Suboshi from being killed by Tamahome. She also creates a huge storm to destroy the Suzaku Seishi’s ship and prevent them from reaching Hokkan in their journey to retrieve the first shinzaho. Soi is a complicated woman in that she is very loyal to the people she cares about, very brave in battle, and wields a strong will and even stronger powers, but there are times when she hesitates to kill her enemies because she is struck by the love between Miaka and Tamahome. Otherwise, she does what she must to achieve victory, but always with a clear head, never falling victim to her emotions.

Soi is also a master of Bouchu, which is the art of using sexual intercourse to raise or lower a man’s chi. Using her body is the only way she knows to express her emotions so learning to achieve anything deeper than a physical relationship has always been beyond her grasp. She is deeply in love with Nakago and it is her desire for him to return her love that is the driving force of her actions. She holds no personal hatred towards Miaka or the Suzaku Seishi (judging by some of her actions, she probably admires them) but for Nakago, she would do anything. Her love for him blinds her to the fact that he is using her, as he uses everyone, for his own purposes.

Soi fell in love with Nakago when he, then eighteen, saved her when she was twelve from being beaten by a man who was part of the brothel her family had sold her to. I still consider his actions to be curious and out of character but obviously, he must have had his own motives. Soi is a dedicated Seishi and will protect the Seiryuu no Miko by whatever means Nakago wants her to.

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+Ashitare:
Star Pattern: Scorpius
Symbol: "bi" - tail
Birthdate: 11/21
Birthplace: Penal Settlement, Northen Hokkan Country
Age: 34
Height: 213cm ~ 7'0"
Hair color: Brown-grey
Eye Color: Red
Blood Type: Unknown
Family: Unknown
Seishi Power: Half-wolf
Location of character: right hip
Interests: Eating human flesh
Flaws: All brawn and no brains
Seiyuu: Ootomo Ryuuzaburou

Ashitare is the half-man, half-wolf fifth member of the Seiryuu Seishi to appear. He was part of a circus for awhile until Nakago “saved” him and became his new master. Ashitare is very animal-like in that he is vicious and brutal but obeys the will of his master and has little self-control. He is basically more brute strength than brains. He has very keen senses, being half wolf, and is very powerful (he has to be if even Nuriko was impressed by his strength). Ashitare holds no qualms about killing and feeding off of people’s flesh.

The one positive trait he does have is loyalty. He is utterly loyal to Nakago, his master, no matter the abuse he is given. In the end, he will always obey and return to the one he knows as his master. I’m kind of torn between hating and feeling sorry for him. It’s obvious to anyone who’s watched the series why I would want to hate him (it still grates on me WHY WHY!!??), but I also want to feel sorry for him because it’s obvious he was treated like an animal all his life. One has to wonder if perhaps he was once more human than animal, and his cruel experiences shredded down his human side. Either way, he’s the one who gets sent to do the dirty work when needed.

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+Tomo:
Real Name: Chuin Ruo
Star Pattern: Libra
Symbol: "shi" - Root
Birthdate: 10/13
Birthplace: Unknown
Age: 21
Height: 184cm ~ 6'0"
Hair Color: Black
Eye color: Brownish-gold
Blood Type: AB
Family: Unknown
Seishi Power: Creating illusions using “shin” (his clam), telekinesis
Location of Character: Right lower abdomen
Interests: Torturing others with his illusions (he thinks he’s being kind by letting them die happy)
Flaws: Evil to the bone (and doesn't like women ;_; )
Seiyuu: Tobita Nobuo

Tomo is the sixth of the Seiryuu Seishi to make an appearance. We first learn of his appearance after tricking Miaka with a fake Taiitsu-kun and making her believe that if she sleeps with Nakago, she could lower his life force and retrieve the shinzaho. This would effectively make her unable to summon suzaku as she would no longer be a virgin. He is a master of illusions, using his victims own memories and desires to create his worlds of illusion. Tomo considers himself an artist, which is why he dresses up the way he does.

Much of Tomo’s childhood is a mystery as he was abandoned by his family at a young age, so he does not remember much, if anything, about his real family. He was taken in by a dancer who gave him a new name (his “real” name) as they did not know his old one. Tomo, I think, has a sort of loss of identity in that he doesn’t quite know who he is. He can take the persona of anyone he wants to in his illusions, and he was a performer, pretending to be other people, most of his life. I don’t think he knows, though, who he really is (I’ve even read somewhere that Tomo used to be SHY?!). Tomo is also homosexual and, although this isn’t emphasized at all in the anime, he has strong feelings for Nakago. He does all he can to win Nakago’s affections, putting him at odds with Soi when their mutual love interest is around. Even so, he has respect for her and can work with her when necessary.

Tomo’s attire is reminiscent of Chinese Opera regalia, probably because he joined a traveling opera troupe. He explains in one of the tv episodes what the colors on his face represent, which I won’t quote here. But underneath all that paint is a rather gorgeous man! Tomo is extremely handsome without all his “gear” ^_^ Despite his eccentricities, Tomo loves what he does and is a loyal member of the Seiryuu Seishi.

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+Miboshi:
Real Name: Unknown
Star Pattern: Sagittarius
Symbol: "mi" - Basket
Birthdate: 12/4
Birthplace: Unknown
Age: Unknown
Height: Unknown
Hair Color: Unknown
Eye Color: Unknown
Blood Type: Unknown
Family: Unknown
Seishi Power: Entering other people’s bodies, calling forth demons
Location of Character: Neck
Interests: Manipulating people at will
Flaws: Evil!
Seiyuu: Nakazawa Midori

Miboshi is the last of the Seiryuu Seishi. He joins Nakago in Sailo Country, to the west where he possesses the body of the head monk of a temple. Miboshi protects Yui from Tatara, a member of the Byakko Seishi, who is trying to convince her to return the second shinzaho to Miaka. Miboshi is very powerful, but very little is known about him, as he gave up his old body long ago in order to continue practicing the black arts. He finds it easiest to possess the body’s of children as they are less resistant. He has feels no mercy for those he possesses or for his enemies. He is loyal to Nakago, however, and does what he must to protect his Miko.

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