Saizo

Saizo (サイゾウ, Saizō) is a playable character in Fire Emblem Fates. He is voiced by Tarusuke Shingaki in the Japanese version and by Benjamin Diskin in the English version.

Profile
Saizo is a retainer of Ryoma, and the twin brother of Kaze. He has a hotblooded personality that can become fired up easily and, as a result, his partner Kagero often has to restrain his recklessness.

Saizo and Kaze are members of a ninja clan from Igasato, found in the Hoshidan mountains. His clan has served the Hoshidan royal family faithfully for many years. Their father, the former Saizo, was killed by Kotaro in an unknown incident. Saizo took up the name as the fifth head of the clan and traveled to Mokushu to search for his father's killer. There he found him, but was unable to assassinate him. Caught by the Mokushujin, Saizo barely managed to escape, though he received a scar on his head and lost his right eye.

Like Kaze, Saizo is very handsome. He is well aware that his face attracts women, so he hides his face in order to smoothly carry out a given task. On the other hand, Kaze does not seem to realize that he is very attractive.

In his supports with Kagero it is revealed that the two of them were lovers at one point in the past, however, they gave up their relationship to dedicate themselves to serving Hoshido. The said relationship can be potentially rekindled through an S-Support.

If he achieves an S-Support, he will have a son named Asugi.

Birthright
In Chapter 7, Saizo is stationed at Fort Jinya where he assists the Hoshidan forces to repel a Nohrian attack. After the battle, the Avatar allows Silas into the army. Saizo is concerned considering that Silas is of Nohrian descent, but allows him to join after some persuasion by the others.

Later on in Chapter 9, Saizo helps Hinoka foil Zola's trap into killing the Avatar and Sakura after the princess thought that Izana would never act so foolish due to being royalty.

Conquest
The group has multiple encounters with Saizo on this path.

The first comes at Chapter 12 where Saizo is one of the enemies the player must fight in order to reach Ryoma or escape. If Kaze engages in battle with him, Saizo remarks that he never thought his twin brother to be a traitor. Kaze stands by his decision, but wishes he didn't have to fight his brother. Saizo wishes the same. If defeated, Saizo will drop a Flame Shruiken before retreating.

In Chapter 17, the group runs into Saizo once again within the cavernous labyrinth that Kotaro leads them into. He will speak with Kaze, where he reveals to him that Kotaro was the one who murdered their father, and that he wishes to avenge him. He also reveals that the Mokushujin captured Kagero as a bargaining chip with Hoshido. The Avatar and their allies are attacked by the Mokushujin shortly afterwards.

Saizo does not join your party, but he becomes an ally for this battle. With his Locktouch skill, he is able to disarm the traps set by Kotaro's men. If he engages Kotaro in battle, they exchange heated words with Kotaro taunting Saizo about his father's death. If Saizo defeats Kotaro, he mentions that his father's death is now avenged.

Should Saizo survive the battle, he will give the Avatar a Speedwing as a gift. However, he warns the Nohrians that the next time they meet, they will be fighting as enemies.

His last appearance comes at Ryoma where he and Kagero are stationed with several Hoshidans to stop the Nohrians. The player can optionally kill him during battle (it is required on Hard or higher if the player wishes to bring their main army into the central room). If Ryoma is defeated by the Avatar while Saizo is still alive, it is unknown what happens to him afterwards.

Revelations
In Chapter 8, Saizo is stationed at Fort Jinya after the battle between Hoshido and Nohr concludes with the Avatar and their company going rouge. The Avatar eventually arrives at the fort in hopes of gaining support from Hoshido first to deal with Valla, but is believed to be a traitor and is attacked on sight. Saizo, Orochi, and Yukimura are eventually defeated by the Avatar's forces. Refusing to give up, Saizo decides to blow himself up in hopes of killing the Avatar, but Kaze and Sakura step in to stop him. Kaze explains that the Avatar saved him from execution in Nohr and believes their story. Saizo trusts his brother at the very least, and allows the Avatar and Kaze, along with Sakura, to leave with no further conflict.

After rescuing Takumi and his retainers in Izumo, the Avatar passes by Mokushu where Kaze notices a smoke bomb from Saizo warning them of an enemy threat. Interpreting this as a means to get Saizo into their cause, the Avatar and their army head to the heart of Mokushu where Saizo, Orochi, and Reina were trying to rescue Kagero. The Avatar quickly makes contact with Saizo, saying that they came to rescue them. Seeing that the Avatar does not have any malicious intents, Saizo believes in the Avatar's good will and joins their army. Saizo can battle Kotaro and if he lands the killing blow, he will avenge his father's death.

Personality
In contrast to his brother Kaze, who is very calm, Saizo is brash and temperamental. He also becomes very frenetic when provoked, experiencing tremendous surges of passion that compel him to behave irrationally. This fact is made particularly evident in Chapter 17 on the Conquest route, where Saizo, guided by his feelings of seething hatred towards Kotaro, blindly throws himself into the heat of battle in a bid to exact vengeance on the man responsible for his father's demise.

Saizo has also been portrayed to be extremely cold and unfriendly towards people whom he is unfamiliar with, a fact that extends towards his allies. This is not without a cause, however; given his occupation as both a spy and one of two personal bodyguards of Ryoma, it thus comes as no surprise that he chooses to maintain a hostile attitude as a measure of caution. Saizo's careful vigilance is made especially evident through his initial support conversations with people like Azura and the Avatar, where his inability to trust anyone with a Nohrian background causes him to constantly keep a close eye on their actions under the justification that they could be plotting something sinister. However, he will acknowledge them properly if they have proven themselves to be friendly-- in his supports with Azura, she gains his trust by healing him while he's wounded, and in the Avatar's case, he trusts them after a while (in Birthright, he deems them "incapable" of making any threats, while in Revelations, believes in their good will).

Juxtaposing Saizo's anti-social behavior is the fact that he is extremely shy regarding gentler emotions, becoming very easily embarrassed and flustered whenever people either display affection towards him or tease him. Through his supports with Sakura, for one, he becomes visibly agitated when she light-heartedly remarks that it is hard to imagine him purchasing candies, dropping his usual facade of cool levelheadedness as he stutters uncontrollably before hastily departing from her side. Despite Saizo's cold demeanor, deep down he does have a caring side which he goes to great lengths to disguise. This is demonstrated in a support where the Avatar is carrying heavy things and Saizo goes out of his way to help. He tries to mask the good deed as only having done it because of his "honor", but quickly gets embarrassed for showing his soft, caring side.

Through Saizo's supports with Laslow, he is revealed to be a keen, astute observer, possessing the ability to determine a person's origins and history by watching their swordsmanship skills.

Like Kagero, Saizo is loyal to Ryoma and would gladly sacrifice his life for him. Should the player fight him with Kaze on Conquest, he will state to him that he is extremely disappointed and ashamed by his brother's actions. In his supports with Ryoma, Ryoma is worried about him because he feels that he is not being paid enough for his services. Saizo tells him that he does not need to worry about his payroll and that he is blessed to be his retainer.

He hates sweets the most out of everyone in the army. His birthday is October 2nd, the same as Kaze.

Base Stats

 * -|Birthright Chapter 7 - A Vow Upheld=


 * -|Revelation Chapter 11 - Mutual Enemies=

Conquest Chapter 12 - Bitter Intrigue

 * -|Normal=


 * -|Hard=


 * -|Lunatic=


 * In Guard Stance with Kagero. Guard Stance: +1 Move.

Conquest Chapter 25 - Ryoma

 * -|Normal=


 * -|Hard=


 * -|Lunatic=

Revelation Chapter 8 - Traitor's Brand

 * -|Normal=


 * -|Hard=


 * -|Lunatic=

Xenologue 20 - Memories of Foam 6: Unfinished Dawn

 * -|Normal=


 * -|Hard=


 * -|Lunatic=

Conquest Chapter 17: Den of Betrayal

 * -|Hard=

Growth Rates
◾ Note: Growth Rates are based on the character in their starting class
 * 45%
 * 55%
 * 45%
 * 80%
 * 50%
 * 55%
 * 50%
 * 25%
 * }

◾ Note: Growth Rates as an Master Ninja
 * 45%
 * 55%
 * 45%
 * 80%
 * 50%
 * 55%
 * 50%
 * 30%
 * }

◾ Note: Growth Rates as a Mechanist
 * 50%
 * 60%
 * 45%
 * 75%
 * 40%
 * 60%
 * 50%
 * 25%
 * }

Max Stat Modifiers

 * +1
 * 0
 * +3
 * -2
 * 0
 * +1
 * -2
 * }

Standard Sets

 * }

Friendship Sets

 * -|All Routes=


 * }
 * -|Birthright/Revelation=


 * }
 * -|Revelation=


 * }

Partner Sets

 * -|All Routes=


 * }
 * -|Birthright/Revelation=


 * }
 * -|Revelation=


 * }

Special Classes

 * }

Supports
Romantic Supports Other Supports
 * The Avatar (Female)
 * Orochi
 * Kagero
 * Oboro
 * Rinkah
 * Hana
 * Setsuna
 * Felicia
 * Azura
 * Hinoka
 * Sakura
 * Mozu
 * Charlotte (Revelation)
 * Beruka (Revelation)
 * The Avatar (Male)
 * Ryoma
 * Kaze
 * Subaki
 * Laslow (Revelation)
 * Asugi
 * Shigure (if Saizo is his father)
 * Kana (if Saizo is his father)

Quotes
Refer to Saizo/Quotes.

Possible Endings

 * Saizo - Angry Ninja (爆炎使い Bakuen Tsukai lit. Explosive Flame User)
 * While no official records of Saizo the Fifth exist from after the war, later scholars agreed that he most likely stayed in Hoshido, working covertly for the Hoshidan royal family. What else would he do?


 * Saizo and Felicia
 * Saizo disappeared from official records after the war, but no doubt he served the royal family forever. Felicia gave up her career in the service industry for the military, ultimately becoming a commander.


 * Saizo and Hinoka
 * Saizo disappeared from official records after the war, but no doubt he served the royal family forever. His wife, Hinoka, became general of the Hoshidan royal army, and the two remained together always.


 * Saizo and Rinkah
 * Saizo disappeared from official records after the war, but no doubt he served the royal family forever. Rinkah's fiery personality ensured her husband's life was not boring, and they loved one another well.


 * Saizo and Mozu
 * Saizo disappeared from official records after the war, but no doubt he served the royal family forever. His wife, Mozu, meanwhile, was a constant source of support and a humanitarian in her own right.

Etymology
Saizo possibly shares his name with a member of the legendary Ten Braves, Kirigakure Saizō.

In the Japanese version, his support conversation with his son, Gurei (or Asugi in the English version), reveals his name can potentially be 彩造 (彩: color; 造: make), not 才蔵, like the legendary Kirigakure Saizō. In their conversation, his son asked why Saizo named him "Gurei/Gray", while Saizo means a totally different thing.

Trivia

 * Saizo shares his English voice actor, Benjamin Diskin, with Jakob and Hayato.
 * He also shares his Japanese voice actor, Tarusuke Shingaki, with Stahl and Gerome from Fire Emblem Awakening
 * Kaze and Saizo are the first members of the Cain/Abel archetype whose base classes are not Cavalier-based.
 * Saizo placed 15th for males in the official character popularity poll.
 * In the NA version of Saizo and Oboro's C Support, there is a typo where Saizo says "I'm a solder" instead of "soldier".