Hiyoko Saionji

Hiyoko Saionji (西園寺 日寄子 Saionji Hiyoko) is one of the characters featured in Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair.

Hiyoko has the title of Ultimate Traditional Dancer (超高校級の「日本舞踊家」“chō kōkō kyū no Nihon buyōka”).

Hiyoko was murdered by Mikan Tsumiki along with Ibuki Mioda in Chapter 3 after ending up in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Appearance
Hiyoko is a very petite girl with long, blonde hair that is generally seen tied into curved twin tails. At first sight, Hajime Hinata remarks that her voice and her appearance don't give off the air of a high schooler at all. In the game, she has gold eyes and keeps her hair up with two hair-ties, both of which consist of a green ribbon with a cat face in the middle.

Hiyoko is dressed in an orange, traditional furisode kimono with a white floral print pattern, and a green obi sash which is tied around her waist and secured with a bow at the back. In her official artwork, she is instead dressed in a pink kimono with a red sash, her hair put up in one ponytail instead of two, tied up with a Kanzashi with pink flowers and holds a fan.

In the news paper clipping of Hiyoko from the real world she is shown to be much taller and bustier. She has only one ponytail tied back with a black scrunchie. Hiyoko also wears a yellow kimono with a pink rose-outline pattern, and a purple obi sash. She also wears zori (Japanese sandals). Her outfit reflects the fact she is the Ultimate Traditional Dancer.

Personality
Hiyoko's cute appearance, voice, and (initially) her way of talking give off the impression she is innocent and childlike. However, in her introduction alone, it is quickly revealed that she is cruel with a malicious side in how she squishes ants while telling Hajime that they make a satisfying popping noise if done correctly, and even invites him to join her.

Later at the beach, Hiyoko goes around trying to step on and trample the crabs, laughing as if it were just child's play, showing an alarming fascination with violence. She also constantly judges others and patronizes them with rude insults, with Mikan and Kazuichi Soda being the most common victims.

Hiyoko often takes a jab at Akane Owari as well, though she, unlike Mikan or Kazuichi, doesn't get frustrated but rather actually takes her pranks into serious consideration. Hiyoko is able to manipulate the others to do her bidding easily. She proves this when Akane agrees to investigate the motel on the third island under her request.

In one of Hiyoko's free time events, she revealed to Hajime that one day, Akane saw Hiyoko stomping flowers. She asked Hiyoko what was she doing, but Hiyoko was disturbed and annoyed toe explained to her, so she told Akane that stomping and kicking her food before she eat it gives her a lot of more protein. Then she actually started eating the flowers, but she said they didn't taste that good.

On the other hand, Hiyoko loves Japan and its cuisine very much, and does show some innocent and childlike traits like her liking for gummy candy or konpeito. She is also prone to tears when humiliated, such as in Chapter 2 when Akane says something smells and it turns out to be coming from Hiyoko. She also seems to hate it when people don't side with her, such as in one of her Free-Time Events when she tries to get Hajime to go and beat up Kazuichi with her. She also often passes off her crying as fake tears, though Hajime notes that it probably isn't true.

Hiyoko becomes attached to Mahiru Koizumi after the latter helps Hiyoko take a shower and shows her how to tie her obi, even referring to Mahiru as 'big sis' afterwards. Though reluctant at first, Mahiru went along with it and became close to Hiyoko.

Hiyoko also hated being deceived to and it was proven in Chapter 2 when she felt annoyed and flustered by Monokuma's invitation that was actually made by Nagito Komaeda. In Chapter 3, Hiyoko told directly to Hajime that she hated being deceived by others.

After the events of Chapter 2 and with Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu's apology and subsequent re-opening of his wounds, Hiyoko attempts to change herself for the better, becoming somewhat less hostile and not insulting as much (except to Mikan, to whom she is just as mean to as ever).

History
[Warning: Several spoilers follow this section!]

Prior to the Tragedy
Hiyoko's Free-Time Events reveal that she lived with her grandmother and is heiress to the Saionji Clan, which is also the head of the school of traditional Japanese dance. Being the heiress, many people were jealous of her to the point of bullying her, such as poisoning her food or putting needles in her shoes when she was a young child, among other horrible things. In addition, her grandmother, though she treated Hiyoko well, only cared about pride of the family, to the point where Hiyoko couldn't even see her own parents.

Because of Hiyoko's past, she considers herself part of the noble class and everybody else meager slaves. Hiyoko is said to be a rookie dancer, but it is said that her family has high expectations as she has done many shows overseas. She is also popular with younger audiences, though most of her fans are older males.

While in Hope's Peak Academy, Hiyoko befriended Mahiru Koizumi, Ibuki Mioda, Mikan Tsumiki, and Sato. During their time together, they discovered a corpse in the music room. This was later revealed to be Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu's sister, who was murdered by Sato. A few days later, Sato was killed by Fuyuhiko. When Mikan, who was late, asks what's wrong, Hiyoko suggests her to enter the classroom. This part of Hiyoko's life was revealed in Monokuma's second motive, "Twilight Syndrome Murder Case".

Much later, Hajime finds a news article in the glitch version of Hope's Peak Academy that shows an older, much more mature-looking Hiyoko, showing that their time spent on 'Jabberwock Island' was actually a memory of their time when they first came to Hope's Peak while in reality, their bodies had matured around 2–3 years (approximately).

Prologue - Welcome to Dangan Island! Panic at the Heart-Throbbing School Trip!?
Hiyoko can first be found hanging around at the Usami Corrals. Hajime notes that she was poking at the ground repeatedly for some reason, which later turns out to be that she was crushing (popping) ants. She invited Hajime to join her, but he declined, which makes Hiyoko call him a wuss.

Chapter 1 - Destination Despair
Later, Mikan and Kazuichi quickly turn into easy targets for Hiyoko's cruelty. She also started to bought gummies from the supermarket. Otherwise, she does not have much of a significant role in either Prologue or Chapter 1.

Chapter 2 - Sea and Punishment, Sin and Coconuts
At the beginning of Chapter 2, after everybody gathered at the Restaurant, Akane suddenly speaks up and tells everyone that she smells something bad. Although everyone was confused at first, the smell turns out to be coming from Hiyoko, who becomes frustrated and begins crying. She admits that she hasn't been able to take a shower for the few days, due to the fact that she is unable to properly wear her kimono by herself and that it isn't her fault that she smells.

While most of the others go off to investigate a new island, Mahiru offers to help Hiyoko, who immediately happily drags Mahiru off to take a shower with her. If Hajime has a certain item with him at this point, he will go to peek at them taking a shower together. For the rest of the chapter, Hiyoko has a close bond with Mahiru, often hanging around her and referring to her as 'big sis'.

Later, after Mahiru's murder in the Beach House, Hiyoko acts suspicious and runs away when Nagito tries to question her about whether Mahiru tried to talk to her before her death. It's revealed that Hiyoko was one of the Twilight Syndrome Murder Case characters, labeled as Girl B.

During the Class Trial, Hiyoko is initially heavily suspected as to being the culprit. She immediately denies all the accusations in tears, yelling that there would be no way that she would've killed her big sis. Thanks to Hajime and Chiaki Nanami's efforts, it is determined that all the evidence that seemingly pointed to Hiyoko were actually traps set by the true culprit to frame her instead.

Hiyoko admits that she was actually the first witness to the body of Mahiru, and ran out the Beach House in panic. Thanks to a multitude of testimonies from Hiyoko, Kazuichi, and Chiaki, Hajime arrives to the conclusion that Peko Pekoyama was the murderer. She is found guilty and executed, with Fuyuhiko heavily injured in the process.

Chapter 3 - Trapped by the Ocean Scent


Later, in the beginning of Chapter 3 after Fuyuhiko's injury, Hiyoko snuck into the Restaurant before anybody else in the morning and made a sinister-looking memorial to honor Mahiru, to which she had thought that everyone would be happy over.

However, Hiyoko's expectations were ruined when everybody, not knowing Hiyoko had made it, commented that the memorial was creepy and unsettling to the point that even Gundham Tanaka thought it was evil. Not wanting everyone to know that she had made that 'creepy and unsettling' memorial, she goes with the flow and comments about how Mahiru wouldn't like it at all as well, until Chiaki points out that the memorial was surely made with an honest intention.

Hiyoko begins crying and admits she made the memorial because she thought Mahiru would be lonely, and apologizes for how it looks since the only thing she can do is dance. Hiyoko then asks for them to not burn it, to which the others agree, keeping it up for Hiyoko and Mahiru's sake.

When Fuyuhiko comes back to the group, Hiyoko openly shows her distrust and dislike of him, as he is essentially the cause of Mahiru's death. Despite that, after Fuyuhiko apologizes and bows down to the floor at the expense of re-opening his wounds, and later seeing him earnestly trying to change for the better, she forgives him and tries to change herself for the better as well.

After Monokuma's announcement of Chapter 3's motive, the Despair Disease, is given, Hiyoko along with Kazuichi, Gundham, Sonia Nevermind, and Chiaki move to the Motel near the Hospital so they can keep in touch with those staying at the Hospital.

Hiyoko, however, locks herself into her own Motel room and initially doesn't come outside because she doesn't want to contract the Despair Disease. Later, Sonia finds her door half-open and goes to check up on Hiyoko, who she finds with her clothes half-on and crying. She attempted to wash herself and put her clothes back on the way Mahiru had taught her properly how to do, and yet she wasn't able to, causing her frustration.

At Sonia's recommendation, Hiyoko went to the Live house and planned to use the full-body mirror there to fix her kimono. However, she witnessed Mikan murder Ibuki on the way and she was murdered by Mikan with a slit to the throat.

Mahiru Koizumi
Hiyoko's friendship with Mahiru blooms in Chapter 2, when the latter helps her take a shower and then wear her kimono correctly. Since then, Hiyoko regularly referred to Mahiru as her 'big sis' or 'big sister Mahiru'.

Although Mahiru was initially reluctant to be dragged around by Hiyoko, it is evident that Hiyoko greatly looked up to the other as she was devastated by Mahiru's death, and later made her a memorial. Even after the events of Chapter 2, Hiyoko tries to take a shower and put her clothes back on by herself since Mahiru had taught her with so much patience, and was extremely frustrated to find out that she couldn't.

Mikan Tsumiki
Hiyoko is quick to latch onto Mikan, but not in a friendly way. Mikan quickly became a common target for her bullying. She constantly makes rude remarks towards Mikan without any particular reason to do so.

It was shown that Hiyoko and Mikan's relationship had been the same even before the Pre-Despair Incident when they were all students of Hope's Peak Academy, evidenced by the Twilight Syndrome Murder Game in which they were Girl A (Mikan) and Girl B (Hiyoko). In Chapter 3, Hiyoko ends up being murdered by her, not due to her actions, but merely because she had witnessed Mikan killing Ibuki.

Hajime Hinata
Hiyoko appears to like Hajime more than most of the others, calling him Big Bro. He apparently reminds her of her father. She does think that Hajime is bland and a wimp at times.

Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu
Besides the other people that were fallen victims of her bullying, Fuyuhiko was also targeted by Hiyoko. She often called him a coward yakuza, or an ugly baby-faced yakuza. Later at the end of the chapter 2, Hiyoko developed a feeling of hatred for him.

Hiyoko blamed Mahiru's and Peko's deaths on him and Hiyoko still refused to apologize to Fuyuhiko after he lost his right eye. Even when Fuyuhiko gave her and the others an awkward greeting she still refused to apologize to him, and even cornered him, which caused him to jab his own stomach to show his guilt to her. Finally, Hiyoko agreed, forgave him and chose to cooperate.

Ibuki Mioda
Hiyoko appears to think of Ibuki as a friend, despite the fact that she often insults her. She joins her improvised band as a dancer. During the events of chapter 2 it is revealed that both Ibuki and her, along with Mahiru, Mikan and Sato, were friends at Hope's Peak Academy.

Ibuki appears to like her as well, though she is amazed by how many tears Hiyoko can cry. They seem to have a similar taste in music, which is revealed in Ibuki's "Welcome Back" party for Fuyuhiko. Ibuki played one of her songs, but Hiyoko was the only one who enjoyed it. In the end, Hiyoko and Ibuki were murdered together by Mikan.

Sato
Prior to The Tragedy, Hiyoko got along with Sato (including Mahiru, Mikan, and Ibuki) which was later revealed in Monokuma's second motive, "Twilight Syndrome Murder Case".

Presents
Obtained from the MonoMono Machine.
 * Cloth Wrap Backpack
 * Biggest Fantom
 * Paper "10th Act Verse"
 * Century Potpourri
 * Rose In Vitro

Choices
During free time conversations, the player will occasionally be given a choice on how to respond to something that is said. These are the 'right' choices.
 * Confeito
 * To protect his daughter
 * Sonia

Skills
These will aid you, usually during Class Trials.
 * Pivot Turn - Erases all dummy panels. Effective during Closing Argument.

Quotes

 * “Hmmm? I'm Hiyoko Saionji.”
 * “Squish! Squish!”
 * “Um, um...I've been thinking this ever since I first met you... You have a shady-looking face, and you look like the kind of person who's too lazy to try hard. And not only that, I think you're so hopeless for coming after me like some pedo pervert!” (to Hajime Hinata)
 * “Honestly, everyone on this island is a huuuge weirdo! Ah, except Mahiru!”
 * “Hey, isn't it stressful when someone you're not interested in at all tries to talk to you?”
 * “Jeez Hajime...you're such a pushover. You totally promised me without realizing it was impossible...and you even got tricked by my fake crying! Jeez, you're so hopeless. I gues I'll go easy on you and make you bring me something else.” (to Hajime)
 * “That thing you call 'friendship' is just bunch of weaklings plotting together. This world is divided between with a chosen noble like me, and those who serve us as slaves. That's why I don't need to team up with something like friends...”
 * “A slave should never talk back to their master!”
 * “Hey Hajime. Are you thinking about killing me? Then you better make it quick, 'cause if you fail, you're the one that's gonna die, y'know? You're not even thinking about killing me? Are you a coward? Or are you just too stupid to do it?” (to Hajime)
 * “I'm just saying we should take good care of the things that are close to us. I know I have an old-fashioned way of thinking because I'm involved in a hobby with over 400 years of history. But what's wrong with old-fashioned things? Of course...I don't intend to disagree with the new direction Kabuki Theater is taking these days... But I think it's a good thing to protect things that need to be protected.”
 * “I love flowers 'cause they're soooo pretty! I used to play at flower gardens when I was a kid. It was lots of fun stomping them and messing them up! It's fun to stomp pretty things with my feet and kick them all over the place.
 * “Huh!? What does that mean, you stupid, ugly, idiot!? You're so meeeeeeeeean!” (to Hajime)
 * “How can you perform a traditional Japanese dance if you don't have a heart that cherishes flowers? You don't understand at all, do you?”
 * “I seriously love traditional dancing, Japanese candy, and Japanese food. And as much as I love these... I seriously love stomping on disgusting things!”
 * “Well, it's so elaborately made that it's pratically art. They're so small and sparkly and cute... I love them so much. Foreign sweets are made with too much sugar, so they're perfect for uncultured idiots.” (talking about traditional Japanese candy)
 * “You're unrefined, common human being Hajime, so of course you wouldn't understand... You have to make it a habit to be mindful of the very tips of your fingers at all times! That's also the very first move in dance!”
 * “Well, no duh. What's wrong with that? Friends are what you call a bunch of weaklings who decide to get along and play nice, right? The world is filled with people who exist to serve perfect humans like me. That's why I don't need friends or any close contacts...”
 * “I had a reaaaaal bad dream today. The next time you casually say my last name, I'll kill you.”
 * “I hate my last name! Everyone who shares my last name...eventually dies a crazy death!”
 * “There's nothing lamer than being envied by people who have no talent at all!"
 * “Life isn't that easy.”
 * “That's why...it really makes me happy when you talk to me...Heh, as long as I say that, everyone gladly agrees to become my slave.”
 * “Man, people who can't read between the lines are the worst... Their lives are completely worthless.”
 * “Rice, fish, vegetables, miso, soy sauce... I could totally live of that stuff alone. I seriously can't stand smelly, oily people who eat tons of meat! They think and act like stupid animals.”
 * “Jeez...that's why opportunists are such useless cowards.”
 * “I'm always serious!”
 * “She's nothing but sturdy toy, y'know?” (talking about Akane Owari)
 * “From her face, brain, style and personality, the only good thing here are her ears!” (talking about Ibuki Mioda)
 * “What am I going to do?! Just listening him to speak is embarrassing!” (talking about Gundham Tanaka)
 * “You sure you're not exaggerating about your 'powers'? Aren't you just a breeder?” (to Gundham)
 * “You're really kind-hearted. Well...in your case, I guess that's a good thing.” (to Hajime)
 * “Ha! A nasty, trashy, pigshit like you doesn't have any privacy rights!” (to (Mikan Tsumiki)
 * “Short and foulmouthed...? That's like the complete opposite of me!”
 * “No one would kill a nice person like Mahiru besides a piece of shit, menace to society like Fuyuhiko!”
 * “What are you even saying, you nasty, toilet-clogging bitch!?” (to Peko Pekoyama)
 * “I-I don't have such ugly footprints! They're probably Mikan's based on how ugly they are!”
 * “People who call other people liars...are usually liars themselves.”
 * “Saying I met up with her when I never even saw her... Is this a panel of idiots?”
 * “There's no way I'd wear such a childish mask! Is your brain fried or something!?” (to Akane about the Sparkling Justice mask)
 * “Y-You're a midget too, you know! You're the one who worries about never getting taller!” (to Fuyuhiko)
 * “I'll get my revenge! I'm gonna bop you on the head with all my might!”
 * “There's no way I'd kill Mahiru... Cause...Mahiru taught me how to wear a kimono...and she was very, very kind... There's no way I would kill a nice person like her! Why wouldn't you believe me earlier!?”
 * “You guys are stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!”
 * “Shut the hell up, pig barf! I hope you get a hangnail and die!” (to Mikan)
 * “Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! How mean! Give me back Mahiru!”
 * “Stop being annoying or I'm gonna make Akane bop you on the head and shut you up for good.” (to Hajime Hinata)
 * “Wh-Whatever! Let's hurry up and vote so we can freaking kill this weird, crazy bitch!” (talking about Peko)
 * “mrmrmraaaaants-o,,o,,o’(~=squish--~;31-o,,o,,o’mi$s[@Ma9hiru8823” (Hiyoko's cottage post-fifth trial)
 * “I told her that you only understand piggy-talk!” (to Byakuya Togami, about Ibuki)

Trivia

 * Saionji (西園寺) translates to “Western garden temple” while Hiyoko (日寄子) means “Child who brings forth day”.
 * Her report card states that:
 * She likes bubble wrap, otherwise known in her terms, "squishy squishy". She also hates sour food (sour stuff in the english localization) and being scolded,
 * Her Bloodtype is B,
 * Her chest is 25 in.
 * Her title is often translated as the Ultimate 'Classical' Dancer. In original Japanese, she is known as the Ultimate 'buyō-ka', or a master of buyō dance, which is a traditional form of Japanese art that combines the act of moving to a rhythm and dancing.
 * At some point during the game, the remaining students find out that about 2-3 years have passed since their actual enrollment at Hope's Peak Academy after a glitch in the Neo World Program reveals a newspaper article featuring Hiyoko in her actual current appearance - considerably taller and much more adult-looking.
 * Hiyoko has a bit of a sweet tooth; she mostly eats gummies. However, she never eats yellow gummies, due to her dislike of sour food.
 * Hiyoko's Japanese voice actress, Suzuko Mimori is known for her part in the Japanese dub of the American cartoon series  Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic - matching the "cutesy" motifs in Hiyoko's character design and her childish and innocent façade.
 * It could also be that the part of the game following Hiyoko's introduction, where Nagito tells Hajime about how she personally contributed to the recent rise in the popularity of the Nihon Buyō classical dance - yet her audience is mostly older men - was also meant to have an underlying reference to My Little Pony's Brony fanbase.
 * The creators of the game originally intended for Hiyoko to live instead of Fuyuhiko, but they realized that this way, Peko's death would be for nothing. They then scrapped Hiyoko as a survivor and had her get killed by Mikan.
 * The quick change is evident by how the main characters don't even look for the murder weapon used on Hiyoko.