Saiko Yonebayashi

Saiko Yonebayashi (米林 才子, Yonebayashi Saiko) is a Rank 2 Ghoul Investigator, a Quinx, and the deputy squad leader of the Quinx Squad. She is one of the main protagonists for Tokyo Ghoul: Dragon Quinx (東京喰種トーキョーグール: ドラゴンクインクス, Tōkyōgūru: Doragon Kuinkusu).

Appearance
Saiko has two thick sections of hair worn in pigtails with uneven fringed bangs, possibly as a result of her laziness. Her kakugan is located in her left eye because of her status as a Quinx, and her face appears rather youthful; Saiko is a bit heavier than the average CCG agent, with notably thick and chubby legs. She is very short, especially for her age. She has light pale blue colored hair. Her right eye is a bright baby blue color while her left eye is bright red.

Six months after the Tsukiyama Family Extermination Operation, Saiko's hair is shorter.

Personality
Saiko is introduced as having a lazy demeanor. She dislikes having to work and prefers having a peaceful, happy-go-lucky and carefree life by playing video games and eating junk food excessively. She can display a childish nature such as when she sometimes talks in third-person. We can also add that she doesn't really try to lose weight but is rather embarrassed of it and humorously covers it with her finger during her introduction. She often oversleeps, which earns her the absence from most missions. Her absence can also be justified by a lack of motivation, it was her mother's decision for Saiko to become an investigator. This can also lead to Saiko being somewhat insecure about her abilities. Throughout the series, we can see that Saiko is in fact very talented in kagune manipulation.

Six months after the Tsukiyama Family Extermination Operation, she has become diligent in her responsibilities as an Investigator, providing an excellent example to the new quinx, and supports Urie in his duties as the deputy squad leader of the Qs squad. Also regarding of Shouta, she is completely smitten by the boy's appearance.

Haise Sasaki
In Tokyo Ghoul:re, Sasaki has great sympathy for her situation and admits to being too soft on her. Saiko has a very close relationship with him, referring to him affectionately as "Maman" (french for "mother") and treating him as a parental figure. She loves his cooking and cuddles with him at several points showing that the two have a strong familial bond.

After Sasaki left the Q-squad, their current relationship is implied to be distant. They seemingly no longer have the strong familial bond after the six-month time skip. However, Saiko still considers Sasaki a surrogate parent. She still refers to him as "Maman" even after his crimes at Cochlea were broadcasted. After he defected from the CCG, she continued to think about him and missed him dearly. In Dragon Quinx, upon hearing the death of Kaneki, whom Saiko used to know him as Haise, she burst into tears as Tohru tried to calm her down.

Tohru Kobayashi
Although Saiko dislikes Tohru because her large chest seem to cause her attention. Just like Hina, Saiko would eventually becomes jealous whenever Tohru helps Shouta or sometimes hold hands with him. She would eventually call her 'meanie' as if she sees anyone with a buxom figure like Tohru's. When Tohru stopped her from kissing Shouta, she eventually slapped her breasts. However, due to Tohru's kind attitude towards Saiko, she starts treating her nicely.

Shouta Magatsuchi
Due to his appearance, Saiko is deeply in love with him. She often talks to him about her life, including Haise and her late friend Ginshi Shirazu. Being deeply in love with him, Saiko would also threaten to kiss Shouta. However, Tohru stopped her before she could even do it, causing Saiko to slap her breasts.

Kuki Urie
He describes her as an ill-fitting cog in the machine and intentionally kept her from working with the team while Squad Leader. However, once he loses his position, he considers her an ideal tool to use against Shirazu. He manipulates and lies to her, and considers her stupid for not seeing through his bluffs. However, he seems to become more caring towards Saiko as time passes. After the Tsukiyama Raid, she now supports him in leading the Qs squad as his second-in-command. When fighting an out of control Urie, Saiko manages to calm him down enough to allow Hsiao to inject him with a suppressant by hugging him and telling him that she loves him.

The pair grew closer and supported each other in battles throughout the story. Years into the future, they are seen to have created a stable life in the Chateau as heads who lean on each other to guide the new generation of Quinx members.

Akira Mado
Akira deeply cares for her underling Saiko and looks after her wellbeing, even telling her not to eat too much. During Shirazu's funeral, Akira comforted a crying Saiko, telling her to let it all out. Saiko would often view Akira as a motherly figure.

Amon Koutarou
In Tokyo Ghoul:re, the two first crossed paths when Amon saved Saiko from Shikorae, though Amon left before Saiko could even know who he was or thank him. When Saiko encountered Amon during the Rushima Landing Operation, she recognized him as her savior from before and even pleaded to have ownership rights over him, wanting to know more about him. However, Saiko threw away her personal feelings towards Amon and crushed him with her kagune when the latter went berserk and overpowered her fellow squad members. Saiko then asked why Amon saved her back then, to which he replied it was the right thing to do. Before being crushed, Amon advised Saiko to always consider if her actions are right or wrong, reducing her to tears.

Powers and Abilities
Quinx Physiology: Being a quinx, Saiko has increased physical capabilities and a rinkaku kagune.


 * Rinkaku Kagune: Saiko's kagune was initially portrayed as two tentacles resembling a reptilian tail. What she utilizes during the Rosewald Investigation appears as a colossal insectoid structure with additional tentacles protruding from its end, being easily several times bigger than Saiko herself. Saiko is said to have the highest explosive power in the Quinx Squad and her kagune appears strong enough to take huge gouges out of concrete structures. It takes a significant amount of stamina to use, as Saiko has been consistently seen panting on the floor after a single usage, and requires recovery time for each blow and her body is left vulnerable while using it. After the Tsukiyama Operation, she is able to control her kagune more efficently, and for longer periods without any noticeable stamina loss. She can control its shape, either using it as several lashing tentacles or its giant form. Her kagune was able to temporarily subdue Koutarou Amon and later incapacitate his kakuja form.
 * Kagune Manipulation: Saiko can easily force her kagune to take on any shape she wishes to duplicate, as Hsaio mentions, it is an ability requiring considerable technique. Several of the forms Saiko has successfully created include a net and two destructive massive arms capable of smashing buildings, as well as multiple arms she may use simultaneously.

Bokusatsu No. 2: Saiko possesses a koukaku quinque shaped like a hammer.

Etymology

 * The name Saiko means "talent, genius, years old, cubic shaku" (才) (sai) and "child" (子) (ko).
 * Saiko's surname Yonebayashi means "rice, paddy, USA, metre" (米) (yone) and "forest" (林) (hayashi/bayashi).

Trivia

 * Shirazu states that Saiko had the lowest grades out of their group at the Academy.
 * Saiko was ranked fourteenth in the latest character popularity poll.
 * Saiko comrades refer to her as a NEET in :re Chapter 8, a term is used for young adults who are "Not in Education, Employment, or Training."
 * According to an omake in :re Volume 1, Saiko is a typical otaku with an interest in anime, manga, and video games. She has a twitter that Tooru Mutsuki uses to spy on her.
 * Due to Saiko's interests, she references in numerous other series:
 * In her room, a poster for the series Himouto! Umaru-chan can be seen.
 * She makes reference to the online game Final Fantasy XI while talking in her sleep.
 * In Tokyo Ghoul Trump, Saiko is featured as the "Three of Hearts."
 * Saiko's first kagune strongly resembles a caterpillar infected with Ophiocordyceps sinensis.
 * In an omake, Saiko seems to have some skill in drawing as she drew a picture of a monstrously muscled Urie, making fun of him always going out to train. Shirazu helped tape it onto the wall of Urie's room.
 * In the Tokyo Ghoul Flip Calendar, Saiko drew a short comic with Urie becoming extremely muscular like one of her previous drawings on the page for July 17th, and on the page for July 19th he is patting her head while reading it.

Quotes

 * To Haise Sasaki: "I'm dead. Deeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaad!"
 * Summarizing the events in the bakery: "Yo! Saiko here! Saiko was working from home just like always, when she suddenly received a text from Kuroiwa bujin inviting her to go out and eat! So she headed there gleefully! But as she arrived, she found out that Special Class Bowl-cut had been invited as well! Although her excitement was slightly dampened by this, as soon as she entered her favorite bakery, her cute little nose was filled with the wafting fragrance of bread and other baked goods, causing her appetite to burst once again! After exchanging pleasantries with a bakery employee, Miss Yoriko, Saiko daintily took her seat. Just as she was about to swallow her first sip of her glass of water, Takeomi suddenly blurted out a marriage proposal! This development was so shocking that Saiko accidentally overreacted and spat out all her water on Special Class Bowl Cut! What will happen to Takeomi... and what will happen to Saiko after all this?! Fired?!".
 * To Ching-Li Hsiao and herself: "Saiko doesn't want anyone to die anymore."
 * To Kuki Urie: "I'm looking. I've been looking all this time. Because Saiko loves you, Uri."
 * "Well... Men say this and that, but... Shove a pair of big tits in their face and they shut up right quick."
 * To Hsiao about Urie: "But just like Maman his tendency to take everything on ends up hurting him. That's for turning against Saiko. Sleep."
 * To Urie, Hsiao and Touma Higemaru: "I guess I'm out of this joint. I'll become a neet. No, a terrorist."
 * "The CCG is a slaughter house! Saiko doesn't want to be a part of it anymore!"
 * To Hsiao about Urie: "Nope. The captain returned to his senses on his own. He's a strong person, Uri. He's become strong."
 * To Tohru: "You keep those colossal irrespirable fun bags (her breasts) away from my Shouta! Or do you want me to slap them again?"
 * To Shouta: "I... I've been in love with you ever since I see you at first glance. My heart felt heavy at this moment."