Yuyuko Saigyouji

L
80

Boundary of Time

The usual outfit of Yuyuko, who has almost reached the end. She carries her Blue Blossom Blade and Blossoming Blade.

Boundary of Time
Voice Lines

Voice Sets

Sword Dancer's Dance
VA: Ike Chisako
Saigyou Ayakashi Branches
VA: Kakumoto Asuka
Cherry Blossom Illusion
VA: Tanaka Tomomi

Character Information

Temperament: Nagori Yuki

Nagori Yuki (a Touhou LW original) refers to snow that lingers on the ground after winter's end or snow that falls during spring. This is an apt temperament for this Yuyuko, who continues to make her way beyond the world's death. Yuyuko's temperament has been fully reconstructed. She's a ghost who stands on the border between life and death (Water Phase). She's imbued with the temperament of the cherry tree that can't blossom, the Saigyou Ayakashi (Wood Phase). The flexible and patient Water Phase resists Metal Phase, because metal collects water, but it is weak to Earth Phase, because earth directs water. The strong and kind Wood Phase resists Water Phase, because water nourishes wood, but it is weak to Metal Phase, because metal carves wood.

Ability/Backstory: Capable of manipulating death (Lost)

The ability of Yuyuko Saigyouji, who has almost reached the end (a Touhou LW original). Yuyuko completely lost this ability due to a Lost Word. She is currently regaining it little by little, though not through restoring or replicating her old ability, but with a newly constructed original ability that formed a core to build upon. She has continued to travel across worlds to try and end the Lost Word Incident. In the cycle of life, the four seasons, spring, summer, autumn, and winter, correspond to birth, growth, fruition & decline, and death, respectively. And just as spring follows winter, rebirth follows death as the cycle continues. This cycle is also known as the karmic cycle, and the process of rebirth is known as reincarnation. To explain the concept of "life," you also need the concept of "death." All living beings die, and it is only through living that one can die. You can't refer to a being that doesn't die as "alive." According to one record, all beings exist on the infinitesimally thin line between life and death... The transition from winter to spring is the same as the one from death to life through reincarnation. This makes Yuyuko's Spring Snow Incident an infinite series of reincarnations, meaning it will never end. The incident directly brings attention to the land of Hourai, which is free from both death and life; Yuyuko's existence as a ghost removed from the karmic cycle; and a dream for revival that will never come true. It's thought that the daughter of the Fujimi family written about in an old record was Yuyuko Saigyouji before she died and that hers is the body buried beneath the Saigyou Ayakashi. In other words, it's Yuyuko's body buried there. When the Saigyou Ayakashi reaches full bloom, that body will revive, and the ghost Yuyuko will be reborn as a human. However, she'll also experience the passage of 1,000 years all at once, causing her to vanish in an instant. The Saigyou Ayakashi is a greater youkai that used to drain people's life force with an insatiable thirst, but now, it's sealed away by Yuyuko's corpse, never to bloom. It's thought that Yuyuko doesn't know that, however, on account of her losing her memories. Even after the incident ends, it's likely things will remain that way. When Yuyuko came face-to-face with the Lost Word Incident and its power to erase both life and death, there was surely nothing she could have done. However, if the Saigyou Ayakashi remembers Yuyuko from before she died, perhaps it can awaken the Fujimi family's daughter and tip the scales in Yuyuko's favor with a powerful "invitation to death." Swords That Can't Cut Yuyuko's Blue Blossom Blade and Blossoming Blade are wooden swords made from fallen branches of the Saigyou Ayakashi. Youmu's Hakurouken is the treasured sword of the Konpaku family, and her Roukanken is a blade forged by youkai. On the other hand, both of Yuyuko's swords emerged from among the Saigyou Ayakashi's branches as reproductions based on the Saigyou Ayakashi's memories of the Konpaku family's swords. The Saigyou Ayakashi is far bigger than any other cherry tree, with its branches being considerably thicker than a normal cherry tree's trunk, meaning Yuyuko's wooden swords are of the highest quality. Moreover, since the Saigyou Ayakashi is a greater youkai, they are also greater youkai swords. However, since they're wooden, they can't slice through anything, and are known as "Swords That Can't Cut," with the fictitious style of swordsmanship Yuyuko practices with them being known as "bladeless." The lower these two swords' cutting potential, the better they can exhibit their power. There are so few things they can cut through that their cutting potential becomes negative, giving them the power to "un-cut" that which has been cut. Blue Blossom Blade This is the longer of the two Swords That Can't Cut. It's a wooden sword that emerged on its own based on the memories of Youmu's Hakurouken carved into the Saigyou Ayakashi's rings. The Hakurouken slices through regrets and sends spirits of the dead to nirvana. The Blue Blossom Blade, on the other hand, induces regrets and prevents the spirits of the dead from moving on. Furthermore, the Japanese word "seirou" (lit. "blue blossom") means the abode of a nobleman or beautiful woman, while "hakurou" (lit. "white blossom") means the abode of someone of low status. Blossoming Blade This is the shorter of the two Swords That Can't Cut. It's a wooden sword that emerged on its own based on the memories of Youmu's Roukanken carved into the Saigyou Ayakashi's rings. The Roukanken contains the power to slay ten phantoms with one cut. The Blossoming Blade, on the other hand, prevents even a single phantom from perishing. The Japanese word "rouchu" (lit. "blossoming") means indoors, while "roukan," (lit. blossom viewing) means to look out at cherry blossoms.

Attacks

White Blossom Slash

The Spread Shot of Yuyuko Saigyouji, who has almost reached the end (a Touhou LW original). She thinks of Hakurouken while swinging her Blue Blossom Blade. Yuyuko doesn't appear to have learned much in the way of swordsmanship, and her fencing instructor, Youmu, is supposedly still inexperienced. So when Yuyuko decides to swing her sword, she isn't very good with it. She isn't able to cut, so her style of swordsmanship must allow for that not to matter. It's known as "bladeless."

Bullets
  • Raikiri Wielder's Sword Spirit
  • Raikiri Wielder's Blade Soul
  • Raikiri Wielder's Phantom
  • Raikiri Wielder's Temperament
  • Raikiri Wielder's Mind
  • Raikiri Wielder's Soul
Blossom-Viewing Slash

The Focus Shot of Yuyuko Saigyouji, who has almost reached the end (a Touhou LW original). She thinks of Roukanken while swinging her Blossoming Blade. The transition from winter to spring represents reincarnation. This is the natural flow of the karmic cycle, but it's a reversal of the cycle of life. Yuyuko's two wooden swords were made from branches of the Saigyou Ayakashi and are, thus, "bladeless." This means they can't cut, and so slicing with them results in a "negative slice," which is the same as undoing a slice. Yuyuko is a ghost who remains trapped between winter (death) and spring (birth), meaning she doesn't reincarnate. The Saigyou Ayakashi has a similar quality in that it cannot bloom, but by using swords made from it, Yuyuko can turn her own state of limbo into an advantage. Fates will intertwine in the reborn world as she makes her way there from the lost world.

Bullets
  • Sohaya Wielder's Blade Soul
  • Sohaya Wielder's Sword Spirit
  • Sohaya Wielder's Temperament
  • Sohaya Wielder's Phantom
  • Sohaya Wielder's Soul
  • Sohaya Wielder's Mind
Hakugyokurou: Spirit's Sword Dance Training

A Spell Card of Yuyuko Saigyouji, who has almost reached the end (a Touhou LW original). She recalls her previous fencing instructor, who left upon attaining enlightenment. Before Youmu took over as the Saigyouji family's fencing instructor, the role was carried out by her grandfather, Youki Konpaku. Yuyuko doesn't appear to be that skilled with a sword, perhaps because her ability makes swords unnecessary, but it could also be because she avoided taking Youki's overly strict lessons. Whether the Prismriver sisters were already performing at Hakugyokurou when Youki reached enlightenment is unclear... but it would be nice to think they all met.

Bullets
  • Spirit Swordsman's Fencing Lessons
  • Spirit Swordsman's Gardening Lessons
  • Spirit Swordsman's Defense Lessons
  • Eldest Poltergeist's Performance
  • Second Eldest Poltergeist's Performance
  • Third Eldest Poltergeist's Performance
Hakugyokurou: Unknown Poet's Fujimi Poets Society

A Spell Card of Yuyuko Saigyouji, who has almost reached the end (a Touhou LW original). She artificially recalls someone she herself has no memory of. It's likely that Yukari Yakumo knew the famed poet who died under a cherry tree. The poet lived in the Heian Era, which was a time rife with conflict between humans and youkai. Perhaps Yuyuko and Yukari met during that very era.

Bullets
  • Unknown Poet's Poets Society
  • Unknown Poet's Poetry
  • Unknown Poet's Poem Recital
  • Nekomata Listening Intently
  • Nine-Tailed Fox Listening Intently
  • Greater Youkai Listening Intently
Banquet - Saigyou Ayakashi Pruning Dance

The Last Word of Yuyuko Saigyouji, who has almost reached the end (a Touhou LW original). The Saigyou Ayakashi and Yuyuko guide each other in this attack. Yuyuko doesn't know of the fate she once led herself to or the hidden truth of the Saigyou Ayakashi. Although, aside from certain individuals in special positions, like Yukari Yakumo, it's likely no one knows those things. But does the Saigyou Ayakashi know? According to the reliable records discovered thus far, the Saigyou Ayakashi has always maintained perfect silence. (Although it may just be a youkai incapable of speech.) But for over a thousand years, it's been watching, and those memories should be carved into its growth rings. Plants are not silent beings that never move; it's just that moving takes them an extremely long time. Their roots spread underground like a nervous system, which may allow them to sense things at distances well beyond the likes of any animal. If the Saigyou Ayakashi does spend an incomprehensibly long time thinking carefully about things, what will it think of Yuyuko Saigyouji when the Lost Word Incident arrives? And what will it do?

Bullets
  • Saigyou Ayakashi Sword Song - Full Bloom
  • Saigyou Ayakashi Sword Song - 3mm Prune
  • Saigyou Ayakashi Sword Song - 6mm Prune
  • Saigyou Ayakashi Sword Song - 9mm Prune
  • Saigyou Ayakashi Sword Song - 12mm Prune
  • Saigyou Ayakashi Sword Song - 15mm Prune

Skills

Skill: Saigyouji Daughter

The design of the mansion and the fact they retain fencing instructors means the Saigyouji family were likely samurai.

Skill: Huaxu Ghost

Since long ago, death has been likened to sleep. In the Kingdom of Huaxu, the dead await their reincarnation.

Skill: Netherworld Bloom

The cherry blossoms bloom, and the ghost dances. Watching it all is the Saigyou Ayakashi, the only cherry tree that never blooms.

Passive: Ancient Spirit of the Dead
Passive: Invitation to Death
Passive: Deathbed Death Manipulation