(⁠＠⁠δ＠⁠﹁) (⁠◉⁠ω◉⁠)⁠¯⁠\⁠

Happy Birthday to one of my all-time favorite characters. She's a fantastic character, and I thank Yū Kobayashi for doing her character justice. I cannot imagine anyone else who could pull off such comedic timing and convey such powerful emotion to bring a character like Sarutobi to life as she has. I always loved how there is a woman who can keep up with the men of the series in the dirty jokes department. That's something impressive when you consider the strong male ensemble of Gintama.

Sadly, Sorachi did not go through with the Ninja arc he initially intended for the Oniwabanshu. I wish he had honed in on her skills and interest in Gintoki more frequently, since that's how she came into the series by literally crashing down into his life, and why she continues to play a consistent role in his life. Her confidence in her skills and her unwavering devotion to Gintoki deserved to be taken more seriously than what ended up being written in the end.

She puts on a front to combat whatever she assumes has been going on between Otae and Gintoki; however, her bravado and composure, which make her appear to be the "better" woman, makes her rare moments of vulnerability even more notable to me.

I wish the ninjas had gotten the initial arc they were supposed to, because this aspect of her character would be more evident to fans. I admire how much she truly ended up caring not only for Gintoki but also for the rest of the people around her in the end. She ended up loving and appreciating her friends and how they would laugh together.

I especially wished for a Ninja arc because, unlike many fan favorites, she never gave up hope or wavered in doubt when things were at their worst. We see a good example of this in the silly Monkey Hunter arc when everyone grows frustrated to the point of doubting that they will ever get back what they lost. She presses forward and inspires Gintoki to continue the search, rather than accept the current state of things.

In Be Forever Yorozuya, she breaks down in front of her rival Otae, expressing a rare showcase of vulnerability and dissatisfaction. Maintaining the same appearance and composure until the man she loves returns, and unable to accept how the strongest foe she's known could accept that lying down. Regardless of the inevitable and melancholy, she refuses to let go without a fight and chooses to hold onto hope and maintain the status quo as best she can.

As I understand it, the Shogun Assassination arc was something Sorachi had in mind in the early lessons of Gintama. The Ninja arc was mainly scrapped, but elements of what he had planned for Zenzou and Sarutobi made it in. Sachan, almost from the beginning of the arc to the end, takes a serious initiative in the mission and makes it her number one duty to make sure the leader of the Oniwaban makes it out alive. As things become increasingly bleak by the second, she continues to affirm that everyone will make it out alive and things will return to the way they always were. A proper arc that she has earned never came to be, but I wish it had because she epitomizes what Gintama is known for, promising to return home no matter what, so that everyone can continue to smile.