Saya Takagi



Saya Takagi (高城沙耶, Takagi Saya) is one of the main characters in Highschool of the Dead. Saya is a genius, and her high level of intellect is her major contribution to the group, though it often causes her to be stubborn and arrogant. She usually stays out of combat, preferring to think of strategies to help the others fight. However, this changes when the group prepares to leave the police station.

Appearance
Saya is a girl of under-average height with long pink hair which she mostly keeps in two pony tails on either side of her head. Her hair also has two thin, long bangs at the sides, two thin strands of hair over the left side of her forehead, and a spiky larger portion of hair covering the right side of her forehead. Saya has fierce orange eyes and furrowed eyebrows. She wore contacts at the beginning of the series, but because her contacts dried out she has worn glasses ever since. Saya's physique is slender, however according to Morita she has bikini model sized breasts. Unlike the other female students in the group, Saya's attire has varied more from the school uniform and she has not worn it since leaving Rika Minami's apartment. It should be also noted that a visible pointed tooth appears at times in the right side of her mouth.

History
Before the main events of the story, it is shown that Saya has been childhood friends with Takashi since kindergarten and possibly may have feelings for him. However, Takashi seemingly does not return these feelings, leading one to believe that Takagi is in fact the only female member of the group in Takashi's age range who he is not involved with on a romantic level. Kohta Hirano asked her out multiple times, but was turned down without a second thought. She also did this with Morita, ignoring him completely each of the three times he tried to talk to her. It is assumed that Saya was part of the swimclub under a teacher that later attacked her as one of "them" during the initial Outbreak.

Personality
Saya tends to be a very mean and somewhat impolite person. Being a genius, Saya always considers herself right and because of this can be considered 'stuck-up'. Despite being this way, Saya has been shown to be a very caring person and looks out for the rest of the group, mostly Takashi. Saya also considers herself to be a mother figure or an older sister figure to Alice and will scold anyone who tries to ruin her innocence.

Saya's view of Kohta also changes throughout the series. She goes from thinking of him as a useless gun otaku to a respectful comrade. She also goes from calling him by his family name to his given name, a sign of closeness.

Also Saya's view of Takashi has changed. Originally she thought of him as "stupid" and criticized him of cutting class, but the two work well together and he follows her orders without complaining. She may have romantic feelings for him.

Fujimi Academy
Saya is first seen in the hallway of the school when she finds Kohta and tells him to leave with her just as the outbreak is starting in the school (In the anime, Saya is first seen on the stairs with Takashi where she criticizes him for his regrets about Rei). As she and Kohta travel through the hallways, Kohta wonders who will save them, and Saya explains that nobody will since the police and Self Defense Force are probably dealing with the outbreak as well (this was originally in an omake chapter, but it was incorporated into the anime storyline). The two then enter the arts and crafts classroom to find supplies. Saya gathers many tools, including the gas-powered nail gun which she gives to Kohta and asks if he knows what to do with it. A group of them enters the classroom, and Saya hides behind Kohta as he shoots and kills them with the nail gun. They leave the classroom to continue their escape from the school.

Later, Saya is seen conducting an experiment in which she is throwing wet towels at one of "them". From this, she determines that "they" only respond to sound. Kohta complains about having to walk long distances as Saya begins leading the way through the halls, and she says he is "such a fatass" and that he can't complain until he's old enough to drive. As they near the faculty room, they encounter another group of them. Kohta fights them, but he has to change magazines, and Saya is confronted by one of "them". She trips and falls down and momentarily panics, but then she pulls a power drill out of the bag, thrusts it into its head, and drills until she is covered in blood and there is not much left of the head. The other members of the group arrive and fight the remainder of "them" and then begin pleasently introducing themselves. Saya gets angry that they acting so friendly and gets very defensive when they try to calm her. Saeko Busujima makes her look into a mirror, and she sees her bloodstained clothes and then begins to cry.

In the staff room, Saya is seen by Kohta taking her contacts out and putting on her glasses. She seems a little embarrassed by this. The group has a discussion about what is going on outside, during which Saya points out that the disaster is actually a pandemic. The group then decides to leave the school to find their families. As they make their way to the front doors, Saya informs the others that "they" only react to sound and are strong enough to "rip a door off its hinges".

Tokonosu City Streets
The group fight their way to the bus and get on it, along with Koichi Shido and some other students. When Takashi is harassed by another student on the bus and Kohta begins to raise the nail gun to defend him, Saya holds him back, not wanting the situation to get out of control. After Rei attacks the student, Shido says they need a leader, and then appoints the position to himself. Saya and the others are very unhappy, and Rei leaves the bus, followed by Takashi.

Later, Saya is seen sitting on the bus in deep thought. She wakes up Kohta, who is sleeping in the seat next to her, and says that they should have moved away from the city and that densely populated areas would be most dangerous. She goes on to speculate about whether the Self Defense Force has secured certain areas and army bases from "them". She begins to think about how they can survive, and, when she mentions that she wishes Takashi was there for her to talk to, Kohta says she likes him, which she quickly denies. Saeko and Shizuka Marikawa join them, and the group decides to leave the bus. They tell Shido that they are leaving, but he won't allow Shizuka to go. Kohta grazes his cheek with the nail gun, then holds him there while they exit the bus.

Saya, Kohta, Saeko and Shizuka walk away from Onbetsu bridge and eventually meet up with Takashi and Rei, who are riding towards the bridge. Takashi tells Saeko he is glad to see her, and Saya gets angry, asking,"What about me?" The group decides to go to Shizuka's friend Rika's house, and when Saya says she wants to take a shower there, Kohta smugly says "yeah", and she kicks him. When they get to Rika's house, they encounter a group of "them", and Saya gives Takashi a crowbar to fight with.

Rika's House
Later that night, Saya is in the bathroom at Rika's house bathing with Rei, Saeko, and Shizuka. She is sitting next to Saeko and wonders why they all have to bathe together. Saeko sprays water on her and then tells her she has a nice voice when Saya screams. After the girls leave the bathroom, Saya is seen sleeping on a couch. Later, she appears to be having a strange dream in which there are three Kohta-like figures who are saying, "Takagi-saaan." When Takashi leaves to save Alice, Saya wakes up to the sound of the motorcycle and walks outside to investigate. When she realizes what is happening, she quickly wakes up Shizuka and then starts to gather supplies. She helps load the supplies onto the humvee, and the group leaves to pick up Takashi and Alice.

The next morning, Saya is sitting on the roof of the Humvee with Kohta and Alice, who are singing renditions of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat", as they cross the river. When Kohta sings a gun parody version, Saya becomes very angry, telling him he shouldn't teach a child that kind of song. They reach the other side, and Saya and the other girls go behind the Humvee to change their clothes. Unlike Rei and Saeko, Saya does not change back into her school uniform. They reach the road and decide to go to Saya's house first, since it is the closest. As they approach her house, they encounter increasing numbers of "them", and they get the Humvee stuck against a rope fence in the road. Saya points out that all of "their" guts are making the tires slide. When she sees that the others are all fighting, she decides to help them, so she jumps out and picks up Takashi's gun. Kohta asks if she can use it, and she says she knows how because she is a genius. As Saya is loading the gun, Saeko smashes the face of one of "them" standing next to her, covering Saya in blood and bile. She snaps and yells out that she is not shy, not timid, and not a coward. She then asks how she could let herself die when her house is only a little farther. Just as Saya and the others realize the fight is hopeless, Saya's mother and some others from the Takagi house arrive wearing firefighter uniforms and blast all of "them" away. When Saya sees her mother, she is overjoyed and runs over to hug her.

Takagi EstateEdit
At the Takagi house, Saya is seen having an argument with her mother. After the argument, she is walking away angrily when she sees Takashi. He addresses her as "Takagi" which causes her to yell at him to call her by her first name and not to bow his head like "any other guy would". She walks away from him even angrier than before. After calming down, she enters the garage and finds Kohta tinkering with the Ithaca. She tells him to have fun now because they will be leaving soon. When Kohta questions her, she tells him about the difficulties of securing water and electricity. Her family has decided to go to the plants and take full responsibility. Matsudo enters and tells Kohta he shouldn't be playing with a gun. When Saya questions him, he tells her he is working on the Humvee. Matsudo leaves and Saya tells Kohta he should take the guns to the adults, since they are in charge there. Kohta says they should discuss it with Takashi.

Saya and Kohta enter Rei's room, where the rest of the group is gathered, and Saya says she wants to talk. She tells the others that she probably wont be with them when they set out again. She begins to criticize her parents and says they are great but they deserted their own daughter. Takashi grabs her by the front of her shirt and lifts her up in front of him, telling her to stop. He tells her that they all feel the same way, and she is better off since she knows her parents are alright. Saya understands and tell Takashi to let go of her. Saya's father arrives and they witness his beheading demonstration. She and her father then briefly exchange angry looks with each other. When Kohta and Saeko get in an argument about swords, Saya tells him to calm down, but he gets angry and leaves. Saya then seems to get annoyed by Takashi and leaves as well.

Later, Saya is looking around outside of the house for Kohta. She finds Saeko, who is kneeling beside a koi pond and admiring the koi inside. They talk about how happiness has been lost and the world as they know will never be the same. Saeko brings up that she killed a living person at the school. She said that it was supposed to be assisted suicide, but no child should have to do that. Saya says that she left her classmates behind to save herself and she doesn't think it was wrong. They are interrupted when they hear Souichiro yelling. He finds his men trying to take the guns away from Kohta. When he tries to get Kohta to give them up, the rest of the group arrives to defend him. Last to arrive is Saya, who tells her father that, though Kohta is a freak and a worthless gun otaku, he has been protecting her, unlike her father. Shortly after the confrontation, some of the people at the Takagi house start to speak out against Souichiro, and he tells Saya to go talk to them so he knows she is not a fool. She takes Takashi and Kohta with her and tries to reason with the people. They think that "they" are just people with a disease that makes them violent, which is what the government said, but Saya tries to explain that "they" are not human. The people are starting to believe her, but she accidentally mentions that she is Souichiro's daughter, and they will no longer listen to her. They say Saya and her friends are just "gun-waving high school brats", and that she is the daughter of a killer. The people leave and Saya, Takashi, and Kohta have a discussion about why they are acting that way, during which Saya says they are closing their eyes to reality. Kohta explains that they just want things to go back to the way they were before by any means necessary and that they won't recognize change because they can't accept their own foolishness. Saya says she sees him in a new way now. Takashi agrees with what Kohta says, which makes Saya say he has earned his place as their leader.

When Takashi and Rei are preparing to leave to find their parents, Saya asks if they are really planning to go alone even though he is the one who brought them all to her house. She looks a little upset as she asks this. Takashi assures her that they are not saying goodbye forever and that they will return when they find their families, and Saya looks a little less upset. Shido shows up at the house, and he and Rei have a confrontation. Saya, like the others, is relieved when she does not kill him. Soon after, Shizuka makes a call on Takashi's cell phone, but it stops working after an explosion is seen far off in the sky. Saya wonders why the phone broke, and when she sees that other things in the area have stopped working, she runs over to Rei and tells her to aim with her gun's laser sight. When Rei says she can't see the red dot, Saya realizes what has happened and tells her father that they need to change their plans. A man then runs through the gates and says that "they" are coming, and the gates are shut just before "they" enter. Saya's parents prepare to fight, and her mother gives her a Luger PO8 with a stock and a drum magazine. Saya says she doesn't know how to shoot, but her mother asks Kohta to teach her, and he quickly agrees. Takashi asks why cell phones and cars aren't working, noting that it happened after the weird light. Saya explains that it was an E.M.P. blast which was caused by a H.A.N.E. or high altitude nuclear explosion. She further explains that the electromagnetic pulse goes through the antennas of electronic devices and burns out their circuits, making them useless. Souichiro asks her if they can fix the equipment, and she says they would have to replace the fried parts. She then says that there is a chance that some cars weren't affected and that classic cars should still work. Souichiro tells her that he commends her for keeping her head, even in this chaos. "They" break through the gate, and Saya suggests they go inside the house, but her father says they would just break into there too. He then tells Takashi to leave with the others and tells Kohta that he is entrusting Saya to him. Saya is confused and yells at her father, but Yuriko that they have a role to play and that leaving her in the care of the others is the one thing they, as her parents, want for her. She says that the decision is killing them inside and to not make them suffer anymore. Saya says "I love you" to her parents, then runs off towards the ATV. The group escapes on the ATV while Saya's parents and their men hold Them off.

As the group escapes the Takagi house, they pass the students from Shidos bus on the road. Rei starts to ask what will happen to them, but Saya, who looks upset, tells her not to say anything more. Kohta then tells her not to let her guard down. Rei starts to get mad at him, but Saya says it's fine and he is right. They reach the highway and find it overrun with "them". Takashi wonders why it is like this, and Saya explains that "they" react to sound and the E.M.P. blast eliminated anything making sound in the inner city. Also, her parents were using dynamite and the ATV is making a lot of noise. Takashi and Saeko decide to use themselves as bait and leave alone in the ATV. Rei worries about them, but Saya tells her there is no other choice and they will be fine since Saeko went along. This doesn't make Rei happy. They then make their way to the meeting place at the mall.

Weapons
Saya is not in any martial arts classes, but she is willing to fight. At the school Saya uses an electric drill on a Zombie, But later she uses the Ithaca model 37 shotgun to fight off the zombies when they are stuck at the Humvee. When the zombies invade the Takagi Estate, Saya's Mother gives her a Luger P08 Pistol. After the Gang raids the police station, she expresses her desire to fight more and exchanges her Mothers Luger for Kohta's MP5SFK.