Shojiro Ito

"So, Kiichi. Can you tell me that you’re still not going to give up? My job is to observe the lurking rebels in Saga. As long as it ends up just being a kid’s rant, there would be no problem. But, once they’ve crossed the line… I have no other way. This country is still distorted and dangerous, and this is my only way to live. Many people can’t change choose their way of life. Answer me, Kiichi!"

- Shojiro Ito to Kiichi Momozaki, about saving Saga,

Shojiro Ito (伊東 正次郎, Itō Shōjirō) was a minor character introduced in “Episode 20”. He was the best friend of Kiichi Momozaki.

Appearance
Ito seems to be already in his adulthood and knows how to defend himself very well when Yugiri attacked him, so it appears that he received some kind of training. He wears a blue Yukata throughout the episode and classic wooden shoes from the Meiji era. His physical appearance makes him look quite young. His hair is gray as well as his eyes, and he always seems to wear a serious appearance when he is not with Kiichi Momozaki.

Personality
Ito is Kiichi's friend, shown during Yugiri's past in the second season. Two years ago, he caught his attention since he heard of a madman in Saga trying to recover the old prefecture. He went to make fun of him, but he ended up feeling sorry for that nobody was paying attention to him. He is always following Kiichi wherever he goes and from time to time they go out to eat or to the park; however, he constantly tries to make Kiichi forget his plan to save Saga for some reason and tells him that he should become a doctor and study because he is very intelligent. Ito is shown as someone serious and with charisma who does not want to repeat the war of 1874 and recommends to Kiichi that if he continues like this, he will create a new uproar in Saga. Ito is serious when he realizes that Yugiri is helping him with his plan, and they are getting people from Saga to join the cause.

He is the only one who seems to tolerate Kiichi, joking with him and fulfilling his dream of restoring Saga. But for a while, it is unknown how genuine this is since he is in Saga to eliminate the insurgents. He would eventually almost kill Kiichi if it weren't for Yugiri's intervention. However, when he dies, it is clear that he did, after all, see something in Kiichi's dream, and dies regretfully that he betrayed his friend.

Despite assassinating several of the rebels and almost killing Kiichi, deeply Ito always wanted to see him fulfill his objective of saving Saga, but unfortunately for him, his work forced him to avoid new revolts. In the end, Ito was always noble with his actions and showed appreciation for the people he knew to the point of sacrificing himself for Kiichi to build a new Saga. The anime shows his actions as antagonistic towards Saga and Yugiri, but in reality, it was what shaped the prefecture that it is today and led to Yugiri's beheading before her resurrection a couple of centuries later.

Natural Abilities

 * Enhanced Reflexes—TBA

Skillset

 * Impersonification—Ito was able to mimic the police officer’s voice to scare Kiichi Momozaki into thinking he was in trouble again.
 * Swordsmanship—As seen in Episode 21, Ito is skilled with the katana to the point of taking down several men much larger than him and assassinating them in the process.
 * Encryption—The letter that Ito throws to the tramp at the end of the episode is encrypted and says the following:
 * If/when the target's supporters gather… I couldn't confirm the target until now. There is a high probability that they will spread from now on.

Etymology

 * The name Shojiro means “right, proper” (正) (sho), “next” (次) (ji) and “son” (郎) (ro).
 * Shojiro's surname Ito means “that one” (伊) (i) and “east” (東) (to).

Trivia

 * Ito appears to be a member of the Kenpeitai, the secret police of the Japanese army. Considering they were founded in 1881, just two years before the events of Saga Jihen parts One and Two, it lines up with the timeline and would also explain why Ito was able to defend himself so quickly from Yugiri's chopsticks. He also mentions that he only became friends with Kiichi Momozaki after learning of his political views. With all of this, it doesn't bode well for Kiichi or Yugiri to have attracted his attention.
 * He is named after Kashitaro Ito, an officer of the Shinsengumi.
 * Later it is confirmed that he was part of the government and was sent to Saga to avoid new revolts.
 * Despite murdering rebels and almost killing Kiichi and Yugiri, Ito was only doing his job to get ahead, and as his phrase “The country is corrupt and ruthless” shows some people are forced to do questionable jobs to continue with their life.
 * His full name is known only in the credits; he is addressed solely by his last name on the show itself.
 * The group picture of him, Ito, and Yugiri can be seen resting on one of the shelves in the Jofuku Bar near the end of “Episode 21”.
 * He has many moments that frame him in a rather sinister tone.
 * Yugiri nearly incapacitates him when he enters her house uninvited. He has nothing but a stern look on his face as he blocks her blow with a fan.
 * At the end of his debut, he is seen passing a note to an informant on the streets.
 * He is eventually revealed to be a government agent sent to subdue any attempted armed rebellion. He does it by killing a group of rebellious samurai.