Sousuke Sagara
Encyclopedia
is a fictional character
and the main protagonist
in the light novel
, manga
, and anime
series Full Metal Panic!
. He was portrayed by Tomokazu Seki
in the original anime and by Chris Patton
in the English
dub.
within the paramilitary counter-terrorist force Mithril, he serves as a member of the SRT (Special Response Team) of the Western Pacific Battle Group "Tuatha de Danaan" and is assigned to the assault submarine of the same name. His commander is Captain Teletha Tessa Testarossa
. His call sign is Urzu-7 and his ID number is B-3128. Serious and dedicated, he operates as team pointman as an Arm Slave
specialist.
While Sousuke's nationality has been up for debate for some time, it has been proven in the final novel that he is entirely Japanese. Throughout the series, they make remarks that show he is Japanese, but never outright say. These instances include Kurz, when Sousuke comments on his noodle dish: "Are you really Japanese!?" Then there is the Hong Kong mission, where they send the three SRT members that are Asian, and the one PRT who works well with Uruz 9 to round out the team, so that they will not be looked at funny when roaming a war torn city - Melissa Mao, Wu, Yang Jan-Kyu, and Sousuke Sagara. In long-time xenophobic Japan, there were no comments about the ethnicity of the new student, only his quirks. Had he not been Japanese, it surely would have been questioned why an Afghan from America had a fully Japanese name.
There are many other instances, but the true proof comes in book 12, "Always, Stand By Me Part 2," when Kaname is observing the alternate timeline options. In the peaceful time she was going to change the world into, there was the fully Japanese, born and raised, boy in her class, named Sousuke Sagara. She had her crush on him, and he admitted his feelings to her. What makes Kaname not choose that future, however, is that there are a few things that feel wrong. While it is definitely the face of the man she loves, he is missing a scar on his left cheek. While it is definitely the name of the man she loves, the kanji for his surname is wrong (相楽 instead of 相良). Everything else about him was right, but because those were wrong, the entire world felt wrong, and so she did not change the course of history.
The anime states he is from Helmajistan and the novel series states he is Japanese. His cover story in the novel is that he grew up on a military base in America, in order to explain his behavior. In the first manga series, he is assumed to have been raised Afghan. In the first season of the anime, he is noted as being from Helmajistan, a fictional country that is meant to represent Afghanistan. In "The Second Raid," he states that he claims no country as his own. His exact date of birth is also unknown, but placed in his records as July 7, 1984. This birthday was chosen based on his call sign. He is Uruz 7, and thus his listed birthday is 7-7, to make it simple to remember so that he would not slip when asked.
It is possible that Sousuke Sagara is not even his real name. When found as a child, within the band of his pants was written the name, in a child's hiragana
handwriting, 'Sagara Sousuke.' The kanji
of his name that he uses was given to him by Kalinin, who taught him the Japanese he had forgotten from years of disuse. In "Always, Stand By Me (Part 2)," it is indicated that his real name is, in fact, Sousuke Sagara, but that the kanji he uses for Sagara is incorrect.
He is depicted as having dark brown hair and grey eyes, as well as a small, visible cross-shaped scar on the left side of his chin. His novel description, however, shows that he has the colorings of normal Japanese genetics, with black hair and deep brown eyes. He is literate and fluent in English
, Japanese
and Russian
, the latter of which was stated in book 10, when they are in an abandoned and ruined Russian secret laboratory, and Sousuke is reading the signs to figure out where they are. He can also speak some Persian
as well as several local Afghan dialects
fluently. It is stated in book six that while he can speak Persian, he never learned to read it, and that is why he never caught the difference between "Badam" and "Badame," which would have led to their figuring out about the cruise sooner, and not wasting time on places called "Badam." As a child, he was raised as a Muslim
and soldier in Afghanistan
, but, as a teenager, does not follow strict interpretations of Sharia
law like the people who raised him. This is because of his subterfuge, and not necessarily because of his belief system.
In the 6th book, he is shown worrying more about Ramadan
than Christmas
, but his consideration is depicted on a partial combat basis ("It was a time when Soviet soldiers would lower their guard"). In his daily life, Sousuke is depicted as quite secular
. He is shown eating pork
and his refusal of alcohol
is made purely off of the fact that he clearly shows a genuine distaste for it [The Second Raid]. He is capable of reciting the Qur'an
from memory, probably due to his childhood in a Muslim country
, but finds classical Japanese literature
, poetry
and history
extremely difficult to comprehend.
In addition to being a capable Arm Slave pilot, Sousuke is a specialist in Arm Slave operations and maintenance, improvised explosives, small arms, survival training, anti-armor combat, trap setting and camouflage. Additionally, he is proficient in logistics, demolitions, breach and forced entry, covert intrusion, and hand to hand combat. His background and experience as a guerrilla fighter, and later a mercenary soldier has made him much more sensitive and knowledgeable about tactics and methods more commonly used by guerrillas than government trained regulars.
While Sousuke is an excellent soldier, his military career is the only life he has ever known. He has no social skills and sees nearly every situation in a military light. This causes many problems for Kaname Chidori
, the woman he is assigned to protect. Even in school he carries a gun with him, although it is loaded with non-lethal rounds. He is known to say as an axiom "a peaceful solution is always best". However, to him this simply means a solution where no one is physically injured. He once says this axiom after threatening someone by firing a gun next to their head. His total lack of experience with normal life outside of the military gives him no readily available "civil" concepts about life, like entertainment or anything recreational, and tends to horribly misinterpret the actions of people around him. This is shown throughout the main series when Sousuke is guarding Chidori at Jindai High, and Fumoffu! focuses mainly on this aspect. This part of his personality is indeed one of the main sources of the series' humor.
As a teenage guerilla and trained operative, Sousuke has been known by many various identities, such as Sousuke Seagal, Isegar Sousuke, and during his time in Afghanistan (Helmajistan in the anime), Kashim. Two characters refer to him as Kashim, one being Gauron
and the other Zaied, a former comrade from his Afghan days.
jetliner in the North Pacific by then Spetznaz officer, Andrei Kalinin, but both his parents died. His mother was shown to die before his eyes, telling him to "live. Fight." This incident is later the source of some of his nightmares, and is one of the few aspects of his mother that he is shown to remember. His age at this time was noted as being at about four or five years. The Soviet nuclear submarine's rescue action was unauthorized, and later officially denied. Officially there was no Soviet involvement, and thus no rescue operation and no other survivors. Kalinin's efforts to locate living relatives of the child also failed, as no record of a passenger named "Sagara" existed. It remains unknown if Sagara is the maiden name of Sousuke's mother, or the name written upon the child's clothing is the child's real name. According to the Full Metal Panic! anime's first season, his birthday is 7 July 1984. This birthdate was fabricated, using his call sign, "Uruz 7."
From there, Sousuke was taken into the Soviet state child care system as an orphan. He was later taken into a KGB training program for child soldiers
, known as 'Nozh,' which translates as 'Knife' in English. At (approximately) age 8, Sousuke was trained as an assassin and deployed into Afghanistan
(Helmajistan in the anime) to assassinate a local leader of the local resistance army. He failed to assassinate his target, and instead was adopted by the man he was sent to kill, General Majhid, who named him Kashim. He became part of the resistance army, fighting against the invading Soviet forces. He learned the use of small arms and basic survival techniques during this time as a guerrilla fighter. It was during this time that Sousuke first met Gauron
. At the time, Gauron was a mercenary AS instructor at a nearby camp, and they were neither enemies nor allies. Although their meeting at the time seemed inconsequential, it is later revealed to have served as an important event that spurred Gauron's obsession with Sousuke, whom he deemed a "Killer Saint."
Raised as a guerrilla
fighter, Sousuke became a skilled AS pilot and soldier. During this time, the Soviet offensive grew in magnitude with the fresh success of the new Arm Slave
s. In the early stages of the war, Kalinin's forces capture Sousuke. Sousuke and Kalinin are reunited for the first time, eventually leading to Kalinin's decision to desert the Soviet army. Kalinin gives specialized Spetznaz training to Sousuke, from which Sousuke learns Japanese and some Russian.
Following the defeat against the Soviet army, Sousuke becomes a mercenary, eventually escaping the country with Kalinin. However, they were separated afterwards in Cambodia. Sousuke has since been involved with most of the wars in the Middle East, collectively called the Fifth Middle East War. He built a solid reputation as a soldier during this period, gaining a group of friends. He spent five years as a soldier for hire, further building his combat and survival skills.
Sousuke was eventually scouted and invited to become a private military contractor for the military junta corporation known as Mithril. While showing unspectacular skills at the training camp, his actions in the line of fire with an Rk-92 Savage convinced Melissa Mao to include him in the elite SRT unit. It is at Mithril that he is reunited for the second time with Kalinin, this time his commanding officer. As an SRT member he is trained to operate the M9 Gernsback Arm Slave, serving as pointman.
The story of Full Metal Panic! follows Sousuke's active duty with Mithril. In the Siberian tundra, an extraction operation of personnel from a secured research facility was detected and attacked by a mixed force of a Hind Gunship Helicopter
and Rk-92 Savages. Sousuke’s performance in an M-9E was directly responsible for securing the survivor for extraction, as this was seen as the first episode of the anime.
As the first person to operate it, Sousuke becomes the only Mithril pilot able to use the ARX-7 Arbalest. This increases his importance within the organization from a mere sergeant to the only soldier who can pilot an Arm Slave
equipped with a Lambda Driver. His current mission to protect Chidori forces him to cope with an unfamiliar and peaceful lifestyle, forcing many awkward and comical situations. His over-protectiveness usually annoys Chidori to no end but later in the story, they grow fond of each other and express their feelings for each other.
Initially, Sousuke was confused with the Lambda Driver-equipped ARX-7 Arbalest and its quirky A.I., nicknamed "AL". Because of its unreliability in the field and his own internal conflicts, he came to despise the AS. However, Sousuke later resolved his own issues and came to accept the Arbalest and put up with Al. Since then, he has been able to utilize the Lambda Driver at will by concentrating. However, this could not save him from the power of the Belial arm slave piloted by Leonard Testarossa and the Arbalest has since been destroyed. Following the kidnapping of Kaname Chidori and the destruction of Mithril he has become very unstable and will stop at nothing to rescue Chidori.
In the novel, Continuing On My Own, Sousuke tells Chidori that he likes her, but he's afraid because he fears the gulf that exists between them, since she is a Whispered
. At the end of the novel, Chidori is kidnapped by Leonard Testarossa, and Sousuke embarks on a mission to save her. In the novel, Get Together and Make My Day, Sousuke fails to rescue Chidori, but manages to speak with her over a radio as she is being taken away on a helicopter. In this conversation they finally express their feelings of love towards each other. Sousuke promises to save her no matter what and Chidori promises to wait "for years, even hundreds of years" for Sousuke - they both promise to kiss the moment they are reunited.
In the novel, Approaching Nick of Time, he travels to a top secret base in the USSR, codenamed Yamsk 11, with Tessa to uncover more information about the Whispered's origins. Leonard and Kaname also go to the same facility, where her mind is taken over by a personality named Sophia, who appears to be a "Whisperer" who imparts the Black Technology
knowledge to the Whispereds. Under Sophia's control Chidori, Sousuke, and Tessa are shown an illusion of Chidori shooting and killing the other two. Leonard and Sophia/Kaname return to Mérida Island, where Amalgam has built a device to utilize a final ability of the Whispereds.
In Always, Stand by Me - Part 1 , weeks later after the Yamsk-11 incident, the Tuatha de Danaan dangerously avoids enemy submarines while embarking its final mission to Mérida Island, avoiding submarines from both the USA and Amalgam. In the hangar, Sousuke assists in developing a new armslave flight system called XL-3 along with Lt. "Bruiser" Sax for the Laevatein ARX-8. Adding additional features to the ARX-8 that goes beyond its limits : AS-size buckshot, assault rifle, the gigantic demolition gun, two smaller Gatling guns, the Lambda Driver cancellation device "Fairy's Feather", the disposable rapid deployment booster XL-3, and twelve "Black Mamba" anti-aircraft missiles under the wings. During this time, Sousuke along with Tessa decide to split away from the SRT team unit to pursue Chidori on Mérida Island on TDD-1. While the rest of the SRT team embark on their final mission against Amalgam who have taken control of a nuclear war-head facility borderline of Afghanistan and the Soviet Union.
Ideally, Sousuke wishes to stop Chidori from using the final whispered device, a.k.a. TARTAROS. But after the incident in Yamsk-11 with Chidori, Sousuke becomes clouded with hesitation and indecisiveness. Unsure and worried that even after he successfully rescues Chidori she would not be her old self again. He internally expresses concern if Leonard's and Chidori's ideal new world should be fought against or accepted for the benefit of everyone. Sousuke also feels uncomfortable with the responsibility in deciding the fate between the current dimension and the new dimension which he thinks is 'not his call to decide'. After successfully using the XL-3 on TDD-1, the ARX-8 takes flight towards Mérida alone and defeats a Behemoth in midflight before he dangerously loses control of the XL-3 and miraculously lands on the Mérida coastline unharmed. After defeating two more Behemoths inland he finds his determination and strength to continue and finally realizes who he is and what he desires.
Character (arts)
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
and the main protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
in the light novel
Light novel
A is a style of Japanese novel primarily targeting junior high and high school students . The term "light novel" is a wasei-eigo, or a Japanese term formed from words in the English language. Light novels are often called or for short...
, manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
, and anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series Full Metal Panic!
Full Metal Panic!
is an ongoing series of light novels written by Shoji Gatoh and illustrated by Shiki Douji. The series follows Sousuke Sagara, a member of the covert anti-terrorist private military organization known as Mithril, tasked with protecting Kaname Chidori, a spirited Japanese high school girl.Individual...
. He was portrayed by Tomokazu Seki
Tomokazu Seki
is a Japanese voice actor. He formerly worked for Haikyou and is now the head of Atomic Monkey.-About:Some of his most notable roles include Shinichi Chiaki from Nodame Cantabile, Gilgamesh from Fate/stay night, Rob Lucci from One Piece, Gundam characters Domon Kasshu and Yzak Joule, from G Gundam...
in the original anime and by Chris Patton
Chris Patton
Christopher David Patton is an American voice actor who works on anime for Funimation Entertainment, ADV Films, Seraphim Digital, and OkraTron 5000...
in the English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
dub.
Overview
Sousuke Sagara is approximately sixteen to seventeen years old. A SergeantSergeant
Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
within the paramilitary counter-terrorist force Mithril, he serves as a member of the SRT (Special Response Team) of the Western Pacific Battle Group "Tuatha de Danaan" and is assigned to the assault submarine of the same name. His commander is Captain Teletha Tessa Testarossa
Teletha Tessa Testarossa
is a fictional character and the tritagonist in the light novel, manga, and anime series Full Metal Panic!. She is portrayed by Yukana Nogami in the original anime, and by Hilary Haag in the English dub by ADV Films and FUNimation Entertainment...
. His call sign is Urzu-7 and his ID number is B-3128. Serious and dedicated, he operates as team pointman as an Arm Slave
Arm Slave
Arm Slaves are fictional mecha from the light novel, manga, and anime series Full Metal Panic!. These huge and tall robots are used primarily by military forces in the Full Metal Panic! universe, most especially by MITHRIL and Amalgam.-Overview:...
specialist.
While Sousuke's nationality has been up for debate for some time, it has been proven in the final novel that he is entirely Japanese. Throughout the series, they make remarks that show he is Japanese, but never outright say. These instances include Kurz, when Sousuke comments on his noodle dish: "Are you really Japanese!?" Then there is the Hong Kong mission, where they send the three SRT members that are Asian, and the one PRT who works well with Uruz 9 to round out the team, so that they will not be looked at funny when roaming a war torn city - Melissa Mao, Wu, Yang Jan-Kyu, and Sousuke Sagara. In long-time xenophobic Japan, there were no comments about the ethnicity of the new student, only his quirks. Had he not been Japanese, it surely would have been questioned why an Afghan from America had a fully Japanese name.
There are many other instances, but the true proof comes in book 12, "Always, Stand By Me Part 2," when Kaname is observing the alternate timeline options. In the peaceful time she was going to change the world into, there was the fully Japanese, born and raised, boy in her class, named Sousuke Sagara. She had her crush on him, and he admitted his feelings to her. What makes Kaname not choose that future, however, is that there are a few things that feel wrong. While it is definitely the face of the man she loves, he is missing a scar on his left cheek. While it is definitely the name of the man she loves, the kanji for his surname is wrong (相楽 instead of 相良). Everything else about him was right, but because those were wrong, the entire world felt wrong, and so she did not change the course of history.
The anime states he is from Helmajistan and the novel series states he is Japanese. His cover story in the novel is that he grew up on a military base in America, in order to explain his behavior. In the first manga series, he is assumed to have been raised Afghan. In the first season of the anime, he is noted as being from Helmajistan, a fictional country that is meant to represent Afghanistan. In "The Second Raid," he states that he claims no country as his own. His exact date of birth is also unknown, but placed in his records as July 7, 1984. This birthday was chosen based on his call sign. He is Uruz 7, and thus his listed birthday is 7-7, to make it simple to remember so that he would not slip when asked.
It is possible that Sousuke Sagara is not even his real name. When found as a child, within the band of his pants was written the name, in a child's hiragana
Hiragana
is a Japanese syllabary, one basic component of the Japanese writing system, along with katakana, kanji, and the Latin alphabet . Hiragana and katakana are both kana systems, in which each character represents one mora...
handwriting, 'Sagara Sousuke.' The kanji
Kanji
Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...
of his name that he uses was given to him by Kalinin, who taught him the Japanese he had forgotten from years of disuse. In "Always, Stand By Me (Part 2)," it is indicated that his real name is, in fact, Sousuke Sagara, but that the kanji he uses for Sagara is incorrect.
He is depicted as having dark brown hair and grey eyes, as well as a small, visible cross-shaped scar on the left side of his chin. His novel description, however, shows that he has the colorings of normal Japanese genetics, with black hair and deep brown eyes. He is literate and fluent in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
and Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
, the latter of which was stated in book 10, when they are in an abandoned and ruined Russian secret laboratory, and Sousuke is reading the signs to figure out where they are. He can also speak some Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
as well as several local Afghan dialects
Languages of Afghanistan
Afghanistan is home to more than 40 languages, with around 200 different dialects. The two official languages of Afghanistan are Persian Dari and Pashto, also known as Pakhto or Afghani. Both are Indo-European languages from the Iranian languages sub-family...
fluently. It is stated in book six that while he can speak Persian, he never learned to read it, and that is why he never caught the difference between "Badam" and "Badame," which would have led to their figuring out about the cruise sooner, and not wasting time on places called "Badam." As a child, he was raised as a Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
and soldier in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, but, as a teenager, does not follow strict interpretations of Sharia
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
law like the people who raised him. This is because of his subterfuge, and not necessarily because of his belief system.
In the 6th book, he is shown worrying more about Ramadan
Ramadan
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which lasts 29 or 30 days. It is the Islamic month of fasting, in which participating Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex during daylight hours and is intended to teach Muslims about patience, spirituality, humility and...
than Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
, but his consideration is depicted on a partial combat basis ("It was a time when Soviet soldiers would lower their guard"). In his daily life, Sousuke is depicted as quite secular
Secularism
Secularism is the principle of separation between government institutions and the persons mandated to represent the State from religious institutions and religious dignitaries...
. He is shown eating pork
Pork
Pork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig , which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC....
and his refusal of alcohol
Alcoholic beverage
An alcoholic beverage is a drink containing ethanol, commonly known as alcohol. Alcoholic beverages are divided into three general classes: beers, wines, and spirits. They are legally consumed in most countries, and over 100 countries have laws regulating their production, sale, and consumption...
is made purely off of the fact that he clearly shows a genuine distaste for it [The Second Raid]. He is capable of reciting the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
from memory, probably due to his childhood in a Muslim country
Muslim world
The term Muslim world has several meanings. In a religious sense, it refers to those who adhere to the teachings of Islam, referred to as Muslims. In a cultural sense, it refers to Islamic civilization, inclusive of non-Muslims living in that civilization...
, but finds classical Japanese literature
Japanese literature
Early works of Japanese literature were heavily influenced by cultural contact with China and Chinese literature, often written in Classical Chinese. Indian literature also had an influence through the diffusion of Buddhism in Japan...
, poetry
Japanese poetry
Japanese poets first encountered Chinese poetry during the Tang Dynasty. It took them several hundred years to digest the foreign impact, make it a part of their culture and merge it with their literary tradition in their mother tongue, and begin to develop the diversity of their native poetry. For...
and history
History of Japan
The history of Japan encompasses the history of the islands of Japan and the Japanese people, spanning the ancient history of the region to the modern history of Japan as a nation state. Following the last ice age, around 12,000 BC, the rich ecosystem of the Japanese Archipelago fostered human...
extremely difficult to comprehend.
In addition to being a capable Arm Slave pilot, Sousuke is a specialist in Arm Slave operations and maintenance, improvised explosives, small arms, survival training, anti-armor combat, trap setting and camouflage. Additionally, he is proficient in logistics, demolitions, breach and forced entry, covert intrusion, and hand to hand combat. His background and experience as a guerrilla fighter, and later a mercenary soldier has made him much more sensitive and knowledgeable about tactics and methods more commonly used by guerrillas than government trained regulars.
While Sousuke is an excellent soldier, his military career is the only life he has ever known. He has no social skills and sees nearly every situation in a military light. This causes many problems for Kaname Chidori
Kaname Chidori
is a fictional character and the female protagonist of the light novel, manga, and anime series Full Metal Panic!. She was voiced by Satsuki Yukino in the original Japanese anime and by Luci Christian in the English dubs by ADV Films and FUNimation Entertainment.-Overview:At first glance, Kaname...
, the woman he is assigned to protect. Even in school he carries a gun with him, although it is loaded with non-lethal rounds. He is known to say as an axiom "a peaceful solution is always best". However, to him this simply means a solution where no one is physically injured. He once says this axiom after threatening someone by firing a gun next to their head. His total lack of experience with normal life outside of the military gives him no readily available "civil" concepts about life, like entertainment or anything recreational, and tends to horribly misinterpret the actions of people around him. This is shown throughout the main series when Sousuke is guarding Chidori at Jindai High, and Fumoffu! focuses mainly on this aspect. This part of his personality is indeed one of the main sources of the series' humor.
As a teenage guerilla and trained operative, Sousuke has been known by many various identities, such as Sousuke Seagal, Isegar Sousuke, and during his time in Afghanistan (Helmajistan in the anime), Kashim. Two characters refer to him as Kashim, one being Gauron
Gauron
is a fictional character and one of the main villains from the light novel, manga, and anime series Full Metal Panic!. His Japanese voice was portrayed by Masahiko Tanaka and the English voice was provided by Mike MacRae.-Overview:...
and the other Zaied, a former comrade from his Afghan days.
Character history
Sousuke Sagara was a child when he was saved from a crashed Boeing 747Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
jetliner in the North Pacific by then Spetznaz officer, Andrei Kalinin, but both his parents died. His mother was shown to die before his eyes, telling him to "live. Fight." This incident is later the source of some of his nightmares, and is one of the few aspects of his mother that he is shown to remember. His age at this time was noted as being at about four or five years. The Soviet nuclear submarine's rescue action was unauthorized, and later officially denied. Officially there was no Soviet involvement, and thus no rescue operation and no other survivors. Kalinin's efforts to locate living relatives of the child also failed, as no record of a passenger named "Sagara" existed. It remains unknown if Sagara is the maiden name of Sousuke's mother, or the name written upon the child's clothing is the child's real name. According to the Full Metal Panic! anime's first season, his birthday is 7 July 1984. This birthdate was fabricated, using his call sign, "Uruz 7."
From there, Sousuke was taken into the Soviet state child care system as an orphan. He was later taken into a KGB training program for child soldiers
Military use of children
The military use of children takes three distinct forms: children can take direct part in hostilities , or they can be used in support roles such as porters, spies, messengers, look outs, and sexual slaves; or they can be used for political advantage either as human shields or in...
, known as 'Nozh,' which translates as 'Knife' in English. At (approximately) age 8, Sousuke was trained as an assassin and deployed into Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
(Helmajistan in the anime) to assassinate a local leader of the local resistance army. He failed to assassinate his target, and instead was adopted by the man he was sent to kill, General Majhid, who named him Kashim. He became part of the resistance army, fighting against the invading Soviet forces. He learned the use of small arms and basic survival techniques during this time as a guerrilla fighter. It was during this time that Sousuke first met Gauron
Gauron
is a fictional character and one of the main villains from the light novel, manga, and anime series Full Metal Panic!. His Japanese voice was portrayed by Masahiko Tanaka and the English voice was provided by Mike MacRae.-Overview:...
. At the time, Gauron was a mercenary AS instructor at a nearby camp, and they were neither enemies nor allies. Although their meeting at the time seemed inconsequential, it is later revealed to have served as an important event that spurred Gauron's obsession with Sousuke, whom he deemed a "Killer Saint."
Raised as a guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
fighter, Sousuke became a skilled AS pilot and soldier. During this time, the Soviet offensive grew in magnitude with the fresh success of the new Arm Slave
Arm Slave
Arm Slaves are fictional mecha from the light novel, manga, and anime series Full Metal Panic!. These huge and tall robots are used primarily by military forces in the Full Metal Panic! universe, most especially by MITHRIL and Amalgam.-Overview:...
s. In the early stages of the war, Kalinin's forces capture Sousuke. Sousuke and Kalinin are reunited for the first time, eventually leading to Kalinin's decision to desert the Soviet army. Kalinin gives specialized Spetznaz training to Sousuke, from which Sousuke learns Japanese and some Russian.
Following the defeat against the Soviet army, Sousuke becomes a mercenary, eventually escaping the country with Kalinin. However, they were separated afterwards in Cambodia. Sousuke has since been involved with most of the wars in the Middle East, collectively called the Fifth Middle East War. He built a solid reputation as a soldier during this period, gaining a group of friends. He spent five years as a soldier for hire, further building his combat and survival skills.
Sousuke was eventually scouted and invited to become a private military contractor for the military junta corporation known as Mithril. While showing unspectacular skills at the training camp, his actions in the line of fire with an Rk-92 Savage convinced Melissa Mao to include him in the elite SRT unit. It is at Mithril that he is reunited for the second time with Kalinin, this time his commanding officer. As an SRT member he is trained to operate the M9 Gernsback Arm Slave, serving as pointman.
The story of Full Metal Panic! follows Sousuke's active duty with Mithril. In the Siberian tundra, an extraction operation of personnel from a secured research facility was detected and attacked by a mixed force of a Hind Gunship Helicopter
Mil Mi-24
The Mil Mi-24 is a large helicopter gunship and attack helicopter and low-capacity troop transport with room for 8 passengers. It is produced by Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant and operated since 1972 by the Soviet Air Force, its successors, and by over thirty other nations.In NATO circles the export...
and Rk-92 Savages. Sousuke’s performance in an M-9E was directly responsible for securing the survivor for extraction, as this was seen as the first episode of the anime.
As the first person to operate it, Sousuke becomes the only Mithril pilot able to use the ARX-7 Arbalest. This increases his importance within the organization from a mere sergeant to the only soldier who can pilot an Arm Slave
Arm Slave
Arm Slaves are fictional mecha from the light novel, manga, and anime series Full Metal Panic!. These huge and tall robots are used primarily by military forces in the Full Metal Panic! universe, most especially by MITHRIL and Amalgam.-Overview:...
equipped with a Lambda Driver. His current mission to protect Chidori forces him to cope with an unfamiliar and peaceful lifestyle, forcing many awkward and comical situations. His over-protectiveness usually annoys Chidori to no end but later in the story, they grow fond of each other and express their feelings for each other.
Initially, Sousuke was confused with the Lambda Driver-equipped ARX-7 Arbalest and its quirky A.I., nicknamed "AL". Because of its unreliability in the field and his own internal conflicts, he came to despise the AS. However, Sousuke later resolved his own issues and came to accept the Arbalest and put up with Al. Since then, he has been able to utilize the Lambda Driver at will by concentrating. However, this could not save him from the power of the Belial arm slave piloted by Leonard Testarossa and the Arbalest has since been destroyed. Following the kidnapping of Kaname Chidori and the destruction of Mithril he has become very unstable and will stop at nothing to rescue Chidori.
In the novel, Continuing On My Own, Sousuke tells Chidori that he likes her, but he's afraid because he fears the gulf that exists between them, since she is a Whispered
Whispered
The Whispered are unique individuals in the Full Metal Panic! universe who possess access to Black Technology, technology that outstrips the level of technology that should exist in the world.- Abilities :...
. At the end of the novel, Chidori is kidnapped by Leonard Testarossa, and Sousuke embarks on a mission to save her. In the novel, Get Together and Make My Day, Sousuke fails to rescue Chidori, but manages to speak with her over a radio as she is being taken away on a helicopter. In this conversation they finally express their feelings of love towards each other. Sousuke promises to save her no matter what and Chidori promises to wait "for years, even hundreds of years" for Sousuke - they both promise to kiss the moment they are reunited.
In the novel, Approaching Nick of Time, he travels to a top secret base in the USSR, codenamed Yamsk 11, with Tessa to uncover more information about the Whispered's origins. Leonard and Kaname also go to the same facility, where her mind is taken over by a personality named Sophia, who appears to be a "Whisperer" who imparts the Black Technology
Black Technology
Black Technology is a general term used to describe fictional technology in the Japanese light novel, manga and anime series Full Metal Panic!...
knowledge to the Whispereds. Under Sophia's control Chidori, Sousuke, and Tessa are shown an illusion of Chidori shooting and killing the other two. Leonard and Sophia/Kaname return to Mérida Island, where Amalgam has built a device to utilize a final ability of the Whispereds.
In Always, Stand by Me - Part 1 , weeks later after the Yamsk-11 incident, the Tuatha de Danaan dangerously avoids enemy submarines while embarking its final mission to Mérida Island, avoiding submarines from both the USA and Amalgam. In the hangar, Sousuke assists in developing a new armslave flight system called XL-3 along with Lt. "Bruiser" Sax for the Laevatein ARX-8. Adding additional features to the ARX-8 that goes beyond its limits : AS-size buckshot, assault rifle, the gigantic demolition gun, two smaller Gatling guns, the Lambda Driver cancellation device "Fairy's Feather", the disposable rapid deployment booster XL-3, and twelve "Black Mamba" anti-aircraft missiles under the wings. During this time, Sousuke along with Tessa decide to split away from the SRT team unit to pursue Chidori on Mérida Island on TDD-1. While the rest of the SRT team embark on their final mission against Amalgam who have taken control of a nuclear war-head facility borderline of Afghanistan and the Soviet Union.
Ideally, Sousuke wishes to stop Chidori from using the final whispered device, a.k.a. TARTAROS. But after the incident in Yamsk-11 with Chidori, Sousuke becomes clouded with hesitation and indecisiveness. Unsure and worried that even after he successfully rescues Chidori she would not be her old self again. He internally expresses concern if Leonard's and Chidori's ideal new world should be fought against or accepted for the benefit of everyone. Sousuke also feels uncomfortable with the responsibility in deciding the fate between the current dimension and the new dimension which he thinks is 'not his call to decide'. After successfully using the XL-3 on TDD-1, the ARX-8 takes flight towards Mérida alone and defeats a Behemoth in midflight before he dangerously loses control of the XL-3 and miraculously lands on the Mérida coastline unharmed. After defeating two more Behemoths inland he finds his determination and strength to continue and finally realizes who he is and what he desires.