Houshou Saionji is the father of Kanata Saionji and serves as the monk and patron of the Saionji household, a temple where much of the story takes place. His birthday is June 16th. Shortly after Miyu Kozuki arrives to live at the temple, Houshou departs on a long-term pilgrimage to India, leaving the temple and the responsibility of caring for Miyu in the hands of his son. On the surface, this decision makes him appear somewhat irresponsible, as he abandons his duties as the temple’s caretaker to pursue his own childhood dream of training abroad.

Despite this carefree impression, Houshou’s character is defined by a deep, emotional backstory involving his late wife, Hitome. It is revealed that he met Hitome when she visited the temple as a schoolgirl and asked him to take a photograph of her and her friends. This chance encounter blossomed into a long-distance relationship that continued until she graduated from high school, at which point they were finally reunited. He loved Hitome so profoundly that, after her death, he becomes unable to speak of her without bursting into tears. This overwhelming grief is the very reason Kanata grows up knowing so little about his own mother, as his father cannot bring himself to discuss her. His role in the narrative is primarily as a catalyst; his sudden departure creates the central living situation where Kanata and Miyu must manage the household alone, a scenario that becomes even more chaotic with the arrival of the alien baby Ruu and his caretaker, Wannya. While he is absent for most of the story, his emotional struggle with loss and his connection to the past remain a quiet but important part of his characterization. He does not possess any notable supernatural or special abilities.