Ichigo Saitō is the former president and founder of Ichigo Production, Inc., a talent agency he named after himself. He is a supporting character whose actions and legacy are deeply intertwined with the story's central tragedy. His background begins with him scouting a young, orphaned Ai Hoshino from an orphanage, recognizing a unique and powerful potential in her despite her cynical and distrustful nature. He became her legal guardian and the primary architect of her career, molding her into the luminous idol who would become the center of the group B-Komachi. Ichigo was the source of Ai’s core philosophy that a lie of love could one day become the truth, framing the act of performing as a professional skill. His ultimate professional dream was to see Ai perform at the prestigious Tokyo Dome.

Ichigo’s personality is defined by a sharp contrast between his professional drive and his emotional shortcomings. He is a pragmatic, assertive, and highly competitive businessman with a keen eye for talent and a ruthless streak when it comes to protecting his agency’s interests. He established a zero-tolerance policy for internal bullying and did not hesitate to dismiss B-Komachi members who harassed Ai. However, he is also notoriously clumsy in handling emotions, lacking empathy and psychological insight. This emotional blindness led him to fail to address the deep-seated resentments of other B-Komachi members who felt overshadowed by Ai, a failure that contributed to the circumstances leading to her death.

His primary motivation is intrinsically linked to Ai Hoshino. She was not just a client but a surrogate daughter, and his entire life’s purpose became focused on her success. When Ai is murdered by a stalker on the very day his dream of a Tokyo Dome concert was to be realized, Ichigo is utterly devastated. Consumed by grief and guilt for failing to protect her, he abandons his company, his wife, and his responsibilities, disappearing from the entertainment world. This act of disappearance is later revealed to be motivated by a desire for revenge. He secluded himself to secretly investigate the mastermind behind Ai’s death, intending to exact retribution on his own to protect those he left behind from the consequences.

In the story, Ichigo’s role evolves from a driving force in the past to a missing, almost mythic figure whose absence forces others to adapt. His wife, Miyako Saitō, is left to manage the agency and raise Ai’s twin children, Aqua and Ruby Hoshino. After a long absence, he is eventually found by Aqua and Miyako. Through a combination of persuasion and blackmail from his wife, he is forced to return to his former position, agreeing to help support Ruby’s dream of becoming an idol like her mother. He also becomes a key ally to Aqua in his elaborate plans for revenge, providing support and information from the shadows, even participating in morally questionable schemes.

Key relationships define his character arc. With Ai Hoshino, he is a mentor, guardian, and surrogate father, investing everything in her future and being shattered by her loss. His relationship with his wife, Miyako, is a complex partnership where his external business savvy is complemented by her internal management and emotional labor, though he often leaves her overburdened and ultimately abandons her. Their reunion is a cathartic confrontation where she physically beats him for his selfish disappearance. For Aqua and Ruby, he is an absent guardian who later becomes a crucial, if flawed, ally in their respective paths of revenge and stardom.

Ichigo’s development is one of decline, withdrawal, and reluctant re-emergence. He transforms from a confident, ambitious producer to a broken, guilt-ridden recluse living a solitary life. His eventual return to the agency is not a triumphant comeback but a coerced return to face the mess he left behind. While he regains some of his former purpose by helping Ruby, he remains a figure scarred by his past failures, and his judgment continues to be clouded by his obsession with revenge, at times pushing Aqua further down that dark path instead of offering emotional support.

Regarding notable abilities, Ichigo is an exceptionally skilled talent producer and businessman. His strengths lie in scouting raw talent, aggressive external negotiations, crisis management, and strategic planning within the competitive entertainment industry. He was the primary force behind B-Komachi’s rise to fame and was able to successfully navigate the scandal of Ai’s secret pregnancy to protect her career. However, his most notable characteristic is not a specific skill but a critical flaw: his profound inability to manage interpersonal emotions, provide psychological care, or resolve conflicts within a group, a deficiency that had lasting and tragic consequences for everyone around him.