Athena Saori

Main article : Athena (Saint Seiya)

• Saori Kido (城戸沙織 Kido Saori) also known as Athena

Age: 13

Height: 1.55m (5'1")

Weight: 44kg (97lbs)

Birthday: September 1

Blood Type: A

Birth Place: Greece

Techniques: Misopetha-Menos (used on Dohko), Protection Sphere (used in Hades chapter protecting Bronze Saints), Seal of Athena, several kinds of energy blasts, healing auras.

Seiyuu: Keiko Han (潘 恵子, はん けいこ), Fumiko Orikasa (折笠 富美子, おりかさ ふみこ) later series, Asumi Nakata (中田 あすみ, なかた あすみ) (Hades saga).

NOTE: She is known as Princess Sienna in the (American) English manga and the edited English anime.

The leader of Bronze, Silver and Gold Saints; she is the reincarnation of the Goddess of War and Wisdom, Athena. Though mostly unable to physically fight, she has an extremely powerful cosmos that gives her a notable endurance to pain and extreme conditions (as proved in the Sanctuary, Asgard and Poseidon arcs) and healing/defensive powers (she's arguably the most powerful healer in the whole Saint Seiya universe). She usually channelizes it through a golden aura or her sacred staff.

After Saga (under the guise of the Pope) tried to kill her when she was a baby and that Aiolos rescued her, she was given to Mitsumasa Kido who raised her as his grand daughter. As a child, she was initially very spoiled and rude to the Bronze Saints, but as years passed and she first took over her grandfather's foundation and later discovered she was the new reincarnation of Athena, she acts much more mature and responsible about her mission. She's usually calm and collected, an excellent strategist and very compassionate.

She will lead the bronze saints in some minor battles against Asgard God Warriors, Poseidon and his 7 Mariners, among other supplices in the anime movies parallel storyline. The remaining 6 gold saints will be keeping guard in Athena's Sanctuary.

In the Hades Sanctuary chapter, Saori later on commits [...] in the Hades arc to enter the land of the dead and meet Hades face to face. The dagger that she used to slit her own throat is the exact same dagger Saga tried to use against her when Aiolos rescued her in time 13 years ago.

In the Hades Inferno chapter, when reaching the Arayashiki, she awakened her true Atena avatar's power and for that reason she didn't appear to King Hades until she sensed his true presence (when possessing Shun at 100%). After confronting each other and releasing Hades's spirit from Shun's. Then, Hades took her by force to Elysion. She didn't made any force back as she didn't want her saints to suffer but also as she wanted to be made as sacrifice in a holy vase for making Hades to stop the Greatest Eclipse.

In the Elysion chapter, Phoenix Ikki will be granted some of her blood (as she was on the vase and Seiya and Ikki tried to free her from that confinement) and turn his cloth into a Kamei (sacred) armor. After seeing all her saints suffering against Hades, she will awaken once more and finally retrieve the "packed" armor Pegasus Seiya was holding all the time and she wore her Kamei Olympian cloth and stand a last match against the now fully revived Hades.

After a while, when saving the world once more, she will keep guard of Seiya's maimed body, due to him being cursed by Hades's Sword in the last battle. Some months will pass until Artemis attack the Earth with her Angels. Saori will gave her the Nike sceptre power and the title to be unique Goddess of the Earth in exchange of sparing her Saints' lives. However, She will have a last match first against Artemis after releasing the Hades's curse in Seiya's body and then against her older brother Apollon, trying to make the gods understand the value of human kind.

Relationship with Pegasus Seiya

Saori's relationship with Seiya is sometimes the subject of speculation. At the very least, it is obvious that Seiya cares greatly for Saori's well-being and will not think twice to sacrifice his life for her unconditionally. However, Saori is also the current reincarnation of Athena -- the goddess that the saints live to protect -- so it is only natural that Seiya, being one of her saints, would not hesitate one second to defend her. It has not been clearly stated by Masami Kurumada whether or not their relationship should be defined as romantic or platonic.

Seiya initially despised Saori Kido because of events that took place when they were children. Being the granddaughter of Mitsumasa Kido, Saori was raised as a spoiled child, and readily saw Seiya (along with the other 99 orphans brought into the Foundation) as a slave for her personal use. Seiya, however, was defiant of Saori's commands, and even challenged her authority at one point.

When Seiya returned from Greece years later, he had expected to be greeted by the same spoiled brat he last had a spat with. Needless to say, he was quite surprised to see that Saori had matured into a diplomatic, philanthropist and very calm young lady, a far cry from the little princess he knew. This relationship will evolve, when Seiya and the others trust her first after she committed to them as more important than gold or precious objects (this is seen in the anime in the Geist and phantom saints arc), and later when she's revealed as Atena in the Silver Saints arc. Moreover, Saori swears to be strong when being stung with Saggitta's arrow as a punishment and tells her saints to look for the Pope (Ares) after passing the 12 Houses of the Zodiac.

This change allowed Seiya to gradually accept her into his life, and protecting Athena Saori together with the peace of the Earth becomes his primary goal even before the search of his older sister Seika.