Sayako Kuwahara  

Saya, 桑原鞘子

Sayako Kuwahara is a high school student who enjoys being random and spontaneous, frequently changing her interests and goals. During her first year, she joined the Kendo Club but would sometimes disappear for short periods, claiming to quit. She has known Kirino since elementary school and is often referred to as "Saya" by Kirino. Sayako is one of the tallest members on the team, which others tease by calling her a boy due to her height. In the storyline, she improves her footwork significantly after a brief teaching session from Tamaki. Like Kirino, Sayako finds Tamaki cute and enjoys playing silly games with him, such as messing with his hair, not paying attention to his kendo lectures, making him fight just for fun, and telling dramatic stories about why Asuma quit kendo. She has a pessimistic outlook on life and claims to pursue death the moment she fails at something. In the anime, her hobby is writing, and she enjoys sharing her stories with others, such as explaining why Asuma left kendo in a dramatic fashion, even though her friends found her story uninteresting. Sayako plays the position of Center (Chuken) in the competition.