Sagara Sanosuke was raised by Captain Sagara Souzou who led a group called the Sekihoutai. The Sekihoutai were betrayed by the Ishinshishi, and this betrayal resulted in the deaths of Sagara Souzou and most of the members of the group. Because of this, Sanosuke felt great hatred towards the Meiji government (he thinks it's so messed up) and became the famous gangster known to all of Tokyo as Zanza. He lounged around the city with a red bandana tied up in his spiky hair and the word "Aku" meaning "bad" etched onto the back of his gi. However, things changed when he met Kenshin. Our rurouni finally convinced Sano (after a bloody fight in which Kenshin ended up breaking Sano's huge Zanbatou - is that a phallic symbol or what???) that he doesn't need to beat up the entire world in order to obtain justice, and as a result Sano became Kenshin's loyal buddy from that moment on.

Sano first met Megumi when he and Kenshin were gambling with a couple of his buddies. We all remember the scene when she rushes in on the two men, trying to escape the bastard Kanryuu. At first Sano felt very suspicious of Megumi, questioning her motives and wondering if she had some other reasons for hanging around the Kamiya dojo. He later found out that she was responsible for making the opium which killed a good friend - and from that moment sparks began to fly. However it seems he doesn't hate Megumi and he ended up preventing her suicide attempt with his very own hands.

One thing I love about Sanosuke is that he's not repressed like some of the other men in RK (Kenshin, Aoshi, even Soujirou even though he's insanely happy). He's completely straightforward and will voice his thoughts in no uncertain terms. The fact that he's totally the masculine and rugged type doesn't hurt either ^_^ And even though Sano sometimes comes off as a not-so-intelligent bad ass, he's a charming bad ass nonetheless! Also, his intelligence is often underrated, especially by people like Saitoh Hajime - we've seen him come through in tough situations many times! He's willing to go the distance for any of his friends and you never have cause to question his loyalty. Another reason I love him - he has such wonderful interactions with the other characters. Not just with Megumi but with Yumi, Chou, Yahiko, and sometimes Kaoru as well. Though some often say it's degrading to think of him as merely comic relief (he's SO much more than that), nevertheless I think the comic moments involving Sanosuke add a lot to our chicken-head's charm ^_~ After all, who doesn't like a rogue?