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Overview

Shion Sonozaki (園崎 詩音 Sonozaki Shion) is Mion Sonozaki's twin sister who works at Angel Mort as a waitress. She first appears in Watanagashi.

Profile[]

The twin sister of Mion Sonozaki.
Like her older sister, she has a crafty personality and may be even more adept at worldly affairs than Mion.
She has a soft spot for Satoshi and wanted to help him out, so she took the job of manager of the Hinamizawa Fighters.
She usually lives in Okinomiya and doesn't go to and from the village often.

(Translated from 07th Expansion's official website.)

She lives in Katsumachi, Okinomiya and is the twin sister of Mion. She is a waitress in a restaurant named "Angel Mort". Her appearance is similar to that of Mion??

(Translated from the Entergram Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Hou website.)

Mion's younger twin sister who looks exactly like her. She lives in Okinomiya, the town next door to Hinamizawa and works at a restaurant called Angel Mort. Despite looking elegant and refined, she sometimes acts aggressively towards Keiichi and manipulates Mion. She is just as crafty as her older sister.

(From the Gou website.)

Appearance[]

Like her twin sister, Shion is a tall teenage girl with teal eyes and long light-green hair, however Shion keeps her hair tied back in a longer ponytail with a yellow bow. Her casual clothes consist of a white sleeveless sweater and black skirt.

During work at Angel Mort, Shion wears the traditional waitress uniform.

Shion's school uniform is her St. Lucia uniform. In the original artstyle, it is a gray button-up shirt with a red tie, white undershirt and short blue skirt. In other artstyles, it is a completely white button-up shirt.

Personality[]

Shion is much more feminine when compared to Mion. Despite often acting more elegant and refined, Shion is also more aggressive, shrewd, manipulative, and cold when compared to the tomboy of her twin sister. She is impulsive and will jump to take action or defend others if nobody is there to reign her in.

Shion hates canned food because of horror stories she was told as a child about human meat being inside them.[3]

Background[]

Mion and Shion were born as twins to Akane Sonozaki and her husband. According to the Sonozaki family traditions, one of the two twins was supposed to be strangled at birth in order to prevent disputes over the succession, but while their grandmother Oryou was rumored to have tried to do so, she for an unknown reason did not carry it out[4]. As such, the two twins grew up together and frequently swapped places, delighting in the inability of adults to tell them apart. Shion took part in the dam war and was especially rough towards the dam construction manager.[5]

Meakashi reveals that Shion was actually born the older sister. On the day Mion was supposed to get her demon tattoo signifying her status as the family successor, the twins switched. Thus, the younger sister received the tattoo and was forced to become Mion while the older sister started to live as Shion. (Articles on the wiki will refer to Mion and Shion by the names they are known publicly by.)

As the younger twin, Shion was unfit to be the family head and was eventually sent to the boarding school St. Lucia, remaining there for years before getting tired of it and escaping in 1982 to live in Okinomiya.[6] Although Shion's escape was soon discovered by the family, they allowed her to remain in Okinomiya so long as she kept out of sight.

Shion cooperated with Mion to take her place in public sometimes for jobs and eventually met Satoshi Houjou and fell in love with him. She became the "ghost manager" for Satoshi's baseball team,the Hinamizawa Fighters. After the Watanagashi Festival of 1982, when Satoshi's abusive aunt was found murdered, Shion outed herself as Mion's twin to provide an alibi for Satoshi and was summarily punished by the Sonozakis by having some of her fingernails removed. Shion was formally withdrawn from St. Lucia and transferred to a school in Okinomiya, occasionally going into Hinamizawa for personal reasons.[7]

Relationships[]

Overview[]

Sonozaki Family

The Club

Other

Mion Sonozaki[]

Mion and Shion have a close sisterly relationship, with Shion often referring to her as "Sis" (お姉 Onee). There is a divide between them due to Mion's status as the successor, with the sisters sometimes wondering if they could instead be one person or equals. Shion doesn't mind having a sister however, saying that she would like them to reborn as twins in the next world.[8]

Satoshi Houjou[]

Shion loved Satoshi and devoted a lot of her time to helping him through teaching him how to shop effectively and supporting him in his baseball games. Shion seems to have a single-minded affection towards Satoshi however, blaming Satoko as the reason for his suffering at one point and attacking Mion under the belief that the Sonozakis demoned him away at another.[9] As Meakashi shows. Shion's desire to discover what happened to Satoshi sends her spiralling into insanity as she murders the perceived people responsible.

Keiichi Maebara[]

Gou ep6 keiichi and shion hug

Shion teases Keiichi by hugging him during "dates"

When Shion first meets Keiichi, she develops conflicting feelings for him. She thinks he's similar to Satoshi because he's warm and heroic, however Keiichi's also perverted and childish. Shion considers stealing Keiichi from Mion after hearing how much she talks about him and teases him at times.[10]

Satoko Houjou[]

Shion dislikes Satoko at first, believing she's been keeping Satoshi to herself during their time with their aunt and uncle, so much to the fact that she even killed her in Meakashi. When Satoshi made a parting request to Shion to take care of Satoko before his disappearance, Shion starts acting like a surrogate older sister as Satoko's "Nee-nee". Shion has proven to be dangerously protective of Satoko, as seen in Minagoroshi where she considers killing Teppei when he returns and takes Satoko back.

Tatsuyoshi Kasai[]

Kasai has acted as a guardian for Shion sometimes ever since she was a child and serves her as a chauffeur and bodyguard. He provides her with a stun gun. Kasai's told her many horror stories about canned food having human flesh in them, leading to Shion developing a strong hatred for it.[11] When Shion escapes from St. Lucia, Kasai helps her hide out and gets food for her. Even after Shion's punishment, Kasai continues to act as her guardian and gives her advice at times.

Role in the Story[]

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Question Arcs[]

Watanagashi[]

Shion is first introduced when Keiichi heads to Angel Mort for lunch, where Shion is working her waitress job. Keiichi banters with her thinking she's actually Mion, but Shion introduces herself as a twin. Keiichi still believes she's actually Mion under a different persona, and as the chapter progresses Keiichi gets to know Shion better. He begins accepting Shion as a way for Mion to express her more feminine side until he and Shion suddenly run into Mion working at a store.

During the Watanagashi Festival, Shion pulls Keiichi away from watching Rika's performance and takes him to join Takano and Tomitake in sneaking into the ritual storehouse, where they learn about Hinamizawa's gruesome past. Afterwards, Shion tells Keiichi about a strange banging noise she heard and asks if he heard it too. Keiichi heard nothing of the sort.

After Tomitake and Takano's deaths, Keiichi and Shion trade phone calls, with Shion growing increasingly concerned over them being cursed by Oyashiro-sama because they trespassed inside the storehouse. Keiichi later discovers that Shion was supposed to have disappeared a few days after the festival, leaving him to wonder who he was really talking to on the phone.

Keiichi is convinced that "Shion" may actually be Mion in disguise and later heads to Mion's house to confront her. Mion guides Keiichi to the Sonozaki's underground torture chamber and reveals that Shion had indeed been imprisoned there for a few days and descended into a poor mental state.

Keiichi and Shion are rescued by the police, and Shion heads to her apartment. She is found to have killed herself by jumping off of the balcony, seemingly after fighting and arguing with Mion.

Tatarigoroshi[]

Shion appears during Irie and Keiichi's discussion at the barbecue to introduce herself as the Hinamizawa Fighters' ghost manager. During cleanup, Shion and Keiichi talk about Satoshi's "transferal", where Shion's tone changes as she asks Keiichi to not tell anyone that Satoshi actually transferred.

The credits reveal that after the Great Hinamizawa Disaster, Shion committed suicide at the victim's hospital.

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai[]

Meakashi[]

Much of the chapter is told from Shion's point of view in the years leading up to June 1983, beginning with her escape from St. Lucia and living in Okinomiya while hiding from the rest of the Sonozaki family. Many of the TIPS are notebook entires written by Shion as time goes on.

Meakashi manga shion headpat

Shion takes delight in Satoshi's headpats

Shion gets assistance from Kasai and her uncle Yoshiroh, and arranges a deal with Mion where Shion takes her place in public from time to time. One day, Shion meets Satoshi when he tries to rescue her from delinquents and falls in love with him, building a relationship with him despite the fact Satoshi thinks she's Mion.

Shion learns about Satoshi's home situation and supports him in his baseball games, however he leaves the team to focus on his part-time job and to better support Satoko at home. Spurred on by a conversation with Rena about how Satoshi is secretly tired of protecting Satoko all the time and might be cursed by Oyashiro-sama, Shion in her Mion guise beats up Satoko at school, yelling at her and blaming her for taking advantage of her brother all the time. Satoshi and Rena break them up, with Satoshi angrily criticizing "Mion" for having the Sonozakis target the Houjous.

The night before the 1982 Watanagashi Festival, Shion gets a call from Satoshi, who still thinks she's Mion, and apologizes to him for the school incident. Satoshi asks Shion to take Satoko to the festival since he has other obligations, and says he'll leave Satoko to her. Satoshi and Satoko's aunt is found murdered the night of the festival. Shion believes Satoshi is responsible, and while hanging out with him a few days later, Ooishi appears and tries to bring Satoshi in for questioning. Shion reveals herself to be Mion's twin to help provide an alibi for Satoshi, and Ooishi takes both of them in.

After Shion leaves the police station, the Sonozakis pick her up and bring her to the Sonozaki residence for punishment. Mion takes charge of the proceedings and forces Shion to tear out three of her fingernails: one for Kasai, one for Yoshiroh, and one for Satoshi. Shion performs the deed and recuperates over the next few days.

Shion learns from Ooishi that Satoshi suddenly disappeared on the way home from the toy store. Shion can't believe it, however Ooishi suggests he may have run away from the village using the money he saved up. Later, Kasai tells Shion they arrested the culprit behind the aunt's murder, some drug addict, but Shion still worries about Satoshi. Shion meets Takano later and talks with her about the curse and watanagashi.

Mion visits Shion to say that Oryou has forgiven her. Mion shows concern for Satoshi and Shion gets angry, thinking she's being facetious since she believes the Sonozakis had to do with his disappearance. Mion insists the Sonozakis weren't behind it, and Shion notices that Mion also tore off her own fingernails to atone.

One day in 1983, Shion meets Keiichi for the first time when he saves her from delinquents. Shion briefly considers him a replacement for Satoshi before seeing how vulgar Keiichi really is. Her heart aches as she remembers how warm Satoshi felt, and she starts to hear extra footsteps following her. Shion believes these footsteps are a sign of Satoshi's presence following her and starts speaking to him in private about everything.

During the Watanagashi Festival, Shion pulls Keiichi away from watching Rika's performance and takes him to join Takano and Tomitake in sneaking into the ritual storehouse, where they learn of Hinamizawa's past. As Takano tells her story, Shion starts hearing a banging noise that grows in intensity before suddenly stopping.

Shion goes to spend the night at the Sonozaki residence and overhears Mion and Oryou talking about Takano and Tomitake falling victim to the curse, afraid afraid that she and Keiichi will be next. Mion suddenly appears behind Shion and makes a cryptic phone call to some people to "take care of things", then confirms what Shion just heard and emphasizes that they were killed because they angered Oyashiro-sama. Shion begins to think the Sonozakis really were behind the curse and then knocks out Mion using the stun gun she obtained from Kasai earlier. Shion does the same to Oryou and brings the unconscious Sonozakis to the torture chamber.

Shion locks Mion in a jail cell and restrains Oryou to a chair. When Mion wakes up, Shion interrogates her about what Oyashiro-sama's curse is really all about. Mion says she has nothing to do with Oryou's decisions and simply takes care of surface problems while unknown others deal with the "underside". Shion changes topic, asking why Tomitake and Takano were killed for sneaking into the storehouse. Mion is surprised to hear that last bit of info, but when Shion tells her that four people snuck inside, Mion suggests the remaining two will be made sacrifices.

Shion ponders who the real mastermind behind the curse could be and then tries to wake up Oryou so she can interrogate her. When Oryou is unresponsive even to lighter burns, Shion discovers she accidentally killed her since the shock from the stun gun was too high. Shion tries to calm herself and remembers that Oryou had a hand in Satoshi's suffering, so she grabs a spiked whip and begins abusing her grandmother's corpse. Shion senses the presence watching her again and asks if it's actually Oyashiro-sama. She gets no response.

Shion starts to wheel Oryou's corpse down to the well so she can dump it and horrifies Mion when she walks past. Shion justifies Oryou's death by saying she lied about Satoshi being forgiven and the Sonozakis having nothing to do with the curse. Shion explodes at Mion, still wanting to have Satoshi back, and promises she won't torture her sister so long as she cooperates.

The next morning, Shion poses as Mion when she takes a call from Kiichirou regarding an energency village meeting. Shion then calls Kasai as herself and tells him she trespassed into the storehouse. She ponders the situation she's found herself in but thinks she's past the point of no return now that Oryou's dead.

Shion goes to school pretending to be Mion and asks Keiichi if he saw Tomitake, Takano, or Shion at all last night after the trespassing. Keiichi says he hasn't, scared by what "Mion" is asking. Later, Shion asks housekeepers not to come by for a while since Oryou is in a bad mood and then arranges a library meeting with Keiichi over the phone. They talk about the curse in-person when Ooishi interrupts. Shion leaves and claims she has to go to her job, actually going off to change into Mion for the village meeting.

At the meeting, "Mion" tells the elders about the trespassing into the ritual storehouse, lying that Shion has already been dealt with. Shion's heart breaks a bit when she sees the lack of emotion on Kiichirou's face at this news. After the meeting, Shion asks Kiichirou to come to her house on the pretense of talking to Oryou about something.

During her conversation with Kiichirou, Shion feels relieved when the mayor shows concern for Shion's wellbeing, but it turns sour once Kiichirou starts badmouthing the Houjous and reveals that Shion's third fingernail she ripped off was actually for Shion herself and not Satoshi. An angry Shion knocks out Kiichirou and brings him to the torture chamber, later joining in a village wide search when his disappearance is reported.

As Kiichirou is chained to a device that threatens to choke him if he doesn't stand in a certain way, Shion interrogates him about Satoshi's disappearance. Kiichirou denies knowledge of how it happened and suggests he might've been killed and disposed of in the well. Shion goes to the well and believes Satoshi really is down there. She asks Mion if she would've begged Oryou to stop if she were present for Satoshi's execution, then calls her a liar when she affirms it. Shion accuses Mion of never doing anything to help Satoshi and demands to have the name of Mion back.

At school, "Mion" asks Rika what she knows about the curse, however she doesn't seem to take the trespassing seriously. Shion roughs her up a bit and says she must pay as the head of the Furude family since she and Kiichirou enabled the trespassers to enter. Later that day, Rika heads to the Sonozaki residence to refill her soy sauce bottle. Shion shows her inside where Rika suddenly attacks her by spraying her with something. Rika pulls out a syringe and tries to inject her, but Shion fights back and jabs Rika with the mysterious item instead. Rika wobbles around and Shion cackles with plans to bring her to the torture room, however Rika says she won't give her the satisfacton of killing her and then commits suicide with a knife.

Shion is ecstatic that she's killed the heads of the Three Families, wishing that she could've saved Satoshi if she were Mion. Shion confronts Mion about the day they switched, revealing that Shion was actually born the older sister and Mion younger. The younger sister was acting as Mion the day she was to get the demon tattoo, and as a result forever became Mion. Shion declares that she is now Mion Sonozaki and demands that her sister call herself Shion. The delirious Mion agrees, and Shion threatens to kill her in the future.

While cleaning up after Rika, Satoko calls the house and asks where she went. Shion tricks her into coming over to join Rika for dinner and brings her to the torture chamber. In the meantime, Shion has frequent phone calls with Keiichi, giving him updates on the disappearances and trying to use him as bait to see if her enemies will do anything to him. "Mion" joins the village-wide search when Rika and Satoko are reported missing, rambling that Satoko is cursed but escaped Oyashiro-sama's wrath despite everything she did to Satoshi.

Meakashi manga satoko torture

Shion tortures Satoko by stabbing her

Back at the torture chamber, Shion confirms that Kiichirou is dead from exhaustion and then tortures Satoko as Mion listens in horror. Shion blames Satoko for cornering Satoshi and making him disappear, stabbing her repeatedly as she says this. Satoko exclaims that she was working to better herself after her brother's disappearance and asks if Satoshi is watching, no longer screaming in pain from Shion's attacks and eventually dying from her wounds. Shion realizes that she never believed Satoshi would come back while Satoko did and was rewarded for it. Shion imagines the Houjous' spirits reuniting and turning away from her, realizing that she never kept Satoshi's promise to take care of Satoko.

Shion feels the presence behind her once more, deciding that it must be herself looking at her mistakes. Shion accepts that she is now a demon and resigns herself to her evil deeds. Shion calls Keiichi to talk about Rika and Satoko's disappearances, and he confronts her about the discrepancies regarding Shion's claim of speaking to Kiichirou earlier. Shion cackles widly and hangs up, hoping that Keiichi will realize who she really is.

Keiichi and Rena confront Shion at the Sonozaki residence the next day, where Shion continues to act as Mion and delivers a falsified history about the Sonozaki family derived from her own hatred of canned food. Shion asks to have some time alone with Keiichi and brings him to the torture chamber, knocking him out and strapping him to a table. Shion outlines how she plans to torture him, however Keiichi asks for Shion to be let go, not realizing that the twins have switched. Shion sees that Keiichi really is a nice guy and understands why Mion fell in love with him, then knocks him out with her stun gun.

Shion frees Mion and trades clothes with her. She tells Mion to escape through the underground passage and states her intent to kill her and let the police think Shion is innocent. Shion says she can apologize to Satoshi at the bottom of the well, however Mion says that was just a hypothetical; Satoshi might be in the well if he were killed. Mion explains that Oryou told her long ago that the Sonozakis actually aren't behind the curse and just pretend like they are. Shion can't believe that and asks why Rika tried to attack her earlier then, as the way she died was similar to Tomitake's. Mion swears she's telling the truth but Shion tells her to apologize to Satoshi in heaven and uses the stun gun on her. Mion dies when she falls down the well.

Meakashi manga end

Shion is "rescued" by the police, who believe Mion was behind the murders and disappearances all along. Shion is confined to her apartment and starts going crazy, arguing with what she believes to be Mion's ghost. She escapes her apartment through the balcony and heads to Keiichi's house disguised as Mion, where she lures him outside and stabs him. Shion then returns to her apartment and while climbing back up to the balcony, she trips and falls onto an elevator roof. Shion finally realizes that everything went wrong when she forgot Satoshi's promise and wishes that she were never born. She decides to end her life, rolling off of the roof and falling to the ground. Shion seems to hear Satoshi speaking to her before she dies.

After the credits, an ideal world of Shion having fun with Satoko is shown.

Tsumihoroboshi[]

Shion and Kasai appear at a restaurant and talk to Rena for a bit. They tell her about Rina and Teppei's true nature, being that they scam people through badger games.

Shion's fate after the Great Hinamizawa Disaster is unclear.

Minagoroshi[]

In this world, Shion begins attending the Hinamizawa school and being nice to Satoko as her Nee-nee. During a conversation with other club members about "dreams" (actually them remembering things they did from other Fragments), it is implied Shion has also had them.

When Satoko is taken back to live with Teppei, the club is at a loss for what to do. An angry Shion chides Mion for not wanting to use her Sonozaki connections to help and suggests they just kill Teppei instead. She prepares to leave school to do it but Keiichi blocks her path, saying that Satoko wouldn't like it if Shion became a murderer for her sake. Shion throws a chair at Keiichi but he takes the blow and continues to block the exit; Shion sits down in a huff and awaits Keiichi's method.

The group protests the child consultation center to get them to take action. They recruit classmates and villagers (with Shion recruiting Kameda and his friends by offering to remove him from the Angel Mort blacklist), later petitioning the village elders and Oryou herself. Shion pokes holes in the elders' opinion by revealing how close-knit the council and town government are, admitting that she switches places with Mion sometimes. The protests are ultimately successful. Satoko joins Shion and the rest of the club in enjoying the Watanagashi Festival.

Rika tells the club about her fears that someone is out to kill her and reveals the truth about Tokyo and Hinamizawa Syndrome. They theorize over Takano's possible involvement as the mastermind with her faked death. The club pretends to go home that night but actually stick around, and later help Rika and Satoko run from the Mountain Dogs when they break into Rika's shack. Shion makes use of her stun gun to disarm some Dogs.

The group plans to steal a Mountain Dog van and drive away, but their hopes are dashed when Takano shoots and kills Keiichi. The rest of the club members are rounded up by the Dogs and summarily executed; Takano kills Mion first and moves towards Satoko, but Shion starts cursing her out. Shion declares that Takano was responsible for killing Satoshi, but the major doesn't confirm or deny anything and shoots her. The corpses of the club members are disposed of afterwards.

The spirits of the club members reunite after Rika's death and accept Hanyuu as one of their own.

Matsuribayashi[]

MatsuribayashiCG (10)

Shion and Akane make their regular visit to the dam cosntruction manager's grave and run into Ooishi there. They reveal that every year, Oryou makes ohagi for the manager and sends it to his grave, regretful that the Sonozakis couldn't make up with the manager after the dam war. Their talk with Ooishi convinces him to let go of his hatred for the Sonozakis.

Shion and Kasai are driving when they come across Irie's wrecked car, who was just run off the road by the Mountain Dogs. Kasai immediately sees that Irie was in trouble because of the bullet holes in his car, and the doctor asks them to take him to the Sonozaki residence. The Mountain Dogs follow them due to the tracker on Irie's coat.

Kasai and Shion go to the torture chamber where the club is gathered and learn what they're planning against Takano. The Mountain Dogs start to break in, and Kasai and Shion equip themselves with the torture chamber's armory and prepare to hold the line as everyone else escapes. Rika however is fearful of them dying since this is the final world, and Kasai and Shion are knocked unconscious and held hostage by the Dogs. They threaten to drop them into the well if Rika doesn't come along, and Rika complies. Shion regains consciousness shortly after, where Irie sees she's temporarily lost her hearing in her left ear because of the skirmish. Irie reveals that Satoshi's still alive and is at the clinic.

Shion becomes determined to help the club and goes with Irie, Kasai, and Akasaka to rescue Tomitake from the clinic. The clinic attack is successful due to the low security, though Shion is almost the victim of a surprise attack by a Dog when she rushes into the basement to find Satoshi. Shion finds Satoshi's room and is despaired to hear that he's been in a coma for a long time because of his terminal symptoms. Shion cries at the thought he'll sleep forever, but Irie promises to find a cure and bring him back; he asks Shion to keep it a secret from Satoko until then. Shion asks to visit Satoshi regularly form now on.

Akasaka and Tomitake commandeer a car to break through the Mountain Dogs' blockade of the village, and Kasai provides cover fire using a sniper rifle while Shion acts as a spotter.

In the epilogue, Shion makes frequent visits to the clinic. She's started buying lots of men's clothes while continuing to act as Satoko's big sister.

Trivia[]

  • It was always planned for Mion to have a sister, however Shion originally had the name Tamane (魂音).[12] Shion was also inspired by Onikakushi theories that Rena and Mion switched places with twins.[13]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "作品紹介 — ひぐらしのなく頃に" on the Official 07th Expansion website https://07th-expansion.net/hig_gensaku
  2. At a special Higurashi event, Ryukishi07 answered questions from fans and gave age ranges for the main characters. While audio and video recordings were not allowed, secondhand reports indicate that Shion is in third-year middle school. As the Japanese school year starts in April and her birthday has not passed in June, she would be 14. (1)(2).
  3. Meakashi Day 3
  4. Meakashi Chapter 1. "According to our long-held family traditions, one of the twins was to be strangled to death right after birth. (...) I heard the hag actually put her hands around my neck right after I was born. ...I don't know what exchange took place in that moment."
  5. Matsuribayashi Chapter 17. Shion: "That old geezer was a bastard that pissed me off! I bit him, I elbowed his stomach, and I even scratched up his car with a ten-yen coin!"
  6. Meakashi Day 2
  7. Meakashi Day 13
  8. Matsuribayashi Chapter 21
  9. Meakashi Day 14-2
  10. Meakashi Day 15
  11. Meakashi Day 3
  12. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Official Character Guide/Interview
  13. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Famous Scene Investigation File 100
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