Simon Keyes

"Sōta Sarushiro"

- But aren't prosecutors crazy scazy or something? Constantly glaring at you and everything!

Sōta Sarushiro was a employee of the Berry Big Circus who was accused of murdering Manosuke Naitō. Although he came across as a very shy and meek individual, he was actually a deeply calculating and bitter man who manipulated others in his quest for revenge.

Father's taste tester

 * Main article: The Inherited Turnabout

Sarushiro was the son of the chef Yutaka Kazami, who in turn was acquaintances with fellow chef Isaku Hyōdō. Hyōdō's son Manosuke Naitō became close friends with Sarushiro, with the two often playing together while their fathers collaborated in a dessert-making contest run by the famous television chef Issei Tenkai; Hyōdō lacked skill at making desserts, while Kazami was poor at aesthetics, but they worked together to cover each other's faults. Additionally, since his father had lost his ability to taste sweet things, Sarushiro would help Kazami by tasting his creations for him.

However, on the last day of the contest, Hyōdō betrayed Kazami. He threatened his own son Naitō into stopping Sarushiro from arriving to help his father. Naitō, while crying and begging for forgiveness, bound his best friend's wrists and legs, and then the pair were locked in a car in the freezing cold. The temperature dropped so low as to make the door freeze over so that they couldn't escape.

The two boys would have eventually died, had it not been for the chance arrival of Ryōken Hōinbō, a blind professional assassin who just happened to be passing by at the time with his dog Kuro, with the latter being the one who detected the pair. Hōinbō saved the boys and took them to the Happy Family Home orphanage, as the trauma caused by their near-death experience left them unable to recall the lives before their rescue. Meanwhile, during Hōinbō's intervention, Kazami had killed Hyōdō in a rage after discovering his betrayal, and then fled the country.

Meeting Hōinbō again

 * Main article: SS-5 Incident

Sarushiro would meet Hōinbō again seven years later, when the assassin was given the job of killing Zheng Fa president Teikun Ō at the orphanage. Hōinbō did so, with Sarushiro observing him carrying out the assassination and drawing a picture of the scene just moments before Ō's death. Hōinbō's employers planned to betray and kill the assassin, but Sarushiro repaid Hōinbō by warning him and saving his life. The two would go on to have a father/son-like relationship, with Sarushiro determined to not become "a weak person who could get murdered".

At some point Sarushiro remembered the day that he had been tied up and locked in the car, but his memory was still muddled; he thought that Hyōdō was his father and Kazami was Naitō's father. However, he did work out (unlike the authorities) that Kazami had been the one who had killed Hyōdō, and so decided to kill his childhood friend as revenge, thinking that if Naitō hadn't stopped him and tied him up, "his" father wouldn't have been killed. He also plotted to bring down another three targets, namely the three co-conspirators that had Teikun Ō assassinated and then tried to silence Hōinbō; Marī Miwa (who was also the head of the Happy Family Home orphanage), Bansai Ichiyanagi (the Chief Prosecutor at the time who had manipulated evidence to have Miwa freed after she was accused of Ō's kidnapping and the murder of a witness), and a body double of Teikun Ō who was so jealous of the president that he took over his life after he was assassinated. With the law having completely failed to bring these people to task, Sarushiro felt no other option but to take matters into his own hands.

Two birds with one stone

 * Main articles: Turnabout Target & The Imprisoned Turnabout

Sarushiro would later join the Berry Big Circus as a clown and trainee animal trainer under Regina Berry. During a circus visit to the local prison, Sarushiro saw an opportunity to get revenge on Naitō by having him killed, but not by his own hand. He began by subtly suggesting to Naitō, who had since become a bodyguard to "Teikun Ō"", that he and the president fake an assassination attempt on "Ō" to boost the president's slipping ratings back in Zheng Fa. Sarushiro knew that Naitō would be unable to resist the opportunity to kill the president's chief bodyguard Gai Tojiro in the confusion due to his resentment towards the latter. The plot was found out by the investigating prosecutor Miles Edgeworth and Naitō was arrested for killing Tojiro. Sarushiro had originally hired the infamous assassin Shelly de Killer to off "Ō", but the professional killer figured out that his target wasn't the real Teikun Ō and refused to carry out his hit.

Hōinbō had been captured and arrested since their meeting at the orphanage, but he was still such an imposing figure that the prison warden Marī Miwa became paranoid that he had outside agents working on his behalf that would try to kill her. By then Naitō had been transferred to the detention center to await his trial, and Sarushiro manipulated events to make it seem that Naitō was just such an agent. Miwa killed Naitō in fear for her life and Sarushiro, who had visited Naitō just before he died, was accused of the crime. Sarushiro knew that Edgeworth, who was due to prosecute Naitō's case, would take on his own case, figure out that Miwa was the culprit, and have him cleared of all charges, which was exactly what happened. With one of his targets dead and another now incarnated, Sarushiro then turned his attention to Bansai Ichiyanagi, who was now the head of the "Prosecutorial Investigation Committee".

Abductor

 * Main article: The Forgotten Turnabout

Seeing how capable Edgeworth was, he decided to continue using him to bring down Ichiyanagi. He began by anonymously inviting Edgeworth's assistant Kay Faraday to Gourd Lake, whereupon he chloroformed her and brought her to the roof of the Big Tower, the building where the Prosecutorial Investigation Committee was based, and where that very night Ichiyanagi had murdered fellow Committee member Tsubasa Kagome to silence her. Once again, Sarushiro's "pawns" acted just as he knew they would, with Ichiyanagi trying blame Faraday for the crime and Edgeworth clearing her name and, in the process, showing just how corrupt Ichiyanagi was.

Defeated

 * Main article: The Grand Turnabout

"Sōta Sarushiro"

- ................ Hm. So it has come to this after all. It has been like that since back then, but you sure are full of self-confidence. I like to see that kind of confidence... Crushed under my heel.



That left one last target; Teikun Ō's body double. By chance, Sarushiro came across him on the very night that he was transporting Faraday on top of the Big Tower. The president fired at the balloon, but Sarushiro responded by landing the circus hot air balloon that he was piloting on top of the man, crushing him.

Edgeworth would go on to figure out Sarushiro's involvement in all his recent cases and confronted the man. Just as Edgeworth exposed Sarushiro's crimes, de Killer appeared, determined to kill Sarushiro for lying to him about who the president was. Luckily for Sarushiro, Hōinbō suddenly appeared and crossed blades with his fellow assassin to prevent him from enacting his revenge. Although de Killer agreed to call off his vendetta, the manipulative Sarushiro was arrested for his crimes.

Personality
"Tateyuki Shigaraki"

- Didn't you hear what he said? "I look out for number one." There's no doubt. He's a man who cannot trust others.



Sarushiro put on the appearance of a shy and meek man who would even faint when Edgeworth glared at him and had a habit of covering his eyes, ears, or mouth. He also acted as if he was an honest, if rather simple, person who missed his friend Naitō. Adding to his seemingly harmless appearance was that occasionally he would have Money the circus monkey "control" his facial expressions and arm using Sarushiro's hair, like a puppet.

However, this was all a façade to hide the sort of person he truly was; a confident, manipulative, and scheming individual who was quick to mock and condescend others. He trusted no-one and felt that the legal system was corrupt and incompetent. Sarushiro was also prone to bouts of maniacal laughter, which reminded Edgeworth of Kazami.

Name

 * His Japanese surname contains the kanji 猿 ("Saru"), which means "monkey". Not only does he have a close relationship with Money the monkey, but, combined with his meek persona's habit of covering his eyes, ears, and mouth, this is a reference to the Three Wise Monkeys. His name also serves as a subtle hint for Japanese players, as in Turnabout Target, Shelly de Killer referred to his client as "a monkey person".


 * His English name in the fan translation of Gyakuten Kenji 2 is "Simon Keyes", which is a play on "shy monkeys".

Development

 * The design on Sarushiro's shirt is that of Global Hero Onyankopon, who had previously appeared in Farewell, My Turnabout as a background character during that episode's introductory cutscene.