maintain the balance of the story and because his "inner story-editor" asked him if anyone would really like to see "two old codgers" fight each other. The design model is Director-General Luchi of the Akuda Republic from Purin Purin Monogatari, an NHK puppet show. Watsuki said that the large size of Director-General Luchi's head would "freak me out." Watsuki commented that Luchi's design was "efficient" since one could tell that he was brilliant at one glance. Watsuki felt that of all the Juppongatana, Saizuchi got the "short end of the stick" since the character did not have a chance to fully display what his "massive brain could do." He described this as the "Senkaku Effect," where the characters with the "best noggins" are not used to their "full potential." Fuji , also known as , is a member of the Juppongatana and a giant. Considered a freak by everyone around him, one day he was attacked and almost killed but Saizuchi found him and took him in. The gentle, depressed Fuji was in an ideal state for Saizuchi to manipulate his emotions and turn him into an unbelievable fighter. Saizuchi keeps telling Fuji that he owes him for saving his life and uses that to control him. Fuji is easily defeated by Hiko Seijūrō, who acknowledges Fuji's samurai soul and was the first to look at Fuji as someone other than a monster. Pardoned for his crimes, the Meiji government assigns Fuji to Hokkaidō to develop land and act as a defending fighter during times of war. The idea for a giant originated from the God Warrior in the Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, after Watsuki saw the film. He wondered if it would "even be interesting" for Kenshin to fight a giant, but could not let it go and so decided to have Fuji fight Hiko instead. Watsuki revealed that he and his editor both had doubts about actually doing it because Fuji was so big, but friends and assistants told him it would be fun and he was pleased that it seemed to have paid off. Fuji also utilized inspiration from what Watsuki was told is a Finnish folktale called "Frost Giant", in which a monster-like giant is revealed to have a heart. The design was inspired by the first Eva in Neon Genesis Evangelion. The face originated from Eva #2, but Watsuki's assistants believed the