Sugimaru Eibi

Manga

Drama

Sugimaru Eibi
Japanese	栄美 杉丸
Romanized	Eibi Sugimaru
Characteristics
Gender	Male
Hair color	Black
Eye color	Dark brown
Personal information
Residence	Tokyo, Japan
Education	Eitoku Academy
Affiliation	C5

"Ruy Ramos once said people can teach you technique, but you have to train your heart yourself."

—Sugimaru often quotes sports figures

Sugimaru Eibi (栄美 杉丸 (えいび すぎまる) , Eibi Sugimaru) was a student at Eitoku Academy and a member of the C5. His fellow C5 members were Haruto Kaguragi, Kaito Taira, Issa Narumiya, and Airi Maya. Sugimaru enjoyed anything related to physical fitness, such as muscle training and martial arts. His family were owners of the sports brand, EIBI.

Biography

Early life

The C5 during their childhood

Sugimaru was the heir of the sports company, EIBI. He began training in various sports from a young age, including martial arts. In primary school, Sugimaru joined the C5 with Haruto Kaguragi, Kaito Taira, Issa Narumiya, and Airi Maya. They pledged to protect Eitoku Academy together.

High school

In the first year, Eitoku was controlled by a third-year Kenta Moriguchi. Haruto deposed him after revealing that Moriguchi had not paid his tuition. The C5 then became Eitoku's leaders as their popularity rose. They began performing "peasant hunts", forcing students who could not pay tuition to leave the school. Sugimaru primarily served as Haruto's bodyguard in case any of these students approached him. At the same time, the C5 also began having problems with Momonozono Academy, their new rival.

Meeting Oto

The C5 infiltrate Momonozono

"Leave him alone. He's just run into a massively big wall. As Ichiro says, "Walls only appear before those who can overcome them.""

—Sugimaru to Airi after the C5 meets Tenma

Sugimaru and the other C5 members first met Oto Edogawa, when she accidentally ran in front of their car. She quickly made up an excuse and ran in the opposite direction, leading Sugimaru to comment "nice leg strength." After Oto learned about Haruto's secret, Sugimaru, Issa, and Kaito gathered to give their leader advice on what to do next. Sugimaru later tried to comfort Haruto by quoting Kei Nishikori, after his first attempt to keep Oto quiet failed. A few days later, the C5 snuck into Momonozono to check out their rival. They were taken aback by the luxuries implemented by Tenma Hase, the student president. One of the security robots caught the C5 and the other students were about to start a fight until Tenma stopped them.

Airi later revealed to the whole school that Oto was a "peasant". Sugimaru and the others seemed displeased with the way Airi did it. Nevertheless, the C5 made the decision to "peasant hunt" her. Haruto ultimately could not bring himself to do it. Later, they learned that Tenma, Oto's fiancé, paid her tuition. A few days after, Haruto became suspicious when Airi befriended Oto. Sugimaru then told him "If you want to know, just go find out," which lead Haruto to disguise himself and eavesdrop on Airi and Oto's conversation. Airi ended up hurting Oto again. Sugimaru, Issa, and Kaito later apologized to Oto for her actions. Oto and Airi later became real friends.

Enter Megumi

Sugimaru and Issa speaking to Oto about Haruto

Issa: "I also think that their methods aren't one hundred percent correct, but Haruto and Kaito are doing their best."

Sugimaru: "As Hidetoshi Nakata said "If you don't swallow pain, you won't win the game."

— Sugimaru and Issa to Oto

At school, Haruto informed his friends about his plans to confess his feelings to Oto. Sugimaru supported him, quoting Shuzo Matsuoka's "When you get serious, you will change. When you get serious, everything will change." A few minutes later, Megumi Nishidome showed up to return Haruto's wallet. That night, Sugimaru and Issa went along with Kaito to advise Haruto to date Megumi for Eitoku's sake. After Megumi transferred to Eitoku, Sugimaru was amazed at the rise in applications and called it the "Megumi Nishidome effect." Haruto then mentioned that Oto was dating Tenma officially and left. Airi was upset with Sugimaru, Kaito, and Issa for siding with Megumi. Sugimaru quoted Ruy Ramos in response.

Kaito later decided to restart "peasant hunting". Sugimaru, Issa, and Haruto went along with his announcement without any qualms. Airi refused to participate. After a "hunt" in Oto's classroom, Issa thought that she would try to confront Haruto. Sugimaru and Issa then waited for her to follow. They pulled her into a room and Issa began telling her about how the C5 started "peasant hunts." After Issa finished the story, he asked Oto not to stop Haruto. He wanted him to figure out what was best by himself, a sentiment that Sugimaru agreed to with a quote. A few days later, Haruto declared that he wanted to stop "peasant hunts" after a student confronted him. His speech earned cheers from the other students and a nod of approval from Sugimaru.

Eitoku attacks

Sugimaru helps Haruto train for the contest

"The value of a sunny sky is clear since you have known the emptiness of a cloudy sky."

—Sugimaru makes up his own quote for Haruto

Once Haruto told the C5 that he was considering dating Megumi, Sugimaru and Issa had to stop Airi from raging. The following day, Eitoku was vandalized. Once Oto began cleaning it, the C5 soon joined her. Sugimaru later was hanging out with Kaito, Issa, and Haruto by a pool. They teased Haruto about Megumi several times. On Megumi's birthday, they received a threat telling them to stop the party. The culprit revealed himself when he ran after the cake exploded. The C5 captured him and turned him over to the police. Kaito later told the C5 that the criminal was a jealous fan of Megumi's. A few days later, Haruto was trying to plan a date. Instead of a "wise word", Sugimaru made a joke quoting LS Kitami team's "That's right" in a high-pitch voice. Haruto ignored him.

When a contest between Haruto and Tenma was announced, the C5 were shocked. Seeing his lack of martial arts skills, they asked Oto to convince Tenma to end the contest. Once she called them bad friends, they then began a training regiment for Haruto. He lost the first round and injured his hand. In the second round, Haruto pulled a surprise win. Kaito attributed it to his injured hand, which Sugimaru called "a beneficial injury." Before the third round, Sugimaru told Haruto "The value of a sunny sky is clear since you have known the emptiness of a cloudy sky". He surprised the others by revealing it as his own quote. Haruto then won the whole contest to the cheers for his friends. Afterwards, the C5 went out to celebrate.

Physical appearance

Sugimaru was tall and had strong well-built physique due to his involvement in sports. He had jet black hair which was swept back, save for one strand.

Personality and traits

As the heir to a sports company, Sugimaru had a deep love for all kinds of sports. He was particularly talented at martial arts, making him a candidate for the Olympics. A man of few words, Sugimaru often quoted famous sports figures, such as Kei Nishikori and Yuzuru Hanyu, when he did speak. He later claimed that he started saying quotes when he was two months old.

Behind the scenes

Portrayal

See also: Category:Sugimaru Eibi portrayals

• Keisuke Nakata portrays Sugimaru in Hana Nochi Hare: Hanadan Next Season (2018).
• A younger version of Sugimaru is played by Ryota Nagano.