Zōken Matō

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Zōken Matō (間桐 臓硯, Matō Zōken^?) is a fictional character, in the TYPE-MOON anime, visual novel and manga series Fate/stay night.

Little is known about him aside from the fact that he is the grandfather of Shinji and Sakura Matō. He is a villain in the Heaven's Feel scenario.

Zōken also appears in the Fate/stay night anime series, in a flashback sequence during which he is shown adopting Sakura.

[edit] Biography

A shrewd, powerful, but ancient sorcerer, Zōken is patriarch of the Matō family and is known to be the grandfather of Shinji and Sakura. He has amassed a large and extensive library of sorcerous knowledge, yet his lessons are strict and harsh. Zōken considers Shinji to be a disgrace of a sorcerer, and believes Sakura may have more potential than her brother.

Zōken is a vampire, and actually Shinji's ancestor from two centuries past. He has used a species of magical worms to sustain his long life. Because Matō blood has thinned and no longer produces heirs naturally capable of sorcery, Shinji was incapable of becoming a true sorceror so Zōken offered to adopt Sakura Tōsaka into the Matō when her father, Tokiomi, decided to train only his older daughter, Rin, to become his successor. Sakura was implanted with Zōken's magical worms to prepare her as a vessel for Angra Mainyu in the upcoming Holy Grail War.

In Fate/Zero, it is revealed that after Zōken adopted Sakura, Kariya Matō, a childhood friend of Sakura's mother Aoi Zenjō, became upset that Tokiomi had allowed this to occur. Kariya had previously left the Matō family ten years prior to the 4th Holy Grail War out of disgust for his own family. Disappointed with the lack of sorceric potential in Shinji and Byakuya, Shinji's father, Zōken blames Kariya for allowing the Matō's magical lineage decline since Kariya is the first in many generations to be naturally capable of sorcery. Kariya formulates a deal with Zōken where should Kariya obtain the Holy Grail, Zōken must allow Sakura to return to her family. Due to his lack of formal training, Kariya is implanted with the same magical worms as Sakura.

After witnessing Rider lose to Saber, and enraged at Shinji's incompetence as a Master, Zōken summons True Assassin from the body of Assassin and becomes a Master in the 5th Holy Grail War. Using Sakura as a vessel for Angra Mainyu, the dark spirit that resides within the Holy Grail, he sets out with True Assassin to eliminate the other Masters and Servants.

Sakura soon gives into her dark side and Zōken loses control over her and his plans to acquire the Holy Grail. He is subsequently killed when Kirei Kotomine exorcises him.

Fate/stay night (TYPE-MOON)
Characters
Shirō Emiya | Saber | Rin Tōsaka | Archer
Illyasviel von Einzbern | Berserker | Kiritsugu Emiya
Sakura Matō | Rider | Shinji Matō | Zōken Matō | True Assassin
Kirei Kotomine | Lancer | Gilgamesh
Sōichirō Kuzuki | Caster | Assassin
Taiga Fujimura | Bazett Fraga McRemitz | Avenger | Caren Ortensia | Zelretch
Minor characters
Information
Scenarios | Voice actors | Fate/hollow ataraxia | Fate/Zero