Kaato Higashikata

"I don't have any regrets, but... That's because I'm going to take back the life I lost."

- Kaato Higashikata, JJL Chapter 55

Kaato Higashikata (東方 花都) is a character appearing in JoJolion.

Kaato is Norisuke Higashikata IV's ex-wife and mother to the four Higashikata children.

Appearance
Kaato is a 51-year-old woman with shoulder-length black hair, parted in the middle with two spiral buns on each side which end in two spiraling pigtails. Her eyes are split down the middle, like those of Josuke Higashikata, but hers are split in a zigzag pattern rather than evenly.

She wears a long dress with a layer of fringe along the waist, and with playing card back designs with the Higashikata family crest across her chest and on her hips. She also wears large rectangular bracelets on both of her wrists.

Personality
"This world... is full of liars, after all."

- Kaato Higashikata, JJL Chapter 58

Kaato is a very mysterious individual, showing different sides of herself depending on whom she's speaking with. She seems to act the most genuine around her son, Jobin Higashikata whom she trusts. Kaato herself acts incredibly loving towards her children, however she is not above violently attacking them if she is disrespected; as shown when Joshu tripped her with a chair. She also seems to be very charismatic, as despite her horrific crime the prison community loved her and genuinely missed seeing her leave.

Fifteen years prior to her sentence at Stone Ocean Prison, Kaato murdered a child which is an action she still defends, claiming she has no regrets about it. The full story behind her actions is unknown to the Higashikata children, except Hato and Norisuke himself. Apparently the crime was so horrific that most of Morioh knew about the event and Norisuke divorced his wife. Norisuke also lied to his children about Kaato, removing all photos of her and claiming she died.

Abilities
Kaato's Stand appears to take the form of a simple deck of playing cards. However, by placing an object between two halves of the deck, she can store that object in the deck itself as if nothing was there.

Synopsis
Fifteen years ago, Kaato Higashikata was imprisoned in Morioh's Stone Ocean prison for the murder of a child. She is released from prison on time served shortly after her family's encounter with Tamaki Damo. The guards warn her that society has likely not yet forgiven her for her crimes, but they all loved her dearly. As she gets dressed in her original clothes, she retrieves a deck of cards she was allowed to have while imprisoned, which reveals a cellphone hidden within them, a result of her Stand's ability to hide things within the deck. She calls someone on the phone, who promises to pick her up at the prison, but she asks the caller to keep her release a secret from the family, as she wants to surprise Norisuke. As she hides the phone back in the deck of cards, Kaato claims she has no regrets for what she did as she plans on taking the life she lost back, and her caller is revealed to be her son Jobin. She leaves Stone Ocean prison, tossing her engagement ring from Norisuke in the air as she walks out a free woman.

Kaato later meets up with Jobin, who allows her into the Higashikata household. Kaato waits on the couch for several hours as her children wonder who she could be. Once Norisuke wakes up, she calmly greets him to his utter horror. She lovingly introduces herself to the family, explaining that she is their mother. As Norisuke demands to know why she is out of prison and specifically returned to the household, she swears on her ancestors that she was an innocent woman and simply wanted to be reunited with her family. She then reveals that Norisuke divorced her while she was in prison while Hato explains to Josuke that Norisuke lied to them over their childhood; claiming that Kaato had died or abandoned the family. Joshu is less enthusiastic about meeting his mother and purposefully kicks a chair into her as she goes to hug Daiya. Joshu then undresses Kaato using Nut King Call to humiliate her further. The action causes her deck of cards to fall from her bra and spill out on the floor. Kaato, feigning worry, asks Joshu to help pick them up. As Joshu flips over a card, he is uppercutted by a chair leg that was hidden between the cards. Kaato then warns Joshu not to trifle with her ever while still reaffirming the other children of her love for them. As Jobin enters the household, Kaato politely excuses herself to her hotel; saying that she'll come back when everyone is less shy.

Trivia

 * Kaato's name in Japanese is more normally pronounced as Kato. When pronounced as Kaato, it is similar to the Japanese pronunciation of the English word "card", keeping with the card-naming theme of the Higashikata women.