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Man Cosplays as ufotable President Hikaru Kondo at Machi Asobi Event

Machi Asobi is a bi-annual anime event organized by the animation studio ufotable. One cosplayer at the event decided to take this opportunity to cosplay as the company's president Hikaru Kondo, with a cheeky reference on the side to the recent allegations of tax evasion.

The cosplayer, who goes by the name of Reiji Itsuku (or @itscrazy_cos on Twitter), posted photos of himself dressed as Hikaru Kondo on Twitter on Saturday, the first day of "Machi Asobi Vol. 22." He wrote: "My first cosplay of the Reiwa era is of the ufotable president. I'm so sorry."

Ikutsu evidently had fun with this concept. He posted another picture of himself posing with Fate/stay night's Saber Alter's black sword while pocketing money, saying, "I'm ufotable president Hikaru Kondo Alter."

ufotable is currently producing the Fate/stay night: Heaven's Feel anime film trilogy, the second film of which debuted on January 12 in Japan.

According to Bungei Shunju's Weekly Bunshun Digital magazine, the Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau conducted a search of animation studio ufotable's offices on March 12 as part of an investigation on the company allegedly committing tax evasion. ufotable allegedly owes 400 million yen (about US$3.57 million) in taxes, citing a source from the Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau. According to the report, Kondo was allegedly directly receiving some of the revenue accrued from the studio's merchandise sales.

Weekly Bunshun Digital also cited a source from inside ufotable that Kondo stayed at home and consulted with his lawyer every day for a few days after the original report of the investigation, but has supposedly returned to work at the company's Suginami studio as of April.

The report also noted that ufotable is suspected of supposedly misappropriating funds raised from a charity auction for the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake, a violation of the Penal Code that carries a potential prison sentence of no more than 10 years.

No charges have been filed against Kondo or ufotable.

Kondo founded ufotable in 2000, and the studio is perhaps best known for its various anime adaptations of Type-Moon's Fate franchise, including Fate/Zero and Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works. The studio has also made anime adaptations of Type-Moon's The Garden of Sinners, and the Katsugeki: Touken Ranbu television anime. ufotable premiered the Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba television anime on April 6.

Machi Asobi Vol. 22 was held from May 4 to 6 in Tokushima, which is also where one of ufotable's studios is located. The events have had over 1 million attendees since they began in 2009.

Ikutsu also cosplayed as Fate/Grand Order character Hans Christian Andersen and musician YOSHIKI on the second and third days of the event.

Source: Reiji Ikutsu's Twitter account