<figure id="attachment_423095" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 1667px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-423095"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="7e0f88b9"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2025/04/f133084d818ba86da13dcf5b4fbeaec3.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-423095" class="wp-caption-text">The man accompanying her smiled, but he was always alert and kept an eye on his surroundings, never letting his guard down.</figcaption></figure>
<h2>With a well-built man</h2>
On a certain evening in April, amidst the falling cherry blossoms on Aoyama Street (Tokyo), a woman with bright brown hair stood out, walking with a well-built man, both smiling. The woman, whose left ear cartilage piercing sparkled, is Princess Yoko of Mikasa, who is known as the funky queen. Her all-black sporty outfit was matched by the man beside her, who was dressed in sportswear. However, this man was not her boyfriend, but a bodyguard known as a &#8220;sokei,&#8221; a palace security officer.
Princess Yoko was born in October 1983 as the second daughter of the late Prince and Princess Mikasa, Prince Kan&#8217;in, affectionately known as &#8220;Prince Hige&#8221; (Bearded Prince), and Princess Nobuko. She is now 41 years old.
After her father, Prince Kan&#8217;in, passed away in June 2012 at the age of 66, Princess Yoko took on the mission of her father, who had devoted his life to welfare for the disabled, sports promotion, and youth development. She currently serves as the &#8220;President of the Yuai Cross Society,&#8221; &#8220;President of the Japan Mobility Show,&#8221; &#8220;Honorary President of the NPO Japan Universal Sound Design Association,&#8221; and &#8220;Honorary Advisor to the Inclusive Design Network.&#8221;
Known for her love of cars and motorsports, Princess Yoko was also appointed as the honorary president of the &#8220;2025 All Japan Super Formula Championship Series&#8221; in March.
Princess Yoko’s fashion became particularly noteworthy after the Autumn Garden Party on October 30 of the previous year. She wore a striking hairstyle with blonde hair and pink highlights, along with double piercings in her earlobes and cartilage, which garnered attention and praise for being cool and funky.
However, just a few weeks later, on November 15, her grandmother, Princess Yuriko of Mikasa, the head of the Mikasa family, passed away at the age of 101. During her grandmother&#8217;s funeral rites, held on November 26 at the Toshimaoka Cemetery (Bunkyo Ward), Princess Yoko and her sister, Princess Akiko, returned their hair to its natural chestnut color and bid farewell to Princess Yuriko while mourning her loss.
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead="The &quot;Successor Problem&quot; in the Prince Mikasa Family"></div>
<h2>Is there a solution?</h2>
On this day, as Princess Yoko walked down Aoyama Street, her expression was bright and lively.
On the other hand, due to the passing of Princess Yuriko, the issue of the next heir to the Mikasa family has come into focus. A royal reporter familiar with the affairs of the Mikasa family shared the following.
<figure id="attachment_423096" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 2500px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-423096"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="19a22d31"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2025/04/15ba8a2a94d4feba5c340d00d32b99a8.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-423096" class="wp-caption-text">Their steps were perfectly in sync. It was evident that they shared a long-standing relationship of trust.</figcaption></figure>
Princess Nobuko and Princess Akiko had been in an estranged relationship since the time of Prince Kan&#8217;in’s life. In 2015, three years after Prince Kan&#8217;in passed away, Princess Akiko openly revealed in a monthly magazine the long-standing estrangement and family conflicts between her parents. In 2004, Princess Nobuko left the Kan&#8217;in Prince residence (now Mikasa Prince&#8217;s East Residence) for health reasons, and a separate living situation began.
Princess Nobuko briefly returned in 2006, but in 2008, she developed stress-induced asthma and began living in the former Imperial Household Agency Chief’s residence. After that, the estrangement between mother and daughter continued, and Princess Akiko, at the request of her late father’s wishes, took on the role of chief mourner at Prince Kan&#8217;in’s &#8220;Funeral Rite,&#8221; while Princess Nobuko did not attend. Similarly, Princess Nobuko did not attend Princess Yuriko’s &#8220;Funeral Rite&#8221; either.
Princess Nobuko is also in an estranged state with Princess Yoko, and there is some distance between Princess Yoko and Princess Akiko as well.
&#8220;For many years, Princess Yoko had been taking care of Princess Yuriko, who was elderly, and managing the royal residence. Princess Akiko, who serves as a special professor at Kyoto University of Foreign Studies, travels between Kyoto and Tokyo, which has caused Princess Yoko to feel somewhat conflicted&#8221; (according to the royal reporter mentioned earlier).
On February 22, the &#8220;Hundred Days Memorial Ceremony&#8221; for Princess Yuriko was held, and discussions between the Imperial Household Agency and the three remaining members of the family are about to begin. Princess Yuriko, who was concerned about the relationships of the three left behind, likely hoped for a solution that aligned with her wishes.

 Keisuke Nishi

 On an evening in April, a woman with bright brown hair and a stocky man were walking with smiles on their faces. The woman, whose cartilage earring in her left ear shines brightly, is "Her Imperial Highness the Funky Queen," Yaoko Mikasa.

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