Tatsuhiko Aota captains Shohoku's judo team and has been feuding with Takenori Akagi since childhood—originally about which sport was superior, judo or basketball, though by now it's evolved into a rivalry over who'll claim the National Championship first. The two are childhood friends despite the constant bickering.
He's made a few half-serious attempts to recruit Sakuragi to judo, once even bribing him with photos of a younger Haruko. Sakuragi wasn't having it though, insisting he's a basketball player (and definitely not because staying on the team kept him closer to Haruko or anything). Tatsuhiko doesn't entirely give up trying, but he knows it's a losing battle.
That said, he's no joke athletically. He's the only judo team member to qualify for the National Championships, proving he's got real skill. Beyond that, he's surprisingly loyal when it counts—he was genuinely rooting for Takenori during the rough patches of their second match against Ryonan, which says something about their friendship beneath all the trash talk.
As for his personal life, he's had a long-standing crush on Haruko since they were kids. She calls him "Ta-chan," which drives Sakuragi absolutely up the wall every time.
Content compiled by AnimeList.moe from publicly available sources.
