Fruits Basket

Tohru Honda aged 16, is an orphaned high school student who, at the start of the story, begins living with Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo Sohma in exchange for housekeeping. She loves to cook, describes herself as an excellent housekeeper, and has an after-school job as a janitor to pay her tuition fees to avoid being a burden on her grandfather.She is depicted as polite, optimistic, extremely kind, and selfless; several other characters, including Kyo, and Hanajima,] tell her she needs to look out for her own interests and not shoulder everyone else's burdens.

Yuki Sohma age 16, is the rat of the Chinese zodiac. Yuki is depicted as an attractive, reserved, and accomplished young man with many admirers, but who finds being friendly difficult. When Yuki was young, Akito Sohma kept him isolated and convinced him no one liked him; because of this, Yuki has low self-esteem and feels isolated.He is known as "Prince Yuki" and "Prince Charming" at school, where he has a fan club headed by Motoko Minagawa that tries to "protect" him from other admirers, with the result that Yuki is further isolated,and he is pressured by his popularity to become president of the student council despite his misgivings.

Kyo Sohma age 16 is cursed by the cat, an animal not in the Chinese zodiac but which legend says would have been if it had not been tricked by the rat into missing the Zodiac Banquet .He is depicted as an orange-haired young man who is short-tempered and charismatic, if initially awkward around people; Arisa Uotani once calls him "anger management boy," and Yuki Sohma expresses envy of his ability to make friends easily. He is also fiercely competitive, and can be easily manipulated into doing things he does not want to by turning it into a competition-especially against Yuki.

Shigure Sohma age 27, is the dog of the Chinese zodiac and the owner of the house where he, Tohru, Yuki, and Kyo live. He is a writer who publishes literary novels under his own name and trashy romances under pen names. His most successful pen name is Noa Kiritani, which he used for his erotic novel, Summer-Colored Sky. He is best friends with his cousins Hatori and Ayame, and he and Ayame like to pretend they are lovers. In the anime, Shigure is depicted as lazy and dirty-minded, seeming to take nothing seriously, and with a fondness for teasing people-especially his editor Mitsuru, but also Kyo, Yuki, Tohru, and Ritsu.

Kagura Sohma age 18, is the boar of the Chinese zodiac. She is depicted as a girlish young woman with great strength, and the impulsive behavior associated with those born in her zodiac year. The later usually takes the form of berating and beating up Kyo, who she inisists is engaged to her. When Kagura was seven and Kyo was five, when he was all alone because he carried the curse of the cat, she played with him, and one day threatened him into proposing to her (using a knife in the manga, a boulder in the anime).

Momiji Sohma age 15, is the rabbit of the Chinese zodiac. Momiji is depicted as a cute, cheerful boy who hides a sad family life behind his sunny demeanor. In an author's note, Takaya described him as "the most comfortable" of the Sohmas with his spirit possession, and "the most successful of the boys." Momiji is an androgynous boy who is older than he appears, and Tohru is surprised to learn he is only a year younger than her. To Kyo's horror, Momiji wears the girl's version of their high school uniform with shorts instead of a skirt,until he has a growth spurt at the start of his second year and swiches to the boy's uniform. He lives alone inside the Sohma family compound, and was raised by servants. His mother learned about the zodiac curse when she first held him, just after he was born, and was repulsed; she later had Hatori erase her memory that Momiji is her son. Because of this, his younger sister, Momo, is unaware he is her older brother, even though she is interested in him. Despite his upbringing, Momiji is insightful about others and emotionally strong.

Hatori Sohma aged 27, is the dragon of the Chinese zodiac and, like his father before him, the private doctor to the Sohma family. He is responsible for erasing memories of those outsiders who discover the Sohma family secret, such as Yuki's childhood playmates. Hatori is depicted as a tall, somber man who is rarely amused by the antics of his best friends, Shigure and Ayame. He is often the only one who can restrain Ayame's worst behavior, and is the only person Shigure trusts enough to talk about his schemes. He takes his duties to the Sohma family and as a doctor seriously, and warns Tohru about the dangers of getting too involved with the family.

Hatsuharu Sohma aged 15 often called Haru, is the ox of the Chinese zodiac. Hatsuharu is depicted as having something of a Yin and Yang personality related to the ox's traditional personality He is usually calm, placid, and otherwise an all-around nice guy, but can be goaded into "stampeding," a state in which he is edgy and mean. The Sohmas call these two sides of his personality his "white" and "black" sides; his hair is white with black roots, and his zodiac form is a black-and-white spotted cow. Because of the story of how the first rat tricked the first ox to become first in the zodiac, when Hatsuharu was a child he blamed Yuki Sohma, the current rat, for his reputation of stupidity, but Yuki helped him realize that Haru was not at fault for the ox's actions.

Ayame Sohma age 27 is the snake of the Chinese zodiac, and Yuki's older brother. Ayame is depicted as vivacious, flamboyant, self-confident, and self-centered, with a knack for annoying Yuki and Kyo (one of the few things they initially agree upon). Despite his age, he refers to himself with the boyish pronoun boku. He has gorgeous eyes and silver hair similar to Yuki's violet eyes and grey hair. He runs a shop, named after himself, that sells custom-made "romantic costumes" with the help of Mine Kuramae, his seamstress and girlfriend. He is best friends with Shigure and Hatori, who are the same age; Ayame and Shigure like to pretend that they are lovers, while Hatori is the only one, according to Shigure, who can restrain Ayame's worst behavior

Kisa Sohma age 12 is the tiger of the Chinese zodiac. She is depicted as a cute but very shy and withdrawn girl.When she starts middle school, her classmates harass and ostracize her due to her naturally tawny hair and golden eyes, an effect of her curse. Because she feels ashamed of being bullied, she does not tell her worried mother what is happening and stops speaking; when this distresses her mother even further, she runs away and is found by Hatsuharu. Tohru Honda, who understands Kisa's distress because she was once bullied herself, helps Kisa to come out of her shell, and Kisa becomes very attached to her, calling her "onee-chan" ("big sister"). She sometimes gets mad at Hiro because of his treatment of Tohru

Hiro Sohma age 11 is the sheep of the Chinese zodiac and the youngest of the cursed Sohmas. He depicted as a very intelligent but verbally aggressive and smart-mouthed sophist who is initially not very likeable. Several characters express intense irritation with him, but he escapes physical punishment by hiding behind being "just a kid." Hiro is in love with Kisa and resents Tohru because she unwittingly monopolizes Kisa's time and admiration. His initial attitude toward Tohru eases through the series, through a combination of grudging admiration for Tohru, and being told to let up by Kisa and Hatsuharu, whom he admires. Hiro is frustrated that he is just a kid and desperately wants to grow up so he can protect Kisa, who was beaten by Akito after Hiro admitted he liked her.

Ritsu Sohma age 21 is the monkey of the Chinese zodiac. He is depicted as a beautiful but unstable young man with very low self-esteem and a tendency to overreact. He apologizes frantically for everything, even things that are not his fault. In this, he takes after his mother, the hostess of the Sohma family's Hot Springs, whose position he is in training to take over. Ritsu dresses in women's clothing because he says he then feels less pressure from society, and is initially mistaken for a woman by Tohru Honda because of his long hair and beauty. Most Sohmas call him "Rit-chan" and, to Shigure's amusement, Tohru calls him "Rit-chan-san". Shigure likes to play with Ritsu's insecurities and gullibility, much as he does his editor, Mitsuru; when the two meet, they realize they have this in common.

Kyoko Honda is the late mother of Tohru Honda, appearing only in flashbacks and photographs treasured by Tohru. When she was young, Kyoko was the leader of an all-female bosozoku gang called The Red Butterfly Suicide Squad, the name coming from how motorcycle tail-lights supposedly look like a red butterfly at night. She told Kyo Sohma she was ignored and rejected by her parents, and fell in love with a student teacher named Katsuya Honda who stood up for her when her parents disowned her after a gang fight. Katsuya and Kyoko married after she left middle school and had a daughter, Tohru, and Kyoko learned how to work through difficulties together with Katsuya.

Katsuya Honda is the late father of Tohru Honda and husband of Kyoko Honda. In the series, he appears only in flashbacks. Katsuya habitually spoke formally (see Honorific speech in Japanese) as a way of distancing himself from the world, a habit that, according to his father, Tohru later adopted.

Arisa Uotani age 16 is a former gang member and one of Tohru's closest friends. Arisa is depicted as tough, brash, and sometimes violent; she wears long skirts, sometimes carries an iron pipe, and often speaks like a man. Arisa is tall for a girl, and once claims she wishes to reach 6 feet tall. She is especially competitive with Kyo and bickers with him frequently. Her childhood was troubled: father is an alcoholic and her mother left him for another man when Arisa was young; Arisa joined an all-girl gang (called "The Ladies") in fifth grade, and idolized Kyoko Honda's reputation from her gang days. When Arisa met Kyoko's daughter Tohru in middle school, and then Kyoko herself, she was shocked by the change from gangleader into doting mother, but became friends after Kyoko helped her escape from her gang.

Saki Hanajima age 16 is a psychic girl who has the ability to sense people's "auras" and send out electric "waves", and one of Tohru's closest friends. She is depicted as very perceptive, polite, with a usually deadpan manner, and is often seen eating when not in class. Tohru calls her Hana-chan, and her manga symbol is a small flower, the meaning of the first kanji of her family name. Hanajima had trouble controlling her abilities when she was young, and blamed herself for the near-fatal collapse of a boy who was bullying her. Like Arisa Uotani, Hanajima is extremely protective of Tohru, who was the first person in school who truly accepted her, which acceptance helped her gain control of her powers.

Akito Sohma is the head of the Sohma family and very frail. He often runs fevers, and Hatori Sohma claims half his doctor's work is tending to Akito, who he says "specializes in getting sick." Akito's age is not given, but he is a little younger than Ritsu and is taken for around twenty by Mitsuru. Akito is depicted as short-tempered and abusive, and has physically and emotionally scarred many Sohmas, including Hatori, Rin, Kisa, and Yuki. While he is part of the Sohma family curse, he is not possessed by a spirit of the Chinese zodiac, but rather fulfills the role of the Jade Emperor, a figure from the stories about the origins of the zodiac; he describes himself as the "god" of the zodiac and the "master of their souls." Kazuma Sohma tells Tohru Honda that to the rest of the zodiac, Akito is a figure of awe they cannot resist, with whom they have a "bond of blood." Akito's mother, Ren Sohma, denies that the zodiac bond is real, and Akito is obsessed with proving her wrong. Once the zodiac members are old enough, he desires to have them live within the Sohma compound for the rest of their lives in a never-ending "banquet." Akito initially allows Tohru to live with Shigure because he believes that she will come to reject Yuki and Kyo because of the curse, and when instead they learn that outsiders can accept them and so grow away from him, he comes to hate her most of all. In the anime, Akito and Tohru come to an accommodation centered on his fears of dying young, which is an effect of the curse described only in the anime. In the manga, through Tohru's efforts to break the curse, he comes to realize holding onto the bond has hurt himself as much as the others, and lets the curse go.

Characters That Are in the Manga.

Isuzu Sohma, aged 17-19, is the horse of the Chinese zodiac. She only appears in the manga. She is often called Rin because that is an alternate reading of the second kanji of her given name. She is tall, busty, and initially has waist-length dark hair, which is later cut off; She is depicted as stubborn and independent, to the point she cannot stand being dependent on someone else, traits associated with those born in her zodiac year; she is also sharp-tongued but concerned about others. When Rin was young her parents acted affectionate and devoted to her, unlike the parents of many cursed Sohmas, but when she asked if they were happy, the strain of pretending for her benefit shattered the facade, after which they neglected and abused her to the point she was hospitalized. After this her parents kicked her out and Rin moved into Kagura Sohma's home. Rin and Hatsuharu have a sexual relationship that began before the start of the series. When Akito finds out about it, Rin claims full responsibility to protect Hatsuharu, and to punish her Akito pushes Rin out a window; while recouperating in the hospital, Rin breaks up with Hatsuharu to protect him but without explaining why. Rin starts searching for a way to break the curse, and asks Kazuma, Shigure, and Ren Sohma for help, though she resists the assistance of Tohru Honda, who she thinks is annoying and too nice to others than is good for herself. To punish Rin's meddling, Akito confines her in the cat's prison; after she is released by Kureno, she reconciles with Hatsuharu, accepting his support. She also accepts Tohru's assistance, because of her kindness, and grows as protective of her as of Hatsuharu, and gets angry when someone upsets or hurts her. After the zodiac curse is broken, Rin cannot understand how others can move on as if Akito's abuse never happened, and in the final chapter she says she still gets angry

Kureno Sohma age 26-27, is the former rooster of the Chinese zodiac. He appears only in the manga. According to Natsuki Takaya, while he was still cursed, he did not like others to see his animal form, which was a sparrow instead of a rooster. He is depicted as a polite and selfless young man. Arisa Uotani describes Kureno as "like Tohru" because of his over-the-top politeness and scatterbrained idiosyncrasies, and Saki Hanajima compares his selflessness to Tohru's. Some members of the Sohma family describe Kureno as "broken-in". In his mid-teens, about ten years before the series begins, Kureno's curse was somehow broken, but in Akito's distress he promised never to leave. Kureno and Akito have a sexual relationship, and when Shigure learned about it, some time before the start of the series, in retaliation he slept with Akito's mother, Ren. Akito keeps Kureno away from the rest of the family to hide that he is no longer cursed, and Kureno does most of Akito's work as the head of the family. As a result, Kureno is so sheltered he is 26 when he first visits a convenience store, where he meets Arisa. Despite their mutual attraction, he stays away from her because, he claims to Tohru, of his promise to Akito. However, when Akito locks Rin Sohma away for stealing his father's box, it is Kureno who frees her. As the zodiac curse begins breaking down, Kureno eventually admits he is partially responsible for keeping Akito coddled and fearful by being too obedient, and Akito angrily stabs him in the back. When Kureno is released from the hospital, he moves out of the Sohma compound with Arisa's help, and in the final chapter, Arisa is preparing to move in with him.

Ren Sohma is Akito's mother. She appears only in the manga. She is depicted as an elegant but obsessive woman with long black hair similar to Rin Sohma's. Shigure claims that if Akito had been raised as a woman, she would have looked very much like Ren, and Tohru once mistook Ren's voice for Akito's. Ren and Akito are extremely antagonistic towards each other; Shigure notes that she is obsessed with her child and dead husband. Ren was originally a Sohma household maid who won Akira's heart by being the only one to notice his loneliness and treat him with kindness, instead of as just the head of the household. When she conceived and her child received, as the new god of the zodiac, more attention than herself, and then turned out to be female instead of a proper male heir, she was afraid the baby would replace her in Akira's heart and demanded Akito be raised as male. Before his death, Akira told Akito, but not Ren, that Akito's place in the curse was proof that his and Ren's relationship was special. To feed Akito's fear of being abandoned, Ren continually claims that Akito's bond with the zodiac is fake, rather than the true love Akito claims; to prove her wrong, Akito tried to mold Yuki into a zodiac animal devoted to him. After Akito began sleeping with Kureno Sohma, some time before the series began, Ren told Shigure to make him jealous and then seduced him to infuriate Akito When Rin Sohma approaches Ren for information about breaking the curse, Ren lies and promises to tell Rin how if she stole a black box owned by Akito, said to contain Akira's spirit; later, prompted by Shigure, Ren threatens Akito with a knife to get the box, only to learn that it is as empty as her obsession.

Machi Kuragi age 15-16, is treasurer of the student council during Yuki Sohma's presidency. She appears only in the manga. She Kakeru Manabe's younger half-sister by their mutual father's wife. Machi is depicted as a quiet, nearly emotionless young woman with occasional destructive behavior, such as wrecking the student council room. She has difficulty expressing herself, which sometimes results in Manabe making decisions for her. During their childhoods, their mothers competed to have their own child named heir, a struggle that ended when first Manabe withdrew himself from the running, then Machi's mother bore a son. Machi lives apart from her family because her mother believes she resents, and is a danger to, her younger brother for supplanting her, an accusation she did not contest even though it is wrong.

Kakeru Manabe age 16-17, is vice president of the student council during Yuki Sohma's presidency. He appears only in the manga. He is depicted as alternately lazy and charismatically energetic, strongly reminding Yuki of his older brother, Ayame; Yuki also compares Manabe's ability to make friends to Kyo's. Manabe sometimes claims the student council is a super-sentai-style "School Defense Force", and once tries to get the rest of the student council to pick their team colors. He is Machi Kuragi's older half-brother by their mutual father's mistress, and protective of her because she is still affected by their mothers' fight, now ended, to have their own child named heir. He has a girlfriend named Komaki Nakao (whom he calls "Meat%u2606Angel" because of her love of meat), whose father drove the car that hit and killed Kyoko Honda, also killing himself. Manabe believed that Tohru thought that she was the only one affected by the accident and confronted Tohru on Komaki's behalf, saying that she was annoying. However, Komaki was angry at him because he had disrespected Tohru's feelings. He realized that his feelings and Komaki's were not the same and vowed to understand other people better, and later apologizes to Tohru for his hurtful behavior.