Karakter & Staf — Wandering Son Specials

Shuuichi Nitori

Utama

Female

Shuuichi is a young trans girl who is one of two main protagonists. She is a fifth grader at the beginning of the series. As she grows up and hits puberty, she becomes increasingly concerned about the way her body is changing. Shuuichi has an honest and dutiful personality that generally makes it easy for her get along well with others, though she can also be quite sensitive at times. She is often described as cute, and is able to pass as a girl due to her feminine appearance and physical build; she enjoys wearing cute clothes, which her friends encourage. Shuuichi later becomes interested in writing stories, and joins the drama club as a writer.

Kousuke Hatakeyama

Yoshino Takatsuki

Utama

Male

Yoshino, the other protagonist, is a tall, masculine child who at the beginning of Wandering Son is a fifth grader in Shuichi's class. Otherwise known as Takatsuki-kun by their classmates, with an honorific used mainly with boys, Yoshino wishes to be a boy. Yoshino usually refrains from dressing in traditionally feminine clothes, such as skirts or dresses. Despite this, Yoshino's mother insists on buying such clothes for them. Shortly after becoming friends with Shuichi, Yoshino gets a boyish haircut, taking on the appearance of a boy their age, especially when Yoshino is dressed in a male school uniform. Like Shuichi, Yoshino becomes increasingly concerned and resentful about undergoing puberty, such as at the beginning of menstruation or the growth of breasts. Yoshino goes to buy a chest-flattening garment to escape the necessity of wearing a bra. Like Shuichi, Yoshino shows signs indicating gender dysphoria, though later stops thinking that way due to personal exposure to modelling. Yoshino prefers to dress and act like a boy, but usually abstains from anything which would draw attention, such as going to school in a male uniform after entering junior high. However, Yoshino does on occasion dress in a male school uniform and go to neighboring cities while dressed as a boy; during one such time, Yoshino enjoys being hit on by an older woman. Yoshino wants to look "cool" and wears clothes which are not girlish. When teased by others, Yoshino is prone to getting emotional and is known to get violent on occasion. Yoshino takes up an interest in basketball after entering junior high school and joins the female basketball team with Chizuru Sarashina. In junior high, Yoshino decides not to get a haircut after a comment by Saori, but later cuts it back to a short, boyish style. Yoshino's family consists of a father, mother, older brother, and older sister.

Asami Seto

Saori Chiba

Utama

Female

Saori, nicknamed Saorin, is a girl who is a fifth grader in Shūichi's class at the beginning of Hōrō Musuko. From early on, she takes an interest in encouraging Shūichi to cross-dress, even going so far as to buy him an expensive dress for his birthday which he later returns, much to her displeasure. Saori finds it difficult to associate well with most others, and as such has very few friends, though she becomes close friends with Shūichi. She tends to tell others what is on her mind, disregarding how others may take what she says. As Saori grows up, she gradually becomes more standoffish and stoic; she even has bad relations with her teachers. Despite her self-centered attitude, she remains popular among the boys in her classes because of her physical attractiveness. She is a sensitive girl whose temper sometimes gets the better of her when reprimanding bullies that tease Shūichi because of his femininity and cross-dressing. As she has feelings for him, Saori is often emotionally affected by circumstances involving Shūichi. Due in part to this influence, Saori converts to Christianity to seek forgiveness for her previous actions, though she only attends mass when feeling guilty of her behavior.

Yuuka Nanri

Chizuru Sarashina

Pendukung

Female

Chizuru is a tall girl who makes her first appearance as a classmate of Shūichi's upon their entering into junior high school and is nicknamed Chii-chan. She is a free spirit who enjoys doing unconventional, often outrageous things which surprise those around her, and she usually acts without thinking, resulting in her giving off a childish personality. Her impulsive attitude can often get her in trouble with other characters, but she quickly becomes ashamed when she realizes the consequences of her caprices. She has a stylish demeanor—highlighted by her stature and long hair—which captivates both Shūichi and Yoshino when they first meet her. She tries to be everyone's friend, though she is unable to break through Saori's distaste for her strange attitude. She quickly joins the girl's basketball team once in junior high. She is Momoko's childhood friend. Chizuru's family runs a soba restaurant.

Saeko Chiba

Maho Nitori

Pendukung

Female

Maho is Shūichi's older sister by one year who shares a room with him, and at the beginning of Hōrō Musuko, she is in the sixth grade of elementary school. Maho is a big fan of a teen model named Maiko, and because she deeply desires to meet her, Maho sends in her photo to a modeling agency and is soon hired as a young model in the same agency as Maiko. Maho shows a large interest in clothes, and spends a lot of her money on new apparel. After she starts to become recognized as a model, Maho enjoys the added attention from being asked her autograph by complete strangers. While initially starting out slow in modeling, Maho soon gains confidence in her abilities, and becomes friends with Maiko and two other models, Anna Suehiro and Tamaki Satō. In contrast to her younger brother, Maho is very out-spoken and tends to be rough with Shūichi, even hitting or slapping him on some occasions. Maho is very displeased about Shūichi's cross-dressing, and gets angry and annoyed when she finds Shūichi dressed as a girl. Maho often forces things on Shūichi with little consideration of his opinion. Once in junior high school, Maho becomes attracted to her classmate Riku Seya, and eventually starts dating him.

Nana Mizuki

Shiina

Pendukung

Male

Shiina, otherwise referred to by his nickname Shii, is another adult friend of Shūichi and Yoshino. He was Yuki's classmate in elementary school, and he eventually became her boyfriend after her transition and due to her persistence. Unlike Yuki, Shii had many friends in school. He generally just watches over Shūichi and Yoshino with Yuki, but he does sometimes do bold and unexpected things, such as grabbing Yoshino's crotch when the two of them first meet because he feared that she, who was dressed as a boy at the time, might be Yuki's illicit lover in an affair.

Keiji Fujiwara

Yuki

Pendukung

Female

Yuki, born Hiroyuki Yoshida, is a tall and attractive trans woman living with her boyfriend Shiina. She takes an early interest in Yoshino when she believes Yoshino to be a boy, though remains on good terms with Yoshino even after learning of Yoshino's assigned sex, and gives Shuichi and Yoshino helpful advice when they are troubled. Despite the differences between their situations, Yuki sees much of herself in Shuichi: when they were growing up, Shiina was the only friend who stood by the young Hiroyuki, as she was called then, while girls teased her and the boys bullied her to change. Yuki always keeps up a positive attitude, and runs a gay bar. Since her transition, she has not been on good terms with her parents, who run a uniform store. Yuki is the main character of Takako Shimura's short story "Hana", in the collection Boku wa, Onna no Ko, in which her family—which consists of her father, mother, brother, and sister-in-law—also appears; Yuki is revealed to be a fan of Keiji Sada, a Shōwa period actor.

Takako Honda

Makoto Ariga

Pendukung

Female

Makoto, known as Mako for short, is a trans girl who first appears when the cast is in sixth grade. She is Shuuichi's closest friend, and is an only child whose parents run a bakery. Mako is unusually mature for her age. She's a calm and rational thinker with good listening skills, which helps her to give good advice to her friends, and to get along well with her peers. She is also a romantic who dreams about being in a relationship with a cool, adult man.

Yuuichi Iguchi

Maiko

Pendukung

Female

Maiko is a classmate and best friend of Anna Suehiro. She is a singer and model. She has a large fan base among Shuuichi's classmates.

Ai Takabe

Kanako Sasa

Pendukung

Female

Kanako is a girl who is a fifth grader in Shūichi's class at the beginning of Hōrō Musuko. Her nickname is Sasa-chan, but she is also called Kanabun by her younger brother and Chizuru. While she makes her first appearance in chapter two of the manga, she is not given a name until volume two. She is a short, energetic girl who likes to think of herself as everyone's friend, and easily becomes distressed when her friends fight amongst themselves. In such times, Kanako acts as a mediator between her friends, and tries not to leave anyone alone. She has been friends with Yoshino since pre-school, and later becomes close friends with Chizuru upon entering junior high school. Kanako comes off as an innocent, childish girl who does not have many worries aside from her friends' quarrels. She tends to be a handful for her mother who picks out her clothes for her, and even helps her get ready for school in the morning. She mentions that if she thinks too hard about something, her brain becomes itchy.

Yoshino Nanjou

Fumiya Ninomiya

Pendukung

Male

Fumiya is a boy one year older than Saori whom she first meets when she starts going to church. He takes an early interest in Saori, and he tries to get to know her better so as to become her boyfriend. Fumiya is a talkative boy whom Saori is easily annoyed by, especially when he brings her flowers from his parents' flower shop. After meeting Shūichi, Fumiya becomes jealous that Saori has an interest in him, especially when he is a cross-dresser, which Fumiya feels is gross. However, Fumiya lies to Saori and Shūichi, telling them he likes to cross-dress as well, in an effort to gain Saori's favor. This strategy backfires, as only Shūichi is interested in hearing more.

Kaoru Mizuhara

Anna Suehiro

Pendukung

Female

Anna is a teen model who is a good friend and classmate of Maiko; she is similarly well-known and experienced in modeling. From early on, Anna makes it clear that she disapproves of Shūichi dressing as a girl, and even calls her a freak. Anna initially tells Maho she has no interest in her "weak" brother because of her femininity, though later dates Shuuichi for a time after she asks her out. Furthermore, Anna's opinion of Shuuichi's cross-dressing also changes, saying that it actually suits her, and the two even go out together on a date with Shuuichi dressed as a girl. She feels Shuuichi is an interesting person, and once says she is like a cute little sister. Anna spends a lot of money on clothes, and enjoys modifying them.

Yui Horie

Riku Seya

Pendukung

Male

Riku Seya, usually referred to by his surname, is a classmate of Maho's who meets her upon their entering junior high school. He is generally a soft-spoken boy who initially takes an interest in Shūichi, whom he believes to be a girl, when they first meet. Seya later becomes angry at Maho for stringing him along with Shūichi, though soon reconciles with her and even starts dating her.

Yoshitsugu Matsuoka

Kentarou Kaneda

Pendukung

Male

A middle school teacher who looks an awful lot like Chiaki. He makes his come back in Hourou Musuko also as a teacher, has a wife and one child.

Takayuki Kondou

Momoko Shirai

Pendukung

Female

Momoko is a childhood friend and classmate in junior high school of Chizuru; she is nicknamed Momo. She constantly hangs around Chizuru and is visibly annoyed when Chizuru socializes with others, or even if someone simply sits too close to her. Momoko inevitably starts fighting Saori, who does not particularly respect Chizuru, when they talk.