Characters / Spirit Hunter: NG

A list of characters in the supernatural horror game Spirit Hunter: NG.

Warning: Due to the nature of the game, be wary of unmarked spoilers. Also, be warned that the folders can contain images of intense Body Horror.

---

Human Characters

General

As a whole:

• Action Duo: Akira has this dynamic with whatever companion comes along with him; he's an experienced brawler who brings the muscle, while his companion isn't nearly as strong but makes up for it with their knowledge and non-action skillsets.
• Amateur Sleuth: None of the main characters, besides Officer Ooe, are connected to law enforcement. The actual police are too incompetent and ignorant of the supernatural to discover the truth behind Ami's kidnapping and the various murders around town, leaving it up to the main cast to solve.
• Anti-Hero Team: All of the playable cast are societal outcasts and criminals in one way or another, and are amoral, anti-social, or some combination of both. Kaoru is the nicest of the lot, and she still has little qualms with breaking curfew and sneaking into forbidden areas to satisfy her supernatural mania.
• Brains and Brawn: Akira is strong and can throw a mean punch, but he's not too bright. His companions make up for it, with Seiji being generally intelligent, Ban having good investigative skills, and Kaoru and Rosé having knowledge of the occult.
• Character Class System: In the hidden profiles, the main characters are jokingly assigned classes straight out of an RPG:
  • Akira, Seiji, and Kaoru all have the main class of High School Student, with the sub-classes of Fighter, Yakuza, and Idol respectively.
  • Likewise, Ami's class is Elementary School Student, but her sub-class "Sister" is much higher.
  • Naomasa's main class is Journalist, while his sub-class is Gambler (which is quite low).
  • Rosé's main class is Magician, but she's also quite levelled in her sub-class of Thief.
  • Natsumi's main occupation is a writer, and so it's her main class. Her sub-class is Owner, but is much lower-leveled given her disinterest in running the bar.
  • Maruhashi has a low-level main class of Thug, but a much higher sub-class of Motorcycle Gang.
  • Ooe's only class is Police Officer.
• Childhood Friend: Akira and Seiji have been friends since elementary school. Akira was an outcast due to his abrasive personality and poor upbringing, but caught Seiji's attention when he picked a fight with him. The two have been close ever since.
• Clothing Reflects Personality: Many of the characters have outfits that showcase an important aspect of their personality.
  • Akira wears a black hoodie, gloves, choker, and a red shirt, and is a pragmatic, moody Anti-Hero.
  • In contrast to Akira, his innocent cousin Ami wears a frilly white dress and hairpin.
  • Hazuki dresses in gothic lolita and is a huge occult fan.
  • Seiji wears a dress shirt and tie, giving him a business-like appearance that ties to his role as a Yakuza heir.
  • Seiji's ineffectual Yakuza lackey Maruhashi dons a greasy jumpsuit and a gold chain necklace.
  • Natsumi is a motherly woman who runs a bar that's well-liked for being comfortable, and wears a shawl with a knitted turtleneck.
  • Ban, the shady investigative journalist, dons a waistcoat and tie, a shirt with rolled-up sleeves, and round shades.
  • Rosé wears a black veil dress and an assortment of red jewels, and is a Femme Fatale who doubles as a self-described magician/supernatural savant.
• Commonality Connection: Akira's cousin Ami is a cute young girl, while Maruhashi is a Gonk lackey for the Yakuza. They hit it off quickly due to their shared interest in idol Momo Kuruse, which Akira is surprised by.
• Cruel and Unusual Death: If a chapter's spirit is destroyed instead of pacified, then its grudge will remain and kill Akira's companions in a multitude of grisly ways. In contrast to Death Mark, where said deaths were offscreen, this time there are CGs showing exactly how gruesome their deaths are:
  • Seiji is the only companion who only has one possible death. He's possessed by Kubitarou, lured to her haunting spot, and decapitated there, after which she sticks a sapling through his head and leaves it for Akira to find.
  • Kaoru can be killed by the Urashima Woman, who attacks her while she's having a shower and leaves her bloody body there for Akira to find, turtles spewing out of her mouth. Otherwise, she can also be decapitated by Kubitarou, her head remaining alive just long enough to have a brief conversation with Akira over the phone.
  • Ban may be killed by the Screaming Author when it wraps its razor wire around his body and yanks him into the attic. He's strangled, impaled, his neck is broken, and his arm is severed before he finally gives out. Otherwise, he can be literally split down the middle by the Killer Peach.
  • Rosé's potential death by the Screaming Author is even more horrible; the spirit believes her to be a bird, since she used her voice to mimic a bird cry earlier, so it grabs her with wire and forcefully yanks her body until it's distorted at all joints, resembling a morbid crane. In particular, her neck is extended in a hideously inhuman way. Her death by Killer Peach is comparatively "nicer", but it still has her naked and gored through the stomach.
• Foil:
  • Rosé and Seiji have a fair few traits in common, and even their differences tend to mirror each other, which is made clear by Rosé replacing Seiji as one of Akira's companions: both are good-looking, polite, dexterous people who hide a darker side, have criminal ties, know unscrupulous skills like picking locks, and have little problem with going against the law. Whereas Seiji is a young man who likes older women, Rosé is an older woman who likes cute young men, and while Seiji is terrified of the supernatural, Rosé is an expert on it.
  • Ooe is revealed to be one for the Killer Peach. Both are (or were, in Peach's case) women of the law who prioritized the exposure of injustices over following the rules. They both also lost their families thanks to the employees of Sumii Co. It's this connection between them that causes Ooe to act rashly towards Killer Peach. Later on, she admits that she understands the Peach's murderous rage, but that her methods are wrong and Ooe wants to do right for her by pursuing justice within the realm of the law (somewhat, at least).
• Freudian Trio:
  • Kaoru is an energetic idol who gets excited around the supernatural, Seiji is a cruel-minded skeptic who uses manipulation to get his way, while Akira is more pragmatic than Hazuki, but possesses supernatural power and is more willing to believe in it than Seiji. Akira usually mediates bickering between Seiji and Kaoru due to their differing opinions on spirits.
  • A similar dynamic grows between Akira, Rosé, and Ban. While Rosé is always collected and secretive, Ban is brasher and more willing to take risks, with Akira being calmer than Ban but more violent and expressive than Rosé.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: Akira and Seiji, friends from childhood who've known each other for so long that Seiji can read Akira flawlessly, much to the latter's annoyance. The game makes it clear that it's one of Akira's most important relationships, alongside his ship teasy one with Kaoru.
• Interclass Friendship:
  • Akira is a Working-Class Hero who used to live in poverty, while his best friend Seiji is the rich son of Yakuza. Once they became friends, Seiji hooked Akira up with an underground fighting gig which, along with being adopted by his aunt, helped Akira get on his feet.
  • Rosé comes from the upper-class, which is reflected in her glamorous appearance and mannerisms. On the contrary, investigative journalist Ban is always a little strapped for cash due to his gambling addiction. Though calling what they have a "friendship" might not be accurate, as their differing stances on money are one of the many things that cause them to clash.
• Intergenerational Friendship:
  • Ami is good friends with Yuri and Kaoru, despite her being elementary-aged and them being high-schoolers. This is explained as Ami and Yuri living in the same apartment building, with Yuri playing with Ami when Ami's mother was too busy with work to look after her.
  • While Akira's first two companions are both around his age, the second set are Ban and Rosé, a middle-aged man and a woman who keeps her age a secret, but frequently teases Akira for being young and "cute". Having adults who're experienced with supernatural affairs proves very useful to Akira, though that doesn't stop him from bickering with them like he does with his high-school friends.
• Like an Old Married Couple: Akira and Seiji have been friends since childhood, and it shows with how comfortable they are with hurling insults and bickering. Kaoru even jokingly calls them "lovebirds" after Akira threatens to smack Seiji for teasing him.
• Odd Friendship: While they're riding together on his bike, Akira acknowledges that, despite being best friends, he and Seiji are complete opposites - Seiji is a polite, sociable boy who hides a dark personality, whilst Akira appears intimidating but would rather be left alone. Even their clothes contrast, with Akira favouring black while Seiji wears white.
• Older Sidekick:
  • Ban and Rosé are both notably older and more experienced with the supernatural than Akira, but because he's the one afflicted with Kakuya's curse they default to him as their leader, figuring that his decisions on how to handle his own curse are more important than what they think is right.
  • Later in the story, Ooe joins the crew. She mostly helps Akira from the background, working with her connections to allow him access to private areas.
• Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: The main cast consists of a teenage delinquent, his friend the Yakuza heir, an occult idol, a corrupt investigative journalist, a criminal magician, and a shady cop. When riding with Seiji and Kaoru on his motorcycle, Akira realizes that it's their outcast nature that has drawn them together so easily.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni:
  • Seiji and Akira swap around these roles depending on the situation. Akira is generally stoic and has the ability to keep calm in life-threatening situations, while Seiji is the more emotional of the pair and gets riled up by the supernatural. However, when dealing with social problems, Akira is more likely to lose his cool and attempt violence, with Seiji being the one to pull him back and handle the situation calmly.
  • Rosé is as calm and collected as can be, and is often the one deriding Ban for getting emotional and advising him to calm down. While Rosé prefers the subtle approach, such as picking locks, Ban is more forceful in his gathering of information.
• Ship Tease: Akira and Kaoru can have some flirtatious moments together. Kaoru wants to paint symbols on Akira to protect him from spirits, and so asks him to undress in front of her. While riding her home on his motorcycle, Akira has the option to playfully caress her knee. And Kaoru says that she wants to get to know Akira better... in a spiritual way, of course. Don't mind her red cheeks. If she's around for the Demon Tsukuyomi case, then the two will pretend to be a couple to draw out a spirit.
• Student–Master Team: Rosé takes Akira on as her spiritual disciple, even though he gets no say in the matter. Despite that, she does genuinely help him out and teach him some things about spirits that he didn't know before.
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Ban and Rosé are both professionals who work well in assisting Akira, but they can barely go a minute without sniping at each other.
• Vitriolic Best Buds:
  • Akira and Seiji love hurling insults at each other, but they're only comfortable doing so because they've been best friends for so long.
  • Seiji has nothing but barbed words for his underling Maruhashi, who's too devoted to Seiji to ever snap back at him. However, at the end of the Kubitarou case, Seiji is clearly anguished by Maruhashi's murder at Kubitarou's hands and swears vengeance.
• With a Friend and a Stranger:
  • The dynamic between Akira, Seiji, and Kaoru. Akira is the protagonist, Seiji has been his best friend since childhood, while Kaoru is a newcomer to the dynamic (though she was already friends with Akira's younger cousin).
  • Akira's companions for the Screaming Author case are Ban, a journalist that he already has a tentative partnership with, and Rosé, a mysterious supernatural expert that Ban brings into the case.

Protagonist/"Akira Kijima"

[Class] Fighter LV72

^{Click here} to see Akira in the Bad End

Voiced by: Yoshiaki Kawabata

"I don't need anyone to believe me. It's my problem. I'll take care of it."

The protagonist of the tale, Akira Kijima is a high school student-turned-underground fighter who's flung into the supernatural after his cousin is kidnapped by a mysterious spirit.

---

• The All-Solving Hammer: When faced with any sort of roadblock, his default answer tends to be "beat it up". Multiple other characters call him out on his violent predisposition.
• Badass Biker: Akira's motorcycle only adds to his image as a tough, capable fighter. Seiji and Kaoru are both impressed by it and demand rides from him on separate occasions.
• Bad Mood as an Excuse: When he was a kid, his family had no money and he always felt like things were falling apart. This gave him some anger issues that only fighting could help him deal with. After he was adopted by his aunt, and Seiji gave him an outlet for his anger, he was able to stabilize himself.
• Big Brother Instinct: Loves and cares for his younger cousin Ami, who he treats like a younger sister, and is very determined to track her down and save her after she's abducted by Kakuya.
• Blessed with Suck: In the Bad End, due to the repeated trauma he's suffered due to seeing his friends die, his Bloodmetry has reacted by becoming stronger and stronger until it's working beyond his control, reading his own blood and forcing him to relive the hellish images he's seen in a nightmare loop. The physical effects are slowly killing him, but the helping hand that saves him leads to something even more fearful.
• Book Dumb: He's clever enough to solve the various puzzles and mysteries Kakuya throws his way, as well as keep himself alive against murderous spirits, but he's terrible at anything that requires actual research and leaves that to his more intellectual allies. In his profile, his intelligence is his lowest stat, more than three times less than his physique.
• Chaste Hero: He's mostly oblivious to the interest that Kaoru shows in him, gets irritated rather than flustered by Seiji shipping the two of them, and responds to Rosé's offer of a date with "I'd rather sleep". Romance is clearly not on his mind.
• Conditioned to Accept Horror: Throughout the course of the game, Akira grows rather disturbingly accustomed to the spirits haunting him and threatening his life.
  Akira: Yeah, a bunch of weird things have happened. I almost died once, too.
  Rosé: And yet you seem pretty unfazed.
  Akira: Well, obviously, I didn't die.
• Conspicuous Gloves: He's always shown in a pair of black leather gloves, which don't seem to serve a particular purpose besides making him look cool. At least they don't get in the way when he uses his contact-based psychometry.
• Contrasting Sequel Main Character: Yashiki, the protagonist of Spirit Hunter: Death Mark, was a gaunt, middle-aged man with amnesia and a proclivity towards the supernatural. Akira instead is a high-school brawler who's practically-minded and unfamiliar with the supernatural. This is shown most clearly with their respective spiritual files; Yashiki's notes are detailed and written like journal entries, whilst Akira's are crude, laconic scrawls.
• Cool Shades: One of the potential appearance options for Akira is a pair of slim black shades (in contrast to the previous protagonist's Stoic Spectacles) that he wears all the time and makes him look like even more of a badass.
• Disappeared Dad: While his mother raised him until she passed away, Akira never knew who his father was. This becomes relevant when Rosé speculates that he has latent spiritual powers passed down by blood, and questions whether his father could've had the same powers.
• 11th-Hour Superpower: With Kakuya beating down the proverbial door, Akira has a leap of intuition. Evidence had strongly implied that his mother had had an affair with Yakumo Miroku, the author who had been infusing dolls with energy and using those in the Nagoshi no Gi rite to bind/pacify Kakuya before losing his powers and being forced to alter the ritual to use corpses instead. Recalling a Bloodmetry memory where Yakumo had mentioned using his left hand to infuse the dolls in the past and that his right had had a different power, Akira decides to try using his own left hand (rather than the right one used for Bloodmetry) to perform the Nagoshi no Gi ritual. It works.
• Fearless Fool: Some of his more reckless actions - such as continuing to stay in an apartment that he knows is haunted - are attributed to his unwillingness to be scared of the spirits that are haunting him.
• Fight Clubbing: He engaged in this during middle school at Seiji's insistence and had just quit prior to the events of the game. In Seiji's variant of the Good End, he returns back to the ring.
• Four Is Death: As a little Easter Egg, the birth date of our spirit-fighting protagonist is 4/4.
• Hello, [Insert Name Here]: Like Yashiki before him, Akira Kijima is the protagonist's default name that can be changed if the player so wishes. This also changes the surname of his cousin and aunt.
• Heroes Fight Barehanded: He's a no-nonsense brawler who prefers using his bare fists over any kind of weapon, as he says when he's given Seiji's gun and hides it away instead of using it.
• Hero with Bad Publicity: After his cousin is kidnapped, his acquaintance Maruhashi is found dead, and his aunt is found comatose, Akira gets hauled in by the police who start to suspect that he's up to something, and refuse to believe his claim that spirits are behind it all.
• Hopeless with Tech: He's not very tech-savvy, as revealed when Ami changes his ringtone and he has no idea how to change it back. When Ami asks him if he's good with any technology, he replies that his motorbike is the only thing he needs to be familiar with.
• Improbable Aiming Skills: To further show off his impressive physicality, Akira is able to use a rock to knock a flashlight out of a guard's hand from a distance, and then use another to accurately strike a lamppost that was on the other side of the plaza.
• It's All My Fault: While he does recognize that, ultimately, Kakuya is to blame for everything, Akira feels a tremendous amount of guilt for getting his companions involved with spirits after Maruhashi is killed by one. It takes a pep talk from one of said companions, where they insist that they hold responsibility for their own actions, for him to get over it.
• I Work Alone: Akira believes that his problems are his own and that he doesn't need to get anyone else involved with him. While Seiji applauds his independence, he also still insists on tagging along, as do the other companion characters.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's abrasive and doesn't suffer fools lightly, but, as is noted by his character bio and Kaoru, he does care deeply for his friends and family and will go out of his way to protect them.
• Le Parkour: He's a physically fit young man who displays some impressive feats of acrobatics - he scarpers up a wall twice his height to avoid the police, and later on kicks off a wall to cling to a ceiling pipe to avoid getting run over by a car.
• Lovecraftian Superpower: In the Bad End, a mysterious voice, who can optionally be identified as Rosé transforms Akira into something non-human to free him from the guilt of his companions' deaths. When he's next seen, he has a long tentacle for an arm and glowing red eyes.
• Magnetic Hero: Despite his lack of people skills and intimidating aura, Kaoru realizes that there's just something about Akira that draws people towards him. Even though he prefers working alone, he starts the game with three close relations and only builds them up from there.
• Minor Living Alone: Akira is in his last year of high school but already has his own apartment in favour of staying with his aunt. This is to keep his job as an underground brawler a secret from her, and because he likes the freedom.
• Muscles Are Meaningless: Despite being a prized underground fighter and noted by many for his physical prowess, Akira isn't that bulky. Lampshaded by Hazuki when she's amazed at how strong he is for being a "beanpole", and wonders if he's even human.
• Mysterious Parent: His missing father is revealed to be Yakumo Miroku, the spiritualist that was keeping the Big Bad in check until he passed away. This explains Akira's ability to use Bloodmetry, as it's a form of spiritual power that was passed down from his father.
• Nephewism: After his mother passed away, Akira was raised by his aunt Natsumi. After two years with her, he regards her and her daughter as his immediate family, a sentiment they reciprocate.
• The Nose Knows: He has an acute sense of smell, shown off in the Kubitarou case when he was able to pick up on blood that Maruhashi and his companion missed.
• Not So Stoic: While he's a generally stoic person who responds to deaths with disbelief more than anything else, the potential death of his companions at Kubitarou's hands causes him to completely flip out, screaming curses while chasing her down.
• Ordinary High-School Student: Akira is a little out of the norm, being a prized underground fighter for the Yakuza, but he considers himself and his life to be average and boring until he's marked by a supernatural spirit.
• Perma-Stubble: One of the potential appearance options for Akira is a scruff of facial hair to match his blunt, badass personality.
• Plagued by Nightmares: In the Bad End Akira becomes plagued with visions of all his companions that died, preventing him from getting any sleep and causing his health to deteriorate.
• Power Incontinence: In the Bad End, the gruesome murders of his companions cause his Bloodmetry to go out of control, causing him to frequently read his own blood and be fed the vivid memories of their deaths.
• Pretty Boy: Without his perpetual grimace, Akira actually looks quite nice. If he appreciates Kaoru's gothic lolita style, then she'll reply that he should try it for himself, since his face is pretty enough for him to look good in woman's clothing.
• Psychometry: Akira possesses a specific form of it that's referred to as Bloodmetry; by touching blood and concentrating, he can see and hear a brief scene related to the blood's history. Using Bloodmetry is a gameplay mechanic alongside the regular investigation of objects.
• Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs: While not shown in the game proper, his profile states that his record for his right straight is 8 punches per second.
• Real Men Hate Sugar: He's unambiguously one of the strongest and most masculine characters in the game, and "sweet things" are listed as a dislike in his profile. Naturally, his favourite food is chicken.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: The key art for the game features him with a single, glowing red eye. This shows up once in the game; in the Bad End where he's been transformed into a bloodthirsty monster.
• Sleepy Depressive: After Maruhashi is killed by Kubitarou, Akira is plagued with regret and spends several days sleeping fitfully into the evening. He eventually gets a pep talk from one of his friends, but even then it takes a while for his routine to get back to normal.
• So What Do We Do Now?: When reminded that he's on summer break, Akira reminisces on how crazy his life has become because of spirits, and whether he'd even be able to return to a life of normalcy. In Seiji's ending, he concedes that he can't go back to a life of peace, and so resumes his job as an underground fighter.
• The Stoic: Outside of the Judgement system, Akira doesn't emote much, and is noted even by his friend to have a permanent poker face. Ban describes him as having Nerves of Steel, which he proves when he reacts nonchalantly to Rosé breaking into his aunt's bar.
• Super-Reflexes: His experience and training as a street fighter have heightened his instincts and reaction time, allowing him to process dangerous situations and react to them much faster than the average person.
• Supreme Chef: Because he's a Minor Living Alone, Akira has taught himself how to cook. The quality of his cooking is commended on, and he bonds with Ami while teaching her how to cook.
• This Is Something He's Got to Do Himself: Subverted. He'd like to keep the people he cares about from getting involved in Kakuya's game, but he just plain doesn't have the ability to investigate on his own and his friends know it.
• Traumatic Superpower Awakening: He already had a sixth sense that helped him win his underground boxing matches, but being thrusted into Kakuya's game granted him the ability to perform Psychometry with blood. If Kaoru and Seiji both die, his sixth sense gets even stronger as a reaction and lets him catch glimpses of Rosé's true form, allowing you to select a secret dialogue choice when she asks him how she looks after they both pacify The Screaming Author.
• When He Smiles: If the player has him smile via the Judgement system, the other characters will often remark on how charming and handsome it makes him look, especially since he's normally quite moody.
• We Are Not Going Through That Again: After everything he went through, he understandably turns down Kaoru's offer to conduct a séance in her variant of the Good End.
• Working-Class Hero: He lived in poverty before his aunt took him in, and he frequently shows his greatest assets to be his practical mind and his almost superhuman physicality, trained by underground fighting.

Companions

Seiji Amanome

[Sub-class] Yakuza LV51

^{Click here} to see him in the Normal End while possessed by Kakuya

Voiced by: Tomohisa Sako

"A stranger's death dripping with danger and intrigue is a great source of entertainment."

Akira's best friend since elementary school and heir to the Amanome branch of the Yakuza. While he seems kind, his pretty face hides a twisted individual who loves to dig out people's secrets.

He's one of Akira's companions for the Urashima Woman and Kubitarou of Kintoki cases, and potentially one for the Demon Tsukuyomi case.

---

• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Seiji is a mild-mannered young man with a pretty face and soft voice. However, he's also the heir to the Yakuza who takes great pleasure from tormenting and blackmailing others.
  Ban: Stop pretending like you're innocent. I know who you are under that sheep disguise.
• Character Tics: When taking or making phone calls, he has a habit of stepping away from others, since said calls are usually of a morally dubious nature that he doesn't want to be overheard.
• Collector of the Strange: Seiji has an odd hobby of collecting gross-sounding drinks, to the point that people will gift him with strange drinks to pacify his sadism. At one point, Akira's run-in with a spirit is interrupted when Seiji drops by with a drink for him to try.
• Deadly Euphemism: Fond of using these to explain in a faux-innocent way what he or his minions have done to people that cross them. It even includes the classic "sleeping with the fishes" when it concerns a man who lives by the shore.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He's a two-faced sadist who delights in the torment of others, but he does genuinely like the Kijima family and goes out of his way to help them however he can.
• Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon: He's a doe-eyed pretty boy with a gentle smile and slim body. It makes his cruel personality all the more surprising.
• Flat-Earth Atheist: Subverted. He's clearly terrified of the supernatural and initially refuses to believe Akira's story about ghosts and spirits, but when he's forced to confront them himself he concedes to the evidence and doesn't try to deny their existence. That said, he still will only consider the supernatural as a very last option, preferring mundane explanations for the various murders throughout the game.
• Gentleman Snarker: His polite demeanour lends itself well to the scathing insults he likes to throw Akira's way, though Akira's not afraid to fling back.
• Green-Eyed Monster: In his Normal End, he confesses that he's been envious of Akira since childhood, since the other boy's strength (both physical and mental) make him more suited to the Yakuza than Seiji himself.
• Gun Nut: He explains to Akira that he had a phase in his life where he was all about guns, hence why he learned how to lockpick so he could break into his father's safe and steal one. While he doesn't show the same obsessiveness now, he does still take a gun with him when it comes time to confront Kubitarou.
• Horror Hunger: In his Normal End, Seiji is possessed by Kakuya and, after his body is transformed into something more monstrous, expresses his desire to "break the boundary" between him and Akira by eating the latter.
• If You Ever Do Anything to Hurt Her...: He performs a platonic version to show his close friendship with Akira. He says to Ban that, if his information on Kubitarou isn't sufficient and Akira dies as a result, then he'll use the full power of the Yakuza to track Ban down.
• Likes Older Women: Seiji is head-over-heels for Akira's aunt, and dismisses the idea of being attracted to girls his age since he prefers his women "refined".
• Manipulative Bastard: One in the making. He's so efficient at exploiting people's weaknesses that it's said he even has high-ranking politicians and police in his pocket, despite his relatively young age.
• Master of Unlocking: Thanks to an incident in his past where he broke into his father's safe to try and get a gun, Seiji has become talented at picking locks. This is useful in the Urashima Woman case where they need to sneak some oars out of a locked shack.
• Non-Action Guy: Seiji isn't nearly as physically fit as Akira, and relies on him to do any heavy lifting, even saying that he's the type to let others handle physical work for him. He makes up for it with his people skills and his Yakuza connections.
• Overlord Jr.: He's the heir to Taizou Amanome, the current head of the Amanome Family. According to Taizou's profile, he dotes on his son dearly, and Seiji is clearly a chip off the old block given how well he utilizes the Yakuza and its connections. That said, Amanome Sr. isn't above giving some tough love if Seiji gets too out of line.
• Psycho Sidekick: Akira is well aware that Seiji uses his connections to threaten, blackmail, and even kill those who oppose him or the Kijima family, but as they've been friends for years, and Akira isn't exactly a bastion of morality himself, he doesn't dig too deeply into it.
• Put on a Bus: If he survives the events of Kubitarou of Kintouki, he gets grounded by his dad for Maruhashi's death.
• Red Baron: He's earned the title "Prince of Threats", due to his proficiency at weeding out people's secrets and using them for blackmail.
• Screw the Rules, I Have Connections!: If security proves to be too much of a hassle for the characters to get past, then Seiji tugs on his Yakuza connections and has them "taken care of", allowing the protagonists free reign.
• Shipper with an Agenda: He frequently teases Akira about getting together with Kaoru, which mostly seems to be because he enjoys riling up his best friend.
• The Social Expert: His criminal upbringing has taught him how to be skilled at negotiations, how to play it cool when being interrogated, and how to pick out people's weaknesses and exploit them.
• Slasher Smile: One of his common expressions. His normally soft eyes sharpen into pinpricks as he takes on a wicked smile, revealing his true personality.
• Token Evil Teammate: All of the investigators are guilty of at least one criminal act, but Seiji is a Yakuza prince who commits the biggest crimes in the process of the story, like ordering security guards kidnapped, having his goons tear up a neighborhood on motorcycles, and extorting a man into giving in to the Yakuza. He is also the most sadistic of the lot, as he has a Slasher Smile he regularly whips out.
• Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?:
  • He's terrified of the supernatural, to the point that just hearing about them causes him to seize up in a way similar to an allergic reaction. Unfortunately for him, he's a main character in a horror adventure game.
  • He also has a severe and inexplicable phobia of boats, to the point that he hospitalised his father for two months when he was forced into one. This is used to explain why he doesn't accompany Akira to the confrontation with the Urashima Woman, as she resides on an island in the middle of a lake.

Kaoru Hazuki/Momo Kuruse

[Sub-class] Idol LV42

^{Click here} to see Momo Kuruse

^{Click here} to see her in the Normal End while possessed by Kakuya

^{Click here} to see her in Death Mark II

Voiced by: Yuubi Midorikawa

"Hehehe, Momo Kuruse is here. How's your guardian angel today?"

Momo Kuruse is an up-and-coming idol, her distinctive gothic style drawing her much attention and appeal. Her true identity is Kaoru Hazuki, an occult fanatic who gets pulled into the story due to being friends with Akira's cousin.

She's one of Akira's companions for the Urashima Woman and Kubitarou of Kintoki cases, and potentially one for the Demon Tsukuyomi case.

She appears in the "Princess Mach Rumors" bonus chapter in Spirit Hunter: Death Mark II, which takes place 5 years before NG. Here, she hasn't started in show-biz yet, and is looking for inspiration for the occult-themed idol she wants to be.

---

• Agent Mulder: She readily believes anything related to the supernatural, even if it's from dubious sources like infomercials. This contrasts her with the skeptical Seiji and uninformed Akira.
• Be Careful What You Wish For: Kaoru is a fan of the occult and geeks out at the genuinely threatening spirits that she fights alongside Akira. In one Bad End, she's decapitated by one of said spirits, but is able to have one last phone call with Akira as a ghost. While she tells herself that she's excited at the genuine supernatural experience, the narrative notes that she's actually terrified in her last few moments before death takes her.
• Connected All Along: Not only was she Ai Kashiwagi's kohai, Death Mark II reveals that she'd actually met previous protagonist Kazuo Yashiki long before NG. Her photoshoot isn't just a Continuity Nod to Mary, it actually was based on a picture of Mary that Yashiki had.
• Becoming the Mask: In her Normal Ending, she confesses that being forced to put on a smile for her idol work for so long has started to have an effect on her, and left her unsure as to how much of her is genuine and how much is an act.
• Beneath the Mask: As Momo Kuruse her attitude and way of speaking change, and she seems a little bolder than she does as Hazuki. Momo is able to do things like suggest that Akira strip down so she can write the Heart Sutra on him, for example, or ride on a motorcycle with Akira.
• Character Catchphrase: Regardless of the time of day, she always greets others with "Good morning!", which is due to her hectic schedule as an idol.
• Cloudcuckoolander: Both Akira and Seiji call her crazy for her intense interest in the supernatural, and she's called Akira everything from a lab experiment to an ESPer to an urban legend. Despite her eccentricities, she is knowledgeable about the occult and proves to be useful in the investigation of spirits.
  Akira: What scares me is the thought that she might actually be serious about everything...
• Elegant Gothic Lolita: Being an occult idol, she dresses in the gothic lolita style that's only just coming into fashion during the time period of the story. It's not as extravagant as some examples - a black puffy dress and beret with dark green bows - but it still makes her stand out from the crowd. A bonus chapter from Death Mark II reveals that her outfit was inspired by a picture of Mary Kujou.
• "Eureka!" Moment: In Death Mark II's Extra Chapter, Kaoru spends the plot unsure of what theme to go for in regards to her occult idol persona. She gets the idea for “Momo Kuruse”, a doll-themed idol, upon hearing Kazuo mention his doll-making tools, asking to see more, and then seeing the picture of Mary Kujou, the enigmatic yet adorable Elegant Gothic Lolita doll residing in the mansion.
• Follow in My Footsteps: If she's around for the Demon Tsukuyomi case, then she'll reveal that her reason for becoming an idol was because she was raised to be one by her ex-idol mother, which is not to say that she dislikes being one, just that she regards it as an occupation instead of a passion.
• Guile Hero: While not nearly to the same level as Seiji, Kaoru shows a surprisingly devious streak despite her bubbly personality; she subtly threatened her manager to cover for her when she sneaks out at night, she knows secret routes to skirt around police, and she's fine with sneaking into prohibited areas or bluffing her way into them.
• Idol Singer: Momo Kuruse is an idol that's gained notoriety for her occult interest and aesthetic. Her true identity is Kaoru Hazuki, a friend to the first victim of Kakuya's curse. Akira's cousin is a fan of Momo, and changes his ringtone to one of Momo's songs.
• It's Personal: While she was already dedicated to saving Ami, Kaoru holds a personal grudge against the Urashima Woman for canceling her concert, and then killing one of her fans.
• Ms. Exposition: She's an expert on the occult and the supernatural, and provides Akira with information on the various ghostly happenings in the first chapter.
• Never Bareheaded: As part of her gothic style, she always wears a swanky black beret with an opulent velvet bow.
• Nightmare Fetishist: She really enjoys the occult, and is more enthusiastic about confronting ghosts than scared of them. It's to the point that, when she jokes about prioritizing ghosts over the well-being of her or others, she has to clarify that she's kidding.
• Paper-Thin Disguise: Akira points out that, despite her desire to keep her Momo identity a secret, she goes out in the same distinctive gothic clothes regardless of whether she's Momo or Kaoru. Her only defense is that she loves the style too much to not wear it in her everyday life.
• Parental Substitute: She acts as one towards the turtles possessed by fetuses in Urashima Lake. By giving them a hug and soothing their crying, she's able to appease their spirits.
• Plucky Girl: She shows little fear in the presence of spirits, and is determined to do anything to hunt down and save Ami from Kakuya. Even if a scare is put in her, she'll eventually bounce back and keep on moving.
• Secret Identity Change Trick: In case she suddenly needs to switch from Momo to Kaoru, she keeps scotch tape on hand that allows her to quickly (if painfully) remove her temporary face tattoo.
• Significant Birth Date: Kaoru is obsessed with the supernatural, and fittingly was born on October 31st.
• Stepford Smiler: While she's a genuinely peppy girl who enjoys being an idol, she also confesses that she always has to force a smile as part of her persona, and it can put a strain on her sometimes.
• Token Good Teammate: Of the cast of criminals, she is by far the most moral and law-abiding, as she is only guilty of breaking-and-entering and other minor things, preferring to stay out of the trouble that the others get themselves into.
• Wig, Dress, Accent: All Kaoru does when donning her persona of Momo Kuruse is put on a silver wig, a facial tattoo, and a cutesy manner of speech. Even though she keeps her distinctive gothic lolita fashion as Kaoru, most people write her off as a diehard Momo fan rather than Momo herself.

Naomasa Ban

[Class] Journalist Lv55

Voiced by: Taiki Yamashita

"Each and every spirit is hiding some dark truth underneath all its artifices. I guess I'm just helplessly drawn to uncovering those truths."

A shrewd journalist infamous for his backdoor dealings and coercive methods. Despite his earned reputation, he's skilled at journalism. Also hopelessly addicted to gambling.

He's one of Akira's companions for the Screaming Author and Killer Peach cases.

---

• "Blackmail" Is Such an Ugly Word: He's fond of using nice euphemisms for his dirty work.
  • Rosé gets annoyed with Ban for extorting the high-schooler Akira. Ban retorts that it wasn't "extortion", he was just "collecting fees" that he was due.
  • When Rosé talks about breaking-and-entering into the Miroku residence, Ban rephrases it as them "investigating" the place. Rosé makes fun of him for being so hung up on the terminology.
• Brutal Honesty: At least when it comes to other guys, Ban doesn't mince his words or offer false sympathy when he's relaying bad news.
• Bunny-Ears Lawyer: He has a terrible gambling problem and squanders most of his money as a result, but he always makes sure his recklessness doesn't bleed over into his work, where he's instead cautious and effective at gathering information.
• Close to Home: If Ban helps Akira get rid of the Screaming Author, then he reveals in the aftermath that he lost his own son to a spirit, so he always makes sure to pay respects to the dead if they were a child.
• Cool Old Guy: He's around 40 and it's just starting to catch up with him, but he rankles when people call him "old man" and he proves to be just as effective with investigations and fighting spirits as Akira's younger companions.
• The Gambling Addict: Made apparent at the beginning of Chapter 3, where he extorts 5,000 yen from Akira and immediately gambles it all away at pachinko. Rosé's comment on the matter suggests this is a recurring problem, which he proves throughout the later chapters. If he's alive by then, he extorts another 30,000 yen from Akira to bet on a horse race with 100-to-1 odds. He wins this time, and uses the money as a bribery for Moon Tower access.
• Friend in the Press: Naomasa becomes one to Akira. Using his information-gathering skills to find out things about the spirits they fight, proving a very valuable ally and becoming somewhat of a friend to Akira.
• Hidden Heart of Gold: He pretends to be tolerant at best of Akira, but when he tries to play off Akira's arrest, Rosé reveals that he was secretly worried and offered up a prayer for Akira's safety.
• I Minored in Tropology: After pretending to be a teacher to satisfy a tortured spirit, Ban reveals to Akira that he actually does have a teaching license from his college days.
• Immoral Journalist: Downplayed. He is a notorious blackmailer who is known to resort to dirty tricks to dig up scandals, frequently extorts protagonist Akira for gambling money (which he then loses), and commits breaking-and-entering into both an abandoned house and a company building. However, he is trying to help Akira fight the spirits, and is a good guy at heart- he is just willing to resort to unsavory methods.
• Intrepid Reporter: Ban is a journalist that hounds Seiji for his ties to the Yakuza, and his effectiveness is shown when he's easily able to put together a profile on Akira, Seiji's friend. Despite the antagonism, he assists the protagonists by sharing what he knows of the supernatural incidents, and later becomes one of Akira's companions.
• I Resemble That Remark!:
  • He chastises Akira for treating him like he's an old man. Seconds later, he complains about nearly putting out his hip after helping Akira move a wooden shelf.
  • When Akira says that he almost seems like a responsible adult, he bites back that he's always responsible. Then he asks Akira for a loan since he's all out of cash from gambling.
• It's Personal: His reasoning for investigating spirits turn out to be much more personal than for the money - his son was killed by one, and in hunting down the killer he realized his desire to expose all the dark secrets that spirits possess.
• Miracle Rally: When gambling, he has an uncanny ability to always win the last bet, no matter how much he's lost up until that point. It's so potent that he accurately predicted a win when he needed it to help the cast advance their investigation.
• Mysterious Informant: In the first few chapters, where he provides information on spirits to Akira but keeps his sources a secret, and is evasive enough about his private life to even give the Yakuza a run for their money. Not so much after he joins Akira's group and slowly opens up to him about his occupation and past.
• Occult Detective: Alongside Rosé, he works with a group of supernatural investigators. After his son was killed by a spirit, he was motivated to hunt them down and expose the truth behind their existence.
• Outliving One's Offspring: He lost his son to a spirit, which is what motivated him to face off against the supernatural and expose the seedy underbelly of the world.
• Perma-Stubble: He has a light beard and long, tied-back hair, to show he's less concerned about his appearance than he is about his investigative work.
• Round Hippie Shades: He has a pair of black spherical sunglasses that mark him as an unconventional, shady person.
• Smoking Is Cool: Fitting with his general image of a shady informant, Ban is found smoking when he meets Akira at the Moon Tower for a second time.
• Tagalong Reporter: He forms the second set of Akira's companions alongside Rosé Mulan, helping him investigate spirits with his journalism skills.
• Thrill Seeker: The reason he's addicted to gambling is for the thrill he gets when the odds are against him and he only has a slim chance of victory. This also seems to apply to his work with the supernatural, as he gets an adventurous gleam in his eye when he talks about routing the dark secrets of spirits.
• Unscrupulous Hero: He's known for his unethical journalism and dirty tricks to scrounge up whatever scandals he can, but he is ultimately on the protagonist's side.

Rosé Mulan

[Class] Magician LV60

^{Click here} to see Rosé's true form in the Bad End

Voiced by: Eri Tomizawa

"I might not kowtow to society's norms, but I draw the line at stealing top-shelf alcohol."

A stage magician and supernatural savant who was hired alongside Ban to investigate the supernatural. Little is known about her, and what she does divulge only brings up more questions than answers.

She's one of Akira's companions for the Screaming Author and Killer Peach cases.

---

• Back from the Dead: If certain actions are taken, then Rosé will appear in the Bad End despite being killed by a spirit earlier in the game. This is because she's a spirit herself, and was able to resurrect herself after being destroyed.
• The Beautiful Elite: She comes from wealth and it's treated her well, as she's a gorgeous woman with an air of class and sophistication. That said, beneath her charm is someone who's skilled in lockpicking and enjoys breaking society's rules.
• Canon Immigrant: Rosé's first appearance was in Death Mark: Blue End, a Japanese drama CD. NG marks her move to the series proper, and establishes her connection to the previous protagonist via the supernatural circles they both run in.
• Classy Cat-Burglar: She's an amazing lockpicker who can slip in and out of buildings with ease, but only does so for the fun of it. She's wealthy and claims to be innocent, but it's obvious there's more to her than just an elegant woman.
• Dead All Along: Turns out that she has been a spirit since the very beginning.
• Elegant Classical Musician: She's a graceful and attractive woman from the upper class, so it's not too much of a surprise when she reveals that she's been trained in a variety of classical instruments.
• Femme Fatale: She's flirty and dons a simple black dress, bearing an exotic name as part of her stage persona, but she deliberately keeps an air of intrigue around herself while assisting Akira with his investigation.
• Foreshadowing: A lot of information on Rosé (or lack thereof) takes on a new light with the revelation in her specific Bad End. She keeps her real name and age a secret since, as a spirit, she's both undead and probably been around for a while. She's known for escaping certain death, which is because she's able to resurrect herself. And her knowledge and interest in the occult, despite purportedly being a stage magician, is because she's a spirit herself.
• Gratuitous French: Her speech is peppered with a few French words and sayings, which fit with her image of a woman from the upper-class.
• Hidden Depths: Akira is surprised to learn that, despite her glamorous looks, she's a fan of the idol group Love&Hero.
• Master of Unlocking: She's experienced with lock-picking, even more so than Seiji. While she puts it down to her dexterity from being a stage magician, there's obviously more to it than she lets on.
• Mrs. Robinson: She makes it clear that she has no interest in men her age, and instead is attracted to young, "cute" men like Akira.
• Ms. Exposition: Rosé takes over the role of the spiritual expert after Kaoru leaves, and helps Akira learn more about Kakuya, ghosts, and his own powers.
• Mysterious Past: She works as a magician, knows about the supernatural, and was raised in the upper-class, but besides that, she keeps tight-lipped about her past. One Bad End shows that she's some sort of spirit, perhaps even a doll, but the revelation only manages to raise more questions.
• Nice Girl: Beneath her haughty front and sharp tongue, she appears to be genuinely compassionate and well-meaning.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: In her variant of the Bad End, she turns Akira into a spirit in order to get him to move on from the deaths of his other companions. Unfortunately for her, Akira then goes on a murderous rampage.
• The Night Owl: She dislikes the daytime and how harsh the sunlight can be on her skin, and finds the night much more convenient for her work as a magician and a supernatural investigator. It's also part of her general bucking of societal norms. "Daylight" is listed as one of her dislikes in her profile.
• Occult Detective: She's part of a circle of supernatural investigators, and joins the story after she was hired by Yashiki to investigate the Miroku Mansion.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: It's revealed early that Rosé Mulan isn't her real name, but whatever it actually is doesn't get revealed.
• Signature Scent: Fitting with her name, the sophisticated Rosé comes armed with the sickly-sweet scent of black rose perfume.
• Slave to PR: She hesitates to act motherly towards a Creepy Doll because she has a reputation of haughtiness to uphold, even though Akira is her only witness. She eventually relents and soothes the crying doll.
• Stage Magician: Her claimed profession, though she states it's merely a side gig for her true role as a supernatural savant.
• Stage Names: Akira pegs immediately that "Rosé Mulan" is too exotic to be her real name, and she clarifies that it's her stage name for her performances as a magician.
• Token Heroic Orc: In her specific Bad End, Rosé is revealed to be some form of spirit. While spirits are usually malevolent and blood-thirsty, Rosé has been helping the protagonist all throughout the game, and even her decision to transform him into a spirit himself was done with good intentions at heart.
• Vague Age: She recognizes an ancient form of battery and claims that she hasn't seen one in a long time. When Akira then asks her how old she is, she playfully keeps it a secret.

Reina Ooe

[Class] Police Officer LV31

Voiced by: Erina Seto

"Worryin' about maybes won't get us anywhere."

A tough detective hailing from Kansai, Ooe has a strong sense of justice that she doesn't let any rules or regulations get in the way of. While initially an obstacle, she eventually gets on the same page as Akira and helps him with his investigations.

She accompanies Akira and his companion(s) during the Killer Peach and Demon Tsukuyomi cases.

---

• Accent Adaptation: In the English localization, her Kansai accent is shown with her dialogue having more contractions than the norm, and replacing "you" and "your" with "ya" and "yer".
• Action Girl: She's a tall, muscular detective that Akira notes would probably be able to handle herself in the underground matches he used to frequent.
• Cowboy Cop: Akira realizes this about her when she breaks some rules in order to get the police off his back - not out of any sympathy for him, but because she's interested in the supernatural and wants to investigate it for herself, rules be damned.
• Early-Bird Cameo: Natsumi mentions a "sympathetic female detective" a chapter before Ooe shows up in the flesh.
• Expy: With her black hair, half-lidded eyes, and role as a Cowboy Cop who bucks the rules in favour of the truth, she's strikingly similar to a female version of Mashita from the previous game. This appears to be deliberate, given that her concept art features a sketch of Mashita alongside her own.
• Fair Cop: While she isn't a Ms. Fanservice, her half-lidded eyes, buttoned-down shirt, and husky voice make her seem sultry.
• Friend on the Force: Not initially, as she mostly gets in Akira's way in the first three chapters. Once Akira lets her in on what's going on with the spirits, she agrees to help him out and pulls some strings so that he can investigate the Killer Peach case without having to deal with the other police.
• Good Is Not Soft: She tries to be genial and offer her help to Akira at first, but as he continues to keep tight-lipped while bodies pile up around him, she stops playing nice and hauls him into the station to demand some actual answers out of him.
• Hot-Blooded: She's passionate about her work and, despite her amiable personality, is easy to rile and not to be messed with. When confronted with a spirit, she shows no fear and faces it head-on.
• The Idiot from Osaka: Exploited. She has a distinct Kansai accent that she uses to better pressure suspects into confessing.
• It's Personal: The reason she's so rash during the Killer Peach case is that her family were killed in the fire covered up by Killer Peach's victims.
• Justice Will Prevail: She joined the force due to her strong sense of justice - if playing rough, bending the rules, or outright breaking them is required to see that justice through, then so be it.
• Occult Detective: She's an officer who hounds Akira not because she's interested in him, but because she's interested in the occult cases that he has ties to. Akira convinces her to help him by agreeing to tell her all he knows about the supernatural.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: She attempts to be one towards Akira, approaching him in her free time and making it clear that she's willing to hear him out on matters that the other cops wouldn't believe, but he dismisses her.
• Too Dumb to Live: Confronting a murderous spirit as if she's an everyday criminal is perhaps not the smartest move in Ooe's book. She promptly gets sliced to pieces by the spirit's katana, but a convenient time-loop brings her back to life. Twice. This happens in spite of her being warned by Akira and his partner to stop antagonizing the Killer Peach.

Others

Ami Kijima

[Sub-class] Sister Lv75

^{Click here} to see Ami possessed by Kakuya

Voiced by: Erika Ishitobi

"If I were all alone, I probably would've cried. But I have you, so I'm okay."

Akira's young cousin, who treats him more like an older brother. Sweet, caring, and loved by many who meet her. She's kidnapped by Kakuya at the start of NG, which kicks off the plot.

---

• All-Loving Heroine: Ami's shown to be incredibly nice and forgiving towards others. She's quick to befriend Maruhashi despite his scary appearance, and even shows concern for the driver of a car that nearly killed her.
• And I Must Scream: She was awake when Kakuya possessed her, and so was aware of putting her own mother in a coma and trapping her "brother"/cousin in a Pocket Dimension.
• Big Brother Worship: She adores Akira as if he were her own brother, and loves to spend time with him while her mother is working. Which takes a very dark turn when she's possessed by Kakuya, whose love for Akira is much more violent.
• Big Damn Heroes: After Akira is trapped in Kakuriyo by Kakuya, Ami uses the same mirror method that he used to rescue her to repay the favour.
• Cheerful Child: She's an innocent young girl who loves her mother and cousin, even drawing out his softer side. She's enthusiastic about many things and especially enjoys the idol Momo Kuruse. Her disappearance and endangerment serve as Akira's motivation for the game.
• Everyone's Baby Sister: Everyone that she talks to has a soft spot for her, and her kidnapping by Kakuya is treated as unforgivable both by her cousin-turned-brother and his friends. Kaoru thinks she could become a good idol because she triggers a protective instinct in others.
• Plucky Girl: Her kindness and optimism allow her to get along with pretty much everyone she meets, and she has a noted stubborn streak that's enough to get Akira, who otherwise doesn't like bothersome things, to play along with her.

Natsumi Kijima

Natsumi Kijima

[Class] Writer LV40

Voiced by: Yuubi Midorikawa

"I want to do all I can for the regulars who tell me how much the bar feels like home."

Akira's aunt, and Ami's mother. Her motherly nature hides a steely resolve. While she owns a bar, it plays second gig to her true occupation as a horror novelist.

---

• Doing It for the Art: In-Universe, this is Natsumi's reasoning for running The Black Rabbit; her actual profession is a horror author, but the bar was left to her by her husband, so she keeps it running as a hobby rather than to make a profit.
• Drowning My Sorrows: The lack of any progress in finding her missing daughter upsets her to the point that she turns to alcohol, to the dismay of her nephew. She says at the same time that she hasn't been able to keep down any food. She gets steadily worse throughout the later chapters until Akira confesses to her about what really happened to Ami.
• Fangirl: She's a fan of Yakumo's horror literature, which motivated her to become a horror novelist herself. Akira doesn't have the heart to tell her (at least not at the time) that he's so good at writing horror because he himself committed horrific acts of surgical Body Horror on girls that he kidnapped.
• Good Parents: She's shown to be a great mother to both her actual daughter Ami and her nephew Akira, with his only complaint being that she's sometimes too motherly. After Ami is kidnapped, she spends all of her time at the police station trying to help track her down.
• Gut Feeling: Akira notes that she has an uncanny women's intuition after she clocks that he wants to investigate the Urashima Woman and advises him against it.
• Hopeless with Tech: She knows how to type with a computer, since she's an author, but beyond that, she has no clue. Seiji pounces on the chance to give her a hand.
• In Vino Veritas: In the Screaming Author case, she's drunk enough alcohol to drown her sorrows that Akira doesn't have to probe her at all to get her talking about information related to the case.
• Silk Hiding Steel: She's a kindly and demure woman, but Akira notes that she has to have nerves of steel to run a bar by herself, and she isn't intimidated by Seiji's ties to the Yakuza. When she learns the truth of the supernatural phenomena going on, her work on investigating the happenings, due to her affinity with horror novels, shows her off as very competent for understanding the spiritual world.
• Spanner in the Works: She figured out how to rescue Ami and was about to do it herself. Even though Kakuya got to her first and put her in a coma, she still gave Akira enough information to finish the job. And because she scraped herself as she hit the floor, Akira is able to use blood psychometry on her clothes and see that Ami was the one who attacked her.
• Unwitting Muggle Friend: For the first half of the game she's kept in the dark about Akira's involvement with spirits and how it relates to her daughter being kidnapped, due to his fear that Natsumi would also fall victim to a spirit. She eventually finds out via a detective that's been hounding Akira, so he spills the beans about everything that he's gotten up to.
• Workplace-Acquired Abilities: Her main profession is writing horror novels, which proves useful to Akira when her research on urban legends helps his investigation of spirits. She's in fact, too useful in learning how to save Ami that Kakuya targets and curses her just before she can begin her attempt to rescue Ami, and becomes comatose until the end of the game.

Mitsuru Maruhashi

Mitsuru Maruhashi

[Class] Thug LV13

Voiced by: Taiki Yamashita

"I was about to cut off a finger to prove my sincerity, but... Mister Seiji said that there was no point in offering a dirty finger, so he stopped me."

A young member of the Yakuza who serves under Seiji. Despite his posturing, he's actually quite buffoonish. He proves to be an informative asset during the Kubitarou of Kintoki case.

---

• Big Eater: Downplayed, but he clearly likes his food and it's not unusual for him to be carrying around some goodies.
• Boisterous Weakling: He knows how to talk big and throw a mean glare, but he falters when Akira refuses to back down and promptly gets his ass kicked. He learns a lesson and is much less of a braggart in his later appearances.
• Butt-Monkey: After getting his ass kicked by Akira at the start of the game, he spends the rest of it getting bossed around and insulted by Seiji for the sake of comedy.
• Delinquent Hair: He's a former biker gang leader and current lackey to the Yakuza, and has a distinctive red mohawk.
• Fatal Flaw: Impulsiveness. His inability to control himself ends up getting him in trouble multiple times in the game like when he confronts Hazuki and ends up in a fight with Akira. This also ends up killing him when he decides to check the well by himself, which unlike Akira who has someone with him to warn for Kubitarou's incoming attack, Maruhashi did not and end up headless.
• Fat Bastard: Subverted. He's an obese man with a range of gross expressions that is introduced harassing Hazuki. However, later it's revealed that he is simply over-enthusiastic about his new job as a (ineffectual) Yakuza lackey; he apologizes to Hazuki for his behaviour and is eager to help the protagonists in any way he can.
• Gonk: The artist clearly had fun with his over-the-top, ridiculous expressions, none of which are flattering.
• Hidden Depths: Despite what his bulky appearance and boisterous attitude would suggest, he's not a strong-arm for the Yakuza; rather, his job is information gathering, and he's more proficient at that than he is at picking fights.
• In-Series Nickname: Kaoru eventually starts calling him "Maru", since it fits with his round appearance. He likes it since Kaoru reminds him of his favourite idol, Momo.
• Otaku: He's a big fan of the idol Momo Kuruse, though unaware that she and Kaoru are the same person. After his death, Kaoru laments that she never revealed that to him, as it would've made him happy.
• Plucky Comic Relief: His ineffectualness combined with his earnest devotion to Seiji makes for some light-hearted moments. In the Kubitarou case, this makes his death all the more depressing.
• Shoo Out the Clowns: Maruhashi provides most of the early funny moments with his appearance and behavior, and then is promptly killed by Kubitarou.
• Stupid Crooks: Akira calls him out on his stupidity when he tries to scout girls right in front of a police station, which is an early indicator that Maruhashi's not the brightest bulb in the box.
• Yes-Man: Anything that Seiji asks, Maruhashi will do without question. Because even if he does question it, Seiji will just blackmail him into compliance, and he's desperate to keep his job as Seiji's underling. This makes Akira compare him as a dog being led around by his figurative owner, Seiji.

Yasuko Kuramoto

Yasuko Kuramoto

"Dear me, what a noisy mother. Well then, we'll just have to quiet her down first..."

The midwife who killed the Urashima Woman and made off with her child.

---

• All There in the Manual: Her name and background aren't in the game at all, but instead the five-chapter novella that was released as a bonus.
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: She seems like a loving, maternal woman when the Urashima Woman first meets her. This is just because Yasuko sees her as a surrogate for Yasuko's child, however, and she reveals her true cruelty after the Urashima Woman actually gives birth.
• Black Sheep: She was oppressed and disowned by her family due to her inability to have a child, branding her as a "useless woman" according to their traditions.
• Freudian Excuse: Her family were a traditional sort who mistreated her due to her inability to give birth, leading to her current obsession with having a child.
• Green-Eyed Monster: She was deathly envious of the Urashima Woman for being able to give birth while Yasuko couldn't, leading her to kill the woman and steal her baby for herself.
• Irony: As she herself notes, there's something cruelly ironic about a sterile woman, who was ostracised for her inability to give birth, taking on a job as a midwife.
• Obfuscating Insanity: She's fully aware that the children and fetuses she steals from the hospital aren't hers, but she pretends to delusionally believe it so that the police's judgement will be less severe.
• Orderlies are Creeps: While she initially appears to be a warm and caring midwife, her true colours are slowly revealed until she finally steals the Urashima Woman's baby, assaults her when she tries to get it back, and buries her corpse in the lake alongside all the fetuses Yasuko also stole from the hospital.

Yakumo Miroku

Yakumo Miroku

"It would be nice... to go back to the past you long for."

A celebrated author of children's horror literature, though his true nature is a lot more complex - and a lot more bloody - than that. Rumoured to be the Screaming Author, though again the truth isn't what it seems.

---

• Blood Is the New Black: In the CG that shows him while he was alive, he was dressed in white monk robes that were drenched in the blood of the girl he was converting into a doll.
• Body Horror: The only way to describe his corpse once Akira finds it. Multiple arms are stitched onto his body, his jaw is torn nearly in two, and the whole thing is covered in rot and maggots, making the whole thing nearly impossible to register as a human body. The worst part is that the arms were stapled onto him by himself.
• Creepy Monotone: What makes his dissection of live humans all the more unsettling is how calm he is when doing it, his voice perfectly level and measured.
• Foil: Yakumo can be seen as a dark mirror to Yashiki, the protagonist of Spirit Hunter: Death Mark. They are both heads of distinguished families with magical power who have made it their life-long mission to stop the rampage of a murderous doll spirit, the only difference being the lengths they went. Yakumo kidnapped and tortured young girls to make dolls that held their sorrow to create playmates for Kakuya for ten years. While Yashiki, or, more accurately, his true self Masamune Kujou, risked innocent lives by unsealing Mary, he never intentionally harmed anyone and only made the choice as otherwise, Mary's seal would be destroyed.
• Four Eyes, Zero Soul: He's shown to be wearing round spectacles while dissecting his victims, which make him seem all the more detached and cold.
• Hikikomori: Yakumo is a very reclusive man whose only known contact is the publisher of his children's stories. Nobody's even sure if he's still inside his mansion when Akira and co. begin investigating, and Rosé even suggests that he could've died in there and none would be the wiser.
• Imperfect Ritual: As properly performed by men of the Miroku family for several generations, the Nagoshi no Gi ritual involves infusing a doll with spiritual energy and offering it to Kakuya in order to pacify her for as while. Unfortunately, Yakumo Miroku lost his powers in an accident. Rather than allow Kakuya to enter our world, he instead altered the ritual to use the corpses of murdered children instead. Their wishes, hopes, and dreams pacified Kakuya four times. Alas, the fourth time, he used T(s)ubasa Aoi, a middle-schooler who had entered puberty. Thus, for the first time Kakuya became aware of notions like adolescence, adulthood, and the secret games adults played with no children allowed...
• Law of Inverse Fertility: After losing his supernatural powers in an accident, he hoped to have a child with similar abilities, only to learn that due to his abnormal sperm, his fertility was low enough to make it nearly impossible. Thus, he was forced to alter the Nagoshi no Gi ritual to use young girls' corpses instead of the dolls he'd been infusing with spirit energy. Later he had an affair with a fan who became his housekeeper, only to flee the place in terror when she started getting an inkling of his gruesome activities. Thus he never knew about his son, Akira Kijima.
• Mad Doctor: Before he was a children's author, he was working to become a surgeon. The Screaming Author is made when he puts his medical skills to use by dissecting the limbs of a young girl, keeping her alive while he mutates her to resemble a bird-like monstrosity.
• Mistaken for Pedophile: His mansion contains evidence that he was stalking young girls, which naturally leads Akira to question whether he was a pervert who got off on abusing kids. While that isn't the case, the truth isn't much better.
• Reclusive Artist: Despite his success as a children's author, he has very little personal relations and none of them have ever been inside his home. invoked
• Telepathy: Something that's only revealed in the character profiles; Yakumo's right hand allowed him to read people's thoughts, similar to how his son could use psychometry by touching objects with his right hand.
• Villain with Good Publicity: He's celebrated as a best-selling children's author, his adoring fans unaware of the surgical atrocities he inflicts on young girls in his secret attic. His neighbours were aware, but given his family's high place in society, he was able to buy them off so they wouldn't snitch.
• Walking Spoiler: Yakumo is tied to multiple large spoilers for the game; he isn't the Screaming Author spirit, but rather the one who created it, he was the one responsible for sealing Kakuya until his spiritual power gave out, and in the late-game he's revealed to be Akira's father.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: Nagoshi no Gi reveals that he amputated young girls in order to turn them into dolls and offer them to Kakuya, satiating her for ten years. A noble goal, but with a horrible price to pay, and nothing justifies his involvement with the Screaming Author.

Satomi Kijima

Satomi Kijima

Akira's mother. She died two years prior to NG, hence why Akira moved in with his aunt and younger cousin.

---

• Fangirl: Being an avid reader, she quickly became obsessed with Yakumo and his horror literature after she became his housekeeper. This eventually led to her conceiving his child.
• Generation Xerox: Notably inverted; Satomi had a weak constitution and so took to reading to pass the time. Her son is the complete opposite, a physically fit young man who hates books and gets headaches when he tries to research.
• Posthumous Character: She died two years prior to the game, explaining why Akira lives with his aunt instead of her. Most of the information about her is related through exposition or the supplementary character profiles.
• Self-Made Woman: Deconstructed; after her parents died, she struck out on her own to try and make a living as a house-keeper. This ended up with her becoming pregnant with a child who grew up in poverty, until eventually, she passed away from her weak constitution, leaving him in the care of his aunt. Had she allowed herself to be taken in by relatives, like what happened with her sister, then she might still be alive.

Hyakki Yagyo Spirits

General

"Spirits are distinguished by how they feed off of fear. They drive humans to the brink of death, and soak them in fear and despair. That is their wish."

The antagonists of the tale. Each chapter, Akira and his companions must work to investigate a spirit, discovering its history and weaknesses in order to pacify it... or otherwise destroy it.

---

• Antagonist Title: As in the previous game, each chapter is titled after its respective spirit.
• Arc Villain: As before, each chapter centers on a spirit that is killing people and must be stopped.
• Given Name Reveal: As in the first game, the spirits all have real names that are revealed as you investigate them. But unlike the first game, the spirits' real names give away a twist about them, so the reveal also serves to reveal this info.
• Humanoid Abomination: Many of the spirits have the general appearance of a human, but are distorted in some way to make them appear ghoulish, which only becomes worse once their true visage is shown.
  • The Urashima Woman is a pregnant woman with stringy black hair. Underneath her hair is revealed to be an abnormally long neck covered in barnacles and a giant, multi-layered Lamprey Mouth.
  • Kubitarou is an absolute giant despite being a young girl, with flesh that's mottled red and brown. Her face is a lump of flesh that only has a big, drooling mouth.
  • Killer Peach has the body of a woman, but three heads belonging to a monkey, dog, and pheasant. The monkey, in turn, has a human head hanging down from its jaw, which belonged to Peach when she was alive.
  • Kakuya appears as a doll-like human, her features beautiful but stiff and unnatural. At the end of the game, when she forces herself to "grow up", her body distorts into something that's still recognizably human - and is more curvaceous to represent her desire to do "grown-up" things to Akira - but its face is mutated, the skin is cracked, it has claws for hands, and it has one arm and one leg too many.
• Murder Into Malevolence: The spirits were all good people in life - or at least had good intentions, in the case of Kubitarou. However, their painful and grisly deaths caused them to be brought back as murderous spirits with a grudge against humans.
• Puzzle Boss: Like with Death Mark, the spirits are beaten by reviewing all the information you have on them and puzzling what item to use on what location to either distract them (in order to fall back) or pacify/destroy them.
• Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl:
  • In Yuri's brief appearance before she attacks the protagonist, she can be seen with long black hair that falls over her face, obscuring her features but leaving some of her bluish skin on display.
  • The Urashima Woman's appearance is that of a pregnant woman with long, stringy black hair and a tattered white hospital gown. Her goal is revenge on the midwife that killed her and stole her newborn baby.
  • The Screaming Author appears as a young girl with long black hair and a tattered white dress, the remnants of her clothing before she was kidnapped.
• Sympathy for the Devil: Many of the spirits are vengeful and murderous because they were horrifically abused in life; when they learn of the circumstances behind the ghosts, Akira and his companions take pity on them.
• Vengeful Ghost: As with Death Mark, the protagonist and his associates have to find and pacify vengeful spirits as part of Kakuya's game.
  • Chapter 1 has the Urashima Woman, the spirit of a pregnant woman who was murdered by her midwife after she gave birth, and then dumped in the lake alongside all evidence of the crime. She kills those who throw rocks into the lake, as she interprets it as an attack on the dead fetuses that the midwife also disposed of there. She's pacified with evidence that her son is alive and well, and destroyed with the fake evidence that her son was stillborn.
  • Chapter 2 has Kubitarou of Kintoki, a giant man who chops the heads off of animals. In actuality, Kubitarou is a woman who was mentally disabled in life and mistook a bear plushie as her younger brother. When said plushie lost its head, she started bringing animals heads to a sacred tree in the hopes of reviving him. She cut the tree down in anger when it didn't work, and in retaliation, the villagers tied her up and starved her to death. She's pacified when a new head is attached to her bear plushie, or otherwise destroyed if she's lured in front of a passing train.
  • Chapter 4 has Killer Peach, who in life was a dietwoman seeking to expose injustices. She was brutally murdered by the 5/5 Club after she was about to expose the president's involvement in an arson case - after she became a spirit, she sought her revenge on all four of the men. She's pacified by evidence that the remaining member of the group is also dead, or otherwise destroyed if she's overloaded with his scent.

Kakuya

Kakuya

^{Click here} to see her final form

Voiced by: Erika Ishitobi

"You have to play with Kakuya. We'll play forever and ever."

A girlish doll who serves as the Big Bad of the story. She kidnaps Ami in order to force Akira into playing her game, with death awaiting if he ever loses.

---

• Asian Fox Spirit: She's a flute-playing spirit with fox ears, who can manipulate other spirits and has a fondness for games. Unfortunately, said games have a tendency to put the competitors in grave danger.
• Berserk Button: While normally she acts serene, the mention of NG causes her to address Akira with an intense bloodlust. This is because NG refers to the ritual that keeps her locked away in a mirror.
• Big Bad: She is the fox-like doll spirit who kidnaps Akira Kijima's cousin Ami to force Akira to play her Deadly Game, where he must appease various vengeful ghosts for her entertainment.
• Butterfly of Transformation: In the endgame, when she forces herself to become "grown-up", the resultant body is littered with butterfly wings to symbolize her transformation.
• Contrasting Sequel Antagonist: She contrasts a lot with Mary Kujou, the Big Bad and fellow talking doll from Spirit Hunter: Death Mark. Kakuya wears traditional Japanese garb and talks like a child, while Mary wears Elegant Gothic Lolita and speaks formally. Kakuya is openly presented as the Big Bad, while Mary provides guidance to the player throughout the game on the behalf of her deceased master, the Big Good, and is only revealed as evil in the last half-hour. Kakuya forces the protagonist to act by taking Ami hostage and personally naming spirits for him to take down, while Mary wipes the protagonist's memory and manipulates him with lies and half-truths. Both Kakuya and Mary Kujou have some form of love for their game's protagonist, but Kakuya's "love" is a childish, clingy jealousy and Mary's love is a monstrous, sadistic lust. Finally, Kakuya is fully capable of movement, while Mary can only move her head and arms and spends most of the game sitting on the same couch.
• Creepy Child: Her mannerisms invoke childishness, with her innocent tone and the way she speaks (referring to characters with the cutesy "-chan" honorific, and being unable to pronounce her own name). However, she's a malevolent spirit that curses the protagonist and forces him to "play" with her, putting the lives of him and his cousin in grave danger.
• Creepy Doll: Akira realizes she's a doll due to her ethereal appearance and her tendency to speak without moving her mouth, which just highlights her inhumanness.
• Cute Is Evil: Kakuya is an adorable little fox-girl doll with a beautiful kimono who speaks in Third-Person Person and acts like a little girl who wants to play with people. She's also a Creepy Doll who's appearance is actually unsettling up close, and she forces people into a Deadly Game for her amusement.
• Elmuh Fudd Syndwome: Her name is actually Kaguya, but since she's a little kid, she pronounces it wrong.
• Daddy's Girl: The men who kept her sealed in Kakuriyo were viewed by Kakuya as her "daddies", and it's partly this love that causes her to become so obsessed with Akira, since he's secretly the son of her last "daddy".
• Deadly Euphemism: Kakuya doesn't outright say that she kills anyone - merely that they disappear, or that she'll "break" them (the latter making sense since she's a doll herself).
• Demonic Possession: She demonstrates the ability to possess a person's body if the situation calls for it, as shown with her possessing Ami after the Killer Peach case, and then Seiji/Kaoru in the Normal End.
• Emotionless Girl: Whatever emotion she claims to experience, her expression and voice never change from their perpetual stoicism to match it.
• Fake Memories: Since she wants Akira to love only her, she uses her power to try and wipe his memory of his friends and loved ones.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Akira theorizes that one of the reasons Kakuya sent a lightning bolt down on Seiji and Kaoru, besides just to liven up her game, was that she was jealous of Akira for having friends. This is confirmed in the endgame, when she erases Akira's memories of them out of jealousy that he's closer to them than her.
• Hitodama Light: When appearing to Akira in the underpass, she's followed by two small, flickering orbs of flame.
• I Have You Now, My Pretty: She reveals herself to be in love with Akira after she traps him in Kakuriyo with her, and makes it clear that she wants to have "grown-up" fun with him, whether he reciprocates or not.
• Kimono Is Traditional: She wears a luxuriously decorated Japanese garment, which makes her stand out in the otherwise-urban setting and marks her as something supernatural.
• Lack of Empathy: Without the ability to experience love, she forces people to play her games, tormenting and killing them without any remorse because she only cares to satisfy her own desire for fun.
• Magical Flutist: Kakuya's presence is identifiable by the flute that she plays, which can be heard from a large distance by those that she's cursed. In contrast to the horrific hauntings that she inflicts on her victims, her flute's song is serene.
• Multi-Armed and Dangerous: One of her Bloodmetry scenes with Ami reveals that she has two extra arms stored in her traditional garb, larger and more bloody than the delicate ones she usually has on display.
• Mystical White Hair: The first thing that Akira notices about her is her long, snow-white hair, which combines with her traditional Japanese dress to give her a mysterious, otherworldly appearance.
• The Nicknamer: Jealous at Seiji and Kaoru for being closer to Akira than her, she calls them "Yakuza Punk" and "Hussy Girl" during the game's climax. This also makes it more difficult for Akira to remember who they were.
• Parasol of Prettiness: As part of her elegant, traditional appearance, she carries a red parasol when confronting Akira in the underpass. It'll make an appearance in some endings where Kakuya was supposedly locked away, signaling that she might not be gone for good.
• Plot-Relevant Age-Up: Thanks to Miroku screwing up and using an adolescent for the Nagoshi no Gi ritual, Kakuya became aware that human bodies can grow and change, gradually becoming aware of sex. Since she is infatuated with Akira, she decides to make herself grow up, into a twisted Body Horror form which unless you make the right choices WILL have sex with Akira against his will.
• Sealed Evil in a Can: As revealed in the tale of Nagoshi no Gi, Kakuya is an ancient evil doll that was sealed away inside a mirror via a ceremonial rite. However, one of the spiritualists in charge of sealing her lost his powers, causing the seal to weaken and Kakuya to slip through into the world again.
• Yandere: At the end of the game she reveals herself to be violently in love with Akira, to the point that she forcefully traps him in a Pocket Dimension and removes his memories of anyone else that he might care about more than her.

Yuri Takamura

Yuri Takamura

"A-A... mi ...run away... or else... I'll k-k-k-kill you..!"

A friendly girl who used to be acquainted with Ami and Kaoru, before she met her end at Kakuya's hands. She returns as the first spirit that Akira must face against.

---

• Arc Villain: Of the prologue, as the spirit who tries to kill Akira and Ami.
• Commonality Connection: According to her character profile, the reason she met and befriended Kaoru was because she, too, was aiming to become an idol.
• Posthumous Character: She's already deceased by the time of the story's start, and it's her ghost that Kakuya possesses to attack Akira and get him involved with Kakuya's game.
• Resist the Beast: She gives Ami a warning to run away before attacking her and Akira, implying that there's a part of her that still cares about Ami and is trying (and failing) to fight against her own bloodlust.
• Small Role, Big Impact: Her only role is as the tutorial boss, and she doesn't get much development beyond her bond with Ami and Kaoru - however, it's that bond that causes Ami, and by extension, the protagonist Akira, to get involved with Kakuya's game.
• Starter Villain: She is the first spirit that Akira fights, although she is only a villain by proxy as Kakuya is controlling her and she is only faced briefly.
• Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl: Due to relative recency of her death and lacking a strong grudge, she remains looking as a normal schoolgirl, compared to the monstrous spirits that come later in the game. Her hair cover her face to show that she's still a hostile ghost.
• Warm-Up Boss: Yuri is the first spirit to be fought in the game. The "fight" against her is short and relatively simple and exists to demonstrate the (slightly revamped) Puzzle Boss mechanics. She also doesn't have much of a backstory and doesn't require a lengthy investigation for Akira to understand her history and motives.

The Urashima Woman

The Urashima Woman (Himeko Shimizu)

"Uuoo... my... BABY..."

A spirit rumoured to drown those who throw a rock into Urashima Lake. She appears as a pregnant woman, calling out for her baby.

---

• Advertised Extra: As with Hanayome before her, the Urashima Woman is the spirit that was featured the most in promotional artwork, and even received a novella that expanded on her character. In the game proper, she has no connection to the protagonists or the story as a whole, as opposed to the spirits that come after her.
• Arc Villain: Of Chapter 1, as the spirit haunting the Urashima Lake park and killing those who throw a rock in her lake.
• Creepy High-Pitched Voice: When she speaks, her voice is modulated so that it comes out in an unnaturally high, warbling tone.
• Covered in Mud: She's covered in mud from the lake, which gives off a bad stench comparable to sewer water. She tracks mud into Akira's apartment when she haunts it, and presses herself up against his front door, leaving a muddy imprint of her body there.
• Death by Childbirth: Invoked; after she gave birth, her midwife deliberately killed her and stole her baby, driven by envy at not being able to conceive herself.
• Determinator: The novella expands on the moment where the midwife made off with her baby. After giving birth, having her placenta fall out, and being assaulted and drugged by the midwife, she still manages to get to her feet and track her upstairs. Afterwards she falls down the stairs, but is still alive even then. It's only getting locked in a suitcase and dumped into a lake that finally puts her down - and even then, she comes back as a spirit and gets her revenge on the midwife.
• Given Name Reveal: You don't learn until the end of the Chapter that her name is Himeko Shimizu- which connects her with Takumi Shimizu, the man mentioned in a pamphlet laying near the park entrance, who is actually her long lost son and the key to pacifying her.
• Lamprey Mouth: Under her ratty long hair, it's revealed that the Urashima Woman has a giant lamprey-like mouth, with multiple sets of teeth beneath the first circle of them. This emphasizes her connection to the lake and her death by drowning.
• Making a Splash: Her cause of death was drowning, and so as a spirit, she's gained some control over water. She can make her victims feel like they're drowning even without water present, she can control the water in Akira's pipes when she haunts his apartment, and Seiji theorizes that she can teleport herself to any location that has water, such as bathrooms, lakes, sewers, etc.
• Mama Bear: Her entire motivation as a ghost is to find the baby that was stolen from her. She kills anyone who can't tell her where it is, or who appears to be a threat to the dead fetuses that were dumped in the lake.
• Starter Villain: While Yuri was the first spirit faced, the Urashima Woman is the first full-fledged antagonist that Akira faces, who must be investigated thoroughly and has more of an arc to herself.
• Supernatural Suffocation: Her cause of death was drowning, and so as a spirit she's gained some control over water. In particular, she can make her victims feel like they're drowning even without water present.

Kubitarou of Kintoki

Kubitarou of Kintoki (Kaneko Ooishi)

"Hey, hey..? Head... Could ya... give me..?"

A giant spirit that decapitates animals to collect their heads, and is rumoured to do the same to humans. Appears as a behemoth with a gleaming axe, all the better to chop heads with.

---

• Arc Villain: Of Chapter 2, as the spirit terrorizing Kintoki by cutting off the heads of dogs.
• Bad People Abuse Animals: Kubitarou is quickly established as a nasty spirit due to its modus operandi being the murder and decapitation of people's pets. However, she is portrayed sympathetically when her reasons for doing so are revealed, as she does not do it out of malice but genuine mental illness.
• Collector of the Strange: She collects heads from a variety of sources, ranging from plushies to humans. This is revealed to be because, in life, she presented the heads to sacred cedar trees in the hopes of reviving her younger brother. After becoming a spirit, she loses all sanity and only continues collecting heads out of habit.
• Dramatically Missing the Point: The reason she collects heads is because she misinterpreted a children's song that she thought could heal her younger brother. The opening line is "Head to the Great Tarou Kintoki"; because of her sub-standard education, Kubitarou took it to mean "Bring a head to the Great Tarou Kintoki".
• Driven to Villainy: Kubitarou is initially presented as a murderous dog-killer who delights in chopping off heads, so it comes as a surprise to learn that there's a genuinely tragic reason behind their actions; in life, she was severely disabled and shunned by her village as a result. Her only solace was her younger brother - actually a teddy bear - and when its head was ripped off she misinterpreted a children's song and started bringing decapitated heads to the sacred cedars in the hopes of bringing him back. When it didn't work, she chopped down the cedar, and the village revolted by tying her to the cedar's brother tree and leaving her there to starve to death. Had she not been shunned, and instead received proper healthcare and education, then she wouldn't have turned into the murderous spirit that she is.
• Dumb Muscle: She has superhuman strength, but was addled by mental illness in life and was treated as dull-witted by her village as a result.
• Fat Bastard: Kubitarou of Kintoki is a giant, obese ghost who decapitates animals to collect their heads. However, not only is Kubitarou not acting out of malevolence (rather, they're just using heads as an offering to try and bring back their little brother), but it's revealed that their obesity in life is partly what lead them to be shunned by the rest of their village.
• Given Name Reveal: Initally, Kubitarou is thought to be a man, but is later revealed as the female Kaneko Ooishi.
• The Heretic: Branded as such when, in a fit of anger, she cut down the sacred cedar tree that was used as a place of worship. Doing so angered the townsfolk to the point that they tied her up to its sister tree and left her there to starve to death.
• Honor-Related Abuse: After cutting down the sacred Kintoki Cedar, Kubitarou was strung up by her father and left to starve by the village. He then put a gag order on the village to keep them quiet about her heretical act.
• Kill the Lights: She's capable of this, but it seems limited to light sources that she's consciously aware of. She blacks out Akira's apartment when haunting him there, but leaves his neighbors' lights functional. She blacks out the street lights in the neighborhood, but she doesn't black out the headlight of the train passing through the area as it approaches.
• Lady Looks Like a Dude: Her huge stature, superhuman strength, violent disposition, and deep voice causes Kubitarou to be mistaken for a giant man.
• Obliviously Evil: Due to her mental illness, she legitimately cannot comprehend that beheading animals and people is wrong- she just does so thinking that the sacrifices will bring her teddy bear back to life, while displaying a childlike innocence towards her killings.
• Meaningful Name: Kubi translates to neck, which is what Kubitarou has a knack for chopping heads off of.
• Shadow Walker: While she's weak to light, Kubitarou has an advantage in darkness where she can use it to teleport closer to her victim.
• Tiny-Headed Behemoth: Diagnosed with obesity like she is, Kubitarou has a massive body and small head that's exaggerated by the inhuman proportions of her spirit form.
• Trademark Favourite Food: She loves manju, and offering some to her is suspected to be one of the ways to summon and/or pacify her.
• Weakened by the Light: She's sensitive to light, and will disappear if a strong light is shone on her. This is justified as Kubitarou having oxyopia when she was alive; her acute eyesight caused her to be overly sensitive to light, which became a straight-out weakness when she became a spirit.

Screaming Author

Screaming Author (Tubasa Aoi)

^{Click here}to see the Screaming Author's true appearance

"...Please don't look inside..."

A spirit that resides in Miroku Mansion. Its screams are rumoured to cause insanity and death upon those who hear them.

---

• Animalistic Abomination: As a result of Yakumo's surgical alternations, the spirit no longer resembles a human, but instead a disturbing, crane-like figure, with metallic wings and bird feet molded to its flesh.
• Animal Motifs: The crane. Specifically, The Crane Wife, of Japanese folk tales. Defying this motif and painting her legs yellow so she can be a duck instead is how to pacify it.
• An Arm and a Leg: Both its arms and legs were amputated; what makes it particularly horrifying is that they were still alive when it happened, and they beg the culprit to kill them because the pain is too much.
• Arc Villain: Of Chapter 3, as the spirit haunting Miroku Manor who kills anyone that gets too close to the attic.
• Brown Note: Its screaming is so harsh and piercing that even just hearing it a little can induce unconsciousness, and prolonged exposure leads to insanity and death.
• Don't Look At Me: The reason the spirit begs people not to look inside the mansion is that her body has been mutilated to a ghastly degree by Yakumo, and she's horrified at how she appears now. She can't leave the room she's in, but she can at least warn people to stay away.
• Given Name Reveal: The spirit's real name is not Yakumo Miroku like the player is led to believe, but Tubasa Aoi, one of his victims.
• I Cannot Self-Terminate: As a spirit, it's trapped in the Miroku mansion with no way to die and free itself from its tortured existence. When facing off against it, the Author pleads Akira to "burn it", which he correctly guesses to mean that it wants him to set it alight and end its misery.
• Kill It with Fire: The way to pacify it is using incense to burn it alive. This is a fate, if you perform the necessary action beforehand, it outright enjoys after all its time spent in agony within the Miroku mansion.
• Meaningful Name: Her name as a human, Tubasa, comes from the word Tsubasa (翼), which means wing. She was then mutilated to resemble a crane, and as a spirit, she has a bird-like scream and can attack people with the wires that compose her wings.
• Monster Delay: In contrast to the other spirits, the Screaming Author isn't shown beyond a silhouette right up until the final confrontation with them. This serves a dual purpose; to emphasize the spirit's sound-based powers, and to really hit home how grotesque its appearance is when it finally is shown.
• Non-Indicative Name: The Screaming Author is not actually the author involved in the case, but instead one of the young girls that he experimented on.
• Non-Malicious Monster: Unlike the other spirits, it doesn't go out of its way to hurt anyone - on the contrary, it begs people not to get close to it, and they only die because they ignore that warning. The only time it's actively malevolent is when it's destroyed instead of pacified, which is when its grudge consumes it and leads it to kill one of Akira's companions in retaliation.
• The Scream: Naturally, the spirit is known for its high-pitched, unearthly wails. Its victims continue to hear the screaming in their head long after they leave, which drove one woman to have a nervous breakdown and commit suicide.
• Symbolic Mutilation: Tubasa was slated to play the princess-turned-avian in a ballet performance of "Duck Lake". However, she was kidnapped beforehand by a crazed fairytale author, who removed her limbs and mutilated her body to resemble a crane.
• Tortured Monster: By far one of the most tortured and sympathetic spirits in the series. She was an innocent young girl who was kidnapped by a crazed doctor that chopped off all her limbs while she was still alive, and then mutilated her body with wires and surgery so she would resemble a crane. She's so distraught at what she's become that she begs everyone not to look at her, and the only way to pacify her (provided you do the necessary action beforehand) is to burn her alive.
• Vocal Dissonance: Unlike the other gruesome-looking spirits, its voice sounds exactly like a timid young girl. Which is what she was in life, until she was mutilated into the murderous, bird-like horror that she is now.
  • Voice of the Legion: However, every time it says "Please don't look inside", it's echoed by a very deep, demonic sounding voice.
• Walking Spoiler: The chapter doesn't make it clear until the end that the Screaming Author isn't Yakumo, but one of his victims, which makes it difficult to talk about it in non-spoiler terms.

Killer Peach

Killer Peach (Tomoko Okayama)

"Now, accept your punishment..."

A feminine spirit that appears with multiple heads and a katana, murdering various men who work at the Sumii Group. She earned her name due to her animal heads matching the ones found in Momotaro's (Peach Boy) tale.

---

• Appearance Is in the Eye of the Beholder: Her face appears different to all those who see it, differing between a monkey, dog, and a pheasant - this is how she got the name "Killer Peach", as those are the three companions of Peach Boy Momotaro. When Akira looks at her, he sees all three heads at once, including an extra one hanging from the monkey's jaw.
• Arc Villain: Of Chapter 4, as the spirit haunting Moon Tower and killing the employees of the company working there.
• Creepy High-Pitched Voice: Like the Urashima Woman, her voice is edited to be unnaturally high-pitched, first heard by Akira and the player when she laughs wickedly.
• Does Not Like Men: All of her victims are men, something that Ooe takes advantage of - assuming (correctly) that Peach doesn't kill women, Ooe serves herself up as a decoy so the male Akira can escape. Though it's later shown that she doesn't bear a grudge against men in general - just that the people she's hunting down for revenge all happen to be men. She will cut down women if they so happen to anger her.
• Driven to Suicide: If Akira soaks her with cologne that belongs to one of her victims, she'll be so overcome with hatred that she slices herself into pieces, preferring to die than smell like the man that ruined her life.
• Given Name Reveal: It's not revealed until just before the boss fight that she is Tomoko Okayama, a dietwoman who sought to expose the corruption of Noboru Ishimaru and his company.
• Hidden Harasser: She makes no attempt to hide that she's stalking Akira and his companion from the second they enter the building. Throughout the investigation she can be seen just out of the corner of the eye, appearing briefly just to disappear as quickly, and her footsteps constantly echo throughout the building as they explore the offices.
• Justice Will Prevail: She was a dietwoman who sought to investigate and expose the crimes of society. When she was killed by a group of criminals that she was trying to expose, she took her revenge on them as a spirit.
• Katanas Are Just Better: Her weapon of choice, that she uses to decapitate her victims, is a katana. It belonged to one of her victims, and she took it up to emulate a hero from one of her child's fairytales.
• Losing Your Head: She appears to Akira as a being with three animal heads, one of which is holding a decapitated human head in their jaws. The human head was Okayama's original head while alive, before she was decapitated by the men she would then make her victims.
• The Nose Knows: She has an acute nose to make up for her poor eyesight. She first confronts Akira after he picks up a cologne-soaked shirt from one of her victims, which Ooe uses to her advantage by taking the shirt and acting as a decoy.
• Outliving One's Offspring: Both her husband and her son were killed in the fire started by Sumii Co. employees, hence why she seeks revenge against them. She also does so while emulating Momotaro, in accordance with a drawing that her child drew for her.
• Signature Scent: Her archenemy, Noboru Ishimaru, was really fond of a cologne called Ogre Blue. Reina says that it just smells like bottled old man smell. In the Momotaro folk tale, he fought and defeated an island full of Oni, sometimes referred to as ogres.
• Super-Persistent Predator: If you take the correct actions to purify her, playing the memorial tape that contains the news that her final target Noboru Ishimaru is long dead, her last words imply that she will continue hunting him down in the afterlife.
• Vigilante Woman: A rare mix of this and Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl. Rather than seek vengeance against the living in general, she restricts her murders to employees of the company who covered up the truth of the Momoi Department Store fire, where she lost her son. Her main targets are the 5/5 Club, consisting of President Noboru Ishimaru and his subordinates who embezzle money from the company, peep on female employees, and murdered her for getting too close to the truth. She also has a hatred of the police, who failed to do anything about the 5/5’s crimes, and will kill Ooe if she discovers that Ooe is a police detective.
• Villainous Rescue: At the climax of the Demon Tsukuyomi confrontation, Akira writes her name on the memorial at Moon Tower. This causes her to appear and destroy the Demon Tsukuyomi, rescuing Akira and freeing the amalgamated spirits.

Demon Tsukuyomi (Warning: unmarked spoilers)

Demon Tsukuyomi (Masaru Ishimaru, Various)

"Grant... Grant... Grant..."

A spirit that's rumoured to grant the wish of those who burn an offering for it.

---

• Arc Villain: Of Chapter 5, as the characters must summon and defeat it to win the penultimate round of Kakuya’s game.
• Be Careful What You Wish For: It's hypothesized that Demon Tsukuyomi was formed when the wishes of Masaru's victims drowned out Masaru's own wish. These people would've wished to stay alive, which is why Demon Tsukuyomi is made up of the people that died to Masaru's arson.
• Body of Bodies: As an amalgamation of multiple spirits, it appears as a giant clump of flesh littered with grotesquely deformed faces. Akira and his companion are both disgusted by its appearance.
• Chained by Fashion: Chains wrap around its spherical body, the same ones that were used to tie up their bodies back when it was a group of humans caught in a store fire. If Akira isn't able to gift it with the proper items, then it'll lash out and attack him with its chains.
• Due to the Dead: It's defeated by writing Killer Peach's name, Tomoko Okayama, on the memorial for the victims of Masaru's fire. This causes Killer Peach to appear inside Demon Tsukuyomi, and she immediately destroys Masaru's spirit herself. The rest of the amalgamation is pacified as a result of being avenged.
• Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: Masaru burned down the department store believing that it would grant him a wish he could use to bring his dead mom back to life, and he asks Akira to do so in order to pacify him.
• Extra Eyes: It has giant eyes all over its flesh lump of a body, all of which skitter around eerily.
• Laser-Guided Karma: Masaru offered up the Momoi Department people as sacrifices to summon Tsukuyomi and have it grant his wish to revive his mom. When he died along with them, he became Tsukuyomi itself, forced to live a life of torment until Akira and co. take care of him.
• Lunacy: It's rumoured that Tsukuyomi got its name - which comes from the Japanese god of the moon - from the fact that it can only be summoned when there's a moon out.
• Mind Hive: The spirit is a collection of all those who died in the Momoi Department Store fire - their bodies merged together into one spherical clump of flesh, which moves and operates as a single unit.
• Time Master: Masaru's wish was to relive the time when his mother was alive. When he became part of Tsukuyomi, this manifested itself as the elevator in Moon Tower becoming capable of shunting people back in time.
• Voice of the Legion: Because its a combination of multiple spirits, Tsukuyomi's voice has multiple reverbs to match the multiple people that are speaking as one.
• Volcanic Veins: Its body pulses with red light, which comes from its death from being burned alive.

Other Characters

D-Man

D-Man (Hiro Aratama)

^{Click here}to see the explorer of the untapped world

"One who explores the untapped world, I am D-Man."

A mysterious man who leaves cards around the city for Akira to find. Is highly knowledgeable about various spirits, and has some sort of connection to the characters from Death Mark.

---

• Beware the Nice Ones: He's very well-mannered and non-confrontational when he approaches Akira, especially considering that he's a spirit. However, he'll still kill Akira and cause a Game Over if the wrong answer is picked for Crisis Choice.
• Calling Card: His D-Cards are left all over the place for Akira to find, sometimes in places that shouldn't be physically possible (such as a time-displaced department store).
• Dead All Along: At the end of his quest, it's revealed that D-Man was killed before the quest even began; the person who's been sending texts to Akira is his surprisingly eloquent spirit.
• Given Name Reveal: At the end of his sidequest, he reveals himself as magazine editor Hiro Aratama.
• Hero of Another Story: The D-Cards chronicles his adventures in spirit hunting, aided along by the characters from Death Mark.
• Mr. Exposition: His cards either exposit on various ghostly tales, or summarise information that Akira has gleaned about Kakuya and his general situation.
• No-Sell: He explains in Spirit Memoirs 6 that curses have no effect on him, hence why he's so cavalier about receiving a mail that supposedly turns a person into a murderer. This is because he's already dead.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Up until all his quests are done and he formally introduces himself, he's known only as D-Man. The nickname came about by him shortening Desk Man, since he was a desk editor for a magazine in life.
• Punny Name: His name sounds like "demon". And he is indeed a spirit, though not a malicious one- ironically, his nickname actually means "Desk Man", with the demon association being unintentional.
• Remember the New Guy?: He's well-acquainted with the Death Mark cast, despite having not shown up in that game at all. It can be inferred that they only crossed paths post-game, during the five-year gap between games.
• Seeker Archetype: He's an investigator who searches out information on the supernatural and shares it with other seekers of the "untapped world".
• Sorry That I'm Dying: In his last D-Card he says that he feels bad about dying... because it caused an inconvenience for his co-workers and readers.
• Stranger Behind the Mask: One might think, given how he hides his identity, that he will be someone from the first game or someone Akira knows. However, he is in fact Hiro Aratama, a person who had never been mentioned before. The real twist is that he is a spirit, and a non-malicious one at that.
• Token Heroic Orc: As opposed to every other spirit in the game, D-Man is not murderous, and rather is polite and well-spoken.
• Undeathly Pallor: If the lopsided gait and bloodstained shirt weren't enough of a hint, D-Man's blue-purple skin when he finally meets Akira marks him as a spirit.
• Urban Legend: He's an (admittedly self-proclaimed) legend amongst occult fans, his true identity a secret.

---