Hanasaku Iroha/Characters

The characters of the anime series Hana Saku Iroha:

Ohana Matsumae
"Age: 16

Voiced by: Kanae Ito"

The main character. Ohana moves from Tokyo to her grandmother's hot spring inn Kissuiso after her mother Satsuki runs off with her boyfriend, leaving a huge debt in their name. Desiring drama but claiming to be pragmatic, Ohana resolves to work hard in her new environment after discovering the Kissuiso isn't what she thought it would be.


 * A Cup Angst
 * Beware the Nice Ones: She explodes at Minko and Nako -- the former for telling her to "die," and the latter for constantly running away -- forcing them to tell her their least favorite foods.
 * Big Eater: Subverted and Played for Laughs. She's forced into becoming one in Episode 20 to taste-test Minko's Omelete Rice. With obvious results.
 * Borrowed Catchphrase: She'll often use Minko's to someone who annoys her.
 * Break the Cutie: Has been subjected to this a few times, especially in Episode 1, when many of her expectations about the inn gets blown up in her face spectacularly. Fortunately she can cope well, and as such she has, time and again, gotten out of such situations changed for the better.
 * Chaste Heroine: Due to her inexperience and obliviousness when it comes to love.
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * The Cutie
 * Disappeared Dad: Her father isn't around, meaning either he's dead or divorced from Satsuki, since she took his surname but currently has a boyfriend (who she later dumps).
 * Does Not Like Spam: Her idea of coping with people she doesn't like is to cook a dish with his/her most hated food, then she'll write why she hates that person in said food.
 * Drunk On Milk: She's not very good with soda and can get drunk with it, as shown in Episode 13.
 * Hair Decorations
 * Flower in Her Hair
 * Flower Motifs
 * Generation Xerox: Her strained relationship with her mother mirrors.
 * Genki Girl
 * Get a Hold of Yourself Man:
 * Hair of Gold
 * I Didn't Mean to Turn You On: Does this to in the Sick Episode.
 * I Want To Sparkle: Realized this about herself.
 * Ko-Chan Is Not My Boyfriend
 * Little Miss Snarker
 * Love Hurts: In spite of her above inexperience with love, she starts to feel love's sting when she sees Ko with his co-worker Igarashi.
 * Meaningful Name: Her name is Ohana Matsumae, which means "flower" in a polite tone. Her homeroom teacher notices it, when he meets her. Ohana also means "family" in Hawaiian.
 * My God What Have I Done: When she gets mad at Tohru and tells him to "die," copying how Minko acts towards her, she quickly realizes how hurtful her words are (and it nearly got them in a car accident because they were distracted) and apologizes, as she doesn't want him to literally die.
 * Naive Everygirl
 * Naive Newcomer
 * New Transfer Student
 * Nosebleed: Has a sensitive nose that is prone to these.
 * Not So Different: Turns out Satsuki acted similarly when she was her age.
 * Oblivious to Love: Even she is aware of how dense she can be when it comes to other guys liking her. She was oblivious to Ko's feelings until he confessed to her in Episode 1 to her, and she is oblivious to seemingly developing feelings for her as well.
 * Parental Abandonment
 * Plucky Girl
 * Red Oni Blue Oni: The red to Minko's blue.
 * Sailor Fuku
 * Shipper On Deck: For Tohru/Minko.
 * Stepford Smiler
 * Strong Family Resemblance: Enishi and Sui notes her resemblance to Satsuki. Hilariously lampshaded in Episode 12 when.
 * Supreme Chef: She has been cooking since she was in preschool.
 * Tareme Eyes
 * Vitriolic Best Buds: Is slowly becoming this with Minko.
 * Wrong Genre Savvy
 * Tareme Eyes
 * Vitriolic Best Buds: Is slowly becoming this with Minko.
 * Wrong Genre Savvy

Minko Tsurugi
"Age: 17

Voiced by: Chiaki Omigawa"

One of the workers at Kissuiso and is usually seen helping in the kitchen. Minko has a rocky first start with Ohana after the former catches the latter pulling out her plants, as Ohana mistook them for weeds. In spite of her harsh personality, Minko is a capable and hard worker.

""Anyone's a loser compared to Tohru!""
 * A Day in The Limelight: Episode 19 and 20.
 * Apologizes a Lot
 * Because You Were Nice to Me: Tohru was the first person to give her a chance at her dream, after all.
 * Brown Eyes
 * Cannot Spit It Out
 * Catch Phrase: "Just die."
 * Gratuitous Vietnamese: When Ohana calls her out on it, it leads her to try and come up with a new insult: "Hobiron".
 * The Comically Serious
 * Defrosting Ice Queen
 * Determinator: She takes her dream very seriously.
 * Don't You Dare Pity Me: Does not like it when Ohana tries to help her.
 * Does Not Like Spinach Or "Hobiron"
 * Dogged Nice Girl: Towards Tohru.
 * Godiva Hair
 * In Series Nickname: She has two.
 * "Minchi"
 * "Minko-hime" (ie. "Princess Minko")
 * Letting Her Hair Down: In school.
 * Love Hurts:
 * Perpetual Frowner
 * Red Oni Blue Oni: The blue to Ohana's red.
 * The Resenter: Towards Ohana.
 * Sailor Fuku
 * She Cleans Up Nicely
 * Shorttank
 * Single Target Sexuality
 * Shorttank
 * Single Target Sexuality


 * Sitcom Arch Nemesis: Initially towards Ohana.
 * Sleep Cute
 * The Snark Knight
 * The Stoic
 * Not So Stoic
 * Tall Dark and Bishoujo
 * Tomboy and Girly Girl: To Ohana and Nako.
 * Tomboyish Ponytail: While working. She only lets her hair down during school.
 * Tsundere
 * Tsurime Eyes
 * Unusual Euphemism: "Hobiron!"
 * Unwanted Harem: Is one of the two most popular girls at school.
 * When She Smiles
 * You're Not My Type: Played completely straight when a boy at school confesses to her. She then takes it a step farther by explaining exactly what her type is (Tohru), completely crushing the guy's hopes. However as of Episode 14, he's at it again.

Nako Oshimizu
"Age: 17

Voiced by: Aki Toyosaki"

Another employee at Kissuiso and a waitress. Nako is friends with Minko, who she nicknames "Minchi," and is very shy.

"Minko: I never realized how sexy that dress was."
 * A Day in The Limelight: Episode 18.
 * Be Yourself: Sui gives her this piece of advice at the end of her spotlight episode.
 * Big Breasts Big Deal: Type 1
 * Buxom Is Better:
 * Lampshaded by Minko when she and flat-chested Ohana wears the same dress.


 * It gets funny when Nako tries on the wedding dress Ohana made for . It's so tight the back can't be zipped shut (the looks on Ohana's and Yuina's faces after realizing this are priceless), and Ohana concedes that they need Minko for this.
 * Cool Big Sis
 * Cowardly Lion:
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * The Ditz: A mild version.
 * Does Not Like Taro
 * Girlish Pigtails: During school, her hair is in braids.
 * Hidden Depths:
 * Hime Cut
 * In Series Nickname: "Nakochi."
 * The Nicknamer: Apparently aspires to be one. After brainstorming several nicknames for Minko and settling on "Minchan," she chokes and calls her "Minchi," which sticks.
 * Odango: While working at Kissuiso.
 * Sailor Fuku
 * Shrinking Violet: Normally,.
 * Tareme Eyes
 * Wet Sari Scene: After rescuing from killing himself.
 * What Beautiful Eyes: Ohana's mother said this to Nako.
 * What Beautiful Eyes: Ohana's mother said this to Nako.

Yuina Wakura
"Age: 16

Voiced by: Haruka Tomatsu"

Ohana's and Minko's classmate (and Nako's schoolmate) and the daughter of Kissuiso's prestigious rival, Fukuya. She is, along with Minko, considered one of the prettiest girls in school and enjoys popularity with the boys. She has a habit of affecting various accents to amuse herself.


 * A Day in The Limelight: Episode 14 and 15.
 * Arranged Marriage: Episode 14 reveals that she's engaged to Yosuke Himawari, a distant relative of hers.
 * Brief Accent Imitation: Loves doing this.
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Genki Girl
 * Green Eyed Monster:
 * Hidden Depths: She turns out to be far more perceptive than her appearance suggests.
 * In Series Nickname: "Yuina-hime" (ie. "Princess Yuina").
 * Kansai Regional Accent: Fakes one on Ohana's first day at school. She fakes a different accent every time she meets with Ohana.
 * No Sense of Personal Space: She can get really touchy-feely with the other girls from time to time.
 * Perpetual Smiler
 * Princess Curls
 * The Rival: Subverted in that she is on friendly terms with Ohana, . She appeared to be one towards Minko when the latter
 * Sailor Fuku
 * Sugar and Ice Personality: Inverted. She's introduced as a quirky, yet nice airhead; but later episodes show that she can also be very blunt.
 * Tareme Eyes
 * Third Person Person: From time to time.
 * Unwanted Harem: She's just as popular as Minko.

Tomoe Wajima
"Age: 28

Voiced by: Mamiko Noto"

Head waitress of Kissuiso. Tomoe loves gossip and wants compensation for the sharing of it.


 * A Day in The Limelight: Episode 7.
 * Adult Child
 * Beauty Mark: Sports one by her left eye.
 * Christmas Cake: And is very sensitive about it.
 * Cool Big Sis
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Genki Girl
 * Gossipy Hen
 * Large Ham: She has her moments.
 * Odango: At work.
 * Tareme Eyes

Koichi "Ko" Tanemura
"Age: 16

Voiced by: Yuuki Kaji"

Ohana's best friend from Tokyo and is affectionately called "Ko-chan" by her. Ko confesses to Ohana upon learning that she is moving away.


 * Anguished Declaration of Love
 * Childhood Friend Romance: Has had a crush on Ohana for quite some time.
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Dogged Nice Guy: Towards Ohana. To the point that he tries to visit Ohana in Episode 8, . Ironically enough, he has a Dogged Nice Girl of his own -- his co-worker, Igarashi.
 * In Series Nickname: Ko-Chan
 * Nice Guy
 * Shrinking Violet: A mild version.
 * Tareme Eyes
 * Nice Guy
 * Shrinking Violet: A mild version.
 * Tareme Eyes
 * Tareme Eyes

Satsuki Matsumae
"Age: 38

Voiced by: Takako Honda (adult) and Kanae Ito (child)"

Ohana's mother and a novelist. Satsuki runs off with her boyfriend after he gets into debt and leaves Ohana with her grandmother, who she does not get along with.


 * A Day in The Limelight: Episode 13.
 * Abusive Parents:
 * Adults Are Useless
 * Big Sister Bully: Enishi mentioned that she used to bully him in the past.
 * Cool Big Sis: But in Episode 6, he also admits to Ohana that she used to cheer him up just as their mother used to for no reason.
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Does Not Like Broccoli
 * Generation Xerox: Sui and Enishi note the strong resemblance between mother and daughter.
 * Genki Girl
 * Good Smoking Evil Smoking
 * Hot Mom
 * Jerkass:
 * Odango
 * Parental Abandonment
 * Parental Betrayal:
 * Parental Neglect
 * Perpetual Smiler
 * Really Gets Around: Implied during her teenage years.
 * Sailor Fuku: In her teenage flashbacks.
 * Tsurime Eyes
 * Sailor Fuku: In her teenage flashbacks.
 * Tsurime Eyes

Sui Shijima
"Age: 68

Voiced by: Tamie Kubota (elderly) and Takako Honda (adult)"

Manager of Kissuiso and Ohana's estranged grandmother. Sui carries a cold demeanor and quickly puts Ohana to work while she stays at the inn. She does not have a good relationship with Ohana's mother Satsuki, and has stated that she had disowned her.


 * Abusive Grandparent
 * Makes Ohana work at Kissuiso from her first couple of minutes after arriving and isn't above slapping Ohana thrice as punishment for accidentally disrupting customers. Subverted in that she treats all her staff with the same level of strictness, and are paid decently for their work.
 * Alliterative Name
 * Armor Piercing Slap: Slaps both Ohana and Minko, the latter because it was her futon that fell on the customers, and the former because Ohana demanded that she be slapped as well for dropping it in the first place.
 * Bad Boss: Is not above physically disciplining her employees. Subverted in that she pays them well for their work.
 * Brown Eyes
 * Defrosting Ice Queen: She starts to warm up to Ohana slowly, but the first time she really shows her softer side is in.
 * Evil Matriarch: Subverted.
 * Good Smoking Evil Smoking: Smokes a traditional Japanese pipe.
 * Happily Married: She and her late husband were this.
 * I Have No Daughter: Has this attitude towards her daughter Satsuki, though it turns out that she wanted Satsuki to succeed her.
 * I Was Quite a Looker: According to several older customers in Episode 6. And in flashbacks in Episode 21,.
 * Insistent Terminology/They Call Me Mr. Tibbs: She demands to be addressed as "Madam Manager" rather than "Mom" or "Grandma" at work.
 * Jerkass Facade: The only times she shows her softer side is when she's by herself, though she's friendly with Denroku.
 * Parental Favoritism: Always made it very clear that she would've wanted Satsuki to succeed her in taking over the inn.
 * Perpetual Frowner
 * Pet the Dog:
 * Stealth Mentor: Possibly to Ohana if Episode 3 is any indication.
 * The Stoic
 * Tsurime Eyes
 * Wham Line:
 * Yamato Nadeshiko
 * The Stoic
 * Tsurime Eyes
 * Wham Line:
 * Yamato Nadeshiko

Enishi Shijima
"Age: 32

Voiced by: Kenji Hamada (adult) and Youko Hikasa (child)"

Ohana's uncle and Satsuki's brother, who is, personality-wise, the opposite of his mother, sister, and niece.


 * Accidental Pervert: When he first meets Ohana, he accidentally bumps into her and gropes her butt.
 * A Day in The Limelight: Episode 16 and 17.
 * Brother Sister Incest: Tomoe suggests that the reason he likes Takako is because she has a similar personality to Satsuki. He hastily denies it. It's later revealed that they used to attend college together.
 * Brown Eyes
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Lovable Coward: Doesn't have much of a backbone when it comes to Sui, Satsuki, or Takako, and he was quite the crybaby when he was a kid.
 * Megane
 * Tareme Eyes
 * Throw the Dog A Bone: Finally gets a break in Episode 16, when.
 * The Unfavorite: Sui doesn't hide her preference for Satsuki over him to take over Kissuiso. She changes her tune a bit after he grew some balls and took charge, and later,.
 * The Unfavorite: Sui doesn't hide her preference for Satsuki over him to take over Kissuiso. She changes her tune a bit after he grew some balls and took charge, and later,.

Tohru Miyagishi
"Age: 23

Voiced by: Junji Majima"

Assistant chef at Kissuiso and serves as a strict supervisor towards Minko. Ohana is somewhat intimidated by Tohru's constant yelling at Minko and greatly dislikes him after having a conversation with him.


 * Brown Eyes
 * Cool Bike
 * Deadpan Snarker
 * Green Eyed Monster:
 * Hot Blooded
 * Jerk With a Heart of Gold: He yells at Minko whenever she screws up at cooking, but he also gives Ohana advice -- in his own rude way -- when he questions her on her self-reliance and is perceptive to the fact that she doesn't have many friends. In Episode 5, he also shows his appreciation for Ohana's concern for him by pinching her nose.
 * The Mentor: To Minko and a bit towards Ohana.
 * Cynical Mentor
 * Oblivious to Love: He is unaware that Minko has a crush on him.
 * Red Oni Blue Oni: The red oni to Mr. Ren's blue oni.
 * Sitcom Arch Nemesis: In Ohana's opinion.
 * Tsurime Eyes
 * Tsundere:
 * Sitcom Arch Nemesis: In Ohana's opinion.
 * Tsurime Eyes
 * Tsundere:

Renji Togashi
"Age: 42

Voiced by: Tarou Yamaguchi"

Head chef at Kissuiso.


 * Benevolent Boss: He seems to be one as he frequently stops Tohru from browbeating Minko over her cooking blunders.
 * Cool Old Guy
 * Good Scars Evil Scars: Has one across his left eyebrow.
 * Impossibly Tacky Clothes: His fashion sense is most often than not Lampshaded, usually by Tohru, sometimes by Tomoe or Nako.
 * No Social Skills
 * The Quiet One
 * Red Oni Blue Oni: The blue oni to Tohru's red oni.
 * Running Gag his stupid fashion sense, accentuated by frequently reading men's fashion magazines during his free time.
 * The Stoic
 * Not So Stoic: He turns out to work horribly under pressure.

Takako Kawajiri
"Age: 30

Voiced by: Ayumi Tsunematsu"

An apparently wealthy business consultant for the inn who Enishi cannot say no to.


 * Bob Haircut
 * Cool Shades
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Gratuitous Foreign Language
 * Gratuitous English
 * Gratuitous French: In Episode 21.
 * Hime Cut
 * Jerkass Facade
 * Tareme Eyes
 * Tsundere: Seems to act like one towards Enishi in Episode 17.
 * Waif Fu
 * Zany Scheme: For a business consultant, she sure loves dishing out erratic plans to improve the inn's public image.
 * Zany Scheme: For a business consultant, she sure loves dishing out erratic plans to improve the inn's public image.

Taro Jiromaru
"Age: 31

Voiced by: Junichi Suwabe"

A customer (and eventually part-time worker) at Kissuiso and supposedly a famous novelist.


 * A Day in The Limelight: Episode 3.
 * Berserk Button: He gets furious when his draft to his novel "of the century" accidentally gets discarded.
 * Butt Monkey
 * Throw the Dog A Bone: Also gets a bone in Episode 16, when
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Dirty Old Man: Though he's not that old.
 * Jerkass Facade: Turns out he's much nicer than his actions suggest.
 * Large Ham
 * Male Gaze:
 * Does a bit of one to Ohana in Episode 1, briefly distracting her and accidentally letting Minko's futon fall on two customers.
 * And she along with Minko and Nako are the main characters in his novel... and it's that genre.
 * Appears again from Episode 8, when he's sent room to room to evaluate which of the new guests might be a hot springs inn reviewer. The room with the two women gets particular scrutiny.
 * This happens again in Episode 13 when undresses in front of him and he's Distracted By the Sexy.
 * Megane
 * Tsurime Eyes
 * Work Off the Debt: Turns out that he cannot pay his bill, so he gets sent to work in the inn.
 * Yuri Fan: Most of his stories are this.
 * Work Off the Debt: Turns out that he cannot pay his bill, so he gets sent to work in the inn.
 * Yuri Fan: Most of his stories are this.

Denroku "Beanman" Sukegawa
"Age: 73

Voiced by: Cho"

Kissuiso's janitor and head of its maintenance section. Denroku is nicknamed "Beanman" because he shares the same surname as a bean-selling company and has worked at Kissuiso since it first opened.


 * Ambiguously Gay:
 * He blushes when Jiromaru threaten to tie him up.
 * He also seems very pleased when the young master happily embraces him, and was absolutely nonchalant about Satsuki's nudity while he worked.
 * However, Sui stated that he has a son, much to Tomoe's shock.
 * Eyes Always Shut
 * Improbable Hairstyle:
 * In Series Nickname: "Beanman."
 * Miniature Senior Citizens