Haru Ichinose (一ノ瀬 晴; Ichinose Haru) is the deuteragonist of the manga and anime series Akuma no Riddle. She is a former student of Myōjō Academy's 10th year's Black Class who served as the this year's Black Class' target for the 12 other assassins. She was the target for her classmates to assassinate in class. This is revealed to be part of an overarching plot by a secretive clan that Haru belongs to.
Appearance
Haru is a young girl with fair skin and a petite stature. Her salmon-colored hair uniquely resemble pigtails on the sides of her head. They are not actually tied, but naturally appear way. Her eyes are pink in both manga and anime. However, in early splashes for the manga, she had purple eyes. This was changed later on.
For most of Haru's appearance in the series, she is wearing a white shirt with short sleeves under a brown-yellow, sleeveless vest. The shirt underneath has poofy sleeves and the vest is slightly large. She also has a dark blue pleated skirt, black socks, and white sneakers. For pajamas, she usually wears a pink blouse with frilly hems, decorated with small polka dots, and an occasional light green outer sweater.
For swimwear, she wears a pink and black sleeveless wetsuit with darker pink shorts, and a blue and white short-sleeved hoodie. In the OVA, she is seen instead with a pink blouse.
Haru's clothing choices usually cover her upper arms and legs due to the scars underneath. These scars notably appear like serrated markings making a ring around her upper arm and thighs. More scars litter her torso, with a notably one looking like an X just below her collar on her chest. In most scenes where Haru is in her underwear, she is wearing a white bra and panties.
As a child, Haru usually wore her hair with a single tuft tied up. She usually is seen in overalls. It is also shown that she wore an eyepatch at some point, likely to due to early injuries.[1]
Personality
Haru is shown to be a bright and cheerful girl. As claimed by Tokaku Azuma initially, she is naïve and trusting of others even in the face of danger. While it is true she has an optimistic demeanor, this belies her resolve and uncompromising dedication to staying alive. Kouga Yun said Haru is stubborn and obstinate and has an “iron hand in a velvet glove”. As shown multiple times throughout the manga and anime, she is capable of cunning to survive, going as far as using poison flowers on Otoya Takechi and even dropping Sumireko off a roof.
Apart from these attributes, she is very forgiving. Even after Haruki tries to kill her and fails, she merely tells the other that she is forgiven. She is keenly aware of the fact that everyone has their own reasons, and she is thoroughly fixated on her own to survive, because to die would be an insult to all those who laid their lives down for her.
Synopsis
History
Haru was born to a "normal life," as she claims. She had a mother, father, an older brother, and a younger brother. It is shown that Haru does indeed have memories of normal events with her family, like celebrating her birthday.
However, she experienced a lot of violence in her past, with her parents and siblings being killed early on. As claimed by Yuri, Haru was deemed to possess the Queen Bee power and was thus a target for various unknown entities. Haru's parents and her siblings died in the many violent conflicts surrounding this, and Yuri claims they gave their lives for Haru. Their manner of deaths and the events themselves are largely unknown and left ambiguous. Haru is shown waking up in a hospital asking for her brother, only to be ignored.[2] Her mother is shown smiling and bleeding over her amid debris, telling her to smile and live.[1]
At some point after her family is all dead, Haru is tortured by unknown men in suits. It is revealed that this event was the cause behind the jagged scars on her arms and legs, as the assailants took a saw to her limbs.
It is not entirely clear how Haru came to join Class Black. She claims that she agreed to the acceptance herself because she was told that she would be able to live a normal life if she succeeded in graduating.
Black Class
Haru attends Class Black from its initiation to the day of graduation. She is shown to be eager and does not miss class easily. Upon entering, she attempts to befriend her classmates, distributing phone charms that she assembled as gifts. This does not deter most of the assassins in her class and earns her scorn from certain characters like Inukai Isuke. She is assigned to be Tokaku's roommate in Room 1, and helps with rollcall until Kaminaga Kouko takes over the position.
Initial Attempts
Throughout Class Black, Haru is constantly a target for her classmates that wish for their desires to be fulfilled after the orientation concludes. Haru herself is not invited to orientation, and Tokaku assumes that she knows nothing about the Class Black being a set up to kill her. Haru is first targeted by Takechi Otoya, then Kouko, and then Sagae Haruki. Thanks to Tokaku's aiding vigilance and skill, Haru is able to elude death many a time.
Venus Festival
For the school festival, Haru is casted as Mercutio in the class production of Shakespeare's play, Romeo and Juliet. Kenmochi Shiena initially tries to make assassination attempt, but is thwarted by Kirigaya Hitsugi, who then serves Haru her notice. Haru watches alongside her bewildered classmates as Namatame Chitaru and Hitsugi seemingly die on stage at the end of the play.
Remainder Attempts
Shutou Suzu is the seventh assassin to attempt and be expelled when Haru figures out the passcode to her bomb collar. Her attempt is followed by a joint effort between Isuke and Banba Shinya to kill Haru on a rainy day by separating Tokaku and Haru. Haru is shown to be resourceful and successfully evades the attacks until both are ultimately subdued and expelled.
The seeming final attempt on her life is from Hanabusa Sumireko, who has been waiting to be the last acting assassin. Sumireko taunts Haru, claiming she is someone who requires servants and cannot stand along to be queen. While Sumireko is able to defeat Tokaku, Haru ultimately outsmarts and outmaneuvers Sumireko and throws her off the school's tower rooftop. She and Tokaku assume that Class Black is finally over.
Final Attempt
The elimination of all their other classmates triggers the "true orientation," and arbitrator Hashiri Nio leads Haru and Tokaku to meet with the chairwoman, Yuri Meichi, who organized the entire Class Black event. There, the chairwoman discloses the entire initiation nature of the assassin game and the truth about Haru's lineage and the alleged Primer ability that she possess as a Queen Bee candidate to control other humans. Haru vehemently denies this.
Haru is led to the burial ground under the academy, where she finds her family's grave among the rest of the clan. As she mourns, Tokaku arrives and reveals that she will make her assassination attempt now, despite having declared her initial intention to protect Haru. Tokaku claims that this is the only way she can be sure that she is not being manipulated by Haru, and that she protected her all this time of her own free will.
A second Tokaku appears and denies this, claiming to protect Haru. This turns out to actually be Nio in disguise, as the arbitrator to kill Haru herself. Tokaku ultimately subdues Nio and then seemingly kills Haru, winning Class Black. However, it is revealed that Haru ultimately survived the attempt and successfully graduates.
After Black Class
After graduation, Haru and Tokaku leave Myoujou and live together, even delivering the graduation diplomas to their other classmates in the aftermath. After a significant amount of time passes, it is shown that Haru and Tokaku remain together in the future. Haru becomes Queen Bee, succeeding Yuri, and Tokaku is her protector by her side.
Manga-Anime Differences
There are large differences between Haru's actions, demeanor, and various other events between manga and anime versions.
Survival Skill
Haru is shown to be far more intuitive and proactive in preventing her own demise in the manga compared to the anime. For example, she is not captured by Otoya in the manga as she was in the anime. She is even able to help Tokaku subdue Kouko by throwing books and disarming the assassin.
Secrecy
In the manga, there are many scenes omitted from the anime where Haru hints that she knows much more about the Black Class than Tokaku thinks she does. Tokaku also asks Haru about her true identity, to which Haru does not answer, instead saying that she does not wish to lie. Hitsugi is also shown speaking with Haru and pointing out the other's "manipulation."
Final Attempt
Tokaku's assassination attempt on Haru's life differs greatly between manga and anime. In the manga, Tokaku shoots Haru and then attempts to commit suicide. Haru ultimately stops her, crying and saying that she cannot live without Tokaku. However, in the anime, Haru takes a knife and is willing to attempt to kill Tokaku in order to survive no matter what, despite admitting that she loves Tokaku.
Skills and Abilities
Haru is suspected of having the "Primer" ability, making her a Queen Bee like Yuri Meichi. This ability theoretically allows her to control other people through pheromones. It is never explicitly established if she has this ability.
Aside from the Primer, Haru has resistance against all sorts of drugs. She wakes up prematurely when Isuke drugs her tea. She also tells the other that she has "undying magic" protecting her from death.
Left to her own devices, Haru's strong survival instinct is her best skill. She is able to evade being killed and captured by Takechi, and she is also resourceful to use the environment to her disposal. When being chased by Banba, she is able to elude the other and damage her with school objects. Against Sumireko, Haru uses an eloquent ruse to trick her opponent into a trap with grenades before grabbing her off the roof and kicking her down.
Trivia
- The name Haru means (晴) "sunny".
- Haru's surname Ichinose means "one" (一) (ichi) and "swift current, rapids" (瀬) (se), which literally means "one in the rapids" put together.
- The names of her family members are:
- Kazuaki Ichinose (Father)
- Hinata Ichinose (Mother)
- Natsuo Ichinose (Older Brother)
- Wataru Ichinose (Younger Brother)
- Haru and Yuri Meichi belong to the same clan (Any further explicit relationship family-wise between them two is left unclear).
- Haru's favorite food are strawberries.
- Haru's hobby is crafting.
- She sleeps an average of 7 hours.
- Kouga also said that even if Haru looks like Tokaku’s princess, she’s actually Tokaku’s prince.
- Haru has a good eyesights and nimble fingers.
- She’s the hardest character to draw due to her hair.