The Nabari no Ou anime and manga series features an extensive cast of characters created by Yuhki Kamatani. The series takes place in a modern-day Japan where the ninja world of is hidden from the surface world, a name given to the world unaware of Nabari. The series' storyline follows Miharu Rokujou, a 14-year-old student who unknowingly possesses a powerful secret art within him, and his introduction into Nabari upon his power's activation.
The protagonist of the series Miharu Rokujou remembers nothing of his childhood and lost his parents at an early age. However, he is not concerned by this and strives to live a normal life. This plan is compromised when Miharu is attacked by real ninja and Koichi Aizawa and Tobari Kumohira come to his aid. There, Miharu learns about the hidden ninja world of Nabari and the Shinra Banshou, a powerful secret art containing all of the world's knowledge, which resides inside of him. This secret art is so powerful, the possessor is revered as the King of Nabari and is sorely coveted after. To protect himself, Miharu is forced to join his school's Nindō club managed by his two protectors. Kumohira vows to find a way to remove the secret art from Miharu. Until then, Kumohira, Aizawa, and Raimei Shimizu, a samurai from their ally the Fuuma Village, must protect Miharu from the Grey Wolves, a squad of elite ninja who lead the search for the secret art, and foil the Grey Wolves' attempts to gather each ninja village's .
Banten Village
During the Sengoku period, Village was a dispatch post of Iga Village. After the creation of the kinjutsushō , it was considered to be an independent village. It was always small and is currently on the verge of extinction. Its members are known as the conservatives of the Shinra Banshou, Nabari's most powerful and coveted secret art. There are three Banten ninja: Miharu Rokujou, Tobari Kumohira, and Koichi Aizawa. Miharu is the possessor of the Shinra Banshou. Aizawa is one of Miharu's classmates. Although he seems to be a normal 14-year-old, he was originally an owl who became immortal after a former possessor of the Shinra Banshou experimented on him. Tobari is Aizawa's and Miharu's teacher in the front world. The village has no leader throughout the duration of the story's events. In the anime adaptation however, Tobari Kumohira is acting as the temporary leader. The Engetsurin's effect and whereabouts of the kinjutsushō are known only to Tobari. Although it has been seen in the manga adaptation in the recent updates, it has only been used once during the anime adaptation. It is located on a silver cuff on Kumohira's ear and has the ability to restore memories. The kinjutsushō is so powerful that it is able to restore memories to people who did not have the memory to begin with.
Miharu Rokujou is an apathetic 14-year-old middle school student and protagonist of the series. Although Nabari's most powerful secret art, the coveted , is literally written into his body and he is venerated by all of Nabari's ninja as king, Miharu cares little about his gift's profound merits. His only goal is to inherit the family's okonomiyaki store. To protect those around him from getting hurt, he acts indifferently although he is not averse to acting in a rather innocent and cute manner to get what he wants. Miharu actually yearns for friendship and love at heart. After Miharu meets Yoite and promises to erase him in exchange for his friends' lives, his indifference begins to sway as his concern starts to revolve around Yoite. As the bond between them tightens, Miharu begins to wish for Yoite's continued existence, and offers to use Shinra Banshou to save him when Yoite collapses in a near death state from overuse of Iga Village's kinjutsushō, Kira. However, Yoite dissuades him from doing this and dies before the erasure can transpire. The Shinra Banshou spirit comments that Miharu fulfills a wish of his own although he fails to erase Yoite's existence. After a one-month rest, Miharu wakes up without any memories of Yoite, although he vaguely recalls erasing a person.
Kouichi Aizawa
is Rokujou's seemingly 14-year-old classmate who studies Nindō under Kumohira. He is normally portrayed with an energetic attitude around other people, becoming serious and relentless when it comes to ninja duties. He is fascinated with death as a result of his immortality. His immortality is attributed to the holder of the Shinra Banshou during the Edo period, who was a medical practitioner who experimented with placing the wisdom of the Shinra Banshou into animals, since humans usually died. He and Shijima Kurookano are the only survivors of the experiments and gained immortality; they believe that their mission is to observe the end of Nabari. This implies that Kouichi, and subsequently Shijima, are at least a century old. Kouichi's ultimate goal to have the Shinra Banshou release him from immortality and ensure that another immortal being or "monster" like himself is never created again. They are together referred to as the The Aizawa household are descended from Fuuma ninjas and are native Banten ninja. Kouichi has also confessed his love to Raimei, though she has not yet given him an answer.
Tobari Durandal Kumohira
is Miharu Rokujou's and Koichi Aizawa's 25-year-old teacher in the front world, the world that is unaware of Nabari. Born in Ireland, he was forced by his grandfather, a "Japan otaku" and "ninja fanatic", to go to Japan and learn to become a ninja. Kumohira is unable to return home partly due to an intense hatred of transport resulting from amaxophobia, a fear of being or riding in vehicles. Shortly after his arrival in Japan, he became a close acquaintance to the Rokujou family. He was involved in an incident involving the Shinra Banshou and the deaths of its current user, Asahi Rokujou, her husband, and Tobari's grandfather. The incident was erased from the memories of every one involved individual through the Shinra Banshou's power and Miharu's memories of Tobari's acquaintance with the Rokujou family were lost. Tobari is the only one to remember the incident. In the world of Nabari, he is a ninja of the Banten Village. He is entirely devoted to protecting Rokujou, and wants him to become the king of Nabari. In the anime adaption, he is the temporary leader as the current leader is away while in the manga, he is not a stand-in, but has the power to arrange for a temporary leader. According to Aizawa, Kumohira has probably recorded Banten's kinjutsushō through verbal communication. Among the Banten ninja, Kumohira is the most vehement dissident against Miharu using the Shinra Banshou, instead advocating its permanent seal. This often results in him going to great length to dissuade Miharu from attempting to activate it, which clashes with Miharu's promise to Yoite. After realizing Miharu's determination to fulfill his promise, Kumohira goes into hiding to conceal the whereabouts of the last kinjutsushō, Banten's Engetsurin, from those trying to find it. Following the Shinra Banshou's latest activation, he has returned to Banten.
Fuuma Village Village is a village allied with Banten found deep within a forest in the Japanese countryside. Nearly all the texts regarding ninjutsu and the Shinra Banshou has been written the village's leader Kotarou Fuuma. The Shimizu clan, which resides in Fuuma, are guardians of the world of Nabari and the Shinra Banshou and are to always act neutrally. Fuuma's kinjutsushō is the . The Tenpenka reshapes the cells of the user into any desired shape. However, because the cells are being reshaped, they will eventually misalign, collapse, and die.
Raimei Shimizu
is a 14-year-old guardian of the world of Nabari and head of Fuuma Village's Shimizu clan. She prefers to fight with a sword named over using ninjutsu to the point of claiming to be a samurai. Five years ago, her older brother Raikō annihilated their clan. She has sworn to kill him in revenge. The two reconcile and stay on friendly terms after Raimei learns that the massacre was Raikō's vengeance against their uncle and his gang, who killed Raikō and Raimei's parents. She has a tendency to mistake one person for another or reveal information she intended to keep to herself when excited.
Kotarou Fuuma is the leader of Fuuma Village and a chief consultant of MEXT. He has written almost all the texts regarding ninjutsu and the Shinra Banshou and all about the world of Nabari and ninja techniques, with the exception of the kinjutsu of other villages. He loves women as he claims that if he had the power of the Shinra Banshou, he would turn the Fuuma Village into a paradise where all the world's women are in love with him. Most of Fuuma's residents are female. According to Raimei, he is lying ninety percent of the time. He has spies hidden within the other ninja villages.
Saraba is Kotarou's second-in-command. She is a no-nonsense woman and acts much like an older sister to Raimei and Jūji, calling Raimei once Raikō has been spotted. Assists in locating him.
Jūji Minami is a 12-year-old medical ninja who has accompanied Miharu on several missions. It is implied that she may have a crush on Miharu.
Kairoushuu/Iga
The are a squad of elite ninja independent from the Village led by Tōjūrō Hattori. The Iga Village is said to be connected to the birth of the Shinra Banshou and the Grey Wolves are the main force seeking it. As such, the Grey Wolves are the main antagonists. They aim to remove the Shinra Banshou from Miharu Rokujou and are stealing the kinjutsushō from other villages. The group is split into specialized sub-divisions. The , shortened Suikō-Han, handles all operations in the field and is responsible for the acquisition of the kinjutsushō from other villages. The researches the Shinra Banshou and through studying the kinjutsushō, investigates ways to extract and control the secret art. The , also known as the , are responsible for managing the rebels within the organization often through elimination. The Grey Wolves' secret intelligence unit is part of the Ministry on Defense. In the anime adaption, the secret intelligence unit is called . The Grey Wolves' leader Tōjūrō Hattori often takes in outcasts, as seen when he takes in Kazuhiko and Kazuho Yukimi, Raikō Shimizu, and Yoite, offering them a place within the organization. Iga Village is very modernized, using the internet to keep the villagers in touch with each other. is the village's kinjutsushō.
Tojuro Hattori is the 59-year-old leader of the Iga clan and the Grey Wolves. He serves as a political critic in the front world. His ideal is to change history and achieve equality among humans with the Shinra Banshou, fascinating and winning the loyalty of many subordinates, as seen with Yukimi and Raikō. Hattori takes in many outcasts, such as Yukimi, Kazuho, Raikō, and later Yoite, offering them a place in the Grey Wolves. Despite this kindness, Hattori has little qualms about eliminating whoever opposes him, seen when he orders the Kasa to dispose of Yoite when he defies Hattori. After the Shinra Banshou's latest activation, he temporarily retires from Nabari and entrusts the Grey Wolves and Kasa to an unknown person.
Ichiki is often seen in the company of Hattori. She is the 49-year-old leader of Kasa. In the front world, she acts as the manager for Hattori's political career. Ichiki is always seen dressed in a traditional kimono and appears to be blind.
Yoite