Kiku Honda
Height: 165cm (5'5")
Age: A secret
Birthday: February 11th
Japan's basically a success story—went from being a total recluse to one of the world's most developed nations, despite some pretty rough patches in history (like his whole Axis Powers phase). He's got black hair that often reads as dark brown in the original manga, and brown eyes that fans describe as having a kind of dead stare to them.
When Japan was young, China took him in and raised him like a little brother. These days, that relationship's. complicated. Japan straight-up denies any connection to China and actually attacked him with a katana at one point. China still seems to care, but Japan's not interested in reconciling—they're basically enemies now.
On the flip side, Japan gets along great with most countries: America, England, Greece, Turkey, the Netherlands. He's got a solid friend group that looks out for him. Creator Hidekaz Himaruya's mentioned that Japan would probably vibe with Romano and Prussia too, though they've never really been shown hanging out. Interestingly, he calls them "Romano-kun" and "Prussia-kun" instead of the more formal "san."
Russia, though? Total opposite story. Japan's terrified of him—literally gets stomach aches just looking at him. There's this whole thing where Japan tried increasingly absurd methods to kill Russia (including hiding in Germany's ceiling with a harpoon), convinced Russia's basically a radioactive monster that breathes fire and destroys buildings.
Personality-wise, Japan's the serious, quiet type—sometimes comes across as mysterious or even shy. He's definitely not prudish despite what you'd think, and he's remarkably intelligent and skilled with his hands. His go-to responses are basically "I'll consider it," "Maybe next time," or a flat "No." His anger is supposedly absolutely terrifying, but almost nobody's ever actually seen it because he barely gets mad in the first place.
Japan was isolated for so long that he's genuinely clueless about the outside world, but he's genuinely curious and puts in the effort to learn. He acts like a weird mix of an old man and an otaku—and yeah, he's admitted to Greece, England, and France that he's way more into 2D girls than real ones. He loves animals and keeps a dog (Pochi-kun), a guinea pig, and a rabbit. He's got a weakness for meat buns and anything soft and fluffy, but he absolutely hates cockroaches to the point of crying.
His hobbies revolve around nature and tech: watching seasons change, moon-gazing, and tinkering with new inventions. Blood type A positive, apparently—fits the stereotype for Japan. Creator Himaruya's suggested that's probably his type anyway.
Japan finds his own culture completely normal and doesn't get why anyone thinks it's weird. Western culture baffles him, especially Western nudity—which is hilarious considering he's got erotic woodblock prints stashed away. The irony's not lost on fans.
Fun fact: his first name, Kiku, literally means "chrysanthemum," which is one of Japan's national flowers. His last name Honda uses the same kanji as "Nihon" (Japan), so it's basically a built-in pun.
Content compiled by AnimeList.moe from publicly available sources.
