Nao's older brother was a talented guitarist in a band, known for a unique ability to vibrate air that he'd weaponize during live performances to manipulate his guitar's sound in real-time. It was pretty innovative stuff—exactly the kind of thing that would stick with a kid watching from the audience.
That all changed when scientists got ahold of him. They experimented on him extensively, and the aftermath left him hospitalized with no clear path to recovery. Worse, whatever happened during those experiments scrambled his memory. He doesn't even recognize Nao anymore, which is heartbreaking considering how much he shaped her world.
His band and that incredible live sound? They're the reason Nao became such a devoted fan of ZHIEND. She chased that feeling her brother gave her, trying to recapture something she'd lost. He's been her greatest influence, even if he's no longer there in any meaningful way.
Content compiled by AnimeList.moe from publicly available sources.
