Kiznaiver

Kiznaiver
Promotional image featuring the main cast of characters. Clockwise from the top: Noriko, Yuta, Honoka, Chidori, Katsuhira, Tenga, Nico, and Hisomu.
キズナイーバー (Kizunaībā)
Genre	Action, Thriller, Science fiction, Drama[1]
Manga
Written by	Roji Karegishi
Published by	Kadokawa Shoten
English publisher	Crunchyroll (Digital)
Demographic	Seinen
Magazine	Dengeki Maoh
Original run	March 25, 2016 – present
Anime television series
Directed by	Hiroshi Kobayashi
Produced by	Uryuu Kyōko, Uetsuki Mikio, Saita Hideyuki, Kase Naoto, Usa Yoshihiro, Kaneniwa Kozue, Ōwada Tomoyuki
Written by	Mari Okada
Music by	Yuki Hayashi
Studio	Trigger
Licensed by	^UK Anime Limited
Network	Tokyo MX, GTV, GYT, BS11, ABC, TVA, AT-X
English network	^SEA Aniplus Asia[2]
Original run	April 9, 2016 – June 25, 2016
Episodes	12
Manga
Mini! KIZNAIVER Theater
Written by	S.Kosugi
Published by	Kadokawa Shoten
English publisher	Crunchyroll (Digital)
Demographic	Seinen
Original run	April 27, 2016 – present

Kiznaiver (キズナイーバー Kizunaībā) is a Japanese anime television series produced by Trigger, Aniplex and Crunchyroll and written by Mari Okada. The series features character designs by Shirow Miwa.^[3] It also features the directorial debut of Hiroshi Kobayashi, assistant director of the anime Rage of Bahamut and episode director for Kill la Kill. Kiznaiver follows a group of high school students who are chosen to be a part of an experimental program which creates bonds between people by forcing them to share each other's pain. It is thematically similar to Trigger's previous works, which deal with problems attributed to character interaction.^[4] The series' title and premise are based upon the Japanese words for "wound/scar" (傷 kizu), and "bond/connection" (絆 kizuna).

Plot

Kiznaiver takes place in the futuristic, fictional Japanese town of Sugomori City. While the city appears to be normal, in reality, it was created to test a large-scale experiment known as the "Kizna System". The ideal goal of the currently incomplete Kizna System is to create world peace by connecting people through shared pain and suffering. All those who are connected to the system are called "Kiznaivers". If a single Kiznaiver experiences pain, either emotional or physical, the system distributes it among the other Kiznaivers.^[5]

A few days before the start of summer vacation, a mysterious and seemingly emotionless girl, Noriko Sonozaki, tells high school student, Katsuhira Agata, that he has been selected to become a Kiznaiver, alongside several of his classmates. This allows Katsuhira to share his pain and build bonds with his classmates, whose lives and personalities each differ from his own. This leads to serious implications as Katsuhira's classmates attempt to shoulder each other's pain and Noriko assigns them on various missions.^[6]

Characters

Main characters

Katsuhira Agata (阿形 勝平 Agata Katsuhira)

Voiced by: Yūki Kaji, Ruito Kuga (childhood)

The story's apathetic and "semi-emotionless" protagonist. During his early childhood, he was part of a previous Kizna System experiment which had failed, rendering him incapable of feeling pain; however, he only has vague recollections of these events. Katsuhira lives alone next to his friend Chidori, as his parents seldom remain at home due to their jobs. During his second venture as a Kiznaiver, he begins to understand emotional pain through his connection with the other protagonists, allowing him to express his own emotions better.

Noriko Sonozaki (園崎 法子 Sonozaki Noriko)

Voiced by: Hibiku Yamamura, Sakkuru Zaizen (childhood)

A beautiful girl who lacks human kindness and displays no emotion whatsoever. She acts as the arbitrator for the Kizna System and is a member of the Kizna Committee, alongside Urushibara and Yamada. It is revealed that Noriko was a member of the same failed experiment as Katsuhira but instead of distributing her pain to others the experiment wound up taking all nineteen candidates' pain into herself while the others lost most of their emotions and sensation. Consequentially, she requires constant medication and has remained connected to him through the Kizna System ever since. As such, she seeks to help Katsuhira regain his lost sense of pain. In the end of the anime, she and Katsuhira start to date as well as showing a bit of her emotions.

Chidori Takashiro (高城 千鳥 Takashiro Chidori)

Voiced by: Yuka Terasaki

Katsuhira's childhood friend who is humanistic, emotional, and seemingly nosy at times.She is called "Two-Goody Shoes" by Noriko.She fell in love with Katsuhira during their childhood and desperately wishes for him to return to his original kind and funny personality. She is a good cook and often makes meals for the other Kiznaivers. In the end of the anime, it looks like she might end up having feelings for Tenga in the future.

Hajime Tenga (天河 一 Tenga Hajime)

Voiced by: Tomoaki Maeno

A delinquent who is impulsive and rowdy to the point of being obnoxious, but is caring and very protective of his friends. After they become Kiznaivers, Tenga casually begins to live with Katsuhira in his apartment. He attempts to act as Chidori's wingman to help her win Katsuhira's affections, but is revealed to have feelings for Chidori himself. Despite receiving the nickname "Mad Dog", he suffers from an intense case of cynophobia.

Nico Niiyama (新山 仁子 Niiyama Niko)

Voiced by: Misaki Kuno

An energetic girl who behaves in an eccentric manner by claiming she "sees fairies". This is revealed to be a lie in order to create a quirky persona, which she developed out of fear that people would dislike her because she is attractive, naturally intelligent, and comes from a rich family. For this reason, she becomes slightly bothered when people point out her intellect or exhibit more quirkiness than her. Despite of her unique personality, Nico is shown to have a mature side. She is also extremely perceptive and is not afraid to show it when it is important. Although in love with Tenga, she and Hisomu scheme a date for Chidori and him at the end of the anime, showing her mature side. She still affirms that one day she'll have a show-down with Chidori to win Tenga's affections.

Tsuguhito Yuta (由多 次人 Yuta Tsuguhito)

Voiced by: Nobunaga Shimazaki

A sly and self-centered honors student and ladies' man. With the exception of Honoka, he attempts to dissociate himself from the other Kiznaivers, whom he views as "peculiar animals". Yuta's darkest secret is that he used to be severely overweight, due to being a latchkey kid that resorted to eating junk food instead of being fed proper meals; he is still an extremely fussy eater as a result of this. He holds affections for Honoka and wishes to help her sort out the issues stemming from her past; in doing so, he becomes more open-hearted, and his more gentle personality is revealed. In the end, his efforts to get close to Honoka seem to pay off.

Honoka Maki (牧 穂乃香 Maki Honoka)

Voiced by: Rina Satō

An aloof and intelligent girl who outwardly maintains a cold and condescending attitude towards others. She used to be best friends with a terminally-ill girl named Ruru, and the two became a manga artist duo under the pen name Charles de Macking. While working on the project together, the two gained affection for each other; However, Honoka feared the pain of losing her would be unbearable if they were in a relationship. She decided to break off their friendship entirely, leaving Ruru to complete the last chapter of their manga alone before finally dying. Initially, Honoka never read the series finale and assumed it left feelings of hatred behind, subsequently becoming bitter and guilt-ridden. However, with the help of Yuta and the Kiznaivers, she realizes that Ruru actually wanted her to move on. Honoka then decides to reject being "friends" with the Kiznaivers, believing that their bond through the Kizna System made them closer than friends or lovers. In the end of the anime, Honoka states that she wants to help Yuta gain weight again, in order to keep possible other love interests away from him.

Yoshiharu Hisomu (日染 芳春 Hisomu Yoshiharu)

Voiced by: Kōtarō Nishiyama

A handsome and distinct man shrouded in mystery. He is a masochist who becomes easily aroused when feeling or even thinking about (physical) pain. Despite this, he is seemingly harmless and spends most of his time smiling, although his bluntness sometimes unnerves his new friends. Hisomu very rarely attends his classes and had never been seen by the other protagonists prior to their connection to the Kizna System. When he does attend, he never wears his uniform, opting to wear tattered gym clothes instead.

Others

Kazunao Yamada (山田 一直 Yamada Kazunao)

Voiced by: Junichi Suwabe

Nicknamed Yaamada (やーまだ). He is Katsuhira's perverted homeroom teacher and a member of the Kizna Committee. Was one of the caretakers of the original nineteen children that Katsuhira and Nori were a part of. Unlike his colleague, Mutsumi, Yamada seems to take a deranged pleasure in putting the Kiznaivers through different challenges and tests.

Mutsumi Urushibara (漆原 睦 Urushibara Mutsumi)

Voiced by: Mie Sonozaki

Nicknamed Urushii (うるしー). She is the counselor of Katsuhira's school and a member of the Kizna Committee. Was one of the caretakers of the original nineteen children that Katsuhira and Nori were a part of. Unlike Yamada, she seems to have genuine concern for the members of the Kiznaiver group. She also reveals to the Kiznaivers the result of the original experiment and why Noriko is the way she is. She seems to have a maternal connection to Noriko, showing extreme emotion and concern when Noriko attempts to kill herself.

Gomorin (ゴモリン)

Sugomori City's mascot character. It is typically used as a costume for staff who work under the Kizna System, although ordinary city workers also dress as Gomorin.

Ruru (瑠々)

Voiced by: Sayaka Nakaya

Honoka's deceased best friend and the other half of her manga artist duo, who died from terminal kidney disease. Ruru fell in love with Honoka and sought a romantic relationship with her. Even though Honoka only viewed her as a friend, she feared the grief from Ruru's inevitable death would be too much to bear if they became further involved. Honoka stopped their friendship entirely, leaving Ruru to finish their manga alone. After her death, Honoka blamed herself for forcing Ruru to work on the last chapter by herself, worsening her illness due to overwork and heartbreak.

Media

Anime

Kiznaiver is an original anime series from Trigger. It is directed by Hiroshi Kobayashi and written by Mari Okada. While Shirow Miwa provides original character design, Mai Yoneyama adapted it into anime.^[3] and the opening theme is Lay Your Hands on Me by Boom Boom Satellites,^[7] and the ending theme is Hajimari no Sokudo (はじまりの速度) by Sangatsu no Phantasia.^[7] The anime has been licensed in the UK by Anime Limited.^[8]

Episode list

No.	Title	Original air date
1	"Sometimes, a Bond Can Bloom from the First Day Eye Contact Is Made" "Hitome Atta Sono Hi kara, Kizuna no Hanasaku Koto mo Aru" (一目あったその日から, 絆の花咲くこともある)	April 9, 2016
A vision recalls of a young girl plummeting to her apparent death as a young boy chases after her, screaming out in pain. 12 years later in Sugimori City, Katsuhira Agata is a seemingly emotionless boy who gets bullied and beaten up constantly for money, much to the disgust of his caring childhood friend Chidori Takashiro. Shortly after, as the same bullies come once again to extort his money, musclehead Hajime Tenga appears to stop them and strikes a deal with him to get the bullies off his back. While Katsuhira says he doesn't need the money, explaining his high pain tolerance, Tenga tries his luck as a mysterious lady confronts them. As Chidori questions Katsuhira's whereabouts in class, he wakes up on the school rooftop and meets the blue-haired lady again. Introducing herself as Noriko Sonozaki, she explains to Katsuhira that his high tolerance to pain and his submissive nature are the reasons for his constant bullying as they seek to "carve their scars" into someone, before pushing him from the top of the stairs. After being transported into an underground hospital facility by the city mascots known as Gomorin, Katsuhira meets Chidori and Tenga, as well as envied pretty boy Tsuguhito Yuta, eccentric fairy enthusiast Nico Niiyama, and aloof and cold-hearted Honoka Maki. Noriko explains of their meeting as part of an experiment designed for world peace known as the "Kizna System", taking Katsuhira's fall as an example of a fatal injury if not for the experiment which divided his pain among the test subjects. While most of them dismiss the experiment and leave, they soon realize the situation they're in is all too real. Bonded by pain as evident as the Kizna Scar on each of their wrists, they will face challenges together unlike any other as Noriko declares the group Kiznaivers.
2	"If You Can Swallow a Bizarre Situation Like This So Easily, Two Buckets of Barium Shouldn't Be a Problem" "Konna Ijou Jitai Kantan ni Nomi Komen Nara Bariumu Nanza Baketsu Nihai wa Karuku Yoyuu Dattsuuno" (こんな異常事態カンタンに飲みこめんならバリウムなんざバケツ二杯は軽く余裕だっつーの)	April 16, 2016
Noriko assigns the Kiznaivers their first challenge by having each of them introduce themselves. Should they give any incorrect answers, she has Katsuhira strapped and tasered as a penalty, simultaneously giving the others jolts of pain as well. Met with several spikes of pain from Tenga's bold response, Honoka questions about the end results from sustaining the pain for very long, to which Noriko replies "Dead End". Also by withholding answers every 10 minutes, the same penalty is applied. As the exits are closed shut behind them, vicious dogs appear to chase a fleeing Tenga, who makes his first correct introduction by stating his fear of dogs, despite his nickname "Mad Dog". After Honoka clarifies their "self-introductions" as a secret confession, a bomb goes off within the building, prompting her to storm off without confessing. As a countdown signal flashes on their scars while the ceiling collapses, Nico confesses next, stating her belief of fairies is a front for her sophisticated personality. As she stumbles upon a poster of an obese kid with pearly whites, Yuta's confession comes to light as the group meets his 6th grade self. As Honoka becomes haunted by a scribbling of Charles de Macking and a girl calling out to her, the others are led outside to Katsuhira inside a crane platform about to drop. While Katsuhira introduces himself as one who's devoid of emotions and pain, Chidori reminds him of his younger days, wishing for the younger him to return back and gives her confession as bottled-up love for Katsuhira. Never realizing her feelings before, Katsuhira reintroduces himself as a Kiznaiver slowly learning his own feelings, as her confession made him feel "happy". With the challenge seemingly complete, Honoka boldly announces her own introduction saying that she has killed someone.
3	"Depending on How You Look At It, I Think We Could Get Through Anything... Right?" "Donna ni Sanzan na Joukyou Datte Torae Kata Shidai de Nantoka Yatteikeru kamo...... ne?" (どんなにさんざんな状況だって捉えかた次第でなんとかやっていけるかも...... ねっ？)	April 23, 2016
While Honoka passes off her introduction as a joke, Noriko relays the final mission to the Kiznaivers to survive the duration of their summer break. As Honoka leaves, she informs everyone of her terrible personality as a mysterious man watches over them. The next day, when Tenga has taken residence in Katsuhira's apartment, the Kiznaivers have another bout of pain along with the code "D:7" on Katsuhira's wrist. In school, the group has taken efforts to conceal their Kizna Scars, and while they meet to discuss the unknown source of pain, they experience it once more, to which Noriko informs them their next mission of tracking down the missing 7th Kiznaiver. While Nico inflicts slight pain on Katsuhira in hopes that the remaining Kiznaiver in their class will resonate with it, when nobody reacts, Yuta deducts the remaining member as Yoshiharu Hisomu, the only student that has stayed absent since the start of school. As the group confronts Hisomu at his apartment, he leads the other Kiznaivers on a wild goose chase until Katsuhira catches up to him on an overpass. While Hisomu runs off again, in order to convince him that all of their bodies are connected, Tenga prepares to jump from the overpass and onto traffic until Katsuhira does it instead. While Tenga and Chidori rush in to help Katsuhira who landed inside a nearby convertible, the others watch in disgust as they resonate from Hisomu's climaxed state as a result of the pain, with their Kizna Scars signaling the end of the mission. Meanwhile, Noriko gives a conference regarding the Kizna System to government officials with the aim of the "true connection".
4	"Now That We're All Connected, Let's All Get to Know Each Other Better, 'Kay?" "Sekkaku Tsunagari Attandashi sa Motto Otagai Wakari Aou Yon" (せっかく繋がりあったんだしさもっとお互いわかりあおうよん)	April 30, 2016
Katsuhira recalls visions of his past involving him and a young Noriko as he wakes up in his apartment. While there, Hisomu explains to the Kiznaivers his masochistic side as well as his reason for running away, taking pleasure in fatally dangerous and unexpected pain. As Yuta, Nico, and Honoka leave, they ponder Hisomu's influence on the group, and while Nico considers him and the other Kiznaivers as friends, Honoka coldly retorts to them being nothing more than casual acquaintances, depressing her mood. Back at the apartment, Hisomu recalls his stay at the hospital to the others at the start of the Kizna experiment, with Noriko promising him bodily stimulation through pain. After Hisomu makes an unexpected appearance at school the next day, Nico gathers the group to exchange emails, to which she intensely stares down Honoka from her previous remark. While Tenga spots Katsuhira's bullies, they are once again confronted by Noriko for another mission. Confronted with a gigantic bowl of fried rice that they must eat in 30 minutes, Katsuhira stops Noriko outside the restaurant to exchange contacts while inviting her to the Kiznaiver's training camp tomorrow. At the day of the camp, the group takes an awkward ride while learning a secret of the Kiznaivers. Upon Honoka's request, Noriko tells them about the origins of Sugomori City as a testing ground for the Kizna experiments and the Gomorin, the city mascots that are also some Kizna Committee members in disguise. As they arrive to their destination, Chidori notices Katsuhira and Noriko's growing relationship conflicting with her affections, prompting Tenga to help her bring Katsuhira closer to her. Meanwhile, Kizna Committee members and school staff Kazunao Yamada and Mutsumi Urushibara are seen driving in a car with Katsuhira's bullies tied up with similar Kizna Scars.
5	"Wahoo, It's a Training Camp! Let's Step in Deer Poop and Have Pillow Fights! Go, Go!" "Hyahhoi, Gasshuku Daa! Shika no Fun Funde Makuranage Shite Go Go!" (ひゃっほい, 合宿だぁ! 鹿のフン踏んで枕投げしてゴーゴー!)	May 7, 2016
As the group is led into their resort inn, Tenga struggles to bring Katsuhira and Chidori together. While Chidori arranges two separate groups to prepare dinner and firewood for the bath, despite Tenga's urging, she leaves Katsuhira out of her cooking group. As Yamada and Urushibara unload a bus of Gomorin in preparation for another Kiznaiver mission, Tenga praises Chidori's cooking skills during dinner in hopes that Katsuhira will be more attracted to her, but to no avail. After bath time while Katsuhira and Noriko share a conversation, Chidori walks through the hall to what looks like both of them kissing, causing her to run off in despair as her inner pain resonates through the Kiznaivers. After Honoka cooks a meal fit for Yuta's restrictive diet, she forces herself onto him, as Yamada captures them on video. While bullies Kamaishi and Yoshizawa get dressed in their Gomorin suits, Noriko introduces Yamada and Urushibara to the group as Kizna Committee members, and the Kiznaivers are thrown into another mission to find Chidori. As her and the group are faced with menacing Gomorin outside, Katsuhira goes on ahead to find Chidori, and a spiteful Yoshizawa attempts to strike Tenga until Nico strikes him instead. As Kamaishi confronts Chidori, he resonates to Yoshizawa's pain in front of her while revealing himself, and her attempts to console him turn into a hateful lecture regarding her pain towards Katsuhira's harassment over the years. As the group feels Chidori's constant pain signal, they are eventually led to her during her ranting. With pain more unified than ever, Katsuhira confronts Kamaishi to return the money they've stolen from him since the start, never realizing how his misfortune affected others until now. As the group heads back, Yamada and Urushibara mention the experiment's "second stage" as they watch over them.
6	"Nothing Good Comes From Being Around All Of You" "Anta-tachi to Iru to Hontto ni Rokuna Koto ga Nai" (あんた達といるとほんっとにろくなことがない)	May 14, 2016
Honoka experiences more visions of her past involving a girl named Ruru. While the Kiznaivers (excluding Yuta) spend the day at Katsuhira's apartment, Honoka leaves alone until she is stopped by Nico, wanting to walk home with her. When she pries on her about her ideals of friendship, Nico calls herself stupid, with her words resulting in Honoka's inner pain transferring to the rest of the group. While Noriko discusses the Kizna experiment's financial situations, a mysterious man approaches Honoka. At a restaurant, while Yuta's friends are enamored by a girls manga under the pen name Charles de Macking, a line in the manga strikes a chord within Yuta, prompting him to leave. As an editor attempts to negotiate with Honoka to obtain the rights to produce her manga as a movie, he is then stopped by Yuta. Claiming to have followed the painful sadness within her, she detests him and soon runs off. As Yuta regroups the other Kiznaivers while sharing with them a piece of Honoka's past as a manga author, Noriko assigns a special mission to them to save her, leading all of them back into the school. When Honoka arrives first noticing the crowd of people and a TV crew, her attempts to escape are stopped by the filmers wanting an interview with Charles de Macking, attracting the attention of the crowd as well. Bombarded by the media and bystanders, Honoka breaks down with a massive pain signal transferring through the Kiznaivers. Despite the intense pain, the rest of the group manages to drive away the filmers and the crowd, deeming the mission complete. However, when Honoka realizes the scenario in regards to their mission, she runs off as Nico emphasizes how severe her case must be if a seventh of the massive pain they all felt had accumulated in herself. While the group decides to confront Ruru's family to connect Honoka's past, Katsuhira first confronts Noriko to express his disappointment in her by how half-hearted the mission felt.
7	"A Battle Touching Upon the Identity of the Pain that's Seven Times the Pain of One-Seventh of a Pain" "Nana-bun no Ichi no Itami no Sono Mata Nana Bai no Shoutai ni Fureru Tatakai" (七分の一の痛みのそのまた七倍の正体に触れる戦い)	May 21, 2016
As the group confronted Ruru's family amidst a tense atmosphere, her parents tell them about her terminal kidney illness, her connection to Honoka, and a mysterious parting of ways before her inevitable death. When Honoka reminisces of their time together, it is revealed that as a manga artist duo under the name Charles de Macking, they were the best of friends while only having each other to rely on. However, as work with the manga progressed, Ruru developed feelings for Honoka, causing her to create the wedge that would drive them apart. Moments before Ruru created the final chapter, Honoka expressed her desire to stop drawing manga with her, and while she takes it lightly, she gives a traumatizing message of resentment to Honoka as the final scene from the chapter. As Honoka's heartache resonates with the other Kiznaivers, they set out to form a lasting friendship with her. The next day, the group reaches out to a withdrawn Honoka within her room, and while she does not respond to their calls, they decide to personally confront her to ask if they could be friends with her. Despite not working as planned, Yuta assures the group that Nico's outburst of concern actually touched her heart as evident with their shared pain. As the rain quickly pours down, Honoka goes for a walk and encounters Yuta reading her manga, and much to his surprise, found out that Honoka did not read the final chapter. While she assumes Ruru's hateful message was laid inside, Yuta convinces her to read the final chapter, while telling her she lied about the ending. When asked about the reason for breaking off Ruru's friendship, she did not want to bear the burden of her death should they have stayed together. As they meet up with the other Kiznaivers attempting to blow up fireworks at the beach, Honoka tells them to go for a swim, which they reluctantly do despite the rain and the time. Reaching the end of the manga, her eased heart is felt by the Kiznaivers, as Ruru's message was revealed to have forgiven her. While Honoka states that she cannot be friends with the group, she assures them that being Kiznaivers makes them closer than friends or lovers, remarking to her late friend's message from their manga.
8	"Happy Times Don't Tend to Last Very Long" "Happii na Jikan tte Sousou Nagaku wa Tsuzukanai Mono da yo ne" (ハッピーな時間ってそうそう長くは続かないものだよね)	May 28, 2016
Yamada and Urushibara review the latest analyses from the Kiznaivers' previous mission while noticing Honoka's emotions resonating on a deeper level above pain, prompting the start of another mission. In the middle of a typhoon affecting Sugimori City, the Kiznaivers are spending time together until several Gomorin kidnap them and are taken back to the school. There, Yamada shows the group a video presentation covering the details of a previous Kizna experiment done many years ago on children to connect the entire spectrum of sensations including pain. While they question the previous experiment's inhumane methods despite their true aim for world peace, the Kiznaivers are left at school with another mission to get home safely. While the group plans an escape however, Yamada makes preparations for the true purpose of the mission, to forcefully pair certain Kiznaivers to instigate a romantic connection. Using a flowchart of pairings, they deduce Yuta's feelings for Honoka, as well as Nico's love for Tenga and his love towards Chidori, who still likes Katsuhira. When Noriko traces Katsuhira's romantic feelings to her, she decides to confront him personally despite Urushibara's wishes, wanting to reciprocate his feelings he said "from before". Meanwhile, Yamada manipulates the pairings by separating Tenga and Nico, leaving Chidori and Katsuhira to find a way out. As Nico's flustered emotions are transmitted, an irritated Hisomu attempts to trigger pain and angers Honoka by touching on her internal trauma, leading to Yuta chasing after her. As Yamada confirms the romantic bond between Honoka and Yuta, Chidori and Katsuhira are led to the roof, where she attempts to confess her feelings to him. After her confession however as Noriko comes out to confront him, Katsuhira runs outside and saves her from a crumbling statue, to which a glow emanating from her collar is seen. As she takes it off, she reveals to have her own Kizna Scar on the back of her neck, much to Katsuhira's surprise.
9	"It's All Over......I Think" "Banjikyuusu......kashira" (万事休す……かしら)	June 4, 2016
As Noriko reveals her own Kizna Scar to Katsuhira, she tells him of her existence inside of him before collapsing. While Tenga and Nico follow what seems to be Chidori's inner pain to her despairing over Katsuhira's feelings, the group responds to a beaten up Hisomu, in which they take shelter in the AV room. Safe from the Gomorin attacks, Yamada screens Katsuhira and Noriko conversing from the gym onto a projector. As the others watch, Chidori becomes more unnerving at the sight, while Noriko's possession of a Kizna Scar is revealed to the others as ties to her past and Katsuhira's visions. While Tenga rallies the group to head to the gym, a reluctant Chidori comes along due to Nico's persuasion. While Urushibara questions the Kizna experiment's boundaries, Noriko vividly tells Katsuhira of the time they spent 12 years ago with the other Kiznaiver children. As the present-day Kiznaivers experience a tremendous bout of pain, Hisomu traces it back to Katsuhira, much to Chidori's concern. Clenching on to his glowing chest, Noriko unbuttons his shirt to reveal a second Kizna Scar on his body. Reaching out to hug Noriko, Katsuhira pieces together his past, welling up with emotions for the first time since the start of the second Kizna experiment. As the group arrives, Katsuhira responds to Chidori's inner pain as she then runs off, forcing a furious Tenga to yell at him to chase after her. Confronting Noriko, Tenga and the others respond to Nico's emotions, running off as well after Noriko tells Tenga about Nico's hidden feelings for him. As Katsuhira grabs Chidori's hand while she pleads to let her go, Katsuhira and the others hear her inner voice wanting to be held, as their Kizna Scars glow red. As Urushibara goes against Yamada and tries to stop the kids before things get any worse, Katsuhira holds Chidori until a jealous Tenga starts beating him up as his inner feelings for her resonate through the group. As Nico's and Honoka's inner sorrows are resonated as a result of their broken friendship, the culmination of everyone's inner thoughts leaves the group writhing in pain as their red Kizna Scars flicker. When the rain clears out, Urushibara and Noriko confront the recovering Kiznaivers and assures them that their Kizna will be released once summer is over.
10	"You Knew Very Well That Your Romantic Feelings Might Be Unrequited, Right?" "Suki na Kimochi ga Mukuwarenai kamo Nante Juujuu Shouchi no Ue daro?" (好きな気持ちがむくわれないかもなんて重々承知の上だろ？)	June 11, 2016
Hisomu confronts Katsuhira in his apartment as they talk about the day the Kiznaivers headed their separate ways. To prevent even more turmoil from coming between them, they reluctantly decide to cut off all contact with each other until the end of summer when their Kiznas will go away. As the new school year comes about and the group's Kizna Scars have all disappeared, Yamada mocks the ex-Kiznaivers on their summer experiences in front of the class. While majority of the group is still apart from one another, Hisomu and Nico encounter a wandering Katsuhira looking for Noriko and decide to rebuild their friendship from scratch. As support for the Kizna System begins to falter under government investigation, Noriko runs to the school rooftop and attempts suicide to try and produce firsthand results of the Kizna experiments. As Katsuhira resonates to her massive pain from his other Kizna Scar, him as well as Hisomu and Nico trace her steps to the same hidden stairway below the roof where she exited to confront Katsuhira. As the Mayor expresses his sympathy to Urushibara of the Kizna experiment's insufficient funding to continue on, she confronts Katsuhira and the others as they tried to figure out what happened to Noriko. While she only collapsed mere moments before jumping off, she agrees to tell Katsuhira about their past as Kiznaiver children. 12 years ago during the first Kizna System experiment, there were 19 kids that were part of the experiment that would divide a part of their sensations to everyone else, minimizing their bodily harm. However, a fatal error was tracked where one of the children took in the pain of several others, that person being Noriko. As the other children continued in their daily camaraderie, every sensation felt by them became amplified 19 times to strike Noriko with unbearable amounts of pain. As the experiment was deemed a failure, Noriko has been given medication to this day that nullifies all of her senses. However, because every other Kiznaiver child's sensation is connected through Noriko, the medication also took away their senses as they were never returned back, and Noriko has been taking in Katsuhira's pain the entire time. While Katsuhira was one of the few people allowed back into society, Urushibara takes the group upon Nico's request to the laboratory's old playground to the remaining children still under special care. Encountering five of his old friends sitting nearly still and emotionless, Katsuhira remembers their time together as well as Noriko's childhood love confession before uncontrollably sobbing.
11	"We Have To Contact Each Other And Confirm Our Feelings. Because We're Friends!" "Ichiichi Renraku Shiatte Kimochi wo Kakunin Shiawanaito. Datte, Tomodachi Nanda kara!" (いちいち連絡しあって気持ちを確認しあわないと. だって, 友達なんだから!)	June 18, 2016
Noriko remembers her past as a Kiznaiver child, as she grew closer to Katsuhira and the others who are bonded by her. Wishing for their happy times to continue forever, she resonates to Katsuhira's sorrow before waking up. While Nico decides to keep everyone informed of the events that happened on the way out, the group still has trouble accepting what happened between them, and Katsuhira decides to call Chidori to confide with her. Reuniting with his emotionless friends, he apologizes for not acknowledging her feelings and thanks her for sticking through for him before hanging up. Angered by his unrequited feelings, Chidori soon realizes her own selfishness after yelling at Tenga for the same thing. The next day, Yamada and Urushibara are reminded of the Kizna System's precarious situation, and Noriko arrives at Katsuhira's class where he goes with her for a talk. As he talks about yesterday's events, he concludes her reasoning for getting Katsuhira's pain back was to help her realize her own pain. As Noriko disregards his reason and leaves, Katsuhira gathers the old group after class to discuss what he learned on his second Kiznaiver venture. Apologizing for forcing his pain onto the group and expressing his desire to feel pain to truly connect with his friends, the others experience a heavy sensation in their hearts despite not having their Kizna, and Katsuhira collapses. As Noriko cannot come to terms with the imminent shutdown of the Kizna System, she meets her five friends to assure their fun times will be back soon as one of them murmurs her name, much to her surprise. While Katsuhira recovers, Urushibara thanks the group for resonating with his pain, as the strength of their bonds transcended their own Kizna. Meanwhile, as black-colored Gomorin overrun Sugomori City, Noriko makes an announcement asking the people to connect all of their bonds with her.
12	"If The Kizna System Spread Throughout The World" "Sekaijuu ni Kizuna System ga Hirogatte" (世界中にキズナシステムが広がって)	June 25, 2016
As the group tries to make sense of the chaos that's taken over Sugomori City, Kamaishi and Yoshizawa confront them with special Kizna Scars on their bodies, seeking revenge on Tenga. Urushibara reveals to Katsuhira that Noriko's announcement is her and Yamada's intent to connect her pain with every citizen of the city using the black Gomorin, despite already carrying the pain of Katsuhira and his friends. Lonely since childhood, Noriko became devoted to the beliefs of the Kizna System after meeting Katsuhira and the other children in hopes to connect with everyone, even willing to surpass the limits of the Kizna System to do so. Believing that she can raise the efficiency of the Kizna System in hopes to save her friends, her ideals of a peaceful world through bonds are her only motivation. As a beaten Kamaishi and Yoshizawa tells the others of Noriko's intentions, the group comes to terms of their friendship and bonds through Katsuhira to try and save Noriko. As the city's drawbridge rises with Noriko standing on top of it, Urushibara and Katsuhira hijack a police car and rushes to her location, where he will confront Noriko. As she sets off a bomb destroying part of the drawbridge, she stands dangerously near the edge, telling Katsuhira of their moments together which were only possible through the Kizna System. However, Katsuhira and the others object, stating that them becoming friends had nothing to do with it. Unconvinced, Noriko prepares to jump off until Katsuhira tells her to let go of her wounds, promising that their friends will always be there for her. With her and Katsuhira's pain resonating with each other, he scales the drawbridge where they both fall together. As both of them come out of the water, Katsuhira feels a multitude of sensations, much to his relief. Time passes after the incident, and love is in the air for the group. As Yuta and Honoka reciprocate each other's feelings, the same happens to Chidori and Tenga, and although Nico planned their meeting, she confides to Hisomu that she'll one day win Tenga's heart. While the Kizna facility's old playground becomes a park where the first-generation Kiznaivers' emotions start to bloom, the group meets up at the hospital, where a recovering Katsuhira and Noriko have begun dating, with their emotions slowly returning as Nico and the others open up to Noriko.

Manga

A tie-in manga by Roji Karegishi is published simultaneously by Crunchyroll digitally and by Kadokawa Shoten in their Dengeki Maoh magazine. It premiered on March 25, 2016.^[9]

A gag manga featuring the characters in chibi form called "Mini! Kiznaiver Gekijō" (みにっ! きずないーばー劇場) is drawn by S. Kosugi and serialized on Dengeki Comics NEXT. The tankobon version is released on June 6, 2016.^[10] Crunchyroll took the English license for it, titled "Mini! KIZNAIVER Theater".^[11]

References

1. "Studio TRIGGER's New Original TV Anime Project "Kiznaiver" Revealed". Crunchyroll. October 10, 2015. Retrieved October 11, 2015.
2. "Aniplus HD Airs Simulcasts of Kiznaiver, Endride, Bungo Stray Dogs, Big Order". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
3. "Studio Trigger Reveals New Kiznaiver Original TV Anime". Anime News Network. October 8, 2015. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
4. "TRIGGER ANIMATION EXPO スペシャルイベント決定！ | TRIGGER Inc.". www.st-trigger.co.jp. Retrieved 2016-03-15.
5. "TVアニメ「キズナイーバー」公式サイト". TVアニメ「キズナイーバー」公式サイト (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-03-14.
6. "TVアニメ「キズナイーバー」公式サイト". TVアニメ「キズナイーバー」公式サイト (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-03-14.
7. "キズナイーバーpixiv公式アカウントページ". www.pixiv.net. Retrieved 2016-03-16.
8. "Anime Limited Updates from London MCM Comic Con". Anime News Network. May 28, 2016. Retrieved May 28, 2016.
9. "Crunchyroll to Publish Kiznaiver Manga Online". Anime News Network. March 25, 2016. Retrieved March 25, 2016.
10. "GOODS キズナイーバー". Retrieved May 31, 2016.
11. Luster, Joseph (April 27, 2016). "Crunchyroll Adds "Mini! KIZNAIVER Theater" Gag Manga". Crunchyroll. Retrieved April 28, 2016.

External links

• Official website
• Kiznaiver (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia