Haitora

**Haitora** (ハイトラ *Haitora*) is an original character created by *Yako Kureishi* in the **Somali and the Forest Spirit** manga and anime series. He will be voiced by *Yūki Ono* in the anime.

## Appearance

Haitora usually wears a bird mask that consists of a solid bone with an unmoving beak fused to the facial area. The eye sockets are hollow. Without the mask, Haitora is a middle-aged man with medium skin and grey hair. He has feather-like features over his right eye. His left eye is green.

**Clothing**

His clothing consists of a long green cloak, a grey shirt with a brown leather chest piece and brown leather belt that feathers out into several strands at the end, green pants down to his knees and black boots that resemble the feet of a large bird.

## Personality

Fairly reserved, he does not show discontent, not at his illness, neither to a sand shark or being found out as being human. He was willing to reveal this to Golem among other sensitive information that ended up helping Somali.

## Story Overview

In the past Haitora lived with his wife and daughter in a human village, until it was raided by non-humans. While being transported, the human slaves staged a commotion that allowed some, including Haitora’s family to escape. Though the trio wandered in the forests, growing close to starvation due to the lack of food. Haitora coming across a bird-like non-human, killed her so as to use her flesh to feed his family. The flesh however proved poisonous and killed his wife and daughter, though Haitora survived but his face was malformed with feathers due to ingesting the flesh. He came upon a young Uzoi, and realizing he had killed her mother and brought deaths to his family, decided to take her in and raise her as a form of atonement.

Haitora evidently hears the commotion and walks over to ask Uzoi what she is doing as she argues over the last scoop of ice cream with Somali.

At a table together in Winecup Village, he shares with Golem that they are searching for medicine since he is in rather poor health.

Agreeing with Uzoi's offer to have Somali and Golem travel with them across the desert, later he asks her whether there was more to the suggestion than kindness.

He is surprised when Uzoi says that Somali has a similar smell to him, and wonders what would a human be doing with a golem.

Listening to Uzoi's plan for them once in the desert, he is apprehensive but cannot comment further since his illness results in him coughing up blood.

As he steers the wagon through the desert, Haitora is handed a gun when a sand shark is spotted. Firing the weapon, it produces a flash which allows them to escape.

Reaching a cave, he informs Uzoi that he and Mr. Golem will pitch the tent.

With the issues raised, he asks why Golem is studying humans if it is anything to do with Somali. Haitora then states he is a human and that Uzoi's plan was to use Somali's blood to help cure his own.

For everything, he has done Haitora felt he had to die and to that end, he used himself as a decoy for a canterbird attacking Somali and Uzoi. From blood loss as a result of his illness and exhaustion, he trips and falls over in the sand.

Haitora is saved by Uzoi and told to stop thinking that he needs to die to make things right.

## Relationships

### Somali

A young girl disguised as a minotaur who he travels with through a desert.

### Golem

Traveling with him, they set up camp and raising the matter of humans, he explains what Uzoi's plan is.

### Uzoi

His companion who he has been traveling with since she was very young. Needing help on account of his illness, he cared for her deeply even given the possibility she could turn hostile to him. Haitora tells her she is the only thing he lives for and he would have given up his life anytime she asked for it.

## Abilities

* He is an accomplished marksman, aiming through a sand storm to fire at and distract a sand shark.