Kaede Hanagata

**Kaede Hanagata** (花形 (はながた) 花楓 (かえで) , , *Hanagata Kaede*?) is a detective at Inari's Special Investigation Unit under Nobimaru's command.

## Appearance

Kaede is a tall, busty young man and has a strong, firm physique. His outward appearance gives a warm air about him: big eyebrows, round orange eyes and a big smile. Due to losing one of his eyes in battle, he has heterochromia. He has a short, messy two tone haircut, which is amber on top and orange underneath. He also has an undercut. He has a number of piercings on both of his ears.

He prefers to wear his black jacket halfway, underneath he wears a white tank top. He has a tattoo extending over from his left bicep to his upper back, which depicts a fox and a maple tree surrounded by numerous small flames. A Special Investigation Unit armband can be seen on his left sleeve and he also wears black fingerless gloves with studded knuckles. On his lower half he wears black pants and sneakers. On his waist he has a chain accessory with three fur tails hanging from it.

## Personality

Kaede’s personality is the exact opposite of his partner Akagi’s. He has a friendly and sunny attitude, even greeting strangers with a cheerful smile. Unlike Akagi, he is very sociable and excited to make new acquaintances. He desires a place where no one will get mad no matter how wild he gets. As he also hates boredom, he desires a city with lots of humans.  Kaede also often displays childlike enthusiasm, especially in battle.

However, this enthusiasm quickly turns cruel and ferocious, as he does not hesitate to kill anything or anyone that prevents him from accomplishing his goal. Kaede is sometimes considered somewhat airheaded and tends to have a one-track mind, as he tends to be careless and act recklessly, doing whatever he wants. Beneath the outgoing attitude Kaede is self-centered, uninterested in others, not even understanding how his partner operates.

## Background

Not much is known, besides after being scouted by Nobimaru, joining the Special Investigation Unit, he was partnered up with Akagi.

## Powers & Abilities

* **Fire Manipulation**: By hitting his fists together, he can manipulate fire. His power can be incredibly destructive, as it’s powerful enough to obliterate large areas of land.

## Relationships

### Kazuaki Akagi

Kaede’s partner. Being total opposites, Kaede’s efforts of getting to know Akagi prove to be ineffective. Despite this, Kaede respects Akagi and enjoys working with him. He also relies on Akagi’s rationality. Through mutual understanding, they’re able to cooperate nearly perfectly.

### Umetaro Matsutake

Kaede and him are good friends. They hang out together, usually over drinks at a bar.

## Appearances

**Manga Appearances**
*Chapters in order of appearance*

Shikoku Arc

* Chapter 27 - Ambition

Shimane-Amagafuchi Arc

* Chapter 28 - Snakes of Ash
* Chapter 29 - Special Investigation Unit
* Chapter 30 - Counterattack
* Chapter 31 - Left
* Chapter 32 - On The Move
* Chapter 34 - Meet Up

Ogreham Factory Arc

* Chapter 35 - Stupid
* Chapter 36 - Bad Habit
* Chapter 41 - Important Person (cameo)

Gourd Training Arc

* Chapter 46 - Weapon
* Chapter 47 - Friends
* Chapter 48 - Autumn Leaves
* Chapter 49 - Awakening
* Chapter 50 - Mission
* Chapter 51 - Back at Yashima
* Chapter 52 - Breaking Into

## Etymology

* His surname, **Hanagata**, means "**flower-shaped**" when spoken altogether. His surname has the Kun reading for "**flower**" (花)(*hana*) and the rendaku pronunciation of "**form, shape, style**" (形)(*gata*).
* His given name, **Kaede**, meanwhile has the Kan-on reading for "**flower**" (花)(*ka*) and the Kun reading for "**maple**" (楓)(*kaede*), however, it should be noted that the "ka" in the second character is not included and instead replaced by the first.

## Trivia

* He likes all types sports, as well as horror movies.
* He dislikes boredom and being ignored.
* He spends his days off hanging out with his close friends. When he’s bored with them all, he turns up unwanted to Akagi’s place.
* He likes his meat cooked to medium, though he’s not picky.
* When asked about his preferred type, he says he likes everyone.
* Kaede doesn’t have a home of his own, so he stays the night at various people’s homes and considers them all his.

## References

*Kemono Jihen* Manga: Volume 8.
*Kemono Jihen* Manga: Chapter 41.
*Kemono Jihen* Manga: Chapter 36.
*Kemono Jihen* Manga: Chapter 27.
*Kemono Jihen* Manga: Chapter 28.
*Kemono Jihen* Manga: Chapter 30.
*Kemono Jihen* Manga: Volume 10.
*Kemono Jihen* Manga: Chapter 46.