Kanta Higurashi

* Manga
* Anime

**Kanta Higurashi** (日暮 莞太, *, *Higurashi Kanta**?) is a character in Zombie 100. He is a former NEET and the leader of his group, consisting of people he found during the apocalypse's first days.

## Appearance

Higurashi is a young man of average height with a poor, slouched posture. He has messy black hair styled in a wolf cut, with sullen, disillusioned black eyes that have eyebags underneath them. As a chain smoker, he is always seen with a cigarette on his lips.

His outfit consisted of a plain black t-shirt when he was a NEET and a pair of black sweatpants.

During his stay in Gunma, he is shown wearing a black sweater paired with beige-colored sweatpants. He wore a pair of dark blue sneakers with white laces and vamps for footwear.

## Personality

Throughout his childhood, Higurashi seemed to be a very shy and quiet kid. He mentions having friends in his elementary years, but over time his quietness took over. He spent most of high school reading and listening to comedy sketches. During his time in college, Higurashi, Kencho, and Akira become acquainted. He was infuriated with Akira, as he grew jealous of how he lived everyday carefree and with no worries. When the zombie apocalypse happened, similar to Akira, Higurashi was thrilled.

In many ways, Higurashi is a dark reflection of Akira. Whereas Akira was a joyful person, full of dreams and enthusiasm, Higurashi was a disillusioned man who isolated himself from society, actively refusing to work, for what he perceived as meager wages, while indulging himself in video games and cigarettes. Thus his elation at watching the zombie apocalypse unfold was not out of any sense of liberation from dehumanizing conditions like Akira suffered, but rather out of a perverse sense of freedom in which he could do as he pleased without anybody to demand anything out of him.

He eventually met, like-minded bitter individuals who shared a hatred of society that they perceived as shunning them for not being "useful". His priorities in the now chaotic world were thus very simple; to indulge himself in malignant pleasure, by engaging in immoral and even criminal acts at the expense of everyone else, out of a sense of entitlement and petty revenge. He showed sadistic behavior, demonstrated in his acts of hurling dynamites at houses, depriving villagers of safe places to hide. His most immoral act was when he tried to force Akira's hand to turn himself into a zombie by saving his dad, and then taking him hostage, showing the lengths his sadistic cruelty will go to.

However, when his plans fail, he is prone to having mental breakdowns that leave him vulnerable to attacks, which eventually became his undoing.

It seems that the combination of being lonely and introverted turned him into the bitter, empty person he was at the moment, who is naturally envious of people like Akira due to the latter's natural ability to socialize and have fun with each other.

Only after being defeated, did he truly realize that his one true desire was to hang out and have fun with friends, which he was unable to do due to his shy nature. Making peace with Akira and with his real wish.

## Story

### Manga

Higurashi's first appearance is in Episode 9, with him walking along with his group, who passed Akira and his dad on the way. Akira remarks he knows him after they've mostly gone out of range.

The next scene shows Higurashi standing in front of the barricaded tunnel filled with zombies along with his group. One of them asked if they were doing this, to which he said "Of course".

The scene now pans out from his tired eyes to his room clad in no light, browsing jobs on his PC with an overflowing ashtray right next to it. He grumbles about the prices, remarking working is for losers and later about making the "old woman" get more [cigarettes] for him, but eventually goes out to presumably buy some for himself.

While walking through the streets, he monologues to himself when he started falling behind everyone, commenting on a life unwanted by society and others, to where he also laments about wishing he could go back to summer break, specifically in grade school where he didn't have to worry about anything, and have fun with his friends at the pool and do whatever he wanted.

He eventually stumbles into a woman being eaten by a zombie, and he is then chased by said zombie, running out of the alley he was in. He then comes across absolute chaos, to which he malignantly smiles, exclaiming that he is finally free. He gleefully announces that it's always summer break every day. Moments later, he is shown taking as many cigarette packets as he can, stuffing them in a bag with a smile on his face, until he hears a sound and finds the future members of his group.

He then remarks that going to the pool all by yourself is lame, an euphemism for what he is about to do. Together with his new group, they began listing all the horrific and illegal acts that they wanted to do before they became zombies. Almost the same thing Akira wrote in his notebook, but with a darker, sinister tone.

In Episode 10, his next appearance shows when he wanders around Gunma and eventually gets the attention of Kenichirou. Upon spotting Akira, he grew increasingly irritated and turned his back on them with a huff. He spits out his cigarette in anger and remembers all the times he saw Akira and Kenichirou, happy and laughing, with him noticeably away and in the shadows, signifying his feelings of loneliness, of being out of place. He comments that it's been a while since he saw their [annoying] faces and they [Akira and Kencho] always look so happy with themselves. Having gotten a nasty idea, he smiles with all his teeth that this [situation] is perfect.

He is seen now in front of the barricaded area of zombies, along with his group, opening with the phrase "Sorry to keep you zombies waiting". Without further ado, his group piloted a bulldozer with stolen keys and started removing it, with its absence the wall of sandbags keeping the zombies barricaded fell out of their positions, essentially unleashing the zombies into the village. He takes malicious glee on the destruction and mayhem that happens, while he and his group are cozily safe upon the bulldozer. Upon seeing the villagers head inside houses for safety, he started lighting up dynamites and throwing them to cause explosions destroying said houses. He and his group eventually come across the quartet [Akira, Shizuka, Kencho, and Bea], to which he gleefully remarks that they sure are persistent [surviving].

Upon being asked by Kencho if they did this. Higurashi affirms with a malicious smile. When Akira why did he do this, he says "*They're just going to become zombies anyway, they might as well do what they wanted before then*", holding a notebook eerily similar to Akira's. He then tells the latter that "*he'll love to see him [Akira] become a zombie in front of his own eyes*". When asked by Kencho what's his problem with Akira. Higurashi snarled that he always hated Akira for being happy, saying he was disgusted by it. He remarks that this is our last summer break ever. He is then confronted by Akira's words, which angered him. He then cruelly states that this is a competition to see who finishes their bucket list first.

In Episode 11, he makes his appearance by pulling up Akira's dad from the zombies and saving him. He then asks Akira for the surefire way to turn him into a zombie, and then in a show of absurd cruelty, takes Teruo hostage and demands that if he wants his dad to live, Akira must get out of the house he was in and zombify himself. With more cruel taunts and insults hurling at his way.

In Episode 12, Higurashi reminisces about how in elementary school, he had friends like everyone else, recounting how his life was at its peak back then. But then, as middle school happened, everyone noticed that he was naturally an introvert, and eventually became lonely by himself. He mentioned that he tried to change himself in college, joining numerous other organizations but he felt that to everyone else, he was an empty, visionless, self-conscious idiot. He once saw Akira with Kencho and remarked that he should've been like him, but in his words, Akira "*cruised through life without a care in the world*".

Back to the present, Higurashi takes a huff of his cigarette and remarks, disappointed that a "half-dead old man doesn't mean much of a hostage". He then watches, with bewilderment, as the door opens and Akira screams, seemingly getting bitten. Akira then comes out, seemingly zombified, while Higurashi laughs in malicious joy. Higurashi gleefully taunts Akira, who, after seeing Higurashi reachable enough, reveals he's not bitten, and throws him off the bulldozer. Higurashi demands in disbelief what just happened. After the flashback that explains the events, Higurashi has a mental breakdown from being outsmarted by Akira. When asked what he wanted to do, while caught in his reverie, Higurashi is bitten by a zombie on his ankle, to which he viciously bashes the head with his kicks while screaming in hysteria.

While being zombified, Higurashi brokenly reveals that all he wanted to do was to have fun in the pool with his friends. It was then revealed that back then, Akira approached him, but Higurashi ran away due to his fear of rejection and as a result, missed the opportunity to become friends with him.

Higurashi has another breakdown while being embraced by Akira, who tells him that when in the future, if he becomes a zombie as well, he'll join Higurashi in the pool so he'll never be alone again, Higurashi then pushes away Akira to safety while heading to the zombies, unintentionally distracting them. He is never then seen again.

### Anime

Higurashi's death is expanded more in the anime. After reaching the riverbank and on the brink of being zombified, Higurashi recalls Akira's promise and therefore hallucinates a scene where a zombified Akira is at the pool, waiting for him. Higurashi smiled while tearing up, and without further ado, commits suicide by letting himself drown in the river.

## Relationships

### Akira Tendou

Akira and Higurashi are acquaintances, as they attended the same college. It has then later on expanded. Higurashi loathes Akira for enjoying his life, which comes from a place of jealousy and envy upon the latter's happiness.

### Kenichirou Ryuuzaki

Kenichirou and Higurashi are acquaintances, as they attended the same college. With Kencho's association with Akira, Higurashi hates him as well by deault.

## Etymology

* The name **Kanta** means "smiling, reed used to cover tatami" (莞) (**kan**) and "thick, big, great" (太) (**ta**).
* Kanta's surname **Higurashi** means "sun, day" (日) (**hi**) and "evening, livelihood/make a living, spend time" (暮) (**gurashi**).