Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku - TV Tropes (2025)

Age: 16

Birthday: Janurary 28th

• Delinquent Hair: Played with. While many assumed he dyed his hair blonde and pierced his ears to go with his Face of a Thug, the truth is he happened to catch a glimpse of a foreign baker smiling while serving customers. He was inspired to copy his appearance in hopes that he could be like him.
• Dye or Die: The night before the meeting between Kaoruko's Kikyo friends and the Chidori boys, Rintaro dyes his hair back to its natural black. He did so not out of fear of what Kaoruko's friends may think but out of love for her as he felt no longer burdened by his past insecurities.
• Face of a Thug: Has a rather stern and intimidating face, which often frightens other people or aggravates the occasional fight.
• Foil: To Subaru. Both had a Friendless Background due to their appearance and became close to Kaoruko due to her kindness. When they both eventually did come out of their shell and open up, Rintaro took it in stride and began enjoying life while Subaru lost her stern persona and became a bit of a nervous wreck.
• Forgotten First Meeting: Rintaro actually met Kaoruko not too long before the story started as she happened to come across their store when he was helping out. The kindness he showed her is what compelled her to become a regular just to see him again.
• Friendless Background: As a child, he was bullied for his parents owning a bakery and how scary he looked.
• Gentle Giant: He may be tall and intimidating, but he's very much a Nice Guy.
• Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Rintaro is already the tallest among the boys of Chidori, so he's absolutely massive compared to Kaoruko.
• Important Haircut: Rintaro no longer dyes his hair blonde as of chapter 63 as he found a renewed purpose in life with Kaoruko.
• Nice Guy: He's a very kind, gentle and morally upstanding guy, and that's the main trait he has in common with Kaoruko.
• Real Men Wear Pink: Rintaro starts out somewhat ashamed of his family owning a cake shop and him helping out there, yet he accepts it over the course of the story and even starts baking himself.

Age: 16 (17 after chapter 31)

Birthday: July 22nd

• All Girls Want Bad Boys: Averted. Kaoruko fell in love with Rintaro because of his kindness and not for his looks.
• All-Loving Hero: She'll try and make friends with anyone regardless of class or apperance.
• Class Princess: She's popular and well-liked for being cute, sweet and kind.
• He is Not My Boyfriend: Averted. Despite knowing the bad blood between Chidori and Kikyo, when confronted by a group of her classmates she introduces Rintaro as her boyfriend without hesitation.
• Nice Girl: Her kindness is the main trait she shares with Rintaro. She's friendly and approachable, doesn't have a mean bone in her body and is always ready to help others.
• Scholarship Student: Entered Kikyo on a scholarship as her family couldn't afford its steep tuition. Her status as one made her a bit of an outcast as the other students of Kikyo all come from wealthy backgrounds, though she's quickly accepted due to her personality.

• All Men Are Perverts. Played with. While they aren't above indulging in erotic magazines, they show little to no interest in the girls of the neighboring Kikyo.
• True Companions: The quartet of Rintaro, Ayato, Saku, and Shouhei are friends through thick and thin.

Age: 16

Birthday: March 16th

• The Baby of the Bunch: The youngest of four brothers, with the eldest being 15 years older than Ayato.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Do not hurt his friends.
• Broken Pedestal: For his oldest brother. Ayato wanted to become a police officer like his oldest in order to match his strong sense of justice, but when one day he returned home to announce he had quit the police force it devastated Ayato.
• The Heart: The emotional center of the group.
• Improbable Aiming Skills: Had a 100% accuracy rate when he and Madoka played an arcade shooter. It's somewhat justified as he aspires to be a police officer and reads books about the profession religiously.
• Martial Pacifist: He doesn't enjoy fighting like the other boys of Chidori as when he was in elementary he often fought a lot, particularly with his much older brothers. However when he's angry, particularly when his friends are threatened, he's an amazing fighter.
• Pint-Sized Powerhouse: The shortest in their group but suggested to have taken down a group of delinquents all by himself, some of whom where even as tall as Rintaro.

Age: 16

Birthday: August 21st

• The Ace: As smart, if not smarter than the girls of Kikyo Academy, talented at sports, and good looks on top of it. Its a mystery to his classmates as to why he ended up going to Chidori of all places.
• The Atoner: Went to Chidori due to having an Unknown Rival in middle school, vowing to never get in the way of someone who tries hard to excel academically as he never took studying seriously but always placed on top. He's also taken to improving his tutoring skills so as to ensure he won't leave anyone behind.
  • Come chapter 114, he made amends with Hidaka.
• Brilliant, but Lazy: Played with. By his own admission he never took studying seriously but excelling academically came naturally to him. He went to Chidori not because he flunked the entrance exams or ruined his reputation but it was his first and only choice as he was atoning for his lack of enthusiasm for studying.
• Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: The responsible one to his little sister.
• Friendless Background: He was ostracized in middle school for being academically The Ace. Hidaka was the only person he could've made friends with he inadvertently drove away as he didn't quite understand why he worked so hard to beat him in exams.
• Hidden Depths: Saku's intelligence is on par with, if not greater than the coursework of Kikyo Academy as Subaru was shocked to see him solve an exercise so quickly.
• Not So Above It All: As aloof and indifferent he tries to be, the scent of donuts is enough to get him to come around.
• Origins Episode: Chapter 70 & 71 serve as Saku's backstory in middle school and how he ended up in Chidori despite being academically talented.
• Ship Tease: Heavily with Subaru.
• Trademark Favorite Food: Donuts.
• Tsundere: Platonic Harsh-type. Typically has a rather sour demeanor and sharp tongue but is easily flustered when praised. He's especially sensitive to being left out, as he took Rintaro keeping what he was doing with the Kikyo girls a secret the hardest.
  • Perhaps especially so towards Subaru, as the two initially began on bad terms due to the students of Kikyo and Chidori often feuding with each other. However after she and Kaoruko began hanging around their group more, he quickly warmed up to Subaru and was even the first one to outright state they were friends. He even gave her a set of donuts from a shop he noticed her looking at.

    Saku, to Subaru: "I don't spend lots of time with people I don't consider close. I wouldn't study with them, I wouldn't play video games with them. And I definitely wouldn't go to the beach and hang out with someone I'm not close with, either... I already consider you a friend!"

• Unknown Rival: A classmate from his past declared he'd beat him in the exams though it never really clicked with Saku.
• WhenHeSmiles: Saku is typically aloof and doesn't often wear his emotions on his sleeve, so its often a big deal when he can have a genuine smile.

Age: 17

Birthday: May 27th

• Big Eater: He's very food motivated and, especially when outside of school, is typically seen having food close.
• Cannot Keep a Secret: Has almost let it slip that he and the rest of Rinatro's friends are close to the Kikyo girls. He's also not one to wait for Rintaro to be honest with his feelings, often confronting him head on about it to the chagrin of Saku and Ayato.
• Kindhearted Simpleton: Easily the dumbest of the group and frequent Butt-Monkey, but he's got a heart of gold.

• Reasonable Authority Figure: Firm but fair with his students.

• All Girls Want Bad Boys: Averted. The girls of Kikyo Academy have an intense hatred for the boys of Chidori because they're all low class delinquents.
• Alpha Bitch: The girls of Kikyo Academy carry themselves with an air of superiority, especially when they happen to cross paths with the boys of the neighboring Chidori high.
• Not So Above It All: As much as they look down on the boys of Chidori high, the girls of Kikyo often lament that boys seems like they're always having fun and living their best life while they're stuck in a never ending cycle of studying.

Age: 16

Birthday: November 19th

• Defrosting Ice Queen: She originally held the boys of Chidori with the same contempt the rest of the Kikyo girls do, but after coming to terms with Rintaro's friendship with Kaoruko she warmed up to him. The sentiment even extended to Rintaro's friends.
• Foil: To Rintaro. Both had a Friendless Background due to their appearance and became close to Kaoruko due to her kindness. When they both eventually did come out of their shell and open up, Rintaro took it in stride and began enjoying life while Subaru lost her stern persona and became a bit of a nervous wreck.
• Does Not Like Men: As a result of bullying from when she was a child due to her silver hair. She's getting over it though as she spends more time with the Chidori boys and even seeks to attend a co-ed high school to get over her fear of men.
• Hopeless with Tech: While she's able to use her smartphone without difficulty, Subaru tends to struggle with other devices.
• Ojou: Of the Proper Lady variety.
• Ship Tease: Heavily with Saku.
• Yamato Nadeshiko: While she lacks dark hair she nonetheless is one to a fault. Even over text she's overly formal, though Rintaro notices she's getting more relaxed as she gets accustomed to them.

Age: 17

Birthday: June 11th

• Alpha Bitch: Subverted. She never really saw a point to hating the Chidori students, especially since she's never met any of them personally.
• Brainy Brunette: Played with. While she's not up to the high standards of Kikyo, she was at least smart enough to get in and avoid make up classes.
• Gamer Chick: She'd much rather be playing video games than studying.

Age: 16

Birthday: March 25th

• Always Someone Better: How she came to view Kaoruko for a while as Kaoruko consistently placed first in exams while she could never rise above having middling scores.
• Does Not Like Men: Downplayed. Her disdain for Chidori is largely a cover for her own insecurities rather than genuine hatred.
• Inferiority Superiority Complex: Of Kaourko's friend group, she was the least acceptive of associating with the Chidori boys as looking down on them was a means of coping with her own academic mediocrity. It comes to a breaking point when she learns Natsusawa is able to handle Kikyo's coursework with ease.

Age: 17

Birthday: June 25th

Age: 16

Birthday: January 14th

• Girlish Pigtails

Age: 45

Birthday: May 5th

• Delinquent Hair: Played with. While she does have a sharp temper like her son, Kyoko only dyed her hair blonde to match with Rintaro so he wasn't doing it alone.
• My Greatest Failure: Has deep regret for not being there as much as she could be for Rintaro when he was a child.
• Supreme Chef: Does most of the cooking for the family and also works in the family's bakery, though she's second only to her husband as he's the head pâtissier.

Age: 47

Birthday: April 18th

• Disappeared Dad: Subverted. Given how only Kyoko typically appears in early chapters and he's typically faceless or non-existent in flashbacks, it's reasonable to assume that Rintaro's dad may have left at some point given how he turned out and it in general being a common feature in the medium. The truth of the matter, however, is that he's simply dead tired a majority of the time as he's the head pâtissier for the family bakery. In his first actual appearance he has to be dragged to the couch after passing out from exhaustion. Its also implied he and Rintaro actually have a great relationship as he was happy that Rintaro came to him for baking advice.
• Face of a Thug: Played for Laughs. Has a stern face like his son and scowls often, though its largely a result of him being tired from working too much.
• So Proud of You: Seeing Rintaro finally enjoying his youth with his friends and show genuine passion for baking fills him with immense pride.
• Supreme Chef: Head pâtissier of the family bakery.

Age: 20

• It Runs in the Family: Inherited his father's extreme work ethic and penchant for passing out on the stairs.
• Posthumous Sibling: Subverted. Much like Keichiro, many of the flashbacks and family photos kept his face obscured somewhat suggesting he may have passed away before the events of the story. In actuality, he's just been working hard as a beautician.
• Real Men Wear Pink: Works as a beautician.

Age: 14

Birthday: Feburary 11th

• Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: The foolish one to her older brother.

Age: 46

Birthday: November 22nd

• Delicate and Sickly: Has been in and out of the hospital numerous times de to frequent illness. It's actually the reason Kaoruko met Rintaro as the hospital she often stays at happened to be close to his family's bakery.

Age: 13

Birthday: April 23rd