Character Relationship Map: Liverleaf

Characters

• Nozaki Haruka (played by Anna Yamada) — protagonist

  A student in a small rural town, Haruka is isolated and relentlessly bullied by her classmates because of her connection with Mitsuru Aiba. After her family home is destroyed by a fire and Nozaki Kazu...

• Mitsuru Aiba (played by Hiroya Shimizu) — supporting

  Mitsuru is connected to Haruka, and that connection contributes to her isolation at school. Although Taeko Oguro and the other students deny that Haruka’s treatment has anything to do with Mitsuru, th...

• Taeko Oguro (played by Rinka Otani) — supporting

  Taeko is one of the students who participates in the hostility toward Haruka while insisting that Haruka’s situation is unrelated to Mitsuru Aiba. After the fire and the disappearances of other studen...

• Risako Kato (played by Ayaka Konno) — supporting

  Risako is a student whose disappearance becomes a major source of fear among the remaining students. Her vanishing, alongside Yoshie Tachibana and Yuri Mishima, fuels rumors of murder and contributes...

• Yoshie Tachibana (played by Seina Nakata) — supporting

  Yoshie is one of the students whose disappearance intensifies fear in the isolated town. After she vanishes along with Yuri Mishima and Risako Kato, rumors spread that they have been killed, causing t...

• Kyoko Minami (played by Aki Morita) — supporting

  Kyoko is Haruka’s teacher and witnesses the cruelty directed at her, but feels pressured to preserve a peaceful final term because the school is closing. She is mocked when she becomes physically ill,...

• Hidetoshi Kuga (played by Kenshin Endo) — supporting

  Hidetoshi becomes a suspected figure after the students admit that they started the fire to frighten Haruka. They argue over whether he was responsible, with one student citing a burn scar on his hand...

• Yuri Mishima (played by Arisa Sakura) — supporting

  Yuri is one of the students who disappears as the conflict surrounding Haruka grows more dangerous. Her disappearance, together with those of Yoshie Tachibana and Risako Kato, leads to rumors that the...

• Nozaki Kazuo (played by Masahiro Toda) — minor

  Kazuo is a member of Haruka’s family who tries to support her after the bullying becomes unbearable, telling her that she does not have to return to school. When a fire destroys the family home, he di...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Nozaki Kazuo → Nozaki Haruka (Family Member) — Kazuo is a protective member of Haruka's family.

  At home, Nozaki Kazuo tells Haruka that she does not have to return to school. He later dies during the fire while protecting another family member.

• Kyoko Minami → Taeko Oguro (Professional Teacher) — Kyoko occupies a supervisory role over Taeko and the other students.

  Kyoko Minami is the teacher responsible for the students while they participate in the escalating bullying and later turn against one another.

• Kyoko Minami → Nozaki Haruka (Professional Teacher) — Kyoko is Haruka's teacher but is constrained by the school's impending closure.

  Kyoko Minami is Haruka's teacher and sees the cruelty directed at her. She is pressured to preserve a peaceful final term because the school is closin...

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Taeko Oguro → Hidetoshi Kuga (Conflict Disputed Responsibility) — Taeko is part of the student dispute surrounding Hidetoshi's alleged responsibility.

  The students argue over whether Hidetoshi was responsible for the fire, while Taeko later confronts her own role in allowing the bullying.

• Taeko Oguro → Yoshie Tachibana (Social Student Group Member) — Both are connected to the same hostile student group.

  Taeko is described alongside the other students who humiliate Haruka, and Yoshie is later identified as one of the students who disappears amid the gr...

• Hidetoshi Kuga → Nozaki Haruka (Conflict Suspected Aggressor) — Hidetoshi becomes a suspected participant in the fire-related conflict.

  After the fire, the students argue over whether Hidetoshi was responsible, and one student cites a burn scar on his hand as evidence. Hidetoshi later...

• Yuri Mishima → Nozaki Haruka (Conflict Bullying Opponent) — Yuri is associated with the hostile student group surrounding Haruka.

  Yuri is named among the students who disappear after the group admits starting the fire to frighten Haruka.

• Risako Kato → Nozaki Haruka (Conflict Bullying Opponent) — Risako is connected to the student group whose actions intensify the conflict around Haruka.

  Risako is named among the students who disappear after the bullying and the fire. The surviving students debate whether the group's actions caused the...

• Yoshie Tachibana → Nozaki Haruka (Conflict Bullying Opponent) — Yoshie belongs to the student group implicated in the harassment and fire incident.

  Yoshie is named among the students whose disappearance follows the group's escalating hostility toward Haruka. The students also admit that they start...

• Taeko Oguro → Nozaki Haruka (Conflict Bullying Opponent) — Taeko is part of the hostile student group and later experiences guilt over it.

  Taeko Oguro and the other students participate in humiliating Haruka and placing blame on her. Later, Taeko is forced to confront her role in allowing...

• Nozaki Haruka → Mitsuru Aiba (Social Stigmatized Association) — Mitsuru's connection to Haruka becomes a source of social stigma for her.

  Haruka is isolated and bullied partly because of her connection with Mitsuru Aiba. Other students deny that her situation is related to Mitsuru while...

Story Analysis

A bullied student is trapped between escalating collective cruelty, family tragedy, guilt, suspicion, and an unresolved threat.

Plot Progression

1. A Girl Outside the Circle — Haruka is isolated in a rural school where classmates share long-standing bonds. Her connection with Mitsuru becomes an excuse for humiliation, while Kyoko recognizes the cruelty but is pressured to p...
2. Cruelty Finds a Target — A disturbing discovery in Haruka's desk intensifies the harassment. The students continue bullying her, and Kyoko is physically ill and mocked while the school authorities fail to restore safety.
3. The Fire and Its Cost — Haruka's family attempts to support her, and Kazuo tells her she need not return to school. A fire destroys the home, Kazuo dies while protecting the family, and Haruka is left grieving.
4. Guilt Beneath the Snow — The students admit starting the fire to frighten Haruka, then argue about Hidetoshi's responsibility. Several students disappear, Hidetoshi vanishes, and fear turns the remaining group against itself.
5. The Unfinished Threat — Kyoko's history of bullying reveals a painful parallel with Haruka's experience. At Haruka's home, an intruder issues a threat involving fire, but the provided dialogue ends before the confrontation i...