I Want to Eat Your Pancreas - Characters & Cast

Initially, his motivation is simply to fulfill his promise to Sakura to keep her secret. This passive motivation evolves as he spends more time with her. He becomes motivated by a genuine desire to be with her and, eventually, to understand and embrace her philosophy of life. After her death, his motivation is to honor her memory by living fully and connecting with others.

Haruki begins the film as an unnamed, withdrawn and introverted high school student who believes he has no need for other people. His chance encounter with Sakura and her diary forces him out of his self-imposed isolation. Throughout their time together, Sakura's vibrant personality challenges his worldview, and he slowly learns the value of human connection, friendship, and vulnerability. By the end of the film, after grappling with profound grief, he is transformed. He learns to open up, forms a friendship with Sakura's best friend Kyoko, and chooses to live a life engaged with the world, fully embracing the lessons Sakura taught him. His name, revealed late in the film, means "spring trees," symbolizing his potential for growth, which Sakura helped realize.

Her primary motivation is to live a normal life and experience as much as she can in the time she has left. She is driven by a desire to form a genuine connection with someone who knows her secret but doesn't treat her differently because of it. She wants to ensure her life has meaning, which she finds through her relationships.

Sakura is presented as a cheerful, popular, and endlessly energetic girl. However, her outward personality is a conscious choice to live fully despite her terminal illness, which she keeps secret from her friends. Her arc is not one of drastic change, but of finding a unique and honest connection with Haruki, who allows her to be herself without the pity or special treatment she would receive from others. He becomes the sole keeper of her secret, and in their friendship, she finds a unique solace. While she is the one teaching Haruki to live, he, in turn, gives her a sense of normalcy and a companion with whom she can be vulnerable. Her final diary entries reveal the profound impact Haruki had on her, showing that their relationship was mutually transformative.

Her motivation is her deep love and protectiveness for Sakura. She wants to ensure her best friend is happy and safe, which fuels her initial suspicion of Haruki. After learning the truth, her motivation shifts to understanding and honoring Sakura's memory.

Kyoko is Sakura's best friend, fiercely protective and initially hostile towards Haruki, whom she sees as an unworthy and strange companion for Sakura. Unaware of Sakura's illness, she misinterprets Haruki's closeness to her as him taking advantage of her. Her arc is one of grief, denial, and eventual acceptance. After Sakura's death, Haruki shares the diary with her, revealing the truth. This painful revelation allows her to truly understand Sakura's final months and Haruki's role in them. Overcoming her anger, she forms a friendship with Haruki, and they bond over their shared love for Sakura, visiting her grave together a year later.