Hatori Souma

Hatori is calm, responsible and outwardly severe. He frequently serves as the practical counterweight to Shigure and Ayame, whose behavior can exhaust his patience.

His apparent coldness is largely protective. Hatori understands how severely the Souma family's internal rules can punish emotional attachments, so his early warnings to Tooru come from experience rather than hostility.

He is also compassionate in understated ways. Hatori treats sick family members, looks after younger Zodiac members and quietly intervenes when Shigure or Ayame's behavior goes too far.

Hatori transforms under the Zodiac curse, although the "Dragon" manifests as a small seahorse rather than the enormous mythical creature the title suggests.

He is a trained physician and serves as the Souma family's private doctor, treating both conventional illnesses and situations involving the cursed members.

Hatori also possesses the ability to suppress or erase specific memories through hypnosis. The family uses this when outsiders discover secrets that cannot be allowed to spread, placing Hatori in the painful position of carrying out decisions that can permanently alter relationships.

Hatori initially appears threatening because Yuki warns Tooru that he is responsible for erasing memories. When Hatori summons her to the main estate, however, his concern is that remaining close to the Soumas could eventually hurt her.

His own past explains that warning. Hatori once attempted to build a future with Kana Souma, his assistant and fiancée, only for their relationship to bring them into direct conflict with Akito.

After Akito violently opposes their engagement and injures Hatori's eye, Kana is consumed by guilt. Hatori ultimately erases her memories of their relationship so that she can recover, sacrificing the life they had planned together.

Kana Souma was Hatori's assistant and the woman he intended to marry. [He erases Kana Souma's memories of their romance after trauma and guilt leave her psychologically unable to cope.](#spoiler)

Shigure Souma and Ayame Souma are Hatori's oldest friends. Hatori frequently restrains Ayame Souma's excesses while remaining wary of Shigure Souma's manipulative tendencies.

Tooru Honda initially receives a warning from Hatori to distance herself from the Soumas, but he gradually comes to trust her influence on the family.

Akito Souma controls much of Hatori's life as family head and is responsible for some of his most painful experiences.

Mayuko Shiraki is an old acquaintance connected to Kana. Hatori and Mayuko gradually move toward a romantic relationship after both have spent years carrying unresolved feelings.