Tohru Honda

Spoiler! This page contains major plot spoilers related to the Fruits Basket manga, not yet revealed in the anime. Read at your own risk!

Information

Relationships

Quotes

Gallery

Designs

Tohru Honda
Manga Anime Re-Design Past Design 2019 Anime 2001 Anime
Kanji	本田 透
Rōmaji	Honda Tōru
Description
Gender	Female
Age	16 (Beginning of the series) 18 (End of the series)
Height	161 cm / 5'3
Weight	46 kg / 101.4 lbs
Hair Color	Brown
Eye Color	Brown (Manga, 2019 Anime) Blue (2001 Anime)
Blood Type	O
Year	Dog
Astrological Sign	Taurus
Professional Status
Occupation	Student
Affiliation	Sohma Family Kaibara Municipal High School
Relatives
Parents	Katsuya Honda (Father) † Kyoko Honda (Mother) †
Spouse	Kyo Sohma (Husband)
Children	Hajime Sohma (Son) Unnamed Son Unnamed Daughter
Extended Family	Unnamed Parental Grandfather Unnamed Parental Grandmother † Unnamed Parental Aunt Unnamed Parental Uncle Unnamed Parental Cousin Unnamed Parental Cousin Unnamed Maternal Grandparents Unnamed Granddaughter Unnamed Daughter-in-law Kazuma Sohma (Father-in-law) Unnamed Father-in-law Unnamed Mother-in-law †
Debut
Manga	Chapter 1
Anime	Episode 1 (2001) Episode 1 (2019)
Voice Actors
Japanese	Hiroko Konishi (Drama CD) Yui Horie (2001) Manaka Iwami (2019)
English	Laura Bailey

“	I want to protect them. I want to use all the strength I have to protect the paths they’re walking on.	”
—Tohru Honda about the Sohma Family.

Tohru Honda (本田 透, Honda Tōru) is the main protagonist of the Fruits Basket series. She is the only daughter to the late Kyoko and Katsuya Honda.

Tohru is a student at Kaibara Municipal High School. She loves to cook, describes herself as an excellent housekeeper, and has an after-school job as an office janitor to pay her tuition fees to avoid being a burden to her relatives. She is depicted as a polite, optimistic, independent, extremely kind, and selfless person with a nurturing personality.

Following her mother's death which left her orphaned, Tohru begins living with Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo Sohma due to accidentally setting up a tent on their property. She later learns that thirteen members of the Sohma family are cursed, as they turn into animals of the Chinese Zodiac if they are embraced by anyone of the opposite sex or when their bodies come under a great deal of stress. As the series progresses, Tohru meets and befriends the rest of the zodiac and the family's mysterious head, Akito Sohma, and resolves to break the curse that burdens them. Only later does she admit that she wants to free Kyo most of all.

In Fruits Basket Another, she is married to Kyo and the mother of three children, with her oldest son Hajime Sohma acting as one of the main characters.

Appearance

Tohru's full appearance in the anime.

Tohru is a fair-skinned, slim girl of average height who is considered to be quite cute. She has waist-length, straight, brown hair and an eyebrow-length fringe that frames her round, brown eyes (blue in the 2001 anime). She has two long strands of hair, laid on her shoulders. She usually wears bows in her hair which are often pink or yellow in color, and sometimes they're blue or purple. She either wears a large one in the back or two smaller ones that pull her hair back to the sides. Outside of school, she either has her hair untied, in pigtails, in a ponytail, or in braids.

Her school uniform is a classic naval-styled Japanese school uniform. The uniform has a blue mini-skirt with pleats and ruffles at the hem, and a white and blue top with a jacket. She wears blue socks that go up to mid-shin, and brown slip-on shoes. This is the outfit she is most commonly seen in, although she is known for wearing other short dresses.

Tohru wears simple and practical clothes when she is not in her uniform. Her work uniform as a janitor is a light blue shirt and pants. She wears whites gloves and styles her hair in pigtails, which she covers with a white bandana. Her swimsuit is a one-piece with daisies. The only time she dresses up is when other characters like Ayame Sohma or Mine Kuramae dress her. She wears a large ballgown as a costume when she plays the "not-so-evil stepsister" in the school play Sorta Cinderella.

Personality

Tohru is an extremely kind-hearted, gentle, optimistic, honest, empathetic, and cheerful girl who sees good in everyone she meets and is willing to help them no matter what. She doesn't hold any grudges toward those who have wronged her, especially in regards to Akito who has physically and emotionally scarred most of the Cursed Sohmas. Despite losing her father at a very young age, her mother in her teens, and even living in a tent for a while, she always has a smile on her face, remains hardworking, dedicated, independent, and positive. On the other hand, she is considered to be spacey, innocent, and very naïve, and Tohru herself tries to be so nice all the time that she never says a word of complaint even if others treat her badly. She has a bit of a problem with standing up for herself, but as the series goes on, Tohru learns to speak up and make self-serving requests once in a while. Tohru notes that despite how she seems, she can be quite stubborn about doing the right thing and never goes along with something she doesn't agree with. She is also very protective of her friends and family, and has no trouble standing up for them despite her fears.

Despite her clumsy and air-headed personality, Tohru is emotionally intelligent and insightful when it comes to people's feelings, and shows glimpses of wisdom from time to time. Most of the advice Tohru gives to others comes from conversations she had with Kyoko or as a result of her slowly healing from the pain of her mother's death. According to Yuki Sohma, Tohru is a nurturing girl who is willing to give everything she can without expecting anything in return, and she always says the things one wants to hear the most. Because of this, Yuki, as well as Isuzu Sohma to a certain degree, sees a "mother-figure" in her, while Kisa Sohma views her as an "older sister" type of figure. However, Tohru's self-sacrificing kindness and tendency to put other's needs before her own has caused her to neglect herself to the point of misery, and she obsessively sidelines her own needs and problems. Partly because she wants to take care of her friends, but really because she views herself as a burden and can't face her own trauma. Behind her cheerful personality, she has serious self-esteem issues and an unhealthy inability to move on from her mother's death. Tohru almost never talks about her mother in the past tense, and her over-attachment to photos of her; such as treating it as though it really is her, shows that she's still unable to cope with her death.

Tohru's most notable quirk is how she always speaks very politely, which she proudly admits she inherited from her father. She uses polite language incorrectly, to people she's close to, or even in situations where it is unnecessary. However, it is later revealed that Tohru only mimicked her father's, Katsuya, speech patterns and personality traits to remind Kyoko of him after Kyoko's psychological breakdown in the hopes it would keep her mother from leaving her, and due to her father's family's statements that she was probably the daughter of a man her mother had an affair with. She also has a deep-rooted fear of being abandoned because it reminds her of the time Kyoko left her alone in the house to attempt suicide after Katsuya died.

As the series goes on, Tohru grows more confident to tell people what is on her mind, and at one point she even shows all of her "bad" traits to Kyo, such as confessing that she has secretly resented her father for almost "taking" her mother away from her. She becomes embittered towards the circumstances of the curse and even stubbornly argues with Rin that she won't stop before she succeeds. When she gets in a fight with Kagura Sohma, she refuses to apologize and doesn't expect an apology from her either. Tohru later reveals that she doesn't want to free just anyone from the Curse, but Kyo specifically, since he had become the most important person to her. Although she feels guilty about it because she fears she's demeaning her mother's memory by placing a new person in her heart, Tohru learns to live her life while still having a special place for her mother in her heart. Although she can be selfish in wanting to pursue Kyo, she is selfless in wishing him happiness even if it's without her. Upon breaking the curse, Tohru remains the stubborn and confident girl she had become, yet the similarly kind-hearted, optimistic, and cheerful girl she always has been.

History

Early Life

An infant Tohru with her parents.

Tohru was born as an only child to Kyoko and Katsuya Honda in the Year of the Dog. She lived a very peaceful life with her parents and was doted upon by both of them. Occasionally, the family would visit Tohru's grandfather, who was the only one who didn't oppose Kyoko and Katsuya's marriage. Tohru mentions that she remembers that her father would hug her close, praise her when she did something good, welcome her home, and give her many gifts. When Tohru was three years old, Katsuya and Kyoko thought about giving Tohru a younger sibling. However, Katsuya soon died of pneumonia while he was away on a business trip.

During Katsuya's funeral, Katsuya's relatives accused Tohru of being the child of an affair because they thought she doesn't look like him, and because of Kyoko's past as a delinquent and teen rebel had given some bad impressions to their family. Tohru overheard all of this, which made it harder for her to remember her father fondly. Soon after, Kyoko fell into a deep depression, to such an extent that she neglected Tohru; she didn't check up on her, didn't care for her, and didn't talk to her. Kyoko was convinced that Katsuya was waiting for her in the sea, so she went there with the thought of committing suicide in order to be reunited with her beloved. While Kyoko went on the trip, Tohru's grandfather was the only one who checked up on Tohru. Tohru, disheartened by her mother's neglect and abandonment, convinced herself that the only way to make Kyoko come back was to become like her father. As so, while Kyoko was gone, Tohru tried to remember as much as she could of Katsuya; including his tendency to speak politely.

Kyoko eventually snapped out her near-suicidal depression when she realized that her daughter still needed her. When she arrived home, Tohru welcomed her home with a smile, the same way Katsuya used to welcome Kyoko home. Kyoko broke down in tears and pulled Tohru into a hug, apologizing to her over and over. Tohru broke down in tears as well and hugged Kyoko tight.

Following this event, Kyoko lived with the thought of raising Tohru well and never abandon her again. They were extremely close and spent much time together, and Kyoko shaped much of Tohru's character by the wisdom she shared with her. Tohru was very fond of the bedtime stories her mother used to tell her, especially the ones about the Chinese Zodiac. When she heard about how the Cat was the only one deceived and made a fool in the story, she felt sorry for the Cat to such an extent that she wished she could be born in the Year of the Cat instead of the Dog.

Tohru was excluded in a game of "Fruits Basket".

Aside from her life at home with her mother, Tohru was often a victim of bullying at school. The children would play a game called "Fruits Basket" and her peers would humiliate her during the game by designating her as a rice ball instead of a fruit and never calling on her during the game. Because of this, Tohru began thinking that she didn't belong amongst the crowd, regularly feeling lonely. She was also ashamed of the fact that she was being bullied, and wasn't able to confide into her mother until much later. However, Tohru still stayed positive, hoping that someone would call out rice ball so she could play as well.

Meeting Yuki Sohma

Yuki gave Tohru his hat.

When Tohru was around six or seven, she was chased by the male bullies from her class, but ended up lost when she escaped from them. Tohru stayed hidden so they wouldn't find them, but before she knew it, dawn arrived and Tohru grew so scared that she burst into tears. However, she was found by a boy in a hat; Yuki Sohma. Without thinking, Tohru began running after him in hopes of being saved and returning back home. Even though he was much faster than her and she almost lost sight of him, Yuki would stop and wait for Tohru to catch up. When he eventually succeeded in guiding Tohru back to her home, Yuki gave her his hat and immediately disappeared from the scene since he had transformed into his Rat form. Meanwhile, Tohru and Kyoko hugged one another out of relief. Although she didn't know the identity of the boy who helped her, Tohru cherishes the memory and has kept the hat as a memento ever since. She mentions that the boy who helped when she was lost, and waited for her each time she struggled, was her "first love".

Meeting Arisa and Saki

During her middle-school years, Tohru became even more independent and took care of most of the household chores while her mother worked. Kyoko also expressed her wish for Tohru to attend high school, experience life as a high school girl, and graduate, something Kyoko herself was never able to do.

Despite her friendly personality, Tohru mostly spent her time alone at school. When she met Arisa Uotani for the first time in her first year of middle school, Arisa was still in a violent street gang and her idol was the Crimson Butterfly, as in Kyoko. Upon finding out about Arsa's idolization towards Kyoko, Tohru invited her over to her house, though Arisa was disillusioned that Kyoko had become a doting parent. It is at their home that Tohru first called Arisa "Uo-chan" after Kyoko first suggested it. The love displayed between Tohru and Kyoko leads Arisa to be reminded of the neglect of her single father, and she rejected them both.

The start of Tohru and Arisa's friendship.

Despite Arisa's harsh personality, Tohru continued to reach out to Arisa and even saved her from getting beaten by her fellow gang members and took her back to her house. Gradually embracing the loving environment that she never had, Arisa would spend more time with Tohru and Kyoko. Despite their peers' misgivings, Tohru embraced her friendship with Arisa. Arisa soon quit her gang with Kyoko's help, in which she emotionally declared wanting to become Tohru's best friend. From that point on, Arisa and Tohru became very close, and the two were often pointed out for being an odd duo.

Tohru and Saki wanted to stay together.

As Tohru reached 8th grade, Saki Hanajima transferred into the class. While most of the class ignored Saki, Tohru cheerfully reached out to her and gave her some extra food during lunch. Tohru and Arisa later invited Saki to sit with them, and despite Saki's misgivings and doubts since she was "odd", the two girls explained that they were also social outcasts in their own way. The three then began spending much time together, and Saki was given the nickname "Hana-chan" by the two girls.

Even after finding out about Saki having the power of electrical waves, Tohru confessed to Saki that she still loved her and wanted to continue being friends with her. She also consoled Saki to not distance herself, while Arisa told her to not assume things. Saki emotionally became firm friends with Tohru and Arisa as a result. The three girls found strength in each other and became inseparable best friends.

Death of Kyoko

Tohru enrolled at Kaibara Municipal High School along with Saki and Arisa. After the first day of high school, the three threw a party at Tohru's house while Kyoko was there to celebrate with them.

Tohru's grief upon losing her mother.

Tragedy struck one day as Kyoko was hit and killed in a car accident. When Tohru rushed to see her in the hospital, she had already passed away, to which Tohru became completely grief-stricken. The same morning, Tohru overslept and did not see her mother leave for work. This made Tohru extremely regretful, as she had always told her mother "Bye, be safe!" every morning before she left for the past years. For this reason, Tohru partially blames herself for her mother's death, since she was not able to see her mother off that morning. At the same time, Tohru made it a priority to graduate from high school to honor her mother's wishes.

Tohru witnessed her relatives' arguing.

After becoming orphaned, Tohru's relatives' began arguing over who would take Tohru in. It was eventually decided that Tohru's parental grandfather would take her in. He solely lived on his pension, so Tohru yearned to work so she could pay her own taxes and expenses to lessen the burden for her grandfather. During this time, Tohru's grandfather habitually began calling Tohru for "Kyoko". Everyone seemed to write this off as a result of his age, but he later admits that he started doing it because, after Kyoko's funeral, it looked like Tohru was going to fall apart if there wasn't some sort of reminder every so often that Kyoko was once alive and that other people think of her as well.

While Tohru was still mourning her mother, she was visited by Komaki Nakao. Her father was the driver of the truck that hit and killed Kyoko, and the accident killed him instantly as well. While Komaki went inside her house along with her Tohru's grandfather to offer respect, Komaki's boyfriend, Kakeru Manabe, confronted Tohru. He told her that she was disgusting for apparently thinking she was the only one deserving of sympathy while paying no attention to the other victims of the situation. This shocked Tohru greatly, and she apparently repressed this memory.

Pre-Fruits Basket

Tohru's determination.

Four months before the start of the series, Tohru's grandfather revealed that his daughter's family would be moving into their house, but that the house needed remodeling first. He explained that he would temporarily live with his daughter's family during the construction, and asked Tohru if she had a place in. Not wanting her grandfather to worry, Tohru replied that she did. However, in fact, Tohru did not want to bother anyone or have the heart to ask Arisa or Saki if she could stay with one of them, so she ultimately decided to secretly move into a tent in the woods.

Story Overview

Fruits Basket

First Year Arc

Tohru in the beginning of the series.

Tohru is first seen outside of her tent, telling her mother's picture that she will be back after school. Having a little extra time left before school, Tohru takes a stroll around when she notices a house nearby, in which she begins admiring the Chinese Zodiac figures. Shigure Sohma, the owner of the house, introduces himself while Tohru does the same, and they talk about the Zodiac before her classmate, Yuki Sohma, interrupts. Yuki and Tohru walk together to school, with Tohru learning that Yuki has a hatred for the Cat in the Zodiac. Later that night, Yuki and Shigure find her tent and question why she is there. Tohru explains her situation and offers to pay rent to them, begging them to allow her to stay in her tent there. A landslide destroyed her tent, however, and Shigure invited her to stay the night at the house. This eventually leads him to offer a room and board to Tohru in exchange for her doing household chores, which she accepts.

Tohru discovering the Sohma curse.

That same morning, an orange-haired boy named Kyo Sohma appeared and started to pick a fight against Yuki. Tohru tried to stop him and she accidentally landed on him, which caused him to turn into a cat. She also bumped into Yuki and Shigure, causing them to turn into a rat and a dog. This is how Tohru learned of the Sohma family curse, where thirteen members of the house are possessed by the spirits of the Chinese Zodiac and are transformed into their animal if hugged by someone of the opposite sex. Despite being an outsider, Tohru is still given permission by Akito Sohma to stay with Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo. Tohru quickly becomes close friends with Yuki, and her acceptance of him despite the curse inspires Yuki to better himself. And despite her initial strained relationship with Kyo, Tohru becomes good friends with him as well, and confesses that she has always liked the Cat in the Zodiac legend the most.

Tohru, Kyo, and Yuki walk home together.

Time passed with her meeting another member of the Zodiac: the Boar, Kagura Sohma, but eventually, Tohru received word from her grandfather that the renovations on his home are done. Tohru had grown so attached to the Sohma family that she found it extremely difficult to leave them. In spite of this, Tohru believed she was intruding on the Sohmas and decided to return to her grandfather's house, where she was treated poorly by her grandfather's family and became quite miserable. When Yuki and Kyo arrived to take her back to Shigure's house with her grandfather's blessing, she was thrilled.

Tohru questions Shigure about the curse.

During the school's cultural festival, Tohru met two more members of the Sohma family, Momiji and Hatori: the Rabbit and the Dragon, respectively. Hatori asked Tohru to visit the main house, though Tohru was worried that Hatori was going to erase her memories. During her meeting with Hatori, Tohru learned about Hatori's past with Kana, his assistant turned lover, and how he had to erase her memories. He warned Tohru about the Sohmas saying that they were dangerous, but Tohru remained steadfast in her affection for the family. The encounter that was meant to frighten her away but instead gave her the first hints that the Sohma family was carrying a heavyweight. After seeing Akito for the first time, she realizes that Akito is a presence that frightens the Sohmas. She questions Shigure about the curse, but he doesn't tell her anything.

Tohru again met another member of the Zodiac soon after; the Ox, Hatsuharu Sohma, during a school track day. She learned of Yuki's abuse at the hands of Akito and was embarrassed when Hatsuharu insinuated that Yuki was much happier because of her.Tohru continued to develop a strong bond with the Sohmas during holidays like Valentine's Day, where she made chocolates for all of her friends, and White Day, where Momiji treated her, Yuki, and Kyo to a day at the hot springs. It was during this trip that Tohru realized that Momiji only was a year younger than her.

Second Year Arc

Tohru defends Yuki from Akito.

On the first day of the next school year, Hatsuharu and Momiji began to attend the same school as Tohru, Yuki, and Kyo. Akito Sohma introduced herself (at this point still identifying as male) that same day and Tohru felt intimidated by her, but still managed to defend Yuki even though she did not understand why he was so afraid. She was later seen to be determined to cheer Yuki up, and invited him and all of her other friends to play badminton.

Tohru continued to come into contact with other members of the Zodiac, meeting the Snake, Ayame, who is also Yuki's older brother.

She also met Momiji's mother, who had no memories of her son as she broke down upon finding out he was cursed and had to have her memories wiped. This experience and the subsequent embrace further endears Tohru to Momiji. She continued to have close and personal moments with the Sohmas, taking Kyo and Yuki along with her, Arisa, and Saki to visit her mother's grave on the anniversary of her death. Tohru appears to be surprised by how Kyo looks to uninterested, yet tries to drag him into their conversations. Later during the evening, Tohru falls asleep in the living room, to which Kyo whispers that he "is sorry".

After taking a vacation with the Sohmas, Tohru met Kisa Sohma, the Tiger, in which they developed a strong affection for each other. Tohru also met the Monkey, Ritsu Sohma. More lighthearted events occur, with Tohru catching a cold and Kyo taking care of her by cooking a rice porridge for her, and Tohru joining Yuki at Ayame's "costume" store. However, Tohru grew more and more aware of something sinister beneath the surface, especially in regards to the Curse. During this same time period, Tohru met Hiro Sohma, the Ram of the Zodiac.

Tohru carrying Kyo in his cat form.

Tohru becomes particularly close to Kyo after his adoptive father Kazuma Sohma forces him to reveal the monstrous "true form" of his curse. Kyo violently tries to push her away, but Tohru, although scared, stays with him because she wants to understand him better and live alongside him. Kyo, who had never received such an acceptance from anyone before, hugs her and calls her by name for the first time. He vows to treasure Tohru from then on and be by her side, and Tohru carries him home in his cat form.

After giving her future a thought, expressing her worries and anxieties to Kyo, visiting Kazuma's house with Kyo, and having a fun time at a haunted house with Kyo, Yuki, Haru and Momiji, Tohru and the Sohmas head to the Sohma beach house to have fun during the summer vacation. During the vacation, Tohru is forced to face her trauma regarding her mother due to some insensitive remarks said to her by Hiro, and she becomes more cautious to talk about her mother. However, she is able to hide her worries, though Kyo notices her change in behavior; reaching out to her and urging her to speak out about what she truly wants. They develop a deeper bond and Tohru begins showing the first inklings of her romantic feelings for him.

Yuki "confessing" to Tohru.

On the other hand, Tohru's relationship with Yuki changes as well, as he tells her that his "lid is slowly opening" and that there is something he needs to tell her, but is not yet ready to (in regards to their mutual past about Tohru's cap). Eventually, Yuki thanks Tohru for always accepting and helping him, kisses her forehead, and admits to himself, but not to her, that she is so very dear to him. This surprises Tohru greatly and she spends much time thinking about it, and Yuki later apologizes for confusing her and doesn't expect any answer from her, but does say that he won't apologize for the kiss. Tohru, however, is more confused about what Yuki was so sad about and wanted to convey, but Yuki says that he will tell her eventually.

Meanwhile, Tohru later finds a Horse in the yard, whom Yuki introduces as Isuzu Sohma, though she quickly runs away from them. Now that Tohru has met eleven of the twelve zodiac animals, she wonders whether Akito is the remaining Rooster.

Akito also attended the beach trip as well and kept a close eye on Tohru. Unbeknownst to Tohru, Akito was the indirect factor for making Kyo realize that he loves Tohru, but denies this to Akito in order to protect Tohru. Kyo vows to spend as much of his time "outside" as he can with her. She is the "hope" that Kazuma promised would come to him. Before leaving the beach, Akito went to see Tohru. When Momiji tries to stop Akito from entering the beach house, Akito beats him until Tohru steps in to protect him. Akito tells her to stop interfering, warns her of Kyo's coming confinement, and explains that Kureno Sohma, not herself, is the Rooster—for she is the god of the Zodiac. Tohru, wanting to protect her friends, especially in regards to all her previous experiences with the members of the Zodiac, emboldened her to break the curse.

Tohru went to see Kazuma and asked if he knew how to break the curse. Kazuma told her that he did not know how to break it, but that another member of the Zodiac, Rin Sohma was also trying to do the same. Tohru also met Kureno, who was the former Rooster of the Zodiac, who had his curse broken somehow. This gave her hope that the curse could be broken, even if she did not know how to. She confessed to Shigure that, while she wanted to break the curse for all the members of the Zodiac, she wanted Kyo to be free of it most of all.

Third Year Arc

Tohru is "rejected" by Kyo.

Tohru had begun to feel guilty about falling in love with Kyo since she believed that she was replacing her love for her mother. Shigure and Rin both chided her for it, but she pushed the feelings away. When Tohru finally admitted her love to Kyo, he rejected her. Tohru also learned that Kyo could have saved her mother since he was there on the day of the car accident, but grabbing Kyoko would have caused him to transform and reveal his curse. Because of this, Kyo blamed himself for her death. Still, Tohru proclaimed she loved him in spite of it. However, Kyo still rejected Tohru and he ran away, with Tohru following him in a daze. She was stopped by Akito though, who was jealous that Tohru had gained the affection of all the members of the Zodiac. Despite Akito attacking her, Tohru extended her friendship, as she was understanding of Akito's fear of being alone. However the cliff she was on collapsed and she fell, rendering her unconscious. In her daze, she tried to comfort Kyo who, along with Yuki, found her. He kissed her, although it is later revealed she did not remember him doing that.

Tohru survives the fall and is hospitalized. As she recovers, Akito accepts Tohru's friendship, and comes to accept both the person she is, instead of the god she has believed her father wished her to be, and the woman she was born as, instead of the man she was raised to be. Meanwhile, Yuki convinces Kyo to reconcile with Tohru when she is discharged from the hospital. But Tohru takes off in a dash once she sees Kyo because she feels as if she has been rejected, but Kyo chases after her. After catching up with her, Kyo apologized for his mistakes and confesses his feelings for her. Tohru asked Kyo if she could hug him, but Kyo was uneasy because he was unsure if he would transform. Still, he does so anyway, wanting to hug Tohru even for a short amount of time. That was how Tohru and Kyo learned of the curse being broken, as he stayed the same despite her embracing him. The Cat's curse was lifted, not just because of Akito, but also due to Tohru's true love for him. Akito decided to let go of the control over the members of the Zodiac, and all of the other members of the Sohma family are therefore able to lead regular lives now that the curse is broken.

After becoming a couple, Tohru and Kyo go on their first date, accompanied by Saki and Arisa. After the date, Kyo asks Tohru to accompany him to a certain place: Kyoko's grave. When they arrive, Kyo proposes the idea of moving away together, since he wants to learn all kinds of things now that he is free from the curse. He wanted Tohru along with his journey, and Tohru emotionally accepts. Tohru once again is steadfast in her belief that Kyoko did not hold any ill feelings towards Kyo (which is later confirmed to be true). Upon hearing this and accepting his past with Kyoko, Kyo says in front of the grave that he will keep their promise to protect her for the rest of his life. She and Kyo are shown packing to move to another city to continue his martial arts training, so that eventually he can inherit Kazuma's dojo.

Epilogue

An elderly Tohru and Kyo.

As Tohru, along with Yuki, Kyo and the others have graduated, they are moving out of Shigure’s house. While Tohru and Kyo clean their rooms, they talk about their future together; but they also reminisce about the past and the memories they have created in Shigure's house over the past years. Tohru is overwhelmed by emotions and begins crying, and Kyo comforts her and tells her with endings, come beginnings, too.

During her last day in Shigure's house before moving out with Kyo, Yuki visits the house for the last time as well. Upon seeing him, Tohru happily exclaims "Welcome home". Yuki then begins expressing how grateful he is towards Tohru, gives his thanks to her for what she has done for the Sohma family, but most of all, how she had helped him grow into the man he is today, and how she had been like a mother-figure for him. This briefly surprises Tohru, but she cries and smiles brightly by Yuki's words. The story ends with Tohru and Yuki exchanging a handshake.

Tohru and Kyo enter a committed relationship with one another, and Tohru is last seen walking hand in hand with Kyo in their old age, as their children and grandchildren talk about their love fondly. Tohru narrates that happy things and sad things will be accepted as the two grow old together.

The Three Musketeers Arc

Tohru and Kyo have just begun dating and are getting ready to graduate high school. Shigure asks her if she's happy to spend every second with the man she loves, and she timidly but happily responds that she does. Kyo later separates them and tells Tohru that she can sue Shigure if he ever crosses the line. She is later seen on a date with Kyo as her best friends Saki and Arisa accompany them.

Fruits Basket Another

At some point, Tohru married Kyo, having three children between them. Since Kyo is training to take over Kazuma's dojo, the family settled down in the countryside for the time being. However, it is mentioned that they will eventually return to the city one day.

Silhouettes of Tohru and Kyo with their unnamed child, and Yuki and Machi.

Tohru is seen in a memory flashback as silhouettes with Kyo, her youngest son, Machi, and Yuki, while her oldest son, Hajime Sohma, played with Yuki and Machi's son, Mutsuki Sohma, when they were children. When Hajime graduated from middle school, Tohru and Kyo told Hajime about the Zodiacs Curse and Kyo's past with the Cat's spirit. After hearing about his parents past, Hajime decided to enroll at the same high school they attended, because he wanted to understand which environment they spent their time in to come where they are now. This means that Hajime commutes from home to attend school.

Hajime also remarks on how his friend, Sawa Mitoma, reminds him of his mother in terms of speech.

Differences from the source material

• Tohru's appearance differs slightly between the manga and the anime adaptions:
  • The 2001 anime depicts Tohru with blue eyes and her ribbons being blue as well. The manga and 2019 anime show Tohru having brown eyes and yellow ribbons during her debut.
• Tohru's hat is completely absent in the 2001 anime, which leaves no connection between her and Tohru.
• Tohru's first meeting with Akito differs between the manga, 2001 anime, and 2019 anime.
  • In the manga and 2001 anime, Tohru officially meets "him" by the window of the Sohma estate. In the 2019 anime, Tohru sees Akito in the car alongside Kureno Sohma.
• The 2001 anime changed a few important elements when it came to the events surrounding visiting Kyoko's tombstone a year after her death:
  • Since the hat is absent in the 2001 anime adaption, Yuki does not see a baseball cap in Tohru's room.
    • In the manga, this specific moment is crucial to Yuki, because he realizes that she was the girl who he saved when they were young, which also leads to him gradually being able to confront his true feelings towards Tohru.
  • The 2001 anime also didn't show Kyo apologizing to sleeping Tohru after visiting Kyoko's grave.
    • This is actually a huge foreshadowing regarding how Kyo actually knew Kyoko and how he feels responsible for her death.
• Tohru's actions and some events in the true form arc differ greatly between the manga and the 2001 anime:
  • When Tohru finds out about Kyo's true form, she breaks down and feels the need to go to her mother's grave.
  • She also needs convincing from Saki and Arisa to chase after him.
  • Akito also appears to taunt her, only leaving when Shigure intervened. Shigure, begging and crying, pleads for Tohru to save Kyo.
  • Tohru goes on to find and save Kyo, but does so with the help of Yuki.

Tohru speaks to Akito.

• Since the 2001 anime didn't cover the entire manga and since the manga was still ongoing while it still aired, there are notable differences in the ending:
  • Tohru asks Shigure permission to speak with Akito, and Yuki, Shigure, and Hatori accompany Tohru to the Sohma main residence to see Akito. After an initially meek exchange, Akito seizes her by her hair in a rage after Tohru is unable to say why she came, but Yuki and Shigure restrain him from hurting her further. However, she begins to feel sympathetic, explaining that he still has a life to live. Releasing her hair from his hand, Akito eventually realizes that Tohru accepts the Sohma family curse.
  • The series ends on a bright future day with Tohru, Yuki, and Kyo back at the residence where they live.

Creation and conception

According to Natsuki Takaya, Tohru was the first character she created for the series, with Yuki and Kyo Sohma soon after. When asked how she came up with Tohru's personality and background, she said:

“

I thought that for a girl to accept other people's feelings so wholeheartedly, she'd have to have a slightly unusual way of looking at things so that she wouldn't be crushed by having so much empathy. But I still worried that I needed something else to flesh her out. And then the thought, 'Oh, yeah—I'll make her use super-polite language, and use it incorrectly!' came to me all at once. After that, her character was completed in no time.

”

It is said that Tohru's father Katsuya named her Tohru because "it brought out her hidden flavor, like adding salt to sweet things." Takaya also gave Tohru a name normally used only for men because she likes to give masculine names to female characters "to balance them out." In addition, Takaya chose to have other characters address her as "Tohru-kun", using an honorific typically used for boys, because she thought it was "a more dignified form of address."

Laura Bailey, Tohru's Funimation dub, has said that Tohru's character has helped her be more positive: "I was so inspired by her character by her, joy, and outlook on life that, you know, you wanna emulate that."

Trivia

• According to the official Fruits Basket Character Book:
  • Tohru chooses clothes based on how sturdy and practical they are, rather than their looks, so she dresses very plainly. Natsuki Takaya mentions that Tohru is quite "unfashionable".
    • But since she recently had a bit more money, her newer clothes are somewhat cuter.
    • When she wears particularly adorable outfits, they are usually things Shigure picked out.
    • Tohru has a maid's costume in her possession but doesn't wear it, and keeps it safely in the dresser she uses for western clothes.
  • Tohru receives presents from Shigure quite often.
  • The boys that teased her when she was younger presumably did it because they liked her.
  • Tohru is very quick to respond when people come down with colds since her father died of complications from a cold. But when she gets sick herself, she is slower to react.
  • Tohru pays for all of her own school expenses and clothes from her part-time salary. Her co-workers loves her enthusiasm.
  • Tohru is a very good cook, and can cook about any dish; Japanese, Western, or Chinese.
• Although she is born in the year of the Dog, Tohru wants to be born of the year of the Cat since she feels sorry for the Cat for being tricked in the Zodiac Legend.
• Tohru is a very deep sleeper, and is the type of person who could sleep anywhere and even through an earthquake. Apparently, her son, Hajime, inherited this trait of hers.
• Kyoko's, Tohru's mother, "color" was red, which is inspired by her former nickname "Red Butterfly". Katsuya's, Tohru's father, "color" was white, since he was described as being a straightforward man. A mix between the two colors results in pink, which is Tohru's trademark as well as her favorite color.
• The tent that Tohru lives in is in the shape of a half-cylinder in the manga; but in the anime, it is much smaller and in the shape of a triangular prism.
• While many sites list Tohru as an Aries, she is actually a Taurus. The mix up exists due to a fanfiction about Tohru's birthday (Entitled "Happy Birthday, Miss Tohru!"), the story was published on April 5th, 2006. On most search engines April 5th, 2006 shows up when a search is done for Tohru's birthday. All character profiles on websites predating this story list her as a Taurus. Her real birthday is on May 6th.
• Despite not being able to transform, Tohru is represented by a rice ball with a "plum on the back".
• In 2001 Anime, her Meetings with the different members of the Zodiac occur in a different order between the anime and the manga, with the anime getting a different ending than the manga.

Navigation

[v · e · ?] Fruits Basket Characters Main Characters Tohru Honda  •  Kyo Sohma  •  Shigure Sohma  •  Yuki Sohma Sohma Family Zodiacs Akito Sohma  •  Ayame Sohma  •  Hatsuharu Sohma  •  Hatori Sohma  •  Hiro Sohma  •  Isuzu Sohma  •  Kagura Sohma  •  Kazuma's Grandfather  •  Kisa Sohma  •  Kureno Sohma  •  Kyo Sohma  •  Momiji Sohma  •  Ritsu Sohma  •  Shigure Sohma  •  Yuki Sohma Others Akira Sohma  •  Ayame and Yuki's Mother  •  Hinata Sohma  •  Isuzu's Father  •  Isuzu's Mother  •  Kagura's Mother  •  Kana Sohma  •  Kazuma Sohma  •  Kisa's Mother  •  Kyo's Father  •  Kyo's Mother  •  Momo Sohma  •  Momiji's Mother  •  Momiji's Father  •  Okami Sohma  •  Ren Sohma  •  Satsuki Sohma  •  Tohru and Kyo's Son  •  Tohru and Kyo’s Daughter-in-law  •  Tohru and Kyo’s Granddaughter Secondary Characters Kaibara High School Arisa Uotani  •  Chie  •  Hiroshi and Yusuke  •  Kakeru Manabe  •  Kimi Toudou  •  Machi Kuragi  •  Makoto Takei  •  Mai Gotou  •  Mai Iwata  •  Mayuko Shiraki  •  Mio Yamagishi  •  Minami Kinoshita  •  Motoko Minagawa  •  Naohito Sakuragi  •  Rika Aida  •  Saki Hanajima Others Akimoto  •  Delinquent Trio  •  God of The Chinese Zodiac  •  Cat of The Chinese Zodiac  •  Katsuya Honda  •  Kyoko Honda  •  Komaki Nakao  •  Kunimitsu Tomoda  •  Megumi Hanajima  •  Mine Kuramae  •  Mitsuru  •  + Minor Characters Relatives Arisa's Father  •  Kyoko's Father  •  Kyoko's Mother  •  Machi's Mother  •  Mayuko's Mother  •  Saki's Father  •  Saki's Grandmother  •  Saki's Mother  •  Tohru's Aunt  •  Tohru's Female Cousin  •  Tohru's Male Cousin  •  Tohru's Grandfather Fruits Basket Another Main Characters Sawa Mitoma  •  Hajime Sohma  •  Mutsuki Sohma  •  Shiki Sohma Sohma Family Chizuru Sohma  •  Hibika Sohma  •  Kinu Sohma  •  Mina Sohma  •  Riku Sohma  •  Sora Sohma Students Amane  •  Chiaki Hasada  •  Michi Manabe  •  Mio Hasegawa  •  Mito  •  Rio Mosca  •  Ruriko Kageyama Others Sawa's Mother