Karashi Nerimaya

Karashi Nerimaya is the reigning two-time champion of the Karaku Cup, Akane-banashi's premier rakugo competition, and he carries that title with an openly confident, even cocky attitude that makes him feel a cut above everyone else in the room. His success has already opened doors for him outside of competition: several major companies have offered him work on the strength of his reputation alone.

He discovered rakugo during his university years, joining a rakugo club mostly out of curiosity. What he found there frustrated him: he thought the traditional stories the club performed were dull and failed to actually excite an audience, so rather than quit, he built his own distinct performance style meant to fix that problem. That approach paid off, carrying him to back-to-back Karaku Cup titles.

As the reigning champion, Karashi becomes the rival every new competitor, including Akane Ousaki and Hikaru Koragi, has to measure themselves against. His cocky attitude is also presented as something of a weakness, a sign of real skill paired with a dangerous overconfidence that could trip him up if a sharper opponent ever manages to read him correctly.