Ikuya Kirishima

Ikuya Kirishima (桐嶋 郁弥 Kirishima Ikuya) is one of the main characters in the movie High☆Speed！－Free! Starting Days－ and Free!'s third season, Free!-Dive to the Future-. He was also a minor character in the light novel High☆Speed!. He is the younger brother of the Iwatobi Junior High swimming club's captain, Natsuya Kirishima. He is currently studying at Shimogami University, where he is on the swim team, alongside his friend from America, Hiyori Tono.

Appearance
Ikuya is a muscular, though smaller-framed young man with teal hair, amber eyes and long, black eyelashes. He and his brother do not look particularly alike, but share the same eye color. In competition, he wears black jammers with subtle brown and gray designs.

Personality
When first introduced to the series as a member of the Iwatobi Middle School Swim Club, Ikuya is quiet, cynical, and distrustful of others. Though taciturn, he isn't afraid to express his annoyance or to speak his mind and was at odds with his older brother, Natsuya. When Natsuya, as swim club captain, tries to enlist new members for the swim club, Ikuya resists, saying school-based sport clubs are a waste of time. Though he eventually joins, it takes time for him to warm up to his teammates - Haruka, Makoto and Asahi - but comes to trust them. He admires Haruka a great deal, secretly wishing he possessed similar confidence in sport.

Ikuya's health was seen to be fragile and he had some fear of water due to the fact that he nearly drowned several times. Yet, being a determined athlete and not wishing to disappoint Natsuya, he pushed himself endlessly, often suffering from oxygen deprivation from over-training in the pool. This drive was due to his belief that swimming and competition are to be mastered, as indicated by the anime's depiction of water being an "enemy" that binds him. In this way, he was shown to be both similar to and different from Haruka - both brilliant swimmers with radically different approaches to their sport.

Another major difference between Ikuya and Haruka is Ikuya's desire to "never be ordinary." He professed this to his friend, Hiyori Tono, who supported him in that belief but who, unbeknownst to the others, was left in charge of keeping Ikuya's health intact while Natsuya travelled the world as a professional swim competitor. This responsibility strained their friendship, but Ikuya remained oblivious to Hiyori's struggle until he faced his past. In making amends his former teammates and swimming an IM with Haruka in fulfillment of their promise, he felt re-connected to humanity and was also able to reconcile with Natsuya and Hiyori. Only then, did Ikuya begin to see himself in a fully "humanized" way, although he still held competition and winning to be a major goal in life.

History
Ikuya enjoyed swimming as a child, but grew disenchanted with it as he grew older. This was due, in part, to his idolization of his older brother upon whom he depended a great deal. In a misguided effort to force Ikuya to become self-sufficient and independent, Natsuya pulls away emotionally, but instead of Ikuya rising to the challenge, his fragile self-esteem perceives the distancing as a rejection and he begins to renounce the things that Natsuya and he used to share, like swimming. In junior high, he tries to avoid joining the swimming club because Natsuya is the Captain, but is "roped into" doing so by Haruka, Makoto and Asahi.

Once a member, it becomes obvious that Ikuya is an excellent swimmer, but has health issues due to his perfectionism and over-training to the point of oxygen deprivation. More than once, he has lost consciousness while swimming and needed to be recused and even hospitalized. Over time, Ikuya comes to respect and enjoy the camaraderie of being on a team and hopes his newfound friends continue swimming. Unfortunately, it is during this time that Haruka has a falling out with Rin and gives up competitive swimming and the team's plans to work together fall apart, as do their developing bonds.

Shortly thereafter, Ikuya follows Natsuya to America where they attend high school, returning to Japan for university studies. Upon his return to Japan for university, he reunites with his former middle school friends and teammates and makes amends with his brother.

Trivia

 * He is a childhood friend of Nii Satomi, who only appears in the light novel.
 * His favourite foods are fried shrimp, sweet tamagoyaki and pistachio cream
 * Since he is the youngest in his family, he has always wanted a younger brother
 * According to Hiyori, pistachio drinks are Ikuya's favourite.
 * His motif animal is a beluga.