Hiyori Tono/Relationships

Ikuya Kirishima
"#16935C"

- You'll never be ordinary. Hiyori has a close friendship with Ikuya as they are both 1st year students at Shimogami University. Hiyori's main relationship is that with Ikuya Kirishima. In the very first episode when Ikuya comments he doesn't desire to be ordinary, Hiyori affirms this by saying he does not think that Ikuya will ever be anything ordinary. Ikuya does not seem truly satisfied with the affirmation and immediately Hiyori inquires that if Ikuya is upset with him. Ikuya indifferently replies that he is not while distracted by a bird in the sky.

The relationship between Ikuya and Hiyori is a bit complex and complicated. On one hand, Ikuya seems to care deeply for Hiyori and appreciate him. When the Shimogami University coach asks Ikuya why he doesn't swim medley and thinks its a loss of talent, Hiyori supports Ikuya. On the other hand, Ikuya seems to find Hiyori a bit of a nuisance in that he can deeply interfere in Ikuya's life. This is shown when Haruka and his friends want to meet Ikuya but Hiyori pretends that he has no acquaintanceship with him and tells them to just watch the people from the colleges swim. He also considers Asahi and Haruka "inferior copies" to Ikuya when he watches them swim.

To avoid having Ikuya meet his former friends and peers, Hiyori intrudes on Ikuya as he is showering, telling him that he has got his things and they can leave. This invasion seemed a bit odd to Ikuya. Later in a cafe, Ikuya asks Hiyori why he is acting "weird" to which he replies he is always weird.undefined When Haruka and Ikuya meet on the bridge and Haruka genuinely attempts to apologize for quitting the swim club in middle school, Hiyori interferes. He cuts their conversation short and says that Ikuya is too tired to talk.

The next day, Hiyori gives Ikuya a wake-up call and proceeds to talk about Haruka and Ikuya's other former friends but Ikuya just wants to get ready and go to university to swim. Ikuya's tone suggests that he is not always appreciative of Hiyori giving too much attention to him. However, Hiyori is able to see that Haruka's sudden presence has an effect on Ikuya's swimming. When asking about why his rhythm seems off Ikuya rebuffs it. Hiyori is later shown to message Natsuya to show that Ikuya is not doing well as last year and gone back to swimming basics.

Hiyori seems to know that the reason that Ikuya now swims individual medley because of Haruka and Asahi suddenly quitting in middle school, which had a negative impact on him. Ikuya swims to mirror some of Haru's insecurities in the first TV series. Where Haruka was adamant to swim only Freestyle, Ikuya seems adamant on swimming only Individual Medley (IM) and no longer wishes to participates in relays. In this mirroring, Hiyori seems to be an "extreme" parallel to Sosuke and Makoto, in that he loves Ikuya deeply and wishes to protect him. Like Sosuke did with Rin in Free! Eternal Summer, Hiyori seems to challenge Ikuya to be the best at swimming and feels no one can compare. Like Makoto, who seemed to never in the past question Haruka leaving swimming, he doesn't seem to try to help Ikuya grow or change out of his reluctant attitudes about the medley.

In Interference of Loss！, Hiyori bars Haruka, Makoto, Asahi and Kisumi from meeting Ikuya. He considers them wasting his time and not letting him move on. He calls them "weaklings" holding down Ikuya. He also states that he is Ikuya's "best friend" and that the others may not even be friends with Ikuya anymore. Makoto agrees to a race to show Hiyori they deserve to meet Ikuya. Later on, he shows up in Ikuya's dorm room and offers to cook for him but Ikuya has already eaten. Ikuya seems to know that Hiyori stopped his middle school friends to meet up with him. Hiyori mentions that it was for the best as they would distract him. Ikuya, reluctantly agrees.

Later on, he comes to swim and passive aggressively taunts Haruka, that unlike him, he keeps his promises. After winning his race with Makoto he deems them unfit to meet Ikuya, though he has to admit that Makoto is a formidable backstroke swimmer as he is. He reveals that Ikuya almost drowned badly in America as a child and it implied he somewhat blames his old friends for it.

Then with a smile and casual nonchalance he comments he researched on Haruka and that everyone who swims with him seems to be always left in suffering. Saying this he exists without a care and a happy demeanour. This comment leaves Haruka in shock and Makoto, Kisumi and Asahi get genuinely concerned over Haruka's emotional wellbeing.

In a way, Ikuya and Hiyori's relationship seems to have both positive and negative attributes. Whereas Hiyori is very caring and kind towards Ikuya, he seems to overindulge him and put him on a pedestal. This means Hiyori cannot always understand the complex human emotions of Ikuya. Despite these shortcomings, he is a devoted friend and seems to always hold Ikuya as a top priority.

Haruka Nanase
"I always keep my promises."

Hiyori does not like Ikuya's childhood friends, especially Haruka Nanase. Hiyori seems to count him responsible for the troubles that Ikuya has faced in his life. He usually tells Haruka and his friends that Ikuya cannot be bothered. In a veneer of politeness he tells Haruka, when Ikuya meets him on the bridge, that Ikuya is worn out and Haruka shouldn't bother him. He does research specifically on Haruka and even tells Ikuya about it. Later on, with the same coerced politeness he tells Haruka and company that he is Ikuya's "best friend" and that they may not be his friends anymore. When Haruka mentions he wants to apologise to Ikuya for not being able to keep his promise, Hiyori acts that it happened so long ago that Ikuya may not even care about it. He also calls Haruka and company "weaklings" wasting Ikuya's time. However, he does agree to a race so he can deem them "worthy" of meeting Ikuya.

Though, when he agrees to race with Makoto, he brings up Haruka's failed promise. In a way, he compares himself to Haruka as in he thinks he is a better friend to Ikuya than Haruka was in the past. By saying he keeps his promises, he is critiquing Haruka harshly. After winning the race with Makoto he says they can't meet him albeit he openly acknowledges Makoto's talent. Yet, he does not shake hands with Makoto meaning he is not showing civil sportsmanship and does not hold them in high regard.

Then he specifically points to Haruka and with a calm and cheerful disposition states he knows a lot about him. In the same manner, he says that whoever Haruka swims with ends up suffering and exits, leaving Haruka in emotional shock and the others concerned about his wellbeing. This shows that he has selective cruelty towards Haruka because he thinks Haruka is a bad friend to Ikuya. He may even be jealous of Haruka because Ikuya had adopted his freestyle from Haruka's own. To him, Haruka is both an "enemy" to Ikuya and a rival for being close to him.