Ikuno

Ikuno (イクノ) is one of the main characters in DARLING in the FRANXX. She is a former Parasite with the codename "196" of the Thirteenth Plantation, where she's partnered in boy-girl pair with Futoshi to pilot a FRANXX called Chlorophytum. She had Mitsuru as her original partner.

Due to her struggling with her sexuality, she shared a stormy partnership with Mitsuru and didn’t know how to express her true feelings for Ichigo. She usually kept her thoughts to herself until Ichigo encouraged her to be more open with herself.

Appearance
She has deep purple hair tied into a short ponytail using a blue butterfly clip and bangs on either side of her weary green eyes. She wears a pair of black-rimmed glasses and has freckles under her eyes. When piloting Chlorophytum, she wears a white bodysuit with light violet accents.

During the events of Episode 21, her purple hair turned white. In Episode 24, she is shown to have aged significantly compared to the other parasites, having white hair and is confined to a hospital bed.

Personality
Ikuno is intelligent, logical, and a very quiet girl who doesn’t speak much with others. She naturally comes off as emotionally detached and serious, and she prefers to keep to herself and maintains an air of poise. Although she gets along with most of the squad, she has a tumultuous partnership with Mitsuru and they don’t hesitate to show their dislike for each other. However, she is not completely indifferent towards him and is willing to help him if necessary, even if he refuses her help and treats her coldly. She is an avid reader of books and spends her off-duty time reading.

Despite her composed exterior, she is rational and will carefully analyze a situation so she can help conclude a logical solution. Due her keen to be observant, she is strongly opinionated, especially regarding to the pros and cons of both genders. By her own admission, Ikuno loathes the boy-girl pairing system, to the point she openly states she agreed to participate in the Boys vs Girls conflict because she prefered to keep the boys and girls separated forever and she has never harbored any interest of boys. This causes confusion among her squad mates and she exhibits fismay when she realizes the FRANXX can never function with two pistils, as she attempted to try it with Ichigo. Although she rarely exhibits sentimentality, deep down, she secretly hates how she feels. Despite that she is happy for Mitsuru and Kokoro when they become a couple, this deeply irritates her because she struggles to accept her complicated feelings for Ichigo. She later admits to Ichigo that she is attracted to girls and she has been in love with her since Ichigo gave her her name but she is ashamed for this because it makes her feel she is not normal. Despite this, she is comforted and encouraged to not be scared of her true feelings.

Her struggle with her own sexuality tends to have a deep impact in her over concepts such as gender; when Alpha said humans casted their gender aside for evolution because it was a nuisance, Ikuno was enraged and slapped him before attempting to attack him. With Ichigo’s encouragement, Ikuno becomes more open and sociable, and is willing to take risks for the sake of her friends. This is demonstrated when she goes full power in episode 21 to help Zero Two reach Hiro, causing her health to significantly weaken. She also spends ten years developing a cure for the parasites’ accelerated aging process, although this shortens her own lifespan, so they can all live their lives to the fullest.

History
Ikuno spent her childhood in Garden with the other parasites. Receiving the code of "196," she did not have special rights or expectations of her piloting ability.

After children begin copying Hiro, she is shown to be alone and mocked by them. She is given her name by Ichigo and begins to have feelings for her.

Ikuno is accepted into plantation 13's squad where she is partnered with Mitsuru. Though she passes, she is present as Naomi and Hiro fail to connect.

Episode 01: Alone and Lonesome
Ikuno is present when the other parasites discuss the "partner killer" as she reads her book. She looks up to stare at Ichigo. When they begin to talk about Hiro, she shows more concern for Naomi and the position he put her in.

She attends the welcoming ceremony and, in the train, the group discusses Hiro on their way to the startup ritual. Ikuno says that their ship probably isn't headed back to the garden since she never heard of any parasites coming back home. Hachi greets them at the platform.

In the parasites' FRANXX, they begin the startup ritual. A fog rolls in and the ritual is stalled. Hiro begins to refuse to leave when Naomi's ship is hit by a klaxosaur. The plantation begins firing at the klaxosaur and Strelizia in its stampede mode. Dr. FRANXX notes it's a maho class and Nana orders everyone to evacuate.

Strelizia easily destroys its core and defeats it. They are shocked when it's revealed that Hiro was piloting it. Zero Two drops Hiro to the ground. Nana introduces her as a pistil with the special forces unit APE directly controls. Zero Two looks down and smiles to him, saying she found her darling.

Episode 02: What it Means to Connect
Zero Two unexpectedly shows up at the squad’s boarding house and eats breakfast with them. Everyone finds her to be a strange person and Ikuno is curious how a girl like Zero Two has a code in the single digits. They are met by Nana, who announces she will be their caretaker like she was in the Garden. The squad is later told of a mock battle to test Hiro’s piloting skills and he will be promoted as a stamen if he does well. Ichigo volunteers to be his partner while Miku and Zorome volunteer to be the opponent. Ikuno watches the battle with the other squad members.

Episode 03: Fighting Puppet
A klaxosaur approaches the plantation and Squad 13 is dispatches to deal with it. However Chlorophytum fails to activate as Ikuno struggles to connect with Mitsuru. She asks to be given more time but he tells her not to bother, and Hachi announces Chlorophytum will stay behind. Nana later asks them what happened and offers to run tests on Ikuno who appears to have been tired. Mitsuru asks if the problem is they are incompatible but Nana says that happens at lot at first and there is ko reason to split them up, much to his disappointment.

Delphinium, Argentea, and Genista are soon ambushed by a horde of klaxosaurs and their escape route is blocked off. Zero Two suggests Nana let her go with Hiro or else the others will die but Nana refuses to let her sortie because Hiro is not an official stamen. Mitsuru asks to pilot Strelizia with Zero Two instead and after some hesitation, Hiro convinces Zero Two to go with him. During the battle, Mitsuru is overwhelmed by the power he feels, openly bragging how changing partners makes a big difference and suggests he be Zero Two’s official partner. This deeply hurts Ikuno. She is present with the rest of the squad when Zero Two emerges from Strelizia and Mitsuru is found to be near death.

Episode 04: Flap Flap
Mitsuru is hospitalized for his injuries and is deeply traumatized by the experience. Despite appearing composed, Ikuno is shown to be worried about him as she and the others watch him tell Hiro not to pilot with her again. The squad discusses how the rumors of Zero Two appear to be true after what happened and express their concern for Hiro. Ichigo touches Ikuno’s shoulder to show her support due to Ikuno still feeling upset at failing to connect, which deeply moves Ikuno.

A klaxosaur appears near the plantation. Mitsuru tried to get out of bed to go to fight. Ikuno tells him he shouldn’t but he doesn’t listen. She offers to help him but he refuses and then falls into her arms. Calling him stubborn, she helps carry him. Mitsuru asks if she can connect and she is able to help activate Chlorophytum after thinking of Ichigo. She is surprised to see Strelizia appear and help them defeat the klaxosaur, and the group rendezvous with Plantation 26.

Episode 05: Your Thorn, My Badge
Plantation 13 links up with Plantation 26 for magma energy transportation, and they call are co fused why the process is called ‘kissing’. But they are aware this will attract klaxosaurs and will likely become the most difficult battle they have faced. The two squads later take part in a friendship ceremony and are praised by the mayor. They then meet with Hachi and Nana to discuss the joint operation.

Episode 06: DARLING in the FRANXX
Squad 13 is to be a last line of defense while Squad 26 will be on the front lines. Squad 13 deals with a horde of Conrad klaxosaurs and Argentea accidentally collides with Chlorophytum. A Gutenberg klaxosaur suddenly appears and Squad 13 saves Squad 26 from getting killed. Strelizia shows up but fails to kill the monster and Strelizia’s connection severs as Hiro is on the verge of dying and Zero Two fights in stampede mode. Everyone fears that Hiro is dead until Strelizia suddenly reconnects and they realize he survived. Strelizia successfully kills the klaxosaur and everyone greets Hiro and Zero Two when the battle ends.

Episode 07: Shooting Star Moratorium
For their successful victory, Squad 14 is awarded a trip to the beach. Ikuno talks with Ichigo as the boys begin to admire the girls’ figures. Ikuno tells Ichigo to go swimming and she starts reading. Mitsuru asks her if she came just to read and she says forcing herself to fiddle isnt her style. He mentions how Hiro is acting normal when he acted suicidal not long ago. She tells him not to tell her what he‘s thinking and he mocks for simply saying it. He tells everyone he found something strange and takes them to remnants of an abandoned city. While exploring a mansion, Zorome says it’s no different than their boarding house and Ikuno agrees, saying it has similar designs and it must have been used To build the environment they live in.

The group later eats dinner and discusses the previous civilization before the Plantations existed.

Episode 08: Boys × Girls
During a battle, a klaxosaur spills goo on the FRANXX and the girls’ parasite suites melt in front of the boys, much to the boys’ excitment and the girls’ fury. Miku annou she is done with the boys and convinces the girls to split the house from the boys. Ikuno admitts she would prefer this to last forever. Zero Two licks her neck and says she tastes like a secret, much to her surprise. Zero Two says she will join them but causes more problems when she tricks the boys into walking in on the girls bathing and steals their clothes.

The girls continue to talk poorly about the boys until Kokoro says there some things the boys can do with the girls, such as piloting the FRANXX and, without saying it, having children. Miku refuses to reconcile with the boys and hides in one of the ab rooms that belonged to a previous squad that Zero Two was killed. Because of this, they realize how short life is and reconcile. Ikuno and Mitsuru only look at each other before Mitsuru walks away and Ikuno smiles.

Episode 09: Triangle Bomb
The squad receives their annual presents from Papa and Ikuno gets books. The squad is dispatched to fight a Gutenberg klaxosaur but it begins to absorb Delphinium, causing Goro to eject Ichigo from the FRANXX. The squad is told to focus on killing the klaxosaur even it means leaving Goro to die but Ichigo and Hiro refuse this and they all come up with a rescue strategy. Chlorophytum and Genista will be a last line of defense while Strelizia and Argentea will help Ichigo get to Delphinium and hold off the klaxosaur in time for Delphinium to actuvate.

Episode 10: The City of Eternity
For their record of victories, Squad 13 is invited to the city to receive medals. They are amazed how advanced the city is and Zorome wonders if he will get to live here when he becomes an adult. Ichigo says she can’t picture them becoming adults, which everyone agrees.

Episode 11: Partner Shuffle
During a meeting, Nana and Hachi praise the squad for their high killing numbers but Chlorophytum‘s capacity has been declining. While the FRANXX guard a drilling facility, Chlorophytum deactivates when Mitsuru falls ill. Everyone later talks about how Mitsuru had had a weak body for a lib time and Ikuno says he had an Elixirs Injection, which is a powerful drug that greatly increases one’s capacity and aptitude abilities but Kokoro points out is had a 15% success rate.

When Mitsuru recovers, he and Ikuno undergo a capacity test and his results show a deep decline. Nana suggests a partner shuffle. Ikuno makes him angry when she says he simply wants to be acknowledged. Ikuno asks Nana to try a pistil-pistil connection as an emergency backup if they lose a stamen and asks Ichigo to help her. Ichigo is reluctant but agrees. Kokoro asks to try with Mitsuru, much to everyone’s surprise. After 160 seconds, Ikuno and Ichigo fail to synchronize and time out while Mitsuru and Kokoro manage to maintain a low but stable connection. Ichigo says she knew it wouldn’t work without a boy but Ikuno angrily says she was serious.

When a klaxosaur appears, Ikuno pilots Chlorophytum with Futoshi. They save Mitsuru and Kokoro from getting crushed by the klaxosaur when they fail to attack it and hold it off long enough for them to reconnect.

Episode 12: The Garden Where It All Began
Squad 13 arrives at the Garden to undergo tests. They are surprised to be returning and talk about how so many children disappeared. They are met there by the 9’s and Aloha surprises the girls by kissing Ichigo’s hand. Miku says she finds him to be hot but Ikuno disagrees and is not interested. After taking the tests, they use the opportunity to look around and remember their childhood. They are surprised to see the children are being developed into parasites earlier than expected due to the high number of klaxosaur attacks.

A klaxosaur attacks the facility and the squad sorties. Zero Two ignores orders to work by the plan and attacks Hiro, causing Strelizia to enter stampede mode.

Episode 13: The Beast and the Prince
Hiro and Zero two remember their forgotten childhood memories. Towards the end, everyone watches Ichigo use Delphinium to restrain Strelizia and yell at Hiro to get away from Zero Two before she devours his humanity.

Episode 14: Punishment and Confession
Ichigo orders the squad to keep Zero Two from seeing Hiro, although Ikuno and the others are reluctant because they think it will do no good. Eventually, Goro convinces Ichigo to let Zero Two see Hiro, who left his hospital room to find Zero Two. Seeing his room empty, Zero Two accuses them of tricking her and attacks them. Hiro calls her a monster for this and a disheartened Zero Two decides to leave, while Ikuno and the rest look on.

Episode 15: The Bird that Shares Wings
The Squad is ordered to sortie with Squad 26 to fight a horde of klaxosaurs near Gran Crevasse. However, a Lehmann klaxosaur appears and Squad 26 is ordered to carry out a suicide attack to stop it but fail. The FRANXX and 9’s then fight it but fail to stop it as well. Plantation 13 is crushed by the klaxosaur and Hiro rushes to the battlefield and reconnects with Strelizia. Hiro and Zero Two save everyone from being killed and Mistilteinn is spared.

Episode 16: Days of Our Lives
A month passes since the battle at Gran Crevasse and the squad has been left alone in their boarding house. Since the damage to the plantation restricted their access to water and electricity, and their caretakers have disappeared, they have to rely on their rations for food and they develop a routine on chores. During breakfast, Ichigo asks Ikuno how her fever is and she says she is fine. Zero Two feels her forehead and head says it is normal, and tells her not to push herself.

Everyone later discusses five sources to gather water but two of those are not usable to filter. They realize how easy things were when their caretakers took care of them and gave them necessities. Zero Two suggests they cook their own food and they all agree. Ikuno and Miku make bread. Zero Two, Hiro and Goro return with fish and Hiro says he didnt catch any. Zero Two shows them how to reel in and catch fish.

After making dinner, everyone praises their hardwork and they talk about their new life and their uncertainty about the future.

Episode 17: Eden
Ikuno narrates that everything at some point will come to an end but they will never know when. Like the rest of the squad, she is displeased when the 9’s show up and announce they will be staying. The next day, Zorome tells the squad that he saw Kokoro and Mitsuru in an embrace and Ikuno says she is not surprised as Kokoro and Mitsuru hear their friends know what happened. Alpha shows them the baby book that Kokoro has been hiding and demands an explanation. She confesses her desire to have a baby and she believes they can live a life other than piloting the FRANXX but Alpha condemns her. He says humans have casted their reproductive functions aside for evolution and gender is an inconvenience. This angers Ikuno and she slaps him across the face, challenging his assertion. He says humans have also let their emotions take over them and she tries attacking him again before Ichigo and Goro restrain her. Nana and Hachi then defuse the situation.

Afterwards, Ikuno and everyone debate what Kokoro said about being able to have babies. Ikuno doesn’t blame Kokoro for not saying anything because they have things they can’t talk about. Ikuno later sits on the patio and says they know nothing after what happens when things come to an end.

Episode 18: When the Sakura Blooms
After Hachi tells Ichigo the squad will be leaving for a parasite camp soon, Hiro gathers everyone together to discuss his plan to create a wedding for Kokoro and Mitsuru, who have decided to get married before they leave. Everyone voices their support. Ikuno, Ichigo and Miku gather curtains to make the wedding dress.

ikuno lays in bed and Ichigo wonders if she is under the weather since she had a fever not long ago. Ikuno says no and throws Ichigo into the bed, admitting how much she hates the boy-girl pairing and she has never been interested in boys. She confesses she has loved Ichigo since she gave her her name and she wants to keep Ichigo all to herself. However, she knows how she feels is not normal and hates herself for it before breaking down in tears. Ichigo hugs her and comforts her.

Before the wedding begins, Ikuno gives a bouquet of flowers to Kokoro and pins some flowers on Mitsuru‘s uniform before sitting in attendance as the wedding continues. However, the 9’s and APE assault team interrupt the wedding and take Kokoro and Mitsuru away. Weeks later, it is revealed their memories were erased.

Episode 19: Inhumanity
The squad talks about how Kokoro and Mitsuru were implanted with fake memories. Hiro decides to confront Papa, who justifies it because it would have hindered their objectives. Everyone is angry and Hiro demands he release them from duty since they no longer see him as their papa and he agrees as long as they win the final battle.

Episode 20: A New World
Papa instructs Squad 13 to eliminate the klaxosaurs at Gran Crevasse so Strelizia can take control of Star a Entity. During the battle, however, an armada of ships appear from the sky and the klaxosaur s stop fighting with the parasites. Papa reveals they are VIRM and he is the leader, and he has been using humanity as tools for his own benefit. Everyone is confused and then shocked to hear this.

Episode 21: A New World
The Squad is confused on him the true enemy is but Ichigo orders everyone to return to Gran Crevasse to check on Hiro and Zero Two. They are confronted by the 9’s for disobeying orders but they continue heading to Gran Crevasse. They help Zero Two and Dr. Franxx reach the entrance to Star Entity to save Hiro after he is forced to link with the klaxosaur princess and Star Entity is set to detonate to destroy the planet by VIRM. The corridor is blocked off and Ikuno and Futoshi blast through it in full power but Chlorophytum deactivates and Ikuno’s hair turns grey. Genista and Argentea stay behind to protect Chlorophytum while Delphinium takes Zero Two and the doctor to their destination.

When the battle ends, everyone in the squad is shown to have survived but Zero Two is left catatonic.

Episode 22: A New World
Squad 13 takes charge of taking care of the other parasites and begin attempting to grow crops to survive. During a meeting, they discuss their shortage on water and maintenance, and they can’t use magma energy so they will have to continue farming. While working in the fields, Ikuno appears tired and Ichigo tells her not to work too hard but Ikuno says she is fine. The parasites then see a VIRM and klaxosaur crash into the field after killing each other.

Ikuno is present in the hospital room with the rest of the squad when the new Nana tells Kokoro that she is pregnant. As Kokoro begins to panic, Miku asks all the boys to leave while the girls try to comfort Kokoro. The next day, the parasites find that all the crops have died despite following the requirements. Hachi and Nana arrive, much to the relief of the parasites. Hachi surmises the crops died because magma drilling has deprived the soil of natural resources. Ichigo collapses and Ikuno takes care of her, and says Ichigo has been so worried about the others that she has been neglecting herself. She and the squad devise a plan to gather fresh soil from Cerasus to try farming again until Hiro announces he will be going to space to rescue Zero Two. Although everyone is worried he will get killed, Hiro refuses to change his mind.

Ikuno sits outside with everyone as they look as a shower of shooting stars and they discuss Hiro’s words, and wonder if they will ever find something so important they will choose it over everything else. They next morning, the squad meets with Hiro to tell him they will be going with him, with the exception of Kokoro and Mitsuru. The 9’s also announce they will be joining him.

Episode 23: A New World
Squad 13 and the 9’s arrive in space and travel to Mars’ orbit to reach Strelizia. They find Strelizia in the middle of a battle with a large armada of VIRM and the klaxosaurs form a defensive strategy. Everyone engages in battle and offer cover for Hiro so he can reach Strelizia. After Alpha sacrifices himself to protect Hiro, he and Zero Two manage to reconnect and Strelizia evolves into the Strelizia True Apus. After eliminating the armada of VIRM, the two announce they will be traveling through a warp gate to track down the rest of the VIRM and destroy them for good. Although Ikuno and the others struggle to accept this, they tell Hiro and Zero Two to return alive.

Episode 24: Never Let Me Go
72 days since Hiro and Zero Two passed through the gate, the parasites return to Cerasus and begin farming. She and Ichigo bring files to an office space. When Ichigo asks what they're for, she says there's something she wants to get done.

245 days after opening the gate, Ikuno is present at the birth of Kokoro and Mitsuru‘s daughter, Ai. She happily watches with Ichigo and Miku as Mitsuru is introduced to his daughter. She is also present when Naomi is brought back And all the girls embrace Naomi. She continues to work in her office and Naomi brings her food as she writes.

As Goro leaves for his journey, Ikuno asks Ichigo is she's okay since she'll miss him the most. She is surprised when he kisses Ichigo. Afterward, he says that he'll find what she asked him for. She smirks and thanks him, later saying that he's changed a lot.

Two years after opening the gate, Ikuno returns Naomi's mirror to her. She smiles when she thanks her. Ichigo suddenly opens the door and tells them to come quickly. She joins the others as they start praying to the skies. She tells them that she decided to make the most of the time she has left as Naomi stands by her side. After Hiro and Zero Two sacrifice themselves to destroy the VIRM planet, Ikuno wonders if their prayers reached the two in time and Miku believes they did. Everyone then mourns the loss of their two friends.

3705 days since the gate passage, Naomi and she continued their research. She later lies in a hospital bed as she examines Ichigo, who is heavily pregnant, and says everything is fine. She also wonders what Ichigo’s baby will be like. Futoshi enters the room and tells her to try his new bread recipe. When Naomi teases him for not losing any weight, he blames Ikuno for helping him regain his appetite. He thanks her for researching and keeping the ex-parasites' accelerated aging in check. Though the rest of the group reunites outside, she and Naomi hold hands in the hospital bed.

Ichigo
Ikuno has known Ichigo since childhood, and harbors romantic feelings for her. She blushes when encouraged by her in Episode 4 and finds comfort in recalling it before successfully linking with Mitsuru and activating Chlorophytum. Ikuno is notably more talkative and happy when she is speaking with Ichigo, as in Episode 7, though she returns to her quiet facade when Ichigo leaves. In Episode 11, when Nana and Hachi ask if anyone would want to do a partner shuffle, Ikuno states that she wants to do a pistil-to-pistil connection with Ichigo in Delphinium. However, they fail to link and activate Delphinium. Because of this, Ikuno gets mad, saying that she was serious about doing this to Ichigo, who didn't take it as seriously as she did.

In the 5th ending theme, Escape, a scene is shown where Ikuno attempts to kiss Ichigo. In Episode 18, she tearfully confesses to Ichigo, crying about what a pain she finds herself to be, as well as the whole FRANXX piloting system. Ichigo hugs her, and comforts her by stating that she herself is also a pain, and that she believes it's just a natural part of life. When Ikuno was in the Garden, a few children called her 'Ikuro', from her numerical readings. Ikuno disliked the name, and Ichigo came up to her, and turned the 6 90-degrees counter-clockwise so her name sounded like 'Ikuno' instead of 'Ikuro'. Ikuno states that ever since then, she has had feelings for her, but for she to give up to her feelings it not so easy, and by the time the wedding starts, she is calmed down and beginning to accept the situation. Although Ikuno knows Ichigo will never reciprocate her feelings, she still cares deeply for her and, despite showing a brief tint of jealousy after Goro kisses Ichigo, she shows her support for Ichigo and Goro as a couple. When Ichigo becomes pregnant, she goes to Ikuno for prenatal care and Ikuno is interested in knowing what her baby will be like.

Naomi
Naomi and Ikuno had previous interactions due to her previously being Hiro’s partner but their relationship was unknown. In episode 24, they begin spending time together after Naomi is freed and she works with Ikuno as a doctor. As they continued working together, they develop a relationship and Naomi takes care of Ikuno from her hospital bed.

Mitsuru

Mitsuru is Ikuno’s original partner. However, they do not get along and don’t hide their dislike for each other. Mitsuru blames Ikuno for their incompatibility due to her distaste for the boy-girl pairing system but she points out he is also at fault for his difficulty in trusting others. However, she is not completely indifferent towards him, as she was visibly hurt when he paraded how Zero Two was a better partner and she later defended him and Kokoro against the 9’s. Things between them start to ease after they switch partners and become more civil with each other.

Etymology
Ikuno's name comes from the numeral's readings of her code "196": i from 1, ku from 9; meanwhile, no resembles hiragana "の" (no) when 6 turns 90-degree counter clockwise.

Quotes
"A pain? So what if it's a pain?"

- Episode 17; Ikuno says this after slapping Nine Alpha.

Trivia

 * Ikuno's notebook is decorated with white lilies. In Japanese, the word for lily is 百合 (yuri), which is also the word used for homosexual relationships between women.
 * In the Drama CD, Ikuno reveals she meticulously keeps track of Ichigo’s daily movements, including how she bathes and sleeps.
 * The only way Ikuno is able to connect with Mitsuru/Futoshi in Chlorophytum is by thinking of Ichigo.
 * Zero Two describes Ikuno’s taste as 'a secret’.
 * Ikuno is the only known surviving parasite after the Gran Crevasse siege to have retained her accelerated ageing process and, by the time she was chronically 25, she has aged into an elderly woman.

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