Shu Inuzuka

Name: Shu Inuzuka

Gender: Male

Birthday: June 25

Zodiac Sign: Cancer

Class: Year 2 Class 4 → Year 3 Class 3

Occupation: High school student, part-time worker

Goal: To become a veterinarian

First Appearance Medium: Original manga of Shikimori's Not Just a Cutie

Voice Actor (CV): Nobuhiko Okamoto

Shu Inuzuka is a classmate of Yuuki Izumi and Miyako Shikimori, attending the same high school and sharing the same class.

He is portrayed as a cheerful, energetic, and socially active student who balances school with frequent part-time jobs.

Inuzuka is very straightforward and honest with his own feelings, often acting exactly as he wants without putting up a façade.

He likes hanging out and having fun, but he is also fundamentally serious and dislikes skipping class or slacking off.

He and Yuuki Izumi talk and hang out together constantly, and they openly recognize each other as best friends.

Among the male students, he is the one closest to Izumi both emotionally and in terms of day-to-day interactions.

Because of that closeness, Miyako Shikimori is often jealous of the time Inuzuka spends with Izumi.

There are many situations where Izumi prioritizes his best friend Inuzuka over his girlfriend Shikimori, causing Shikimori to see Inuzuka as a kind of one-sided rival.

Inuzuka is bright, upbeat, and good-natured, with a knack for keeping the mood light and positive.

He enjoys planning outings and schedules with friends, and he prefers to think together with everyone so that all can have fun.

He tries to be considerate of others and notices the atmosphere in a group, making him a natural social glue.

At the same time, when he realizes he has overlooked something important, he gets very nervous and flustered, showing that he cares about how others feel.

A key trait is how honest he is with himself.

Because he is so true to his own feelings, he tends to put his own convenience first and can come off as selfish or self-centered.

Meeting Yuuki Izumi in high school gradually changes him.

Through their friendship and shared experiences, Inuzuka begins to think more seriously about other people’s feelings and starts to feel genuine sadness at the idea of parting from them.

He dislikes irresponsible behavior such as cutting class or slacking without reason, even though he personally loves to play and have fun.

This mix of playfulness and seriousness makes him a “proper” high school student: energetic, but with a solid sense of responsibility.

Importantly, even though he is repeatedly dragged into Izumi’s streak of bad luck and often gets hurt in his place, he never holds any resentment toward Izumi.

His loyalty comes through strongest in those moments, as he simply accepts it as something he does for his friend.

With Yuuki Izumi

Inuzuka and Yuuki Izumi are best friends who openly acknowledge their bond.

They often talk, joke, and hang out after school, and Inuzuka is deeply trusted by Izumi.

When Shikimori is absent or cannot reach Izumi in time, Inuzuka acts as his substitute protector.

He frequently takes the hit in Izumi’s place, ending up battered or exhausted while Izumi is saved.

Despite repeatedly suffering from Izumi’s misfortune, Inuzuka never blames him or distances himself.

Their relationship is a key emotional axis of the story, showing a strong, warm male friendship.

With Miyako Shikimori

Because Izumi sometimes chooses to spend time with Inuzuka over his own girlfriend, Shikimori often gets jealous.

She envies the ease and familiarity between the two boys and, as a result, one-sidedly regards Inuzuka as a rival.

This rivalry is not rooted in hatred but in Shikimori’s insecurity and jealousy.

Inuzuka, for his part, is not hostile toward her and just continues being Izumi’s honest and supportive friend.

With Kyo Nekozaki and Yui Hachimitsu

Kyo Nekozaki and Yui Hachimitsu often call him simply “Dog” because of his “Inu” (dog) family name vibe and dog-like energy.

Inuzuka, however, always retorts that they should add “Inuzuka” properly instead of reducing him to just “Dog.”

Their teasing reflects a friendly, casual relationship within the group.

They see him as an easygoing, energetic presence, while he plays along with the jokes even as he complains.

Inuzuka has notably good physical ability and athletic sense.

He is not superhuman, but among ordinary students he is clearly on the capable side.

During a table tennis match that arose because Miyako Shikimori challenged him over Izumi-related matters, their game ended without a decisive winner.

This showed that, at least in that moment, he could keep up with Shikimori’s high performance level in a one-on-one sports setting.

Even so, he cannot consistently match Shikimori, who is portrayed as highly talented in many areas.

For example, in the school’s ball game tournament, his class loses to another, and when he tries to shield Izumi from misfortune, he often cannot fully protect him and ends up injured.

His stamina and toughness are highlighted by how many hits he takes for Izumi.

He is willing to throw himself into danger or physical trouble if it means helping his friend, which adds a heroic undertone to his otherwise lighthearted persona.

Inuzuka’s long-term goal is to become a veterinarian.

To achieve this, he must enter a university located in a rural or regional area, away from his current city life.

Pursuing that path would mean separating from Izumi and the rest of his close high school friends.

As he grows more attached to them and learns to value others’ feelings, the thought of parting becomes painful.

Because of this sadness and his emotional struggle, he finds it hard to bring up his future plans to his friends.

He hesitates to say that he will be leaving, even though he knows that following his dream is important.

His inner conflict revolves around a promise implied in the line, “I am just going to keep my promise.”

This suggests that he sees his future as a veterinarian not only as a personal ambition but as a promise he must fulfill, even at the cost of separation.

Inuzuka acts as both comic relief and emotional support within the group.

His lively presence keeps scenes upbeat, while his loyalty and growth add depth to the narrative.

He often catalyzes events involving group activities, such as outings or casual hangouts.

Because he likes to make plans together and ensure everyone enjoys themselves, he naturally becomes a social organizer among the friends.

He is also a narrative counterbalance to Shikimori.

Where Shikimori’s love for Izumi is romantic and protective, Inuzuka’s connection is grounded in friendship and camaraderie, highlighting different forms of “wanting to protect someone.”

His gradual realization of how much his friends mean to him, and his difficulty confronting the idea of leaving them, adds a bittersweet layer to the otherwise light and comedic tone of the series.

This emotional arc showcases that even an easygoing, self-centered teenager can evolve into someone who deeply considers others.

Since his debut in the original manga, some readers have commented that Inuzuka’s character design resembles Katsuki Bakugo from My Hero Academia.

The resemblance mostly lies in hairstyle and general silhouette, leading to casual “he kind of looks like him” remarks.

The twist came with the anime adaptation, where Inuzuka’s voice actor turned out to be Nobuhiko Okamoto, who also voices Katsuki Bakugo.

This coincidence led to the running joke that Inuzuka is like a “bright, friendly, always-smiling Bakugo.”

Additionally, in the original promotional video for the Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie manga, Yuuki Izumi’s voice actor was the same person who voices Izuku Midoriya in My Hero Academia.

This double link between the two series became a fun piece of meta trivia for fans of both works.