Akira Sohma

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Fruits Basket character
Akira Sohma
Gender	Male
Age	N/A
Height	N/A
Blood Type	N/A
Sign	N/A
Occupation	Former head of the Sohma family (deceased)

Akira Sohma (草摩 晶 Sōma Akira) is a fictional character in the manga Fruits Basket.

Akira was the leader of the Sohma clan before his early death, at which his heir, a young Akito Sohma, succeeded him.

Role in the story

Akira Sohma was the late head of the Sohma clan, because of his poor health. A maid named Ren, who was attending to him while he lay sick in bed, saw how lonely he was, and how afraid he was of dying. The two soon fell in love, and Akira even defended Ren from a strict maid, who had scorned her and told her to leave the household. Soon, the two got married, and it wasn't long after that Ren became pregnant with Akito, their daughter-raised-male.

Akira was supposedly the most ecstatic over Akito's birth, because the little girl was possessed by the spirit of the Chinese zodiac's god, the Jade Emperor. Akira often told Akito when she was little how special she was, and that she was "born to be loved" (chapter 117) by the rest of the zodiac members.

While Akira may have been overjoyed with the birth of his first and only child, Ren was not, believing that Akito was stealing her husband's affections away, and that she was no longer the most important person in Akira's life. This troubled Akira greatly, who's wish was for Ren to be the happiest about Akito, believing that their daughter's godliness was proof that Ren and Akira's relationship was special.

When Akito was a young child, Akira's poor health finally caught up with him, and claimed his life. Before he died, he gave Akito an empty box (which a maid later told her contained her father's soul), stating that he would never truly leave her, even if Akito couldn't physically see him.

Moments after the late head's death, Ren burst into the room, distressed that his departure had been so sudden that no one had had time to come and fetch her, fueling her anger towards her daughter.

Ren later claims that the bond between Akito and the zodiac animals is not the "real thing" (even though Akira seemed to believe so), but that Ren and Akira's relationship was indeed the "real thing" (Chapter 98).