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Childhood
At some point in his childhood, Kafka and Mina Ashiro met each other after a kaiju attack, swearing to fight against kaiju alongside each other as future Defense Force members.
When Kafka was 23, he had already failed his Defense Force Entrance Exam four times. However, he gave it another shot when an 18-year-old Mina tried joining for the first time, eventually joining while Kafka failed again. Despite the failure, Kafka encouraged Mina to go on as he would catch up with her soon. Unbeknownst to Kafka, Mina was being studied due to her incredible strength, eventually holding a grudge against Kafka for not joining her as he promised.
The Man Who Became a Kaiju Arc
Kafka was working at Monster Sweeper Inc. as always, cleaning a kaiju corpse killed by the Third Division. At work, he was then introduced to Leno Ichikawa, a new part-timer, who wanted to join the Defense Force just like Kafka, who had already attempted to join them but had given up due to his age, much to Leno's disapproval and Kafka's chagrin. As they were both assigned to intestine duty, Kafka helped Leno during his first day and, at the end of the day, Leno thanked him and informed him that the Defense Force had raised their age limit to 33, raising Kafka's hope once more. Moments after, a Yoju appeared and Kafka promptly pushed Leno away, saving him from being eaten. He then sent Leno to call for help as he would hold back the Yoju. The Yoju easily overwhelmed Kafka, but Leno managed to return in time to save him from being killed as well. A moment later, both were saved by the Third Division and its Captain: Mina Ashiro.
That night in the hospital, Leno thanked Kafka for saving him and added that he should try to join the Defense Force once again. Kafka agreed but suddenly a small flying kaiju appeared and, after saying "I found you.", it entered Kafka's mouth. Kafka then transformed into a humanoid kaiju, surprising Leno and an old man, who raised an alarm. Surprised by Kafka's new overwhelming strength, the duo ran out of the hospital. While they were running, Kafka sensed a Yoju emerging and headed to help a little girl in danger. He easily killed the Yoju and recalled his promise to Mina. He decided to try for the Defense Force, and at that moment, turned back to a human.
Three months later, a news report said that Kafka's kaiju form had been labeled as Kaiju No. 8, the eighth kaiju which appeared that year, stating that the Defense Force was still looking for him. Leno then reached Kafka, who was eating alon in his kaiju form, and told him they had passed the first exam for the Defense Force. Ten days later, they went to complete the test for the second exam at Tachikawa Base, the base of the Third Division. In the parking lot, a girl calling Kafka an old man, to his annoyance, asked him to move his car as her lucky number today is five, and he had coincidentally parked on the 55th parking slot. She then proceeded to lift his van with one hand and toss it aside, introducing herself as Kikoru Shinomiya. She then wondered why Kafka reeked of kaiju, but Leno quickly explained that they worked at a kaiju disposing of company. Kafka then flipped the van back, transforming only parts of his body that Kikoru couldn't see, and told her to remember his name. As she got interested in his strength, she promised to crush him. Leno then explained that there were two tests for that year: fitness and aptitude, and since the aptitude test was a wild card and changes each year, they would need to score the most points in the fitness exam. Unfortunately, Kafka barely managed to finish the fitness test and places 219th out of 225. Kikoru quickly made fun of him, but Leno explained that there are quite a lot of people who could be considered elite, like Haruichi Izumo, Iharu Furuhashi, Aoi Kaguragi and the top one, Kikoru Shinomiya herself. Kafka was surprised that she's a big deal and Kikoru commented that he made a fool of himself again. As the aptitude test was about to start Soshiro Hoshina, the Vice-Captain of the Third Division, announced the task would be kaiju neutralization. All the examinees were given Defense Force suits that have kaiju muscle fibers in them and increased their strength. Unfortunately, Kafka was the first candidate ever to not draw any significant power from it, causing Soshiro to laugh. As the test started, Kafka performed terribly but realized the drones were not only there to monitor how many kaiju they killed, but to judge their teamwork skills and adaptability. He and Leno started to provide backup to other candidates using their knowledge of kaiju, but suddenly a Yoju hit Kafka and injured him. However, Kikoru killed that Yoju and promptly told Kafka she would finish the test soon. Even though he suffered fractures, Kafka still stood up, begging Soshiro to continue and asking Leno to carry him, as they tried to catch up to Kikoru. However, no one was able to keep with her and she managed to kill all the Yoju left. As she defeated the Honju and the final examination ended, a humanoid kaiju appeared and seriously wounded Kikoru. Then, the Honju was mysteriously resurrected and proceeded to attack Kikoru again, causing everyone to evacuate the venue, and for the Third Division to intervene. Meanwhile, Kafka quickly transformed and defeated the resurrected Honju before anyone could arrive, saving Kikoru's life and begging her to keep that a secret. Then he, Leno, and an unconscious Kikoru were collected by the Defense Force and brought to an infirmary. There, Kafka and Leno had their injuries treated and Kafka thanked Leno for his encouragement. Just then, they were unexpectedly visited by Mina who thanked them for saving Kikoru's life.
Some days after, both of them received their passing exam results and finally became members of the Defense Force, even though Kafka only became a cadet since Soshiro wanted to keep an eye on him. During the Presentation of Enlistment Certificate, Kafka loudly vowed to be at Mina's side one day, causing her to punish him for disrespecting her title as Commander with 100 push-ups.
At some point, he and Leno met Kikoru to inform her about Kafka's conditions. Upon hearing that Kikoru promised to keep the secret, but also promised to be the one to kill Kafka, should he ever pose a threat to humanity, and also gave them tips on the humanoid kaiju she faced in the exam venue.
Sagamihara Neutralization Operation at Daybreak Arc
Two months after, Kafka had his marksman training, being able to unleash a measly 1% of his armor's strength and promptly bragging about it with Kikoru. After training, he went to the hot tubs with the other boys and they talked about why wanted to be Force members, discovering that Mina's influence among them was greater than he thought. During the night, he decided to study instead of sleeping, but then Soshiro arrived to inform him that he overheard everything Kafka said, including his promise to Mina, and warned him not to be too friendly with anyone. Suddenly, an alarm went off alerting the officers of a kaiju outbreak, with Soshiro informing Kafka that this would be his first official mission. Assigned to Vice-Captain Hoshina's platoon, Kafka tried to provide support but proved unable to keep up with the others, simply watching them from the sidelines. While his 1% released force initially slowed him down, he was still able to locate the core of the Fungal-type Yoju and report it to Soshiro, thus earning him a lot of praise from the Vice-Captain and the satisfaction of being useful to the Defense Force. As he was enjoying his moment, he witnessed Mina shooting at the enormous Honju with a cannon multiple times. He was later approached by Soshiro who, to demonstrate the kind of power someone should have to stand next to Captain Ashiro, showed off his swordsmanship skills in front of Kafka's shocked eyes, before witnessing the Yoju rushing out of the Honju's corpse. Later, Kafka witnessed one of the dead Yoju moving and heard the call for help of the Ikaruga Platoon, which lost Leno and Iharu, he and Kikoru agreed that the kaiju who attacked Kikoru at the exam venue was there too. Luckily, moments before the Humanoid Kaiju was about to kill Iharu and Leno, Kafka arrived in his Kaiju form and decapitated the other kaiju with one fist to the face. While carrying Leno away, the Humanoid Kaiju regrew his head and recognized Kafka as the rumored Kaiju No. 8. Kafka engaged in combat with it and proved strong enough to resist everything the Humanoid Kaiju threw at him. Kafka was able to strike him strong enough to expose his core, the Defense Force arrived and spotted him before he could finish the kaiju off. This forced the kaiju to attack the Defense Force to distract Kafka and escape, forcing Kafka to retreat to avoid being caught by the Defense Force. Entering an alley to transform back, he was approached by Soshiro, unaware that the Kaiju No. 8 he just found was Kafka. Evading all his attacks, Kafka watched as Soshiro got ready to go all out on him. As Soshiro kept attacking him, Kafka managed to defense himself from everything Soshiro threw at him until, since Soshiro localized his core, he distracted Soshiro by punching his blade away, and escaped. He then reached Kikoru again to transform back into a human and be aided by her.
Sometime later he visited Leno and Iharu in the infirmary and, after two weeks, Kafka and the other Force members celebrated their first mission all together. While discussing the mission during the party, Soshiro announced in front of everyone that Kafka was promoted to an official Third Division officer.
Raid on Tachikawa Base Arc
Later Kafka had a private meeting with Mina, who told him that he was still far from aiming to be at her side, shpwing Kafka that she never forgot his promise. She also revealed to him, before leaving, that it was Soshiro's decision to have him promoted to officer and that the Vice-Captain has high expectations on Kafka. Then, after studying as usual, Kafka noticed that Soshiro was training in the training rooms by reenacting his fight against Kaiju No. 8. After a brief conversation, Soshiro confirmed his high expectations on Kafka to him. Later that night Kafka witnessed dozens of flying kaiju attacking Tachikawa Base. Recognizing the kaiju as Wyvern-type kaiju, Kafka told Soshiro that, since Wyvern-types are usually solitary in nature, they had to be controlled by a powerful leader. While preparing to join the fight, he helped Platoon Leader Ikaruga and other Third Division members to deal with the Wyverns by telling them about their weak spots.
Later he rescued Akari Minase from a kaiju and, after meeting with Kikoru and Leno, they were both ordered to help the injured. Before they could move, Kafka and Minase watched in amazement as the off-duty senior senior officers arrived to protect Tachikawa Base. Then, despite being in his human form, his kaiju sense awakened and he felt that Vice-Captain Soshiro was in trouble. Upon witness as Soshiro was about to be crushed by the enormous kaiju, Kafka got ready to transform and save him, despite Leno's recommendation. However, before he could do anything, he and everybody else heard Mina's voice thank everyone for standing their ground, and watched as she shoots the kaiju in the shoulder with her cannon. Watching as Soshiro, Mina and Kikoru took down the massive kaiju, Kafka could only tear up wishing to become as strong as them one day, before being interrupted by Leno's sassy comments. As everyone was cheering, a massive bomb made out of the Wyvern Yoju appeared in the sky, ready to blow up on Tachikawa Base. Sensing the threat, Kafka started running at incredible speeds and, without listening to Soshiro's advice to retreat, he transformed into Kaiju No. 8 in front of everyone, ready to take on the threat. After watching Soshiro giving his all in battle, Kafka decided to step up and face the Yoju-bomb by jumping and punch it far away in the sky, making it blow without any casualties. Exhausted and damaged from his actions, Kafka saddened over damaging his own body and failing Leno and Kikoru. Seconds later, he was approached by the Third Division, with Mina herself taking him into custody. After being imprisoned for a whole day, Kafka was then escorted by Mina into a truck who would take him to the headquarters of the Defense Force. During the trip, Kafka was reassured that no one in the Third Division saw him as a kaiju and, when asking if he could still aim to stand at Mina's side, he bursted in tears as Mina replied that she'd be waiting for him. Arriving at the Ariake Maritime Base, Kafka was imprisoned while waiting for judgement.
Kaiju No. 8 Captured Arc
Detained as the headquarters of the Defense Force, Kafka was later approached by the Director General himself Isao Shinomiya, who had talked about Kafka with his daughter Kikoru a few minutes before. As soon as he was released, Kafka tried to tell Shinomiya that he was a human, but the Director General quickly attacked him and violently collected a sample of blood, making it clear that he didn't consider Kafka a human, but a kaiju. Then, while trying to find a way to prove Isao that he wasn't a kaiju, Kafka was attacked by Isao once again, now geared up to dispose of Kaiju No. 8. During the fight, Kafka sensed Isao's presence as that of a Daikaiju and, before he could dodge, he had his leg severed before being viciously punched. As he fully transformed In his kaiju form, Kafka could only watch as his body started moving out of control and attacked the Director General. Inside of his own body, Kafka saw the very kaiju that transformed him into No. 8, who told him to kill Isao. Then, out of control, Kaiju No, 8 kept attacking Isao with new moves and strategies, with Kafka not able to hold his transformation for long. As No. 8 took control of his body, Kafka tried to fight back to avoid killing Kikoru's father in front of her eyes. Then, when the kaiju inside of his body knocked him out, Kafka almost gave up until he remembered Mina's words, giving him the willpower to punch himself in the heart and stop his raging body, finally transforming back into Kafka Hibino and then fainting.
Safe and sound in the informatory, Kafka dreamt of the time he and Mina took the cat Miiko to the crematorium. When he woke up, Director General Shinomiya was there to explain how they still see Kafka as a kaiju but are willing to give him a chance to show his usefulness. Understanding that they keep him alive to use him as a weapon, Kafka swore to prove his worth not only as an ally but as a Defense Force member.
Five days later, Kafka was suddenly called by Isao Shinomiya in a meeting with First Division Captain Gen Narumi, First Division Vice-Captain Eiji Hasegawa and Kikoru. There, Isao announced his decision to have Kaiju No. 8 moved to the First Division as a way to both give Kafka a chance to prove his worth and to have the strongest anti-kaiju fighter in Japan and the strongest daikaiju around in the same division, to better face future threats. Kafka, shocked at Narumi's presence, then heard a bored Gen proposing of disposing of him to make him Narumi's personal weapon. Think about the promise to Mina, Kafka told Gen that he couldn't die yet and that he would do his best under his captaincy, convincing Gen in giving him a shot.
Kaiju Weapon Arc
After entering the First Division, Kafka and Kikoru were dispatched to defeat some Ant-type kaiju that attacked Shinagawa Ward in Tokyo. Upon complimenting Kikoru for neutralizing some kaiju, Kafka took action with his partial transformation to defeat some kaiju, in order not to lose control of his transformation like he did against Isao. Then, realizing he couldn't beat any kaiju if not fully transformed, Kafka promptly tried to go all out before shockingly realizing he couldn't transform for some reason. A second later, a shocked Kafka watched as Kaiju No. 9 appeared in front of him in a whole new form. Unable to face him properly, Kafka was aided by Kikoru and the two joined forces to take down No. 9. As Kikoru tanked No. 9's attacks, Kafka's transformation stopped once again at the idea of his losing control of his kaiju form again and killing all of his friends. Realizing his problem was only due to his inner fear of hurting people and not to Kaiju No. 9 nor other external factors, Kafka found courage in Kikoru's words and transformed into Kaiju No. 8 to finally face No. 9, promptly pulverizing him having found new control over his kaiju form. After the fight, Kafka and Gen Narumi found out No. 9's true target was Isao Shinomiya and Kaiju No. 2's power, with Kafka and Gen quickly rushing to Isao's location.
Upon arriving, they found Isao's injured body alone, only to discover it was Kaiju No. 9 who had assimilated Isao and taken his appearance. Kikoru then joined them, mad at the kaiju for killing her father, but Kafka protected her and fought No. 9 with Gen. In the climax, No. 9 attacked Kikoru and Kurusu at the same time, forcing Kafka and Gen to stop their onslaught to save the two and unwillingly allowing No. 9 to escape, much to Kafka's rage.
Kafka took part in Isao's funeral at the Ariake Maritime Base, with the rest of the First Division. Overhearing Kikoru's conversation with Captain Narumi, Kafka felt guilty for not stopping No. 9 in time and swore to defeat him next time. Sometime later, scientists in the First Division discovered a part of Kafka's hand didn't revert back to human form, worrying them that if Kafka were to keep transforming, he could one day be unable to turn back to human. Being informed, Gen has a conversation about it with Kafka, with Gen telling him he couldn't let Kafka keep fighting. However, sharing the pain they felt upon witnessing Isao's death and No. 9's ferocity, Gen asked Kafka to lend them his power for the sake of No. 9's death, with Gen offering Kafka to kill Kafka himself in case he wild again. Kafka promptly accepted.
The Compatible User Arc
During their morning training, Kafka and Kikoru found out from Vice-Captain Hasegawa that Vice-Captain Hoshina and the rest of the Third Division were coming to the Ariake Maritime Base for the Anti-No. 9 Eastern Divisional Conference, being instructed by Eiji about the rivarly between the First and the Third Division.
A month later, Eiji informed Kafka and Kikoru about Leno becoming the first compatible user in history with Kaiju No. 6's weapon, much to Kafka's disapproval. However Kikoru reassured Kafka of Leno's strength. That night Kafka went for a jogging session around the base, praising Leno's improvement and wondering about his own. Then, he found Soshiro spying on him and almost slashing him the way he was about to do in their first fight in Sagamihara. Being finally even with Kafka, Soshiro thanked Kafka for saving the Third Division during No. 10's attack and told him not to transform anymore since Soshiro himself wanted to destroy Kaiju No. 9. However, Kafka promptly declined but was later offered a combat training session by Soshiro. At Ryunei Shrine, after hearing its story as a place where spirits of those who died while killing kaiju reunite, Kafka had a quick sparring session with Soshiro. The latter praised Kafka's improvements due to his training but underlined his overconfidence in his power as Kaiju No. 8, which brings him to fight recklessly. While fighting using the Squadron-Style Combat Technique, Soshiro then encouranged Kafka to improve and steal his place as Mina's Vice-Captain, right before strangling him as usual. Then, as they were about to leave, Kafka briefly saw a samurai-like ghost staring at him in the middle of the temple before disappearing, leaving Kafka very confused. Then, remembering Soshiro's words about his training, Kafka kept excerisizing his lower body until he was interrupted by Kikoru, who gave Kafka his phone back. Upon receiving it, Kafka found out he had many notifications unseen and started worrying about his Third Division comrades possibly lashing out at him for his kaiju nature. Then he received a call from Leno, which Kafka mistakenly refused, and another from Iharu, which he responded to much to Leno's annoyance. Then, after realizing how much his comrades valued his efforts and considered him an ally, Kafka opened his inbox messages and saw the many worried texts from his comrades, making him tear up. He then followed Kikoru to training.
Three month later, in which he kept training with Soshiro, Kafka briefly encountered Mina during her temporary stay at the Ariake Maritime Base. There, an embarassed Kafka ate his dinner with his friend and the two of them recalled the days when they were kids and used to play Defense Force soldiers. Then, Mina thanked Kafka for defending Tachikawa Base back then and reassured him on their promise to kill every kaiju left together, before leaving.
Cataclysms Arc
Five days prior to the attacks, Kikoru made Kafka promise that he would not save her in case she was in trouble, with her thanking him for doing it in the past but declaring that she needed him to trust in her skills.
During the No. 9-induced cataclysms, Kafka took action with the First Division in Oizumi, doing rear guard duties. As six Daikaiju approached the coast, Kafka asked Platoon Leader Shinonome to deploy, with her preventing him to keep him as their trump card. Then, Kafka and Rin witnessed as Mina shoot down two Super-giantclass kaiju from Tachikawa.
The Second Wave Arc
After Kaiju No. 13 targeted the main force of the First Division in Oizumi, even defeating Platoon Leaders Shinonome and Tachibana, Kafka suddenly intervened to save Rin from the rogue kaiju and then face it himself, despite Rin's disapproval. Upon transforming, Kafka triggered the Defense Force scanner as well as the senses of the new five Identified Kaiju that attacked the other officers. Keeping his promise to Kikoru, Kafka used his communication device to tell her he wouldn't save her since he trusted her, while then preparing to face an ecstatic Kaiju No. 13. As the latter augmented his muscules' size to punch him, Kafka easily blocked the blow and retaliated with a single punch, sending an injured No. 13 flying against a wall and killing it.
The Last Wave Arc
Later, he was told through communications that Mina Ashiro defeated Kaiju No. 14, with Kafka feeling inferior in front of Mina's immense power. However, second later, Kaiju No. 9 hacked the Defense Force comms, saying that while the officers surpassed its expectations, the battle was still its victory. When Kurusu announced No. 9's appearance in Tachikawa, Kafka promptly worried about Mina and immediately transformed to rescue her, swearing not to repeat the incident that killed Director General Shinomiya. However, No. 9 stated that No. 8 would never make it in time, as the Third Wave was unleashed on the exhausted Defense Force officers all over Tokyo. A rageful Kafka, remembering his promise to Mina as kids, declared war on the new series of Daikaiju, which quickly opened fire on the city. As two kaiju were attacking civilians, Kafka promptly annihilated them. In the background, No. 9 explained that even though the kaiju were no match for Kafka, he couldn't allow them to attack civilians and officers, hence he would never make it in time to Mina. A powerless Kafka then listened to Mina being taken by No. 9 and the latter stating its true threatening intentions. Punching his way to Mina, Kafka struggled to defeat the Third Wave, while considering whether to stay there and fight or immediately reach Mina in Tachikawa. Simultaneously, No. 9 was about to absorb Mina, taunting Kafka for losing those he loves because he never lets go of things. Eventually, right after Mina was captured by No. 9, a new kaiju reading appeared and the Third Wave was suddenly frozen. Behind Kafka, Leno finally appeared wearing Numbers Weapon 6, as he encouraged Kafka to reach Mina while he took on the Third Wave.
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