Main characters
Hikaru Shindo
; : Hikaru is the Main protagonist of Hikaru no Go and a sixth grader in elementary school. An important factor in the development of Hikaru's passion for Go is an encounter early on in which Hikaru becomes the rival of Go prodigy Akira Toya. At first, he thinks that Go is just for old folks and he is annoyed at Sai's demand to play, but little by little his passion for Go increases as he plays more and more. From being a member of a school Go club to becoming an Insei and finally a professional Go player (at 14 years old with three losses) a year after Akira, Hikaru matures throughout the course of the series. Throughout the series, Hikaru gets older in age as the series follow him from 6th grade to high school. Hikaru is often portrayed wearing clothing having the numeral "5". This is a pun on the Japanese word for five: 五, which is pronounced ''go''. Part of his strength is his ability to read far into the game very fast, and to make seemingly stupid moves, which, in fact, lure the opponent to playing what looks like the obviously correct move, which Hikaru then uses against them.Fujiwara no Sai
; : A spirit from the Heian era of Japan and mentor of Hikaru Shindo. Once the Go instructor to the Emperor, Sai continually plays Go, his goal being to one day play theAkira Toya
; : Hikaru's biggest rival and Kaio Middle School student. The son of Koyo Toya, Akira is already playing Go at a professional level when Hikaru first begins playing. Akira is amazed by Hikaru's seemingly impossible ability and becomes obsessed with discovering the secret behind Hikaru's strength. Meanwhile, Hikaru is impressed with how serious and focused Akira is on the game despite only being a 6th grader like him. As the series goes along, the plot brings these two characters together to play each other under different circumstances, each time adding to the mystery.Haze Middle School
Akari Fujisaki
; : Hikaru's childhood friend. She learns a little bit about Go, when Hikaru becomes interested, and she later joins the Haze Middle School Go club, serving as vice captain of the girls' team, despite her being a weak player. She loves Hikaru, as noted by her two friends and various other characters. Hikaru shows interest in her only little by little, though. The two remain friends throughout the course of the series.Kimihiro Tsutsui
; : Captain and founder of the Haze Middle School Go Club. Initially he relies on a strategy book, though he has excellent Yose (end game) skills. Kaga persuades him to abandon the book in favor of trusting his strength. When he founded the Haze Middle School Go club he is the only member, but through the efforts of Hikaru and Akari the club grows. Kimihiro graduates from Haze Middle School before his dream of defeating the Kaio Middle School Go club can be realized.Tetsuo Kaga
; : President of Haze Middle School'sMasako Kaneko
A player at the Go Club who is also a member of the Volleyball ClubYuki Mitani
; : A player at the Go Club at Haze Middle School who overcomes his cheating habit. He is angry at Hikaru for choosing to be an Insei rather than stay at the school Go club when they have a tournament around the corner. Yuki and Hikaru are no longer seen as friends. When After Sai leaves and Hikaru said he wants to stop playing go, Yuki got mad at him because he left the club and got so far he became a pro to catch up to Akira Toya, and now he wants to quit. Yuki remains in the Go club, but only after much convincing.Kumiko Tsuda
: Kumiko Tsuda is one ofNatsume
A male member of Haze Middle School's Go Club.Hitoshi Koike
A member of the Go Club.Insei
Yoshitaka Waya
; : Hikaru's "big brother"Shinichiro Isumi
; : Another Insei friendly with Hikaru, Isumi is the eldest in Hikaru's peer group, turning 18 during the series. He does very well as a forerunner in the first pro exam shown, going undefeated until his match with Hikaru. During that match, rumors about Hikaru's incredible strength add to the pressure of time constraints, and he misplaces a stone; his attempt to move the stone after letting go of it prompts his honorable resignation before Hikaru can accuse him of cheating. The match weighs on his mind and he loses his next two games and the chance to become a pro, ultimately ending with four losses. He later goes to study Go in China in one of the few character arcs in the series that does not center on Hikaru. There, he learns to control his emotions and passes the next year's pro exam without a single loss. Isumi also unknowingly helps Hikaru get over his grief for Sai when their practice game makes Hikaru realize that by playing, he can find Sai within his moves, the Go that Sai passed on to Hikaru.Kosuke Ochi
; : Yet another Insei in the same group as Hikaru, Ochi is one of the youngest (12 years old when introduced), yet very outspoken about his ability. His bragging about his strength hides his insecurity; after each loss he is known to disappear into the restroom for long periods of time. Akira tutors him to find out about Hikaru's current strength. Ochi is unnerved by Hikaru because Akira's obsession about him seems to suggest there is more to Hikaru than what Ochi knows. Ochi is also angry that Akira acknowledges Hikaru as a rival, but not Ochi himself. He demands that Akira view him as a rival if he can defeat Hikaru in the pro exam. Ochi loses to Hikaru, but does pass the pro exam with the highest score and only two losses. He comes from a wealthy family, as evidenced by the number of pros that come to his household to tutor him privately in Go.Toshinori Honda
; : Toshinori Honda is a strong insei and one of the five forerunners (which include Hikaru, Ochi, Waya, Isumi, and Honda). He almost makes the top three players in the professional exam, even managing to beat Hikaru, but ultimately fails. He eventually became a Professional along with Isumi and Kadowaki the next year, barely scraping with six losses.Tatsuhiko Kadowaki
; : Kadowaki is a cocky player who initially applied to be an insei before Sai plays for Hikaru and easily beats him. Kadowaki thus decides to train for another year. The next year he passes with a near perfect score, losing only to Isumi.Yuta Fukui
; : Nicknamed , an Insei and classmate of Waya who is known for his extremely fast-paced style of play. Although Waya is the stronger player, he cannot seem to defeat Fuku. Hikaru loses one game to him during the pro exam, but Fukui ultimately fails the exam.Asumi Nase
; : The only female Insei that has a prominent role in the series. She is able to defeat Honda in the pro exams, but ultimately fails the exam.Toshiki Adachi
; : One of the strongest insei, being able to beat Waya and advance in the Young Lion's Tournament. He eventually fails the pro exams.Eiji Komiya
; : One of the strongest insei. He eventually fails the pro exams.Toshiro Tsubaki
; : Nicknamed "Gorilla Man", Tsubaki is a large, loud, hairy man who easily intimidates Hikaru. He fails the pro exams, and due to the age limit of 30 will never be able to retake it again, so he asks Hikaru to win in his place.Kyohei Katagiri
: An insei who tries and fails to take down the forerunners, eventually failing the pro exams.Ryo Iijma
; : Ryo Iijima was an insei who notices Hikaru's growth. Iijima was outraged when he learns from Waya that Waya's group helped Hikaru by taking him to Go salons, because Hikaru was the whole group's "competition" for obtaining the status of a Go professional. Iijima later decides to quit.Professional
Koyo Toya Meijin
; : Akira Toya's father and professional Go player, known as ;Kuwabara
; : An elderly professional and current holder of the Honinbo title. Kuwabara is friends with Toya Meijin, but rivals Ogata, whose challenge he defeats. In his title defence next year, he defeats the young fast-improving Kurata. He is able to vaguely sense Sai's presence, and develops an interest in Hikaru. Kuwabara bets on Hikaru in his Beginner Dan series game. Kuwabara was Shusaku's real family name.Shigeo Morishita
; : Also known as Morishita Sensei or Mr. Morishita, is a 9-dan pro who is Waya's go teacher and leader of the study group which Hikaru also frequents on Waya's invitation. He considers Koyo Toya a rival, since the two of them became pros at the same time. Morishita also mentors Michio Shirakawa (7-dan), the community Go leader.Seiji Ogata
; : A Go professional who recognizes Hikaru's talent when he comments on a Go move during a children's tournament that even professional Go players would take some time to see (although this is Sai's insight - Hikaru had not yet attained much skill by this time). He is also a student of Koyo Toya and soon takes the Judan and Gosei titles when Koyo Toya retires.Shinoda
; : A Professional Go Player and the Insei Instructor for the Insei classes.Zama Oza
; : Zama is the current holder of the Oza title, a smug and condescending man. He played Akira Toya in the Shinshodan Series, and was angered by his precocious attitude, resolving to crush him. Akira dominates most of the match, but his excessive risk taking allows the Oza to turn the game in his favor.Michio Shirakawa
; : A 7-dan Go player and the community Go leader. He was mentored by Morishita. A member of Morishita's study group and a community go teacher.Atsushi Kurata
; : Atsushi Kurata is 7 Dan professional Go player. He met Hikaru when Hikaru point out an important historical significant Go board is a fake and when Kurata plays Hikaru at a Go salon in one color Go and recognizes Hikaru's potential. He later become the manager for Japan Team for the Hokuto Cup and let Hikaru play as Japan first against Korea First Ko Yongha.Kaio Middle School
Kaoru Kishimoto
; : Kaio Middle School Go club president and former Insei who did not become a professional. He played Akira in a game, and had to resign early and admitted he was outclassed and right not to pursue professional play. Later he plays a match against Hikaru to gauge his strength, and defeats him easily. His dismissive attitude to Hikaru's plan to rise to Akira's level while playing in the school club spurs Hikaru on to register as an Insei. His liking for black coffee allows Hikaru to realize that he is the failed Insei that the others are discussing shortly after Hikaru becomes an Insei.Mr. Yun
;Mr. Yun : Yun is Akira's Middle School teacher who is in charge of the school Go club. He is originally from Korea. He worked as a go instructor for children in Korea, and was initially disappointed in young Go players in Japan, until he joined the Kaio faculty.Yuri Hidaka
; : A 3rd year Kaio Middle School student who stands up for Akira when he gets bullied by three other members of the Go club who resent his presence in the club. She hates bullying of all kinds, but this does not stop her from bullying others.Ito, Kojima, and Okumura
;, Three students who dislike Akira Toya's presence in the Kaio Middle School Go club, and try to humiliate him into quitting the club by making him play "blind Go" (i.e. calling out the moves without looking at the Go board, likeOther characters
Harumi Ichikawa
; : Ms. Ichikawa is the cashier of the Go salon owned by the Toyas. She feels saddened when Akira frequents the club less often because of his pro schedule, and refuses to start calling him "sensei" when he goes pro, preferring to keep calling him by the nickname "Akira-kun". She frequently drives him to different places and he sometimes tutors her in Go.Shu
; : The owner of a Go salon where Hikaru finds Yuki Mitani. Shu recognises that Mitani is cheating, so he hires Dake-san to teach him a lesson.Dake
; A GoHeihachi Shindo
; : Hikaru's grandfather, a regional Go champion, who owns the board where Hikaru first discovered Sai. He claims his brother bought the board in an antique shop, intrigued by the rumor that a "ghost in a tall hat" would appear from it sometimes. He keeps the board as a memento after his brother's death and refuses to give it to Hikaru, but after seeing how much Hikaru has improved in Go in one year's time, he buys him a nice Go board to practice on his own.Mitani's Sister
; : A girl who works at an internet cafe and lets Hikaru play Go on the computers for free during her shifts. She also helps Hikaru with his English.Mitsuko Shindo
; : Hikaru's mother.China
Yang Hai
; () A Chinese Go professional who befriended Izumi during the latter's trip to China. He invited Isumi to stay over in his dorm room so Isumi wouldn't need to spend money on hotels. He is very interested in computer technology and involved in projects designed to teach computers how to play the Go. In addition to Mandarin Chinese, Yang can also speak Japanese, Korean and English. He is later chosen as the coach for team China during the Hokuto Cup.Zhao Shi
; () A 14-year-old Chinese Go professional who represented China as the third board in the Hokuto Cup.Le Ping
; () A 13-year-old Chinese Go professional. Having turned pro at the age of 11, Le relocated from his hometown inKorea
Suyong Hong
; () : A Korean Go professional, 2 years younger than Hikaru (12 years old). Hikaru, Waya, and Isumi travel to Go salons to sharpen their skills while they are Insei. In one of them they meet Suyong, whose uncle runs a Go salon, while Su-Yong is on vacation from Korea. At the time, Su-Yong is a Yeon'gusaeng (the Korean equivalent of an Insei), but is disillusioned with playing Go. Heated words between him and Hikaru lead to the two playing an intense, exciting match at the Go salon. Hikaru defeats Su-Yong and this spurs Su-Yong to work harder to become a pro. Su-Young becomes famous after beating a 9-dan in Korea. He appears again as the third representative for Korea in the Hokuto Cup.Yongha Ko
; ({{korean, hangul=고 영하, rr=Go Yeongha) A professional Go player who is chosen to represent South Korea in the Hokuto Cup. He unintentionally caused a lot of tension between Team Japan and Team Korea surrounding the tournament, as a bad translation of his Korean words during an interview caused people in Japan to think he insulted Honinbo Shusaku.