Minipedia

Growing up in America, Souta spent most of his childhood bouncing between soccer fields, basketball courts, and football practices. While he genuinely loved sports, a large part of his motivation came from wanting to impress his father, whose approval was difficult to earn.
As the years passed, his mother became increasingly concerned by how much Souta relied on his father's opinion. No matter how many achievements he earned, he was always searching for the next accomplishment that might finally make his father proud. This became a frequent source of arguments between his parents, eventually leading to their separation.Before leaving, Souta's father congratulated him after one of his accomplishments and gifted him the hat he still wears today. Though simple, it remains one of the few moments where Souta felt genuinely acknowledged by him.
Following the divorce, Souta moved to Japan with his mother, who hoped a change in environment would encourage him to focus more on his studies rather than pursuing sports. The move was difficult. Having always been closer to his father, Souta struggled to adapt and spent years arguing with his mother, often begging to return to America.Eventually, he found comfort through Kitagawa High School's sports clubs, joining several teams and building friendships through competition. Growing up surrounded by athletes and competitive environments, Souta became accustomed to communicating through banter, teasing, and shouting rather than openly discussing his feelings. While his attitude can sometimes come across as rude or stubborn, he rarely means harm; it's simply the way he's always known how to connect with others.

Personality

Souta, in simple terms, is a lot. He's loud, energetic and almost incapable of sitting still; he loves to ensure his presence is immediately noticed but there's no need for him to try. Everyone who knows him can agree that Souta and quiet are practically two completely different concepts; unless he's upset, uncomfortable or something's wrong, silence is something that rarely applies to him. He gets excitedly easily and tends to express his excitement just as intensely, whether hes talking alot, challenging someone to a race, interrupting someone, tapping his foot or finding things to keep himself occupied. To some, he can be seen as "too much" but Souta never intends to overwhelm anyone. He's just naturally expressive and enthusiastic. (and has undiagnosed AuDHD)Another big part of his character is his childishness. Souta has a playful almost childlike mindset which affects his way of approaching things and becoming easily fascinated by anything that can hold his attention. For example, he prefers comics over traditional books because they give him visuals along with the words that make the story more interesting for him and learns best when he can see whats being taught; making him a visual learner. Animated shows, films, stories are also a good way at keeping his attention, especially when they teach lessons through characters' mistakes than someone simply explaining them. (Examples: Finding Dory/Nemo, MLP, Toy Story, Big Hero 6, Ninjago). Abstract explanations can be harder for him to process, but connecting an idea to something he can already enjoy makes it click easier. For example, when Souta's nervous, Ken encourages him to imagine himself as a dragon breathing fire to regulate breathing. Similarly, when explaining not every conflict needs to end with a fight, he used knights and dragons as an analogy because he knew those were concepts Souta could easily visualise.One of the main problems is that people often haven't taken the time to figure out how he learns best. Throughout his childhood, Souta was heavily stereotyped in school, being viewed as "lazy" and the "naughty kid" who didn't care about his grades rather than considering he was struggling with his attention span and keeping up with the class. When he didn't understand something, he would pretend that he did instead of asking for help. This is because he was embarrassed; when everyone else seemed to understand when he didn't, he felt stupid. He also didn't want to be a burden to his teachers or the rest of the class. As a result, he expects people to give up on him before he can properly understand something, which causes him to label himself as the "dumb friend."This insecurity links with his confidence too. He can come across as cocky, arrogant or selfish but his confidence isn't to put others down. He's grown up receiving praise for his appearance and athletic ability so overtime that praise has built his confidence. He knows he's good at certain things and isn't afraid to acknowledge it. But that confidence can become toxic when blended into his ego. He gains a tendency to believe he's right even when he isn't, and admitting he's wrong can feel like he's admitting weakness. This becomes destructive pride which causes him to be defensive, argumentative and stubborn when backing down feels like loosing. And Souta hates losing.

Souta's competitiveness often makes his insecurities worse. He constantly compares himself to others. Especially when someone's stronger, smarter or more capable than him, but it'll take a lot for him to admit it. His fear of appearing weak is connected to the expectations he grew up with about what a man should be: strong, confident, capable and emotionally tough. This has caused vulnerability to make him uncomfortable and find it hard to express and discuss negative emotions properly. When he's angry, frustrated/hurt is to laugh it off or act on it rather than talk. This is one of the main reasons why he gets into arguments or lash out. He distracts himself for hours by doing sports or his usual hobbies till its a late night with nothing left to distract him. Ironically, he doesn't struggle expressing himself when it comes to his interests; if he really likes a girl, he'd ramble endlessly but explaining why he likes her is what he struggles with. He just lacks emotional and romantic vocabulary.

NOW FOR SOME POSTIVIESSSS!! Souta's really loyal and protective of people he cares about. His teasing and tendency to be annoying are just his ways of showing affection; if he's always bothering you, asking you to race, dragging you along with his ridiculous choices, it means he's comfortable with you. You should really be concerned if he isn't bothering you.He's also naturally sassy and terrible at hiding his judgement in his expressions so he may scoff or give quiet comments.