Yorito Nagai
永井頼人
Ground self defence force member (leading private) / male / 21 (actor: Kiyokazu Ebina)
A young member of the Japanese Land Self Defence Force who is in the middle of cargo transportation training when he becomes caught in the oddity, crash landing on Yamijima due to helicopter trouble. He is ranked leading private. Despite losing his respected senior and friends in the crash, he attempts to carry out his duties as an SDF member initially, but harbours a mistrust of his commander, Misawa, who survives along with him, and decides to face the island's oddity in his own way.
Nagai, formerly having no distinct goals for the future, nor intending to go to university, was a normal, average young man from the country, who ended up joining the SDF (this was due to being told, "If you've graduated from high school and you're not doing anything, may as well join the SDF!" by an uncle. Nagai himself thought, "Apparently I can get a driving license if I join the SDF, so I guess I'll give it a go?"). His parents half expected, half feared him to be broken and quit quickly as they saw their son off, but luckily Nagai was good at his duties and met Okita, a man of character; this meeting had a positive influence on him, and he even became distinguished amongst those young members who joined at the same time he did (he had been athletic when he was younger, and started getting excellent grades in the SDF).
For Nagai, a stereotypical young man who had trouble getting used to adulthood, Okita was a truly respected senior, both as a colleague and a friend. Okita's death (which was caused by his protecting Nagai!) is such a shock to him, but when Okita's corpse strangely reawakens ans begins to attack him, Nagai is sent into total panic. Due to the quick wits of his boss, Misawa, the two are able to escape. However, as he does as he is told while they explore the island, Nagai gradually becomes distrustful of Misawa's strange behaviour. Never having been all that strongly passionate about the SDF, and still having the childish view that, however high ranking someone is he can't stand anyone he can't trust (though he may have cautiously gone along with it if Okita had been there...), Nagai is unable to surmise Misawa's true intent and disagrees with him. Later, this thoughtlessness leads to his momentum building and culminates with the shooting of his boss, causing him to panic and look after Ichiko to try to act as a SDF member should, but Ichiko awakens as a Simulacrum... This is the first time Nagai realises his ignorance and impotence, letting him reassess the situation realistically. Through various experiences, Nagai grows as a man.
When Misawa notices that Nagai has been taken in by Yuri's power, Nagai becomes distrustful of him, wondering what he wants with a helpless young girl. This is, of course, Nagai's misinterpretation.
Speechless at the murder of his commanderIn a complete panic at having actually shot Major Misawa to death. He tells himself that he had to do it "to protect Ichiko"...
Misplaced anger at the strategyHeads for the top of the pylon with Itsuki, but is pushed off by a Yamibito. Still, Nagai doesn't lose hope, eliminating the foes on the surface.
Parting with OkitaIn order to destroy the Yamibito that has completely fused with Okita's body, Nagai uses TNT to blow him up so that he can't even regenerate. Goodbye...
"Crash Landing" (-2:24:27 / Offshore Yamijima / Cape Hidaru)
All of the fewer than twenty SDF members on board the helicopter, save for Nagai and Misawa, are killed upon impact upon crash landing. Witnessing someone's death for the first time, Nagai realises how weak and fragile humans are, grieving. However, all of the dead on this island are now returning as "something else" - Shibito - that are the enemies of humanity. Nagai is stunned by the various strange phenomena that occur one by one before his eyes.
"Rescue" (14:45:29 / Yamijima Mining Co. Housing / Building C, Room 102)
To drown out the shock of having shot his commander to death, Nagai pours his everything into protecting Ichiko as a member of the SDF. His desperate actions momentarily call back Ichiko (Simulacrum ver.)'s human memories, but as she has already awakened his attempts are futile. Was the girl a monster, like Misawa predicted...? The shocking truth swallows Nagai up, but he finally begins to reassess the reality of the situation in a calm manner.
"Rebellion" (16:58:59 / Bright Win / Wheelhouse)
Seeing Itsuki deep in his despair and feeling like he is seeing a glimpse of his old self, Nagai cheers him on with, "It's too early to give up! Let's do what we can." The two are of conflicting personalities, but they have a comrade mentality due to them being of the same generation and gender, and this is an important scene that shows a strange trusting relationship blossom between them. After this, "night" visits the Reflected World Yamijima once more, and the story heads for its conclusion...
Q: Please explain what leads to the discord between Nagai and Misawa.
A: Nagai is full of distrust for Misawa after he orders him to attack Okita, his senior who has just become a Shibito, with everything he has, and after Misawa so calmly points his gun at Nagai. The situation is so strange, even his sense of duty towards the SDF fades. On the other hand, since Misawa is already on the verge of cracking, he has already cast off any normal, calm decision-making. He begins to play by the rules of the strange world rather than the real one.
Character Archive: Yorito Nagai
After being pushed from the pylon, at 22:00 "Blitz" Nagai applies facepaint. This is because Nagai is entering "misplaced anger mode", in a display to push what remains of his strength beyond its limits. Despite having no guarantee of a certain future or his own safety beyond this point, he has decided upon a kamikaze attack, as a member of the SDF as well as one of Japan's "fine, healthy young men". If he calms down even a little or becomes timid, he will break down, so he uses this to pump himself up.
Nagai commits himself to an endless fight for survival in the midst of the oddity. But who could have predicted that its end would connect with a world controlled by Yamibito...? How utterly hopeless.
Past
Born on 25 July 1984
Real World
-5:00 - Cargo transportation training on a Self Defence Force helicopter. Due to influences of the oddity that occurs off Yamijima's coast, pilot suddenly dies. Helicopter thrown into chaos
-3:00 - SDF helicopter crash lands on Yamijima's Cape Hidaru. Okita shields Nagai before they hit, sustaining grave wounds
-2:00 - Escapes from crashed helicopter
-1:00 - Fights back against Shibito Okita; escapes from amusement park along with Misawa
Other World
0:00 - Finds Itsuki and Yuri. Siren sounds right afterwards. Swept away by a huge, deep red tsunami
1:00 - Swept to Uryu Forest by tsunami. Woken by Misawa
2:00 - Explores boat. Spots Yuri and chases her in a panic. Escapes from grounded boat with Yuri
3:00 - Quarrel between Nagai and Misawa. Loses sight of the fleeing Yuri
Return of the Dove
6:00 - Siren. Suspicious of the strange-sounding siren that rings across the whole island
10:00 - Rests in a sunlit area
14:00 - Misawa points his gun at the cornered Ichiko; Nagai shoots reflexively. Misawa dies. Nagai, unmoving, trembles, protecting Ichiko
14:00 - Ichiko awakens as Simulacrum. Tries to bring back her human memories, but she runs away
16:00 - Saves Itsuki from creeping Yamirei. Hearing from Itsuki that they will fight back until the end, both head for the pylon
18:00 - Itsuki and Nagai are awed by the sight of the strange pylon (Spider's Thread). Pushed from tower on corridor at the summit by Yamibito Tsuneo Ohta
19:00 - Moving through the mountain
22:00 - Nagai applies face paint and goes into full combat mode. Wipes out the Yamirei at the school and blows up Type 0 Yamibito Okita with TNT
23:00 - Nagai watches the pylon collapse in stunned silence. Decisive fight with Yamibito Misawa. Final battle with Otoshigo
24:00 - "Stolen World"