Parona

Parona (パロナ, Parona) was a teenage girl from Ninannah and close friend of March. She actively fought against the sacrificial rituals imposed on her family, but was ultimately murdered by Hayase for interfering with her hunt for Fushi.

Background
As a child, Parona often played with her elder sister, who took her into the forest one day and had her play an innocent game of hide and seek. She claimed the game would end once she returned, and promised to make Parona a new doll as a reward, leaving her with enough food to last a couple of days. However, Parona came out of hiding after about a week and asked for the whereabouts of her sister, only to be told that she was no longer there, chosen as a sacrifice to the Spirit Bear Oniguma. Consequently, Parona was admonished by the villagers for evading her role as a sacrifice and exiled from her home, and not long after, she found her sister's corpse lying deep in the forest.

Parona eventually found her way to another village, becoming close with a very young March after gifting a doll of her own make. From then on, she would regularly "play house" with her and create more dolls over the course of their friendship.

Appearance
Parona was a young girl around the age of 15. She had long black hair tied in a loose ponytail, and wore a dress with cloth wrapped around her arms, legs, and torso.

Personality
Having experienced the loss of her sister and being ousted from her home, Parona was a survivor through and through, being clever, resourceful, courageous, and willing to do what she believed was right for her and her surrogate sister. She abhorred the sacrificial ceremonies that dictated the lives of the Ninannah people, resolving to do whatever it took to allow her and March to live in peace.

With her keen ability to plan and improvise, she single-handedly saved March and, though she was captured, escaped using a knife she had in her shoes beforehand, as well as broke out of the Yanome prison despite needing to subdue a guard with weapons she prepared.

Parona was also skilled at suppressing her emotions and kept a pleasant demeanor around March in particular. However, she often conveyed her thoughts honestly, rationally, and coldly, which frightened the little girl at times. Even in her grief, she was able to maintain her composure long enough to calm Fushi down before she broke into tears.

Skills
Expert Archer

Parona was a proficient archer with excellent aim, but lacked the strength to properly use bows larger than she was accustomed to, which caused her to miss a killing shot on Hayase.

Improvised Crafting

As demonstrated when kept in and escaping the Yanome prison, Parona was able to quickly craft improvised spears and bows out of mundane tools and materials.

Natural Hand-to-Hand Combatant

Though limited and seemingly without much training, Parona could hold her own in close combat. She was able to quickly disable a Yanome guard with only a few well-placed strikes before holding him at spear point, and during the prison escape, was able to match blows with another guard and knock him off the wagon.

Highly Athletic

Parona could climb buildings and run quickly without tiring for extended periods of time, and could roll to break her fall even from great heights.

Spirit Bear

 * A Rambunctious Girl (debut)
 * A Little Evolution
 * A Larger Vessel
 * Those Who Follow

Jananda Island

 * Jananda, Island of Freedom (form taken by Fushi)
 * A Girl Named Tonari (form taken on by Fushi)
 * The Children's Dreams (form taken on by Fushi; flashback cameo)
 * The Defeated (form taken on by Fushi)

Quotes

 * "I get the feeling everyone's life has a purpose... so if he's going to live forever, I wonder what meaning he's found on it." - Pondering Fushi's immortality (Chapter 5)
 * "The way you live isn't something given to you! It's something you win for yourself!" - Parting words to Fushi (Chapter 11)