Suzaku Kururugi (枢木 スザク)

Background

Later, Suzaku is introduced as an Honorary Britannian soldier. Prince Clovis sent honorary Britannian Soldiers to retrieve the poison gas stolen by the Japanese Resistance. Among them, Suzaku finds the vehicle and confronts Lelouch, whom he believes to be a terrorist. When Nagata opens the capsule, Suzaku quickly puts his gas mask on Lelouch's face. The capsule opens, and instead of gas, as Suzaku expected, a restrained C.C. appears. Before they can get answers, Suzaku's superiors come and tell him not to question his briefing and to shoot the "terrorist" Lelouch. When Suzaku refuses, he got shot in the back. However, the bullet stopped by a broken pocket watch belonging to his deceased father.

As a result of Lelouch's rebellion in a counter-attack against the Britannian Army and a twist of fate, Suzaku became the pilot of the experimental Knightmare Frame Lancelot since Britannia wouldn't risk actual pilots on a practical craft.

Lelouch rescues Suzaku from his impending execution by assuming the identity of Zero and taking credit for Clovis' murder, forcing the military to acquit Suzaku due to lack of evidence. While Suzaku agrees with Zero on the latter's assertion that the Britannian Empire is corrupt and not worth serving, he wants to change and improve the Empire from within to show that his father's death was not in vain. As Suzaku claims, achieving results by wrong or illegal methods is meaningless.

Having been acquitted of all charges, Suzaku meets Third Princess Euphemia li Britannia and escorts her around Area 11. In Shinjuku Ghetto, they conflict with Shinichirō Tamaki, a member of the Japanese Resistance, and Suzaku ends up intervening in an internal pureblood struggle.

From this point on, Suzaku remains the pilot of the Lancelot. He enrolled at Ashford Academy at Euphemia's suggestion. Lelouch later confronts him, and they talk about their past, but Suzaku worries that he will only cause Lelouch and Nunnally trouble. Later Lelouch invites him to Nunnally at the clubhouse, but Suzaku leaves, wanting to keep their statuses as royalty a secret.

His rank within the military is initially Private, but he is promoted to Warrant Officer by Cornelia when she first arrives in Japan. When Mao kidnaps Nunnally, Suzaku helps Lelouch rescue her. After detonating the bomb and rescuing Nunnally, Suzaku approaches Mao to arrest him; however, Mao uses his Geass and reveals the fact that Suzaku was the one who killed his father, Genbu Kururugi.

Suzaku is appointed as Euphemia's personal Knight, granting him the rank of Major after a televised battle with the Black Knights makes his occupation public knowledge. During the fight on Shikine Island, Lelouch confronts Suzaku after luring him into a trap to recruit him by reminding him of his father's death. After reinforcements arrive, Lelouch is forced to use the power of Geass on Suzaku and commands him to "live." As this command gives no time or event limitations, it activates every time Suzaku feels threatened, and he must live by any means necessary.

He eventually encounters Kallen at Kamine Island and captures her only to spend their time being stuck. While spending time on the island, Suzaku and Kallen talk to each other peacefully until Suzaku tries to convince Kallen to abandon the Black Knights, which causes her to retort that Suzaku's ideals will bring nothing but the suffering of the people. That makes Suzaku tell her that he killed his father and wants to atone for what he did.

At the primarily Administrative Zone's inaugural ceremony, Suzaku sees Zero and wants to request Euphie's assistance, which Euphie said was okay. Meanwhile, Suzaku sees the Gawain, he had the same reaction regarding C.C., and the moment the two reacted, Suzaku lost consciousness. Suzaku later woke up and saw trouble going around the stadium. He commanded the troops to stop attacking but get denied since Euphie ordered it, which shocked him, and as a result, he went to find Euphie. Suzaku falls in love with Euphemia and is thus crushed emotionally by her murder at Zero's hands.

He gets a visit from V.V., who explains Lelouch's power of Geass to him. Before heading out to battle, Suzaku calls Lelouch, whose number was Euphemia's, and discussed their current actions and wishes both other luck as friends. This drives him to find and kill Zero at all costs, exemplified when he brutally kills anyone who gets in his way, including senior Black Knights member Yoshida. After this incident, he was nicknamed the "White Reaper" or "White Death."

He follows Zero to Kamine Island after Cornelia instructs him to. He meets Zero, and the two have a standoff. Lelouch tries to offer Suzaku a truce to rescue Nunnally, but Suzaku is too swept up in his grief to come to a ceasefire. In retaliation, Lelouch reminded his father's death. Enraged, Suzaku exclaims that Lelouch's very existence is a mistake, one he intends to correct, and tells Lelouch that he will be the one to save Nunnally instead. Lelouch draws his pistol as well, and both men attempt to shoot one another, at which point the screen fades to black, and the season ends with two gunshots.