Father

"Nothing about this world has changed since its inception. The faithful look like fools. Life is cheap. The weak are crushed; defeat means death. Only the victors survive."

- Chapter 98

Father (, Toto-sama) is the main antagonist of Noragami, as well as Yato and Nora's parent.

He is a human returned from Yomi who became a Crafter with the ability to control ayakashi. In his current incarnation, he is known as Kouto Fujisaki (, Fujisaki Kōto), the oldest son of the Fujisaki family and a third year student at Hiyori Iki's school.

On Tamatsuki, he is known as the Mask-Maker (ち, Menuchi-sama).

Appearance
Kouto is a young man with neatly parted, brown hair that reaches halfway down his face on either side. In the manga, his hair and eyes are colored a light-brown; in the anime adaptation, however, his eyes are colored a rusty red.

Father's original form is that of a man with unkempt, short, black hair who wears a black koromo over a white kosode, the typical attire of a Buddhist monk. His eyes are generally covered by his hair and are seldom shown.

Personality
When playing the role of Kouto Fujisaki, the Fujisaki family's eldest son, Father acts relaxed and polite in front of friends & strangers and is said to be smart and athletic, despite also being described as "weird" by classmates.

However, when no one is around, his demeanor changes completely - Father is fickle and cruel as was shown during one of his first appearances, when he summoned an phantom and commanded it to possess a woman, before proceeding to steer her off her own balcony to test his new Word. According to Hiyori, he usually attacks others indirectly, using people precious to them to send a message. He can also be very petty, such as when he reveals to Yato that he kissed Hiyori for seemingly no reason other than to upset him, as he often goes out of his way to do.

Father harbors an immense hatred toward gods and, by extension, the humans who worship them, treating them both with disdain if not outright vitriol.

Skills & Abilities

 * The Word (のの, Yomi no Koto no Ha): Father is in possession of two brushes - one he stole himself from the Underworld and one he obtained after Ebisu's death - giving him the ability to name, control, and summon ayakashi. He is also able to communicate through them, command them to possess people , and summon them with Chiki. Father notes that Ebisu's Word is better than his old one because ayakashi produced with the Word he originally attained all had some weakness, such as dying after one use or disappearing in the sunlight.
 * The Words are also capable of naming shinki and sealing their Blight. Shinki named by the Word will not sting their masters, seal any Blight that might have been already inflicted on its master , and give them the ability to shift into a ayakashi-like form. Father summoning ayakashi.png
 * Liberation (, kaihou): Chiki, one of Father's shinki, has the ability to break a shinki's name upon contact. Father describes it as a kind of "poison" which will corrode their given name and cause the shinki to become obsessed with their past. The shinki will eventually remember their human name - revealing the God's Greatest Secret - and become karma ayakashi in their grief and anger.
 * Astral Projection: Father is able to separate his soul from his body, similar to Hiyori. His soul appears in a black koromo with the face of the body he is currently inhabiting ; however, there are certain instances where he is seen with his original appearance. Unlike Hiyori, he does not seem to have a cord that connects his soul to his body.

Quotes

 * To the Stray: "He's finally reached his rebellious phase! It really is adorable, how stupid he is!!" (Chapter 40)
 * To Bishamonten: "Your ilk gets off scott-free for everything you do. But who do you think forgives the debt? People do. No matter how much you take from them, how much you walk all over them. They just accept it without a word of complaint. I can't forgive any of you. Not the gods... nor any of the idiots who forgive them." (Chapter 60)
 * To Amaterasu: "If you're just going to sit there like any old mountain or river, then you might as well admit you're not even trying anymore!" (Chapter 99)

Trivia

 * Father's clothing identifies him as a Buddhist monk. Although he says that he only took the appearance of a monk, he shows at least a basic understanding of Buddhism. During the Sakura arc, we see him wearing a black koromo - worn only by Buddhist monks - as well state that karma ayakashi are a manifestation of a person's karma (, gou). In addition, Father's name for Chiki's ability, Liberation (, kaihou), is likely a reference to liberation from the cycle of endless death and rebirth known as samsara, the ultimate goal of Buddhism.
 * Chiki's weapon form is that of a shakujō, a six-ringed staff carried by Buddhist monks. In the past, it was used by wandering monks to scare off small animals and for self-defense on their travels. Although a young Father is seen carrying a similar staff in Chapter 98, this staff was likely the old monk's.
 * When naming Yato, Father makes a reference to the constellations Kanoto (eight of the ten Heavenly Stems) and Tori (the Rooster of the Zodiac), demonstrating his knowledge of Chinese astrology. The cover of Volume 12 alludes to this also, showing each constellation of the 28 Mansions.
 * He wants to add Yato to his family plan but can't get it to work out.