Kurama is the chief of research working for Kakuzawa in the diclonius children research containment facility. He is around his mid-30's and is also the surrogate father of Nana and biological father of Mariko. His wife, Hiromi Kurama, died from Cesarean section complications shortly after she gave birth to Mariko. Although he had previously been tasked with killing all diclonius births, he falters when he must kill his own daughter. Lucy carries a deep hatred toward Kurama, stemming from his failure to save Aiko Takada (seen in the Elfen Lied OVA); however, she states that she will not kill him but will kill everything that loves him. It is revealed late in the series that the General Director of the Diclonius research program kept his daughter Mariko alive, increasing Kurama's perceived debt to him. Near the end of the series, Kurama makes a deal with Bando to repair his damaged arm in exchange for his help in killing Lucy.

Kurama kills himself in the final episode of the anime as he cradles Mariko in his arms, lamenting his failure to give her the warmth and love she needed in her life. The explosives implanted inside her are detonated at his command, and he perishes along with his daughter. It should be noted that right before the explosion, Kurama has a series of images flashing in his mind. In them, his wife is still alive and Mariko is a normal child, and together the images make up Kurama's idea of how life presumably would have played out if Mariko had been born normal (Mariko as a toddler, Mariko on her first day of school, etc.).

Kurama does not die in the manga; Mariko (worried about the safety of her father) confronts Lucy and clings to her as the bomb inside her detonates; this results in Lucy's horns being destroyed and turning back into Nyuu, as well as Mariko's death. Kurama, depressed by his pathetic ability as a father, attempts to commit suicide with a nearby MP5, but is saved by Bando. Kurama then lives in a small shed on the beach and is rendered partially insane. He clings to a dead body of what he thinks is his daughter, Mariko, and won't let anyone come near him. Later, Nana finds him but he shuns her away, still clinging to the clone Mariko. Another clone Mariko shows up and Kurama tries to embrace her too. She however attacks him and fights with Nana. When she is about to finish Nana off, Kurama shoots her in the head and survives the series, regaining his sanity.

In the epilogue, Kurama and Nana were shown together visiting a grave marked "Kurama" and Kurama holding Mariko's ashes. It is then revealed that they are now living together. Nana asks him to take her as his wife and began crying, questioning whether Kurama wanted to "make babies with Nana", to which Kurama smiles and responds, "Why are you saying such silly things? Nana is my...", as the scene fades.

Voiced by: Osamu Hosoi (Japanese), Jay Hickman (English)

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