Edasaki Banri

Edasaki Banri (枝先 絆理) is a minor character from the Toaru Kagaku no Railgun sidestory. She is one of Academy City's Child Errors and a telepath of unknown level.

Appearance
She has brown hair where she keeps properly in a headband. She has a few freckles above her nose, though it is more prominent in the manga.

Personality
Banri is always cheerful and a bit of a tomboy compared to her fellow female students, but can also be kind to her teacher in spite of the fact that she and the rest of the class play pranks to their teacher. She is the closest student Harumi has, and that she completely trusts her.

Background
She was formerly in the same Child Error facility Haruue Erii was in, and were close friends with her. They were both telepaths, and would converse using only telepathy. One spring day, she and the Child Errors of her facility took a group picture—with her in the middle, that picture of hers was later used by Erii for her locket. Some time later, Banri moves away and says goodbye to her friends, she telepathically tells Erii that they'll meet again for sure some day.

She is later transferred to the Advanced Education Department, where she is under the teaching of Kiyama Harumi as part of an experiment. She later becomes closer to Harumi after she is invited to her apartment, after her clothes was soiled on rainy day. However, she is struck into a comatose state after Kihara Gensei's experiment on the analysis on the overloading of esper abilities, which in truth was an experiment to analyse esper exposure to the Crystallized Esper Essence, with the overloading of her abilities as the result of the experiment, which horrifies Harumi, forcing her to quit.

She and her students were eventually transferred to various treatment facilities for years after the experiment. Eventually she and the other children were found by Kiyama Harumi with the help of the Heaven Canceler.

Level Upper Arc

 * Main article:Level Upper Arc

Banri and the rest of the students are first seen, including how they were experimented on, when Misaka Mikoto accidentally gained access to Kiyama Harumi's memories, after electrocuting her. Banri and the children's fate was the reason for Kiyama Harumi's attempts on creating the Level Upper, in order to find away to revive them.

Poltergeist Arc

 * Main article:Poltergeist Arc

During Haruue Erii's debut, the picture of Banri is seen slightly in Erii's locket before she walks away; it is later confirmed that it is truly Edasaki Banri's picture in the locket, and that Erii is looking for her.

Banri officially debuts in episode 22 of Toaru Kagaku no Railgun in person, where she and the rests of the children are still under a comatosed state. Here, Kiyama Harumi (after being released from prison by Heaven Canceler) states that she is the once causing the recent Poltergeist Incidents, as every time she tries to apply a way to wake them up—they cause an AIM Dispersion Field Resonance with Erii, as she is telepathically trying to communicate with her every time Banri tries to wake up. She and the other children are later taken in by Therestina and MAR, in order to prevent another Poltergeist Incident.

Erii later reunites with a comatosed Banri after Therestina shows her Banri. Erii, Banri and the rest of the children are later kidnapped by Therestina, as she wants to continue Kihara Gensei's (her grandfather) experiment on the Crystallized Esper Essence. She is later saved by Misaka Mikoto, Uiharu Kazari, Shirai Kuroko and Saten Ruiko from Therestina's experiment, and is later revived by Harumi using the crystal.

Here, Harumi tearfully reunites with her students, and with Banri and the rest of the children wondering why she has eyebags under her eyes, to which she replied that she was "a little busy." Banri later thanks Erii telepathically for listening to her calls for help.

She is last seen on a rooftop of medical facility with the other children, recuperating from being bed-ridden for so long. Here, she asks Erii, who is guiding her wheelchair, where Kazari and the others are, as they are waiting for the gift they had prepared for Kiyama Harumi. Their gift is later revealed as a blimp that was suggested by Mikoto, here they use it to say happy birthday to Harumi, and later saying they love her; which brings Harumi to tears after witnessing the spectacle.

Silent Party Arc

 * Main article:Silent Party Arc

As the day of her hospital release draws close, Erii negotiates with her teacher to have her move in with Banri, a bitter pill that Kazari needs to swallow as she has grown close with Erii. She is later released from the hospital, and as a treat for the others, she gets to wear the Sakugawa Middle School uniform that the girls gave to her many days ago.

She then joins the party prepared for Banri, as Kuroko and Kazari go tend to Judgment business. As the party goes on, Banri notes to Mikoto on her amazement with Judgment, especially Kazari, and tells her that she wants to join Judgment as well. Banri is the first to leave as she has a check-up to go to, while others wait for Kuroko and Kazari.

During the Silent Party, Haruue Erii and Edasaki Banri is somehow permitted by Yomikawa Aiho to ride with her in the Ekaterina II S towards the Academic Assembly venue where several Judgment members try to fend off armed and dangerous Powered Suits controlled with Diffusion Ghost. The mecha still in the form of a very large vehicle later swerves and hits the two mechas piloted by Kosako Shunichi and Madarame Kenji. After temporarily disabling them, Erii and Banri gets out of the truck. Erii tells tells everyone that a telepathic connection is being set up to compensate for the lack of communications devices, care of Edasaki Banri and the telepaths of Judgment. Yanagisako Aomi apologizes to Banri for the bother, to which Banri says that she is more than happy to help Judgment, a clear reference to her wanting to join the organization. She is not seen again until after Mikoto successfully destroys the AIM bomb sent out by STUDY, watching the debris burn up in the atmosphere.

Ability
She is a telepath of unknown level, she is seen to be able to communicate to other telepaths using her ability alone.

Trivia

 * The fandom often compares Banri to Tainaka Ritsu of K-on! fame, as they both have a similar character design (brown hair with a yellow headband) and sharing the same voice actress.

Quotes

 * (To Kiyama Harumi)"We are raised by Academy City. So maybe, if I could, help out this city."
 * (To Kiyama Harumi)"I believe in sensei, so I'm not scared."
 * (To Kiyama Harumi)"Sensei? Why are there bags under your eyes?"
 * (To Kiyama Harumi from a message on a blimp)"We love you!"