Makoto Itou is the central protagonist of School Days, a first-year high school student attending Sakurano Academy. He is sixteen years old and lives with his divorced mother, while his younger sister Itaru resides with their father. Makoto is a generally mild-mannered and sociable student who initially appears friendly, casual, and somewhat easygoing. He is close friends with Taisuke Sawanaga and Otome Katou, and he has a childhood friendship with the latter.

At the beginning of the story, Makoto becomes infatuated with Kotonoha Katsura, a shy girl from a neighboring class whom he sees on the train each morning. His seatmate, Sekai Saionji, discovers his interest and decides to help him pursue a relationship with her. This marks the start of a complicated romantic entanglement that forms the core of the narrative. Makoto's personality is marked by indecisiveness and a weak will, traits that make him susceptible to being influenced by those around him. As he becomes involved with multiple girls, his character undergoes a pronounced deterioration. His initial charm and sociability give way to a growing selfishness, apathy, and recklessness. His motivations shift from genuine romantic interest to an overwhelming pursuit of sexual gratification, and he begins to prioritize his own desires over the feelings and well-being of others. He becomes increasingly unable to commit to a single partner and instead pursues simultaneous relationships, lying and cheating as he goes.

Makoto's role in the story is that of a catalyst for the escalating tragedy. His choices and his inability to face the consequences of his actions are the primary drivers of the plot. Key relationships include his conflicted bond with Sekai Saionji, who begins as a helper and friend but becomes a jealous lover, and his deteriorating relationship with Kotonoha Katsura, whose fragile mental state collapses under the weight of his betrayals. He also becomes involved with other classmates such as Setsuna Kiyoura, Hikari Kuroda, and Otome Katou, further complicating the emotional landscape. When Sekai reveals a possible pregnancy, Makoto initially promises support but quickly flees from responsibility, a moment that crystallizes his cowardice and emotional immaturity.

Makoto's development is depicted as a slow but steady moral decline. He begins as a shy and somewhat passive boy who cannot muster the courage to confess his feelings, but over time he becomes a selfish and unempathetic individual who manipulates and uses those who care about him. Despite this, he does occasionally show glimpses of guilt and attempts to remedy the harm he has caused, though these efforts are often too little and too late. In the anime adaptation, his actions lead directly to his own death at the hands of Sekai, who kills him in a fit of jealous rage. In the original visual novel, his fate varies widely depending on player choices, with possibilities ranging from a polyamorous peaceful resolution to multiple violent and tragic endings. Makoto Itou possesses no supernatural abilities; his notable traits are entirely social and interpersonal. He exhibits a level of charm and expressiveness that initially attracts others to him, and he demonstrates a capacity for emotional manipulation as the story progresses. However, these abilities are ultimately overshadowed by the destructive consequences of his choices, and his inability to form genuine, committed connections becomes his defining weakness.