Kennosuke Honami is introduced as a young sports newspaper reporter, often characterized by his relentless and resourceful nature. He works for the "Mainichi Sports" newspaper, and his initial assignment involves covering the world of judo, which leads him to discover the prodigious talent of Yawara Inokuma. His background is that of a dedicated journalist who is willing to go to great lengths to get a story, though this professional drive eventually transforms into genuine personal care.

His personality is a mix of tenacity, immaturity, and underlying sincerity. In the beginning, he is overly focused on his career, often coming across as pushy and unconcerned with the personal boundaries of his subject. He is prone to getting flustered, especially when dealing with Yawara's complicated relationships with other men like Sayaka’s brother or the foreign judoka. Despite his often clumsy and thoughtless exterior, Kennosuke possesses a strong sense of duty and a hidden gentle side. He is not particularly talented at judo himself, but he has a keen eye for technique and potential.

Kennosuke’s primary motivation shifts over the course of the narrative. Initially, he is solely driven by the ambition to turn Yawara into a sensational headline, viewing her as a ticket to professional success. However, as he spends more time with her and witnesses her internal conflict regarding her grandfather’s ambitions versus her desire for a normal life, his motives evolve. He becomes deeply invested in protecting her happiness and supporting her choices, even when that support conflicts with his job as a reporter.

In the story, Kennosuke serves as a catalyst for Yawara’s public career, often pushing her into matches against her will for the sake of his articles. More importantly, he occupies the role of the primary romantic interest and emotional anchor. He is the one who frequently consoles Yawara after her matches, offers her a semblance of a normal relationship, and struggles alongside her against the overbearing expectations of Jigoro Inokuma. His presence provides a contrasting, ordinary perspective to the intense world of elite judo competition.

His key relationship is, of course, with Yawara Inokuma. Their dynamic evolves from a pushy reporter-subject relationship to a tentative friendship and eventually a romantic partnership. He also shares a significant and often antagonistic relationship with Yawara’s grandfather, Jigoro. Kennosuke frequently clashes with Jigoro, acting as a buffer between the old master’s ruthless training methods and Yawara’s personal desires. Another notable relationship is his rivalry with Sayaka’s brother, who also shows romantic interest in Yawara, though Kennosuke usually emerges as the more persistent and domestically suited partner.

Regarding development, Kennosuke undergoes one of the more significant transformations in the series. He begins as a selfish and career-driven schemer who sees Yawara as a means to an end. As the series progresses and he fails to get the "exclusive story" he initially wanted, he matures significantly. He learns to prioritize Yawara’s well-being over his circulation numbers, eventually quitting or risking his job to protect her from unwanted pressure. By the end of his arc, he is a reliable and loving partner, having abandoned his earlier shallow motivations for genuine devotion.

In terms of notable abilities, Kennosuke does not possess any physical fighting skills or judo techniques comparable to the main cast. His strengths lie in his persistence, his observational skills as a journalist, and his ability to be in the right place at the right time to support Yawara. His greatest "ability" is arguably his capacity for growth and his unwavering commitment to staying by Yawara’s side, often using his wits to manage difficult situations or people when physical strength is not required.