#maybe the friendship manga was actually the friendship we made along the way

[mettywiththenotes]

Thats it. Whatever the fuck Hori and Gege have got going on is becoming my villain origin story

[myinterestsvary-writes]

AKwaRd tensions

Shoving my OHSHC agenda down YALLS throats for now

[lawlightautismtruther]

SUPER LONG LAWLIGHT DYNAMIC ANALYSIS RANT (THIS MOSTLY ONLY APPLIES TO THE ANIME)

It’s really not that serious, but there’s more to my thesis of L being a sub/bottom than just blorbo yaoi fuel. I‘ll call back to my post about L’s true emotional vulnerability that most viewers seem to miss, because on a surface level (especially when coming from the manga and when trusting the words of Obha at face value) you may see L as detached and cold. You’re supposed to think that L is unfeeling at FIRST but post-confinement/pre-yotsuba, the truth starts to seep out. L could have had Light convicted after seeing that no more criminals were dying since locking him up, but he didn’t. Even Aizawa admitted that it was enough evidence. You know it’s real when Aizawa agrees with Matsuda, lmfao.

Anyway, after this point, L and Light actually really start to bond. (I pretty much see lawlight as subtextual canon) L, not really needing to do this because of his access to surveillance, handcuffs himself to Light Yagami. He doesn’t want to be apart from him. I actually find it to be a comedically obvious act of desperation.

My point is, Light is winning the game, and L is letting him do it out of what I believe is love. L has found the one person in his life (besides maybe Naomi) that he really feels any sort of connection to, and therefore he would hate to watch that person die. L is inarguably a vulnerable character imo. If you rewatch the the series, outside of his internal monologues, he’s actually extremely soft-spoken and coy.

“Oh, uh, well it was nice meeting you”

“Light, please make Misa stop talking now.”

You get the point. He’s nervous. He’s super frail and holds himself very compactly, he walks with his eyes on the ground usually. He shakes when Aizawa lays a hand on him. He is terrified of shinigami. I think his coldness is an act to protect himself. I really do, because he knows how much things actually do affect him. In order to continue with cases, he has to pretend like none of it really matters to him. And he almost believes it at this point, too— hence his monster speech.

But then there’s Light Yagami. A worthy individual to truly understand L. He comes along, actually treats L like a human being (be it an act, I believe it still feels good to L, who has been treated like a robot his entire life), of course L is bound to at the very least see him as a friend.

I don’t believe L’s external behavior towards Light is an act. He didn’t have to be kind, he didn’t have to pretend it was a friendship. He had zero professional reason to do so. In fact, it very much made the case a harder one to solve. If we take L’s character at face value, he would have scrapped all of the fluffy shit (like asking Light to go get cake with him, telling Light he was his only friend knowing damn well Light wouldn’t budge regardless, etc.) Adding a friendship into the mix only complicates the process of trying to read Light.

As much as L the detective hates to lose, L the person is desperate. If he really hated to lose, why did he let himself? He’s submitting to Light’s will and THAT is what kills him. On the day he dies, he knows it will happen, but still, he treats Light with kindness. Sure, he asks him if he’s ever told the truth once in his life, but after that, he pretty much gives up prying. That’s it. He’s put his gun down. Since he’s going to die anyway, he might as well just enjoy being around Light. I know for a fact that he is smart enough to have come up with some sort of plan to convict Light post-Higuchi. There’s a book about that. But canonically, he didn’t do it. Notice also how L goes to Watari before he dies for comfort. L is really such a sad character.

The crux of his character is his submissiveness, hence why I’m such a proponent of that ship dynamic. Its not just a wet-dream, it’s something I sensed in their dynamic to begin with. It’s why I became an L simp, not the other way around.

Anyway, the anime is a genius adaptation and expansion on the original story imo. (At least up until L’s death— unfortunately it didn’t do the other Wammy’s boys any justice)

TLDR;

manga L- cold and domineering, hates to lose and mostly loses at first because Light outsmarts him

anime L- the very opposite and I LOVE IT

Look at me putting my 5 on the AP English literature exam to use! Also, I know I’m a huge L fan, but I am a Light kinnie and I love him as a protagonist in every possible anti-hero type way and would love to analyze him so let me know if yall want that.

Okay, class, any questions?

[n-fblog]

Reo, Nagi, and Differences from the Main Manga

Thoughts from Episode: Nagi, chapter 17

Reo:

This chapter was kind of needed for him to "abandon" his ego of becoming the best with Nagi (and we can see it sort of fading in the textbox) -- and simultaneously get rid of that growing attachment he has to Nagi. Really sad to see him say, "thank you" as if he doesn't even have the strength to break them apart himself (and he didn't)

The chameleon makes its first chronological appearance so we can clearly see him start to 'adapt' his thinking and playing even though it's not fully fleshed out yet, which is exciting! I wasn't sure if that was something he made up with Shidou before, but it's hilarious to know it all started with Nagi, AGAIN. Or maybe this is the manga trying to convey that he's changing himself to help Nagi walk away lol

His inferiority complex with Nagi makes itself kind of known here, with the monologue- "Those are the words *I* wanted to say,," but was unable to...

Somehow, Nagi being able to encourage Reo makes him the stronger one mentally -- which is tough for someone who subconsciously already thinks he can't go very far without Nagi skill-wise.

Poor guy... and he still has so far to go before he starts to think he can fight on his own.

Nagi:

Man, this chapter pretty much confirms that their mischaracterization and miscommunication goes both ways lol. Nagi spitefully admonishes that he isn't Reo's 'toy' when Reo flips from "wanting to be the best" to "wanting to stay together"-- These guys have such a hard time acknowledging their friendship outside of football, it's actually painful.

I can't tell if he made any sort of connection betweey 'toy' and being Reo's 'treasure'. But that's almost definitely a metaphor on Reo's part. What a lot of people misuse is that Reo calls Nagi his 'treasured possession' when I really, truly don't think he meant viewing Nagi as a literal object. But how else do you expect a rich boy who's only been shown love through material things to describe something he values? *(see tags for a rant on this lol)

I do wish we'd gotten more insight into how he felt when he heard what Reo said in the moment, but this chapter was already long as it is. I do think Nagi's expressions sort of speak for themselves.

I mean, he straight up looks like he's about to cry here. 

I would argue that part of Nagi's promise to 'stay together' during the entrance actually includes 'believing in each other' like he says here:

 And if that's the case, then what did Reo's claim of abandonment mean to him? Was it that Reo didn't believe in Nagi's newfound drive to win? Or was he mad that Reo didn't believe in himself? I think it's a bit of both, but I really want to see more thoughts in the manga or from the fandom

Blue Lock vs. Episode: Nagi

So... Nagi definitely seems more angry in this chapter, right? When you revisit Ch. 76, you can see that Nagi is a lot more apologetic towards Reo

( Here you see him lament not growing alongside Reo, but fired up and excited to work with Isagi)

vs. what we saw this chapter

(Nagi saying sorry and acknowledging he's changed, but looking less toward the future and more resisting the past)

Maybe this is just a difference in translations, but "I can't [am not able to] go back" feels a little different from "I won't go back" -- the former just feels like an admission (to Reo), while the latter feels a lot more confrontational, a downright refusal to go along with what Reo wants.

And that's fine, but it does reshape how I thought about Nagi, and I think it really emphasizes just how pissed he was at Reo by the end of 2nd Selection.

This reframes their interaction during U-20 tryouts for me. I originally thought it was mostly setting up Reo's chameleon style defense and Reo's internal conflict (which it is) but EpiNagi really just shows that Nagi also has a ways to go before they reunite in Manshine

I think this could be the panel (from Ch. 107, 3rd Selection) where Nagi forgives Reo -- it's the point where Reo sort of shows he understands Nagi's drive to win, and that he doesn't value staying together over improving anymore. After that, they have no issues (in Nagi's eyes) so it was probably easy to imagine walking up to Reo during MC v BM and asking for his help ... but man, we still have a long way til then, and I can't wait for EpiNagi to probably prove me wrong :p

[ang0sgl4sses]

I just read M O T H by streetcat and need to yap about it

I needed a Kokonui fic, and streetcat delivered, the whole narrative just felt like accurate poetry to the escenary of the plot. (maybe another time i would actually write about the way the writing makes you feel the atmosphere)

it is placed in the bonten timeline, so you know its gonna have angst, but what i really liked was the different interactions Koko and Inupi had with Mikey, Sanzu and Draken.

i've been thinking about the ending a lot (i adored it, dont get me wrong), but mainly about the posibilities it had of the relationships that were built over the plot.

Case 1: Sanzu and Mikey

i think that to fully dive into their relationship we have to consider the manga, we know that part of the loyalty that Sanzu has for Mikey is because he knows about the first timeline, he knows about what shinichiro did and the consequences it had. Sanzu is loyal bc hes Mikeys childhoold friend, and knows the impact of everything Mikey has lost. His loyalty is a double edged sword; Sanzu cannot defy his king, he cannot stop him from selfdestructing, but if a better path is open, he will sugest it and defend his point until it's taken. Sanzu chose staying and being the one Mikey tainted with his dark impulses.

Sanzus derangement and volatile personality is a show of his original self and the tainted version of the timelines.

so, in MOTH i think is interesting how he will follow orders, almost killing koko and inupi without a second thought bc that was his order from his king; being uncomfortable when confronted with his own values and interests ; admiring kokonui relationship from afar and talking to inupi about it (like his friendship with koko during boten, sharing what he knows from what was said during high conversations), offering an alternative to Mikey of a plan that wouldnt risk Koko, and Mikey listening to him. Mikey has never doubt of Sanzus loyalty

Case 2: Mikey and Inupi

it is said along the story that inupis boldness towards Mikey was gonna get him killed, and true, he did put himself in riskier situations but he also knew what to share. From what he remembers from his teens, to what hes heard from Takemichy and Draken, he knows that Mikey was idolized, and to some extent that was one of the steps he needed to dehuminazing himself, the fact that everyone thought Mikey was unreachable made him believe it.

Inupi realizes that Mikey is in a situation similar to kokos (at least in the MOTHverse) and he confronts him, and Mikey listens mostly because of Draken.

he didint kill inupi because draken asked him to, but he helped inupi to save koko because he saw the same drive draken had for saving him, only that he cannot allowed it

Case 3: Mikey and Koko

Overall i think they dont have many interactions, bc at the beginning Mickey is hunting koko for being a traitor, but when the time comes, he pardons kokos and inupis lives. when Mikey questions koko for his choice and answers that he just wanted an excuse to be killed bc he was fucked up and tired, thats when he decided to let him go, because unlike mikey , when someone offered a hand to help koko, he accepted it

Case 4: Sanzu and Inupi

i loved that there was a point were inupi was like "oh, hes crazy crazy" and he was so angry for what Sanzu did to koko (beating him up and have all the intentions of killing inupi infront of him), and he was just trying to find safe ground, questioning the severness of his actions and the meaning of his loyalty

but then koko disappears and turns out that Sanzu is the only one inupi knows that could help him

Sanzu laughs at knive point bc he was genuinly surprised by inupi, and hes willing to go with whatever hes asking bc it was interesting, even if it didnt concern him, Sanzu listen to what inuppi had to say.

Also, I think that Inupi starts to give him some slack after Sanzu tells Mikey that there's a way to save Koko without the risk of killing him, thats when he realizes that genuinely, Sanzu follows orders, but he ain't stupid, he has his own criteria of what it is worth speaking up for, your not supposed to understand that criteria.

Case 5: Sanzu and Koko

we know that they spent time together because of bonten, but in MOTHverse, they are the closest they have to friends. They've shared things, so they know each other; that's why Sanzu knows he has to hunt for Inupi, and Koko knows that he's just following Mikeys orders, thus, it's useless trying to talking him out of killing them, but he tries nonetheless.

Sanzu is aware of this, and he convinces himself that he's okay with any outcome, because its his kings will, but we see, when he and Inupi talked, that he had some kind of affection for Koko, for all the years that they have known each other

[hezuart]

Hi Hezu! It’s been a while, Hope you’re doing Well 😊 since the Blaech TYBW Arc is getting Animated👀(more excited to see the Animation), There are Questions I Got to Ask! What would happen if Ichigo Took Rukia instead of Orihime to Face Yhwach? Would it have changed The story that we Currently have or Remain The Same? (To Me, I Think The Main Characters Ichigo and Rukia should Ended The Final Arc As They Are “🖤The Death and Stawberry🍓” Plus They Started The journey and shouldn’t They have finished the Journey Together as Well? I don’t know The Ending in The Manga was Messed up for Me😖) and Also How Would You have Rewritten TYBW Arc? Sorry That There are to many Questions😅😔

Ah! I almost forgot to Mention, Have you Heard about “Vanitas no Carte”?🤔 it’s Anime About Vampires and More🦋

So the whole thing with Ichigo and Yhwach was already a bit of a mess, what with him stealing Ichigo's powers, the Fullbringers kinda just showing up as a Deus Ex Machina... and the overall rush of the storyline just didn't fit as a finale. I would have completely rewritten BLEACH's final arc so it wouldn't have come down to Ichigo chasing Yhwach through a portal. Anyway, Rukia, despite being more powerful than Orihime, probably wouldn't have made a whole lot of difference in the fight. Her bankai is too dangerous to use on an unpredictable enemy. Her ice powers might have proved more useful than Orihime's powers, but overall I don't think she would have won them the war. She could have very well become an injured damsel in distress too. It is very weird that Renji of all people comes along to the final battle, and not like... ALL of them. Out of everyone, Renji is the one who doesn't belong in the main cast, but they always act like he does. He wronged pretty much every member of Karakura in some way, and he's never made up for it. Rukia spent time in the world of the living and time with the Karakura team  when Renji hasn't. (Even when he did, he spent it with Urahara, who is also a shinigami) So he can't relate to any of them. He may be one of Ichigo's rivals but its just very random for him to come in to assist Ichigo, especially when in the end he barely puts up a fight before Aizen has to interfere. Well for one, to fix the arc, I would have honestly had Yhwach kidnap Ichigo, brainwash him, and train him as a proper Quincy, because Uryu is really useless here. I feel like Uryu, once he realizes Ichigo has been captured and Ichigo is a QUINCY, Uryu would finally have a purpose and kick it into high gear to try and help not only himself but also Ichigo. He's gotta drop his secret agent nonsense with Yhwach to try and get Ichigo out unscathed, which involves needing the help of the other members of Karakura. I’d fix Bazz B and Jugram’s friendship. Maybe have Jugram turn against Yhwach for the sake of Bazz B in the end. (I’d fix a lot of other Quincy characters too, to make them more likable and relatable because honestly I don’t care about any of them) There wouldn't be zombies in the way they were introduced. X-axis guy would never turn into giant mitosis birds because what the fucking hell was that I'd also have more flashbacks explaining the soul king, on top of Yhwach's actual overall plans. Aizen escapes. He never gets back in that chair. At some point maybe ichigos powers go haywire because yhwach is controlling his Quincy side and that clashes with his hollow. Any excuse to see more zangetsu. Maybe Quincy Zangetsu gives up because he knows its inevitable that Yhwach will win, but Ichigo and Hollow Zangetsu manage to convince him. Ichigo gets a badass complete bankai, a perfect fusion of ALL his powers that Yhwach never foresaw, and destroys the man. (See the Bleach Brave Souls all powerful version of Ichigo for reference) Ichigo becomes Soul King, or maybe even Aizen becomes the Soul King. Whoever becomes the next Soul King is placed in Stasis, unable to move or speak……. Or maybe that whole thing is tossed out and they can freely walk around the Zero Squad Barracks. If Ichigo doesn’t become Soul King, then he at the very least would no longer be allowed to return to the human world and he’d probably become a captain, resparking the Shiba family Noble line.

Side note but I’d explain what on Earth was going on with Komamura’s family history, I’d probably kill Toushiro or make him ill (his life was cut in half and he becomes an adult for some really weird reason when he goes bankai… like I know hes the most popular BLEACH character in Japan but he’s been through way too much to come out unscathed like that) Nemu and Mayuri would have never had that creepy Stockholm syndrome chapter sequence. Absolutely kill off Mayuri. Maybe Nemu could take over as the new squad captain in his place. Ichigo’s friends’ tickets would actually be usable and have meaning despite the horrible timing they received them. Orihime and/or Hachigen fix Captain Kyouraku’s eye (because wtf why is that not fixed yet. Like yeah , eye patches are cool but sir there’s people who can fix that for you. Right there. Even Nemu could probably make one for you. Fix it.) Neliel and Grimmjow would have gotten a fight scene against some powerful Quincy, maybe see some Segunda Etapa forms from them. Def a lot more bankais from other characters, especially Hisagi, whose bankai was hinted at, but never received until the novel. 

And probably so much more. I would have rewritten the entire Fullbring arc as well. Given Orihime and Chad proper upgrades. I would have never separated the gang as much as Kubo has the past decade... There’s just so much to fix.  ~~~

I've heard of Vanitas no Carte and I've seen some episodes. It looks really pretty and it seems like something I could get into. The main character sorta reminds me of Lelouch. Unfortunately, the anime has a major tonal dissonance problem. One moment it's very serious or scary, and the next the characters have a complete 180 comedic reaction, and it seems to happen constantly to the point where I'm taken out of the story because of it. And I'm also confused on the direction of it. It seems to tease a romantic subtext with the main characters, Vanitas and Noe, but they both actually have girlfriends??? That they are super romantically involved with? But the girls don't have as much screen time or an overarching plot that truly relates to main characters' overall story? I mean I haven't watched the full thing, so maybe I'm missing something, but we spend a good chunk of time focusing on those relationships instead of the plot at hand and I don’t understand what their purpose in the story is. So I could check it out, but I think it won’t be something I’ll be able to stick to.

[ordonianhero]

It’s complicated

Warning: game and manga spoilers

CW: Mention of abuse and r*pe/S.A. (avoid if you can’t read said content for your own safety)

Disclaimer: not writing this to invalid people’s ships. Just wanting to make something clear about how toxic it is to normalize abuse. (Despite how in character it maybe that they did said action/behavior)

So I am writing this because I felt something needed to be clear up. In the game of Twilight Princess, Midna shatters the mirror of twilight because for the simple reason of knowing if left open, that everything they did to save both kingdoms would be at risk of yet another attack. This was also shown in the manga. Though the manga creators were given more creative way of telling the story, it is not canon to Nintendo. Nintendo allows it but have made it very clear the mangas have never been canon. Not saying people who are midlink shippers are wrong. Thats the thing about fandoms, you can ship however you like and that is 100% valid for you. Not everyone will ship the same way. Thats okay too. So now that’s out of the way, i would like to discuss something I felt was disturbing.

So in the game midna is very sassy, it just her trying to cover up her feeling of being able to do anything in her current state once Zant turned her into the imp form. So she seemed help, but wasn’t exactly nice about it. Link (twilight) happened to be her tool to getting what she wanted. Taking back her kingdom and giving little care (at first) to what happened to his world. She had an agenda. His agenda was basically to save his home and the people who are in it. The Ordon kids, ilia and the village. He later on found out though the light spirits that his task was much more then just his little village. That he was fated to save all of hyrule. He also even through her sassy ways, could see Midna behavior was of someone who was scared for her people, her kingdom. Though she only saw Link (Twilight) was a means to and end. Her attitude changed after he (despite how she treated him) when he went out of his way to get her help as she was dying. Along with seeing how much both Link and Zelda were willing to sacrifice to help her save her kingdom as well.

The manga story was a tad different and it doesn’t entirely follow the game because the creators were given creative leeway by Nintendo to tell their own version of the game. Yes Nintendo had to approve the manga before it got published. However, Nintendo has been clear that the mangas are just a work of fan content and by no means canon. Other then the one in the Hyrule historia. I actually wasn’t too fond of the creators take on Link’s back story, but that’s just me. Still amazing piece either way. So what is troubling me is the normalization of the way Midna was towards Link (twilight) and assuming that its a healthy relationship (or friendship. However way you saw it) to be physically, verbally, and emotionally abusive towards him. She hits him, calls him names….I mean that’s not okay.

“Oh well she just teasing and being sassy.”

Yeah okay in the game that’s true, the manga really went a lot father then just sass some times. There were other characters in the manga where it sort of implied things far more beyond just abuse, beside link and midna stuff. Manga was far more darker then the game.

At the end of the final manga we come to the part where Midna is about to shatter the mirror and telling Link that no, he can’t go with her. (Manga implied they have feelings for each other) some may assume if they havent played the game she is shattering the mirror for no reason. She is. It cause light and dark can’t mix. That is clear. Thus she is shattering the mirror to once again protect both their worlds from having happened, to happen again.

So now you maybe wondering where I have issue with the manga and Midlink area. Many have gone to say the content in the manga is “Juicy” when Link (twilight) couldn’t understand why he couldn’t just leave with her. Her reasoning was because he belong in the light world. To continue to serve hyrule (completely different from what actually happened in the game). Midna called him “disobedient and rude….” As she has said and told him several time through the manga series. Ever since they met that is how she saw him. “Disobedient” and “Rude”. Then she full on smacked him. A very in character thing for her to do. Yes. Then tells him, “No link, go back”

He replies, “I don’t want to.”

Which then resulted in her kissing him, pushing him away and saying with a smirk, “there’s… your reward.” Followed by “I’m not trying to silence you. That was a GIFT…from the real me.” Followed by her breaking the mirror. Which few speculate once again that this was to stop link from chasing after her. If the mirror was intact. Sure that maybe how it was seen I guess, but knowing all that hyrule went through, midna knew they couldn’t be together and to protect his and her world, it had to be shattered.

So for many people, seeing the kiss is a way to make up for smacking him. People saw this as Romance was confirmed, which no doubt it seems so. However this giving readers the thought that some how the way she treated him during the whole series was completely normal and shows a “Healthy relationship” between two people.

Sorry to break it to folks, but that is in no way “Healthy”. Matter of fact her way of treating him, even if he was was being disobedient and rude, by no means did she need to do half the stuff she did to him. Yes he is stubborn, yes the he sort of got an ego after he got the master sword. But by no means is smacking a person okay or doing half the dang stuff she did. I can’t stand for that kind of message that its normal to hurt each other in a pretty abusive way. Even if it wasn’t abusive…nobody (friend, family, partner) should ever treat another person the way Link was treated in the manga. That is where I have issue is the view that this is normal and okay. Healthy. NO! If you are a midlink shipper and you are making the conclusion based on the Manga that smacking or hurting anyone demonstrates a “healthy relationship” I worry.

So what’s going on in LU, well the Comic creator has made it very clear we wont be seeing midna, that Link’s feelings right now are just complicated and that his heart sort of torn right now, though he is close with Ilia. (Relationship or friendship) she is basing her take on Midna and Link friendship, relationship, its complicated based off the game and not off of the Manga. Not sure of what her take is of the manga it self. But this what she said a long while back:

So in conclusion, i wasn’t midlink shippers to enjoy their ship, but avoid justifying abusive actions as “Healthy”. Though this is about a bunch of fictional characters. There are folks out there who have or do experience this and chalk it up to they deserve this kind of treatment. Which is not true. Everyone deserves to be in a relationship where one should never be physically, verbally, or emotional treated in such a manner.

Now if you saw things differently and I am open to hear you out. Comment below and explain how you saw the interaction between LInk and Midna.

But I wanted to share my upset at the thought people found the ending showing a healthy relationship by abusive behavior.

That is all. I again don’t want other to take this as me being anti midlink or discouraging people who ship midlink. I was just troubled.

Thank you for hearing me out.

[snowmaniaph]

Drama: Kieta Hatsukoi special talk

Michieda Shunsuke as Aoki

Meguro Ren as Ida

Portraying high school boys’ love and friendship that started because of a certain misunderstanding, the youth romantic comedy manga “Kieta Hatsukoi” will have a drama adaptation.  Michieda Shunsuke from Naniwa Danshi and Meguro Ren from Snowman, two who received praise for looking like they stepped out of the manga, will have a special talk about working together.

Getting along because of their favorite SMAP song

Michieda: He asked (Mukai) Koji-kun for my contact information as soon as the drama was confirmed. I think it’s cool how he casually showed care (for his kouhai).

Meguro: We can’t meet personally so we talked through text. But there are limits because of the distance.

Michieda: (laughs)

Meguro: I’m not the type that’s good with long-distance communication so it was hard for me. But when we actually met for script reading and interviews, I feel like we quickly got close during maybe our 2nd meeting.

Michieda: When we talked about something we had in common during an interview, Meguro-kun was surprised when I said our common point was that we both liked SMAP. He previously mentioned on TV that he listened to SMAP’s “Kono Shunkan, Kitto Yume Janai” while going to practice.

Meguro: It’s because until now no one had liked that same song that I liked a lot. So I was very happy that you liked it too!

Michieda: We both got excited (laughs)

Meguro: Micchi, do you inform your members when you get cast in a drama?

Michieda: I don’t tell them much of the details. When drama becomes the topic while chatting with members, I tell them when I find the right timing.

Meguro: It’s hard to find the timing to tell members about a solo job, right?

Michieda: That’s why before the release of news, there are members who really know, and there are members who only know a bit. But everyone is happy for me. (Nishihata) Daigo-kun even went out of his way to say “Do your best-!“.

Meguro: Everyone in Snow Man also congratulated me. The other day, Raul sent me a mail saying “I’m really looking forward to it. I want to watch it soon.”. Sakuma (Daisuke), who read the original work, kindly said “I can’t see anyone else as Ida”. Wanting to meet everyone’s expectations made me want to work harder.

Michieda: Ida’s serious and awkward side and his airheaded side can already be seen during our script-reading so I am excited to shoot.

Meguro: Micchi is also perfect as Aoki. He already feels like Aoki.

Michieda: Aoki’s facial expression changes quickly, and his emotions vary a lot, so I want to express all that in my own way. The original work is a manga, so expressions like Aoki’s bulging eyes when staring at the eraser is hard to do (laughs).

Meguro: It’s not as much as Aoki’s, but Ida’s facial expressions are also often comical so I want to express that properly. Ida is someone who says what he genuinely thinks about Aoki, so I want to be able to properly do those cool scenes.

Michieda: In a photo shoot today too, I got shy just by staring at Meguro-kun. Aoki also has a lot of scenes where he gets shy because of Ida. I’m still thinking if it’s ok to release those as it is (laughs).

Meguro: Then, I will work hard to make Aoki feel shy (laughs).

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Q: Would you two get along if you were actually classmates?

Meguro: I think we would get along. Because I find myself enjoying our conversations, and I feel like we really have the same wavelength.

Michieda: I feel the same. But Meguro-kun has a cool image so I might need courage if I want to talk to him.

Meguro: If our heights were the same as now, would we be next to each other if we were asked to line up according to our height?

Michieda: Ah! In school assemblies!

Meguro: We would be able to talk then.

Michieda: I feel like once we talk we would find out that we have a lot in common and then we’d get closer.

Meguro: Rather than an extrovert who loudly has fun with a lot of people, I find someone who stays alone in the classroom more interesting. Micchi has that image. Am I wrong?

Michieda: I am very noisy once we get close, but I am very shy at the start (laughs).

Q: Any episode when you felt your heart skip because of the other?

Meguro: When he carried me on his back for a magazine photo shoot. I am always the one carrying someone else, so having someone carry me after a long time made my heart skip (laughs).

Michieda: I thought “he’s tall” and “I don’t have strength” (laughs). For me, it was when Meguro-kun princess carried me. No one besides the members did it to me so I got embarrassed. In “Kieta Hatsukoi” Aoki’s heart also beats fast because of Ida, I’m sure it feels like this.

Meguro: I’m used to carrying someone so it was the same as usual for me (laughs).

Q: What kind of “heart flutter” do you want to give our readers?

Meguro: What I like about this work is the part where people have pure feelings and fall in love with another person. I think people who see this drama will also want to experience a pure kind of love that makes you think “it’s because it’s that person that I fell in love”.

Michieda: High school students Aoki and Ida are both awkward but still try to express their feelings through words. I think seeing them try their best to convey their feelings to each other will give that heart-throbbing feeling.

Meguro: The two of us haven’t had a lot of interactions, so please also look forward to our pair’s fresh chemistry.

[lost-technology]

Warning: Shipping Opinions Ahead. (And you probably won't like them since I rain on all the parades in this particular fandom). I am such a non-shipper for this fandom. In some fandoms, yes, I have pet OTPs. In Trigun, I do not. There didn't seem to be much in the way of shipping for me in either the manga or the '98 anime (some Wolfwood and Milly "eating sandwiches" aside. Yeah, they banged, but that's it for main character ships). There is definitely shipping to be made from various character-interactions, but nothing concrete, nothing canon. I'm left wondering what the second half of Trigun Stampede is going to do, if they are going to change that for their continuity. I am actually afraid that the producers will get the "bright idea" to "respond to the fans" and make canon ships and I want none of that! I think I enjoy ships better (in general, all fandoms) when they're not expressly canon. And...Trigun just feels like an overall "gen" fandom for me. But I've been thinking a lot lately of how I would react if Stampede canonized certain specific ships and have come up with interesting answers. This is because, well, I'm coming off of a very canonically and near-canonically ship-heavy fandom, and ooooh, boy, did people in the fandom get uproariously angry at some of the ships that the show made canon! (In She-Ra fandom, people didn't just get mad at other fans over shipping bullshit, some got incredibly angry AT THE SHOW and its creators in... what I think are supremely funny ways - and maybe not even the ways that you'd think). I'm like "Trigun is my Love and Peace peppered with ironically insane amounts of violence gen fandom! My sanctuary!" I started thinking, would I actually *hate* anyone on Stampede's crew if they decide to make any given ship or number of ships canon like how some people in my other fandom were? Nah, for the most part. That's it. "Nah." Although I wouldn't like it, it wouldn't be the end of the world for me. I would say - and I know this is controversial, I would be *somewhat upset* - I cannot lie, if Vashwood became canon. Like if there was a kiss or an "eating sandwiches" scene between them. And the weird thing about it is that I wouldn't be upset over the ship itself, but for highly subjective and frankly weird personal reasons. Back when I was first in this fandom in the early 2000s, I wound up meeting someone else in the fandom and we formed a toxic online-friendship. We got along well for a while, but we both had issues and we were two awful tastes that tasted awful together and toxic-spilled our way around the fandom. Eventually, my friend became a toxic friend - to me. Pretty controlling. Started shipping Vashwood hard, convinced themselves it was super-secret canon and that everyone who did not view it as canon was an idiot, including other Vashwood shippers who were all "No, it's not canon, it's just fun." I had some of the same feelings I had back then as I do now (I like them better as a Friend-Ship / Platonic, maybe asexual QPR / BroTP), although I'm not an annoying church-person anymore, at least. My friendship with this person ultimately didn't break over shipping, it was a LOT of other stuff, a controlling / not respecting my boundaries in general. But it still wouldn't shatter my world if the ship were made, I just really don't want an annoying person from my past to become "right." See? Stupid personal reason, so shippers carry on. Vash x Meryl? Oh, I have my Vash x Meryl heart swell at some of their interactions. I was into that ship back in the day, but somehow it doesn't feel right to me if they canonically got together. Like, a tacked on happy ending feeling... Wolfwood x Milly - if the tragedy of it is retained, I will accept it. Yes, I am cruel.

[pinkymoone]

AOT *spoilers ahead

My opinions on the ending…

Long time no see! I finally watched the last two episodes of AOT and let me purge the unshakable “whyyy!” I feel about AOT’s ending.

So, the credits begin to roll and I think, it’s not so bad. It makes sense. It’s simple. I strangely understood it all. Then, I think, the dialogue sucked. Especially eren and armin’s conversation, reiner’s last remark, and mikasa’s last quote. Then, I’m in a crisis, was all of this just for that? For eren to die to make his friends heroes (which is totally out of character by then), for armin to say he’ll go to hell with him and thank eren for genocide but then surviving just fine and suddenly doing peace talks, and mikasa still hung up on eren ‘til the end? There was no development in armin nor mikasa’s character as foils and eren’s character (even other characters, like reiner) was straight up butchered in the last few chapters/minutes of the manga/anime.

Couldn’t the characters have been more complex? Have more development? It would’ve been nice to see that they were struggling with ptsd, finishing up their ties with the whole ordeal, or possessing some conflicting feelings about how the situation panned out and is currently after three years. This story was realistic in the way the situations were, but the execution and the characters were highly unrealistic and half-assed. I don’t really see anyone talking about levi and zeke’s ending, but in comparison to their prominent narratives and contributions their ending was so dull (like many others). My additional problem with zeke was that armin motivated him to help their friends win this fight and he did so easily… then just died. It’s like isayama knew the only way to end this was to nerf some of eren’s power, but he sacrificed zeke’s character in the process. Also… eren pretty much died for nothing by the end. There is still war.

I’m also very surprised that the war plans in this story were more complex than the actual ending. And let me get this out of the way, “only Ymir knows” is turning into a meme and I believe it isn’t one of the main problems of this story. It makes sense because everything was up to mikasa in whether or not she was going to kill eren. Ymir saw that she did, breaking the chain of obedience, but also saw the kiss, and learned that there is love even in that choice.

I get isayama added so much to this story that every little thing was hard to keep track of by the end, but plot holes— or rather, things that just need more explanation— are so immense (like that worm thing).

I even argue that some aspects of this story were unnecessary (or could’ve been less complicated) if he was planning on ending the series like this all along (maybe gabi and falco’s whole dealio?).

But, my biggest problem is this. What in the world was isayama trying to convey with this whole story?

Love…war…hate…no, nope, there is nothing. He’s conveying nothing, at least nothing compelling and not confusing.

It’s hard to make out the overarching theme because there is no major force of evil or good that prevailed or lost, or no sense of logical closure from any character, and everything just seems like a stale portrayal of a “meh” reality (kinda? the “reality” isn’t so consistent throughout). If that was the goal from the beginning, discussing the complexity of human morality in reality, then I’d take it. But nothing was solved in that way, things were brushed over, and there wasn’t a huge (sensible) shift in the perspectives of the audience (and I don’t think eren’s sudden turn to friendship was a sensible shift). Isayama randomly made eren the mastermind, a “savior” for his friends after killing 80% of humanity, but really… friendship? After all that characterization from good to evil to then he was good all along and prioritized his friends the most? We know that’s not true. I see it’s hard to make out a different outcome without reconstructing a bulk of the story but it’s such a cop out.

The ending is what makes a story. There is no story if there is no ending. I think AOT will be remembered for having a controversial ending rather than it’s eminent qualities, which is both sad but also just on isayama. This isn’t any hate towards him, but he can’t just produce a story that readers raised him into fame and return the favor with a dry ending that divides the people—the fandom.

*these are only my opinions and if there is any misinformation feel free to educate me on ur perspective :)

[satorugojoswiife]

I was watch how the grinch stole charismas last night (the jim carrey one) as one does because ya know christmas. And I was cackling to myself thinking like what if the manga ends and sukuna has like a full grinch-esque moment. Like gege has been trying to fight the shonen allegations for so long lol and what if last minute like he has a complete 180 and is like actually i have feeling s now and friendship is magic. The real jujustsu kaisen was the friends we made along the way lmao. Like that would be gege magnum opus of trolling. (this sounded funnier to me in my head feel free to ignore me lmao)

Naruto gonna show up and talk no jutsu him and he'll be like damn :/ maybe I shouldn't be bad guy this really was our jujutsu kaisen

[officersnickers]

Thank you for the addition, @miaus82! With the different versions of The Promised Neverland, I feel like only the manga really grasped how the relationship between Ray and Norman works (mostly because it's written by Shirai himself) - them rather being two sides of the same coin rather than being (more or less) friendly rivals. Wheter it be the anime, the live action adaptation or the joke manga, Ray and Norman are kinda always depicted as guys who scheme and work around each other than working FOR the other's sake. Yes, we mostly got to see them in this very stressful time before the escape from Grace Field House or caught in the conflict in humans vs. demons, but even in these scenes, Shirai made sure we got to see glimpses of the boys being actual friends and not just guys working against (or for/ with) Emma.

For example, why is Ray so often angry at Norman's decision to take every child with them in the escape? Because Ray knows Norman; he knows his friend is logical and strives for the best possible solution, in contrast to Emma, who's more idealistic - a trait Ray surely admires, but it can only bring you so far in the environment of the farm system. Suddenly, the one Ray thought he could work with the easiest "turns" against him and makes things more complicated than they need to be. And Ray can't take it. He's stressed out of his mind, he's planning to die in not even three months. He needs Norman and his judgement so Emma can survive. So they both can survive because guess what - Ray loves Norman as much as he loves Emma and vice versa. He wants them to live. Survive. And because they are that close, Ray can be way more open around Norman than for example his younger siblings. Norman can take his ugly side; his anger, his frustration, his different opinions. Ray doesn't act "like that" because he can't stand Norman, but because he's so dear to him! Maybe because initially, Norman had the highest chance to suvive due to his intellect, but I'm pretty sure also because they get along just so well. They share a lot of interests, they challenge each other in chess and discussions, give each other emotional room when Emma can be overbearing from time to time (no shade though. they need her as much as Emma needs them).

All I've said before with Ray being friends with Norman goes the other way, too. Norman doesn't need to smile politely at him like he usually does, because Ray is possibly one of the few people who also knows about "that" side of Norman - being manipulative, being a chess master in letting people believe they have a free will when he begs them to do smth for them, just the character traits he turns outside as soon as he becomes "William Minerva". Norman is not just some uwu soft boi, too frail for this world, too good, but also can be a huge ass burden to his surroundings if he wants to. And I think because Ray can take this, he's integral to Norman, too. Around his friends, Norman doesn't have to pretend all the time like he had to, for example, around the Lambda gang. Ray tells him straight to his face when he's in the wrong, acts foolish or even mean (just remember the whole *lying to Don and Gilda is cruel!*-thing...).

Of course, Norman feels betrayed by Ray's role as Isabella's spy. Maybe he couldn't forgive him initially until Emma showed him Ray's possible perspective. Norman is quick throwing anything and anyone under the bus he feels he doesn't need anymore - like Isabella, who wasn't his mother anymore, but a mere monster to him, hours after Conny's death, while Emma had a harder time to come with terms with that. Like Ray, he gives up too quickly - again, they are like the same person, just a slightly different font. I mean, using themselves to get whatever they want? They know their own strenghts, they know their own weaknesses, and so they know about each other's, too. It's a complicated friendship, for sure, but it's not just some shallow rivalry or "ugh can't stand that guy's way of thinking" like the anime/ movie/ adaptations often conclude. It's truly a shame, because it's way more than the usual "rivals being friends and friends being rivals"-theme in other shonen series, but more of a "we head to the same destination but I need to sit in the driver seat and try to have control to make sure we get there safely"-situation, to me.

Or just in short: No one gets them like Shirai did get them. What a shame 😔

Ray "saying" goodbye to Norman in the anime:

Calm. Collected. Aura of spite. "Serves you right you self-sacrificial idiot".

vs.

Ray "saying" goodbye to Norman in the manga:

So weak he has to lean against the wall. Look of utter defeatment. Barely able to lift his head. "Just kill me here and now. can't get worse anyway anymore".

[makeste]

i don't get it tbh. the apology shouldn't have been here. it was in the middle of everything and it had basically no impact on deku whatsoever? this was sooooo no what i was expecting and tbh i'm kinda mad about it ngl lol also ngl times twice but if whatever ochaco says does reach him instead of the kacchan apology that's been built up as the emotional climax for the entire series i'm just flat out gonna drop this manga lmao. but this was barely an emotional climax at all, i really don't get it

2/2 like we get just a few pages? shoved in there like "okay everyone talked now kacchan disappears from the chapter, that's over and done with, moving on" the apology itself was great, but the placement and brevity undermined its emotional resonance. deku remains the exact same after hearing it, doesn't think about katsuki at all. just about his earlier "can't keep up" words? then we go on to ochaco whose "saving heroes even though that's what everyone has been doing" i guess is more important?

3/3 (last one promise) like i'm sorry but there was time for several chaps of endeavor ugly crying, for mineta's anal beads and pervy romantic trope non-confession, for overhaul to pop up being his usual piece of shit self for no plot-relevant reason, for adult top heroes to stand around for chapters like "huh everything we're doing is awful. let's keep on trusting this smelly kid" and. a few panels for kacchan apology. no reaction. shoved among "idk u well mido but stay!" + ochaco making faces

4/4 (i lied) and all this after katsuki's distress and emotions were once more made into jokes at the hospital, emotional consequences of the war ignored, w all might probably dying and the last thing he did to this kid was ditch him leaving us to guess he maybe gives a shit abt him and maybe he bothered to visit in the hospital cuz they sure didn't show shit. i honestly feel like all katsuki stuff was shoved into the background: krbk friendship for mina, dkbk for ofa, name reveal for jokes...

okay, so I have talked in the past about fandom reacting like Miette whenever this stuff happens, and tbh this is basically what I mean by that anon. there is no reason whatsoever to assume that this is the one and only reaction we'll ever get from Deku regarding the apology and that it will never come up again. this is 100% going to be revisited. and tbh I think it's a smart move on Horikoshi's part, because if he gave us everything in this one chapter then what further development would there be to look forward to? he's gotta hold something back so that we have that one last milestone to anticipate in the rebuilding of their relationship. I've often said that for me me, Deku and Kacchan's story is the most important part of BnHA. and so it makes sense to me for Horikoshi to not completely resolve it until close to the end of the series, if not the very end.

I think this is a pretty good compromise honestly, because I wasn't even sure if we were going to get the apology itself before the finale. but this way we can head into the final battle with Kacchan having put all of his character development out there and not holding anything back, and it's nice to have that, and to have that reinforcement of just how far he's come, and how serious he is about his atonement. and so his feelings are finally all on the table now, and now it's all Deku.

and he deserves to have some time to work out how he feels about this and not be put on the spot to deliver a reaction, honestly. but to say it had "no impact whatsoever" is a huge overreaction imo. first of all, we saw the shock on his face -- he was absolutely floored. this was something he clearly never expected from Kacchan (which is why it was so important for Kacchan to actually say the words, in addition to taking action as he's already done -- because Deku needed to hear them, because he genuinely had no idea that Kacchan actually cared. and he deserves to know that, because Kacchan is one of the most important people in the world to him). not to mention that Deku kind of has a million other things on his mind right now. like we just had a whole entire arc about that lol. the apology isn't supposed to be for Kacchan's benefit; it's supposed to be for Deku's. so let him have the time to absorb it before he settles on what to say. Kacchan had all the time in the world to figure out his part of it, after all.

to me this is like a promise that there will be at least one last great, emotional, and deeply personal moment between the two of them. because when Deku finally does forgives him -- not that he hasn't already, imo, but once they finally have that conversation -- that shit is going to be so fucking cathartic, and tbh I'm glad Horikoshi didn't try to cram that into this chapter along with everything else that's currently going on. besides, I'd rather see that part of their reconciliation happen once Deku is more back to his normal self again; I feel like it would be more meaningful that way. right now he's too exhausted to be able to come up with any words. but he already has shown the best possible reaction I could have ever hoped for -- complete and utter relief and trust. Kacchan is the person he trusted enough that he could finally let go of his fears and anxieties -- if only for a moment -- and give into his exhaustion at long last, and that moment where he collapses and Kacchan runs to catch him has instantly become one of my favorites in the whole series.

so yeah, my apologies anon, but absolutely nothing is gonna spoil that for me, and I can't join you here in being even remotely disappointed with this chapter. well aside from the lack of hug lol (but I can be patient for that as well).

[thewritetofreespeech]

MC rejecting the 7 brothers romantically?

yaaaaaaaaaaasssssssssss!!! yes, yes, yes!! 

I should not be this happy to ruin people’s dreams & happy endings. I’m a terrible person.....

Obey me Brother + Rejection

Lucifer

“Lucifer I...don’t feel the same way.”

Lucifer was stunned to hear those words from you.

He was usually so careful. So calculating on things. He never thought that you wouldn’t feel the same. Where had his trust been misplaced? Where had he gone wrong? Perhaps his cold heart had warmed too much to your kindness. Thought that, maybe, your friendship & bravery towards him could be something a kin to love. Hoped, even.

“Well, I apologize [Y/N]. I didn’t mean to inconvenience you. Please know that this doesn’t change anything between us, or your placement in the program.”

He excused himself and went back to his work. Burying himself in it, as usual, to not have to deal with these feelings. Logic and power, that was all that mattered.

Mammon

“I’m sorry Mammon I...don’t feel that way about you.”

His heart suddenly felt emptier than his piggy bank.

Had he really heard you right? Did you really no....feel the same?

He could have sworn you did! He was your first after all! The one you had chosen, out of all of them, to be the first you made a pact with. Your relationship was special. You were special. You made him....feel special.

He can take rejection from anyone but you. Mammon had taken it all his life, so he accepted it, but not from you.

“Ha! Ya think I was being serious?! I-It was just a joke!” He barked out before he ran away. Not literally. He had some pride. But he removed himself from the conversation quickly before you can realize the tears welling up behind his gold shades. He’ll never put himself out there again.

Levi

“Levi I’m sorry but....there’s someone else.”

He was shocked to hear your response. This wasn’t how it happened in manga!!

Of course he knew that things didn’t work out perfectly like they did in manga. Yet another reason the RL world was so cruel. But he had hoped they wouldn’t lead him wrong.

As he thought about it though, he couldn’t be surprised. Of course there was someone else. Someone as perfect & wonderful as you must have someone on their mind. Not a smelly, stingy otaku like him. He’d flown too close to the sun, and now like Icarus he was crashing down.

“It’s....ok. I-I-I didn’t really mean it. I was just practicing for when I meet Ruri-chan next month!” He ran away and hid in his run for several days. The darkness and his figures his only friends now.

Satan

“I’m flattered Satan. Truly. But....”

Satan sighed softly as he prepared himself to be let down gently. He’d prepared for this.

Although he had prepared for this it still hurt. Planning for something and for it to actually happen were two separate realities he had come to face. It hurt. And usually when he was hurt he lashed out. This was the first time he felt hurt and also felt....defeated.

“That’s ok.” He replied calmly, with a force polite smile. “I understand. You don’t have to explain any further. I hope this won’t make things awkward for us. Even though I wish we could be more, I still want us to be friends [Y/N].”

He’ll take what he can get.

Asmo

“Asmo I’m sorry. I like you! But....only as a friend.”

At first, he doesn’t understand the response. The words just don’t compute in his head. Then they come through with a blaring blast like a siren. 

Everyone wanted him. And he meant everyone. He was like Helen of Troy, Cleopatra, and Casanova all wrapped into one! No one said no to him!

Was this how it felt? To be rejected? Oh God...what had he done to all those poor people....

“I...I have to go....” The usually jovial, chatty demon excused himself from you and all but ran away. He couldn’t face this. He felt like his heart, his guts, his soul was being ripped out. Well, at least he could cry pretty.

Beel

“Oh Beel I....I don’t think about you...that way.”

There was a hammer in his gut all of a sudden. He wasn’t excepting that.

He knew it was a long shot for you to accept his feelings. He wasn’t as smart as his brothers. He wasn't traditionally handsome like Asmo or Mammon. But he wanted to try. To be honest with you.

Maybe he had held out hope until this moment that maybe you could think of him as more than the big, dumb jock who ate all the food all the time.

When you tell him no, Beel tried to take it in stride. “It’s ok. I just wanted you to know how I felt.”

The hammer in his gut was quickly dissolving. Turning into a deep pit and hole that demanded to be filled. He quickly excused himself, forcing a smile, and went to the kitchens. In a matter of moments the fridge, the freezer, the cabinets, were all cleaned out. But the empty feeling wouldn’t go away. Why wouldn’t it go away?

Belphie

“Belphie I....”

You don’t have to say anything else. He knows what’s coming.

Of course you keep talking, but Belphegor was just drowning them out. Another failure. Another disappointment. He just wanted this to end so he could go back to his room and sleep for an eternity.

He should have known better than to get involved with a human. He been right about them all along. Selfish, cruel, small minded humans who only take, take, take and then foolishly give hope to people because it’s not enough to just take they have to destroy all happiness.

“Fine. Whatever.” Belphegor muttered at [Y/N] before slumped back to his room.

He should have never let them open that door. He should have never let you in.

[chosonore]

part two | yearning

yearning [noun. a strong feeling of wishing for something, especially something that you cannot have or get easily]

pairing: kamo noritoshi/f!reader

summary: your relationship with noritoshi was like a game of cat and mouse; no matter how hard you tried to escape from him, he would always find his way back to you.

wordcount: 8.2k

content/warnings: friends to enemies to lovers, language, somewhat suggestive, noritoshi is kind of a dick but i promise it gets better so please don’t lose faith in him, we’re somewhat following the timeline of the anime/manga so spoilers ahead!! but what follows afterwards is purely pulled out of my ass lol, lowercase intended [UNEDITED]

a/n: hello, here i am again with a super long chapter ( ˙꒳​˙ ) it is so incredibly messy and i’m so sorry if it gets confusing for you; this just really shows how sporadic my writing process is, i have some guidelines that i follow but sometimes venture off my path when i suddenly get a new idea. nevertheless, i hope you can somewhat enjoy this chapter. feedback or just your thoughts are much appreciated! for those that are waiting for the ~steamy~ content, it is coming next chapter hehe. as always, stay safe everyone (´｡• ᵕ •｡`)

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"noritoshi, could you just stay quiet today? i'm really not in the mood," you sighed as you entered the training grounds. the exhaustion from the mission the day before was clinging onto your bones, heavy and admonishingly. the normally exciting sparring lessons seemed dreadful, knowing that all students were to practice today. to practice the balance within the team, utahime had claimed the week prior as she was reprimanding your lack of discipline when it came to noritoshi. stubbornness ran in the family; you refused to back down when someone was hurting your pride. said stubbornness came back to bite you - instead of taking a break to fully recover, you claimed that you would be fine with the help of your reverse curse techniques.

as the days came and went, the yearly tournament slowly approached. after the devastating defeat last year, everyone was on edge and determined to beat tokyo tech. well, that excluded todo, he was just looking for stronger opponents it seemed. noritoshi, on other hand, appeared to be more agitated than usual - if he wasn't barking orders at the other students, he would criticize their fighting styles. you knew he wanted to win the tournament at all costs, to prove himself worthy of the position as the kamo clan head. but he was too rigid about it, rarely accepting help and haughty when questioned. you've been avoiding him as best as you could and of all days, today had to be one where you could not. opponents would be swapped every ten minutes so everyone could practice with another student - facing noritoshi for ten minutes was easy. so you thought. 

"can't promise anything, princess," noritoshi retorted smugly and pat your head like he usually did when he was trying to get a reaction out of you. life always found a way to prove you wrong. for some reason, noritoshi had made it his goal to get under your skin as much as possible on this particular day and it worked. it was childish to engage in this banter but you couldn’t help it. the feeling of not being taken serious by noritoshi had always bothered you. it almost seemed like he wasn’t considering you equal to him, always looking down on you. being stressed wasn’t good, your mother had always reminded you, so it was best to remain calm and collected.

stay calm and collected, calm and collected, you repeated in your head. gritting your teeth, you slapped his hand away and jogged away from him towards todo. at least he'd leave you alone while you were near todo - probably to avoid todo getting mad at him and not wanting to hear about takada-chan again. he was the ultimate and fool-proof shield. the taller male was walking at a leisurely pace in front of you, leading the group as per usual. you caught up to him, slowing down so it didn't look like you just jogged all the way here. away from the menace that was noritoshi. todo glanced at you suspiciously before subtly turning around. a guilty groan left your lips. of course he knew, he always knew. as the unlikely friendship was blossoming between the two of you, you rapidly realized that todo was far more perceptive than he would ever let on. even though he took lighthearted jabs at you, he didn't care enough to intervene; it was a mutual understanding. in a way, you appreciated that he treated you like everyone else, not once had he tried to approach you about your deteriorating relationship with noritoshi.

upon seeing the unlikely pair, miwa speed up as well to join them. even though todo scared her to no end, your presence eased her nerves a little. after all, you weren’t scared to put him back in his place when he was being dramatic. she nudged you gently in greeting, nervously clasping her sword in front of her. "do you think we'll win this year's competition? we've been training a lot, so i hope i can show off some of my skills."

"never say never? even if we lose, it's a good experience to learn from," you replied wryly. while the students of the kyoto tech were strong and coordinated well with each other, noritoshi and you could easily destroy the balance. he didn't know when to stop, persistently pushing your boundaries and you fell for his tricks every time. as long as you could work out a strategy that involved working alone or with a partner that was not him, you'd be fine. your safest bet was to work with miwa since you were both sword users and have practiced together extensively. if noritoshi and you exhibited enough chaos to tear the world apart, miwa and you represented the perfect balance when fighting.

"you're our secret weapon though!" miwa exclaimed excitedly, elbowing you gently. "no one knows you can heal, so we'll use that to our advantage."

"uh…"

"what? don't tell me you-"

"i've asked yuta about advice before," you interrupted her, scratching your head sheepishly. "he's one of the very few people who can use reverse cursed techniques, so i asked him to give me some pointers and how to use it more to my advantage."

when yuta participated in the competition the year before, you were absolutely mesmerized by his level of skills and how he had supposedly mastered them in such a short amount of time. of course you hadn't told anyone that you were talking to him - everyone was still salty about the defeat and would, undoubtedly, have crucified you on sight. truthfully, you didn't understand why everyone was so hellbent about hating the students of your sister school. weren't you all colleagues in a sense? yuta was nice and respectful towards you, always trying his best to explain you how to implement his tips. along the way, you might have developed a tiny, fleeting crush on him but never acted on it. it was only a crush after all and you didn’t feel certain about it not being a mere distraction from your feelings for noritoshi. perhaps it was the way he made you feel, the way he treated you like noritoshi used to before. you couldn't even deny it, you missed your old 'toshi. when you looked at him now, it hurt you, seeing all the traces of gentleness having left him.

"really? you never told me! what is he like? he looked like he was really nice but there were moments where i was really scared of him. well maybe not him but rather… that curse."

"uh, yuta is actually not that scary. he's really helpful and always there for you when you need advice. i think i've improved a lot since we've started talking." you made a mental note to thank yuta again if you got to see each other anytime soon. apparently, gojo had sent him on a mission overseas a few months back and ever since, your exchanged messages grew to be rather sporadic. still, you appreciated that he made an effort to text you every now and then to let you know how he was doing and in turn, also asked about your wellbeing.

"fraternizing with the enemy, i see," noritoshi's voice rang out beside you, dangerously close to your ear. it made you jump in surprise, not having sensed him earlier - your hand automatically shot out to hit him, only for him to catch it in time. you shot him an annoyed glare. beside you, miwa and todo glanced at each other, silently agreeing to ignore the squarreling pair.

"i don't see how that's any of your business."

"it is if it jeopardizes our chance at winning," noritoshi narrowed eyes at you in suspicion. of course he didn't trust you, you were nothing but a mild inconvenience to him. you didn't owe him an explanation, not today and not in the future. any friendship or friendliness between you was long gone. refusing to look into his eyes, you attempted to tug your hand away from him but instead accomplished the exact opposite as noritosh tightened his grip. "what did you tell him?"

"he only helped me with training, that's all! it doesn't concern you anyways so-"

noritoshi was irritated, you could tell. the anger was rolling off him in waves, intimidating even you. why was he so annoyed by the fact that you asked yuta for advice? it wasn't even farfetched - the only other alternatives were gojo and ieiri, both of which you hadn't mustered up the courage to ask yet. wasn't it in everyone's best interest for you to become a great healer? noritoshi would know best - he was the driving force behind your ambition, the sole reason why you worked to the brink of exhaustion just to show him that you didn’t need his help, that you were worthy of a higher rank.

"i don't want you to hang out with the tokyo tech kids, especially not with him."

"wait, what?" you gaped at him in disbelief. "is this just because you have personal beef with some of them? leave me out of this, i just want to improve and you don't get to tell me what to do." with that you shoved the taller male, stomping past the other students towards utahime who was looking at you in disapproval. you missed the upset frown on noritoshi's face as he followed you, wanting to reach out but stopping midway. it wasn't the right time or place to let you know why he didn't want you around them, not yet. seeing you hang out and being relaxed with everyone else but him hurt him, oh how it hurt him. he wanted you close to him, only see him, talk about him excitedly and with stars in your eyes like you did when you talked about yuta. and yet, he couldn't let you know. the only way to keep you orbiting around him was to play these silly games, rile you up and drawing a reaction out of you. it was the only way to make you pay attention to him. and so he did.

calm and collected, my ass, you thought two hours later. of course todo and noritoshi had completely eviscerated the rest of the students with no mercy, leaving everyone in a sour mood. whatever strategy your team would have for the tournament was probably thrown out the window, the two of them would take care of it anyways. not that they would stand a chance against yuta.

“yuta isn’t here?” the disappointment in your voice was palpable. you did look forward to meeting yuta again, thinking that he might have come home from his overseas trip for the tournament. but you supposed getting to know the other students wasn’t too bad, you were interested in the first years and their skills. they certainly looked more approachable than your classmates. miwa told you how todo and mai had met two of them a few weeks prior and promptly started a senseless fight that was then stopped by the second years. it landed them in the water as utahime gave them a lecture - while she didn't tolerate the childish behaviour, everyone else seemed to turn a blind eye to it. noritoshi had scoffed in disapproval upon hearing the news, uttering something about not wanting to associate with dimwits like them. 

"nope, he's still overseas. it doesn't matter anyways, we'll still beat you without him," maki replied with a confident grin, arms crossed as she took in the kyoto tech group of students. regardless, you broke out in a sprint and jumped, engulfing her in a warm hug. while you two didn't talk as much as yuta and you did, you were still friends. she was a source of inspiration to you, a master of all kinds of weapons whom you deeply admired. maki gave you some awkward pats before pulling away to introduce you to the first years - megumi, yuji and nobara. the younger students were wary of you, most likely because of their encounter with todo and mai. you couldn't hold it against them, their intensity and stubbornness was something you had to deal with daily after all. you silently cursed the two brash students before taking a deep breath and extending your hand to the ones in front of you.

“hi, i’m y/n, nice to meet you,” you introduced yourself with a friendly smile, visibly relieved when they shook your hand and introduced themselves. especially nobara seemed to be eager to get to know you, fussing over your uniform and inquiring about your skills. you were glad they welcomed you, not wanting to cause any more trouble than would undoubtedly arise for the duration of the tournament. while megumi seemed to be cautious and more reserved around you, yuuji and nobara already treated you like their friend. subconsciously, you envied them for the wholesome friendship dynamic as it reminded you of what you used to have with noritoshi. the fleeting thoughts left as soon as they made an appearance in your head, disappearing when nobara grasped your hand and pulled you towards the buildings to show you around. unbothered by the reactions of your fellow kyoto tech classmates, you followed her - their energy was stifling and the tournament didn't start until later in the day anyways. it was useless to stay with your group and practice, you'd only overexert yourself.

“y/n.” noritoshi called after you sternly, glaring at you when you turned to look at him - ever since stepping foot into the estate, he was moody and more serious than usual.  it was probably him being tense about the tournament, the spirit to win deeply ingrained in his bones. none of the other students seemed to be bothered by the presence of the tokyo tech students, so why should he? ignoring him, you continued your journey until you felt a force harshly pulling you back by the fabric of your hoodie. intuitively, you could tell it was noritoshi. 

"noritoshi, let me go," you snapped at him irritated, struggling to free yourself from his grasp.

"we have things to discuss, did you forget that?"

"i don't want to," like a petulant child, you gave him an angry look as you stood your ground. tension filled the space between you, tethering on the edge of anger. why was a normal conversation never possible with him? and why did he treat you like a child? you let up when megumi appeared to your side, shooting noritoshi a warning glance as he attempted to remove his hand from yours. even though he didn't know what your relationship was like, he stepped in regardless - you were impressed by him. even if noritoshi remained calm, he was a menace to deal with afterwards.

"she said no, didn't you hear-"

"get your hands off of her." noritoshi growled at megumi, the sudden influx of cursed energy that was surrounding him made all students in close proximity freeze. you couldn't hide you shock either, he had never been this threatening towards someone else. he might push boundaries to the extreme, knowing that he could away with it due to his bloodline and family name but he had never outright threatened anyone that didn't do his bidding. with those words he pulled you towards him, wrapping his arm around your waist protectively. paralyzed, you blankly stared at him. his cursed energy was suffocating you, never had you experienced this amount of pressure. not only that, the unusual closeness set your heart ablaze, burning down the walls that you'd carefully constructed around it.

"you're being ridiculous," megumi challenged the older male, unbothered by the strong pressure. he didn't understand why noritoshi was making a big deal out of this. surely he didn't consider megumi a threat? noritoshi's hold on you strengthened and with panic you realized the blood-red markings appearing on his face, he was being serious, oh god he was going to rip megumi apart-

"hey hey, stop it you two," panda's voice snapped you out of your trance and seemingly noritoshi's as well as he wacked his arm. "you just got here and you're already stirring up trouble, are you not ashamed?"

noritoshi simply scoffed and let you go, his cursed energy dissipating with the movement. the rest of the students were as stunned as you were, no one daring to make another move until the tension evaporated. todo was the only one who looked rather annoyed, smacking the back of noritoshi’s head as he started to tell him off - noritoshi, however, kept walking past him towards the dorms that they were staying at for the week. it was almost like there was steam coming off his head as a result of holding his anger in. nobara gaped at you in surprise, pointing at you accusingly. “i didn’t know that was your boyfriend!”

you spluttered in horror, quickly reaching out to her to try and cover her mouth so she wouldn’t say anything incriminating. “n- no you got it wrong! we’re not together, not at all! i hate noritoshi,” you floundered, hastily trying to set the record straight. nobara didn’t look like she believed you, pushing your hands away while giggling. she wiggled her eyebrows at you, whispering at you about how lucky you were to snag such a handsome guy although she thought that he really didn’t have to overreact like that because megumi was harmless. covering your face in embarrassment, you turned away from her and caught a glimpse of an amused todo winking at you.

“i’m serious, nobara!" whatever whining you did, the two of them didn’t let up, making you wonder what you ever did wrong to deserve this scrutiny. as your last resort you grabbed nobara's hand, dragging her along towards a secluded area in the estate. being the subject of the earlier conflict was already troubling enough, you didn't want the other students to get the wrong idea by her wild speculations. nobara was still giggling when you arrived, pinching your arm playfully.

“c’mon, it’s impossible that there is not something between you! did you see the look on his face? i don’t think he would have cared had it been any other person,” she gushed excitedly, her face lighting up in glee. with no doubt, nobara enjoyed poking her nose in other people's business, seemingly having a knack for sniffing out the hidden. a dejected sigh left your lip. a younger you would have jumped in happiness after finally receiving noritoshi's attention but the present you knew better. there wasn't more to it, you told yourself and yet, a tiny sliver of doubt made its way into your mind. could he really have been so bothered by another male being so close to you? todo didn't count, obviously.

"no, there's nothing to it, i promise. we don't have the best relationship anymore and mostly fight. i mean yeah his reaction was really uncharacteristic but…"

"anymore?"

"noritoshi and me grew up together and were childhood friends. i- i didn't agree with his antics as we grew up and we drifted apart after that and now… hate each other? he’s just unbearable and we don’t get along. everyone at kyoto tech knows that so they’re mostly ignoring our fights. and it’s childish, i know, i know..." 

“are you sure? like super duper sure? because it didn’t look like it to me,” nobara contemplatively rubbed her chin. the wheels were turning in her head, something didn’t quite add up. even at first glance, whatever you said made her feel doubtful.

“trust me, i wish it was different too. i mean i used to like him a lot and it makes me sad and i wish we could at least be civil around each other. but he just makes me so angry,” your ramblings stopped nobara’s thinking - so that’s what it was. normally, nobara really didn’t care about other people’s business but this was too juicy to pass up. how far could she push it to make you realize?

why was the layout of all these buildings so confusing? and why were there so many buildings to begin with? you’ve been wandering around for at least five minutes now and you still couldn’t figure out where the hell yuji’s and megumi’s rooms were supposed to be. they didn’t even have any signs around. at this point, it didn’t matter if it took longer than anticipated - the others could wait. nobara had insisted on having a small get together the night before, to get to know each other and play some card games. you couldn’t refuse, it’s been a while since you just hung out with friends without any quarreling. there was no harm in getting to know you future colleagues, even though your classmates were treating them like criminals. so instead of going herself and much to your dismay, nobara had sent you to fetch the other two students, claiming that you would be fine if you just stuck to the measly sketch she’d made for you. most of the rooms you’ve already knocked at remained empty so you couldn’t be far from their rooms, you concluded.

stopping in front of the last remaining door of the corridor, you took a deep breath. this had to be one of their rooms. slowly, you raised your hand to knock at the door when it was suddenly yanked open, startling you in the process and making you drop the piece of paper you were holding. what you weren’t expecting was coming face to face with noritoshi who looked at you as equally confused. he was the last person you wanted to see today, not wanting to confront him about his actions earlier. you couldn’t wrap your head around it; why had he overreacted in such a way? it wasn’t like you were in danger or in need of protection. for a brief moment, you thought that there was a sliver of strange possessiveness. you couldn’t quite place the emotions in his eyes, it made you shudder.

“oh uh, sorry. i was looking for yuji and megumi and this is very obviously not one of their rooms. sorry again. i’ll take my leave,” you awkwardly stammered, taking a step back. noritoshi’s figure was towering over you and in a rare moment, you felt intimidated by him. perhaps it was the dark look in his eyes that told you that he was not thrilled by what you just told him. before you could react, he swiftly grabbed your arm and pulled you inside his room, trapping you against the door.

“w- wait!” you protested weakly, pushing at his chest until his face slowly came into your vision. you couldn’t help but stare at his lips, watching them move as he was talking to you. your ears were ringing, you couldn’t tell what he was saying. the close proximity was suffocating and yet you craved more, not wanting to let him go.

“y/n? did you hear me?” 

“huh?” snapping out of your trance, you looked at him dumbfounded. noritoshi was frowning at you, slightly concerned about your state as you didn’t answer him. just then you finally got a proper look at him. it was a rare sight; noritoshi wearing casual clothes, a simple oversized shirt and shorts, and his hair down without the bindings. feeling nostalgic, your heart clenched. he looked like his old self, the ‘toshi that you loved dearly.

“i said, i don’t want you around them. i don’t- i don’t like seeing you with them,” noritoshi repeated with a strained voice. he placed his hands beside your head, inching closer to you.

“what- noritoshi, you don’t get to tell me who i can hang out with! last time i checked, we’re not even friends anymore so where do you get the idea that you can do this? what’s the big deal ab-” you didn’t get to finish your sentence when he pressed his lips against yours clumsily. you seized up in shock, not returning the kiss as a whirlwind of thoughts entered your mind. holy shit, he was really kissing you. but you hated each other, so why? why, why, why. when you didn’t respond, noritoshi pulled away in panic, spluttering apologies as he moved away from you. your emotional world was in chaos, all the buried and forgotten feelings for him breaking the dams and flooding your senses until the yearning became too much. you were reminded of the conversation you had with your mother years ago - you still wanted him, missed him. you wanted him by your side. desperately, you reached out, fisting the fabric of his shirt as you leaned up to kiss him. noritoshi caught you in his arms, wrapping them around you as he fervently returned the kiss. he was holding you like he was afraid you would dissipate into thin air, frantically pulling you in. his hands were roaming, discovering the expanse of your body.

his touches left you feeling delirious, high on pleasure. a mewl left your lips, pleading him for something, for more. your hands moved higher, feeling his chest and broad shoulders before you wrapped your arms around his neck. his name left your lips in breathy sighs as he peppered kisses down your jaw, pulling the collar of your shirt to the side to gain more access to the expanse of your neck. suddenly, you were hoisted up and pressed against the door as noritoshi held you by your thighs. you struggled to wrap your legs around his waist, to distracted by his relentless ministrations. by the time he's left multiple hickeys on your neck, you were whimpering mess. noritoshi's breath was taken away at the sight of you in his arms, lips swollen from the kisses, the glossy eyes, dishevelled hair and the hickeys that were slowly becoming more visible. he couldn't understand how carelessly you were letting him proceed when you supposedly harboured a strong dislike for him. nevertheless, he enjoyed it and wanted to savour the moment, ingrain it into his memory so he'd never forget why he was treating you like a nuisance.

a loud knock resounded from the door, followed by someone shouting: "noritoshi? has y/n been here?"

out of sheer shock, you shoved noritoshi away from you and nearly fell as you attempted to detangle yourself from him. he caught you in time, signalling you to stay quiet as the person outside was still shuffling around nervously. you slumped against him limply, letting your head rest against his chest. his heart was beating erratically. it made yours fill with pride as you could tell that you had the same effect on him as he did on you. still, the precarious situation suddenly dawned on you - you'd just made out with your sworn enemy and, yes you used to have a crush on him, enjoyed it very much. and by the looks of it, he would have continued if you hadn't pushed him away. the entire ordeal greatly confused you; was noritoshi just playing around with you? it couldn't be, he had initiated it after all. the cold treatment he usually gave you didn't match with his actions just now. you couldn't get close to him, not when he gave you mixed signals. you wanted someone who cherished you and was always sincere so you wouldn't have to second guess their actions.

"huh, i guess noritoshi's already sleeping. we'll have to check somewhere else, i hope she didn't get lost," the person outside mumbled as you stayed silent. the sound of shuffling was heard, then steps away from the room. you stayed put until you were sure they were gone and gently removed yourself from noritoshi's grip, not looking him in the eyes. he didn’t move, letting you go willingly.

“i’m sorry, i don’t know what came over me,” you apologized with a pained voice. “please forget that it ever happened and uhm, please don’t tell anyone.”

noritoshi’s eyes widened at your pleas, moving to stop you from leaving so he could explain himself to you. “y/n, wait, i can ex-”

hastily, you stumbled to open the door, dashing away from him until the building was out of your sight. you poorly hid behind a tree, sinking to your knees as you buried your face in your hands. what the hell. you just made out with your childhood friend turned enemy. your buried feelings were all over the place and your mind just couldn’t stay still. it messed with your outlook as well as your image of noritoshi, distorting and twisting it until you had to rethink your relationship. maybe all this time, you subconsciously hoped that he would return back to his old self and somehow give you an explanation. never having received closure on the end of your friendship, you would even forgive him for the sake of your relationship. were you this shallow? no, you simply harboured a lot of feelings for him. you weren’t able to tell what his thought process was - was he even interested in you? did he see you like that?

“there you are,” you lifted your head to see gojo walking towards you with his hands stuffed inside the pockets of his pants. you almost didn’t recognize him as he simply wore a pair of sunglasses and let his hair down. “the others are looking for you. what are you doing out here? trouble in paradise?”

“n-no! i just needed some time away from everyone to- to catch my breath,” you exclaimed indignantly and perhaps too hastily you realized when gojo smirked at you knowingly. why did everyone assume that there was anything between noritoshi and you? was it that obvious?

“uh huh. that’s not what your neck says,” gojo pointed out while wiggling his eyebrows and offered you a hand to stand up. “he really doesn’t like any competition.”

“fuck,” you cursed quietly, covering the hickeys with one hand while taking gojo’s with your other and pulling yourself up. it was embarrassing enough to meet one of the teachers like this but it was even more embarrassing to know that your teacher had seen the aftermath of your makeout session. 

“i’m not gonna tell anyone, if that’s what you’re concerned about. although it would certainly be funny to tease little noritoshi,” gojo was giggling and you knew he was greatly amused by the entire situation. it almost reminded you of nobara. you groaned in frustration as you trailed behind him towards the girls’ dorms. you needed to hide your neck so no one would question it or grill you until you confessed; the potential embarrassment was mortifying.

your group strategy was already falling apart when todo suddenly disappeared in the depths of the forest, not caring about your teamwork in the slightest. normally, it would frustrate you a lot more if you weren’t already preoccupied with your own troubles. todo would be fine anyways, the remaining group members could work on a strategy on their own. as mechamaru and mai were discussing, you shot a glance at noritoshi. he looked as deadpan as usual, probably not listening to the discussion as he worked better on his own and it was more or less decided that mechamaru and him would be moving on their own while the others would team up. otherwise, you couldn’t tell whether he was bothered by what had transpired between you the night before. on the contrary, he looked calm and composed, probably more focused on his goal than anything else. and for some reason it bothered you.

when you’d returned to nobara’s room last night, gojo had helped you make up an excuse. while dramatically gesturing around, he’d told them that he intercepted her journey towards the boys’ dorms to recruit you for training, claiming that he wanted to teach you more about reverse cursed techniques. although he saved you from scrutiny and embarrassment, you couldn’t help but feel like he might use it as leverage in the future. it was gojo after all, he was unpredictable. absentmindedly, you agreed to whatever plan the others had schemed and grabbed your sword, getting ready to move to your assigned position with miwa. while you had heard of the other students’ skills, you weren’t sure where to place their levels as there was always room for surprises. underestimating opponents was a beginner's mistake. the bell rang out, signaling the start of the tournament; with swift movements, the group members dispersed and slowly moved towards the "enemy".

in the distance, you could already hear loud explosions - it was probably mechamaru happily blasting away his opponents. you gritted your teeth in annoyance, the blasts were too loud for you to make out anyone approaching you. and as you predicted, someone was taking advantage of the noise to stalk up on you. barely being able to block the blow with your sword, you found yourself opposite of maki who was grinning at you. the challenging glint in her eyes told you that she wasn't going to go easy on you but you welcomed it. it was a good opportunity for you to grow and hone your sword wielding skills.

however, it proved to be more difficult to defeat maki than you'd originally anticipated. in mere minutes, maki had already disarmed miwa, leaving her defenseless and you were hanging on a bare thread. your grip on the sword was weakening, laboured breath making your ears ring. it was frustrating, knowing that after all those months of rigorous practice, you still couldn't win a fight. giving up wasn't an option, at the very least you had to give it your all.

"c'mon, you can do better than this!" maki teased you as you ducked away from the swipe of her spear. it missed you by a hair's width and left you scrambling to create more distance between you so you could heal yourself. maki's relentless hits didn't give you any rooms for it - you really had to learn how to constantly apply it to yourself without losing time. from the corner of your eyes, you could see that miwa had picked up the phone. she was probably calling for help, you thought and dished out another hit towards maki which she skillfully dodged. instead, she delivered another blow to your legs, making your knees buckle from the force. you used your sword to support you and took another breath before you tried to lunge at her. in the distance, miwa suddenly collapsed, making you stop mid-move and took another hit from maki that took all the air in your lungs.

"eyes on your opponent, y/n. you know better than to get distracted in a fight, you could've been killed in a real fight," maki reprimanded you as you coughed heavily, gasping for air as you slowly got back up. you were unsteady on your feet, not having enough energy to even heal yourself. conflicted by whether you should face maki again or help miwa, your eyes were flitting between them. maki took advantage of your uncertainty, dealing another blow to you that knocked the sword out of your hand. as your last resort, you kicked at her feet, trying to get her to fall, only to have her pin you to the ground.

"you're going to have to practice a lot more to beat me in the future," she sighed, picking up your sword. panic welled up in your chest - the sword was the only way you could possibly somewhat win this fight but even subconsciously you knew that it was over. reaching out for the sword in desperation, your vision was clouded with tears. it was frustrating, so so frustrating. why couldn't you be as talented as her? or have fast reflexes like noritoshi? why were you ordinary, not being able to make any progress no matter how hard you try?

"i know but i can't give up now!" you defiantly retorted, pushing at her with all might. "i have to win, i just have to show my skills for once and prove myself, i- i-"

even maki softened up at your heart wrenching sobs, easing up on her grip. you both knew it was over. you were probably already eliminated from the tournament, with no other possibility to redeem yourself. she knew that you tried your best and never once underestimated her but something irked her. it was your motivation, your driving force.

"y/n, there's no shame in losing. that's how you grow, make mistakes and learn from them. you tried your best, it's not easy to stand against me for so long."

"i know but there's- i'm still not where i need to be! look at how much progress the others are making in comparison to me! i've been practicing day and night and still, no one is noticing me. i'm just a measly healer and i-"

"y/n." maki cut you off sternly. "is this your motivation? proving yourself to others? you'll not be able to improve if you keep fighting for others. you need to start working on yourself, for yourself. you don't owe anyone anything. but you have to realize that trying to satisfy other people's needs will only make you unhappy and hinder your growth."

"i'm unhappy with my skills! i keep telling myself that it's okay, that i have a rare cursed technique but sometimes i just wish i had a flashy technique or be as strong as you. i don't want to be looked at as if i need protection, i don't want it! i just-" you hiccuped, sniffling again as you wiped your tears with the sleeves of your uniform. "i just want someone to acknowledge me, want him to accept me as an equal…"

"who?" maki's cold look made you freeze in your movements. you didn't mean to let that slip. no one needed to know that the entire time, you were vying for noritoshi's attention. but she was right; there was no point in giving it your all if it wasn't for yourself. it was a silly, childish dream of yours to be equal with him again. he was far out of reach and you couldn't catch up to him.

"n- noritoshi," you admitted in defeat. maki saw right through you, there was no point in lying. she raised her eyebrows at you but didn't question it further. after all, you hadn't told her about the background story. unless nobara had done so, you wouldn't doubt it.

"i'm not gonna ask you why. but this is my advice, do not fight for somebody else. if you relentlessly work on yourself for your own benefit, you'll see progress a lot faster. your technique might not be flashy but it is powerful, remember that. you're a valuable asset to every team," she concluded and pulled you up, awkwardly patting your back as you still sniffled. maki opened her mouth to tell you some comforting words but froze when another extremely loud boom resounded near the entrance of the estate. your eyes widened at the sudden influx of cursed energy - there was no doubt that a high-level curse had just entered the school grounds. you turned to maki to tell her the news but she'd already moved, pointing to miwa.

"take her to a safe place, you can't stay here! in your state, you wouldn't last against such a strong curse," maki yelled at you as she disappeared in the woods. you scrambled frantically, not wanting to be left behind. while you were useless for the tournament, you could at least still be of assistance against a curse. miwa was still laying on the ground, unmoving. you shook her gently, scared that she was seriously hurt. it seemed like she was just sleeping instead; you were relieved. throwing her across your shoulder, you winced in pain but persisted nonetheless. you had to get her away from here, who knows what curses were roaming around. your senses were flooded with the stench of blood and debris, the pressure of cursed energy, the loud rumbles. you couldn't tell where the others were but you hoped they were safe.

a loud thud startled you and you stopped, ready to draw your sword until realization hit you that it was utahime that was inspecting you. determined, you thrusted miwa's limp body towards utahime. 

"miwa will be okay, she's just sleeping! i'm okay too, don't worry, please just take care of her and i'll check on the others!"

"y/n, don't be stupid! you're injured and in no state to help others." utahime attempted to convince you; you shook her off stubbornly, insisting that you were fine.

"what if the others get hurt? i have to help them or at least warn them!" your resolve was firm and unwavering that even utahime couldn't convince you otherwise. slipping out of her grasp, you sprinted towards the source of the cursed energy. from far away you could already see the damage that the curse had caused. multiple buildings were torn apart, trees dislodged and- were those branches rapidly growing out of the ground? you watched in horror as the branches whipped around, following running figures on the rooftop of one of the buildings. upping your speed, you jumped towards the group to aid them. as you neared them, you could make out inumaki, noritoshi, and megumi fighting against the curse, maki trailing close behind. 

they barely stood a chance against the curse, every hit that they dealt, the curse would come out unscathed. "what's the deal with that curse?" you asked, panting as you joined them, coming to a halt behind inumaki. megumi was yelling something but you couldn't hear him as noritoshi turned to you and shoved you out of the way.

"y/n, what are you doing here?" 

"helping you guys? what the fuck does it look like?" you yelled back exasperated. why was he mad at you in such a situation? they needed any helping hand they could get to defeat the curse. while you weren't useful in fights, you could at least provide continuous healing. noritoshi didn't have any time to reply as the curse lashed out again, dodging it by jumping to the side. you stayed close to inumaki, swiftly healing him when he collapsed from the rebound of his cursed speech. you clenched your jaw, not wanting the others to see that you were slowly running out of energy and strength. next thing you know, a body was hurled through the air, landing near you with a thud. your heart filled with dread when your eyes fell onto the figure, recognizing noritoshi.

"y/n, heal them as best as you can and get out of here! take them to the teachers!" maki yelled out and this time you obeyed, too panicked about noritoshi's state. you were thankful that inumaki had enough energy to run after you'd healed him - hauling noritoshi's tall frame around was already difficult enough but even more so when you were exhausted. as you neared the gates, utahime was already running towards you with a concerned look on her face. you were glad that she was nearby, it meant that gojo and the other teachers were close and could defend you.

"what happened?" utahime worried but you couldn't reply. falling to your knees, you gently laid noritoshi on the ground. the injuries looked bad, there was blood everywhere. you had to stop the wound on his head from bleeding but your trembling hands were preventing you from doing so.

"i- i don't know, i just- i think the curse hit him and now he's unconscious and he's losing so much blood and-"

utahime pinched you firmly, snapping you out of your panic. she was already holding a cloth to noritoshi's temple to stop the bleeding. patting your hand, she told you in a gentle voice: "heal him if you still have enough strength but don't overexert yourself. ieiri will be here soon." 

nodding frantically, you placed your trembling hands on his abdomen and let your cursed energy flow. the strength was slowly leaving your body but you had to save him. you had to make sure he was okay, he couldn't die, not like this. regret was bubbling up inside you; what if this was the last time you would ever get to see him?just as you felt his energy responding to yours and saw his hand moving slightly, you couldn't hold yourself upright anymore. the last thing you saw was utahime reaching out to catch you as you collapsed.

you woke up with a startle, gasping for air as you sat up abruptly. sunlight was flooding the room and it felt uncomfortably hot on your skin. you pushed the blanket back but stopped halfway in your movement. your entire body hurt, muscles burning and screaming for more rest. and yet you couldn’t stay still as you remembered the previous events. how long were you out for? was everyone okay? gritting your teeth, you slowly moved out of the room. again, you were faced with the endless maze that was the tokyo tech buildings and stopped in your tracks, not sure which direction to go. you let out a sigh of relief when you spotted yuji in the distance, waving at him to get his attention.

“y/n!” yuji ran towards you, frantically gesturing towards your room. “you’re supposed to be resting! what are you doing here?”

“is everyone okay?” you croaked, now realizing how dry your throat was.

“yeah, ieiri did a good job of healing everyone! some of us are still resting though and so should you.”

“no, i… is noritoshi okay?”

“noritoshi? oh, you mean the guy with the long hair?” yuji nodded, curiously eyeing you as your shoulders dropped, the stress rolling of them. “yeah, he’s still recovering though. ieiri said that his injuries were probably the worst so he’s not allowed to leave the bed.”

“can you take me to him?” you asked with a small voice, doing your best to muster up a puppy face. yuji sighed, scratching his head sheepishly. you could see the conflict in his eyes, that he was thinking about rejecting your request. in the end, he shook his head in defeat and motioned for you to follow him. a small grin found its way onto your lips - yuji was just too nice, he couldn’t say no when people ask him for favours. the walk to noritoshi’s room was silent, neither of you knowing what to say. you knew it was selfish of you not to ask him about his wellbeing more or visit the others but you just had to see for yourself that noritoshi was okay. yuji stopped in front of a door, pointing at it.

“this is his room. he might be sleeping though… my room is down the hall so if you need me to accompany you back to your room, just call me.”

you thanked him quietly and watched as he retreated. taking a deep breath, you knocked at the door and waited for a reply. a few moments passed before noritoshi’s voice rang out, giving you the okay to enter. gingerly, you opened the door and entered the room. noritoshi was sitting on his bed, reading a book as if nothing had happened. you looked at him bewildered. he didn’t look like his injuries fazed him at all. despite the bandages around his head and arms, he remained calm as if nothing hurt. 

“noritoshi,” you breathed out, taking a seat on the chair near the bed. he didn’t spare you a look, keeping his eyes on the book. “i uhm. i’m glad you’re okay! when i saw you in that state, i was so so scared that i could lose you… i did my best to heal you, i know i didn’t do much but-”

“i didn’t need your help,” noritoshi snapped at you, placing the book on his lap. “i would’ve been fine without it.”

you were stunned. why was he so agitated? after you initial shock, you huffed in frustration. “what the hell, you could’ve died! i was trying so hard to keep you alive and you react like this? i know you don’t like me but even this is a low blow for you!”

“it wouldn’t have been a problem if you hadn’t inserted yourself into everything! you’re not helping anyone, just dragging us down; everything could’ve gone well if it wasn’t for you standing in the way,” noritoshi countered as frustrated, this time actually looking at you. you stared back at him in disbelief. you saved his life and he had the nerve to shot you down like this.

“does it really hurt your ego to admit that i was actually helpful? we were friends at some point so why do you insist on being such a dick? and here i was, finally thinking that we were getting somewhere- for fuck’s sake, we kissed and-”

“leave.”

you stopped rambling. the tired tone in his voice, the deadpan look on his face; he was serious. you couldn’t believe him. tears welled up in your eyes as you leaped from the chair and hastily exited the room, slamming the door in anger. 

you never wanted to see him again.

p.s: yes nobara gave you a wrong sketch of the buildings what about it hehe

taglist: @milkteeboba​

[chillwildwave]

1. My favourite member is Robaire since we almost share the same traits: we speak French, we both love singing and dancing and we are also quite helpful, I also love him just because I find him attractive.

2. It has always been Robaire if I’m being honest.

3. Robaire is an extreme perfectionist and often cusses in French whenever there’s a malfunction on stage.

4. Jesse’s adopted father was in fact an artist who taught him how to paint and observe the world around him in the name of art.

5. Tae Young spends his time on his makeup before getting on stage.

6. Aaron Z is a massive fan of Micheal Jackson, when he was young, he went to his concert!

Aaron T did in fact have dreams of being a comedian but due to his bad jokes, he gave that dream behind to become a member of 4Town.

7. 1: U Know What’s Up, the confidence they send is unreal along with their vocals, the intro and the 1st verse are my favourite parts.

2: Nobody Like U, the song that started it all, the early 00s vibe this sends is just ethereal, Im especially obsessed with Aaron Z’s rap verse, it just hits!

3: 1 True Love, this song shows how talented these members are, from Robaire’s unexpected high note to all the harmonies, Im especially in love with the music video.

8: I ship Jesse and Tae Young since they do have this big bro, lil bro dynamic evidenced in the manga.

9: I remember during my final school play where I hat to play the lead singer of a boyband version of the Lost Boys in Peter Pan, and my teacher asked me to perform “Nobody Like U” from 4*Town, from that moment, my heart fluttered. During the performances, everyone in the audience even snag the song while they were leaving the play, especially when I went back to class, some students started singing the song whenever they walked passed me which shows that they really did enjoy my performance! I did to! And I’ll never forget that day!

10: I read the manga, my favourite chapter was True Crew since I was in love with Z’s personality and he and Robaire’s friendship really connects with me since it does show why Z despises Ro and he tries to make him feel better despite hiding his overachieving side.

11: 1: Nobody Like U - “Let’s call em what it is, it’s a masterpiece!” That line just slaps!

2: U Know What’s Up - “U wanted it, I went for it and baby I got it!” The vocals just send me!

3: 1 True Love - “Nobody Else” these HARMONIES… Come on, you can hear the pain in their voices!

12: My favourite scene was when Mei introduces the boys, it was actually fun to get to know why she loves the group so much by showing each individual personality of each member- I specifically couldn’t stop staring at Robaire’s smile when he came on screen, from that moment, it was love at first sight!

13: I would actually want to make Aaron Z the lead character since he struggles through a lot as seen in the manga and it would be great to see him have his point of view of his experiences of fame and how his rivalry with Robaire will affect the rest of the group!

14; Robaire: The Little Mermaid 🧜🏿‍♂️ Isn’t it obvious?

Tae Young: Snow White 🕊️🍎. The way he fosters animals sends Disney Princess vibes.

Aaron Z: Rapunzel 🪮🗼. I guess his shy personality translates well with this story.

Aaron T: Red Riding Hood ♥️🐺🌳. This definitely makes sense for his outgoing enthusiasm.

Jesse: Cinderella 🥿👑🧚. This screams Jesse because of his dual struggle of being a father and a member of a boyband.

15: I was thinking they could have some 4*Town Barbie dolls that sing when you raise their hand or maybe some T shirts that say out one of their lyrics from their songs.

16: If they made a next album, it would be a more mature take as most of their songs would be about clubbing, love, and the life of being a celebrity so that they could share their experiences with the 4*Townies.

17: The diversity and inclusion of each member, I mean, it’s refreshing to see others be seen within these characters whether they’re Black, mixed, white etc.

18: To be honest, I love that amount of creativity that we hold and the love we have for this group in order to keep their legacy alive and live on through the hearts of millions!

19: I do a lot of art in my spare time, I’m currently practicing some animation for my college course on September.

20: All For You is definitely my favourite from their discography, just because the harmonies sound out of this world especially when my favourite part comes up when they sing “since you’re no one else I’ll be around and I’ll never leave you!”

21: Sunflower because I think it personally suits them!

22: Cry Me A River by Justin Timberlake just because I can definitely hear his voice on this specific track!

23: I would make a series that focuses on each member of the group to gives us a look at their individual personalities and how they prepare for the show (maybe some footage of dance rehearsals, studio sessions and some vlogs about their lives.)

24: Aaron T and Z cause they just remind of siblings from the amount of vibes they give!

25: “Girl I Love Ur Jeans” I’ve been willing to hear this for a long time as I believe it would have a similar vibe to Nobody Like U but with a bit of an edgy side and a rap verse between Z and T that I really want to hear!

26: Not really. Just the themes of brotherhood, fame, friendship and parental expectations.

27: @4townie since I’m obsessed with the series, I love their content and they seem like a friendly and creative person, I really enjoy reading their headcanons as well!

28: Yeah, I enjoy it very much as a way to bring the fandom alive from the dead as well as combining it with my other aspirations like drawing and writing to share my artistic side as well.

29: I would at least create a chapter where we get Aaron T’s backstory and Robaire’s backstory to know why he’s an overachiever and why it bothers Aaron Z.

30: Not really.

31: I’d get along well with Robaire and Jesse since we both have artistic sides to us, we also have a fond love for performing in front of people!

32: Not much, it’s great the way it is!

33: Bye Bye Bye by NSYNC, Gots To Be by B2K, Larger Than Life by Backstreet Boys.

34: My message is that I’m grateful for the amount of love we have for the group, emphasised by our creativity, passion and support to show that we’re not going anywhere, and don’t forget… I know something big is happening, I just know it!

Welcome one and all to the… 4*Town Ask Game! Where you can answer questions to emphasise your love for the entire 4*Town fandom and to also bring the hype of my fanfiction that’s coming up soon.

How it’s going to work: I’ll write the questions on this post, make sure to read them carefully as a way to fully answer the questions in detail, once you've read them, reblog to answer the full questions and make sure that the words are appropriate as I don’t tolerate hateful behaviour. And don’t forget to share this to others so they can share the love for this group as well! Without further ado, let’s get started!

Who is your favourite member and why?

Who was your favourite member previously?

Share with me a headcanon on Robaire 🌹

Share with me a headcanon on Jesse 🎨

Share with me a headcanon on Tae Young 🕊️

Share a headcanon on The Aarons (Z and T)

What is your favourite 4*Town song and why? (Include your Top 3.)

Who do you ship from the group and why?

What was your first memory of 4*Town?

Did you read the manga? If so, what is your favourite chapter and why?

Name me your top 3 favourite lyrics from each 4*Town song🎵🎶

Do you have a favourite 4*Town scene from Turning Red and why?

Since I’m working on the “4*Town: Unfiltered” story, who do you want to be the main protagonist and why?

If you could imagine each 4*Town member in a fairy tale or any story, which one would each member be in and why?

What type of merch would you buy if 4*Town had merchendise?

For their next album, what concept would you want it to be and what songs could you include and why?

What do you like the most about 4*Town and why?

What do you love most about the entire fandom?

Do you do art or any other activities?

Can you tell me your favourite song from Robaire and Aaron Z’s discography? (You can sing the song’s lyrics as well.) And if you don’t know what I mean, I’m talking about the songs from my headcanons.

Pick a song for Tae Young and Jesse if they were a duo.

Pick a song for Aaron T if he went solo.

If you had to make a series or a spin-off of 4*Town, what would you include and why?

Do you have a favourite relationship from the group and why?

Which unreleased song from the group are you willing to hear and what are you expecting the song to sound like?

Are there any more themes or genres for my fanfiction that I should explore? It would be nice if you gave me any suggestions, please.

Do you have a favourite blog from the fandom and what do you like about them?

Do you enjoy sharing 4*Town content? Why or why not?

If there were any changes in the manga, what would you change? Why or why not?

Any unpopular opinions on 4*Town?

Which member do you think you’d get along with the most? Why or why not?

What are you expecting the fanfiction to look like to you when it gets released on Wattpad? Any form of plot? Character development? Conflicts?

Which songs remind you of 4*Town? Why or why not?

And the final question: Do you have a message for the whole entire fandom?