Name:
=3Kat

About this blog:
I usually write about the manga that I'm currently reading. At times, I write about the anime/tv shows I watched and the PS2 games I played. Since it is hard to share and talk my thoughts about a certain manga series when people don't know about it, I tend to summarize them from Chinese scanlations so beware, this blog is filled with spoilers and they are not 100% perfect. Feel free to point out my mistakes. Occasionally, I would blog about myself and other misc. things. ^_^

Layout:
The blog picture is from shel's Wind & Clover artbook scanned by YIXIN for JumpC. Quote is from the anime Boys Be. Edited in Photoshop CS2. The background is from GRSites. The GB animated gif used to be from this site, Gin-san of Gintama is a screecap from piyopiyo2006 in Youtube and Pleinair by Takehito Harada is from JumpC. Gin and Pleinair edited and animated in Photoshop. Moyashimon germ and Rabi gif are taken from ikunlun forum.

Answers to FAQ:
1. If there are no new summaries of certain series here for some time now, it is because there are no new Chinese/English scans of it so I can’t do anything about it but to wait for their release. I can’t read Japanese.
2. Scans of the series are in the link below. Just click the titles. If it isn’t there, that means it isn’t available in public sites yet. Iieye sites seems to work only on IE.

Persona 3

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Past Dreams:
2008

01/20/03 - 02/20/03

Blog by pitas

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Manga pics from
Sky-fire, Iieye, & Billwang.

Most of the Quotes are from
Quote Garden, ThinkExist & Our Daily Bread

Synopses of Pending Summaries + Chocolate Cosmos [Chapter 9]
Friday, May 9, 2008 @ 01:05 p.m.

Hiyo! First of all, thank you get well wishers ^-^ The fever spell has somewhat broke off today and I hope it stays that way but unfortunately, I’m still feeling weak and my brain is not working properly. ^^; Hehe, I got a nasty flu virus so I need more rest. Ah, it’s been such a long time since I’m been sick this long. Anyway, since I’m not sure when I can start properly summarizing again, I’ll mention briefly as to what happened to the new chapters that came out except for V.B. Rose and The One because those scans aren’t uploaded yet in BW.

Ojousama wa Oyomesama [c. 12-13]: Monkey guy proclaims that he wants to marry Towako for his own selfish reason of not wanting to be the heir of his family. He blackmails Towako by threatening to ruining Yuuga and her family if she didn’t marry him. In order to know more of his motive and how to handle him, Towako tries to get close to him but then, this is making Yuuga jealous especially since Towako won’t tell him what’s wrong. Thus, the couple are snubbing each other. There is also a short side story of Tsubaki.

Skip Beat! [c. 122]: Kyouko thanks Ren for his pep talk. Ren and Yashiro accompanies her to buy a vase for the rose. Kyouko picks the one that is really flashy as she thinks it suits the rose which is king. Ren corrects her that is a queen, Queen of Rosa. He tells her a fairy tale about it wherein the Queen of Rosa always cries since her daughter died near a river bank. Soon, a rose grew from that the place where the Queen died from sorrow and crying. And according to the legend, the princess is found inside that rose. Ren hints that rose he gave her might be descendant of the original one so she might also find something inside. At home, Kyouko tries to convince her not to believe such things and if it was real, it would never happen to her. She finds the rose has fallen down because it is too heavy for her small vase. She screams in horror. She picks it up and says she will put it in a more comfortable seat [vase]. Suddenly, a small tear-like crystal fell down from the rose. The next day, Kyouko is feeling really high over getting a crystal and it is just like in the fairy tale. She thanks Ren and now, she feels that she can overcome any trial. She is now ready to tackle her new role. Yashiro thinks that Ren planned everything from giving the rose, putting that crystal inside and the fairy tale but Ren denies it. Hehe, all three are Ren’s birthday gift for her. ^-^

Hanayome-sama wa 16 Sai [c. 2]: It’s honeymoon time as Shinga forcibly takes Tamaki to a trip. Tamaki is a bit jealous over Shinga’s secretary but soon, things are cleared up as to why Shinga didn’t went home for a couple of nights. It is capped with more ah..‘harassment’ from Shinga’s part. =P Hehe, the guy is really filthy rich.

Koibana! Koiseyo Hanabi [c. 11]: During the girls’ sleepover, Hanabi has finally admitted to the others that she does like Chikai. In school, Chikai and the other guys are getting hungry as they smell the cooking from cooking class. When Atsumi goes to get something to drink in the vending machine, her skirt got ripped when she bends down. She is embarrassed that Sasa is there looking at her. To her surprise, Sasa removes his sweater and covers her shirt with it. In that little path, Koibana sees Chikai. He is playing hide and seek with the others. She starts to call him names that he gets irritated and tries to strangle[?] her with his arm. Koibana sees that he is wearing the ponytail band that she made for him. She quickly kicks him on the shin. She explains that it is just thanks for making the wooden dog charm for her. She says she has no plans in breaking the two of them up because Yukine is a nice person. Chikai asks what does she want. She says she doesn’t have any wishes, she only likes it this way and a playboy doesn’t need to be enticed. She offers him an onigiri. Meanwhile, Mii is looking at the two from the window. Ami claims that Mii is in love with Chikai but doesn’t want to pursue it because she doesn’t want her friend to be her rival. Mii denies it all and left. Chikai eats the onigiri and says it is delicious. Chikai then quickly runs off when one of the guys has found him. After he left, Hanabi berates herself over what she did and if it is a confession. In class, Atsumi tells Hanabi that she will make Sasa as the one whom she will make the knit project. Hanabi has also decided to change hers. As she goes to apologize to Sasa, she sees Shinichi outside the window, asking where is Mii. Hanabi says she didn’t know then she notices that he is wearing the ponytail band she gave Chikai. Shinichi says he took it without permission. Because of Hanabi commenting on it, Shinichi guessed that Hanabi was the one who gave it to Chikai. Shinichi says that they are the same, even if it can’t be [for them to be with the one they like], they cannot just simply let go. Hanabi agrees. Chikai and friends come and he seems to lecture her about limiting her world to certain guys only and to women that she won’t be happy. Hanabi gets sick when seeing the other guys with Chikai. Chikai comments that she is her dog. At Yokine’s school, her classmates ask where is Yokine’s other earring. Yokine says that she has left it in Chikai’s house. Nappa narrates that when he smelled Chikai before, he smelled a strange girl’s scent. According to his sixth sense, Hanabi will definitely cry. Lots of unrequited love here. ^^;;

Bokutachi wa Shitte Shimatta [c. 13]: When Kera tries to tell Yukito as to how he knew Kotori, Kotori quickly denies that she doesn’t know him. Kotori is worrying too much that Kera might tell Yukito about them. Kera used to tease her about her name and stole her first kiss. Because of this, Kotori is overly conscious when Yukito tries to kiss her. The two are again in their lover’s quarrel. Natsume gives her some pep talk. She decides to confront Kera and to her shock, Kera has forgotten about the kiss and just remembers that her name is strange. Lol Kotori goes home happy and thinks she is a fool for over worrying about it. Yukito has overheard everything and now knows why Kotori has been acting a bit weird lately. And, during PE, Kotori left her shirt so Yukito lends his to her. Yukito won the race for the guy’s division and he was informed that Kotori is running behind them. Yukito goes to her and they hugged. Happy together again.

Hadashi de Bara wo Fume [c. 6]: Sumi sees some childhood pictures of Soichiroh and Nozomu. Sumi notices that Soichiroh is looking sad. She then notices a child with young Nozomu and asks if it is a younger brother or sister. Nozomu is about to explain but his mother quickly urges them to eat. Meanwhile, Eisuke brought home a lady to take her of the kids but she turned out be a bully who orders the kids around. Eisuke learns from the prostitutes that Sumi went with a rich guy. He decides to play around with the women before looking for Sumi again. During dinner, Nozomu is displeased over the topic of getting married and being vice manager of the bank after he graduates that he leaves the table. Soichiroh urges Sumi to comfort Nozomu. When she left, Soichiroh is slyly smiling. At the balcony, Nozomu and Sumi talk. Nozomu is quite comforted by what Sumi said that Nozomu is already lucky to have all those things – house and family. Nozomu mentions about admiring Soichiroh to have married her since life would be happier that way. Sumi gets embarrassed and tries to tell him not to say such embarrassing things when she lose her balance. Nozomu catches her and hugs her. Komai is watching them from below. Komai tells this to Soichiroh who is smiling over this. Obviously, Soichiroh is plotting something.

And, a short blah on Chocolate Cosmos [c. 9]. Since Love.Junkie tagged before asking if the teacher liked the girl or not. I ended up browsing the other chapters. Well, I think that the two ending up together has a higher chance than the other boy. I think it is in chapter 5, while Sayuki [lead girl] is taking care of Katsuya [teacher] when he is sick, he ‘unconsciously’ stole a kiss from her. Then, the part which I talked about in chapters 7-8, Katsuya gave Sayuki his earring as a birthday gift when Youshi [other guy] informs him that it was Sayuki’s birthday that night. Sayuki actually planned to confess to Katsuya but Youshi was there. So now in chapter 9, Valentine’s day is coming soon so time for another confession attempt. She tells her friends about the earring while they are in cooking class. She then starts to always argue/bully Youshi like they accidentally touched hands. She would go wash her hands. Everyone notices this and even Katsuya. Sayuki just wants to forget and Katsuya to forget that she actually slept on sleeping Youshi’s shoulder while Katsuya was looking at them. During class break, Sayuki says she is going to the comfort room but Shiori says that she is actually just going to see Katsuya for she did this 15 times already. She sees some girls teasing Katsuya that he would look better without his glasses. After they left, Sayuki tells him that he looks better with glasses. She is actually thinking that she doesn’t want to have other girls after him. Katsuya teases about something. Sayuki exclaims that isn’t the reason but because if he doesn’t wear glasses, he looks young and not like a teacher, and the first time she saw him, she thought he is a high school student. Sayuki is surprised when she sees Katsuya looking gloomy sad. Katsuya walks away and says she doesn’t have to tell him because he knows that.

Sayuki changes the topic by showing up the earring that he gave her that she is now wearing. Katsuya asks it back. Sayuki refuses. He tells her not to tell anyone about it. She asks why. He says that as a teacher, he must let others know that he has favoritism. She asks doesn’t he give other studens a birthday gift. He mentions that he doesn’t do such things to others. Sayuki is really happy about this and thinks that she has hope. Later on, the girls are looking at books on making chocolates for Valentines. Mina and Shiori mention about giving chocolates to Youshi and Kaji. They ask Sayuki if she is going to give one to Youshi. She says why would she. Mina wonders why Sayuki is too cold with Youshi. Shiori remembers when they were in junior high, Sayuki told her that anything about Youshi, she hates, and she doesn’t want to see him again. On Valentine’s day, Sayuki decides to give her gift after classes. After school, Sayuki finds Katsuya alone. Sayuki gives Katsuya a bouquet of flowers. Katsuya is surprised. Sayuki exclaims that they are ‘Chocolate Cosmos’, dark flowers that smells like chocolate because she thinks that Katsuya already have a lot of ordinary chocolates. Katsuya smells them and says that it does smell like chocolates. Sayuki says that she thinks that flowers suit Katsuya. She thinks it is because when she saw him at the beach before, he smells like chocolates. Katsuya laughs and thanks her. He comments that it is the first time someone said flowers suit him. He then bids her goodbye. Before he leaves, Sayuki calls out to him. Meanwhile, Kaji and Youshi are walking together. Youshi complains about Valentines Day because he didn’t get any chocolates from Sayuki. Kaji informs Youshi that Sayuki will be giving Chocolate Cosmos to Katsuya. He asks Youshi if he knows what is the meaning of Chocolate Cosmos in the language of flowers. It is the ‘End of Love’. Back at school, Sayuki shouts that she has something important she wants to tell Katsuya. Katsuya turns around and asks what is it. And that’s it for this chapter. Hehe I wonder if the meaning of the flowers will come true. It is actually the first time I heard of such flowers. ^^;; Anyway, at least we know where the title comes from and I think this pretty much hints as to who Sayuki will end up at the end. Scan by tongyanen.

Word of the day:
Consider what the Lord has done through those who've shown you love; Then thank them for their faithful deeds, for blessings from above. ~ Sper from Our Daily Bread

Monthly Blahs: Manga and Anime
Saturday, May 3, 2008 @ 04:52 p.m.

Manga: Triple Kiss is your typical shoujo school love triangle story. Yukino is torn between the guy she currently likes and the guy who is her first love. Her first love is a boy who said if she is nice, they will meet again. Then, a second boy is the one whom she played with at the sandbox. I don’t like the first chapter since it starts with Yukino meeting with this long haired guy, Sasegawa who seems to know her. She falls for him even as the girls tease her about it and boys are bullying him. Things changed when Sasegawa is forced to cut his hair. [I still wonder why he is carrying a knife in school ^^;] Then, all the girls are after Sasegawa and a new guy, Hikaru claims that Sasegawa’s master. In second chapter, Sasegawa and Yukino are trying to be lovey-dovey as they do like each other but Hikaru got this guy to trick Sasegawa so that he can be alone with Yukino in a locked gym. Hikaru tries to make moves at Yukino who asks why is he doing this when Sasegawa is a good guy and they are childhood friends. Hikaru confesses that he is angry because Sasegawa decided to transfer school on his own. Yukino realizes that Hikaru is lonely so he also transferred to that school. Yukino is treating him like a kid that before Hikaru knew it, he is blushing. He is touched by what she said that he stole a kiss just when Sasegawa and the student who lured him away opened the door. Hikaru acts as if it is nothing and orders Sasegawa to do an errand. Sasegawa agrees to do it but warns him not to do this again because he likes Yukino.

In chapter three, it is confirmed that Sasegawa is the boy whom Yukino met at the sandbox. In school, Hikaru acts as if nothing happen but Yukino and Sasegawa are obviously bothered by what happened. Yukino tells Sasegawa that she also likes him, too. After school, Yukino somehow got a cold and was waiting for Sasegawa. It is Hikaru who came. Even as he pretend to not care at first, he ends up forcing her to ride in his chauffeured car so that he can drive her home. Meanwhile, Sasegawa is deterred by hoards of girls trying to seduce him but he manages to get away. Since he didn’t find Yukino, he gets her address and tries to find her house. In the car, Hikaru chats a bit with Yukino. He tells her that the one who made Sasegawa’s hair long before was him because during elementary, half of the girls in school are all going gaga over him. By making Sasegawa’s hair long, the girls will be disgusted with him. If he didn’t do that, he fears that the girl he likes will eventually choose Sasegawa. Instead of feeling hate towards him, Hikaru is surprised that Yukino is moved by what he said. She says that Sasegawa has made Hikaru lose confidence so doing that is okay just for the girl he likes. Yukino cheers Hikaru up to do his best. Just as she is going out of the car since they have reached her house, Hikaru grabs her hand and says, what if that person is me? He tells her that he was the one who said if she becomes a good girl, he will play with her. Hikaru confesses that he had always been thinking of her. Sasegawa has finally find Yukino’s house and sees Yukino looking a bit stunned. Yukino tells him what Hikaru said about meeting with her ten years ago. She tries to say it doesn’t matter to her. Sasegawa is a bit uneasy over Yukino’s expression that he re-declares that he likes her and he won’t give her to anyone. He then kisses her but Yukino feels that she does like Sasegawa but something in her heart is wavering.

Chapter four starts with Yukino dreaming about a guy asking her which one is her ax – the gold one or the silver [the faces of the boys are on the ax]. Yukino says it’s both so she is dropped down to hell for being greedy. Yukino almost falls but is held up by Sasegawa. She is obviously bothered by what Hikaru told her. She tries not to think of it so she asks if they can go out on a date. Sasegawa is about to say something when the books in his bag fall down. They are all magazines of having sex and sex hotels. Yukino quickly runs away as Sasegawa tries to explain the misunderstanding. Sasegawa is furious when he finds a note from Hikaru saying it is his present for him. I think Sasegawa doesn’t know that Hikaru has also met Yukino when he is young or Hikaru is lying but he thinks that Hikaru deliberately pretends that he was the one whom Yukino met before to trick Yukino. He says if something happens, he won’t help Hikaru. A flashback of young Hikaru being introduced to his cousin [the child of his father’s younger sister], Sasegawa who will live with them. Hikaru asked him if his mother is dead but Sasegawa didn’t answer and just go to the gate. Sasegawa said he wants to find his mother who is important to him. Hikaru solved the problem by telling Sasegawa that he will be Sasegawa’s important person from now on. He will be the master and Sasegawa will be the slave. Since he is his important person, he won’t let Sasegawa go to some other place. End flashback.

Yukino goes to the clinic and finds Hikaru there. He tries to pull her to the bed so that they can sleep together but Yukino punches him in the face. She then exclaims that she has decided to have sex with Sasegawa since she has seen the books that Sasegawa had. Yukino thinks that doing that will make her heart from being confused. Hikaru tries to tell her that he was the one who put them there but Yukino doesn’t want to listen to him. Yukino runs off and convinces herself that she likes Sasegawa. On the day of their date, after school dismissal, Sasegawa calls out to her but Yukino is starting to imagine doing it with him so in order to calm herself, she says she is going to the toilet. On the way to the toilet, she bumps into Hikaru. In the toilet, Yukino is trying to calm herself. To her surprise, Hikaru is there and opens the door. He tells her to close the door next time. Yukino calls him a pervert but to her shock, she learns that she is in the male’s toilet. Hikaru covers Yukino’s mouth as Sasegawa enters and calls out to Hikaru, asking if he is alright since Hikaru said he doesn’t like going in the stinking toilet there. Hikaru hugs Yukino as he tells Yukino that he hopes that Sasegawa will open the door and see what they are doing. He tells her that he likes her so.. Hikaru is surprised to see Yukino on the verge of tears. She thinks she isn’t the type to like two persons at the same time but after what Hikaru said in the car, she is having feelings of guilt for she doesn’t want to hurt Sasegawa. Yukino tells him not to do this. Sasegawa is about to leave when Hikaru calls out to him. Yukino is really afraid what will happen but Hikaru just tells Sasegawa that he had a headache so just give him some medicine then he can go home. After Sasegawa leaves, Yukino thanks Hikaru. Hikaru says it’s nothing and tells her that he won’t forgive her if something happened between Yukino and Sasegawa because of him for it will humiliate Sasegawa. Yukino says yes and then leaves. Yukino finds Sasegawa as she thinks that Hikaru let her go but why is she feeling a bit sad. Sasegawa and Yukino goes home together as Hikaru finds the medicine on his desk with a note of instructions for the medicine. He looks at the note and tells himself that he won’t feel that bad if the other guy isn’t him.

If we are judging from the shoujo rule of who gets the kiss first will be the one whom the girl ends up with, then, it will probably be Hikaru. It does seem weird for me to like the other guy which is Hikaru. I find him amusing and somewhat reminds me of Domyouji of Hana Yori Dango. Even if he is a spoiled brat, he is nice. =P I like the author’s two page spread inside the manga and I do find their surnames amusing since they consist of numbers. Speaking of liking the other guy, it is the same with Chocolate Cosmos. I read the first two chapters then skipped to what is the latest in Chinese scans around chapters 7-8. ^^; The girl likes the teacher but then, there is a student who likes her. The part I read is they went on a trip. The student gives her a drink as a gift, ah, birthday gift but then, iirc, the teacher gives her a better gift and it seems the girl likes it better. It made the student jealous that he takes the canned drink from her and throws it away. The next day, she is vexed as to why he did that when he gave it to her so she went to look for it. She fell down but it got the canned drink. She is found by the two guys and they went home. And strangely enough, I’m rooting for the student. Hehe, I guess the teacher really did gave such a bad impression on me when he put on manicure in the first chapter. ^^;;

Kyou, Koi wo Hajimemasu is somewhat typical for a Kanan Minami series. Actually, the common factor of her other two series that I have read is the lead guy is a jerk and tends to do an attempted rape at the lead girl. In this one, it is a bit toned down. It starts pretty much the same as Bokutachi wa Shitte Shimatta except the lead guy is bullying her and there is nothing romantic about it like the part where the girl is made to lead the class but no one listens to her. The guy here blackmails her, iirc, to go out with him before helping her. For some reason, she is attracted to him even if he tried to rape her. ^^;; Is it because he is the only one nice to her or is it because of his good looks? Then, there is a bit of problem when her younger sister also falls for the guy. She is outgoing and everything that the lead girl is insecure. In the end, the guy did turn down the sister during a trip. Just when she confessed to the guy, the guy also turns her down and tries to brag about it in class. When the others are bullying her, he helps her out. Confused? Then, a friend is furious about what happened and tells her to try to be cute by wanting to be one instead of thinking it’s hopeless. She then makes a fool of herself when she tries to distribute brochures to people at the street when she gets bump by someone. She ends up picking the papers up and shows her underwear to everyone. That’s the end of chapter 12 and I’m wondering where the story is headed. I guess the guy has major issues and probably stems from his problem with his mother. One minute he seems to like her and then, he bullies her. He is pretty lucky that the girl tolerated it and seems to still like him anyway. ^^; Hehe, I guess she can't help it if he is nice at times if the bullying is too much.

Shitsuji-sama no Okiniiri is okay but it just goes to the category of just browsing and I don’t want to summarize it. I have read a few chapters but then, I’m not quite into it that I still haven’t download all of the chapters. ^^;; I skipped some chapters and checked out the latest one in BW which is chapter 13. It is still a stand alone chapter wherein the lead girl wants to give the guy a pen. She worked as a waitress to earn the money but she isn’t doing such a good job at it. The guy overhears her learning some things that he becomes suspicious especially since the girl seems quite tired that she slept at school. It is the guy’s younger brother who saw her at work and informed the guy about it. Since there are a lot of customers, the girl is having a hard time so the guy, who went there, helps her out. Later, the other two guys also help out. In the end, she gives the gift to him as she apologizes not telling her about the work since she wants him to be surprised. They talk a bit about being happy as both are blushing. Haha, that’s easy to summarize since it is a bit typical. Maybe it will be better just to watch this if ever there is an anime or maybe not because so far, it didn’t work for me in regards to Special A. ^^; I’ll just include this series with Kaicho wa Maid-sama wherein I just browse around just to see what’s happening. Haha, could it be that I’m just not fond of series that is about maids and butlers. ^^;; Anyway, that is also what I’m doing with La Corda but then, I don’t know any of the characters since I didn’t read the story from the start. For those reading it, it is now on it’s second part in chapter 47. I’m thinking it’s the second part because the fairy is already gone and there is a new guy eyeing on the lead girl. Also, I learned that Shinshi Doumei Cross has ended though I haven’t seen what happened. The last I learned about it is the real guy has some illness..ah, I think it’s leukemia. Don’t take my word for it. ^^;; Anyway, the author has a new series already.

Chiyou yo Hana yo is so-so since I don’t have the time to read the rest of the series. It is a josei which is about a woman’s boss is his childhood friend who is a bit sadistic yet nice when he needs to. He also addresses her as young miss/ojousama. I have read the author’s other two series and I do think her forte is sex comedy. They are pretty funny. Arakure seems to be nice just base on the covers. It is about a girl whose mother died and she was taken in by her grandpa who is a yakuza head. If you read Gokusen, the yakuza portrayed there is pretty much the same here. The love interest is a student in her school who is also a yakuza. It is interesting at first but around volume 2, I have no idea where the story is headed and isn’t that fun to read anymore. I guess the Chinese scanners also think that way since they didn’t update it after volume 3. ^^;; Nothing much is happening in Fullmetal Alchemist maybe just that Ling seems to be back. I wonder if the reason just to revive Greed is to make Ling have his powers. ^^; And lastly, Kekkaishi is currently in the arc wherein they are going to save Tokine from the people who took her because she killed a ‘god’ – the statue with an umbrella which attacked the place before. Yoshimori is guilt-ridden since Tokine did it to save him hence he and some people are going there.

Anime: Lots of anime this season that I wonder why am I typing here when I should be watching especially since my harddisk is about to be full. ^^;; Haha, I guess typing an entry here has become a habit. Of course, the most anticipated anime this season is Code Geass R2. I even bought a figurine just to commemorate it. Haha, I was a bit tense since it is a bit like a lottery, I don’t know which figure is inside. It’s the last one in the store. I just prayed hard that anyone is okay as long as it’s not Suzaku. Lol I got Zero. The story is okay so far. Lelouch laughing like a maniac at times makes me think if he’ll survive this series since people laughing like a villain usually ends up dead later on. Also, why do I keep on thinking that Rolo is Nunally. I’m imagining her memories got swiped then they do some modern surgery on her. Just like what happened to Allen’s sister in Vision of Escaflowne. Hehe That way, it would be somewhat the same as the ending of season one. I finally finished Gundam 00 and I’m not too happy that all of the gundams are wrecked because I bought a kit. Haha, I should have thought that they are going to get upgrades in the second part just as in most Gundam series. Regarding the one dead pilot, I’m thinking that the twin who is lurking around before would be his replacement. And ya, I don’t like Graham’s mask. So far, Macross Frontier reminds me of the first one. Love triangle, getting trapped = bonding, singing, novice pilot, etc.

Soul Eater is such a nice eye candy. ^^ The animation is really nice and the color is really nice as to be expected from Bones. I tried reading the manga and compared to the manga, I like how much the studio has improved it that I’m sticking with the anime for now. Nabari no Ou is also nice and I ended up browsing through the Chinese scans of this and what happened isn’t quite what I expected. Some people compared this to Naruto but it didn’t give me that idea except it is about ninjas and the team composition is the same as Naruto’s. Oh ya, also something powerful is hidden the lead, Miharu. Reimei is after her brother who killed off the family but it is already explained why Raiko did it. And, they tend to do missions. Okay, so it does have a lot of similarities with Naruto. ^^;; Based on the manga and the icons of some people in Chinese forums, the one who is popular here is Yoite. At first, I was a bit confused as to why he is the most prominent in the ending. His power is the strongest but the price is his life. In the manga, he and Miharu are currently on the run. Yoite is asking him to use the hijutsu to prolong his life. That is the surprise in this series because I didn’t expect Miharu to be teaming up with the enemy. Or rather, they run away from their respective groups. ^^; So, what’s up with the sensei promising to protect him and everything when Yoite is the one who is always with Miharu. Haha. Also, it is a surprise that Kouichi can’t die and Miharu’s cat is like Yoruichi of Bleach. When I first saw Himitsu – Top Secret, I thought the lead is a girl who wears a suit. ^^;; Anyway, I’m watching this for the solving cases using the brain of the deceased. I do wonder if they are going to show more about the characters like development, etc. The focus for now is on the glasses newbie. At first, I’m not interested in Kurenai since it seems to be about a boy babysitting a girl. Since I find that ‘weapon’ in his elbow a bit interesting, I find myself watching the rest and it is pretty okay.

I somewhat gotten used to Vampire Knight and they do change some things so that it doesn’t seem redundant if one has read the manga. After watching a bit though like Aidou being obsessed with collecting things that Kaname destroyed [is that in the manga?], a thought occurred to me that it seems the manga haven’t quite developed the side characters. This is along with the speculation that the manga might end soon. I was like, hey, this can’t end soon, I still don’t know what is the reason why the others are so loyal to Kaname. Why do they stay with him even if he isn’t really the friendly type though he is more friendly than Zero is? ^^;; Heck, even if Yuuki has a crush on Kaname, she isn’t in the level of loyalty and admiration as Ruka have for Kaname. Where did Kaname got his loyal bodyguard, Seiren? Since the others are his childhood friends, Senri is his relative so what about Seiren? Then, I wondered if that other girl pureblood at the party, Sara, will have a part in the story. I’m beginning to think if they will just make a new arc like after certain years, this is now the new story. Hehe, I got sidetracked there. Itsura na Kiss is quite predictable since I know the story but not boring yet. What is boring is Special A that I actually skipped through episode 2. ^^; Episode 3 is so-so. The first episode of Allison & Lillia is quite nice as they are now going on an adventure to find the treasure which can stop the war but then, first things first, they are going to save the old man. Sigh, there are still old anime that I have still to watch and Persona 3 that I need to finish. So, I’m using that time to do those things while there aren’t much new chapters to summarize. =P

Word of the day:
We thank You, Lord, for blessings you give us on our way; May we for these be grateful, and praise You every day. ~ Roworth

Preview: Bride of the Water God
Friday, May 2, 2008 @ 01:44 p.m.

I just found a really lovely Korean manhwa in BW [yay, it’s up again ^^]. Have anyone seen English scans of it? The Chinese title is The River God's bride. The story is about a girl who becomes a sacrifice/bride to the river god. It is the typical trying to appease the god so they [village] let her ride on a boat and ‘drowned’. She ends up in a Chinese-inspired kingdom and was told that a little boy is her husband. Since the boy is a god, the river god, the other characters are also gods and other spiritual beings. Do you know Merupuri? That’s the twist here. The boy is actually a gorgeous looking guy at night. Hehe, reverse Swan lake? Anyway, I’m think there is some secret to it. The thing is she doesn’t know that they are two different people because he deliberately used different names. Well, she suspects but she haven’t confirmed it yet. The major draw for me here is that the art is very similar to Yami no Matsuei. It’s so, so pretty. ^_^ I won’t be surprised if the author 尹美庚 [I don’t know the English equivalent of the name Edit: Thanks to jenstar0009 who says the author is Mi Kyung Yun and for the English title] is inspired by it. Currently, two volumes are out in Chinese and five volumes are out in Korean. I do want to summarize this one though I’m not too confident with my Chinese in regards to summarizing fantasy shoujo. ^^;; That is why I just browsed through the story and it means, it will take time to summarize. So if someone can tell me if there are English scans of this, then I won’t bother but if there is none, I’ll give it a shot. Hehe, it's licensed and up to date so I won't bother. =P Oh ya, here are some samples of the pretty art as scanned by 一件小马甲 for BW . These are the pretty volume covers ^^

These are the pretty spreads ^^

And these are scenes from the manhwa ^^ Haha, just for the art, I would want to buy this. ^_^

By the way, the only pending summary for now is Ojousama wa Oyomesama. The scans from iieye are quite bad that I can’t see the pictures anymore. ^^; I will try to get it out tomorrow or early next week. Hehe, I’m somewhat hoping that someone in BW will scan better ones for better picture captions.

Quote of the day:
Life is not about how many breathes you take, but about the moments that take your breath away. ~ Hitch the movie.

Weekly Jump Update: Bleach, Naruto, One Piece, D. Grayman, Reborn, and PSYREN
Tuesday, April 29, 2008 @ 11:47 a.m.

In Soul society, three people are experimenting at night on some people who were screaming in pain then vanishes with only their clothes left behind in Bleach [c. -104]. Later on, Urahara, along with Mayuri and Hiyori, meets with Shinji, who is with Aizen. Shinji’s group informs Urahara that there have been some disappearing cases lately wherein people would just leave their clothes and vanish. It is ninth division’s duty to investigate it and that is headed by Kensei whose lieutenant is Mashiro. Mashiro complains why do they have to go when they have already sent 10 men advance team to check it out. While Mashiro is complaining and being difficult, a huge hollow appears and it is chasing after some kids. They attack and Kensei finishes off the hollow. Kensei sees a black haired boy crying. Kensei tells him to quit crying but smile because he is still alive. When asked what’s his name, he says he is Hisagi Shuuhei. Then, Mashiro informs Kensei that she has found ten clothes lying around. Kensei looks surprised. Obviously, the advance team are killed off. It could be either Urahara’s group or Aizen’s group who is responsible though most likely Aizen’s. If it is Aizen, I wonder who is the third person in their group aside from Gin? I guess this somewhat explains why Hisagi is in the ninth division.

Madara kept on insisting that Itachi is a good guy who became a sacrifice and Itachi planned to keep the whole secret of what he did to his grave since the others who knew about it will not talk about it in Naruto [c. 398]. Sasuke cannot accept this truth that he hyperventilate and passed out. When he woke up again, Madara has already tied him up to make him listen to his history lesson. Madara tells him that Itachi’s massacre of the Uchiha clan is really a mission and to understand the purpose of it, Sasuke must know how the Konoha is built. His story begins with the whole place being in a state of war but the two strongest of the clans are the Uchiha and the Senju. Madara leads Uchiha clan while Hashirama, the future first hokage leads the Senju clan. So, I’m thinking along the lines that since two clans made up of Konoha, the other might want to surpass the other hence they need to keep the peace by wiping out the other half. Hm..I’m guessing that Madara wants to tell this story so that Sasuke will join him in hating Konoha for what they have ordered Itachi to do and wiping out their clan. Also, if he ever joins up with Naruto again, it will be like the same as when the village is first formed. Naruto and Sasuke teaming up to lead Konoha.

Luffy and others defeat the other pirates/hunters who were after them as they make their way deeper into Shabondy to meet with the coating engineer that Hachi is recommending in One Piece [c. 498]. They go to a bar and meet with Shakkie who is quite informs about pirates including Strawhats and she used to be a pirate, too. Shakkie informs Luffy that he has even encountered Garp. Hachi tells her the purpose of their visit but she informs them that Rayleigh, also an ex-pirate haven’t went there for half a year. She suggests that they look for him deeper into Shabondy where he probably is hanging around. She tells them to be careful since there are currently nine pirates exceeding the 100 million bounty there aside from Luffy and Zoro who are in that place. Luffy’s rank among them is number two. The rest of the pages introduces the nine pirates who have a large bounty. The one higher than Luffy is a pirate called Kid and it is because he also harms civilians so Shakkie is cheering for Luffy’s group. Luffy says that he is worried about Rayleigh if he is out there where there are many strong pirates. Shakkie tells them not to worry for Rayleigh is 100x stronger than him. They were all shock about this. I’m thinking if Strawhats ever defeat these nine people, they will be really famous. I’m sure they will be in a fight someway or another but then, there is still those nobles to deal with. If there will be a history lesson in this series, I wonder if Rayleigh/Shakkie will be telling it since they seem quite knowledgeable about things and they might been around with Roger. Hehe, they might be even crewmates.

Cross and Malcolm are going to the Central for a meeting in D. Gray-man [c. 157]. Cross left Timcampi with Komui while Malcolm left Link to take care of things there. Johnny finds the others in some place watching Allen and Kanda beating each other to a pulp. Johnny wants to work on their new uniforms. Unfortunately, the head nurse finds them and punishes them for leaving the infirmary without permission. Later on, they group together as Komui informs them about Rinali’s innocence which is not a parasite type since her cells haven’t changed. They are not sure if Rinali is the only one who can evolve like that. Everyone doesn’t like the idea of mixing their blood with their equipment innocence. They are calling this ‘crystal-type’ innocence. Noise tells them his thoughts about the Earl easily overpowering them if it weren’t for the help of the generals. It is as if the Earl can easily destroy them if he wants to. Somewhere else, Bookman tells Rabi not to change his innocence to a crystal-type for there is no need for him to get too involved with the exorcists. He informs Rabi if he sees this kind of transformation happening soon, they would have to leave the place. Rabi doesn’t seem to happy about that. Bookman tells Rabi that from what Noise said, it does seem that the Earl can easily destroy Black Order years ago but for some purpose, the Earl didn’t do it. Rabi is surprised about this. Bookman says it would be good to wait and see what will happen. The last scene is of Tiki in a party as the guest are asking about Duke Millenium. Tiki then have a dance with a young lady as the girls are all looking at him. Above the balcony, a count-looking guy looks down and tells Rhode that Tiki can easily get the attention of women because of his looks. He also finds the girl he is dancing with cute. Rhode asks if she is cuter than her. The man says of course Rhode is cuter. Why do I think that count-looking guy is the Earl’s human form? ^^;; Anyway, from the way Bookman is reacting making the innocence crystal type is bad news. Would Rabi actually listen to him? The art seems to in a rush since they look like drafts. ^^; So, the Earl and Noahs are planning something and I don’t think they are at the party just to have a good time. =P

It turns out that the Reborn that Tsuna saw is just a hologram in Katekyo Hitman Reborn! [c. 191]. Reborn informs him that his earphones are larger because of this and he wanted to show himself to Tsuna earlier but he wasn’t able to until now. Tsuna asks about the earthquake which Reborn said didn’t happen in their place. Tsuna is really happy that everything is fine in Reborn’s side. Reborn is asking Spanner casually as to when Tsuna can perfect is X Burner. He reprimands Tsuna for always slacking that Tsuna is afraid when Reborn is pointing his gun at him. Spanner is amused at Tsuna reaction since Reborn is just a hologram. Reborn informs Tsuna that Ryohei’s group got separated from each other. Meanwhile Irie is pleased that he is having control over the place again. Back to the fight, Gamma tries to fire another shot at injured Ryohei but his kangaroo takes the hit for him. Hayato is frustrated about this. He is forced to open the box that he can reach. Out comes Uri, his cat whom Hayato hopes to free him but Uri have other ideas and that is to attack Gamma. Ryohei punches Uri to safety as he blocks the attack. Ryohei is temporarily healed by his power. Ryohei informs Hayato that he will be freed if he defeated and tells him to keep his cool. Gamma fires another attack which defeats Ryohei. Gamma is about to fire the finishing blow but it is blocked. Hayato has unleashed his sistema cai and says that he won’t forgive Gamma. And sistema cai looks cool. ^-^ From the trainings, iirc, Hayato is the only one which the author didn’t show as to what the sistema cai actually looked like. He also seems to have a lot of boxes. Hehe, it’s payback time. Ah, Tsuna does seem kind of back to being wimpy. He’s really lucky that he encountered Spanner instead of other ruthless villains like Gamma.

Oboro’s plan is to take Tatsuo’s mouthpiece which he used to ward away the sand worm in PSYREN [c. 20] . Amamiya will distract the worm. Both Yoshina and Asaga will get to Tatsuo. Yoshina will charge straight on to distract him while Asaga will go at the side to Tatsuo. Oboro will babysit Kabuto. Before they leave, Yoshina tells Asaga that he is depending on him to bring Tatsuo back with them even if Amamiya says that Tatsuo can no longer be saved because he became a tavoo. The last scene is Yoshina charging on to Tatsuo. Nothing much happened but I don’t quite like the present-flashback to know what they discussed-present way of presenting this chapter. It is quite confusing. Yoshina’s antics makes him quite likeable. Hehe, he is like a younger brother and well, I guess that is why the others like him. I do wonder if they can still save Tatsuo.

Quote of the day:
You have to know the past to understand the present. ~ Dr. Carl Sagan

Nana [Chapter 74]
Monday, April 28, 2008 @ 07:26 p.m.

The opening narration is about wanting to call that name when [she?] woke up because of a music – that beautiful flower’s name. The picture is a lotus = Ren. Present arc: Takumi wakes up because of a doorbell. He sees young Ren beside him. Takumi smiles when he saw him. He gets up and wonders who it is so early in the morning. He looks at the clock and it is already 10am. Later on, at the dining table, Naoki tells Takumi that he wants to see if the person in the picture is really Nana or not. Takumi tells him not to be too meddlesome and if he did go, Nana might notice and run away. Naoki says how about pretending to be a woman. Takumi says it will be suspicious. Naoki is surprised when young Ren gives him a cup of coffee. Takumi also wants one, too. Young Ren looks sly as he says papa, [didn’t you say] do things by yourself? Young Ren yawns and goes out. Naoki laughs that Takumi got taught by his own son. Takumi is stunned and sweatdrops over this. Takumi laments why is that child so intolerable yet he is so cute. Naoki says isn’t Ren his kid, since his IQ is quite high. Naoki is about to tell Takumi about what his daughter Momo did yesterday but Takumi tells him not to mention daughters because he will think of Satsuki. Too late, he did imagined Satsuki happily calling him. Naoki tells him that if they find Nana, Hachi will definitely agree on staying there, too. But then, he did try telling that to Hachi but Hachi told him, ‘Nana might return back so I will stay here.’ Naoki laments that she is like the Hachiko dog [being loyal].

Takumi asks Naoki if he is free that day, why don’t he play with young Ren since if he let young Ren by himself, young Ren might stroll off to a far place. Naoki says it’s okay. He asks if it is okay for young Ren not to go to school but up to when will he be on a ‘break’. Takumi tells him if he mentions about accompanying him [young Ren] back to Japan, young Ren will hide away to avoid being send back. Naoki says if he likes it there so much, why not let him study in a school in London. Takumi says but in spring break, Hachi will definitely come and insist on bringing young Ren back. Naoki feels sorry for young Ren that because of his parents, he have to go from one side to the other. Since part of her family is at a different place, Satsuki will also be lonely. Takumi looks sad about this. Standing up, Naoki exclaims that Hachi should also stay there so they should quickly find Nana. Takumi tells him that isn’t the problem. It’s just that because of work that he had sacrifice everything so right now, he is being punished. It’s natural that Hachi doesn’t want to come with him. Naoki tells him not to say, ‘it’s just that’. Even though it’s Takumi, he should use those words to Trapnest. Takumi is surprised and then smiles. He apologizes for it. Naoki tells him that he is still waiting for the day when Takumi will re-establish Trapnest and Reira will sing again one day. Takumi looks sad about this. Young Ren carrying his guitar passes by and sees this. Young Ren calls out to him and hugs him. Takumi asks where is he going with his guitar. Naoki tells young Ren that he is going with him to his house to study. Young Ren shouts at him that Reira is singing and not to bully his father. Naoki is surprised. Takumi tries to calm young Ren down as he tells him that he isn’t being bullied though he is being lectured a bit by Naoki. Naoki asks singing? Takumi tells him that if young Ren is playing the guitar, Reira will sing.

Reira is at the park remembering what Ren has told her before about not ending up with the person one likes yet afraid of being together with another person, one would always cherishing that person. Reira remembers Ren saying that he wants to become that gentle person. Reira tells herself that she has thought of destroying everything that Takumi cherishes. Honestly, she always loathe her God-given voice. But she couldn’t believe that because holding the hand of the boy who shares the same name as Ren can made her gentle. He is young yet he is good at playing the guitar. She should be hating. She happily turns around and smiling says, did she become a bit mature. She looks a but stunned that no one is sitting at the bench. She pulls her hat down and cries. Ren, say something. Past arc: Hachi reads the name that Ren will give the child – Ichinose Satsuki. Ren says that since before, he decided that the child will have a name which means a flower just like his name. [Satsuki is common written as ‘May’ or ‘五月’ but the way Ren writes it is ‘皐’ which means Rhododendron indicum aka azaleas] Hachi exclaims in happiness as she loves the name. Takumi tells Ren the way he says it, it is as if it is his own kid. Ren tells him who knows, maybe it’s mine. Takumi is shock that he looks at Hachi. Hachi nervously says it’s impossible for Ren belongs to Nana. Ren is a bit sad that Hachi didn’t play along with the joke. Narration that it has been a month since there is no communication with Ren. Putting all my strength not to think of him but then, the people around me won’t let keep quiet about it.

Hachi calls Nana and informs her of the name that Ren has given the child and she really likes it especially since she will give birth on May. To Hachi’s dismay, Nana says it’s just an ordinary name. Nana tells her isn’t she due on April, she cannot just decide on the day she wants. Nana asks what if the child is a boy. Hachi says it’s okay for Ren said they will just choose another name. Nana says that’s right. Hachi says that there are few flower names that will be suitable for a boy. She asks Nana if there are words that have a bit different intonation as ‘Ren’. Nana thinks that she didn’t know that Ren wants a child with a flower meaning. The new wine [named demon king] which she newly opened sake turns in her stomach and could it be because she drank the medicine with it. In Takumi’s vehicle, Ren apologizes for making Takumi drive him back. Takumi says it is okay for he is also going that way. Ren looks a bit sad and asks if this is about work. Takumi says it is work related. Ren happily says that he is quite honest with best friend. Takumi tells him who’s your best friend. Ren tells him not to react too much since he is referring to himself and Reira. He says that Takumi is such a lonely man for he knows that Takumi would treat his comrades/friends as his army troops. Takumi says it’s good if he knows. Ren gloomily says nevertheless, he is still lonely. Takumi sweatdrops and says he isn’t lonely. Ren sadly says to reach that high place while trying to protect the castle, he even ‘mess with’ his precious sister. Takumi looks stunned after Ren said this. [The truth hurts kind of look]

Ren says Takumi is really something for he is able to give up everything for work. Takumi says speaking of that, it is something that Ren told him before that made him do that wherein her best friend should be praying for her real happiness. Ren asks what is real happiness for Reira said she wants to have an ordinary person’s happiness but from the look of things, it seems that Reira wants to go down to hell with Takumi. Takumi gloomily thinks that he also thinks that. Ren laughs out loud about this as Takumi says it isn’t funny. Ren says if Takumi is going to hell, he should accompany her. Takumi angrily says he is going to bring Ren, Naoki, and even Maria with him. Ren laughs over this. Ren is surprised when Takumi confesses that it would be okay if he can just live peacefully with Hachi and Sastsuki. Ren smiles and asks what if Hachi found out, they will be in trouble. Takumi seems to have only realized this now. He says even if Hachi abandons him, wherever he goes, it is a battlefield. Ren shouts don’t be naïve, reap what you sow, painfully fight until the end. Takumi wonders out loud that someone has said that to him before. Who could it be. Chasing others to the dead end, you will also be chased to the dead end, Takumi will definitely be fighting until the end. Takumi wonders if it is Atsushi [ex-guitarist of Trapnest]. Ren says the only one who could say such ominous words is Yasu. Takumi then remembers who it was..it is Shion.

At a park in Shinjuku where there are a lot of people, Shion approaches Misato [Nana’s sister] who is sitting. When she sees Shion, Misato starts to cry. Shion takes Misato with her. Meanwhile, Shin is talking with Chikage [Misato’s friend] on the phone. Shin learns that Misato has run away from home and it has been three days already. Misato’s father is preparing to re-establish his new store. It is planned that in April, the three of them including Misato’s brother, will be living together but now, they don’t know what’s going to happen. Shin tells her not to cry because he won’t be able to hug her. Chikage apologizes. Shin says he should be the one who should apologize for he arrange a meeting with Nana and this has happened. Chikage says it is okay for being able to talk with Shin, she is already satisfied with that. Just hearing his voice has made her energetic already. Shin says her encouraging mail to him has also made him energetic. Chikage says it’s nothing. Shin says he really doesn’t have any supporting fans anymore. Chikage exclaims that isn’t true for everyone is still waiting for the day when Blast will re-group so he should do this best. Shin thanks her and tells her she should also be energetic and to keep in touch with him. Shin is planning to call some other girl when Nobu arrives and shouts at him as to what is he doing. Shin says he is working. Taking the cigarette from Shin’s mouth, Nobu shouts didn’t he said that the law prohibits underage smoking. Nobu cries if he really have reflected on his deeds. Shin apologizes. Nobu says if Nana is the one who seen this, she will kill him. Shin says but Nana is away. Nobu exclaims that isn’t the problem and why is he looking down on him. Shin shifts the blame on the adult who have left the cigarettes and lighter on the table. Nobu is shock as he says that he will definitely lecture Yasu. He asks where is Yasu. Shin says he doesn’t know because he was such in a hurry that he left his cigarette pack. In a hotel, Shion is closing the curtains when the doorbell rings. It is Yasu who asks about Misato. Shion asks isn’t he worried about his jealous girlfriend if he is nowhere to be found. Yasu sweatdrops.

In Ren’s place, Ren tells Takumi that is quite nostalgic mentioning about Atsushi and Shion. He wonders where are they now. Takumi says that Shion still has feelings for Yasu. Ren is totally shock. Yasu then asks Ren what does he want to talk about because he plans to go [to Reira] then go back quick. Ren is still shock over learning Yasu and Shion that he wants one, too. Takumi wears his coat and says he is going. Ren tells him to wait. Takumi says if he wants be with someone, why don’t he make up with Nana. To Takumi’s shock, Ren tells him that he wants to quit Trapnest. Seeing Ren looking gloomy, Takumi asks what is the matter. The scene changes to Hachi talking on the phone with Nana. Hachi tells Nana that it is her birthday the day after tomorrow. Nana says eh. Hachi asks what kind of answer is that, it is on May 3rd and she is definitely drunk. Nana says she has been busying with her concert tour that she totally forgot about it and she doesn’t even know where she is right now. Hachi says it is also the day when they met so she wants to celebrate it with her. Nana invites her to the hotel. Hachi exclaims if she really can. Nana is surprised and says it’s okay. Hachi excitedly says she will definitely go and will also bring a cake but then, where is she. Nana laughs at this. The last scene is from present Nana looking out the window. Hachi, this year’s birthday, I will definitely buy a gift for myself as a reward for being hardworking. A one-way ticket to Japan. I had been thinking of this for many years already.

So, Hachi did made the right decision to stay put in Japan because Nana is going back. I do find it a bit sudden for Nana being suicidal a few months ago to suddenly decide to go back even if she has been thinking of it for a long time. Did I miss something? I guess Nana is having mood swings or the author is planning to end this soon? Anyway, I guess the break-up of Trapnest blurb in the official site meant is Ren quitting Trapnest. Hehe, he doesn’t want to be drag to hell with Takumi? It is a wise choice since this will definitely bring Nana back to him and well, perhaps, he can stop taking drugs. It will stop making things messier as it is now especially if Hachi knows of the affair with Reira. I guess that is why he said that he admires Takumi for being able to give everything up for work. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out. What could happen? Well, the popular theory is Ren died. As for Takumi, he is indeed reaping what he sowed. It seems that Hachi did know about the affair that she doesn’t want to be with him anymore. But from her narration before, she did mentioned that she still likes Takumi so they might still be together even for the sake of their kids. I do have this impression that Takumi is spoiling the kids or do they love him more than Hachi? Young Ren want to stay with his father and Satsuki seems to be a papa’s girl. If given a choice, I somewhat fear that the kids would want to live with Takumi. ^^;; Naoki wants Takumi’s family to be together but from the way Takumi is reacting, it seems that it is easier said than done. He seems to be thinks he is being punished that he can’t bring himself to put Trapnest back. As for Reira, I wonder if she also thinks she is being punished that she decided not to sing anymore. I guess being with a kid who is named after Ren and is good at playing a guitar has made her finally realize that she should do as Ren ‘advised’ her to do – to just support Takumi. From the way she is talking about destroying everything that is precious to Takumi, it made me think if she deliberately become a mistress to ruin Takumi’s marriage and well, if she did stop singing, Trapnest is finished. Revenge for not cherishing her? From Takumi’s conversation with Ren, he does want to be with Hachi and did think of Reira as a sister.

Quote of the day:
You can't do just one thing; everything has its consequences. ~ Murphy’s Law

Ouran High Host Club [Chapter 61]
Saturday, April 26, 2008 @ 09:46 p.m.

[Since the English scans are out, I won’t be summarizing this in detail. Hehe ]

While in the onsen [hot springs], Hikaru has been thinking over what he has overheard from Kaoru and others. Kaoru arrives and teases him about being with Haruhi alone that night. He also informs him that Kyouya, Honey and Mori are staying nearby and will join them skiing tomorrow. Hikaru looks flustered then goes to a waterfall for ‘training’. Kaoru remembers talking with the others about what Tamaki could be thinking – is he really an idiot and his brain is like a black box. At the end, they wonder what is Tamaki is doing. Tamaki and Antoinette are preparing to have a ‘onsen’ in his bathtub using mixes which supposedly makes the water like the onsen of a specific place. But in the end, I think the mix smells like rotten eggs. [Ah, did he got tricked or the mixes are already expired ^^;; Edit: Kou says onsen really smells that way.] Then, the scene changes to Haruhi wanting to sleep but Hikaru wants to dry her hair first before she goes to sleep. He then asks her an advice on what to do with his predicament on wanting to help someone but he will end up being in trouble. Haruhi tells him to try to solve it without troubling himself. Hikaru exclaims that he doesn’t want that because he owes that person a lot. Since Haruhi is at a loss, Hikaru tells her to forget it. He ends up not getting any sleep since Haruhi is snoring and he keeps on thinking about Tamaki.

The next day, Honey and Mori are showing their skills in snowboarding. Kyouya is just taking their pictures so that he can put them on their website. [Hehe, and probably sell them =P ] When Haruhi is looking around, Kyouya tells her that Tamaki didn’t come. Haruhi blushes and denies she is expecting him. She wants to get started with her ski training with the twins but Hikaru look awful and gloomy because of lack of sleep. Kaoru tries to convince him to go back to sleep but Hikaru doesn’t want to since he promised that special training to Haruhi. They then overhears Souga exclaiming that he slept really well that night. It made Hikaru angry that he starts to bully Souga and take him for skii training so that Souga will be all sore and he won’t be able to sleep that night. Kaoru ends up as the one teaching Haruhi. Later on, Hikaru brings Souga up high in the mountain. Souga panics because he can’t ski well yet and tries to call someone for help but he doesn’t have any signal on his mobile phone. Kaoru go there with them since he tried to stop Hikaru. Haruhi ends up there because she accidentally ride on the lift. Haruhi becomes confident when Kaoru gives her a pep talk. They try to do it to Souga, too but it failed. Kaoru is getting worried over the weather so Hikaru tells him to go down with Haruhi and he will handle Souga after all, it is his fault why they are there. Haruhi apologizes to Hikaru if he can’t sleep because of her. She tells him that he already knows what he should do regarding his problem and he should do what would be less troublesome to him.

After Haruhi and Kaoru go down, Hikaru thinks he has to do something else things will be like that wherein he can’t progress. He then notices Souga is missing. He finds Souga who has fallen down and twisted his foot. He decides to carry Souga on his back. While carrying Souga, Hikaru remembers all the nice things that Tamaki said to him. Then, Hikaru wakes up and wonders if everything is a dream. He asks where is he. Kaoru tells him they are in the lodge and Souga is fine though he had a sprain. He says that Mori and the mobile squad found them and Hikaru was so happy that they were found that he fainted. The doctor said that it is because he lack sleep and he is very exhausted. Kaoru leaves as he wants to tell Souga that Hikaru is alright. When Haruhi is going to call the others to inform them that Hikaru is okay, Hikaru confesses to Haruhi. Haruhi looks slightly surprised or was that no reaction since what he said haven’t sink in yet. The last scene is Tamaki wanting to go there as soon as possible when he heard from Kyouya that Hikaru had an accident. And so, Hikaru has finally confessed and Haruhi doesn’t have any ‘over the top’ reaction. Maybe by next chapter. What would be her answer? Hehe, Tamaki is going there. That will be interesting. The more the merrier. But then, so if they all know who’s in love with who, then what? Haruhi has already decided to pursue her goal rather than be sidetracked by being in love. I don’t think Hikaru knows that Haruhi already knows of her feelings for Tamaki. Also, I think it will be quite hard for things in the club to go on like before after this.

Word of the day:
Worry can do a lot of things to you; prayer can do a lot of things for you. ~ Our Daily Bread

Hadashi de Bara wo Fume [Chapter 5]
Saturday, April 26, 2008 @ 06:17 p.m.

Nozomu kisses Sumi’s hand and she feels faint over this. Soichiroh catches her. Nozomu asks if she is alright. Sumi says she is and she apologizes. Nicolas comes out and asks if everything is okay. Soichiroh says everything is. Nozomu looks at her and asks if he has seen her somewhere before..like in the road before. Sumi is happy that he remembers her. Sumi is about to say it’s true when Soichiroh covers her mouth. He tells Nozomu that maybe in Kamakura before she got married but Sumi is tired so she is going to rest. Nozomu says it could be and tells Sumi to take care. Soichiroh forces her to go to her room while still covering her mouth. Sumi can’t do anything even if she wants to thank Nozomu for saving her sister’s life. In the room, Sumi asks why didn’t he let her thank Nozomu. Soichiroh says it is because he already told everyone that she is from Kamakura. He throws her on the bed and says that her reaction to Nicolas and Nozomu’s kiss on the hand is different. Sumi blushes and denies it. Soichiroh tells her to stay inside until everyone else leaves. He locks her in the room and says that Sumi easily falls for people. [It is like easily gets attracted to people in one glance]

Soichiroh goes out back to his two guests. Nozomu asks if Sumi is okay. Soichiroh says she just needs to rest because she is tired from the wedding and moving to that new house. Sumi tries to listen in through the door but she can’t hear anything. She happily smiles since she didn’t expect to see her prince there and receive cute flowers from him. She looks at her hand and thinks he even kissed her hand. Sumi suddenly remembers Soichiroh’s forceful kiss. Sumi wipes her mouth and feels disgusted. It has reminded her that she has threw herself away. As Nicolas and Nozomu are about to leave, Nozomu tells Soichiroh to greet Sumi for him. Sumi rushes out to him. Komai has let her out of the room. Sumi asks if Nozomu is leaving. Nozomu says he is. They were all surprised when Sumi bends to her knees and bows to him [prostrate] while shouting her thanks to him. Embarrassed, Soichiroh pulls her up and tells her not to do that. Komai tells Nozomu that she is thanking him for the flowers. Nozomu says since she is that happy, it also makes him happy. He tells them that he has a party in his house next month so why don’t she and Soichiroh come. Soichiroh says they will go. Sumi doesn’t know what a party is. Soichiroh tells Nozomu to come anytime for a visit.

After the guests left, Sumi asks Komai what is a party. Soichiroh is already going upstairs. He tells her that it is where there are a lot of people eating and talking together. If she eats the same way as she did in the morning then it will be quite embarrassing that Nozomu will laugh at her. Sumi is shock about this especially when Komai tells her that the Ijuin family pays special attention to etiquette. Sumi pleads Komai to quickly teach her how to be lady right away. Soichiroh thinks she is quite naïve. So, Sumi practices how to walk with a book on her head, how to eat properly and how to write. After she wrote her name, she asks Komai how to write Nozomu’s name. While Sumi is writing Nozomu’s name, Komai asks her if she adores Nozomu. Sumi becomes nervous and can’t explain. Komai winks his eye and tells her that he will keep it a secret from Soichiroh. A woman in love becomes more and more beautiful. He tells Sumi that even if she adores Nozomu, she must always have her eyes only at Soichiroh.

When Soichiroh arrives home, he is shock to see Sumi, all dressed up and beautiful standing on top of the staircase, welcoming him. Komai asks Soichiroh how is it, doesn’t she looks like a lady and he did his best. Komai informs him that they have been studying for days. While Sumi is walking down the stairs, she trips. Soichiroh shouts her name but she ends up falling on Soichiroh. Komai asks if she is alright. Soichiroh helps Sumi stands up. Soichiroh says something about Sumi being stupid for falling down and asking Komai to buy something. [Sorry, the scans are really blurred] Sumi screams to quit calling her stupid and stop belittling her. Soichiroh sees the Nozomu’s flowers on the vase. He shouts at Komai to throw them away. Komai tries to protest that it is Sumi’s. Sumi shouts that she was the one who told Komai to just let it be. Angry [or jealous], Soichiroh grabs the vase and throws the flowers at Sumi. He shouts that it is trash. Soichiroh goes upstairs. Komai tries to call out to him then Sumi. He sees Sumi picking up the flowers. She is crying as she says it isn’t trash. Meanwhile, the landlady finds Sumi’s house very dirty as the children are playing in the trash. The landlady asks where is their sister. They say that their brother is looking for her. She takes the children into her house to wash them up.

Soichiroh enters the room and asks if Sumi is ready. Komai tells him that he is just going to fix Sumi’s hair. Soichiroh says he is unsatisfied with it. He says it is better for her hair to be let down and she should have some perfume. Sumi screams that it stinks. Komai shouts that isn’t how a lady would act. Sumi acts like a snobbish lady and says please don’t do that, it stinks. Soichiroh[?] shouts that it isn’t right and tells her to do it again. Sumi tries to shield herself from the perfume as she holds her nose. She thinks he is bullying her again and Nozomu will definitely hate her if she smells awful. While riding on a rickshaw, Sumi is nervous and tells herself to make a good expression to Nozomu. She isn’t prepared when they have already arrived at Nozomu’s house. Nozomu happily greets them. While her heart is beating fast, Sumi thanks him for his invitation. She becomes nervous when Nozomu is surprised at her. She wonders if it is because of that stink smell. Nozomu smiles and says she is specially beautiful today that she is like a doll. Sumi blushes and is happy that he praised her. Soichiroh pulls Sumi to him and tells Nozomu not to be fascinated with her because she is his. Nozomu laughs and says of course, come in. Sumi looks ill as she remembers that she is the wife of this awful man.

After reading this chapter, I feel sorry for Sumi because she is stuck in a loveless marriage and Soichiroh always bullies her. And, it’s not funny or cute. Sumi’s inspiration on becoming a lady is obvious Nozomu but from the covers, she will most definitely end up with Soichiroh. It is depressing already since the lead guy is the meanest of all the characters in the story, aside from Sumi’s brother. It’s nice that Komai is going to keep her crush a secret from Soichiroh but then, it is already pretty obvious. I kind of think that Soichiroh is jealous and not because he loves Sumi but more on doesn’t want his ‘belonging’ to be taken by some other guy. I have some vibes that Soichiroh isn’t really ‘chummy’ with Nozomu as if he has this, somewhat like a rivalry. Hm..I wonder what will happen at the party. It would be scandalous if the others know why they get married haha that’s too far off maybe Sumi’s brother somehow arriving there and create a ruckus actually I want that to happen as a punishment to Soichiroh. =P Scans by Bai Yun for BW.

Word of the day:
Let the road be rough and dreary, and its end far out of sight; Foot it bravely, strong or weary, trust in God and do the right. ~ Macleod

Guesswork + Unconfirmed Info about Nana 74
Friday, April 25, 2008 @ 12:46 p.m.

I had been checking around for Nana chapter 74 chapters. The blurb in the official site mentions that something major happened that shock both Trapnest and Blast. From the comments of other people, they are all fearing that it is Ren’s death. This is just a theory from someone else. Remember that Ren said that he will help Hachi name the child? Hachi’s first born could be a boy and that child is the Ren whom Reira is with at the park. During Valentines, Hachi asks Satsuki to whom is she giving the chocolates. She answered not her father nor her older brother. In chapter 66, Nobu is asking about Ren. Hachi says he is with Takumi in London and always playing the guitar. Could Nobu meant young Ren? Why would they name a kid the same name as Ren unless Ren is no longer there. If this is true, it sucks because Reira got Hachi’s husband and son with her. ^^;; But then, someone said that Hachi mentioned that the one who had given them the envelope of Nana’s whereabouts is Ren. I rechecked that part and when Yasu and Shin mentioned that and jokes that it is like Santa. Yasu looks really sad then Shin looks sad before the Trapnest song is played. It will make sense as to why Nana tries to commit suicide/disappear. What do you guys think?

[Edit:]This is the short report from Room 708 which I also seen from baidu but I didn’t post because I’m not sure if it is true. Oh well, this is what they say from 2ch. Young Ren is definitely Takumi’s son. Takumi and young Ren are living in London. Hachi with her daughter will wait for Nana to return because she can’t leave Japan. Reira doesn’t want to sing anymore and will only sing when young Ren playing the guitar. Takumi’s band doesn’t know if they will be temporarily go on a hiatus or just disband. Nana’s sister Misato has run away and picked up by/stayed with Shion in a new dorm. Naoki got married. Cover page from Room 708

PS. I'm currently browsing through Bleach and Naruto. I had a sudden thought. Why do I have a feeling that these authors are talking with each other or is it just a coincidence? Naruto is going to give us a history lesson on Konoha. Bleach is currently in a history lesson. If Cross from D. Gray-man is going to tell about the 14th then it is also a history lesson. One Piece could be heading there, too since the new characters are ancestors of those who created the world government. So far, Bleach's is interesting because I already know the characters and it is amusing to read what they were like before. ^^

Vampire Knight [ Chapter 39]
Thursday, April 24, 2008 @ 10:18 p.m.

[Hehe, I have found ASSAM’s translation which is usually for simplified Chinese scans. ^_^ Temporary raw scans from 閑櫻√緋/Hiko’s baidu album.]

Yuuki covers her eyes when the sun shines on her. Her eyes hurt as she thinks with these vampire eyes, it’s the first time she has seen the sunlight. Aidou says it’s already morning. He urges her to quickly go back before Kaname comes back. Yuuki says yes. She thinks the light isn’t as gentle as before. Yuuki and Aidou suddenly turns around. Yuuki says she smelled blood. Aidou says she has become quite sensitive to many things. He tells her not to go back else Kaname will worry. Yuuki says she has this irritable feeling that is moving and coming near very fast as if they are going to cause trouble. Many shadowed figures of people are approaching the school. They says our king has resurrected. In the office, the president has also sensed it and think, the school will not be at peace again. In sun dorm, Yori overhears from some girls talking that there is no classes. A girl wants to go to moon dorm but they were prohibited from going out. Yori asks them if they have seen Yuuki. They tell her that she is probably at the president’s. Yori says she had brought Yuuki’s spare clothes but she didn’t see her there. Yori thinks that Yuuki is hiding something from her. I know she has a ‘secret’ that she can’t tell me and I know she doesn’t want to tell me so that I won’t be worried. But then like this, I will really lose. Then, the girl who wants to go to the moon dorm goes out even as her friend tries to tell her that she shouldn’t. The girl insists that this is a rare opportunity that shouldn’t be missed for today, she will definitely go to moon dorm. A pretty woman with a hat greets them a good morning. She says that young girls are quite spirited. She is like that before. She plans to make gifts to her master. The two girls feel uneasy and scared when the woman is suddenly in front of them. One of the girls says she isn’t going anymore because this woman gives her a scary feeling. The woman touches the girl’s chin and says right, I’m scary, because—I’m a vampire. The girls become scared as the woman’s nail become long and her fangs are showing. There are a few more vampires behind the trees. The girls scream. Kain burns[?] off the woman’s hand. Ruka tells him why is he being merciful. Ruka says that they are human vampires and asks them who are they under. They cannot forgive them for invading Kaname’s territory.

Yori is surprised to see a man entering through the window. The man says that they plan to give a gift upon their first meeting with their master whom they haven’t seen for a long time. She asks who he is. The guy is about to say that he just said the reason why [he is there] when he is suddenly impaled by icicles courtesy of Aidou. The man turns into ash. Yuuki and Aidou also enter the window as Yuuki shouts if Yori is okay and if that guy did something to her. Yori is a bit surprised and scared that she asks if she is Yuuki. Yuuki looks a bit in anguish as she apologizes for letting her experience being scared like that. I and..that guy who turned into dust a moment ago are the same..sorry. To her surprise, Yori hugs her and shouts stupid, don’t use that lonely expression to apologize for it will make me the one being apologized to, lonely. I’m always waiting for Yuuki to come back safe and sound. It is more scary if one’s friend is mysteriously missing. Yuuki seems touched by what she said as she says out Yori’s name. Meanwhile, Rido has fully revived as he sits up in the coffin. Zero has sensed this. Ichiru kneels to him and says that he has eagerly anticipated his revival. Zero complains that it is another pureblood vampire which are quite loathsome. He remembers Yuuki shouting. Zero tries to convince himself that Yuuki isn’t any different. Kaname is standing in front of him and says he is surprised for a moment, he thought that Zero is going to cry. Zero says what an eyesore, disappear from my sight, Kuran.

Kaname laughs and says, if like this..you are quite dejected, I will be troubled. Zero asks why would he. Kaname says he had spent four years in painstakingly taking care of the ‘colt’ [This translator uses ‘car’ instead of ‘colt’ but I’ll stick with ‘colt’ since it is the kanji in the raws] and if one makes a single mistake, it can eat up the ‘king’ [commander]. And that ‘colt’ is you. Eliminating Rido, the monster who has awaken from his coffin, is your mission. Zero glares at him and asks if Rido has annoyed him. Do it yourself. Kaname says, you always pretend not to notice. He tells Zero that since he is in the womb, he didn’t take away all the strength of his twin brother. So now, he only have half of strength of a vampire hunter. If at that time you had seized the other half of your brothers then it won’t be so troublesome now. Zero tells him to shut up. Kaname continues afterwards, because of Shizuka, you become a vampire. Then you had greedily suck the blood of Yuuki who is protecting you. Zero exclaims for him to stop talking. After Yuuki has awakened, the blood that you have sucked has started to gain the original strength of being from a Kuran family and it starts to spread in your whole body. And then, I also gave the strength of Shizuka’s blood to you. I have tolerated everything that is intolerable. All just for this day..so that you can become the strongest vampire hunter. Can you liberate me from Rido’s curse? Only you. After a pause, Zero asks do you think I will save you? Kaname says you cannot..betray Yuuki..I can accompany Yuuki out of the school. But as long as Rido exists, he will unceasingly search for us just to grasp Yuuki and eat her.. Zero looks surprised by this. Kaname closes his eyes and opens them again. He says..goodbye.. He then left.

Looking out the window, the president says vampires have hidden their true identities and mixed with human society but I have spend a lot of time trying to convince the important people in the society that vampires aren’t scary. It isn’t just for the secret exchange of their wisdom and skill but to be able to communicate with each other effectively [like coexisting peacefully]. Touga says it’s quite regretful that the ultimate objective wasn’t achieved. Carrying his bandaged weapon, the president says, no..“no matter for good or evil, killing vampires is not a crime” one day I will break that widely recognize rule. I don’t want to give up. But now, I need to go and do what should be done. Sitting on the coffin, Rido’s hand is bloodied. He looks at it then laughs. He says the strength to pursue, capturing [something] with all effort, that is a vampire’s true instinct. In the cell, Zero is holding/controlling[?] his right hand which is becoming vampirish – longer nails. He then sees Ichiru right in front of him. Ichiru bends down and takes the gun that Touga left in the cell for Zero. Zero asks him..the gun..what is the matter. Ichiru points the gun to Zero and says Zero’s name. Ichiru fires the gun at Zero. Zero got shot in the left shoulder. Blood spills out from behind. Of course, Zero is shock.

Hm..I think Rido could have ordered Ichiru to do it. After all, it is rational to kill off the biggest threat to him. Kaname mentioned that he is the greatest vampire hunter for he has the blood of pureblood vampires within him. If Zero is dead, Rido can’t be killed off by anyone else. Unless of course, it is part of Ichiru’s revenge for killing Shizuka. He could be planning on killing off Zero just like how Zero shot at Shizuka. Hmm..why is Rido’s hand bloodied and Ichiru’s face has a bit of blood? Did he bit him? It seems that Rido tend to make vampires out of humans as his underlings that are attacking the school. They also want to offer humans to him. So, Kaname has explained the reason why he let Zero drink Yuuki’s blood. He must have such great patience to wait and bear all of it especially since he loves Yuuki. Since Zero won’t want to save Kaname from whatever curse Rido has on him, Kaname is quite ‘cunning’ to just change it from him to Yuuki. It is like he is telling Zero that if he can’t do it for him then at least do it for Yuuki. If Zero survives Ichiru’s attack, I hope he realize that this isn’t the time to be moping around and he should do what he should do. Heck, even if it isn’t protecting Yuuki, he could at least protect the other students as a vampire hunter since currently, there are many vampires attacking the students. He can even vent his anger and frustration on them. Haha, he can even imagine Rido is Kaname since they look somewhat alike. But then, this isn’t a shounen manga. ^^; Anyway, I don’t think he will die since he does have pureblood within him..Shizuka didn’t die when she got shot before. It is nice to see that the president is going to fight now. What took him so long? I guess he is still in denial over what is happening. I’m thinking that Kaname is planning to take Yuuki away so that the school won’t be involved anymore and well, that place is already invaded by Rido’s minions. Hm..would his friends join him. Takuma isn’t shown with Rido..where is he? And lastly, it’s nice that Yori still considers Yuuki her friend even if she knows what’s Yuuki is hiding. ^-^ Slightly disappointed that it is Aidou who saved her. It would be better if it was Yuuki. I would really laugh if by the end, she ends up with Aidou who is now Yuuki’s ‘knight’/bodyguard. =P

Quote of the day:
One loyal friend is worth ten thousand relatives. ~ Euripides

Teaser: Vampire Knight [Chapter 39]
Wednesday, April 23, 2008 @ 12:30 p.m.

The scans are out but in a Chinese forum which I have no access to and BW is currently ‘dead’. Maybe the scans will spread later tonight or tomorrow. The delay is because most of them are currently having their exams. Anyway, I did find a summary from baidu. I can’t confirm if it’s accurate without the scans.

Rido invades the campus. Ruka and Kain fends off the attack. A vampire appears and grabs Yori to become Rido’s food. Then, Aidou and Yuuki arrives to fight off the enemy. Yuuki looks apologetic but Yori hugs her and says that Yuuki looks lonely, she will wait for her to be ‘energetic’ again. [the summarizer isn’t sure about this part but maybe something along the lines that Yori is really worried about Yuuki] Scene changes to Rido who have resurrected. Zero manages to sense Rido’s ‘chi’ and realizes that there is a pure blood. He remembers Yuuki and feels as if he is contradicting himself. Then, Kaname appears before him. Kaname tells him that he is the ‘colt’ that he has carefully cultivated and now has his, Yuuki’s and Shizuka’s [via Kaname] blood within him. You have now become the strongest vampire hunter who has the strength to eliminate Rido. Kaname also informs him that he is preparing to leave the school with Yuuki but as long as Rido lives, he will try to ensnare Yuuki. Kaname says goodbye and left. Then, scene changes to the president and Touga talking and it seems the president wants to fight[?] or take action. Rido said to himself about, ‘the strength of pursuing is a vampire’s instinct/ability’. [summarizer not sure of the meaning but I’m guessing it meant vampires are good at hunting their prey] The last scene is Zero’s. Ichiru appears in front of Zero and picks up the Touga’s gun that he has left behind. He then fires it at Zero.

Summarizer wonders if Rido bit Ichiru because his face is all bloody. Then, hopes that Zero didn’t just turn into ash. I really doubt it because from the way it looks, Zero will be the one to finish off Rido. Maybe he just fired at the door. Anyway, I can’t guess accurately without seeing the scans. Well, I guess we now know the reason why Kaname let Zero stay by Yuuki’s side. First is to make him bond with Yuuki that Zero can’t kill her later on. Second is to get Yuuki’s blood and with all three purebloods within him, he is the strongest vampire hunter and can kill Rido. Kaname is such a good long term planner but what he did is quite risky. More comments when the English/Chinese scans are out.

Shuukatsu!! -Kimi ni naitei- [Chapter 6]
Wednesday, April 23, 2008 @ 11:20 a.m.

Yuri walks away from Ryoji as she thinks that she is naïve so that is why Ryoji said that, ‘gambatte’ [do your best]. I have decided to run forward and not become a lover. Having a drink with Mitsu, Yuri determinedly tells her that she has now sealed up her love and will become a job hunting soldier. Mitsu sighs and tells her what is she saying when she wasn’t the one who was rejected. Yuri remembers Ryoji saying that he doesn’t want to go steady with anyone and confessing is futile to the girl he rejected. Yuri smiles and tells Mitsu that later on, she will also be rejected but no matter how one looks at it, she feels a bit light hearted because Ryoji won’t be looking at other girls, too. Mitsu doesn’t seem convinced by what Yuri said. Yuri says enough of that for now, I will be going to different publishing companies tomorrow. I might have a better chance if I go there by myself. Someone behind her says, so you’ll just go there. Yuri says that’s right, for it is useless to wait around and -- there won’t be progress. She turns around to face the one who said that. It turns out to be Ryoji. Ryoji smiles and says don’t be mistaken to be a high schooler. Yuri blushes and thinks that she just decided to seal up her love and yet.. She tells him not to look down on her. Mitsu interrupts as she faces Ryoji and says, it’s the first time we met, I heard that you took care of our Yuri. Yuri and Ryoji are surprised. Mitsu smiles and tells Ryoji, let me say a couple of things, I think someone as smart as you will be able to understand it. If you do anything bad [excessive], I won’t forgive you. Ryoji looks at her in surprise. Mitsu angrily grabs Yuri’s arm and says let’s go working soldier, this isn’t the place to just stare. Yuri exclaims why did Mitsu just said that. Mitsu refuses to elaborate. Yuri thinks that she haven’t talked with him yet so Yuri looks back at Ryoji. Ryoji didn’t move from where he is standing nor look back at them. Yuri decides to do what she should be doing right now so she runs off.

All dressed up and determined, Yuri looks up at a publishing company. This is the first step for the new me. I am now different from how I was before who didn’t know what I wanted to do. She enters and to her dismay, the man tells her that their job hiring is over. Yuri asks but the deadline isn’t over yet. The man says they want people who can work immediately so why don’t she come back next spring. Yuri looks down as she is turned down right at the very start. Yuri determinedly tells herself that rejected once or twice by a publisher, she shouldn’t be like that. If I have time to be depressed, then I should use that energy to do something. The second publisher tells her that they aren’t hiring new graduates at the moment. The third publisher tells her that they are a small company so they only hire when someone else leaves. Yuri tries her best not to give up as she goes to the fourth one. The man says they can do the interview. Yuri is thrilled that finally there is one. The man asks what kind of books does she want to do. Yuri says children books. The man exclaims, children books, we can’t, sorry, starting this year, we won’t be publishing children books anymore. Yuri is all depressed as she looks at some children books in a bookstore. She thinks that there are many children books in bookstores and it is quite hard to just go in and apply. The most troublesome is there is no calling/informing [if she got the job or not]. She looks determined again as she tells herself to be positive because someone who is going to give dreams to children shouldn’t be pessimistic.

Someone then calls out to her. It is Ryoji on a bicycle. He says it is already late [11pm], she shouldn’t be out alone by herself. You’re not the vigilant type, are you? You should be more conscious of danger. Yuri is shock to see him and wonders why is he there. Ryoji notices something and asks why is your expression like you have seen something you don’t want to see. Blushing, Yuri denies it and tries to hide the fact that she is happy to see him. She quickly turns away and says, goodbye. Ryoji asks if her house is nearby. Yuri says it’s no problem because it is nearby around 15 minutes away. Ryoji thinks that 15 minutes is still quite long so he tells her that he will accompany her. Yuri says he doesn’t have to because it is already late. Ryoji says he won’t be accompany her if it isn’t very late. When Yuri still protests, Ryoji tells her that he won’t be happy if something happened unexpectedly to her. Yuri finally relents but she tells him to just walk near her house. Yuri asks if he is free. Ryoji says he isn’t because he is still thinking of the many school stuff and he doesn’t like to do unimportant things while in the middle of something. Yuri says that’s good. Yuri tells herself that this is okay for this is a coincidence and they are just walking together. Ryoji takes out a small teddy bear [cellphone/key] strap and says he is giving it to her. He tells her that it is a freebie inside an instant noodle pack and he doesn’t need it. Yuri tells him to throw it if he doesn’t need it.

Ryoji says there is a different reason, I don’t know why but when he saw her, he feels that he wants to give it to her. Yuri is a bit angry about that for being given what someone doesn’t want. Ryoji says it is a ‘giving a helping/loving hand to the lost sheep’. Holding it, Yuri shouts that she doesn’t want it either and don’t blame her if she throws it away. Ryoji walks a bit and looks at her. Yuri then blurts out what kind of girl was his ex-girlfriend. Ryoji is surprised as Yuri can’t believe she just asked that. Confused and embarrassed, Yuri tries to say something. Ryoji answers her by saying that she is an ordinary girl but I can’t be with her. Yuri is a bit taken aback when Ryoji looks a bit sad talking about the past. She stops him and says up to here is okay because her house is just there in that street. She thanks him for accompanying her there. She tells him that she still plans to find work in Tokyo and prepare for graduation. Yuri tells him to take care as she walks on. She turns around and is surprise to see him still there. Embarrassed, she walks a bit more then turns around. She sees him still there. She wonders why is he looking at her. Does he plan to wait there until she reaches her house? Please, don’t be like this. If I look back again, he might not be there anymore. Definitely. I hope he isn’t there...3..2..1. She turns around and he isn’t there. She is a bit surprised. He’s really not there. That’s good. He seems to have noticed that my feelings isn’t calm. While walking home, Ryoji stops then looks back towards the direction where he left Yuri. He seems to be blushing a bit.

Yuri goes and had another interview. She informs the interviewer that she will be busy preparing for her graduation soon. The man tells her about an editing job wherein she will be responsible handling an author and sometimes, she will have to submit a report. He asks her what does she think is the most important characteristic that an editor should have. Yuri thinks for a moment about it if it is knowing how to judge aesthetics, good feeling/instinct, etc and all of those are important. Yuri says it is vitality. The man perks up and asks why does she say so. Yuri says you asked me what’s the most important, I’m not quite sure but I think that anyone who has vitality won’t be look down by others. The man tells her that he also think that vitality is the most important. Because in this kind of work, one has to keep on doing it very late at night, so I think one’s body should be fit and one has to have vitality. The work isn’t easy but if you work hard, I think this work is suitable to you. Yuri goes out in a good mood. She thinks that this is the first time this has happened [after many job application]. She wonders why she feels that way when she didn’t get the job yet. She feels as if she has finally reached the top. She imagines herself on top of a mountain shouting success. She wonders what she has been doing before. She wants to tell someone about it. She takes out her mobile phone which has the teddy bear strap that Ryoji gave her. She is about to call Ryoji but decides to call Mitsu. Mitsu can’t be reached at the moment. She hangs up the phone and thinks that this isn’t the time to be happy. While walking, she calls to her mother to inform her that she just arrived in Kyoto station. She will be at home around 15 minutes. She sees a convenient store so she tells her mother that she will be going in there for a moment. She asks her mother if she wants to buy something. Tea and ice cream are what her mother requested.

Inside the convenient store, she takes a bottle of tea. She notices a display of the teddy bear cellphone straps on the racks. She says but aren’t these freebies in the instant noodle. She remembers Ryoji telling her that it is for her because he doesn’t need it and it is ‘giving a helping/loving hand to the lost sheep’. She quickly snaps out of it and thinks that she is thinking too much into it. She goes to get some ice cream and plans to go to sleep early. After paying, she notices a couple going in. The girl says she wants to read some magazines. Yuri decides to read some magazines, too. She begins to zone out again as she thinks that with some effort, she can now see the horizon. She will go to school and look at the autumn recruitment and also search in the internet. She will also buy some new clothes and keep on being energetic [not sure about that]. I get someone to review with me and then..then.. She then thinks that she should go home because the ice cream is melting. When she goes out of the store, her phone rings. Her mother angrily asks what is she doing when it is already late, does she plan on making her worried. Yuri apologizes and says she will quickly go home now. She freaks out that the ice cream isn’t ice cream anymore since it melted. Someone passes by and she looks up to see who it was. She is surprised that it is Ryoji who is also surprised to see her. He points to the bear strap and teases her that she really likes that little bear. When you said you don’t want-- He stops when he sees Yuri crying. Yuri tells herself that she can’t do it. She can’t seal her feelings and she doesn’t want to ask about his ex-girlfriend. And, I want to see him. I want to hear his voice. Yuri drops the bag which contains the ice cream and tea when she covers her mouth to stop herself from crying. To her surprise, Ryoji hugs her as she keeps saying his name in her head.

So, Yuri is making progress in both her job hunt and love life. It is easier to do something in this case finding a job when one knows what one wants. Her interview went smoothly because of this and well, maybe a bit of good luck charm – thanks to the little teddy. =P Obviously, it isn’t a freebie but something Ryoji deliberately bought for her. Realizing this and seeing him again as finally broken down Yuri to stop kidding herself when she has already fallen for Ryoji and from the way he is acting, he does have feelings for her. Hehe, and he can’t stop himself from doing that either. I guess they are both the same in not wanting to be in a relationship at present but their hearts say otherwise. Hmm, from the way Mitsu ‘protected’ Yuri, I was thinking if Mitsu know something about Ryoji that Yuri doesn’t. Anyway, I think she is just being a friend since she doesn’t want Yuri to be hurt and be lead on by Ryoji’s special treatment to Yuri. Scans by Abbeydu.

Quote of the day:
Vitality shows in not only the ability to persist but the ability to start over. ~ F. Scott Fitzgerald

Weekly Jump Update: Bleach, One Piece, D. Grayman, Reborn, and PSYREN
Tuesday, April 22, 2008 @ 12:01 p.m.

Mayuri realizes that Urahara got promoted to captain but he still refuses to go out that place with Urahara in Bleach [c. -105]. Urahara gives him a proposal Mayuri can’t refuse when he informs Mayuri that he plans on making a research and development institute within division 12 with Mayuri as vice-president and if anything happens to him, Mayuri will be the president. Somewhere else, Yoruichi visits young Byakuya and plays a game of tag with him. The old man who is a captain turns out to be Byakuya’s grandfather. Elsewhere, Ukitake is trying to convince Kaien to be his lieutenant but Kaien refuses. Ukitake tells him of a young genius who just graduated the academy within a year and he is about Byakuya’s age. That boy is assigned to division 5. It turns out that it is Gin whom Aizen has taken an interest on especially on how easy Gin finished off a seated officer. Hmm, what is the purpose of bringing Hiyori there only to be told that she will be somewhat replaced by Mayuri. Is this one of many reasons why she hates ‘shinigamis’? Well, two mad scientists are better than one so did he get Mayuri to help him make the hogyoku and gigai? The way Byakuya and Yoruichi are acting, they reminded me of the Hitsugaya and Rangiku though Byakuya is more hot-headed. ^^;; Something must have happened that Kaien accepted the lieutenant position later on..ah, something like massive removal/demotion of captains. It does seem that Aizen and Gin go way, way back. I do wonder if Gin would have ended differently if his mentor is someone else. Hehe, geniuses are becoming younger and more talented, first Kaien, then Gin and now, Hitsugaya who made it captain when he is still young. I does seem to be a very long prologue and I was thinking by the time it is finished, I might have forgotten about Ichigo and others. =P And, if there is a character poll in the future, they might all be replaced by characters from the prologue. Haha

Usopp, Sanji and Franky stay at the ship to fix the ship and protect Nami’s gold in Sanji’s case in One Piece [c. 497]. They try to dissuade Zoro from leaving but they relent when Zoro says he will ask for directions if he is lost. He assures them that he will just remember the port number. Unfortunately, he thinks it is 1 because a bubble is covering it the number 4 of 41. While walking around, Hachi tells them to be careful of other pirates, pirate hunters, kidnappers who are slave traders and marines. He also tells them not to tell others that they are not humans. They go sightseeing as they rent some bubble cars and eat some food there. Nami and Robin separate from the others as they go shopping. Luffy and others then find a pirate with a collar. He is shouting for someone to free it from him and wanting to go home. Hachi quickly tells them to not mind the guy. Camie seems to be in anguish as the pirate keeps on crying. When he tried to remove the collar, it explodes. Everyone quickly goes away from that pirate. Camie tells Hachi that those world nobles, Tenryubito are coming. Above a building, there is a shadow guy who notes that pirate couldn’t make it to the New World. Soon, a dog with a oxygen helmet appears and piss on the pirate. Then, a father [Rosward] and daughter [Shalulia] with a pet beast arrive. They have oxygen helmet because according to Hachi, they don’t like to breath the same air as ordinary people. Shalulia says that they have to buy a new one [slave/pirate]. Rosward says she doesn’t know how to discipline them. Luffy is outraged that he wants to shout out but Hachi stops him. After the Tenryubito leaves, Hachi explains that they can’t be hurt because if they do, an admiral will be after the culprit. Also, they are doing as they please because they are the ancestors of the 20 kings who had made the world government. So, we finally know a bit more about the world government. With ancestors like this, I can easily guess that the world government is up to no good that they can’t even curb the ‘injustice’ that these Tenryubito people are doing unless of course if they do it to pirates only. From the way Camie is acting, I think not. I think she is captured before. I think the history of this people has also something to do with the research of history that Robin is doing. Hm..the crew are divided into different groups as they usually do, so I guess we’ll get to see the situation in that place from the different people they will meet and well, different enemies. I seriously doubt Luffy and others will take a blind eye on what’s happening especially since Hachi didn’t warn Zoro and others.

L4 drops on the floor near Cross and keeps yapping about their group winning even if it lost in D. Gray-man [c. 156]. To shut it up, Cross just blast it away and obviously not caring anymore about making it into a test specimen. Then, Komui and others go to rescue the science team. Everyone is okay except for those made into Skulls as they are turning into ash one by one. Rinali is trying to get a doctor for Allen who is on the corridor since Allen can’t move. Her boots turn into rings when someone asks her where is Allen. Kanda looks at a scene then promptly leaves. That scene is when everyone is crying out to Tapp. Rinali quickly goes to them. They were all helpless from helping him as Tapp wishes to still live but like the rest, he also turned into ash. Link go to pick up Allen and carry him off for medical treatment. Cross tells Malcolm that it isn’t the time for infighting because the Earl isn’t going to sit around and do nothing. There will be a meeting. Cross will tell them all about the 14th and the musicians but in return, they would let him talk with Allen. DGM is really such a depressing series. They have won but still, there are many deaths and they aren’t exactly rejoicing after finally defeating L4. Anyway, because of this attack, we’ll hopefully get to know more about the 14th in the next chapter and what’s the connection with Allen. I also hope that Kanda and Rabi’s innocence has somewhat level up, too. Actually, just Kanda because for Rabi, his other seal attacks aren’t shown yet.

Gamma explains to Hayato and Ryohei that the base is made of squares which can be moved around in Katekyo Hitman Reborn! [c. 190]. The two realizes that the black in the center is just space so that the squares can be moved around like a puzzle. Gamma realizes that it is all Irie’s doing but he is still grateful that he can get to fight. Ryohei ties up Hayato and tells him to leave this fight to him. Gamma tells them that they can’t defeat him like before even if Hibari is with them. Ryohei fights with him and is easily defeated[?] by a lightning attack. Gamma tells Hayato that he isn’t the same before. Meanwhile, Tsuna finds his gloves and pills beside him because of the earthquake. Tsuna takes the opportunity to grab them while Spanner is looking for something. To his surprise, Spanner seems to know about this and wants him to go to hyper mode. Tsuna protests if he did, he can escape. Spanner doesn’t care for they can always kill him the next time they caught him since they are powerful. Someone tells Tsuna that Spanner is right because without the X burner, they are in big trouble. Tsuna agrees if he said so and then realizes that it was Reborn who said that. Ah..that’s a surprise. What is Reborn doing there? I thought he is in the base? As for Ryohei, I somewhat guessed he is going down in this one because it is rare for shounen manga for a character to keep on fighting major enemies by himself. It is more appropriate if Hayato defeats Gamma as payback from before. I hope Hayato uses ‘brains’ here in contrast to Ryohei’s battle which uses more on ‘muscle’. Hm..would Gamma fight fairly? Because at the moment, Hayato is all tied up. ^^;;

Amamiya manages to dive into Tatsuo’s mind in PSYREN [c. 19] . She can’t see anything in it at first but finally there is one part which isn’t dark. She sees Tatsuo trying to run but he can’t and regretting coming to Psyren. Tatsuo is then carried off by a tavoo into a siren tower. They had put a tavoo core on Tatsuo in a certain lab inside. Amamiya is angry over this as she wakes up thanks to Yoshina. Amamiya realizes that this person isn’t Tatsuo anymore. When Yoshina is frustrated with himself about not being able to help Amamiya yet he gets the sick to safety, Oboro looks up to Yoshina in high regard. Amamiya manages to waste all of Tatsuo’s burst bullets including one to hit the worm. Then, she returns to the others. Yet, she is already exhausted from using her powers. Oboro tells the others of a plan and it seems he has recovered from being sick. Oboro seems to have somewhat recovered and would Oboro be their tactician? I think it will be hard for them to get Asaga to fight seriously with them if he knows that person used to be Tatsuo. He might not be able to accept what happened to his friend that easily though, maybe he might think that defeating him would at least set Tatsuo free. I wonder what the plan would be. Also, is the worm still there or it is just hurt from the blast?

Quote of the day:
Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come. ~ Anne Lamott

Yoru Cafe - My Sweets Knights - [Chapter 7]
Sunday, April 20, 2008 @ 10:39 a.m.

It is snowing when Hina is walking in the streets holding two bags of stuff. Hina says it’s cold and today, it is a rare sight to have a heavy snowfall in Tokyo. She thinks she has bought a lot of things so she has to walk carefully. Soushi calls out to her from behind. Hina tells him that he is coming home quite early today compared before. Soushi says that’s right, it is because of the snow, there isn’t much work. He asks in this weather, why did you bought a lot of things? Hina says that it is because they are on sale and also, she eats a lot. Soushi offers to help her. When he reaches out his hand to get the bags, Hina suddenly remembers the night they were together. She blushes and quickly exclaims that he doesn’t have to. Since the ground is slippery, she slips backwards. Soushi manages to grab her hand while shouting that it is dangerous. Unfortunately, he also loses his footing and they both fell, sending the groceries flying. Hina covers her head so that they won’t hit her but one of the bags fells on Soushi’s head. Hina turns around and is shock to see that she is sitting on Soushi. Hina quickly apologizes. Soushi is angry as he shouts, why you, why didn’t you just give it to me! Then this wouldn’t have happened! Hina then holds up a bag and says, here, as you asked. Blushing a bit, Soushi says okay. While they were walking, Hina thinks from that day on, when I see Soushi, I will think of it..the night when I learned about doing that thing unknowingly to Soushi and also thinking of a different kind of life. Then, I have become unsure of myself. Hina remembers Yoshizumi telling her that it isn’t being frivolous but one’s true feelings coming out. Glancing at Soushi, she thinks that Soushi doesn’t seem to mind what had happened. She notices that Soushi’s face is quite reddish. Soushi notices that she is looking at him and asks if there is something on his face. Hina says it’s nothing. They walk in silence to the café.

They have arrived in the café as Nozomu greets them and how come Soushi is with her. Soushi says that they just met each other on the way. Hina thinks that she can’t tell him about being worried about that thing because I’m the boss here. I have come here in a night café, Queen Café, for half a year already. Kunizaku gave this store to me and this is my current goal in life so this isn’t the time to mind other things but there is something that bothers me.. The café has already opened. A couple of women greet Nozomu a happy valentines day and give him a two boxes of chocolate. Nozomu happily thanks them and accepts the chocolates. One of the women says that it is snowing so they hesitated to go there but because they want to give him-- Hina is staring at Nozomu as she wonders, do these three guys have girlfriends? But he [Nozomu] said not to pry on one’s private life. That’s right, this person is the first to decline [talking about it] and he even said it in such a serious manner. What that person said before has become reality. Nozomu notices her and asks her why is she staring at him. Nozomu whispers to her, don’t worry, next time, I will give all of this to you. Hina smiles and thanks him. Then, they hear a loud crashing sound. Soushi is kneeling on the floor. Nozomu approaches him and asks what is the matter. Looking sick, Soushi curses and says that he already drank medicine. Nozomu shouts that his fever is quite high. Hina realizes that is why Soushi’s face look reddish earlier.

Hina puts his arm on her shoulder as she helps him get back to his apartment room. Inside his room, Hina asks if he is okay. Soushi apologizes to her about [not being in the] store. Hina exclaims that it is okay since it is snowing, there isn’t much customers. Nozomu and Yoshizumi are doing their best so she can go with him there. She tells him not to work when he is feeling sick like that. Soushi says he is okay and he can walk by himself. Hina panics when Soushi is becoming tipsy and looks as if he is going to fall. Hina tells him not to force himself if he can’t do it. She freezes and blushes when Soushi removes his shirt. She quickly looks away and tells herself as to why she is embarrassed but this will make her remember what happened that night. Soushi is saying that he can’t find something. He calls out to Hina and apologizes as he asks her to get his pajamas in the bathroom. She goes into the bathroom to get them. She tells herself that this isn’t the time to be randomly thinking of such things. I am here to take care of him. I have to persevere. The only one whom Soushi can depend on now is me! Hina then finds the pajamas. Soushi gets startled when Hina shouts, persevere! Soushi is now on bed as Hina takes his temperature. It is 40.7C. Hina says it’s quite high. Why didn’t the medicine work? She tells him that it would be better for him to go the hospital but she had called a taxi. The person said that it is snowing hard and all of the cars are already out. Soushi says is that so, I’m okay, just go back to the store, I’ll just lie here. Even if you stay here, you can’t do anything. Hina protests that something might happen if she isn’t there. Soushi asks but, doesn’t she keep on thinking [uneasy about] what happened that night. Hina is surprised as her heart beat. Looking away, Soushi tells her not to worry too much about it, he isn’t a bit angry. If you plan to apologize, there is really no need to do that. Hina says it will be a lie if she says she doesn’t mind [about that night]. Even if there is no reason [to stay], I still cannot just leave and not care about Soushi. Because Soushi is my important.. Hina stops and thinks, important what? I’m not saying the same things. Hina stands up and says that she will make something warm for him. Do not look down on a fever, that person [Kunikazu] also had a high fever before the end [he died].

Suddenly, the lights went out. They were surprised that it is a brownout. In the café, Nozomu and Yoshizumi are trying to calm the customers. Hina thought, no electricity, could it be because of the snow?! No way, no electricity at this time. She asks Soushi as to where is the flashlight. Soushi tells her that it is in the kitchen on top of a rack. Hina goes and tries to find it. Soushi gets uneasy as Hina is breaking things while she is shouting okay..[crash]..something must have broken [crash] what is this, ah..[crash]. Soushi stands up from bed and thinks that Hina is going to break everything. While Hina is reaching for something, Soushi asks if she is okay. Hina blushes and thinks that he came. Don’t come when it’s so dark. Hina says she is okay so he doesn’t have to move because if he forces himself, his temperature might go up. Something crashes again. Soushi gloomily thinks who is the one causing his temperature to go higher. Hina exclaims could this be it. She explains the description but Soushi says it is for tea. Finally, Hina finds it. She quickly turns around and bumps into Soushi. The two falls down again. They shout at each other if they are okay. Soushi tells her to open the flashlight. When she opens it, she finds herself on Soushi and her skirt is lifted up. Hina gloomily thinks that Soushi has seen her underwear. Soushi blushes and just says it’s an accident, an accident. He holds the flashlight and goes back to bed. Hina notices that Soushi is laughing. Hina asks him not to laugh that way. Soushi apologizes and says that Kunikazu is quite a dignified person, how could he marry someone who like you who is quite careless. I’m always quite doubtful [about it]. But now, I know why. It’s because he can’t just leave you. That person is a capitalist yet he likes to look after people. Hina thinks, about that person, I should be able to talk about him to Soushi but why? Why don’t I want to talk about him [Kunikazu] with this person [Soushi]?

Hina starts to shiver and says that there is still no electricity. She wonders how is the store and if Yoshizumi and others are okay. She then realizes something and asks Soushi if there is anything there that can be used to warm them without using electricity. Soushi says that he doesn’t have any of that sort. Hina thinks that the situation is really bad. Hina rushes off and says that she will try to make him something warm. Hina panics since all of the cookware [stove, tea pot, etc] there has to use electricity for them to work. Hina ponders on what should she do. If this continue, Soushi will.. Hina looks at him as he is shivering and says it’s cold. Looking determined, Hina hugs him..or rather his head. ^^; This surprises Soushi as he blushes. He tries to protest but Hina hugs him tighter. Hina says this is urgent, if you don’t have any objections, just think of this as a gratitude for the ramen you made for me before. Soushi didn’t protest anymore. He closes his eyes and says sorry, I’m a bit.. Hina is surprised when Soushi loses consciousness. Hina calls his name. She remembers the time when the doctor told her that if the fever didn’t go down for 2-3 days, the body might not recover so please tell the family.. Hina is becoming uneasy as she calls Soushi’s name again. She again remembers when she is crying on top of Kunikazu who is in the hospital and shouting that it’s hot, why isn’t it working, isn’t the body still warm? Why! Then, Hina shouts, no..don’t die! Meanwhile, Yoshizumi and Nozomu are walking in the hallway. Nozomu is angrily complaining when the electricity will come back. Yoshizumi says that they should check on the boss and Soushi. They go in Soushi’s room and call out if the two are alright. The two were a bit uneasy when they see Hina hugging Soushi. Hina turns around to look at them. She is crying.

The two guys ask what is the matter and what happened. Hina exclaims that Soushi..Soushi will die..! Quick think of a way...should think of a way! Nozomu shouts he doesn’t understand what she is saying. Yoshizumi tells her to calm down and tell them what happened. Hina shouts he will die! If we didn’t think of a way, he will be like what happened at that time..will become like that person. Hina thinks, no, no, don’t happen again..! Soushi angrily says, hey, don’t treat me as dead. Hina and the two guys are surprised. Soushi says that I just loses consciousness for a moment, really, it’s just a little fever, how could I die of it? Yoshizumi asks if Soushi is okay. Soushi says yes, far from being dead. Nozomu starts to laugh and says, so that’s it. Boss, no matter what, that won’t happen. Soushi won’t die just because of this little thing. He used to be an athlete and he still have strength..strong/stubborn like a cockroach. Soushi gets a bit embarrassed and unhappy about that comment. Soushi says even if it isn’t like a cockroach, what Nozomu said is right, it is quite troublesome if you look down on me just because of a small cold. Nozomu smiles and says please don’t worry, boss, we are okay, we won’t abandon you. Hina looks at them and then closes her eyes as if she’s relieved. Just then, the lights come on. Yoshizumi[?] says it is the first time that he encounter such a long brownout and he hopes it won’t happen again. Nozomu looks stunned at the two. He asks, I’m thinking..who’s who hug the other first? Hina and Soushi look surprise then look at each other. Hina says Soushi said he is cold so. Soushi says boss said she’s cold, so he hugged her tighter. Nozomu tells them okay, okay. Yoshizumi seems thoughtful as he didn’t say anything. Hina asks what about the store. Yoshizumi says that the customers have all left.

Yoshizumi and Nozomu leave the room and walk in the hallway. Nozomu says that lately, it seems that something is up between Hina and Soushi. Yoshizumi didn’t seem to have heard it but Nozomu drops the subject. Yoshizumi asks what do you think is the reason why boss was entrusted to them by Kunikazu. Nozomu looks at him and says it’s for Queen-sama to choose a groom among them. Don’t know if she will accept them, but a total stranger is less ‘threatening/pressuring’. Kunikazu is really kind to us. Yoshizumi says that’s like your style. Nozomu says Soushi probably didn’t think of this. Inside the room, Hina has made something warm for Soushi to drink. Hina blushes and thinks that she just did another embarrassing thing. Soushi thanks her. This surprises Hina. Soushi smiles and tells her even if my mouth is quite stiff [not talkative or protesting earlier?], honestly, I feel that it would have been really bad if boss isn’t here. Hina blushes. She tells him that it’s very good that I was able to help. Tomorrow, you should definitely go to the hospital. Soushi says, yes. Hina narrates, Kunikazu, I really want to see you now and hope you’ll tell me that you believe in me. Because, I already can’t believe in myself. From that day on, it seems my heart is swallowed and vanished. Everyday, the time I spent thinking of you grows lesser and lesser. Later on, at the staff room, Nozomu is laughing that the medicine didn’t work because it is an epidemic cold [influenza] for that season. You need a special medicine for it to be cured. Yoshizumi sighs and says it is that guy’s fault, working at the service industry and yet, he didn’t get a vaccine. Hina is gloomy and speechless that he asks what is the matter. Hina says she didn’t get it either. The two guys are surprised and ask huh? Hina says I also didn’t get the vaccine..it’s not okay..right. The two guys were speechless as Hina becomes gloomy. A few days later, Hina is sick on bed. Hisaki rushes in with a bouquet of flowers. He shouts, Hina, I heard you were sick. Yoshizumi thinks, ah, the acting [temporary] cake chef is here. Lol

This chapter shows what a cute couple Hina and Soushi would make. ^-^ The ‘getting sick and I’ll take care of you’ plot is quite cliché already but it is still fun because this usually makes a couple closer to each other. =P Hina didn’t realize but she is fast falling for Soushi. She has become quite attached to Soushi that she fears of losing him. Nozomu has already notice that something is happening between them. It turns out that Kunikazu didn’t tell them anything about why Hina is left in their care. The two guys have already guessed it. Poor Hisaki, it seems he has also guessed this reason. The only ones who have no idea are the two couple themselves. Hehe From all the four, Soushi does have that edge especially since Hina is a fan of his. Scans by Tongs for BW. And the cover below is from the official site. It is the latest Petit Comic and they do look cute together. ^-^

Word of the day:
Fear will leave us when we remember that God is always with us ~ Our Daily Bread.

Skip Beat! [Chapter 121]
Friday, April 18, 2008 @ 04:30 p.m.

On December 26, 9:20am, Kyouko is happily looking at the gifts on her table – cosmetics, bouquet, rose, and a pair of shoes. The inn lady comes in and says that she is still staring at those. She thinks that since yesterday, Kyouko has just been in that staring pose. Kyouko says that she feels really happy when she looks at the gifts. The inn lady says she is happy that Kyouko is happy about the gifts because she and her husband didn’t know what to give a young girl. They were helped by the customers to choose the gift. Honestly, they are worried that Kyouko won’t like their gift. Kyouko assures her that it isn’t true for that shoes is a famous brand. Kyouko bows and thanks her for the gift. The inn lady also bows to thank her for yesterday [at the party] and they were really happy. The inn lady then notices that the rose is in a small container and it is taped on the table so that it won’t fall over. She tells Kyouko that it seems that their flower vase isn’t suitable for that kind of flower. Kyouko says it is because the rose is bigger than the ordinary ones. If she has time, she will buy a vase that won’t lose to the rose. The inn lady asks even if she is using time leisurely, doesn’t she have work. Kyouko looks at the clock and notices that it is already 9:30am. Kyouko screams in horror. At the Box ’R’ [drama] meeting, the director[?] asks where is Kyouko. The other cast says that she haven’t arrived yet. They were gossiping that Kyouko is quite courageous to be late and they have no choice but to wait. A dark haired girl tells a co-actress that they shouldn’t say things like that for Kyouko must have her reason as to why she is late. The co-actress exclaims that she is quite big hearted. The dark-haired becomes embarrassed and tries to deny that she is. The other cast laughs and says that Chiori is quite cute. They laugh about something and didn’t notice Chiori’s dark look when no one is looking.

In Dark Moon set, Ren and Yashiro are walking. Yashiro looks at the time and it is 15:50. He is glad that they made it in time since the appointed time is 16:00. Ren says that it is a good thing that they didn’t go to some place to eat lunch and just bought some easy to eat food. Yashiro is holding the bag and says they did bought some fast food since they don’t have much time during lunch but then, if Kyouko knew, she will be furious like a demon. Yashiro feels ill as he begins to imagine Kyouko shouting why they bought that kind of food. Ren says it is better than not eating anything at all. They are surprised to see Kyouko all gloomy and depressed as she sits in one corner. They look at Ogata who says he also doesn’t know what happened because when she came there, she is already like that. Since she is like that, she can’t go into Mio’s character so they had let her rest. Yashiro says it seems that something bad has happened. Ogata says he had asked her about it but she won’t say what it is. It is as if whatever he will say won’t help at all. Ren approaches Kyouko and puts a drink on her lap. This made Kyouko look up as Ren asks won’t she drink it. Ren notices that Kyouko is looking at him as if wanting to talk to him. Ogata approaches the other actresses. They asks what happened with Kyouko. Ogata tells them that it seems Ren is listening to whatever Kyouko is going to say. Ogata thinks that it seems that Kyouko is only willing to talk about it to Ren. He says that it would be nice if Kyouko could recover from what is making her depress and act again.

After Ren listened to Kyouko’s story, Ren asks, and then? Kyouko and Yashiro look at Ren in surprise. Ren says just because of being late in the new drama, you made everyone wait for you for about an hour? Kyouko tries to explain herself but Ren has already stand up. He tells her to forget about it [being late] and quickly try to change her current mood. I will give you 5 minutes to think of a way to do it. Understood. Okay, start. Kyouko is shock and tries to tell him to wait. Ren is already walking away. Kyouko thinks, is that it?! Ren notices something pulling him that he looks behind him to see Kyouko clinging on his coat. Ren asks what does this mean. Kyouko says he should be angry. She thinks because Ren is never late. She tells him that ‘she is quite disappointing’ and ‘she should apologize to death’ are the things that her mind is telling her. Ren says that there is no need to endlessly talk about it and become angry. Kyouko tries to protest and says but she was late, an hour and 23 minutes. And it is for a reason wherein anyone would laugh when they hear of it. Ren says if he gets angry, she will carry this ‘defeat’ to the next work and the rest of the work will be affected. He tells her that she is quite undetermined [unsure of herself] today. Didn’t you say you want to become a first class actress? This surprises Kyouko and it reminded her of her meeting with Tora. Flashback: Tora asked her, in the future what does she plan to learn in the showbiz world and until when would she be satisfied. Kyouko smiled and told him that she wants to find herself and that will be to show off to others about herself. She hope that she has many opportunities to act from now until the future. She want to act in many different roles to have a long autobiography/filmography and I hope to study thoroughly different acting techniques so that in the end, I will become a very strong, very high first class actress. End flashback.

Ren tells her that showbiz world is very strict. Even if a family member dies, one cannot just leave one’s work. Even if one feels depressed and unhappy, one would still smile and act happy. Being able to instantly change their feelings is their specialization. So-called first class are the ones who can stop their own grieving and hurt feelings. If just because of this little thing, you can’t act and then, you don’t even acknowledge for a long time that there are people at work there. They had been waiting for her yet not knowing what is the reason of it all. What first class, the current you can’t even change your feelings to act as ‘Mio’. You should go back home today. If you cannot fully use your acting skill then you shouldn’t stay here. Ren starts to walk away. Yashiro looks back and forth from Ren to Kyouko. Yashiro chases after Ren and tells her that he is quite strict even if it is true, he should do it in a kinder way because Kyouko is depressed. Just a small truth would make Kyouko.. Ren tells Yashiro he knows but saying that will not develop talent and.. Yashiro is surprised that Ren looks confident when he looks at him. Ren says that he won’t say those meaningless things if he thinks that she can’t do it with her talent. Ren keeps on walking as Yashiro is surprised that he stops and looks at Kyouko. He finds Kyouko smiling in confidence just like how Mio would be.

It seems that Kyouko will have problems with her co-star, Chiori later on but she does seem to show what Ren has mentioned. Chiori acting happy and everything yet, the truth she isn’t. Actually, Ren has been able to do this but he have difficulty in suppressing love. =P Once again, Ren helped Kyouko overcome her minor trial. It does show that Ren do recognize Kyouko’s talent and how Ren is the one whom Kyouko can confide things like this. Also, it seems that Kyouko’s goal has changed. Instead of becoming a famous actress to make Shou regret dumping her, it is more about becoming a first-class actress to develop her acting skill and act in many dramas/movies. It has become like Ren’s goal/love for acting. But then, she still haven’t put down those Shou-Ren posters in her room. ^^;

Word of the day:
Sometimes our plan does not unfold the way we thought it would; But God is always in control to use it for our good. ~ Sper from Our Daily Bread

Hanayome-sama wa 16 Sai [Chapter 1]
Tuesday, April 15, 2008 @ 07:46 p.m.

[With a cover spread like that especially with a Kaname look-alike as leading man, who won’t be interested? Hehe The Chinese title is High School Bride. The story is nothing new based on the first chapter. For me, it is like Faster than A Kiss, Teppen! and Hadashi de Bara wo Fume ideas being mixed in then used for this chapter. The story is about Tamaki, a 16 year old high girl whose mother has just passed away. Her mother’s last words for her is go to this address and someone there will take care of her. She finds herself in front of a huge mansion and greeted by this good looking guy who owns the place. To her shock, the guy tells her that she will be his bride. She is forced into marriage because of money. The main thing I’m worried about is that most of Yuuhi Ryu’s works are smut as according to Baka manga. I haven’t read any of her series before so I don’t know what to expect. I’m just thinking that if this is smut and from the ones I have read, there is a high chance that the guy is a jerk aka forceful/aggressive that there will be a lot of ‘attempted rape’ scenes. ^^; Hehe, actually there is such a ‘bed scene’ here already though nothing happened. This is serialized in Sho-Comi.]

My mother who single-handedly brought me up has passed away. I’m now an orphan but I can’t just cry [all the time]. Mama, I will be strong and continue to live. A girl in uniform is holding a note. She is surprised and asks herself, is this the place? In front of her is a huge mansion. The girl asks, is this the right place? It’s so big. Flashback: A couple of women are whispering to each other about who’s going to take care of the girl if their sister-in-law died. Both are unwilling to take her in. The girl’s mother gave her a note and told her if she died, she should go there for there is someone who will take care of her there. End flashback. So, here I am today. I wonder if I’m going to stay at the servant quarters. What kind of person is my mother’s friend? A sports car then arrives. A young man calls out to her, you’re Shimizu Tamaki, right, you are quite early. Tamaki is surprised that he knew her name. Who could this good looking guy be? Is he the young master of this place? The young man tells her to come in. Inside, the maids and a man greet the young man, welcome, master. Tamaki is shock and exclaims, master?! The young man asks, what, can’t I be one? Tamaki thinks that he is quite young. Tamaki tries to tell him that her mother has sent her there. She is surprised when the young man grabs her face and says, eh, becoming my wife, your charm isn’t enough but you’re okay [anyway]. Tamaki is shock and as the words, wife echo in her brain, she then exclaims, ha!!? Wife?!

In the living room, Tamaki exclaims what is this all about. Who are you?! A man [with the maids earlier] lights the young man’s cigarette and tells Tamaki that Ohtori Shinga-sama [not sure about his name ^^;] is her fiancé. Tamaki shouts fiancé?! The man says that’s right. He introduces himself as Tsuruma [surname], the secretary of a lawyer. Two years ago, Shinga-sama has inherited everything from his father when he was 19 years old hence he is now the president of Japan’s Ohtori Cosmetics Company. Tamaki knows the brand. She points at Shinga and exclaims You? 21 years old? President? Shinga says can’t I be? Don’t point at me. Tsuruma takes out a will and tells Tamaki that her mother and Shinga-sama’s father are old friends. They both had wished that their children will get married to each other. Tamaki looks at the will and falls on her knees. I haven’t heard of this, mama! Tamaki protests that she doesn’t plan to get married. Tsuruma says that can’t be because all of the expenses of the hospitalization and medicine for her mother which is approximately ten million is paid by Shinga-sama. Shinga smiles and says basically you’re the compensation. Tamaki protests that this is their parents’ wish and they will be married even if they don’t even know each other, is that okay with him. Shinga says it’s no big deal for him. Tamaki shouts why, don’t you have any dreams about marriage like slowly developing feelings with the one you like and then the two of you will bring up a loving child. Shinga asks do you really want a child? That’s fast. Tamaki shouts that isn’t what I meant. This is too much, I didn’t have my first kiss yet. Tamaki thinks and yet, I’m going to get married.

Shinga looks at her and says, I guess there’s no choice. He holds her head and gives her a kiss on the lips. In the middle of kissing, Tamaki tries to shout as to what is he doing. When Shinga finishes, he asks are you satisfied, let’s stop here for now. Tamaki is furious that it was her first kiss. She tries to punch him as she shouts why did he did that and what’s that about, ‘stop here for now’. Shinga, blocking her punches, says didn’t you say that you won’t get married if you didn’t have a kiss. Tamaki shouts I didn’t mean that. Tamaki thinks that this guy is really a tyrant. Tsuruma says and so that’s how it is, sign the marriage contract. Tsuruma pulls her thumb and made her sign it with her thumb mark. He tells her that it is her mother’s wish for her to continue with her studies and because of Shinga, she can continue to stay in that place. Your mother will definitely be happy or do you want to quit school and have no place to stay? If you think about it, you can’t do it. Congratulations! Tamaki is shock and thinks, no way--?! Shinga wears his coat and tells Tamaki that because of her mother’s situation [recently died], the ceremony is that simple. I’m going back to work. Since you are new bride, you should properly dress up as one. Tamaki is shock that she is really a new bride. The maids come with towels and other bath stuff. They tell her that they are going to dress her up from head to foot. Tamaki is shock as they drag her away. Shinga walks away and lights another cigarette. He smiles and says, playing with that person, I can’t wait. Tsuruma who is following him don’t seem to approve of that yet he didn’t say anything.

In the bathroom, Tamaki tries to tell the maids that she can take a bath on her own. A maid said that they can’t because they are ordered by Shinga-sama to take care of her. They strip her and bath her. Tamaki asks herself why did things become like that. I become a compensation for the debt and got married to a guy whom I met for the first time. The maids start to gossip that it is really a surprise that Shinga-sama has gotten married. He is quite good looking, excel at work and quite charismatic but he doesn’t seem to be serious with women. The head of the maids shouts at them to quit talking. The maids happily tell Tamaki that getting that guy’s love, they admire her. Tamaki thinks that even if they admire her, and I can’t love [not sure about this one, maybe she doesn’t love Shinga] but still it is puzzling how things turn out like this. They curl her hair and paint her nails. The maids are happy with the outcome as Tamaki is now dressed in a short frilly nightgown. She is then treated to a delicious meal. In the bedroom, Tamaki is shock to see the bed covered with rose petals and a bouquet. Tamaki starts to blush and thinks that even if they say, married, but this is.. Shinga is behind her and whispers to her ear that wearing that nightgown makes her a bit seductive. Tamaki is shock as she exclaims that he’s back. Shinga asks, can’t I? Tamaki stutters as she shouts welcome back, good job at work. Tamaki gets nervous when Tamaki removes his necktie. Tamaki tells him to wait for she haven’t [emotionally] prepared herself yet. Shinga carries her and puts her on the bed. Tamaki is unbuttoning his shirt. He tells her do you think I will wait? Aren’t we married? Tamaki shouts no, let me go, I don’t want this. Tamaki thinks that even if she is compensation, there is no need for this. Shinga holds her wrist and licks it. He says if she keeps on resisting, it will be more fun for him.

Tamaki is shock by this that she pushes him and shouts, stop. She tells him that doing this thing, shouldn’t they mutually like each other first. If you don’t really like me, then don’t do this thing! Shinga stops. Tamaki thinks that before, when her father is still alive, he and her mother look quite happy. If it isn’t mutual love, then it has no meaning. Tamaki says, you definitely don’t like me.. With a serious look, Shinga holds her hand and says, I like you. This surprises Tamaki. Shinga says I..always like you so I wanted you to be mine. I like you. Tamaki is confused and asks what is he saying. He then gives her a deep kiss. Tamaki then turns away from him [prone position]. Shinga tells her not to escape and face him. Become my woman. He then gives her a kiss mark [?] at the back of her shoulder. Shinga says from early on, I have already liked you, Tamaki. Tamaki is surprised then looks at him. She is already blushing and obviously a bit aroused. She asks, from early on? Shinga’s expression changed. He laughs and says that she actually think it’s true. Tamaki is shock. Shinga says but, it’s very interesting. Women are like that so easily moved. Anyone who believes in love is stupid. Shinga is already standing up and then, he goes out of the room. Tamaki is furious that he lied to her. Tamaki shouts I really hate a guy like you! She throws a pillow on the closed door. How frustrating, how frustrating. I shouldn’t cry. I never thought that he is that bad of a person. She sees her bag and takes out her mother’s picture. Mama..you made me marry this kind of person, is it because of money? Tamaki tries to stop herself from crying by telling herself, stupid, stupid, don’t cry. Even if I cry, nothing will happen.

The next morning, the maid is calling out to Shinga who just dressed up. She tries to tell him about Tamaki. Shinga is surprised to see a Japanese style breakfast [miso soup, two rolls of tamagoyaki, grilled fish, and two kinds of pickles] on the dining table. Shinga asks, what is this? The maid tells him that they tried to stop Tamaki. Tamaki comes out while wearing an apron on her school uniform. She says, what is it? Of course it’s breakfast. Pointing the rice spatula at him, Tamaki exclaims, I heard that you only have coffee for breakfast. If you don’t eat breakfast properly, how can you have the energy for work! Shinga is surprised and tries to say, hey, you.. Tamaki quickly pulls him and made him sit on a chair. Shinga looks a bit stunned and asks what is she planning to do. While putting some rice in his bowl, Tamaki says that she has decided. Since we are married, it is useless to get angry. We should just try to get along with each other. Shinga is surprised and he didn’t answer back. The maids are whispering to each other as to what’s up with Tamaki. Tamaki narrates, mama, for you, this guy’s father is not a bad person. But I think this person [Shinga] is quite bad. But if we are together, who knows, maybe I’ll find something good about him. Tamaki gives him a bowlful of rice. Looking at the bowl, Shinga tells her that he haven’t eaten breakfast for five years. Tamaki tells him that since he is the president, he should be able to eat it all. Shinga eats and says it is delicious. Tamaki looks a bit surprised by this. She then tells him that tomorrow, it will be wasabi [Japanese horseradish] congee. Shinga says I don’t eat wasabi. Tamaki says, huh, you’re like a kid! Shinga angrily shouts shut up. Hence with that, the start of life as a 16 year old bride.

Aside from Shinga eye candy, I’m a bit curious as to how the author will tackle this story so I’m going to read more of it. Hehe, if it isn’t good, I can just drop it later on. I’m still thinking if Shinga is actually lying about liking Tamaki. I’m a bit confused if he is hinting that they met before or he is just teasing her. It is quite unbelievable for a guy who has everything would want to be ‘tied down’ to a high school girl just because it is their parents wish and she owes him a lot of money. So, I want to find out the reason for that. Also, I’m also wondering if it is possible that her mother and his father are actually lovers of some sort. I think it is a bit odd for her to leave her daughter to her friend’s son. I’m guessing that she and his father had this idea of making their children ‘have a family’ and not ‘be lonely’ because right now, the two don’t have parents = orphans. Maybe it is like Tamaki will take care of Shinga’s emotional needs while Shinga will take care of her material needs. But, I think this relationship will be a bit hard to work especially if they don’t like each other yet and they have their own worlds – school and corporate world – where there could be ‘others’ who are interested in them. I’m actually a bit surprised that Tamaki manages to make him eat the breakfast she made. I guess Tamaki believes in the saying that the way to get to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Hmm, getting married early seems to be the trend plots in shoujos lately. Scans by Tongyanen

Quote of the day:
Happiness for the average person may be said to flow largely from common sense -- adapting one-self to circumstances -- and a sense of humor. ~ Beatrice Lillie

Teaser: Hana to Akuma [Chapter 9]
Monday, April 14, 2008 @ 07:31 p.m.

I just got to share this. ^_^ As usual, this is guesswork from the raws. The chapter starts with a demon girl angrily complaining. At Vivi’s mansion, Hana is pouting and complaining about something. They were interrupted by the demon girl who turns out to be Felton’s fiancé of some sort. Felton said something probably that he already has a girlfriend there or something so the demon girl wants to see that girlfriend. She is waiting in a separate room. Felton tries to ask Ayame for help but she turned him down. Hana must be asking about the history of it all so there is a bit of flashback about Felton together with Vivi and Graves. Hana decides to help Felton since he helped her a lot many times before. Hana will drink a potion to make her older. Hana removes her necklace and gives it to Vivi for safe-keeping.

After 30 minutes, grown up Hana arrives. Everyone was stunned at how beautiful she looks. Demon girl asks her something but she made a mistake in answering. Felton covers her mouth and holds her shoulder, probably introducing her to the demon girl. Demon girl isn’t buying it so Hana decides to kiss Felton on the cheek. This made Vivi furious. When Felton tries to return it, Vivi tries to stab him with a candlestick. Vivi is about to reveal who Hana really is but Hana quickly covers his mouth and pushes him down on the floor. Hana puts her finger in his mouth and sternly tells him something probably to keep it a secret so as their plan will work. Hana stands up and walks away. Vivi touches his lips with the back of his hand and he is blushing. Hehe, for a while there, I thought it will be like Akuma to Dolce when that demon girl appeared as in she is Vivi’s fiancé/admirer. I think this chapter will start to make Vivi change how he thinks of Hana. ^-^ I can’t wait to read it in Chinese scans. Scans by Sandy225 for BW

Koibana! Koiseyo Hanabi [Chapter 10]
Monday, April 14, 2008 @ 06:31 p.m.

Chikai and Ami are shock when Hanabi exclaimed that it is useless to like Chikai. Hanabi thinks that saying it like that, it hurts. Hanabi then realizes what she just did. She calls herself stupid. She stands up and starts to climb up the fence. She says ah..about this, it’s no big deal, I only..want to tell you. Goodbye, sorry for interrupting! Ami asks ‘no big deal’, if it isn’t a big deal, why would you even jump over the fence? Hanabi freezes and mentally thinks for Ami to quit saying it since Chikai is right there and he might know [of her feelings]. Chikai just says, ah, it is generally not jumping over. Ami asks Hanabi to go to the faculty room. In the faculty, Ami is dressing up/putting make-up like how she used to look like before. Hanabi asks what is she doing, dressing up like that [when confessing to Chikai]. Ami says it is okay since no one is around. Hanabi apologizes for interrupting what she was doing. Ami laughs that Hanabi is really naïve that she actually believed that. Hanabi is puzzled and surprised. A flashback, Ami calling out to Chikai and introduced herself to him. Ami told Chikai not to ask anything nor say anything. I’m an actress. Oh, she’s coming. Ami started to tell her confession. End flashback. Hanabi exclaims that Ami has tricked her. She couldn’t believe it and Ami would even dress up for it. Ami says she is just pretending to be a passionate woman. Hanabi can’t believe it that she actually thought it is true. Ami takes out the ‘knit-love’ form and tells Hanabi to re-write it. In the form, Sasa’s name is on it. Ami says at times, as an adult, even if you hate it, you say I like but do not be like an adult who obviously like yet would lie and then hurt oneself. Hanabi grabs the paper and writes Sasa’s name using an ink pen. Ami exclaims that she isn’t being honest. Hanabi is looking away and blushing. She then drops the paper and leaves. Ami picks it up and smiles. You’re really naïve.

Hanabi takes out Nanpa for a walk. Nanpa is happy that they get to walk farther away than they used to. Hanabi has an ulterior motive for it. She is wondering where did she saw Chikai before when he is with a dog. She wonders if the dog is his girlfriend’s but then, she is still wearing a uniform then so there is a greater chance that the dog is Chikai’s. She then sees a grassy part which is near a river. She wonders if Chikai is there. She begins to wonder if she is a stalker. Sure enough, she finds Chikai playing with the dog. First, it is playing catch ball. Hanabi remembers the wooden dog craft that Chikai made for her and Chikai guessing if she likes dogs. Hanabi thinks, you’re the same, right? She still looks at him as he lets his dog climb on his back while he is lying on the grass. Chikai is smiling but he quickly frowns when he sees Hanabi. Realizing that he knew she was there, she exclaims, it’s very cute, what’s the name? Looking away from her, Chikai sits up and says, Chikai Uno. Hanabi laughs and says, I’m not asking about you! Hanabi is forced to approach him when Nanpa is already walking towards Chikai. Chikai says ‘Cleo’--‘Cleopatra’. Hanabi is a bit surprised by the name and says that he is quite close with his dog. Chikai says generally. Hanabi says but I saw you too looking quite happy together. Chikai looks at her and says, you’re too nosy. He quickly looks away again. Hanabi realizes that Chikai was shy/embarrassed when talking about himself.

Hanabi introduces her dog, Nanpa. Nanpa talks to Cleo, you’re called Cleopatra, how pitiful. Cleo says I don’t want to be told that by you. Chikai asks if Nanpa is an Akita [breed]. Hanabi says he is. Chikai has formed an O-shaped with his hand as Nanpa approaches him. Hanabi realizes that it is a technique to get dogs to come near someone. Nanpa is wondering about the smell. Chikai pulls up his hand and says Nanpa’s fur is quite nice. Nanpa gloats this to Cleo and soon the dogs are in an argument as they bark at each other. Hanabi quickly grabs Nanpa and shouts for it to stop. Looking at her and then away, Chikai says I already have a girlfriend, it’s useless. Hanabi didn’t move as she faces away from him. Chikai laughs and says so easily read, just like a dog. Hanabi remembers Chikai playing with Cleo. An uneasy silence. Hanabi becomes angry as she thinks if she is like a dog, always waiting. She quickly exclaims that she is going. As Hanabi walks away while blushing, she thinks she is quite abnormal to be happy about this. Chikai Uno is obviously an unacceptable person, obviously a super guy [I think along the lines that he is a boy] and obviously, it is useless. But I still begin to fall deeper for him. Then, Chikai gets a phone call from Yukine. Chikai tells her that he is alone with Cleo. That night, Nanpa is sniffing at the wooden dog craft. He starts to bite into it and thinks that it is that ‘bitch’ [female dog] companion [smell]. Hanabi grabs it from Nanpa’s mouth and tells him that he can’t [play with it]. She then sees a ball of yarn/thread in her cabinet. She goes to it and thinks that she is really angry. Please, please..disappear from my sight.

While walking to school, there is a mantis on Mii’s shin that has cling on her sock. The guys behind her start to drool as Mii bends over to remove it. They were disappointed when their view is obstructed by Chikai. Chikai tells Mii that she is surrounded by beasts. While holding the mantis, Mii looks at him as Chikai tells her that she isn’t like a girl. Chikai then walks away. In class, Kareshi shows them the flower pattern that she is going to make into a blanket. Atsumi says that Kareshi is really talented, she will make a good wife. Kareshi says Atsumi is good in cooking so she can get a man through his stomach. Hanabi and Mii wonder what about us. Mii tells Hanabi she is cute..inside, she is cute. Kareshi and Atsumi agree with this. Hanabi says she will be embarrassed by that. Mii tells her that she said, ‘inside’. Hanabi remembers writing Sasa’s name on the form and thinks that it is better to not to be honest about liking someone for even if one is honest, the other person won’t return it [the feelings]. Hanabi tries to change the topic by asking what the others will be making for the project. Mii says she will make a really short scarf. Atsumi says didn’t Hanabi planned on making a scarf. She thinks it is better to make a hat and mittens for Sasa. She imagines Sasa wearing ‘doggie’ like hat with mittens. Atsumi drools and says I want to eat. Hanabi said she already wrote down that she is going to make a scarf. Hanabi suggests that they buy some materials. Atsumi suggests that they go to Maggie Town so that after shopping, she can go to her work. Mii is going too since she wants Kareshi to help her pick some things. Kareshi suggests that after they wait for Atsumi to finish her work, they would study together that night. Hanabi is excited over the idea. She thinks that even if she doesn’t know much [about love], but it is the first time she starts to feel pain.

They go to a craft store and Hanabi likes a lot of things that she bought a lot. When she is going to pay, she is surprised by the huge amount that it is going to cost her. She thinks that in liking things, one must have money and she remembers Ami’s words to her. While walking, Hanabi tells them that after drinking something, why don’t they go in a gift shop which sells a lot of cute things. Hanabi laughs that she doesn’t have any more money so she will just look around. She then notices a sign on the shop. It is an advertisement on looking for help for the shop. In a small fastfood restaurant, Atsumi waves her hand at Mii and Kareshi who were drinking something while waiting for her. Kareshi asks if Mii is also going to find work. Mii says if there is a work that is easy, she will. Kareshi says she doesn’t think there is such a job. Hanabi enters the place. She is smiling and flashes a V-sign. She tells them that she got the job. The owner agrees to wait for her to finish the exams before starting. Hanabi says it will be fun working there since there are a lot of cute stuff. Mii asks isn’t there any easy jobs. Hanabi tries to say something when Atsumi asks Hanabi how was it. Hanabi happily says she got it. Atsumi says that’s great and they’ll be together when it’s break time. Hanabi thinks that happiness is waiting for her..it is how it should be.. A girl then approaches and greets Atsumi. Atsumi says it will be her shift next. The girl says it is and she hopes it won’t be too busy later on. Hanabi freezes as the girl looks at her. Hanabi remembers her with Chikai. The girl smiles at Hanabi. Hanabi blurts out, girlfriend.. The girl and Mii are surprised, probably the others, too.

Blushing, Hanabi says, isn’t it right, you’re Chikai’s. Atsumi asks the girl if it is true. The girl says it’s true, are they schoolmates with Chikai? Hanabi is stunned that the girl calls Chikai by his first name. The girl smiles and says I should say..thanks for your care so I’ll get ready for work. As the girl goes in, Hanabi thinks I have no hope and I shouldn’t hope. Winning this, I never thought of it. A loser like me, what am I in Chikai’s eyes? Hanabi tells her friends that she is going to the comfort room. Her friends seem worried about her. As she goes, she sees Chikai asleep on a bench near a vending machine. Hanabi wonders if he is waiting for his girlfriend there. She takes out a hair elastic band she made for Cleo. She remembers Chikai wearing her elastic band for his ponytail and happily embracing Cleo. Hanabi starts to stretch the band and laughs at herself. Ah.ha.ha.ha, how pitiful, making this thing. While she is stretching it, it fly out of her hands and hits Chikai’s forehead. The band is now on the bench beside Chikai. She tries to grab it when Chikai is half-awake and asks, is it over? Good work. He then grabs Hanabi’s face and says,...Yukine.. Hanabi quickly pushes him away. Chikai hits the wall and is now wide awake. He sees Hanabi in front of him. Blushing and a bit teary-eyed, Hanabi says, I’m not Yukine..sorry about that, it’s me. Hanabi quickly runs off. In Chikai Uno’s eyes, I’m ‘a stupid person’? ‘Pitiful person’? You can laugh...use this kind of expression to like me. Chikai notices the band beside him and picks it up.

Ah, the pain of being the ‘other’ in a love triangle. From the looks of it, Hanabi doesn’t have much of chance with Chikai for not only Yukine is pretty and nice, Chikai loves her. Well, at least she has something in common with Chikai. They are both dog lovers so that can be an advantage for Hanabi. Hm, is that why he made that dog craft for her? Hehe, I won’t be surprised if there is some dog romance later on. ^^;; With all the denials and frustrations, I’m beginning to have a bit of déjà vu of Parfait Tic. ^^; Hm, I think Hanabi’s friends will help Hanabi sort her feelings out. It is really obvious that she is jealous of Yukine. I’m a bit puzzled with Mii’s expressions lately. At first, I was thinking that she just feels angry at Chikai for ‘teasing’ Hanabi but in that mantis part, I begin to think otherwise. Is she interested in him, too? Also, there is Atsumi who seems to like Sasa. Scans by Tongyanen.

Quote of the day:
We give dogs time we can spare, space we can spare and love we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. It’s the best deal man has ever made. ~ M. Facklam

Weekly Jump Update: Bleach, Naruto, One Piece, Reborn, and PSYREN
Monday, April 14, 2008 @ 12:08 p.m.

Nothing much happened in Bleach [c. -106] except for more info dump and what was revealed at the last scene. While in division 2, Urahara is in charge of the investigation and detention of ‘perceived threats’ within gotei 13. Maggots’ nest is the place where these shinigami are imprisoned. Urahara brings Hiyori there against her will. When one of those threats tries to attack Hiyori, Urahara shows off his power by overpowering the guy using just one hand. They then go to a cell which holds Mayuri, the only one who is really dangerous among the group. Urahara has a proposal for Mayuri. He asks Mayuri to accompany him outside of that place. So, the two scientists knew each other. So, how could an ‘ex-perceived dangerous threat’ become a captain? Hmm, what could they be talking about and why did Urahara drag Hiyori there? I somewhat think that Urahara is trying to show to Hiyori the ugly side of soul society regarding detention of perceived threats when they haven’t done anything yet. Weird, I’m beginning to think Hiyori’s cute when I find her annoying before. ^^;;

When Sasuke sees Tobi’s sharingan, his eye turns into mangekyou sharingan and created a black fire on Tobi’s shoulder in Naruto [c. 397]. Tobi screams in pain as he withdrew in the shadows. Sasuke wonders what happened as his eye reverts back to normal. Tobi puts back his mask and tells Sasuke that Itachi gave his ‘black fire’ technique to him. It seems to be activate if Sasuke sees Tobi’s sharingan. Tobi’s theory is it is to keep him away from Sasuke. Sasuke is of course confused over what Tobi is talking about. Tobi asks if Itachi did something to him before he died. Sasuke remembers Itachi poking his head and the blood dropping into his eye. Itachi tells him that Itachi passed his powers to Sasuke. Sasuke became all confused so Tobi tells him that Itachi wants to protect him. Sasuke is shock as he can’t believe it and threatens to kill Tobi for lying. Tobi re-introduces himself as Madara, Itachi’s accomplice that night. Sasuke doesn’t want to hear anymore of this but Madara insists that he must know about Itachi’s life and what he did to protect him and their village. Okay, from the way Madara is talking, it seems that he is saying that Itachi only pretends being the bad guy but in reality, he is protecting everyone. For a villain, I wonder what is Madara’s agenda since he keep on insisting that Sasuke knows about his brother. To make Sasuke realize that he can’t go back to Konoha after everything he did for his revenge and yet, it turned out that the reason for his revenge isn’t really true? Anyway, I’m somewhat thinking in the lines that Sasuke would later on feel that he owes Itachi, if what Madara is saying is true, so he will join up with Konoha again. Luckily for him, Naruto and others will welcome him with open arms. And, there is no Naruto next week.

Hachi and others treat out Luffy and others to their takoyaki in One Piece [c. 496] while they are already out in the sea. Duval and others chase after them to thank them. Just as I thought, Duval got ‘beautified’ by Sanji’s kicks. It seems Duval become more cocky since he is now handsome than before. He gives them his ‘phone’ number and happily left with his gang. After they ate their fill of takoyaki, Sanji invites Hachi and others to rest in their ship and have some tea. Pappagg tells them there are two ways to go to New World. One is through a pass from the world government but since they are pirates, they can’t do that. The other way is to just walk over Red line and leaving the ship. Franky protests. Pappagg says processing and fees takes time but there is a different route to do that. The downside is that it is a more dangerous route since it is filled with sea monsters. Camie tells them that there is a hole in Red line which they can use to pass through and that is where Fisherman’s Island is located. In order for the them to pass through in the ocean floor, they are going to Shabondy archipelago where there are a lot of soap-like bubbles floating up. Robin asks about the log post but Hachi said that place isn’t really a land so the log post won’t record. It is made of trees like mangrove trees and in 79 trees, people build towns in each tree. They anchored at port 41. Hachi tells everyone not to forget so that they won’t get lost. Camie mentioned about going to an amusement park but it seems she can’t go. Hachi informs them that they will need someone to coat their ship with resin from the bubbles that comes out of the trees so that they can go underwater without the ship being destroyed by the pressure. Hachi tells them he knew someone who is good at it but they have to promise never to mess with the world nobles in the towns and pretend not to see anything even if someone is going to be killed. Hmm, I think that is practically impossible for Strawhats to do that because they tend to help those who are being bullied, etc. I’m sure they will ‘free’ those town from the world nobles.

Tsuna is getting worried about the others while Spanner is busy doing something in Katekyo Hitman Reborn! [c. 189]. He tries to ask Spanner a lot of questions like what is happening and why does Spanner want to help in perfecting his technique. Spanner tells him he just wants to see his technique and he doesn’t like the idea of killing him in just a remote manner. Tsuna protests that killing is bad then quickly apologizes that it’s his bad habit. Spanner says he doesn’t know what is happening but Irie is quite busy. He warns Tsuna not to provoke Irie for he is the type of guy who can see the whole picture as evident during an international school robotics competition they both participated before. Irie goes to a certain room as the two Cervello follow him. Irie decides to use something which only he and Byakuran knew about. Back to Ryohei and others, Ryohei finishes the Baishana by defeating the snake and making it fall on Baishana. Ryohei shares the same belief as Tsuna about not killing anyone. When Irie can’t contact Baishana anymore, he decides to use his ring to control the whole base. From the monitor, the whole base is divided in different cubes. He starts to rearrange everything to prevent the intruders from entering his lab. Everyone inside thinks that it is an earthquake. Because of the moving of the ‘blocks’, Ryohei and Hayato got separated from Takeshi. Ryohei tells Hayato to just continue on to their goal. They were surprised when they meet Gamma. Hehe, another fight coming up and I’m sure it will be Hayato’s turn. Since the Black knight is shown during the ‘earthquake’, I’m guessing he will be fighting Takeshi. It seems that because of Tsuna, they [Vongola] have a policy of ‘don’t kill’. Since Spanner mentioned about Irie being in a robotics competition, I’m thinking that Irie is more on brainwork and mechanics that he made that base like that. Well, that shouldn’t be a surprise since he does have a laboratory. ^^

Yoshina doesn’t want to leave Oboro in PSYREN [c. 18] . Kabuto insist on leaving him but he changed his tune when he himself also got sick. They dropped the plan to just run for it while ‘Tatsuo’ is charging. Amamiya decides to just fight against ‘Tatsuo’ while the two guys take care of the sick guys since ‘Tatsuo’ has finished charging his gun. Amamiya thinks to herself that she is returning the favor of being saved by Yoshina and Asaga before. She attacks ‘Tatsuo’ and made him waste a couple of shots. Amamiya then tries to mind read ‘Tatsuo’ to learn who he really is. I really find the interaction of the guys really amusing. Since the two got sick immediately there, I wonder if that place is more ‘toxic’ than the one they went before. I think that ‘Tatsuo’ is the same one that Asaga knew since plot-wise, it would be create more conflict rather than for them just to go all out on ‘Tatsuo’ because he is a fake.

Quote of the day:
Gratitude is a duty which ought to be paid, but which none have a right to expect ~ Jean-Jacques Rousseau