Imasara desu ga, Osananajimi wo Suki ni Natte Shimaimashita - Ch. 40 - Gears Setting Chaos In Motion

[ShiroiElTsukai]

Sorry champs, I fucked up... made a crucial translation mistake on the last two pages, I will go back and fix it and make sure it doesn't happen in the future

 

[Crisisninjax]

I love the discourse around this manga. I actually like Yami; I think she's a very human character, deeply flawed, and a little selfish, like we all are. You can tell none of this was to hurt Hikari intentionally; Yuu and Yami just got together first. She's a teenager in really shitty circumstances, with poor emotional regulation, and her only emotional outlet before befriending Hikari was Yuu. Shitty decisions are par for the course.

I'm not absolving her; once she found out Hikari was in love with Yuu, she should have told her, and she definitely should not have kissed him. I've seen comments saying she might be bipolar; it's not that deep; it's just emotion overruling rational thought—she literally says why is she doing this in her internal monologue. Also, she didn't see Hikari; this is clearly a past event from her perspective; she's saying she didn't know Hikari was there at that moment.

I get why the community doesn't like this arc; they thought they were getting a comfy childhood friend romance, and the rug was pulled out from under them. But the lack of empathy does make me laugh. You don't have to like Yami, but the way some people are acting, you would think she committed murder.

*Edit grammar

 

[mug3n]

Count me in...

Digo...
¿cuentame dentro?

*Ok, me acabo de dar cuenta, perdón por el retraso

 

[babugue]

Alright, had to dive back into this because the Yuu hate felt... seriously off. And yeah, after a re-read, my gut was absolutely right. It's not just that protagonists confessing after drama is common (generally someone confess to the protagonist and the love interest see and we get drama, here was the other way around); it's that the narrative heavily leans on the girls' perspectives, leaving Yuu's internal struggles mostly in the shadows until the very end.

People forget, or maybe as the story doesn't scream it enough from his PoV, but Yuu was crushing on Hikari for AGES. We see this clearly when he tells Yami about Hikari (Chapter 23: "There's someone there I want to catch up to, to stand beside"). His attempt to get into her high school, despite the odds (revealed in Chapters 16 & 17), wasn't a whim; it was a testament to his long-standing, one-sided love. Hikari herself admits internally she would have rejected him flat out if he'd confessed back then (Chapter 17: "The 'manly' me back then, according to her. The me who had never even considered romance. I might not have nodded yes to his confession."). She literally only saw him as a childhood friend, almost a younger brother figure, for the longest time.

Then Yami enters the picture. And let's be brutally honest, based on Yami's own recollections (Chapters 22-30, especially 29 & 30), she was the one who initiated and escalated their physical relationship, used him to cope with her own immense trauma, and then abruptly cut him off without a real explanation, leaving him in the dark. For her to then reappear and, in Chapter 40, unleash that tirade blaming him for not magically finding her or "chasing her enough" despite her being the one to ghost him? That's an incredibly unfair burden to place on anyone, let alone a teenage boy who was clearly just as invested. Of course, he'd be emotionally guarded after an experience like that. It's no wonder he tells Seki (Chapter 12) that his feelings for "someone" (Hikari) existed before he even met Seki, showing his emotional landscape was already complicated.

So, when Hikari finally catches feelings (like the title clearly spells out), Yuu is initially... cautious. That's not him being "indecisive"; that's a kid who's been burned, trying to protect himself. Remember Chapter 1? Hikari leans on his back, and there's no emotional flicker from him mentioned. Fast forward to Chapter 18, same scenario, and he's blushing intensely. That's him responding to Hikari (finally) showing some (albeit incredibly confusing and often demanding) interest. He isn't just "going with any person"; he showed zero romantic interest in Seki or Matsuyama (Chapter 16). His focus has always been narrow.

And let's talk about Hikari's "interest." She herself knows she's a handful (Chapter 19 is a prime example: "Even I can't defend myself today."). The whole festival invitation drama, where she spiraled because he hesitated for a moment? He didn't even say no! He ended up practically begging to go because she made him feel like he'd ruined everything. She repeatedly puts him in situations where he can't win, expecting him to read her mind. How many of us would keep pursuing someone who consistently pushes away or sends such mixed signals? Both Yami and Hikari did this to him in their own ways.

He does try to be open when he feels it's safe. He confessed his feelings of inadequacy to Hikari during their date (Chapter 17), how he always felt he was chasing her shadow, and she interpreted it as him seeing her as a "rival." Then, when he finally gathers the courage to confess his love directly at the festival (Chapters 37-38), a moment that should have been a triumph for both of them, Hikari rejects him (Chapter 38: "But! But! I hate liars!") because of the Yami situation that he was just as blindsided by.

So, why is Yuu getting all this flak? We're seeing the world almost exclusively through the girls' emotionally charged and often unreliable narration. This guy:

1. Loved Hikari from afar for years, got no reciprocation.
2. Got into an intense relationship with Yami, was deeply invested, then got abruptly abandoned and later blamed for her pain.
3. When Hikari finally shows interest, he cautiously opens up again, only to be emotionally manipulated by her mood swings.
4. Gets physically and verbally assaulted by Yami in front of Hikari (Chapter 40).
5. Confesses his long-held love to Hikari, only to be rejected again.

He's not "indecisive"; he's reacting to the emotional chaos these two create around him. He’s the one consistently putting his heart on the line when he feels there's even a sliver of a chance, only to have it crushed. The poor dude just got slapped and thrown to the ground (literally and figuratively) and rejected by the two people he genuinely cared about. Yeah, that's definitely not going to affect him at all, right? The distress is pretty evenly distributed, if not more so on Yuu's side for being the emotional punching bag. Seriously, cut the guy some slack. What would you guys do in his shoes?

 

[KuroeNekumi]

Man...
To be as screwed up in the head as Yami...
That's just rough.

Also kinda funny she exploded like that yet Hikari only saw the kiss and didn't hear jack shit about what they were talking about.

 

[nogoodsumbeach]

"Well, now that everything related to Yami senpai is settled, I've finally moved on, and realized that the person I really love is my dear childhood friend Hikari, so I'm going to confess to her today. What could possibly go wrong?"

Sounds like a good plan to me hahaha

Nah but seriously tho imo sometime between him being ghosted by Yami and his confession to Hikari, Yuu realised that the one he really loves is Hikari.
I think this conversation between him and Yami is just the final push he needed for the confession instead of it being the main reason why he does confess.

But idk maybe i am wrong lol

 

[Litreara]

Like the real story here is that they're not actually all that close. They just hang out because they live next door. And that's the extent of their relationship.

Yuu and Hikari have known each other since they were six years old. Not only are they incredibly close, but their families are too. Hikari’s parents have always been busy with work and often relied on Yuu’s mom to take care of her. Even now, Hikari regularly has dinner with Yuu’s family because her parents are still working late.

Yuu even buys Hikari’s mom a birthday present. I don’t even know when my closest friends’ moms’ birthdays are.

So I genuinely don’t understand how you came to the conclusion that they’re “not actually all that close” and only hang out because they happen to live next door.

 

[GRilledGalaxy]

Ofc she was the issue. Yuu still fumbled the confession.

 

[nogoodsumbeach]

Dude did not know the two were friends. At all. If he did, then, yeah. "I was in a pretty intense relationship with your best friend" would be important to say upfront.

This chapter just confirms he does know tho, like yeah Yuu just found out that both Yami and Hikari were friends but when he does confess to Hikari he does know that fact.

Like Yuu hiding his past relationship with Yami from Hikari is understandable, but the moment he found out they were friend he should be upfront about it if Yuu want to confess to Hikari.

imo Yuu not telling Hikari about any of the details before the confessions is because he fears that it would lower his chance and i totally get why he does that, but it doesnt mean what he does was right. Hikari rejecting his confession because she saw what happen is even more of a reason why he should just be upfront about it.

And i am saying this as someone who still want to see Yuu and Hikari ending up together, but i hope these next few chapters will be Yuu telling Hikari the truth about everything because its the only way for them to be together.

 

[GennArc]

I actually like Yami, I think she's a very human character, deeply flawed, and a little selfish like we all are. You can tell none of this was to hurt Hikari intentionally, Yuu and Yami just got together first. She's a teenager in really shitty circumstances, and her only emotional outlet before befriending Hikari was Yuu.

To further your point, I think her circumstances are not meant to make her more sympathetic, they are just there to build her up as a character. Instead of "her life was shitty so it makes me feel sorry for her", it's more about "this is how she became this charmingly flawed character who makes this story livelier".

 

[Rafalga]

No one should end up with anybody and everyone needs to grow up first. This is a train wreck with no logical solution on sight. Maybe a time skip at the end to when they are young adults i donno.
Stop self inserting for a few seconds and look at everything objectively.

 

[jojoka]

Yuu haters in shambles now that Yuu is proven innocent. Hope you guys apologize to him.

Nope still an asshole, if he was interested in Hikari he would of stepped out of that situation instantly especially after he was ghosted. This just makes him more spineless and pathetic.

 

[GennArc]

imo Yuu not telling Hikari about any of the details before the confessions is because he fears that it would lower his chance

I don't get why you guys keep mentioning the chances. Does he really seem to be a calculating kind of guy to you?
To me it seems like that was all quite spontaneous. He just had a soul-crushing encounter with his ex girlfriend who ended up bidding him farewell. He probably felt like he just had to confess now or it all goes to waste. And it's been 30 minutes since he first learnt about their friendship, so he either confesses or goes full backstory of having an intimate relationship with her best friend.

 

[middle-the-nerd]

Yuu is clear in my book, I wouldn't act differently than he did, absolutely dumbfounded at the sack of bullshit she is trying to throw on him. She ghosted him and now she demands him to do something about it, she slaps him even if she is in the wrong and knows it and then goes for a kiss while knowing Hikari was there? I'm sorry, this is not how it works. I would lend her a hand if she was willing to accept help, but that's it, she's too far gone.

Yeah I pretty much think the same thing

Would the smart thing probably have been to be a little more open about what happened and not lie? Sure but it's clear it really affected him what happened i can understand why he wouldn't want to be honest about it and honestly, most of the people who think they would have handled it better if they were in his shoes are full of it- it's incredibly easy to think that when viewing it with a level head but it's completely different in the moment

But I do think he absolutely should take responsibility and apologize to Hikari for not being honest she dies deserve that

 

[Kimochi-kun]

No one should end up with anybody and everyone needs to grow up first. This is a train wreck with no logical solution on sight. Maybe a time skip at the end to when they are young adults i donno.
Stop self inserting for a few seconds and look at everything objectively.

Iyup, i genuinely think all 3 of them should stay away from each other, at least for a few years.

Because the way they are now, and as things stands, their relationships will not be healthy.

 

[middle-the-nerd]

Also yeah- I think we can now completely confidently, say Yuu x Yami isn't just cooked it's fucking incinerated

 

[misopogon]

I feel like this manga is an elaborate shitpost, it's almost like it's being written ironically

 

[middle-the-nerd]

I agree Yuu is indecisive and still has that wishy-washy attitude even in this chapter, but dont think him still caring/tries to care for Yami is an example of that imo.
Think its just normal Yuu to still cares for Yami even tho he already moves on. Like it is his first ever real relationship, Yuu not being in love with Yami anymore doesnt mean he has to stop caring for her.

Imo while he's extremely wishy washy like a lot of people point out and I agree it's frustrating (even if I can understand it) I don't think he's a bad person

Him still caring about Yami feels in character to me but not because he's wishy washy, but because he is a nice guy overall

He's a teenager deeling with some issues and not handling is well not a complete dickhead

And just to be clear, not saying this voids him of responsibility of his actions not at ALL just that I can understand and sympathize with what he's facing mentally/emotionally especially given his age the the takeaway from everything shouldn't be that he's a shitty person it's that he needs to get his act together and take responsibility

 

[middle-the-nerd]

I don't get why you guys keep mentioning the chances. Does he really seem to be a calculating kind of guy to you?
To me it seems like that was all quite spontaneous. He just had a soul-crushing encounter with his ex girlfriend who ended up bidding him farewell. He probably felt like he just had to confess now or it all goes to waste. And it's been 30 minutes since he first learnt about their friendship, so he either confesses or goes full backstory of having an intimate relationship with her best friend.

Yeah Yuu definitely didn't think his confession through much lol

My current prediction is He didn't suddenly do it because he felt like like his chances rose dramatically or anything he just probably got closure from Yami after everything between them and now had a sorta "now or never" feeling- you know the kind where you feel like if you don't do it in that moment you feel like you never will?

It all feels purely driven by emotions, not by rational thinking

 

[ThanOneDude]

this is straight PEAK