JFC, why are so many people just handwaving Mitsumi and dumping all of the responsibility on Shima?
No seriously. Look at the situation where Mitsumi demands why Shima didn't jump to her defense.
You are running two scenarios at the same time each with opposite results where you have NO idea how the opposite party is going to react.
A: You jump to their defense with the result A1: They thank you A2: OR They get mad for you treating them like they cannot defend themselves
B: You stand aside with results B1: They thank you for letting them stand up for themselves OR B2: They get mad because you didn't jump into the fray on their behalf.
See? Shima rolled a choice, and it came out wrong.
I wasn't expecting Shima to get it right the first time, nor am I expecting Mitsumi to react positively to this. They are still getting to know each other. But it was this, this FIRST sign of trouble (literally a nothing burger) that causes Mitsumi to bolt. This is what made me look at Mitsumi and say "what the heck? You made me read 7 books for you to do this?" Let me reiterate this Ethanobi; I read 6-7 books for it to just end it falling off a cliff without any ceremony. Also, (Ch 52) Shima tells her that Mitsumi interpreted Shima's feelings toward her not as romantic AND we have Mitsumi's friend, basically pointing out a potential flaw in her as in "all she really focuses on is studying". If you guys are telling me that Shima wasn't ready, SHE wasn't ready either. And if this is the confirmation from her friend, how on earth are you guys going to tell me that she was right on the money about Shima's feelings toward her? This just vindicates what I just said, and yet all you guys just keep handwaving everything Mitsumi does and dump all of this on Shima.