~ MonStar's little blog ~

Jul 13, 2023

by Mon

Manga Reading: Nana Volume 6🍓

Manga Reading: Nana Volume 7 🍓

"Nee Nana, forgetting about our mistakes and our wounds isn't enough to make them disappear. even now I keep calling your name despite my pain, I'll keep doing that until you answer me"

I finished reading this volume last month but, it took me forever to sit down and write this post. But, here we are now, even if I'm almost done with volume 8~

Volume 7 is another orange volume, we see both Nanas in what seems to be the subway station, they are checking a "timetable" book. They look really happy. ♡

As we all know by now, this volume is divided in 4 chapters, from 21 to 24 so, let's get into it!

Chapter 21 starts with Blast's third concert in Tokyo, which was super crowded. Hachi and Misato-chan were already there. Jun-chan and Kyosuke arrived a little later but didn't see the show, the decided to let two other girls in cuz there were no places available anymore and they were clearly, hardcore Nana fans. They did pretty well, which was perfect because a person from Gaia Records was there too, and he realized how good the band was and their popularity.

He meets them at the end of the show and offers them to discuss a few things so they could have a chance to debut as a professional band. Because of this, Hachi and Misato-chan went back home right after the concert, Jun-chan and Kyosuke gave them a ride and also invited them to their art exhibition.

Nana calls Hachi to let her know they won't be back until very late cuz of the meeting. Even tho, she is happy for them, she can't help to feel a little left behind, especially cuz she prepared a lot of food to celebrate with them. Hachi and misato-chan end up eating part of the food she made and chatting for a while. Since Misato-chan will spend her Summer break there, Hachi decides to message Takumi and let him know so he doen't randomly show up while she's there. Takumi calls her just to make sure her visit is a woman, he smiles as soon as he hears her answer. Hachi also tells him she misses him and wants to see him. She leaves the apartment as soon as they hang up to meet him, leaving Misato-chan alone. Reira heras their onversation and pretends to feel sick so she can stay at the same hotel as Takumi and call Shin-chan.

Then we see Blast going back home after the meeting, Yasu says he'll think about Gaia's proposal and give him an answer soon. Meanwhile Nana, Shin and Nobu share a taxi, Nana is planning to go back home to see Hachi while Shin receives a message from Reira and leaves the taxi before the others.

When Nana arrives to the apartments, she realizes Hachi is gone, she also notices a new microwave oven Hachi bought, a lot of food and a cake in the fridge, this makes her feel bad cuz she knows Hachi prepared it for them.

Hachi and Takumi reunite, at the same time as Shin-chan and Reira.

Chapter 22 Nobu hears someone knocking on his door at 6am, she opens thinking it's Shin but, it's actually Nana, who brought part of the food Hachi made and the cake. He wants to thanks her right away but, it is way too early for that. so they have an early breakfast together. At the same time, we see Hachi getting ready to leave the hotel, she realizes Takumi was still sleeping, which surprises her. She feels bad for calling him when she feels lonely even tho he's tired and leaves him a note before leaving. We also see Reira and Shin-chan in their hotel room. Shin refuses to take Reira's money this time, telling her she paid a lot last time so he'd take that as a part of last night's money. (My sweet Shin-chan's life is so sad sometimes 💔).

Later that day, Hachi starts worrying about her future, not only because she feels lonely but also because she doesn't have a stable job and she feels stuck. When she arrives to the apartment building she notices she received a letter from Mizukoshi-san, her former boss, telling her he recently got married, which makes her feel even worse.

As soon as she gets to the apartment, she's greeted by a very happy Misato-chan, she's happy because all Blast members (except Nana) are there. Shin-chan immediately runs towards her to give her a big hug. They start talking about the record label and how they should accept the offer they are making. Hachi tells them how much she likes their music despite not knowing anything about punk, besides knowing the Sex Pistols because of a movie. She's sure they'll be a big success.

At some point, they run out of alcohol and Shin asks Hachi to go get more, Nobu offers to go with her. She feels a little awkward cuz she doesn't know wha to talk about when they are alone, especially now that she knows he has feelings for her. She apologizes and tells him she's glad they met again cuz she thought he wouldn't want to see her again. Hachi tells him he might be idealizing and that once he knows her true self, he'll be disappointed, to which he tells her she should go ahead and disappoint him or he won't know how to let her go otherwise. They just hug after that.

Back in the apartment, Shin asks Yasu about his relationship with Reira, he wants to know if he was ever jealous of Takumi. Yasu admits he was, but not because of Reira, he was a little jealous of his talent. He also shares a little bit of how their relationship evolved until he realized he could never help her when he needed him. Suddenly, Nana arrives and wonders where Hachi is, Shin tells her she left with Nobu, this makes her really happy for some reason.

Then we go back to Nobu and Hachi. As they're are hugging, Hachi realizes she really has to end things with Takumi if she wants to have something with Nobu, that hug made her feel really good. Then, they kiss.

Chapter 23 After sharing a kiss, Hachi and Nobu hold hands and walk to the store but, she keeps wonderin what could be on his mind after everything that had happened between them and Takumi. In the apartment, Nana asks Yasu to tell the man from Gaia to prepare a contract as soon as possible, then she decides to take a bath as everyone starts leaving assuming Hachi will spend the night with Nobu.

When Hachi and Nobu are at the convenience store, they see a poster about a firework expo, Nobu asks her if she wants to go with him, this makes her happy and, of course, she says yes. They walk back to the apartment holding hands again and start talking about random things that lead them to end up talking about Takumi and how Hachi didn't want anyone to find out about them. Nobu understands and tells her he's willing to wanit for her and do everything he can to make her happy.

When she arrives home, Misato-chan is surprised she came back alone. Hachi goes to the bathroom, where Nana is already taking a bath, she undresses and jumps in the bath tub with her and tells her about Nobu inviting her to see the fireworks together. Nana seems to be a little upset cuz she expected Nobu to do a little more than just inviting her to do that.

Now in her room, Hachi thinks about ending things with Takumi through the phone, then she takes down the Trapnest poster she had. Then we see Trapnest talking about how the paparazzi had been following them and how they have to be very careful with everything they do. Especially Ren having Nana staying at his place. While they're at it, Takumi receives a message from Hachi asking him to call her whenever he can, he calls right away. Even tho she was planning to end it, she couldn't do it through the phone, it didn't feel right so she asked him to meet to which he replies he can't because they're in the middle of shooting a TV show. He quickly asks her if she's pregnant, feeling releived when she says no, telling her he's glad cuz it'd be "bothersome" if she was. This makes her feel angry so she tells her not to call her again and, hangs up. He doesn't seem to understand why she got so upset. Hachi waits for a couple of minutes to see if he'd call her again but, he never does. She realizes she was hanging onto a man who didn't really care about her but, at the same time she's proud thinking she broke up with him. In a way.

The next day, Hachi unexpectedly visits Nobu at work, he's surprised cuz he thought it'd take longer for her to end things with Takumi. After work, they go to his apartment and, sleep together.

Chapter 24 We see Hachi and Nobu in bed, talking about his family, Nana back in high school and their relationship with Ren. The next morning, Hachi arrives to the apartment, finally finding Nana there. Hachi's nervous to tell her about what's happenening with Nobu and tries to avoid the topic but Nana asks her if she was able to find him at work. At some point, Hachi starts crying and tells her she's fallen in love with him. Later that day, Nobu and Hachi go to Jun-chan and Kyosuke's art event, which took Jun-chan by surprise. After the event, she meets with Kyosuke and Shouji at Jackson's Hole and tells them everything about Hachi's new relationship. There are some cute Jun-chan x Kyosuke scenes after that, where they talk about Hachi and Shouji and what made their relationship fail. They are always really cute together.

Takumi tries to call Hachi but the calls won't go through, this annoys him. He kinda complains about it with his bandmates and, even tho Ren knows about her new relationship with Nobu cuz Nana told him, he doesn't say anything. We move on to Nana and Nobu talking about Hachi. He thanks her for helping him and supporting him through it all which to she replies she wasn't doing it for him, she only used him to "keep Hachiko tied up in her garden", Nobu is shocked but doesn't have time to say anything cuz Hachi arrives, interrupting them.

Nobu decides to talk to Shin about it, Shin admits Nana can be a little too possessive and also points out how toxic her relationship with Ren is. In the end, Nobu tells Shin he should try loving someone but Shin says that is impossible for him.💔

We move on to see Yasu and the guy from Gaia with Shin's step-dad since they need his approval to sign the contract. Yasu realizes the man doesn't love or care bout Shin at all, which is pretty sad.

Towards the end of the volume, we see Hachi and Misato-chan painting Hachi's room, she wants to get rid of the mark the Trapnest poster left on her wall. In a way, it is a way to officially leave everything she had with Takumi behind.

And that is rhe end of volume 7. As always, there's a Junko's room section that keeps getting weirder and more random each time.

Oops! I think this was a long post again. I'll keep my thoughts short. I think now that I read this volume, I realized that Nana and Hachi's friendship was a little toxic too. Too many toxic relationships in this story, omg. Still love them so much and I think Nana is the coolest.

Anyway, the links to my previous Nana manga posts will be linked down below in case you haven'r read them or feel like doing it, hehe. (They are all super long tho)

Manga Reading: Nana Volume 5🍓

Apr 4, 2023

by Mon

Manga Reading: Nana Volume 5 🍓

Manga Reading: Nana Volume 6 🍓

"We've spent an enourmous amount of time together, however... I didn't understand you at all.
I didn't even realise that I had hurt you.
Forgive me."

It's time to check Nana volume 6! I think now I am reading a volume a month, and even tho I'm still behind, I'm proud of myself. At least I'm reading something. Hehehe.

Anyway, volume 6 it's also a hot pink volume. I'm starting to see a pattern here. We have Nana and Hachi traveling in what seems to be a train or a bus. Hachi has a drink amd Nana is eating something that looks like a hotdog or something. Love it.

Something I forgot to mention on my previous posts is that at the end of each volume, there is a "message from the Author" part where Ai Yazawa shares short stories or messages about the process of making this story and things that inspired her back then.

This volume is divided in 4 chapters as usual. From chapter 17 to 20. Let's do this!

Chapter 17 Starts with Jun-chan and Kyosuke having breakfast and talking about Hachi and how much she has changed in the past few days. Kyosuke suspects her change could be thanks to a "new man." I love these two, they act like an old married couple sometimes. Then we see Hachi talking to Nana and the other Blast members about her new job as a demonstrator in a supermarket (dunno if that's the right name, tho) and how fun it is, especially cuz she gets to wear cute outfits.

They all leave the rehearsing studio together, Nobu and Shin start talking about the Trapnest concert they all will attend the next day, Hachi is not going tho. She said she would be busy. For some reason, Nana and Shin have a short conversation about Tanabata, Nana is surprised he doesn't know what it is about and, Hachi ends up inviting him to the apartment so they can celebrate it and write their wishes on the tanzaku and hang them on the bamboo tree. This scene is super cute! They all make the most random wishes and, since it is really how and they don't have AC in the apartment, Nana decides to turn a fan on, right in front of the bamboo tree, makeing all the tanzaku fly out the window. They show this scene of all the tanzaku flying and we can read Nana's wish: "I want Hachiko to find a long haired boyfriend" ♡

The next day, Hachi is getting ready while watching TV, Trapnest is having their last concert and Takumi promised to visit her when that happened. She wonders if he's actually do it but she's almost sure, he won't cuz he hadn't been in contact with her while he was on tour. Still, she decides to buy some ingredients to cook for him, just in case. She remembered he really liked the tomatoes Jun-chan gave her and goes to see her to get some more. They talk a little and she leaves to start cooking. A part of her doesn't want him to go cuz that way it'd be easier for her to just give up, other wise she thinks she would have to tell Nana everything that's been going on between them. When Nana arrives, she's surprised with the amount of food Hachi made, she lies telling her she thought Ren was coming too but Nana tells her they have a wrap up party. They end up having dinner together while talking about the concert. Nana tells Hachi she couldn't help to compare herself with Reira which, in a way, motivated her to practice a lot harder to become better than her.

While the girls are talking, the other Blast memebers are waiting for Trapnes backstage, Yasu decides to leave before they arrive. And, here is where Reira and my sweet Shin-chan first met. They all go to the after party together, in which Takumi is asked to sign some pictures. This reminds Ren he promised to give Hachi Takumi's autograph. When he asks him, Takumi says she won't need it anymore cuz he slept with her the next day they met. Ren is surprised, he knows Takumi is a player and how important Hachi is to Nana. He acts super rude and tells them he didn't pushed her to do anything and that she even "wagged her tail with joy". This made Nobu really mad but, he just left. Shin-chan approached Takumi and threw his drink at Takumi's face before leaving the place. This is why I love Shin-chan so much, he really adores Hachi and, sometimes, acts very mature for his age. Reira laughs at Takumi and since he's upset, he decides to leave saying the whole situation reminded him he had somewhere to go.

Back to the apartment, someone rings the bell at 3:05am, waking Nana up and wondering who could it be, she leaves her room to open the door and finds Takumi holding Hachi at the door. She's shocked, Takumi just makes a sign, asking her to stay quiet. She goes back to her room with a worried look on her face.

Chapter 18. We see Nobu and Shin on the street talking about what happened before. They both look sad but nobu looks veeeery disappointed. Shin pretty much encourages him to fight for Hachi cuz he can tell he loves her. They decide to take a taxi and, go home. Then we see Nana in a café waiting for Yasu, who looks really worried when he arrives. Nana doesn't want to tell him the real reason why she left the apartment at such a super duper early hour in the morning at the beginning so she tells him she realized she left her wallet at home and needed him to help her with that. They chat for a while and in the end, she tells him she left because Takumi arrived and didn't want to bother them. Even tho she says Hachi is free to date whoever she wants, she hates the idea it' had to be Takumi. Nana is someone who likes to be in control so, she admits that even tho she doesn't own her, seeing her taking a different path makes her feel alone. We move on to Hachi and Takumi in bed. They start talking about how popular they must be with the opposite sex and how Takumi is glad she doesn't have a boyfriend. He also tells her he doesn't want to share her with anyone. I used to think this was kinda cute years ago.

Nana and Yasu leave the café, Yasu goes to work and Nama to Ren's place. He asks her to move in with him, she just says she'll think about it. The next day Hachi is waiting for Nana, wondering when she'll be back home cuz she wants to talk to her about everything that's going on in her life. Someone knocks at the door and she quickly goes get it thinking it could be Nana but, it's acually Nobu. He seems to be willing to talk to her, he even rejects a beer saying "he doesn't need it to say what he has to say" but in the end the only thing he says before leaving is that he will become better than Takumi. This leaves Hachi feeling a little confused.

Then we have a short scene of Yasu checking the voice messages on his phone, he has a message from someone at Gaia Music telling him he saw the demo he sent and he'd like to talk to him in person. Then we see Reira paying Shin-chan before entering the hotel room, Nana buying some things to have at Ren's house and Hachi alone in the apartment.

Chapter 19. We see Hachi waiting to hera from Nana, really late at night, she receives a message in which she tells her she'll spend the night at Ren's but she'll meet her the next day to hear everything about her love story. Then we see Reira and Shin in bed, she's telling him a little more about her and how people expect a lot from her. I used to like her, she's a very lonely person but, honestly, I don't like her that much anymore.

We move on to what seems to be the next day, Nobu and Shin are talking in the rehearsal studio about what happened with Hachi. Shin still thinks Nobu should be brave enough to tell her how he really feels. He also mentions he lost his favorite lighter, which is a super cool Vivienne Westwood which is also a necklace he always wears. Yasu arrives followed by Nana, she wants to know how his meeting with the people form the record label went. Later that day, Nana goes back to the apartment and tells Hachi about the call from the record label. She gets super excited and assumes Blast would have a debut soon. Nana explains someone from the record label will go to their next concert and see what happens from there.After that, Hachi apologizes for not saying anything the night Takumi went to see her. Nana seems to be ok with it but also tells her she's planning to spend a few days at Ren's. They continue talking about Takumi, the fact that all the Blast members are aware of what's going on between them and the fact that Nobu is in love with her. Hachi is super confused and not sure about what to do with Takumi and Nobu. Nana asks her not to worry about it.

Nobu is constantly thinking about what he told Hachi and how he can't just leave things the way they are. While he's talkinh, Shin receives a phone call from Reira and and tells Nobu he has to leave right away because of "work". Before he leaves he tells him there is something he can beat Takumi at, and that is love. Shin arrives at the hotel where Reira is staying, she called him using as an excuse the fact that he left his lighter necklace thingy there. She invites him in but he refuses to stay if it's not for "work." She gives him the lighter back and he tells her he lied when he told her he charged ¥100 thousand a night the first time they met and that he felt weird receiving that much money and that, because of that, she can spend another night with him whenever she wants. Then he just leaves.

Then we have a scene of Hachi and Nobu outside the apartment, they start talking about what happened the other night, he apologizes and tells her he really likes her even tho he knows she might be in love with Takumi. They walk back to the apartment, she's kinda confused cuz she doesn't even know if what she feels for Takumi could actually be love. Nobu's words made her feel way happier than when Takumi said he didn't want to share her with anyone else. In the end, she decides do move on and if Takumi ever calls her again, she'd end things with him.

The next day Hachi finds a note from Nana on the table, she left to spend 2 weeks with Ren. Hachi feels a little worried, she wonders if she really will be back after those 2 weeks.

Chapter 20 We have a few short scenes: Ren and Nana are having breakfast together, Ren suggests they should go on a trip now that he has some free time but Nana turns him down cuz she's busy with rehearsals and prepping for the concert. Then he notices she's taking birth control pills and asks her about it, to which she tells him he should find another woman if he wants to have kids.

Then we see Shin with a woman named Ryoko-san, she's obviously older than him. It seems like they have spent the night together. From what I know, this woman is someone who has "taken care" of my sweet baby Shin-chan and taught him everything he knows about women. She tells him she's traveling to America soon, so she won't be seeing him for a while.

Last short scene shows Yasu meeting up with Naoki (Trapnest member), they were friends back in high school too. They have a short conversation about why Yasu changed his mind about moving to Tokyo and become a part of a band. Yasu says he did it because of his "fatherly love" for the band.

We move on to Takumi smoking on the beach, unexpectedly Reira walks in, surprising him. She said she was looking at him from afar for 30 minutes. It looks like their families live in the same city. Takumi's mom is dead tho, and he doesn't have the best relationship with his father. Reira and Takumi have known each other since they were very young so, Reira mentions she also went to visit Takumi's mom's grave. She suggests they should do something together now that they bumped into each other but, he declines.

Back in Tokyo, Blast is rehearsing for the concert and Hachi is there with them. Nana wonders where could Takumi be and why he hasn't contacted Hachi. But she seems to be ok with it, in a way it's better fo her. She also says there is no point in contacting him if he's gonna end up ignoring her, which is sad. She's actually there to see Nobu, she keeps thinking about the last conversation they had and how if Takumi doesn't contact her anymore, she'd become another girl he abandoned and that way she won't feel bad for starting something with Nobu.

Nobu walks Hachi to the apartment after the rehearsal. They don't talk about anything important really, but suddently Hachi sees Takumi's van, a black 4x4 Mercedes, she gets super nervous and tells Nobu she can walk home alone from there, she doesn't want them to see each other but, Takumi gets off the car before Nobu leaves. He asks Hachi why is she out so late and tries to justify the fact that Nobu was with her. In the end, she goes with Takumi, leaving Nobu alone.

When they arrive to the apartment, Hachi is willing to ask him to leave and never call her again, she offers him some food or something to drink. He accepts the drink and before she realizes, he goes straight to her room and they end up spending the night together again. In a way she feels like Takumi is the only one who knows how empty she feels and doesn't judge her for that.

When Trapnest's break was over, Nana didn't come back home, Hachi stopped visiting Blast at the rehearsals because she couldn't see Nobu. We see Hachi picking misato-chan at the train station, she's going to spend a few days in the apartment since Hachi is still alone there. And that is where this volume ends. We also have a long Junko's room. I do read them but I never include them here because they are not really relevant in the original story and, it'd make these posts even longer.

I gotta say I love how Nana is very focused on her goals and doesn't let Ren or their relationship get in the way. For some reason, I didn't use to see Hachi's relationship with Takumi as a bad thing, at least not as bad as I see it now. In a way, I used to understand how she felt but everything is just toxic. I don't know if I mentioned this before but, the more I see Reira's relationship with Shin-chan, the more I dislike her~

I know after this chapters, some things will get super dramatic and kinda sad.

For some reason, I ended up making this post, a super long one too. Even tho I was trying to keep them shorter.

The previous posts are linked down below for you guys to check them if you want.

Feb 28, 2023

by Mon

Manga Reading: Nana Volume 5 🍓

“At that time I told myself that I didn't want to fall in love ever again. But that night while praying for your happiness Nana, I thought that despite all the wounds and all the pains it could cause I wanted to dream again, and love someone with all my heart.”

I'm back with Nana volume 5! I'm trying to get caught up here, hehe. Volume 5 is an orange volume again. It is slightly lighter than volume 3 tho, which was also orange. We can see both Nanas in what seems to be a café. It looks like they're ready to leave and they both bought something (idk it looks like bread to me). Like I've mentioned before, this covers have a continuation, it makes you feel as if you were following a side story. They are too pretty.

We have another short summary and this volume is also divided in 4 chapters: from 13 to 16. Let's get started!

Chapter 13 starts with both Nanas still at the concert, Hachi is worried thinking Ren never really noticed them even when they were really close to the stage. Before the concert is over, Trapnest members take a short break before performing their last song and while they start talking about their performance backstage, Ren runs to the bathroom to call Yasu, he did notice Nana was there. In the meantime Hachi asks Nana if she thinks Ren saw her to which she answers telling her it is almost impossible to see faces with all the lights on stage and that she hopes one day she can perform in a big stage too.

Yasu tells Ren he should try to see Nana because if he doesn't do it this time, he'll stay with her. And, he gives him Hachi's phone so he can contact her because Nana doesn't have one.

When Nana and Hachi go back to Hachi's family's house, Hachi is really sad because they couldn't have their reunion but, Nana seems to be ok with it. They have dinner together and shower after that. When Nana is showering, Hachi remembers she forgot to turn on her phone, and when she does, she realizes she had a message from Yasu telling her that Ren might call her, of course she freaks out and runs into the bathroom to tell Nana, she's worried they might have missed his call. They decide to call Yasu and Nana asks him for Ren's number cuz she doesn't want to wait, she's willing to go see him and end things

for good.

Then we see Ren in his room, thinking whether he should call Hachi or not when suddenly Reira knowck on his door. She can't sleep so she wants to go play cards in Takumi's room. She invites him but he turns her down. I feel like Reira is always kinda flirty with Ren and Takumi~ Anyway, when Ren goes back to his room, he receives a phone call from Hachi's number, he's surprised when he hears Nana's voice. She asks for his address so they can talk.

When she arrives to the hotel, she finds a way to enter without the fans noticing her but, she does find security and has a bit of a hard time trying to pass. But Ren comes to the rescue telling the security guy she's with him and giving him a can of coffee. So, they quickly go to his room and as soon as they close the door, Ren holds Nana tightly. at first she asks him to let go but she slowly gives in and hugs him.(This would be a romantic scene if I liked Ren~).

Then we move to Nobu's apartment, where he's playing mahjong with Shin and Yasu. They start remembering when they used to play with Ren and kinda remembering how things were back when he left Blast to join Trapnest.

And, we go back to Nana and Ren in his room. They both cry and kiss...

Chapter 14. Hachi and Jun-chan are on the phone at 4am, she was too excited about Nana and Ren that she couldn't sleep. When they finish talking, she tries to go back to sleep. In the meantime, Nana and Ren are in bed together. When Ren wakes up he realizes Nana is not in bed with him anymore and thinks she left. He gets out of bed and sees her things so, he goes to the bathroom and finds her taking a bath in this huge, fancy bath tub, filled with rose petals. He joins her and they start remembering the small bathtub they had when they used to live together. They talk about other things to and, in the end, they reconcile.

When Hachi wakes up the next morning, she notices Nana is there too. She's super curious and wants to know what happened but Nana doesn't really tell her. She does ask her if they could use their phone to stay in tocuh since Nana doesn't have one and, they don't have one at home either. In return, she'll ask Ren to get Takumi's autograph for her. This makes Hachi really happy, not because of the autograph but, because it means they are back together.

After seeing knowing what happened between them, Hachi starts longing for a boyfriend again, Jun-chan and Kyosuke kinda suggest she could try dating one of Nana's friends and her first thought is, Yasu. So, later that day, at the rehearsal, Hachi and Yasu are the first ones to arrive, she gets all nervous not knowing what to tell him so, she shows her the Trapnest book thingy she bought at the concert and also tells him how her boyfriend cheated on her. He tells her some nice things about her and Hachi decides to ask him if he has a girlfriend, to what he says that he's single. Right when she's ready to say something, Nobu arrives along with Shin-chan. Nana arrives after them and scolds Shin for smoking. She asks all the band members to stop smoking cuz, she wants to take care of her lungs a lot more to become a better singer. (she's basically doing it to become better than Reira.

She even starts working out.

A couple of days later, Hachi receives a message from Ren, telling her there will be a mahjong tournament at Nobu's and wants to see if he can stop by their apartment before that. She's super excited and replies right away saying yes. Nana, of course, ask her not to reply without telling her first and, they decide to change the tournament thingy to their apartment cuz, they'd have more space there.

Hachi marks the date on her calendar and doesn't think about anything else until the day comes. She plans her outfit, the food she's gonna make and even the flowers she'll but for decoration.

When the day comes, she even leaves work early. When she arrives home, everyone is already playing. She rings the bell for some reason and while she waits, she's thinking about a good way to introduce herself to Ren, since this will be her first time meeting him. When they finally open the door, she sees Takumi welcoming her with a "Welcome home, Nana-chan". She's speechless and starts crying, relizing this was Nana's doing as a way to thank her for what she's done for her and Ren.

Chapter 15 While the guys are playing mahjong, in which Shin-chan seems to be pretty good at, Nana and Hachi are in the kitchen, making some food. Nana joins them after that. Hachi continues cooking, thinking about many things at the same time, when suddenly she sees Takumi, next to her, eating one of the tomatoes Jun-chan gave her. He really liked them so, they have some small talk, sh'es super nervous and not sure about what else to say. The bell rings and breaks this kind of awkward moment between them. Takumi goes get the door and as soon as he sees Yasu, he greets him all friendly, which surprises Hachi, she had no idea they were friends.

They spend the rest of the evening playing and chatting, Hachi and even Nobu, learn a lot about the past they all have together, including the fact that Yasu and Reira dated for a while. This makes Hachi compare herself to Reira, thinking that Yasu could never look at her after dating someone as beautiful and talented as Reira.

At some point, they run out of alcohol, Nobu has to go buy more and Hachi decides to go with him. They continue talking on their way to the konbini and kinda bond a little. This makes Hachi think that if she can't start a relationship with Yasu, she could try with Nobu. They seem to want similar things. When they arrive to the apartment, Takumi is already gone.

The next day we see Hachi waking up to her phone ringing, she realizes Shin is sleeping next to her and asks him if something happened between them, to which he says nothing happened because she doesn't give him money. This shock her, considering his age. When she leaves her room she sees Nobu sleeping in thee dining area and a "do not disturb" sign on Nana's door. She assumes Ren stayed over too.

Her phone rings again, Yasu was trying to call her to wake her up, that way she wouldn't be late for work. Since it is already late, she shows up at work wearing a mask, claiming she woke up wit allergies. But, I guess people there were just tired of Hachi doing her own stuff during working hours and, they fire her.

Of course she is sad and worried. The girl likes nice things and she just can't afford them so she just sits on a bench in the street, drinking canned coffee while she thinks about what to do next. While she's at it, she receives a phone call from a private number. It is Takumi, and for some reason they are in the same are, he's stuck in traffic tho. He says he called her because he left without saying goodbye and he wanted to thank her for the food she made for them last night. They decide to meet.

Chapter 16 Hachi and Takumi are in his van, and while Takumi talks about what a coincidence it was that the two were in the area, she keeps thinking she must be dreaming. He mentions he wanted to see her again, which she didn't believe. It was too good to be true. Suddenly, Takumi turns around and kisses her while the traffic light is on red. Hachi is aware everyone says he is a player and this was no fairy tale. He drives to a hotel, acting cool. Hachi is super nervous and doesn't know what to do, she considers leaving but she ends up staying. He takes her to a very big, fancy room that makes her feel like a princess, it is the first time she stays in a place like that. She takes a shower while he orders room service, they have dinner together and chat for a while, then Takumi takes a shower. While he's in the shower, she thinks to herself that now she's already there, she's gonna enjoy the moment and promises not to fall for him.

Nana calls her from her new phone cuz it was late, Hachi couldn't tell her where she was and lied about spending the night at Jun-chan's. And well, they sleep together and he leaves after that cuz Trapnest would start a tour the next day, leaving a note with his number and e-mail for her. When she wakes up she realizes it is too late for her to go back home cuz she already missed the last train. This makes her cry cuz, in a way, that gave her some hope to see him again or at least, hear from him again.

After that we see Trapnest together, and also a bit of Blast in the rehearsal studio. When Nana and Hachi are back in the apartment, we see Hachi complaining to Nana, she applied to 3 part-time jobs and she was tured down, she wonders what could be wrong with her. Nana suggests she should look for a job based on things she likes, she seemed to be happy when she used to work in the antiques shop cuz she was surrounded by pretty things. Even tho Hachi wanted to tell Nana about Takumi, she wanted and advice but, she just couldn't.

Then we see a very quick scene where we find out Shouji and Sachiko are planning to move in together~

Lastly, we see Blast in what seems to be a dressing room, Nana receives a message from Ren and leaves the room after that.

That is the end of chapter 16. Then again, we have more Junko's room which seems to be longer each volume.

Ok, back when I watched the anime, everything that happened in this volume was very exciting. Even the Ren and Nana reunion and, I don't even like Ren! Blast and Trapnest reunited, being friends and getting along was fun and Hachi meeting Takumi was like a dream came true. At this point I used to like Trapnest a lot cuz their music (in the anime) were more my style and well, I liked Takumi. I mean, now I know he's not a good character but, the dude is hot! And until now, he was not that bad.

I don't think I have a lot to say about this one cuz, I enjoyed it a lot. I know I'll have more to say on the next one tho.

So, let's not make this post any longer. The previous random chit chats about the other volumes are linked down below, in case you missed them or want to check them out. (they are long and all over the place tho. You've been warned)

Jan 19, 2023

by Mon

Manga Reading: Nana Volume 4 🍓

“I wasn't really able to love someone but I couldn't help but want to be loved.”

I finally finished reading Nana volume 4! I'm so behind guys... I have volumes I haven't even opened yet and volume 8 should be out by now. Anyway; this time we have a pink volume with both Nanas in what seems to be somewhere out their apartment. They are both wearing the same outfits as the previous volume so, it's as if the covers of the manga were telling us a mini story.

As usual, we have a short summary of the story at the beginning and it is divided in 4 chapters, from 9 to 12.

I've realized these posts keep getting longer and longer so, I'll try my best to keep it in a decent lenght. Hehe.

Let's do this!

Chapter 9 last volume left us with Hachi, Nana and Shin waiting outside the restaurant where Shouji works because he said he wanted to talk with Hachi. Shin leaves the nanas alone when he receives a call from a client. It's a cold night and Nana wants to leave too but Hachi begs her to wait with her so, they wait for him together. I think Nana is super nice and sweet to Hachi in these scenes. She's the best. ♡

Then we see Shouji and Sachiko as they finish they work shifts, they are being all dramatic. Shouji tells her he's gonna break up with Hachi and she runs away, making a scene as she hears that. Shouji runs after her and when they both leave the place, Nana and Hachi see them. Nana asks him who's the girl and he introduces her as "his girlfriend". While Nana is angry, Hachi just stands there without saying anything and then she starts crying, Nana is about to punch Shouji but Sachiko gets in the way, blaming herself for what's happening. Nana tells Hachi to do something, to fight for her boyfriend to what she replies she doesn't want him. Of course she's shocked and very sad but, they decide to just leave. That night Nana stays with Hachi but has to go to work the next day.

The next day, Hachi spends most of her time in bed, dreaming about Shouji (and Trapnest). Jun-chan goes to check on her cuz she found out they broke up and was worried about her. This is a difficult situation for Jun-chan cuz she's friends with both, Shouji and Hachi so, she tries to understand them both. They talk for a while and then Jun-chan leaves.

Nana comes back home at night to find Hachi sitting in the dining room with the lights off. She's been there all day. Nana brings dinner and also gives Hachi an envelope she found on the mail for her. This is something that will cheer her up, tickets for the Trapnest concert back in her hometown.

Chapter 10. Jun-chan and Kyosuke are talking about Hachi's situation on their way to Jackson Hole, where they'll meet Shouji, who's trying to hide from them. They talk about what happened with Hachi and he says he wants to apologize to her. After a while he leaves the place with flowers for her ugly girlfriend because, it's her birthday.

We move on to the night of Blast's concert. Jun-chan and Kyosuke pick Hachi so they can go to the concert together. In the car, Hachi is telling them about the Trapnest concert and asks Jun-chan to go with her but she turns down her invitation. When they arrive to the place, it is super loud and crowded, the band before Blast is about to finish their presentation. While Jun-chan and Kyosuke go grab a drink, Hachi tries to find a place close to the stage. When the band is done playing, most of the people start leaving, Hachi notices it and starts talking to a girl loudly, telling her how amazing the next band (Blast) is. The girl starts fangirling back and Hachi thinks she's just playing along to help her. Truth is, Misato-chan (the girl) was already a big Blast fan, she's been following them since they used to play at Nana's hometown. Misato-chan is a highschooler who likes to dress Lolita style. She's a big Nana fan and a friend of hers. In a way.

When people start listening to their conversation, they come back to give Blast a chance. When the band walks in the stage, Hachi starts feeling nervous and super excited while Misato-chan hands Nana a rose as soon as she walks in and Nana recognizes her. This scene is super exciting in the anime! All the members look super cool and Nana's voice is just amazing.

The presentation goes pretty well, even Jun-chan and Kyosuke are impressed. When the show is over, they all go to the Nana apartment to celebrate along with Misato-chan. They are all eating, drinking and having a good time. But Hachi feels left out as Nana is too happy having Misato-chan there. They seem to be close. When everyone starts levaing Nana asks Misato-chan to stay over so she doesn't have to go and stay at a hotel. Misato shares a room with Nana, while Hachi stays in her room and can't sleep and starts thinking about a lot of things like imagining Misato-chan being in love with Nana, then Shouji and Asano-san and even about quitting her job. The next day she wakes up to a note from Nana telling her she went to Disney with Misato-chan, which of course, makes her super jealous. So she gets dressed and decides to go shopping to clear her mind. When she's out, she remembers she doesn't have any money to spend so, after some window shopping she goes to the supermarket to buy something for dinner. In the supermarket she sees Sachiko from afar. Sachiko doesn't see her but, Hachi ends up leaving the place without buying anything.

When she arrives home, Nana is there with Misato-chan, they seem to be very happy, wearing matching Minnie Mouse ears and already having dinner. Hachi gets really mad when she sees them cuz she feels like people are being taken away from her and asks Nana if Misato-chan will start living there too and that she should consider the fact that she is also living there. Nana looked really sad after listening to that and left with Misato-chan and didn't come back until next morning.

Chapter 11 starts with Nana knocking on Yasu's door super early in the morning (before 5am). She was surprised to see he was awake to what he replies he came back from work and continued working. She jumps in bed right away, ready to sleep, they have a short conversation and Nana leaves after that, not looking too happy. Yasu is so cute with her tho. Still think they shoulv'e ended up together.

Back in the apartment 707, Hachi is getting readu for work even tho she's exahusted cuz she couldn't sleep. As soon as Nana arrives, Hachi apologizes to her, Nana tells her she understands her in a way and that she isn't mad at her. Hachi asks her about Misato-chan cuz she wants to apologize to her too. Nana gives her the girl's number so she can call her before she leaves. Both Nanas leave for work. Hachi decides to call Misato-chan during her lunch break. She apologizes and they continue talking about Nana and Blast. Misato-chan tells her she's been a fan of Blast since Ren was part of the band. That surprised Hachi and she started connecting things like, Nana's Ren flower tattoo and the fact that she asked Shin to be better than Ren when he joined the band. She continues thinking about that for the rest of the day. She wonders if she should ask Nana about it. She's so curious that she decides to go to Nobu's place and ask him about it. Shin is there with him too.Who btw, already knew about Nana and Ren because Nobu told him when he was drunk.

Nobu tells her the story of how they met, the relationship they had and why they broke up, he also asked them not to ask Nana anything about Ren.

Suddenly Hachi starts feeling bad for fangirling over Trapnest and Ren with her, and even inviting her to the concert without knowing their story. When they are both back in the apartment, Hachi is super nervous, and tries to hard not to show she knows something about her relationship with Ren, and even tries to tell her it's ok if she doesn't want to go to the concert with her. But Nana interrupts her, telling her that she will go to the concert with her. Even tho Hachi is suprised by her answer, she's also happy cuz this is a chance for Ren and Nana to reunite and get together again.

The next day Hachi visits Nobu and Shin-chan in the rehearsal studio to ask Shin not to mention anything to Nana "in the name of a touching encounter." At the same time she's also daydreaming about how this encounter could give her the chance to start something with Takumi.

Later that day, someone knocks on Yasu's apartment again but, this time is not Nana, it is Ren.

Chapter 12. The morning of the concert, Hachi started pauing more attention to Ren, his likes and story and found many things in common with Nana's. She was surprised she never noticed before. (mostly because she was biased with Takumi). Both Nana's take a train to Hachi's hometown, all Hachi can think about is Nana and Ren being reunited at the concert. When they arrive they are greeted by Hachi's older sister, who takes them home. On their way home they talk about their lives in Tokyo. Nana is impressed when they arrive to the house. To her, the house is very big and beautiful, she also loves the environment of a loud house and a family.

Before they start getting ready for the concert, Nana opens uo about her past and Hachi cries because this was the first time Nana opened up to her and, because all the things that were normal for her, were something Nana didn't have. As they continue talking, Hachi asks her if she still loved Ren, Nana realizes Hachi invited her to the concert because she knew about her relationship with Ren. Nana doesn't really answer the question but, thanks her for the invintation and the intention.

We move on to the concert, it is crowded! Nana is nervous so, she decides to leave and smoke before it starts, while Hachi goes to buy some Trapnest merch. When Hachi takes her sit, she realizes they will be sitting right in front of the guitar, so the chances of Ren noticing Nana would be high. Meanwhile, Nana starts remembering the day they decided to name the band "Black stones" (Blast) thanks to Yasu's favorite cigarettes. When she's done with her cigarette, she joins Hachi, just in time for the concert to start. As Trapnests starts playing, Hachi prays for Ren to see Nana. They both hold hands and cry together.

And that is the end of volume 4. As always, we have Junko's Room which is longer this time. I've never enjoyed Shouji's relationship with Sachiko. I hate how it develops and they way they both do things. Oh well~

While I was reading this volume, I remembered how much I understood Hachi when she was feeling left out and as if people were stealing her place back when I watched (and probably rewatched) the anime. There was a long period of time where I felt like that too. Whether it was with friends or family and it was just something that used to stress me a lot. I mean, I can still feel left out sometimes but, I don't let it get to me as much as it did before. Plus, it doesn't happen with the people I care about. Guess I was with the wrong people. And well, even tho I'm not a Ren fan, the whole concert thing and Nana seeing Ren again was so exciting! (specially in the anime), They way she looked at him, how she was holding hands with Hachi and crying together was just... so cute!!

Anyway, I'm gonna end this post here. I think it is a little shorter than the previous ones (which are linked down below in case you have a lot of free time to read my all over the place posts).