What's wrong?
My mom put green peppers in my lunch again.
I'll get in trouble if I don't eat them.
Ugh.
Show some appreciation.
HUH?!
Appreciation for you suddenly eating my lunch?
But you hate green peppers, right?
Well, yeah...
Thank you.
But I don't know how you stand that bitter taste.
Yeah. They sure are bitter.
Kinda smell like grass, too.
Then what'd you eat them for?
For love... I guess.
Oh jeez, there he goes. Thinking that loving bitter stuff makes him all cool and mature.
No, I know for a fact he totally hates green peppers.
It's been like that since elementary school.
What? So he's just pretending to be a tough guy?
Nope.
He did it to help out the person he likes.
That's what he meant by "love".
Uh, no way! It's just a tough guy act!
Boys like him always do that!
Then why don't you ask him?
Hard pass! He's just gonna tease me for it!
He teases you because he likes you.
Oh yeah, my mom said something like that too...
Nope! Forget it! There's no way that's true!
Dislikes
Dislikes!
Something wrong? Why the big sigh?
Well...
In my breakfast this morning there was...
Well, I've just been feeling off ever since I got up this morning.
Hey. Didn't you say something about breakfast?
Nope. Nothing.
Uh-huh...
Close call!
If she found out the reason I'm feeling down is because I had to eat stupid green peppers for breakfast...
You don't like green peppers? What a baby!
I can't let that happen!
Let me guess, green peppers?
You had to eat something you hate and it ruined your whole morning?
How does she know?!
Green peppers are pretty bitter.
Wait a sec. Do you dislike green peppers, too?
They're also pretty pungent.
She relates!
Yeah, ain't that the truth! Who in their right mind would ever want green peppers for breakfast?
I don't mind them, personally.
So, you hate green peppers, huh?
You have the taste buds of a little kid.
She's making a fool of me!
F-fine, what about you then? Don't you have any dislikes?
Dislikes?
Well, it's not something particular.
Oh yeah. She totally does.
Okay, so I win if I manage to guess the thing that you dislike.
Sure. But I don't think you'll get it right.
Just watch, I'm gonna hit the nail on the head. And then...
Who has the taste buds of a kid now?
I'll let her have it.
Isn't it, like, super hard to choose what kind of emoji to use?
A vegetable?
So you want some hints, huh?
Nope, it's not a vegetable.
It's something that perks you up.
Vegetable
What's it taste like?
Sour and refreshing, but with some sweetness to it.
Okay, so...
Wait, hold on.
You only get one more hint, okay?
You'll eventually get it right if I just keep giving you hints forever.
Nothing gets by Takagi-san. She totally shut down the streak I had going.
I'm gonna have to narrow it down with this last question...
What color is it?
Well...
It's yellow.
YES!
That really limits what it could be!
Now to think...
I've got it!
The thing that you dislike is none other than...
pineapple!
Wrong.
For real?!
I'm still curious. What's the right answer?
Any beverage similar to energy drinks.
But that's not a food!
Yeah, you only asked me what I disliked.
Besides...
I told you that it wasn't "particular".
You did say that...
Right?
Hey.
Whenever the day comes that I have the chance to cook for you...
What chance? That's not gonna happen.
You never know.
Anyway, whenever that happens I'll make some tasty green peppers for you.
Good morning!
Oh, good morning.
Let's go pick up the handouts.
Sure.
So hey, I bought this book the other day and it's super interesting.
No green peppers, please.
Gyoza.
Gyoza
Hey, Mina.
Will you eat my carrots?
Sure thing!
Being picky again, Yukari?
You'll never get taller like that.
Yeah, well, I'm taller than you anyway.
Okay, let's make it a trade.
I'll give you one of my gyoza.
No, I can't accept that. You're doing me a favor by eating the carrots.
It's okay, because I love carrots!
Sure, but you love gyoza too, right?
I love pretty much anything, so no worries!
Really? But...
Go on, I insist!
No, I really shouldn't.
Come on, take it!
I'm good, you have it.
I'm giving it to you!
Like I said, I feel bad...
You don't hav- huh?
Wow. This gyoza is really good.
Why the heck did you eat it, Sanae-chan?!
Yeah, what do you think you're doing?
I mean, you two obviously didn't want it, so...
I never said that.
Look, Sanae, you need to apologize.
Sanae? Where are you going?
Dude, how many of those are you going to eat?
I'm stocking up on calories for all the energy I'll need in tomorrow's meeting.
We have to decide what our class is doing for culture fest, right?
Yep.
I used to think the idea of a donut hole toss was best,
but I decided that we should do a fried chicken cafe instead.
Fried chicken cafe?
Wait, did Tsukimoto-san agree to that idea?
That doesn't matter.
When you get down to it, I'm really the only one who's doing all the culture fest duty work.
So no matter what she says, I'm going to make sure that we do a fried chicken cafe.
Kimura! Yo! Dude!
And then... huh?
Turn around! Behind you!
Tsukimoto-san!
Uh, listen, Nishikata and Takao here agree with me about the cafe, so...
What?!
Don't drag us into it!
MELON
BREAD
Here.
Huh?! For me?!
I was wrong to assume that you didn't want the gyoza.
Wow, thanks!
Whew. So Sanae does have a nice side to her.
Yeah, so...
I'll trade you this for the rest of your gyoza.
What?!
Play nice!
Fried Chicken Cafe
3 Votes
After tallying up all the votes, our class has decided to go ahead
with our idea of putting on a play for the culture festival.
We did it, Yukari-chan!
Yeah!
Audition
I'm the one who will be writing the script.
I'm going to be the director.
And I get to design the costumes!
Okay!
N-no... it can't be!
I knew this would happen. I mean, nobody's ever heard of a "fried chicken cafe".
Which idea did you vote for, Nishikata?
Since you love it so much, I bet you voted for the fried chicken, huh?
Only because Kimura asked me as a favor!
Sensei!
Considering the time that we have left until the event, we should finish doing auditions today
and then next time we can start rehearsing. Does that sound okay?
Have you already decided on the story?
Yeah, more or less.
Listen up!
It's a love story between a prince and princess!
We came up with it together!
And it's really thrilling!
Long, long ago...
There lived a prince who was put under a curse and turned into a frog.
His name was Juliot.
To avoid being seen by others, he spent many long years cooped up in a castle in the forest.
But one day, he has a fateful encounter with a princess named Romiya who gets lost in the forest.
They quickly fall in love with each other.
Until the twist!
An evil wizard appears and tries to tear the two lovers apart.
So Romiya and Juliot flee!
And their cool animal friends come to save them! That was my idea!
To top it off, a shocking and sorrowful final scene that will no doubt leave the audience in tears!
Yeah!
In the end...
What fate will they meet with?!
That sounds amazing!
Totally off the rails!
For sure.
The villain...
My fried chicken... my fried chicken...
An evil wizard, eh?
Yahoo! I think everybody likes our idea!
Yeah!
So, we need to decide who will play who.
I think the princess role would best be filled by Takagi-san.
She has the right qualities. Like long, beautiful hair and a composed personality.
We're going with Takagi-san.
Is that okay?
Any objections?
Why not?
Sounds good.
I agree!
Takagi-san... playing the princess?
What do you think, Nishikata?
W-well, I'm down with it if everybody else is...
Oh?
All right, we have our princess.
Okay!
The biggest problem is figuring out who will play the frog prince.
We're not sure who would be a good fit.
And so...!
We're holding auditions!
Auditions?
Yep!
All the boys will come up one at a time and perform in front of Takagi-san.
Whoever manages to sound the most princely gets the role!
It's just like Cinderella in reverse!
A princess searching for her destined lover!
Oh how it sets my heart aflutter!
Hey Nishikata. Let's have a contest.
Huh?
If you get chosen to be the prince in the play, then you win.
What?!
Takagi-san! Could you come up here?
Wait! What kind of contest is that?!
O, my beloved. Princess Romiya!
Yeah, that's so true.
Fried chicken... fried chicken...
Next!
O, my beloved. Princess Romiya.
Next!
O, ribbit ribbit!
Next!
You're going to be the evil wizard.
Yes! I knew it!
A contest is a contest.
I'm totally gonna knock the wind of Takagi-san's sails by getting the role of the prince!
All of you guys just sound like emotionless robots!
You gotta make it seem like you really love the princess!
It's just a contest!
Next!
Nishikata-kun, did you hear us?
Huh? Uh...
Well, I...
He's setting the right mood.
Yeah!
I knew it! Just seeing these two...
makes my heart go pitter-patter!
Oh, my beloved fried chicken...
Huh?
What's the matter, Prince Charming?
My beloved... fried chicken...
Darn you, Takagi-san!
She must think I'm too embarrassed to say the line out loud!
Then I'll give her an earful!
O-oh! My...
My be...
My beloved...
My beloved fried chicken! How I wanted to eat you...
That's it!
What?!
Say that again. But this time replace "fried chicken" with "princess".
My beloved princess!
He's perfect.
Huh?
I can feel the love surging from his words.
Kimura is the prince.
H-hold on a sec! He doesn't seem like a frog prince at all!
I think Nishikata-kun is the better choice.
Oh yeah! I can see it!
No, it's Kimura. We'll change him to a pig prince.
A PIG PRINCE?!
Just calm down.
Well, you guys managed to decide on more than I expected you would today.
ROLES
PRINCESS ROMIYA – TAKAGI
PRINCE JULIOT (PIG) – KIMURA
EVIL WIZARD – TAKAO
GOOD WIZARD – HOJO
MONKEY – SAKURAI
DOG – SHIBASAKI
PHEASANT – TAKAGAWA
DANGO DUMPLING A – NISHIKATA
But in order to make the culture fest a success, you're all going to have to get on the same page.
Everyone should work together and practice as if they were in the lead role.
PHEASANT – TAKAGAWA
DANGO DUMPLING A – NISHIKATA
OWNER OF THE INN – MINAE
You came close, Nishikata. Swap a few letters and you could have been "Prince".
As long as you take your role seriously, then you can put on a good performance.
"Prince" and "Dumpling" don't even sound similar!
I don't understand how "Dumpling A" is even a real role!
It's a shame.
Remember that you won't always be in school. So this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for you.
I was looking forward to hearing... your confession of love.
THOSE WERE JUST LINES FROM THE PLAY!
Hey! Quit interrupting, Nishikata!
S-sorry, sir!
How much farther?
We'll be there soon, Takagi-san.
What exactly are we going to do in a place nobody can see us?
Tell me the plan, Mister Dumpling A.
Let me guess...
Are you going to finish confessing your love?
L-look, I told you its for a contest!
Uh-huh.
Look! We're here!
The pond!
Fishing
Wow. I didn't realize there was a pond out here.
Yep!
It's a secret spot that Kimura told me about.
And in here...
FISH BAIT
I stashed some fishing rods and bait!
So, is this going to be a fishing contest?
Exactly.
Whoever manages to catch 5 fish from the pond first wins.
Sounds good.
After all, you got up extra early...
and went to the trouble of preparing this just for me.
Whatever, let's get started.
Okay!
Ready? Start!
FISH BAIT
This is kinda nice. Just us taking it easy.
Sure, I guess so.
Hey. Does this pond have any prize catches in it?
A prize catch?
Well, according to Kimura, there's a real whopper in here somewhere.
Wow!
Hey. If one of us catches it, let's make that an instant win.
Sure, but there's no way that's happening.
Anyway, if you ask me, since you're a total fishing novice you should focus on just making one catch firs...
Hooray! I got one!
No way!
She got the jump on me!
I better come up with an idea for your penalty, huh?
Go ahead and celebrate while you can.
Because you'll have to remove that fish from the hook by yourself.
And if you can't manage that, then you won't be catching any more!
Which means I might just win.
All right! On to the next one.
WHAAAT?!
I prep and fillet the fish that we eat at home, so I'm used to handling them.
Unfortunately for you.
Crap!
But she's only caught one! The real showdown starts here!
Got my second one!
Takagi-san, you've never fished before today, right?
Yep! I think I'm having beginners luck!
Calm down. Beginners are still just beginners.
Her luck has to run out eventually!
I'm gonna make a comeback starting right now!
You've got one on your line, Nishikata!
Whoa! It's a big one!
Wait a second... this might be the whopper!
Aw, poo.
That's too bad.
But I'm glad that you didn't fall in.
Uh-huh...
Your line snapped. Guess that means I win, huh?
S-sure...
That was fun!
My heart won't stop trying to leap out of my chest...
What is this?
Love.
Huh?
I love koi fish. You know, like the one we just saw.
O-oh, yeah... that was a big koi fish.
Wish I could show it my appreciation.
I mean, it's all thanks to that koi fish...
that I won our contest.
What should I make you do this time?
Curse you, Takagi-san.
I know! I have to practice my role as princess for the culture fest.
So I'll have you help me.
What?
You can be the dumpling... and the prince while you're at it.
If you say so. I did lose the contest.