Chapter 39 is the 39th chapter of Kodocha, the fourth chapter of the eighth book in the Tankōbon Release, and the third chapter of the sixth book in the Kanzenban and Bunkoban releases.
Summary[]
Sana visits Akito in the hospital, Fuka and Sana have a difficult conversation, and Sana and Rei sneak Akito out of the hospital so he can see Kazuyuki (who is moving) off.
Plot[]
Sana thinks of how she never expected to hear Akito say thank you so sincerely. Backing out of their hug, the subject moves to Akito's right hand, which he describes he can't move from the wrist down. Sana is confused, since he was stabbed in the upper arm, but he explains it has to do with radial nerve paralysis. In an inner monologue, Sana assumes he'll have to quit karate, and feels sorry for him. But in reality, Akito assures her that he's not stressed about it, he has other things on his mind. Sana asks what those things are, and he explains that he just thinks on the past, or worries about Kazuyuki. Sana is confused why he'd worry about the guy who stabbed him, but he's firm in the fact that he's his friend.
Sana relays what her mom had found out, which is that Kazuyuki and his mom have had more open communication. She finishes by wrapping it in a optimistic bow, which surprises Akito - he teases her for her cheerfulness - but she assures him he did something great, and that she genuinely believes it's going to work out. A nurse lets Sana know visiting hours are over, so she leaves. Natsumi calls to tell Sana how he's doing, which includes that his attacks have completely stopped after her visit, and that he's being moved out of intensive care into a normal one. Sana works with a tutor to prepare for finals that are in two days.
In therapy, Mrs. Komori's therapist brings up how her husband is incarcerated due to a traffic accident that was his fault, and Mrs. Komori urges him not to tell Kazuyuki that, as she's been fiercely sheltering him in fear of him finding out. In response, her therapist says he already knows, Mrs. Komori cries learning this, and her therapist speaks to how they need to have more honest dialogue. Misako eavesdrops on the therapy session.
Sana returns to school, and starts exams. She sees her peers interacting with Fuka, but feels tense about their friendship given everything that's happened. Sana tries to sneakily leave, when Fuka asks to walk home with her.
Fuka asks about she and Akito, and Sana says she's only seen him the one time so far. Sana's answers are timid, and Fuka notices it, she says not to worry because she's over everything. They get taiyaki, and eat it together in the park. Fuka tells Sana not to worry about her, Sana learns that Tsuyoshi gave Fuka the rundown of everything that happened in sixth grade, and how a lot of people assumed Akito and Sana were dating then. Sana is taken aback by this, and Fuka explains how she feels awkward with her position now that she knows the full context. Sana explains though how scrambled her feelings were, and how she only figured out she had feelings for Akito because of them starting to date. This hits a nerve with Fuka, causing her to run around the park yelling. Sana's response is to apologize, but Fuka assures her she shouldn't and says she's not apologizing either. The conversation turns mundane as the topic of exams comes back up. Sana thinks about how hard Fuka is trying to make things feel comfortable, so decides she'll try hard too in response.
Sometime later, Sana is happy to be done with exams. She and Fuka rejoice, and Sana gooes to talk to Mr. Suzuki after class about Kazuyuki. He lets her know that everythings been settled, he can continue to live with his mom, the one stipulation is that he has to continue therapy. The surprise comes in as they've decided to move, seemingly to start with a fresh slate, but are leaving town today.
Sana rushes to visit Akito in the hospital and tell him the news. Akito wants to see him, so Sana and Rei sneak him out of the hospital and drive him to the train station. They find Kazuyuki, and he starts crying, explaining how he learned about Akito's hand. Akito tells him not to worry though, saying he's looking forward to trying one handed karate (which Sana is surprised, but happy to hear). Akito asks how things are between Kazuyuki and his mom, and he says they can talk more than they did before, and that he'll be okay. He goes on to explain that he's only better now because Akito came to find him in the forest, and thanks him, saying he didn't expect he'd come to see him off. Sana assures him that they're friends, and Akito backs her up. Akito asks, and gets Kazuyuki's new address, and then Kazuyuki leaves on the train.
Sana tries to verbally pat Akito on the back for everything, but he rebuffs it. Sana thinks about how everyone carries the scars inflicted by life, and that that's part of why you have to keep going, and find ways to enjoy life. Sana's encouraging ideas of a party when he gets home, wondering where the car is, etc, meanwhile Akito is lost in thought. He reminds Sana that he and Fuka broke up, and asks about things between he and Sana with that in mind.
Characters[]
Characters[]
{{Scroll Box |height=300px |content=
- Sana Kurata
- Akito Hayama
- Fuka Matsui
- Kazuyuki Komori
- Fuyuki Hayama
- Rei Sagami
- Mrs. Komori
- [[Misako Kurata
- Maro
- Tsuyoshi Sasaki (mentioned)
}}
Author's Notes[]
Another irrelevant drawing by Miho Obana: "Look... I tried to follow the "drawing song" from the Kodocha TV show..."
Akito's Ghost Mom: "In the August 1997 issue of Ribon (pages 1-35 in this volume), I might have caught readers a little off-guard when I drew the ghost of Akito's mother in a few panels. It wasn't really important to the story, I was just doing it to be creative. But the magazine ended up getting a ton of calls (and I got a ton of letters) asking why she appeared there! My favorite call to the magazine was when an editor who didn't deal with my work answered the phone. The caller said she saw a woman's shadow in the magazine. And the editor told her that that was impossible and hung up on her. When we all found out, we joked about how the woman who called probably got nutty, thinking that she was starting to see things. Hee hee."
"But I apologize to all my readers and to Ribon's staff for the trouble I caused. But if you didn't catch it, it's okay. It's different from the drawing of the babies-I just wanted to put something in there that would be fun to find. Why don't you see if you can find her? Oh, by the way this time, this isn't a quiz! To be continued..."
Trivia[]
- This chapter was never adapted in the anime, though some elements of the Kazuyuki Arc were reused in the Karate Club Arc.