I didn't "miss" the first name basis, but it was confirmed on Hisa's end in Chapter 119, and on Mihoko's end in Chapter 123, so it's not exactly new, and I didn't feel the need to comment on it. That's a good point about Saki, though.

Now we're up to 156. I'm honestly surprised by Mrs. Haramura's personality, since I'd always imagined her to be somewhat strict and at least willing to tacitly agree with her husband (if not all the time), although the size of her breasts is to be expected. Still, it's an interesting look at Nodoka's family situation, and the fact that her parents don't see eye to eye may become relevant later.

As for Mr. Haramura, I hope that the reasoning behind "If you keep moving and have to make new friends at each new school, you end up with more friends in the end" is not the kind of logic he uses in court, since that means that Nodoka will likely not be that close to any of them. It's a nice development that Nodoka's taking umbrage at his suggestion that she wasn't very close with her friends in Nara (long-distance correspondence is difficult to maintain over time), so I wonder if that might mean that Nodoka is taking more of an assertive stance when it comes to having to move.

last edited at Mar 23, 2016 8:45PM by Nezchan

Chapter 155 has been translated.

1)The information seems to suggest that the Miyanaga family broke apart when Teru was in 5th grade, which is a bit longer ago than I thought (although I'd heard that the Drama CD scene with Saki and Teru, which includes Saki's fond memory of Teru when they were young, was not long before Teru and her mother left home). Perhaps it also means that it'll be that much harder for Saki to reconcile with Teru, let alone get her parents to reconcile with each other.

2)I wonder why Nodoka said she didn't know whether Saki and Teru were related, especially since Nishida immediately sees through it.

3)It's nice to see Nishida consider the possible ethical implications of this as a journalist, but her comments suggest she's only scratched the surface. I hope we get to see more about this fairly soon.

Saki manga is dragging on it's feet. Soooo slow. Plot doesn't move forward.... Reminds me of watching Dragon Ball Z anime on TV. >_<

On the other hand Shinohayu is progressing nicely. ^_^

Sometimes I just think Ritz-sensei don't really know how to end Saki and is taking her time. But yeah, if the reason for the conflict beteween the Miyanaga sisters is something silly the fans will rage.

We've had some hints that something tragic happened that Saki doesn't really remember well, involving a third girl and a building on fire. Saki's story about Teru being angry when she tried to visit is probably tied to that, as is her insistence she has no sister.

...which, of course, Teru has retracted as of 128, but we haven't seen any follow-up on that. We also have hints that the third girl was or was becoming paraplegic, and might have enjoyed mahjong. It's interesting, but I'd like to see more concrete information about it.

Apparently, in the newest chapter, there's some interesting developments as far as the scores go. Nelly's finally making a comeback, Himematsu and Kiyosumi have switched places (which means Kiyosumi finally is in a position in which they can advance), and Usuzan is once again dangerously close to going bust (which might be interesting to see, and not just because it would make the semifinals end sooner; perhaps Saki could send Usuzan under zero to prevent Himematsu from rising to second, since Kiyosumi's hold on it is extremely tenuous).

Chapter 42's been translated for some time, and focuses on Mairu and Himeko returning to their hometown.

We also get another look at the mysterious girl we first saw in Chapters 102 and 104. It seems she, as well as Teru, plays a part in motivating Saki, but we have yet to see who she is or what impact she had on Saki.

It's also nice to see Saki making some headway against her opponents, even if her wins are small at the moment. I suspect that her victory will be the result of a direct hit on Kyouko, thereby dragging Himematsu out of second place.

Things are getting worse and worse for Kiyosumi. It's a bit depressing that Saki's only victory so far has been followed by a few other losses that essentially negate the small gains she made.

It's also somewhat depressing that Kiyosumi is the only school that hasn't been in the top two at any point in this half of the semi-finals. By comparison, in the quarterfinals, the first round ended with Miyamori and Eisui in the lead, and in the side A semifinals, Achiga took second place as early as the sergeant round.

Chapter 24 has been translated. Without spoiling anything, let's just say it's a fairly surprising development that potentially puts one character VERY close to reaching her goal. I wish the main series had more episodes like that, especially considering that Saki and Teru haven't seen each other since the nationals began.

last edited at Aug 30, 2015 1:16AM

Chapter 24 has been translated. Without spoiling anything, let's just say it's a fairly surprising development that potentially puts one character VERY close to reaching her goal.

Chapter 8 has been scanlated and is available on the AK scans wiki.

One of the best parts of this story is that the characters each get more attention and development. This is especially true of Maho, who comes off as a more interesting and likable character when you see more about her personality and relationship with Miho.

Incidentally, there is a sequel to this manga out, which apparently features Hitomi and Emi.

Chapter 39 has been translated, and Chapter 40 is out, at least as a raw.

I'm not sure why this site isn't hosting the first 104 chapters. Perhaps the people uploading to this site couldn't host them, for some reason, or this was the point at which they first started getting scanlations (which, being at the start of the Side B semifinals, is a decent place to start).

Chapter 145 has been translated. Essentially, Sawaya shows off more of her skills, which is a nice change of pace for Usuzan given their first three members' incompetence, but it does make me seriously wonder how Kiyosumi will pull through here. Perhaps another perfect hand at the last minute, like the prefectural finals, or Achiga's quarterfinals match, will be what they need here.

Nodoka has some interesting discussion about left-handed people in mahjong. I'm also curious as to who told her about it being better to use her right hand, since it seems to refer to when she first learned how to play mahjong, something that happened before she even came to Achiga. Perhaps a flashback will shed light on this.

Kinue seems to be taking the loss somewhat hard, as I expected. I'm curious as to how she'll feel when, as I suspect, Himematsu gets eliminated.

It's nice to hear more about Usuzan's plans for the future. It seems as though, even if they've accepted that they've all but lost already, the outcome is still within their plans.

It's interesting to see that Teru's attitude toward Saki may be shifting, however slightly, even if she's still not referring to her by name ("It might be tough for that girl, since it will be her second match against Suehara-san") and seems to be making excuses to avoid watching the match.

well i have not just been watching this for developing of the charaters but also the wining damn thing , and teru and her school dominated for too long. i like when the underdog knocks the world champion, if they lose i feel i've some years reading and waiting for these chapters ..... i know i sound really into it a little bit , but it comes from competive sports attiude that i have when i played volleyball my tea, made it all the way to the state championship only to lose in the last set by 2 points .

It should be pointed out that apparently, Shiraitodai hasn't had all that good of a record until winning the tournament two years before the start of the story, since it's said that West Tokyo did not produce many good players. It's not necessarily a bad thing for Kiyosumi to unseat them (or possibly Achiga, which is also an underdog), but perhaps there was a time when Shiraitodai could have been considered an underdog.

no Kiyosumi has to win this , this isn't just about out saki and teru, think about it, this is hisa last chance to make a impression to become a pro, if nodka wins they will get to stay home instead moving , saki and teru will have more time to bond when they directly face each other , but Kiyosumi has to win this. i actually saki's big mess up in the indivual match, besides Kiyosumi wasn't even heared of un till this match, plus i want to see teru's school and Rinkai crash into the ground while Kilosumi raises to the top

Isn't Teru Vanguard while Saki is Captain? They won't face of anyway unless deus ex machina comes and helps :/ Fot Hisa to make an impression she could simply dominate her round. As for the Haramura case....usually in this situation the "oh but she is so happy with her friends" plot would move her father anyway...(also if Kiyosumi wins the nationals it would feel like Saki would end which I don't want >_<)

It is indeed true that Teru is the vanguard while Saki is the captain. Saki seems to be aware of this, since she's watched the Side A semifinals captain match, and refers to Awai by her position. She also chose not to watch Teru's match for unspecified reasons, but knows she's the vanguard.

As for Hisa, I don't recall her wanting to become a pro. In the first two years, when she lacked the members for a team, she mentions that she could have participated in the Individuals (and given how she ranked, it's possible she would have been able to move on to the nationals), but chose not to. As for Nodoka, that is entirely up to her father, since he gives a somewhat ambivalent answer to her proposal. It might be nice to see how he develops over time.

I like this version of Shiraitodai's uniform. It's a shame we don't get to see it more; I suspect it's their winter uniform.

Incidentally, it could be the positioning of Teru's arm, but Sumire's tie doesn't seem to be around her collar.

It's good to see that the series is being scanlated again, and I hope that the new scanlator can keep pace with the updates.

Kiyosumi's situation is unfortunate, and it seems their only hope for getting through is to get points from Himematsu so they can switch second and third places, not unlike how Achiga got through the quarterfinals (although in that case, they were actually second midway through the match, until dropping to third as a result of Kentani's surprisingly good vice-captain).

The shyness feeling seems to be mutual, even if Kuro's significantly more outgoing. Perhaps it has something to do with the taboo nature of their incestuous relationship (see the tags)