Volume 18

Author's Note
Everyone experiences it. A bittersweet season of love. These are our SALAD DAYS. Popularly supported by an overwhelming majority, the "Yuuki and Futaba Saga" is compiled here. It illustrates everything about what makes romance in the days of youth irreplaceable. The best of all love stories concludes in this volume!

Chapter 1: Job at Summer's End
Takama Bandou, 16, is lead onto a summer job where he meets a manly girl Kikka Mogami, who takes offense on his refusal to work with girls. Takama's wish to get away from girls for a while stems from his all-female kendo blackbelt family who use him as a punching bag for their practice. In a fit of rage, Kikka shoulder-throws Takama, tells him that it's guys who are useless and to hit her if he so dares. However, he refuses to raise his hand on girls as a matter of principle. They make an internal agreement to not butt into each-other's affairs. When a customer forcefully tries to enter when the store is undergoing restocking, Kikka tries to stop him, but he slaps her instead and gets slapped in return by Takama. Both get fired thereafter due to the incident. On the way, while they bicker, Kikka acknowledges his manliness and honesty to have followed his principles without thinking about repercussions, and Takama praises her that she's pretty strong, "for a girl that is" and earns the wrath of Kikka again.

Chapter 2: Suddenly Salad Days (Part 1)
Soujirou Kida and Ichirou Kida are brothers. Karin Nishijima, the beauty pageant winner of their high school turns out to be their cousin and their mother announces that she'll be living with them from now on following the death of her sister. Ichirou is very reluctant to the idea but upon learning that their 'cousin' is apparently his crush, becomes very accepting of her. Ichirou challenges Soujirou to a sparring match citing his popularity. Meanwhile, Karin stares into a photo of Soujirou on her desk.

Chapter 3: Suddenly Salad Days (Part 2)
Ichirou decides to confess to Karin if he wins against Soujirou in the 48th Fall Kendo Tournament. Soujirou, however, seems disinterested in the situation. Karin, who was eavesdropping on their conversation, begs Soujirou to defeat Ichirou so that she can keep staying with them as a family. Soujirou victors by a small margin. Ichirou decides to win the next tournament to confess to Karin.

Chapter 4: Honest Girl
Akira Torii falls in love with Aika Yashiro at first sight. He later finds out that she attends the same cram school. When they bump into her next time, she has changed her hairstyle. Akira's friend remarks how girls in love become more beautiful. Akira assumes this to be Aika's conscious effort to attract him. He later makes the same remark to her, only to be refuted that she isn't in love and not once has she thought that she'd dress up only for the one she loves. Akira becomes sad and embarrassed for acting on his assumptions on a one-sided love but the fact that his feelings haven't changed reflects how powerful his love is for her. He decides to be good friends with her first and fix his mind on the exams for the time being as he states, "This is only the beginning."

Chapter 5: Decision (Part 1)
Futaba is back to school after a long period but still can't face Yuuki after their abrupt separation. Miwako Wada is a newcomer to the dorm Futaba now lives in and she requests for Futaba's help with Yuuki. Day by day, Miwako grows closer to Yuuki while Futaba is still conflicted until one day, she snaps on Miwako when she tells her that Yuuki invited her to his apartment. Reflecting that her actions were uncalled for, she instantly apologizes to Miwako. However, as she sees Miwako entering Yuuki's apartment from her dorm room, she grows increasingly conflicted about her feelings for Yuuki.

Chapter 6: Decision (Part 2)
Miwako Wada tells Futaba that Yuuki finally accepted her confession and they've decided to go out. As the days go by, Futaba becomes increasingly frustrated while looking at them standing together in their classroom and on the hallway. She finally reflects on her actions which led to their break-up and realizes how Yuuki must have felt when he saw Futaba and Sou together, although there was no romantic subtext to their relationship. After a week, Miwako comes to Futaba's room and tells her how it's been a week since they began dating and starts crying. It seems that Yuuki rejected her confession but since she was transferring to another school after a week, she requested him for a week-long relationship. Miwako says that she can finally move on and begin a beautiful new romance. Futaba cries lamenting the fact how someone her junior looks so positively at romance while she's being pathetic and unable to move on ahead. After Miwako leaves the next day, Futaba decides to keep her head up and start greeting Yuuki normally, facing her problems head on.

Chapter 7: Rebirth, and Then... (Part 1)
Yuuki reminisces his days with Futaba at the site of Co-Op Yamashina which is being rebuilt. Hearing the news from Yuuki, Futaba tells him of how happy their days were as neighbours. Just like their apartment, Yuuki thinks that as long as their feelings of love stay kindled, they might be able to rebuild their relationship once again. This is however thwarted by the news of Futaba, her sister and Shuuto moving back to Osaka the week after. Apparently, their divorced parents are getting remarried and also Hatsune has become pregnant with a child. Futaba is of course overjoyed with this news. Seeing her happiness beaming on her face, Yuuki realises that he has no right to stop her.

Chapter 8: Rebirth, and Then... (Part 2)
Fumika doesn't know of Yuuki's past relationship with Futaba and their subsequent break-up so she advises Yuuki how it is odd that she would be moving half a year before graduation. Yuuki confirms that this is indeed too weird and comes to the conclusion that she would be staying. He approaches Futaba with the offer to put in a word with the owner of Co-Op Yamashina in case she wants to live there again. Futaba doesn't say anything but when asked by Shuuto, she says that she will be moving to Osaka with them. In a flashback, Futaba's classmates tease her because of her convenience bento and she overhears them talking about how her parents do not come in any of the school's events to support her. When Futaba is given the choice to choose who she goes with after the finalization of the divorce, she chooses to stay with her sister, telling her parents that she hates them both. After the end of the flashback, the teacher announces that Futaba will be transferring schools to Osaka. Yuuki is dumbfounded, more so because she didn't say a word about the transfer. He realizes he has become one among the many classmates and that he can't make her notice him anymore.

Chapter 9: Rebirth, and Then... (Part 3)
Yuuki's friends ask him about her transfer and are surprised upon hearing that he didn't know anything. Yuuki congratulates Futaba on her parents' reunion and offers to walk her back to her dorm. She declines. The day of the moving, Shuuto goes to Yuuki's to bid him farewell and asks if he'd come to the station to see them off. He declines saying that it's best if he didn't. Suddenly, in an epiphany, he remembers of how Futaba has trouble expressing herself on complicated situations, and questions if her happiness is true. He runs to the train station and upon arriving, Futaba berates him for causing trouble and tells him to return home. Yuuki asks if what she said is from the heart and Futaba is visibly shaken. But before he gets to hear her answer, the train leaves.

Chapter 10: Salad Days are Eternal
In a myriad of memories, Yuuki resolves to chase after her, that he won't allow it to end without proper closure. In the train, Shuuto tells her that it's not too late to still make it. Hatsune follows up by saying that the move was for each member of their family to be happy and asks if she truly is happy. She tells him that family will always be family, bound by blood, even if neglected; but for a lover, this is not the same. Lovers are strangers to begin with; so to stay together effort is required, especially for someone like Futaba. Hatsune finally asks her to be true to herself. When she gets off the next station, Yuuki is on the follow-up train to chase after her. He gets off and they are overwhelmed to see each-other. Yuuki tells her about how lame it is to part ways without a proper conclusion. Before he gets to finish, Futaba promises him that she will do her best, that she will make more of an effort than she ever has, and that she wants to stay with him forever.

Aftermath
On April 2008, Futaba has turned 24. It's been six and a half years since they have rekindled their relationship. They are both staying in the rebuilt Co-Op Yamashina. She wakes Yuuki in the morning and they go for a walk. The nameplate is painted with both their names. They are getting married.

On their walk under the cherry blossom, Yuuki sees his two students bickering with each-other just as he and Futaba did before. Futaba narrates a passage from Shakespeare's "Antony and Cleopatra": My salad days, when I was green in judgement. She says that those two are their "salad days". Yuuki counters that it's not their time to be reminiscing since they're still young. Their time is just about to begin... When our lives halt, when we look back... When we cry, when we smile... When we are uncertain, when we are confused... Slowly but surely... Realizing the important things in life This youthful season is our "SALAD DAYS"...