History HoYay / Tsurune

** One of the volumes has Masaki [[MeetTheInLawsmeet Minato's grandparents]]. After they grill him on what he's been doing with their grandson, the grandmother then asks Masaki to keep watching over Misato from now on--but in Japanese uses a phrase more similar to "forever" akin to the same promise Minato makes to Masaki in volume 2.

** One of the volumes has Masaki [[MeetTheParents meet Minato's grandparents]]. After they grill him on what he's been doing with their grandson, the grandmother then asks Masaki to keep watching over Misato from now on--but in Japanese uses a phrase more similar to "forever" akin to the same promise Minato makes to Masaki in volume 2.

-->''“So mysterious~. Does that mean there’s someone who was charmed by you that much? No way, could it be that whole 'the greatest hate springs from the greatest love’ thing?”''\\

-->''Today, he saw that Minato had been constantly chasing after his coach with his eyes.''\\

** In one chapter Kairo becomes more and more agitated at Seiya mothering Minato so Seiya teasingly suggests Kaito may want Seiya to watch over him to, which Kaito promptly denies. Shortly after the boys visit a festival together and Kaito tries to impress Seiya with his goldfish catching skills before patiently teaching him his methods while Nanao watches. Afterwards Kaito realizes that Seiya isn't concerned about Minato at all in this setting and when he brings it up Seiya teases him about Kaito being more likely to get into trouble so he's "fulfilling Kaito's wish to be taken care" of by Seiya for once. Kaito is supremely flustered by this.
** Seiya even attempts to cheer Kaito up with a joke at one point. And while it falls horrifically flat given his complete inability to tell jokes its significant that he even attempts it for Kaito's sake.

* In volume 2 the team are staying at a hotel and while Minato and Masaki are talking the narrative veers for a second to mention that Kaito and Seiya are coming out of the baths and getting drinks together. In the very same scene a wild boar somehow ends up rampaging through the lobby and Kaito immediately, without hesitation, gently maneuvers Seiya behind himself to protect him from it. That chapter's illustration then goes to show that he doesn't lower his protective stance in front of Seiya even when the boar suddenly turns away and ''charges at Nanao''.
* In the same volume Seiya casually props his arm on Kaito's shoulder during a conversation, after its been hammered home that he really dislikes Ryouhei hanging off him without permission and shortly after the story tells us that Seiya actually does not overly like physical contact in general and rarely initiates it. This speaks of a level of physical comfort with Kaito he doesn't have with any of the other guys, including Minato.

* In the books, [[RedOniBlueOni Kaito and Seiya]] have a much more significant relationship than they do in the anime. Nanao teases Kaito about how he's always watching Seiya (which is shown in the book's illustrations), and Kaito dislikes Minato for holding Seiya back from reaching his true potential as an archer. Kaito frequently worries about Seiya, and tells Seiya multiple times that he respects him. Although Kaito's interest comes across as one-sided interest at first, he and Seiya eventually become friends, and by the second book they're frequently seen hanging out together.

** The scene where Minato first catches a glimpse of Masaki is clearly meant to show that he's absolutely mesmerized by both Masaki's archery and the man himself. The director of the anime describes it as a sort of LoveAtFirstSight for Minato.

** Shu brushes away Minato's bangs in the beginning of the second book and the artwork features him looking at him longingly.

** In the anime, the scene where Minato and Seiya reconcile comes across as fairly romantic, with Minato yelling at Seiya that he wants to be with him, and Seiya resting his head on Minato's shoulder while blushing. A sweet insert song plays during this scene, with lyrics that seem to reflect Seiya's feelings, and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biHSx3kKdr8&app=desktop there's even an official music video focused on Minato and Seiya to go along with it.]]

** In both the anime and the book, Shu touches the scar on Minato's left flank and leans in close to whisper in his ear when they reunite. In the anime, Minato looks dazed after Shu touches him. In the book, it's stated that Minato's breath was taken away.

** Seiya is ''extremely'' protective of Minato. He constantly defends him from Kaito (including brandishing a sickle when Kaito blames Minato for their loss), he finds Masaki suspicious because Minato shows interest in him, and he shamelessly admits he chased Minato all the way to Kazemai even though Kirisaki has a higher social and academic standing. He also shows jealousy towards other important people in Minato's life, particularly Masaki: in the anime, after remembering a time when Minato smiled at Masaki, Seiya coldly tells Masaki [[GreenEyedMonster "I hate you"]]. Now, there ''is'' an explanation for all this other than romantic interest: Seiya [[spoiler:feels responsible for the traffic accident that wounded Minato and took his mother's life, so he wanted to be the one to bring back his happiness in order to atone for his guilt.]] Still, there's nothing to say there can't be multiple reasons why he acts the way he does.

* Although it's not as strongly implied as Minato's feelings are, Kaito comes across as though he has a bit of a crush on Masaki himself. When it turns out that Masaki knows Minato, Kaito becomes jealous to the point where Nanao teases him about wanting Masaki all to himself. Kaito also gets excited when he receives a text message from Masaki telling him to meet up early at the shrine, but when he gets there and sees Masaki helping Minato get dressed, it becomes a classic case of [[NotWhatItLooksLike]].

''“It seems that Kazemai’s coach is good at shooting through the hearts of archers, since he’s adored by even you.”\\

* In the books, Motomura and Sase from Kirisaki are very easily shipped together. They're nigh-inseparable roommates who act like the team dads and laugh about their "cute kouhai" together. It's also stated that they massage each other's feet on a daily basis.

** The first book includes a scene where the Suguwara twins ask Shu how he got to be so skilled at archery. Shu replies that the biggest reason he works so hard is because there is someone out there who "wants to shoot through [his] heart." The twins then ask him if he loves that person, and he pointedly doesn't deny it.

** In both the anime and the book, Shu touches the scar on Minato's left flank and leans in close to whisper in his ear after they reunite at the preliminary tournament. In the anime, Minato looks dazed after Shu touches him. In the book, it's stated that Minato's breath was taken away.

** In the anime, Shu delivers a romantic-sounding speech to Minato after the preliminary tournament. His request for Minato to continue doing kyudo so they can reach new heights together may be standard for a sports anime, but lines like "You appeared out of the blue and changed my life" and "You need to take responsibility" sound like something out of a romance. Adding to the {{Ho Yay}}, ''Seiya'' turns out to have been eavesdropping the whole time and tells Shu not to pursue Minato so aggressively. Shu's response? To tell Seiya that Minato doesn't need him and that he should quit chasing him. [[LoveTriangle Does this remind you of anything?]]

** In the second book, Shu is shown to be possessive of Minato. During the prologue, he thinks "I won't forgive anyone who steals Minato away from me." In a later chapter, he notices that Minato has been watching Masaki often and becomes highly jealous.

** Although Shu is more clearly fixated on Minato than vice versa, Minato does care about Shu too, allowing for moments of mutual {{Ship Tease}}. In the second book, Minato offers to cook Shu as much takoyaki as he wants, and Shu replies that he won't tell Minato to stop cooking for him "until [his] life is extinguished." Shu also falls asleep on Minato's shoulder while riding the train. In the anime, Minato dreams about his first meeting with Shu, and the next morning he pulls out his old phone to look at a picture of the two of them together as children.

* Although it's not as strongly implied as Minato's feelings are, Kaito comes across as though he has a bit of a crush on Masaki too. When it turns out that Masaki knows Minato, Kaito becomes jealous to the point where Nanao teases him about wanting Masaki all to himself. Kaito also gets excited when he receives a text message from Masaki telling him to meet up early at the shrine, but when he gets there and sees Masaki helping Minato get dressed, it becomes a classic case of [[NotWhatItLooksLike]].

* In the books, [[RedOniBlueOni Kaito and Seiya]] have a much more significant relationship than they do in the anime. Nanao teases Kaito about how he's always watching Seiya (which shows in the book's illustrations), and Kaito dislikes Minato for holding Seiya back. Kaito frequently worries about Seiya and tells Seiya multiple times that he respects him. Although this comes across as one-sided interest at first, they eventually become friends, and by the second book they're frequently seen hanging out together.

* [[Teacher/StudentRomance Masaki and Minato]] have a fair amount of {{Ship Tease}}, especially in the books.

** Minato's behavior towards Masaki is somewhat crushlike. In the anime, he sometimes blushes in Masaki's presence and acts shy around him. In the novel, he's described as being weak to Masaki's smiles, and he frequently admires Masaki's elegant form both when he's shooting and when he's just doing regular things like drinking coffee. At one point, Masaki's hand quickly brushes over Minato's, and Minato thinks to himself that he never wants to remember the warmth of that touch forever.

* Although it's not as strongly implied as Minato's feelings are, Kaito comes across as though he has a bit of a crush on Masaki. When it turns out that Masaki also knows Minato, Kaito becomes jealous to the point where Nanao teases him about wanting Masaki all to himself. Kaito also gets excited when he receives a text message from Masaki telling him to meet up early at the shrine, but when he gets there and sees Masaki helping Minato get dressed, it becomes a classic case of [[NotWhatItLooksLikeNot]].

''“It seems that Kazemai’s coach is good at shooting through the hearts of archers, since he’s adored by even you.”



* Kaito and Seiya:
** While Kaito admires Masaki, his conflict with Minato early on was mostly because he felt Minato's reluctance was troubling Seiya, who he also respected. In fact, Minato and Kaito get into a physical altercation over this. There's even a colored illustration of Kaito staring at Seiya. This part of the story was cut out from the anime version, however.

** Although Shu is more clearly fixated on Minato than vice versa, Minato does care about Shu too, allowing for moments of mutual {{Ship Tease}}. In the second book, Minato offers to cook Shu as much takoyaki as he wants, and Shu replies that he won't tell Minato to stop cooking for him "until his life is extinguished." Shu also falls asleep on Minato's shoulder while riding the train. In the anime, Minato is shown dreaming about his first meeting with Shu, and the next morning he pulls out his old phone to look at a picture of the two of them together as children.

** Seiya is ''extremely'' protective of Minato. He constantly defends him from Kaito (including brandishing a sickle when Kaito blames their loss on him), finds Masaki suspicious because Minato shows interest in him, and shamelessly admits he chased Minato all the way to Kazemai even though Kirisaki has a higher social and academic standing. He also shows jealousy towards other important people in Minato's life, particularly Masaki; in the anime, after remembering a time when Minato smiled at Masaki, Seiya coldly tells Masaki that [[GreenEyedMonster he hates him]]. There ''is'' an explanation for all this other than romantic interest: Seiya [[spoiler:feels responsible for the traffic accident that wounded Minato and took his mother's life, so he wanted to be the one to bring back his happiness in order to atone for his guilt.]] Still, there's nothing to be say there can't be multiple reasons for his behavior.
**
** In the anime, the scene where Minato and Seiya reconcile comes across as fairly romantic, with Minato yelling at Seiya that he wants to be with him, and Seiya resting his head on Minato's shoulder while blushing. A sweet insert song plays during this scene, with lyrics that seem to reflect Seiya's feelings, and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biHSx3kKdr8&app=desktop there's even an official music video focused on their relationship to go along with it.]]


* [[HeroWorship Ryohei's adoration of Minato]].
* Masaki and Minato:
** The way Minato first catches a glimpse of Masaki detailed to show he's absolutely mesmerized by both Masaki's archery and the man himself. The director of the anime describes it as a sort of LoveAtFirstSight for Minato.

** At one point, Minato mentions that he wanted to make ginger pork. It's not a dish he usually likes himself, but Masaki mentions that it's his favorite.
*** The author takes it even further in volume 2, in which [[spoiler:Minato and Masaki start to get jealous of other people stealing the other's attention, which cultiminates in a scene in which they swear to be each other only teach and pupil forever, which looks like a marriage proposal: "My teacher for eternity is you. I want to listen to your tsurune forever. Please take care of me, teacher."]]
** An advertisement for the anime has some text explaining things from Masaki's point of view. He mentions how lost in "darkness" he felt, until he encountered his "light" and helped him through archery. He doesn't name names, but it's obvious he's talking about Minato.
** In the novels, Masaki [[spoiler:escapes the hospital]] just to go see Mjnato and the crew during their finals match.
* Masaki and Kaito:
** Shuu teases Kaito for caring so much about Masaki, commenting that Masski must be "good at shooting through the hearts of archers, since he’s adored by even you.”

** The first book includes a scene where the Suguwara twins ask Shu how he got to be so skilled, and he replies that the biggest reason he works so hard is because there is someone out there who "wants to shoot through [his] heart." Then they ask him if he loves that person, and he pointedly doesn't deny it.

** In both the anime and the book, after reuniting with Minato at the preliminary tournament, Shu touches the scar on Minato's left flank and leans in close to whisper in his ear. In the anime, Minato looks dazed after Shu touches him. In the book, it's stated that Minato's breath was taken away.

** In the second book, Shu is shown to be quite possessive of Minato. During the prologue, he thinks "I won't forgive anyone who steals Minato away from me." In a later chapter, he notices that Minato has been watching Masaki often and becomes highly jealous.

** Although Shu is more clearly fixated on Minato than vice versa, Minato does care about Shu and enjoy his company, allowing for moments of mutual {{Ship Tease}}. In the second book, Minato offers to cook Shu as much takoyaki as he wants, and Shu replies that he won't tell Minato to stop cooking for him "until his life is extinguished." In the anime, Minato is shown dreaming about his first meeting with Shu, and pulling out his old phone to look at a picture of the two of them together as children.

** Seiya is ''extremely'' protective of Minato. He constantly defends him from Kaito (including brandishing a sickle when Kaito blames their loss on him), finds Masaki suspicious because Minato shows interest in him, and shamelessly admitted he chased Minato all the way to Kazemai even though Kirisaki has a higher social and academic standing than the former. It's later revealed that he mostly does it [[spoiler:out of guilt for indirectly causing Minato and his mother's car accident (which left the latter dead)]], but Shu's accusation of Seiya acting like Minato's "knight" might be an indication that it's happened before that.
** In the novel, part of Minato and Kaito's early conflict was over Seiya, and Minato agrees to reconcile with Kaito just because it was what Seiya would have wanted.
** The insert song in episode 10 that plays when Minato and Seiya make up is fitting and seems to reflect Seiya's point of view. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biHSx3kKdr8&app=desktop There's even an official music video focused on Minato and Seiya's relationship to go along with it.]]

** The first book includes a scene where the Suguwara twins ask Shu how he got to be so skilled, and he states that biggest reason he works so hard is because there is someone out there who "wants to shoot through [his] heart." Then they ask him if he loves that person, and he pointedly does *not* deny it.

** In the prologue of the second book, Shu is seen thinking "I won't forgive anyone who steals Minato away from me." In chapter 1 of the second book, Shu even thinks that Minato is the only one who can affect him and touches his hair very intimately after Minato invites him to eat takoyaki. In the anime, when they reunite, the first thing Shu does is touch the scar on Minato's stomach and whisper in his ear.
** Episode 11's description says it all:

* [[ChildhoodFriends Seiya and Minato]]:
** Seiya is ''extremely'' protective of Minato. He constantly defends him from Kaito (including brandishing a sickle when Kaito blames their loss on him), finds Masaki suspicious because Minato shows interest in him, and shamelessly admitted he chased Minato all the way to Kazemai even though Kirisaki has a higher social and academic standing than the former. It's later revealed that he mostly does it [[spoiler:out of guilt for indirectly causing Minato and his mother's car accident (which left the latter dead)]], but Shu's accusation of Seiya acting like Minato's "knight" might be an indication that it's happened before that.
** In the novel, part of Minato and Kaito's early conflict was over Seiya, and Minato agrees to reconcile with Kaito just because it was what Seiya would have wanted.
** The insert song in episode 10 that plays when Minato and Seiya make up is fitting and seems to reflect Seiya's point of view.
* Shu and Minato:

* [[StudentTeacherRomance Masaki is likewise adored both by Minato and Kaito]].

** The insert song in episode 10 that plays when Minato and Seiya make up is fitting and seems to reflect Seiya's point of view:
-->Those eyes that don't see me
-->What are you looking at?
-->Are you moving on a little faster than before?

-->I haven't found the right answer yet, but
-->when I recollect all the times we've met, I realized I'm not alone

-->I'm like the one cloud spreading across the wide sky
-->That you're the light, we will
-->walk with time against our backs with the piercing wind
-->There are infinite possibilities in my hand
-->Even when I'm lost, I'll turn my tears into strength

*** Takes it even further in volume 2, in which [[spoiler:Minato and Masaki start to get jealous of other people stealing the other's attention, which cultiminates in a scene in which they swear to be each other only teach and pupil forever, which looks like a marriage proposal: "My teacher for eternity is you. I want to listen to your tsurune forever. Please take care of me, teacher."]]