Line #14 Headscratchers/NatsumesBookOfFriends


1	* How did Madara manage to get himself sealed? And by such an amateur? All one had to do was accidentally trip over the rope, and bang, he's free.
2	** Madara mentions "well there are a lot of reasons for that" when Natsume asks in the early chapters, so it seems he might have willing let himself be caught or it was out of carelessness
3	** It's possible that it only looked like the seal was easily broken, but it was only broken that easily because the one who tripped over it was Natsume, and Natsume's high spiritual power coming into contact with the seal was the reason why it broke. It's also very likely that the seal weakened because it was a long time ago. He could very well have been sealed by someone with extremely high spiritual power, like Reiko.
4	* This troper found it weird that Tanuma seemed to feel a-ok during and after he got possessed by that youkai (not that I didn't want him to be fine). He feels ill whenever he gets too close with youkai so if one was inside is mind, wouldn't that put a lot of stress on his body ?
5	* This troper was reading the afterword for volume 13 (it was right after when Natori helps Natsume reseal a youkai back into the pot, chapter 52). The afterword says "But I also feel that the distance between him and Natori grows each time they encounter one another". However, this troper felt it was the exact opposite, especially after chapter 52 (since he says he regrets involving Natsume into the exorcist business and is just happy to help him). To this troper, the only times it that seemed they were distant was their first encounter and the incident with Kai [[spoiler: and now possibly chapter 62 but the outcome has yet to be determined and it happens much after that chapter]]. Otherwise, it seemed their relationship either got better or stayed the same. Now I'm wondering if I'm missing something crucial from any of their encounters.
6	** I think it's a one sided closeness from Natsume's side, on the whole Natori is still maintains a polite distance. He's protective and cares about Natsume's well being but their relationship as friends hasn't gone further. Natori said he's fine with Natsume keeping secrets from him and never really try to pry. He's probably respecting Natsume's privacy which he's right about but that also seems like he doesn't have any interest in Natsume as a person. Natori also said that close relationships make him uncomfortable.
7	** Take the those private information Natsume has on Natori that Natsume knows from Higari's memories and Matoba for example. None of them were disclosed from Natori himself. Natsume has his poster pasted in his cupboard and bought magazines that feature Natori. It's obvious Natsume interested in knowing more about Natori but he didn't ask Natori directly. Maybe Natsume is too shy to ask or he thinks he'll bother Natori with trivial questions. Natsume might feel a bond with Natori from what what he knows about him but Natori has no clue. Natsume wants to help Natori but Natori prefers that he stay out of his work. I think that's what the mangaka mean about their growing distance.
8	** I've seen another note from the mangaka on Natori where she say he might seem to have changed but in fact he has not.
9	*** Do you remember what volume/chapter this was?
10	* Taki's parents. Where are they? This troper knows she has mentioned them but we have yet to see them. I'm curious to know how were they like when Taki was cursed by the youkai. You can get away with not calling some friends or other people by their name but I'm pretty sure the parents had to know something is wrong. Although we don't know nicknames/alternative names count as part of the curse, I'm assuming Taki didn't take the risk because there is no way to confirm it since one could see the mark. Did Taki's parents question ever confront her (cuz I'm sure her personality changed a least a tiny smidge or enough for them to notice)? Did they become distant? Did Taki even tell about the whole youkai thing to them?
11	** Ok, so recent chapters have confirmed the whereabouts of her family (her brother and dad being overseas while her mother works late). But we still don't have any confirmation of what and how Taki's family was like during the period where Taki was mostly silent (were her brother and father overseas when it happened)?
12	* If Matoba has a problem with his depth perception due to having the use of only one eye, how does he use a bow?
13	** The paper itself is pretty transparent so he can still see with the other eye (though maybe not 20/20). Matoba mentions it gets in the way when he is careless.
14	* Who did Natsume meet first, Nyanko-sensei or Nishimura? In the first episode, he is already friends with Nishimura and Kitamoto when he breaks Madara's seal, but then later in Nishimura's focus chapter, he sees Natsume with Nyanko-sensei before he and Natsume become friends.
15	** Natsume met Nishimura first but didn't become good friends until some time after Nyanko's seal was broken. In the first episode, Nishimura probably just recognized him as the new student in his class.
16	* Given that Reiko was Takashi's grandmother, she must've had a child (Takashi's mom? The anime isn't clear on this), right? On the other hand, she seemed to have a rather strong dislike for humans (and maybe youkai too). It doesn't quite make sense.
17	** The manga confirms that Reiko was Takashi's mother's mother.
18	** Well, there's possibility of her having a relationship with a youkai, although it goes into WMG. It is possible, as shown with Aoi (the bird spirit) and his girlfriend.
19	** She referred to Shigeru as "the boy [she] likes", so it seems possible that she could have grown fond of, even come to love, another human.
20	** It's also possible she wound up having a loveless affair with a man, which lead to a child (these things do happen). Though this is more WMG.
21	** In Chapter 59, the acorn eater's memories include Reiko talking almost fondly about a "strange" human man who's been "nagging" her by telling her to not do reckless things like climb trees but buys her manjuu.
22	** It's mentioned in a later chapter that she gave birth without ever marrying, so it could have been that she grew fond of that "strange man" who kept buying her manjuu, for example, but because of her problems with human beings, pushed him away.
23	** In the introductory Hakozaki chapters, one of the dragon shiki of an ex-exorcist mentioned a man who visited that had similar features to Natsume. It was dismissed to either be Reiko or Natsume's dad so it is assumed to be Natsume's grandfather.
24	* What is the point of changing Natsume's hair color from manga when adapted into anime? I know these things happen often, but what is the point?

Context Headscratchers / NatsumesBookOfFriends