Manga / Nekoka Danshi no Shitsukekata

Nekoka Danshi no Shitsukekata (How to Train a Werecat Boy) is a manga series written and illustrated by Ayane Ukyo, as her first entry in the Yaoi Genre. It ran from 2009 to 2014 in the magazines Kaguya, Kaguya Spade, and Wings. The manga is compiled in 5 volumes.

Michiru Ninomiya has just returned to Japan to live with his beloved older half-brother, Shiou Ninomiya, after a decade of being apart. In an unexpected turn of events, he finds out that his father and Shiou are both werecats, as well as Shiou's housemates, Kagetora Yaguchi and Kuroe Honda! With the government targeting werecats, as well as a past Michiru cannot clearly recall, Michiru is determined to understand who Shiou is now and to protect him.

Nekoka Danshi no Shitsukekata has inspired many Spin Offs, which ran concurrently in the more explicit sister magazine Dear+ under the pseudonym Aya Sakyo. Some of the characters make appearances in Nekoka Danshi and vice versa, creating a Shared Universe. The series include:

• Ikezu Kareshi No Otoshikata: This series focuses on Kagetora's co-worker, Yukio Gotou, and their editor, Ichiro Tanaka.
• Nekoka Kareshi No Ayashikata: This series focuses on Michiru's classmate, Ryouta Kokonoe, and the school nurse, Yoshiyuki Natsume.
• Kuroneko Kareshi Series: This series focuses on Shingo, the black cat Michiru runs into, and Keiichi Kagami, Shiou's co-worker.
• Fukigen Kareshi No Nadamekata: This series focuses on Eugine Kagami, Keiichi's older brother, and Ei Takamizawa, his childhood friend.

Tropes present in Nekoka Danshi no Shitsukekata include:

• Big Brother Instinct: Shiou is very clingy to Michiru and often looks out for him.
• Cats Are Superior: Subverted in this case. Shiou works in the entertainment industry, and the house he lives in actually looks high class, whereas some werecats lead normal lives. There is some sort of hierarchy within the werecat community. Housecats tend to be viewed as lower class.
• Cuteness Proximity: Kuroe really, really adores Michiru in his cat form.
• Crossover: Nekoka Danshi includes many cameos from Ukyo's other BL series. For example...
  • Ikezu Kareshi No Otoshikata: This example is more of a Hilarious in Hindsight moment than an actual cameo, but in chapter 1, when Michiru first enters the mansion, Kagetora mistakes him as a new assistant that his editor, Tanaka, sent over.
  • Kuroneko Kareshi Series: Shingo appears as a black cat in chapter 1. He appears again in chapter 23. Remember when Shingo tells Kokonoe that he's met a werecat who became a cat permanently in Nekoka Kareshi No Ayashikata? He's referring to Michiru!! Also, Keiichi appears in chapters 11 and chapter 23.
  • Nekoka Kareshi No Ayashikata: Kokonoe briefly appears in a panel of chapter 7 (concurrent to chapter 4 in Nekoka Kareshi) while Michiru's class is having PE. Natsume appears in chapters 8, 12, 21, and 22. In chapter 23, both Natsume and Kokonoe (in cat form) appear together.
• Cute Kitten: Kuroe certainly thinks Michiru in his cat form is a cute kitten! Also, Shirotan, a female housecat who lives in Shiou's house, is also an adorable cat.
• Even the Guys Want Him: Michiru's friend and classmate is a big fan of Shiou.
• The Gadfly: Keiichi enjoys teasing Shiou. In his own words, "I'm not stopping even if you find me annoying."
• Implied Love Interest: Kagetora and Kuroe's relationship is heavily implied, but the nature of it is never outright stated.
• Meaningful Name: The characters for "Shiou" literally mean "lion king", and Shiou can transform into a lion. "Kagetora" uses the characters for "shadow tiger", and Kagetora can transform into a tiger. The "kuro" in "Kuroe" uses the character for the color black, and Kuroe can transform into a black panther.
• Not Blood Related: Michiru and Shiou turn out not to be related at all.
• Shapeshifter Mode Lock: Near the end of the series, Michiru gets trapped in his cat form.
• Smoking Is Cool: Kagetora is often smoking in most of the panels that he appears in.
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: Kagetora and Kuroe clearly have something between each other, even though neither admits to it.
• The Worf Effect: Shiou briefly loses control of his feline instincts when he becomes overwhelmed by Keiichi's catnip-instilled cologne, even though the cologne had been ineffective on him before. Michiru later realizes it's from the injection the government shot at him when he was trying to protect him.