I think a simple explanation would have sufficed but alright.
I feel bad for her seeing as the media is being...the media and prying into her family's business. There's also the fact that she is being harassed by other shogi players being accused of a faker and her mother was putting all of her dreams onto her (though she does confess).
I still don't see her being Joker's girl. It's a good confidant, but I just don't see it.
Sorry, I can't join the minority.
I just realized it doesn't show both Christmas and Valentine's.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7IWigntfVA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51aE7kTwkag
Watching it was better for you and me. I didn't have to type it, nor would I have done the story justice.
Akira comes off introverted with a bit of a sarcastic edge to me, so the girls who are more like that too (Haru, Hifumi, and Makoto, I don't think he would ever see Futaba beyond family) fit the best for me.
I also liked Makoto initially, but she's too uptight to be a good match for him, I feel. They have differing interests and paths in life.
Haru was the only girl visibly shaken by a romantic rejection, so she'd be my second choice (I might do her my next time) but overall I like Hifumi most. Soft spoken but determined describes both of them, and I like a coupling where they support one another but remain separate. The Christmas Eve date really fits best to an outsider too, and Hifumi is the only introvert who is not on the team.
And I like to think Joker considers her beside him in battle whenever he frequently uses the skills she taught him.
(edited by TogoSystem)