Takada is a 5th grade transfer student, and Nishimura is a bit of a gloomy girl that everyone else calls "The Grim Reaper." Takada is determined to figure how what makes her so special to get such a cool nickname, and what he finds is an awesome friend and someone who makes him happy to be around. Other classmates try to make fun of Takada for being around Nishimura, but Takada's carefree attitude turns all their jabs around and makes everything backfire. Nishimura finds herself with a friend at last, but can't help feeling like her first friend is a little clueless to all the bullying going around. Takada likens several bully tactics to video game or RPG storylines, and the two also find out that they could have been childhood neighbors had things gone differently.
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The battle with Arlong concludes, and Luffy realizes how he can free Nami from her trap. But, in doing so, he manages to tick off the local naval officer who was doing business with Arlong for many years. Thus, Luffy gets a price on his head of 30 million berries, far more than Arlong, Don Krieg, or Kudo. The crew finally sail off towards the Grand Line, but decide to make one more stop at Roguetown, the site of the execution of Gold Roger, the original King of the Pirates, but another chance for them to stock up on provisions and other supplies. Luffy stops off at the site of the Pirate King’s execution and runs into some old foes who have partaken in the Devil’s fruits themselves and undergone some transformation. Their altercation brings out the local soldiers, but Nami’s keen senses helps her realize a storm is rolling in on the island.
It’s the end of the Strongest under the Heavens tournament, and it’s no surprise that Goku and Kuririn have made it through to the finals. Also in the finals are some colorful side characters, including Bacterium, who dispatches his opponents with his lack of bathing, and Jackie Chen, who faces off against Kuririn. Back again is Yamcha, who is also in the finals. Goku and Kuririn learn some valuable moral lessons during the tournament and have some great reflection time with Master Roshi afterwards. After the tournament, Goku decides it’s time to go after the dragon balls again because he wants the one his grandpa left him, not because he wants a wish. He sets off alone with Bulma’s radar to guide him, and he soon finds out that he is not the only one seeking the dragon balls. His quest sets him up against the Red Ribbon Army, an organized, well funded crime group that has a less sophisticated radar and no morals when it comes to achieving their goals.
Illustrated by Miya Tashiro
Mio and Yuri make their escape through the currents and end up in Millicuffs, the kingdom to the south, rather than Aquatia! Mio is rather unhurt, but Yuri needs medical attention, and Mio racks up quite the debt from an unhuman doctor. She goes to town to try to earn some money and does so with one of the only skills she knows — healing people. This also makes her a big target, as the inhumane here know that means she’s probably very valuable. Mio also meets another powerful unhuman who tells her she, and everyone else, would be much safer if she returned to the sea and learned to embrace her true powers. As it is, she may be putting everyone in danger! This volume also has Part two of Eno’s Flight.
Illustrated by Kelsey Ramsay, colored by Ronda Pattison, lettered by Rus Wooton and Shawn Lee
Teenager Cheyenne and her mom Rebecca move to St. Augustine, Florida with a dream of fixing up an old diner and having it be the gem of the town. Little do they know the history of the diner, that a man was murdered there, and the town’s seething hatred for the building. Later, an investigative reporter named Jean McKnight comes to the town to cover the Founder’s Day celebration, a fluff piece to salvage her career after a terrible outing that tarnished her reputation. The three lives cross when they all find that there is much more to this town, including something supernatural that may trace its roots back to the landfall by Spanish explorers at the heart of the town’s celebration.
The final fight between Shishitoren and Furin begins, and Umemiya sees right through Toriyama's façade. He breaks down what Toriyama has been hiding behind as the Top for Shishitoren, trying to prioritize having fun and being free instead of building up those below him and truly making his organization powerful. After the fighting is over, Umemiya calls for a celebration back at the diner, and wants to talk with Sakura to dissect his fight and who Sakura is. Sakura tells Umemiya his plans to become the Top of Furin and attests that he had no plan of trusting anyone, but Umemiya says Sakura's actions since arriving bely that intention.
In a remote part of the world, Son Goku is living his life alone after his grandpa, Son Gohan, has passed away. One day, he gets a visit from the beautiful genius Bulma who has crafted a device to detect the legendary Dragon Balls which, once collected, will grant her a wish from the Dragon god, and her radar is telling her Goku is in possession of one! She manages to recruit Goku to be her bodyguard as she collects the rest of the Dragon Balls. The two set off and encounter episodic adventures and meet a colorful cast of characters. Then, Goku begins training under the legendary Turtle master, Muten Rōshi, where he first has a rivalry with fellow trainee Kuririn that buds into a friendship as the two compete in the Strongest Under The Heavens martial arts tournament.
The fight with Shishitoren continues with everyone taking on their opponents one at a time. As Sakura takes on Togame, Shishitoren’s second-in-command, we get a little bit of insight into how the childlike Toriyama rose to the top of Shishitoren and the toll it took on Togame for them to get there. Sakura also jabs at Shishitoren for preying upon the weak, and that’s how Togame finally figures out why Furin members were on their turf to begin with. Then, it’s finally time for the firsts to square off in the main event: Toriyama versus Furin’s Umemiya.
Sanji finally agrees to come with Luffy, which is great for many reasons: many volumes ago, Nami made off with the Merry Go, so they’ll have to take Sanji’s boat to track her down. Luffy already sent Usopp, an injured Zolo, and one of the pirate hunters after her, so the second pirate hunter, Sanji, and Luffy are on their tail now. But Nami may be going into a Lion’s Den. She had expressed interest in a great reward on a dangerous pirate, a Captain of the Fish-Men named Arlong. His brute strength makes Don Krieg look weak, and he has a crew of mutant fish-men with special abilities and strengths under his command. Nami’s treachery may run a bit deeper than everyone originally thought as Usopp uncovers her family home in a small village on the same island as the Arlong pirate compound.
In saving a junior high student, a fellow first year and Sakura have provoked a neighboring gang, the Shishitoren, whose general and several members challenge a select group of Bofurin to a one-on-one style tournament to settle the score. The matches include Sakura and Bofurin’s general, Umemiya. At first meeting, Umemiya doesn’t seem like the type of person to be leading the school, and Sakura is not at all impressed by his bubbly nature and proclivity for vegetable gardening. Within the Shishitoren turf is their headquarters and the site of their fights. It's an abandoned theater with plenty of good views of the fights happening on the the stage for everyone to see all of the action.
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About MeI've been reading manga and comicbooks for years. Now, I write reviews and other helpful things for School Librarians, teachers, parents, and students. Search this siteRatings, Audience, and Subject Tags
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