Blue Period volume 9 - Tsubasa Yamaguchi

 So, picking up where we left, Yatora and his group needed all the help they could get.

 

 

And that help arrived from an unexpected corner...

 

Yakumo brought the whole costume team to help out, as Kimeni had secretly went out to ask around for help.  Thanks to this, they manage to finish on time for the festival parade.  Yatora's friends also come to the festival, and while they might not win the grand prize, much to the sadness of Kimeni, they do win one of the side categories.

 

In the meantime, their class's foodstall is a huge success,  as Yuka passes by and immediatly starts flirting with one of Yatora's friends, Hacchan.  Hashida also comes by the festival, joining Yatora and Takahashi to the art exhibit of the students.   Here, the latter two find themselves in exactly the same situation as a year ago and have a good talk.

During the summer break, Yatora paints nothing, kicking back and relaxing with his friends to go out fishing and the likes, until he goes visit an exhibit about Velasquez with Takahashi and Hashida to get his art fired up again.  He learns about what made Velasquez so great, as he initially isn't impressed by him at all.  Takahashi turns out, contrary to what Yatora expected, to have had quite a reputation in art at middle school, even though he was on the academic track.  Being an artistic prodigy, he takes them both to his place to show a piece he made when aged only 3.

 

 

The next weeks, they will learn about fresco's and mosaics at the campus, which is totally new territory for Yatora and his classmates causing them to struggle with the process of creating that form of art.  Yatora admits to Yakumo he is jealous of Takahashi's natural talent though.  During a night out with his fellow students, they talk about a rumour that every year one student is allowed into TUA based on academic scores and not on their art performance, and clues seem to lead to Takahashi being that special student.  When Yatora tells him about this, it pisses him off intensly.

 

During the meeting of the faculty teachers, it is once more hinted that there is indeed a special student in this group of freshmen students, but his identity is kept under wraps apart from being stubborn and not listening to advice.  But the end of the school year is already approaching, and for their final assignment they will have guest lecturers like the famous artist Konatsu Ono.  Yatora tries to make up with Takahashi, but feels worse afterwards, but Hacchan lets him see that hard work is a talent on itself as well...

 

So the end of the first year approaches, will Yatora pass?  And who is that special student, is it Takahashi, who has been hinted at, Yatora, for being our main protagonist, or will it turn out to be someone totally different?

 

Maybe I will find out more in the next volume!