I Will Never Not Be Obsessed With This Cover Art.

completely unprompted TBHK crossover for fun ;)

The Conflict Between the Yugi Twins From Their Point of View

In Amane's and Tsukasa's relationship there's the fact that they're twins so they grew up with each other, they shared different life experiences, they're each other's half and polar opposite and have a deeper connection because of it. However, there's a hierarchy between them. Amane is like the big brother to Tsukasa, and Tsukasa is the younger brother to Amane despite they're twins.

Amane's POV

Tsukasa sacrificed himself for Amane's health and after that, everything started to change between them and it deepened the conflict. After Tsukasa disappeared, Amane missed his brother very much and he probably felt guilty because Tsukasa disappeared shortly after he asked him if he loved him, but Amane never replied in a straightforward way. He felt guilty because he couldn't see the signs of Tsukasa going from his life, he couldn't understand his behaviour, his reasoning or the way he felt before he disappeared.

I think Amane always kept thinking about the way his little brother was before he merged with the pit god because when Tsukasa returned, he was different. Amane also admits that he doesn't understand his little brother since the day he disappeared and why his brother disappeared. He didn't understand Tsukasa's actions and feelings at all. He never knew that Tsukasa thought "Amane hates me so it will be okay if I disappear".

When Tsukasa returned, something changed about him and it was evident to Amane and his mother. Tsukasa wasn't possessed, but he wasn't entirely human anymore. I think the guilt Amane felt deepened when he saw that Tsukasa was different after he returned. So, maybe if they had a good relationship, there were some problems between them while they were still alive because Tsukasa acted differently. Amane loves his brother more than anyone, but probably he didn't truly accept the Tsukasa that returned because Tsukasa changed and deep down he feels guilty about it.

When they were 8, it's shown that Amane wanted to spend time with Tsukasa, so I think that despite what he thought deep down, he appreciated his younger brother more, he was the one protecting and guiding him. I think Amane became more attached to Tsukasa after he returned.

Now, when they were 12 years old, the person who Amane spend most of his time with, was Tsukasa. Even Tsukasa said to him "You'd prefer if I stayed here, right Amane?" So he didn't have friends at school. Tsukasa was the one who had friends and was popular. Despite this, Amane still displayed some signs of envy towards Tsukasa "you have a lot of friends, are you really my little brother?". Amane perceived that they were so different in this aspect. Tsukasa perceived this envy and retorted "of course Amane, you don't have any friends because you're tone deaf". This is a comical moment, but I think it shows that Amane felt envy towards Tsukasa and it hasn't changed since they were children.

Now, in a metaphorical sense, this scene of Tsukasa asking "You'd prefer I stayed here, right?" has a hidden meaning when tied with "or would you rather me gone? You have to decide". I think part of the memories Amane can’t recall are related to Tsukasa revealing something about merging with the pit god in exchange for his health or it could be that Amane discovered something about Tsukasa and the pit god based on Tsukasa's behaviour and that's why Tsukasa implicitly asks Amane "if he wants him to stay or to disappear" in the 1968 School Festival. "Will you accept me as I am now, or do you think I'm a fake?"

Maybe in Amane's mind at that time after that revelation, Tsukasa's changes started to make sense and he didn't make a decision yet. That also would explain what he said about "believing that the lunar rock was real" months later. On the surface, he decided to accept Tsukasa and preferred to think that he was still his brother as shown with that lunar rock metaphor that landed when he was 4 because he loves his brother very much even if he changed. So his final answer when he was alive was that he preferred to believe Tsukasa was still Tsukasa despite merging with the pit god.

However, in The Trial of the Clock Keepers, it’s shown that Amane didn't rule out the possibility that the Tsukasa who returned was an entity masquerading as him. It's clear that he still had his doubts, that deep down, he really didn't think that the Tsukasa that returned, was really his brother.

They had a good relationship, but I think a huge part of the conflict between them, is that despite Amane loves his little brother, he never truly accepted Tsukasa the way he was since he returned to his family because of his guilt, his mindset, because Tsukasa's behaviour was influenced by the pit god and because he didn't really understand his little brother's feelings or his reasoning. On the other hand, to some extent, Amane was influenced by what their mother thought about Tsukasa.

Amane thinks that once a dead person becomes a supernatural, "they stop being themselves, they get jumbled up" and he even also applies it to himself. In the following scene, it's clear what Yako stated, that no matter how berserk someone can become, how warped they're, or if they changed shape, they're still themselves. This scene and some other parts of the manga contradict what Amane thinks deep down.

When Amane became a supernatural (Hanako), he never accepted that berserk or warped part of himself. Maybe in the past, Kou's and Teru's grandmother sealed him because he went "berserk" and unleashed a part of himself he never knew existed. When he became a supernatural, it triggered something deep inside of him, that berserk, very dark part he has. But he doesn't accept it because he's scared of that dark side of himself. He doesn't accept the changes that comes with becoming a supernatural.

I also think that's why he prefers to call himself "Hanako". Because to him, Amane doesn't exist anymore. Amane ceased to exist after he became a supernatural. But note that Tsukasa still calls him Amane. Accepting that supernatural and dark side of Amane.

Now, he tried to find a solution to protect Tsukasa in his own way. But he also couldn't let him go. It was a selfish solution. So he preferred to make Tsukasa his yorishiro rather than letting him go or rest in peace. He couldn't bear the thought of his little brother separating from him again since they were kids and he showed his love in that way. Even if he didn't talk to Tsukasa for decades after he became his yorishiro, he couldn't let him go. So that's why maybe the solution, his way of protecting him in his perspective, had to include not separating from each other.

A small room for speculations and theories in this paragraph: Now there's this art. Amane is holding a portrait with a black ribbon which in Japan is for someone who has died and there's a picture of the moon. It could be a metaphor of Tsukasa. It also could mean several things, like Amane's possessive and twisted love because of the facial expression he's making here. But what if Amane mourns the "death" of his brother "the human side of him" after he found out about the truth? What if he wanted to protect Tsukasa's human side from the entity?

Tsukasa's POV

Tsukasa wanted to make his brother happy and always tried to cheer him up and take care of him in his own way while he was sick. Most of the time, he was the one initiating physical contact with him and Amane was shyer and less expressive than him. The balloon scene also shows how can Tsukasa act more maturely than Amane at times.

Before Tsukasa merged with the pit god, there were signs of Amane acting like the "older brother" when he did some things for Tsukasa, like reading for him because he wasn't that good at reading, However, Tsukasa was always the one trying to cheer him up when he was sick. Amane thanked Tsukasa for his efforts to make him feel better and Tsukasa asked Amane "if there was something he wanted, to let him know".

Then Amane had an emotional outburst and shoved Tsukasa, frustrated because he had better health. Despite this, Tsukasa replied very gently to Amane. Amane was feeling really bad and if he had expressed what he was feeling in a calmer way, maybe it wouldn't have lead to the conflicts between them. Tsukasa saw Amane's reaction as Amane hating him. Despite this, Tsukasa showed signs of emotional maturity and he was the one who took responsability for Amane's health.

I think that these panels show how Tsukasa and Amane despite having a hierarchy between each other where Amane's has the role of the "older brother" and Tsukasa has the role of the "younger brother", they have different emotional maturity and even though Tsukasa is more innocent and childish than Amane, he was the one who offered support to his older brother in difficult times in his own way.

Then he was in the red house and he met Kou who told him something like "He says that he hates you but it's just in the moment" and Tsukasa was ready to return to his family and let go of his own belief that Amane hates him after this. But in the end, Tsukasa was defined by the thought "Amane hates me" after this incident. Tsukasa saw the envy that Amane had towards him since this happened and also after he returned. But he also perceived that Amane wanted to spend time with him. He saw Amane protecting, guiding him and showing his affection for him in some way, maybe while they were still alive for many years, Tsukasa didn't think that Amane really hated him. However, when he turned into a yorishiro, it's shown that he still thinks that Amane hates him. We don't have enough information about Tsukasa when he was alive, but Tsukasa was extroverted while Amane was very introverted when they were in middle school.

Maybe Tsukasa tried to understand Amane, but Amane was someone who was very closed up with his feelings. He probably saw his affection in his actions "You'd prefer if I stayed here, right, Amane?", but probably something seemed off to him "Or would you rather me gone?". Maybe part of it was the envy that Amane felt toward him, maybe it was the fact that Amane perceived him differently because he merged with the pit god, maybe it was the revelation that he merged with the pit god in exchange for his health, or maybe it was all of these things. I think that Tsukasa which didn't feel envy but a genuine respect towards his brother, saw something off coming from his brother but he couldn't grasp into it. Maybe that's why he let Amane decide if he wanted him to stay or to go. Tsukasa wanted to go from's Amane's life (Maybe because he felt that Amane didn't fully accept him and also because he didn't want to bring the tragic destiny to his big brother's life). He also always wanted Amane to keep on living, that was his wish since he was 4 after all and he let Amane make the final decision.

Then Amane killed him, and then killed himself. I think that from Tsukasa's perspective, the conflict is related to the reason he thinks Amane commited the murder-suicide. In any case, it's good to point out that when Amane killed himself he disregarded the sacrifice Tsukasa made for him. Tsukasa always felt hated by Amane, and the fact of the murder-suicide, made Tsukasa believe it even more.

There are also some other things that were happening at the same time and we don't have information about them, the main point of the story, which is why was Amane's final answer to kill his brother and himself. But whatever the reason it may be, I think that from Tsukasa's perspective, Amane was selfish in the way that Amane's final decision was that he wouldn't keep on living the life he sacrificed for and he didn't respect Tsukasa's other side of the solution, that is, to go, but rather, he took away Tsukasa's life. So, Amane threw away the life Tsukasa gave him and also, he didn't let Tsukasa disappear, but rather, he killed him.

I think the scene of Tsukasa appearing after the HanaNene kiss is a clue about what happened and the conflict between them. Here Amane didn't take into account what Nene wanted. So maybe it's a parallel of how Amane didn't respect Tsukasa's wishes when they were alive.

In the analysis I made about Amane there may be hints that Amane killed his brother because he wanted to protect him from something, but he didn't take into account Tsukasa's feelings or opinions on the matter. He completely disregarded them, and made a selfish decision thinking maybe, about how to share some kind of burden his little brother was dealing with probably as the consequence of being merged with the pit god (Being a supernatural, or the sacrifices, maybe?) and also he couldn't let Tsukasa go.

In Amane’s heart, however, there was a deeper issue: he couldn't truly accept the Tsukasa who returned, the one forever changed by the merger, as the real Tsukasa. Despite this, Amane chose to believe he was real even if he wasn't completely convinced about it and that protecting him in this extreme way, would be the only way to share his burden and preserve Tsukasa's humanity. In the end, the murder-suicide was Amane’s way of "taking the easy way out" from Tsukasa's perspective, a selfish decision made under the guise of love and protection, but at the end, it denied Tsukasa’s agency and his chance to decide his own fate.

Manifestation of the Conflict Between Them

In the Trial of The Clock Keepers there's a clearer manifestation of their conflict. Tsukasa was willing to let Nene destroy him after she had destroyed The Clock Keeper's yorishiro and Amane had to tell Tsukasa the way he was feeling about him disappearing because despite Amane's selfishness, Tsukasa wants to grant his wish. He doesn't care if he dissappears, but Amane doesn't want Tsukasa to disappear.

Amane also has a problem with the way Tsukasa shows his love for him, willing to sacrifice his life like it's nothing. Amane has a dilemma of getting what he wishes for and sacrificing his brother in the process because he loves him. But Tsukasa accepted that "Amane hates him" (it didn't help one bit that Amane told Tsukasa "I hate you so much") and to him, the fact that Amane doesn't want him to disappear doesn't mean that Amane loves him.

"The final panel of one chapter and the first panel of the next both display the text, "His feelings didn't reach the younger brother he cares for" while Amane says that "He hates him so much".

The trial scene is reminiscent of when Nene and Hanako confronted each other after she saved him from Teru. Tsukasa parallels Hanako and Hanako parallels Nene. Hanako is focusing on grating Nene's wish "But your wish was this" and then Nene had to tell him to stop, that he doesn't have to grant her wish anymore. It's the same when Amane stopped Tsukasa and he told Amane "But you wanted this". Then Nene told Hanako that he "acted on his own", that he was going to extreme lengths to grant her wish and then she told him that "she hated him" but she cried and hugged him. Then Hanako understood and hugged her back.

However, in Hanako and Tsukasa's case, things were more complicated. When Amane told Tsukasa "I hate you so much", it didn't reach Tsukasa at all. Instead, he replied "Yeah? I know?" he took it literally. Hanako had a problem with Tsukasa sacrificing himself, going to the extremes to grant his wish. He didn't take Amane's feelings into consideration, because he thinks that Amane hates him. Amane was never blunt about how he truly felt about his brother. So, that's why Amane's feelings didn't reach his brother. Because he also doesn't understand how his own brother feels. The twins don't understand how the other is feeling. They never expressed the problem they had with each other.

When Amane let his feelings show, that he didn't want Tsukasa to disappear, Tsukasa responded by sharing what he believed Amane truly felt about him, he decided to open up to him and tell him what he really thought deep down: "you despise me, yet you hate the idea of never seeing me again". But how did Amane reply? "You're an impostor!!!". He completely invalidated the way Tsukasa really felt because he didn't know and he didn't understand that his little brother was defined by this idea since they were kids even before merging with the pit god. And Amane expressed what he really thought deep down "You're something masquerading as my little brother!!!". So I think what they expressed during the trial, was a more evident manifestation of their conflict and the root of the misunderstandings between them.

Maybe with the murder-suicide Amane was trying to protect Tsukasa and share a burden, but to Tsukasa, it happened because Amane didn't truly accept him as the real Tsukasa, so this confirmed to him that Amane hated him. We know that Amane's final answer was that he was going to accept Tsukasa after merging with the pit god but Tsukasa didn't see Amane's feelings and reasoning behind the murder-suicide and he thought that Amane would never truly accept him. Instead, Tsukasa saw what Amane harbored deep down, that Amane doubted whether the Tsukasa who returned was really Tsukasa at all. Perhaps it was this doubt, this uncertainty in Amane’s heart, that Tsukasa perceived and interpreted as confirmation that Amane hated him.

Conclusion

The conflict between them is related to Amane's mindset, the way they showed their love to each other and the changes Tsukasa had after merging with the pit god. Amane committed the murder-suicide, sacrificing both his brother and his future, a decision he made in an attempt to solve a problem. It was likely an act of love from Amane's perspective but the full details are still unclear. However, by doing this, he disregarded Tsukasa's wishes and feelings.

Also, throughout the story, Amane's failure to communicate his thoughts and emotions is a recurring issue. He shows his love through actions, he wants to protect his loved ones, but in doing so, he ignores what his loved ones want and that makes him selfish from Tsukasa's point of view.

Tsukasa always thought that Amane hated him, and it was deepened by the fact that he thought Amane wouldn't accept the changes he had because of not being fully human anymore. When Amane decided to kill Tsukasa and himself, Tsukasa viewed it as a selfish act, not an act of love, because Amane always keeps his feelings locked up in his heart and he never expresses himself clearly. Amane shows everything through his actions and he took away Tsukasa's possibility of making a decision. He preferred to make decisions on his own without considering what Tsukasa wanted (The same thing Nene mentioned about him).

When Tsukasa sang with Nene

It's one of my favorite Tsukasa's moments. AidaIro showed his artistic and delicate, emotional side. "Over the rainbow" is a song about hope in painful or distressing circumstances. I think the lyrics are also a reference to what he wants deep inside.

Something he longs for, maybe something ideal for him, a hope he has for better circumstances. Which also means he's in a situation he can't escape (Being the person's he loves the most and thinks that hates him, yorishiro. Being Amane's yorishiro). A situation that makes him feel hurt, a situation that he's struggling with and he wants to break free from it.

But then Nene joins in and they sing along!!! He's looking upward and ahead with a soft gaze, with a gentle smile. He also shows more of his deepest feelings in his face, the sadness but also the good memories from when he was alive, he was reminiscing about the past.

And at the same time it's a face of hope, a face of someone soon to be in a better situation, a face of someone about to be free from the chains someone else put on him. To me, it was his personal farewell before he disappears. Before Nene destroys him. His face shows it all.

I think it's one of the very few times that Tsukasa let himself to feel, he let his feelings show: Pain, hope, nostalgia and enjoyment. He was genuinely having fun singing along with Nene, he opened up a bit, he was so comfortable to express himself and Nene also got relaxed to sing along with him.

They shared something they really liked in common, that is, to sing and they did it together. It was a personal, meaningful moment between them in which he showed his innermost emotions through his facial expression, through the lyrics of the song, through his behaviour. That was unexpected and enchanting.

And I link this hope to this scene. Apart from granting Amane's wish, to bring happiness to him, to bring better circumstances for him with his ultimate sacrifice, there's his hope to disappear, to finally be free from his painful situation.

It's something really sad, his hope for himself in his current circumstances in the original timeline. He longs to be free even if it means to disappear.

He has his childish, carefree side but he also has his emotional, deep side which he almost never shows and because of that, some people tend to overlook it. I would love to learn more about his inner emotional world. We'll probably see more of it from when he was alive.

TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN - Covers 1/3

mitsuba

Something abt hanako being tone deaf and tsukasa being the singer is funny to me

Also it's given me a new headcanon; whenever amane had nightmares or couldn't sleep tsukasa would sing for him, instead of amane singing to tsukasa i would love for tsukasa to do it for him, even if it was terrible i would love to see tsukasa try to soothe amane

ALSO LOOK AT MY BABY SMILING HE LOOKS SO HAPPY JUST LISTENING TO YASHIRO SING ACK-

mitsuba is in a toaster!!!

(submitted by anon)

I love the Hananene and Mitsukou parallels.

I NEVER NOTICED THIS HELLO

KOU CALLING MITSUBA BY HIS FIRST NAME

Like the fact that Kou doesn't even call Yokoo and Satou by their first names and that Kou promised to be friends with Mitsuba UGHHHHHHH idk if I'm sad or happy but I'm feeling EMOTIONS about chapter 114

eepy

THEY ARE SO CUTE IM CRYING