SPOILER Summary/Synopsis:
After asking Ruka to take care of Hayate, Ruka reminds Nagi that the contest rules said nothing about being the first to sell out, only that the person who sold the most would win. Nagi thinks this means they tied, but Ruka reveals she had a final copy of her manga, which was unsold. As such, Ruka tells Nagi that she has won.. Nagi's legs give out as Ruka congratulates her, saying that though she lost, she too has no regrets.
As Chiharu and Ayumu congratulate the shocked Nagi, Kayura asks Ruka why she thought she lost. Ruka says that Nagi's passion was the difference. Kayura seems to understand as someone approaches and asks to buy that final copy from Ruka.
Thoughts/Review:
I don't remember who did it, but someone called the outcome of this contest, stating that they felt that Ruka would only sell 99 copies and would purposefully withhold one. That seems to be exactly what happened here.
When this contest first began, I thought that Ruka would probably win, but would come to a decision as a result of the contest that would cause her to give up on forcing Hayate to marry her, but would allow her to be in the "I haven't given up on you yet" category. What I hadn't considered at the time was Hata-sensei's plans for Nagi, and I probably should have. However, Hata-sensei is so blasted subtle and slow on pushing plots forward that important foreshadowing moments actually get lost, at least for me.
Currently, I'm rereading the manga that Viz is releasing at a painfully slow rate. I'm up to the point where Nagi decides to take a part-time job in order to earn money to buy Hayate a watch with for his birthday in November. As I look back now, that was the point where Hata-sensei put Nagi on her path that lead her to the place she is with this chapter. Back then, it was the fact that she wanted to do something on her own without the backing of the Sanzenin fortune or name. While I think she will still buy Hayate a nice watch with money she's earned on her own, with the doujinshi manga she created, she has achieved the goal she set out to do when she first took a part-time job that she didn't need.
Frankly, I love it. I am so glad to see Nagi have such great character growth so that she can stand on her own two feet. I'm guessing this will sorely be needed as the main plot moves forward and Hayate presumably ends up with Athena again. Nagi has shown that she can let Hayate go if needed.
As to why Ruka would hold a copy of her manga, I think this ties in with my earlier theory on Ruka winning but giving up on Hayate. If Ruka had come to her own decision about giving up on forcing Hayate to marry her, then in order to save face, she goes through with the contest but purposefully takes a dive to allow her opponent to win. For Ruka, this is a graceful way of bowing out, and I like it personally, presuming she's really come to her decision after thinking things through carefully.
That being said, since it appears that Hayate is buying the last copy of the doujinshi, that would put things back at a tie and allow the status quo to stay in effect, but still allow Nagi to get the win since the sale is after the event closed.
OK Hata-sensei, what do you have for us next? I hope that we get to see what happened with Hayate, Hina, and Kurosu. I also hope that Hata-sensei keeps writing as well as he has of late, not worrying about ramming in comedy just for the sake of comedy, but keeping any comedy elements in check so that they don't derail the story being told.
I can't wait to read the next chapter!
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