Surface

Looks The following is mentioned because it ought to be addressed, and because it tells the reader more about Yuyuka’s looks (which may not be evident in the drawings alone): Interestingly, when Suzume reveals Yuyuka’s message to Shishio, he makes a knowing face and laughs awkwardly, which may lead one to believe that Yuyuka’s careful concealing of her true personality at school doesn’t fool her homeroom teacher, or that there have been instances of her pulling something like this before.

Seeing how nothing along those lines is brought up, with Yuyuka lacking motive either way if Mamura isn’t involved, it comes down to what Shishio tells Suzume on their way to the bowling center: “Ever since the first year of high school, she’s been wearing black contact lenses and fake eyelashes. How could she be a pure girl?” — an incredibly shallow and sexist remark, made all the more repulsive by the fact that it comes from the mouth of a teacher and directed at a fellow female student. (And it’s presented as a matter of fact without being challenged in a series and magazine aimed at young girls.) Worse, the same line is uttered by another male character later on who shows interest in Yuyuka. Suzume, at the very least, doesn’t think that way, and Yuyuka’s input regarding make-up and fashion is something the two of them have fun with together.

Façade At school (and perhaps in her free time as well, as is shown in one instance where she talks to an adult to fish for information), Yuyuka enters something that’s referred to as her “cute girl mode”, a personality that gets along with others easily while avoiding conflict. Elements of it include an inviting smile, a modest and shy demeanor — even more so around guys — and an approach to fellow students via small talk. Yuyuka started to wear this mask quite some time before the story starts because her “pretty and cute” looks had made her quite popular in the past: As she constantly ended up in the spotlight, her popularity made her the target of misunderstandings and conflicts. Though it is the persona she employs when first talking to Suzume, it is not a mask created solely for that purpose, seeing how it dates further back and is kept up even after Suzume discovers the truth.