Weekly Izushie

The relationship between Shiemi and Izumo started off on uneven ground. With Shiemi's naivety coming to a head against Izumo's propensity for emotional isolation, Izumo often acted defensively when faced with a mirror of her own insecurities (a common form of self preservation in childhood trauma victims). Despite it all, however, Izumo finds it hard to deny Shiemi's unwaving optimism in the face of hardship. Chapter 41 and their tag team against the Mayuko is our first glimpse at Izumo's guard lowering and her world expanding outside of Paku.

As for Shiemi, we see how she has very little patience or respect for the judgment of strangers—a far cry from the girl being ordered around under the guise of 'friendship'. Where Izumo is far more keenly aware of the judgement of others (leading her to be incredibly high-strung and prickly), Shiemi represents a unexpected source of inspiration to her. The two girls, slowly but surely, begin to shift towards each other as Izumo finally accepts Shiemi's help: the walls built up by her hyper-independence falling away as the pair pull eachother out of a sticky situation.