#makisaka

the second 2 are fills for SASO, but the first is just a rando sad teshi

Title: Gradual Climb

Rated: T

Pairing: Makishima Yuusuke X Onoda Sakamichi

If anyone of you has watching Yowamushi Pedal like I have, you would know that Onoda, the little blessed otaku, is the greatest cinnamon roll to ever exist in a sports anime. I mean, he literally went from ‘no way am I ever going to be involved in a sport’ to ‘cycling is fun’ and through that he’s obviously made a lot of gains in friendship and *cough* potential relationships. Now obviously, there’s a lot of potential pairings in this series that could involve Onoda, I mean it’s shipping hell really...he might as well be in an otome game. 

Well this rant concerns one relationship that has really stuck out to me, and oddly enough Pixiv has a lot of fan art of these two: Makishima and Onoda. Yes, I know this pairing really isn’t as popular as others but when I saw how popular it was on Pixiv I started wondering what people saw...and needless to say...I had no idea that this pairing had potential. So here are a few of reasons why I think this is an interesting pairing. (Warning: contains spoilers)

1. Their relationship is a slow build-up. 

At first, Makishima doesn’t think much of Onoda when he watches Onoda go against Imaizumi, but when Onoda catches up and faces off Imaizumi for the top of the peak he grows interested and even cheers Onoda on at one point. It was when Onoda took the peak that Makishima realized the potential Onoda had and started taking an interest in him. When Onoda first rides with Makishima he’s nervous because Makishima is well...scary. Not to mention they had nothing in common and had the hardest time talking to each other. When Onoda asks Makishima what he’s interested in and Makishima answers “Gravure” it’s followed by dead silence. Later Makishima admits he’s bad at socializing and is better able to communicate by climbing. Seeing Makishima climb then inspires Onoda who calls Makishima “cool” and means it. Makishima of course is taken aback by this since no one has ever described his climbing style as cool. He also has no understanding of why Onoda likes those capsule toys and is taken aback when Onoda takes pictures of one he assembled, but later when he sees the same toy, the Black Manyu, on Imaizumi’s water bottle he asks Imaizumi to trade with him and gives the water bottle with the Manyu to Onoda because he knew Onoda would like it and he probably wanted to look like a cool senpai. Also, during the Inter-High when Tadokoro fell behind because he was feeling ill Onoda offered to go get him. Makishima held his doubts at first but then placed his trust in Onoda and sent him off while the rest of the team moved forward. Onoda ended up keeping his promise and Makishima ended up being glad that he placed his trust in his kohai. There was a lot of trust placed in Onoda until the end. Also seeing Makishima hug Onoda was really cute considering this guy probably isn’t a body-contact type of person.

2. Makishima helped make Onoda stronger. 

Of course, one could argue that there were a lot of people who contributed to Onoda growing stronger but as far as climbing goes and the Inter-High, Makishima was primary source of advice to Onoda. He was the one who pointed out that Onoda’s tires had been changed because he felt it wasn’t fair that Kinjou didn’t explain to Onoda that his bike had been modified while Imaizumi and Naruko were aware of the modifications on their bikes. By explaining to Onoda about the modifications and how to overcome the challenge Onoda was once again encouraged. Kinjou of course, thought Onoda should figure it out on his own but Makishima insisted that Onoda needed a push in the right direction. Makishima also explained to Onoda a lot about how the Inter-High works and the challenges that are presented at this event. Even after the Inter-High before leaving for England Makishima gives Onoda advice on how to pedal on the new yellow BMC he received. 

3. These two actually have a lot in common.

As senpai and kohai these two clicked, and it turns out they were never that different from each other. If anyone watches Spare Bike and sees Makishima as a first-year you can definitely see some similarities he had with Onoda. Both were awkward in their own ways. Onoda didn’t have friends when he first entered high school and was only interested in anime. Makishima of course was seen as a social outcast and was used to being alone when it came to climbing. (Not to mention both singing while riding, lol.) Both are earnest in their feelings, like when Makishima told Kanzaki that he loved riding bikes. Onoda is also earnest in his feelings when he expresses them as we’ve seen repeatedly, such as when he gives Makishima 10 keychains because he wanted to express his gratitude. Both also are prone to knowing when something bad is happening such as when Tadokoro got sick and Makishima had a bad feeling that Tadokoro was still going to be sick the next day. Before Makishima left for England Onoda developed a bad feeling and ended up deciding to go with Makishima on that climb because...he knew something was up. 

4. Onoda really misses Makishima.

Granted, Makishima probably should have told Onoda that he was planning to go to England instead of leaving so abruptly. Although he did not leave without a heartfelt good-bye, telling Onoda to take care of Sohoku and patting him on top of the head.  He also tells Onoda that no matter where he is he’d always be riding beside him. (And boy did that give me the feels.) After Makishima leaves, Onoda struggles a lot because Makishima isn’t there...he still feels like he needs him. Luckily Teshima steps into this role and mentors Onoda who is still coping with Makishima being gone. Onoda also admits during his next race that Makishima is the coolest climber and uses this motivation to beat Ashikiba. Yes, Makishima becomes Onoda’s motivation.

So you see, there is a lot of potential with these two. As a senpai and kohai relationship, these two are definitely close. Makishima means a lot to Onoda and in return Onoda means a lot to Makishima. They’re both very sensitive, kind-hearted individuals with a lot of similarities even though they seem vastly different. And this is why these two are pairing material to some people. As I said before, Pixiv has a surprising amount of fan art of these two. You just have to put in: 巻坂

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: 弱虫ペダル | Yowamushi Pedal Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Makishima Yuusuke/Onoda Sakamichi Characters: Onoda Sakamichi, Makishima Yuusuke Additional Tags: Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Lazy Mornings, Boys Kissing, Adorkable, Aged-Up Character(s) Summary: