ChikaIta

ChikaIta is the slash ship between Chikage Utsuki and Itaru Chigasaki from the A3! Act Addict Actors fandom.

Canon
Itaru and Chikage likely first met at an unspecified time before the events of Year 1 Main Story (2017). Itaru has been working in a prestigious trading company since he graduated from University in 2016 while Chikage, as his Senpai (Senior), had been working there for an unspecified longer time. Their relationship during this time is mostly unknown, though they were likely only passing acquaintances since they worked in different departments and Chikage was usually sent abroad on "business trips" (which were usually missions for The Organization).

The first reference towards Chikage was near the end of Act 4 when a mysterious threatening message attached to a bouquet was found after the 2nd Gen Winter Troupe's Debut Play Sympathy for the Angel. It is later confirmed that Chikage got the tickets from Itaru, having made up a newfound interest in theatre as an excuse.

While only mentioned after the event, the first time Chikage saw Itaru act was during the 2nd Gen Spring Troupe's 3rd Play A Clockwork Heart in which he played the supporting role Boyd. He states that this was when he truly began to become a fan of Chigasaki Itaru the actor. According to him, he also kept up with the actor's blog which is how he knew Mankai Company was recruiting new members in Act 5 of the Main Story (set in Year 2 AKA 2018).

When Chikage first expressed interest in joining the troupe, Itaru informs him that they would be roommates by default, to which Chikage says works out well since they already know each other. They also establish a personal contract primarily concerning Itaru's late-night gaming and streaming habits. Said contract, according to Itaru later on, is as follows:

1. Do not expose my slovenly dorm lifestyle to the outside world.

2. Do not get in the way when I am immersed in games.

3. Do not disturb the perfect placement of electric wires and cords in my room.

4. Do not move my gaming consoles or my computer.

5. You are banned from entering the room when I am taking videos (primarily from 10 PM to 12 AM on weekdays).

As Chikage gets acquainted with the Spring Troupe and director, he sometimes tells lies that he plays off as jokes. Most fall for them at first, but Itaru easily realizes when he's lying. It's worthwhile to note that while Masumi is usually on edge whenever any guy is alone with the director, he says Chikage is probably fine, likely due to sensing the latter's lack of interest in women.

The next few episodes focused on the troupe getting Masumi back from his father, to which Chikage was minimally involved in, only getting dragged into it when he arrived in the morning (after "staying overnight for work") just as the group was about to leave for the airport. He actually initially didn't want to go, only doing so when told that they were all Masumi's real family. During this time, Chikage is hardly ever in his room with Itaru and the latter maintains that he's never seen him sleep in their room once.

After numerous instances of foreshadowing, Chikage ends up kidnapping the director in order to destroy Mankai Company as an ill-guided act of revenge towards Hisoka, who he believed was a traitor to The Organization and the reason why their adoptive older brother, August, was dead. As expected, the members of Mankai are in a panic at the sudden disappearance of the two. Itaru asked his other co-workers but the only details he was able to find was that the two had supposedly decided to leave on a business trip in a hurry. After Hisoka regains (at least partially) his memory, he's able to find the hideout where Chikage is keeping the director hostage. Chikage tries to kill Hisoka, but after an explanation of the truth as well as the revelation of their backstories, repents and lets the director go.

The three go home to Mankai after Hisoka calls it their new family, and Sakuya notes that Chikage's acting has changed. Before their opening performance of the 2nd Gen Spring Troupe's 4th Play The Wonderful Charlatan of Oz, Itaru described Chikage using otaku/netizen slang, which he realizes that Chikage understands, prompting him to call Chikage a netizen too. He then remarks that birds of a feather flock together and that Chikage should show that side of himself more often.

The night after their first run of the play, Chikage leaves their dorm room with his suitcase. Itaru claims to have been up due to collecting log-in bonuses for his games, but in truth, he was cautious of Chikage leaving since he and the director noticed something off about him earlier that day. He asks Chikage where he's going at such a late hour, to which Chikage merely says that he's lending the suitcase to someone and is thinking of getting a new one. Though Itaru can easily tell that it's a lie, and Chikage might have known that Itaru saw through him, he pretends not to know and lets Chikage leave. Itaru sadly mutters about how he doesn't intend to come back before calling Sakuya, having decided earlier on that their bright and innocent young leader would do a better job at convincing his senpai to stay.

Sakuya ends up playing a coin toss battle against Chikage and roping him into a spring troupe tradition: sleeping on the theatre stage. He ends up telling Chikage stories about their time first year in Mankai, including how Itaru picked Masumi up from school during their run of Spring Troupe's 2nd Play Alex in Wonderland. Chikage begins opening up too, and the two fall asleep. A bit later, the rest of the Spring Troupe (including Itaru) end up joining the two. When the director arrives in the morning, they're all peacefully sprawled on top of each other in their sleep with Itaru's head on Chikage's shoulder.

After that, Chikage is able to make it through all the way to closing night and is even noted to look cheerful and refreshed at the end of the play's run. He sincerely apologizes to Mankai for the trouble he has caused, though with an elaborately spun lie of a story for an explanation since he cannot reveal the specifics of his circumstances concerning The Organization. To this, Itaru amusedly comments that he has nerves of steel to lie in an apology. By now, the rest can tell it's a lie, of course, but they acknowledge his sincerity and forgive him. Hisoka and Chikage somewhat reconnect whilst reminiscing about August as they stare at the moon. After this, Chikage starts regularly going to sleep in his shared room with Itaru.

Chikage and Itaru don't appear much in Acts 6 and 7, but they do attend the Spring-Winter Troupe joint training camp during the Petals Flutter, You Slumber event set in between said two acts. They're shown to be similar in that they both don't want to stay somewhere without an internet signal, but different in the fact that Itaru is of course much less athletic, to the point of being incredibly out of breath just from a bit of hiking while Chikage, having gone through harsh spy training since childhood, barely breaks a sweat. Aside from having their usual banter, Itaru and Chikage also worry about Masumi's insomnia around this time and show concern for the younger boy in their own way. Everyone in the two troupes (perhaps Itaru the most) are glad that Azuma was able to trick Sakyo into letting them stay at a high-class and expensive place, but at the end of the event, they're found out due to the director's inste post that Kazunari showed to everyone in the Summer-Autumn troupes. Sakyo scolds Azuma and Chikage as well as warns them not to scam people like that again.

During Act 8 of the Main Story, Chikage is visibly much closer and more comfortable with Itaru and the rest of Mankai. Before Citron had to leave for his home country due to his status as Crown Prince, all members of the Spring Troupe agree to grant him a wish each. Itaru ends up going first, having to treat everyone to a free meal (of course, everyone including Chikage takes advantage of the fact that it's his treat and order a lot). On the other hand, Chikage's wish is for last and is revealed to be to help Citron disappear without anyone noticing, presumably because Citron doesn't want to go through the pain of a long and sad goodbye with everyone. At some point after Citron leaves, the director finds an encrypted microchip in the talisman charm he left behind which was originally Guy's. Due to... their expertise in such matters, Hisoka goes to ask for Chikage's help in figuring out what's inside (presumably, Itaru witnessed them decrypting it since they worked in his and Chikage's room and he's usually in their room at that time of night).

When Mankai decides to get Citron back by using Winter Troupe's performance at his coronation as an opportunity, Itaru and Chikage come alongside the rest of Spring Troupe. Hisoka and Chikage go shopping during their free time, in which they buy an ungodly amount of sweets and spices respectively. Itaru notes this and realizes that Chikage was actually fond of the Zahran spices that Citron snuck into his food. The two of them observe Tsuzuru's interactions with his older brother and in a somewhat parental way, agree that he likely turned out to be such a responsible person because his older brother is carefree like that. Later on, when they see Citron on stage, they agree with the rest of Spring Troupe that even though he's a prince, he's one of them and that'll never change. Spring Troupe originally had a plan to meet up with Citron with Mika's help and it goes so well at the start that Itaru is able to joke about it being a game to which Chikage teases him for. But on their way, Tangerine ends up running into them and pleading for their help.

Apparently, Citron's other two younger brothers who covet the throne, Orange and Navel, kidnapped Citron and he's in danger. Chikage insists to go and rescue Citron alone, asking everyone to believe in him because he'll definitely be fine and make sure he'll keep everyone safe. He promised Hisoka to keep their new family safe, after all. Despite everyone else taking his word and leaving, Itaru stays with Chikage. Chikage tries to get him to stay back by calling him dead weight, but Itaru is unshakeable. In a last effort, he insists that he can't promise to be able to protect Itaru under these circumstances, but Itaru followed him fully prepared to take the risk. Chikage muses that it's out of character for Itaru to be so self-sacrificial like this, to which Itaru says is the same for him. Chikage amusedly agrees. Surprisingly, Itaru is actually useful as he's able to bribe one of the guards with top-quality sake he got earlier. Chikage also voices his surprise at this.

They're able to eavesdrop and find out that Citron is being held in a trap cellar (though only Chikage can understand the Zahran language so he translates for Itaru). There turn out to be a lot of guards, so Chikage asks Itaru to close his eyes. Itaru asks if he means literally or metaphorically (towards the criminal acts he's probably about to commit) to which Chikage cheerfully clarifies that he means both. Itaru complies and sounds of Chikage beating up the guards ensue. When Chikage says he can open his eyes, he casually asks if Chikage killed them, to which the latter assures that they're barely breathing. Itaru compares the situation to an action game and Chikage tells him to stop being meta. They untie and rescue Citron but when they rush back to the performance venue, they find that the curtains are in flames and fire is rapidly spreading.

Thanks to the quick action and guidance of Tangerine, the fire is put out without anyone getting hurt — all of these events open the king's eyes to the fact that Citron would rather stay as an actor and Tangerine would make an equally good Crown Prince, so after being removed from the line of succession he's able to go back home with Mankai as his country's Minister of Arts and Culture. Itaru and Chikage also scold Citron for acting distant from them. The Spring and Winter troupe are able to go home (along with the director) and the entire company has a party in celebration during which Itaru and Chikage tell Citron that he's not allowed to disappear or leave them. Itaru also complains about all the serious stuff that happened. On the other hand, Chikage simply starts talking about the Zahran food they got to eat and the spices he brought home.

The next event in which Chikage and Itaru are given focus is Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Spring Troupe's Fifth play (set in Year 2 but after Act 8 Main Story). One day, Itaru and Citron come home with a big haul of shokugan (lit. food toy, small boxed toys that come in sets like something you'd get from a Happy Meal) that are apparently a new line consisting of Knights of Round (commonly abbreviated as KniRoun or KotR) toys. He talks about the game series (which has nine games and will apparently release the tenth one the same year) and how it's his favorite of all time, to the point that he plays each game at least ten times and insists that it's flawless. When he invites Chikage to replay games with him, the latter teases him about wasting time since according to him games can be easily hacked to get the highest score. Of course, Itaru calls him unromantic for saying this. When Itaru mentions that KotR IV was one of his favorites since he got it from Santa in primary school, everyone in Spring Troupe is somewhat surprised and Chikage laughs because it's hard for them to imagine Itaru as a kid believing in Santa. Itaru whines for them to shut up and quit teasing him.

While the Spring Troupe are discussing his high school days, the director and Sakyo come looking for him. Believing Sakyo is just going to scold him, Itaru attempts to escape but is stopped by Chikage who claims he has to take care of Itaru as his Unromantic Senpai. Itaru accuses him of holding a grudge just for the nickname, but Sakyo interrupts and assures him that he's not in for a lecture or anything. Apparently, they heard that Itaru likes the Knights of Round games and came to tell him that an offer came for them to put on a stage adaptation for the fourth game. Itaru is actually petrified in shock.

Later on, he attends a meeting with an End Links (the company that owns the KniRoun series) representative alongside the director, Sakyo, and Tsuzuru, but he ends up freezing in a different way this time. It turns out that the representative, Tonooka, is someone that Itaru recognizes. Itaru tries to avoid talking to him, but he sadly calls him, "Chiga......" thus revealing to the others that they knew each other. Tonooka one-sidedly explains that they were high school friends, but it seems there's more to the story as Itaru doesn't comment and continues not to say much during the meeting, and not a single thing towards Tonooka. The only time he speaks up is to ask which game in the series is being adapted and to request to be the lead since the answer, IV, is a very previous work to him. At the end of the meeting, Tonooka invites Itaru for a drink but he refuses, using his practices for the play as an excuse about being busy. The director notes that they probably had a more complicated relationship as more than just schoolmates since there's a sort of scary layer to their cheerful conversation, something like two people testing the waters with each other but not exactly at the same time.

As part of their role studies for the play, Spring Troupe started playing all the KniRoun games. Chikage comes home one day to see everyone (even the director) gaming in the living room, which he overdramatically acts afraid of. Teasing Itaru, he says that everyone caught a case of the Chigasakis. Itaru lightheartedly quips back that he shouldn't treat people like germs before inviting him to join them. He declines, saying he's unromantic anyway so he'll only clear KniRoun IV during his spare time and just read a summary of the plots online for the other games in the series. Itaru calls him unmistakably unromantic for starting with spoilers like that.

Soon after that conversation, Tsuzuru arrives and announces that he's done with the script. Of course, they stuck as close as possible to the original but had to make certain decisions on which key scenes to keep as well as which important characters to feature like which Knight of the Round should accompany Lancelot as the third party member (since this can be chosen in the game). Adapting the entire plot strictly would be impossible to fit in a roughly two-hour play, which is why Tsuzuru had to pick and arrange the episodes. Unlike for their other plays, Itaru takes the lead in assigning the roles to the troupe members instead of Tsuzuru, discussing his reasonings in detail. He's already decided to be the lead and therefore Lancelot; Chikage is assigned last as Gawain, the sub-lead. They agree that it's natural because Chikage fits Gawain in terms of age, physique, and being Lancelot's senpai as he is to Itaru. Due to witnessing Itaru and Chikage's banter, Citron adds that like Lancelot and Gawain, Itaru and Chikage are also perfectly in sync. The director then brings up a supervisory meeting, but Itaru says he can't make it even though he wants to meet Hoshii (the creator of KniRoun who's like a God to him). While he says it's because it's a weekday and he has work, the director wonders if it's also because Tonooka will be there.

At the end of the supervisory meeting, after Hoshii gives his comments on their work so far, Tonooka thanks them for coming and asks why Itaru couldn't come, to which the director explains that besides being an actor, he's also a salaryman and has work on weekdays. He seems somewhat surprised at this and makes a vague comment about preparing for something in case they need help, to which the director is internally uneasy due to feeling like he's plotting something. When the director meets Spring Troupe after passing the supervision, Itaru starts them off by talking about the details of the characters that they should portray, putting emphasis on the fact that Gawain seriously injured and scarred his left arm once which causes him to shield his left side more. Chikage appears to remember what he's talking about even though this knowledge came from a scene in a sub-event that only appears under a certain set of conditions in the game.

After Itaru lectures them on the characters, he reminds the troupe that they have to portray the detailed setting properly to appease the diehard fans, to which Chikage amusedly comments that lots of people like him will come. Itaru asks the director if she's cleared KniRoun IV, she's apparently at the final dungeon, while Chikage contributes that he's already finished it for a while now. Sakuya mentions that he thought RPGs were for playing alone but it's more fun to play and then talk about it with everyone... this causes Itaru to go quiet, further foreshadowing his backstory concerning Tonooka.

After a session of practice, the Spring Troupe and director note that Itaru's still too unathletic and his stamina won't hold with all the sword fights in the play they have this time. Chikage teases Itaru because his role as Gawain has nearly as many, to which Itaru grumbles for him not to compare them because Chikage's athletic abilities are too good it's like he's cheating. Their troupe leader suggests that they all go for a jog with Tasuku before morning practice to build stamina and Itaru agrees. Because he actually hates exercise a lot, the director notes that his attitude towards this play is really special and he's doing his best to work hard on his role.

During another session of practice, Itaru does his rounds, as usual, giving tips to the troupe members as the leader for this play. He started off with Chikage, telling him that he should portray Gawain with a bit of a darker feel during the scene he was practicing, to which Chikage agrees to try his advice. After he asks the director if they could focus more on one of the scenes with Lancelot and Gwen, she and the other troupe members begin to notice more and more that Itaru is especially hard on himself in terms of perfecting his role's characterization for the play. Citron has a talk with him while he's gaming to which he reveals that he's particularly attached to Lancelot because KniRoun got him through a tough time like when he was in primary school and he was bullied for being at the bottom of the hierarchy in terms of sports prowess. Even until middle school, his only escape was daydreaming about being reborn as Lancelot and talking to Gwen, so he's got a really high ideal of what Lancelot should be like.

Soon after, Hoshii and Tonooka drop by Mankai's lesson room to watch a full run-through of the play during practice. Once more, Itaru avoids talking to Tonooka as much as possible. They each introduce themselves to Hoshii, to which Chikage teases Itaru for not asking Hoshii for a handshake or something since he knows that Itaru thinks of Hoshii like a God. After their performance, Hoshii gives critique, the gist of which is that he'd rather they portray how they felt about KniRoun and its charm rather than only act out the characters. He also apologizes for expecting too much. To this, Itaru and Chikage are silent.

A few days before dress rehearsal, the spring troupe and the director. talk about what they should do but Itaru immediately apologizes for not having been a good enough Lancelot. Everyone tries to cheer him up and tell him it's not his fault, but when he remains unconvinced and is only silent, Chikage diverts the conversation to the task at hand. They don't get anywhere since they don't understand what needs to be resolved. Chikage asks about Izumi's last meeting with End Links before the performance and ends up tagging along on it a few days later. Izumi wonders what's going on since it seems out of character for him to have gone to the meeting with her.

When he arrives, Tonooka admits that he can't give them any concrete advice because the issue was that their portrayal of the characters was perfect but perhaps too perfect in staying true to the source material so their feelings and passion towards KniRoun couldn't be seen. Instead, he suggests that they take a different approach and expose Itaru's true identity as the gaming streamer《taruchi》, who's immensely popular in the KniRoun fandom. He continues to elaborate that the streamer《taruchi》's fame is far above that of the actor Itaru Chigasaki, so having it known that he's actually one and the same as the lead would make the play hard to ignore... he reveals that it's to the point where Hoshii himself has heard of 《taruchi》, to which Izumi is surprised but Chikage already seems to know of. While Izumi is apprehensive because she and Chikage know keeping Itaru's private and public personas separated is important to him, Tonooka insists that this is the best way to get Hoshii to give them an OK. Chikage reacts somewhat hostile and on edge, voicing his suspicions that exposing Itaru was Tonooka's objective in the first place by approaching Mankai company for the stage adaptation and that not all the fans who'd make a fuss about it would be supportive voices.

Upon getting home, Izumi and Chikage fill the rest of the spring troupe in on Tonooka's suggestion and Itaru is silent. The spring troupe all agree with the director being against the idea and moreover express that they wouldn't want to step all over Itaru's feelings like that especially when it wouldn't even solve the issue or help them live up to Hoshii's expectations. However, Itaru interrupts them and says it's fine even if he's outed as a game nerd to his workplace (where he's popular to the point of being called the office's prince due to his public persona). He insists again and again that it's okay, but Chikage says that the 《taruchi》 on the internet was the only place where Itaru could discard his fake personality. He knows that it was the only place where Itaru could show his real self without fear of backlash or ostracization so it must have been his emotional support. The director thinks to herself that Chikage himself also posts curry reviews as the popular blogger 《chikausa》 so he likely understands Itaru's feelings on it even more than the rest of them.

The spring troupe question how Tonooka even knew his streamer identity in the first place, to which Itaru maintains that he never told Tonooka but that he likely figured it out because he sometimes talked about personal experiences during his streams... since there were stories from Itaru's high school days that only he would know. They remark about how the two must have been close back then despite not looking it right now, and Masumi recalls something Itaru once said all the way back during the Alex in Wonderland (Spring Troupe 2nd Play) Event in Year 1, where Itaru foreshadowed Tonooka's existence by remarking something along the lines of "he'd laugh at me for doing something so unlike me" after he helped Masumi resolve some issues. Itaru affirms that Tonooka was the person he had been referring to at that time, remarking that Masumi had a good memory. Since everyone can already more or less tell that something happened between the two in the past, the director straightforwardly asks Itaru about it. He says it's a gloomy story but asks if they'll all listen. He says he'll tell them if they're interested, to which Chikage teases him that he actually wants them to listen. Sakuya goes to brew some tea as they gather around, obviously willing to listen, some remarking that Itaru's not honest about what he wants and Chikage fondly calling him an attention seeker.

Itaru explains how in middle school, he was bullied relentlessly by sporty boys because he was pale and skinny... all he could do was try not to stand out by cooping himself at home with his games. When he got into a high school that was far away from his hometown, his older sister (who practically raised him since their parents were often away) created a plan for his successful high school debut. Saying it was annoying that he was always at home, she trained him to act as a sickly pretty boy sort of character (by coughing and sighing as he stared wistfully out of the window, reading listlessly in the library, and skipping gym class whilst using a chronic illness as an excuse), since his looks already made him stick out so he might as well stick out in a good way. He was only half-willing to comply, but surprisingly her strategy worked and girls and boys alike treated him nicely and looked out for him.

But one day, at the end of class, he dropped the key to his house which happened to have a limited edition Sir Round Table Knight (KniRoun's mascot) keychain on it, which Tonooka picked up for him. Prior to that, he didn't have a good impression of him since he was a rowdy "normie" type of person, and he expected to be teased for it, but surprisingly Tonooka recognized the keychain and Itaru found out he was also a KniRoun fan and gaming nerd. That was the start of their friendship where Tonooka and he secretly gamed together, both even revealing to the other that their "sickly" and "normie" personas were entirely made up. Tonooka was his first, closest, and only friend during those days... they could only be themselves around each other.

Near the end of their last year of high school, Itaru was talking to a classmate that was interested in trying out the new KniRoun game coming out. When Tonooka came in, he tried to include him in the conversation... but Tonooka just made a strange face and left, to which Itaru realized he might have been a bit careless since that could have outed them as game nerds. He didn't think it was a big deal, though, so when Tonooka started badmouthing him and revealing his secrets after school the next day, his head went blank and he left. Tonooka chased after him but didn't even apologize, only said that Itaru could out him too. Coldly, Itaru remarked that rather than doing something troublesome and hating Tonooka, he simply didn't care about him anymore. Tonooka, despite having been the traitor, was the one left standing there in shock and regret as Itaru left.

At the end of the story, Itaru confirmed that Tonooka and his betrayal was the reason why he had a hard time forming genuine connections — the rest of his life before joining Mankai, from his remaining high school days to university and his time as a working adult, he only ever had superficial relationships with people. He started live-streaming his games because it was the closest thing he could have to talking to people about them, but now that he already has all of them (Mankai, mainly Chikage and the rest of Spring Troupe), he says it would be fine even if he has to stop streaming as a worst-case scenario. The others still express apprehension, but once more Itaru insists that it's really fine. Chikage scolds him, telling him not to be so hasty, to which it's Itaru's turn to tease him for caring so much. Chikage asks the director if they can hold off their decision and Izumi says they can for one or two days. Because Chikage resolutely says that time is enough, the director and a silent Itaru realize he has a plan to help Itaru in mind.

Quotes

 * Chikage - "Let me say this now: I can’t promise you that I can protect you under these circumstances."
 * Itaru - "K."
 * Chikage - "So you were fully prepared to take that risk... Since when were you this kind of character?"
 * Itaru - "That goes for both of us."
 * Chikage - "That's true."
 * — Main Story Act 8, Episode 33


 * Chikage - "Close your eyes for a sec, will you, Chigasaki?
 * Itaru - "You mean physically? Or to the criminal acts I'm pretty sure you're about to commit?"
 * Chikage - "Both."
 * Itaru - "Roger that."
 * — Main Story Act 8, Episode 34


 * Chikage - "You really waste too much time......"
 * Itaru - "Speaking of which, senpai, you don't get tired even if you don't sleep much, right? You're suited to replaying games. Lend me a hand next time, please."
 * Chikage - "You're joking. What's so fun about putting hours into something you could hack and get the max score on instantly?"
 * Itaru - "Sigh......you've got no sense of romance. You're an unromantic senpai."
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 1


 * Chikage - "If you're looking for Chigasaki, he is here, yes."
 * Itaru - "Wait, let go of me."
 * Chikage - "As an unromantic senpai, I have to look after my kouhai properly."
 * Itaru - "You're the type to hold quite a grudge, huh......"
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 1


 * Chikage - "Urk......A Chigasaki outbreak......"
 * Izumi - "We were all playing 'KniRoun' together."
 * Chikage - "I'm going to my room so I don't catch it."
 * Itaru - "Don't treat a person like a germ. Since you're here, you might as well play too, senpai. This is a way of preparing for your role as well."
 * Chikage - "I'm unromantic anyway, so I'll pass. I'll clear IV in my spare time, but for the rest of the series I'll read spoilers on the net."
 * Itaru - "To start reading from the spoilers, that's so unromantic...... You're unmistakably unromantic."
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 3


 * Itaru - "Gawain is senpai."
 * Chikage - "Well, if we follow the natural course of things, that's how it'd turn out."
 * Itaru - "In terms of your age and physique, you fit, and Gawain has to seem more senior than Lancelot."
 * Chikage - "So you're saying I can act like a big shot."
 * Itaru - "You can just do things as you usually do."
 * Chikage - "Huh, so that's how you see me, is it."
 * Citron - "They're perfectly in sync, too."
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 3


 * Itaru - "It can't be helped. I have a lot of sword fighting to do this time."
 * Chikage - "Gawain has a fair amount too."
 * Itaru - "Please don't lump me in with your cheat athletic ability."
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 4


 * Itaru - "I'm fine with that."
 * Sakuya - "That's ― Isn't it incredibly important to you to separate the world you have as 《taruchi》 from yourself, Itaru-san? We can't destroy something that precious!"
 * Chikage - "As Sakuya says, up until now the 《taruchi》 on the net was the sole world where you could discard who you were as Itaru Chigasaki, was it not? Since you've never been able to show your true self, it must have become your emotional support."
 * Itaru - "......"
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 6


 * Tsuzuru - "If you want us to listen, please be honest and say it."
 * Citron - "He's not honest, is he."
 * Chikage - "Nice one, attention seeker."
 * Masumi - "Gross."
 * Itaru - "Meanies."
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 6


 * Itaru - "That's why even if, in the worst case, I have to stop streaming from now on, it's not an issue. I already have all of you."
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 7


 * Itaru - "I'm telling you it's fine."
 * Chikage - "......Don't be hasty, Chigasaki."
 * Itaru - "You're rather fixated on it, huh. As expected of a netizen."
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 7


 * Chikage - "......I first stood on stage for Oz. By becoming a different person on stage, I was able to confront the feelings of mine that I'd always averted my eyes from for the first time. It was a strange sensation, like being connected to your heart as you stood together on stage with me. In the blink of an eye, I'm about to stand on stage again like this; that's how rare and precious I think that moment was for me... Aren't you the same? There's something about theatre that sets you aflame more than games do."
 * Itaru - "―"
 * Chikage - "If so, then you can just tell that directly to Director Hoshii. It's something only you, both actor and masochistic nerd who plays the same game countless times over and over again, can do, isn't it?"
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 8


 * Itaru - "......Even though I should have known the best, I overlooked something important. Senpai, you saved me."
 * Chikage - "......Gross."
 * Itaru - "I'm making a point of being grateful and that's what you say?"
 * Chikage - "Well, it's good if you've cleared your thoughts."
 * — Knights of Round IV THE STAGE, Episode 8


 * Itaru - "And to Chikage, or as I like to call him, Sir Bores-A-Lot... Honestly, it kind of pissed me off how good you are at fight scenes. I don't know what else I expected from someone as OP as you, but whatever. There's so much more I could say, but I don't want to get teased to death by you, so I'll stop here... Well, I guess I have one more thing: I'm glad you were my Gawain."
 * — Itaru's Blog: Special Thanks (Available: 04/08/21 - 04/09/21 in the EN Server)


 * Itaru - "... During the plays for KniRoun, I was helped by everyone. I guess you can say these are my feelings of gratitude for that."
 * Chikage - "Heh. I think your feelings were made pretty clear by that blog, though?"
 * Itaru - "Wha. Everyone else didn't look at it at all... This is why you're an unromantic senpai."
 * Chikage - "Well, I understand where the reason for your enthusiasm comes from, but as documents for a presentation, it's a bit much. These flickers of your love that are shown here will probably come across better written in a letter rather than a document."
 * Itaru - "Just like that one time... is what you're saying?"
 * Chikage - "That's right. Just like that one time you dragged me onto the stage."
 * — On the Trajectory to Full Bloom, Spring Episode 4


 * Chikage - "Didn’t you practice darts?"
 * Tsuzuru - "You said you couldn’t come because of work, so he quit."
 * Chikage - "Really?"
 * Itaru - "Yup, yup. It’s senpai’s fault that I still suck. Nothing I can do about it."
 * — Scarlet Mirror Epilogue


 * Itaru - "You guys are going to do Senpai's recording now, right? I'd like to to be able to look forward to it, so I guess I'll go somewhere else."
 * — Starring Party, Spring Episode 4


 * Itaru - "I was in the common room. The students were working on their homework, you see."
 * Izumi - "Were you helping them?"
 * Itaru - "I was spreading KniRoun propaganda."
 * Izumi - "That's what you were doing...?"
 * Chikage - "You were actually just in their way."
 * Itaru - "Now, now. It's important to take breaks, too. By the way, the subject is English, so if you go, Senpai, I think Tsumugi-sensei will be happy."
 * Chikage - "Then I guess I'll go help out."
 * Itaru - "K, baton pass."
 * *high-fives*
 * Chikage - "Don't go into full otaku-mode and trouble Director-san."
 * Itaru - "I'll do my best."
 * — Starring Party, Spring Episode 5


 * Itaru - "I messed up on the important last scene, and my head went blank. I even forgot my lines after that part, and I totally got goosebumps, but..."
 * Izumi - "The other two's adlibs were able to connect the scene together.."
 * Itaru - "That's right. At that moment, Citron and Senpai embodied their characters completely... I could even see the background as the game's landscape. That gave me goosebumps in a different sense. That scene, and of course everything outside of it... I won't ever forget any of it. ... I'd love to become Lancelot again one day."
 * — Starring Party, Spring Episode 5


 * Itaru - "I was about to hit a save point, so wasn't it fine to wait for me to get there."
 * Chikage - "Even at the fastest pace, it would take 15 minutes to get to the next save point."
 * Itaru - "... Are you a strategy guide? Just how much play time have you accumulated?"
 * — Starring Party, Spring Episode 5


 * Itaru - "Speaking of which, senpai, how many hours is your total playtime?"
 * Chikage - "...It's a secret."
 * Itaru - "Come on, isn't it fine to spill it now?"
 * Chikage - "I have too many save files to count."
 * Itaru - "Seriously?"
 * — Starring Party, Epilogue 2


 * Masumi - "Sigh… I haven’t seen this guy without his phone in hand recently."
 * Chikage - "He’s always carrying it in one hand, isn’t he? It’s like it’s become a part of his body."
 * Itaru - "Thanks for the compliment."
 * Masumi - "That’s not a compliment."
 * Chikage - "How did you hear a compliment from that?"
 * — Starring Party, Itaru Backstage Story Banquet of Blooming Starring "Itaru" Part 1


 * Itaru - "I loved KniRoun’s works. I’ve been playing them since I was a kid, after all."
 * Chikage - "His passionate speech on the opening day before the curtain rose was also impressive."
 * Itaru - "Well, that’s just how much emotional attachment I have to it…"
 * — Starring Party, Itaru Backstage Story Banquet of Blooming Starring "Itaru" Part 1


 * Itaru - "Speaking of which— you started it with me, didn’t you, senpai? The KniRoun social game, I mean."
 * Chikage - "Right. Chigasaki recommended it to me."
 * Itaru - "Even though he’s got crazy luck and pulled 8 SSRs from the tutorial, he hasn't accepted my friend request yet."
 * Chikage - "Well, it's not like I'm that into it."
 * Itaru - "You liar~ You’re actually playing it in secret, aren’t you?"
 * — Starring Party, Itaru Backstage Story Banquet of Blooming Starring "Itaru" Part 1


 * Chikage - "Then I’ll send you my invite code. You’re down, right, Masumi?"
 * Masumi - "…Sounds good."
 * Itaru - "Eh? Even though you won’t become my friend…?"
 * Chikage - "Well, we’re brothers in the play."
 * Itaru - "If you pull that card, then there’s nothing I can say…"
 * — Starring Party, Itaru Backstage Story Banquet of Blooming Starring "Itaru" Part 1


 * Itaru - "Senpai, please add me as a friend later."
 * Masumi - "He still won’t let that go?"
 * Chikage - Well, I’ll think about it."
 * Itaru - "That’s a promise. I heard it, alright?"
 * — Starring Party, Itaru Backstage Story Banquet of Blooming Starring "Itaru" Part 2


 * Itaru - "Oh hmm... Well the one thing that has definitely changed has got to be... the average age?"
 * Chikage - "Haha, of course. My apologies for the sudden increase."
 * Itaru - It’s not your fault, not at all. What about you, Sakuya?"
 * Sakuya - "Well umm... Things have gotten a bit more lively, but other than that not much I think."
 * Itaru - Well, answering seriously... I think it's less about how Spring Troupe has changed and more about how Chikage has changed, am I right? Well you see, before he joined the troupe he was quite rebellious."
 * Chikage - "Who are you calling rebellious? ...However, well, maybe I was a little rebellious. Perhaps you could say it was all thanks to Sakuya’s support not just as my second lead, but also as the leader of Spring Troupe that I was able to turn over a new leaf."
 * — Starring Party, Chikage Backstage Story Banquet of Blooming Starring "Chikage" Part 1


 * Itaru - Chikage tosses a coin and then we need to guess whether it is in right or left hand."
 * Sakuya - "Yes! However, I never seem to guess right and I’ve set a new record for consecutive defeats..."
 * Chikage - "Now that you mention it, we haven’t played yet today. Shall we do it right here?"
 * Itaru - "You have a coin in your pocket? Someone came prepared, not surprised."
 * — Starring Party, Chikage Backstage Story Banquet of Blooming Starring "Chikage" Part 1


 * Chikage - "Since we don't have practice and work, we cleaned up our room but...Chigasaki's got so many stuff in his area. There's so many wires around his games and computer, so there's a lot of dust as well."
 * Tsuzuru - "Ahh, I see... I feel sorry for you..."
 * Masumi - "I feel sorry that you have to share a room with Itaru."
 * Itaru - "Rude."
 * — The MANKAI Dorm in Those Days: Spring-Summer Edition, Episode 1


 * Itaru - "While we're at it, should we talk about our memories?"
 * Chikage - "You probably just want a break from cleaning."
 * Itaru - "Busted right away."
 * — The MANKAI Dorm in Those Days: Spring-Summer Edition, Episode 1


 * Itaru - "Who would've thought that I'd have to share my castle with Senpai later."
 * Chikage - "Too bad for you."
 * Itaru - "No, no, not at all."
 * — The MANKAI Dorm in Those Days: Spring-Summer Edition, Episode 1


 * Itaru - "But I like it so much that I often sleep on the sofa instead of the bed. Well, since you're my roommate, I'll let you sleep there occasionally."
 * Chikage - "No, thanks. I don't want to turn useless."
 * Itaru - "...I don't care if you regret this later."
 * — The MANKAI Dorm in Those Days: Spring-Summer Edition, Episode 1


 * Itaru - "...Nice. Now that I've heard a good story, it's about time my HP's recovered."
 * Chikage - "Once it's recovered, we should get back on cleaning."
 * Itaru - "No, I'm not talking about that HP, I'm talking about my game's..."
 * Chikage - "We haven't collected the recyclable trash yet; and you should do something about your game magazines, they're stacked now because of your subscription."
 * Itaru - "You demon..."
 * — The MANKAI Dorm in Those Days: Spring-Summer Edition, Episode 5

Fanon
ChikaIta is one of the most popular ships in the A3! fandom, being second only to JuBan in amount of AO3 fanfics. Within the fandom, Chikage is usually regarded as Itaru's second love, with Tonooka (first appears in Knights of Round IV THE STAGE) as his first. Chikage and others who know of Itaru's backstory with him are somewhat hostile to him at first due to how much his betrayal hurt Itaru.

Hurt/Comfort as well as friends with benefits angst are quite common for fanfics of this ship. Many also dabble with the fact that Chikage's an MIA spy and might have to go back to that life one day, leaving Itaru or dying in the process. Chikage canonically would lay his life on the line to protect Mankai Company which he considers his new family, but he's most protective in particular of Itaru, Hisoka, and Izumi (the director).

The main appeal that many fans agree on about this ship is that they're both well-known liars and fakers, often donning different personalities when not at home (where they're roommates), but it's due to this that they understand each other the best. They have a lot of banter, but they always have an absolute mutual understanding of the other which would remind many of an old married couple. It can be said that they're incredibly similar yet contrasting at the same time, both having incredibly different double lives.

This perhaps is the reason for why they not only fully respect each other, but also learn from one another. It's acknowledged even in canon that the two can be fully themselves around each other, as being fake would be useless anyways since they can read each other well. Itaru jokes more around Chikage which many fans take as not only being comfortable around the other, but also a consideration for Chikage to remind him that they're both human despite their pasts. Chikage, aside from giving in and teasing Itaru back, also tends to look out more for Itaru since there are times he tries to be strong but can't truly defend himself (such as the instance in the Knights of Round IV: The Stage event wherein Itaru kept saying it was fine to give in to Tonooka's suggestion to expose his streamer identity when Chikage knew it clearly wasn't).

Expanding on the above mention of their old married couple dynamic, they're often treated as Sakuya's parents (since Sakuya is an orphan who's neglected by his relatives) and sometimes Masumi's (a latchkey kid with his rich family living abroad) as well.

Fans headcannon Chikage as gay (due to his disinterest in women, numerous remarks of disliking women, and general discomfort when a woman flirts with him). Meanwhile, Itaru is usually interpreted as a bisexual, spending a lot on both his best boys and best girls in games. He's never actually had a relationship with a woman and can find some of them troublesome or scary (such as some of his officemates or his older sister) but he had a massive crush on the fictional character Gwen so many say that in real life he leans towards men since the only women he likes are 2D.

A common scenario that can be seen in fanfics is Itaru's much feared older sister, Konomi, meeting Chikage and being the first person to be able to scare him with threats so badly. This is especially funny not only because Itaru has said before that she and Chikage are similar in being tricky people but also because Chikage himself is incredibly dangerous and has faced many life or death situations having been an international spy since childhood yet is still afraid of such an in-law.

Since Chikage and Itaru share room 103 of the Mankai Dorms, ChikaIta shippers also celebrate 103 day on October 3 (10/3), a special day aside from ChikaIta week. To a lesser extent, fans may also celebrate March 10th for a similar reason.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

TWITTER
 * - ChikaIta Week 2020

SPOTIFY PLAYLISTS
 * chikaita. - https://open.spotify.com/user/itscaleyy/playlist/6Yy7CylKyYiuKzU2mkKKdQ?si=EcLwJbGdREGvMZsirBkAEA
 * another chikaita playlist????? - https://open.spotify.com/user/prawnchips/playlist/5rqMn0LUGwwxg5nnnlHVKJ?si=8CxhrCW2T2mn1mDtdb448w

Songs

 * Itaru's First Character Song, Gamer's High (ゲーマーズ・ハイ) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMehsDG0iHc
 * Chikage's First Character Song, Charlatan's Blues (ペテン師の憂鬱 Petenshi no Yuutsu) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YMWXdZz_zg
 * Spring Troupe's Fourth Play: Knights of Round IV THE STAGE theme song, The Pride of The Knights - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMR254QRVJ0
 * Itaru's Second Character Song, Real Luck - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Ho9rPSBWPs
 * Chikage's Second Character Song, SEEDS - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYGwnM0kE1k

Trivia

 * Itaru is a popular gaming streamer who goes by the handle 《taruchi》 and covers his face with a red panda mask (his motif animal) to conceal his identity. Chikage, on the other hand, goes by a the pseudonym《chikausa》when running his popular culinary review blog, "Chikausa's Curry Blog" which is known to all spicy food connoisseurs in Japan. The "usa" is a reference to "usagi" meaning rabbit (his motif animal). The kanji for "utsu" in his last name also means rabbit. Both of these are referenced in the Main Story. While Banri also games as 《NEO》, he doesn't stream as Itaru does. Only Chikage and Itaru have a large following on online bases where they don't reveal their identities (while Kazunari has a notable following on his Inste/Instablam account, all members of Mankai Company have one as theatre actors and regularly update it on top of their actor's blog).
 * Itaru regularly refers to Chikage as "Unromantic Senpai" or "Cheat Character" (referring to how Chikage appears to be a jack of all trades, much like how a broken videogame character would be good at everything) while Chikage in turn refers to him as his "Uncute Kouhai".
 * Chikage actually doesn't need glasses, having perfect eyesight. He likely wears glasses to further separate himself from his past persona as April, who never wore them. Meanwhile, Itaru is one of a few members of Mankai that actually need glasses despite no longer wearing them, as revealed in Tsuzuru's blog post Megane Day. This is supported by the fact that he wore glasses during his high school days. He likely started wearing contacts either at the start of his University Days or when he entered the trading company.