Akanidai

Akanidai is the het ship between Akane Owari and Nekomaru Nidai from the Danganronpa fandom.

Canon
Nekomaru is close to Akane due to their desire to improve themselves physically. A Special Time Event in Chapter 3 reveals that Nekomaru has been doing "it" to Akane - giving massages.

Nekomaru, after Peko's execution, decided to guard the third island's entrance, due to being worried that Akane would do something reckless. She indeed does by challenging Monokuma to a battle. The host attempts to punish her with a shot from a bazooka for breaking the rules against the violence against the headmaster. However, Nekomaru stands in the way, taking the shot for her and saving her life.

She was the most shocked to discover that he was a robot and was really depressed about his death, never saying thank you to him because he always defended her. This led to Kazuichi Soda using some of Nekomaru's remains to create a miniature version of himself to cheer her up.

During their time at Hope's Peak Academy, Akane and Nekomaru would often fight, Nekomaru considering it training, but Akane considering it battle. The two were rather close despite their constant fighting.

Akane
Akane has a fiery personality and she loves fighting, as long as there is no other weapons besides the person's own fists and body, which lets her get along very well with Nekomaru Nidai. She is eager to challenge someone to fight her and she respects those who are physically strong, and can somehow correctly tell which people would be strong opponents even if they don't look like it. She seems to think that punching things, including people, is the best way to solve problems and her hot head can sometimes get her into trouble. While she also loves athletic things such as climbing and running, she can actually be very lazy and unmotivated if she isn't allowed to do things her own way. She dislikes planning, training, and routines, but has a remarkable talent for inventing her own moves. In general, her mood can shift very quickly. She can bounce between bored, to happy, to angry, and to happy again. Despite her easygoing and aloof personality, she is loyal and protective towards her friends.

Akane is also extremely fond of food and she can eat almost anything, including small animals. She claims that food is the most important thing, because "If you don't eat, you'll die." She also thinks that eating is very important so you can regain your strength. While her hungriness is often played for laughs, it has some darker undertones. She says that she quickly loses her energy if she doesn't eat and she just gets more hungry if she eats just a little. Her eating can even appear compulsive and sometimes it's hard for her to stop, and she turns low-spirited very quickly whenever she is very hungry.

Although Akane seems to have a rather serious attitude, she may say some quite out-of-place statements. Even during Class Trials, she tends to say random statements that only vaguely relate to the murder. She isn't the most intellectual member of the cast, being easily confused by complex words, misinterpreting insults and figures of speech, and generally defaulting to violence (or threats thereof) to solve problems. She is also very gullible, often easily believing things people say, as shown as she easily believes people's lies in Class Trials and is surprised when others tell her that they're lying. This has often been exploited by Hiyoko Saionji, who used her to investigate the motel room in Chapter 3 when she didn't want to do it and as mentioned in one of Hiyoko's Free Time Events, tricked her into eating flowers. She also dislikes complicated plans and has stated herself that she isn't very good at doing detailed work. However, despite her appearing a bit slow, it should be noted that her gut feelings are never wrong and she can sometimes say things that end up being very important.

In Akane's dark past, sexual harassment was the norm for her and as she is rather clueless, she doesn't seem to be aware of just how bad and wrong it is. She can mention her past experiences in a very casual way, which confuses and disturbs others. For example, she thinks it's completely normal to let someone to do something specifically to her breasts, and she quite often offers this either as a way to apologize or reward someone. She also sees no problem in getting naked in front of others, and she doesn't like wearing swimsuits while swimming. She does, however, get easily embarrassed about romance or if she has to wear clothes she considers silly. Though, she does not seem to really care about pretty things like flowers and pretty sceneries, not really considering them important.

Due to her past, Akane can also be forgetful of people's personalities, as shown when she mentioned in the first Class Trial that the Ultimate Imposter was a jokester, only to be corrected by Kazuichi Soda. She also tends to forget people's names; for instance, she frequently forgets Hajime Hinata's name, calling him "Hank", "Harvey", and "Hector".

Akane claims that she never gets worried about anything and she is generally very carefree. In actuality, she believes that hesitation and worry is a sign of weakness and she hates being weak. She forces herself to be strong and believes that real strength is showing no weaknesses at all. She believes that she has to be strong alone and that she can't rely on anyone else. After spending time with Nekomaru and Hajime, she begins to think about what it really means to be strong and weak.

Akane is intrigued by the world, as it's huge and "full of treasure". Due to her background, she is content with and appreciates food and buildings many others would consider "crappy". Since she used to take care of her younger siblings, she is very protective of "hungry small things" and she is sometimes strict about safety. She is also terrified of ghosts, but she keeps this a secret.

Nekomaru
Nekomaru is a vigorous, boisterous, openhearted student who is passionate about supporting athletes, but suffers from dyspepsia. He frequently shouts when speaking, being a team manager. He is very optimistic and his willpower is immeasurable, but he isn't very smart and he's very bad at lying. He also really appears to enjoy fighting, often in the form of very serious training.

Nekomaru sees no shame in talking about certain things that could make others feel embarrassed or uncomfortable. For example, he never misses a chance to loudly proclaim when he needs to go to the restroom, irritating Mahiru Koizumi, and causing him to apologize. He also tends to get too close to other people's personal space, though he does this just to check their potential as athletes. Furthermore, as the self-proclaimed Ultimate Masseur, he frequently offers his special massage to the others to the point that he forces them to receive his massage, as shown in his first and fifth Free Time Events with Hajime. He states that his massage is his own ultimate weapon that can relieve fatigue in an instant, but it also appears to be highly addictive to the receiver.

Though Nekomaru may appear scary and aggressive, he has a very kind heart. He cries quite easily and isn't afraid to show it. As a team manager, he can be quite strict, but he is very supportive and inspiring to his athletes and strives to improve them however he can. Teamwork and fighting spirit are very important to him.

In his fifth Free Time Events, he states that he will give everything he has to fully support everyone so they can escape the killing game together. True to his statement, he is the only one who willingly coached Akane by giving her a training routine and paid attention to food that she ate so she can stay fit and healthy. To prevent murders from continuing, he and Kazuichi Soda even tied Nagito Komaeda in the old lodge after he manipulated a murder to happen during the party in Chapter 1. He has a protective side to all of his classmates, Akane in particularーwithout thinking twice, he sacrificed himself to save the Ultimate Gymnast from her punishment in Chapter 3. During the surprisingly romantic moment, they share the effect of aphrodisiacs in Danganronpa 3, Nekomaru acts more tender and bashful towards her than usual.

Quotes
"Akane...Fuyuhiko has finally come back to us. You better not do anything reckless... I can't stand...the thought of losing someone...any longer."

- Nekomaru telling Akane not to do anything reckless so he won't lose her, in Chapter 3 of Danganronpa 2.

"That stupid fool! No...I'm the one who was the fool... It was my mistake to not keep my eyes on her! Tch...! As a team manager, I should've had a proper grasp of my athlete's private life... Dammiiiiiiit! This failure will haunt me for the rest of my life, or my name isn't NEKOMARU NIDAIIIIIIII!!!!"

- Nekomaru blaming himself for Akane acting recklessly by fighting Monokuma.

"There's no need to worry about worryin'! I know coach Nekomaru is a monstrous guy. There's no way he's gonna die from somethin' like that... There's no doubt! Nekomaru is definitely gonna come back! S-So...when that happens...I'll make sure...I apologize to him. Cause I was too weak, and I caused him trouble... So when he comes back... I'll make sure...to say I'm sorry."

- Akane wants to apologize to Nekomaru for nearly getting him killed.

"When I think about Nekomaru...it's like...my knees start shakin'... That's weird... There's no way...I've got that kinda weakness. It'd prolly go away if I battled a strong dude, but Nekomaru's not here..."

- Akane about her feelings to Nekomaru.

"I'm sure you don't want to hear this, since I caused a similar incident... And I already know that a guy like me has no right to say this to you but... But...when I look at you, I just have to say something...! You don't need to act so stubborn, you know? 'Cause...I know what you're going through. The only reason you're standing here right now...is because someone sacrificed himself for you... You feel guilty about that. Isn't that right? So you don't want to be honest about it, huh... Well, I understand that feeling too... But like he said, it's better to just be alive... It might hurt to look at his painful appearance right now... But you're much better off because at least he's still alive! I mean...for me... ... S-Sorry... Right now...I feel very grateful to her... But I can't tell her that anymore. But you're different. So... Make sure you tell him how grateful you are..."

- Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu giving Akane an advice about Nekomaru in Chapter 4.

"Why is Nekomaru...? Why did he have to die...again? Dammit... I never paid you back... I never paid you back...for your help last time! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

- Akane crying after Nekomaru's death.

"I'm here today...because coach Nekomaru risked his life...to protect me... I'm gonna be the one who avenges him! I'll definitely find out who the killer is!"

- Akane motivated to avenge Nekomaru's death by finding out his killer.

Fanon
sailed as a result of their canon interactions, with the two often training together. The very suggestive special time event where it was revealed that the "it" that Nekomaru has been doing to Akane were his massages further fueled the ship. The fact that their most important interaction is with each other also helped. So did both times when Akane mourned Nekomaru's death.

It is the most written ship for both of them on Archive of Our Own. Fan fictions tend to portray their relationship the same way the canon did, with them being training partners. Some however include an actual romantic relationship between the two.

Fandom
FAN FICTION
 * Akane/Nekomaru on FanFiction.Net
 * Akane/Nekomaru on FanFiction.Net

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