Manga Like Seaside Stranger: Harukaze no Etranger

First-year high school student Touji Seryou needs only seven days to decide if he can love someone. He is notorious at school: whoever asks him out on Monday becomes his partner for the week, and by Sunday he breaks up with them, stating he cannot return their feelings. Yet girls keep approaching him, because during that one week, Seryou treats them with genuine devotion. Yuzuru Shino is a handsome senior in the archery club who is always dumped once others discover his disagreeable personality. After hearing rumors about Seryou, Yuzuru happens to meet him at the school gates and jokingly asks him out. To his surprise, Seryou takes the offer seriously. What will happen during their week-long relationship?

Hikaru Kusakabe is a typical teenager—he plays in a band, smokes, goes to parties, and lives his youth to the fullest. His classmate Rihito Sajou is the exact opposite: an honor student who always ranks first in class and got a perfect score on his high school entrance exam. While rehearsing for a chorus festival, Kusakabe notices that Sajou isn't singing and offers to help him practice. They begin meeting every day after class to train. Despite their completely different personalities, the two boys start growing closer and developing feelings for each other. With the pressure of their final year of high school, students face the looming decision of their futures. Along the way, these two boys must learn to understand their own emotions while supporting each other and growing together.

Kouhei Sugihara lives isolated from the world because of his hearing impairment. When the outgoing and energetic Taichi Sagawa enters his life, Kouhei realizes that Taichi's voice shines as brightly as the sun. Often misunderstood by others, Taichi is surprised when Kouhei sees his genuine, kind-hearted nature. Taichi's bold personality pushes Kouhei to demand more from himself, drawing him into the vibrant social world he always longed to be part of. Through this, Taichi helps Kouhei find a community of people willing to listen and understand him, even if they have to repeat themselves occasionally. Navigating the challenges of living in two very different worlds, Taichi and Kouhei discover a connection that goes beyond ordinary friendship and overcomes every barrier. Hidamari ga Kikoeru is a moving story about isolation, self-respect, and finding bonds through the common experiences that unite all people.

Yu Yang is a second-year university student who comes across as dependable and friendly. At the start of the new semester, he is assigned to help orient every freshman he encounters around campus. This duty eventually introduces him to Li Huan, a new student whose height is quite imposing. In addition to his intimidating build, Li Huan is quiet, distant, and frequently gives Yu Yang the cold shoulder. Having only tried to help him, Yu Yang quickly becomes annoyed by this behavior. Yet, despite his first impressions, Yu Yang believes that his unexpected meeting with Li Huan will change how he sees the future—and possibly his views on love as well.

Despite their differing levels of popularity, high school students Chiharu Saeki and Wataru Toda are close friends. Saeki is the most attractive boy in their year, and he constantly turns down the girls who confess to him, saying he already has a crush on someone. They share a common interest in watching films, heading to the cinema a few times each month and taking turns picking which movie to see. One day after a movie, Saeki confesses his feelings to Wataru, but tells him he doesn't have to accept or return them. Instead, Saeki proposes that they spend the summer traveling to the real locations where various films were shot. Although Wataru tries to act unfazed after the confession, he starts to wonder about his true feelings for Saeki as they grow closer through this small promise.

Yutaka Hozumi has always struggled to eat around others, as people say his presence makes mealtimes dull and ruins the taste of food. One day while having lunch alone, a hungry little boy approaches him, and Yutaka gives him the onigiri from his meal. When the boy's older brother appears, Yutaka meets Tane and Minoru Ueda—siblings with a large age gap. When Yutaka encounters the brothers again, they ask to learn how to make his special rice balls; little Tane insists they were the best he had ever eaten. Giving in to Tane's adorable pleas and his own intimidation of the stern Minoru, Yutaka agrees to teach them how to cook. As lessons turn into shared meals, Yutaka and the siblings grow closer—but Tane and Minoru's tight bond stirs up painful memories for Yutaka, and there are underlying emotions in these group dinners that were not obvious at first.

In the spring of their high school years, Yuiji Hasegawa comes to believe that his gentle but reserved classmate, Yamato Yoshinaga, harbors romantic feelings for his own straight best friend, Kyousuke Hongou. When they end up in the same study group, Yuiji accidentally catches Yamato holding the hand of a sleeping Kyousuke, and the embarrassment is clear on Yamato's face after being discovered. Despite his reservations about Yamato's homosexuality, Yuiji keeps what he witnessed to himself, and this marks the start of their friendship. The two boys have very different experiences with love, yet their bond appears to deepen as they strive to understand one another. Still, the lingering question is whether their relationship could develop into something beyond friendship.

The hardworking first-year high school student Akira Kagiura and his upperclassman Taiga Hirano have shared a dorm room for six months. Kagiura once felt uneasy about his coming life in the dormitory, but thanks to his lively senior looking after him, he has grown peaceful and comfortable. As he leans on Hirano more with each passing day, Kagiura finds himself falling for his altruistic friend. With only half a year left in their time as roommates, Kagiura is resolved to give a name to the bond he holds so dearly before it ends.

A hat maker named Kutsuna Satoru discovers a man named Kashiba Ryou collapsed by the roadside. Kashiba Ryou has traveled to Japan seeking death. Volumes 2-3: Dear Hatter Volumes 4-7: The Speaker

Three years after finishing high school, Hikaru Kusakabe and Rihito Sajou remain in a long-distance relationship. Kusakabe dedicates himself to building a music career, working tirelessly and finding few chances to see Sajou. Meanwhile, Sajou keeps busy with college clubs and going out drinking with friends. Yet Sajou feels the weight of Kusakabe’s absence deeply. When Kusakabe shows up without warning one day, Sajou calls off their engagement. Despite their feelings for each other never fading, both Kusakabe and Sajou must now adjust to a new reality, holding onto the hope that they will eventually reunite.

Kiyo and Ino are two boys who attend different schools, both feeling bored with their daily school routines. Their only connection at first is sharing the same train to school. One morning, Ino wakes Kiyo up and tells him he has overslept and missed his stop. That moment leads into a story about love, pain, and emotional struggle.

This newest story in the I Hear the Sunspot series sees Kouhei still studying, while Taichi moves into the workforce to follow his own path, and the two embark on a new life together.

College student Junpei Shishido tends to be quick to befriend people, even those from other departments. While exploring campus one day, he spots Leo Onizuka, an introverted student who looks oddly familiar. When Junpei approaches him during a second encounter, Onizuka coldly claims they have never met and begins doing everything to avoid him. Shortly after, Junpei stumbles upon Onizuka's ID card and recalls how he knows Onizuka and his infamous nickname. Certain that his college life is ruined now that his secret is exposed, Onizuka is shocked when Junpei instead offers to befriend him and hide the truth about his past. This marks the beginning of a friendship between polar opposites. Over time, the once unsociable Onizuka slowly breaks out of his shell while still remaining true to himself.

After the great popularity of I Hear the Sunspot, its sequel I Hear the Sunspot: Theory of Happiness has finally been released. Where will this "more than friends, less than lovers" relationship go from here?

On Christmas night, 26-year-old Yamada comes across a drunk and sobbing high school boy on the way home from work and takes him in. That boy had been wrestling with his feelings of being in love with someone of the same sex. A straight adult and a gay high school student—this is a story that puts aside gender as their hearts gradually draw nearer.

Masaki Fujiyoshi is a stay-at-home parent and spouse. He has struggled extensively with feelings of being a burden to his loving husband, Hiromu, because of his status as an omega—a secondary gender that allows a person to give birth regardless of being male or female—and the difficulties they had to overcome to achieve this domestic life. When their son, Hikari, was born, the family moved to an area better suited for raising children. Hikari is now approaching his second birthday, and he and his parents are forming meaningful bonds with those around them. These include the beta college student living next door, Yuuki, to whom Hikari has become quite attached; Hiromu's coworker and friend, Matsuo; and the mysterious single father often seen wandering around the park. Despite their current domestic happiness, the family's connections to their past are broken. There are people they left behind in order to create their happy family, and when those people begin to reappear, Masaki and Hiromu are uncertain about their intentions.

After losing his job in Tokyo, twenty-five-year-old Mitsuomi Kozuka returns to the countryside where he grew up. At first glance, the rural area seems frozen in time. Soon, however, Yamato Kumai enters his life. Despite being the same age, Yamato is cheerful and full of youthful energy, a stark contrast to Mitsuomi. Even so, Mitsuomi finds comfort in Yamato's company, feeling truly at home. But living in a tight-knit, conservative community prevents them from openly expressing their feelings, as they face uneasy situations and endure judgmental stares from the locals.

Kwon Eungi, a university student, doesn't care much about dating. He's cold, hard to approach, and serious, preferring to stay on the sidelines while his closest friends talk about romance. His sole interest is the nearly dead classical guitar club—he's trying to revive it with the next wave of freshmen. Fortunately, among the newcomers is Choi Jeongwoo, a ray of sunshine who seems completely unaffected by Eungi's prickly demeanor. Thanks to guitar lessons and regular hangouts with mutual friends, Eungi and Jeongwoo keep running into each other. When Eungi accidentally finds out that Jeongwoo recently ended a relationship, he feels a strange urge to make sure Jeongwoo is okay, and soon admits to himself that this might signal a growing romantic attraction. Even after noticing that Jeongwoo might feel the same way, Eungi—who has never experienced such feelings for another man—treads carefully in their relationship, but it gets increasingly difficult to stay away.

Mishima, a junior high school student, suffers vicious bullying for being gay and feels disconnected in his isolated rural hometown. The one moment he truly feels alive is when he secretly uses a tube of lipstick he stole from his single mother. That brief happiness is disrupted when he loses the lipstick and discovers Kirino—the soccer team's star player and one of Mishima's worst tormentors—covertly applying it on the school rooftop. Thus begins a bittersweet summer as the two search for a place where they can be themselves, but unsealing Pandora's box is rarely simple.

Several years have passed since Mitsuomi Kozuka and Yamato Kumai became a couple. Living a peaceful life in the countryside, they appear content in their relationship. Yet, while they can show their affection through tender touches and warm glances, the two struggle to voice their love for each other. When Mitsuomi suggests a domestic partnership—an unofficial version of marriage—Yamato is reluctant to take that step forward. As they work through misunderstanding and unease, the couple reflects on how to achieve happiness without any regrets.

Upon transferring to Hitomi's school, Ryuu makes a strong impression on him. Intrigued by rumors of a large tattoo covering Ryuu's back, Hitomi decides to get closer to him. As time passes, the bond and interest Hitomi develops for Ryuu gradually turn into something deeper, but before he can fully understand his emotions, Hikaru enters the picture—and his attention is fixed on Hitomi.

Having struggled against persistent obstacles for years, Hikaru Kusakabe and Rihito Sajou have finally begun living together. Inside their small apartment, countless new experiences await them. From sharing a single coffee mug to discovering each other's tastes in food, Kusakabe and Sajou are drawing closer every day—and soon enough, they can barely keep their hands off one another.

Kohei Sugihara, a college student with hearing loss, and Taichi Sagawa, his relentlessly optimistic former classmate, first crossed paths in a chance meeting that sparked an unmistakable connection, eventually deepening into love. Now spring has come, and as Kohei nears graduation, he begins hunting for a job. Meanwhile, Taichi is put in charge of a new person at his workplace. Life is more hectic than ever, but on the whole, things seem to be improving for the couple. That is, until Ena, one of Kohei's former flames, suddenly appears.

Akamatsu, a high school yankee, habitually starts brawls with Seven, a powerful homeless man residing in the local park. For Akamatsu, these fights with Seven are the ultimate excitement, so when it appears that Seven might be forced to leave the park, Akamatsu abruptly proposes that Seven move in with him.