Discussion about Sakakura Juzo’s love life centers on two scenes. One of these recently occurred in zetsuhen 6. Sakakura asks if Yukizome loves Munakata. She says she does, and she blushes. After she leaves, Sakakura punches a wall and says there’s no room for him.

The other critical moment was back in zetsuhen 3. Yukizome and Sakakura both say Munakata is “the only one” who can fix Hope’s Peak Academy. Yukizome then declares that she will not “give away” Munakata to Sakakura. He reacts intensely by covering his face and sweating.

Now, 6 by itself could just mean Sakakura feels awkward with his two close friends possibly dating. 3 by itself could just mean Sakakura is embarrassed by any discussion of romance. However, in conjunction, it seems likeliest that Sakakura reacts intensely because he does in fact have romantic feelings for Munakata or Yukizome, which is why he gets upset about the prospect of Munakata dating Yukizome.

So is he attracted to Yukizome? Or is he attracted to Munakata? I will examine these two possibilities using evidence from all the episodes aired so far, placing these two scenes into a larger context.

I’m going to argue that Sakakura is not attracted to Yukizome, and that he has a strong preference for men. However, beyond that, gay or bisexual both works for me. It’s fine to say “Sakakura is bisexual”, but I don’t like it when people say “Sakakura is not attracted to Munakata (in spite of overwhelming evidence), and he’s attracted to Yukizome (with scant evidence), and that’s not a homophobic argument, because he could be bisexual”.

MIHEN 1

Munakata is shown for the first time leaping forward, and Yukizome gets a reaction shot, her only focus during this scene. The first time that Sakakura gets focus in a frame, he’s in a team with Munakata. Sakakura takes off his jacket. Then Izayoi leaps in. This emphasizes that Sakakura and Munakata are a team even within the overarching team of the future foundation.

Here’s what I would have done as a director if I wanted to have Sakakura liking Yukizome. Earlier, he hands her his jacket during the group shot. There. Done. This would not have taken additional time. Instead, Bandai is even standing between Sakakura and Yukizome. A Sakakura + Munakata moment occurred, and a Munakata + Yukizome moment, but no Sakakura + Yukizome moment at all.

The next scene takes place in the future foundation headquarters. Sakakura gets moderate focus as he expresses radical sentiments, pounding the table and rattling his teacup. Yukizome turns her head at the moment of the noise but does nothing. Munakata arrives and his footsteps rattle teacups as he expresses radical sentiments similar to Sakakura’s. “Yukizome, you too; we’re starting” is the first individually directed statement from Munakata. We cut to her, and looking at this frame paused, it’s obvious that she was replacing Sakakura’s rattled teacup. However, the action is emphasized as little as possible; Sakakura doesn’t react at all.

Munakata goes on to show the monitor. When Naegi arrives, Munakata tells Sakakura to arrest him. Sakakura handcuffs and then punches him, grumbling to Kirigiri, “it’s just a scratch”. Munakata eventually says “enough”. Aftewards, Munakata talks with Yukizome about her working too hard, and he sends her to tend Naegi’s wounds.

Here’s what I would have done as a director if I wanted to have Sakakura liking Yukizome. Shot from a different angle where only the two of them are in the frame, and you clearly see his hands wrapping around the teacup, brushing against her feminine fingers. He acknowledges her. Maybe “thanks”, maybe “it’s no big deal”, maybe just “tch” or something. Or maybe after the punch he says “it’s just a scratch, Yukizome can patch it up real easy.”

Bombing occurs. When Yukizome and Naegi enter the conference rom, everyone is panicking. Sakakura says “Was it you?” to Naegi. Yukizome is surprised. Munakata says, just in case, Sakakura should pin down Naegi. Sakakura does precisely that. Yukizome says, “don’t get too rough!” Sakakura says, “huh?“ Munakata is the one who tells Yukizome to calm down. Sakakura doesn’t say a single full sentence to Yukizome. Though he listens to her, Munakata’s orders take priority.

The following happens in rapid succession:

Sleeping gas gets rolled out. Sakakura says, “What?”

Munakata looks at Sakakura. (What follows is a POV shot.) Sakakura has let go of Naegi. He falls face down onto the floor. Munakata gasps. In the background (note her arm) Yukizome falls to her knees. Munakata hears this, cries “Yukizome” and runs over. Munakata has fallen to his knees. He extends his hand, saying, “Are you alright?” Yukizome says “Kyosuke” before falling to the floor. Finally Munakata falls to the floor.

Once again, Munakata is the pivot of the trio. He worries about both of the others. Sakakura and Yukizome don’t worry about each other this time.

Then they wake up and Monokuma’s there and Sakakura says, “who are you?” Monokuma announces a game. Naegi says, “heck no”. Munakata asks, “where is Yukizome”. Sakakura and Asahina are both looking - there’s no emphasis on Sakakura’s facial reaction; he’s a shadow of Munakata. The rest of the episode, the reaction is just Munakata, Naegi, and Monokuma.

IN SUMMARY: Munakata interacts a lot with Yukizome, including the suggestive line “when it’s just the two of us you can call me Chisa”. Munakata and Sakakura are also frequently framed as a team. Sakakura is the member of the foundation who most ardently agrees with Munakata. Yukizome and Sakakura interact occasionally, but there’s not a single frame focused on just the two of them, or of Sakakura’s face as he looks at Yukizome.

ZETSUHEN 1

Sakakura isn’t in this one except for the picture on Yukizome’s desk.

He looks surprised and a little uncomfortable, rather than embarrassed. This is directly contrasted with the placid smile of Munakata. Rather than the pivot of the trio, Yukizome is simply the one who takes initiative in posing for the picture (cf mihen 6).

The scene establishes, for people who don’t pay close atention to profiles, that Sakakura and Yukizome and Munakata were a trio of close school friends. Not just Munakata and Yukizome being on a first name basis, or Sakakura as a bodyguard acquired later by Munakata. The trio was insufficiently obvious in mihen 1, MOSTLY BECAUSE YUKIZOME AND SAKAKURA HAD VERY TEPID INTERACTIONS.

MIHEN 2

While the episode opens with Naegi and Munakata reacting to Yukizome, Sakakura isn’t included and instead starts his screentime by kicking the TV. He’s framed as the teammate of Munakata, the strength and hope respectively of the Future Foundation.

A few minutes later, GG and Sakakura have collaborated on laying Yukizome’s body to rest. Why does GG get equal camera focus in this scene, and why is GG the one to donate a jacket? Sakakura says “damn… of all people, why did it have to be her?” よりによって is sort of his way of saying that she was a cinnamon roll too good for this world, too pure. It’s not necessarily the expression you would use to convey that she was the most important individual to him personally. And you don’t get a closeup of his face. His voice isn’t raised much, either. To top it all off, Mitarai glances at Yukizome’s body again.

Sakakura stands up and says they have to find and kill the attacker, i.e. Naegi. The framing of Munakata and Sakakura as a team continues. Asahina objects to Sakakura confronting Naegi. Sakakura shows he is fairly willing to physically strike women who say things he dislikes. Also, Sakakura doesn’t really notice when Bandai first reacts to the NG code, which is why a hand gets put on his shoulder. Sakakura has tunnel vision to the max.

Munakata looks at Yukizome’s body and insists they go on with lynching. Sakakura votes for Naegi, surprising no one.

Here’s what I would have done as a director if I wanted to have Sakakura liking Yukizome: HE GETS HIS OWN SOLO SHOT VIEWING OR TOUCHING HER BODY. NOT MITARAI, NOT MUNAKATA, NOT GREAT GOZU.

After Munakata lectures about how Naegi should kill himself, Sakakura proceeds to pull a knife. Munakata pulls a weapon too. They go forth as a team. (In the interest of fairness, though “Don’t get in our way” in the official subs, I should note Munakata does not say “our”; literally he says “don’t impede”.) Sakakura gets separated from the others by Gekkougahara’s taser. Munakata continues to give chase.

Then Munakata gets stuck in front of a door. Sakakura jumps down (like an entire story). He was looking for Munakata and stops upon finding him; this is a higher priority than the manhunt for Naegi. Munakata announces that the plan is eliminating despairs, same as ever, to which Sakakura says “I’ll protect you, same as ever”. This is a declaration of protection (per TV Tropes), for Munakata specifically (he uses “you” in the singular). It’s not exactly a phrase that’s never romantic; likewise for same-as-ever. “We need to avenge Yukizome, too.” That’s an afterthought.

Also there’s tender piano music playing this entire scene. The same track plays at the end of mihen 5, when Kimura looks at the candy she received from Ando, whom she loved. Kimura just wanted to save everyone. Sakakura is in a similar position wanting to protect Munakata.

IN SUMMARY: Sakakura has a very understated reaction to Yukizome’s death. He never raises his voice or pounds his fists or cries. It’s very different from the reaction to Ishimaru losing Owada, Asahina losing Ogami, Saionji losing Koizumi, Kuzuryu losing Pekoyama, Owari losing Nidai, Sonia losing Tanaka, or Hinata losing Nanami. Furthermore, it’s also extremely different from Munakata’s reaction to losing Yukizome! Sakakura isn’t subtle - he might have been hiding his feelings for the good of the group, but if there’s any time to lose control of his facade, it’s when she’s died. This is a man who had to put his hands into his pockets to make himself kick the TV instead of punching it. Even the wall-punching scene in zetsuhen 6 is more physically intense.

Rather than the aftermath of Yukizome dying, the accusation of Naegi is when Sakakura gets the most screentime. He’s passionate about it, though he only gets really physical after Munakata’s encouragement. When the two men rendezvous later, the language and even music are extremely sentimental.

ZETSUHEN 2

Sakakura doesn’t appear in this episode.

MIHEN 3

This episode starts with the discovery of Gozu. Then we see Izayoi with his head in Ando’s lap. Afterwards are the much less domestic Kirigiri, Tengan, and Mitarai. Sakakura and Munakata wake up together. Just like the conference room shot, this is the most similar to Izayoi and Ando.

MUNAKATA: Somehow we survived. Honestly I thought it was 50-50.

SAKAKURA: Don’t try to be a show off.

MUNAKATA: I am just being logical. If I were the attacker I would kill me first.

SAKAKURA: Sure, if the goal’s killing us all.

MUNAKATA: Indeed, I hope that is their goal. There are worse outcomes than our death.

It’s cute how they talk together. Munakata clearly has a great deal of respect for Sakakura’s opinion. He doesn’t just keep him around for his fists. Originally Munakata said they should try to lynch the attacker. By the time he kidnaps Naegi, Munakata’s plan has changed drastically. Neither of them bring up Yukizome.

Later on, they’re comfortable together after Naegi’s speech; Sakakura says it was crappy, Munakata says it was splendid but hollow. Sakakura is totally ready to attack Naegi, but Munakata takes the duty onto himself.

UPDATE ON EVIDENCE THAT SAKAKURA LIKES YUKIZOME: None. There is no evidence in this episode that Sakakura likes Yukizome. He does not think of her once. Munakata certainly finds time to think of her (“the future that she and I imagined”). Alone together, Sakakura and Munakata comfortably engage in teasing and respect each other’s opinion.

ZETSUHEN 3

Sakakura intervenes in the confrontation between Hinata and some other security guard. He gets really carried away and is about to pull off a one-two power-chopping pose when Yukizome rushes in. Sakaura doesn’t see her until her face is right in front of his fist. Once again Sakakura demonstrates a tendency towards tunnel vision.

Of course, he does stop. Sakakura also picks up her dropped handkerchief. This is actually a pretty nice gesture. If the camera emphasized their hands grazing a little more, I might even call it potentially romantic. As it is, Sakakura doesn’t linger and immediately speaks harshly. He tells Yukizome she’s too wrapped up in things. Munakata’s orders are the most important.

This makes a lot more sense looking at mihen 6. Sakakura is shown literally holding the pinnacle of his career path in his hands and throwing it away for Munakata. Yukizome had no such specific plans. She enjoys being a teacher, while Sakakura takes no pleasure in being a security guard.

They both think very highly of Munakata; he’s the only one who can fix it. It’s like they say in mihen - he’s their hope.

THIS is the moment that Yukizome looks at Sakakura and becomes concerned that he might be romantically attracted to Munakata. She’s not just saying this for funsies. The 74th class is a bunch of adults and two people have just died. Now is not the time for a joke. Furthermore, that in mihen 2 we learned that Sakakura has zero compunctions about hitting people, even women (e.g. Asahina), who say things he doesn’t like. I’ve learned this the hard way - you do not imply a straight male athlete is attracted to men if you don’t want to get slapped six ways from Sunday. Yukizome has known Sakakura for three years and she doesn’t think he’s exclusively interested in women.

There are plenty of straight or bisexual women who would fall all over themselves to unbuckle the boxing champion’s belt, and yet Yukizome assumes he is attracted to men. This is why I say Sakakura is a gay man or a bisexual man with a strong preference for men.

Yukizome has her airheaded moments but misunderstanding relationships isn’t one of them. Munakata explicitly describes her task as “forging relationships” in mihen 6. As early as episode 1, Yukizome catches on to the connection between Kuzuryu and Pekoyama. Their relationship is highlighted both in zetsuhen 3 and zetsuhen 6, each time by Mioda, and their free time events suggest romance is involved. I know sometimes you miss what’s right under your nose of you yourself being liked, but it’d be more consistent to have Yukizome keep catching on to the connections of others.

Pekoyama is also the only person in this anime to punch a wall like Sakakura does in zetsuhen 6. If Natsumi is the one who gets murdered (Yukizome), and Kuzuryu is the one who wants revenge and gets an eyepatch (Munakata), then to complete the parallel, Pekoyama (Sakakura) is the one who would do anything to protect Kuzuryu (Munakata) and is in love with him.



Even if somehow Yukizome had misunderstood, I think that Sakakura would directly correct her if he were not interested in men. (This is even more important if he is attracted to Yukizome - she should know that he’s available to ladies like herself!) Some people might hear “nonsense” as “I’m gay is nonsense”, so now let’s look more closely at the specific lines.



たとえ逆蔵くんでも宗方君は渡さないからね！

いきなりわけ分からないことを言うんじゃねえ

Yukizome says “even if it were Sakakura-kun, Munakata-kun is someone I won’t give away, you know!” There’s also an implication, “So don’t try anything.” Giving away a person is a fairly uncommon phrase and generally reserved for a romantic context, such as a father giving away his daughter to her new husband.

What’s strange about this statement is that Yukizome technically doesn’t possess Munakata. From a formal perspective, all three of them are just friends with each other. Sakakura says, “don’t suddenly say things that don’t make sense”. I believe Yukizome’s preemptive possessive overture is what Sakakura doesn’t understand, rather than the implication he’s attracted to men.

Anyway, he’s immensely embarrassed by the whole thing. He sweats and covers his face with one hand, which is absolutely unprecedented. During mihen he is completely open at all times except when hiding that he can’t punch people. What does Sakakura have to hide? If he doesn’t like Munakata, and especially if he wants to convey to Yukizome that he’s available, it would be very easy for Sakakura to flatly deny her accusation, probably shouting.

What makes much more sense is that Sakakura has been too shy to tell Munakata his feelings, and now that Yukizome has caught on, Sakakura needs to hide his feelings all the more, lest Munakata find out too.

Yukizome announces that she’s leaving. It’s once he calls her again that Sakakura uncovers his face. He tells her that she really acted like a teacher back there.

Sakakura has nothing to hide here. He’s not blushing or sweating, just averting his eyes. There’s nothing fraught about this moment because Sakakura is saying something that Yukizome already knows: He admires her as a friend.

IN SUMMARY: During the previous episodes Sakakura was clearly much less passionate about Yukizome; they had some positive interactions but nothing that got emphasized. On the other hand, he demonstrated loyalty towards Munakata, something intense and sentimental.

The purpose of this scene is to confirm that Sakakura feels something special towards Munakata, and he does not feel it towards Yukizome. That’s why Yukizome points it out; she knows him better than the audience does. None of them in mihen so far ever brought up romance. Kodaka doesn’t randomly assign one character as having a crush. He uses it to shed light on the plot. There is no preexisting Sakakura/Yukizome subtext in mihen for this scene to clarify.

I really think this scene is strong by itself and should be used to look at all subsequent scenes in a Sakakura/Munakata type light. I’ll continue in a slightly more conservative manner, nevertheless.

MIHEN 4

We return to Sakakura after he threw a chair at Kirigiri. Sakakura demands that they give away Naegi and his comrades because they might be remnants of despair. (He uses the same verb as Yukizome; this isn’t common in friendly relations outside of romance, it’s a hostage exchange.) Tengan has some strong words for him about violence.

「俺のボスは宗方」 Sakakura says “My boss is Munakata” (as in, not Tengan) in a slightly surprising phrasing, using the English loanword. Japanese fans found this pretty gay because Sakakura and Munakata are clearly equals and classmates, and Sakaura isn’t in a specific corporate subordinate position either. It’s similar to the times Kuzuryu uses not “tool” but the loanword “hitman” to describe Pekoyama. This is Sakakura’s way of saying he has a special relationship with Munakata.

They tie up Sakakura. Afterwards Munakata announces the capture of Naegi over the intercom. Just to be honest, I am gonna point out that Sakakura doesn’t get a reaction shot. I suspect this is because they talked about the plan; therefore Sakakura’s reaction would spoil the nature of the trap. Anyway, Asahina takes away Naegi, and Tengan lures Munakata out of the room.

Sakakura has freed himself from his bondage and initially chases after Asahina, Naegi, and Gekkougahara. However, from three stories away he ends up catching a glimpse of Munakata in danger, and he stops dead in his tracks. Honestly in this scene alone he shouts more than when Yukizome died. How did Sakakura even notice Munakata when we know he has such bad tunnel vision as to not notice Yukizome rushing TOWARDS him and Hinata until the last possible second? I mean, Sakakura also initially misses Bandai convusling to death three meters away. Back in mihen 2 Sakakura did manage to jump down one story and fairly easily found Munakata in front of the door. Munakata is the common factor. Sakakura is always paying attention to him.

SAKAKURA: Munakata!

MUNAKATA: Sakakura? (is that you?)

SAKAKURA: I’ll help you!

MUNAKATA: I’m fine.

SAKAKURA: But… (emotionally)

MUNAKATA: Follow Naegi Makoto.

SAKAKURA: …understood.

UPDATE ON EVIDENCE THAT SAKAKURA LIKES YUKIZOME: None. There is no evidence in this episode that Sakakura likes Yukizome. He does not think of her once. Munakata certainly finds time to think of her thanks to Tengan’s lines like “was Yukizome-kun a necessary sacrifice” and “love drives men mad”.



ZETSUHEN 4

He’s not in this episode either.

MIHEN 5

Sakakura manages to catch up again and fights Asahina. “I will eliminate anyone who gets in Munakata’s way. That was the vow I swore!”

「宗方の邪魔になる奴は俺が消す。俺はそう誓ったんだ！」

Now he really easily could have said a promise, like, a promise between men (男の約束). The type that Daiya and Mondo had. That would be pretty innocuous. But instead he says vow. Yes, this sometimes means a wedding vow.

Sakakura’s also shown because he and Yukiome and especially Munakata were helpful friends of Kimura. This is consistent with the little nods in mihen 1 to Sakakura and Kimura getting along. There’s no reveal that Kimura and Sakakura were in love, though; that would be poorly developed. Instead, Kimura used to love her best friend Ando, and she would have done anything for her. Kimura still has regrets, and the same sentimental music plays from mihen 2 where Sakakura vowed to protect Munakata.

As we don’t see Sakakura at all in the main timeline of mihen 6, during that section I’ll leap straight into the flashback.

UPDATE ON EVIDENCE THAT SAKAKURA LIKES YUKIZOME: None. There is no evidence in this episode that Sakakura likes Yukizome. He does not think of her once.

ZETSUHEN 5

(Sentimental music begins)

YUKIZOME: And so, my life in the reserve course was coming to an end.

SAKAKURA: I bet you’ll be able to go back to the main course soon.

YUKIZOME: I see I’ve been worrying you, too, Sakakura-kun.

SAKAKURA: Don’t sweat it. So, how did your reserve course investigation go?

(Sentimental music stops. It’s not sentimental because they spend time together; it’s because they talk about the main course.)

Yukizome asks him for a trustee’s ID. Outright ominous music begins as she mentions Kamukura. It’s all very seri–

SAKAKURA: When it comes to Munakata, you get serious.



YUKIZOME: So do you, Sakakura-kun, right?



Sakakura turns his head and says “Tsk.” Similar to the scene in zetsuhen 3, this is one of the very few times he hides his reaction.

The conversation resumes about Hinata and then Yukizome goes on to the main class. It’s interesting to note that she describes herself as Kyosuke’s partner in a clearly womanly, romantic context, blushing. If Sakakura and Yukizome are “serious” the same way about Munakata, this makes the “boss” comment even more suggestive.

IN SUMMARY: Sakakura is very emotionally supportive towards Yukizome as a friend. However he doesn’t see spending time with her as particularly special; he quickly progresses with serious discussion of the investigation. Just like zetsuhen 3, Yukizome makes a logical inference that Sakakura is attracted to Munakata, and Sakakura tries to hide his feelings but does not make a flat denial because he does not need to make himself available to Yukizome.

MIHEN 6

All three are shown from behind; Sakakura on the left, Yukizome some distance to the right, and Munakata on her right.



SAKAKURA: (to both) What’s wrong? Sorry to say goodbye?



YUKIZOME: (turns to look at him in unison with Munakata) It does make me a little lonely, thinking that we’re graduating.

SAKAURA: Why lonely? We’ll still be together.

「寂しいも何もこれからも一緒だろ」

Meaning, all three of them as friends and allies.

MUNAKATA: (in the official subs) You’re a strange pair. With your skills, you could work anywhere you want.

「物好きな連中だ。お前たちならいくらでも進路があるだろうに」

Now let me be clear, he never refers to the fact that there are two of them specifically. There are many different words that could separate Sakakura and Yukizome as a couple but those aren’t what Munakata used. I’d render the sentiments thus, liberally:

“I can’t believe I’ve had the good fortune of meeting and befriending multiple people who have weird preferences, such that they associate with me, even though all of you have innumerable career options.”

「へっ、世界も取ったし、お前といたほうが楽しそうだ」

“I already won the world championship, and being with you seems more fun.“

Just getting this out of the way. Yes, in Japanese as well as English, when you say to a person "I wanna be with you”, it is often romantic. Furthermore, Sakakura speaks directly to Munakata as he says he wants to “be with you” (お前) in the singular. Why would he not use the plural you in this context? If you assume he’s hiding his feelings (which his hidden face scenes confirm), then he would be safest saying you, plural, and conveying that they both matter as friends. The only purpose of the singular is to convey that Munakata is more important to him than Yukizome. For me this is actually the smoking gun.

「宗方くんってこうと決めたら突っ走っちゃうトコあるからさ。私みたいなのがいないとね！」

“Whenever you make a decision, Munakata-kun, you always follow it without a thought. You need somebody like me with you.”

It’s not like Yukizome takes this particularly hard either. She also describes herself, singular, “being” in the company of Munakata-kun, singular. After all, "rushes forward into a decision without a second thought” is also a perfectly accurate description of Sakakura, you know. Yukizome only includes Munakata because she wants to be with him alone; Sakakura is the same way.

Munakata thanks them and announces his plans. They both accept the orders with smiles on their faces. Munakata says “if you are with me, it is no dream” using the plural you to include both Yukizome and Sakakura.

Yukizome sets up the camera, then tugs in Sakakura and Munakata. Sakakura looks a little cross to take down his belt, which he’s been wearing this whole time. Munakata has no such encumberment so he calmly smiles. Neither of them have time to change this expression before Yukizome grabs them. Also, Sakakura makes no effort to prevent Yukizome holding him by the wrist, instead of holding hands like she is perfectly willing to do with Munakata.

Sakakura’s only interactions with Yukizome are not holding hands and an address to both the others that all three of them will stay together. If zetsuhen 6 was supposed to reveal that Sakakura’s main motivation is liking Yukizome, mihen 6 would be an appropriate time to set up this reveal. Instead, Sakakura declares that he wants to be with Munakata, and he sacrifices his career on the level you’d mostly expect from a spouse.

ZETSUHEN 6

Sakakura got her the ID card and coldly explains the risks. Yukizome thanks him and says she has to go even though she’s risking her life.

SAKAKURA: You’re risking my life too.

Now keep in mind it hasn’t been established that Sakakura would absolutely die for Yukizome at any time, the way he already said for Munakata repeatedly in mihen generally and implied in zetsuhen 3. If he was already willing to die for Yukizome, Sakakura wouldn’t object in the first place to her risking his life.



YUKIZOME: Oh, you’re right. I’m sorry, Sakakura-kun. But I want to be of use to Munakata-kun. I’ll do it for his ideals. No, to be honest, I don’t really care about that. Anyway, if I can be of use to Munakata-kun this way, I’m fine with it.

SAKAKURA: You love him that much, huh?

YUKZIOME: Yeah, I could die for Munakata-kun, I think.



Sakakura clenches his fist. He has to make a difficult decision here. It didn’t go without saying before, but he won’t turn away from Munakata’s ideals now, and he doesn’t like the idea of Yukizome hurt or dead, either.

SAKAKURA: I’ll entrust my life to you too!

Again, until now he hadn’t planned to die for Yukizome.

YUKIZOME: Sakakura-kun… thank you.

She leaves. Sentimental music plays. The critical scene begins. His eyes aren’t particularly lidded as he watches her walk away; the purpose is to verify that she can’t see him. Then he punches the wall.

「くそっ、俺の付け入る隙がねぇ、そんなの解ってたじゃねぇか。」

“Damn! There’s no room for me at all. But… I knew that all along.”

I was actually really surprised when I rewatched the episode because I expected the line to be the highly similar expression “入る隙間がねぇ”. This means more like there’s no room to enter and fits best with #MakeRoomForSakakura. This can be used in a lot of situations, such as your big sister got a new cat and feeds it all the time and now you feel ignored. With three adults the same age it usually means the first two people are dating and the third one wants to date (at least) one of them.

Instead Sakakura uses a slightly different expression, 付け入る隙, which is much more adversarial and occurs almost exclusively in romance or sports, especially boxing. The word in the wibbly-wobbly “space” semantic sphere in this case means gap, like a gap in the defense, such as the hands a boxer holds up in front of his face as a guard. Sakakura is saying that there’s no gap he can find. I’d render the sentiments thus, liberally:

“There’s not any gap in the defense that I can just punch through.”

Even if Munakata is in love with Yukizome, it wouldn’t matter as much since Yukizome might not return his feelings, so Sakakura might be able to support Munakata through the heartbreak and eventually end up in a relationship. Now, Sakakura knows that Yukizome loves Munakata and is just as serious about dying for him. Yukizome would be just as good a partner for Munakata as Sakakura would be - maybe even better, since she’s not the same gender. That could be why Sakakura goes on to say, “I knew from the start.”

The gestures are more passionate than any gestures Sakakura makes as a reaction to Yukizome literally dead before his eyes. He has to restrain himself from lifting his fist, and then as soon as she’s gone, Sakakura hits the wall. I think that he was resisting the urge to strike Yukizome, because she is the one “in his way”. Of course, punching her would be wrong, and Sakakura does recognize that.

He couldn’t display such visceral anger towards Munakata, who isn’t on the same continent currently. Sakakura is so focused on his immediate surroundings that he targets Naegi, Asahina, and then Mitarai who isn’t even part of their faction, just because he’s in roughly the same area. If Munakata was the one “in his way” that he wanted to punch, I think we’d get some indication about the distance of the target.

Again, Sakakura doesn’t want to actually punch any people. It’s a funny parallel to his mihen situation, where his NG code almost definitely is that he can’t punch people or he’ll die. Punching either Munakata or Yukizome would only damage Sakakura’s worth in their eyes, which is about as bad for him as dying.

CONCLUSION

From the moment that he is introduced in mihen 1, Sakakura is presented as Munakata’s devoted partner. He gets along okay with Yukizome, but much like his friendship with Kimura, it doesn’t get highlighted for the audience, so they have to reinforce the 74th class being a trio in the photo shown during zetsuhen 1. Sakakura mourns Yukizome in mihen 2, alongside Great Gozu, with less intensity than Munakata. Avenging her is an afterthought for him. His number one priority is protecting Munakata, and he criticizes the others for only thinking about protecting themselves.

Sakakura is wrong, by the way. Izayoi tries to sacrifice himself as he tells Ando to run away first. Those two are in a romantic relationship, and in group shots they’re framed as a team, just like Sakakura and Munakata.

In zetsuhen 3 we see a softer side of Sakakura as for the first time in the series he converses properly with Yukizome, who points out something increasingly obvious: Sakakura would like to get into a relationship with Munakata. He’s hiding it for the time being, but this sheds a light on mihen 4, 5, and 6, where he waxes lyrical about how Munakata is his boss, he made a vow to protect Munakata, he wants to be with Munakata. In these episodes Sakakura doesn’t think at all about Yukizome. Danganronpa Gaiden: Killer Killer is the same way, with Yukizome entirely unmentioned while Sakakura is proud to serve as the right hand of Munakata.

What’s the twist in zetsuhen 6? That Sakakura likes Yukizome, which has completely failed to be foreshadowed in any previous episode? Or that Sakakura can’t protect Munakata and simultaneously hide his romantic feelings without experiencing intense emotional pain, the kind of regret he never had to face as an undefeated champion boxer? I know what interpretation makes the most sense in this mature anime about adults making hard choices.

SPECIAL THANKS

Electra, for screaming with me moments after this came out. Riku, for helping me take the time for myself to get this done. Jess, for being a mature adult and therefore right about everything. Mary, for engaging in the sacred ritual of lesbian salt with me, and lots of help especially in the Pekoyama section plus the concept of consolidating the picspams. Benji, for bonus validation. And finally thank you for reading!