Nanoka Ayase

**-Spoiler Warning: *Plot details follow.-***

**Nanoka Ayase** (綾瀬 菜乃花, *Ayase Nanoka*) is the heroine of the series. She is a first-year student in high school at Kiriyama High and the best friends of Yuuko and Chisato who are also in her class.

## Appearance

   Nanoka is a beautiful young woman with salmon-pink colored hair (sometimes depicted as light brown) where it is reaching mid-length past her shoulders with square bangs hanging over her forehead and light brown eyes.

She has been noted by the "Manager" of having a transparent like appearance as if she were putting on airs. However, other characters like Hayata Kiriyama have remarked that she has a cute appearance.

### Middle School

When Nanoka was in middle school, her hair was cut short and ended right before reaching her shoulders.

### After the Timeskip

   2 years later, Nanoka is now shown to have bangs swept to the left side.

## Personality

Nanoka is described by other characters as being doll-like and docile with a mysterious atmosphere that makes her hard to approach. She doesn't clearly articulate what she wants or means to say unless heavily provoked. However, after meeting Hayata Kiriyama, she slowly becomes more straightforward and direct. She claims that it is thanks to Hayata that she was able to become so strong. Additionally, she states that it is because of Hayata that she is able to push herself forward as she does not want to return to the past.

In part 2, she suffers from amnesia and returns to her former persona from middle school albeit a bit more emotionless and colder than the former. She is afraid of getting back her memories because every-time she comes close, it feels like her head will explode. It is furthered revealed that she is essentially a different Nanoka all together and becomes furious when the real Nanoka inside interferes with her life. She desperately attempts to destroy the former Nanoka. It is noted by Takato Uesugi that Nanoka began smiling more after her encounter with Hayata although she isn't aware of this.

When her memories return, she returns to her real personality and is able to smile from the heart again.

## Background

In middle school, Nanoka was a part of the student council where she met Takato Uesugi. They dated briefly and then broke up after she heard him lying about their relationship. When she begins her first high-school year, she is first approached by Yuuko and the two become friends with Chisato joining their group shortly after. After hearing a strangers break up one day, she finds herself wondering what went wrong in her first relationship. When she hears a familiar voice passing by in a crowd and speaking kind words that she always needed to hear, she instantly turns around and confesses.

## Etymology

* The name **Nanoka** means "vegetables, greens" (菜) (**na**), "from" (乃) (**no**) and "flower, blossom" (花) (**ka**).
	+ **Nanoka** (菜乃花) is a direct reference to the nanohana (菜の花 / rapeseed blossoms) which is also in the title of the series 菜の花の彼.
		- While the main title of the series 菜の花の彼 reads Nanohana no Kare, the katakana beneath it reads Nanoka no Kare ナノカノカレ.
		- The nanohana is known for blooming in large fields and marks the beginning of Spring although the flower can bloom as early as January.
		- Nanoka is heavily associated with this plant throughout the series both visually and symbolically.
* Nanoka's surname **Ayase** means "design" (綾) (**aya**) and "swift current, rapids" (瀬) (**se**).

## Trivia

* Nanoka ranked 2nd place in the popularity poll (2017) with 22.3% of the votes.
* Volume 8 is the only volume that Nanoka is not featured on for either the front or back cover.
* Nanoka's birthday is the same day as the Hinamatsuri festival in Japan; also known as Girls' Day.
* Nanoka has been featured on the front and back covers of the manga for a total of 16 times as of volume 14.
* Nanoka is the first female character introduced while Hayata Kiriyama is the first male character introduced in the series.