Classmates #3

Asumiko Nakamura's delicate linework and soft cherry-blossom palette make this third volume of Classmates — subtitled Sotsu Gyo Sei -Spring- — a genuinely beautiful thing to hold. The cover frames two young men in school uniforms and red ties, standing apart amid drifting petals, each clutching a rolled document that hints at a moment of transition. It's a quietly moving image, and the cover's own poetic text — "two boys' hearts are changing… spring has come" — sets exactly the tender, reflective tone that makes this series so compelling.