Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi Volume 16 (2024)

Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi ~Onodera Ritsu no Baai 16~ (世界一初恋 〜小野寺律の場合16〜), or The World's Greatest First Love: The Case of Ritsu Onodera 16, is the sixteenth volume of the Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi manga series.

Chapters[]

• The Case of Ritsu Onodera No.30
• The Case of Ritsu Onodera No.31
• The Case of Shouta Kisa No.10
• The Case of Nao Kiyomiya No.1

Synopsis[]

When Ritsu Onodera changes jobs, looking for a fresh start, he's not exactly thrilled when his new boss turns out to be his old flame. Ritsu's determined to leave all that in the past—but how can he when his boss is just as determined that they have a future?

Ritsu realizes it was Takano who helped him when he collapsed—not Nao, as he previously thought! Now Ritsu decides that he’s finally going to tell Takano how he feels, but first he has to tell Nao, who has a crush on Ritsu, that he and Nao can’t live together anymore. Will Ritsu be able to go through with it and finally confess to Takano?^[1]

Plot[]

"The Case of Ritsu Onodera No.30" opens with Ritsu Onodera having a dream about being intimate with Masamune Takano. He eventually wakes up, and is quite flustered about what he had dreamt about, but he doesn't dwell on it for too long as Nao Kiyomiya walks into the room, asking how he's feeling, as his illness from No,27, No.28, and No.29 is still ongoing. Nao lies to Ritsu, saying that he was the one who found Ritsu collapsed, when it had really been Takano to help him in No.29. Ritsu ends up realizing it, but doesn't have the time to confront him quite yet, having to head into the office. At Marukawa, he speaks with Takano, their conversation picking up where it left off at the end of "The Case of Masamune Takano No.1". Ritsu wants to talk about their relationship issues as of late, but before their conversation can get anywhere, Ryuichiro Isaka approaches the two of them and orders Takano to go on a business trip to Kyoto, effective immediately, that Zen Kirishima was originally meant to go on, but now couldn't due to his daughter being sick. Later, when Ritsu gets back home, he confronts Nao on the lie he told that morning, and properly rejects his love confession, saying that he only sees him as a friend. Nao doesn't take the rejection well though, and gets forceful with him. Before Nao can kiss him, Ritsu punches him in the face, and Nao leaves the apartment. Ritsu is flustered over the whole thing, but he then receives a text from Takano. He falls asleep on his couch as he thinks about how badly he wants to see Takano.

"The Case of Ritsu Onodera No.31" opens with a short flashback in a dream to Ritsu Onodera and Nao Kiyomiya's time together in England, during which and older Ritsu wonders if Nao had been in love with him the entire time. When Ritsu wakes up, his phone is ringing, it's a phone call from Nao. It's decided that he won't be staying over at Ritsu's apartment anymore, and Ritsu meets him with his luggage at a cafe. The two of them talk, and Ritsu clears up any misconceptions Nao has left about his past and present relationship with Masamune Takano. Nao finally gives up on pursuing Ritsu, and the two of them see each other off on good terms. While at the train station, Nao runs into Takano, and they discuss how Ritsu had kicked Nao out, rejected him, and that he wouldn't be living there anymore. Takano thanks him for giving him the information, and tells Nao that he won't ever give up on being with Ritsu. The two of them part ways, and Takano is nervous to get his hopes up about what all this means for his relationship with Ritsu, only to find Ritsu waiting outside their apartment building when he gets home. The two of them head inside to Takano's apartment and have a long discussion about everything that's happened recently, as well as their relationship as a whole. Ritsu went into the discussion wanting to confess his feelings, but the conversation becomes difficult for him when Takano continuously apologizes for how forceful he was in No.28. He stumbles with his words a bit, and Takano laughs before professing his feelings to Ritsu. They get caught up in being intimate with each other, and before cutting to the next day, Ritsu thinks to himself yet again that he loves Takano. When Takano leaves the bedroom in the morning to go make breakfast, Ritsu quickly realizes that he got so caught up in the moment that he never ended up confessing his feelings to Takano, and quickly gets dressed and runs out to rectify this. Takano deduces what he's about to do and cuts him off, telling him that as a girls' manga editor he has higher expectations of a confession from him. Ritsu is taken aback, but decides in that moment that he'll go along with what Takano wants, putting off his confession for a different time.

"The Case of Shouta Kisa No.10" opens with Shouta Kisa reading a note from Kou Yukina, telling him to eat the meal that he left behind in the fridge for him. The two of them are currently adjusting to their new living arrangements, Yukina having moved in right across the street in No.9. Despite living close to each other, the two of them still aren't seeing each other all that much, and it leaves Kisa feeling a bit depressed. At the start of the chapter, he's taking a bit of time off at the behest of the higher-ups, yet still working at home, having just recently taken on a new author towards the end of the fiscal year, unable to find time to spend with his lover. Time passes, and one day at Marukawa after his time off had ended, Kisa and Yukina happen to run into each other, much to Kisa's surprise. It turns out that Yukina had won an illustration contest and was picked to do illustration work for one of Akihiko Usami's upcoming books, a children's book titled "Mii-kun's Lunch". Using the money that he received as payment for his illustration work, Yukina decides that he wants to take a trip with Kisa, so the two of them find a time where their schedules match up and stay at a ryokan. They arrive at their destination too late to do any sightseeing, so they spend their first night being intimate in their hotel room. The following morning, Kisa finds himself thinking to himself that he's become greedy when it comes to his relationship with Yukina.

"The Case of Nao Kiyomiya No.1" is told from Nao Kiyomiya's perspective, very briefly showing how he came to love Ritsu Onodera during there time studying in England together. Then, in the present, he and Ritsu talk to each other via a video call which takes place an undisclosed period of time after "The Case of Ritsu Onodera No.31". He further reflects on their time after reuniting as adults in "The Case of Ritsu Onodera No.23" up until when they parted ways again in No.31.

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