| Akane | |
|---|---|
| |
| First Appearance | Chapter 16 Episode 3 |
| Last Appearance | Chapter 202 Episode 25 |
| Profile | |
| Gender | Supposedly female |
| Status | Living braid of hair Office secretary |
Akane (あかねちゃん Akane-chan) is a minor character in the series.
Overview
Akane is one of the more bizarre members of the cast, simply being a living braid of hair. Yako and Neuro first discover her still attached to her corpse in the wall of their newly-acquired office. She is implied to have been done in by the previous Yakuza owners of the office, even though she denies this statement, and refuses to reveal the culprit of her murder. Akane became "alive" after absorbing some of Neuro's demonic energy, though whether or not she is the original soul of the body, or just hair isn't explained. In the Muhyo and Neuro crossover, Yako warns Neuro not to mess with Muhyo's exorcism spells as they may exorcise Akane, the closest thing to a spirit in their office. Akane apparently holds a mystery, probably something to do with her death, but Neuro states he will solve it some other time as he isn't interested in it at the moment. However, the mystery remains unsolved even as the manga ended. Akane is shown to be smaller and attached to Yako's hair in the final chapter.
Akane becomes the secretary of Yako's Detective Agency after being discovered, with exchange of getting hair care treatment from Yako five times a week. She does the paperwork in the office and manages the agency's website by replying to emails. She seems oddly cheerful throughout the series, usually showing some concern for Yako, but also showing fear when she and Yako went up against the Kamakiri Hairdresser. Akane is more loyal towards Yako than she is towards Neuro as shown in the latest chapters, where she refuses to listen to Neuro after he fires Yako. She isn't limited to being stuck to her corpse in the office anymore, and is usually seen attached to Yako's cellphone.
Akane, being a braid of hair is unable to communicate verbally with the other characters in the series, though she can show her expressions by swinging around when she gets excited and trembling when afraid. She usually communicates with Yako and Neuro by typing out her messages in the computer or by writing them out in a whiteboard beside her wall.
Abilities
Yako's hair fused with Akane
Akane has the ability to come off her corpse in the wall and attach herself with Yako's hair. She noticeably grows longer and her colour changes to follow the hair of the person she attaches herself onto. In this state, she can manipulate herself like a weapon similar to other fictional characters like Eve from Black Cat and some Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo characters. She cannot stay attached to Yako for too long though, as the imbalance in demonic energy between the both of them, and the fact that Akane is "dead" and Yako alive, would eventually cause them to switch bodies.
When Akane is attached to Yako's cellphone she requires a steady amount of energy as she is separated from her body. She originally saps the battery power from Yako's cellphone (the information and data in the phone comes next) but Neuro later gives her one his triangular hairclips, which work as energy fuels. When attached to the phone, Akane can use herself as an antenna in areas with low frequency, though this severely weakens her.
Concept and Creation
According to Yūsei Matsui in an interview, Akane was created when his editor asked him to make a mascot character for the series. While Akane wasn't exactly what the editor thought was cute, Matsui stated she was a handy character and it was easy to draw her emotions with hearts and music notes. Akane is sold as a cellphone strap as part of the series merchandise. Oddly enough, the mangaka has one on his cellphone as well. Akane has also appeared in Jump Ultimate Stars as a Help Character where she gives the player more defense and boosts Eve from Black Cat.