Another SaiTeru thing that gives me life!
Honestly? If you ask me, this right here is another clear indicator of all the SaiTeru development and of where Saiki stands in regards to Teruhashi by the end of the manga.
After all, this is the final group illustration and it pays a lot of attention to detail. It really does its best to capture everyone’s characters and dynamic.
For example, here you have Nendou’s mom looking at Kouta with a smile on her face, possibly hinting that she may give him another chance in the future. And at the same time, you have Nendou’s Ghost Dad with his eyes fixed on her.
Meanwhile, Saiki’s Grandpa is glaring daggers at Kuniharu because how dare he stand between his daughter and his grandson, that should be his place!
And here you have Rifuta blushing up a storm because she’s standing right behind Makoto. All while Hairo’s enthusiasm is causing Suzumiya to be almost hidden from the picture. Luckily Satou remains unaffected by her bad luck. Then, of course, Takahashi greedily eyeing Saiko’s money because some things never change.
No matter where you look, the cover is full of awesome, meaningful details.
And then you have Saiki and Teruhashi, front and center. And it’s obvious that something has changed.
Teruhashi is grabbing his shoulder and leaning on him in a way she’s never done in the manga. What’s more, Saiki is perfectly fine letting this happen and looks content reaching out to the audience. This is pretty big, because while Teruhashi looks a little nervous, it still establishes that SaiTeru have become pretty close.
But if you ask me, it also hints that they’ll become even closer. Because look at Chiyo. Chiyo, who would’ve normally been trying to stand close to Kaidou, looks thrilled to be where she is. Staring at Teruhashi comfortably leaning on Saiki’s shoulder with a happy, approving smile on her face. The kind of face that says, You did it, Kokomi!
So yeah, to me everything about this cover screams Yes, Saiki and Teruhashi are going to get together eventually. And what do you know, Saiki is pretty okay with that lol