Haneru Emi is a high school girl from Hiroshima City who loves punk fashion and is passionate about mahjong. She meets Nashiko Jippensha and others after creating a special online mahjong room called the "Onomichi Cup." Though Haneru is a strong mahjong player from her training with a professional group, she finds a tough rival in Riche Hayashi. Haneru envies Riche’s skills and seeks her out by tracking her down to a local mahjong parlor. Despite Haneru’s cool personality and appearance, she quickly becomes friends with the others, especially when she discovers they cheer for the same band. While highly intelligent and good at reading her opponents' plays, Haneru struggles with sports and physical stamina. She becomes the fifth member of the group, but her main goal remains to face Riche again in mahjong.
Haneru Emi is described as slender, with an outstanding figure.
Her chest is rather modest.
She loves punk fashion, which makes her stand out, and was the reason Nashiko was wary of her at first.
Haneru is cool and serious about mahjong.
She loves bands and often goes to their live shows.
Despite her coolness, she is easy to tease and often ends up being the target of the group's jokes.
She has a strong desire to challenge Riche in mahjong.
Haneru is 17 years old, making her one year older than Nashiko and her friends.
She lives in Hiroshima City.
Despite living far from Onomichi (over 83km away), she makes the long trip by train just to see Nashiko’s group and play mahjong.
The train ride takes about 1 hour and 30-40 minutes, costing 1,520 yen one way or 3,040 yen round trip.
Haneru is very skilled in mahjong because she has been training with a serious group.
She can quickly figure out tricks and hidden meanings in games.
At a beach flag quiz, her speed was behind Nashiko, but she chose the correct flag instantly, showing her intelligence.
She can spot cheating even when it’s cleverly hidden.
Her intelligence is almost on the same level as Riche, making the two of them the smartest in the main cast.
Physically, Haneru is not strong.
She gets tired quickly and is bad at sports, like beach volleyball and running uphill.
She can't keep up with others during physical activities.
Haneru is first wary of Nashiko, but they bond over their shared love for a certain band.
Nashiko and Izumi call her "Haneru," while Pai calls her "Hanecchi."
Even though she is older, the others speak to her informally and sometimes tease her.
Haneru joins Nashiko’s group as the fifth member at their mahjong parlor.
Meeting Through Online Mahjong
Haneru discovers Nashiko’s group while playing online mahjong.
She creates a special "Onomichi Cup" room.
Haneru dominates early matches, but struggles against Riche who can read her hands.
She loses to Riche, which really frustrates her.
Her online name is "FOOL'S MATE."
Searching For a Rival
Driven by her defeat, Haneru finds Riche’s social media and discovers the location of the local mahjong parlor the group hangs out at.
She travels from Hiroshima City to Onomichi just to meet them and challenge Riche again.
Becoming Friends
At first, Nashiko is cautious of Haneru’s punk style, but when they realize they root for the same band, they quickly become friends.
Haneru is allowed to join their group and participate in events like barbecues and parties.
Struggling With Challenges
Haneru is focused on challenging Riche in mahjong, but things don’t always go her way.
Sometimes the schedule doesn’t match.
Other times she is eliminated before Riche joins the table.
Haneru is also not good at sports or physical challenges and gets tired faster than her friends.
Haneru’s birthday is April 26.
She cares deeply about mahjong and gets upset if her friends cheat, even if it is just for fun.
She can spot the clever hidden meaning in the group’s Christmas surprise, which involved using certain tiles to write "Christmas" in the mahjong game.
The distance from Hiroshima to Onomichi makes her dedication even more impressive.
"I just want to beat Riche at mahjong."
"You’re cheating? That’s not okay, even if it’s for Christmas!"
"We cheer for the same band? Let’s go to the next live show together!"
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