This article contains spoilers from Blue Box Chapter 198
Blue Box came back this week after a short break, and Kouji Miura picked up the story from where we left off. Blue Box Chapter 198 was titled “You have to attack” and focused mainly on Taiki’s birthday. The Kyoto trip was mentioned again, but it has not started yet. Instead, this chapter gave us some calm moments and a bit of development for side characters like Haruto, Hina, and Ayame.
| Title | Blue Box |
|---|---|
| Chapter | 197 |
| Writer/Artist | Kouji Miura |
| Translation | Christine Dashiell |
| Lettering | Mark MCMURRAY |
| Studio | Shueisha |
| Publisher (JP) | Weekly Shonen Jump |
Taiki’s 17th Birthday in Blue Box Chapter 198
Blue Box Chapter 198 begins with a panel showing the class whiteboard with the date, 15th January (Wednesday). That confirms it is Taiki’s birthday. Hina says she finished making the itinerary for Day 2 of the Kyoto trip, and everyone praises her work.
Then Taiki walks in, and the whole class wishes him a happy birthday. They also ask what he is holding, turns out it is protein powder that Kyo gave him as a gift.
Hina, like always, gives him chocolates. Last year, she gave him three (this happened back in Chapter 109), and this year she gave him four. Taiki jokes she is 13 chocolates short since he turned 17, but she says she is just adding one to last year’s count.
Taiki and Chinatsu
Taiki then meets Chinatsu, who was waiting for him. She wishes him and says she wishes she could take him to the beach like he did on her birthday. Instead, she packed him a lunch, omurice. This moment was similar to what happened in Chapter 110 when they cooked omurice together at Taiki’s house, and Chinatsu drew his face on the food. She does the same again this time. Before Taiki leaves, Chinatsu gives him a kiss on the cheek and says she hopes he liked it. So instead of another full kiss scene like in Chapter 196 (titled “I love you”), this time it was more of a small, romantic moment.
Shota Takasago Becomes Insecure
After that, Taiki heads to the gym. His teammates wish him, and this time, even Ayame, the manager, is aware of his birthday. They surprise him with a cake made from shuttlecocks.
Then the focus shifts to Shota Takasago and Kyo. Shota gets a little insecure after seeing Ayame being friendly with the male badminton team. Since he is dating her now, Kyo tells him it is okay to be honest about how he feels. But Shota says he does not want to limit her just because they are dating.
Haruto also joins in and brings protein as a gift. He actually did not know it was Taiki’s birthday, it was just lying around in his locker.
Hina and Haruto’s Advancement in Blue Box Chapter 198
Later, Haruto passes by Hina and Nina. He ignores them. Nina then follows him and says he is being unclear about how he feels toward Hina. Haruto says he was not trying to mislead Hina and explains that someone once told him that his moves were rough and without timing. He is now being more cautious.
But Nina tells him that sometimes, if you don’t attack, you will never leave an impression. After that, she tells Hina, “That guy might be worth your time”. And Hina replies, “I guess you might be right”.
Sometimes you have to attack, otherwise you might never make an impression on the other person.
Nina Shimazaki
Blue Box Chapter 198 Review
Blue Box Chapter 198 was light in terms of action but pretty strong in character development. The main focus was on Taiki’s birthday, and it gave some room to highlight how much things have changed since last year. Back then, Chinatsu and Taiki made dinner together at his house and celebrated his birthday like that. But now Chinatsu has her own place, and their relationship feels a bit more stable and mature.
This chapter also brought back some side character focus. Haruto and Hina, who were kind of left in the background for a while, got some attention again. It looks like Miura is slowly setting up something between them once more. Now that the birthday chapter is out of the way, there is a good chance Chapter 199 will finally begin the trip. Blue Box Chapter 199 will be released on 15th June 2025.
Blue Box Chapter 198 is now available to read on Manga Plus for free.
Blue Box Chapter 198 Review
Summary
Taiki’s 17th birthday takes the spotlight with calm moments and character progress, especially between him and Chinatsu. Haruto and Hina also get some focus again, while the Kyoto trip still hasn’t started yet.
