Nogizaka no Himitsu

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (乃木坂春香の秘密^?, lit. Haruka Nogizaka's Secret) is a Japanese light novel series byYūsaku Igarashi, with illustrations by Shaa. The series originally started serialization in volume thirty of MediaWorks' now-defunct light novel magazine Dengeki hp on June 18, 2004. One more chapter was published until the first bound novel of the series was released, though more chapters were later serialized in the magazine. The first novel was released in October 2004, and as of July 2010, 12 volumes have been published by ASCII Media Works under theirDengeki Bunko imprint. A manga adaptation by Yasuhiro Miyama was serialized in ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Moeoh between the October 2006 and August 2010 issues. An anime adaptation produced by Studio Barcelona aired between July and September 2008; a second anime season aired between October and December 2009. A visual novelfor the PlayStation 2 was released in Japan in September 2008 and a second game for the PlayStation Portable was released for digital download in February 2010.

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu is set at the private high school Hakujō Academy in Japan and centers around the male protagonist Yūto Ayase and his classmate Haruka Nogizaka. While Yūto is rather ordinary, Haruka is very attractive, intelligent, and rich. Due to this, she is the school's most unattainable girl and is so idolized that her classmates give her the French nicknames Nuit Étoile (The Night Star) and Lumière du Clavier (The Piano's Light). One day, Yūto's good friend Nobunaga Asakura asks him to return a book to the school library, and when he goes to return it, Yūto stumbles across Haruka and her darkest secret—she is a diehard fan of anime, manga, and the otaku culture. Yūto promises to keep her secret hidden and the two become close friends. Yūto does his best to help Haruka with her secret hobby while developing his relationship with her.[edit]Plot

[edit]Characters

[edit]Main characters

Yūto Ayase (綾瀬 裕人 Ayase Yūto^?)

Voiced by: Wataru Hatano

Yūto is the main protagonist of the story. He is an ordinary student who attends the private high school Hakujō Academy and is in his second year of high school. One day, he stumbles across his classmate Haruka in the library and discovers her hidden secret—she is a major otaku and loves anime and manga. Following this revelation, Yūto starts to hang out with Haruka which brings up the envy and jealousy of many of his fellow classmates. Yūto lives with his parents and older sister Ruko, though his parents are always working and thus are generally absent from home. He behaves bluntly and generally likes to be left alone. He has an average determination to study for school. Even though he and Haruka are so close, he sometimes believes since he is not wealthy he cannot officially be her boyfriend.

Haruka Nogizaka (乃木坂 春香 Nogizaka Haruka^?)

Voiced by: Mamiko Noto

Haruka is the main female character of the story, and is Yūto's classmate. Due to her beauty and intelligence, She is idolized at school and regarded as the school's most unattainable girl, even known by the French nicknamesNuit Étoile (The Night Star) and Lumière du Clavier (The Piano's Light). She is very skilled at playing the piano and has taken overall victories in international contests. She also has a gentle personality, is a natural airhead, and is quite clumsy. Her deep hidden secret is that she is a major otaku and loves anime and manga. In middle school, her secret was exposed and she received a certain amount of prejudice towards it which caused her to keep it a secret once she entered high school. When Yūto finds out about it, Haruka is relieved that he does not tell anyone or harass her about it. She also comes from a rich family and privileged upbringing, so her interest in the otaku subculture is looked down upon due to her status in society, which is another reason why she keeps it a secret. Haruka once fled to a park after being scolded by her father, several years before. It was here that her anime obsession started when Yūto gave her the first issue of Innocent Smile. While being very talented, she cannot draw well, but does not realize it because she is too proud of it for anyone to tell her directly.