The Alpha and the Three Treasures [BL]

This manga is composed of two sweet stories, one bearing the main title and the other called Cheeky. Interestingly, they are connected by a shared sentiment: these boys strive to appear strong and cheerful on the surface while secretly longing for someone to notice their inner pain, someone who can genuinely understand them.

The first story is titled Dash, where admiration blossoms into desire. Akimoto joins the judo club at his new high school captivated by Saitou's performance in a competition. He dreams of witnessing those incredible moves and bold attitudes again and aspires to become as skilled as his admired sempai. You might say Akimoto has a thing for Saitou, indeed, that's what everyone assumes seeing how he's become Saitou's errand boy. However, this "thing" isn't romantic—at least not until Akimoto contemplates sempai's graduation, along with several aspects of the genius judoka's lazy demeanor.

Dash skillfully blends comedy, a touch of drama, and sports into a sweet yet serious narrative. We observe how admiration transforms into love when Akimoto recognizes all facets, even the vulnerable ones, of his admired sempai. He works tirelessly to win Saitou's heart, unaware why, and before he can fully grasp it, Saitou begins to be influenced by his relentless attention. What made me adore this story? That joyful, shounen-like vibe that seamlessly transitions towards serious and sexually charged moments without becoming overly heavy or dramatic. Definitely a smooth progression of events thanks to well-crafted words and visuals.

The characters stand out as another highlight of this tale; they behave appropriately for their age, and how refreshing that is! They're silly, joke frequently, and can be a mess at times. Akimoto is purpose-driven, straightforward, a bit slow, but always endearing. Saitou steals the show for me—he's cheeky, sarcastic, cheerful, and full of himself. It was expected yet delightful to see him become as flustered as angry, a bottom with the upper hand!!!

Cheeky presents a different story that feels oddly akin to the previous one. Ohyama reunites with his cousin Yoshirou, holding fond childhood memories. As Yoshirou comes to stay at his house, Ohyama quickly realizes the cute kid has turned into a devil; he's not only promiscuous but also dismisses everything as if it were a game. Ohyama is worried, annoyed, and thoroughly confused by Yoshirou's advances. It turns out he can't abandon the kid, even when he wants to, especially upon realizing Yoshirou's support during his loneliness was a promise made in childhood...

This love story is somewhat complex. I mean, they're cousins and one is a promiscuous brat who even engages in sex for money! Yoshirou feels lost, and Ohyama becomes his sole salvation, regardless of the implications. Despite being mostly humorous, what lingers most is the melancholic feeling when you grasp Yoshirou's true nature, executed beautifully in my opinion. Nonetheless, I'm satisfied with the ending; what was supposed to be an erotic scene abruptly shifts into a hilarious one. And it seems Yoshirou isn't all talk; he wields a potent mix of cuteness and experience.

As mentioned earlier, the characters often mirror each other. Somehow, Ohyama feels somewhat flat here, perhaps because Yoshirou is so entertaining and intriguing; besides, the story primarily offers a view of him through Ohyama's eyes. He's utterly unashamed of anything. I must award extra points to this one for the bottom being the aggressor—something rarely seen.

Isaku Natsume's art is quite appealing, perfectly suited to the story; almost a shounen-style art. Big eyes, messy hair, and charming smiles. The boys look adorable when they blush, and their awkwardness is endearing—it's a clean and sweet style. Additionally, there aren't very explicit scenes here, almost shounen-ai except for certain parts that nearly cross the line, focusing more on the humor of youth.

Dash! serves as an excellent transition from shounen to boys' love. It's a refreshing story with a distinct style in the genre, a light read with just a hint of drama and plenty of hilarious moments. I'd say this is definitely a must-read if you're seeking something unique that makes you feel happy while reading it.<p>

Oh my God, this book. This freaking book. I never thought a shonen-ai could make my heart race like a schoolgirl chatting with her crush. Yes, a shonen-ai—meaning no explicit sex—which is quite an accomplishment for someone who's spent enough time in the darker corners of the internet to leave detailed instructions for trusted friends to destroy my hard drive upon my death. And it takes a truly exceptional sexless BL story to earn a 9 out of me; in fact, I believe this is the first 9 I've given any BL here (I wouldn't dare rate anything a perfect 10—what's the fun in that?). I rarely read anything under an M rating because once you've ventured far into the "sin bin," it's hard to regress. Then again, there's plenty of M-rated BL that just slaps together a lame and unsatisfying sex scene to lure in readers with that "explicit content" label, and they're the worst offenders in my opinion—if a book claims to be rated M, it had better deliver. With 16+ stories, at least I know what I'm getting (or rather, not getting)—you can't complain about missing sugar in your cornflakes if the box clearly states there isn't any.

Interestingly, the reason I bought this book was because it was beautiful—the pages are thick and lush, even more so than my other oversized June books. I think my thought process in the bookstore went something like, "hmm, no explicit sex but the pages are super nice." Logic, I guess?

I absolutely adore Natsume's art. Her boys aren't too feminine or too masculine—just cute yet athletic teens. They're funny and cheeky (the second story was aptly named), full of personality and character—I love the cute sideways smiles she draws. But don't get me wrong, this book isn't about ridiculously handsome boys with ridiculous problems ("His Arrogance," anyone?), and there are some serious emotional undertones at play in both stories, which was one reason I became emotionally invested in all four main characters in a way I rarely do with a shonen-ai. I'm tempted to Google doujinshi of them to see if an artist unraveled the end of that proverbial rope, but I think I'd be disappointed—part of the charm and beauty of this story was what you didn't see, and it surprised me how okay I was with that—at least in the first story, Natsume dangles just enough bait to stoke your imagination, and I was delighted by it. In contrast, "Our Everlasting" tried this for what seemed like the entire book, but the effect was more annoying than anything, because—coincidentally!—see the end of paragraph one.

Dash is easily my favorite shonen-ai that I've read so far. It was funny, endearing, and fluffy without being cloying. Highly recommended.

Isaku Natsume's Dash! features two stories. The titular story, Dash!, revolves around a high school judo club. Saitoh is the team's star member, and the main reason Akimoto chose to attend that particular school. However, upon closer inspection, the master judoka isn't quite what Akimoto expected—seemingly lazy and spending little time practicing in the dojo. Nevertheless, he enlists Akimoto as his errand boy, leading the younger student to spend much of his time following and obeying him. As Akimoto's feelings for Saitoh shift from friendly to lustful, he uncovers the older boy's hidden dark secret.

The other story in the book is titled "Cheeky!" It follows Taka, a basketball player, whose younger cousin Yoshirou suddenly shows up at his door, claiming to have run away from home after issues with a boyfriend. The cousins hadn't seen each other since childhood, and Yoshirou appears much changed—promiscuous with both men and women, cheeky, yet beneath the surface, deeply insecure and anxious. He repeatedly makes advances on Taka, who brushes him off due to his introverted nature, but jealousy begins to surface when Yoshirou starts flirting with Taka's teammates.

While I usually prefer books with a single storyline, this dual-story format works well. The stories are long enough to allow readers to get to know the characters, witness some character development, and reach a climax. These tales follow the standard BL formula—"boy meets boy, falls in love, doubts his feelings, and overcomes them"—but the characters transcend these tropes. Natsume's ukes deserve special praise for their spunk and attitude: both Saitoh and Yoshirou stand out as unique individuals. Saitoh, with his charming grin, is strong and independent, yet willingly submits to the younger boy without transforming into a blushing bride afterward. Instead, he retains his authority as a sempai, almost topping from the bottom. Yoshirou leans more toward the traditional uke archetype but remains the instigator and the aggressive party in the relationship. The semes are somewhat less memorable: Akimoto is large, slightly clumsy, and blushes adorably while doting on Saitoh, while Taka fits the mold of another tall, dark-haired, brooding seme.

I greatly appreciate Natsume's art style—it's clean, reminiscent of shonen, and strongly echoes Yellow Tanabe's Kekkaishi (Saitoh bears an uncanny resemblance to Kekkaishi's Yoshimori). Personally, I favor this style over the more flowery, shoujo-like end of the BL spectrum. Natsume's boys are athletic and personable—not quite adults yet, but well-built enough to avoid looking like children. As a 16+ title, Dash! offers kisses and passionate blushes as its most intense moments—although both couples do consummate their relationships, there's no nudity, with only tantalizing glimpses of pecs and abs. While it might feel teasing to those who typically prefer M-rated content, the appealing art and characters make it worthwhile.

Dash! maintains Juné's usual high production quality, except for slightly thicker, heavier paper. Sound effects have been translated (though not always replaced), but honorifics remain largely untranslated, with only 'senpai' and 'kohai' kept, and without explanations of their meanings. The translation flows naturally.

Dash! is delightfully cute: light on plot but elevated by more interesting characters than your average BL manga. It lacks non-consensual elements or graphic details, avoiding excessive sweetness or innocence, making it thoroughly enjoyable fluff.

nice and interesting love it

Oh my goodness. This book is everything. So good

I did not know about the book order, I came across The Crowns Obsession during a search and didn't even think to check out the other books first. Thanks for letting me know 😊

There's a lot of hard to read sentences and confusing POVs in the first part of the story. But as it goes on, it becomes better that may leave you awestruck at the later part, because of the development of the story and the dimensions of characters... Very satisfying.