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One of the major plot points in the Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You manga and anime is that Sasaki is clueless about the fact that the Super S store employee Yamada and his smoking buddy Tayama are the same person. That crux is the driving factor behind some situations in the story, while also sort of establishing something of a love triangle and drama. With volume seven of the manga, we’re finally seeing Sasaki come to certain realizations about Yamada and Tayama, then determining how to handle that.
Editor’s Note: There will be some spoilers for the first half of volume seven of the Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You manga below.
The seventh volume begins with Sasaki and Yamada/Tayama currently not talking. After an awkward exchange between Sasaki and Yamada, part of which involved him giving her his cigarettes and suggesting he wouldn’t speak to Tayama, he’s avoiding the story and “letting things cool down.” Except he does find himself back in the smoking spot as usual and encountering Tayama again. Which doesn’t end up being awkward. However, it does lead to the revelation that he’s finally pretty much realized the truth. So that chapter ends with him thinking, “How am I going to ask her if she’s Miss Yamada after all this time?”
Given Sasaki finally starting to think about that possibility, part of his side of the story for this volume is wrapped up in him thinking about how he should handle that conversation and considering past interactions with Tayama and Yamada. Especially after he runs into Tayama while walking and she takes him to a park she used to run off to in order to get away for a bit and opens up to him a bit. We can really feel the anxiety on his part. Which is identifiable, especially for anyone who’s ever had to have a tough conversation with someone they’re starting to get close to.
Meanwhile, on Yamada/Tayama’s end, she’s dealing with an even more stressful situation. Her and Miyamoto end up dealing with a nightmare customer as Sasaki comes into the Super S. He helps diffuse the situation and take the pressure off the two of them. However, that customer then begins causing trouble for and stalking her. But because of the kind of person she is, she doesn’t go to other people or risk getting them involved. Instead, she keeps it to herself and even tells Sasaki that they temporarily can’t smoke behind the store.
Naturally, all of this comes to a head with basically Sasaki’s anxieties and overthinking converging with the stalker situation leading to Yamada/Tayama not showing up to work. We see the events play out from his point of view in the Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You manga. Which means he needs to lock in and focus on what matters, while also dealing with his own fears and insecurities.
For the sake of spoilers, I won’t go over how things turn out in that situation. But it works out in a way that I really appreciated. Especially since it suits both characters, their development up until now, and the story quite well.
While it does take a while for Sasaki to start thinking about the important question in the Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You manga, it’s handled well. We see his thought process. We watch him work out the understanding of the situation. We also see how his dealing with that anxiety and issue is juxtaposed against Yamada/Tayama dealing with her own issue stressing her out. The culmination also leads to some strong character development as well. It makes me hope we don’t have to wait too long for volume 8.
Volumes 1-7 of the Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You manga are available now, and Square Enix hasn’t shared a release date for volume 8 yet. The anime adaptation is airing on Crunchyroll.
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