Manga like Toumei Ningen no Hone

Adabana

Also known as Adabana.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Thriller

After the gruesome murder of two small-town residents, a ramen shop owner, and a local student, the community is left shocked. Mizuki Aikawa, the best friend of one of the victims, confesses to the brutal crime. However, nothing is as it seems, and Mizuki's public defenders believe there has to be more to the story. When the truth unravels, they discover a tale of class, exploitation, and the deeper struggles of meeting family expectations.



Tags: Crime , Suicide , Female Protagonist , Tragedy , Seinen , Achronological Order , Prostitution , Blackmail , Nudity , Prison , Police , Torture , Denpa , Revenge , Sadism

Aku no Hana

Also known as The Flowers of Evil.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Psychological , Romance

The story opens as middle school student Takao Kasuga receives an F on a math test. But he doesn't even seem to notice because he's too engrossed in surreptitiously reading Beaudelaire's The Flowers of Evil. And the day goes downhill from there. In a moment of weakness, he finds and takes home the gym clothes belonging to sweet, pretty Nanako Saeki on whom he has a major crush. Unfortunately for Takao, there's a witness to the theft: Nakamura, who has a huge chip on her shoulder and a sadistic streak.

As the saga unfolds, we see Takao struggling to decide whether to confess or cover up his misdeeds at the same time that he tries to win over the girl of his dreams, and avoid the blackmail attempts of Nakamura, his new ”BFF.”

Smart, funny, and emotionally engaging, The Flowers of Evil introduces a character who's not a hero, but just an ordinary teenager in search of true love and real friendship.



Note: Includes one extra chapter.

Tags: Coming of Age , Psychosexual , Philosophy , Denpa , Love Triangle , Rehabilitation , Classic Literature , Tragedy , School , Time Skip , Male Protagonist , Sadism , Bullying , Suicide , Shounen , Rural , Writing , Heterosexual , Blackmail , Urban , Female Protagonist , Nudity , Crossdressing

Yagiza no Yuujin

Also known as My Capricorn friend.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Supernatural

Yuuya Matsuda runs into a classmate, Naoto Wakatsuki, who was fleeing a murder scene. Tormented by aggressive bullying, Wakatsuki had reached his breaking point and had killed the bully. From guilt of turning a blind eye on the bullying, Yuuya decides to run away with him. Shocking truths and a bittersweet ending await the boys.



Tags: Bullying , Suicide , Male Protagonist , Primarily Teen Cast , Fugitive , School , Shounen , Tragedy , Time Manipulation , Crime , Urban Fantasy , Primarily Male Cast , Travel

Onani Master Kurosawa

Also known as Onani Master Kurosawa.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Psychological , Romance

Kakeru Kurosawa is an asocial junior high school student. He rarely associates with his classmates, and he looks down on them. But this behavior is topped off by a certain bad habit, his closely guarded secret: every day after school, he sneaks in to the rarely used girls' toilet on the 3rd floor and masturbates in a stall. Kakeru's shadowy routine remains undisturbed until one day, when a diminutive girl from his class, Aya Kitahara, almost discovers him. Their meeting begins a coming-of-age story dealing with blackmail, bullying, revenge, heartbreak, and ultimately, redemption.



Note: Includes one extra chapter.

Tags: Coming of Age , Masturbation , Bullying , Male Protagonist , School , Revenge , Philosophy , Anti-Hero , Primarily Teen Cast , Tragedy , Psychosexual , Rehabilitation , Heterosexual , Love Triangle , Delinquents , Tsundere

Hibari no Asa

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Psychological , Slice of Life

Teshima Hibari is a 14 year old girl with a body that is more sensual than most girls her age. Her story includes the opinions and reactions of all of the people around her, as well as the actions of her own life. The chapters explore the thoughts and feelings of classmates and adults, men and women. The males often have romantic or sexual feelings for Hibari, while the women sometimes have feelings of inferiority or jealousy. Whether positive or negative, it seems everyone has a reaction to Hibari.

Tags: Josei , Tragedy , Bullying , Coming of Age , Female Protagonist , POV , Philosophy , Psychosexual , Survival , Suicide , School , Ensemble Cast , Urban , Heterosexual ,

Jumyou wo Kaitotte Moratta. Ichinen ni Tsuki, Ichimanen de.

Also known as Three Days of Happiness.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Psychological , Romance , Supernatural

Kusunoki used to believe he was destined for great things. But now, approaching the age of twenty, he’s a completely mediocre college student with no motivation, no dreams, and no money. After learning he can sell his remaining years, he chooses to divest himself of all but his last three months. Spending this remaining time with his monitor, Miyagi, has Kusunoki truly destroyed his final chance to find happiness…or has he somehow found it?



Note: Includes two extra chapters.

Tags: Philosophy , Tragedy , Coming of Age , Male Protagonist , Kuudere , Cohabitation , Primarily Adult Cast , Urban Fantasy , Heterosexual , Suicide , Drawing , Photography , Shounen , Mopeds

Tsumi to Batsu: A Falsified Romance

Also known as Crime and Punishment: A Falsified Romance.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Horror , Psychological , Thriller

Taking inspiration from the Russian classic Crime and Punishment and then placing the behemoth of a book into a modern metropolis, Ochiai Naoyuki retells Dostoevsky's drama from the eyes of a struggling Japanese writer. In the 2006 remake Crime and Punishment ~A Falsified Romance~ Ochiai's lead is an incredible talent with award winning abilities. Tachi recently placed as the Best New Writer in a major literary competition, but the stress of living up to his family's goals of him becoming a powerful man has broken him on the cusp of greatness. He dropped out of college. However after moving to Tokyo he struggles with his identity and the duality of life in this surreal megalopolis. Despite being recognized for his tremendous potential, success does not come quite as easy, and life is a constant struggle. For Tachi Miroku life is nothing but a battle, with his past and his moral fiber. He hasn't been to work in four months and his dreams are a total mess filled with abuse, taunting, and the strong smell of blood. Tachi is alone and without direction in life right now. You could say he is a hikkikomori but that is only where his troubles start.



Tags: Seinen , Classic Literature , Anti-Hero , Tragedy , Hikikomori , Philosophy , Male Protagonist , Crime , Nudity

Piece

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Romance

One day, Mizuho, a university student, receives news that her classmate in high school, Origuchi Haruka, passed away. Mizuho doesn’t remember being best friends with Origuchi, but apparently, Origuchi told her mother that Mizuho was her best friend. And now, her mother wants Mizuho to help her find the boy Origuchi dated during high school. Mizuho told Origuchi’s mother that Origuchi was a very plain girl, and she was never seen with a guy, but her mother told Mizuho that Origuchi got pregnant and had an abortion when she was in high school. Mizuho was shocked, so she starts asking her other classmates in high school and following the traces Origuchi left behind.

Tags: Shoujo , Heterosexual , School , Female Protagonist , Achronological Order , Delinquents , Crime , College

not simple

Also known as not simple.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Slice of Life

Ian, a young man with a fractured family history, travels from Australia to England to America in the hope of realizing his dreams and reuniting with his beloved sister. His story unfolds backwards through the framing narrative of Jim, a reporter driven to capture Ian’s experiences in a novel: not simple. A story within a story, a book within a book, a tale about the search for family, for an emotional home.



Tags: Tragedy , Coming of Age , Seinen , Achronological Order , Estranged Family , Foreign , Writing , Travel , LGBTQ+ Themes , Boys' Love , Male Protagonist ,

Kimi to Tsuzuru Utakata

Also known as The Summer You Were There.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Psychological , Romance

Shizuku is a shy girl who hardly talks to other people. Instead, she loses herself in creative writing, crafting a novel that she never plans to show anyone. But when Kaori–Shizuku’s cute, popular classmate–gets her hands on Shizuku’s manuscript, everything changes. Kaori is a huge fan, and suggests that Shizuku can get inspiration for her writing if the two of them start dating! Can these very different young ladies create their own love story together?



Tags: Yuri , Tragedy , Female Protagonist , Writing , Rehabilitation , Disability , Bullying , Primarily Female Cast , Coming of Age , LGBTQ+ Themes , Fake Relationship , Primarily Teen Cast , Suicide , School