Chapter 4

This is a summary of the fourth chapter of the Tomodachi Game manga series.

Short summary
Yuuichi suggests using tricks in the upcoming game and asks Shiho to act casually. Shibe and Yutori return, interrupting their conversation. They move to the second round of the game, where they find themselves on a rooftop with a twist on the traditional Sugoroku game. Manabu-Sensei, a new character, introduces the game called "Backbiting Sugoroku." The goal is to expose secrets and earn bonus points for vilifying friends. Manabu-Sensei outlines the rules, and the participants are given examples of secrets. Shiho becomes angry when secrets about her are mentioned. Manabu-Sensei reveals there is an audience of "Gods" who are funding the game. The participants are instructed to expose their friends and push them towards the finish line. Shiho questions the morality of this, and Manabu-Sensei suggests handing in blank cards. However, if all participants hand in blank cards, they will progress slowly and proceed to the third game. Manabu-Sensei warns against traitors and explains the process of submitting the backbiting cards. The audience becomes impatient, and the participants submit their cards. All cards are blank, but they still move forward and incur a debt of 100k yen. The participants realize the accumulated debt will fall on the first person to reach the end. In the third round, one submission is made that reveals a love triangle between Sawaragi, Yuuichi, and Tenji. The chapter ends with tension between Shibe, Shiho, and Tenji.

Long summary
We get a recap of the last chapter, with Shiho saying she likes Yuuichi and also announcing that she will never betray him. Tenji is seen outside the room, implying he was eavesdropping on their conversation. Yuuichi tells Shiho that he doesn't know what the next game will be but tells her he will try some tricks and that she should act casually no matter how suspicious his actions are. Shiho complies but then asks what specific tricks Yuuichi has in mind but before Yuuichi can reply, Shibe and Yutori come back and asks what's taking them so long, Yuuichi apologises. Shibe asks the the two of them have been scheming, Shiho replies angrily and Shibe says he was just shooting in the dark. Tenji knocks both of them on the head calling them idiots. Tenji says it is it natural for Shiho to have reacted like to that to Shibe's comment due to the suspicions so he tells them to be more sensitive to each other and not hide anything either.

They finally move onto the stage for round 2. They step outdoors, where they seem to be at the top of a school rooftop. Manabu asks if everyone is here, and Shibe says "Manabu-Kun, what's going on here?" surprisingly, Manabu wonders why Shibe has called him Manabu-kun when he is actually an entirely different person called Manabu-Sensei. He has the same facial expression and physique as the other Manabu, but instead of the usual spiky hair, yellow cap, and blue overalls, he has long black hair and wears a tie and blazer similar to the attire of a school teacher. Manabu-Sensei says it is sweet that the five friends have stuck together, but then says he is worried they've been hiding things from each other. Then he announces the beginning of the new game "Backbiting Sugoroku".

Shibe askes what the tiles on the ground are and Tenji wonders what the difference is between regular Sugoroku. Manabu-Sensei answers both their questions he states that in regular Sugoroku you take turns to roll a dice and take the corresponding steps, with one to reach end first winning. Manabu-Sensei then reveals that they have added a twist to the original concept and says the dice rolls in this are equivalent to the secrets of your friends you expose, he continues on saying you get bonus points for exposing secrets that vilify your friends and by doing that you push your friends into the pits of hell and win the game. Yuuichi repeats what Manabu-Sensei said seeming nervous. Manabu-sensei goes through the rules of the game, he reveals there is an audience who he describes as Gods as they have funded the game.

Manabu-Sensei gives various examples of what the bad-mouth could be: Tenji wearing fake glasses, Yuuichi being rich, Yutori having G-Cups, and Shiho having smelly feet. Surprisingly, Shiho admits she accidentally wore her dad's socks one time, to which Shibe comments that he loves her despite her smelly feat and gets punched in the face before he can finish his sentence. Shiho asks Yutori if she actually has G-Cups, to which she replies that it's slightly off the mark, which is not made clear if she meant slightly bigger or smaller. Shibe makes another comment, saying he loves Shiho's flat chest, and yet again gets beaten for it. Manabu-Sensei asks the Gods (the audience) who among the five is the most unforgiveable, and the results come in with Shibe first, Yuuichi second, Shiho third, Tenji fourth, and Yutori fifth. It is shown that the number of steps each person takes corresponds to their voting placement, and Manabu-Sensei says they can even backbite multiple people at a time. Tenji makes a comment, saying that it is just a popularity contest, so the person with the most exposed secrets will advance further. Manabu-Sensei says that Tenji is right but then asks a rhetorical question: What if it was a disadvantage to reach the finish line first? He says the game will end as soon as someone reaches the finish line and the winner will receive 400k for each participant for a total of 2 million yen, and those who fail to finish will receive a bonus of 1 million yen. Additionally he says you can opt out from the third game and go home for a break, Manabu-Sensei reveals that the third game is very tough and that there is a penalty for the first person who reaches the finish line but he may only announce it after the games end. Manabu-Sensei then instructs them to "expose your friends" and "push them to the metaphorical hell that is the finishing line" if they don't want to lose.

Shiho responds angrily, calling his statement "stupid" and asking, "Who would push their friends to hell?", Manabu-Sensei replies that she can always just hand in a blank backbiting card. Shibe asks what happens if everyone hands out a blank card and he replies that they'd all advance one step, if they were to do this every turn they'd win slowly but if that happens only 2 million yen will be awarded and then everyone would have to go to the third game. Shiho says she doesn't mind the idea but Manabu-Sensei says that even a single traitor would be terrible news. Yuuichi reassures Shiho that they're aren't any traitors in the group and asks Manabu-Sensei if they are able to speak in game to which he replies that they can. Manabu-Sensei shows them to the place they submit backbiting cards and explains that you take one of the cards on the pile, write on it or leave it blank then place it in the box, then you can leaven in 3 minutes. Tenji asks what will happen if a lie is written on the card, Manabu-Sensei says it is fine as long as your not caught out but if you are found to have lied you will be pushed to first place. For example if Shibe had written Yutori is a boy but Yutori has evidence to claim she is not one then, Shibe would be placed to the upcoming adjacent tile of the one nearest to the finish.

Manabu-Sensei announces that the Gods (audience) are getting bored of the rules and want the game to start. It then goes to the perspective of the spectators, Maria and Tsuniko, Maria describes it as a marathon race and says there's no way they all reach the finish at the same time. Tsuniko explains the competitive nature of humans and wonders what they'd do if it were disadvantageous to move forward. It is the end of the first round of submission and all the cards are blank and they all move 1 tile forward. Unexpectedly, the tile makes them lose 100k yen. Shibe gets frustrated, saying this was never mentioned, but Manabu-Sensei explains that this is how regular Sugoroku works. He then mentions that their plan is to move one step at a time, and there are 60 steps. Yuuichi does the maths and calculates that if they get -100k debt every 1 step then that'd total to -6 million yen by the end. On round 2 it is another set of blank cards so they step forward once but this time they get 500k yen deducted. Manabu-Sensei explains that all the debt accumulated in this game will fall on the first one to reach the end so the total of 3 million yen that they all share will be dumped on one person. Shiho tells everyone not to be swayed by Manabu-Sensei's words and Shibe says he will always be by her side.

For round 3 there is a finally a submission, only one submission. Tsukino comments that as long as someone writes something it's fine to be something trivial. The card says "Sawaragi is in love with Katagiri Yuuichi and she has also been in a relationship with Mikasa Tenji". The chapter ends with Shibe looking angry, Shiho looking cold, and Tenji pushing up his glasses.