High School Debut

Haruna Nagishima focused heavily on playing softball all through middle school, but her love of shojo manga led her to wanting a romance of her own come high school. However, given her total lack of attention to style and flirting situations up until high school, she's an utter train wreck in trying to find a guy. Her best friend, Mami, points out that when she had similar problems in softball, she got better via advice from a coach. Haruna, instantly seeing the wisdom in this, thinks immediately of the perfect guy to ask, one who helped with her shoe when it broke the other day.

Enter Yoh Komiyama. A Deadpan Snarker that all the girls watch from a distance, he is said by everyone close to him to know what style works for anyone. He's like a Japanese schoolboy Simon Cowell, with the addition that girls just typically annoy him. Haruna's insistence wins him over, and he agrees to coach her on one condition: she can't fall in love with him.

Just how long do you think that will last?

By artist Kazune Kawahara, the series ran for about five years. A live-action film adaptation was released on April 1, 2011.

Tropes used in High School Debut include:

• Action Girl: While not actively on a sports team anymore, Haruna still exercises regularly, goes to batting cages to clear her head, and sees no problems jumping down a full flight of stairs to catch up with people. After physicals are done, she's shown to be the strongest girl in her whole school in all categories. Yoh speculates that he stops getting girls approaching him because they're afraid of Haruna.
• Adaptation Dye Job: Not just a dye job, actually. Compare the Fumiya from the manga to the Fumiya from the Live Action Adaptation.
• Aloof Big Brother:
  • Yoh can be like this to Asami sometimes.
  • Miyabi is a gender-flipped example. She is bitter, rude, and hates her younger brother Akito for getting special treatment because he was "cuter" than her. As a result, Akito blames himself and is convinced that if he was never born, maybe his sister would have been a nicer person.
• Bishie Sparkle: If Yoh isn't actively scowling, he's emitting these. Asaoka and Fumiya also have them occasionally.
• Blue with Shock: Haruna's standard reaction when she finally realizes something. She even does this on the cover of one of the volumes.
• Cannot Spit It Out: When Haruna does finally realize she's fallen for Yoh (it takes two full volumes), she tries to hide it because she's afraid, due to his "no falling in love" condition, she will lose him entirely if she confesses.
• Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Go ahead, just try mistreating a girl in Fumiya's presence. Also his Berserk Button and, in the present time incident involving Asami, a Crowning Moment of Awesome and Crowning Moment of Heartwarming.
• Deadpan Snarker: Yoh. In fact, Haruna gets worried about him when he stops snarking.
• Defrosting Ice Prince: Yoh mellows consdierably after spending more time with Haruna.
• Dirty Old Man: Haruna's second-year teacher is rumored to be one, as she notes that several pretty girls are placed in the front row. Haruna then notes that she got placed near the rear of the class. He's also disappointed when Haruna gets picked to be class representative.
• The Ditz: Haruna is pretty spacey, but even she's not as bad as Fumi, who's described as the most clueless person on the planet (Haruna being a close second).
• Generic Cuteness: Haruna is supposedly plain-looking.
• Gonk: Haruna's second-year teacher.
• Hot-Blooded: Haruna, and it's even noted that her body temperature is similarly warm.
• Ho Yay: At one point, Yoh's sister Asami starts to doubt her attractiveness, so she tries making eyes with Haruna to see if she still can seduce someone. She can, and Yoh stops Asami right before she tempts Haruna into kissing her. Later, Haruna gets so despondent over another guy kissing her that she considers running off to become a nun. In order to shock Haruna and show her it's no big deal, Yoh also kisses the guy. It also shocks all of their friends. To cap it off, the guy in question afterwards marvels about the kiss. "so soft..."
• I Want My Beloved to Be Happy:
  • Haruna eventually gets over Fumiya and quickly grows to support his relationship with Asami.
  • Subverted. Asaoka decides not to confess to Haruna, only to do so, but she doesn't take him seriously because he's always such a joker.
• Idiot Hero: Haruna, who will fall for any trick pulled on her and who misses the bleedingly obvious, like how Yoh actually falls for her first.
• Informed Ability: Several of the so-called "cute" characters (most notably, Leona) don't appear all that attractive. This may be Values Dissonance, though--maybe the "so much eyeliner, she looks like a raccoon" look is popular in Japan right now.
• Little Sister Instinct: Though she may not always show it, Asami genuinely cares about Yoh and is protective of him.
• Love Bubbles
• Love Triangle: One pops up a little less than half way through the manga between Yoh, Haruna, and Asaoka--who may or may not really be in love with Haruna.
• Otaku: Haruna's kohai still tell stories about her binging, buying ten manga in a single visit. She's also obsessive about studying very hard on whatever she's focused on--whether it be softball or finding a boyfriend or going on dates.
• Second Love: Haruna falls for Fumiya before realizing she's developed feelings for Yoh. Also, Yoh towards Haruna.
• Sibling Yin-Yang:
  • Yoh and Asami, though they have their Not So Different moments.
  • Akito and Miyabi. They look nothing alike and act nothing like.
• Tomboy and Girly Girl:
  • Haruna also becomes close friends to Yoh's sister Asami, who is rather feminine.
  • Also, Yoh's first girlfriend, who ends up asking Haruna for advice on how to get Yoh back, has this dynamic with her.
• Stalker with a Crush: Miyabi ends up becoming this towards Yoh after her resentment turns to affection.
• Sugar and Ice Personality: Yoh.
• Two-Teacher School: Heck, a teacher isn't introduced at all until Haruna reaches her second year. That said, most of the in-school scenes happen at lunch or between classes.
• Unknown Rival: Leona, who played on a rival softball team that couldn't get past Haruna's pitching, ends up at the same high school as everyone else and constantly tries to challenge Haruna. While Haruna is well aware that Leona wants revenge (well, eventually is well aware), she's blissfully ignorant of how obsessed Leona is with topping her.
• Unwanted Harem: Surprisingly, Haruna, of all people, gets one when three first year boys--a mute Bishonen, a Delinquent-looking ladies' man, and a Yoh Fan Boy--each take an interest in her.
• The Voiceless: Akito. He finally takes in Chapter 39.