Noda, Takeshi

野田猛

Noda is one of the characters who speaks the least; in fact, the other characters never call him by name in all but four episodes. However, he holds greater importance in the manga. Takeshi Noda was the one who nicknamed Yamaguchi 'Yankumi.' He is recognized for his signature hat and long hair. He often sits at the front of the class and is usually seen talking only to Yoichi Minami. He is good friends with Shin, Uchi, Kuma, and Minami. In the manga, he was the first to notice Shin's crush on Yankumi. Noda also has an older sister who dated Minoru for a short while. Noda was accused of being a purse snatcher, which required Yankumi to act as a decoy to prove his innocence. Noda is one of the smarter boys in Yankumi's class, though he is still incomparable to Shin.