Heya,in My Decade Long Dedication To A Certain Infamous Needlemouse Fandom, A Certain Rivalshipping's

Heya,in my decade long dedication to a certain infamous needlemouse fandom, a certain rivalshipping's aspect that I found really fascinating is the "underlying dread to end up/become like them" (mostly one-sided from the more heroic character's end). As you're one who seems to be really literally and analytically knowledgeable, do you think that aspect can be found in the Oumota ship?

Oh, that’s an interesting question! I honestly have rather mixed feelings on this one, so excuse me if this answer will feel rather incoherent, it’s basically me rambling out loud in a stream of consciousness kind of way trying to sort my thoughts out and give you a - hopefully - satisfactory answer.

I think with Oumota this is kind of tricky, because they are both liars manipulating their perception of themselves in other characters’ eyes. So I don’t think it’s them really dreading that they could become like the other one, it’s more about how they both understand and NOT understand the each other due to being blindsided by those lies in one way or another. So what I mean is that I think there is something to it for sure, but it’s kind of... surface level? If that makes sense?

I think out of everyone in the game Oumota are both most likely to uncover each other’s lies and also canon-wise come about as close to it as possible. I think it’s obvious that they both feel some kind of resentment to each other but I think it’s more over those masks they both wear than anything else. A lot of what I’m saying here is based entirely on my own interpretations of these characters, so keep in mind that I am biased and I am relying less on canon (as canon gave us a pretty limited perspective here, both because of Shuichi’s POV and because of the nature of the game) and more on how I interpret these characters after over 2 years of analyzing them and writing about them. So what I mean to say is that they both dislike each other’s masks, they both dislike that persona that the other one tries to be, which is funny because in the end it boils down to the fact that what they really have a problem with is each other’s dishonesty. I think I made it quite clear many times that I truly believe that Kaito was as much of a liar as Kokichi if not more. I think Kokichi dislikes this mask that Kaito builds for himself, especially since he isn’t willing to admit that it’s all a lie (Kokichi himself is very upfront about his lies, as a contrast) and just continues to lie more and more as the game continues. I think Kokichi doesn’t trust him and honestly, for a good reason. Kaito is... pretty transparent, most of the time, and I like to think that Kokichi is good at reading people. He recognizes that this is just a persona of a brave hero who talks bullshit about how everything’s gonna be fine, while - from Kokichi’s perspective - not really doing anything and certainly nothing actually productive. And in turn, we see at points that Kaito calls bullshit on Kokichi’s lies and even genuinely seems to want to break through this facade - calling him pure, constantly arguing with him, chasing him in his free time, challenging him and his words, etc. I think that in a way in chapter 5 they kind of have to let go of any resentment they might feel towards each other and in turn they get a better look at who the person beneath the mask actually is. 

I think what they really don’t want to be is to be like the mask the other one is wearing. It’s less about who they are at their core and more about those personas they both hide behind and it is frustrating for both of them.

Like, for Kaito the idea of being untrustworthy would be unbearable, you know? This is his whole thing. He gains people’s trust. He makes them rely on him. So becoming like Kokichi, isolated, always lying, being hated by everyone? This is everything Kaito would never want for himself, this is literally his worst nightmare when you think about it. Kaito is all about making this kind of connection and wanting to feel like he is needed. He would never want to be like Kokichi which I think on some level is why he’s so persistent about making him drop that mask, like, he is so frustrated with Kokichi most of the time because he refuses to believe that anyone would be like that. 

And Kokichi, in turn, most likely sees Kaito’s fake honesty and the way he makes people rely on him as... Well, kinda dangerous? And considering what Maki does in ch5 then, well, for a good reason. Kaito is dangerous because he’s both predictable and not. He’s quick to jump into action, he has people who depend on him and have feelings to him, he is able to motivate people with his words and I think in many ways Kokichi sees it as something he would never be able to be and in the context of the killing game also as something that might be potentially a big problem because Kaito doesn’t think about the big picture. Meanwhile, Kokichi is constantly agonizing about the killing game, trying to solve it. I feel like he sees Kaito as irresponsible, especially with how Maki (who is dangerous due to her talent and poor temper) and Shuichi (the one who solves the trials, the only real asset they have) are so dependent on him. Kokichi sees his lies as useful, while Kaito from his perspective uses his simply to gain admiration and delude himself.

In a lot of ways this dread comes simply from who they are as people and not necessarily because they have something personal against each other, you know? The killing game just really doesn’t help here, because it probably 1. makes Kokichi’s paranoia worse and having someone as unpredictable and well, kind of influential (his relationship with Maki and Shuichi) as Kaito in a situation like this one is a formula for a disaster and 2. Kaito’s hero complex is likely to be a bigger issue in a killing game than it would be normally, because he really wants to be this person that others rely on, he wants to be the hero, he wants to prove himself and not only is not difficult but he’s also running out of time. He feels the pressure of time and so he becomes even more unpredictable and prone to lashing out, as we can see looking at his fight with Shuichi. So there’s this very apparent clash, because they both have their own ways of going around things and these methods are completely contradictory and stand in the way of achieving their goals.

I don’t think that would be that much of an issue outside of the game? It is a special kind of situation and I it certainly makes things worse, I feel like in a different scenario it would be more about silly banter and teasing and childish rivalry that is ultimately enjoyable for both of them, like Kokichi pranking Kaito and him chasing Kokichi everywhere. As it is, it’s a conflict of interests.