History Manga / NatsumesBookOfFriends

** the scarecrow ayakashi in chapter 80. It can be created intentionally or accidentally by powerful humans, especially if there were strong feelings when creating them. The reason is because they are human-created souls stuck in a restricted vessel.

* ConsummateLiar: This trope is overall played with. Natsume grows into this when he realizes in his childhood [[CassandraTruth that nobody can see or hear ayakashi]], lying in order to cover any incidents caused by ayakashi and even personal problems. Natori feels that he can relate to Natsume as [[ASharedSuffering he went through similar ordeals]], offering a place to stay "if he ever got tired of lying". In more recent chapters, Natsume has learned to talk to others about his problems though time to time, he still can't always tell the complete truth.

** contract between a human and youkai [[spoiler: that use the real name of the youkai. Instead, a new name is given until the end of the partnership. The reason is that using a youkai's real name will bind its life and fate to the contract medium. Therefore, the Book of Friends would also be considered illegal since it's a collection of these contracts but the existence is unknown to most humans.]]

** [[a technique that sacrifices coerced, weak-willed ayakashi into a doll to create a stronger ayakashi. It is invoked by a Matoba clan exorcist but the ayakashi was uncontrollable and fled to the Hakozaki residence]]

* ArtEvolution: The most noticeable change would be Nyanko-sensei: his facial expression used to be more fixed and pronounced (the ink more think and resembling closer to a porcelain maneki-neko), compared to now where the line markings got narrower and some of the cheek marks removed (resembling closer to the current anime appearance).

* InLoveWithTheMark: Chapters 37 and 37 deal with a starving Ayakashi that took human form so that she could eat a human, only to end up falling for him instead.

* OutOfCharacterAlert: Played straight and possibly invoked by Nyanko-sensei when he talks to Tanuma [[spoiler: while impersonates Natsume]]. While the others did notice he wasn't his usual self, they assumed Natsume just wasn't feeling well. [[SecretKeeper Tanuma]] does catch on and does manage to make him reveal himself, much to Natsume's dismay.

* BabyMorphEpisode: Chapter 78 where Natsume is de-aged.

* TheDarkArts: Chapter 62 reveals, while not all of it is are necessarily evil, there are a few spells and practices that exorcists deem as illegal. For example:
** a contract between an human and youkai [[spoiler: using the real name of the youkai. Instead, a new name is given until the end of the partnership]]. The reason is that using [[spoiler: a youkai's real name]] will bind its life and fate [[spoiler: to the contract medium]]. Therefore, [[spoiler: the Book of Friends]] would also be considered illegal since it's a collection of these contracts but the existence is unknown to most humans.
** spells that allow [[spoiler: relatively normal people to see youkai]]

* FantasticRacism: The antagonistic Matoba clan holds the Youkai to be creatures inherently inferior to humans, believing they possess no emotion or empathy and are thus [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything meant to be in human service]]. The context is upped in season 4, where the Matoba's aggressively hunt a tribal clan of monkey youkai (wearing tribal masks and brandishing spears, no less) who openly wonder what they ever did to humans to deserve this treatment. Matoba is later seen punishing one of them for the "crime" of entering a human home.

** In fact, those who are able to see or sense ayakashi have somewhat poor social skills. This includes Matoba, who seems to have NoSenseOfPersonalSpace in the anime.

* PsychoticSmirk / SidewaysSmile: Often done by youkai, especially if they are trying to deceive Natsume. At the end of chapter 62, [[spoilers: Natori does on as well when referring to the Book of Friends]] but it's hard to tell what his true intentions are as both the wording and art style make it ambiguous.

There is an anime based on the manga, in four thirteen-episode seasons (the third aired in the Summer2011AnimeSeason and the fourth in the Winter2012AnimeSeason).

* HeyItsThatVoice: [[Creator/HiroshiKamiya Natsume]] has [[Manga/{{Noragami}} appeared]] [[Manga/AttackOnTitan in]] [[Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei quite]] [[Manga/ArakawaUnderTheBridge a]] [[Manga/BlueExorcist few]] [[Manga/OnePiece other]] [[LightNovel/{{Durarara}} series]].

* KillingIntent: Some of the youkai. [[Lampshaded Detected]] on their second encounters by Natori from [[spoiler: Kai]] and Matoba from Madara.

* TheWorfEffect: The Matoba clan and Matoba himself quickly establish themselves as to not be fucked around with by being able to not only cause serious damage to Nyanko-Sensei in his Madara form, but knock him out of it altogether.

* HeyItsThatVoice: [[Creator/HiroshiKamiya Natsume]] has [[Manga/{{Noragami}} appeared]] [[Manga/AttackOnTitan in]] [[Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei quite]] [[Main/ArakawaUnderTheBridge a]] [[Manga/BlueExorcist few]] [[Manga/OnePiece other]] [[LightNovel/{{Durarara}} series]].

An appropriate word of description for this series would probably be "heartwarming". It's been described as "{{Tactics}}, but less violent", though it definitely has its moments. The occasional outbursts of action are balanced out against gentle explorations of the supernatural, basically it's a light-on-plot, SliceOfLife take on the spirit world, and a sometimes exciting, sometimes peaceful foray into the world of the supernatural. And it's packed with more CrowningMomentsOfHeartwarming and {{TearJerker}}s than you can shake a stick at.

[[AC: Tropes Used.]]

* KillerRabbit: One of the creatures that Natsume encounters by chance is a "karu", which looks exactly like a little ball of fur with two small eyes and is [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter really very cute]]. When it gets agitated, however, it opens an oddly-shaped mouth with tiny but very sharp fangs, and its fur puffs out into poisonous spikes. [[spoiler: Then it turns out that karu ''eat'' other youkai and similar sources of spiritual power, and they travel in packs...]]

-->--''Natsume Takashi''

* Stepford Smiler: Natsume's smile is mentioned by various characters to be 'fake'.

Has a Character Sheet that desperately [[NeedsMoreLove needs more love.]]

* HeyItsThatVoice: [[Creator/HiroshiKamiya Natsume]] has [[Manga/Noragami appeared]] [[Manga/AttackOnTitan in]] [[Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei quite]] [[Main/ArakawaUnderTheBridge a]] [[Manga/BlueExorcist few]] [[Manga/OnePiece other]] [[LightNovel/{{Durarara}} series]].

* HeyItsThatVoice: [[Creator/HiroshiKamiya Natsume]] has appeared [[Manga/AttackOnTitan in]] [[Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei quite]] [[Main/ArakawaUnderTheBridge a]] [[Manga/BlueExorcist few]] [[Manga/OnePiece other]] [[LightNovel/{{Durarara}} series]].

* HeyItsThatVoice: [[Creator/HiroshiKamiya Natsume]] has appeared in [[Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei quite]] [[Main/ArakawaUnderTheBridge a]] [[Manga/BlueExorcist few]] [[Manga/OnePiece other]] [[LightNovel/{{Durarara}} series]].

* HeyItsThatVoice: [[Main/HiroshiKamiya Natsume]] has appeared in [[Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei quite]] [[Main/ArakawaUnderTheBridge a]] [[Manga/BlueExorcist few]] [[Manga/OnePiece other]] [[LightNovel/{{Durarara}} series]].

* KillingIntent: Some of the youkai. In their second encounter in the anime, Matoba [[LampshadedTrope notes this with Madara]] even though he doesn't looks too different (because of this, it might [[ImpliedTrope be more frequent case Madara]] with [[MoralityPet Natsume being the main reason of holding back]].