From Best Friends to Love Rivals — The True Story Between Former AKB48 Star and Top-Tier Woman

Going out for meals together, hanging out at home

Sixteen handsome men and beautiful women, who have lived lives full of attention from admirers, engage in love battles in the new-style romance reality show Love Power Kingdom 2 (ABEMA). High-level romance techniques, such as the finger pinch kiss and nose deep kiss, have also become a major topic of conversation.

The ones who spiced up Love Kin 2 from the early episodes with unexpected developments are Mariya Nagao (31) and Yume Hayashi (30). They are super popular beauties who have also appeared in gravure for FRIDAY, but in fact, they are close friends in private as well. That the two would become rivals on a romance show was surprising—so we asked the “Mariyume” duo about their real relationship.

—Tell us how you became close and share any friendship stories.

Nagao: “I think it was through a mutual friend. At first, it wasn’t just the two of us, but hanging out in a close-knit group made us become friends. From the first time we talked, I felt we clicked and that our values and ways of living were similar.

She’s tough and likes alcohol, and our personalities are similar in that we think as long as it’s fun, it’s okay. When we went on a trip to Fukuoka with a few close friends, we played until morning (laughs).”

Hayashi: “Originally, we had a lot of mutual friends, and I was one of the members who would hang out and drink with everyone. We often met when the usual group gathered.

But after co-starring in Love Kin, we started meeting much more frequently. Now we go out for meals together, hang out at home, and sometimes even meet two days in a row.”

—What do you like about each other?

Nagao: “Her straightforward, genuine nature. Yume can get along with anyone and treats people equally without being influenced by prejudice or reputation, which is very appealing. And of course, as you probably already know, I absolutely love her face and figure—they’re too cute!”

Hayashi: “Mariyagi’s unique, calm, soft atmosphere and the way she talks. She’s a good listener. Even though she’s like an older sister, she sometimes acts cute and depends on you. She treats everyone equally, is considerate, and has so many wonderful qualities (laughs). And simply put, I like her face too!”

On “FRIDAY Subscription,” you can also enjoy unlimited gravure of Mariya Nagao and Yume Hayashi!!!

The Difficulty of Being a Top-Tier Girl

—Did you see each other as rivals while participating in Love Kin 2?

Nagao: “Honestly, I thought, ‘She’s pretty tough’ (laughs). Because our approaches are similar, I felt she was a rival. And because she was a rival, I also wanted to stay in the game until the very end together.”

Hayashi: “Of course, I already knew her and knew she was popular with everyone, so yes, she was a rival. But more than that, we’re close friends, so it wasn’t like we turned against each other or had a clash (laughs). At first, in the male votes, we tied for last place, and the two of us kept saying things like, ‘We’re in trouble, huh?’ or ‘At least we survived,’ comforting each other and talking about everything.”

—After watching the broadcast, what were your impressions?

Nagao: “Neither of us are the type to push aggressively from the start, but seeing Yume properly express her feelings to someone partway through, I thought, ‘She really tried.’ Yume is also an exceptionally beautiful top-tier girl, so I think there was a wall for men of ‘I want to approach, but I can’t.’”

Hayashi: “‘That’s classic Mariyagi,’ I thought (laughs). She’s really skilled at closing the distance with anyone, and that’s why she’s so popular.

In Love Kin, you need all sorts of techniques and actions to make someone like you, but Mariyagi probably doesn’t consciously think about any of it. Yet, people fall for her because of her aura and the way she handles distance. Watching the show, I could feel that a bit, and I thought, ‘As expected.’”