Chiikawa’s Slot Machine Arc: three friends, three swapped bodies
Based on our Japanese story page and article on this arc; anime episodes checked on the official anime site (2026-10-01).
Usagi leads Chiikawa and Hachiware into a run-down game arcade where only one slot machine still works. After they play it, the three find themselves in each other’s bodies, and a night’s sleep doesn’t fix it. Nagano posted the story on X from late 2021 into early 2022; it is collected in Volume 5 and was adapted in the anime. Here is where to read it in order, without spoilers.
- Original posts
- 18 posts on Nagano’s X, Dec 9, 2021 – Jan 7, 2022
- Book
- Vol. 5 (Japanese), released Jan 23, 2023 · Korean edition 먼작귀 (Daewon C.I.) Vol. 5
- Anime
- Episodes 202–211 (“Slot 1–10”), aired Sep 13, 2024 – Oct 15, 2024
- Main characters
- Chiikawa, Hachiware and Usagi; Momonga appears in the second half
Read the Slot Machine Arc in order
Our Japanese page shows all 18 of Nagano’s posts for this arc as X embeds, in posting order. The reading page is in Japanese, but you only need to scroll: Nagano’s X posts are lined up from top to bottom in order, and on longer arcs the 「次のページ」 (Next page) button at the bottom takes you on.
- Page 1: Days in swapped bodies
- Posts 1–12
- Page 2: Looking for a way back
- Posts 13–18
- 18 is the number of Nagano’s posts we collected, not an official episode count.
- The posts have no text, just an emoji or two, so the story is told entirely through the drawings.
What is the Slot Machine Arc about? (no spoilers)
The three friends find an unfamiliar game arcade. The other games are broken, and only one slot machine works. After they play it, their insides rotate: each of them wakes up in someone else’s body.
- The swap doesn’t wear off overnight, so they carry on with everyday life (a bowl at the ramen shop “Ro,” a giant pudding, studying for the weeding exam) in each other’s bodies.
- Little by little they start to miss their own bodies, and in the second half they head back toward the slot machine to look for a way back.
- Whether they manage to switch back, and how, is best found in the comic or the anime.
Who swaps with whom?
It’s not a two-person swap: all three of them rotate. Hachiware ends up in Chiikawa’s body, Usagi in Hachiware’s body, and Chiikawa in Usagi’s body.
- Chiikawa’s body
- Hachiware inside
- Hachiware’s body
- Usagi inside
- Usagi’s body
- Chiikawa inside
- In the anime, each body keeps its own voice, but the way of speaking follows whoever is inside.
- What the slot machine is, who put it in the arcade, and why the swap came out in this order have not been explained, as of October 2026.
- On the way back to the arcade the trio meets Momonga (anime episode 208). Fans link Momonga’s reaction to the swap with Dekatsuyo, but what Momonga knows is not shown.
Which volume and which anime episodes?
The Slot Machine Arc is collected in Volume 5 of the Japanese books (Kodansha). In the anime it is episodes 202 to 211, titled “Slot 1” to “Slot 10”.
- Volume 5 was released on Jan 23, 2023. The Ode Arc and the Black Shooting Star Arc are in the same volume.
- The episodes aired in Japan from Sep 13, 2024 to Oct 15, 2024, on Fuji TV’s “Mezamashi TV” (Tuesdays and Fridays).
- Episode 211 is a double bill: the second half is a different story.
- We have only checked the Japanese books and the broadcast in Japan.
Characters and more to read
The trio of Chiikawa, Hachiware and Usagi carries this story. Volume 5 also has two more arcs you can read in English guides.
Frequently asked questions
Who swaps bodies in the Chiikawa slot machine story?
All three: Hachiware goes into Chiikawa’s body, Usagi into Hachiware’s, and Chiikawa into Usagi’s.
Why did they swap?
They played a slot machine in an old game arcade. What the machine is, and why it swapped them in that order, has not been explained.
Which volume has the Slot Machine Arc?
Volume 5 of the Japanese books (Kodansha).
Which anime episodes are the Slot Machine Arc?
Episodes 202 to 211, aired in Japan in September and October 2024.
Where can I read it?
The original posts are on Nagano’s X account. Chiifan’s Slot Machine Arc page shows all 18 posts in order.
Sources
Pages marked (Japanese) are only available in Japanese.