Inoue Reon: “The Night My Joining Was Announced, Danbara Ruru Sent Me a LINE Message” — Even Though We’d Had Zero Contact Before

Rein: There's a lot, but honestly, it's the fact that Ruru-chan messaged me on LINE the very night my joining Juice=Juice was announced. Before I joined, we really hadn't talked at all — we had basically no connection — but she kept telling me how happy she was that I was joining… Now I call her "Ruru-chan," but at first I called her "Danbara-san," and even fans would ask me, "Wait, you still call her Danbara-san?" I'm the type who really wants a same-age groupmate, and Ruru-chan already had various same-age, same-batch pairings with other members, each with its own special meaning to her — so the fact that she welcomed me into that circle too still means so much to me, and honestly she's helped me so much ever since. Being with her isn't just reassuring, it's just… easy. Comfortable.
Ruru: It is easy. There's less to overthink. When I joined Juice=Juice, I had a same-age member who joined with me, but she graduated after less than two years, so I spent a long stretch surrounded by older members. That was fun too, of course, but looking back, there were so many moments where I really missed having someone the same age, a fellow "batch-mate"… So when Rei-chan joined and I realized we were the same age, I was thrilled! I was like, "Same age! Same batch!" — even though we'd basically never talked, I just unilaterally decided we were kind of batch-mates (laughs). I probably came on too strong and scared her a little, but I was genuinely so happy she ended up joining, and even now, having someone like a same-age batch-mate really helps me get through each day.

Inoue: What a reliable same-age friend.
Danbara: Glad we got it all out and talked it through, since we both had things we wanted to say.
Inoue: Yeah, really glad.
Danbara: You'd better fight with me sometimes too, you know.
Inoue: Eh, um…
https://i.imgur.com/CbjS5VN.mp4

Danbara used to call Inaba "Inaba-san" at first too, but eventually started calling her "Manaka-chan" or just "Manaka," didn't she?

When Kobushi Factory's disbandment was decided and every member besides Inoue was set to retire, Inoue reportedly started hanging out a lot in other groups' dressing rooms. When the other members teased her about it, she apparently said, "Well, I'm about to be all alone soon."

She says she "observes" people first, but the person being observed usually notices they're being watched — which just makes them more guarded, if anything.

It's only natural for a leader to pay attention to the new member — honestly, that'd be true even if she weren't the leader.

Amii-san doesn't take detours like that.

Inoue also had Inaba, who'd been through a similar experience, so I doubt she was ever short of someone to talk to.

@Inoue: "This was with Tanimoto Ami-chan and Danbara Ruru-chan, before I'd even joined Juice — Ami-chan asked me, 'Wanna come listen to Ruru-chan sing?' I wondered what she meant, thought maybe it was some kind of solo performance, but it turned out to just be going to karaoke to listen to Ruru-chan sing. I actually tagged along for that once."
That's a refreshingly shameless bit of self-interest from Tanimoto, honestly.

Amii-san's something else, huh (lol)

Could there have been a timeline where Rei Rei ended up joining Tsubaki Factory instead?

If I were the one deciding where Rei Rei would transfer to, given the situation at the time, I'd guess the candidates were Morning Musume ("Musume.") or Juice=Juice (JJ). But Musume. would've caused all sorts of problems with the group's internal skill balance, so I think it ends up being JJ anyway.

If she'd joined Angerme, her same-age member Sasaki Rikako wouldn't have quit yet, and the two of them would probably be the group's twin aces by now.

If it weren't for Yanamin, Manakan, and Rei Rei, Danbara probably would've already quit by now.

If she'd joined Angerme, having Kamikoryo, Inoue, and Sasaki together would've made for a seriously glamorous lineup.

Angerme disbands
Gets folded into "Nagano Juice" (a pun combining Juice=Juice with Nagano Prefecture's famous apple juice)
Hayashi Nia finally gets a same-year batch-mate

Back then, Juice=Juice's manager had been poached from Nice Girl, so Angerme or Musume. were never really on the table.

Maybe Danbara was struggling too, back then.