The Salty Koharu Has a Soft Spot for Me (塩対応の佐藤さんが俺にだけ甘い, Shiotaiō no Satō-san ga Ore ni Dake Amai; lit. 'The Salt-God Satō-san Is Only Sweet To Me!') is a Japanese light novel series written by Kazami Sawatari and illustrated by Achiki. The series was serialized as a web novel posted on the website Shōsetsuka ni Narō from June 2019 to March 2021, before being picked up for publication by Shogakukan under their Gagaga Bunko imprint in December 2019. Twelve volumes and a short story volume have been published as of March 2026. A manga adaptation illustrated by Kaya Tetsuyama began serialization on the MangaONE and Ura Sunday services in May 2020, and has been compiled into eleven tankōbon volumes as of October 2026. An anime television series adaptation produced by Tezuka Productions premiered in October 2026.
Contents
Plot
The series follows Sōta Oshio, a second year high school student and a part-time worker at his family's cafe. One day, he saves his classmate Koharu Satō after other customers make advances on her. Sōta and Koharu, both having feelings for each other, form a relationship.
Characters
Sōta Oshio (押尾 颯太, Oshio Sōta)
Voiced by: Arthur Lounsbery (audiobook, voice comic), Hiiro Ishibashi (anime)
Sōta is a second-year high school student who works part-time at his family's cafe. He posts pictures of the cafe on social media, where the cafe's account has over 5,000 followers. He has been in love with Koharu since middle school, but has never made his feelings for her known, fearing rejection. Koharu also has feelings for him as well, but he does not realize it. His mother died when he was young, and he was raised by his muscular father.
Koharu Satō (佐藤 こはる, Satō Koharu)
Voiced by: Nene Hieda (audiobook, voice comic), Miku Itō (anime)
A beautiful but cold highschool girl and Sōta's classmate and his first love. She is named "Salt-God Satō-san" and has a reputation for rejecting anyone in school. She befriends Sōta after seeing his social media pictures, which interest her as her own photography skills are poor. It is revealed that she has had feelings for him since the entrance exams.
Ren Misono (三園 蓮, Misono Ren)
Voiced by: Yūki Yonai (audiobook, voice comic), Chiaki Kobayashi (anime)
Ren is Sōta's best friend who is popular among women despite his rough personality. He often gives him advice of various qualities.
Rinka Sudō (須藤 凛香, Sudō Rinka)
Voiced by: Himari Mochida (audiobook, voice comic), Miyu Tomita (anime)
Rinka is Koharu's cousin in junior high school who cares about her very much. She is worried about Koharu and her relationship with Sōta due to Koharu previously lacking romantic relationships.
Media
Light novel
The light novel is written by Kazami Sawatari and illustrated by Achiki and was originally posted as a web novel on the website Shōsetsuka ni Narō on June 19, 2019, under the title Shiotaiō no Satō-san, Kono Mae Nanpa kara Tasukete kara Nanka Ore ni dake Mechakucha Amakunai? (塩対応の佐藤さん、この前ナンパから助けてからなんか俺にだけメチャクチャ甘くない？). Sawatari later removed the series from the website on March 7, 2021, due to a lack of time for working on it as well as it diverging from the published version. Shogakukan later picked up the series for publication under their Gagaga Bunko imprint beginning on December 18, 2019. Eleven volumes and a short story volume have been published as of March 2026. An audiobook of the first volume has also been released.
Manga
A manga adaptation illustrated by Kaya Tetsuyama began serialization on the MangaONE and Ura Sunday services on May 15, 2020. It has been compiled into eleven tankōbon volumes as of October 2026. A voiced comic video featuring the same cast as the audiobook was posted on YouTube on August 16, 2021.
The manga's chapters are published in English by Comikey.
Anime
An anime television series adaptation was announced on March 18, 2026. The series will be produced by Tezuka Productions and directed by Fumihiro Yoshimura, with Takashi Aoshima handling series composition, Daisuke Okushima designing the characters, and Shun Narita composing the music. It premiered on October 6, 2026, on AT-X and other channels. The opening theme song is "Sugar Salt" (シュガーソルト), performed by Masayoshi Ōishi, and the ending theme song is "Hatsukoi Reply" (初恋リプライ; 'First Love Reply'), performed by HoneyWorks featuring Sara Hoshikawa. Crunchyroll is streaming the series under the title The Cold Sato-san Is Only Sweet to Me. Plus Media Networks Asia licensed the series in Southeast Asia for broadcast on Aniplus Asia.
Reception
The obi in the eighth volume of the manga reported that it had collectively sold over 1.2 million copies both physically and digitally. The light novel was nominated in four categories at the 2019 Ranobe News Online Awards. The manga adaptation was one of two winners of the Men's Comic Prize at the 2022 Digital Comic Awards.