Chapter 01 - "Welcome to the Project!"

Welcome to the Project! (プロジェクトにようこそ!, "Purojekuto ni Yōkoso!") is the first chapter of the Welcome to the N.H.K. manga.

Synopsis
Tatsuhiro Satou is down in the dumps as it seems everything is going wrong for him. He's been two years out of college, his parents stopped sending him allowance, and worst of all, his neighbor won't stop blasting anime music. He answers his doorbell to find a pair of religious solicitors, Misaki Nakahara and her aunt. He gets sucked into naughty fantasies with Misaki. Tatsuhiro falters under the pressure of not having any social interaction skills, and falls under the assumption that the lady already knows that he is a NEET. He starts shouting at the lady, and puts up a horrible defense for himself which ultimately scares the lady away. Misaki falls behind as she stares at Tatsuhiro directly in the eyes, and gives him a smile.

Tatsuhiro feels completely embarrassed and snorts a "legal drug" that puts him in a hallucinative state to escape the pain. in this hallucination he has, the objects around him wake up, congratulating him for discovering the conspiracy. He "realizes" that Japan's major broadcasting station, the N.H.K., are the major conspirators behind his misfortune. Since the N.H.K. mass-produces anime, and viewers of anime tend to be reclusive social outcasts, the organization succeeds in turning Japan's population into hikikomori.

Tatsuhiro decides to search for a part-time job to discredit the lady's assumption, and impress Misaki as well. He applies at a manga café, and to his astonishment, he finds Misaki working at the front desk. He stops short of asking her for an application and collapses under the embarrassment. He diverts the topic of discussion to motorcycles and then absconds the café.

Once again, his neighbor next door is playing his obnoxious music. Sick of it, he kicks down the door and demands the music be stopped. To his amazement, his old high school acquaintance, Kaoru Yamazaki, is the otaku living next door. They have a drunken reunion, Yamazaki complaining about women and how corrupted they are. Satou calls his obsession with anime girls unhealthy, and rips a naked anime figurine out of his hand. In a turn of misfortune, Misaki happens to be visiting Satou at that moment, and catches him. Seeing how pathetic he looks, she deems him perfect for her project, and hands him a contract before exiting.

Dear Satou Tatsuhiro,

''You have been selected to be a participant in my project. If you wish to be cured of being a hikikomori, meet me at the Mita District 4 Park tonight at 9 o' clock.''