Lurkette

She is now on Instagram.
https://www.instagra...3kxM2V0NHd3Mjd2

How long is one typically an Oha girl for? I remember Koharu (who omg Hana really looks like at times) was one as well, but MM activities weren't terribly strenuous back in those days   They didn't even do release day events LOL
 
I could see them waiting until that gig is done to debut her, be it in an established group or a new one, due to the practice load that comes with it nowadays. If she's put in MM or Angerme, that's a lot of discography and complex choreography to get acquainted with.

I didn't see anyone answer this, but all Hello!Pro members who have been Oha Girls have also been active members in groups. Koharu was not actually an Oha Girl, either; she was a once-a-week regular. Ogawa Saki, Ikuta Erina, Inoue Rei, and Funaki Musubu have all been Oha Girls while also performing in their respective groups at the same time. Eripon didn't do the full year of the role since she took over after Saki's abrupt graduation, but she still did it her first year in Morning Musume. Rei also did it during her debut year. Funaki was doing both Angerme and Country Girls during her tenure, so having to learn choreo while doing TV definitely isn't a reason to hold off on a debut.

It was announced at the opening of her calligraphy exhibition. It's all over net news, take your pick of sources.
https://www.nikkansp...4140000549.html
https://news.yahoo.c...611ee32827de34d
https://mdpr.jp/music/detail/3699609

^ Thank you. I agree that this scenario doesn't warrant a real punishment, and comparisons to very extreme cases like Ogata and Oota are ridiculous. If one of the members was already thinking about leaving this might be the impetus, so I think that's the only reason we'd see any change from this.

^ I believe the girls pictured are Mao, Saori, and Kisora.

Gay bars in Japan are like gay bars elsewhere where many people do go in costume, so I doubt that a school uniform would be off limits, but the men in the photo are also presumably adults. Anyone can rent a school uniform so it's not an automatic "you must be a teenager" scenario.