Board Thread:Questions and Answers/@comment-198.52.158.171-20200703194145/@comment-46291250-20200711072738

We need to make something clear: “Aishiteru” is only used in very serious relationships. It’s not the phrase for a confession. It’s what you use when you’ve been dating for five years and are comfortable with every aspect of your partner. “Daisuki”, aka the word Mika used, is used for confessions. I mean, in Naruto, Hinata used this to confess to Naruto, and they ended up married with two kids. NO ONE USES AISHITERU FOR CONFESSIONS. (I mean, unless you’re an outlier who doesn’t understand Japanese culture/are VERY confident in your relationship.) This is one of those aspects that gets lost in the different cultures because English speaking countries don’t understand Japanese culture and don’t have the same strong stigma against saying “I love you” to people.

TL;DR: “Aishiteru” is never used for confessions. “Daisuki” is practically the equivalent of “really liking” someone/something. This is often lost in translation due to the difference in cultures.