Maya is an Iriomote cat (kitten actually) who the girls meet on their class trip to Okinawa on the Iriomote island. Surprisingly he seems to like Sakaki a lot. When Maya's mother dies he searches for Sakaki and eventually finds them and saves Sakaki and Chiyo from Kamineko and his gang. Chiyo then offers to keep Maya at her place until Sakaki moves out and is able to keep Maya at her own place - and Sakaki names the kitten Maya as an abbreviation of &#039;Yamamaya&#039;, a term used by Iriomote natives. (Image credit: Wikipedia)

It's not manga, it's Azumanga! &minus; smart, fun and totally addictive. Created by the iconoclastic Kiyohiko Azuma, Azumanga Daiou is strongly character driven, taking the reader through the daily tribulations of Miss Kurosawa, Miss Yukari, the wild Tomo, hair-triggered Yomi, ditzy Osaka, brash Kagura, cute Chiyo-chan and athletic (but girly) Sakaki. 
(Source: ADV) 
Notes: 
- A great number of chapters are divided into several parts that have been included in the final chapter count. 
- The chapter count includes 5 extra chapters.

Ten year old child prodigy, Chiyo Mihama, is finding it tough fitting in at high school with the girls five years her elder: Osaka (dimwitted with a weird take on the world), Tomo (a powder keg that goes off at a moment’s notice), Kagura (the competitive athlete of the bunch), Yomi (the hothead), and Sakaki (timid and obsessed with a love of animals that isn’t reciprocated). Together with their teacher, they navigate the rough waters and fun times of high school. 
 
(Source: Sentai Filmworks)