hashiridase mae muite
Face forward and run.
kajikamu te de sora ni egaita
I painted the lights in the sky
kimi no mirai ni shukufuku no akari tomosu
with these numb hands to brighten your future.
kirihirake sono te de
Cut through it with your hands.
kikoeterukai kono koe ga
Can you hear my voice?
sunao ni waraeru koto dakishimete hashiridase
Embrace the fact that you can laugh honestly and run.
sukoshi dake otona no iro ni somaru yubisaki
Your fingertips were painted in an adult's color.
terakusa sou ni sotto kakushite
Embarrassed, you hid them.
hoozuetsuita kimi mitsumeteru shisen no saki ni
And as I gazed at you resting your chin on your hand,
chiisana tsubomi ga yura yura
beyond you was a flower bud, swaying side to side.
nee bokura nante ima mo mayoi bakari de
Hey, even now we're always lost,
ano hi okutta kotoba imasara omoidasu
and I remember the words I said that day:
kimi iro ni mirai somete
"I'd paint the future with the color of you."
hashiridase mae muite
Face forward and run.
kajikamu te de sora egaita
I painted the lights in the sky
kimi no mirai ni shukufuku no akari tomosu
with these numb hands to brighten your future.
kirihirake sono te de
Cut through it with your hands.
kikoeterukai kono koe ga
Can you hear my voice?
sunao ni waraeru koto dakishimete hashiridase
Embrace the fact that you can laugh honestly and run.
So, anyway, there is a really cute girl in class five but she's kind of weird...
Are you listening, Natsume?
Yeah, I am.
She was staring at me with crystal clear eyes.
What's her name?
I have no idea.
She never says anything.
Where are you going, Natsume-kun?
Nowhere really.
We were just discussing this cute girl from class five.
Yeah! So we have to hurry!
Why are you going with them?
Come on, break is almost over!
What's so important?
There she is, Natsume!
See? That girl there!
Super cute, right?
But she has this gloomy aura...
That's what makes her great!
She's leaving!
She's coming out here!
I'm... Nishimura... from class two.
I'd really like to be your friend, so... um...
See? She was staring right at me!
What makes you say that?
I think you're crazy.
Why?
The Girl's Circle
I'm back!
Welcome home, Takashi-kun.
Dinner will be ready soon. Can you find the cat?
I think he's in the empty lot in the back alley.
Nyankichi-kun, I mean.
Oh, sure.
Sensei?
Nyanko-sensei!
Geez, how long can a walk take?
Hey! Where are you?
Natsume?
I'm over here.
Let's go home, Sensei.
It's time for dinner.
Hold on.
This won't take long.
Man...
It felt like we were trapped in waves of energy.
Yeah.
Good gracious.
Hey, what's this?
There's something strange here.
Is it some kind of written character?
That voice... is it a Youkai?
I saw something like this by the river.
Is it some kind of curse?
We should probably leave.
Yeah.
What was so strange?
A human!
Whoa, small...
It sounded like you thought you shouldn't stay here. Did you find something?
Wait!
Save us!
Markings?
It kind of resembles a magic circle.
What did you find?
Nyanko-sensei?
Don't scare me like that.
Look, Natsume!
I caught some little sparrows!
To eat?
Wrong, idiot!
Two more and I'll be able to walk on air!
Walking!
You'll have to go on a diet first.
What is this?
I've never seen a circle drawn like this.
Really? You don't know what it is either?
It couldn't be... a crop circle, could it?
That's outside my range of knowledge.
Hey, what are you doing?
Natsume-kun?
You're...
Oh no, I... I just said your name.
Yeah.
I see.
That's no good. What should I do now?
What's wrong?
I'm sorry. I'm sorry!
I'm going to win.
I have to.
Hey!
What was that?
Was she the one who drew this?
And what did she mean by "win?"
That serious look she had bothers me...
It sure is windy.
You saw me, didn't you, human?
You little brat.
I should eat you.
I'll give you 360 days. By then... you must...
But if you can't, you lose.
And I'll eat you.
What a weird dream.
Is it somehow connected to what happened yesterday?
Nothing's there.
I thought I saw a character on my chest in the mirror for a moment.
Oh? What do we have here?
Entranced by your own good looks?
Touko-san?
N–No!
You don't have to explain.
You are at that age...
Sensei!
Nyanko-sensei!
Sensei?
Did you leave?
Good afternoon.
A Youkai!
How did you get in here?
Sensei! There's a weird mustachioed Youkai in my room!
Didn't you have the barrier up?
That lowly barrier is incomparable to a Youkai of my might.
Hey, Natsume, what's got you so ril—
What's with that mustache, pal?
Your pitiful bodyguard is also of no importance.
Who are you calling pitiful?
Why would someone so important want to talk to me?
As this matter concerns the deeds of a human,
I desired to consult a human, and I thought you to be most suited for that, Natsume-dono.
Deeds of a human?
Last month, as I walked along the riverbank...
Mustache!
An elderly human woman noticed me as we passed each other, and cried out!
Could that person see Youkai?
Certainly not. She was nothing more than a common human.
"How peculiar..." I thought as I looked towards my feet...
At that time, I discovered that a strange circle had been carved into the ground!
A circle?
Such circles bring nothing but misfortune,
and my investigations have revealed that a human girl has been inscribing them all over!
Natsume-dono! I beg of you to stop her!
Yes, I shall now escort you.
Sensei!
Wait, Mustache Man! Wait!
Mustache Man?
I said stop, Mustache Man!
Please don't call me that!
There she is. That's the girl.
So it's the girl from yesterday.
The character on my chest might have something to do with that circle.
H–Hey!
Hey, you.
Natsume-ku—
Oh no!
I said your name again.
Wait!
I just want to talk!
Sensei!
Are you okay?
M...
Monster?
Mega cute!
Beg your pardon?!
Oh, his fur's incredibly fluffy!
It feels so nice!
Stop it!
He's not used to being fussed over.
I'm sorry. When I see cute things, I just can't help myself.
Did you hear that, Natsume?
Did you?
Don't be happy!
I'm Taki Tooru from class five.
Say, Natsume-kun...
You can see Youkai, can't you?
I heard...
From who?
A Youkai.
So you can see them too?
No, not by myself anyway.
But I can if they stand on a circle similar to this one.
I draw them in order to see Youkai.
Help me please, Natsume-kun.
This is a matter of life or death!
Yours!
This note was left to me by my grandfather after he died.
It was a mysterious diagram, and I used to draw it out in my backyard.
Then, one day...
I saw a little Tengu inside of it.
I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me, but it happened again after that.
Eventually, I realized that they were Youkai.
I'm told my ancestors were comparable to Onmyouji.
My grandfather really admired them, and always said he wished he could see Youkai too.
It made me very happy, so I'd draw those circles when I played.
Then, last year...
I saw a huge and terrifying Youkai step into one of my circles.
When he noticed me, he spoke to me and said:
You saw me, didn't you, human?
You little brat.
I should eat you.
But that wouldn't be any fun.
I'll give you 360 days. If you can find me by then, I'll spare you.
But if you can't, you lose.
And I'll eat you.
That dream was her memory?
And then, I'll go back through your memories and try to eat the last 13 people whose names you spoke.
Thirteen?
Ever since, I've tried really hard not to speak.
But I've said a lot of people's names by accident.
I had no idea that a girl like this went to my school.
That's why I have to win.
I'm sorry for saying your name.
But I need your help!
Any person whose name you've said will be cursed alongside you, huh?
Natsume 1
That "1" must be the order we're to be eaten in.
Can you see the Youkai standing next to me?
No...
All right.
How about... now?
He's got a mustache and a big face!
That's right.
Despite my size, I assure you I mean no harm.
Basically, as the deadline loomed nearer she's been searching by drawing that circle everywhere?
Yeah.
I guess this means you won't be alive much longer!
The Book of Friends will soon be mine!
Aren't you supposed to be my bodyguard?
It would pain me to let someone I've spent so much time raising be eaten by anyone else.
I don't see how you've raised me...
Takashi-kun, dinner!
All right! Food!
That guy...
Whoa, you've made a feast.
There was a sale.
Shigeru-san will be late, so let's eat without him.
Listen to this, Takashi-kun.
Today, at the supermarket's sample corner, I was talking to a salesman...
And before I knew it, I'd eaten all the sample wieners.
I was so embarrassed!
Did Taki spend a whole year forcing herself not to talk?
All so that she wouldn't say someone's name?
She probably loves to talk just like other normal girls.
What's wrong, Takashi-kun?
Nothing.
These veggies are delicious.
Really? I'm glad! There are a lot left, so eat up, okay?
Even someone like me who didn't have a family...
Even my life can't be thrown away so easily anymore.
We'll win.
Why did you have to be cursed just because you saw him?
We can't let that Youkai's crazy curse beat us.
It's probably because of my ancestors,
but standing inside of a circle I've drawn enhances one's spiritual power.
Anyone with the latent ability to see Youkai will therefore see them while they stand in the circle.
I followed rare clues I got from Youkai who had seen him, but didn't have any real leads,
until a small Youkai told me that "Natsume-sama can see us."
Is that how you know me?
Yes.
I wanted to talk to you, but I didn't know if it was even true.
It's been a long time since I've spoken this much.
Sorry.
I guess you haven't been able to talk like this...
We'll win.
Yeah.
Thus, our quest to end the curse by finding the Youkai began.
Thanks a bunch!
All right, thanks.
The only thing I can think of that might help is the mark on its forehead.
Let's check out the lake today.
We have to hurry.
I only have one month left...
Don't worry.
We'll find him.
Yeah.
All right, I'll check the banks.
Okay.
I saw that, Natsume!
When did you two get so close?
What?
Don't try to hide it!
She's my girlfriend!
Since when?
Oh, you mean Taki?
She and I aren't—
What?!
You're already that close?
I didn't even know her name!
Guess you lost.
Um...
It's fine... It's fine!
She probably wants nothing to do with me.
I've got your back, Natsume!
Come on, Nishimura!
Jeez...
One more month and the Book of Friends is mine!
Seriously, aren't you supposed to be my bodyguard?
One more month and the Book of Friends is mine!
You'll get hurt playing around on those stumpy legs.
Are you okay, Sensei?
Man, what a klutz.
Natsume?
Where did you go?
Hey, Natsume!
Natsume?
Natsume!
ne mou sukoshi dake mou sukoshi dake kiiteite hoshii
Hey, just a little longer. I just want you to listen a little longer.
ne mou sukoshi dake mou sukoshi dake wagamama ii desuka
Hey, just a little longer. I just want to be selfish a little longer.
te ni ireta totan ni kieteshimai sou
The moment it was in my hand, it seemed like it would disappear.
kotoba wo kuremasenka?
So could you say something?
anata ga iru sore dake demo
With just you here,
sekai ga kawatteshimau
my world changed.
monotone no keshiki ga hora
Just look at the monotonous scenery,
azayaka ni utsuru
it looks so vivid.
itsunomanika hanareteita
We were walking with our hands held,
te wo tsunaide aruiteku
and before we knew it, we had to separate.
umaku wa aeseteiru ka na
"Do you think we're a good match?"
ano sora ni kiite miru no
Was what I asked the sky.
That Which You Must Not Call
Natsume-kun, I'm sorry I got you involved in this.
Taki, don't worry about me.
I'll help you.
Hey, Sensei, you're back.
Oh, my name is written!
Let's go seal that Youkai!
Oh no!