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.
Natsume!
Over here.
Sensei?
What are you doing?
I simply came to buy gratin dishes for Touko-san, Shigeru-san, and myself.
Wait.
You're not going to buy me one?
Buy one more dish!
Now, stand up! Stand up, Natsume!
What was that?
I just felt a strange presence.
It was from this picture?
Do you like it?
I'm about to close up the shop, but there are still some things that haven't been sold.
You can have it if you want.
The Man Among the Rows of Cherry Trees
Hanging it up?
What a boring picture. It's just full of branches.
You think so?
I think it's pretty.
That's right.
He may be right, though.
It'd be nice if flowers blossomed on them.
What is all this?
Where did these come from?
Strange...
Ah! Again?
The next morning...
It happened again today?
And on the following morning, flowers fell onto my bed.
Don't tell me you brought these in as you were drunk, sensei.
How rude! I have no interest in flowers!
It's been happening ever since I hung that up.
If a Youkai or something is doing this, then I've got to deal with it soon.
Thank you! I've always wanted one of this size.
I need to prevent disasters from befalling this house.
Don't just come in, sensei!
Why do you have a net?
Fairies might be doing this, you know.
I'm going to catch them!
Unscientific things such as those don't exist.
What? Just whose mouth said that?
Come on! Whose?
How dare you enter my territory!
What are you doing with these flowers?
These flowers were offered for him.
They have nothing to do with you, you damn thief.
Thief?
What, are you saying I stole?
How impudent! I'll eat you!
Stop, sensei!
Why? Why?
I was actually being a bodyguard too!
Who is this "him"?
Only sensei and I are here.
What are you talking about? There's another one right here.
Him.
Don't be so loud.
You'll scare Yasaka-sama.
R-Right...
The people in the house too.
Yasaka-sama?
Right.
He lives in this picture.
I'll be reclaiming this.
It's mine.
I completely forgot about it and left it behind,
so a human picked it up and sold it.
And now it's in this shabby house.
It's not... It's not... coming off!
Huh? Why?
It's not coming off!
Did you nail it on or something?
I didn't!
What about you? You did something, didn't you?
What?
Very well.
I will continue to visit until it comes off.
What?!
My name is Miya. I will come back tomorrow.
Wait! H-Hey!
Don't leave this creepy thing behind!
And naturally...
Excuse me.
The next day, Miya came.
Put your hand out, boy.
This is my thanks for taking care of Yasaka-sama.
I'm thankful, but don't let them fly around in my room!
Hey, wait!
They're beautiful, aren't they?
Yasaka-sama was once a human.
He loved gazing at flowers and butterflies.
Was a human?
It is an old story.
I was above a row of cherry trees and gazing at them.
The cherry trees in full bloom made me feel good.
I was happy, so I began to talk to him while concealed among the cherry trees.
Are your books more important than this rare opportunity with the cherry trees?
Is chasing after words more fun than chasing after flowers?
They're both important.
And talking to you is fun.
He called himself Yasaka.
He was weak, but he was the heir to a distinguished family,
so he barely had any free time for himself.
He continued to converse with me, without even realizing that I was an Ayakashi.
And so...
I feared that he would realize I was an Ayakashi.
So I did not go to that row of trees when I could not conceal myself among the blossoms.
We became friends who would only converse during the season in which the flowers bloom.
Miya,
when I become free one day, I'd like to travel.
I'm sure it'd be wonderful to gaze upon the grass of different lands.
Miya, I wonder why.
There are so many things that I want you to hear.
One year, when that spring passed,
he suddenly stopped coming.
I waited and waited...
For the spring to come and the spring to follow that...
I searched for him.
I walked around searching for him, not even knowing where to look.
And finally, I found that picture.
Upon asking, I was told that it was drawn by a renowned Ayakashi.
He probably got tired of the human world and ran away into the picture.
That is why I took it and began to travel in order to comfort him.
So that one day, when his heart heals,
I'm sure he'll come out.
And then I'll be able to converse with him again.
This picture was certainly painted by a renowned Ayakashi.
However, it's simply a picture.
Yasaka was drawn standing among the row of trees in the winter.
Wait as she might, no man would ever come out.
Even so, Miya came by everyday with flowers.
Day...
After day...
That's a funny cough.
I just can't stop.
Come on, sensei! Don't damage them!
I wonder if Miya always traveled,
chasing after calm, beautiful sceneries like this while holding onto a single picture.
Watching. Watching.
That's Harujizou.
He's an Ayakashi that appears during the spring and walks around to predict fortunes.
A sinister shadow entwines you.
I can see your corpse littered with leaves.
Wait! What do you mean "corpse"?
Takashi-kun?
T-Touko-san...
What's wrong?
You were talking out loud to yourself.
No. Ah...
It's nothing.
Really?
Yes.
I see.
Yeah.
All right. Let's go home together.
Okay.
"I feared that he would realize I was an Ayakashi," huh?
It's the same for me.
Still, what did that Harujizou mean?
Natsume!
What is this?
I see! I know why you're coughing!
This picture is absorbing your power.
It's trying to steal more power by branching out.
Sensei!
I won't let a simple picture steal my prey!
I'll devour it now!
Stop, sensei! This is Miya's...
Natsume, you idiot!
What the heck are you doing?
Get up, stupid Natsume!
Miya, when I become free one day, I'd like to travel.
I'm sure that it'd be wearisome traveling alone though.
So would you like to go together then?
Hi, Miya.
So you came to see me this year too.
What should we talk about today?
I'm sorry, Natsume.
This picture seems to have gained powers after having been held by me for so long.
It has taken root in the wall, so it won't come off.
At this rate, your life will be in danger,
so I will use my power and burn this picture.
No, Miya!
It's important to you, isn't it?
It's okay, Natsume.
I actually already knew.
He...
Yasaka-sama may not be anywhere anymore.
But the days when I traveled with this picture were as fun as the times I had with him.
On rainy days.
Windy days.
I wasn't alone.
But...
It's okay now.
I just wanted to talk to him face to face without worrying about how strange I may look to him.
Miya.
I'm still okay.
Let's look for another way to take it off.
But...
I like this picture too.
How stupid.
Miya and I are the same.
We're afraid of telling the people whom we love the truth and that we feel sad.
So, sorry, sensei.
I want to leave this picture to Miya.
This picture hanging here is, without a doubt, Yasaka-sama.
He came to the row of trees, knowing that you wouldn't come.
Even so, he wanted to see you.
It's Yasaka-sama searching for you, Miya.
However, we could not think of anything, and days had passed by.
It's a relief that Touko-san can't see it.
Idiot.
I've decided.
I'll burn this picture.
Miya?
But before that, I'd like to make these trees blossom.
Just like when I met him.
Will you help me?
It's done.
Natsume!
It's pretty, huh...?
Miya...
Miya, you know, Yasaka-sama...
Thank you, Natsume.
Good night.
I see.
This is inside the picture.
When I woke up,
the growing branches and the painted blossoms were completely gone.
Looking at the picture, Yasaka-sama could not be seen anywhere.
The picture came off easily.
And ever since that day, Miya never came by again.
Miya, his heart may have dwelled in the picture without anyone knowing.
It must have drained my power and grew branches, in order to see you once again and blossom.
I wonder if those two are still surrounded by cherry trees in full bloom.
Or were they released from the picture, and now traveling together?
Takashi-kun!
I wonder if Miya told him the truth.
Did you say something, Natsume?
No, nothing, sensei.
Goodbye, Miya,
my dear friend who I met in the season of flowers.
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.
Temporary House
Ever since the day that I saw strange footsteps, mysterious phenomena have started occurring in the house.
The same thing happened to me when I was young.
Shigeru-san.
But when that person came, it all stopped right away.
She was a bit strange, but she was a beautiful woman.