mata sonna kao wo shite
There you go, making that face again,
kuchibiru kamishimete
biting onto your lips.
yowasa wo kakushiteru kedo
You're hiding your weak side,
sono hitomi no oku
but deep in those eyes,
uzukumaru kimi ga
I can see you cowering.
honto no kokoro nara
If you had a true heart,
omotte, naite, hito yonde, fuwande
you would care, cry, call for someone and worry.
nande itai no mottenda
Why are you holding onto the pain?
boku ni sotto azukete yo
Share some of it with me.
sugu ja muri to omou no naraba
If you don't think it's possible right away,
sukoshi zutsu de ii
you can do it slowly, bit by bit.
tsubasa no nai bokura kitto
We don't have wings,
tobenai toki mitsuketeru dake
but I'm sure we're only finding times that we can't fly.
koe no kagiri kimi wo yobu yo
I'll call for you to the limits of my voice
mayowanai you ni
so that you won't get lost.
fuwari kokoro maiagare
Soar up to the sky with your gentle heart,
ano kaze ni nosete issei erose
ride on that wind, and get it all at once.
Why can I see those things?
Am I a weirdo?
What's wrong?
Do you feel sick?
Oh?
You live around here, don't you?
You're always alone, right?
I see you around often.
Hey.
Could it be...
You can see them too?
Those strange things.
Hey, you.
Is Natsume in this class?
Yeah, that's right.
Which one?
I'm not sure if he's around.
He doesn't have much of a presence, you know.
Ah, there he is.
Over there, the one by the window.
Hey, Natsume!
Natsume!
Wake up.
What?
You've got... a guest!
Huh?
He's gone.
He was asking for you just now.
Who?
I don't see him around much.
Sorry for waking you up.
It's okay.
But still, you sure sleep a lot.
Can't sleep at night?
Kind of.
If you've got some problems, I'll listen to them.
It's nothing.
Come on, you guys.
The chime has already rung.
How scary!
Ever since I inherited my grandmother's Book of Friends,
Youkai have been coming to reclaim their names.
Unlike my grandmother, I gladly return their life-valued names.
I feel like I'm going to break down...
I'm back!
Where'd you go, Nyanko-sensei?
Around.
You reek of alcohol!
Don't come any closer! Go away!
Come on, don't say that.
I brought you back a gift.
A gift?
Hey!
Wait!
Go on home, now.
Don't get captured by that stupid cat again.
Damned cursed brat.
Takashi-kun! I'm going shopping now, okay?
Okay.
Take care.
It's your day off, so you don't need to stay home. You can go out.
Have you made new friends here yet?
Yeah, they're all very friendly.
I see.
Okay, I'm going now.
Was that a bug?
A bug, a bug.
It's pleasure to meet you.
You're Natsume-sama, aren't you?
Please forgive us for intruding!
Don't just-
Please forgive us for intruding!
Don't just come in!
You're returning their names again?
Damn it, the Book of Friends is getting thinner!
And I'm waiting for the day when a huge one which he will not be able to handle to arrive,
and eat this cheeky brat!
Hey, Nyanko.
Why do all these small Youkai keep coming?!
Do you like them small?
That's not it.
We came to Natsume-sama because he has immense power.
Please help us, Natsume-sama!
There is a human that we would like you to exterminate.
Human extermination?
A pretentious, human Youkai exterminator has recently come to our dwelling place, the Eight Fields.
But rather than extermination, the human just seems to be testing his power and enjoying it.
We're just trying to live happily!
Are there really humans who can exterminate Youkai, though?
There are!
Please help us, Natsume-sama!
I'm sure you don't know, but there are problems when a human exterminates another human.
So I can't. Sorry.
Natsume-sama!
Why not?
Doesn't it sound interesting?
Killing humans is my specialty, you know.
Things will get complicated, so please be quiet, sensei.
A Youkai exterminator, huh?
Then that means they believe in those things, right?
Maybe they can see them?
Can you see them too?
Just like me...
I'm going no-
Good morning!
They're still there, sensei!
They sure are, Natsume.
Natsume-sama!
Step aside! Step Aside!
Natsume-sama is passing through!
Move down! Move down!
Hey, you guys...
Step aside! Step Aside!
Hey, listen!
No, no, it's been shown to be because of my back's proportion!
He won't let us see him off and pick him up!
Stop, it's a real bother!
Oh, so this is school?
School, school!
Shut up.
Natsume! Go, go, go!
Maybe we should write over there too! Should we?
Sign - Charm
Celebrate.
What the heck are they doing?
What's this feeling?
Natsume-sama!
We've been waiting for you!
Come on, let's go home.
All right.
I'll at least listen to your story.
Ah, thank you, Natsume-sama!
Natsume-sama!
So? What kind of people are they?
They always shoot a spirit wave out of the blue, so we can't get close,
or see them well.
They smell human, though.
I see.
Do they have a grudge or something?
Maybe they're easily affected by Youkai and are not used to having them around.
I kind of understand them.
Moreover, I'd rather talk to them than these guys.
Oh?
You came again?
Hey, you said you could see them too, right?
Can you see them?
Am I strange?
Who knows?
I'm not sure.
You're right.
A human? There's a human!
Damn human!
Did you come to drive us out?!
N-No-
Nyanko-sensei!
Hey, you've got it wrong.
He is...
They're all small ones.
You should learn how to exorcise them yourself.
You should be able to blast them away.
If you don't hurry, they'll suck your brain through the holes of your nose and ears.
Your brain!
Stop it, you damn sexual harassing Youkai!
Sexual harassment?
You don't know what that is?
It means a sexy belly dance!
I told you to make them stop, you damn sadistic cat!
Who's next?
What's that? I can hear something.
Something's coming.
He's here! It's him!
Over there?
Grab hold, Natsume!
What was that?
Ones with a high spiritual power are able to shoot a purifying wave.
They aimed at an open field and shot it.
Let's go after them.
A purifying wave...
Was everyone erased?
They just ran in fright.
I see, that's good.
This place has been purified though, so the low level ones won't be coming back for a while.
So they were chased out of their place?
A sudden attack...
This is quite one-sided.
Just who is doing this?
Getting into it now?
So will you do it, Natsume-sama?
Natsume-sama!
I thought you couldn't come back here for a while!
We're both different types!
Then can't you do something about it yourselves?
That's...
It feels like I'm getting more involved with the Youkai.
If I open up to them too much again...
Natsume, Natsume!
You look sick.
You okay?
Yeah.
Really?
That glance just now...
Hey, do you know that guy who just passed by?
Class 1's Tanuma, I think.
Tanuma...
He's the one that asked for you the other day.
He just moved in to that old temple just past the Eight Fields.
The Eight Fields?
Natsume?
Maybe Tanuma is the one...
There might not be another who can see them.
There was no one who could understand the fear of walking alone in this unstable world.
This is different from what we promised!
Look after him next month! Please!
Feeding my family alone is a trial!
Plus, he keeps saying creepy things.
He says he can see strange things.
What happened?
They said I'm not their family.
That's obvious, though.
Are you lonely, Natsume?
What about you?
I don't feel lonely now that you've come.
Yeah.
I'm not alone.
You can see them too, right?
I'm not strange, right?
I'm not alone, right?
Oh?
If it isn't Takashi-kun from next door.
What are you doing here alone?
There might not be another who can see them.
In this...
Unstable world...
My, my, what's wrong Takashi-kun?
Natsume...
Go away!
Natsume...
Get away from me!
He lives in the Eight Fields neighborhood?
Do you know his address?
What?
I just thought it was unusual for you to be interested in someone.
You think so?
Yeah.
You and Tanuma are similar in some way.
You two like being alone, suddenly becoming uneasy,
and your faces go pale as if you're seeing something scary.
The Youkai exterminator is probably Tanuma.
He can probably see them.
If that's true, he's the first one like me.
But...
Natsume-sama...
What's wrong, Chukyuu?
We got hit.
A direct hit.
The exterminator came again?
Yes, he's most likely still in the forest.
Are you two okay?
Yes, as long as we rest and absorb power from the earth.
But, if they can see them...
How can they do something terrible like this?
They aren't all good, but...
Let's go, sensei.
Geez...
Something's coming.
He's huge!
What is it?
I have come to see Natsume-dono.
You have a cheeky face just like Reiko.
You have the Book of Friends, do you not?
I would like my name returned.
Sorry, but could we do that later?
I'm a bit busy at the moment.
Busy?
Planning how to exterminate a human.
Sensei!
Then I, Misuzu, shall help you.
Having my name stolen and not being able to serve my master at least once is dull.
Plus...
The one from before.
You seem to have saved my servant the other day.
What a good thing you did, Natsume.
Please be quiet, sensei.
As expected from Natsume-sama! You command someone as great as Misuzu!
The Book of Friends is to be feared!
You don't need to suck up to me all the time.
Misuzu-dono! Natsume-sama's enemy, the human, is in that forest!
Please punish him!
Understood.
W-Wait!
Damn!
This is bad. This is bad, bad!
If something that strong faces the exterminator,
Tanuma might die!
I have to find him first!
Is that him?
Stop! Stop, stop, stop, stop!
Give him an order, Natsume!
Say his name!
Stop, Misuzu!
He stopped...
Damn amateur!
Idiot!
As long as their names are in the Book of Friends, you can end things quickly by ordering them around.
O-Oh yeah...
Just what is it?
It's not Tanuma.
So this is the Youkai exterminator?!
Now, Natsume-sama! Finish him off quickly!
Finish him! Finish him!
Hold it, this is him, right?
It's his smell, no doubt about it.
I see.
Hey...
What are you talking to yourself about?
H-He can't see the Youkai?
I just moved in to the temple at the Eight Fields.
The truth is, my son is quite sensitive.
So he gets affected by things easily and often gets sick.
And so, I heard that this area was known for having monsters.
So I would often go around and purify the area.
It's just to soothe them, though.
S-Soothe...
He has such power and he can't see us?
Rather than having spiritual power, he seems to have Buddhist powers.
He wasn't born with the power, so he trained and learned it.
That's why he still can't see them.
The monsters around here probably aren't very bad,
so please keep it to a minimum.
Could it be you can see them?
No, you don't need to answer.
If you want to talk, please come by anytime.
You might get along well with my son.
Son?
Priest, what is your name?
My name is Tanuma.
Geez...
Despite what you say, you seem to favor the Ayakashi.
It's not like I'm partial to them or anything.
It's just that we exchanged words and became acquaintances.
When I was small, there was even a Youkai who took on the form of a human just to talk to me.
I was a kid, so my actions may have hurt them.
But now that I think about it...
I'm sorry, Natsume.
I just wanted to talk to you.
Even so, I'm glad to have met them.
Natsume-sama!
Can you see them?
Can you see some strange things in the garden?
No.
But for a moment, I felt like I saw the shadows of two strange things.
I'm probably just seeing things again.
I would see shadows and feel some presence.
Sorry for talking about weird things.
I heard a rumor that some Natsume guy would seem like he sometimes saw things.
So I wanted to talk to you.
But it's probably my imagination.
I can see them.
I can see very weird things.
It's a secret, though.
We might just be the weird ones.
I see.
You may be right.
I can't say it well,
but I've come to understand something recently.
Whether you're a human or an Ayakashi,
we're the same in that we meet with our hearts,
that being alone is lonely,
and that the first step is scary.
Natsume-dono, I would like my name returned.
Sorry, I'm tired today, so make it another day.
And just as usual, my days are troublesome.
I don't get along well with Youkai,
I'm going now!
But, listening to them sometimes might be nice.
hi no tsukurishi zora ni
On that day where the sky was ablaze,
sashikomu hitosuji no hi
and rays of light were piercing through,
yuudachi no ameagari ni
the evening rain had stopped,
kizuku natsu no nioi
I noticed the scent of summer.
hishimeku hikari ga terasu
Among the crowded, shining lights,
omoi ni mimi wo sumaseba
I turned my ear to my thoughts,
kikoeshi tomo no omokage
and I could hear traces of my dear friends.
natsu yuuzora kawarirazu
The summer evening sky
azayaka na sugisarishi hibi
and the vivid passing days were just the same,
kokoro no mama warai atta
and so I laughed; it was just like
ano natsu no omoide yo
my memory of that summer.
What is your name?
I am Shigure.
Did you use to be the God of Youth?
There's someone who wants to see you.
I don't want to get involved with people anymore.
That is because I am nothing but an impure Ayakashi!