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.
Hello.
Did you come by to see the fireflies?
Yes.
I heard that it was almost the season for them.
I see.
It seems you were a bit too early, time and season-wise.
Their numbers have dropped too.
Is that so?
Well then, excuse me.
I wonder if she possessed him.
Seems so.
You...
You can see me even though you're a human child?
Geez...
What a careless human child.
Is this okay with you?
Bothering with me, I mean.
Weren't you possessing that person from before?
Possessing?
How rude.
He's my friend.
Friend?
So he can see Youkai?
It's an old story.
I used to talk a lot to him when he was young.
For a while, we were always together.
But one day, he suddenly couldn't see me anymore.
And that's it.
He couldn't see you anymore?
Can that even happen?
When people become adults, those kinds of powers tend to become weaker.
I see.
So that happens too...
I heard that he would be getting married soon,
so I thought I would at least see his big day.
Well, our relationship was a lot like yours.
We're not friends!
Our relationship is that of a master and pet!
I see.
What's your name?
Try guessing.
Mask.
Blonde hair.
I got it! It's pond woman!
I'm a low-level Ayakashi.
Plus, I didn't have a name in the first place.
Don't tease me.
I'll give you a name, then!
What about Curly-noodles?
What do you think?
Come on, what do you think?
I didn't think I'd be able to talk to another person.
This must be fate.
I'll be in your care until the ceremony.
I said, what do you think?!
What do you think about Curly-noodles?!
Shut up, Nyanko-sensei!
Then how about Curly?
What a dull radiance.
Hey.
You're going to sleep already?
You're so boring.
Hey, are you listening?
Hey, wake up.
Hey!
That night, I had a dream where someone was calling out.
Kiyo...
Takashi-kun.
You're going to be late!
Wake up, I have to go out.
How about "Kiyo?"
How about "Kiyo" as your name?
Do what you want.
Becoming unable to see Youkai...
So that can happen too?
A long time ago, there was a mountain god in this forest
that fell in love with a human woman, and they would rendezvous secretly at night.
During those times, the fireflies from this pond would light the way for them in the pitch-black darkness.
To thank them, the mountain god turned the short-lived fireflies into Ayakashi.
In their joy, many of them left the pond,
and the fireflies here are said to be the descendants of those who stayed behind.
Well, it's just a legend, though.
Look!
H-H-Hey!
Watch out!
You're...
the one from yesterday.
S-Sorry, I think I tripped over something.
You're a feisty one.
Excuse me...
Is there something in this pond?
Something?
Yeah.
Not sure. Besides the fireflies, I guess there are carp.
That Ayakashi doesn't attack people.
I see.
I couldn't ask him.
I couldn't ask him if he could see Youkai too.
Going to see a human who could see them,
and asking them about their past would just be trouble for them.
Kiyo...
That person is called Akifumi-san.
Because he could see Ayakashi,
he suffered much from the looks he got from his family and others.
He would come here to cry by himself,
and I would hide quietly and watch him.
But one day, he came during the night.
In a rush, I tried to hide,
but something caught onto my body.
Who's there?!
A Youkai?
Wait!
Could we talk for a bit?
I, ah...
I'm interested in humans.
I'm not interested in Youkai, though.
But...
He came the next day too.
We talked about many things.
We talked and talked so much.
Sometimes, we would play together.
So this is how it feels?
It feels nice.
You're right...
You're right.
But on one day, his eyes could no longer see me.
He wouldn't notice even if I touched him.
He would come to the pond and I would call for him several times,
yet he couldn't see me even when I stood right in front of him.
I wonder if you'll be unable to see us one day?
That would be terrible.
What am I saying?
Wasn't that my wish for the longest time?
I had always, always wished to be free from all this.
I thought I wanted to know.
He can no longer see Kiyo's fleeting light,
so why does he continue to go to the pond?
I see, so you can see Ayakashi too.
Yes.
A Youkai I met recently told me you could once see them.
When I think about it, it was all like a dream.
Is it tough?
It was tough on me because I was always alone.
But I was able to get along well with one Ayakashi.
I came to like her.
I couldn't say it,
but I loved her.
But one day, I suddenly couldn't see Ayakashi at all anymore.
And that was it.
I just couldn't forget about her, so I didn't get married.
But...
But I finally met a girl I could love with all my heart.
And she's a very nice person, too.
Our wedding ceremony will be held in three days.
I won't come here anymore, then.
Akifumi-san!
I have to go now.
See you again.
Okay.
Thank goodness.
Kiyo.
He found someone important to him.
He's...
not alone anymore.
Kiyo...
Is that okay with you?
On that night,
I had a peaceful dream.
It was probably Kiyo's memory that flowed into me.
Hotaru!
Hey!
Hotaru!
Where are you?!
Hotaru!
I can't see you! Please come out!
Hotaru!
Don't leave...
Hotaru...
Please come out...
Do you hate me now?
I love you.
...love you.
I love you.
I love you...
I love you!
I'm...
not Akifumi-san.
Hotaru.
That's what you were called, right?
I saw and heard it.
I am a firefly Ayakashi.
I won't be able to keep it,
but I'm able to return to being a simple bug just once.
Then you won't be able to keep your current form,
and your life will end as a bug.
Or so I've heard.
Even so, I don't mind.
Even without me...
He will continue to laugh.
Then, at the very least,
even as a bug,
I want to see him.
Wait, Hotaru!
Wai-!
I hope she's not intending to head towards the pond.
That huge, big-mouthed guy doesn't attack humans,
but he eats fireflies.
Because he's going around and eating them,
all the fireflies here are hiding somewhere.
Where are you, Hotaru?!
What are you doing?
It's too dark.
How irritating.
Get on!
There she is!
Stop!
Where's Hotaru?
She ran away after that.
This smell... it's someone else's!
Then...
My mom got really mad then.
Right?
It's pretty, huh?
Yeah.
It's really pretty.
It's like...
Wait!
Sensei...
Did everything go well for the mountain god and his lover that the fireflies protected?
Who knows.
Unlike Ayakashi, humans have a short lifespan.
Hotaru.
Will the day come when I can't see them either?
These one-sided encounters and these troubling days...
Will it be liberating for me?
Or...
At that time,
I felt that the small firefly whispered something to me.
However,
I couldn't understand the bug's words.
Goodbye, Hotaru.
I wonder if he understood them?
Maybe only he could...
It's tough when you can't do anything, even though you can see them.
You're an idiot.
You don't have any obligation to help out everyone.
In the end, Youkai and humans are completely different.
But...
Let me tell you this, Natsume.
Even if you couldn't see us anymore, I wouldn't let you get away until you give me the Book of Friends.
Even if the Youkai before me disappear one day,
the memories from my encounters with them will never disappear.
Then how about you make an effort to be my bodyguard?
You promised, right, sensei?
And they will never go away.
Not a single one.
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.
Who are you?
I'm Natori Shuuichi.
Could you help me out with an exorcism job, Natsume-kun?
An exorcism?
There seems to be some kind of aura coming from you.
Sorry for being so fabulous.
His aura...