Looks like the sun's rising.
Yeah.
You can get some sleep, too.
That sounds good,
but I don't think I can.
That so?
How could I?
I mean, today's the day I go ocean diving for the first time.
Amanchu!
"The Story of the Blue World"
Wake up, you all.
We're here.
Ah, summer is in the air!
Good morning...
Sis?
This is the mecca for rookie divers.
Mecca?
That's right.
Its name is Osezaki.
Wow! There are quite a few people here, even though it's early morning.
On weekends, divers from not only Kanto, but from all over the country, gather here.
This place gives birth to a whole bunch of divers every year.
It's finally time, Teko.
Yes! I'll do my best to pass the open water course!
Let's-a-go.
Cha.
Katori-sensei.
Good morning.
Good morning!
We got a great spot.
How do you like it?
Thank you so much for doing this.
Don't mention it. We did it because we wanted to.
We just wanted to have fun, together with our hard-working students.
Thank you very much.
Okay. Let's unload the luggage.
Right!
There. Piece of cake.
Well, aren't you all hyped up.
I am!
This way, Teko.
The water's so clear.
My heart's racing because I'm doing something new...
Scared?
Yeah, a little, to be honest.
But I feel a lot more excited now.
Excited to see something wonderful I've never seen before...
together with you.
Yeah.
Cha?
The groups who will be diving today are the buddy twins
and the buddy pair of Pikari and Teko.
And I'll be diving solo, so that makes five.
To start off, we'll slowly snorkel on the surface
and make our way out to that float.
Right.
There's a rope dangling from that float all the way to the seabed.
Teko, grab that rope and descend at your own pace.
Got it.
Okay, does everyone have their equipment on?
Begin the buddy checks, then.
Okay.
I'll start, okay?
Okay.
BCD, inflator,
and tank,
all clear.
BCD, inflator,
and tank,
all clear.
Weights, all clear.
Hooks and buckles, all clear.
Valve,
residual pressure,
regulator,
octopus!
Everything's all clear!
Cha, cha, cha, cha!
Let's go, Teko.
Yeah.
Put on your fins once the water gets to your waist.
The cold water's getting into my wetsuit.
It's really hitting me that I'm about to go ocean diving now.
You'll get used to the cold in no time.
Oh, okay.
Here.
Grab hold of me and put on your fins.
Thanks.
I got them on.
Off we go to the float, then.
Yeah.
Ba-dump...
Oh, I see fish.
So cute.
There's a blue world expanding beneath my eyes,
and the ocean floor is growing farther.
I can't see it anymore.
The rays of light from the surface
are melting into an endlessly dark blue.
Pikari.
You okay, Teko?
Yes, I'm okay.
Let's take a short break.
All right.
Teko, once we've dived all the way down,
you'll be putting everything you've learned so far into practice.
Right.
I can't see the bottom.
Stop it.
Keep that thought out of your mind.
The disappearing light, and the dark blue...
It's so scary!
Huh, Teko...
You're missing one of your fins.
It must've come off.
Oh, dear.
We're not gonna find it now.
D-Does that mean the open water course is canceled?!
Whoop?
This dropped on me.
Thank you so much.
Thank you so much!
No problem.
See you, then.
So cool.
Normally, you'd never see it again.
Wow!
This is awesome.
Absolutely amazing!
There's a brand-new world down there!
So many bubbles!
Pillars of bubbles!
Those are made by the air exhaled by the divers below.
They're all waiting down there.
Beneath this ocean,
at the bottom of that dark blue...
I wonder what kind of world I'll find waiting for me.
Ready, Teko? All okay to go?
Okay.
Confirm positions.
All clear.
Air, all clear.
Time, all clear.
And now, dive...
Let's go...
...together...
...to the world in the ocean!
The anxiety from before
turned into excitement at some point.
Slowly and steadily I go
to a brand-new world.
Amanchu!
Then, shall we...
...enjoy this, too?
Let's eat!
Nothing beats this!
You can't come to a beach and not have yakisoba!
My ears are ringing.
I have to equalize them!
Yay! I did it.
When you can't see the surface anymore,
you suddenly lose track of which way is up
and which way is down.
That's when the air we breathe out rises gently
and shows us which way is up.
The ocean floor is still out of sight.
All of a sudden,
the scenery comes bursting into view,
like the fog that was obstructing it cleared up.
I never knew something like this could happen!
Wow!
This is the world within the ocean!
It's so wonderful!
A spectacle you could never see if you just looked down from the surface.
...you'll be putting everything you've learned so far into practice.
Right.
Let's start with mask clearing
Let's start with mask clearing, which you hate so much.
Hang in there, Teko!
Hang in there!
I'll do my best!
Yay! I did it!
With the regulator off?
This woman...
She's a master mask clearer!
Neutral buoyancy
Next, maintaining neutral buoyancy.
Which means maintaining a state where you neither sink or rise underwater.
Regulate the buoyancy by adjusting the amount of air within the body...
H-Huh? Wait... What?
Why?
Regulator recovery
Regulator recovery.
Next, hand signals.
Hand signals
I'm out of air.
Please share some.
All right!
Take off your mask.
Put it on.
Yeah. Perfect.
Whoa! She did it!
Well done
Well done!
It was all over in the blink of an eye.
I hope I did a good job.
Pikari's grandmother was right.
But it's all right.
Look up and see.
There's an endless world of fun
starin' ya right in the face.
The countless pillars of bubbles
are all breaths of divers...
Signs of life that the blue world shows us.
I had no idea a world like this existed!
I'm so glad I didn't give up that day.
I'm so glad I didn't suppress my feelings yet again.
I'm so glad I managed to say I was scared.
I'm so, so glad I got to come here!
See you soon.
I hear a clapping sound.
What could it be?
The bubbles were so awesome!
Sometimes, they'd expand and become like jellyfish or plates!
Yeah.
Also, the fish were adorable!
Like that tiny yellow one or that one that was walking along the floor!
Yeah!
I'm starting this logbook with Pikari.
What should I write down first?
Frogfish
Was it like this?
Cha.
There's so much I want to mention!
Aren't you all going to write your logs?
We will.
But this feeling of exhaustion you get only when you wear wetsuits...
I'm amazed you have that much energy, Teko-chan.
Yeah! I'm having too much fun remembering the dive!
Inbox Akane-chan Sub: Doing okay, Futaba-chan? The hot days keep coming. You're not suffering from summer fatigue, are you? From Akane
It's from Akane-chan!
I'm fine.
I had a dive for an open water course with the Diving Club today...
Inbox From: Akane-chan Sub: Awesome! Wow! That's amazing! Congrats on your first (ocean) dive! But, you know, I think you'd be right at home underwater. From Akane
On your feet, all of you. Attention.
I'm gonna announce the results of the open water course.
Cha!
Ooki Futaba.
Yes?
Cha...
I present you this C-Card, which certifies you as a qualified Open Water Diver.
Thank you very much.
That one's just a sample,
but you'll be sent the real thing soon.
Got it.
Huh, this sound...
I see.
That clapping sound...
Maybe it was the ocean applauding to congratulate me.
Uh...
They say that clapping sound
is caused by snapping shrimps or by the waves striking the rocks.
Was I thinking out loud again?
You totally were.
But the idea that it might be the ocean's applause
isn't so bad.
Stupid me!
Ah, to be young again.
We were down there until just a little while ago, huh?
Yeah.
Thank yo—
Thank you—
Whoop?
Why would you thank me?
Well, uh...
You see, your hair is so long, silky, and pretty.
The first time I saw it, it was swaying in the wind, almost like it was underwater.
You looked like a beautiful mermaid to me.
And when we ended up in the same class,
I wanted to become friends and go ocean diving with you, no matter what.
I went and decided that myself.
I have this habit of deciding things and having fun all by myself,
and going out of control often.
Is that so...
But I've ended up causing trouble for others that way.
Although I was convinced that they were having fun,
some people turned around and told me to cut it out.
But, like, that's not the point.
Basically, what I'm trying to say is...
Er, uh...
Darn it.
I can't put it into words at all.
No, it's okay.
I get it.
You've given me so many things.
Like the dark blue world within the ocean,
the sparkling bubbles,
and the adorable fish...
I wouldn't have ever seen them if it weren't for you.
And, if it weren't for you,
I wouldn't have joined the Diving Club, either.
Also, I've come to realize
that I've fallen in love with everything you've given me.
Really?
Really.
I've gained so many new things to love.
Whoop! That makes me so happy!
Before I met you, I had nothing I could say I loved.
Maybe I was too scared to come to love anything,
and maybe that's why I created a void within me.
I hated myself for being that way, too.
But now it's the opposite.
I want to fall in love with many more things.
I want you to show me everything you love—
No! I'll make you show me!
I went and decided that myself.
Whoop!
I get it now.
That's what I want to thank you for.
You've come to love everything I love.
So thank you.
Weirdo.
If you love what I love, that means you've come to love yourself, right?
I mean, I love you lots...
Gosh!
Let's go.
Yeah.
If you muster up just a little courage
and take a step forward,
the world you see takes on a whole new hue.
Now that I've gotten past the anxiety
and embraced the excitement,
I know full well that if I look up and see,
there's an endless world of fun always staring me right in the face!
So...
Let's-a-go to a brand-new future!