Agreement
I lost.
He was my father's friend.
Why didn't you take the dragon?
I had a feeling if I took the dragon, you would've checkmated me.
And it looked like I could checkmate you from the first move.
And here I thought you would go for the dragon.
You don't play like a child.
You came to checkmate me.
Even though he was my father's friend, every time he came over,
I would get happy and restless.
Kouda, sorry I'm late.
An emergency came up.
Oh, good work.
Sorry to keep you waiting.
No, that's fine. I was playing with Rei.
- Huh, how did it go? - Oh, I lost.
I see.
Apparently, a while ago, he and my father were members together in the federation.
Rei made an interesting move just now.
It reminded me of the kind of moves you used to make.
- It looks like he's been studying quite a bit. - Right?
Shogi wasn't my favorite, but it was precious time that I could spend with my busy father.
So I did my best.
For me, I wish he'd play a little more outside...
...but I guess he's like me after all.
In the neighborhood and at school, I got bullied a lot.
I just couldn't seem to make any friends.
The kids in my class would have bewildering conversations...
and I couldn't keep up with it.
It seemed like a foreign language.
And yet, the words he said while on the other side of the shogi board
always made a deep impression on me.
Even though he's an adult, he really spoke to me.
I understood that.
He was the only person outside of my family who did that.
Modern Shogi
Pick up Momo from kindergarten?
Yes. The thing is, my aunt...
Yes, you've met her before, right? She's the proprietress of the club I work at.
She made a misstep while going down stairs and hurt her foot. I'm at the hospital now.
Hina isn't picking up because she's at her school club, and Grandpa is busy at the shop...
I'm sorry. Would you do me this favor?
Momo, time to go home!
Okay!
It's Rei!
Hello.
It seems she's having fun.
Momo, what song is that?
Um, it's the cat song! Do you know it?
Nope.
This is the first time I've heard it.
Hey, wait!
Momo's hat!
Thank goodness. A little more and it would've fallen into the river.
A cute girl! Let's play!
Stop it, Shiro!
I like her! I like her!
Momo!
Come on, come on, little one, let's play!
Come on, come on, let's play!
SLAM
Huff Huff
Wag Wag Wag
Momo, are you okay? Did you hit your forehead?
I'm sorry! I'm sorry!
Ah, I made her cry. I'm sorry...
Sadness...
Look, we're home, Momo.
Let's tend to those scratches.
Momo, do you know where the first-aid kit is?
Let me see.
Sand got into the scratches.
Here, rinse your hand off.
Rei, it hurts.
Sorry. Hang in there a little longer, okay?
Um, first...
Disinfectant.
That and gauze...
Brother!
Rei?
I'm really sorry about today.
Rei, children often fall down, so you don't have to worry about it.
Momo doesn't hurt anymore!
So bright...
Um, I'm thirsty, so can I get some milk maybe?
Rei really felt bad about that, huh?
He hardly ate anything at dinner.
Momo, you probably cried too much and made him worry.
But Momo didn't cry!
I haven't had dinner yet-meow!
Big
Big Liars
But Rei was crying.
Big tears drip-dripped down his cheeks. Momo saw it.
Why? Why was Rei crying?
I'm sure it's because...
...he remembered something.
Rei also had...
...a little sister, too.
One day, my normal life suddenly ended, as if it had been ripped away from me.
When I returned from the school trip, my precious father, mother, and little sister...
...had become cold, stiff, spotted masses.
They said it was an involvement with a drunken truck driver...
Apparently, the three of them were killed instantly.
I wonder what will happen to their son.
The younger sister, Kiwako, will probably take him in, right?
There's no way that woman would agree to it.
And his grandfather is far too old...
You fool!
What's going to happen to the hospital?
You finally gave up shogi and agreed to take over after I retired.
- I thought everything would turn out well... - Father-in-law, it'll be okay.
You've got me. I'll take care of everything.
Yes, that's what I've been saying from the beginning.
But you only thought about big brother.
Poor child.
I'll find a good orphanage for Rei.
I didn't know what an orphanage was.
Koud—
But...
...until then, no matter how tough school was,
in the evening I could return to my warm room and relax safely by myself.
But if I go there, even though I went back to my room, somebody would always be there.
Somebody would be there when I went to sleep, too.
I realized out of the 365 days in a year, I wouldn't have a single moment to feel relief.
And then he arrived.
Many of my blood relatives had come to the funeral,
but out of everyone in the room, he was the only one...
...who made me feel so nostalgic that I wanted to cry out.
Like I said, my husband will be taking over the Kiriyama Hospital. There's nothing else to say.
I can't believe Kiwako's terrible attitude.
She's always been like that.
- Shhh, we're in front of the deceased. - But...
Do you...
...like shogi?
This was the moment of an agreement.
The god of shogi and I were bound to each other by an ugly lie.
Yes.
It was a lie.
The first time in my life that I lied in order to live...
After that, I could never return.
Then, the ropes were cut and the curtain dropped,
and I became the child of a shogi family.
Agreement
Over the Cuckoo's Nest
It's coming undone.
Oh no, pulling it will make it worse.
What should I do for something like this?
Here it is.
Is this it?
Waiting for me at that house of shogi...
...were the true children of the family, who also aspired to be professional shogi players.
Don't be so full of yourself! You're just a "zero"!
Kyouko, the daughter, four years older than me,
and Ayumu, the son, a third-grader who was the same age as me.
Dear, please forgive her. She's had enough.
- No. - Kyouko is a girl!
This isn't just about shogi. How dare she strike an opponent after losing?
But...
Father was strict with Kyouko.
I think he was harder on her because of her strength.
She was as tempestuous as a storm in every respect.
Her shogi style, her disposition, and her beauty, too.
Hey. What are you staring at, twerp?
Knock it off! Kyouko!
Um, Dad...
Would you like some more?
Yes, please.
Hey, what was that just now?
What do you mean, "Dad"?
Um, I'm sorry.
Is it strange? I told him to call me that.
Why? That boy is an apprentice, isn't he?
You didn't adopt him, so why would he call you "Dad"?
I can't relax if he called me "Master" in the house.
Can't you think of me as being his "shogi father"?
That reminds me, Mr. Inoue from the training hall told me, Rei.
He said you beat Mr. Hashimoto, the famous amateur. That's amazing!
Father loved shogi.
Good or bad, everything was centered around shogi for him.
Therefore, those who loved him had no choice but to get stronger...
I had a question about losing entrance into the league...
...in order to stay in his field of vision.
And then...
...Ayumu was the first one to have a breakdown.
Ayumu seems to be in low spirits at school lately.
His grades are dropping, too. Has something happened at home?
Well, the apprentice we've taken in has surpassed him at shogi.
I'm quitting shogi.
It's impossible.
If he won't continue unless someone persuades him, it's pointless.
But—
If he isn't someone who can convince himself and make progress on his own, it's pointless.
Becoming a professional isn't the goal.
The path after becoming that will make your head spin.
The further you go, the steeper it becomes, and there won't be anyone around you.
Only someone who can maintain himself will continue to make progress.
Why?! Why do I have to quit the federation?
If you can't beat Rei, there's no point in going on.
If you make it to the 1st dan, there'll be stronger players everywhere.
You understand, right, Kyouko?
So in the end, only someone else's kid made the cut?
That's Kiriyama's son, right?
So he went out of his way to raise his rival's child, who then upstaged his own kids.
How ironic.
After that, Kyouko spent a lot of time gallivanting around town,
while Ayumu shut himself in his room and became immersed in video games.
The three of us no longer spent time together.
I couldn't bear the situation, so I became increasingly absorbed in shogi. And then...
By the end of my second year in middle school, and one step away from being a professional,
I had reached the 3rd dan league.
There is a species of bird that does not raise its own children,
but engages in "brood parasitism."
The cuckoo lays its eggs in the nests of shrikes or meadow buntings.
The hatched chick then tosses the original eggs out of the nest before they're hatched.
In this way, it takes over the nest.
When the parents return, none the wiser, they work hard to feed and raise
the chicks of the bird that murdered their own offspring.
Ah, that's me.
Even if the cuckoo chick outgrows its surrogate parents,
they will continue to feed their chick.
That bird is me.
You're really not going to high school?
Yes.
Are you sure that's what you want?
I think school is a place you go to in order to choose your future course.
So I don't think it's necessary for me anymore.
If I continue at this rate, this year, or if that proves impossible,
next year, I'll surpass the 3rd dan league and become a professional.
I want to focus on shogi.
After I become a professional, I'll do my best to improve my performance,
I'll leave that house.
win tournaments and money, and save that money...
I have to leave there as soon as possible.
so I can become independent.
Before I devour the members of that family...
...and Father as well.
I did it.
It's a little zig-zaggy...
...but it'll be okay. It won't come undone anymore.
Good. I can still wear it.
What is it, Rei? Are you cold?
I'm the cuckoo...
I know. For now, put this on.
Sorry it's mine...
...standing over the lives that were thrust aside.
It's a little big on you.
Th-That's okay. I'm happy to wear it.
It's really warm.
I hear them calling out a song of spring.
Thank you, Dad.
And I think, that if I truly were a bird,
then at least...
I could have never known about this relentless pain.
Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Next Episode Preview
Episode 6
I want to go somewhere.
Chinatown! In Yokohama. We can get meat dumplings, or chili shrimp.
How about a place with a beautiful beach, where we can relax?
Digging for sweet potatoes! And a soy sauce factory!
Let's soft-pedal it, and talk about it more indirectly. That's too straightforward.
"March... March Comes in Like a Lion".
Momo likes Bodoro more than lions!