Welcome to the Department of Dairy Science!
Hokkaido O
Hokkaido Ooezo Agricultu
Hokkaido Ooezo Agricultural High School
For the next year, you will live in student housing
pursuing your studies, as well as practicums in agriculture.
We have many livestock, so there's no such thing as a holiday on the farm!
Here's the cattle shed!
In Japan, dairy cows are generally kept in enclosures,
but here at Ezonoo,
we have implemented a pasture-based dairy system
Ugh!
that allows us to keep our cows...
How can you all stand the smell?
It's huge!
Oh, sorry.
I was just changing this one's straw bedding.
Minami-sensei, can you put him back in his stall?
Sure thing.
You're just leaving him there?
Aww, so cute.
Won't he run off?
Maybe I should grab a hold of him...
Hey!
Oh, where'd he run off to?
A student chased him toward the fields.
What an idiot.
He would've come along if you held a feeding pail.
Well, he's gone off somewhere.
Uh-oh, we have a lost one.
Blue skies...
The great outdoors...
No cell reception...
A clingy calf...
Where am I?
Episode 1 Welcome to Ezonoo
Why, you—
It's your fault.
All your fault, you jerk!
If a bear shows up, I'll sacrifice you and run!
Hey, did you hear that?
A... bear?
Found you!
Uh, a Horseman of the Apocalypse?!
Uh, Hachiken-kun, right?
I've come to get you.
You okay?
A feeding pail?
It's that simple?
Animals just run faster when you chase them.
So that's it...
But why the horse?
I got one from the equestrian club.
I can go anywhere on a horse.
Wow, I'm impressed that you can control such a huge horse.
It's just a plow horse.
I've been riding since I was little, so I'm used to it.
My family has a farm with cows and horses.
I thought I might carry on the family business,
so I came to this school.
What was your name again?
I'm your classmate, Mikage.
Mikage Aki. Nice to meet you.
Dairy Science
Welcome, students!
I'm your homeroom teacher, Sakuragi.
We'll be together for the next three years.
You've been living in the dorms,
so you probably know each other already.
But let's have everyone introduce themselves.
I'm Aikawa Shinnosuke, from Makubetsu East Junior High.
I want to become a vet.
Komaba Ichirou, from Shimizu First Junior High!
I'm gonna carry on the family dairy business once I graduate!
I'm in the baseball club!
We're gonna try for the nationals!
I am Inada Tamako, from Obihiro Kawanishi Central Junior High.
I'd like to study agribusiness management
and set up a world-class farm.
I'm Tokiwa Keiji!
From Nakasatsunai South Junior High!
I'm gonna take up my family's poultry farm!
Yoshino Mayumi, from Shimourahoro Junior High.
I want to start up a cheese business using
milk from my family's dairy farm.
What's with these guys?
Next, Hachiken.
Hachiken!
Oh, okay!
Hey, it's that guy who got lost during the campus orientation tour.
Oh, you're right.
I'm Hachiken Yuugo, from Shin Sapporo Junior High.
Um, nice to meet you all.
Shin Sapporo Junior High?
Isn't that a prep school?
About Practicums Forming Teams
We're now going to split the forty of you up into eight teams.
Each team will work together on chores like
the AM-PM barn practicum.
Girls
Boys
You'll draw straws to form five-person teams.
Be nice to your teammates for the next three years.
Ooezo Agricultural High School Dormitory for Future Agriculture Managers
Here, eat this.
You've still got a ways to go until breakfast.
Thanks.
G'luck. Night!
I'm sleepy...
Cold...
Man...
The livestock practicum lasts for a whole week, right?
Yeah...
Uh, you're...
Aikawa. Aikawa Shinnosuke.
Nice to meet you, Hachiken-kun.
Same here.
You want to be a vet, right?
Yeah.
It's my childhood dream.
I'm already about to give up, though.
What about you?
If you came from Sapporo to a high school way out in the boonies,
you must have a reason.
Because it's a boarding school...
I don't have to go to home.
Get help!
What about nets?
Nah! Just get help!
Oh, is something going on?
Oh, first-years?
Guys, help us out!
The chickens intended for a practicum got loose!
Oh, uh... Okay, I'll help!
But what about our practicum?
All right, let's catch 'em quick!
Wha?!
I'll let the instructor know.
Don't hold them back.
Hey, Tamako!
You—
Whew, thank god!
Thanks, first-years!
Sure...
We should thank you.
We'll give you some smoked chicken when it's done!
Yeah!
Which dorm room are you in?
What're your names?
Chicken Coop
Good morning!
Hey! Great work, right off the bat!
All right, come right in.
It's gonna be like this for three years?
Ugh, it stinks...
Wow!
It's like an egg factory!
Hachiken, Tokiwa, collect the eggs.
Okay!
You're good at this.
My family runs a poultry farm.
But I didn't know the chicken coop was so systematic.
It's only for chickens to eat feed and lay eggs.
But these kinds of efficiency-first coops that aren't kind to the chickens
are criticized in the West.
For me, when it's this efficient, it's just impressive.
U-Um...
Yeah?
Where do chicken eggs come from?
Where?
The anus, of course.
The same as poop?!
Intestines
Ovary
Oviduct
To be more precise, it's called the cloaca,
and the oviduct opens directly into the intestine—
A-Aren't these dirty, then?
Well, that's why we're giving them a good scrub by hand.
Each egg's full of the farmer's tender, loving care! Delicious!
But...
But it's like poop!
Poop...
Ooezo Agricultural High School Dormitory for Future Agriculture Managers
It's time for breakfast.
All students, please report to the dining hall.
I repeat, it's time for breakfast.
All students, please report to the dining hall.
Wonder what's on the menu.
It's a silver spoon.
Is there a meaning behind it?
In Europe, they give a newborn child a silver spoon.
It's to ensure that they never go hungry.
All right, let's eat...
Let's eat!
What's wrong? It'll get cold.
I'll let you have this...
...to thank you.
Really?
Yay!
The anus...
Looks delicious!
Wait a minute...
Wait a minute!
That came from the anus...
The anus!
It's tasty because it's fresh!
Forget Tamako!
What's the matter?
This school's hard on your nerves...
Is it?
But math's coming up.
General subjects are harder on my nerves.
Revised Edition Mathematics I
Finally, time for normal high school stuff!
Revised Edition Mathematics I
But wow, I'm at an agricultural high school, all right.
It's way too thin!
The content's sparse, too.
I'm gonna ace this for sure!
The true enemy is...
I'm Yachiyo, in charge of livestock science.
I'll start with the basics.
Livestock Science
But, because this area has a lot of dairy farms,
the class will emphasize dairy cows.
Okay.
I took advantage of spring break and already studied the textbook.
Nothing will stop me!
I've already memorized all the numbers!
I'm gonna get the top score on the next exam—
Okay, about all the reference stats in this textbook.
They're based on the national average.
The cows in Hokkaido are big, so those numbers don't fit.
Livestock Science
So we'll use another reference text in class.
Dammit...
Campus Motto Defy Logic Cooperation Diligence
Hachiken!
You're smart, right?
Huh? Not really—
Teach me math!
I'm already lost at page one!
But this is junior high stuff.
No, I totally sucked back then, too!
Besides, I got in here because I was recommended for being a farmer's son.
Really?
Despite scoring one out of five in math, I got in without taking the entrance exam.
We got in through referral, too,
but we weren't that bad!
Don't make us sound bad.
My best grade was a three!
What, on a ten-point scale?
No, five!
Me, too! I always got twos in English.
Oh, same here.
Man, they're so dumb.
Yeah?
All right...
Want to start with the basics?
Don't underestimate how dumb I am, though!
No problem.
I'll stick with you till you get it.
Really? Thanks!
If this is what my classmates are like,
I guess I'll be the top student in my class, no problem.
First, take X...
What's "X"?
Huh?
Aikawa, you want to be a vet?
Yeah.
What's the deal with somatic cell cloning research these days?
Once TPP kicks into gear,
Japan won't be able to compete with imported agricultural products
unless it can grow high-quality produce in large quantities at low cost.
Japan won't be able to insist on not cloning beef cattle anymore.
Hey, I'm interested in that topic.
Well, if we're talking recent research...
Cloning cows from somatic cells is a really complicated process,
so the success rate is really low.
More and more research institutes are giving up.
They say clones have a shorter lifespan,
The genetic blueprint gets reset during the early developmental stages following insemination,
but a study found that Dolly was actually an exception.
and as cells proliferate and differentiation continues...
You need to select good genetic markers, then do a blastocyst biopsy to...
By silencing the XIST gene on the X-chromosome, they've improved...
As for what will happen to the epigenetics of the recipient's cloned embryos...
Are they speaking in code?!
Isn't that college-level science?
Oh, our knowledge is really skewed, so it's nothing to be proud of.
All right, line up, first-years!
We'll test your endurance with a marathon today.
What?!
One lap around the school campus!
Let's start with warm-ups!
One lap?
That's not so bad.
Oh, and by the way...
Our campus, which includes fields and forest used in practicums,
is the largest in the nation for a high school.
One lap covers twenty kilometers.
I... want to quit this school already.
Hey! No slacking!
Hey, the evening livestock practicum's about to start.
Gimme a break.
If we don't get this done quickly, I'll miss club practice.
You're still up for that?
Komaba-kun, you already joined a club?
I've been training with them since spring break.
Want to join me in the baseball club?
I don't like sports...
Neither do I.
Actually,
why the hell does this school have two baseball fields, anyway?
This school isn't short on space, that's for sure.
Hey!
You've joined a club, too, Aki?
"Aki"?
Yeah, from spring break.
You two seem like good friends.
We went to the same junior high.
We're next-door neighbors, too.
Don't bring a horse all the way here.
I borrowed him from the neighboring university, so I'm just moving him.
These two are close, huh...
Hachiken-kun, did you choose a club already?
Huh?
No, I might not join any...
It's a requirement to join one, you know?
What? Seriously?
There are no cultural clubs, either!
It's all athletics!
Damn jock school!
If you haven't decided,
how about the equestrian club?
Horses are so cute!
Cute?
So, come check us out sometime!
Okay, I will at some point.
All right, off we go to the practicum.
Hey, be careful!
They're a valuable product!
Hachiken, you're exhausted.
And you're fine, Tokiwa?
Sure, I'm tired,
but I totally prefer practicums over studying textbooks!
Komaba, you don't look tired at all.
I get lots of sleep during class!
Don't be proud of that!
Feed Store Room (Biological Production Association: Practicum Room)
White
This... is the last of 'em.
All right, all done!
You can go home!
Thanks.
I'm starving!
Dinner will be awesome.
The wind's really blowing!
Hey!
Chicken-sensei!
Can I borrow some of your students?
What's the matter?
The greenhouse got damaged by the sudden gust.
There's supposed to be a cold front tonight.
We could lose our crops to frost!
We can't allow that!
All hands on deck!
Hey!
Get a firm grip on it, Aikawa!
Okay!
Hey, pull harder!
Tamako, don't tell me you're getting blown away by the wind!
Hachiken, go help her!
Why me?
Damn it...
Crap!
I... I'm starving.
It's seven.
We totally won't make it to the dining hall in time.
Nice work!
You've been a huge help.
You guys must be starving!
Eat up!
Although, it's whatever we managed to find.
The pickles are from the gardening instructor.
The eggs are from me!
Let's eat!
Gimme the soy sauce!
Wait, wait.
Break the yolk, then pour it over!
C'mon, gimme!
Not yet. It tastes even better when you pour it on.
You already did.
Just three more drops...
It's all black now.
Nah, it needs even more.
Super tasty!
Damn you, anus...
Damn you!
Shut up!
I told you it's the cloaca.
Tokiwa, how can something so tasty come out of an anus?
Chickens are amazing.
I'm glad you think that... but kind of mad, too!
Amazing!
Ooezo Agricultural High School Dormitory for Future Agriculture Managers
Nishikawa Hajime Hachiken Yuugo Beppu Tarou
I'm beat.
I'm tired inside and out.
Oh, are you down for the count already?
Since you came all the way out here from a big city like Sapporo,
you must've wanted to come to this school, right?
Let's tough it out together till graduation.
Nishikawa, Beppu, what're you guys' goals?
My family has a farm, so I signed up
for agricultural sciences to carry on their business.
Our potatoes are awesome.
I signed up for food science because I want to make good food!
What's with this whole "you're a loser if you don't have a dream" vibe?
Huh? What was that?
Nothing.
Hey, it's bath time!
Hurry!
Why do we only get fifteen minutes each to wash up and change clothes?!
Is this a prison?
Here!
What else can they do? There're too many of us!
Hey, hurry up!
The next team's waiting!
That's too fast!
Give us a bit more time!
Shut up!
It'll cut into our free time!
Whatever, just wait!
Hey, don't come in!
I'm really exhausted...
This story is a work of fiction. The people and groups are fictitious, but the themes relating to food and life are firmly based in reality. Visiting the places and facilities used as models can be dangerous and may result it contracting diseases from the animals. Please enjoy this story as a work of fiction.