Wait, please!
I understand how you feel,
but guerrilla recruitment isn't allowed!
Huh? It's not?
Passionately Welcoming Earth Sciences Club New Members
Sorry.
We got a little ahead of ourselves.
For now, let's get you both back to the classroom.
Class 2-5
I'll get permission from the school.
Once we have that, we can all recruit as much as we want.
Okay!
I'll have to decorate this sign more in the meantime.
More?
Hey, hey!
Oh, Suzu-chan.
Huh?!
Making a spectacle of yourselves so early in the new school year, eh?
It was the talk of my class, too, so I got too embarrassed and came here.
Suzu-san, your hair!
What happened to it?
Oh, you haven't seen it, have you, Ino-senpai?
As of this spring, I've been reborn.
I'm Suzu Version 2!
It does look good on you, but it's awfully sudden.
She was growing it out all this time because she admired my sister.
Yeah.
But when I talked to Misa-nee,
she told me to treasure myself instead of admiring her.
As a result, business is booming at Suzuya thanks to Suzu-chan's upgraded look.
Jeez, I owe so much to Misa-nee.
You tend to make a spectacle of yourself, too, Suzu-san.
So what was that parade about earlier?
Starting this year, there are only three of us in the earth sciences club,
so I want to make sure our club will continue after we graduate.
Wow, you're actually sounding like a vice president.
Yeah.
Also, we'll be able to get more funding if we have more members.
Wow.
I-It's not like that!
We weren't hoping to buy an equatorial mount with the new members!
Oh?
All right, then, today we'll work out a plan for recruiting members.
Okay.
I-I'll do my best!
Excuse me.
Club Member Recruitment Plan
Oh, come on in.
I'd like to join the earth sciences club.
Same here.
Huh?
10. Rain With Occasional Fortune-Telling
We haven't formally started recruiting yet, and we already have people wanting to join?
I wonder if our parade this morning worked.
I'm a first-year, Nanami Yuu.
Same, Sakurai Chikage.
Sakurai?
S-Sakura-senpai's younger sister?!
Thank you for taking care of my older sister last year.
Now that I see you, you look just like her!
Nice to meet you, Ino-senpai.
S-Same!
Oh, I heard you participated in the Earth Science Olympiad!
I participated, too...
Yes, you were loud.
Mira-senpai, Ao-senpai. I hope we'll have a good year together, too.
Huh?
You know about us?
Yes.
You're both with the astronomy group, right?
You know a lot about our earth sciences club.
My sister often talked about all of you at home.
She said she had a lot of fun, and you were good club members.
Uh, so I assume you're hoping to join the geology group, Chikage-chan?
Yes. I fell in love with rocks thanks to my sister.
I also like power stones and fortune-telling.
Geomancy Fortune-Telling
That's reassuring!
I'm sure it'll be a big hit in our newsletter and at the cultural festival!
You're just as cute as my sister said you were.
Oh, uh, we should explain for you, Nanami-san.
We have two groups in our club: the geology group and the astronomy group.
I know.
I came to see you at the cultural festival last year.
You were here?
Did you have fun?
Yes.
But, frankly, I thought it was a bit lacking.
Yoo-hoo!
Megu said she wanted to look in on the earth sciences club,
so I brought her here...
Looks like things are awkward.
Oh. This is Suzu-san, a second-year,
and her younger sister, Megu-san.
They're not club members,
but they helped us make the sweets for the cultural festival.
Your sweets were the best!
Aw, what a sweet, honest girl.
Um, so about what you were saying... What was lacking?
Your displays for the cultural festival were all well-made,
and your sweets were both delicious and wonderful.
But...
As the earth sciences club, I think you should be more aware of issues.
Aware of issues?
What I want to pursue isn't geology or astronomy, but meteorology.
I want to approach our club activities with a sense of duty toward learning
more about weather and climate, in order to help others.
To help others, huh?
Nanami-san seems like a very responsible girl.
That's a new field and a new goal.
I wonder if our current earth sciences club
can help Nanami-san realize what she hopes to achieve.
Don't hold back. Eat up.
There's plenty more.
Thank you so much.
Here!
Thanks.
I'm starting to learn what you like, Ao!
Oh, that's right. You both got letters.
From the National Astronomical Observatory.
I hope we can discover an asteroid!
Shining Star Challenge
The problem is the required short essay.
Only seven people get to participate, after all.
We've been studying hard every day and gathering information,
so I'm sure we'll be fine.
Yeah.
My feelings about space and the stars, huh?
When I first met Ao, I wanted to learn more about the stars.
Once I joined the earth sciences club,
I learned about rocks and learned how fun it can be to share the stars with everyone.
That's it!
A barbecue?
Yeah!
I want our two first-years to have lots of fun experiences!
So I was thinking we should have a barbecue with everyone like we did last year.
That might be a good idea.
Let's talk to Ino-senpai and Endou-sensei about it.
Yeah!
I already put it in your schedule.
Of course...
Class 1-2
This weekend, we're having a barbecue to welcome our new members.
Let us know if there's anything you'd like to eat.
Sounds fun.
We'll collect rocks by the riverside
and observe the stars and moon while eating delicious food!
They're all so carefree.
I want to toast marshmallows
Uh...
She's actually surprisingly cute, huh?
Sparkle
White marshmallows, yellow marshmallows, pink marshmallows!
That sounds like a tongue twister.
Mira, I think you bought too many marshmallows.
I want to make Nanami-san happy!
Star Marshmallows
I guess she got that bag for herself.
That just leaves preparing the food.
Yeah!
It's been so long since we had a barbecue. I can't wait!
The weather report said it would just be cloudy!
Maybe we should postpone it.
But we already bought so much food...
Location change!
I'll meet you all at the station!
I called Suzu, too!
Sensei...
That's our barbecue magistrate!
See you later!
I see.
We won't have to worry about the rain here.
The weather was already like this when I woke up this morning.
I didn't want to reschedule, either,
so I quickly searched for places we could hold it in the rain.
Thank you again this year, Suzu-san.
No, no, don't worry about it.
Anyway, I'll leave the rest in your hands.
Wake me when the meat's done.
Huh?
I can't believe it's raining on our first event of the new school year.
It's fine.
I brought lots of tissues with me!
Oh! I get it!
You're so cute, Ino-senpai!
I'm sure it'll clear up if we make a bunch!
Let's make them together!
I think we should start getting the barbecue set up instead...
They're just as easygoing as my sister said.
You all seem used to this.
We did this last year and the year before.
Actually, this exchange feels sort of nostalgic...
If we'd hosted it at the riverside, we could have collected rocks and stargazed...
But we can't do either here.
I'm sorry, Nana-chan, Chika-chan.
Chika-chan?
Nana-chan?
The way she just gives everyone a nickname is nostalgic, too.
Something smells good.
What are you making?
You'll see.
The meat's so good.
Isn't it?
It's totally different when you eat it outside.
Though...
Looks like it's really pouring down now.
I think it'll stop in an hour or two, though.
Nana-chan, can you predict the weather?
Huh?
I'm good at predicting it with my shoe!
No, um...
I just looked at the forecast on my smartphone.
You'll get your shoe dirty.
Oh, right.
That was so good!
Nanami-san, you want to focus on meteorology,
which includes weather reporting, right?
Of course.
It includes everything related to weather.
The wind, clouds, atmosphere, even natural disasters.
Uh, you make it sound like you don't like it much.
Of course not. Not after my relatives suffered because of it.
Huh?
The truth is, three years ago...
My relatives' home suffered flood damage.
Fortunately, no one was injured,
but I never want to see my aunt make that face again.
That must have been terrible.
That's why I need to be able help other people.
Nanami-san...
You can have this.
It's blue lace agate,
also known as sky blue onyx.
It helps calm emotions and relax the spirit.
You shouldn't push yourself too hard.
I'm not really pushing myself.
What's that? Some kind of charm?
You have a wrinkle on your forehead.
Thanks, I suppose.
Meteorology is a field that's really close to home for you, huh?
Well, it's more helpful than geology or astronomy,
since it's used to predict the weather and prevent disasters.
Astronomy helps people, too,
by launching artificial satellites that improve our lives
and watching small astronomical bodies and debris to see if they'll hit Earth.
Geology can help in daily life, too.
Uh...
No examples are coming to mind right now!
It helps with predicting earthquakes and excavating oil and mineral resources.
Some stones have the power to make people happy, too.
That last one isn't exactly geology.
No.
All of our photos, videos, and letters were ruined by the mud.
Aunt...
I hate the rain.
I hate that filthy, foul-smelling mud, and I hate how useless I am.
I'm just doing what I have to do.
The rain finally let up, huh?
Making so many was worth it!
Hey, that's...
Look, Nana-chan! There's a rainbow!
Oh, a circumhorizontal arc!
Circumhorizontal?
In atmospheric optics, that's called a circumhorizontal arc, not a rainbow.
The light is refracting off of hexagonal ice crystals to create the rainbow colors.
It's a fairly rare phenomenon.
This is actually my first time seeing the real thing.
Wow, I see!
Hey, I know! Let's take a picture!
Yeah!
I want to put this in our newsletter!
You've studied an awful lot, Nanami.
Mira-chan, Ao-san, please line up over there!
Okay!
Here I go!
I have a goal. It's only natural.
Yay!
Yeah,
but I think studying for the sake of others is incredible.
I just wish you would cherish your own feelings a little more,
especially the part of you that finds it fun.
Your wrinkle's gone.
If we don't take the picture quickly, it'll disappear, Nanami-san.
They already gave me the nickname, so Nana's fine.
Let's go, then, Nana-chan.
Everyone!
The baumkuchen's ready!
Baumkuchen?!
Incredible!
It's perfect!
Let's eat!
This has great strata!
It's bent here, so it's a folded strata!
"Baum" means "tree," so aren't these age rings?
Nana-chan, that's rude.
I'm glad you're enjoying it!
By the way, what are these creepy-colored marshmallows?
Huh? I didn't buy any marshmallows that color.
Nana-chan, you burned them.
That was fun.
I need to prep for tomorrow, so I'll be taking off now.
Okay, thanks for today.
I just wish this weather had come sooner.
All right.
Why don't we try sticking it out a bit longer?
On days when the weather is nice, we practice using a telescope like this.
Go ahead.
The moon is pretty.
Right?
The one you see next to it is Jupiter.
What magnification are we seeing it at?
Oh, uh,
the lens barrel's focal length is 910 millimeters,
and the ocular lens is 15 millimeters thick, so, uh...
With this lens, the magnification is about 60x power.
I know. Let's adjust the angle.
Got it!
You can take pictures like this on your smartphone, too?
It's called a collimated photo.
It's hard if you're not familiar with it, but you're good at it, Nanami-san.
Nana's fine.
Speaking of which, you two, how are your short essays coming along?
Short essays?
Shining Star Challenge
The Shining Star Challenge?
The short essays are essentially the test to qualify for participation.
They're not done yet,
but we're polishing them up together every night.
Every night?
Are you delinquents, walking around late at night?
Ao-senpai is currently living away from her parents with Mira-senpai
so they can discover an asteroid together, right?
I heard it from my sister.
Away from her family...
It's not easy to take a bold step like that, is it?
What? What's the matter?!
Onee-chan...
What's that?
Earth fortune-telling.
It's called geomancy.
I just wanted to try reading their fortunes.
This is...
Isolation...
But they should take action and move forward.
Huh? No way. For real?
From: The National Astronomical Observatory To: Konohata Mira You have passed the written screening
I-I did it!
Ao!
I passed the written screening!
That's incredible!
Wow, congratulations!
That's truly worth celebrating!
I'm going to write an article about it as a scoop for the newspaper!
We'd love to accompany you there, as well,
but it's not in our club budget.
So, instead...
I compiled information about the special products of Ishigaki Island!
Buy these at Ishigaki Island!!
Use it as a reference when buying souvenirs!
Jeez, Senpai, you're getting too excited and out of control.
Sorry.
I didn't make it.
Huh?
U-Um...
They both look like they've lost their souls.
Only one passed? Chika's fortune was spot-on.
I-I'm sorry!
But cheer up! I'm sure there'll be another opportunity!
Senpai, you're not being very encouraging!
Senpai...
Mira! Ao!
What are you two sulking for?
Yoo-hoo! Long time no see!
Sakura-senpai? Monroe-senpai?
Senpai, what's wrong?!
It's just way more reassuring when our senpai are here.
Chikage told me about it.
You don't have any time to waste after clearing that major hurdle!
Yeah.
Besides, even if only one of you can go,
you can still share what you learn there with each other, right?
Onee-chan
We're still here to give advice if anything happens, too.
Right!
Thank you so much!
Later!
Oh, I forgot to tell Mira congratulations.
You haven't changed, Sakura-chan.
"While you may feel isolated,
the path before you leads to new stages.
Abandon your old values and go forth with faith in your intuition."
That's your fortune.
I hope it's helpful.
Endou-sensei said she'd be my chaperone.
That's a relief.
I know.
I'd probably get lost if I traveled... to Okinawa... all by myself...
Mira?
I wanted us to go together!
Mira!
You're not acting like yourself.
Like everyone already said, we have to move forward.
R-Right.
I'll try thinking about whether there's anything I can do.
Has Ao gotten stronger?
Well, I'm heading out.
Be careful.
We're looking forward to the results!
Also the souvenirs!
It's going to be lonely for us, too.
It's only for a few days, though.
I'll call you every day!
It's so hot!
Okay. First, we rent a car...
Mira!
Ao?!
I... I'm here!
Y-You're here? But...
Why?
What's going on?
11. Shining Star Challenge!
Next time, "Shining Star Challenge!"