See ya.
See you tomorrow.
We really have to go home now.
Let's call it a draw then.
That's not fair!
We were just about to win!
You guys should surrender.
Yeah! We were way better.
Surrender? What are you talking about?
We were better, right?
You don't even have the flag. Why on Earth would we surrender?
A draw, I'd say.
Satoru! Why are you siding with them now?
Rules, I tell you. Rules.
Gotta follow them.
Time's up when the sun goes down.
But it's still right there!
Only because we're up on a hill.
Let's go home, Maria-chan.
We have to go home once we hear Going Home...
We could go home right now if you surrender.
You guys...
Hey, referee!
Yeah?
Take this seriously.
The referee wasn't even paying attention.
Tell them it's a draw.
Come on.
You're right.
It's a draw.
Hey, Shun!
We're going home!
Wait for us!
We weren't done!
I'm going now! The Copycats will come.
Saki, let's go!
Can you see that?
See what?
A minoshiro.
Yeah.
So? What's so special about it?
A thousand years later Ibaraki Kamisu 66th District
UTW presents
FROM THE NEW WORLD
Season of Fresh Leaves
I am Mushin, the head priest of this ravaged temple.
I'm Watanabe Saki.
Um... Where... Where am I?
This temple is called the Temple of Purity.
Um, is this outside the Holy Barrier?
It is.
You have ventured outside the Holy Barrier for the first time in your life.
Now then, let us kindle cedar sticks for your passage to adulthood.
Let us burn away the last of your worldly desires.
Look at the flames.
Try controlling them.
I can't.
Fear not. You can.
Make the flames tremble.
Sway them from left to right.
Saki!
Everything is okay now!
What is this?!
A Spirit of Blessing.
It has come to you too!
This?
It means you're an adult now.
You've graduated from Harmony School!
You'll be in Sage Academy now!
I'm so happy!
We don't have to worry anymore!
Stop! That's enough!
The last worldly desire left within you is your Cantus itself.
Cast away your worldly attachments.
You must cast all of them into the purging flames to reach enlightenment.
Let us give the power that the heavens granted you back to the gods.
We shall seal your Cantus in this human emblem.
Control the emblem and make it stand.
Put all your feelings, everything, into this emblem.
Watanabe Saki!
Your Cantus has been sealed here!
All your worldly desires have been burned away, and the ash will return to the ravaged earth.
Your Cantus has been eradicated.
Look at the flames.
You can no longer control the flames.
You have shown great devotion and abandoned your Cantus.
Now I shall teach you a pure mantra, summon a new spirit and bestow Cantus upon you once more.
Mantra...
This is Watanabe Saki-san, your new classmate.
Watanabe Saki
We're all in Group I.
Mamoru's from Friendship School.
Hello.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you too!
Took you a while.
Sorry I took so long.
You bet!
We got tired of waiting.
I'm a late bloomer.
It's not like it's necessarily a good thing if the spirit comes to you quickly.
So you say, and still you're the last one.
Say what you want, but you sure took your time.
Oh come on, Satoru! You weren't much faster!
Wait, the last?
But the class that I left still has a lot of kids.
May you be cleansed within.
Well...
In Sage Academy, we practice our abilities on top of covering the normal subjects.
Did anyone tell you?
I'm top of the class in Surface Water Manipulation.
And you're a complete failure when it comes to Force Exchange.
The teacher said I should focus on the imaging part of it for the time being!
The Lotus Farms.
This place is similar.
To where?
Don't you remember? We went on a field trip in Harmony School.
Wow.
Hey, aren't those pouch cows?
You're right!
They've got pouches!
This place is similar?
What are you on about?
The atmosphere just reminded me of it.
No idea what you're talking about.
Hey, Saki.
Next period is Fiends and Karma Demons.
What? We still have that?
I don't like that subject.
Unlike back in Harmony School, we're reading the unabridged version!
Fiend
Very well, Akizuki-san will read today.
Yes, sir.
LOGIC
It was about five hundred years ago.
LOGIC
A young man was wandering the mountains, picking herbs.
LOGIC
Completely absorbed in his herb-picking, he reached the Holy Barrier.
He glanced outside the cordon and saw a large field of herbs.
He had been reminded many times by adults that crossing the Holy Barrier was forbidden.
If the need arose for whatever reason, he was supposed to be accompanied by an adult.
He saw a fiend coming for him.
He was about to lead the fiend back to his village.
If he followed the path to the village, the spirit would obliterate it.
What should he do?
"My life matters not."
"The fiend should never find the village."
And so, no fiend has ever found our village so far.
Fiend
Well done, thank you.
Now, everyone.
Go back to the first page and read...
Look at it carefully.
Picture the fine details too.
Try to see the artist's own mental projection.
Here.
That's amazing, Shun.
Here.
You're so fast!
I can beat that!
Here, Mamoru!
Okay.
Done. Here, Maria.
Okay, here I go.
All right! That's good work.
You're up last, Reiko.
Okay.
We're counting on you, Reiko.
I'll do my best.
I'm sorry!
Don't worry. Let's just try again.
I'm sorry.
I'm not going to lose to you.
You're mighty slow.
You're not much faster!
I'm not going to lose to you anyway, so don't worry.
You idiot. Racing amongst ourselves isn't going to earn us anything.
Look at Group V.
They work really well together.
Our ace is in perfect shape, though.
But well...
We also have people dragging us down.
We'll never win anything with Reiko here.
Reiko's a nice girl!
She's just a little below par today.
Are you stupid?
I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.
Oops, my bad.
I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
Hey, why didn't you invite Reiko?
I'm trying to be considerate here. Considerate.
You saw what happened today.
Walking home with us would only hurt her more.
But man, she was apologizing too much.
It was embarrassing.
Don't say that!
Well, that's how it is.
We're all pretty talented.
We've got Shun too.
Right, Shun?
I'm not that great.
You are.
It's always Reiko who screws up.
We're never going to win.
I know you all agree with me.
Hey, I heard there are people who never graduate from Harmony School and just disappear.
That's just a rumor, Saki.
But, I mean...
Doesn't it bother you?
I've heard something, but it's just a rumor.
Harmony School
The only time you can catch a glimpse of what's inside that door is when the teachers open it.
And there are lots of graves inside...
Lies.
That's scary.
Are you telling tall tales again?
Whose graves are those?
How would I know?
But there were, like, so many—
Why would they have to put up gravestones inside the school?
Are you stupid or something?
What's your problem? How am I supposed to know?
There weren't any graves.
You've seen what's inside, Shun?
Remember the time when the teacher had trouble collecting everyone's homework?
The independent observation one for science.
The teacher told me to gather it all and bring it to him, so I went into the administrative wing.
I could see the inner yard from there, but I only saw what looked like brick storerooms.
At any rate, they weren't gravestones.
See? I knew it was one of your tall tales.
I didn't make this up!
I know plenty of other scary stuff about Harmony School.
Yeah, yeah.
Scary, scary.
Hey, cut it out already!
What more is there?
Mamoru! I said I don't want to hear any more!
But...
There's another person who saw something scary in Harmony School.
A giant cat shadow.
You mean a Copycat?
It looks like the Copycats come to school a lot.
Why?
Isn't it obvious? They're after the students.
It was fall.
The time of year when they often wander about at sunset.
They sometimes go to your homes, but usually in the dead of the night—
Stop it!
Saki?
What's wrong?
Okay?
Graduating from Harmony School early doesn't mean you're better or anything.
It has nothing to do with the power or quality of your Cantus.
Did I tell you?
Your father and I took a long time too.
But you weren't the last ones, right?
Well... yes, but...
What if I don't graduate at all?
Is it true that a Copycat comes for you if you don't graduate?
Come on. There are no such things as Copycats.
You'll soon become an adult, so don't say that or people will laugh at you.
But I saw one.
Don't be silly!
You were imagining it.
I saw one.
Saki? Saki?
Are you okay?
Yeah.
Get a grip.
This story was real popular back in Harmony School.
Why would it scare you now?
Shut up! Shut up, Satoru!
What?
Why are you so mad?
What's wrong?
Nothing...
Well, we should head home now.
Yeah.
Not my problem if a Copycat finds you!
Have you seen one?
Of course not.
It would've eaten me if I had.
I thought they don't attack unless provoked?
I heard so too.
Who told you?
I don't remember.
See you!
Yeah, bye-bye!
See you!
Saki!
How's Sage Academy, Saki?
Interesting, I guess.
You guess?
Is it or is it not?
She only just started, so she wouldn't really know yet.
Yeah, it's so-so.
I'm so worried.
At this rate, you know—
Wait!
If you worry so much, you'll make her feel uneasy too.
What are classes like?
We made a pyramid with cards and drew some things in sand.
I see.
That's pretty much what we did back then.
Your father loved to play pranks.
He threw haythatcher eggs at the statue in front of the school.
Priest Mushin, who was the principal back then, gave him hell for it.
That was ages ago.
But at this rate...
Don't you think the Board of Education will act soon?
I don't know.
Trying to influence the Board from the library is really hard.
You're the Judge.
Couldn't you do something about it?
The Board is independent.
I can't investigate them with my authority.
Not to mention my opinions are moot since I'm Saki's father—
I don't want to lose any more of my children!
Quiet down!
But Saki said she saw a Tainted Cat!
Maybe she was imagining it!
What if she wasn't?!
Saki? Saki?
What's wrong?
The Spirit of Blessing came to you, you went to the Temple of Purity, and you've begun studying at Sage Academy.
I'm so relieved.
Relieved?
I don't want to lose any more of my children!
Relieved? What do you mean?
Isn't that obvious?
Our parents were worried too when the spirits were taking too long.
Listen, Saki.
We humans can use Cantus.
But it's a small, insignificant power.
That's why we have to treasure it.
For that reaso—
Thanks for the food.
A few days later, Amano Reiko vanished from the school.
Nakisou na aoringo kakaeteru mune no oku
泣きそうな 青リンゴ 抱えてる 胸の奥
In my chest, I carry a green apple that wets my eyes
Korogatte tsuyogatte
転がって 強がって
I fall over yet pretend to be strong
Kyuukutsu na sora niramu
窮屈な空睨む
I glower at the sky and it seems to suffocate me
Unmei ni juujun ni
運命に 従順に
Do I look like I'd wait quietly
Jukusu no wo matsu mon ka
熟すのを 待つもんか
For destiny to ripen it?
Sen no kaze
千の風
The winds
Agaite sakende
足掻いて 叫んで
I struggle and scream
Fuke fuke
吹け吹け
Blow and blow
Watashi wa shabondama
私はシャボン玉
I'm a soap bubble
Soredemo shinjiteru
それでも信じてる
And still I have faith
Yokisenu arashi ni
よきせぬ 嵐に
In a sudden storm
Joushou shite kakou shite
上昇して 下降して
I rise and fall
Aragau shabondama
抗うシャボン玉
I fight, soap bubble that I am
Soredemo ikiteku
それでも生きてく
And still I live on
Hajikeru shunkan niji hanate
はじける瞬間 虹放て
I make a rainbow when I burst
The boy mocked all things around him so as to glorify his own intellect.
Pride plants the seeds of bad karma.
Solitude brings the seeds of bad karma to fruit.