This is my village.
It's a quiet, peaceful place.
But... sometimes I think...
Do I actually...
Ren-chon!
...live in the country?
sakana ni natte sora wa umi
魚になって空は海
We become fish and the sky is the sea
tonderu you ni oyoideru
飛んでるように泳いでる
Where we swim like we were flying
ano yama wo hitotsu koetara miete kuru
あの山をヒトツ越えたら見えてくる
You can see if you just pass over the mountains
massugu ni nobita azemichi ni
真っ直ぐに伸びたあぜ道に
On a footpath stretching between the rice fields
dareka no chiccha na wasuremono
だれかの小っちゃな忘れ物
Somebody has forgotten something:
katappo ni natta kutsu ga shimesu wa hare
片っぽになったクツが示すは晴れ
The lone shoe means fine weather
yuruyaka ni tsuzuiteku hibi wa kotae nado nai
ゆるやかに続いてく日々は答えなどない
There's no answer in the laid-back days we spend
kisetsu ga mizu wo somete nanairo ni hikaru yo
季節が水を染めて七色に光るよ
The season colours the water, shining in many colours,
ikitsugi shitara kieta
息継ぎしたら消えた
Disappearing when we have a breather
taema naku furisosoideru waraigoe ga tooku de
絶え間なく降り注いでる笑い声が遠くで
The laughter which surrounds us without a pause
utau you ni hibiiteru
歌うように響いてる
Echoes far away like a song
Episode 1
A New Transfer Student Came
Mornin'!
Say again?
Meowning.
I still don't get it.
What's that mean?
Meow... ning!
Meowning...
Is Koma-chan coming?
She left earlier.
Such a nice day, and we have to go to school...
I'm still a bright, shiny first grader, so I think it's fun.
That won't last long.
School life is tough, you know.
What with homework, tests, homework...
We had miso soup with horsetail shoots this morning.
We had egg soup with horsetail shoots and onions.
Run, Ren-chon!
Renge! Natsumi!
Nee-chan!
Nattsun, did you see the news today?
No, I was in a hurry.
I didn't, either.
Too bad.
Today's news was exciting.
Did something happen?
There was an old guy doing radio callisthenics outside the window behind the host.
It was really cool.
Why did that make you excited?
Asahigaoka
Branch
School
It's still kinda chilly.
The classroom feels different than yesterday.
How so?
Mornin'.
Take your seats.
Um...
Can you introduce yourself?
Ichijou...
Ichijou Hotaru
U-Um... I'm Ichijou Hotaru.
I moved here from Tokyo.
Wow!
From Tokyo?!
That says "Hotaru"?
I never saw that character before.
What grade?
Fifth.
Younger?
She's younger than me?!
She doesn't look like a fifth grader.
Did you get into trouble at your old school?
No, it's because of my dad's work.
Oh, well, that sounds normal.
Meowning!
M-Meow...
Have a seat.
Okay.
Oh, that's it.
There's an extra seat.
You just noticed?
Nice to meet you, Hotarun.
Hotarun...
What's first period again?
Japanese.
Complete Training Guide
Grade 7 Japanese
Review Drills
Complete Training Guide
Grade 8 Japanese
Review Drills
Japanese Drills
by Repetition
Oh, everyone's in a different year?
I'm in first grade.
I'm in eighth.
I'm in seventh.
And Nii-chan here is in ninth.
But you're all in the same classroom?
Yeah.
All different classes, too?
What do you mean, different classes?
This is the only class.
There are only four students in the whole school?
Five, now that you're here.
Since we're all in different grades,
we mostly just study on our own.
On your own?
Didn't you get a workbook?
Oh, I did...
Grade 8 Class 1
+ Grade 1 + Grade 7
+ Grade 9
Well, what should we do?
I think...
Dodge ball!
I'm good at dodge ball!
Dodge ball, huh?
Um...
I wondered when I was on my way to the classroom, too...
What are those buckets for?
Oh, they're just to catch leaks.
So try not to get too close to them.
I see.
It'd be a pain if a bucket got moved and we couldn't tell where the leak was.
No, that's not why.
The floor around them is rotten from the moisture.
If you get too close, you'll fall through.
What?!
I'm just kidding.
No idiot has ever fallen through the floor before.
We're just supposed to be careful.
I see...
Here it comes!
Take that!
Damn it!
Huh?
Hotarun!
Hotarun's out.
I shouldn't have tried to catch it...
There's a key on the ground.
Oh, that's mine.
A key?
To what?
What's up?
No one in my family will be home until tonight,
so I brought a house key.
Ren-chon, do you lock your house door?
No.
Nee-chan, ours don't lock either, do they?
I've never even seen a lock.
Me, either...
You're unusual.
Then, what should I use my key for?
Filleting mackerel?
Finally done!
Let's head home.
Hotarun!
Want to come to my house?
You don't want to?
Oh, sure.
Just for a little while.
Those are tangerine trees.
The new blossoms are just coming out.
You grow tangerines here?
Also rice and vegetables, mainly.
Oh, and leaves.
Leaves?
The kind you garnish food with.
Um, do you have any stores?
There's a co-op and a candy store.
Um, any others?
The police box?
That's not a store.
Is there a bookstore?
The candy store sells magazines.
They come in two days late, though.
So... no convenience stores, either?
I've seen commercials about them!
Cattle Crossing
Cattle?
And sometimes deer.
And boars.
What's wrong?
I was just thinking it's nothing like Tokyo...
Guess it's still too early to put the kotatsu away.
You noticed the door wasn't locked, right?
Yes.
My mum and dad are out in the fields today.
Nee-chan, grab that for me.
Can't you get it yourself?
Here.
Thanks.
What's this about, Ren-chon?
I'm gonna show Hotarun my special talent!
No sound's coming out.
Still no sound coming out...
Whoa, something came out!
A tanuki!
You have a pet tanuki?
And the tanuki actually heard that?
I gave it a name, too.
What kind of name?
Gu's
Dish
Gu!
Oh! A psychedelic name!
And if I whistle again, Gu will do a trick!
Seriously?!
It made a sound this time!
What's Gu gonna do?!
Ren-chon!
Morning!
Ren-chon?
Nattsun...
Do we live in the country?
Where's this coming from?
Hotarun was really surprised.
Having all different grades in one classroom, and the tanuki...
Nee-nee told me that if you drive a car at fifty kilometres per hour,
you'll get to a place fifty kilometres away in one hour,
and that's really amazing.
I see.
Just so you know, if you drive fifty kilometres per hour,
you can't get to a place fifty kilometres away in one hour because of traffic lights.
Yeah... I knew that.
But even in Tokyo,
I'm sure there are places with combined elementary and middle schools,
even if they're not in the same room.
And there are no traffic lights on the highway.
It doesn't mean we live in the country.
Hotarun, hello!
Morning!
Meowning.
Good morning.
Ren-chon?
But a tanuki lives at my house, so I think we're in the country...
You're still talking about that?
What were you talking about?
Whether we live in the country or not.
Is this really the country?
If you think about it logically...
Nah, just because we live here, that doesn't mean it's the country.
You already sound like a country girl.
But even in Tokyo, monkeys randomly show up.
So just because a tanuki shows up,
it doesn't mean this is the country, right?
Right?
Ah...
You really don't want this to be the country, do you?
If living in the country means it's so inconvenient you can't do anything,
just having cattle and tanuki doesn't make anything inconvenient, right?
So this isn't the country.
I get it!
So, this isn't the country...
I think I feel better.
Glad to hear it!
What a good girl you are.
Let's eat!
This was made with the wild plants we picked today.
Horsetail shoots, wild udo, and tara sprouts.
It's good!
It sort of tastes like spring!
Hotarun, save your sakura mochi dessert.
How far are we going?
We're almost there.
Hotarun!
Good, isn't it?
Yes, delicious!
We'll bring you here again.
Grade 8 Class 1
+ Grade 1 + Grade 7
+ Grade 9 + Grade 5
Wait!
We took it too slow...
By the way, when does the next bus come?
In two hours.
What?!
Man, buses in the country are so inconvenient.
I knew it!
That's all for today
taiyou ga shizumisouna non
太陽が沈みそうなのん
The sun seems to feel down
sunda kawa nozoite
澄んだ川 覗いて
Peeking into the clear river,
chiisana sakana mitsuketa
小さな魚みつけた
We found a little fish
namae mo shiranai hana wo tsunde
名前も知らない花を摘んで
Picking flowers which we don't even know the name of,
choppiri
ちょっぴり
Just a little bit,
mizu no nioi
水の匂い
It smells like water
a, arette hakubishin?
あ、あれってハクビシン?
Hey, is that a civet?
tanuki nanon
タヌキなのんっ
It's a raccoon dog!
araiguma desho
アライグマでしょ
I think it's a raccoon
itachi desu yo
イタチですよ
No, it's a weasel
doubutsu ni eshaku suru odanhodou
動物に会釈する横断歩道
We greet animals at the pedestrian crossing
sora to jimen wa to oku hito to hito wa chikaku
空と地面は遠く 人と人は近く
The sky and the earth are far apart, but people are close to each other
hosoi suiro wo hasande
細い水路を 挟んで
Right on the other side of a narrow ditch
mushi no koe karutetto
虫の声カルテット
There's an orchestra of bug sounds
mainichi ga jiyuukenkyuu hiraketa shikai de
毎日が自由研究 ひらけた視界で
Every day we're doing a research project in our widening horizons
doko wo mite mo
どこをみても
Wherever we look
azayaka na midori moyou
鮮やかな緑模様
There are vivid green patterns
nonbiri to utau kara nonki na kaze ga fuita
のんびりと歌うから のんきな風が吹いた
As we sing in a carefree manner, a carefree wind blowing blew for us
Anyone want to go play ball?
I do!
Besides, that pudding was mine!
One bite of pudding is the same size as a piece of candy!
A candy store with Senpai...
10,000 yen?!
Episode 2
We Went to the Candy Store
Please Watch Again