"I brought a donation for the shrine," Sayaka announced proudly as she approached, giving Yotsuba a playful high-five.
"You're here to make a wish too?" Yotsuba blinked in surprise.
"I'm a teenage girl, right in the middle of puberty! Of course I have a ton of worries," Sayaka said with a smug expression, puffing out her chest like she was proud of it.
"Really?" Yotsuba's tone dripped with skepticism.
It wasn't that she thought Sayaka was lying to her like some adult brushing off a kid, she just wasn't convinced Sayaka actually had anything to worry about.
"We're doing a ground purification ritual for the Nakamura family today."
"Sayaka's here to help, remember?" Mitsuha walked over, smiling as she gave her sister a gentle pat on the head.
"Hey! Your hands are dirty from cleaning! Don't touch my hair!" Yotsuba whined, stepping back dramatically.
Her twin pigtails bounced wildly with the motion.
"I wore gloves while cleaning, thank you very much." Mitsuha sighed.
'This little sister was so ungrateful.'
Maybe she should just let Sayaka take her off her hands.
"Wait a minute… Sayaka, you tricked me!"
Yotsuba's sharp brain caught on quickly.
She finally realized something was fishy.
Sayaka was dressed in sporty clothes perfect for working, just like Mitsuha.
She was the only one still in shorts and a T-shirt!
"That wasn't a lie! I did bring a donation," Sayaka said with a mischievous grin, pulling out a 500 yen coin.
She winked, then popped it into the offering box like a pro.
"Of course, today's real mission is to cheer Mitsuha on for her debut!" she added, heading back into the shrine building and expertly pulling on a pair of rubber gloves from the supply closet.
"You've changed, Sayaka…" Yotsuba's voice trembled with disappointment.
It felt like her best friend was drifting further and further away… into the adult world, full of lies and secrets.
"W-wait, it's not like that!" Sayaka panicked at the sight of Yotsuba's heartbreak, waving her hands frantically in denial.
Yotsuba ignored her.
She had to figure this out.
Why was Sayaka acting so different? Her little brain was running at full speed, so focused she even stopped wiping with her cloth.
Then, a memory popped into her head something she read in a women's magazine while waiting at the hair salon:
"If a woman in your life suddenly starts changing caring more about fashion, acting more grown-up, don't be surprised. She's probably in love."
Yotsuba's eyes snapped up, a sharp gleam in her brown gaze that startled Sayaka.
"W-what is it?" Sayaka asked nervously.
"Sayaka… You're in love, aren't you?!" Yotsuba declared, her voice full of confidence and childlike wisdom.
"Wha—?! No way! Of course not! Who would I even be in love with!?" Sayaka stammered, face turning red all the way from her ears to the tip of her nose.
Her twin braids bounced as if trying to deny the accusation with her.
"It has to be true!" Yotsuba pressed like a tiny detective delivering her final verdict.
"I said nooo~!" Sayaka groaned in protest.
"Pfft—" A sudden giggle interrupted their showdown.
The two girls turned.
Mitsuha, who had been quiet for a while, was now covering her mouth with one hand, her shoulders shaking.
"Don't mind me... Hahaha!" she said, completely failing to hold back her laughter.
Their serious little drama instantly dissolved, and the shrine was soon filled with the sound of cheerful laughter echoing through the halls.
Once the cleaning was finished, the trio headed back to the Miyamizu family's main house.
A small delivery truck was parked out front, and a few men with white towels wrapped around their heads were carrying items out of the house.
"Good morning, Grandma!" the three girls chimed in unison.
"Morning, Mitsuha-san," one of the movers paused and greeted her politely.
Mitsuha, ever composed, folded her hands in front of her and gave a small, respectful nod in return.
She'd learned that the more polite and formal she acted, the happier the townspeople seemed.
Sure enough, when Mitsuha acknowledged them, the two workers lit up as if they'd just been blessed by the gods.
They picked up the pace, hauling their cargo with extra energy.
Mitsuha recognized them, employees from the Teshigawara construction company.
One wasn't even from Itomori, but even he treated her like a living shrine maiden.
She used to think she'd gotten used to the way the town viewed her and the Miyamizu Shrine.
But the deeper she understood their belief, the more it scared her.
The way they focused their worship not on the gods, but on her, was suffocating.
She thought she was ready to inherit the shrine, but the pressure made her doubt.
"I'll go start breakfast," Mitsuha said.
Even though she was dressed in workout clothes, she still kept a composed posture in front of outsiders.
"Teshigawara's already cooking," her grandmother, Miyamizu Hitoha, said with a satisfied smile.
'Wait—his full name is Teshigawara Katsuhiko? Not just Teshigawara?'
"Ugh, that guy again?" Yotsuba groaned.
'Why does he keep showing up and clinging to Sayaka like that?!'
"Hey now, don't be mean," Mitsuha chuckled, giving her sister a pat.
'This kid really does see the world in pure black and white...'
"I'll help with the cooking," she added, smiling as she led the girls into the living room.
Meanwhile, their grandmother stayed outside to supervise the careful loading of ceremonial tools onto the truck for the ritual.
Each item had to be placed just right to avoid damage.
"Teshigawara."
Mitsuha stopped at the kitchen doorway.
But before she could say anything, Sayaka beat her to it marching forward and patting Teshigawara on the shoulder.
"Done cleaning the shrine?" he asked, not turning around.
He finished plating the stir-fry and turned off the gas before finally facing them.
"Yeah, though by the time I got up there, Mitsuha and Yotsuba had already done most of it," Sayaka said, leaning forward to peek at his cooking.
"Really? Just stir-fried greens?" she said with a disappointed look.
"You little freeloader! If you're not gonna help, at least don't complain about the food!" Teshigawara growled.
He turned away, untying his apron to hand the kitchen back to its rightful boss.
"All yours, Mitsuha."
The old-style kitchen was already cramped with four people in it, so Teshigawara gently tugged Sayaka aside, clearing the way for the Miyamizu sisters to take over.
"Thanks for your help. You and Sayaka should take a break and have some tea," Mitsuha said with a smile, watching the two friends who seemed to have grown even closer.
As the pair walked off bickering playfully, Yotsuba had already dragged a small stool from the corner of the kitchen and stood on it.
With her height, it was the only way she could comfortably use the sink.
Mitsuha pulled a few potatoes from the pantry and placed them in the sink.
The sisters began washing them side by side.
Once clean, the tall and short duo each grabbed a peeler and started peeling.
Mitsuha glanced sideways at her little sister, who was concentrating hard, and couldn't help but smile proudly to herself.
'Mom, can you see this? I figured out a way for even a kid to safely peel potatoes. It's better than the way you taught me.'
She remembered doing this with her mother once, standing side by side at the sink, peeling potatoes—not with a peeler, but with a kitchen knife.
Back then, her mother, already seriously ill, seemed to know her time was running short.
She did everything she could to pass on the skills her daughter would need, hoping Mitsuha would one day pass them on to Yotsuba.
"Knives are dangerous, so be careful. If you feel even a little uneasy, just let go right away." Her mother's voice was soft, no, not just soft, Mitsuha realized.
It was sweet. Adorably sweet.
———————————————————————
After breakfast, Mitsuha quickly washed up and returned to her room.
She changed into her miko (shrine maiden) outfit and stood in front of the mirror, raising a fist to cheer herself on.
Since her father left the family, all the shrine rituals had been performed by her grandmother, the current shrine head.
But this time, it was Mitsuha's responsibility alone, a request from the Nakamura family, and something her grandmother had approved.
"You're now a true miko of the Miyamizu family," her grandmother had said.
'Am I really?' Mitsuha wondered.
'Have I truly become the kind of daughter my mother was? Am I the shrine maiden now—or is that still Kyousuke?'
Standing before the full-length mirror, Mitsuha barely recognized the beautiful young woman staring back.
Gently touching her braids and her cheeks, she still couldn't quite believe it—she really was starting to look like her mother.
'Too bad that idiot Kyousuke can't even wear a miko outfit, or braid hair, or do makeup...'
'There's no way he could appreciate how I look right now, she thought with a touch of regret.'
When Mitsuha walked into the living room, Teshigawara was wearing a traditional-style shoulder pack, filled with ceremonial items that couldn't be placed in the truck.
Sayaka stood beside him empty-handed.
Yotsuba, meanwhile, hadn't changed into a shrine outfit, she wasn't trained or qualified to participate in the ritual.
"Yotsuba, you—"
Sayaka gasped and covered her mouth.
She stared at her friend, momentarily struck. She'd seen Mitsuha in miko attire many times before, but this time felt different.
From the moment Mitsuha stepped into the room, the atmosphere shifted, suddenly solemn, reverent.
That's why Sayaka instinctively covered her mouth, not wanting to break the mood with an exclamation.
"Mitsuha... you look just like Auntie Futaba," Teshigawara said quietly, a hint of awe in his voice.
What he really wanted to say was: 'You look like a god has descended into your body.'
Mitsuha resisted the urge to laugh smugly.
Instead, she pressed her red-tinted lips into a modest smile and humbly replied, "I'm still not quite on the same level as my mother."
"Aaah, come on! I wanna represent the Miyamizu Shrine in a ritual too!" Yotsuba's sudden loud voice shattered the atmosphere.
She scrunched up her face and stared at her stunning older sister with envy.
As Mitsuha rolled her eyes and mentally scolded her dumb little sister, both Sayaka and Teshigawara burst into laughter, any lingering sense of awe now replaced with warmth and familiarity.
Teshigawara even reached out to pat Yotsuba's head, but she swatted him away.
He just grinned and said reassuringly, "You'll be just as beautiful as your sister and Aunt Futaba one day, Yotsuba."
"…I can't believe you just said something that didn't make me mad," Yotsuba said, looking stunned.
Ignoring the lighthearted squabble, Mitsuha took a deep breath and composed herself, ready to leave for the site of the ritual.
"Wait—Grandma, are you coming too?" she asked, surprised to see her grandmother dressed in a formal kimono.
"Heh, of course. How could I miss the Miyamizu family's next head priestess conducting her first solo ceremony?" Grandma Hitoha replied, her eyes crinkling with pride behind her glasses.
Her kimono was immaculate no wrinkles in sight.
"Hehe…" Mitsuha giggled awkwardly, her nervous heart now just a bit steadier.
"But that means… we don't have enough room in the truck," Mitsuha realized quickly.
The little utility truck from "Teshigawara Construction" had only four seats.
Teshigawara would ride in front, with Mitsuha, Sayaka, and Yotsuba in the back.
But now with her grandmother too, they were one seat short.
"Don't worry," Grandma said, still smiling. "I've already asked someone in town to help drive us."
That's when Mitsuha remembered:
Kyousuke wasn't the only one with connections.
Not long ago, the word of the Miyamizu shrine maiden was treated as divine command in Itomori.
The family wasn't just respected, they were practically local nobility.
Peeking outside, she saw a sleek black Infiniti sedan parked in front.
Next to it stood Manaka Minami's boyfriend the same guy Kyousuke had knocked out cold not long ago.
He still had a bandage across his nose.
When he spotted Mitsuha, he immediately flashed an awkward, ingratiating smile.
"A few days ago, his father came by to apologize."
"You were busy hearing confessions from the townspeople at the time, so I didn't tell you," her grandmother explained, standing beside her.
"But when they heard the shrine needed a car today, their family volunteered right away."
Her voice was laced with a strange mix of nostalgia and pride.
The wrinkles on her face deepened with her smile.
'Kyousuke should be grateful he got to use this body,' Mitsuha thought smugly.
In the end, Teshigawara rode in the utility truck, Sayaka sat in the front seat of the sedan, and the three Miyamizus took the back seats together.
———————————————————————
Even though they were traveling by car, the construction site for the ceremony was only a few kilometers from the shrine.
Before they even arrived, Miyamizu Mitsuha spotted a group of people waiting by the roadside.
"Priestess, I didn't expect you to come in person," said Nakamura Heihachi as he hurried forward to help Miyamizu Hitoha out of the vehicle.
"It's Heihachi, isn't it? So it's finally your turn to build a house," Hitoha said casually, placing a hand on his arm with ease.
"Yes, it is. When my grandfather built his house, you were the one who performed the ground-breaking ritual," Heihachi replied respectfully.
Meanwhile, Mitsuha and Yotsuba got out of the car from the other side.
Now that they'd arrived at the actual site, Mitsuha found herself unexpectedly nervous.
"Mitsuha-san, we're counting on you today," Nakamura Heihachi said, helping Hitoha walk toward the vacant lot where the house would be built.
He didn't forget to bow respectfully to Mitsuha on the way.
"Please leave it to me." The shrine maiden offered a composed smile, her confidence now firmly in place.
"Mitsuha, look—it's Nakamura," Sayaka whispered as she approached.
Following Sayaka's gaze, Mitsuha spotted her right away, the last member of the local "fashion trio." Of course.
The Nakamura family.
That meant this was the same Miyamoto Nakamura who had gotten a stern lesson from Kyousuke during that infamous art class incident.
Mitsuha hadn't expected today would bring her here, riding in the same car as Minami Manaka's boyfriend, to conduct a ritual for Nakamura's house.
"Hello, Mitsuha-san." Standing awkwardly by the road with her arms crossed, Nakamura gave a polite, if stiff, greeting.
"Hello, Nakamura." Mitsuha lifted her chin slightly, her elegant jawline perfectly outlined as she responded calmly and walked past.
'God, that felt amazing.' Her nerves vanished in a puff of smug satisfaction.
The basics of the ceremonial area were already set up. Teshigawara was unloading supplies from the truck with a few workers, arranging everything in its proper place.
So, what exactly is a jichinsai?
In Japan, it's an ancient ritual held before construction begins a ceremony to purify the ground and pray for the safety of the workers and the success of the building.
It's typically led by a Shinto priest on an auspicious date, involving offerings of sake, salt, rice, water, and a special symbolic gift called tamagushiryo.
These are presented to the gods to inform them that work is about to begin.
Even today, not just in small towns like Itomori, but in big real estate companies and government projects across Japan, including nuclear research facilities they still conduct this ritual with great care.
A kind of divine insurance policy, you could say science in one hand, and spirituality in the other.
In Itomori, where "musubi," or the spiritual connection to the land, is especially important, the ceremony also serves as a way to communicate with the kami.
The spirits of the land.
Only when harmony exists between the spirit world and the physical one can the people living there hope for happiness and peace.
Once everything was ready, Mitsuha led the procession, with the Nakamura family following close behind.
'Purification of body and mind. Invocation of the land spirit. Offerings of sake, salt, and rice. Recitation of prayers…'
Just as her grandmother had taught her, Mitsuha conducted every step with perfect care.
Meanwhile, in another part of town, someone else was also living their life with quiet dedication.
In the days she didn't see Kyousuke-kun, Yukino Yukari continued teaching as usual.
Gradually, she rediscovered the passion that had made her want to become a teacher in the first place.
Yes, it was because of Hinako-sensei that she had chosen this path to help others who were once just like her.
Although the first student she ever wanted to "save" was Mitsuha, the one who ended up saving her instead Yukino had finally found joy in being a teacher.
After class, she'd tell her students stories about Tokyo, about universities, tall buildings, bustling streets, nonstop subways, and neon lights that stayed on all night.
Seeing the wonder in their eyes filled her with purpose. Even her lunches tasted sweeter.
Yes even without Kyousuke-kun around, she still made lunch for two.
Just in case.
There was always an extra portion in the kitchen, ready to serve him if he ever came by.
It was filled with dishes she'd practiced over and over.
Life was slowly getting better.
Her only concern?
Lately, despite her initial isolation, some male teachers had started asking her out to nearby places like Gifu, for example.
'It was probably thanks to Kyousuke-kun,' Yukino thought.
She'd noticed it herself: her complexion had improved.
Her skin, once pale and almost transparent, now had a healthy pink flush, like cherry blossoms in bloom.
Although she declined the invitations, Yukino still visited a nearby town on her day off.
She remembered Kyousuke-kun mentioning he wanted some coffee beans.
So she searched every store until she found the best blend she could, and placed it carefully in the kitchen cabinet.
When the café was finished, they could enjoy it together.
On days off, she'd tend to the land beside the house, slowly pulling up weeds.
Just like today after watering the apple tree, she felt her energy completely drained.
She slipped off her shoes and climbed up onto the porch, leaning back against the sliding doors.
She took off her socks too, there was no more work to be done.
Wiggling her toes playfully, she felt her fatigue melt away with the release of pressure.
A breeze from the mountains swept through the open windows and doors of the tatami room.
It flowed freely across the wooden floor, carrying with it a soothing chill.
Yukino felt the coolness envelop her.
The wind slipped beneath her sleeves and across her slightly damp skin, giving her goosebumps.
A soft sigh escaped her lips from the sudden sensation.
Her stretched legs instinctively curled in slightly.
Her small, pale feet arched delicately, and the faint blue veins beneath her skin stood out clearly in the sunlight.
A beautiful woman in a loose T-shirt and shorts, barefoot on a sunlit porch—it was a scene straight out of a painting.
Sadly, there was no one there to admire it.
The only witness was Yukino Yukari herself.
But her thoughts weren't on her appearance they were on the apple tree swaying gently in the breeze.
As Yukino gazed at the delicate branches and leaves of the apple tree swaying gently in the breeze, her thoughts drifted along with them.
A poem surfaced in her mind:
God gave the earth, the water, and the sun.
The earth, water, and sun gave life to the apple tree.
The apple tree bore its crimson fruit.
You gave me that apple—
And with it, unknowingly,
You gave me the sweetest part of your soul.
The moment that poem echoed in her thoughts, Yukino was so startled she blushed furiously, not daring to recall the rest of the verses.
As a classical literature teacher, she instinctively interpreted the lines in her own way.
Maybe—just maybe—the apple tree Kyousuke-kun had planted was imbued with a piece of his divine spirit.
Closing her eyes, the noise of the world seemed to fade away.
All she could hear was the rustling of the apple tree's leaves, soft and constant.
It sounded like Kyousuke-kun's hand gently brushing her hair.
So warm.
So tender.
Wrapped in that warmth, a sudden thought broke into her mind like a stone tossed into a still pond, causing her soft, willow-like brows to furrow ever so slightly.