This is the 17th Chapter of The Summer Hikaru Died manga series, written and illustrated by Mokumokuren.
Synopsis[]
"Hikaru" and Yoshiki begin their investigation into the true nature of the false "Hikaru." On a visit to the library, they make an ominous discovery...[1]
Plot[]
Yoshiki puts "Hikaru"'s soiled shirt into the sink with water and women's blood stain remover. Yoshiki washes up the shirt and then asks what happened to "Hikaru"'s wound. "Hikaru" explains that he self-heals when he gets an injury that would restrict his movement, but usually doesn't bother when it's a small injury. Yoshiki then shows him the note he found in Hikaru's home[2] and asks if he knows anything about Nounuki-sama, which Old Lady Matsuura had also mentioned.[3] "Hikaru"'s memory about the note is hazy, but he assumes that he must be Nounuki-sama, or "the Great Brain-snatcher."
They go to the Indou family home to look for relevant clues in Hikaru's room, but they can't find anything. Grandfather Indou returns home from harvesting at the mushroom farm, so they decide to ask him. As they approach him, "Hikaru" discloses to Yoshiki that his grandfather is getting older and showing symptoms of mental decline. They pass him the note. He reads the word "hichi" and then asks "Hikaru" where Hichi-san went. He mumbles that they have to return Hichi-san to the mountains, and not to the temple. When "Hikaru" asks, he confirms Hichi is a person. He calls Hichi pitiful and says that "if only Unuki-san wasn't asked to do something like that, this village..." He trails off, mumbling that this village's karma runs deep. He appears to fall asleep, then snaps back awake. He notices Yoshiki and greets him cheerfully, then walks off.
The boys then sit in the living room and discuss what they know so far. Yoshiki suggests that there might be some sort of generational ritual about returning something to the mountains, and this might be the reason why Hikaru went into the mountains in the first place.
"Hikaru" then remembers something he saw online, so he pulls it up on his phone and shows it to Yoshiki. It's a forum thread about disturbing place names. One poster talks about Mount Hope (Kibogayama) and its surrounding villages that all have body parts in their names: Kubitachi (首 kubi = head/neck), Udekari (腕 ude = arm), and Ashidori (足 ashi = leg). It is said that places with "hope" in their name are ominous and unsettling. Reading this, the boys decide to go to the library the following day to look into Kubitachi's history, in the hopes of finding out more about this village's "karma."
After school, Yoshiki is approached by Asako, who asks if he's feeling alright since he went home nauseous the other day.[4] Yoshiki assures her that he's fine, but she confesses that since that day she's had a hard time hearing out of her right ear, and the hospital can't find a reason for it. She says that "Hikaru" really wasn't like himself that day, and she wonders if it's really because "Hikaru" is possessed. Yoshiki asks her not to hate him too much if that's the case, but when she questions him, he says he's just joking. Before running off, Asako says that she'll help him out if there's ever anything troubling him.
When Yoshiki mentions it, "Hikaru" confirms that it's because he meddled with her head that Asako can't hear on one side. Typically when he does this, humans start hallucinating and die on their own, but Asako had a strong mind and survived with just hearing loss.
They go to the library and find a map book dating back to the early Meiji era. They find that the area had different names: Darumasute and Udeiri (names no longer existing), Udekari and Ashidori (which have remained the same until the modern day). They arrange the maps and find that the towns can be assembled into a human-like figure.
They're then approached by a librarian who asks if they're working on an assignment. Yoshiki nervously lies and says that it's a project for school to research their hometown, Kubitachi. The librarian says she's from the same area, but she hasn't gone back recently and that her mother has recently passed away. They look at her name tag and realize that this librarian is named Matsuura, and is likely the daughter of Old Lady Matsuura.
Character Appearances[]
- "Hikaru"
- Tsujinaka Yoshiki
- Tsujinaka Satoko (mentioned)
- Indou Hikaru (mentioned)
- Old Lady Matsuura (mentioned)
- Grandfather Indou
- Indou Hichi (mentioned)
- Indou Ancestor (mentioned)
- Indou Yuki (mentioned)
- Indou Kouhei (mentioned)
- Yamagishi Asako
- Matsuura
Gallery[]
-17.png "Assembled map (Kubitachi)-17.png (1.37 MB)")
References
- ↑ Yen Press: The Summer Hikaru Died, Chapter 17
- ↑ Chapter 14 (Vol. 3)
- ↑ Chapter 2 (Vol. 1)
- ↑ Chapter 16 (Vol. 3)
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