Title: 千夏のうた (Chinatsu's Voice) Vol. 1
Artist/Author: きたがわ翔 (Sho Kitagawa)
Book Size/Pages: B-6, 227pp., w/o furigana
Original Serialization: Weekly Young Jump Vol 10, 04 - Vol 19, 04
First Printing: 6/23/04
Rating: 4/4

Another find I did while looking at the new releases in the bookstore. This Fuyuki's flashback of the summer, 10 years ago when he met Chinatsu. It's more of a "daily life" story with a girl and her mesmerizing voice than something more supernatural. The plot's been flowing very well so far. I'm surprised something so "innocent" would end up in a Young comic.

The first few pages with the older Fuyuki are in color.

1. 蝶々 (Butterfly): A story from the summer, 10 years ago. 稲葉千夏 (Chinatsu Inaba) has just moved into this rustic town with her grandmother who tells her that this is where her mom had grew up. She explores the new town and finds (岩泉冬紀) Fuyuki Iwaizumi on the shore eating oysters. When they get caught, they both run off in the woods. At first Fuyuki wants to get rid of this incessant guest who wants to follow him, but his attempt causes Chinatsu to fall off a small cliff and sprain her ankle. As he's carrying her home, they see some butterflies and Chinatsu starts singing. Her song attracts the butterflies and Fuyuki is stunned at how powerful her voice is. They go home where Chinatsu's grandma tells her about Fuyuki and how he's younger by a year (unfortunately). In bed, Fuyuki can't stop thinking about the song he heard.

2. 秘密の庭 (Secret Garden): Fuyuki goes to school and arranges to attend school after summer vacation. Instead of going home, she wanders around school. She climbs a tree and spots Fuyuki in class and later goes into the woods in back. After class, Fuyuki comes looking for her and gets accosted by a few bullies. As they're about to pummel him, they hear Chinatsu singing and her song pacifies them.

3. ムクゲの花 (Rose of Sharon): Fuyuki and Chinatsu find a stray puppy in the woods. Fuyuki goes home to get some food for it. Chinatsu then spots another dog who she thinks may be the parent and chases after it. She comes across a patch of flowers to which she finds out belongs to the old man who lives in the bomb shelter. It marks the place where his 10 year old younger brother died in the war. Fuyuki comes back to find that the bullies have the puppy in a plastic bag and are playing with it.

4. 仔犬 (Puppy): One of them drops the bag and Chinatsu tackles the other, making him bleed from the head. After they run off, Fuyuki and Chinatsu find that the puppy has stopped breathing.

5. 小さな命 (Small Life): Chinatsu tries singing and that brings it back to life. At Fuyuki's place, the father of the injured child comes trying to place blame on Fuyuki, but Chinatsu and the old man come to his defense. Chinatsu apologizes and chases after the old man.

6. おじいさんの空 (The Old Man's Sky): They spend the day in the woods first playing around and then doing some cloud watching.

7. 嵐の予感 (Premonition of a Storm): Chinatsu helps replant some of the old man's flowers, but finds out that he has a cataract and can't see. She apologizes profusely. The old man in turn, gives her a gift, a wood-carved fish. He senses the wind picking up.

8. 贈り物作戦 (The Plan for the Gift): They go to the beach trying to find driftwood that looks like a cat so the old man can carve it as a present to Fuyuki's mom. After some searching, the old man and Fuyuki head home. Chinatsu and Mukumuku (the puppy) stay, despite the incoming storm.

9. 台風上陸 (The Storm Touches Down): Mukumuku runs to the old man's place where he realizes that Chinatsu is probably still at the beach. He goes to find that the tide has risen and Chinatsu is clinging onto a rock engulfed by water. With Chinatsu in peril, the old man remembers his brother's death and says that he's also been dead since that day. However, he can't let Chinatsu die.

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