—In the morning, Hida City, Itomori Town, Miyamizu Shrine
Miyamizu Mitsuha awoke to the gentle warmth of the morning sun.
As she sat up, the blanket slipped off her shoulders. Still groggy from sleep, she lowered her head and glanced at herself.
She was wearing pajamas. Good. At least she hadn't slept naked.
She wasn't wearing a bra. Even better. That made for a more comfortable sleep.
Checking her phone, she saw that it was still early—enough time to make breakfast.
As she gradually shook off the morning haze, Mitsuha was about to get up and change clothes when suddenly, she froze. Then, in a flash, she snapped her head downward.
"Ahhh!"
'Pervert!'
After her shriek, her pale cheeks flushed a deep red.
It was as if some unseen pervert was watching her. Instinctively, Mitsuha crossed her arms over her chest, shielding herself protectively.
"Nee-chan, what are you doing?"
The door swung open, revealing her younger sister, Yotsuba, already dressed and ready for the day. She peered in, confused at Mitsuha's strange behavior.
"Nothing! Just shut the door, I'm changing!" Mitsuha frantically waved her hands, her face still burning.
"Hah, typical woman. Yesterday, you were so nice to me—calling me your dear little sister, even buying me tons of snacks."
"What an idiot!" Yotsuba muttered under her breath before slamming the door shut.
At breakfast, Mitsuha couldn't shake the feeling that her grandmother was looking at her strangely.
"What is it, Grandma?"
She put down her chopsticks and ran her hands over her head.
Her hair was neatly braided, as always. Her uniform was perfectly pressed, and her skirt was folded just right.
"You're becoming more and more like Futaba," her grandmother said, her eyes crinkling with a warm smile as she sipped her miso soup as if it were a rare delicacy.
"More like Mom?" Mitsuha echoed, puzzled. When she pressed for more details, her grandmother simply continued smiling without answering.
"Like Mom?" Yotsuba tilted her head, scrutinizing her sister. Their mother had passed away when Yotsuba was very young, leaving her memories of her faint and blurry.
"No way. If you were really like Mom, you'd buy me way more ice cream."
Yotsuba pouted, remembering how her sister had fought her over a single ice cream the other day.
"Excuse me? You already ate yours! That one was mine!" Mitsuha shot back, instantly flaring up.
She was willing to give her little sister many things—but post-bath ice cream was absolutely non-negotiable!
"See? You're acting weird today, Nee-chan! Yesterday, you even promised to make me a special ice cream! Right, Grandma?"
Still cradling her bowl of miso soup, their grandmother simply smiled, observing the sisters' conversation without interference.
"I'm heading out now."
With that cheerful farewell, the sisters set off for the day.
However, as soon as Mitsuha stepped outside, she felt something was… off.
Their neighbor, Uncle Morishita, who often gifted them fresh vegetables, suddenly addressed her differently. Instead of his usual friendly "Mitsuha," he now called her "Mitsuha-san."
That was strange.
In the past, only the older townsfolk—like Granny Kobayashi, who had once been close to her mother—ever spoke to her with such reverence.
"Um, Uncle Morishita, why are you calling me that today?"
And what was with the way he was looking at her? His expression seemed oddly familiar.
"Because, Mitsuha-san, you are looking more and more like Futaba-sama."
Again? That was exactly what her grandmother had said.
Then it hit her. In the past, when her mother was still alive, the townspeople would visit the shrine to seek her advice. And when they did, they looked at her the same way—
With devotion. With fervor. With blind faith.
Her father had always scoffed at such behavior. A researcher of folklore and a shrine priest, he considered their reverence toward her mother mere superstition—ignorance, even.
Back then, Mitsuha hadn't fully understood the meaning of the word.
But now, walking to school, hearing the repeated murmurs of "Mitsuha-san" and witnessing the townspeople's reverent expressions, she was starting to grasp it.
This was exactly what she had always worked so hard to achieve—to be a worthy shrine maiden of the Miyamizu family. To earn the respect of the so-called ignorant townsfolk.
She didn't know why this change had occurred so suddenly, but…
This felt kind of nice.
"Mitsuha~!"
A familiar voice called out—Sayaka's.
Mitsuha turned to greet her friend with the usual bright enthusiasm. But just before she raised her hand to wave, she caught sight of a woman across the street bowing slightly toward her. Her hand faltered.
Instead, she composed herself, turned slowly, and attempted to smile with the gentle, elegant grace she remembered from her mother.
"Good morning, Sayaka. Good morning, Teshigawara."
"Eek!"
Sayaka, who had just hopped off her bike, recoiled in exaggerated horror, hugging her arms as if to ward off a chill.
"What are you doing, Mitsuha?!"
Completely blindsided by her friend's reaction, Mitsuha felt a vein throb on her forehead.
"Don't you think I resemble my mother?" she asked, struggling to maintain her composed smile.
"Uh… Teshigawara, she's asking you," Sayaka nudged her other friend, blatantly avoiding the question herself.
"Like Futaba-sama?" Teshigawara Katsuhiko frowned in thought. "Not really. Futaba-sama's smile was warm and comforting. Yours looks… kinda like it was painted on a clay statue. Creepy."
Mitsuha's expression instantly crumbled. Without another word, she spun on her heel and stormed ahead in silence.
"..."
Sayaka and Teshigawara exchanged glances before quickly hurrying after her, watching her with curiosity.
"Hey, don't you think Mitsuha is acting kinda weird today?" Sayaka whispered.
"Yeah, and her hair's neatly braided today too."
Teshigawara's attention had been fixated on Mitsuha's braid—as if that were the most important part of her existence. To be fair, it was an impressive braid.
"Maybe she got possessed by a spirit yesterday?"
"Idiot. If anything, she's possessed today! Not yesterday!"
"But she's a shrine maiden. Can shrine maidens even get possessed?"
"Must be a foreign ghost," Teshigawara concluded, as the self-proclaimed expert on all things supernatural.
Listening to her friends' increasing nonsense, Mitsuha's expression darkened.
I'm the one acting weird? Shouldn't the weird one be Hojou Kyousuke?
"I swear, you two need to stop already!"
She turned around and hissed at them in exasperation.
Seeing her genuinely flustered, Sayaka and Teshigawara burst into laughter.
Sayaka quickly grabbed Mitsuha's arm, smiling playfully. "Alright, alright, don't be mad! Your braid looks as beautiful as ever today."
"Of course it does! I spent ages on it!"
With just that, Mitsuha's mood flipped instantly. There was no way she could stay mad at childhood friends for more than three seconds.
"Hey, Sayaka, did I really teach Minami a lesson yesterday?" she asked, suddenly eager.
"Of course! Yesterday, you—"
Sayaka paused mid-sentence, frowning at Mitsuha suspiciously.
"…Wait, why are you asking? Don't you remember?"
"Haha, of course I remember, I just want to hear what you think."
After saying that, she quickly took out her mobile phone, avoided Natori Sayaka's sight, and opened the memo to read it.