Spirited Away: The Awkward Rom-Com After Chihiro and Haku's Reunion
A year has passed since Chihiro returned from the mysterious bathhouse, Aburaya. Now a high school student, she's bored out of her mind. The promise she made with Haku, the dragon boy, is a constant weight on her heart.
One day, a transfer student arrives. "Nice to meet you, Chihiro Ogino. I am Nigihayami Kohaku," he says with a dead serious face. He's definitely Haku, but he's acting all human and weird about it! And since he's super handsome, the whole school goes into a frenzy!
But for some
Spirited Away: The Awkward Rom-Com After Chihiro and Haku's Reunion - The Nameless Valley and Only Your Name Are Real
Purple light filled the tunnel.
The air trembled. Chihiro's hair tie—the purple braid Zeniba had given her—was glowing brighter, stronger than she had ever seen it. The light spread like ripples, staining the old brick walls of the tunnel with streaks of purple and yellow.
"[surprised]Wha—"
The three-meter giant swayed unsteadily. Ubara's yellow eyes flew wide with shock. Her outstretched white fingers stopped as if repelled by the light.
"[scared]Chii-chan! That—"
Rin's voice was shaking. Beside Chihiro, she stood frozen, mouth agape.
Without thinking, Chihiro reached for the back of her hair. The purple braid was pulsing, *thump-thump*, like a heart. It was hot. But not an unpleasant heat. It was the same warmth she had felt at Zeniba's house—warm and nostalgic.
(*What's happening?*)
Her mind was blank. But deep in her heart, she was screaming.
(*I won't lose. I absolutely won't lose.*)
She was going to save Haku. And she wasn't going to let anyone erase her memories without permission.
—*Clatter, clatter.*
The sound of wooden sandals.
It came from deep within the tunnel. Beyond the light. From within the darkness, someone was walking slowly toward them.
"[gentle]Heh heh. I thought you might come."
The moment she heard that voice, Rin's face went pale.
"[surprised]Huh? Z-Zeniba-sama...?!"
Rin did a double take. No, a triple take. Then she rubbed her eyes.
What emerged from the light was a young woman.
Long silver hair reaching down to her waist sparkled as it reflected the light. It was casually braided behind her, and behind her glasses, her purple eyes were narrowed with amusement. She looked barely twenty. If you put her in a Mikasaoka High School uniform, she'd blend right into a classroom.
But—her eyes were different.
They held a depth that belied her age, as if she could see right through everything. Like soaking in a hot spring, it was a gaze that seemed to gently penetrate to the very core of your heart.
"[surprised]Zeniba... Grandma...?"
A dumbfounded voice escaped Chihiro's lips.
Zeniba—the woman she had gone to visit a year ago, taking the train from Aburaya. Yubaba's twin sister, the one who had given Chihiro the purple braid. She had been a kind old woman.
"[laughing]Calling me 'Grandma' is so mean, Chii-chan. I'm trying to look young, you know."
Zeniba giggled. Her laugh was just the same as before. Elusive, yet somehow reassuring.
"[surprised]W-wait a minute! Zeniba-sama, why do you look so young?! I mean, did you get younger?! How?! You have to tell me—"
Rin rattled off questions in a single breath. Her eyes were sparkling. Apparently, she was interested in beauty secrets.
Zeniba placed her index finger to her lips.
"[whispers]Shh. Later."
Rin fell silent instantly. Her face was bright red.
(*Rin-chan actually shut up—?!*)
Chihiro's eyes widened involuntarily. *That* Rin. The Rin who was always yelling at Haku was now shrinking back like a scolded child.
"[cold]...Zeniba."
The air grew taut.
Ubara's hoarse voice made the entire tunnel tremble. Rin's shoulders jumped at the pressure emanating from the three-meter giant.
"[cold]Whatever you attempt, the Law is absolute. According to the Law of Boundary Crossing, any spirit that exceeds its time limit shall be forcibly returned. Even if it is a river master—there are no exceptions."
"[serious]Yes, I know."
Zeniba didn't flinch in the slightest.
She stood before Ubara. Her body was small. Facing the three-meter giant, it looked like a cat confronting an elephant.
"[serious]But, Ubara. There is something older than the articles of the Law."
Zeniba's fingers gently touched the back of Chihiro's hair.
The purple braid glowed brightly again.
"[serious]*Enishi*. The thread of fate that binds humans and spirits has existed long before the Law was established. This child's hair tie—the purple braid I made—is proof of that. It is proof of the bond connecting the human world and the spirit world."
"[angry]...Sophistry."
Ubara's body seemed to swell another size larger. Her head nearly touched the ceiling of the tunnel. The air grew heavy. Pressure prickled against their skin.
"[angry]Do you think a mere bond can overturn the Law?"
"[serious]I didn't say 'overturn.' I merely said—that execution requires procedure."
Zeniba adjusted her glasses. Behind the lenses, her purple eyes gleamed.
"[serious]Before the Law is forcibly executed, I demand a verification procedure for the bond. Executing without procedure would itself be a violation of the Law. You are the enforcer of the Law, are you not? You cannot break the Law yourself, can you?"
Ubara's eyebrow twitched.
"[cold]...What kind of procedure?"
"[gentle]I will impose a trial. On those two."
Zeniba turned around.
Toward the tunnel entrance. Further behind Chihiro and Rin—
A figure stood there.
Deep greenish-black straight hair. It swayed faintly despite the absence of wind. Perfect features, like a marble statue. Cold emerald-green eyes that betrayed no emotion.
"[cold]...Chihiro. Rin. Why are you here?"
It was Haku.
Chihiro's heart leaped.
(*Haku—*)
Haku looked between Ubara and Zeniba, then narrowed his eyes as if grasping the situation.
"[cold]Zeniba... So it was you."
"[laughing]It's been a while, boy. I'm relieved to see you're still living your life so clumsily."
"[cold]...You didn't need to do this."
"[sarcastic]Oh, I didn't? I'm saying I'll lighten the load you were trying to carry all by yourself."
With that, Zeniba turned back to face Ubara.
"[serious]The trial is as follows. Retrieve the 'Crystal of Memory'—which sank to the root of this boy's existence when the Kohaku River was culverted—from the Nameless Valley before dawn. If the crystal is returned, his existential foundation as the river master will be reconstructed. The very condition for the Law of Boundary Crossing's erasure will disappear."
"[surprised]W-wait a minute!"
Chihiro couldn't help but raise her voice.
"[excited]Haku won't disappear?! Really?!"
"[gentle]Yes. If you fulfill the conditions."
"[excited]I'll do it! I'll do it!"
"—No."
Haku's voice cut in sharply.
Chihiro turned around. Haku's face was frozen like a statue. But—his eyes were different. Deep within the emerald green, something was churning violently.
(*He can't—quite suppress his emotions.*)
"[cold]Zeniba. I'll go alone. Chihiro has nothing to do with this."
"[serious]She does have something to do with it. As the owner of the purple braid, Chii-chan is already involved."
"[angry]—Even so."
Haku's voice carried emotion for the first time. Anger. No, not anger.
"[angry]The No-Face residual echoes are concentrated in the Nameless Valley. Chihiro's strong emotions—those too-direct emotions of hers—will send the residual echoes out of control. The entire valley will become dangerous. And besides—"
Haku cut himself off.
He was biting his lip. His hand was trembling faintly.
(*Haku—*)
Chihiro held her breath.
Haku, who had always coldly pushed her away, was now fighting desperately against something inside his walls.
"[angry]—Besides, there's no way I can take you to a dangerous place."
Haku's voice dropped low, as if stifled.
"[angry]Chihiro. You wait here. This is my problem. I'll go alone."
Haku grabbed Chihiro's shoulder and tried to push her out of the tunnel.
Chihiro's foot stepped back once.
(*Again—*)
(*He's leaving me behind again.*)
A year ago, at Aburaya. On the school rooftop. On the culvert walkway.
Haku had always left Chihiro behind. To protect her. Choosing to be the one who got hurt instead.
But.
—She'd had enough.
Chihiro stopped her feet.
She stopped dead, as if roots had grown from her soles into the ground.
"[angry]...Chihiro?"
Haku turned around.
Chihiro shook off his hand.
"[crying]—No."
Her voice trembled.
Tears were welling at the edges of her eyes. But she wouldn't hide them anymore. She was done hiding.
"[crying]Don't leave me behind. Don't decide on your own that my memories—that my feelings—are 'unnecessary.'"
"[cold]...Chihiro, that's—"
"[crying]I'm scared!"
Chihiro's voice echoed through the tunnel.
"[crying]A world without you is pitch black, and cold, and terrifying! You disappearing—that's what scares me so much more!"
Tears spilled down her cheeks in streams.
They wouldn't stop. They ran down her face, fell to the asphalt, and left stains.
"[crying]A year ago, when you saved me from the bottom of the river—I called your name. 'Haku.' And then, your eyes shone so beautifully. And then—and then, I thought: I will never forget this person."
Chihiro wiped her tears with the back of her hand. But they overflowed again immediately.
"[crying]My memories are mine. They're not something you can just say you 'don't need.' About you, about the river, about our promise—I get to decide all of it!"
Haku said nothing.
He just stared into Chihiro's eyes. The mask that had killed his emotions was now completely stripped away.
His deep emerald-green eyes were wavering. Hesitation, regret, and then—
(*Ah.*)
Looking into those eyes, Chihiro was certain.
(*This person has been suffering alone all this time.*)
Unable to tell anyone. Choosing to be the one who got hurt, to protect Chihiro.
All of that—was now on the verge of crumbling.
"[serious]Haku. Chii-chan is right."
Zeniba's quiet voice broke the silence.
"[serious]You think it's fine as long as you sacrifice yourself. But, boy—who do you think gets hurt the most when you get hurt?"
"[sad]...I know."
Haku's voice was hoarse.
"[sad]I know. That's why—"
"[serious]You don't know. If you did, you wouldn't turn your back on Chii-chan."
Zeniba gently pushed Chihiro's back.
"[gentle]Off you go. Both of you. The trial is until dawn. You must return with the crystal by then. Understood?"
"[sad]...Go get it, you idiot Haku."
Rin spoke while rubbing her eyes.
She sniffled.
"[sad]Chii-chan has said this much. If you're a man, make up your mind, you wimp."
After a long silence, Haku—
"[whispers]...Alright."
Haku took Chihiro's hand.
On his own. He, of his own accord, grasped Chihiro's hand.
That hand was trembling faintly.
Chihiro squeezed Haku's hand back.
(*It's warm.*)
She had an image of him being cold. Haku, the river master, was always someone at the bottom of cold water.
But—the hand she held now was properly warm.
"[whispers]Thank you, Haku."
Chihiro murmured quietly and squeezed Haku's hand tightly.
—Zeniba drew a specific mark at the tunnel entrance.
Light swirled.
The depths of the tunnel warped and twisted. As if space itself was tearing open, a passage to another world began to open.
"[serious]The Nameless Valley is deep within the spirit world. Do not be deceived by the illusions of the No-Face residual echoes. Keep your eyes only on what is most important."
"[firm]Okay!"
"[cold]...Let's go, Chihiro."
Haku pulled Chihiro's hand.
The two of them leaped into the light.
—
Her body floated softly.
Then, a sensation of falling.
"[scared]Whoa!"
A shriek escaped Chihiro's lips.
The next moment—*thud*.
A soft impact against her back. She had apparently landed on fallen leaves.
"[surprised]This is...?"
Chihiro raised her head.
It was a valley floor, shrouded in deep fog.
Sheer cliffs surrounded them on all sides. Even looking up, the fog was so thick she couldn't see the sky. It was dim all around; she couldn't tell if it was day or night. The air was heavy and stagnant, and each breath made the depths of her chest ache dully.
The remnants of desire—the presence of the No-Face residual echoes.
"[serious]Chihiro. Don't let go of my hand."
Haku's voice sounded near her ear.
"[firm]Okay."
Still holding Haku's hand, Chihiro stood up.
That was when it happened.
—*Rustle.*
The air stirred.
Beyond the fog, something was writhing.
A black shadow. It took on a human shape and slowly approached.
"[scared]Haku—"
"[cold]It's coming."
Haku stepped forward, shielding Chihiro.
—The next moment.
The world chan
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