My Sister Momoko (2003) - full transcript
Momoko and I were born on the same day at the same time.
We were both two months premature,
and we were so frail that the doctor told our
parents that he could not guarantee our survival.
It was then that our dad saw peach flowers blossoming on a tree despite the cold weather.
He wanted us to grow up strong just like those tiny blossoms.
That was why he named us Momoko and Riki.
*Momoko = "Peach Girl" and Riki = "Strength"*
That was why he named us Momoko and Riki.
I'm going too!
I'm going with you!
Let go, Momoko!
You'll make me late for school!
No fair! You get to go to regular school and I don't!
Geez, stop saying the same things over again!
You're hurting me!
What's wrong? Don't fight, you two.
Riki, you're her older brother, remember?
Yeah, but only by a few minutes,
since we're twins.
But you're still her older brother,
so you have to be nice to your sister.
Are we clear, Riki?
I still don't get it!
Stop crying, Momoko. We have to get ready.
Riki, you're going to be late.
I can hear the little frog...
I can hear the little frog
I can hear the little frog
sing its lovely little song
sing its lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak"
"Ribbit Ribbit..."
Ever since Momoko was five,
she's had a condition which makes the muscles in her limbs grow stiffer and stiffer.
Now, even her lungs are growing stiff.
That's why she has tubes under her nose that give her oxygen to breathe.
We used to go to kindergarten together,
and I thought Momoko would come
to elementary school with me.
But Momoko ended up going to a
school for handicapped children.
Kenta!
Good morning!
There's no time for that!
If you're here now, then that means I'm late again!
Just in time!
Good for you, guys.
If you were late this time...
Yeah, that fearsome Godzilla will use his mighty claws to—
Hey, stop doing that!
He wasn't able to avoid the tickle punishment after all.
No! Stop!
Quit it!
That was mean, Godzilla... I mean Mr. Kuroki.
I made it just in time.
That was your reward for not being late.
Come on! That's not fair!
Mika?
Here!
Yasuhiro?
Here.
Kenta?
Here!
Yukari?
Here!
Riki?
Here!
Ryuji?
Here.
Atsuko?
Here!
Shoot... 52 points?
And I tried real hard too.
I'll bet Momoko doesn't know we have dumb tests like these at school.
Wow, your score sucks!
Give that back!
Take a look at this!
Whoa! A 52!
Unbelievable!
I told you to give that back!
Ow!
That hurt!
You stupid...
Watch it!
You two back to your seats!
Let's continue, shall we?
Tamaki Ueno?
Here!
You had the only perfect score in class!
Ooh, wow!
A perfect score!
Way to go, Tamaki!
Time to eat.
Time to eat!
Okay.
Here, say "ahh," Momoko.
I can eat by myself!
It'll take you forever to do it!
Now say "ahh."
I can eat by myself!
I was only trying to help.
Riki?
Why not let her take her time?
Let Momoko handle it.
Fine.
Here!
They say Momoko is mentally retarded,
but she's totally stubborn and
wants to do everything herself.
I'm home!
Your dad's back.
You're here early.
First time in ages I didn't
have to put in extra hours.
We've already started dinner, but since we're all here...
I suppose I can share this wonderful news with all of you.
What is it, Mommy?
Momoko, you can now go to your brother's school.
Really?!
What do you mean?
A while ago, I made a request for Momoko to come to your class.
After discussing the matter with both schools,
she's allowed to attend his school next spring.
Is that so?
Isn't this great, Momoko?
Yay! Yay! I get to go to regular school!
Yay!
Oh, why don't we take Momoko along to Parent's Day tomorrow?
Yes, it will be a good chance for her to get accustomed to his school.
I'm coming tomorrow?
Yay! Yay! Yay!
Hey, Momoko!
Yay! Yay! Yay!
Don't make a racket at school like you're doing now! You better promise!
I'll be good.
You swear?
I mean it.
V!
Momoko, you don't have to be in such a rush.
Ah, it's my brother!
Brother! I came to see you!
It's Kenta and Tamaki!
We will now begin our dodgeball game!
Since your moms and dads are
all here, you better play hard!
Guys! Good luck!
That girl is Riki's twin sister.
What's that weird thing she's got up her nose?
I hear she's sick.
That's why she's so small. And she's also really stupid!
God, then don't bring her here.
What idiot brings their whole family anyway?
Yeah, my mom's the only one who came.
How about you, Ryuji?
My dad can't make it because of work.
Kenta, good luck!
Ryuji! Don't let Kenta win!
Get ready!
Andre the Giant Moron.
Kenta's amazing!
Nice, Riki!
My brother's also good!
There's no "also" about it!
Won't they ever shut up?!
Thanks, Tamaki!
Tamaki, nice!
Pass it here!
Tamaki!
Headhunting! Red team has the ball!
Tamaki! Tamaki!
Tamaki!
Tamaki! Tamaki!
Tamaki, are you all right?
Tamaki! Tamaki!
Tamaki, are you all right?
Hah, serves you right.
Stupid honor student!
Wait, did Ryuji aim for her head on purpose?
All right, he's mine.
Some toss!
Shoot!
They got hit again!
Good luck, Brother! Good luck, Kenta!
Good luck, Tamaki!
You can do it! You can do it! You can do it!
You can do it, Sis! Good luck, yeah!
Go get ‘em, Yukari!
You can do it!
Good luck!
Yes! You can do it!
Good luck out there!
White Team, you can do it!
Whoo-hoo!
Yeah!
Go get ‘em!
Watch out!
You can do it! You can do it!
There's only Ryuji left.
Let's do this, Riki.
Yeah.
You can do it, Brother!
I'm not losing to you guys!
Red Team wins!
Yay! We did it!
Brother, you won! Yay!
Yay! He won!
My brother won!
Move it.
I'm trying to clean here.
Don't bring her here again.
She'll make us all stupid.
Are you talking about Momoko?
Who else would I be talking about?
What's going on, Riki?
Hey, Ryuji, are you all right?
His nose is bleeding!
Someone get a tissue!
Somebody call Godzilla!
Kuramoto, answer this question honestly:
Why did you hit Kita?
What is it, Riki? How will we know if you don't tell us?
Kita claims he didn't do anything to cause you to hit him,
so why did it happen?
You're not making this easy.
Riki, I know you wouldn't hit him without a reason.
However, regardless of what happened, violence is never the answer.
Strength doesn't solve anything.
Are we clear, Riki?
Kuramoto, apologize to Kita.
Fail to do that, and we will have your parents come here.
I'm... sorry.
Was our teacher mad at you?
Did Ryuji do something to you?
Don't be late for school tomorrow!
Okay!
See you!
I'm back.
Welcome home, Brother.
Mommy is next door, so I'm watching the house for her.
Oh?
Brother, were you crying?
Why would I?!
I can still see where you cried.
What now?
I also cry a lot at school.
But Ms. Ushizawa says that crying and laughing a lot shows that we're alive.
It's all right. I will protect you, Brother.
Momoko? Momoko?!
Let's give her more oxygen!
Is something wrong with her?
Her cold's taken a turn for the worse.
Sorry, Riki, but can you eat breakfast by yourself?
Sure.
We'll play ball later.
Right.
See you!
"We went to the hospital. We will call later. Mom."
Does this mean Momoko's staying at the hospital again?
Does Momo have it that bad?
Not according to them,
but they say she still needs to be hospitalized since her body's weak.
She'll be fine soon.
My bad!
Momoko used to be able to do the exact same things as we did back in kindergarten.
Yeah.
I feel sorry for her.
Everything's white! It's so pretty!
Momoko, put on some clothes before you catch a cold.
Isn't Brother going to come to my school?
Yes, Riki, wouldn't you like to visit Momoko's school?
She'll be coming to your school next year, you know.
Please come. Santa will be visiting us today.
"I'm going on a trip, happy as can be..."
It's been a while since we went somewhere as a family.
Yeah.
I hope we all get to go somewhere fun next time.
Dad! I want to go to Universal Studios!
I've always wanted to go there!
I also wanna go to Yooberyoo...
Universal Studios!
Yeah, I wanna go!
Ah, Mr. Train is coming!
Mr. Train! Where are you going?!
Huh? So this is Momoko's school?
Teacher, good morning!
Good morning, Momoko.
My daddy and my brother came with me!
Good morning.
Thank you for taking care of our Momoko.
Oh, the pleasure is all mine.
Nice to meet you.
So you are Riki?
Momoko is always saying how good
you are at soccer and baseball.
He's also very good at dodgeball.
He won after I cheered for him.
Really? That's amazing!
But when he gets mad, he looks like this.
Momoko, stop making things up!
Ah, it's Fumi and the others!
Good morning, Momoko!
Good morning Fumi, Seiji, Satomi!
Good morning.
How are you?
Good morning!
I see you've brought everyone here.
Yes.
Brother!
These are all my friends.
This is Fumi, Satomi, and Seiji.
Brother, Seiji just said, "Good morning."
G-Good morning.
Satomi just said it too!
How nice, Momoko's spirit has rubbed off on them!
Fumi, I saw a train on my way here.
I hope we can all ride a train together and go somewhere far away.
Far, far, far, far, far, far, far...
Where exactly are you going, Momoko?
We will now begin our music class.
Who would like to start us off?
Me! I'll do it!
Oh? I see Momoko's the first to volunteer.
Kids, would you like Momoko to start us off?
Yes...
All right, Momoko, if you please.
Stand!
Bow!
Stand up!
Santa Claus is a busy little bee,
who visits all the houses before Christmas Day.
Hurry, hurry, jing-a-ling! Hurry, hurry, jing-a-ling!
Ring the silver yuletide bells back and forth.
Jing-a-ling! Jing-a-ling! Jing-a-ling!
Santa Claus is a busy little bee,
who dances because he cannot help himself.
Let's be merry, cha-cha-cha! Let's be merry, cha-cha-cha!
Everybody dance the night away with me!
Cha-cha-cha! Cha-cha-cha! Cha-cha-cha!
Dear gods, I pray to you:
I hope you help me get better soon.
I ask you too.
Please help her.
Happy New Year, Fumi, Seiji, Satomi!
What do you all want to do?
Yes, what can they all do?
Fumi likes songs.
Satomi likes picture books!
I'm sorry your husband has to look after the kids.
He said that New Year's should be my time to relax, so don't worry about it.
Hey, Riki!
Get Momoko some pudding, will you?!
Okay!
I envy you, Mrs. Kuramoto.
You have a very sweet husband.
The pudding should be...
Take mine for instance.
The pudding should be...
We divorced because of our kid.
When we found out about our son's condition,
my husband and his mother blamed it on my side of the family.
It was so frustrating to the point that I took Fumiya and left the house.
I've also had the same treatment.
Even now, our grandparents tell us not to take Satomi outside because it's embarrassing.
That's still better than having no family at all.
My husband decided to leave me.
He abandoned both me and Seiji.
You can't always depend on family.
Nobody helps me out with Satomi.
It's like I'm living with total strangers.
Oh, did you hear about Mami, who's in the middle school program?
Her mother gave birth to their third child,
so she may place Mami in a home to ease the burden.
When I first found out about Momoko's condition,
I felt my entire world turn dark.
I prayed to a bunch of gods, and I was so frantic that I didn't know what to do.
But then, I eventually came to realize
even if I laugh or cry, time will stop for no one.
So I might as well have fun with the kids instead of worrying all the time.
That's just like you, Mrs. Kuramoto.
And besides, whenever I see Momoko try her hardest to do everything she can,
it somehow fills me with strength...
the strength to do my best.
I can see that.
We've been through some hard times, but we keep going because of our kids.
That's so true.
Little Red Riding Hood took her mother's... um...
Ah! Pudding! Pudding!
Thanks a lot, Riki!
Right.
Okay, you're up first, Fumi.
Next after Fumi is Satomi, then next is...
Seiji says, "I'm waiting!"
Huh? We're going to Universal Studios?
Yes, for you guys' birthday, since it's during spring break.
Also, you've been really healthy lately, Momoko.
Yeah!
Yay!
All right! All right!
All right!
All right! All right!
All right! All right!
We're going to Universal Studios!
We're going to Universan!
All right!
It won't be your birthday for weeks.
All right!
Yay!
It won't be your birthday for weeks.
If you're this excited now, you'll get worn out before we even leave.
Universal!
Universal, yay!
Let's go!
Only one week before our birthday.
Brother.
I want to go to Frog Park.
Yeah, why don't we ask Kenta to come along?
Okay!
I can hear the little frog
sing its lovely little song
Whenever we come here, we'd hear someone playing this song on their harmonica.
sing its lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
Whenever we come here, we'd hear someone playing this song on their harmonica.
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
Whenever we come here, we'd hear someone playing this song on their harmonica.
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
That's how Momoko learned how to sing it.
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
That's how Momoko learned how to sing it.
That is why Momoko calls this place "Frog Park."
Kenta, hurry, hurry!
We're almost to the top!
Quit being selfish, Momoko! Kenta
has trouble carrying you as it is!
Boo!
You got it. Be sure to hang on tight.
Okay!
High-speed train!
Ah, those are my flowers!
When a lot of my flowers bloom, I won't be sick anymore.
Momoko! Are you cold?
Should we go home?
No, I want to stay here more!
Wait up, Momoko!
I said wait!
Brother! I can hear the wind talking!
Momoko? Momoko!
Honey, this is bad! Call an ambulance!
Momoko?
I'll be at the hospital.
I'll come back when things have settled down. You get some sleep.
Sure.
I'm back!
Welcome home.
Huh? Where's Mom?
Yeah, I have to get to work...
So I came alone. Did you eat your breakfast?
Yeah, I ate some bread.
So how's Momoko doing?
Hmm, it looks like this will be a long one.
So she won't be back in time for our birthday?
What about Universal Studios?
Sorry, Riki. Can we get a rain check for that?
Huh?
You're kidding...
I was really looking forward to it!
Can't they... Can't they just examine her for one day and be done with it?
Riki, this is no time to be selfish.
You know very well we can't do that.
But you promised me for my birthday!
It's Momoko's birthday too.
Once Momoko gets better, I promise to take you both, all right?
Please bear with it.
I've always had to bear with it.
I've had... to bear with a lot.
Riki...
You and Mom...
You only care about Momoko!
When will you start paying attention to me?!
This is all because of Momoko!
I wish Momoko was gone forever!
Riki!
Don't you ever...
say that again.
Riki!
When a lot of my flowers bloom, I won't be sick anymore.
I knew you'd be here.
Your dad told me everything.
I know you have to bear with a lot.
I'm sorry, Riki.
But I think Momoko has to bear with just as much as you do.
You two were born on the same day,
and in the beginning she could do everything you could do, but that slowly began to change.
I want Momoko to be able to experience everything she can.
Even if she can't do some things like you're able to, I think she feels the same way.
That's why I want you, me, Dad, and Momoko to go to Universal Studios, together.
I promise we will go, so please wait a little longer.
Okay, all done.
I'll give you something hot to drink.
Oh, who's that?
Hi, Kuromoto residence.
What was that?!
Understood. I'll be there immediately.
What's wrong, Mom? Did something happen to Momoko?
They said Fumi just passed away.
Fumi's coffin was very tiny.
That boy just turned seven.
Fumi meant a whole lot to Momoko too.
Yes, they're usually hospitalized at the same time.
Mom, does Momoko know about Fumi?
We haven't told her yet.
The news will be devastating, so we're waiting until she gets better before we tell her.
Yeah. I would too.
I hope you get to see Momoko today, Riki.
Yeah, but...
Why won't they let me into her hospital room?
They say children might carry a bunch of germs.
That's so thoughtless, since you take a bath every day.
I know!
That's Momoko!
Mrs. Kuramoto!
We've just called your house!
Momoko is having a tantrum!
It appears she heard about Fumi!
She pulls out her IV needle, and she's highly agitated!
Anyway, we can't calm her down!
Will you come with me?
Riki, stay here.
It's my turn to die!
Momoko? Momoko?!
I'm going to die! I'm going to die!
I'm going to die!
I'll die!
That was... the first time
I realized just how terrifying this all must be for Momoko.
She always has to fight the fear that she might die at any moment.
But I... I had no idea!
I'll make sure... they all bloom.
All of them... All of them... All of them...
They're pretty!
Your brother made this for you. He hopes you'll get better.
Wow, those are my flowers!
Brother, you're amazing!
I can hear the little frog
I can hear the little frog
sing its lovely little song
sing its lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
Welcome home, Momoko!
I'm back!
Welcome back, Momoko.
I got a surprise for you inside.
Ah! A cake!
It's to celebrate your release, and it's also a very belated birthday party for you guys.
Daddy, light the candles!
On it.
One, two, three, four...
Five, six, seven, eight, nine!
You two have grown so big.
Five, six, seven, eight, nine!
Nine candles!
Let's have a big, ginormous cake
for your tenth birthday, Momoko!
Yeah!
Okay, blow them out, you two!
Here we go, Momoko. Ready, and...
Riki, Momoko, happy birthday!
Today, the new school year begins, kids!
As you can see, you have the same classmates as last year.
I hope we have another good year.
Us too!
Also, starting next week, a new friend will be joining us once a week.
Momoko Kuramoto!
Momo's coming to our class!
She's Riki's twin sister.
You remember her from Parent's Day, correct?
God, why is she coming to our school?
She'll be nothing but trouble.
Of course, wait just a moment.
Mr. Kuroki, it's for you.
Coming.
Hello, this is Kuroki.
Can you put a stop to this?
I heard a disabled kid is joining your class.
If you have time to pull that stunt, then you should focus on educating normal children.
Excuse me, may I ask who's calling?
That's beside the point.
What will happen if that disabled kid interferes with my child's studies?
You better put a stop to it.
I'm leaving!
Is your backpack heavy? Should I get it for you?
I'm all right!
See you all later!
I'm off!
Good morning!
Good morning! Good morning!
Good morning.
Good morning!
This is our new classmate, Momoko Kuramoto.
Let's all be friends, all right?
Let's all be friends, all right?!
I won't be assigning a specific theme today.
You can paint whatever you want.
Here.
He says we can paint whatever we want.
I'm going to draw Brother, and Mommy, and Daddy.
Is that Godzilla?
He's not going to like that.
Oh, no rough drawing?
It's fine.
I'll get some clean water.
At least Mothra's on our side.
At least Mothra's on our side.
Sorry. I tripped.
No, you didn't, Ryuji! You did that on purpose!
Riki!
What? Where's your proof?
I don't need any proof!
Hey!
You two better cool it!
It's all soaked.
Teacher, these are flowers.
Whoa, they're pretty.
They are!
They're beautiful!
Wow, they're pretty!
You call that pretty? That's not even art!
Is that right?
I think it's outstanding art.
What's important is to have fun painting what you want.
Don't you think so?
Okay, I'm doing that too!
Things seem to be abuzz in here, Mr. Kuroki.
Oh, Mr. Principal.
Oh? Good morning, Momoko.
Momoko, that's our principal.
Ah!
Mr. Principal?
There's a flower on your face.
There sure is!
Yeah...
and a pretty one at that.
And the following week.
Ready?
You can do it! You can do it!
Wow!
Ah, Brother's next!
You can do it, Brother!
You can do it!
Will she ever shut up?
Ready?!
You can do it, Brother!
Wh-What is it?
Ryuji, you were great! You were faster than my brother.
I want to run as fast as you!
It's your turn, Momoko.
I'll hold your hand and run with you.
No! I will run by myself!
But I...
Excuse me.
Is it possible to allow that?
Sure, you got it.
Are we ready?
Mm-hmm!
Get ready!
What the heck?
I can walk faster than that.
Keep going, Momo! You're almost at the goal!
Momo!
You all right, Momoko?
You didn't have to do this. We're done.
No, I will run!
Momo! You can do it!
Keep going, Momo!
All right!
Goal!
All right!
You did it!
Well done, Momoko.
Momoko really tried her best.
I know.
Momoko's pretty amazing.
Here's an idea.
How about sending our kids to Momoko's school?
Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!
They can interact with their kids and learn.
Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!
What? The special school?
Yeah, they want us to "interact."
Honestly, what are those teachers over there thinking?
How will interacting with disabled kids help in any way?
That's what I think too.
If they're going to waste their time doing that, they should focus more on real education.
I was against the whole idea of letting a disabled kid come to your class.
I thought I made myself clear to that teacher of yours!
Yeah, it's me.
What?!
I've told you repeatedly that won't boost profits!
Renegotiate the deal! And it better not be on their terms!
The useless fools I have to deal with make my head hurt!
I hope you don't turn out to be one of those losers.
Only the strong come out on top in today's world, understood?
Yeah.
Then you better not bring home scores like the one on your last cram school test.
I'll even hire a private tutor if we have to.
Today, we'll be having a special class with the kids from Momoko's school.
Grab your things...
Excuse me!
Oh, what is it, Ryuji?
I don't want to go to the handicapped school.
My father said I don't have to go.
I wish to study by myself in the classroom.
I don't want to go either.
I wish to study too.
Why don't you guys want to go?
We'll just meet more kids who are like Riki's sister.
What'll we get out of it?
He's right. It's a waste of time.
We'll fall behind on our studies compared to other classes.
Ryuji, what kind of studies are most important to you?
I don't know.
I think anything that's on a test is important.
Is that really all?
There are other studies that won't get you any grades that are just as important.
Even if you don't get a grade?
Those are studies that nurture your hearts.
There are other people out there who are different from you.
I believe it's very important to study
how to recognize and appreciate the differences that can be found in each other.
So I want you to experience different things and learn something from them.
Today, we'll learn how to find spring!
I hope we find a lot!
Is this "learning how to find spring"?
I don't believe this.
And you put it through like this...
Is this right?
Satomi, what are you looking at?
Ah, it's a bunny!
Where?
Oh! You're right!
Ah! Now I see a hippo!
Oh yeah! There's a flying hippo!
This is stupid.
Where are you headed?
Someplace where I'm not surrounded by idiots!
Wh-What the heck?!
There's a dolphin right above the hippo!
And I can see Taro right beside it!
A what?
That's my dog!
That hippo seems to enjoy soaring through the sky.
This place smells great.
Mr. Kuroki, are you sleeping?
It's a froggie!
What?
Ribbit! Ribbit! Ribbit!
I can hear Momoko
I can hear Momoko
sing her lovely little song
sing her lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
I can hear Momoko
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
I can hear Momoko
Momoko Kuramoto, here we go!
There!
That looks fun!
Hurry, guys! It feels great!
It does look like fun.
I want to do it!
You going too, Seiji?
Hey, let's scare her.
We'll slide down and stop right in front of her.
Now doesn't that sound like fun?
No, I'll pass.
Me too.
Are you guys taking her side?
Forget you guys!
Seiji Tomizawa, let's go!
Seiji is having fun!
That felt great. Do you want to try?
Uh, sure.
Are you okay, Ryuji?
Ow...
Are you okay?
Don't get in the way!
It's your fault I toppled over!
You slid in her direction in the first place!
No, it's her fault!
You're bleeding...
I'm sorry! I'm sorry for hurting you!
I have some sad news for you.
Momoko is in the hospital, so she won't be joining us for a while.
I hope she gets better, Riki.
Yeah.
I also have another announcement to make.
Since our new building will begin construction in the fall,
we will be holding our school athletic tournament this June.
The tournament?
Momoko will like that.
Right now, I'd like you all to choose five people who'll participate in the class relay.
The fastest kid in our class is obviously Ryuji.
Riki and Kenta are also pretty fast.
Oh, I think Tamaki should be in it!
Okay, our relay runners will be Riki, Tamaki, Kenta, Mika, and Ryuji, since they have the most votes.
We're all counting on you five.
Don't lose!
We mean it!
Good luck!
Brother, you'll be in the relay?
Yeah.
I will cheer for you. So you better win, Brother.
And you better get better in time for the school tournament.
We clear, Momoko? Promise me!
I promise I'll be there.
Hey, why don't we start practicing every morning?
That should put us ahead of the other classes.
I'm in!
Me too!
Yeah, let's make sure we win!
Ryuji, did you hear?
We'll be practicing every morning starting tomorrow.
I'm not doing it!
I'm not doing the relay!
Now wait a minute!
What'll we do without the fastest kid in our class?
Yeah! We'll never win the race!
Ryuji, wait up!
Ryuji, please, race with us.
I will if you quit.
I'll race with you guys, but only if you drop out!
I'm running the relay!
Is Ryuji really going to sit out the relay?
What would make Ryuji do such a thing?
Ryuji's absent from school again.
I hope he's not just cutting class!
He might be.
Guys, bad news!
What is it?
All of Class 3's relay runners are in the track & field club!
What? They'll be totally tough to beat!
Now we won't have an easy time winning.
Here we go!
Yeah!
Go ahead!
Sorry about that.
No, that was my fault.
Geez, what are you doing to us?
Dropping the baton will delay us to no end!
Don't get so mad!
That's Class 3.
Are those guys fighting already? Like that'll help them.
And they don't even have five runners.
You know Ryuji, the fastest kid in their class?
I heard he's not running in the relay.
Then this will be a cakewalk!
Ryuji's still not coming to school.
He'll probably keep this up till the tournament.
He's doing this because he knows we can't win without him, I'm sure of it.
Geez, he's such a jerk.
He wasn't always like that.
We went to kindergarten together, and he was super nice back then.
He'd play his harmonica for any kid who was crying.
Ryuji plays the harmonica?
I think he learned it from his mother.
He'd always have fun practicing in the park.
Ryuji...
I wanted Ryuji to know the real Momoko.
May I have your name?
I'm Kuramoto, Ryuji's classmate!
Um, this is an emergency! I really want to see Ryuji!
I'm afraid he is not in his bedroom.
Ryuji, where did you go?
Riki!
Wh-What?
Ryuji, would you please visit Momoko in the hospital?
Huh? Why would I do that?
I want you to see Momoko! Just for a little bit!
If you're still mad about that punch, you can always punch me back!
Ryuji, I'm begging you with my life!
I won't stay long, you hear?
Thank you, Ryuji!
I wanna go home!
That's Momoko!
Riki, did you come to visit?
Yes.
Momoko is very agitated right now.
I'm sorry, but I plan to call your mother once she's calmed down,
so can you wait in the hallway?
I wanna go home!
so can you wait in the hallway?
I wanna go home!
I can hear Momoko
sing her lovely little song
"Ribbit! Ribbit! Ribbit! Ribbit!"
Sorry for keeping you waiting!
Oh, Ryuji.
How are you?
I'm sorry about what happened to you. Is your arm okay?
Yes.
Really? That's great!
Momoko felt really bad about
what happened to you, Ryuji.
Ryuji came to visit her.
Is that so?
Momoko is sleeping right now. I'm sorry, since I know you came all this way to see her.
Sorry for dragging you there for nothing.
Don't worry about it.
Momoko's agitated because she couldn't come home.
Me and Momoko were born very prematurely.
But Momoko was the one whose body stopped working right.
I promised Momoko that I would win the relay for her.
Ryuji, I'm begging you: can you enter the race?
If you run with us, we'll win!
I know we'll win!
And maybe if we win the race, Momoko will...
get better!
Shoot! I'm late!
You're late, Riki!
That's not going to win us any race!
Ryuji!
Come on, guys! Let's start running.
When we came here, Ryuji was already running.
What made him change his mind?
He came for her!
You need to say "Here!" when you pass the baton!
Tamaki, get your legs up!
Kenta! Lower your head!
Yes! That's the way!
Wow! He cut his time by two seconds!
Explain yourself, Ryuji.
I hear you're cutting cram school to practice running?
You also stayed home from school by faking an illness.
What were you doing out of the house?
Visiting someone.
Who?
The new girl in our class who's in the hospital.
That disabled kid?
God, what are you doing with her?
Isn't that a waste of time?
You could've been-
Dad!
You could've been-
I know you're saying these things... for my own good.
But...
Please, Dad! Let me do something that I want to do for once!
Dad!
This is really important to me!
I want to win the class relay.
I don't care what you say!
I... I won't stop practicing!
I want to go home!
It's just for a little longer, Momoko. Just a little.
No! I wanna go!
That's "Little Frog's Song."
You're right!
I can hear the little frog
sing its lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit"
"Croak, Croak, Croak."
Momoko, I hope you get better soon.
We're all waiting for you.
I'm next.
Momo, you better come to the school tournament.
I can't wait to see you there, Momoko!
Your turn, Kenta!
Cheer for us loudly like you did before, Momo!
That's Kenta.
Our team is fighting hard for the relay. And we will win it!
Brother, promise me you'll win.
I'm all over it! V!
I know you will.
Are you all right, Momoko?
I'm fine.
Sorry I can't come to cheer for you, Riki.
It's a business trip. What can you do?
I'll be sure to get it all on video.
Momoko and I will also cheer in Dad's place.
Yeah, be sure to do that.
Done eating!
Oh, already?
Yeah, I have to go practice with my team.
I'll be there with Momoko in the afternoon, so do your best.
Yeah!
We'll also have to do our best.
Uh-huh.
Kenta! Good morning!
This ends the morning events.
The children may now have their lunch break.
I thought she said they will come in the afternoon. What happened?
Hey, Riki!
Wanna eat? I got enough for three.
Holy...
Eat all you want. I could never finish these by myself.
Where are your parents?
My dad doesn't care for these kinds of events at all...
since they don't help me study.
My mom left my dad last year.
I see.
Sorry, Riki.
For what?
For saying she'll make us all stupid.
It's all right.
Next up on the program is the class relay.
Isn't Momoko here yet?
No.
She'll be there when we run.
Yeah, don't worry, Riki.
We'll definitely give Momoko her victory.
Class 4-1 will win this!
Yeah!
Good luck!
I'll create as big a lead as possible.
Riki, cover the anchor position.
You got it.
On your marks!
Get set!
Go, Ryuji!
Good luck, Ryuji!
Yes, he passed Class 2!
And Class 3!
Wow! He's taken a huge lead!
Here! Go, Mika!
Mika's fast! She's protecting the lead!
Good luck, Kenta!
First place is ours for the taking.
Yeah!
Isn't Momoko here yet?
Here!
Wow! Tamaki's about to pass
Class 2 which is a lap behind!
Oh no!
Tamaki, hang on!
Come on!
Shoot! She twisted her ankle!
Tamaki!
Tamaki!
Tamaki!
Let's go, Tamaki!
Let's go, Tamaki!
We're about to win! Come on!
You can do it!
Yes!
You can do it, Tamaki!
Class 3 passed her!
Riki, it's all on you.
We're going to win first place.
It's not over till it's over!
Come on, Tamaki! Just a bit further!
Sorry, Riki.
Riki, go get ‘em!
Good luck, Riki!
Shoot! I can't close the gap!
Riki, don't give up! We have to win!
Can't breathe. My heart's... about to explode.
Yeah, this is what Momoko goes through.
This is how she struggles...
for every breath she breathes.
But... she would always smile when she's with us.
Brother, you can do it!
Good luck, Brother!
Momoko!
I won't lose!
You did it, Brother!
You won, Riki!
Yay! We won, Momoko-
Momoko?
Riki, you need to go to the hospital now.
We've just received a call from your mother. Momoko is in critical condition.
Ryuji!
Riki, come quickly!
Riki!
When I came here this morning,
Momoko lost consciousness.
I didn't want to tell you this, but she's reached a point where this is to be expected.
Momoko, your brother won the relay race.
You came to cheer for me, right?
I won because you came to cheer for me!
Momoko, you remember your promise?
I kept my promise and won first place! So please...
So please, don't give up!
Momoko!
Momoko!
Momoko?!
Momoko!
It's me, Dad!
Momoko!
V...
Momoko!
Momoko...
Momoko! Don't die!
Momoko!
When Momoko saw Dad, she breathed her last breath and died in peace.
I can hear Momoko
I can hear Momoko
sing her lovely little song
sing her lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
I can hear Momoko
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
sing her lovely little song
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
sing her lovely little song
I can hear Momoko
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
sing her lovely little song
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit,"
sing her lovely little song
I can hear Momoko
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
sing her lovely little song
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
sing her lovely little song
I can hear Momoko...
It's been a year since then.
Although Momoko has left us,
whenever I remember her, I can feel something warm welling up in my heart.
I will continue living my life
with Momoko by my side.
We came out from the dark tunnel
and the brightness took our breath away
It was as if we're seeing the skies
and the scenery for the very first time
Why do I treasure every moment
we touch each other in passing?
Smile, don't be shy
and lose yourself in the light
When you stand in line while covered in sweat
you are happy when they call out your name
The times that were seemingly wasted
are surely treasures we have yet to see
Why do I want to cry
when the warmth spreads inside of me?
Come closer, don't be shy
A new morning will soon be here.
Why do I want to cry
when the warmth spreads inside of me?
Come closer, don't be shy
A new morning will soon be here
We were both two months premature,
and we were so frail that the doctor told our
parents that he could not guarantee our survival.
It was then that our dad saw peach flowers blossoming on a tree despite the cold weather.
He wanted us to grow up strong just like those tiny blossoms.
That was why he named us Momoko and Riki.
*Momoko = "Peach Girl" and Riki = "Strength"*
That was why he named us Momoko and Riki.
I'm going too!
I'm going with you!
Let go, Momoko!
You'll make me late for school!
No fair! You get to go to regular school and I don't!
Geez, stop saying the same things over again!
You're hurting me!
What's wrong? Don't fight, you two.
Riki, you're her older brother, remember?
Yeah, but only by a few minutes,
since we're twins.
But you're still her older brother,
so you have to be nice to your sister.
Are we clear, Riki?
I still don't get it!
Stop crying, Momoko. We have to get ready.
Riki, you're going to be late.
I can hear the little frog...
I can hear the little frog
I can hear the little frog
sing its lovely little song
sing its lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak"
"Ribbit Ribbit..."
Ever since Momoko was five,
she's had a condition which makes the muscles in her limbs grow stiffer and stiffer.
Now, even her lungs are growing stiff.
That's why she has tubes under her nose that give her oxygen to breathe.
We used to go to kindergarten together,
and I thought Momoko would come
to elementary school with me.
But Momoko ended up going to a
school for handicapped children.
Kenta!
Good morning!
There's no time for that!
If you're here now, then that means I'm late again!
Just in time!
Good for you, guys.
If you were late this time...
Yeah, that fearsome Godzilla will use his mighty claws to—
Hey, stop doing that!
He wasn't able to avoid the tickle punishment after all.
No! Stop!
Quit it!
That was mean, Godzilla... I mean Mr. Kuroki.
I made it just in time.
That was your reward for not being late.
Come on! That's not fair!
Mika?
Here!
Yasuhiro?
Here.
Kenta?
Here!
Yukari?
Here!
Riki?
Here!
Ryuji?
Here.
Atsuko?
Here!
Shoot... 52 points?
And I tried real hard too.
I'll bet Momoko doesn't know we have dumb tests like these at school.
Wow, your score sucks!
Give that back!
Take a look at this!
Whoa! A 52!
Unbelievable!
I told you to give that back!
Ow!
That hurt!
You stupid...
Watch it!
You two back to your seats!
Let's continue, shall we?
Tamaki Ueno?
Here!
You had the only perfect score in class!
Ooh, wow!
A perfect score!
Way to go, Tamaki!
Time to eat.
Time to eat!
Okay.
Here, say "ahh," Momoko.
I can eat by myself!
It'll take you forever to do it!
Now say "ahh."
I can eat by myself!
I was only trying to help.
Riki?
Why not let her take her time?
Let Momoko handle it.
Fine.
Here!
They say Momoko is mentally retarded,
but she's totally stubborn and
wants to do everything herself.
I'm home!
Your dad's back.
You're here early.
First time in ages I didn't
have to put in extra hours.
We've already started dinner, but since we're all here...
I suppose I can share this wonderful news with all of you.
What is it, Mommy?
Momoko, you can now go to your brother's school.
Really?!
What do you mean?
A while ago, I made a request for Momoko to come to your class.
After discussing the matter with both schools,
she's allowed to attend his school next spring.
Is that so?
Isn't this great, Momoko?
Yay! Yay! I get to go to regular school!
Yay!
Oh, why don't we take Momoko along to Parent's Day tomorrow?
Yes, it will be a good chance for her to get accustomed to his school.
I'm coming tomorrow?
Yay! Yay! Yay!
Hey, Momoko!
Yay! Yay! Yay!
Don't make a racket at school like you're doing now! You better promise!
I'll be good.
You swear?
I mean it.
V!
Momoko, you don't have to be in such a rush.
Ah, it's my brother!
Brother! I came to see you!
It's Kenta and Tamaki!
We will now begin our dodgeball game!
Since your moms and dads are
all here, you better play hard!
Guys! Good luck!
That girl is Riki's twin sister.
What's that weird thing she's got up her nose?
I hear she's sick.
That's why she's so small. And she's also really stupid!
God, then don't bring her here.
What idiot brings their whole family anyway?
Yeah, my mom's the only one who came.
How about you, Ryuji?
My dad can't make it because of work.
Kenta, good luck!
Ryuji! Don't let Kenta win!
Get ready!
Andre the Giant Moron.
Kenta's amazing!
Nice, Riki!
My brother's also good!
There's no "also" about it!
Won't they ever shut up?!
Thanks, Tamaki!
Tamaki, nice!
Pass it here!
Tamaki!
Headhunting! Red team has the ball!
Tamaki! Tamaki!
Tamaki!
Tamaki! Tamaki!
Tamaki, are you all right?
Tamaki! Tamaki!
Tamaki, are you all right?
Hah, serves you right.
Stupid honor student!
Wait, did Ryuji aim for her head on purpose?
All right, he's mine.
Some toss!
Shoot!
They got hit again!
Good luck, Brother! Good luck, Kenta!
Good luck, Tamaki!
You can do it! You can do it! You can do it!
You can do it, Sis! Good luck, yeah!
Go get ‘em, Yukari!
You can do it!
Good luck!
Yes! You can do it!
Good luck out there!
White Team, you can do it!
Whoo-hoo!
Yeah!
Go get ‘em!
Watch out!
You can do it! You can do it!
There's only Ryuji left.
Let's do this, Riki.
Yeah.
You can do it, Brother!
I'm not losing to you guys!
Red Team wins!
Yay! We did it!
Brother, you won! Yay!
Yay! He won!
My brother won!
Move it.
I'm trying to clean here.
Don't bring her here again.
She'll make us all stupid.
Are you talking about Momoko?
Who else would I be talking about?
What's going on, Riki?
Hey, Ryuji, are you all right?
His nose is bleeding!
Someone get a tissue!
Somebody call Godzilla!
Kuramoto, answer this question honestly:
Why did you hit Kita?
What is it, Riki? How will we know if you don't tell us?
Kita claims he didn't do anything to cause you to hit him,
so why did it happen?
You're not making this easy.
Riki, I know you wouldn't hit him without a reason.
However, regardless of what happened, violence is never the answer.
Strength doesn't solve anything.
Are we clear, Riki?
Kuramoto, apologize to Kita.
Fail to do that, and we will have your parents come here.
I'm... sorry.
Was our teacher mad at you?
Did Ryuji do something to you?
Don't be late for school tomorrow!
Okay!
See you!
I'm back.
Welcome home, Brother.
Mommy is next door, so I'm watching the house for her.
Oh?
Brother, were you crying?
Why would I?!
I can still see where you cried.
What now?
I also cry a lot at school.
But Ms. Ushizawa says that crying and laughing a lot shows that we're alive.
It's all right. I will protect you, Brother.
Momoko? Momoko?!
Let's give her more oxygen!
Is something wrong with her?
Her cold's taken a turn for the worse.
Sorry, Riki, but can you eat breakfast by yourself?
Sure.
We'll play ball later.
Right.
See you!
"We went to the hospital. We will call later. Mom."
Does this mean Momoko's staying at the hospital again?
Does Momo have it that bad?
Not according to them,
but they say she still needs to be hospitalized since her body's weak.
She'll be fine soon.
My bad!
Momoko used to be able to do the exact same things as we did back in kindergarten.
Yeah.
I feel sorry for her.
Everything's white! It's so pretty!
Momoko, put on some clothes before you catch a cold.
Isn't Brother going to come to my school?
Yes, Riki, wouldn't you like to visit Momoko's school?
She'll be coming to your school next year, you know.
Please come. Santa will be visiting us today.
"I'm going on a trip, happy as can be..."
It's been a while since we went somewhere as a family.
Yeah.
I hope we all get to go somewhere fun next time.
Dad! I want to go to Universal Studios!
I've always wanted to go there!
I also wanna go to Yooberyoo...
Universal Studios!
Yeah, I wanna go!
Ah, Mr. Train is coming!
Mr. Train! Where are you going?!
Huh? So this is Momoko's school?
Teacher, good morning!
Good morning, Momoko.
My daddy and my brother came with me!
Good morning.
Thank you for taking care of our Momoko.
Oh, the pleasure is all mine.
Nice to meet you.
So you are Riki?
Momoko is always saying how good
you are at soccer and baseball.
He's also very good at dodgeball.
He won after I cheered for him.
Really? That's amazing!
But when he gets mad, he looks like this.
Momoko, stop making things up!
Ah, it's Fumi and the others!
Good morning, Momoko!
Good morning Fumi, Seiji, Satomi!
Good morning.
How are you?
Good morning!
I see you've brought everyone here.
Yes.
Brother!
These are all my friends.
This is Fumi, Satomi, and Seiji.
Brother, Seiji just said, "Good morning."
G-Good morning.
Satomi just said it too!
How nice, Momoko's spirit has rubbed off on them!
Fumi, I saw a train on my way here.
I hope we can all ride a train together and go somewhere far away.
Far, far, far, far, far, far, far...
Where exactly are you going, Momoko?
We will now begin our music class.
Who would like to start us off?
Me! I'll do it!
Oh? I see Momoko's the first to volunteer.
Kids, would you like Momoko to start us off?
Yes...
All right, Momoko, if you please.
Stand!
Bow!
Stand up!
Santa Claus is a busy little bee,
who visits all the houses before Christmas Day.
Hurry, hurry, jing-a-ling! Hurry, hurry, jing-a-ling!
Ring the silver yuletide bells back and forth.
Jing-a-ling! Jing-a-ling! Jing-a-ling!
Santa Claus is a busy little bee,
who dances because he cannot help himself.
Let's be merry, cha-cha-cha! Let's be merry, cha-cha-cha!
Everybody dance the night away with me!
Cha-cha-cha! Cha-cha-cha! Cha-cha-cha!
Dear gods, I pray to you:
I hope you help me get better soon.
I ask you too.
Please help her.
Happy New Year, Fumi, Seiji, Satomi!
What do you all want to do?
Yes, what can they all do?
Fumi likes songs.
Satomi likes picture books!
I'm sorry your husband has to look after the kids.
He said that New Year's should be my time to relax, so don't worry about it.
Hey, Riki!
Get Momoko some pudding, will you?!
Okay!
I envy you, Mrs. Kuramoto.
You have a very sweet husband.
The pudding should be...
Take mine for instance.
The pudding should be...
We divorced because of our kid.
When we found out about our son's condition,
my husband and his mother blamed it on my side of the family.
It was so frustrating to the point that I took Fumiya and left the house.
I've also had the same treatment.
Even now, our grandparents tell us not to take Satomi outside because it's embarrassing.
That's still better than having no family at all.
My husband decided to leave me.
He abandoned both me and Seiji.
You can't always depend on family.
Nobody helps me out with Satomi.
It's like I'm living with total strangers.
Oh, did you hear about Mami, who's in the middle school program?
Her mother gave birth to their third child,
so she may place Mami in a home to ease the burden.
When I first found out about Momoko's condition,
I felt my entire world turn dark.
I prayed to a bunch of gods, and I was so frantic that I didn't know what to do.
But then, I eventually came to realize
even if I laugh or cry, time will stop for no one.
So I might as well have fun with the kids instead of worrying all the time.
That's just like you, Mrs. Kuramoto.
And besides, whenever I see Momoko try her hardest to do everything she can,
it somehow fills me with strength...
the strength to do my best.
I can see that.
We've been through some hard times, but we keep going because of our kids.
That's so true.
Little Red Riding Hood took her mother's... um...
Ah! Pudding! Pudding!
Thanks a lot, Riki!
Right.
Okay, you're up first, Fumi.
Next after Fumi is Satomi, then next is...
Seiji says, "I'm waiting!"
Huh? We're going to Universal Studios?
Yes, for you guys' birthday, since it's during spring break.
Also, you've been really healthy lately, Momoko.
Yeah!
Yay!
All right! All right!
All right!
All right! All right!
All right! All right!
We're going to Universal Studios!
We're going to Universan!
All right!
It won't be your birthday for weeks.
All right!
Yay!
It won't be your birthday for weeks.
If you're this excited now, you'll get worn out before we even leave.
Universal!
Universal, yay!
Let's go!
Only one week before our birthday.
Brother.
I want to go to Frog Park.
Yeah, why don't we ask Kenta to come along?
Okay!
I can hear the little frog
sing its lovely little song
Whenever we come here, we'd hear someone playing this song on their harmonica.
sing its lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
Whenever we come here, we'd hear someone playing this song on their harmonica.
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
Whenever we come here, we'd hear someone playing this song on their harmonica.
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
That's how Momoko learned how to sing it.
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
That's how Momoko learned how to sing it.
That is why Momoko calls this place "Frog Park."
Kenta, hurry, hurry!
We're almost to the top!
Quit being selfish, Momoko! Kenta
has trouble carrying you as it is!
Boo!
You got it. Be sure to hang on tight.
Okay!
High-speed train!
Ah, those are my flowers!
When a lot of my flowers bloom, I won't be sick anymore.
Momoko! Are you cold?
Should we go home?
No, I want to stay here more!
Wait up, Momoko!
I said wait!
Brother! I can hear the wind talking!
Momoko? Momoko!
Honey, this is bad! Call an ambulance!
Momoko?
I'll be at the hospital.
I'll come back when things have settled down. You get some sleep.
Sure.
I'm back!
Welcome home.
Huh? Where's Mom?
Yeah, I have to get to work...
So I came alone. Did you eat your breakfast?
Yeah, I ate some bread.
So how's Momoko doing?
Hmm, it looks like this will be a long one.
So she won't be back in time for our birthday?
What about Universal Studios?
Sorry, Riki. Can we get a rain check for that?
Huh?
You're kidding...
I was really looking forward to it!
Can't they... Can't they just examine her for one day and be done with it?
Riki, this is no time to be selfish.
You know very well we can't do that.
But you promised me for my birthday!
It's Momoko's birthday too.
Once Momoko gets better, I promise to take you both, all right?
Please bear with it.
I've always had to bear with it.
I've had... to bear with a lot.
Riki...
You and Mom...
You only care about Momoko!
When will you start paying attention to me?!
This is all because of Momoko!
I wish Momoko was gone forever!
Riki!
Don't you ever...
say that again.
Riki!
When a lot of my flowers bloom, I won't be sick anymore.
I knew you'd be here.
Your dad told me everything.
I know you have to bear with a lot.
I'm sorry, Riki.
But I think Momoko has to bear with just as much as you do.
You two were born on the same day,
and in the beginning she could do everything you could do, but that slowly began to change.
I want Momoko to be able to experience everything she can.
Even if she can't do some things like you're able to, I think she feels the same way.
That's why I want you, me, Dad, and Momoko to go to Universal Studios, together.
I promise we will go, so please wait a little longer.
Okay, all done.
I'll give you something hot to drink.
Oh, who's that?
Hi, Kuromoto residence.
What was that?!
Understood. I'll be there immediately.
What's wrong, Mom? Did something happen to Momoko?
They said Fumi just passed away.
Fumi's coffin was very tiny.
That boy just turned seven.
Fumi meant a whole lot to Momoko too.
Yes, they're usually hospitalized at the same time.
Mom, does Momoko know about Fumi?
We haven't told her yet.
The news will be devastating, so we're waiting until she gets better before we tell her.
Yeah. I would too.
I hope you get to see Momoko today, Riki.
Yeah, but...
Why won't they let me into her hospital room?
They say children might carry a bunch of germs.
That's so thoughtless, since you take a bath every day.
I know!
That's Momoko!
Mrs. Kuramoto!
We've just called your house!
Momoko is having a tantrum!
It appears she heard about Fumi!
She pulls out her IV needle, and she's highly agitated!
Anyway, we can't calm her down!
Will you come with me?
Riki, stay here.
It's my turn to die!
Momoko? Momoko?!
I'm going to die! I'm going to die!
I'm going to die!
I'll die!
That was... the first time
I realized just how terrifying this all must be for Momoko.
She always has to fight the fear that she might die at any moment.
But I... I had no idea!
I'll make sure... they all bloom.
All of them... All of them... All of them...
They're pretty!
Your brother made this for you. He hopes you'll get better.
Wow, those are my flowers!
Brother, you're amazing!
I can hear the little frog
I can hear the little frog
sing its lovely little song
sing its lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
Welcome home, Momoko!
I'm back!
Welcome back, Momoko.
I got a surprise for you inside.
Ah! A cake!
It's to celebrate your release, and it's also a very belated birthday party for you guys.
Daddy, light the candles!
On it.
One, two, three, four...
Five, six, seven, eight, nine!
You two have grown so big.
Five, six, seven, eight, nine!
Nine candles!
Let's have a big, ginormous cake
for your tenth birthday, Momoko!
Yeah!
Okay, blow them out, you two!
Here we go, Momoko. Ready, and...
Riki, Momoko, happy birthday!
Today, the new school year begins, kids!
As you can see, you have the same classmates as last year.
I hope we have another good year.
Us too!
Also, starting next week, a new friend will be joining us once a week.
Momoko Kuramoto!
Momo's coming to our class!
She's Riki's twin sister.
You remember her from Parent's Day, correct?
God, why is she coming to our school?
She'll be nothing but trouble.
Of course, wait just a moment.
Mr. Kuroki, it's for you.
Coming.
Hello, this is Kuroki.
Can you put a stop to this?
I heard a disabled kid is joining your class.
If you have time to pull that stunt, then you should focus on educating normal children.
Excuse me, may I ask who's calling?
That's beside the point.
What will happen if that disabled kid interferes with my child's studies?
You better put a stop to it.
I'm leaving!
Is your backpack heavy? Should I get it for you?
I'm all right!
See you all later!
I'm off!
Good morning!
Good morning! Good morning!
Good morning.
Good morning!
This is our new classmate, Momoko Kuramoto.
Let's all be friends, all right?
Let's all be friends, all right?!
I won't be assigning a specific theme today.
You can paint whatever you want.
Here.
He says we can paint whatever we want.
I'm going to draw Brother, and Mommy, and Daddy.
Is that Godzilla?
He's not going to like that.
Oh, no rough drawing?
It's fine.
I'll get some clean water.
At least Mothra's on our side.
At least Mothra's on our side.
Sorry. I tripped.
No, you didn't, Ryuji! You did that on purpose!
Riki!
What? Where's your proof?
I don't need any proof!
Hey!
You two better cool it!
It's all soaked.
Teacher, these are flowers.
Whoa, they're pretty.
They are!
They're beautiful!
Wow, they're pretty!
You call that pretty? That's not even art!
Is that right?
I think it's outstanding art.
What's important is to have fun painting what you want.
Don't you think so?
Okay, I'm doing that too!
Things seem to be abuzz in here, Mr. Kuroki.
Oh, Mr. Principal.
Oh? Good morning, Momoko.
Momoko, that's our principal.
Ah!
Mr. Principal?
There's a flower on your face.
There sure is!
Yeah...
and a pretty one at that.
And the following week.
Ready?
You can do it! You can do it!
Wow!
Ah, Brother's next!
You can do it, Brother!
You can do it!
Will she ever shut up?
Ready?!
You can do it, Brother!
Wh-What is it?
Ryuji, you were great! You were faster than my brother.
I want to run as fast as you!
It's your turn, Momoko.
I'll hold your hand and run with you.
No! I will run by myself!
But I...
Excuse me.
Is it possible to allow that?
Sure, you got it.
Are we ready?
Mm-hmm!
Get ready!
What the heck?
I can walk faster than that.
Keep going, Momo! You're almost at the goal!
Momo!
You all right, Momoko?
You didn't have to do this. We're done.
No, I will run!
Momo! You can do it!
Keep going, Momo!
All right!
Goal!
All right!
You did it!
Well done, Momoko.
Momoko really tried her best.
I know.
Momoko's pretty amazing.
Here's an idea.
How about sending our kids to Momoko's school?
Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!
They can interact with their kids and learn.
Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!
What? The special school?
Yeah, they want us to "interact."
Honestly, what are those teachers over there thinking?
How will interacting with disabled kids help in any way?
That's what I think too.
If they're going to waste their time doing that, they should focus more on real education.
I was against the whole idea of letting a disabled kid come to your class.
I thought I made myself clear to that teacher of yours!
Yeah, it's me.
What?!
I've told you repeatedly that won't boost profits!
Renegotiate the deal! And it better not be on their terms!
The useless fools I have to deal with make my head hurt!
I hope you don't turn out to be one of those losers.
Only the strong come out on top in today's world, understood?
Yeah.
Then you better not bring home scores like the one on your last cram school test.
I'll even hire a private tutor if we have to.
Today, we'll be having a special class with the kids from Momoko's school.
Grab your things...
Excuse me!
Oh, what is it, Ryuji?
I don't want to go to the handicapped school.
My father said I don't have to go.
I wish to study by myself in the classroom.
I don't want to go either.
I wish to study too.
Why don't you guys want to go?
We'll just meet more kids who are like Riki's sister.
What'll we get out of it?
He's right. It's a waste of time.
We'll fall behind on our studies compared to other classes.
Ryuji, what kind of studies are most important to you?
I don't know.
I think anything that's on a test is important.
Is that really all?
There are other studies that won't get you any grades that are just as important.
Even if you don't get a grade?
Those are studies that nurture your hearts.
There are other people out there who are different from you.
I believe it's very important to study
how to recognize and appreciate the differences that can be found in each other.
So I want you to experience different things and learn something from them.
Today, we'll learn how to find spring!
I hope we find a lot!
Is this "learning how to find spring"?
I don't believe this.
And you put it through like this...
Is this right?
Satomi, what are you looking at?
Ah, it's a bunny!
Where?
Oh! You're right!
Ah! Now I see a hippo!
Oh yeah! There's a flying hippo!
This is stupid.
Where are you headed?
Someplace where I'm not surrounded by idiots!
Wh-What the heck?!
There's a dolphin right above the hippo!
And I can see Taro right beside it!
A what?
That's my dog!
That hippo seems to enjoy soaring through the sky.
This place smells great.
Mr. Kuroki, are you sleeping?
It's a froggie!
What?
Ribbit! Ribbit! Ribbit!
I can hear Momoko
I can hear Momoko
sing her lovely little song
sing her lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
I can hear Momoko
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
I can hear Momoko
Momoko Kuramoto, here we go!
There!
That looks fun!
Hurry, guys! It feels great!
It does look like fun.
I want to do it!
You going too, Seiji?
Hey, let's scare her.
We'll slide down and stop right in front of her.
Now doesn't that sound like fun?
No, I'll pass.
Me too.
Are you guys taking her side?
Forget you guys!
Seiji Tomizawa, let's go!
Seiji is having fun!
That felt great. Do you want to try?
Uh, sure.
Are you okay, Ryuji?
Ow...
Are you okay?
Don't get in the way!
It's your fault I toppled over!
You slid in her direction in the first place!
No, it's her fault!
You're bleeding...
I'm sorry! I'm sorry for hurting you!
I have some sad news for you.
Momoko is in the hospital, so she won't be joining us for a while.
I hope she gets better, Riki.
Yeah.
I also have another announcement to make.
Since our new building will begin construction in the fall,
we will be holding our school athletic tournament this June.
The tournament?
Momoko will like that.
Right now, I'd like you all to choose five people who'll participate in the class relay.
The fastest kid in our class is obviously Ryuji.
Riki and Kenta are also pretty fast.
Oh, I think Tamaki should be in it!
Okay, our relay runners will be Riki, Tamaki, Kenta, Mika, and Ryuji, since they have the most votes.
We're all counting on you five.
Don't lose!
We mean it!
Good luck!
Brother, you'll be in the relay?
Yeah.
I will cheer for you. So you better win, Brother.
And you better get better in time for the school tournament.
We clear, Momoko? Promise me!
I promise I'll be there.
Hey, why don't we start practicing every morning?
That should put us ahead of the other classes.
I'm in!
Me too!
Yeah, let's make sure we win!
Ryuji, did you hear?
We'll be practicing every morning starting tomorrow.
I'm not doing it!
I'm not doing the relay!
Now wait a minute!
What'll we do without the fastest kid in our class?
Yeah! We'll never win the race!
Ryuji, wait up!
Ryuji, please, race with us.
I will if you quit.
I'll race with you guys, but only if you drop out!
I'm running the relay!
Is Ryuji really going to sit out the relay?
What would make Ryuji do such a thing?
Ryuji's absent from school again.
I hope he's not just cutting class!
He might be.
Guys, bad news!
What is it?
All of Class 3's relay runners are in the track & field club!
What? They'll be totally tough to beat!
Now we won't have an easy time winning.
Here we go!
Yeah!
Go ahead!
Sorry about that.
No, that was my fault.
Geez, what are you doing to us?
Dropping the baton will delay us to no end!
Don't get so mad!
That's Class 3.
Are those guys fighting already? Like that'll help them.
And they don't even have five runners.
You know Ryuji, the fastest kid in their class?
I heard he's not running in the relay.
Then this will be a cakewalk!
Ryuji's still not coming to school.
He'll probably keep this up till the tournament.
He's doing this because he knows we can't win without him, I'm sure of it.
Geez, he's such a jerk.
He wasn't always like that.
We went to kindergarten together, and he was super nice back then.
He'd play his harmonica for any kid who was crying.
Ryuji plays the harmonica?
I think he learned it from his mother.
He'd always have fun practicing in the park.
Ryuji...
I wanted Ryuji to know the real Momoko.
May I have your name?
I'm Kuramoto, Ryuji's classmate!
Um, this is an emergency! I really want to see Ryuji!
I'm afraid he is not in his bedroom.
Ryuji, where did you go?
Riki!
Wh-What?
Ryuji, would you please visit Momoko in the hospital?
Huh? Why would I do that?
I want you to see Momoko! Just for a little bit!
If you're still mad about that punch, you can always punch me back!
Ryuji, I'm begging you with my life!
I won't stay long, you hear?
Thank you, Ryuji!
I wanna go home!
That's Momoko!
Riki, did you come to visit?
Yes.
Momoko is very agitated right now.
I'm sorry, but I plan to call your mother once she's calmed down,
so can you wait in the hallway?
I wanna go home!
so can you wait in the hallway?
I wanna go home!
I can hear Momoko
sing her lovely little song
"Ribbit! Ribbit! Ribbit! Ribbit!"
Sorry for keeping you waiting!
Oh, Ryuji.
How are you?
I'm sorry about what happened to you. Is your arm okay?
Yes.
Really? That's great!
Momoko felt really bad about
what happened to you, Ryuji.
Ryuji came to visit her.
Is that so?
Momoko is sleeping right now. I'm sorry, since I know you came all this way to see her.
Sorry for dragging you there for nothing.
Don't worry about it.
Momoko's agitated because she couldn't come home.
Me and Momoko were born very prematurely.
But Momoko was the one whose body stopped working right.
I promised Momoko that I would win the relay for her.
Ryuji, I'm begging you: can you enter the race?
If you run with us, we'll win!
I know we'll win!
And maybe if we win the race, Momoko will...
get better!
Shoot! I'm late!
You're late, Riki!
That's not going to win us any race!
Ryuji!
Come on, guys! Let's start running.
When we came here, Ryuji was already running.
What made him change his mind?
He came for her!
You need to say "Here!" when you pass the baton!
Tamaki, get your legs up!
Kenta! Lower your head!
Yes! That's the way!
Wow! He cut his time by two seconds!
Explain yourself, Ryuji.
I hear you're cutting cram school to practice running?
You also stayed home from school by faking an illness.
What were you doing out of the house?
Visiting someone.
Who?
The new girl in our class who's in the hospital.
That disabled kid?
God, what are you doing with her?
Isn't that a waste of time?
You could've been-
Dad!
You could've been-
I know you're saying these things... for my own good.
But...
Please, Dad! Let me do something that I want to do for once!
Dad!
This is really important to me!
I want to win the class relay.
I don't care what you say!
I... I won't stop practicing!
I want to go home!
It's just for a little longer, Momoko. Just a little.
No! I wanna go!
That's "Little Frog's Song."
You're right!
I can hear the little frog
sing its lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit"
"Croak, Croak, Croak."
Momoko, I hope you get better soon.
We're all waiting for you.
I'm next.
Momo, you better come to the school tournament.
I can't wait to see you there, Momoko!
Your turn, Kenta!
Cheer for us loudly like you did before, Momo!
That's Kenta.
Our team is fighting hard for the relay. And we will win it!
Brother, promise me you'll win.
I'm all over it! V!
I know you will.
Are you all right, Momoko?
I'm fine.
Sorry I can't come to cheer for you, Riki.
It's a business trip. What can you do?
I'll be sure to get it all on video.
Momoko and I will also cheer in Dad's place.
Yeah, be sure to do that.
Done eating!
Oh, already?
Yeah, I have to go practice with my team.
I'll be there with Momoko in the afternoon, so do your best.
Yeah!
We'll also have to do our best.
Uh-huh.
Kenta! Good morning!
This ends the morning events.
The children may now have their lunch break.
I thought she said they will come in the afternoon. What happened?
Hey, Riki!
Wanna eat? I got enough for three.
Holy...
Eat all you want. I could never finish these by myself.
Where are your parents?
My dad doesn't care for these kinds of events at all...
since they don't help me study.
My mom left my dad last year.
I see.
Sorry, Riki.
For what?
For saying she'll make us all stupid.
It's all right.
Next up on the program is the class relay.
Isn't Momoko here yet?
No.
She'll be there when we run.
Yeah, don't worry, Riki.
We'll definitely give Momoko her victory.
Class 4-1 will win this!
Yeah!
Good luck!
I'll create as big a lead as possible.
Riki, cover the anchor position.
You got it.
On your marks!
Get set!
Go, Ryuji!
Good luck, Ryuji!
Yes, he passed Class 2!
And Class 3!
Wow! He's taken a huge lead!
Here! Go, Mika!
Mika's fast! She's protecting the lead!
Good luck, Kenta!
First place is ours for the taking.
Yeah!
Isn't Momoko here yet?
Here!
Wow! Tamaki's about to pass
Class 2 which is a lap behind!
Oh no!
Tamaki, hang on!
Come on!
Shoot! She twisted her ankle!
Tamaki!
Tamaki!
Tamaki!
Let's go, Tamaki!
Let's go, Tamaki!
We're about to win! Come on!
You can do it!
Yes!
You can do it, Tamaki!
Class 3 passed her!
Riki, it's all on you.
We're going to win first place.
It's not over till it's over!
Come on, Tamaki! Just a bit further!
Sorry, Riki.
Riki, go get ‘em!
Good luck, Riki!
Shoot! I can't close the gap!
Riki, don't give up! We have to win!
Can't breathe. My heart's... about to explode.
Yeah, this is what Momoko goes through.
This is how she struggles...
for every breath she breathes.
But... she would always smile when she's with us.
Brother, you can do it!
Good luck, Brother!
Momoko!
I won't lose!
You did it, Brother!
You won, Riki!
Yay! We won, Momoko-
Momoko?
Riki, you need to go to the hospital now.
We've just received a call from your mother. Momoko is in critical condition.
Ryuji!
Riki, come quickly!
Riki!
When I came here this morning,
Momoko lost consciousness.
I didn't want to tell you this, but she's reached a point where this is to be expected.
Momoko, your brother won the relay race.
You came to cheer for me, right?
I won because you came to cheer for me!
Momoko, you remember your promise?
I kept my promise and won first place! So please...
So please, don't give up!
Momoko!
Momoko!
Momoko?!
Momoko!
It's me, Dad!
Momoko!
V...
Momoko!
Momoko...
Momoko! Don't die!
Momoko!
When Momoko saw Dad, she breathed her last breath and died in peace.
I can hear Momoko
I can hear Momoko
sing her lovely little song
sing her lovely little song
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
I can hear Momoko
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
sing her lovely little song
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
sing her lovely little song
I can hear Momoko
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
sing her lovely little song
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit,"
sing her lovely little song
I can hear Momoko
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
sing her lovely little song
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit, Croak, Croak, Croak"
"Croak, Croak, Croak, Croak"
sing her lovely little song
I can hear Momoko...
It's been a year since then.
Although Momoko has left us,
whenever I remember her, I can feel something warm welling up in my heart.
I will continue living my life
with Momoko by my side.
We came out from the dark tunnel
and the brightness took our breath away
It was as if we're seeing the skies
and the scenery for the very first time
Why do I treasure every moment
we touch each other in passing?
Smile, don't be shy
and lose yourself in the light
When you stand in line while covered in sweat
you are happy when they call out your name
The times that were seemingly wasted
are surely treasures we have yet to see
Why do I want to cry
when the warmth spreads inside of me?
Come closer, don't be shy
A new morning will soon be here.
Why do I want to cry
when the warmth spreads inside of me?
Come closer, don't be shy
A new morning will soon be here