[ES!! Era Year 2] crossing past the [vast ocean]
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| Outfit name: “Ulysses”. An outfit that Kanata also had a hand in. Designed to envision a fairytale-like butterfly ready to take off. |
The special program, “Behind the Scenes ☆ Shinkai Kanata’s Puka Puka Day”, is currently being live-streamed. Through the interview that looks back on his daily life, Kanata searches for clues that can help with his Solo Live.
Chapter 1
This story is set a little after the Mega Sphere arc began (July), where idols start live-streaming through Mega Stream.
Season: ES 2nd Year, Summer
Haah… The sky is so pretty.
Having lunch on a bench while taking my mind off things is probably the happiest I can be right now.
Not that I have the energy to travel to that many places… But right now, I want to enjoy daydreaming about that.
…That cloud over there looks like the “Kerokero-rin” yuruchara.3
I want to go see them all now… I want to touch their unique textures to feel healed and relaxed…
…If only Mega Sphere had its own original yuruchara, at least…
Would Anzu-san make one for me? I feel like she’d agree if I asked her…
But she seems super busy… She’s also the type who wouldn’t say no if you ask her for a favor, so it actually makes it harder to ask anything from her.
And I’ll seriously feel bad if her physical health gets ruined all because of me…
…Nah, let’s drop that idea. The most peaceful option is that I satisfy myself by looking at the clouds and daydreaming.
Sigh… I wish a yuruchara could just appear from thin air right now.
I feel like I’d be a little more motivated if I had one…
—Hee~y, Midori-kun!
Eh…? That voice…
No way, a yuruchara…!? Was my wish heard…!?
What if it’s somehow Mega Sphere’s official mascot or something…!? I have to get its autograph…!
MEGA STREAM: Behind the Scenes ☆ Shinkai Kanata’s Puka Puka Day
“I finally found ya, Midori-kun!”
“Your autograph, please!”
“…Eh?”
“Autograph? Mine? Why’s that?”
“No, um… That’s not wh—… Eh, are you live-streaming?”
“Ossu, I sure am! I’m currently walkin’ around and asking people an ‘important question’.”
“Midori-kun, what do you think of Shinkai-senpai?”
“What do I think of him…?”
(Anzu-san’s behind Tetora-kun. Which means this isn’t a personal live stream or something…)
(Then I have to give a proper answer here, right? Ermm…)
“Mm~… He’s generally a senior I can respect… maybe?”
“Ahaha, that’s not what we’re hopin’ for here~”
“Ehhh…? I can’t tell what you’re aiming for at all, though.”
“Why’re you asking me that…? Actually… What is this live stream even for?”
“Ah, I didn’t explain it yet, did I! Sorry ‘bout that.”
“This program’s called ‘Behind the Scenes ☆ Shinkai Kanata’s Puka Puka Day’! As the title goes, it’s a documentary that takes you through a day in the mysterious, laidback life of Shinkai-senpai.”
“It’s a special live stream for Shinkai-senpai’s Solo Live, and I’m actin’ as the host for it.”
“For Shinkai-senpai’s…”
“Hold on, he isn’t even here, though…? Is this a horror show with that sort of gimmick?”
“No, no, not at all! He just isn’t here for a li’l while, is all.”
“Shinkai-senpai’s puka puka-ing in a cold bath in the big bathhouse. And obviously, we can’t be showin’ that, so~”6
“I’ve been interviewing people all over ‘til he’s back.”
“That bein’ said… Apparently, Senpai has already done everythin’ he wanted to do back in the Feature Live.”7
“So for the Solo Live that’s gonna be live-streamed, it hasn’t struck him just yet how he wants to go ‘bout it.”
“That’s why he wants to look back on his daily life through a ‘behind the scenes interview,’ while usin’ everyone’s impression of him as clues on what to do.”
“I get it now… So that’s why you asked me what I thought of Shinkai-senpai.”
“My impression of him, huh… I feel like nobody could ever come close to the clear-cut impression Shinkai-senpai gives off.”
“He’s someone with a relaxing way of speaking, brimming with knowledge about the sea, and always has the urge to go into the water whenever he sees it…”
“That’s more or less how he is, right? I feel like it’s not something you even need to ask.”
“Yeah. Everyone else said ‘bout the same thing.”
“By the way, Morisawa-senpai said, ‘Like water, he’s someone you can’t live without, and my partner! ☆’—”
“Kanzaki-senpai said, ‘A respectable and reliable senior, who wraps around you like the great ocean’—”
“And Hakaze-senpai said, ‘He’s the epitome of the sea,’ and also, ‘Gentle, but he packs a punch with his strength~’.”
“Fufu, they all answered in a similar way, mentioning the sea and water, huh.”
“Well, I’d also answer about the same way if I was asked what sort of person he is.”
“Yeah, right~ Same here, when I was first asked, I said, ‘A man who suits water more than anyone out there’.”
“If I close my eyes right now, I can still see it so vividly~ The image of Senpai when he was water-bathing so boldly in the fountain in Yumenosaki Academy…!”
“Mhm… Everyone basically accepted it, like, ‘there he is again~’.”
“But if you think about it, it was a pretty surreal sight to see. His behavior was way too eccentric.”
“…Wait, is it alright that I’m talking about him like this while he isn’t around?”
“If this is a live stream to show stuff behind the scenes, then most of the viewers must be fans of Shinkai-senpai, right? Are the comments going crazy right now…?”
“Mm~… Looks good to me. Lots of comments are saying, ‘This is fine, I feel like we’re getting inside stories’.”
“As expected of Shinkai-senpai’s fans! They’ve all got broad-minded hearts like the sea! ☆”
“Whew… I really appreciate it when there are fans who watch over us so thoughtfully.”
“I’m sure that Shinkai-senpai has also been able to expand on his idol activities thanks to fans like that.”
“Ossu! I want his Solo Live to be an absolute success for the sake of his fans, as well.”
“That’s why I’m hopin’ this live stream helps give him the clues he needs, even if only a li’l…”
“But we still need a li’l more of somethin’ else. Somethin’ that can bring out what makes him ‘Shinkai-senpai’ outside of the sea and water…”
“Uu~myu, this is so hard…!”
Chapter 2
“heeey~, tetora~♪” (waves)
“oh? midori is [with you], too~”
“midori, hello~ [everyone] watching, hello as well~♪”
“How’d the water-bathin’ go, Shinkai-senpai?”
“it went great~ the [cold water] was lovely…♪”
“Huh, usually people would say ‘the hot bath was lovely’ here.”
“i am not good with hot things, after all~ [hot water] is not suitable for survival, you see.”
“i am a little more [accustomed] to it than i used to be, but i do not want to go inside the [big bathhouse]’s hot bathtub.”
“if only the [water temperature] was around the same degree as [heated swimming pools], though~”
“It was designed with a cold bath area in mind, so the hot bathtub is pretty hot, yeah~”6
“I love that level of hot temperature, though! When I go in there with Taishou, I can’t help but have an endurance contest with him~♪”
“Ahh… Yeah, people really like doing that for some reason. Even though it sucks to feel faint…”
“fufu, that reminds me, chiaki [joined along] with that the other day~”
“it does not seem like midori [uses] the [big bathhouse] much, does he?”
“Ahh, yeah. I almost always get it over and done with it in our room’s shower.”
“It’s a pain to leave my room just to take a bath, anyway. And I’d rather not go to places like that in the first place…”
“is it because you have to be [naked] there? midori is very [shy], huh?”
“Ehh? No, not that… I just don’t feel relaxed being in a bathhouse with people I don’t know.”
“I’d be fine with it if I was alone, though. Relaxing in a huge bathtub does sound like it’d feel nice.”
“But you don’t know who’s in the bathhouse unless you go there first, right?”
“Doesn’t the thought of opening the door to a bathhouse full of party animals sound scary…?”
“fufu. it is just like midori to [think] that way~”
“you just need to choose the [right time] then. shinobu mentioned that the [big bathhouse] gets crowded only at certain times.”
“Shinobu-kun said that?”
“yes~ it seems that he practices his [water-escape jutsu] during the time when nobody is in there, like the morning.”8
“Ahh, yeah… Since people might think he’s acting suspicious if he did it in front of them.”
“By the way… Are you sure it’s alright that we’re just having a cozy chat?”
“This live stream is meant to show stuff behind the scenes, right? But we aren’t even talking about your Solo Live, so I feel like this live stream is inching into a disaster—…”
“it is alright~ that is [how] the stream has been from the [start]~♪”
“i have tetora here to act as the [host] for me, while i do what i want to do. that is the sort of relaxing [program] we have here~”
“tetora~ did anything happen while i was [puka puka]-ing?”
“Ossu! While waitin’ for ya, I went ‘round and interviewed people ‘bout Shinkai-senpai. Morisawa-senpai said—”
A few minutes later…
“…i see~ as i thought, people think of the [sea] when it comes to me.”
“that is not bad either, but… there is no area to change things up, so it is quite boring, isn’t it?”
“You want to give yourself a makeover that badly? In that case—”
“How about wearing a Kanatee-looking costume…♪”9
“Midori-kun, Midori-kun, your personal desires are leakin’ out!”
“ufufu. that might also be nice~ it would be unusual and amusing.”
“…ohh? a [butterfly] is fluttering toward us.”
“Ohhh, it stopped on Shinkai-senpai’s finger. You can find butterflies even high up in the sky, huh~”
“that would not be [unusual] for them, actually. since you can find them above the [sea], as well.”
“Above the sea…? You mean butterflies?”
“if we were to look around, we could probably find all sorts of [creatures] that [match] with the [rogue]~ ehe, hehehe…♪”
“anyway… the [asagimadara butterfly] flies over the [sea] for several thousands of kilometers, just like [migratory birds].”12
“perhaps it is to cross over the [sea] in search of comfortable land to be in—”
“or perhaps crossing over the [sea] in itself is the [way of life] for the [asagimadara butterfly]? i am not sure.”
“i wonder what the first [asagimadara butterfly] to go beyond the [sea] was thinking when it decided to take off?”
“it does not even know what is out there beyond the [sea]…”
“and yet… one [speck] of courage is all it took—”
“maybe that is how the [asagimadara butterfly] became a [species] that crosses over the [sea].”
“it [naturally] stretches its [wings] to take flight across the [vast ocean], as if it was always the norm for it.”
“incredible, isn’t it? it crosses past the [sea] without much rest in between.”
“it managed to pull off such a [miraculous] act with its tiny [body]…♪”
“…i have made up my mind. i will go with the [butterfly].”13
“Eh? Erm, do you mean… for your Solo Live?”
“yes~ who i am [right now] is sort of like the [butterfly], after all.”
“i do not know where we are heading towards — nor do i know what lies ahead of us.”
“but even then, i will continue to fly. i will cross over [today], and into [tomorrow] — into the [future].”
“as long as i have the [wind] that is everyone with me, taking me along with them—”
“as long as i am with everyone, i feel as though i [can fly] no matter where, until the very end…♪”
“fufufu, it looks like i have found the [answer]~ all my lovely [fans], please look forward to the [solo live]~♪” (waves)
“No no, please wait! It’s still too early to end the program!”
“There’s still the latter half of today left for the program’s time slot. If we end it here, we seriously will have that live stream disaster!”
“And there are so many people who were looking forward to your behind the scenes live stream, Shinkai-senpai!”
“i see~ that is true, we have already decided on the [time] for the [live stream], so we should not end it early, right?”
“okay then, how about i turn this into a program where i [follow] how everyone is like [behind the scenes]?”
“Eh…? Who do you mean by everyone?”
“i have not decided on anyone in particular. it could be midori, or maybe tetora~?”
“if i act as the [host] instead, it will not turn into a [live stream disaster], yes?”
“Uu~myu… Well, based on the comments, it doesn’t seem like there’d be any problems with that.”
“Shinkai-senpai’s fans really are used to Senpai’s free whims, huh? They’re seriously amazin’! ☆”
“Umm… You can do whatever you want with Tetora-kun, so let’s drop the idea of showing behind the scenes for me—…”
“you will not escape from this, midori. please let me closely follow your [behind the scenes], okay~?”
“I guess I can’t get away with it after all… Uuu, please be gentle with me…”
This story is associated with Kanata’s 3rd Solo: Tabisuru Ulysses – Traveling Ulysses Butterfly. It is recommended to listen to the song and read the lyrics!
Ryuseitai 5* Feature Scout Stories
![crossing past the [vast ocean]](https://f005.backblazeb2.com/file/reitoouji/ro_oTe6962b910GArH3.webp?timestamp=1768077590806)
Translation Notes
- ↑ Around the start of July, the ES idols go to the Mega Sphere only to find out they will be live-streaming on the blimp, and can’t leave to go back down until the end of the month. This is shown in Sailing Ceremony, with Midori initially feeling very anxious by the turn of events.
- ↑ Yuruchara, yuru meaning “loose,” “laid-back,” + the word “character”. Yuruchara are mascot characters, their defining features are that they have very peculiar designs, ranging from bizarre-cute to adorkable, as well as being used all across Japan for PR purposes, in companies, prefectures, etc… For more information please see this.
- ↑ In Japanese, kero is the sound a frog makes, so the yuruchara’s name is based on that. Midori’s mentioned this yuruchara before, one story being Buddy.
- ↑ The Pen-tagon yuruchara is a pentagon-shaped penguin, mentioned by Midori in Soleil.
- ↑ Sumo Cabbage-kun was the yuruchara star of the story, Whimsical City Rider, and Alien Tomato was first mentioned in Midori’s FS1.
- ↑ In Japanese, large bathhouse is daiyokujou. There’s a cold bathtub area, usually used to cool off after a sauna or hot bath. In this case, the large bathhouse has a hot bathtub area and a cold bathtub area.
- ↑ Referring to the 2nd round of Feature Scout, where idols had to perform a Feature Live. You can read Kanata’s FS2 here.
- ↑ Known as suiton in Japanese, it’s one of the ninja arts of escape. In the case of the water-escape jutsu, the ninja dives into a body of water to infiltrate or hide, and then uses a bamboo as a snorkel. Shinobu has done this before in Air Ride; his CG showcases it!
- ↑ Kanatee (Kanata + Manatee pun) is Aoumi Aquarium’s mascot, and you can see how it looks in this CG and in Kanata’s birthday cake.
- ↑ “Rogue” refers to Madara. Kanata used to often call him by this name back in his Yumenosaki days.
- ↑ Madara’s name (斑) means “spots”; used to describe spotted things as well. Also, as a fun note, his name is homophonous with the word for “pacific cod fish” (真鱈).
- ↑ Known as “chestnut tiger butterfly” in English. Kanata gives a main rundown of its well-known feature (being a migratory butterfly), but if you’d like to read up more, I recommend searching its name in romaji (asagimadara), or katakana (アサギマダラ).
- ↑ Kanata’s solo song is called “Traveling Ulysses”, as in the Ulysses butterfly.