Hey...
This ship doesn't look all that old.
I finally just remembered everything.
I found the suitcase, and...
Your suitcase?
That's where the real me is.
Huh?
What does that mean?
Hairi...
Thanks.
For coming along with me.
For making my dream come true.
You see, I...
I think you're...
Bye-bye.
Kamome—
Kamome?
Kamome!
Takahara, how are the goggles performing?
They work great.
But why do you have night vision goggles?
Just in case.
So, where'd you lose the suitcase?
I think it was around here.
I'm positive it was.
I got swept away and nearly drowned.
Hey, is that it there?
Man, this is a hell of a cave.
I bet we could use this to attract tourists.
There were plans at town hall for that.
But, well, it's hard to make sure it's safe and all that.
They consulted with a few companies to do some studies.
Hey, over here.
What do you think these switches are for?
Maybe they're light switches.
Guys, take off your goggles.
You said you nearly drowned here?
I think so...
But it certainly wasn't this shallow.
There's no way I'd drown in a stream like this.
So then... what happened?
This is...
her "real me"?
Is that a woman's underwear?
Huh? Oh, hey, you're right!
How'd this get here?
That's so weird!
I see.
Yup, I see.
I'm sorry! Please don't ask any further questions!
I won't.
I want nothing to do with this.
What's this?
The Adventures of the Higenekos
The Adventures of the Higenekos?
I recognize this!
I read this book a long time ago.
A girl named Kamome comes to summer camp.
She's always by herself, unable to fit in with the other kids.
One day, she sneaks into her archaeologist father's study and finds a map.
She works up the courage to talk to the other kids.
They form the Higenekos and set out on an adventure.
It can't be...
In the book,
Kamome lives in a rented home on a smaller island away from the main island.
Call time
A small inhabited island, you say?
All right.
I'll look into it.
Thanks.
There's a small island near the inlet where you said you arrived.
It's privately owned.
Excuse me.
Who are you?
Er, u-uh...
Sorry, I'm...
Oh.
Did you come to deliver that suitcase?
Um...
That belongs to me.
Does that mean you're Kamome's...
You know Kamome?!
Um...
I'm Takahara Hairi.
My name is Kushima Sagi.
Kamome is my daughter.
Finland?
Yes.
Kamome's been there for two years now.
I don't know how much Kamome told you when you met her.
But you came all the way here to see her,
so I think it's all right for me to tell you.
As her mother.
Ten years ago,
her father worked at a university, studying plants and animals.
We stayed here on this island for a time
when invited to do some fieldwork for a company.
My daughter's been sickly ever since she was little, so she doesn't have any friends.
She spent most of her time reading.
What she really wanted to do was go out and explore.
But she couldn't go anywhere.
You could often find her, nose in a book, while sitting atop this suitcase.
It used to belong to her father. It's traveled all over the world.
I'm sure that's why she liked it so much.
As an author myself, I wrote a novel featuring her as the protagonist.
And that's The Adventures of the Higenekos.
It was something she said that gave me the idea.
Torishirojima
There's a pirate ship on this island with a mountain of treasure!
It was just a child's imagination, of course,
but it started getting me excited too, so I decided to write a book.
And the setting for it was based on Torishirojima.
Yes.
Then the summer after the book was published...
Mom, I want a ship!
Are you saying that ship...
I had it brought in at Kamome's request.
She wanted to turn it into a pirate ship.
She had this grand plan in her mind.
Something beyond even me, a writer.
Okay, Mom, we're going to recreate the adventure in that book.
Recreate the adventure?
Yeah!
It's not just a book anymore!
We're gonna bring a map with us and there'll be a real pirate ship!
Takahara-san...
Yes?
Have you taken a look inside the captain's cabin?
No.
It was locked.
That's where her most cherished treasure is hidden.
We bought the island and inlet that inspired my book ten years ago.
And this year, if everything was complete
and she was well enough, we were going to invite everyone.
What's this?
That was so much fun!
I was excited the whole time I was reading it!
I'm never going to forget it!
I wish I had friends like her!
Where is the story set?
I wanna go adventuring with Kamome-chan's team!
I wanna know what happens after.
I'll wait as long as it takes!
I love Taka-kun!
I want to marry him!
Kamome-chan, please let me join the Higenekos!
Takahara Hairi
I thought Kamome-chan was amazing and courageous.
There's no one like her in my class.
I would love to be friends with a girl like her.
Yeah.
Could you make it an express delivery?
Mom?
Thanks.
Takahara-san, were you on the phone with your family?
Are you going home?
I'm not.
I see.
I just asked to have some stuff sent.
Some stuff?
There it is.
The Adventures of the Higenekos
Kushima Kamome
Thank you for your letter.
In the end, Kamome and the gang promise to meet up and find the pirate ship again.
They promise to make it an even bigger adventure!
If you hold on to this memory, I'll invite you on an amazing adventure ten years from now.
I'd love to see you then.
She'll invite me on an amazing adventure ten years later?
Kamome was really trying to make good on that.
But...
Kamome collapsed?
She's always been in poor health.
Her father died young as well.
Of the same illness.
Did you say you found this suitcase in the cave?
Yes.
However did it end up there?
I brought this suitcase with me to the island,
but I lost it when we landed on the shore.
You did?
Yes.
I had a strange experience when we arrived here.
I only took my eyes off the suitcase for a moment, but it disappeared.
What could have happened?
I've seen those butterflies before.
Come to think of it, maybe they had something to do with Kamome.
If Kamome had gotten her wish...
If we'd passed through the cave and actually found the pirate ship...
If her plan had worked out as she'd envisioned...
I'd have showered her with praise.
She's amazingly creative.
But she ran out of time.
If she could've spent just one more summer here,
her plan would have come to fruition.
It's more like a ghost ship than a pirate ship.
We should start by repainting it.
It's gonna need new parts.
Let's see if we can get our hands on materials for cheap.
Sure. Thanks.
Kamome...?
Hey. You awake?
I think I am.
I'd better not be sleeping right now.
Maybe this is all a dream.
Where were you?
Nowhere.
I was here watching.
The whole time.
I see.
Sheesh.
So you were the one who set up the keys and the ship and everything?
Sorry.
I had no memory of it either, though.
I'd forgotten everything.
I spent almost all day every day bedridden in a hospital overseas.
Eventually, I couldn't really tell when I was awake or asleep.
Then it stops being clear what's real and what isn't.
It's so strange.
I was in bed,
and the memories that were only ever in a book suddenly became reality.
I wonder how everyone's doing.
Do you think they still remember me?
I'm gonna get better and see everyone again...
at the pirate ship we found ten years ago.
This summer, I came to the island
to chase my dream, dragging along my mother's suitcase.
I became a part of the dream.
I really became Kamome, the protagonist in the novel.
But I remembered when I arrived on this ship with you, Hairi...
that it was all a story from a book.
Hairi, you made my dream come true.
I see.
I'm here in front of you because I wanted to see you one last time.
One last time?
You see, I'm here to say goodbye.
I have to go.
Where?
You're overseas right now, aren't you?
Are you going back there?
No.
Somewhere further.
Further?
Hairi, thank you.
For making my dream come true.
And for becoming my friend.
I finally know what "bwuh" means.
You coughed as you were about to say, "You're so adorabwuhl."
Kamome!
Even if what happened on this island was a dream or a hallucination,
I'm going to spend the rest of my time on the things that I believe in.
Takahara-san, lunch is ready.
Oh, okay.
What are you writing?
Letters.
That's a lot of letters you're writing.
Yeah.
I'm going to meet up with the Higenekos at the pirate ship again.
I'm going to make her dream come true.
Why wait ten years?
You could've given them the location when you received the fan mail.
I suggested that too.
But Kamome refused.
She was worried that, since she was the model for the Kamome in the story,
they might be disappointed when they saw her.
If... When I get better someday,
I'm gonna be a good leader like Kamome.
That's when I want to meet them.
She was a timid girl.
She tried so hard.
It was slow, but she was getting better.
She could almost move around like a normal girl.
I'm sorry.
To be honest, there's something I haven't told you.
Just before this summer,
Kamome fell into an eternal sleep.
Thank you, Takahara-san.
Meeting you made coming back to this island worth it.
There's something I haven't told you too.
I see...
You really went on the adventure.
In truth, I wanted to thank her.
I wanted to finish the ship.
I wanted her to see it.
I...
I'm certain...
I loved her.
A big cloth?
Yes.
You'd think if anyone would have one, she would, but it doesn't look like it.
Okay.
By the way, I haven't seen Umi-chan.
She went home yesterday.
What?
She didn't say anything to me.
That's disappointing.
She was curious about you, though.
What's that supposed to mean?
I got everything set up, but...
Are they really going to come?
What if no one shows up?
No, I have to believe.
This was Kamome's wish.
Shiroha!
Y-Yes?
Do you have a big cloth?
What do you need it for?
A flag.
I know!
Shiroha, can you draw?
Huh?
Man, that's a lot of people.
You called them over?
No.
I wasn't the one who invited them.
Who did, then?
Kamome.
Who are all these people?
Shiroha!
Did you get it done?
I did, but...
Can I take a look?
Sure.
P-Please go easy with the criticism.
Wow...
It's fantastic!
Sorry!
It's great! Just amazing!
Thank you very much.
No, thank you.
Hey, Kamome.
If you're still sleeping somewhere far away and you see this...
It's no dream.
This is reality, and you made it happen.
Your real memories.
Oh, I see you.
You...
Heya.
I swear. So you were here the whole time.
I had to see the ship done, you know?
Of course.
I'm not really supposed to be here anymore, though.
I see.
Listen, I really wanted to go on lots of adventures,
just like what I did with you this summer.
I wanted... I wanted...
Then let's go adventuring.
That was the promise, right?
We'll meet ten years from now and set out on an adventure on this ship.
Yeah.
I'll go on a journey.
I'll take this ship across the sea, and...
And we'll meet again.
Yeah!
Well, the wind's just right.
Give us your orders.
Me?
Of course.
You're our leader.
You're right.
Okay.
Higenekos, away!
Summer's ending again.
I'll sail the seven seas to meet you.
With love,
Kushima Kamome, captain of the Higenekos.