Yakusoku

* Vocal ver.
* Vocaloid ver.
* Together

**Yakusoku** (約束 / The Promise) is a song by Harumaki Gohan originally released on September 14, 2019. It was later rereleased on August 26, 2020 as part of the Futari No album. Similarly to Saikai and Himitsu, Yakusoku has two music videos. The Harumaki Gohan vocal version is from the point of view of Nana, while the Vocaloid version is from the point of view of Lili.

## Background

Yakusoku was the second song from Futari No to be released as a single. It was intended to be the prequel to Saikai, giving listeners more context to Nana and Lili's relationship. It was released less than 3 months after Saikai.

Two days before the songs initial release, Harumaki Gohan posted a short teaser featuring the two flowers shown at the end of the music video.

## Story

**Warning**

This section contains spoilers. Proceed with caution.
This song is about the childhood of Nana and Lili, who are both 7 years old at this point in the timeline. The music video opens with the two of them playing hide-and-seek, with Lili being the seeker. After that, they stand in an open field together holding hands and watch an origin fly through the sky. This seems to have inspired them, because Nana starts reading about the sky whale, and the two of them plan to sneak out late at night to find one.

The two of them meet on train tracks in what appears to be a vast field, away from any buildings. Lili holds a lantern as Nana looks through her book. Suddenly, they are engulfed by a bright green light coming from behind them, and they turn around to see a giant whale flying overhead. They watch, stunned, as it passes over them and flies into the distance. Once again, they hold hands.

The next morning, Nana falls onto a whale-shaped cloud and watches as Lili flies away from her on a bird-shaped cloud, a metaphorical depiction of her moving away. In the Vocaloid version, it cuts to Lili sitting on a train, travelling away from her hometown. Nana tries to hold back her tears, but she eventually gives in and cries without restraint. As the sun sets and the two of them are separated, the two of them look at photos of them together, and decide that they wouldn't want to become adults if it means forgetting about each other.

## Theories

**Notice**

Due to the vague nature of Harumaki Gohan's stories, the following section contains speculation.
### Shooting Star/Comet

Although it's implied that the sky whale is a real life form on the Blue Planet, with Nana reading a book about it, it's theorised that the sky whale that the girls see together was actually a shooting star or comet. Along with the last line in the song possibly supporting this theory, there's a strong parallel between the scene of Nana and Lili watching the whale fly away, and the scene in If I Could Become a Comet of Nana watching the comet fly overhead.

### Sky Whale

Not much information is revealed about the sky whale, rendering it open to speculation. On the very last page of the art book, there is a passage that reads as follows:

> "The reason the whales of this planet can fly, is because the unfulfilled dreams of children become their wings."
>
>

The cloud that Nana falls onto as she watches Lili fly away, along with all of the other surrounding clouds, are shaped like whales. It is possible that these whales represent either Nana and Lili's broken promise of always being together, or the impossibility of her dream to stay a child forever.

## Trivia

* In both music videos, a Drink-kun can be seen in the first frame of the scene where Nana/Lili turn around to see the whale.
* In the Harumaki Gohan vocal version, Macaron has a sad expression as Nana cries.
* Nana is shown sleeping with a calendar next to her head. One of the dates has a drawing of a whale on it, and the one after that has a cross on it, presumably denoting the day Lili leaves.
* In Gen'ei AP-Empty Heart, it is implied that Yakusoku and Photon Blue take place on the same railroad tracks.

## References

1. ↑ https://twitter.com/harumaki\_gohan/status/1172091589625171968
2. ↑ Translation courtesy of Tick. Quote is on page 36. https://docs.google.com/document/d/19rlXVBSIBscxEVibx1zsau3yXsaKfezNTWTTFWen\_Vo/edit?usp=sharing