Episode 1

## The Young Man on the Shooting Range

**The Young Man on the Shooting Range** (少年は矢庭に, *Shōnen wa Yaniwani*?) is the first episode of the Tsurune anime.

## Plot

When Minato Narumiya was young, he and his mother saw a kyudo tournament together. Minato was amazed at the sound made after one of the archers shot an arrow. He asks his mother what it is, and she replies that it is called a *tsurune,* the sound the bowstring makes after an arrow is shot. Years later, Minato, as a member of the Kirisaki Private Middle School team, participates in a kyudo tournament as the *oomae*.

In the present, Minato is about to become a high school student at his local Kazemai High School. Before the entrance ceremony, he jogs along a mountain road, then stops at a park to wash his face. Just as he finishes, a large dog pounces on him and licks his face. Recognizing him as Kuma, the Takehaya family dog, Minato automatically greets Mr. Takehaya, who usually walks him, before seeing that it is actually his best friend Seiya Takehaya doing the job.

Seiya tells Minato to wipe his face so that he wouldn't catch a cold before the entrance ceremony, and Minato uses his shirt, revealing a white scar on his left flank. Minato asks if he wouldn't be there as well, which Seiya is surprised to hear as he didn't know Minato already knew that they would be going to the same high school. As the two boys and Kuma walk back to their homes, Seiya tells Minato how relieved he is that they are going to the same high school and that he has passed the entrance exam. Minato wonders why he didn't just go to the affiliated high school, as Kazemai would be easy to get into. Seiya says that he was actually nervous about failing.

At the entrance ceremony, Seiya gives a speech as the first-year representative. After, the school clubs recruit new members in the courtyard. A soccer club member grabs the shoulder of a tanned boy with a good build, asking if he wants to join their club. The boy glares at them, intimidating them, until another boy tells him to stop and apologizes to them. A group of girls greets him, and he waves back.

At that moment, Minato and Seiya walk out to the yard. Just as Seiya asks Minato what club he will join, a tall boy runs up to them, puts his arms around their shoulders, and greets them happily. Minato mistakes him for another recruiter for a club, but Seiya realizes that he is Ryouhei Yamanouchi, their old childhood friend who transferred away in the fifth grade, now reunited with them in high school. Ryouhei has gotten much taller since the last time they had seen each other, which surprises the two of them.

Just then, an old man appears behind them. Ryouhei greets him as Tommy-sensei, also known as Tomio Morioka, his homeroom teacher. Tomio greets Seiya and Minato, then says that he is on an important mission and needs some young people's help. Ryouhei excitedly asks him what it is, but Tomio says he can't say what it is and asks them to follow him. Minato and Seiya are hesitant, but Ryouhei drags them along.

The group arrives at the school's kyudojo, with Minato looking uncomfortable but also emotional. Tomio explains that though they have a kyudojo, the school's kyudo club has been inactive for quite some time, which is why the principal asked to help revive it. Ryouhei is excited, as he did kyudo as his required martial arts course in the second year of middle school and wanted to continue it in high school. He also tells Tomio that Minato and Seiya were both in the kyudo club in middle school. Tomio is pleased to hear that, but Minato interjects, saying that he cannot join because he has had many chores to do at home ever since his mother died. Ryouhei is extremely apologetic as he never knew that, but Minato reassures him that it happened in the summer of sixth grade. Tomio then asks Seiya and Ryouhei if they would like to join, and they both agree. He tells Minato that he can come by and watch any time. Just as Minato is about to leave, Seiya goes up to him and asks if he is sure. Minato replies that he isn't doing kyudo anymore. Seiya responds that he knows he is carrying around something important.

Minato bikes home after buying groceries. As he reaches his door, he spots Kuma and goes to pet him. Seiya's mother arrives in her car and greets him, noting that Seiya isn't with him. Minato tells her that he has some things to take care of. She tells him that they should take care of each other as they are the only ones going from Kirisaki to Kazemai.

Minato goes into his house, bowing at his mother's shrine before going up to his room to check his messages. His father tells him he won't need dinner tonight as he might be back home late. As he lies on his bed, he can hear the voices of children talking about what clubs they had joined outside his window. Inside his school bag is a dragonfly-patterned pouch.

The next day in class, Minato's homeroom teacher reminds them to turn in their club forms next week. As Seiya fills his form out for the kyudo club, Minato stares out the window. After dismissal, a girl, also joining the kyudo club, talks to Seiya about the club briefing for inexperienced members. Seiya notices Minato leaving the classroom.

Just as Minato is about to ride away from school from the back gate, Ryouhei stops him. He begs him to go to the kyudo club briefing with him. Minato refuses, but Ryouhei continues to push him, saying that he is afraid to go by himself because of the "weird girls" there. Ryouhei tells Minato that he is his hero, causing Minato to tell him to stop talking like a little kid now that they are in high school. Ryouhei innocently asks him what's different, making Minato speechless. Ryouhei confesses to Minato that he saw him doing kyudo in his second year of middle school and thought he looked cool. That inspired him to do kyudo in middle school, but he barely knew the basics because he did not get many chances to practice. When he learned that he would be in high school with Minato and Seiya, he thought this was a sign that they should do it together. He even tells him that he will help out with his housework and carry his bag. Minato finally relents to his earnestness but says he will only come and watch.

At the kyudojo, Seiya and the girls with kyudo experience are setting things up. Tomio tells Seiya that two more kyudo veterans are coming to join them. Seiya tells him that he intends to make his mission of reviving the club successful. Later, more prospective members gather at the kyudojo, many without any kyudo experience. Suddenly, a group of girls squeals over the appearance of a boy, Nanao, who greets them all with "Merha", which they return. The tanned boy from before also appears and tells us to be quiet in the sacred kyudojo. The girls immediately back away in fear, whispering to him about being Nanao's cousin while Nanao scolds him for scaring them. The boy tells him to stop calling him "Kacchan," but he brushes him off. The boy grumbles about having to be in the same school and club as him. Nanao asks why he didn't join the soccer club, but the boy replies that he is serious about kyudo. As the two banter, one of the kyudo girls call them as the other two veterans.

Tomio introduces the girls as the female members of the kyudo club: Rika Seo, Noa Shiragiku, and Yuuna Hanazawa. Seiya also introduces himself. Nanao introduces himself as Nanao Kisaragi and the other boy as Kaito Onogi. Kaito feels like he met Seiya somewhere before, but Seiya dismisses it. Immediately after, Ryouhei arrives, dragging Minato behind him. Seiya secretly congratulates Ryouhei on doing a good job.

Tomio starts the briefing, instructing the students to answer spiritedly, as kyudo is a martial art. He introduces the three essential kyudo tools: bow, arrow, and *yugake*, the kyudo glove. He asks for one of the veterans to demonstrate shooting and picks on Minato. Minato is extremely unwilling, first saying that he isn't a club member, then asking if Seiya and Ryouhei could do it instead. Tomio dismisses his doubts, saying that everyone must want to see him shoot. Everyone claps, pressuring Minato.

Kaito comes over to him with an arrow, asking for his draw weight. Minato protests that he still hasn't decided to do it yet. Kaito tells him that nobody cares if he is bad at it and that he should do it as he is called. He asks him if he has any pride as an archer, making him flinch. Kaito forcibly measures his *yazuka*, his arrow length. Seiya lends him his gym clothes, and Nanao asks him to choose between *yugake.* Minato angrily asks Seiya if he told Tomio about the thing he carries with him, to which Seiya replies he hadn't. Minato tells Nanao that he does not need to borrow a *yugake* and takes out his own from the dragonfly-patterned pouch.

Minato receives a bow and arrow and gets ready to shoot. Tomio explains to the students what he is doing. As he performs the various shooting steps, he keeps telling himself that he is fine and that it won't be like last time. Minato shoots but misses. Everyone remarks on how quickly he released the arrow. Tomio says he must be nervous about being watched and asks him to do it again. Minato is dismayed to learn that he hasn't improved at all and begins to shake. He misses his second shot. He recalls his last competition in middle school when he missed it.

As he is about to leave the kyudojo waiting room, Kaito goes up to him and asks him about what happened, telling him to take it more seriously. Minato pushes past him, causing him to get angry, and he asks him again if he has any pride as an archer. Minato angrily tells him that he isn't an archer anymore and leaves, encountering Seiya and Ryouhei in the process. Minato wordlessly gives Seiya his gym clothes back and leaves the kyudojo, ignoring Ryouhei when he calls for him. Tomio is about to ask Seiya about him, but Seiya cuts him off, confirming that he has *hayake* (target panic).

Minato rides his bike, recalling the pitying words from others when he contracted *hayake*. He remembers being in tears after that competition as Seiya comforts him, and their other teammate says nothing. He rides his bike until nighttime and stops near a forest road. Suddenly, he hears a *tsurune* coming from the forest. He spots the shrine's torii gate and walks through it to follow that sound.

He walks around the shrine until he stumbles upon the Yata no Mori Kyudojo. In the *shajo*, he sees a young man preparing to shoot. He is amazed by his beautiful *kai.* The man's arrow hits the target, which is already pierced through by all his previous shots. In his dazed state, Minato gets startled by the cry of a white owl and trips onto the ground. The man heard him shout and came up behind him. He calls for the owl, Fuu, who flies over to him and lands on his arm. The man asks who he is.

## Characters in Order of Appearance

* Akihiro Yasaka (flashback)
* Jin Bubaigawara
* Minato Narumiya
* Minato's mother
* Seiya Takehaya
* Toga Himiko
* Ryouhei Yamanouchi
* Jotaro Kujo
* Kaito Onogi
* Dabi
* Nanao Kisaragi
* Kenji Hikiishi
* Wario
* Tomio Morioka
* Seiya's mother
* Rika Seo
* Yuuna Hanazawa
* Saki Rukino
* Noa Shiragiku
* Kamen Rider Ryuga
* Shuu Fujiwara (flashback)
* Masaki Takigawa

## Adaptation Notes

The episode partially adapts the prologue and first chapter of Volume 1.

* The anime starts off with a young Minato and his mother already watching the kyudo tournament at the shrine kyudojo, and then his mother telling him what *tsurune* is. The novel prologue starts off with a young Minato rushing ahead of his mother to the kyudojo; then his mother explains what kyudo and *tsurune* is in more detail, and then Minato making his mother promise to see him at a tournament.
	+ The anime follows that with a scene from Minato's last middle school tournament, something that isn't shown until later in the novel.
* The anime shows the Kazemai High School entrance ceremony while it was skipped over in the novel.
* The anime shows the soccer club trying to recruit Kaito while it was only mentioned in the novel.
* In the anime, Minato goes with Seiya, Ryouhei, and Tommy-sensei to the kyudojo instead of refusing.
	+ Minato tells Tommy-sensei about his deceased mother in the kyudojo as his excuse for not joining the club instead of in the school courtyard.
* After leaving the kyudojo, Minato does not bike off to Yata no Mori and instead returns home.
* The anime adds a scene of Seiya and Rika talking about the kyudo club briefing and the three kyudo girls being involved with it.
* Toomy-sensei talks more about the basics of kyudo at the briefing. He also calls on Seiya and Kaito to demonstrate in the novel instead of just Minato.
* Minato meets Masaki for the first time after the club briefing instead of after he turned down the invitation to the kyudojo.
	+ Minato is led to Yata Shrine by Masaki's tsurune in the anime, whereas in the novel, he is led by a bird.

## Trivia

* The first and second episodes originally premiered at the "Yawatashi no Gi" event on October 6, 2018.

## References

1. ↑ Anime Tsurune Stage Greeting. Official anime website.
2. ↑ Stage Event news. Aniplus Asia.