Rising Impact (ライジングインパクト)

This was supposed to be a relaxing vacation

at a mountain inn with hot springs.

And now this ?

I guess hiking here wasn't such a great idea after all.

- Now what? - Hee, hee, hee, hee.

- Huh? What's that? - Hee, hee, hee, hee, hee.

- Hee, hee. -

Hee, hee, hee, hee.

What's a tourist doing all the way out here?

Yee, hee.

Hee-hee. Hello!

Maybe he knows where the springs are.

Can you please tell me how to get to--

Scared you, didn't I?

Gotcha!

Yay! I scared you, huh?

Yay! Yeah!

- -

Could you help me?

I'm trying to get to the hot springs.

They're on the other side of this river, but the bridge is out.

Yeah. We can't use it anymore, because the typhoon knocked it down.

So you actually live around here? Really?

Of course! I'm Gawain.

Ask me anything you want.

ENCOUNTERING A DREAM

Hey. Are you sure this is the right way?

Yep.

So, you never told me your name.

Why do I have to tell you my name?

Your name must be really embarrassing.

Kiria! I'm Kiria Nishino.

- Oh! - Hmm?

Hey, look! Y-You can see it now.

- Uh... -

Hey, kid...

Guh!

No one from Tokyo would consider that thing a road or a bridge!

There's a real bridge five miles away, but it would be dark before you got there.

- That's better than falling in the river. - Ugh.

Just so you know, when it's dark, that's when the bears go hunting.

- - That's why you should take the log.

It's not so hard once you get the hang of it.

Easier than fighting a bear, that's for sure.

Wait! Are you crazy?

Ha! Ya-uh!

Woo-hoo! Ha!

He has amazing balance. He skipped right across.

Hey, um, Ms. Kiria,

are you okay?

I'll get there when I get there!

Just shut up and mind your own business!

Keep going all the way up this hill,

and you'll get to the inn.

This animal trail? You've gotta be kidding.

There has to be another way.

Not that I know of. You're so picky.

Listen, I'm tired, and I'm hungry, and I want to get outta here!

- And you have a short temper. -

Hey, if you like, I'll help you with your bag.

Off we go, ho-ho-ho-ho!

Wait. You have to be careful with that.

I need that bag back in one piece!

- - Hmm?

What the heck is in this bag?

Not only is his balance remarkable,

his lower body strength is incredible.

I've been training every day, but... I can't even keep up with him.

- I don't believe it. -

- -

Finally.

I made it.

I gotta ask, how do you do it?

After running up that hill, how are you not out of breath?

That was nothin'.

I exercise more than that every day. I wanna be the world number one.

Number one in what?

My grandpa says you should always try to be the best, no matter what you do.

Whoa!

This sure is a funny-looking bag.

- What the heck do you have in here? - Those are my golf clubs.

I hope you didn't hit something and break one of them.

Golf? Oh, is that the game you see all the old people playing?

It's kinda like gateball?

Why are you opening it without my permission?

You could never hit a ball very far with such a skinny stick like this.

Nothing compares to a home run in baseball, that's for sure!

- Oh, really? - Uh...

- Say that again, you little runt! - Ah, ah, ah.

You don't know the first thing about how to play golf.

Nowadays, even elementary school kids are learning to play.

That's right.

And nothing is more irritating than a sports know-it-all... Oh.

- - Uh...

- - I'm sorry.

Ms. Kiria, you don't have a boyfriend, do you?

I bet I know why.

My grandpa says women who get hysterical can never get a man to like them.

Hey! Gawain! We were looking for you. Let's play some ball.

Oh, yeah! Let's go! I can't wait!

I was born in the Year of the Snake.

Angering me only makes me more persistent.

- - I got it! I got it!

- All right! -

It's almost 330 feet!

Awesome hit, Guccho!

I can hit the ball farther than anyone else at our school.

Gawain, do you think you can beat my record?

I don't want to compete against the other kids in my school.

I wanna be...

Are you ready?

Here it comes!

...the longest hitter in the world!

Whoa!

Whoa!

- That's a huge home run. -

How'd he do that? It's almost 150 yards to the cedar tree!

Yay, me! It's my new record!

Now I'm one step closer to the world's number one.

You call that impressive?

I guess it's not too bad, for a child.

You keep saying "the world's number one."

- But of what? - Hitting a ball the farthest.

We tested all kinds of sports to see which ball we could make fly the longest.

We found that hitting a baseball with a bat was the winner,

because it went the farthest.

Did you know the strongest big league players

can hit the ball almost 500 feet?

So then, the longest hitter in baseball must be the longest hitter in the world.

And someday, I'll play professional baseball in the big leagues

and be number one in the whole world.

Well, if you wanna see how far a ball can go,

stick around for a moment,

and I'll show you the hitting power you have when you play golf.

Play golf?

I don't wanna play golf. That's a super boring sport, right?

Yeah. It's like gateball, the one old people play.

She looks too young for that. Why wouldn't she play normal sports?

Maybe she's a lot older than she looks.

We should probably call her granny instead of miss.

- Don't you ever call me granny! -

Ms. Kiria, my grandpa always says,

"losing your temper is not good for your health."

And now you scared everyone away.

Shut up!

Hmph.

Now watch this.

Huh?

Is that the ball?

It looks like it's floating in the air.

In golf, you have to tee it up before you hit it.

Now give me room so I don't hit you.

Right.

Can that little stick really make the ball fly?

Gah!

- -

It flew

so easily through the air.

Whoa. Amazing!

Did you see how far the ball went? And you barely hit it.

It must have flown 300 yards!

I'd say I hit it closer to 225.

Did you say 225?

Uh! So cool! So cool! So cool!

I may not look it, but I'm a professional golfer.

I'm 10th on the prize-money list.

I'm known as a long-hitter among female pros.

When I'm in good shape, I can hit a ball over 280 yards.

Two... two hu... What?

Of course, some world-class male players can do much better than that.

Some of them can even hit a ball 350 yards.

Three hundred fifty yards?

Gawain, you and your friends thought golf was only for old folks, didn't you?

But you should give it a chance.

If you really wanna be the longest hitter in the world,

golf might be the sport for you.

I can hit a golf ball farther than a baseball?

Ms. Kiria...

...will you let me hit a ball?

What? Am I hearing things?

Who was just making fun of golf, saying it was boring?

No, I wouldn't say that! Golf is awesome! Best sport in the world!

Who called me hysterical and said I'd never get a man?

Ms. Kiria, you are super beautiful. Even your angry face is pretty.

You have to help me!

Well, maybe just once.

Uh...

Batter up.

Hmm. That's a baseball-hitting stance.