Kono Otoko wa Jinsei Saidai no Ayamachidesu (This guy is the biggest mistake in my life / この男は人生最大の過ちです)

Hozuki!

We're off!

Oh no.

What should I do?

It's because he protected me!

Not yet.

It's not going to end like this!

Let's end this right!

That's right.

What am I even doing if I can't stand by the decision I made?

It's okay.

The notes will definitely

sound like we want them to!

Whoa, what is this?

Their playing just changed!

I'm not alone anymore.

Whatever you do, don't you dare and try to match our level.

Just play with all you've got, all right?

That's it.

I'll lead them in my own way.

That's my intention.

Once I found it, I had to get involved.

With the sound that sways my heart so intensely.

What just happened here?

Their performance was rough in the first half,

but it got really good in the second.

And the audience is going crazy.

Hey! Don't let it get to you!

Just because they did well doesn't mean we can't beat them!

Am I right, Mio?

What's up?

Whoa, Mio's laughing like a maniac!

What the heck?

That's creepy!

First, don't roll around on the floor!

Second, it's our turn next, so calm down!

It's okay.

Because I get the feeling I can perform

better than ever, President.

So don't worry.

Everything changed at the midpoint,

as if each half was performed by different schools.

Which means the latter half showed their real ability.

Their tone was quite different from what I expected.

It was profound.

You look happy, Ousuke.

Uh. What? Do I?

Hey, Sen. I don't know about you,

but I thought that performance was kinda amazing.

You're right.

I mean no!

Don't sound so impressed, Haru. It's embarrassing!

Compared to the two of us, they're nothing!

But you just said--

Shut up!

I've got to hand it to them,

what they just pulled off up there was truly incredible.

I can't believe how they were able to recover

in the second half.

Seeing a performance like that has lifted my spirits.

I didn't think I'd see such growth on stage, today.

We should count ourselves lucky to have witnessed it.

That was beautiful.

They did so great!

I'm proud of Chika.

Although he did have me worried at the beginning.

You can use this if you like.

Thanks, Mom.

Huh?

Hey, Kazusa. You okay?

I am certainly not okay.

I just can't accept a performance like that.

I'm sorry!

Huh?

Hey, what just happened?

Are you three okay?

Uh, well.

The truth is that Kudo...

I had an even worse case of the runs than he thought!

So I just couldn't focus and dragged you all down.

I'm sorry.

Right, and I knew about it but didn't tell you guys.

Yeah, me too.

Why tell such an obvious lie?

What do you mean?

Wait, you're lying?

What? But. I! What?

Oh, man.

It looks even worse than earlier.

Chika! Your hand!

Oh, no! What happened?

Uh?! Is it from when I dropped the koto?

The poor idiot hurt himself in the bathroom.

Huh?

He didn't look so well,

so I pulled him aside in the bathroom

and told him he didn't have to perform.

Then he got upset, hit the wall and hurt himself.

It was a pretty pitiful sight to be honest.

I can see why he'd lie about it!

Bastard!

Huh? Did I misunderstand somehow, or what?

I... No, you're not wrong.

It's true.

Are you serious? So lame!

That sounds like something you'd do!

You're so funny!

Stop screwing around

and go get your hand checked out.

I know!

And the rest of you, pack up the instruments.

Sorry, I'm very thirsty,

so I'm going to go buy something to drink.

What? Uh. Okay.

Whoa. Hozuki sure can pack up fast.

Be honest, Kurata.

Is that really how Chika hurt his hand?

Sure is.

Hopefully it'll heal up fast.

And when it does, we'll play together again.

It'll take one month to heal.

Actually, perhaps a bit longer than that.

Are you kidding me?

A month?

But why? You said it's just a sprain, right?

Don't act like this is nothing.

You overexerted it, so it's gotten quite a bit worse.

Don't use it until the swelling is down,

then start physical therapy.

But I play the koto.

Not until you recover, you don't.

I'll heal it in three days!

Good luck with that, buddy.

Okay, you're all set to go.

Let's see.

He's always drinking the strawberry one.

Are you looking for something?

Uh! Well, sort of.

I need to buy some strawberry flavored snacks.

So I'll take them all!

Huh? Kud--

Hey, hold it right there!

Ugh. What a surprise.

You again.

What do you want?

What I want is to talk about that performance.

If you can even call it that!

You were so unorganized in the first half it was hard to watch.

I admit, you were able to recover significantly

in the second half,

but a musician will play a piece correctly from start to finish!

You call that a performance?

Well I don't accept that!

I was right.

You aren't worthy enough to play the koto with Satowa,

and you proved it out there.

Same old speech, huh?

Yeah, all of our problems today were my fault.

And I've said this to you several times,

but Hozuki plays the koto with us because she wants to.

It's not your decision to make.

If you're done now,

I'm going.

It's your whole club's fault!

Your performance.

Satowa's performance.

It...

It wasn't how the Satowa I know would have played!

Huh?

Those tones, that sound, they weren't hers!

They used to be sharper.

They used to be so refined before!

They were powerful, noble, and definitively resonant!

I admired her tones so much, but you amateurs have defiled them!

You've all ruined her sound!

Now every note she plays is just halfhearted and shallow!

Because she plays with all of you.

She's not as good as she was before!

If you stay in this pathetic club,

you'll only get worse.

Why?

Does this mean that I should be facing the koto like I used to?

By screaming all by myself?

Your koto playing feels like a weapon to me.

They've become gentle.

It's not that they became halfhearted

or that she became a bad player.

It's just that her tones have become gentler.

And if I had to choose between her tones from then and now.

I'd pick her current, gentler sound

in a damn heartbeat.

What do you mean?

I'm not asking which sound you prefer!

You don't know anything about tones,

so your opinion doesn't matter!

They've become gentle.

I know. Obviously!

You don't have to tell me, I can hear it for myself!

Since she was a child,

Satowa's tones were wrapped in a sense of solitude in a way.