The Balloonatic

Man...

Over here!

Ow!

Can you girls stop moving around?

Taichi!

Inaba! Did you find him?

No sign of him anywhere.

Damn, where'd he go?

Where'd he go?!

Go!

It was a bad idea to go to a place with a lot of people.

We promised to visit the shrine

together as a club on New Year's.

As a club!

Club!

Pipe down, kids!

Inaba-neechan!

I bought takoyaki!

Ow!

Is that all you have to say for yourself after making us worry?

Okay, that should be enough.

Taichi...

Here, open wide.

Huh?

You can't use your hands, right?

Uh, I can just ask them to let go.

Oh, sorry.

Fancy meeting you here, Inaba-san, Yaegashi-kun.

Happy New Year.

Fujishima...

Why are the two of you here together on this day?

Who are those kids?

Th-They're relatives!

And, uh...

StuCS was planning on coming together,

but then we got stuck with these kids.

Yeah, yeah! What she said.

Oh...

Anyway, this girl looks just like Nagase-san.

It's almost like Nagase-san reverted back to childhood.

Oh, sorry!

We need to get going!

Huh?

Er, wait...

Where are we going?

Just hurry!

Ooh! I want this!

I'll buy something later!

How did we end up in this situation?

End of Term Ceremony

After we stopped having to deal with unleashed desires,

we enjoyed a brief period of peace and quiet.

The issue with Inaba and Nagase was still up in the air,

but for the time being, nothing had really changed between us.

A Story That Began As We Realized It

But on the last day of the second term...

Inaba Himeko Nagase Iori Kiriyama Yui Aoki Yoshifumi

12:00 PM to 5:00 PM

What's this?

It was on the board when we got here.

But nobody remembers writing that.

It's almost 12:00...

What's wrong, Nagase?

I-It feels like my body's on fire.

Huh? Same here.

What's going on?

My clothes are too big!

Ooh, snacks.

Can I have some?

Huh? S-Sure...

Yay!

Let's share!

Uh-huh!

What's going on here?

What is this about?

Is something wrong with my eyes?

Something wrong with my eyes...

Yes, that must be it!

Okay, I'll close my eyes!

When I open them, everything will be back to normal!

One, two, three, go!

This is so good.

Nothing changed!

What the hell?!

Okay, let's try this again.

Tell us your name and age.

Okay!

Kiriyama Yui! Eleven years old!

Nagase Iori. Six years old.

Next question.

Who is this lanky guy with the dirty mind?

Aoki-san!

Aoki-oniichan!

You could have left off the last part!

What about the guy over here who's pretty handsome.

Huh?

Taichi-san!

Taichi-oniichan!

Y-You're actually going to compliment me, Inaba-san?

Okay, do you know why you're here?

No...

There you have it.

What do we have here?! This makes no sense!

So basically, Nagase and Kiriyama had their youth restored?

Yes. They're little kids again.

They don't understand their current situation,

Here you go.

but they've adapted to the circumstances,

so they don't question why they're here.

Thank you.

You're welcome.

It makes no sense at all, but that's where we stand.

So is this Heartseed?

It has to be.

Maybe...

Wait...

Oh! They turned back!

Huh? What?

My underwear's all messed up!

Iori-chan...

We're in the room.

Then avert your eyes!

It looks like he's reversing time this time.

Do you remember anything that happened

while you were a kid?

I don't think so.

But I kept remembering stuff

that happened when I was that age.

Like when I played with friends and stuff from school.

And what was happening at home.

I was also remembering stuff from when I was in fifth grade.

It was almost blindingly clear...

So clear, it's a little uncomfortable.

Wait, winter vacation starts tomorrow.

What if one of us turns into a kid in front of our family?

It said 12 PM to 5 PM on the board.

If this phenomenon only occurs during that time,

we can find a place to hide out until it's over.

For now, the board is all we have to go by.

There's a building near my house that's about to be torn down.

We can go there tomorrow.

I'm home...

You're late, big brother!

Sorry, I had stuff to take care of.

More important than your adorable little sister?

Well, it's Christmas, and you have a girlfriend,

so you're probably busy.

I don't have a girlfriend.

Well, I was getting close,

but something else has come up now.

Like, you didn't get her a present?

There are bigger issues to worry about.

Ah! Wait, big brother!

Heartseed?

Yes, I am Heartseed.

But I'm not.

Yes, you can call me Number Two.

Wh-What do you mean?

You're not Heartseed?

I am Heartseed.

But I am not the Heartseed you know.

So I'm Number Two.

You're just like Heartseed.

But you're a different person?

I need you to become a knight.

Knight?

It would be difficult if everyone became children.

That would be unsustainable.

It's your job to make sure that doesn't happen.

I will be watching.

This won't last long.

However, you must not tell anyone else about me.

If you do,

the 12 PM to 5 PM phenomenon will never end.

What are you talking about?!

What's your relationship with Heartseed?!

What was I doing?

Did I really turn into a kid?

Yeah, I think so.

Oh...

Will Taichi not like me anymore after seeing the past me?

He's not that kind of person, I guess.

T-True, I guess.

What kind of girl talk is this, anyway?

It's laughable that you and I are even talking about this stuff.

But when you consider that we're in love with the same guy,

it becomes pure comedy.

No kidding.

I never thought that you and I would get to talk like this.

Mom's home.

Sorry, Inaban. See you tomorrow.

Yeah, see you to—

No way! Why did you quit?

A lot happened...

Then what about your promise?

Promise?

Yes, your promise! You promised me!

Oh, Taichi.

H-Hey. Is this a friend of yours?

Y-Yeah...