The Hot Spot (ホットスポット)

PREVIOUSLY...

At the base of Mount Fuji,

in Fuji-Asada, Kiyomi Endou

gets her alien colleague, Kousuke Takahashi, to use his abilities

to solve her trivial day-to-day problems.

The only others who know this secret are her childhood friends Hazuki

and Minami.

You guys are amazing!

Takahashi is strong.

-Will you be okay with the side effects? -I'll be fine after using the hot spring.

The minerals in our hotel's hot spring are pretty unique.

They can help heal our bodies.

And today, yet another incident awaits.

It's a long story.

That was delicious.

I'm working the night shift today,

so I'll do housework until then.

I finally got around to washing my uniform after a week!

Like I mentioned before,

this isn't unusual at all.

If we're going to compare, Eri does it every ten days!

We can't wait to test the suction capabilities in the studio.

Allow me to present

the cleaning robot Bodis,

which boasts a unique brush that adjusts seamlessly to any floor,

picking up everything from large pieces of trash to hair

-and even fine dust. -We do our cleaning by hand.

The fact that you can even put one of those down to begin with

means your house is already pretty spacious and tidy.

What I really need is a robot that can clean up enough

to make room for one of those in the first place.

The weather is cold today, so I'm driving to work.

I'm freezing.

TOFU

Do we still have dressing?

No, I don't think we've got much left.

Wait.

Didn't I buy one last time with the same idea in mind?

PERILLA DRESSING

No. I was going to buy it,

but I followed the same train of thought, and when I got home,

there really wasn't much dressing left.

No, hold on.

I totally did the same thing last time

and came home with dressing, even though I didn't need to buy it.

I'm pretty sure I've got a couple of bottles piling up in the fridge now.

PERILLA DRESSING

Yeah, I'm confident this time.

Kiichan!

Oh, hey, Aya-nyan!

-On your day off today? -Nope.

-I'm working the night shift from 4 p.m. -That's rough.

I'll take care of this.

By the way,

we're intentionally queuing up in the longer line,

and there's a reason for that.

-It's because... -2,357 yen in total, please.

-She's on this register. -Thank you!

For about ten years now, she's been working as a cashier.

Her speed and precision are top-notch

compared to everyone else in this supermarket.

Incidentally,

if the difference in the number of people in line is five or fewer,

I always pick her register.

Oh right. I went to Nonchan's store the other day.

-Really? How's she doing? -She's doing fine.

She was complaining about how we don't visit her at all.

-Let's visit her someday -Yes, let's.

Thank you for waiting.

Welcome!

I've decided next time I'll only choose her if the difference is three or fewer.

-You came here by car? -Yeah.

-What about you, Aya-nyan? -I came by bike today.

-Really? -Yeah.

My husband bought an e-bike, but he's not using it at all.

-So I thought I'd ride it instead. -I see.

-Which one is it? -I parked it around here.

I was thinking of adding a baby se...

-Huh? -What's wrong?

-It's gone. -What?

Seriously?

This has to be a joke.

This is terrible.

Huh?

Should we report this to the police?

Sorry to bother you before your shift.

Don't mention it. It's on my way to work.

This is so frustrating. I've only ridden the bike twice.

Oh, I feel you.

Seriously, taking someone else's stuff.

-That's just pathetic. -I agree.

For real, trash like that are just a waste of space in the world.

It's been a while since I heard

such strong language.

By the way, the one I heard it from last was Aya-nyan too.

That sharp tongue of hers is still as impressive as ever!

I'd love to record it and listen when I'm feeling stressed.

I want a best-of collection of all her best lines so far.

...you piece of shit.

Sure.

But first, you want to get your bike back, right?

Yeah, I guess, but it seems impossible.

Really?

Despite what I said,

I kinda feel that way too.

Hold on.

Takahashi may be able to find it.

This is so annoying.

At this point, I don't even care about the bike. I just want to at least

dunk his head in the mud.

That's how I'd feel too.

I'm not sure about the last part,

but I think we might be able to get her bike back.

But I think it's still too early to give up.

-Dunking him in the mud? -No, your bike.

-Oh, that? -Yeah.

-You think we'll be able to find it? -Of course.

-Thank you. -Don't mention it.

But seriously, this piece of crap is getting under my skin.

YAMANASHI PREFECTURE FUJI-ASADA POLICE STATION

-Thank you. -Don't mention it.

Sorry I can't be with you.

-It's fine. Have a good night shift. -Thanks.

-Bye. -Bye.

It just so happens

I'll be seeing Takahashi on my shift today. I'll try asking him.

If memory serves me right...

there's dressing in the fridge.

Or rather, I really hope there is.

CONDIMENTS

There's hardly any left.

TOFU

TOFU

But I have tofu.

Damn it.

I get to work at 3:45 p.m.

-Thank you for your work. -Thank you for your work.

-Good afternoon. -Good afternoon.

CHANGING ROOM

I'll take up the luggage.

Understood.

-Welcome back. -Welcome back.

Every year around this time,

a few students leave home to study

- for their exams at hotels. -It's going to be cold today,

so please keep yourself warm.

-Thank you. - He's been staying here for a week.

It seems tomorrow is the day of his exam.

Tomorrow is the day.

-You mean the exam? -Yeah.

If he passes, he'll become my junior.

-Is that so? -Yeah.

-Which university did you go to? -Kaibun University.

-Really? -Yep.

Which university did you go to, again?

Yamanashi. School of Medicine.

Wait, you went to Yamanashi University?

Yes, the school of medicine.

What? Then you're really smart.

It's not that big of a deal.

Wait. Could it be you used your abilities?

-Well, yeah. -Hey, that's not fair.

Huh? They're my abilities.

I guess you're right.

But you didn't become a doctor even though you went to the school of medicine?

I dropped out.

What? That's a waste. Why did you do that?

At the end of the day, even if I boost my intelligence and cram for an exam,

I can't keep up that level of smarts forever.

That's just how it is, I guess.

Sure, I might see a boost in knowledge temporarily,

but I can't rely on my abilities every day.

-Your body can't handle it? -Yeah.

And my scalp too.

-Scalp? -Yeah, so it seems.

If I enhance my brain,

the side effect is hair loss.

Really?

That's why my hair's a little thin, right?

Right.

I'm not naturally bald, okay?

What?

I'm like this because of my abilities.

Oh, that's what you meant.

But doesn't soaking in the hot spring help?

That's what I thought too,

but in this case, it just doesn't work.

Is that so?

I think it's like how humans

can naturally heal from injuries and sickness,

but hair thinning doesn't work that way.

I see. The power of the hot spring doesn't apply to balding.

I think so.

Wow, okay.

Perhaps it happened sooner than expected

and even if he didn't use his abilities,

he was going to lose his hair naturally. That's what crossed my mind,

but I decided to stop probing further into it.

Hold up.

You're thinking I was going to go bald anyway, except it came ahead of schedule.