Original subtitles

Even if I told you your sister might still be alive?

Why are you investigating my sister?

I don't think it's a regular missing-person case.

It seems it wasn’t about your mother.

The police investigated it and it was someone else.

That’s great.

- Thank you for coming. - Come again.

Ms. Tanaka.

Ms. Tanaka!

- Yes! - Could you buy us some ice?

Sure.

Also, come by after work today to pick up your salary.

Okay.

No way!

Yes!

- Did you get it? - Got it!

Aoi Tachibana is definitely alive!

Quiet down. Did you find her location?

Sorry, I lost track of her just now.

I'm sending the draft. Go right to the office.

We’ll publish this online tonight.

You're Shougo Tachibana, right?

Could I have a moment of your time?

Yes.

I'm Kudo from Weekly Shinsou.

- I’d like to ask you about your wife. - Sorry, no interviews…

Aoi Tachibana is alive.

We have eyewitness reports.

Is Aoi safe?

Yes.

Thank goodness.

Do you really mean that?

You'll agree to an interview, right?

WEEKLY SHINSOU

He's still here!

- Good work. - "Still"? I'm your boss, remember!

So, what’s going on with the councilor’s affair story?

And where’s Kudo?

She's on the phone.

KUDO

Thanks for waiting.

I’ve got photos of all the councilor’s mistresses.

Took you long enough.

One, two, three,

four, five, six…

and guess what… He has seven mistresses!

Nice work!

Then I'll…

- But first… - Huh?

I want to release this other article online.

AOI TACHIBANA IS ALIVE?

INCOMING CALL

Hello?

You’ve been spotted. Leave that place now.

What?

- But my paycheck… - Forget about it and leave quickly.

Got it.

That was tough.

Go straight down that alley, and there’s a yellow taxi waiting.

Take it and head to the location I send you.

Take care.

Hiroto, here, take this.

You can’t put that there.

- It’ll make you stronger. - You should wear it yourself.

No, it's fine.

I’m strong enough already.

What’s that supposed to mean?

Wait!

- Full of energy this morning! - Good morning.

- Good morning. - One for Grandpa Tora, too.

- What’s this? - It'll make you stronger!

I feel it working.

It’s kicking in!

It’s definitely working!

I feel a surge of power!

- Alright, please take good care of him. - Yes.

Have a nice day!

I’m off!

EXCLUSIVE SCOOP: AOI TACHIBANA IS ALIVE

What?

Kaede Kudo?

Yes?

Hello?

I saw the article.

Your team took this photo, right?

Who’s calling?

Komori.

I knew you’d call.

Um…

That article you wrote, Ms. Kudo…

The number of comments is amazing.

It’s our top article this month.

People are asking if the mother killed her son.

Public opinion can be scary.

SHE DEFINITELY KILLED HIM!

Sorry, what were you saying?

Your team took this photo, right?

Where is my sister now? What is she doing?

Why do you want that information?

I want to meet her and find out what happened.

Why now, after all this time?

You didn’t even know she had a son, did you?

Well…

That's true.

Mr. Komori, are you involved in this

by any chance?

I should get back to work now.

Excuse me.

EXCLUSIVE SCOOP: AOI TACHIBANA IS ALIVE

My sister is alive somewhere. But why…

hasn’t she reached out to me?

Mr. Komori.

Oh, sorry.

You’ve got a sticker on you.

Huh?

- Should I take it off? - Yes.

Here.

- Thanks. - Here.

- See you. - Okay.

Excuse me. I'm sorry to interrupt.

I’d like to ask you a few questions.

And you are?

I apologize.

I’m Takada from the Yamanashi Police.

I'm Saeki.

Sorry, um,

do you know this person?

Yes, that's Tanaka. She works here.

Tanaka?

- She stole my wallet and ran away with it. - What?

Tanaka is likely an alias.

Her real name is Aoi Tachibana, who went missing in Yamanashi.

We’re looking for her too.

Um,

mind if we join your theft investigation?

Well…

Hiroto, look!

That's so nice!

- Is it a tulip? - Yes.

Back in the day,

we had tons of these in our garden.

Is this for me?

Nope!

Then who’s it for?

Mi? Grandpa Tora?

It’s a secret!

Please contact me if you're alive.

What is it?

Is she our sister?

Huh?

Is Lion’s mom our sister?

Sorry, I didn’t explain it well.

So, you were aware of it?

I’m scared. I’m really scared.

- Sister scares me. - Did you remember something?

It’s dangerous. Lion is in danger.

It’s okay, it’s okay.

- Lion is-- - It’s okay, it’s okay.

Calm down.

Barbary lion. Angolan lion.

Barbary lion.

Congo lion.

Barbary lion.

Is my sister

a horrible mother who abused and abandoned her child,

or is she…

PLEASE CONTACT ME IF YOU'RE ALIVE

Huh?

What?

My wife went to her parents’ today for our third child’s delivery.

The kids cried and cried.

I kept telling them, "It’s okay, Daddy’s here,"

but they’ve been crying since morning.

- Do they hate you? - Of course not.

Of course not.

At that age, their mother means everything to them.

She's their whole world.

Your kid’s really something, though.

He doesn’t fuss even without his mother around.

Yeah, that's true.

Close the curtains.

If you get caught now, this plan will come to nothing.

Hey, let me use your phone.

What will you do if you contact him?

Don’t move from here until I say so.

KID’S ROOM

I'm at work right now, so…

could you please stop calling me?

Hello?

Are you just going to stand by and let someone die again?

What?

Listen carefully to what I’m about to say.

Mi, pass me the mayonnaise.

Mi?

- Here’s the mayonnaise. - Thank you!

Mi, aren’t you eating?

You love croquettes, don't you?

Should pack this up and go eat at home?

Do you want to?

I’ll eat it.

- There's sauce on your stuffed animal. - I'll clean it for you.

No!

- It's better to wipe it off quickly. - No, it’s fine!

I’m sorry.

I’m off to Tokyo today on a business trip for one night.

Right, Mr. Funaki emailed me.

I could have helped if you’d told me yesterday.

I need to check.

Towel, shirt,

paint, paint.

Need any help? When is Mr. Funaki coming?

Mr. Funaki will be here at 7:00.

- That’s soon! - Yes.

- Mi, did you pack pajamas? - Pajamas.

- You didn’t pack them. - How about this?

He doesn't need that.

- Mi, did you pack your toothbrush? - Paintbrush.

Toothbrush, toothbrush.

- Do you want my handkerchief? - It’s fine.

- It’s 6:58. Just two more minutes. - Don’t worry, Mi.

Start with the toothbrush.

Toothbrush!

Stop! Mi, start with the toothbrush.

Lion, let’s get in the bath.

- Let’s eat. - Let's eat.

Thank you.

Did you manage to get everything packed?

Just barely.

A business trip for an art job…

He's really a popular artist now.

He's staying over tonight,

so it’ll just be me and Lion this evening.

How’s Lion doing lately?

He’s back to full health.

Thanks for making his birthday party a hit.

It feels like you’re a real family.

Why don't you live together permanently?

No, no.

Lion’s mother is still alive,

so I think they should meet if they can.

Isn’t that dangerous?

- You think so? - I mean, I saw it too…

That bruise.

We discussed the possibility of abuse, didn’t we?

- Lion seems eager to see her. - That’s what worries me.

Even in abuse cases, kids often want to protect

their parents and say they want to see them.

But the things Lion brought with him

are all neatly hand-embroidered.

He even learned origami from his mother.

It feels like there’s a sense of parental love in them.

But she abandoned him and left him with you.

If I were you,

I wouldn’t let them meet so easily.

I see.

You have a point.

I’m Hana Sugiyama. Nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you.

This time, Mr. Komori, we’d like you to illustrate

a family living with various animals.

It’s for an essay focusing on their life together.

That sounds wonderful, right, Mi?

We’d love for you to illustrate these animal families.

Families?

You live with your brother now, right?

And with Lion, too.

Lion, as in a lion?

He’s a six-year-old Lion.

Six? That’s pretty big. Isn’t it dangerous?

It is.

Sometimes, he gets unruly.

That's a misunderstanding.

- A misunderstanding. - Lion is part of the pride.

Lion is family, real family.

Lion is family, Lion is--

An important part of your family, right?

With such a strong sense of family, I’m sure

he’ll create wonderful illustrations that are perfect for your book.

Yes.

It feels…

strange without Mi here, right?

I miss him.

He might be missing you, too,

since you aren't there with him.

When is he coming back?

- He’ll be back tomorrow. - You think he'll bring back a souvenir?

Maybe.

I’ll ask him later.

Okay.

- Hey, Lion. - Yes?

Do you miss

your mother?

We made a promise.

A promise?

It's nothing!

KOFU MINAMI CITY MISSING MOTHER AND CHILD CASE

WHERE IS HER SON?

DID SHE KILL HIM THROUGH NEGLECT?

WHAT ARE THE POLICE DOING?

UNFORGIVABLE. CATCH HER QUICKLY!

WITH SO MANY SIGHTINGS, IT’S ONLY A MATTER OF TIME.

LION WANTS TO

SEE YOU.

You startled me!

- What's going on? - Let's go.

The police are downstairs.

Don't just stand there! Hurry!

Police. Please open up.

Lion.

You don’t have to hide it.

You can look at it whenever you want.

This is Mi's and my mom.

She was so kind.

She cherished

her family dearly.

How about your mom, Lion?

She’s kind.

They’re both smiling, huh?

Yes.

Aoi?

Wait!

Here you go.

Where is everyone?

Hiroto’s at university in Tokyo.

Mi’s attending a special needs school, and Dad’s on a business trip.

I see.

How are you doing?

Are you eating properly?

I…

I’m getting married.

What?

Really?

I see.

Congratulations!

- I just wanted to tell you that. - Wait a minute!

I’ve been wanting to give you this, Aoi.

Huh?

It’s not much, but it’s from me.

Here.

Thank you.

If anything happens, you can depend on us.

Everyone here is your family.

LION, 1 NEW MESSAGE

LION IS DOING WELL TODAY

SHUUTO TACHIBANA

A PROMISE WITH MOM!

"A promise with Mom."

What?

"First,

stay by the front door until Hiroto and Michito come home."

"Second,

if you’re in trouble, go to the bathroom."

"Third,

ask if you can live together."

"Fourth,

if they ask you about Mom or Dad…"

- Where are your mom and dad? - I don't know.

"Just say you don’t know."

ONCE YOU'RE AS STRONG AS THE KING OF BEASTS, I’LL COME FOR YOU.

Hiroto.

SHUUTO TACHIBANA

Sorry.

Did I wake you?

I had a scary dream.

I see.

A monster appeared, but I didn’t run away.

I defeated it since I’m the King of Beasts.

That’s amazing.

Because,

she promised

that once I got strong, she’d come for me.

Good work.

Did I get strong?

Yes, you got really strong.

Alright, let’s go to bed.

Goodnight.

Goodnight.

ONCE YOU'RE AS STRONG AS THE KING OF BEASTS, I’LL COME FOR YOU.

I WANT TO SEE SHUUTO

SORRY FOR DRAGGING YOU INTO THIS, HIROTO

Can you hear me by any chance?

Why did you leave Lion with me?

THE 6TH, NOON, TRAM PLAZA CHIBA MAGICAL AMUSEMENT PARK

The amusement park?

"Come with Shuuto."

I’m home.

Welcome back, Mi!

Good job on the business trip.

Yes.

I stayed one night.

Souvenir, souvenir!

Tokyo Banana!

Jelly from the Sumida Hokusai Museum.

Jelly.

Candy from the National Museum of Western Art.

Awesome! Can I eat this?

This one’s mine.

This one’s mine.

- This one’s mine. - Mi, Mi.

Do you have a moment?

Yes.

- It’s about Lion. - About Lion?

I'm planning to go see Lion’s mom,

who is also our sister.

Sister is a scary person.

She’s scary.

I want to see her and find out if she really is scary.

She abandoned Lion.

She’s a scary person.

- Mi, wait. - She’s scary!

- She’s scary. - Mi.

Mi.

Lion

promised his mother that he wouldn't see her.

He’s been doing his best, holding back

his urge to see her all this time.

But now, Lion might finally get to see her.

So,

I thought I’d go with him to meet her.

Will Lion

live with his mom?

I don’t know yet.

But he might.

Mi,

why don’t you

come with us to meet Lion’s mom?

I'm going to see Mom?

Yes.

We’ll go see her.

Yay! I get to see Mom!

Yay!

Will you come with us, Mi?

Come with us!

I’ll go.

I’m going to see my son.

Is it pointless to try and stop you?

There’s something I have to tell him.

Well then, this marks the end of our contract with you.

But just so you know,

I haven’t given up yet.

You made so many.

Yes, these are all for Mom.

I see.

Mi, let’s race to that boat!

Ready, set, go!

Careful! Wait for me.

- Don’t trip! - I won’t!

- Look! - You did it great.

- Yellow and orange. - Stop!

Who’s that kid?

Is that Mr. Komori’s child?

No.

- He could be Aoi Tachibana’s kid. - Seriously?

Then I need to take some…

- Follow them. - Okay.

I knew it.

Tram Plaza.

Tram Plaza, Tram Plaza…

- Tram Plaza is there. - Oh, here.

We got here a little early.

Mi, do you want to ride that?

- That’s my encyclopedia! - Mi! Let go of it!

Wow!

Faster, Mi!

Hiroto, Mi…

I thought I'd never see you again…

Why don’t you wear this?

Hiroto!

Hiroto!

What is this?

Maybe I'm just tired.

TRAM PLAZA

I’m not going.

Alright.

Then you can just sit there and wait by yourself.

I won’t meet Sister.

I’ll sit there and wait.

Alright, let’s go.

It's almost time.

Yeah.

Mom.

Mom.

Mom.

Mom!

Shuuto.

Huh?

You’re Mrs. Aoi Tachibana, correct?

Tachibana!

Stop.

We’d like you to come to the station with us

regarding theft and a few other matters.

Mom!

Mom!

Where are they taking her?!

Mom!

Mom!

Mom!

Mom…

There are so many things I’d like to ask.

So where should we start?

I killed him.

What?

I…

I killed my son.

I wanted to escape from that life every single day.

You’ve done well to make it this far.

Please, keep the child out of the public eye.

I’ll do whatever it takes to find Shuuto.

Mi and I will protect you, Lion.

Promise.