Tsuzuru Minagi/MANKAI Memory

Childhood Memory: TSUZURU

Backstage Stories

Part 1Part 2Part 3

Citron	…!
Taichi	…!!
Tsuzuru	(…Hm? There’s a lot going on in the lounge.
	Everyone sure is energetic in the morning.)
Citron	Good morning, Tsuzuru!
Taichi	Mornin’!
Tsuzuru	Morning.
	Huh, I-Itaru-san!?
Itaru	Morning, Tsuzuru.
Tsuzuru	Good morning…
	Eh, i-it’s… 8 in the morning right now…
Itaru	It’s always like this when I have work, you know?
Tsuzuru	I mean, you’re off today, aren’t you…?
	Are you working on your day off…? No, wait, did you pull an all-nighter…?
Itaru	Nope~. Today’s special.
Tsuzuru	Special…?
TV	“♪~♪~”
Citron	It’s started!
Taichi	Ooh. That person’s the main character this time!
Tsuzuru	Ahh, I see. I get it now.
	A new series started today, huh?
Itaru	Bingo.
	This new Sentai show has been blowing up on SNS.
Citron	I’ve been eagerly waiting for today!
Taichi	Same here!
	*Sigh*, that was awesome!
	The new hero was super cool too~.
Tsuzuru	Yeah. He gets carried away pretty easily, but he’s a refreshing and dashing protagonist.
Citron	I really liked that transformation pose!
Itaru	It seems popular since it has a classic vibe to it despite its unique setting.
Taichi	The preview for the next ep is after this, right?
	I wonder if a new ally will join forces with them?
TV	“SHINE! PLAY THE MUSIC!
	You, take this sword and fight alongside the hero!”
Taichi	Eh? This sword is…
Citron	OH!? A never-before-seen weapon?
Itaru	There it is. The commercial dropped spoilers before the actual show.
	That’s probably the weapon that’ll show up next week or the week after that.
Taichi	What a sharp business tactic…
Tsuzuru	Haha. That happens a lot for hero shows and anime at this hour…
Citron	The official sources spoil the most!
	But I can’t wait for next week!
Tsuzuru	Hold on. Taichi has a little brother, so that makes sense…
	But you’re into these things too, Citron-san?
Citron	Yes! The same hero shows were aired in Zafra 2~3 years after they were broadcast in Japan.
	I watched them in secret.
	I was looking forward to them every week.
Tsuzuru	I see. So that’s how it was.
	…Then there’s Itaru-san. I was sure you’d watch shows like this by streaming reruns instead.
Itaru	It’s only for the first episode. If it’s interesting, I’ll stream it later.
Tsuzuru	Only the first episode…
Itaru	I mean, I can do my best to get up earlier than when I do for work…
	But in the end, I wanna prioritize gaming.
	*Yawn*… and with that said, I’m gonna head back to my room and sleep again.
	G’night~.
Taichi	Goodnight~.
Citron	That’s Itaru for you.
Tsuzuru	Yep…
	*door opens*
Izumi	I-I just passed by Itaru-san.
	Today’s Sunday. And it’s still morning.
Tsuzuru	I knew you’d think that.
	You had the exact same reaction as me.
Citron	Itaru got up early to watch the early bird.
Izumi	Um, I see…?
	Ah, that’s right. That reminds me, Tsuzuru-kun.
	Your turn is coming up for the birthday bromide photoshoot.
Tsuzuru	Oh right, it is.
Citron	You need to prepare one item yourself to use as an accessory in the birthday bromide shoot, right?
Taichi	Yep!
	The theme is a memorable item from before you joined the troupe.
Tsuzuru	A memorable item, huh…
	Well, I don’t have any plans today.
	I’ll drop back home and look for an accessory to use in my photoshoot while I’m at it.
	I’m sure my little bros were also watching that show just now.
Taichi	Great! You can get hyped up over the same topic.
Izumi	Yeah. Have a safe trip.

Tsuzuru	I’m back.
Suberu	Huh?
Noboru	Tsuzuru nii-chan?
Tsuzuru	Suberu, Noboru, I’m home.
Noboru	Welcome back.
Suberu	Welcome back!
	Heeey, Tsuzuru nii-chan’s home!
Takeru	Ehh, really!?
Yuzuru	Tsuzuru onii-chan! Welcome home!
Tsuzuru	Haha. You guys look like you’re doing well too, Takeru, Yuzuru.
	Sorry for dropping by so suddenly.
	There’s just something I wanna find.
Takeru	You’re looking for something?
Tsuzuru	Yeah. I’m gonna use a memorable item from before I joined the troupe as an accessory for a photoshoot.
Noboru	Heh, so you use things like that too, sometimes. That sounds intriguing.
Suberu	Hmm, do we have anything?
Noboru	All the clothes and toys we played with get handed down to our younger brothers in our household, right?
Suberu	Yeah, exactly. There are lots of items that become broken or unusable as they’re used for a long time.
Tsuzuru	That’s true…
	Thinking about it that way, there’s not many things left, huh?
	Ah! Maybe we still have that.
Yuzuru	What is it?
Tsuzuru	Umm, I’m sure it’s in the back of the dresser…
	…Here it is!
Noboru	Ah, that t-shirt…
Takeru	What’s that, Tsuzuru nii-chan~?
Tsuzuru	Ahh, you see…
	*flashback starts*
TV	“Starry Sky Sentai! Star Rangers!”
Tsuzuru	The Star Rangers are so cool!
	I wanna become a hero like them too!
	Ahh…!
TV	“You can be a Star Ranger too!
	Star Ranger style t-shirts now on sale!”
Tsuzuru	Wow…!
	They match the Star Rangers!
	That’s awesome.
	I wanna wear that and become a Star Ranger too!
	But…
	…
	Hey. Mom, dad!
Tsuzuru’s mom	What’s the matter?
Tsuzuru	Um, I have a request…
	I want a Star Ranger style t-shirt…!
Tsuzuru’s dad	A t-shirt?
Tsuzuru	It’s a t-shirt that looks like just the Star Ranger’s transformation suit.
	It’s super duper cool!
	They showed it in a commercial today…
	And I want one no matter what…
	Please! I’ll even help out around the house!
Tsuzuru’s dad	It’s rare for Tsuzuru to beg for something.
Tsuzuru’s mom	It really is.
Tsuzuru’s dad	A t-shirt is fine, isn’t it?
	He can use it all the time.
Tsuzuru’s mom	True. He’s always doing his best with his chores too.
	Alright, Tsuzuru. Let’s go tomorrow to buy one together.
Tsuzuru	R-really!?
	Yay. Thanks mom and dad!
	I’ll be sure to take great care of it!
	*flashback ends*
	And so, they bought this t-shirt for me.
	I was so happy and loved it so much that I wore it all the time.
Takeru	Ooh~. Tsuzuru nii-chan liked these heroes, huh!
Tsuzuru	Yeah, I sure did.
Kaoru	Oh, onii-chan’s home.
	Welcome back.
Tsuzuru	Ah, Kaoru. I’m back.
Kaoru	Huh, that t-shirt… sure brings back memories.
	You used to love that, didn’t you?
Takeru	Did you wear that as a hand-me-down too, Kaoru nii-chan?
Kaoru	Nope, I never wore it.
Tsuzuru	Sentai heroes switch to new heroes from year-to-year, after all.
	Kaoru and the others weren’t familiar with the Star Rangers, so they didn’t wear this as a hand-me-down.
	And, well, that’s why it was left in the back of the drawer like this.
Suberu	I see.
Noboru	You found a great memorable item.
Takeru	Hey, hey. What kinda pose did the Star Rangers do when they transformed?
Yuzuru	Transform~!
Tsuzuru	Eh? You want me to do it?
Takeru	Do it, do it!
Yuzuru	I wanna see~!
Tsuzuru	Guess I have no choice…
	Shine, courage!
	Star Ranger, transform!
Yuzuru	Wow, that’s so cool!
Suberu	Oh, he struck it perfectly!
Noboru	He really remembered it. I’m not surprised.
Takeru	Awesome!
	Hey, I wanna do that pose too! Teach me!
Yuzuru	Me too!
Kaoru	Ahaha. Onii-chan’s Star Ranger is all the rage, huh?

Citron	Happy birthday, Tsuzuru!
Izumi	Happy birthday, Tsuzuru-kun!
Itaru	Congrats~.
Tsuzuru	Thanks so much, everyone.
Citron	Alright, to celebrate Tsuzuru’s birthday, Citrun will perform a birthday manzai show!
Tsuzuru	Hold on, what’s a birthday manzai show!
	Besides, I’m the one we’re celebrating for in the first place!?
Masumi	Their manzai show has already begun.
Tsuzuru	It hasn’t started!
Sakuya	Ahahaha.
Itaru	Tsuzuru’s birthday bromide also came out really well, didn’t it?
Chikage	There was a huge variety in his accessories.
Izumi	It turned out to be a very wonderful bromide.
Tsuzuru	It’s all thanks to everyone who helped with the photoshoot.
Citron	Tsuzuru’s memorable item was a Ranger’s t-shirt, right?
Chikage	It’s very like Tsuzuru to choose clothing as opposed to a transformation belt or weapon.
Itaru	Were you thinking about your family’s situation even when you were a kid?
Tsuzuru	Ah, yeah. I have a lot of brothers, so I guess I was.
	I thought they might be reluctant to buy me a transformation belt or toy. But clothing is practical, so…
	I wanted that t-shirt no matter what, so I took the plunge and asked them.
Izumi	Oh, I see.
Sakuya	Even so, you have great parents for buying it for you when you asked for it.
Tsuzuru	Yeah. It’s a genuinely good memory of mine, so that’s why I used it for my bromide this time.
Masumi	You’re considerate in a weird way.
Itaru	It’s fine, isn’t it? That kindness feels just like Tsuzuru.
Izumi	(It does feel like it’s rare for Tsuzuru-kun to beg for something.)
CHOICE 1: You really loved them [+] Izumi You must have really loved those heroes to want that t-shirt no matter what. Tsuzuru I did. There were a bunch of other books and shows that I liked… But I was particularly into the Star Rangers back then. I admired the main character since he was so cool. He was kind, fun, and dependable to boot. I wanted to become a hero just like that. Izumi That sounds just like you, Tsuzuru-kun. Tsuzuru Eh? Izumi You’re kind, fun, and dependable. You’re really cool, Tsuzuru-kun. Tsuzuru …! T-thank you very much…! It feels a bit embarrassing… But I’m thrilled to hear you say that, Director.
CHOICE 2: Once in a while, ask us for something too [+] Izumi Once in a while, ask us for something too. Alright, Tsuzuru-kun? Tsuzuru Eh? Izumi There aren’t many times you’re selfish or beg for something, so I just thought I’d like to hear some of your requests. Tsuzuru No way. You’re always letting me be self-indulgent with my scripts. Sakuya In that case, we’re the ones always being selfish towards you, Tsuzuru-kun. Citron We want to pepper you too! Masumi It’s pamper, not pepper. Chikage Exactly. You should learn from Chigasaki who’s full of desires and be self-indulgent too. Itaru Lol. But yeah. Sakuya We’d be more than happy to listen to your requests, Tsuzuru-kun! Tsuzuru T-thanks. …I’ll take your word for it and try asking for something next time. Izumi Yeah!
Citron	By the way, Tsuzuru. Did you talk about the morning show with your brothers?
Tsuzuru	Ahh, no… when I brought this t-shirt out, we got excited chatting about the Star Rangers who were my favourite.
	They even got me to do the Star Ranger’s transformation pose.
Citron	OH!? That sounds fun. I want to see that transformation pose too!
	Do it, Tsuzuru!
Tsuzuru	Ehh!? Err, I’m not gonna do it?
Sakuya	I’d like to know about the Sentai heroes you liked too, Tsuzuru-kun!
Tsuzuru	Even you, Sakuya…
Itaru	I might have some sorta transformation belt.
Tsuzuru	Wait, you’re from a different generation, aren’t you!
Masumi	I’m not interested. Why don’t you do it by yourself?
Tsuzuru	That’d be kinda cringe though…
Chikage	Haha. Tsuzuru taking jabs from every direction is as interesting and reliable as always, huh?
Izumi	That’s also a part of Tsuzuru-kun… isn’t it?

Anna