Urushibara Yuki

Seven years since the rare solar eclipse occurred, Adashino continues to assist those in medical need. After visiting a patient at a beachside home, the tactful doctor notices a shadow resembling a bird. This spontaneous sighting leads Adashino to reminisce about a story Ginko once told him about a Mushi that assumes the same form. Such a revelation, however, may lead to false optimism. \[Written by MAL Rewrite]

The story is set in a world with a mysterious phenomenon known as "flow," and features two people (and one cat) who make a living dealing with it.

In the midst of a blazing hot summer beset by water shortages, middle-school girl Chinami faints from heat exhaustion. Upon waking up, she finds herself in a mysterious town by a beautifully pristine river whose waters hide many secrets…

A compilation of noteable submissions to the Afternoon Four Seasons Awards from 1987 to 2000 from major artists from when they were still newcomers. Note: Do not confuse this for the Afternoon Four Seasons Awards CHRONICLE 1987-2000 Selections from 2013, which cut 23 of the 48 oneshots but still spread the remaining 25 across 4 seasonal volumes. Chapters: Spring: 1​. Tsuchida Seiki - Miseinen (1987 Four Seasons Prize) 2\. Takahashi Tsutomu - GOTAVOICE (1987 Spring Semi-Winner) 3\. Matsumoto Taiyou - STRAIGHT (1987 Autumn Semi-Winner) 4\. Irie Noriko - Neko no Te Kashimasu (1987 Winter Four Seasons Grand Prize) 5\. Ohtagaki Yasuo - Ronin Heartbreak! (1988 Summer Honorable Mention) 6\. Sudou Masumi - Shounen-ou ni Shiroi Kumo (1988 Autumn Semi-Winner) 7\. Akizuki Risu - Oku-sama Shinkaron (1988 Autumn Honorable Mention) 8\. Nakayama Masaaki - Ridatsu (1988 Winter Semi-Winner) 9\. Arai Hideki - 8-gatsu no Hikari (1989 Summer Four Seasons Grand Prize) 10\. Hiromoto Sinichi - Western Carnival (1989 Summer Honorable Mention) 11\. Enomoto Shunji - Golden Lucky (1989 Autumn Honorable Mention) 12\. King Gonta - A Mess on a Weekend (1989 Winter Four Seasons Grand Prize) 13\. Irie Kiwa - Haikibun! Sakanahime (1989 Winter Four Seasons Prize) 14\. Hiramatsu Minoru - Ma, Ikka! (1989 Winter Honorable Mention) 15\. Aoki Yuuji - Higan to Shigan no Ma De (1990 Semi-Winner) 16\. Taguchi Masayuki - Shouteki Ningen (1990 Autumn Four Seasons Prize) 17\. Sugawara Masayuki - Home Range (1991 Summer Semi-Winner) 18\. Matoba Ken - Mei Tantei ni Hanarenai keredo (1991 Summer Semi-Winner) 19\. Yasuda Hiroyuki - MOZOO (1991 Autumn Honorable Mention) 20\. Oda Hideji - Sakana (1991 Winter Honorable Mention) Summer: 21\. Matsunaga Toyokazu - Killing Paranoia (1992 Summer Four Seasons Grand Prize) 22\. Ohara Shinji - Boku wa Otouto (1993 Spring Four Seasons Grand Prize) 23\. Kuwahara Shinya - YOKO vs (1993 Spring Four Seasons Prize) 24\. Samura Hiroaki - Mugen no Juunin (1993 Summer Four Seasons Grand Prize) 25\. Kuroda Iou - Ka, Nanten, Kuma (1993 Autumn Four Seasons Grand Prize) 26\. Toume Kei - KUROGANE (1993 Autumn Four Seasons Prize) 27\. Igarashi Daisuke - Obayashi ga Hikoeru Hi & Imada Fuyu (1993 Winter Four Seasons Grand Prize) 28\. Yoshikai Kanji - Kodoku no Oto (1993 Winter Semi-Winner) 29\. Ashinano Hitoshi - Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou (1994 Spring Four Seasons Prize) 30\. Komai Yuu - Sonna Yatsua Inee!! (1994 Spring Honorable Mention) Autumn: 31\. Aramaki Keiko - GENOMES (1994 Summer Four Seasons Grand Prize) 32\. Kio Shimoku - Ten no Ryouiki (1994 Summer Four Seasons Prize) 33\. Abe Yoshitoshi - Ame no Furu Basho (1994 Summer Semi-Winner) 34\. Kiba Kouichi - JAGUA (1995 Summer Four Seasons Grand Prize) 35\. Nihei Tsutomu - BLAME (1995 Summer Special Prize) 36\. Endou Hiroki - Kitto Kawaii Onnanoko dakara (1995 Autumn Four Seasons Prize) 37\. Kitoh Mohiro - Vendémiaire no Migite (1995 Autumn Semi-Winner) 38\. Asada Torao - Spoonman 3.18 (1996 Autumn Four Seasons Grand Prize) 39\. Wakana Shouhei - Kamen Tenshi (1996 Autumn Four Seasons Prize) 40\. Shinemon - Lunch no B (1996 Summer Honorable Mention) Winter: 41\. Hayashida Q - Sofa-chan (1997 Autumn Semi-Winner) 42\. Kimura Kon - Koube Zaijuu (1997 Winter Four Seasons Prize) 43\. Shinofusa Rokuro - Yasashii Kodomo no Tsukurikata (1997 Spring Honorable Mention) 44\. Higuchi Asa - Yuku Tokoro (1998 Spring Four Seasons Prize) 45\. Manabe Shohei - Yuuutsu Suberidai (1998 Summer Four Seasons Grand Prize) 46\. Urushibara Yuki - Mushishi (1998 Winter Four Seasons Grand Prize) 47\. Kumakura Takatoshi - Gurade (1999 Summer Semi-Winner) 48\. Toyoda Minoru - Love Roma (2002 Spring Four Seasons Grand Prize) Selected Descriptions: Kio Shimoku - Ten no Ryouiki A brief insight into the life of a young graduate student looking for work who finds himself in bed with a mysterious girl he has never seen before. Abe Yoshitoshi - Ame no Furu Basho Eshikawa is a man who has lost sight of his life and stumbles through it, with no clear meaning or purpose. One day, he is informed that his ex-girlfriend committed suicide, which sets his brain on retrospect mode. He goes on a journey of self-revelation and contemplates upon the myriad of human emotions, the joys and sorrows of normalcy. Kiba Kouichi - JAGUAR As a woman is returning home one night, she runs into a man who was just in a car crash. As he's dying, he asks her to throw a certain package into the sea. Hayashida Q - Sofa-chan Hayashida Q's debut work about a female couch spirit. See Also: MDList of Afternoon Four Seasons Award–winning oneshots blog post covering this series Wikipedia article about this series Wikipedia article about the contest, including a list of winners

Includes: She Got Off the Bus at the Peninsula (chapter 1): Mitsuko Kunizaki has inherited a small grocery store from her grandmother. Being a single mother to a little boy, she intends to close it down and move on with life. However, in the solitary store that sits next to the last bus stop at the tip of a peninsula lie some long-buried memories that slowly reemerge as Mitsuko arrives at what used to be her home—memories of a lonesome childhood and of people who came to the peninsula to end their lives. The Labyrinth Cat (chapter 2): Residents who have just moved in are always lost in this complex apartment. However, there is one little feline that will help them get back to their apartment house.

They exist in the most unexpected places – be it within your eyes and ears, under the floor and roof of your house, or the trees and flowers in your garden. They are everywhere and yet nowhere at the same time. Are they alive or not? Perhaps it is more apt to say they are beings who transcend the concept of life and death itself… They are mushi. Some wreak havoc in the lives of humans; while others bring them deliverance from suffering. Mushi are neither good, nor evil; for just like any other creature, they are merely striving to survive in this harsh, competitive world. Ginko - a lone wanderer with a reclusive personality, offers help and guidance to those plagued by mushi. This is the tale of his travels and exploits in a wondrous world populated by these mysterious entities. Won the Japanese Media Arts Festival Excellence Prize in 2003 Won the Kodansha Manga Award in 2006 Officially Published: In Italian by Star Comics

A collection of short stories. Aside from "Grass Cricket" and the commentary pages before each chapter and at the end of the volume, these were reprinted in Filament.