The Summer Hikaru Died Episode 2 Recap: Suspicion

The second episode of ‘The Summer Hikaru Died,’ titled ‘Suspicion,’ lives up to its name, continuing the story the day after the town is struck with tragedy. The previous episode follows Yoshiki’s discovery of Hikaru’s true nature, following which the two begin bonding anew. However, their journey is marred by the interruption of Ms. Matsuura, who appears to fear whatever resides inside Hikaru. The same night, Ms. Matsuura dies, and the villagers hurriedly bring Tanaka, an enigmatic investigator, into the scene. As such, the episode ends on a tense note, and here the story continues its deep dive into the history of the village, threading its geography and its beings, be it living or nonliving, into one. SPOILERS AHEAD.

Ms. Matsuura’s Death Prompts a Deeper Look Into the Village

The episode begins with Hikaru and Yoshiki riding their bikes as police cars zip past, headed toward a recent scene of disturbance: Ms. Matsuura’s death. Elsewhere, Tanaka also makes his way to Kubitachi, summoned to conduct a supernatural investigation. At school, rumors swirl around Matsuura; she is declared to have ended her own life by forcing her hand down her throat. Some believe she saw something she wasn’t supposed to, and the protagonist is loosely in the same camp. He remembers the previous day, when Ms. Matsuura had panicked at the sight of Hikaru near the crossing. Although the latter appears to have no clue about the event, Yoshiki’s suspicion about the entity grows. His classmate, Yuuta, believes he has been cursed. His fear renders him unable to cross the wooded trail on his way home, to the east.

This leads Yuuta to ask Yoshiki for help. Though the protagonist initially declines, Hikaru expresses interest, surprising everyone. They talk about how Hikaru was usually the first to get scared, but the new Hikaru assures them that he has changed. Reluctantly, Yoshiki agrees, and soon, the entire group joins the trip through the ominous stretch. Meanwhile, Tanaka reaches the village and meets with concerned locals, headed by Takeda. The latter reveals that his father has locked himself indoors, fearing his death next. In response, Tanaka laughs, treating the visit casually. Enraged, the villagers try to alert him about the new string of suspicious activities that are taking place in Kubitachi, suggesting that the situation is escalating.

The men then break into Ms. Matsuura’s house, and a quick search introduces Tanaka to the concept of Nounuki-Sama. He hypothesizes that she had led a very negative life, which serves as fuel for her spirit. The villagers substantiate the claim, stating that she had seen something horrific as a child, which traumatized her. Although she had held on to her sanity, the last remnants went away with the sudden disappearance of her daughter. Elsewhere, Yoshiki and his friends enter and then exit the forest trail without anything remotely scary taking place, surprising Yuuta. However, on the way back, things quickly take a turn, as Yoshiki spots an oddly shaped shadow zigzagging in the distance. As it becomes clearer, he sees a spirit with a long neck swinging unnaturally, coming closer with each iteration.

Yoshiki Has a Horrifying Experience

An alarmed Yoshiki has no time to react, as when their eyes meet, the entity begins to rush toward him. Fortunately, Hikaru appears just in time, seemingly summoning the spirit towards him, before the two collide with a loud bang. Hikaru is pushed back but succeeds in consuming the spirit. However, he suffers a nosebleed because the spirit put up a fight while he was destroying and consuming it. Yoshiki is surprised by the event and asks Hikaru why he did this. In response, the entity says that had he not acted, that spirit would have taken the protagonist as its vessel. However, there appears to be more to the truth than it seems, as Asako catches up with the duo, asking them about the loud sound. As Hikaru comes up with a fake explanation, citing a misfired gun somewhere else, Asako wonders if the spirits cancelled each other out, revealing that she knows something about Hikaru.

When the group exits the forest, Hikaru notices a spark burning inside Yoshiki’s chest, visible only spiritually. Seeing it, Hikaru smiles, happy that seemingly nothing can separate him from his beloved anymore. In a flashback, Hikaru’s father, Kouhei, shares an old family secret involving a pact with the mountain spirit, Nonuki-sama. He elaborates that the spirit spares Indo family members but can harm those close to them outside of a proper relationship. Kouhei tells his son that if he falls in love, he must marry quickly to bring the person into the family and offer protection. This warning takes on new relevance considering Hikaru’s connection with Yoshiki. Since Nonuki-sama now occupies Hikaru’s body, Yoshiki’s safety remains uncertain.

Tanaka and Yoshiki Inch Closer to the Truth

At a later occasion, Tanaka organizes another meeting with the villagers, this time at Mr. Mikasa’s house, but not before marking it with a protective barrier. He explains that the situation at hand demands a higher degree of sophistication. He then continues, revealing that he took a trip to the mountain on his own and found a bag, which turns out to be Hikaru’s. From inside, he pulls out a totem of a shrunken head, alarming everyone. Tanaka describes it as a powerful stone carried for protection, and states that his initial assumption was that this spiritual object was the reason the mountain had been rid of impurities. However, he now has a new hypothesis, that the deity, Nounuki-sama, has descended from the mountain, having found a way to blend in with civilisation.

Although not privy to the characters, this reveal suggests that losing the stone is what made the real Hikaru vulnerable enough to let a spirit possess him. Now, the new Hikaru brings along with him a host of mysteries. Although rescued, Yoshiki finds himself unsure whether he can trust what now inhabits his friend’s body. Understanding his concerns, Hikaru playfully allows him to enter his body, revealing a gaping hole in his chest, hidden under his clothes. Yoshiki, although hesitant, puts his hand inside and feels the insides of a spiritual being. The scene is charged with many emotions and comes to a head when the protagonist is almost sucked in but manages to pull himself back. This incident leaves him rattled, which is only furthered when he finds the hole gone. Hikaru’s surrealness is brought to the front once again.

Yoshiki Finds a New Ally

Although that act seems to be Hikaru’s attempt to show vulnerability, it only leaves Yoshiki more at unease. This gets worse at the supermarket, where the cashier, familiar with Yoshiki’s family, hits him with a barrage of questions about his parents and sister. She mentions that his sister hasn’t attended school in ages, which is likely why his parents fight every night. She then brings up that his mother is from Tokyo, which, according to her, must lead to a difference in parenting opinions. While Yoshiki is subjected to this invasive rant, he is noticed by the woman, who saw him the previous day. Right when he seemingly approaches his limit, she catches up to him, and out of nowhere, urges him not to become involved with forces beyond his understanding.

The woman expands on her point, claiming that she is a normal housewife who happens to have insight into the supernatural, which implies that she is an unconscious medium. She continues, stating that she has always felt malevolent energy emanating from the restricted mountain. However, it suddenly vanished, filling her with alarm. She claims that the energy now resides in the boy alongside Yoshiki. Furthermore, the woman suspects that the essence of the spirit has somehow transferred to Yoshiki through physical contact. Finally, she tells him that although he has reasons, prolonged exposure to that entity risks his merging with it. This lines up with the intent of the last spirit that Hikaru killed, before telling Yoshiki that he should only have eyes for him. The words now gain a twisted meaning.

Different Night, Same Story

With this, the woman offers Yoshiki her contact details if he needs someone to speak with, revealing her name as Rie Kurebayashi. Yoshiki’s night mirrors the one from the previous episode, with his present and past bundling together into a complex mess. Rie’s warnings are juxtaposed with his positive times with the new Hikaru, although he now sees them in a new light. Alongside, he also begins to see memories of Hikaru prior to his death. These visions find an analogue in the imagery of a cicada attempting to shed its exoskeleton, only to become stuck and fall to the ground. When it reappears later, it is swarmed by ants, suggesting it died during the molting process. This imagery tracks Hikaru’s cruel fate, suggesting that he was in the process of attaining metamorphosis before being taken over by the greater forces that lurk in nature.

However, there is more to it than it seems. The episode’s final shot visualizes the entity inside Hikaru taking over the cicada. This separates the entity from the ants that killed the insect in the first place. It hints at two things: first, the possibility of there being different players in the game, who might have been the reason behind Hikaru’s near-death state, and secondly, the fact that the cicada, empowered by the entity, has a new chance at life and is growing past its previous boundaries. While Yoshiki realizes that his original friend is dead, he seems to have found his footing with the new Hikaru as well. As he still can’t grasp the supernatural elements at play, his emotions, undeniable in nature, seem to take the forefront.