< Walk on and on | Story
Shibuya Park
Kotaro
♪——! ♪——!
Tatsuya
Heh, so this is Mita's new song? I noticed this a while back, but Mita can make some pretty good music.
An
Yeah. How do I put it...? It really feels like Kotaro. It's got a natural feeling that's not overdone, and it's easy to listen to, don't you think?
Akito
Yeah, you're right. If the hard rock style that EVER comes in with is a gut punch, then Mita's music is a good contrast.
Arata
He places his sounds in a way that's very mainstream, so listening to it gives you a sense of stability. Also...
Kotaro
Everybody~! Let's keep this thing fired up!
Arata
In the middle of the track, he creates a "stillness" by cutting down some layers of the track. He knew in advance that he should leave space for interaction with the audience.
Toya
Yes. He's thinking very deeply about the audience, and he's consciously aware of "reaching their hearts"
Toya
(Mita likely also has the intuition to tackle this theme.)
Toya
(That he wants the audience to feel this way, or react that way. It must be because he's always watching them from onstage.)
Toya
(While I've been thinking that I want to reach people's hearts and make them tremble, I haven't been thinking as deeply about whose hearts I want to reach.)
Flashback
Kohane
I thought that it would be nice if I could write one that would make everybody feel special if they listened to it.
Kohane
So that's why I wanted to put the feeling I got when I met An-chan into song form.
Kohane
Ever since An-chan brought me into the world of music, every day has been so heart-racing, and I wanted to convey just how happy it made me——
End flashback
Toya
(———Now that I think about it, Azusawa said something similar.)
Toya
(In that case, what about me?)
Toya
(...Who, out there, do I plan on delivering my sound to?)
Arata
——Then, I'm up next.
— Some time later —
Arata
♪——! ♪——!
Toya
This really is incredible. It's got a piercing intensity to it, and even the more subtle notes are well-handled.
Kohane
I wonder when he finished his new song.
An
He said it was going "so-so" until just a while ago, too. Hearing it like this, I bet he was already looking at the finish line when he said that!
Tatsuya
Yeah. Feels pretty polished, even though me and Mita still have a good chunk of work left.
An
We're in the same boat... Arata's track is a pretty high level, isn't it?
Akito
He's pretty good at graspin' what's trendy, but it still feels like he's mixed his own style into it pretty naturally.
Akito
Even though the sounds're simple, and there's nothing majorly creative that stands out, he makes it hit at the right moments. I dunno if it's because he's meticulous, or what...
Akito
We've gotta pack more into our demo, too.
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The Next Day
Hospital
Hospital
Toya
——And like that, it seemed that everybody's songs were near complete at yesterday's practice.
Souma
Is that so? I guess there's not much time left until your next event.
Souma
I feel kinda bad for making you help out with my work when you're so busy over there.
Toya
No, it's something I asked of you in the first place.
Mouse clicks
Souma
But in actuality, with you helping out, Aoyagi-kun, you've been a real lifesaver.
Souma
All of the ideas I'd come up with were really detailed, and whenever I started thinking about how to convey that——
Souma
Before I said anything, you'd already plugged in the sounds just as I imagined them.
Toya
I suppose so... I feel as though, little by little, I've gotten used to the way you construct your music, Souma-san.
Souma
Well, I feel like it's less intuition, and more that your musical sense is second to none...
Souma
You're such a reliable assistant, Aoyagi-kun. If I were doing this alone, I don't think I'd have made half as much progress.
Toya
I'm glad I've been of use to you. I'm learning a lot from you, as well.
Souma
Really? I feel like I haven't been able to teach you much, but...I guess. It'd make me happy if you were able to write a song that's as good as the new songs everyone else made.
Souma
Considering who we're talking about, I'm sure all of those songs are pretty damn cool, huh?
Toya
Yes. Touno-san's new song in particular has an intensity that surpasses all of his previous music. It has a very aggressive sound to it.
Souma
Huh, he wrote a song like that? You guys can't fall behind~ Vivid BAD SQUAD!
Toya
That's true. I'll have to respond to Akito and Shiraishi's song with my best performance, so we don't lose to Touno-san.
Souma
He ends up eating you alive if you let your guard down, so he's kinda scary. When I was on the same team as him, I felt the same way.
Toya
Is that how it was?
Souma
Yep. Arata was better than me as a performer, so he'd always stand out way more.
Souma
I didn't wanna be outdone either, so I raised my voice as loud as I could while he was busy winning the hearts of the audience.
Souma
Arata was amazing, but I couldn't let that be the reason I kept losing!
Souma
And whenever I brought tracks to him that I wanted to do, he tended to like them.
Souma
He'd say, "Yeah, this sounds good, Souma. I wanna sing this."
Souma
The tracks I wrote then and now have always been for Arata. Whenever he'd say he wanted to sing to something, he'd pull out some ridiculous performance as a response.
Flashback
Souma
Aoyagi-kun, you said you wanted to "be everyone's strength", right? I feel the same way.
Souma
Even if it's just a little, I wanna be some kind of strength to Arata. So I thought I'd try finishing the track I'd been working on right up until the accident.
End flashback
Toya
Even now, you still consider Touno-san to be your very precious partner, don't you, Souma-san?
Souma
...
Souma
Nah, that's not it.
Souma
I'm not Arata's partner anymore.
Toya
Eh...?
Toya
That's...what do you mean by that?
Souma
Because with this body, I can't even do music anymore. I'll never be able to stand on the same stage as him again, no matter what I do.
Souma
Even this song——I'm writing this so Arata can sing it alone. Because unlike in the past, I can't be at his side anymore.
Toya
...
Toya
(...I wonder if that's how he really feels.)
Toya
(The feelings he's put into this song, they really don't read like that...)
Toya
(...No. This might just be me misunderstanding, but...)
Flashback
Miku
Toya, you have the ability to find what feelings a song was written with.
Kohane
So it made me really happy to have you tell me that my feelings got across through my music, Aoyagi-kun.
End flashback
Toya
To me——
Toya
To me...listening to this song, I get the feeling that even now, you want to stand by Touno-san's side.
Toya
To me, it seems you want to pursue the back that's running ahead of you, until you're chasing after each other, and reach that distant place together. It feels like your song is made out of those wishes.
Souma
Why do you...
Toya
That's, I also——
Toya
(I see...)
Flashback
Toya
It's especially because they are my precious teammates——if they're waiting for me, I'd like to respond.
End flashback
Toya
(I also have those same wishes. Maybe that's why Souma-san's song resonated with my heart to such an extent...)
Toya
I also have an irreplaceable partner, the same way you do. Perhaps that's why I interpreted it that way.
Souma
...
Souma
——I see.