Nichijou Episode 9

"Nichijou Episode 9" (日常の第九話) is the ninth episode of the Nichijou anime. The episode was written by Katsuhiko Muramoto and directed by Hiroko Utsumi. It aired on May 30, 2011.

1-B
In room 1-B, Manabu Takasaki's class celebrates the end of a test. Takasaki is surprised at how happy they are, mistaking their enthusiasm for having put all their effort into the test. The responses of the students suggests otherwise. Two girls cry in joy and hug each other, celebrating that the test is finally over. A student who is the son of merchants declares that his parents will be giving a bag of rice to everyone in the class. A boy and girl announce they're getting married and everyone cheers. Then the class then grabs Takasaki and tosses him into the air.

Part 35
Mio Naganohara has just gotten up and is still in her pajamas. She grabs a newspaper and heads for the living room. Yoshino is already there, sitting in her kendo armor, and says good morning to her sister. Mio just walks past her; she sits on the couch and reads her newspaper. When she realizes Mio isn't going to react, Yoshino gets upset and takes off her helmet and stares at her sister, bewildered. Isn't Mio going to be all, "Why are you wearing that?"? Mio continues reading her paper. Yoshino asks Mio if she's still mad at her. Yesterday, she put a knight piece in Mio's mont blanc. Mio angrily shuts her newspaper. She remains calm, however, and tells Yoshino it didn't matter; she could still eat it. Yoshino cheers up. Mio, however, gets furious and starts yelling at her sister. Of course it mattered that Yoshino put a knight on it; Mio was looking forward to that mont blanc! Why on Earth would she do something like that? Yoshino looks happy and answers that she did it because she thought it would look cool. Mio rolls up her newspaper and whacks her in the head. She then storms off, leaving Yoshino upset that Mio can never take a joke. Mio opens the refrigerator. As she reaches inside to grab a box, she thinks to herself that Yoshino is an idiot. The bakery only makes ten of those mont blancs a day. Mio walks up to her room and Yoshino watches her, worried. Mio continues thinking: Yoshino always plays these stupid pranks without thinking about other people. Now that her sister is in college, one would expect her to learn some sympathy. Mio is thinking about letting her sister's stupidity slide for today, however; she closes the door behind her with a devious look and sets the box on her desk. She thinks to herself that she's been hiding a shortcake they only make five of per day, and she opens the box. She is outraged to find that the strawberry on top has been replaced with a king piece: checkmate. She dramatically mourns her lost strawberry. Irate, Mio runs down the stairs, holding her stawberryless shortcake. She trips on one of her slippers, but in an amazing display of balance manages to roll through hitting the ground and get right back up in a single motion, all while holding her undamaged cake. She demands Yoshino tell her where her strawberry, the sweet treat that should be in this position on top of the cake, is. Yoshino smiles and strikes a Buddhist pose. Mio rolls up her newspaper again and smacks Yoshino in the gut. She then drops to her knees and begins to sob, calling Yoshino an idiot. She moans that a shortcake without its strawberry is just bread; sweet bread. Yoshino walks towards her sister and starts singing Happy Birthday, with herself as the person one sings Happy Birthday to. She nears the end of the song and grabs the king in Mio's shortcake, lifting it up. Folded and attached underneath the king is a piece of paper, with "Happy Birthday to Me!" written on it. Mio is shocked, and then smiles and addresses her sister. Yoshino happily smiles back. Mio then quickly grabs her newspaper and whacks Yoshino again. She yells at Yoshino, telling her today is not her birthday!

Quiz
In the faculty office, Sakurai-sensei grades the English tests with Mio's drawings on them. Everyone is getting the question with Sasahara's picture wrong. Sakurai-sensei then marks a student's answer ("man") as correct.

Part 36
Yuuko, Mio and Mai are at a soba restaraunt. Mio and Mai are looking through the menus, but Yuuko has already decided and is now bursting with enthusiasm. She tells her friends that she's always wanted to come here. Mio asks Yuuko didn't she see it in a magazine? Yuuko replies in the affirmative and proudly whips out a coupon. Mai closes her menu and says she'll be ordering the herring soba. Yuuko is impressed; Mai is ordering like a true connoisseur. Mai adds that she'll be getting it without the herring. Yuuko laughs heartily, telling her that that's just plain soba! She calms down and notices the waitress standing nearby and collects herself. Mio decides she'll be having zaru soba. Yuuko condescendingly tells her that's the safe choice at a soba restaurant, as expected from an amateur. Yuuko tells her friends that she will be having the summer vegetable tendon. She says that ordering a rich dish at a soba restaurant is pretty bold. Mio agrees that it is pretty cool. Yuuko adds that it is a seasonal dish, so who knows when she'll have another chance to try it? Mio points out it would be next year, but Yuuko disappointingly tells Mio that she's got to dream bigger. Ready to order, Yuuko pompously claps her hands together to summon the waitress. When it doesn't work, Yuuko just turns around and calls for the waitress, who comes over to take their orders. Yuuko goes ahead and tells the waitress Mio's and Mai's orders; she then adopts a solemn tone and gives the waitress her own order. The waitress leaves.

A little later, Yuuko and Mio are chatting while waiting for their food to arrive. Mio tells the girls that the restaurant makes their own noodles by hand. Yuuko agrees that this place is the real deal. She asks Mio what these "buckwheat dumplings" are, and Mio explains. The waitress then arrives. Yuuko is incredibly excited as the waitress places down the herring soba and the zaru soba. The waitress then leaves. Yuuko tells her friends they can go ahead and eat, even though Yuuko still doesn't have her food. Mai jokes (in her usually subtle manner) that they should eat before their food gets cold; Mio replies that her food is already served cold. Yuuko laughs to herself and thinks that they must be taking their time to carefully prepare her food because it was from the special limited menu. She continues to wait expectantly. Mio and Mai eat their meals while Yuuko waits. Mio and Yuuko decide that it must be taking so long because the restaurant is out getting the vegetables now. Yuuko starts to get impatient, tapping her foot. Behind her outside, an elderly woman enters the restaurant, carrying a large basket full of vegetables, indicating they may have been right about the restaurant going out to get vegetables. Yuuko, trying to make conversation while she waits, notes that the restaurant has a lot of a la carte dishes. Suddenly, they hear the waitress' footsteps approaching, and Yuuko turns around with extreme expectancy and joy. The waitress walks right past her, leaving her to gratefully look at nothing. Yuuko returns to normal and turns back to face the table. She grabs a pair of chopsticks; suddenly, she tears them apart in great anger and cries, "Goddamn!" Mio panics and tries to get Yuuko to calm down; Mai just picks up her bowl and drinks the remnants. Yuuko yells, asking why she should calm down; the food is taking way too long! Yuuko shouts that she doesn't care about the restaurant's excellent reputation; by taking so long, they may be keeping the flavor, but they're not keeping the spirit! She's going to lodge a complaint! The waitress then shows up and gives Yuuko her order. Yuuko bitterly asks the waitress if she doesn't agree that the food took too long, but looks up and sees the waitress crying. Yuuko sheepishly thanks her for the food and the waitress walks off, sobbing. Yuuko then starts to eat her food quickly, trying to shorten the awkwardness of having people wait for you to finish eating something. She suggests they read a magazine or something; she'll be finished soon. It's a big bowl, though...

Things We Think Are Cool
At a shogi tournament, a young shogi player has attracted a large audience. Young Shogi Players!

Part 37
Yuuko is in bed, but she can't fall asleep because of all the mosquitoes. She thinks to herself that the mosquito's would have left by now; she then recites one of her impromptu hokkus involving the Mogami River. She quickly jolts upward in bed and grabs at a mosquito, but when she opens her hand, she sees she missed. The mosquito flies around Yuuko's head. At first it looks like Yuuko is going to go back to bed, but then she suddenly throws off her blanket and begins clapping the air to get the mosquito. She misses, sighs, and sits on the floor. Now tranquil, she concedes that even the smallest mosquito will turn, and declares that they should relax and sleep peacefully. She stands up and heads toward bed. Yuuko then suddenly turns and angrily yells at the mosquito, "I was talking to you!" as she claps her hands around it. She slowly takes her hands apart and looks; she finds the body of the mosquito smushed in her hand, and a little halo rises up from it.

Feeling victorious, Yuuko cheers and imagines applause and a giant banner with WINNER written on it. She then suddenly notices a mosquito on her wrist and smacks it; then there are two mosquito's on the back of the hand she used to kill the last one. She flicks her arm up to send the mosquitoes flying and smacks them down with her fingers in midair; she then flicks her fingers downward, and a significant amount of blood lands on the floor. Yuuko tries again to be calm, sitting cross-legged on the ground with hands clasped together. She notes in a serious tone that she has committed a petty murder. A mosquito then lands on her head, and Yuuko snaps. She tells the mosquito she'll kill it, and starts clapping vigorously around the room, killing mosquitoes. No matter how many she kills, they never learn their lesson. Yuuko thinks she's starting to lose her mind! Suddenly, her mother enters. At wit's end, Yuuko yells at her mother that they can't live here anymore; they have to move! Yuuko's mother then slaps Yuuko extremely hard on the cheek, sending Yuuko flying backward in a live-action version of those diagrams that illustrate progression by having multiple images from the sequence in the same frame and numbering them in order. Yuuko hits her head hard on her desk and her body slams onto the floor. Her head rolls to face her right, and most of the left side of Yuuko's face is covered by a red mark showing where her mother slapped her. Dead center, though, is a flattened mosquito. Yuuko's mother yells at her, asking her if she has any idea what time it is. She tells her to shut up and go to bed, then slams the door and leaves. Yuuko lies there in shock as yet another mosquito circles above her face.

Helvetica Standard
The angel girl Pino sits on the floor of white nothingness and says "Chirashizushi". She extends her arm toward a Namahage and says, "Go!" The Namahage tries to repeat chirashizushi but has a thick accent and mispronounces it. Pino corrects him and repeats it again, slower and emphasizing each syllable. The Namahage tries again, slower, but still mispronounces it. Pino then breaks the word down, and has the Namahage repeat each syllable after she says it. This time he gets each part right, and Pino flaps her wings and cries out "Yes!" in excitement. She says it one more time in a normal way and asks the Namahage to repeat; but he again mispronounces the word.

Self-Control
Yuuko sits in front of a fan; taped to the front is a sign that says "No fan voice." Yuuko struggles not to succumb to her urges for childish fun.

Part 38
Hakase calls for Sakamoto because she's excited: the "winner" on her popsicle is sticking out from the bottom! Sakamoto is unimpressed, which infuriates the Professor. Nano Shinonome tells her she shouldn't be eating snacks like that before dinner, making her madder still. Nano explains that Hakase won't have room for dinner and brings out a dish of omellete rice for her dinner. Hakase is excited by this (it's her favorite dinner) and sits at the table to eat. Sakamoto goes to his bowl to eat, as well, and reproves Hakase for being so childish as to get excited over something like a winning popsicle. Hakase snaps back that it was a super rare popsicle, with "winner" sticking out the bottom. Sakamoto points out that a winning popsicle is a winning popsicle, regardless of where the "winner" is written; and if you eat enough of them, you're bound to win. At this time, Nano gives Sakamoto more of his seafood cat food. Sakamoto looks down and sees a tiny crab in his food, making him very excited. Giddy, he says he almost never gets crabs in his food and will save it for last. Sakamoto turns around to see Hakase with a "Really?" type expression on her face, and Sakamoto is embarrassed. Nano and Sakamoto finish their meals. Nano is surprised that Hakase has barely touched her food, and Hakase looks like she'll never want to eat food again. Nano sternly asks the Professor if she had a lot of snacks during the afternoon. Hakase begins to cry and apologizes. Nano asks just how much Hakase ate, but she's too scared to say anything. Nano gets up and opens the cabinet, revealing nothing inside. Hakase meekly tells Nano that she ate ALL of them. Nano is shocked; Hakase ate all the snacks for the entire month?! Hakase at first feels ashamed, but then gets embarrassed as if being praised. Nano scolds her, telling her it's not a compliment. Hakase then claims that Sakamoto told her to eat everything, and Nano angrily calls for him, waking him up. Hakase cries that Sakamoto told her that food spoils quickly in the summer, and so it's his fault she ate all the snacks. Nano scolds Sakamoto, who is astounded that Nano is actually taking the kid seriously; he's innocent! If they're talking black or white, he's white. Hakase points out that Sakamoto is literally pure black, and Nano agrees, aggrieving him further. Nano stands up and says to just forget it. Hakase snickers, thinking she's getting away with something, which annoys Sakamoto. Nano then tells the Professor that she won't be getting any strawberry juice, shocking her. Hakase follows after Nano, pleading and bargaining with her to get her strawberry juice, but Nano remains resolute. Hakase really begins to weep, and as a final gambit offers to remove Nano's key. This changes Nano's mood completely. Back in the living room, Nano holds a box of strawberry juice and tells Hakase that she'll forgive her this time; but if she does it again, no snacks for a month. Nano begins to hand the Professor her strawberry juice but a sense of apprehension suddenly flashes through her mind. Nano takes the juice box back and tells the Professor that she'll only give it to her after she removes the key. She tells Nano she'll remove the key, but Nano has to turn around first. Nano is elated and agrees. While Nano's back is turned, Hakase walks to the fridge and gets a box of strawberry juice herself. Betrayed, Nano chases Hakase around the table as Hakase drinks her juice. Nano then trips on Sakamoto's food dish and slams into the ground, sliding on her stomach. Her right hand snaps off, and a popsicle stick with "loser" written on it pops out. Nano screams; Hakase tells Nano that her hand is a loser, and Nano angrily asks why she would install something like this. The Professor again acts embarrassed as if being praised, and Nano again tells her that wasn't a compliment. Nano tells Hakase that she is always doing these things without thinking, but sees Hakase eating another popsicle! She chases her again, angry at Hakase for not listening.

A Little Miracle
A class full of children are eating their lunches. On the teacher's desk is a tray with one slice of shortcake left on it. The class then cries, "Rock, paper, scissors!" Every student has thrown rock, except for one who has thrown paper. Excited, she goes up and gets the last piece of cake. She holds it up and everyone applause's.

Short Thoughts
Mai walks her dogs. She suddenly stops; her dogs turn around and sit while Mai kneels. As Mai starts petting them, the female narrator says, "If you search for it, you will find everything."

Part 39
Mio is sitting on the couch, reading the newspaper in her pajamas again. Yoshino enters, glad to see Mio is still at home. Yoshino tells her that something came up, and she was hoping Mio could help out the neighborhood association for her and hands her a piece of paper. Mio asks why she doesn't just get their mother to help, but Yoshino replies that she's out playing sepak takraw with her friends. Again. Yoshino tells her that the neighborhood association will pay her ¥10,000. Yoshino thanks Mio as she leaves. Mio looks at the piece of paper, a flyer advertising a local daifuku fair. Mio thinks to herself that ¥10,000 sounds pretty good for a one afternoon, and she doesn't have anything else to do anyway, so she'll check it out. Downtown, Mio is standing next to a modest daifuku stand on the sidewalk... while wearing a giant daifuku on her head. People walk by, but none seem to be particularly interested in getting daifuku. Inside the daifuku, Mio is mortified that her sister tricked her. As the world warps around her, she thinks to herself how terrible this costume is. What on earth is this? How did this happen? Mio can't imagine that the neighborhood association would put two people selling rice cakes on the street. It's embarrassing! People pass by; those who don't ignore the daifuku stand just look at Mio in pity. Mio wonders how their mascot, Daifuku-kun, can be expected to attract customers. The costume doesn't even have eyes or a mouth; it's just a white mask. This isn't Daifuku-kun; it's just a daifuku! Mio then notices that this "Daifuku Fair" isn't even a fair! A little girl runs playfully without looking where she's going and bumps into Mio, falling down. Mio bends down and offers a hand; from the girl's perspective, it is quite a terrifying sight. The girl shrieks and runs to her mother. Two young boys then show up and start making fun of Mio. They start punching her, and Mio tries to get them to stop. She loses it and yells at them, and they run off. Then, Yuuko walks by, laughing at the daifuku costume. Mio runs into a very narrow alley to hide, but it doesn't really help. Mio sighs in defeat, figuring things can't get any worse. The man running the daifuku stand walks over; he asks her not to ruin the daifuku's image. He tells her to give him the mask and man the stand instead. He then puts on the mask and starts dancing awkwardly while humming. Mio stares at him in amazement and thinks, "I want to go home." Beleaguered, she goes behind the counter. A boy walks up and asks how much for the daifuku; he might be the first customer all day. Mio doesn't know, so turns to the man and asks. However, an armed policeman has him standing against the wall. The daifuku salesman regrets, "I shouldn't have done this." Mio is shocked, and then just decides to let the boy have a daifuku for free. The daifuku salesman continues talking to the police office, telling him, "I won't run. You can't make me run!"

Mosquito
Nano kills a mosquito, but then faints at the sight of such violence.

Don't Miss It!
The king piece (voiced by Hirano Aya), still in Mio's shortcake, introduces itself. It mentions that shogi reminds it of Habu-san, which reminds it of Mango-san. It feels like taking a trip to Okinawa, it'll all work out! The next episode of Nichijou is Episode 10. Don't miss it!

Transitions
After Yoshino laments that Mio can never take a joke, a bunch of turtles sun themselves on rocks extruding from a river. Another turtle swims up to join them.

After Yuuko convinces herself that her food is taking longer because it's special, a turtle moves and falls into the river, bringing several with it.

After Hakase blames Sakamoto for supposedly telling her to eat all the snacks, the turtles slip back into the river as the sun sets.

Image Gallery
Episode 9/Image Gallery