Yoshiki enjoys a summer festival with his younger sister, Kaoru, who's excited to wear a yukata, and Hikaru. While eating shaved ice, Hikaru casually comments, "Just changing the color of the syrup makes it seem like it tastes different," which leads him to wonder, "If something looks the same, does it feel the same too?" He then asks Yoshiki how he figured out he wasn't the real Hikaru...

As Yoshiki watches Hikaru happily eat a slice of watermelon, he's struck by a memory of the real Hikaru. A quiet guilt begins to gnaw at him as he's reminded that the real Hikaru is already gone–is it really alright for him to enjoy a "normal" life without him...? Unaware of Yoshiki's inner turmoil, Hikaru smiles at him and earnestly says, "Just being with you makes me happy." Overwhelmed, Yoshiki reaches out to Kurebayashi, a housewife he encountered at the supermarket.

While discussing the strange and inexplicable death of an old woman in the village, a classmate named Maki confesses that he fears he might be cursed as well, and recounts the terrifying experience he had while taking an unfamiliar path home through the forest. In response to Maki's desperate plea, Yoshiki agrees to investigate. Together with classmates Asako and Yuki, who had been listening to the story, and Hikaru, who showed a keen interest, they venture into the forest...

On a sweltering summer day, Yoshiki realizes that his best friend Hikaru—who had smiled beside him throughout their childhood—is no longer the same. Though this "Hikaru" looks and talks just like him, it's something else entirely. In their stifling, isolated village, Hikaru was the only person Yoshiki could ever truly trust. Desperate not to lose that bond, he chooses to accept the imposter—and vows to tell no one.