What he became engrossed in was collecting odds and ends—like small screws—and arranging or combining them.

#nana56b


Synopsis

Ever since he was a child, Ritsu’s five senses
had always been working at full capacity. The
buzz of the classroom felt like a deafening roar,
and sunlight felt like a flash that burned his
retinas. The world was far too overwhelming, and
he always withdrew into his shell. He struggled
to speak, couldn’t show his emotions on his
face, and couldn’t play like the other children.
For Ritsu, the only solace was to be alone in a
place where no one else was, completely absorbed
in whatever was in his hands.

He became obsessed with collecting small scraps
of junk—like tiny screws—as if they were
treasures, arranging them and putting them
together. In this, there was a “pattern” and
“order” visible only to Ritsu. In his hands,
the scrap materials formed complex geometric
patterns, eventually transforming into intricate
miniature buildings and dioramas of imaginary
cities. It was a beautiful yet lonely world that
existed only within Ritsu’s heart.

During elementary school art class, Ritsu would
always sit alone in a corner, working silently.
While the other students painted with bright
colors, he simply focused on assembling tiny
parts.
His homeroom teacher, Mr. Fujimoto, was
initially puzzled by Ritsu’s behavior. However,
one day, when he happened to glance at Ritsu’s
work, the teacher gasped in awe. What Ritsu was
creating from scrap materials was a “clock
tower”—small enough to fit in the palm of his
hand, yet incredibly intricate. The arrangement
of the gears, the craftsmanship of the clock
face, and the overall proportions—it possessed
a precision and beauty befitting a professional
craftsman, something unimaginable for a work
created by an elementary school student.

“Ritsu, this is… amazing!”
At the teacher’s words, Ritsu didn’t look up
but continued working in silence. The teacher
remained patient, simply gazing at the piece.

Mr. Fujimoto didn’t treat Ritsu as an
exception; he respected what Ritsu “liked.”
While other teachers viewed Ritsu as a
problem—labeling him “uncooperative” or
“unable to function in a group”—Mr. Fujimoto
alone continued to say, “He’s communicating
with the world in his own way.”
The teacher suggested displaying the small
model Ritsu had made at the school exhibition.
Ritsu was hesitant, but moved by the teacher’
s earnest invitation, he agreed for the first
time to do something for someone else.
Although some students and teachers described
his exhibited work as “strange” or “dark,”
it resonated deeply with a few people. And
Ritsu himself began to feel a faint sense of
joy at the thought that his work was catching
someone’s eye.

From then on, Ritsu’s world began to change
little by little.
Mr. Fujimoto collected scrap materials for
Ritsu. In the …