Spoilers and true tears inbound.

Shin feels somewhat responsible for Noe's injury and profusely apologizes to Jun for being unable to prevent the mishap. Unable to to find it within himself to forgive the former, he questions our hero as to why Noe is unable to cry, to which he replies with "self suggestion". After commenting on how beautiful the snow was and that it had helped cushion Noe's fall, Jun merely dismisses Shin'ichiro, who leaves without any hesitation . Confronting yet another apologetic person before him, Jun visits Noe in her room who tells him that she was influenced by Shin'ichiro. Lawl wut?

Making it clear once and for all, Jun meets up with Hiromi for the very last time and openly declares that she was right the whole time, as he had never taken a liking towards her. Not. One. Bit.

In school, Shinichiro finds himself being the centre of attention after his splendid performance at the festival. Enter Hiromi, who walks in with a stern look on her face, asking Shin to drop by later at the apartment. Wondering what just took place in her room, I can't seem to shake off the feeling that it was some sort of attempt at seducing Shinichiro, when Hiromi drinks off his mug, as noted by him as being strange. Realizing she's turning into a slut weird, Hiromi drives Shin out of the place. As he leaves, Hiromi mutters to herself to not having beautiful tears, as she is slowly turning promiscuous....

Back home, Shin receives a call from the publishing company who asks him to submit his piece. He queries his dad on when a person cries, who responds with "when the heart wavers". Right after that, Shin'ichiro finds Hiromi at his doorsteps, who came to apologize on what happened earlier and how she's acted thus far, not to mention telling him to resolve everything once and for all. With that and picture book in hand, Shin heads out to the hospital.

Confronting a stubborn Noe, Shin presents to her his picture book, with the former simply refusing to read it, claiming that she had nothing to do with it. This prompts Shin'ichiro to tell Noe that he wrote it for her, and if she had no interest in it, he would then throw it away. Noe tells him to go ahead, but not before asking where he was going to do so. The sea where Jibeta chose not to fly he says.

At the seaside. Shin'ichiro tears out pages from his picture book and turns them into paper airplanes, tossing them all over the place. As he does so, he notices Noe staggering towards him while struggling to pick up the pieces of paper. I find it difficult to write out the next part, so I'll just go ahead by saying Shin'ichiro finally decides to drop the bomb on Noe, claiming that he had always loved Hiromi though she was a source of inspiration. Noe accepts it with a straight face, leaving him to sing a version of Noe's song while sobbing away.

Having resolved things with Noe, Shin returns to his love only to find her at the bamboo forest where they once shared memories, where he confesses. Bleh.

Some epilogue stuff:

Despite being dumped, Noe is as cheerful as ever, making friends in the process.

Jun attends a rehabilitation centre to rid himself out of his sister complex.

Shin comes up with an ingenuous plan the design the world's first human operated flying machine which he'll call an "Airplane"

Hiromi incapacitates all her opponents with her smelly armpits.

Mr Nakagami and his assistant saw an increase in sales at the sake factory after the latter obtained the ability to see microbes.

Oops, almost forget about this pair. Looks like Aiko's willing to start things over with Nobuse, and it looks like they're doing just fine.

Noe finds herself standing by the chicken coop where Jibeta still resides, as she comes across what's left of the stones Shin'ichiro used to spell out his confession. As she looks into the horizon, the wind blows the tears shed by her which glitters in the sky. The end. SO I GUESS THAT'S WHY THEY CALL IT TRUE TEARS ROTFLMAOXDDDD

Here, have some True Tears.

乙wwww* PA Works, you kept everyone at the edges of their seat with your plot twists and cliffhangers, and now finally you deliver the crushing blow in the most despicable manner possible. You set everything up in such a way that made it seem that Noe could have had a shot. Yet, the way you swung between a Noe Good End to a Hiromi Good End before reverting to what looked like an inevitable Noe ending might have suggested that things would have turned out this way. I wouldn't go as far as calling this ending obvious, although deep down I just had a gut feeling that you were going to serve us with this "main girl wins" bullshit.

*Well done, lol

I had always believed that the manner in which Noe regained her tears would be due to something of spectacular proportions, something so dramatic that it will pull my heartstrings and make me bawww. Well I baww'ed alright, if only because it was so poorly executed that I felt shortchanged seeing Noe shedding her tears during the final moments of the show for whatever reason that eludes me. Shin on the hand became a typical Japanese and went for the most mundane choice presented before him by opting for boring missionary love making with Hiromi rather than erotic chicken coop fornication with Noe. Sigh.

Even in another timeline, Noe's defeat is mourned.

And that bit with Shin's mother with Hiromi? More than ever, I believe she saw herself in the latter, possibly antagonizing her for so long due to that fact. Having her go on about how waiting takes a lot energy out of a person would suggest that she herself experienced something similar back in her heydays. Like father like son.

The confession scene left a lot to be desired, and apart from Hiromi fans, I can't imagine anyone actually enjoying it. Even Noe's false good end had more fanfare than this, which was relatively calm and silent for something which was meant to serve as a closure. That, or I'm still reeling over the fact that it could have been someone else. The epilogue didn't really provide any new insights other than just being the usual time passes by life goes on means of making the story move forward.

To be honest I'm not that bitter. Shin, I kinda know why you went for Hiromi after all. Like when I play visual novels myself, I usually go for the unimportant characters first, before finally going after the main girl(That's why I consider this only 20% complete; Hiromi end = 20%, Aiko end = 20%, Other's = 20% Noe end = 40%). Yes, I'm going to consider this a Noe Bad End rather than a Hiromi Best End, not to mention the fact you might have wanted to unlock that elusive CG of Noe crying(If you look hard enough, you'll notice it). Well done faggot, you earned your achievement.

The great thing about dumping Noe isn't making her cry, but showing everyone online you did it.

Well whatever the case, Shinichiro, I hope you're happy with the choice you made. You know, when you marry Hiromi she's going to be nagging at you every moment when you come home, paranoid about who you've been with, scared that you'll leave her alone, until she cuts your penis off in your sleep, ensuring that no one else will have you!

I now await Hiromifags to rub it in. Oh yeah, I still love the show and all, despite being disappointed over how things turned out. The only thing I can hope now is for an OVA with an alternate ending. I want to believe.

You know who really needs a route? Shin's mom. Man, she's so hot. I actually noticed her before Hiromi.

No chickens were harmed during the filming of this episode. Thank god Noe didn't decide to do what I think she would with Jibeta from the previous episode, otherwise PETA would have been bitching their asses off. Shin was obviously thinking the same thing, as he watches Noe from afar trying to coax Jibeta into taking flight. Of course, the rooster "didn't feel like it", prompting Noe to comment on how Jibeta seemed better off in some ways compared to her.

Relieved that Noe didn't do anything stupid, Shin'ichiro returns home to call Hiromi on the former's well being and that she would returning home, as well as to pass that information to the elder brother. As he does so, he reminisces on Noe's words, realizing his own indecisiveness on issues that matter to him, be it his dancing, picture book or the two girls that loves him so. Staring intently at his half complete work, Shin returns to the main menu and reviews the CGs he unlocked for each of the heroines, probably reminding himself to save the game before making the next few choices.

The Mugiha Festival officially kicks off, and the Nakagami household is thriving with activity. Looking much hotter that I would like to admit, kimono-clad Hiromi helps Shin put on his outfit as he prepares for his war...dance. Elsewhere, looking awfully ronery with a chicken made out of a used tissue box, Noe contemplates as to whether or not to attend the festival. Girl, when in doubt, just save and proceed from there.

The festivities begin, with the dance paving way for procession. Ai shows up a tad late to help out for the event, as she greets Hiromi who was also doing the same. The two girls notice Noe lurking about the vicinity, who immediately flees after being spotted, leading Ai to comment that Noe came to watch as Shin's girl. Those very words trigger something within Hiromi, who snaps at Ai that SHE IS GUNDAM THE GIRLFRIEND, running after Noe thereafter. The bewildered Ai simply mutters that she doesn't know much after all. Lulz.

Hiromi catches up to her rival, only to tell Noe not to intervene, now that she and Shin'ichiro are now honest to one another about their mutual feelings. Noe is unperturbed by Hiromi's plea, simply stating that the latter has beautiful tears, and walks off. Back at the Isurugi residence, Noe tries her best to shut out the sounds from the festivities but to no avail, only to receive a phone call. She runs off to meet Jun who was at the workshop, and surprise, surprise, #4 finally reveals his feelings towards Noe, which is of course transcends brotherly love. He takes the opportunity to kiss his little sister, only to be cockblocked just before he reaches the lips. Damn siscon. Well, can't blame him. If I had a sister like Noe, I'd probably not be able to control myself either, so I have to at least commend him for holding out for so long and not resort to raEp.

The room's getting hotter in more ways than one.

The final portion of the dance is being performed on stage, and all eyes are on the troupe, with at least 2 pairs solely on Shin, as he could only think of Noe, who had cared and inspired so much, evident from his gaze. Through some sort of female instinct, Hiromi too notices that, as she shifts her focus onto Noe. Right after he was done, Shin tries to look for Noe, only to find out Hiromi asked her to gtfo. Our lead knew right away where she would be and proceeds hastily to school, as he arrives just in time to notice Noe jumping off a tree. WHAT. THE. FLYING. FUCK?!

Note to self: Collect all these special scenes as part of the True Tears CG collection.

Again, WHAT. THE. FLYING. FUCK?! I simply can't comprehend as to why Noe attempted at being an heroine, but I guess the emotional stress from revelations such as Hiromi claiming to be Shin's one and only, as well Jun's confession of his feelings finally got to her. She obviously makes it of course, and the joke now shared will probably linger until we find out what really happens to Noe, although those possibilities seem amusing enough. Also tears abound, but whether or not if it's "true" remains to be seen, but for the time being, Jun's bawww'ing is as real as they come, not to mention this guy's as he seems to think his favorite girl already lost out. Heh.

Hiromi HCG unlocked!

I WANT TO BELIEVE! Despite how things have unfolded thus far, the route to an impending Hiromi Good End seems to have taken a slight detour with Shin'ichiro's actions in this episode. Living all on her own now, Hiromi manages to find herself a nice cozy apartment, which is nearby the Nakagami residence.

She invites Shin over to her new place and for once, they share a conversation free of sexual tension, as the possibility of wincest has all but diminished *sob* Seeing that it's begun to snow, Hiromi heads down to the waterfront, with Shin tagging along, to which the latter queries on his dancing practices. As he replied, thoughts of the times he shared Noe kept lingering in his mind. He is brought back to reality when Hiromi suddenly kisses him on the lips. If this doesn't shout Hiromi end, I don't know what will, but wait there's more!

From experience, if this scene appears earlier than in the final episode, it means BAD END! Maybe..

Things seem to have patched up between Aiko and Nobuse too, as the latter gives our likeable sidekick a call, asking if it was okay to start things over, as friends. Despite cries from certain quarters regarding Ai-chan being promiscuous, I'm going to refrain from calling her one, and just assume that Nobuse's feelings finally reached her, and that she didn't mind giving him a shot, considering the fact that hooking up with Shin'ichiro is now out of the question.

Meanwhile, Hiromi resumes school after being suspended for a short time and participates in an inter-school basketball matchup. However, she is fouled by the opposing members at every given opportunity, though she does not do anything about it. Just as her team captain was about step in and ask the referee to cease the game, #4 intervenes, telling the girls who intentionally tripped Hiromi, off.

All this was witnessed by Shin'ichiro who still seems uneasy over it, disregarding the fact that Hiromi is clearly not interested in Jun. This fact is reinforced to greater extent, when Hiromi calls #4 out to stop the charade once and for all. Of course, he'd have no part in this and refuses to split up, to which Hiromi once again hits bullseye when she says that the person whom he love is not her. Shin once again was in the area to witness that spectacle, though it does little to ease his troubled mind. Whatever could be he be thinking about?

Shin'ichiro goes back to his picture book featuring Noe's cocks, but this time around, he finishes it off with a Bad End. Feeling that it wasn't right, he thinks about what Noe would have to say, if she had read it. Later that night, Hiromi receives a call from Jun who is panicking over Noe's sudden disappearance. The caring elder brother asks that she tells Shin about it, although Hiromi hesitates before actually doing so. Right after informing him about Noe, Hiromi's displeasure and disappointment was evident, as Shin'ichiro rushed out, with picture book in hand, as she is left with a disconnected phone. As if lead by instinct, Shin goes to the chicken coop at school, only to finally find Noe standing by the seaside, with Jibeta singing her favorite tune, replacing ending lyrics with how Hiromi is now in his heart. Urk.

Yes, although it still seems unlikely, there might yet be a chance for Noefags like myself to see our favorite girl ending up with the male lead. The glimmer of hope came in the form of Shin'ichiro's indeciveness, as he still seems to care a lot for our crazy chicken girl, who seemed to have gone a little kookier than usual in that final scene hehe. With two episodes to go, it's going to be a neck to neck race between our two heroines for the Best End. For once, Hiromi now seems to be the underdog, as she no doubt realizes Shin'ichiro's affections towards Noe, which is unfortunate, since she had liked Shin the whole time and finally just as things seem to turn out fine, this happens. Oh well, best of luck to both girls.

Is this the end? Hiromi finally defeated?

Unfortunately thats not the case.

Despite being suspended from school and punished to house arrest, things have turn for the better for Hiromi. Finally clearing the air that Hiromi and Shin'Ichiro are not siblings have given them both a chance. Shin'Ichiro has finally made an effort to show his feelings towards Hiromi. Hiromi has also confronted #4 about their current "relationship".

Sadly, Nobuse isn't doing too good... Sucks to be the leads best friend! Aiko had decided to break up with him. Although choosing not to accept his fate, he asked of Noe to cast a curse upon him... So he would never love again! (lawl). Shi'Ichiro feeling guilty later on asked Aiko about it. Personally, Aiko should not have ever started the relationship with Nobuse.... She's only making things much more complicated -.- However in some ways i do find her ... hawt!

Bout time you did!

As for Noe, she's feeling more and more distant from Shin'Ichiro now. Probably wasn't much a relationship to begin with... Her feelings were cheated and customized by #4 anyways. If it wasn't #4's idea of asking Shin'Ichiro date Noe this probably would have turned out different? In anycase, Shin'Ichiro later on invites Noe to his Dance Practice and...

At the Dance Practice, Aiko meets Noe face to face for the first time. And it is much progress for a first meet!?

Soon after, Noe takes her leave with an excuse of not informing her brother.

Later that evening, Shin'Ichiro arrives home to be informed by Hiromi herself that she'll be moving out.(Perhaps she wants to get walked home in a different way -.-?) Although saddened by the news, Shin'Ichiro promised on helping her move. Looking at her room for the last time, Hiromi then confessed that she remembers their childhood festival visit with Shin'Ichiro where she got lost!

From here on I'll let the images do the talking...

The End.True Tears has made a huge progress just within this episode... With 3 more episodes left it high likely to be a Hiromi end. However, with #4 in the way it could meddle with the tides a little. I'm looking forward to Hiromi's ending mainly because i feel its wht "True Tears" & "True Love" is all about? Though it being unfair for Noe it really is just #4's fault for requesting it... Without his appearance, Noe would probably have had a better chance. #4's presence only gave Hiromi a better advantage showing Shin'Ichiro's True Feelings for Hiromi. As for Aiko, Its sad that she doesnt get much screen time.

Evern out.

Why is #4 blushing?

Never before have I wished that my favorite show would end here and now. Noe, girl, you're making me fall for you as well, but I know it's going to end in disappointment as you're having your good end way too early ヽ(；´Д｀)ノ Seeing Noe's joy as she happily tells #4 about how Shin'ichiro had just proposed to her was a bittersweet experience. Speaking of the latter, instead of letting the testosterone overwhelm him, Shin lets his heart speak , as he rejects Aiko's advances and turns her down in a proper manner. A commendable action by our male lead as he does it right there and then without being wishy washy about it or doing a Itou Makoto® Well, I guess her story ends here and she'll be playing a supportive role from here on and maybe go back to Nobuse instead.

Day 1 of Shin x Noe starts off well, and they look so awesome as a couple ;-; Shin'ichiro even reveals to Noe about the picture book he was working on, to which Noe gets all excited as it features Raigomaru as its central character. Suddenly OP music! FUCK YOU P.A WORKS! You're making this look like the last episode, damn it! Stop messing with my mind! （（ヽ(｀０´）ノ）） Shin'ichiro narrates a portion of the story to Noe and unsurprisingly, she enjoyed every bit, so much so that she tells the aspiring author that she loves him even more than ever before and rewards him a peck on the cheek.

The end.

The cheerful first half of the episode then takes an 180 degree turn, as it refocuses on Hiromi, strangely absent in the previous episode. More bitching by the milf that is Mrs Nakagami as she sarcastically commends on how Hiromi has the ability to win men over despite her docile appearance, similar to her mother. Hiromi decides to cool off by asking Jun out for a date as they head to the school gym for a game of "truth basketball" where the loser will have to answer any question posed by the winner truthfully. With the odds stacked against him, #4 falters as he tells Hiromi that Noe has never gone out with another guy before due to her eccentric personality. Hiromi observes his expression and calls him a siscon, which was right on the mark, as he blushes in embarrassment. Hehe.

Jun also tells Hiromi that the deal he had with Shin, as she queries as to whether it will all be over should one side break apart. Sensing trouble, #4 tells Hiromi he'd do anything for her not to do so. On their way out, Jun and Hiromi stumble upon Shin'ichiro and Noe. The two girls have a some small talk, when Hiromi suddenly lashes out at Noe with the same line Mrs Nakagami slapped her with. Sudden Hiromi bitchiness is hot! With that, Hiromi returns home to confront Shin's mom with the defaced photograph of her real mother and apologizes for being a burden. She runs off and heads off to Jun's place once again and asks him to take her out on his bike.Yet again, on their way to "a town where it doesn't snow", Hiromi bumps into Shin'ichiro once more but this time they do not exchange greetings. Cue emo and dramallama.

Another amazing episode, but as I've said before, the story now seems to be hinting towards a Hiromi end. While I've got nothing against her, I wish they'd didn't give me false hopes by serving us with so much Shin x Noe. Whatever the case may be, I'll probably have to prepare baww'ing in the later episodes. Also, noting Hiromi's outburst, it's pretty obvious she's green with envy and the next episode suggests that she might have a minor makeover, and I must say, she looks really enticing, to say the least. Shin out.

This image sums up what I think of this week's episode.

Now excited troubled with the possibility that he and Hiromi may somehow be related, Shin'ichiro contemplates over whether or not to give up entirely, though realizing that he was going to do so regardless. He broods over it at school, to the extent of turning down Noe's lunch. Fully aware that Hiromi was the cause of it all, Noe approaches the latter with bento in hand, and tells her to eats it. What? Nevertheless, Hiromi complies, although the situation quickly turns ugly when Noe demands that she apologize to Shin for holding him back.

Shin'ichiro who was passing by, puts a stop to their argument and questions Noe about it. She frankly lets known that it aches her to see him worry so much and all she wants was to understand him better. The usually clueless Shin is hit with the realization that Noe may actually like him, in a romantic way. Noe is left speechless and embarrassed when he points that out right in her face, as it was right on the mark. Tee hee.

Later in the evening, Shin is approached by Number 4 once again, who reminds him to keep his end of the bargain by going out with Noe, and being the player that he is, Jun tells Shin'ichiro outright that if he fails to do so, Hiromi's gonna get dumped. Ouch. Elsewhere, Ai receives an SMS from Nobuse who asks her to meet him at the shrine. Man, it really sucks to be the male lead's best friend, as the girl they usually like ends up favoring the hero instead. You really have to feel bad for Nobuse, who despite being owned last week, remains delusional as he pathetically attempts to save his non-existent relationship with Aiko ｡･ﾟ･(ﾉД`)･ﾟ･｡

Oh well, enough of that loser. Back home, Jun finds that his sister kneeling by the window who tells Number 4 that she is feeling horny has changed and is feeling hot in several parts of her body, as she is now too embarrassed to face Shin'ichiro. He offers to put her fire out tenderly tells her that change is fine and in fact essential for people. Doing something right as a male lead for once, Shin'ichiro concludes that he may actually like Noe, and takes the initiative to confess to her. Watching Noe getting all flustered as she swings between her tsun-tsun and dere-dere side was such an enjoyable experience. Shin finally manages to ask her out, and being the eccentric person that she is, Noe tells him to put it in writing. He literally spells it out by arranging some rocks and a pair of mittens that read "I Love Noe" So cute! ( ´∀`) She expresses her joy, so much so, that she felt like shedding tears, which made it clear to Shin'ichiro that Noe really likes him.

For some reason or another, Shin decides to head over Ai's restaurant and to tell her that he had just confessed to Noe. No "You Got Owned" expression by Aiko(although it's funny how she was so sure Noe wasn't his type), but she instead grabbed Shin'ichiro and kissed him, revealing her true feelings. If this was an eroge, the pair would have proceeded to copulate like rabbits, but in true True Tears fashion, we're left with a cliffhanger instead. ヽ(｀０´）ノ

Well, that was interesting. Aiko puts herself back in the race for Shinichiro's heart with that unexpected smooch, despite Noe leading at the moment. You can bet this will add more stress on our hero now, as you'd think he would have let off a huge burden by putting Hiromi aside(for now) and going for Noe. Then again, I don't think Aiko has a chance in hell, but it's pretty obvious that she's not going down without a fight. Commendable! Next episode sees Hiromi confronting Shin's mom yet again, as it looks she's properly going out with Number 4, so yeah, more drama and perhaps some lulz. Shin out.

Noe contemplates whipping Shin with his own belt the next time they meet.

Going against Aiko's wishes, Shin'ichiro decides to open the door for Nobuse anyway. Having ruined her precious alone time with the former, Aiko lashes out at the both of them and orders the two to leave. The clueless male lead and his best friend leave her shop, still oblivious to what had just took place. Birds of a feather do indeed flock together, as both Shin and Nobuse are idiots in their own way.

On the other side of the spectrum, Jun shows everyone what a real male lead should act like by asking Hiromi out in the middle of her game. You have cojones, ese! Of course, Shin gets hold of the news and isn't all too happy about it, which is ironic since it was his idiocy that led to this in the first place, but whatever, lawl. He glooms over it during break, and we know by now, that when Shin's feeling down, all alone, Noe will suddenly appear out of nowhere to cheer up him, to which she does, right on schedule. He ungratefully wolves down the food from the bento box Noe brought, comparing himself to poultry raised in a farm. Noe corrects him, stating that he is a cock with big dreams, just like Raigomaru. Shin'ichiro takes leave and asks her to stop bothering him for a while, only to be stopped by Noe who, clearly inherited the same kind of bravado her brother has when dealing with the opposite sex, latches on to his belt, asking how long it would take. Shin'ichiro decides not to reply and hands her the belt instead.

The later half of the show is probably the most enjoyable part for me, as we get to see everybody's OWNED expressions, like so:

Nobuse wins first prize for his looks being told by Aiko why she actually bought the sweater.

Hiromi fares pretty well too, as Jun tells her that Shin'ichiro will be going out with Noe after their date. On a side note, Jun sent out all kinds of wrong signals that would suggest that he is indeed a siscon with his statement.

For someone who just found out that he might have been liking his stepsister all the while, Shin doesn't look too astonished, although you gotta love how Hiromi delivered it, by going "Oops, I let it slip". Guess he doesn't mind incest, which makes it one of Shin's redeeming factors, apart from being able to attract the attention of girls without any effort whatsoever.

Regarding the aforementioned revelation, despite the fact everyone has already suspected that Shin and Hiromi might actually be related, I like the way they build up that climatic scene, with fitting melancholic music to accompany it. Mrs Nakagami's ill treatment of Hiromi finally makes sense, as Hiromi reveals to Shin'ichiro that they might actually be siblings. Tears and more drama ensue.

Oh, Mr Nakagami, you're such a player! If only your son was as suave as you! That aside, the only person yet to be affected by all the drama seems to be Noe, who was still admiring her trophy, courtesy of Shin, towards the end. However, that might all change, as judging from the next episode, she and Hiromi will be getting into a catfight. Cue snarls. True Tears' awesomeness increases exponentially with each passing episode, which applies to my expectations of it as well. Please don't screw up >< Shin out.

Don't trust wieners

Instinctively, Shinichiro looks for Noe at school after being asked by Jun to go out with her. However, he turns down her offer to have lunch together as well as walking home together, using his dance practice as a reason. Noe is surprised by the fact he dances, although Shin sees it as something pretty ordinary. Deciding to bug someone else instead, Noe goes over to where Hiromi is and has lunch with her, to the latter's surprise. Funnily enough, she also begins trading dishes with Hiromi as a gesture, something friends were supposed to do. Even more amusing is Hiromi's face when she thought Noe was going to take her tako wiener away lawl.

Just like the changing of seasons from summer to fall, Hiromi also begins to show a warmer side which we've not seen. She goes home together with Shinichiro, where they take a stroll by the waterfront, having the kind of conversation that made all that animosity between them almost non-existent. Elsewhere, the ever clueless Nobuse thought he'd scored with Aiko when she agrees to make a sweater for him, although I personally feel it was meant for Shinichiro. The cheerfulness of how everything has unfolded thus far takes a dive when Shin's mom spots him and Hiromi walking home together, as she bitches at her, telling her not to get so close.

The next morning, both our heroines are gloomy from the what happened yesterday. Noe, down from being lied to by Shin, goes to meet Hiromi at the eating spot, although the latter is nowhere to be found. Hiromi on the other hand, takes that time to train, trying to forget Shin's mom's hurtful words. With her untouched bento box, Noe visits Shin at his dancing class. She praises him, comparing Shinichiro to her cock. She offers the food to him, but just as he was about to put a tako wiener in his mouth, Shin is stopped by Noe, as she considered it to be a fake food that will make him into a liar. What? She proceeds to talking to him about how she felt he was someone that would shed wonderful tears. Asking how she had intended to collect his tears, Shin is suddenly licked by Noe on the face, which took him by surprise.

In the evening while working on his picture book, Shinichiro is paid a visit by Jun. Instead of a straightforward reply, Shinichiro unwittingly tells Jun, that if he were to go out with Noe, Jun must in turn ask Hiromi out. Strangely enough, Jun does not know who Shin was talking about, until he was reminded. Jun just mentions that she was cute and takes his leave. The now frustrated Shinichiro is unsure of whether or not Jun was being serious, until he decides to speak to Hiromi about it. For the very first time ever, Shinichiro enters her room, telling him about what happened earlier with Jun. The visibly annoyed Hiromi tells him to mind his own business, angry that that he had entered her room just to tell her this.

Shinichiro leaves Hiromi alone for the time being and bumps into one of the workers, carrying stuff including an old photo album. Shin flips through it, only to notice that in certain pictures, a woman's face has been cut out of them. The next day after school, Shinichiro heads over to Ai's restaurant, only to find it closed. Aiko then shows up, and they both enter through the back door. Shinichiro takes note of a bag full of knitting tools, mentioning how lucky Nobuse is. Aiko takes this opportunity to measure the unfinished sweater against his shoulder, only to be interrupted by his best friend knocking outside. However, just as he was about to go open the door, Aiko suddenly pulls Shin back, asking him not to open it.

Stupid Shin is stupid! He basically lost all the love points he gained with Hiromi for the past few days by being a smartass trying to set her and Jun up together. He now has a possible rival to contend with, Then again, Mrs Nakagami clearly does not take a liking towards Hiromi, as it seems she had some form of conflict with the latter's mother, to the extent of cutting out her face from the photo album. On the plus side, Noe and Shin seem to be much closer than ever before, as it seems for once, she did not like the fact she was turned down in favor of Hiromi. Aiko on the other hand seems to be torn between picking Nobuse or Shin, as despite claiming to make the sweater for the former, she quite obviously wanted to give it to Shinichiro instead. Judging from the preview, it does look like her feelings towards him will be made clear, so it would be interesting to see if Aiko will be the first to directly confess to Shinichiro, turning this love battle wide-open, as at this point, who Shinichiro will pick is anybody's guess. Shin out.

Noe reveals her true nature and stabs Shinichiro in the chest*

The trip back home becomes an awkward one, as Hiromi goes into further detail about the person whom she likes, to a depressed and visibly heartbroken Shinichiro. Still reeling in all the pain, he leaves early the next morning, to head down to the waterfront to laze about, with every intention of not wanting to be around Hiromi. There, he meets Aiko, whom he blames for giving him false hope. To seek atonement, she asks him out for a date shopping trip, where Shinichiro tells her about how he had assumed Hiromi wanted to get close to Noe for his own sake, but it turned out otherwise, as the former had someone else in mind. Aiko apologizes and consoles him, telling him how time will heal all wounds.

It becomes tense once again, as Shinichiro heads home, only to see Hiromi, who confronts him as to whether he's been intentionally avoiding her. Unable to find the right words to reply her, they are suddenly interrupted by Shinichiro's mother. Shin takes this opportunity to take his leave, with Hiromi doing the same. Just as she was about to do so, the lady of the house coldly mentions how Hiromi's eyes resembled her real mother's.

Shinichiro's gloominess carries on to the next day, but it all takes a 360 degree turn, as the ever cheerful and energetic Noe catches him by surprise yet again. He asks her if she would want his tears, but she turns it down, claiming it was worthless. Performing some impromptu pseudo waterboarding torture(lawl) on Shinichiro to make him feel better, Noe puts her grandmother's jacket over his shoulders and begins to reminiscence her time as a child with the old lady. She reveals to him how she had been unable to cry ever since and that even if she were to do so, she needed someone who looks upwards and has tears close to the heaven, which explains why Shin's tears wouldn't suffice.

We turn attention to Nobuse and Aiko, with the former thinking it was a date, contrary to a disinterested Aiko who couldn't care less. Ouch. Still, they both spot Shin and Noe walking together, to which Aiko reacts unfavorably. Nobuse ceases the opportunity to hold her hands, but only manages to startle Aiko in the process. Again, ouch. Guessing Hiromi is the cause for Shinichiro's depression, Noe offers to help get him and Hiromi closer together. At the supermarket later in the evening with her brother, Noe tells him about the day she had with Shin. This in turn prompts him to approach our hero the next day, asking him to go out with his sister. ????!!!!

True Tears delivers yet again with this episode. Unlike most shows of the same genre where the main heroine route is hinted right at the beginning, there are now many possibilities that Shinichiro can explore, as every girl has equal opportunity at this point. It's pretty obvious by now that Aiko likes him, and is using the blissfully ignorant and clueless Nobuse as part of her plan. Unlike Taisuke of School Days, I don't think this side male character is going to get lucky any time soon.. Meanwhile, despite the fact Hiromi has admitted to liking Noe's brother, the brief moment she had with Shin when they were preparing to go to school, gave a glimmer of hope to their relationship. Finally, with Noe offering her services and Jun intervening, the possibility of her path looks brighter than ever before. I like all the girls here, so regardless of who Shinichiro chooses, my only hope is that they do it properly.

*Oops, wrong show.

Sexual tension so thick you could cut it with a knife.

Still treating Shinichiro as a replacement for her dead rooster, Noe plants envelopes filled with red seeds all over the place, be it his desk or locker. Noe's cute like that, as most normal girls would do the same, but with love letters instead. Wanting to confront Noe about it, Shinichiro instead finds himself stumbling upon Noe cuddling with a male student of another school right after school. He heads over to Ai's eatery to tell Nobuse about it only to be teased on the matter.

Right after that, Shinichiro and Ai head over to the community center to deliver food, when she brings out the matter regarding how Hiromi wanted to make friends with Noe. Claiming to understand why Hiromi did it, she accidentally blurts about how a person would get close to someone simply to approach to their real target. Ah ha, pretty much like how she befriends Nobuse then...

At home, Shinichiro sees Hiromi being told by his mother to deliver sake to his uncle. He gallantly does so instead, much to his mother's displeasure. Just as Hiromi and Shinichiro leave the house, the latter's dad return to find out what just happened. He tells his wife that both of them are their children, but she doesn't treat Hiromi as one. Ouch. On the way to their destination, Shichiro talks to Hiromi about how they both used to walk the path they were on back when they were kids, to which Hiromi replies, stating she does not recall it. After a flashback of how it was like when they were young, Hiromi utters to herself, about how she's sealed away all her memories.

The next day, which so happens to be the interschool basketball match, Shinichiro yet again finds red seeds being left in a trail for him. He finds Noe on top the tree once again, telling her she should stop whatever she's doing, as she already has a boyfriend. Without answering him, she jumps down, and seems to have hurt her leg. The reluctant Shinichiro then piggybacks Noe all the way to the gym, in full view of everyone, including Hiromi. There, Noe runs off(??!) to greet the same guy she met the other day, who turns out to be her brother. After the match, Shinichiro comes across Hiromi and Tomoyo discussing about the incident which took place earlier, where the latter queries her about her feelings towards Shinichiro. She tells Tomoyo that she actually really likes another person(yeah, right) and then leaves, only to awkwardly stumble into Shinichiro, where hey both stare blankly into one another.

Another great episode, with the introduction of the third female lead, although she seems to be the most passive of the lot and does not have the same kind of advantage that both Noe and Hiromi have at this point. Still, hopefully they will develop her story later on. Speaking of which, Noe is now my current favorite, with her eccentric and childlike behavior being a huge draw for me, despite the fact I would normally go for the childhood friends turned tsun-tsun types(think Nanaka of Myself; Yourself) like Hiromi. That would probably change later on though, when they finally reveal what changed her so much, so I really can't wait to see what happens. Shin out.