Chapter 75

Synopsis
Kotaro reads a book about Panda-chan and pinky promises and becomes obsessed with making pinky promises with others. Many of his promises cannot be fulfilled because of unexpected circumstances, but Ryuuichi is determined to make his pinky promise with Kotaro stay true.

Long Summary
It is the rainy season and Kotaro is inside reading a book, which the chairwoman bought for him, about pinky promises. Kotaro tugs on Ryuu's shirt, but Ryuu says he is busy doing homework. The two pinky promise to read the book together after Ryuu is finished with his homework. If they break the promise, they will figuratively have to swallow a thousand needles and their fingers will be cut off.

Saikawa brings the two drinks and tells Kotaro that he would like to make a pinky promise with him as well. He asks if Kotaro has anything he wants him to do, and Kotaro stares at him. After a few moments of silence, Saikawa promises him that he will make omelette rice for dinner tonight, and Kotaro eagerly agrees. The chairwoman walks up to them, and Kotaro holds up his pinky to her. She promises to buy Kotaro the next Panda-chan book that releases. She refuses to swallow any needles though, but Saikawa suggests she swallow kale juice instead if she breaks the promise. Later, Ryuu reads the book to Kotaro, and Kotaro holds the book close to him even as he is sleeping. At the daycare room, the children eagerly ask Usaida to take them on a walk, but Usaida refuses since it is raining. Kotaro stands inches away from Usaida's face and sticks his pinky extremely close to his eyes. Usaida promises to take them on a walk when the weather is clear. Hayato enters the room and tells Usaida that it is his job to take them out for a walk whether it is raining or not. When Taka asks Hayato if he will take them on a walk, Hayato hypocritically tells Taka to ask him again when the weather is clear. Usaida then decides that Ryuu and Hayato will take the children on a walk tomorrow, regardless of the weather. Kotaro sticks his pinky at Hayato, who is confused since he does not know about Kotaro's obsession with pinky promises. Ryuu asks Hayato if he will pinky promise Kotaro that he will take them on a walk if he is free, and Hayato agrees. Taka looks at his brother and Kotaro doing a pinky promise and becomes envious, so he asks his brother if he will do a pinky promise with him as well. Hayato agrees and instructs Taka to not cry for every little thing, not be picky, and not be willfull, making Taka frustrated over pinky promises. Ryuu suggests simple promises with Kotaro, such as bringing storybooks, so the children pinky promise with Kotaro to bring their favorite storybooks.

Kotaro makes pinky promises with other people too. He and Inomata promise to bake cookies together; he and Yagi promise to blow bubbles together; and he and Inui, who is wearing his paper bag mask, promise to see each other again. Kotaro returns home happy with all his pinky promises, but Ryuu worries if it was good to make so many promises with so many different people. The chairwoman gives Ryuu a flyer of a Panda-chan exhibition at the mall. Ryuu and Kotaro pinky promise to go see the exhibition that Sunday.

Unfortunately, many of Kotaro's promises go unfulfilled. The next day, it is pouring outside, so the promise regarding going on a walk is broken. The children are visibly upset to see their walk canceled. Usaida asks them if they remembered their promise to bring their favorite storybooks, but they had forgotten to bring anything. Kotaro becomes quite depressed after seeing so many promises broken already. Kotaro puts on his cooking apron and headscarf, but Inomata tells him there is no more cooking oil, so they cannot bake cookies. Yagi cannot blow bubbles because he is out with a fever, and Inui writes a note to him to not look for him because he finds it too awkward to meet up with him. Kotaro sadly looks at his book, and Ryuu asks him if he wants him to read the book to him, but Kotaro just shakes his head and puts the book away. During school, Ryuu thinks to himself that he must bring Kotaro to the exhibit, which ends at 6 in the evening that Sunday. Usokawa informs him that the event's ending has been rescheduled to that day at 4 in the afternoon. It is now 3:20 PM, and it takes 20 minutes total to arrive at the mall, so Ryuu swiftly gets up to pick up Kotaro from the daycare room. He thanks Usokawa and tells Hayato that he will leave the children in his care. He grabs Kotaro from the daycare room and runs towards the bus station with him in his arms. He hopes that in the future, Kotaro will not make promises with other people and expect that they need to be fulfilled. At the mall, they make it to the exhibit just in time. The mascot is quite big and intimidating for the young children to approach, which explains why the exhibit was shortened. Kotaro, however, excitedly runs over to the mascot and holds up his pinky finger. Kotaro continues to be obsessed with his pinky promises and still holds up his pinky as he is sleeping. Meanwhile, Taka holds a storybook and promises himself that he will definitely bring the book this time.

Characters in Order of Appearance

 * Kotaro Kashima
 * Ryuuichi Kashima
 * Saikawa Keigo
 * Morinomiya Youko
 * Usaida Yoshihito
 * Taka Kamitani
 * Kirin Kumatsuka
 * Hayato Kamitani
 * Kazuma Mamizuka
 * Takuma Mamizuka
 * Inomata Maria
 * Yagi Tomoya
 * Inui Hiroyuki
 * Nezu Chuukichi (briefly)
 * Ushimaru Yuki
 * Taizo Hebihara