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Natsume's Book of Friends Promotes Hot Spring, Fireworks Fest
posted on by Jennifer Sherman
Nyanko-sensei, the cat from Yuki Midorikawa's Natsume's Book of Friends (Natsume Yūjin-Chō) manga and anime, appears on promotional materials for the Hitoyoshi Hot Springs. Three posters feature Nyanko-sensei in scenes from hot springs and famous places near Hitoyoshi in the southern Japanese prefecture of Kumamoto. To draw visitors to the hot springs, various Japan Railways stations in Tokyo, Osaka, and elsewhere will display the advertisements beginning August 1.
The director and staff for the Natsume Yūjin-Chō anime series visited the cities of Kuma and Hitoyoshi, and the show features actual places from Kumamoto Prefecture. The "LaLa Natsu Fest" event's website offers a downloadable map of locales shown in the anime, and fans can use the map to visit the referenced scenery.
Characters from Natsume Yūjin-Chō also appear on an advertisement poster for a fireworks festival to be held August 15 in Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto. At the festival, 50 attendees' names will be picked in a drawing for copies of the poster with a special message from Nyanko-sensei.
Viz Media is publishing the Natsume's Book of Friends manga in North America. The anime version is currently airing its third season in Japan, and a new episode streams on Crunchyroll outside Japan every Monday.
Sources: Comic Natalie, Saishin Anime Jōhō
Images © Yuki Midorikawa, Hakusensha/ Natsume's Book of Friends Production Committee
