Hachiman Hikigaya has been playing the trumpet since elementary school and is a loner labeled as “ill-tempered.” When family circumstances force him to transfer to Kyoto, he assumes he’ll simply continue his gloomy high school life somewhere else. But fate leads him to Kitauji High School, famous for its “hopelessly weak” wind ensemble.
The band has failed to make it past the Kansai qualifiers for five years running. Its members have wildly uneven skills, yet are unexpectedly enthusiastic. Then a newly transferred music teacher named Taki takes over as their advisor and declares at their very first club meeting, “Our goal is the gold medal at the national competition.”
Faced with a group that can’t even manage a basic ensemble without falling apart, Hikigaya grips his trumpet, its old metal gleaming faintly. He thought he had long since seen through the hypocrisy of group activities, but in Taki’s melodies, he hears musical possibilities he has never experienced before. As the cherry blossoms begin to fall in Kyoto, this underdog team, dismissed by everyone, quietly plays the first note on its way to the national stage. And Hachiman Hikigaya’s own life’s symphony is about to take an unexpected turn.
