doodle acc

so… this is a very handwavy premise and thought.

in september 1945, tamamori is sent to the capital to cover the end of the war for work. during his trip, he finds himself back in jinbocho and eventually sees umebachidou. while the building's been heavily damaged, it's still partially standing. suddenly, a small boy emerges from the inside. the young kaoru. tamamori wonders where the older kaoru is, when suddenly the younger kaoru hugs his legs calling him oji-san. tamamori deduces that the older must've let the younger touch him, dissolving into water and tranferring his memories. he confirms it, seeing kaoru's mask and large clothes inside umebachidou

tamamori decides to take him home, to the shock of everyone in the village except for minakami. minakami, who's learned about the shopkeeper and the past from tamamori, readily accepts kaoru as their new family member. kaoru is initially afraid of most people outside tamamori, but quickly warms up to minakami, sensing his kindness while living with him. minakami gives him prayer beads, just like in the old timeline. the three end up as a family of sorts, with tamamori still being not the greatest dad… but at least he has minakami, minakami's parents, and the rest of the village this time. kaoru is still overall a quiet kid, but learns to speak more and read. he likes listening to tamamori and minakami read stories to him.

1st img: i kept thinking about shopkeeper's line "your dreams (to become a great writer) won't come true. that's what happens when one man's smile is good enough for you."

2nd img: i would be fun to see minakami gain some muscle from working in the brewery and in the fields...