Chihaya is a girl in the sixth grade, still not old enough to even know the meaning of the word zeal. But one day, she meets Arata, a transfer student from rural Fukui prefecture. Though docile and quiet, he has an unexpected skill: his ability to play competitive karuta, a traditional Japanese card game.Chihaya is struck by his obsession with the game, along with his ability to pick out the right card and swipe it away before any of his opponents. However, Arata is transfixed by her as well, all because of her unbelievable natural talent for the game. Don't miss this story of adolescent lives and emotions playing out in the most dramatic of ways!
The High School Karuta Tournament has come to an end and Chihaya has come back to school with the rest of the team, each of whom have made steps forward after earning solid results. Chihaya also practices hard for the preliminaries so that she can play against Shinobu in the Queen Match, but she's shocked to learn that her school trip is scheduled for the same time as this initial tournament. Meanwhile, her injured right hand makes a full recovery at last. The time is right to enter the Yoshino Club Tournament, and waiting for her in Class A are Taichi, Arata from Fukui, and plenty of rivals. It looks like an all-out brawl is about to break out!