Episode 1: Seeds of Mischief 🌱

Furumi Village isn’t just a fictional setting—it’s actually where I bought my first home, nestled in a valley between mountains in Shinano‑machi, Nagano. Hidden between peaks like Mt.  Madarao and Mt.  Kurohime, it’s a place known for ski slopes, crystal-clear hiking trails, healing forests, and a rich folklore rooted in both Shinto shrines and wild mountain spirits.

That real-world backdrop is where Kabu and Kabocha live—and what they come to love, fear, and ultimately fight for.

Meet the Heart of It

Kabu

A folklore-obsessed farm boy who devours ukiyo-e prints and hero myths like modern kids binge comic books. His wide-eyed optimism is infectious—he truly believes he can be a hero. But he’s still rooted in Furumi, with all its everyday struggles.

Kabocha

Pragmatic, skilled in the forge, and bursting with ambition. She’s not strictly the “practical realist”—she believes in dreams, just wants them built solidly. Kabu lights the spark; she builds the rocket.

Together, they challenge each other—and the world—and push forward into adventure.

🌾 What Happens in the Pilot

We meet our two heroes—Kabu, the wide-eyed dreamer raised on folktales, and Kabocha, the pragmatic one who makes those dreams real. Their friendship is fast, funny, and quietly sincere. They don’t always agree, but they always show up for each other.

In the quiet farming village of Furumi, something is wrong. The crops are dying, the soil is going strange, and a sense of unease hangs in the summer air. The adults gather, but no one has answers. The villagers need a savior… and Kabu wants to be one.

Desperate to help, the kids venture into the forest to seek out a figure whispered about in old tales—the Crow Witch, a haunting, elegant creature who offers them a strange gift: a glowing sunflower whose seeds can solve their problems.

There’s a catch, of course.

The seeds it produces are powerful—but unstable. One miracle turns into many. Greed brews. Boundaries blur.

And then it happens: Kabu becomes cursed. His head transforms into a turnip. The Crow Witch vanishes. And with a cawing storm overhead, the remaining cursed seeds are scattered across the world by a flock of black-winged messengers.

The blight is no longer just a village problem.

Now, the two friends are thrust into a larger adventure, tasked with tracking down the seeds and undoing what they’ve accidentally unleashed. The road ahead will be dangerous, but they walk it anyway—one step at a time, together.

🎭 Themes & Tone

What if “Over the Garden Wall” and “Avatar: The Last Airbender” raised a weird little turnip boy together?

That’s the tone we’re chasing.

Yes, the world of Kabu and the Seeds in the Wind is whimsical, magical, and filled with talking crows and vegetable curses—but it’s not childish. We’re telling a story for young adults and curious grownups, where every charming moment sits just a few steps away from something darker, stranger, or more complicated.

Here’s what’s growing beneath the surface in Episode 1: Seeds of Mischief:

🥄 Greed

People always want more. One miracle becomes two, becomes ten, becomes ruin. The sunflower gives freely—but not without consequences. This story asks: What do you do when the thing that saved you might also destroy you?

🔥 Hubris

Just because you want to be a hero, doesn’t mean you’re ready. Kabu’s optimism is powerful, but unchecked ambition—no matter how pure—can leave behind scorched fields. Sometimes the greatest danger is believing you’re the exception to the rules.

🧭 Adventure & Wanderlust

There’s a whole world out there: haunted hot springs, cursed orchards, noodle clans at war. Kabocha dreams of leaving her forge; Kabu dreams of becoming a legend. Their journey is about more than undoing a mistake—it’s about discovering who they could become if they dared to go further.

⚖️ Tradition vs. Disruption

Furumi is built on tradition—old tools, old gods, old rhythms. But what happens when those patterns stop working? Innovation is risky. Disruption can save or unravel. This story doesn’t pick a side—it questions both, and lets the characters wrestle with the answers.

🌬️ Ready to see where the seeds scatter next?

Subscribe to the newsletter, explore the devlog, or follow along as we chart Kabu and Kabocha’s journey—one cursed seed at a time.

The wind’s already moving. Come with us.