I randomly picked this in my folder, did not check the tag, thinking of just some bedtime reading
And now, I can't sleep at all T_T
Well, I keep thinking about this manga after finishing it, so I came back here 🙁 I actually do not comprehend the reason why Kou would like to give Shirou a better childhood with treasured memories, which is in the past, instead of having a bright future ahead of them.
I don't think this is open ending, but an implicit sad ending. In the final chapter, the uncle says that the grandfather had a sense of guilt that made him unable to love anyone. The reason for this is because

"No one could confirm the body" of which the death certificate was sent to the grandfather . Thus, I unwillingly have to believe that Kou went back to the past to die in the war and have his body confirmed so the grandfather could move on to love his family and teach his son to love Shirou. Otherwise, he would have appeared in Shirou's "new" childhood flow, wouldn't he? In the first chapter, in the nick of time he was "summoned" to Shirou's world, he was facing 10 warplanes. Therefore, being sent back to his timeline means he would be in his then warplane, opposing 10 enemies. I doubt he could switch to Top Gun Maverick mode to get alive out of that situation =(
Moreover, I'm afraid that since Kou went back to the past to change it, the last of main story is the last fragment of Kou before he is completely wiped out from Shirou's memory.
I really wish both Kou and Shirou were selfish enough to let the past stay in the past, and keep being with each other in the present.
The more I re-read this series, the more depressed I get. I should be more careful with the tag Tragedy from now on......

in my feelings rn. sorry if i sound dumb, it's 3 in the morning.

i dunno if i was sleepy the first time i read it but basically i didn't comprehend that kou left to prevent shirou's grandpa from moping and being neglectful to his family over kou's apparent death. i noticed one of the last few s shows a photo of young shirou with his parents. i thought "wait, i don't this" and went to like chp 2 and saw it was originally shirou with grandpa. my small brain made the connection shirou's parents survived bc no neglect from grandpa. also kou giving up his chance to be with grandpa so shirou can exist in the future is wow (i hope i interpreted that right). and how the kou and shirou were basically destined to meet? wow. story ended strong but i hate interpreting stories so i would love a sequel (im whining at this point so ignore). only part im iffy about is kou and shirou's age gap but that's fine. i would be happy to hear interpretations on kou welcoming shirou at the end to live together with him and shirou throwing the toy plane again (sorry if i worded it weird)

I really have to look at tags more thoroughly, because that ending..... did not expect it at all. It just came at me like a train and , maybe someone love a good ol surprise, but I don't, because I'd rather I know what's about to come really.

I have been delay reading the last 2 (well 3 if you count the booklet) chapters because it's starting to get heavy in chapter 7/8/9 was it? and finally decide to finish it once and for all, because I don't like having a nearly finished progress lingering longer than it should, and well..... I regret it. I regret ever reading this (in a good way don't worry), liking this, enjoying this, and I also regret getting to know the characters and eventually grow a liking to everyone of them (still in a good way).

Shirou can seem pretty apathetic with some personality at first, but I slowly warms to him as the story goes. Kiku and him are perfect for each other (cries) and the flow of the story is perfect! it's not slow burn and more like slow paced. You can also REALLY feel that slice of life bit in every page, because everything they do is just very mundane while they still have this ominous past that's yet to unfold, it's beautiful really.

All and all, I think this manga perfectly describes Beautiful Tragedy, if there's such expression.

I'd say (or maybe just convince myself) that this one is an open ending :') I'm right though it is!

The lovely countryside scenery captivated me immediately, as well as the image of a man who seemed to have slipped through time in the middle of it. I thought the characters were interesting and compelling as I watched their quiet tension as the story took on a slow, slice-of-lifey approach while the readers know that the mystery of who this man who slipped through time is lurking in the background.

I love the pace, sweetly but almost alarmingly slow. We are treated to an image of a happy life between a lonely teen and this mysterious but warm stranger, all the while a sense of doom lingering in the back of our minds.

The ending. omg. I don't want to spoil it, but I think it's almost perfect. That's all I'll say. Everyone can throw rotten tomatoes at me.

The art is very lovely as well, as expected of Syaku. God what I wouldn't give to have physical copies. An English publisher needs to license this.

Seriously, it's so interesting. There's more to this story than meets the eyes. There's a whole load of things going on between the characters, in their heads and in their hearts as well, even through at first glance they live ordinary life. Slowly but inevitably the tension is ri.

It takes some effort to understand what the author is trying to convey. Characters are unique, there's slight supernatural flip in storyline. At first I thought the story is awkward, but soon I realized how awesome this work is. The art fits the story, it's scratchy but pleasant and at times it's very beautiful - to create a certain mood.

The pilot standing in a lake, who appeared out of nowhere... why did he appear? Is he a lost soul? Is it grief that holds him onto this world? or maybe he was given a second chance? what will happen when he finds his answers? those are just few questions that kept bothering me. I guess not everybody like this type of manga, but I enjoyed this story a lot. I just started reading the continuation, and honestly, I can't wait to find out how it's gonna end.