Ghost Cat Anzu

Karin is left at Sousei ji Temple by her father Tetsuya, who comes to the countryside looking for money and leaves when her grandfather refuses to cover his debts. Karin does not accept the temple as home. She waits at the train station for the return she was promised, treats the adults around her with open distrust, and refuses to make the change easy for anyone. Her grandfather asks Anzu to watch her, but Anzu is not a normal guardian. He is a large ghost cat who rides a moped, uses a phone, works odd jobs, drinks, gambles, and acts more like a lazy neighbor than a protector. Karin sabotages his errands, follows local spirits, and keeps trying to control a situation created by adults who abandoned responsibility.

Anzu slowly becomes involved in Karin’s grief instead of only managing her behavior. Her wish to see her dead mother again leads them into a reckless bargain that pulls the living, local yokai, and the world of the dead into the same chase. What begins with boredom at the temple turns into a trip through spirits, oni, festival crowds, and Enma’s judgment. Anzu tries to bluff his way out of the trouble he helped create, but Karin has to face the truth that bringing her mother back cannot repair the loss the way she wants. When her father finally returns, alive and free of debt, he asks her to come back to Tokyo. Karin refuses. The temple, her grandfather, and the unreliable ghost cat have become the place where she can stay with her grief without being abandoned again.