Tamachi Sugawara Tenmangu in Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto Prefecture, is a small Shinto shrine with the main hall measuring only about two meters in width.

But the building, located about five minutes by car from JR Hitoyoshi Station, attracts visitors from within and outside Japan after it was mentioned as a model of a shrine featured in the opening sequence of the popular "Natsume's Book of Friends" anime series.

The shrine is one of many that is attracting anime and manga fans who are making “seichi junrei” pilgrimages to locations featured in their favorite titles.

These are raising hopes for tourism in the Kyushu region, which has been hit hard by natural disasters and the coronavirus pandemic.

Local tourism associations believe that anime tourism can revive tourism because fans at home and abroad visit story sites throughout the year.

NATSUME FANS FILL NOTEBOOKS AT SHRINE

The "Natsume's Book of Friends" is a title adapted from a girls' manga series by Yuki Midorikawa, who is a Kumamoto Prefecture native, with the anime show airing since 2008.

The story centers around a boy named Takashi Natsume, who can see "yokai" ghouls and hobgoblins.

After he inherits the Book of Friends containing the names of yokai that have been made into minions by his grandmother when she was alive, he strives to give them back their names and freedom with the help of great yokai Nyanko Sensei, which serves as his bodyguard.

There are notebooks labeled "Natsume's Book of Friends" stacked up in the main hall, filled with messages in Japanese, English and Chinese saying things such as, "I'm from China" and "It's my sixth visit."

The notebooks have been placed since around 2011 for fans to socialize with each other.

Currently, there are 31 A4-size 60-page notebooks.

Fans had been visiting the shrine, filling three notebooks with their messages each year. But the number of visitors drastically declined due to a flooding disaster caused by record-breaking torrential rain in Hitoyoshi and elsewhere in July 2020 and then the pandemic, with only one notebook added last year.

"Reconstruction has been gradually moving forward and the coronavirus pandemic situation has improved, so I hope they come back for seichi junrei and brighten Hitoyoshi," said Sachiko Kurisu, 41, a member of the Hitoyoshi Onsen Tourist Association.

Another fan attraction in Hitoyoshi is Bukegura, a former residence of a "karo" top-ranking samurai official in service to the feudal Sagara Domain.

Although it is not shown in the anime, about 1,000 fans visit the building each year.

They come to see an exhibition of anime and movie posters, books autographed by Midorikawa, foreign language editions of the manga and other rare items collected by owner Satoru Tsutsumi, 77, over the past 10 years.

Its reputation spread by word of mouth among fans, luring many enthusiasts also from China, Switzerland, Italy and other overseas countries.

It has also served as a forum for fans. At least one couple married after they met each other there.

‘DEMON SLAYER’ FANS DRAWN TO OITA SHRINE

Meanwhile, Hachiman Kamadojinja shrine in Beppu, Oita Prefecture, has come under the spotlight as a possible story site of "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba," a wildly popular manga series.

The story centers around Tanjiro, whose family was killed by an “oni” demon and whose younger sister has turned into an oni. He fights demons as he searches for a way to make Nezuko human again.

The Shinto shrine and the manga share a number of similarities.

For one, the protagonist’s surname is Kamado.

For another, legend has it that the stone steps at the shrine were built by an oni.

In addition, a picture of a dragon on the ceiling of the shrine’s main hall resembles the one that appears when Tanjiro delivers his special attacks.

Nagasaki, which serves as the locale for "Iroduku: The World in Colors," is home to many events related to the animated series.

In November 2019, 700 fans in and outside Nagasaki Prefecture attended a talk featuring director Toshiya Shinohara and voice actors.

When the city's tourist association offered a tour to visit the Kinenzaka slope, which appears in the anime numerous times, and other spots in 2019 and again in 2020 for fans, it was flooded with reservations.

"Robotics;Notes," an animated series adapted from a video game, is set on Tanegashima island in Kagoshima Prefecture.

The prefectural-run Tanegashima Chuo Senior High School, which served as a model for a school attended by the anime's characters, is open to fans to take photos.

They are allowed to enter the school premises after going through a reception desk. 

The Tanegashima Tourism Association has compiled a map covering pilgrimage sites and other measures to actively promote anime tourism.

"With the number of tourists drastically reduced due to the coronavirus pandemic, we expect that anime pilgrimages can serve as a springboard to bring in visitors all year around and revitalize tourism," said Tatsuya Matsuura, 46, a member of the association. "We want to host an event to celebrate the 10th anniversary of 'Robotics;Notes' next year."