Five essays on concealed conditions, Prince's three reasons for running, the stopwatch Kakeru brings from high school, Haiji's hidden knee, and an ekiden that needs every runner while allowing no runner to substitute for another.

Run with the Wind begins with theft and an invitation. Kakeru Kurahara steals food, Haiji Kiyose pursues him on a bicycle, and the question “Do you like running?” leads to a cheap room at Chikuseiso. Only after Kakeru is inside does Haiji reveal his plan: ten residents, most with no serious running experience, will try to qualify for the Hakone Ekiden.

The story is often remembered as an account of friendship and impossible achievement. These readings keep the achievement while examining its conditions. Haiji's care is extraordinarily particular and his recruitment is manipulative. Prince remains slow and becomes indispensable. Kakeru keeps caring about speed while learning that speed is not the only measure by which a runner appears. The ekiden binds ten lives without dissolving any one of them.

Primary text: the twenty-three-episode Production I.G television anime directed by Kazuya Nomura and scripted by Kohei Kiyasu; Shion Miura's 2006 novel is used as a secondary reference. Full-series spoilers.