Moving forward from the closing moments of the previous episode with the very feared anastamosis happening, this episode starts off very ceremoniously with the choosing of the Binden for the Ritual. It wasn’t really a surprise that Natsume would be the chosen one as her openly professed feelings seem unrequited and she’s a very dedicated priestess. Of course, the choosing is supposed to be by the hand of a higher being, but it would only make sense in the narrative this way.
Ririko and Hitomi keep up with their D-pilot training for the Ritual, but Hitomi comments on the fact that the OTFs are acting differently, as if they feel lonely because it’s not all 4 of them flying together. 
In the meantime, Nao, Eru and Hisone are just running around the track as their status with the OTFs is kind of on hold due to anastamosis. Eru is very adamant in expressing frustration with her feelings. This shall feel very relatable to people who have crushed on the wrong person in the past! Hisone, on the other hand, is oddly calm, even when they get a glimpse of Natsume clinging to Okonogi.
Later Hisone goes to visit Masotan and we see more of the effects of anastamosis on him. Nao explains it as the OTF being jealous of the D-pilot ‘looking at someone else’. I’d say trying to form a connection to someone else and abandoning them after the dragons have submit to the greatest humiliation that Iiboshi mentioned in a previous episode. Hisone admits to Nao that while Masotan was trying to eat her, she could feel his jealous state and how confused he felt. I really appreciated this detail as it maintains the importance and strength of the connection between the OTF and the pilot.
This conversation sends Nao in her own soul searching and she soon talks to Ikushima about her position as a D-pilot, her reason for being there and her feelings after finding out her expectations didn’t quite match the reality. Ikushima suggests that maybe Nao is too independent to be attractive to the OTFs, which would very much make sense because although Nao is as unique as the other pilots, her personality is very strong and assertive. Eru could be seen as this as well, but she has quite a complex, which Nao doesn’t seem to have.
After this we finally see Zaitou approach Eru. I understand that he was following orders and it seems it was quite heartbreaking for him as well to reject Eru so cruelly, but wow, the speech really made me sad for her. It was definitely the push she needed to devote herself again to Norma though. After an evening of heavy drinking and a depressing speech about the sneaky and treacherous nature of humans from the Joie lady, Eru is back on track saying she won’t betray Norma again.
Hisone isn’t quite convinced by the speech, even though she feels it rings true, but she’s also concerned with the fact that she’s the on left so she need to figure out her feelings.
This moment is interrupted by a touching scene between Okonogi and Natsume. It’s a painful one to watch because it’s obvious his feelings for her are not romantic in nature despite her insistence and that it also feels like a goodbye. Although there is a sense of doom surrounding the Binden, we really haven’t been told for sure what this role entails and what kind of fortune she will have. I suppose death, but it remains to be seen.
Okonogi finds solace with Masotan afterwards, but Hisone arrives, interrupting the moment and distresses over what she thinks was a kiss between Okonogi and Natsume. He clears things up and there’s a nice flashback here when he explains about Natsume and his relationship and we understand why he doesn’t have romantic feelings for her. Hisone is still distressed and jealous and she admits to him and herself that she likes him, but before he can say anything she leaves again, trying to find an answer for herself.
The next day she finds out Nao is flying Masotan with a special suit so he can dispel heat. She starts thinking about all the people she has met at the base and her feelings for them and she realizes she finds them all very nice and pleasant. I was wondering if that was going to make her think her feelings for Okonogi weren’t romantic, but my thought was very far off the mark! Suddenly Hisone professes she has found the answer and, as all wait expectantly for her to move on, she shockingly says she’s quitting the force!
I really am curious to find out what’s going on in her head and how/why she arrived to this conclusion. I suspect it has to do with the conversation she had the previous night with the Joie lady and the nature of people always betraying, but I guess we’ll have to wait until the next episode to find out for sure.