Free!: Take Your Marks (2017) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Haruka is moving to Tokyo for college and wants to continue his swimming career, so proximity to a pool is a priority. Kisumi Shigino helps Haruka and Makoto find the place through his uncle's rental agency, and the apartment's location near a pool makes it an easy choice for Haruka's training needs.

Foreshadowing: Haruka's focus on finding a pool-accessible apartment establishes early that his swimming journey in Tokyo will continue after high school.

• haruka apartment tokyo
• kisumi rental
• pool location
• college move

Misaki is a young swimmer whom Haruka and Makoto meet while inspecting the potential apartment. He had previously been coached by Nao Serizawa, the apartment's former tenant, which ties him directly to the swimming world Haruka is about to enter in Tokyo.

Foreshadowing: Misaki's connection to Nao Serizawa hints at how interconnected the swimming community is across schools and generations.

• misaki kuramoto
• nao serizawa
• young swimmer
• former tenant

Momotaro won tickets to the Anago Hot Springs and wanted to present them in a memorable way rather than simply handing them over. By turning the reveal into a complex scavenger hunt, Aiichiro and Momotaro turned a simple graduation gift into a personal and creative experience for the seniors.

• aiichiro graduation gift
• momotaro scavenger hunt
• rin sosuke hot springs

During the trip to the Anago Hot Springs, Momotaro and the captain of Sofukan High School's swim team get into a heated competition over a specific capybara plush toy. The rivalry becomes a comedic centerpiece of the visit and highlights Momotaro's competitive personality even outside the pool.

• capybara plush
• momotaro rivalry
• sofukan swim captain
• hot springs competition

Natsuya Kirishima, a Sofukan alumnus serving as chaperone for the training camp, takes time during the hot spring trip to speak with Sosuke privately. He offers wise and reassuring words about Sosuke's shoulder concerns, giving him valuable perspective and encouragement about moving forward despite the injury.

• natsuya kirishima
• sosuke shoulder injury
• wise advice
• sofukan alumnus

Gou finds the term "PKH East" in an old recruitment manual while making the Iwatobi swim club's recruitment video. The name sounds like a technical recruiting strategy, so Rei, Nagisa, and Gou investigate further, only to discover that it actually stood for "Perfect Kinniku (Muscles) Handsome Azuma," a former member whose attractive appearance was the real reason the club recruited so many female students.

Foreshadowing: The manual itself foreshadows the humorous reveal, since the acronym only makes sense once the full nickname is decoded.

• pkh east
• recruitment manual
• perfect kinniku handsome azuma
• gou discovery

Although Rei, Nagisa, and Gou are initially disappointed that the strategy is just a joke about a handsome former member, the experience sparks a renewed creative energy in Rei. He channels that momentum into pushing through and completing the recruitment video for the next school year.

• rei recruitment video
• iwatobi swim club
• pkh east reveal
• creative inspiration

Rin spots Gou and Momotaro together during the planning for his surprise going-away party and immediately assumes the two are in a romantic relationship. His anxiety spikes further when he learns that Momotaro plans to challenge him in a relay alongside his older brother Seijuro, making Rin fear he is about to lose Gou's affection.

Foreshadowing: Rin's heightened reaction hints at feelings for Gou that have been quietly building across the series.

• rin jealousy
• gou momotaro misunderstanding
• going-away party
• rin feelings for gou

A worried Rin turns to Haruka for help, and Haruka clears up the entire misunderstanding. Momotaro never intended to compete for Gou's attention, he simply wanted a toy that Rin had won from a burger restaurant, and the relay challenge was his playful way of trying to get it.

Foreshadowing: Haruka's calm reaction suggests he understood the situation long before Rin asked him for help.

• haruka reveals truth
• momotaro toy
• burger restaurant prize
• relay motivation

Rin and Haruka team up to face the Mikoshiba brothers, Seijuro and Momotaro, in a relay race. After winning the race, members from both Iwatobi High School and Samezuka Academy gather together for the surprise going-away party to celebrate Rin before he leaves for Australia.

• rin haruka relay
• mikoshiba brothers
• going-away party
• australia departure

The two are shown training intensely for upcoming time trials at their school, mirroring the broader theme of characters stepping into the next phase of their lives. Their inclusion teases the conflicts that will drive the storyline of the next season, Free!: Dive to the Future.

Foreshadowing: Their focused training foreshadows the rivalry and personal struggles that take center stage in the third season.

• ikuya kirishima
• hiyori tono
• time trials
• college preparation

The cryptic post-credits message serves as an official teaser for the third season of the franchise, titled Dive to the Future. It signals to viewers that the characters' journeys toward college, Australia, and new rivalries will continue beyond this anthology special.

• see you next stage
• post-credits teaser
• dive to the future
• season 3