To mark Azur Lane's ninth anniversary, Yostar has — strangely enough — prepared a treat for Japanese fans: onigiri made from rice that spent its life listening to ASMR of the character Owari. This tie-in ties into the AZUR LANE MUSI9 FES festival in Tokyo on September 5 and 6.
Visitors will spot plain salted rice balls on the menu, priced at 1000 yen (about $6.50). The sticker shock comes down to where the rice came from, not any fancy filling.
Called "Owari-Gyaru rice," the crop is the outcome of Yostar's so-called "gyaru agriculture" project. Back in Dec. 2025 the company partnered with an award-winning rice farm in Gifu Prefecture to grow a batch using this unusual method.
They chose the rare Hatsushimo variety. From sprout to harvest, the stalks were exposed to recordings of Owari's voice — whispers, ASMR-style — the whole time; the character "spoke" to the plants, wishing them strength, so the story goes. Speakers were set up across the field, and some plants even had headphones pressed to them so the sounds would, literally, reach each stalk. Yostar also put out a documentary about the experiment (yes, there’s footage).
At first the rice was sold in packaged form alongside themed merch featuring Owari. Now it turns up as onigiri at the anniversary event — simple, unadorned.
Organizers explained why the rice balls are bare: Dai Miwaki from Yostar said they left out nori and other typical additions on purpose, so ppl could taste the rice itself, plain. (No seaweed, no extras — just rice.)
Supply is expected to be limited; after all, this was a one-off farm project. Still, whether you find the idea charming, bizarre, or a little creepy, it’s certainly a memorable way to commemorate the mobile game's birthday — have the rice listen to a character, then eat the result.