Prompt request by a Tumblr user. Hopefully, it's tolerable.

Last names for Tsukuyo and Hinowa were made up.

Lastly, please google 'tokyo train map all lines' for your reference. Look for the one that looks like capillaries, because that's very much accurate.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Gintama. It belongs to Sorachi Hideaki.

Omotenashi

She was back in Japan.

Glancing at the subway map of Tokyo in her hand, she grimaced at the layout of the subway lines. She did not know it was that bad, and at this point, she was starting to feel nervous. Having moved to Singapore at a young age because of her parents' work, Akizuki Tsukuyo took vacations with her family during the summer holidays, but only for a good week or two before going back to Singapore.

At that time, she had not been able to appreciate her land of birth, as she found everything confusing, from the vending machines to the bus system. If, before, she had her parents help her read the kanji written at the train stations, she was on her own right now. Just before she was to start university in three months' time, she made it a point to visit and meet up with an old friend, Natsuki Hinowa, the only person she had contact with all throughout her stay in Singapore. She and Hinowa had met in kindergarten, graduated to elementary before she and her parents moved to Singapore before the start of fourth grade elementary. Before she left, the two promised to stay in touch with one another, which they maintained until this very day.

She did retain her Japanese speaking fluency, but it was, at best, barely passable, while her kanji reading was that of an elementary student. At home, she talked to her parents both in English and in Japanese, but mostly in English, as they needed the language for either school (in school) or work (in their work). Her Japanese was deteriorating, as the only time she used it was whenever she had time to drop by at Kinokuniya to ask the staff there if they had a book that Hinowa recommended to her. Somehow, her best friend managed to keep her up to date with the fashion and the literature of her birth country, and she was thankful that she somehow retained her reading and writing ability.

This is not my day, she thought to herself, annoyed at the fact that she was had no idea how to get to Harajuku. Situated in a hotel in the eastern part of Tokyo, she was at a loss on how to get to the meeting place.

… Not to mention she was stupid enough not to get a WiFi device at the airport for her internet needs.

Hinowa had said that they would be meeting up at Omotesando Exit at Harajuku between half past ten and eleven in the morning, but right now, as she stood in front of an unfamiliar train station, she was at a loss on how to even get to Harajuku, especially since the map she had on her hands did not have 'Harajuku' written on it.

"Knew I should've booked my hotel near Harajuku…" she muttered under her breath. Taking a look at her watch, she nearly jumped up when she realized that it was already ten, and she had exactly an hour to get to the meeting place.

There's no way around it…!

She had to ask someone.

Immediately, she went down the stairs of the subway station and said out loud to the man nearest her, "E-excuse me!"

Sakata Gintoki was minding his own business when a voice called out to him. Puzzled as to why someone would randomly talk to him, he turned around to see a blonde girl looking like she was out of breath. Some of her hair had gone out of place, while the strap of light purple-colored dress she was wearing was falling off her shoulders.

Whoever this girl was, she was not from around here.

"Yes?" he asked.

He noticed her panic-stricken expression for a bit before clearing her throat. "Ummm, uhhh… I want to go to Harajuku… w-what should I do?"

Privately, he wondered why her sentence sounded awkward, but realized quickly that she might be a foreigner.

"Ah. Well, take the Ginza line to Shibuya from here." He said.

At this, she whipped out a small notebook and began jotting down his instructions. "Yes. And then?"

"From there, exit the Metro line and go to the JR line. Ride the train heading for Shinjuku and go down at the first stop. They have announcements in English, so it won't be a problem."

She shook her head. "Ummm… my… uhhh, listening is okay. But speaking is a bit… uhhh… it's very problematic."

"I see." He realized that the girl might be one of those who could read and write, but not speak it properly.

Not that he blamed her. Even he messed up his Japanese at times.

"So it's… Ginza line from Asakusa to Harajuku… then JR… Ummm, JR Yamanote, is it?" at his nod, she muttered something in English that he couldn't quite understand, but he had a feeling that it stemmed from frustration, as it was evident that she was not used to the complex transport system he had been using for most of his life.

"Okay, thank you very much." She bowed awkwardly before rushing to the ticket machines, stopping suddenly as she looked up the fare display above the machines. From the corner of his eye, the silver-haired man noticed her clenching her fist as she looked up at the fare display.

The government kept boasting omotenashi as a positive thing, so he might as well be nice and help her out. Hoping that she wouldn't see him as a creep, he said out loud, "The subway fare is 240 from here to Shibuya. Better if you buy a pass so you can just tap whenever you need to go around."

She turned around to look at him. "… Oh, I see."

"You can buy one from here." He tapped the screen of the ticket machine and tapped the button that said 'English'. "Purchase a Pasmo Card, and you're all set."

She nodded, realizing that Japan had its own version of the EZ Link card back home. "I see. And to top up?"

The guy gave her a questioning look.

"Top up!" she repeated. "Uhhhh… to add uhhh… add money?"

" 'Charge', you mean?" he asked.

Oh, so that's the word they use. Out loud, she nodded.

"You can use the Charge option in the menu." He told her, pointing at the option written in English. He may not speak English, but his reading skills were enough to make out English words. "You can use that."

"I see. Thank you so much again! So sorry for the trouble!" Tsukuyo said, bowing at him in gratitude.

He waved a hand, as if to say it was not a big deal before making his way to the ticket gates, tapping his commuter pass in the process, and heading to the train lines.

He was already running late to his schedule appointment.

"Tsukki! You're here!" Hinowa said, waving at her as she exited the ticket gates of the Harajuku Station. Though she may not look like it, she was beyond exhausted. After arriving at Shibuya, she ran as fast as she could towards the direction of the JR lines, and managed to jump on the Yamanote train bound for Shinjuku before the doors closed. Despite it being one stop away, most of her time was spent in the subway from Asakusa to Shibuya (a good thirty minutes or so), and she was afraid that she wouldn't make it to the time they had agreed on. Her mobile phone was on roaming for emergency purposes, but she did not want to use it frequently.

The last thing she wanted to happen during her vacation was her phone bill going up.

"Hinowa." She hugged the girl. "How are you?"

"I'm good! You look so cute!" the raven-haired girl complimented.

"You look cute too." Tsukuyo said, referring to the girl's outfit, which consisted of a blouse and a dress, plus legging and heels. Unlike the Japanese who preferred to color their hair, Hinowa retained the original color of her hair, though she had it permed to complement her gyaru fashion style. "Is this the current trend in Japan?"

"Kind of, yeah, but I'm not one to fully imitate Shibuya fashion… nor Harajuku fashion." She chuckled.

Tsukuyo smiled. "I know. So, uhh, shall we get going?"

"Oh wait, hold on. I'm so sorry for not telling you… it slipped my mind, but I forgot to tell you that I invited along a friend from way back. You probably don't remember him but—"

"Natsuki." A deep voice behind her said. "Sorry for making you wait."

That voice…!

Stiffly, she cranked her head to the source of the voice…

… and found herself staring at the man who had helped her earlier at Asakusa Station.

"Y-You!" she could not help but exclaim out loud before covering her mouth.

Hinowa turned to her. "Oh, you know him?" as Tsukuyo shook her head, she turned to the perm-haired man, thoroughly confused. "Sakata-kun, you know her?"

"… We met earlier, when she was struggling with the ticket machines." Gintoki shrugged.

"Good, because that would make introductions easier!" Hinowa clapped her hands in glee. "Tsukki, remember Sakata Gintoki-kun? From elementary?"

Suddenly, it dawned upon her as to why the man seemed familiar, though it did not really sink in until Hinowa mentioned the name.

The name of the person whom she thought had no control over her anymore… and yet…

At the mere mention of 'Sakata-kun', her heart began pounding madly from both excitement and nervousness.

As he stood there, her eyes finally took in his appearance. Since childhood, Sakata had always sported a permanently-wavy hairstyle, which had never changed, even until now. If, before, he wore glasses, right now, they were nowhere to be found. Tsukuyo suspected that he may have gotten his eyes fixed, as eye surgeries to correct the vision were cheaper in Japan. Aside from that, he wore a white shirt underneath a dark-colored jacket, and a pair of jeans, which were tucked in inside his black boots.

Who would've thought Sakata Gintoki, her childhood crush, would grow up to be… quite good-looking?

"Crap." She cursed, realizing that she had said her thoughts out loud, though in a language that only she was familiar with. Hinowa was not well-versed in English, nor did that guy so… she was safe. She knew that they did not understand what she had said, for they had no reaction to her earlier remark.

"Sorry about that." She smiled apologetically at Hinowa. "And yes, I… remember him."

"Oh good. He's joining us for today. Hope you don't mind!"

"Oh my god." She said out loud without thinking. Really, where was her brain-to-mouth filter when she needed it the most?

Alarmed, Hinowa asked, "Why? What's wrong?!" if there was one statement that Hinowa understood, it was that. Language barrier or not, it seems as if everyone around the world knew what it meant, even if they were not a fluent speaker of the English language.

"N-No, nothing! L-let's go enjoy today!" laughing nervously, she grabbed the raven-haired girl's arm. "Lead the way!"

She suspected that Hinowa had something to do with this setup, as she was the only one who knew about her feelings for Sakata when they were younger. What her best friend did not know was despite not seeing him nor having any contact with him for a decade, she was still, for some reason, stuck on him.

This was going to be so, so awkward.

Notes:

-The term 'top-up' is indeed used in Singapore, while it's 'Charge' (チャージ) in Japan, hence the lost in translation moment between them.
-Omotenashi means 'the 'selfless desire to take care of others'. It's a service-industry philosophy in Japan wherein the service industry workers treat their customers like kings, regardless of status or nationality.

Thanks for reading!