Hullo Hullo, I just want to say that you guys are awesome for reviewing this story. Doesn't matter what it is; praises, flames, suggestions, critics, I don't discriminate; I love all kinds of reviews, all kinds.
Remember, this is only a fanfiction. No need to get yourself triggered if you find something you don't like. It's as simple as clicking back and never read this story again, if you don't like with what's happening.
Now, the real twist starts here.
"…you…"
Her voice is restrained, threatening to burst.
"Do you know what you've just done?"
But her appearance now betrays her tone. Her tone sounds contained, restrained, as if she's keeping the demons that will escape her mouth if she's lacking in self-control. Fortunately for me, I know that she's fully capable of controlling herself. Her lips are quivering, despite the piercing glare that she's sending my way.
I stared at her with a mixture of… well, a mixture of nothingness in particular. Blankly staring at her seems to be doing nothing but agitating her already thin fuse… which is not a really good thing, mind you.
It's already 6:30. I should've left her alone last night… bringing her back to my place was a mistake.
Now I'm paying for it.
"…no." I said, giving her a hollow shrug of my shoulders. Then, I crossed my arms. "Care to tell me what I just did?"
Her lips fell to a thin, flat line that I thought was rather out of character for her. To me, she's always been reliable and predictable. For once, I'm lost as to what she's thinking, at the moment.
"This… this thing… it's… it's…"
She slams her spoon on my dining table.
"IT'S FREAKING DELICIOUS!"
…there goes the chopsticks…
"It's so delicious I can't even believe that my tongue isn't melting from all the flavors! The saltiness, richness and thickness of the broth… it's perfect… this thing is the only definition of perfection that I'm willing to accept on earth." Yo, yo, calm down, no need to look all serious here.
"Chill down, woman." I advised her while folding my apron so that I could store it inside the cabinet later. "It's just food, no need to get so serious about it…"
I mean, I know that it's good but…
"It's just food?!" It's just food you say?!"
She closes the distance between me and her. And for someone who's not a shinobi, I have to say, it's impressive. She pulls me by my collar, forcing me to stare right into her hazel brown eyes. You're, like, two heads shorter than me so don't be pulling me down like that, girl.
"O-Oi."
"It's not just food, Uzuzu."
God, I forgot she gave me that nickname.
"That… this… this is the food of the Gods! No, it deserves to be more than God's food!" it's amazing how my neighbors are still okay with the constant noise or shouting that comes from my apartment. I don't mean that kind of noise, mind you. Well, not always anyways.
"This is simply perfection! The rich broth, the soft texture of the noodles and… and…!" her voice seems to have gone chirpier as a look of pure bliss melts her face, "the tender, juicy sliced pork bellies… hnnnnnnnnnnnngh!" her body shivers, before she releases a final gasp of satisfaction. "Ramen is the best."
I nodded sagely. "You are a wise disciple, little grasshopper."
"Pfft! Hahaha! You're always funny, Uzuzu."
My face fell. "Don't call me that, please." It won't do much good to my already-rock-bottom reputation. "Call me by my name, dammit."
"Nah!" she sticks her tongue out at me, her left eye closed while her finger pulls down the eyelid of her right one. "I'll call you whatever I want, so, no. Mweeeh!"
I sighed. "Anyway, let's just go back to eating. The food will get cold." I'm hungry too, you know, and it's unfair because you got to do the first bite. I thought we were supposed to be on this together, girl?
"Oh, right! Sorry, sorry! Let's eat again!" I chuckled at how quickly she returns to her seat. As sat on my own chair, she's already slurping her noodles as if it's the only food on the planet. Well, it's not like I can blame her. She has embraced the greatness of ramen, even praising it as something that transcends divinity. "Mwaaaah~! Dis ish swo ghooood!"
Picking up a paper towel from my breast pocket, I leaned forward to dab soup stain from her mouth, chin and cheek.
"H-Hey, Uzuzu! Ahm not a kid!"
"Right, right, but you sure do eat like one." After making sure that there's not a single stain of broth left on her mouth, or around it, I crumpled the paper napkin and threw it into the trashcan that's behind me placed near the wall.
"Oh! Nice throw, Uzuzu!"
"Hm."
I didn't respond to her calling me such annoyance, merely because at this point, I'm getting rather hungry too. As I dig into my ramen, I was filled with that familiar warmth that I always felt whenever I'm eating ramen. Aside from the fact that it's a very good and delicious food, ramen is also the very first real food that I ever tasted. Home cooked ramen, mind you, not instant ones. This and that are two different things. I remembered the memory like it was just yesterday.
Iruka-sensei was the one who treated me to my first ramen and from then onwards, I've been coming back to Ichiraku's every day. So, yeah, if you want to blame someone for my ramen addiction, you can go and blame a dead man.
The saltiness of salt, coupled with the heat that the ginger packs really goes well with the sweetness of freshly minced spring onions. The thickness and richness of the broth comes from the pork bones that took me two days to prepare, and it was definitely worth the wait. Now I know why Teuchi-jiisan and Ayama-nee were so happy whenever I'd slurp my ramen greedily. And now, seeing her doing the same thing that I would do when I was younger brings appreciation and satisfaction to my heart.
"…ey, Uzuzu! You're dozing off!"
I blinked. "Sorry, what was that?" I asked.
She sighs and I can truly sense the disappointment in it. "I was calling you for, like, four times and you're just there staring at your ramen with a faraway look on your face! I know your ramen is delicious, it really is," aww, thank you, sweetie, "but isn't it a bit rude to ignore someone? I mean, we talked about this a long time ago!"
Did we now?
"Oh yeah." I chuckled, closing my eyes for a brief while before opening them again. "Maybe it's because you're calling me with a name that I'm not particularly fine with, did the thought ever occur to you?"
I only said that as a means to tease her, but it seems that her habit of taking my words too far still remains.
"R-Really? O-Oh, I'm sorry… I won't call you that again then, Uzuz- I-I mean, Naruto…"
My teasing smile fades away, replaced by a far more appropriate expression. "I was just kidding, you can call me that." my tone dropped. "But not in public or near the people that I know."
"Eh, why?"
This dummy.
"It's embarrassing." I said flatly. I wasn't gonna lie to her. If I think that it's embarrassing, I'll say that it's embarrassing. "And I'm not 'someone' to you anymore." I stirred the broth with my chopsticks. "I'm just somebody who you used to know, now."
"…"
…gah. Naruto, you idiot. You dumb ass motherfucker, Naruto.
"W-W-What I meant to say is…" I coughed, regaining my composure so that I could explain what I really meant to her. "I don't… want people to misunderstand." I said it as slowly as I could, my voice trying not to sound too sincere or detached. But I doubted that it worked.
"Oh. So… you're seeing someone, Uzuzu?"
Her words come out as a small gasp. I almost missed them.
"No. Romantically, no." my shoulders sagged a little bit. "I realized that having a… proper relationship won't do me any good, not so soon at least." I straightened my back, my voice returning with confidence. "Right now, I'm committed to something else entirely."
"Oh? What is it?"
"…"
…hm.
What… is it…?
What is it that I'm committed to at the moment…?
Time? No, surely, no. I have an eternity worth of time, hell, probably even more.
Pleasure? No. I promised myself to not let earthly pleasure be my main driving force. So that can't be it.
Then… what is it?
Looks like I know what I'll be contemplating about for the next few months or so.
"…" I leaned forward, prompting her to lean forward too, as if she's expecting me to whisper out the answer to her.
"Itai!"
But what she received was not an answer.
You thought it was an answer? Hah! It was me, a finger flick to your forehead! (1)
"That's a secret~"
Thank you for being my instructor, Kakashi-sensei. You're the best. You were a pervert though, but you're one of the best perverts I've ever known.
"Auuu… what's with that cruelty, Uzuzu! Man, you've changed! You used to be quiet, you are still a jerk though, but at least a quiet one!" she exclaims, glaring at me while rubbing her glowing forehead. Oh, I think I flicked her too hard judging by how red the mark that I left is.
My smirk returns. In response to her accusation, I tilted my head whilst resting my chin on an opened palm. "Have I? Well, you're the first person to tell me that."
Still rubbing her forehead, she asks. "Oh, really?"
Well, duh. "You're the only person from my middle school that I still keep in contact with."
"Well duh." She read my mind. "I mean, I was your girlfriend after all."
My spoon stops just a millimeter from getting dipped back into the broth. I looked at her, snorting. "Oh yeah, you were."
"Oi! What's with that nonchalant tone? Man, you're like, twice the jerk that you were, Uzuzu."
Gathering a spoonful of soup, I sipped the pool of broth slowly, but not before winking at her.
"What's with that wink, you're disgusting, creepy, blondie…"
I snorted again.
"You dated this disgusting, creepy blonde, Orimoto, deal with it."
Instead of getting angry, mad or insulted; she merely smiled.
"Yeah, you're right."
Summer break's almost over, in fact, it's more or less over for me.
After the trip to Chiba Village recreation grounds, I've been doing nothing but lounging around town alone with no one to accompany me. the field trip ended right at the middle of summer break, that left me quite some time left before school starts. Ah, but I was not entirely alone, I suppose. My cute little (un)related little sister occasionally visits my apartment from time to time and I also dropped by the publisher's office to meet with the others. You could call them co-workers, I suppose.
So, yeah, ever since Chiba Village ended, my summer break's pretty much the same when it started.
Until Orimoto called.
I did not switch my cell phone number, I still used the same one that I used back in high school, so it's not that weird for her to be able to call me.
But why?
Orimoto… was my girlfriend. Yes, I dated her. I could vividly remember how we ended up dating; it's kind of anticlimactic now that I'm thinking about it.
Oh, shit, I forgot that reminiscing certain events will trigger a flashback scene. Ugh. Carry on.
Four years ago, Naruto, second year of middle school
"Uhm… who are on today's duty schedule?"
This old man… even I remember that and I'm waaaaaaaaaay older than you're supposed to be.
I was sitting on my place, near the window, on the far left edge of the classroom. Cliché, huh? (2)
As usual, no one's willing to answer the teacher's question right away because this generation's just like that. But, in the end, our class representative stood from her seat, answering the teacher's question dutifully.
"Orimoto-san and Uzumaki-san are on today's duty schedule, Kawauchi-sensei."
…damn you, class rep.
I can already hear the whispering starting already. Of course, of course. It's not a secret that my peers… do not have the best opinion about me, because of a particular reason, but it's not like I care about them. And this Orimoto fellow, who's he or she or attack helicopter anyway? (3)
My keen eyes landed on a group of girls, whispering and huddling about a few blocks away from my seat. Three of the four girls are whispering to one of the girls at the same time. Ah, so that's Orimoto. Looks like her friends are warning her about me. I see nothing strange with that.
"Ah, is that so? Then let's begin today's lesson immediately."
Aaaaaaaaaand it's time for me to sleep.
School's ended and I'm just about to leave my classroom, but I was stopped, see.
"Hey, you're Uzumaki Naruto, right?"
I halted my walk. I mean, why couldn't I? Someone, a girl nonetheless, was actually speaking to me. Judging by tone and voice, it's not a teacher.
"So what if I am?" I asked, without turning back to face her.
"Eeeeh? Can't you even face me when you're talking? So rude…"
This time, I turned to face her. "Hmph, you're the rude one here for not introducing yourself first."
Her mouth opens, her face shell-shocked. Then, she laughs.
My smirk drops. "What?"
"Ahahaha! Ahahaha! N-No, it's just, ahahaha!" she's just laughing.
That day, after a very long time, I felt confused. I've always been good in reading people. But I wasn't able to figure out why this girl is laughing at me as if I'd just perform a manzai right in front of her. (4)
"S-Sorry, ahaha… sorry. It's just that, your attitude, it's refreshing." She's stopped her laughing, but the smile on her face is still present as ever.
Refreshing? I fail to understand what she means by that. And even if it was, why laugh?
She walks forward towards me. I noticed that she's not carrying her bag with her. Is she not going home? "Anyway, what are you thinking ditching your responsibilities, mister?"
"I'm sorry, what?"
Her smile turns bossy. "If you're sorry, then go back to class and help me arrange the tables."
Wait… oh. Oh.
She must've noticed the realization on my face.
"Yes, it's me, Orimoto Kaori, the one who you're supposed to help cleaning the classroom with." She says to me in a very sarcastic manner that even I found it detestable.
I already don't like her. She's proven to be annoying.
"Anyway, get back to class, or else I'll go tell sensei that you ditched duties." After giving me one final look with her smile, she waltzes back to class, whistling happily.
I could only stand there, shocked. Surprised.
Perhaps amazed, even.
"…that chick… who does she think she is…" I muttered.
I could've ditched her along with my duty as a duty-student right there by ignoring her threat of telling sensei about my absence. But… something compelled me to stay and return back to class. I didn't know what compelled me that time but I know that it started a very weird, and… unexpected relationship with Orimoto. And when I meant unexpected, I totally meant it. Everyone, at least few of those who did, that were watching us would give the both of us weird looks. Of course, most of their contempt would be directed at me. They were just looking at Orimoto, thinking, why on God's green earth would she associate herself with someone like me.
And before I knew it, she's already a parasite to me.
"Yo, Uzumaki, I'm borrowing your textbook!"
"Uzumaki, I'm gonna be late, tell sensei for me please!"
"Hey, Uzuzu, I'm borrowing some cash. I forgot my wallet. Hehe."
Yeah… her annoyingness level jumped from, like, twenty to a hundred and eleven real quick.
It didn't help that we're in the same class, too. Every time class or homeroom ended, she'd walk over to my table and make conversations with me. And every time she'd do that, everyone would start whispering and talking to themselves. I knew that Orimoto noticed it, but I didn't bring the topic up, if she's fine with it. This continued until mid-semester, and during the start of the second semester, where we'd usually get our new seat arrangements, she became even more annoying because her seat was directly in front of mine.
And then, one day, she asked me out.
"Hey, wanna try dating?"
We were sitting on the bench, watching the soccer club practicing. The sun's about to set, tinting the sky with a beautiful orange and purple-ish hue.
"Sure."
"Oh, you're cool?" I remembered her reaction to my quick and nonchalant reply.
"Why not? I pity the guy you'll date, might as well save him the trouble."
"Ha ha ha. How kind of you, Uzuzu."
"I'll stop being kind if you continue to call me that."
"Heh, like hell. You're just a big softie at heart anyway, I don't know why you're keeping up this 'bad delinquent' type of character."
I remember snorting to her statement. "I'm not keeping a character up. And I'm only a softie when it comes to animals, so don't try to misunderstand things."
"Eh, sure, sure."
"Wow, I can feel the sincerity in your voice, Orimoto."
"Sure, Uzuzu."
And that's how we ended up dating, I guess?
Present
Ah, my middle school life would've made a very interesting work of fiction.
…nah, it'd just be a very shitty and poorly written fanfiction, I'm sure of it.
Anyway, things got awkward after our… 'Break up'. If you could even call it that… but that's a story for another time, I'm not gonna spill my heart out so soon. Especially when the girl's currently lounging on my couch playing her PSP.
Standing and watching her laze around on MY couch in MY apartment, I cannot help but feel a little disappointed. It's as I have another lazy, but cute, little sister who I spoil a little bit too much. But I don't particularly dislike it or anything.
"Haah… don't you have, you know, better things to do other than disturbing the last days of my summer break, Orimoto?" I asked, making sure that my tone is as flat as it could get. "You have friends, right?"
"I do have friends, unlike you, I try to make one." Was that a bite at me? If so, then I feel sorry for you but it wasn't deep enough. "But we'd do this every time, though, right? I'd sit like this on your room, playing handheld console, reading manga or light novels or whatever while you're preparing lunch or dinner or whatever."
When I was still in middle school, I still lived in the orphanage. But it was a nice place and the orphanage mother allowed us to bring our friends home from school. I don't talk much to any of the other orphans back there, simply because most of them were kids who were younger than me. However, I did help around. A lot, even. I'd watch the place when the orphanage was out doing errands, I watched over the brats over there and even did chores. And Orimoto, when we were still dating, would stop by and be like… this.
"Don't put two 'or whatever' in your sentences." I scolded her. "I swear… I'm not sure how you made it to high school with the kind 'a grades you're getting during middle school."
"Oi!" oh, that actually got her off her game. "My grades weren't that hopeless!" she objects rather fiercely.
But unfortunately for her, I dated her long enough for me to know just how bad she did during middle school.
"Oho? This coming from a girl who had to come to school almost every weekend so that she could do some make up tests is sooooo convincing."
"You're a jerk Uzuzuzuzuzuzuzuzu!"
"Now you're the jerk here." my name is not the sound of a phone buzzing.
Bzz!
Oh, speaking of buzzing phones, mine just buzzed a second ago.
Pulling out my phone from my pants' pocket, I looked at the sender ID. Oh, it's Yui. Let's see what she wants.
From: Yui-Yui (づ。◕‿‿◕。)づgahama-yahallo~!
To: Uzumaki Naruto
Re: Please!
Oh God, I forgot how cringey her caller ID is…
Maki! There's a summer festival tonight.
Wanna go there? I wanna buy things for Komachi-chan
since she's been taking care of Sable's these past few days.
And I wanna see the fireworks too, so are you free?
Plz come with me! 。◕‿‿◕。
Uh… now that she's mentioned it… Komachi told me that Yui's been asking her to look after her pet doge, Sable. I guess it's normal for her to want to show her thanks or some kind. Pulling up the keyboard on my phone, I quickly typed her a very quick reply.
K.
What? I said a quick reply, right?
Bzz!
Oh, she replied already?
What's with that reply Maki?!
That's, like, too short! Anyway, meet you in the evening,
see you later on the station!
(^_^)/
That's even quicker than what I just sent!
Sighing, I'm reminded that I would need to get used to a very confusing air-headed girl known as Yuigahama Yui.
And whilst I was texting Yui, Orimoto notices my silence.
"Someone texted you?" she asks, pausing her game.
"Yeah. I'm going out later…" I said, pocketing my phone back. I walked to my TV where my PS4 is also at. Oi, woman, you touched my PS-chan didn't you?
"Oh, with who? A girl?"
"Yeah, actually."
…it's okay, PS-chan, daddy's here…
Hm?
"Orimoto?" I looked back, and noticed that she's dozing off. I figured she'd react more and reply with a snide and Orimoto-like response. "Oi, Orimoto? You're gonna lose that dungeon raid if you're dozing off y' knooooow~?"
"E-Eh what? No, all of my items are rare-wait… I paused my game! What the hell Uzuzuzu, y-you tricked me?!"
"Your fault for not paying attention." I swiftly countered with dash of sass.
"A-Anyway," I can hear the SFX of her game starting again, "so where're you going?"
"To the summer festival."
"Eeeh. You're going to the summer festival with a girl? Wow. So much for not seeing someone at the moment."
Your tone is very dead right there, Orimoto-san.
"Nah, it's not like that." I waved her accusation. Crouching down, I used a nearby towel to brush the dust off my console. "She wants to buy some things from the festival to give to my lil' sister cuz she's been taking care of her dog lately." There, all clean. I gave it a nice pat. "Nothing else, 'rly."
"Heeeeeeeh." She hums. "I forgot you have a little sister…"
Well, now you remember. Well, it's not like it's unreasonable if you forgot, she's not related to me by blood anyway.
I turned around to look at her. I gave her a mean squint.
"Alright, fine, fine. I geddit." She pouts. "Sheesh."
Hm.
"So, who's the girl?"
You don't get it after all! Haah… "She's just a clubmate. We're in the same club."
"You're in a club? What club? The going home club?" (5)
I can sense the mockery in your tone, girl. "No, it's something called the Service Club."
"The Service Club?" she makes a very puzzled face. "What's it like?"
"Just as it sounds."
"Hmm… then, isn't it about time for you to go and meet this clubmate of yours? It's getting pretty late, after all." She says to me, not once leaving her game.
Looking at the clock in my apartment, it's already 4:29, almost evening. Oh, looks like she's taking into account the transportation period too, clever. Unexpected of her.
"You're thinking of something rude, aren't you, Uzuzu?"
"No~thing, I wasn't thinking of any~thing~…"
"…I'mma hit you Uzumaki."
"Heh." Sorry, but we already have a character for that role. "Anyway, I guess you're right. I guess I'll go and take a shower now."
"Uhuh, go do that. I'll… leave when I'm done clearing this dungeon floor."
"Good luck to you then."
Sucks to be you Orimoto, but that dungeon's boss is a level 100 Undead Sorcerer! You won't be able to defeat it until you're at least level 90!
"…she's late."
Or maybe I'm just early.
Glancing at the clock display on my phone, I was able to confirm the time. Again.
"It's… 5:41." I said to no one in particular. Maybe I should've come later? I arrived at exactly 5:00.
The station is crowded with people, mostly girls, dressed in traditional clothing so it's safe to say that the festival will be crowded by the time we get there. I feel no need to describe my state of clothing, but I decided to dress a little more… appropriately for events like this one. Besides, I have enough with people criticizing what I wear. Why? What's wrong with liking orange?!
Pocketing my phone inside my khakis, I tapped the tip of my sneakers like an impatient office worker waiting in line to get their paycheck.
Normally, I'd rather not stand in the middle of the crowd like this, since it'll make it harder for Yui to spot me. But there's a ticket machine behind me, so it's impossible to miss.
"Ah, Maki!"
See?
I saw her ascending from the flight of stairs, coming to full view. The first thing that I paid attention to was immediately her clothing. She's wearing, like most of the young ladies that are present, a yukata. But that's not the only thing. It's orange. Well, light orange, really, but that's like saying orange is actually a darker shade of yellow. It reminds me of tangerines. It has pink flower designs, something which I find suiting for her image. The obi, or sash, tied around her waist to keep her yukata fastened, shares the same color as mom's hair. There's also a small, thin ribbon tied around the sash as decoration. It reminded me of a certain, dear and beloved medic from a distant past. And, oh, she's wearing a neckla-
Ah.
She's… wearing it.
"S-Sorry I'm late Maki, it's crowded and we're not even at the festival yet! He he he…" she must have noticed me staring at her. "W-What's wrong?"
The corner of my lip tugs on itself, I shook my head at her question. "Nothing. It's just… your yukata."
"O-Oh! W-What's wrong with it?" she fidgets around, trying to find anything wrong. "Is it… bad on me?"
"No, no." I shook my again, with more feeling this time. "It's just… it's orange and orange is my favorite color." It's my aura, basically.
She giggles, for some reason.
"Hey, don't diss the orange."
"No, I'm not making fun of you or anything it's just… I can see why." She gestures to my clothing. Except the pants, my clothes, cardigan and shoes have at least orange on them. "Anyway, let's go already, we don't want to be late for the fireworks!" she grabs my wrist without warning and drags me towards the train platform.
"Oi, oi, don't pull, it's not like the festival's going away now."
"But we'll be late!"
You're mistaken, Yui. This is Japan, after all. Though it's not Tokyo, as in the city, not the entire prefecture, the trains here are almost never late. As soon as we reached the platform, the train arrives right on time. We embarked the train along with, like, a hundred other people. The seats are all occupied, so we have to stand. On the way there, naturally, we'd be silent. Japan has this very reserved culture where you don't speak or do anything annoying in public transports, especially trains. But I have no problem with that, in fact, it's one of the few things that I find very… charming about Japan.
You can get drunk in public, as long as you're not driving and causing any trouble. However, that doesn't mean that you should always get drunk and sloshed in public all day. Japanese people respects people's privacy and they expect you to respect theirs in return by not going around and doing stupid shit like sticking your chopsticks into your bowl of rice, playing your MP3 loudly inside the train or NOT slurping your ramen when eating it! Yeah, you heard that right; people actually WANT you to slurp your noodles over here.
Suck it, mom.
"Psst, Yui." I leaned in closer, so that I'm not breaking the iron rule of Japan of not speaking loudly and disturbing others in public transport.
"What is it?"
"I have to pee so, uh, can we like, go to the bathroom first when we arrive at the station?"
"Uwaaah, can't believe that you just said that you have to pee to a girl, Maki… you sure have no tact and a sense of delicacy."
I shrugged. Apparently, I have no tact.
Since the location of the festival's just on the other side of town, it's a pretty quick trip. I couldn't hold my bladder any longer so I immediately search for the toilet.
"If you're looking for the restroom, it's over there, Maki."
"Ah, thanks. Wait here."
"Sure."
I walked quickly, so that I could get this over and done with. I entered the men's restroom and, to my pleasure, it's empty. I used one of the urinals to do my business. After several refreshing seconds later, I washed my hands clean on the sink. Using the hot air dryer quickly, just enough to get the water particles off my skin, I used the sleeves to dry them completely. I went outside and retraced my steps back to Yui, but…
…she's not here.
I looked around. Then, I remembered that it's the 21st century. Bringing out my phone, I dialed her number. I waited on the first ring, the second, the third… the fourth…
Then,
"Ah, M-Maki?"
"Yui? Where are you?"
"I'm coming out of the restroom right now! I decided to go while you're away too."
"Oh, make it quick then."
"Alright."
I hung up. She went to the restroom too, she could've told me… I was worried there for a second. I mean, Yui's, if you take her looks and chest size away, like a child. A big child. She's too gullible to be left alone.
"…why do I have the feeling that you're thinking badly of me, Maki?" ah, there she is. As she walks, she delivers a rather suspicious glare my away.
I brushed her off. "It's nothing, anyway, let's go. I can hear the sound of the festival already." And it's true. The station's close with where the festival's being held, after all. "You don't want to arrive only to find they'd ran out of food, do you?"
"N-No! Of course not! Let's go Maki!"
Sheesh… is food the only thing in this girl's head?
You know what; I won't be surprised if that's the case.
Our walk to the festival is a silent one; we're both occupied with our own stuffs. In Yui's case, it's her phone. She's probably chatting with Yukinoshita at LINE or whatever right now. Me, on the other hand, I'm kind of trying to make myself more… comfortable with how I'm spending my life right now.
Before I joined the Service Club, I don't go to festivals like this one, much less accompanied with a girl like Yui. I don't even have people to talk to outside of Komachi, her mom and those from the publishing company. Even Orimoto, after my broke up with her at the end of my middle school senior year, I don't really keep in contact with her. It was only today that she decided to come and visit my apartment. In all honesty, I don't really know why she decided to visit me after a long time. I mean, we chatted a few times, but only though messages. And the both of us don't even read what the other had to say most of the time.
The reason why Orimoto even came to my apartment earlier today…
'I just want to see you'… she said.
Heh. Normally, anyone with an ex-girlfriend would laugh if they hear their ex say that to them. But due to the circumstances of our break up, I'm fine with it. I let her into my apartment as a friend and, though I kind of regretted letting her mooch off of me, we're chill with each other. It may not make sense.
But hey, so does life.
Orimoto was not the first, and something's telling me that she won't be the last one either.
Whatever I do from now on, I hope that I won't fuck things up.
"Hey Maki, let's go buy some food already!"
This girl is really like a kid, I mean, she's even pulling on my cardigan.
"Hm? And what do you wanna get?" I asked her.
"Hm…? Let's see… ah, I want candied apples! Yeah, candied apples! Let's get some, Maki!"
Candied apples, huh? Can't say I'm too keen on munching on sugar so soon. "Nah, I'll pass. I don't want to start eating sweet things first… guess I'll get mine later. Why don't you get one for yourself now, I'll wait here?"
Suddenly, the excited smile fades away from her face. She retracts her hand back, no longer pulling on my cardigan. "Uuuh… I guess I'll… also buy it later, then."
"…"
"…"
…God… being a nice guy sucks. Sighing, I tried to cheer her mood up a little bit. "Tell you what, Yui, why don't we go grab some cotton candies? Komachi likes those so let's get some for Komachi. In the meantime, why don't we see the other stalls as well?"
"Ah, right! Let's go!"
She drags me off again, this time, I don't really mind it as much as before. Yui's leading me deeper into the festival, where the crowd is thicker and the atmosphere's rowdier. I'm not good with crowds, but I can't say that I hate it either. It makes for a very good escape when you're in a pinch, after all.
"Oh, let's look at that!"
Yui, stop pulling so hard, it'll stretch.
"Eeeeh… what's this?" she's like a five year old seeing a brand new toy, well, that's not too far from the image actually.
I looked at what she's referring too. Ah, it's these. There strings, like a lot of them, tied into a bundle and for every penny you pay, you get to choose and pull on one of the strings to get the prize that's attached to the other end of the string that you chose. See? The prizes are inside the glass box, visible for all to see, making this game all the more tempting. This is not a game, this is a scam. You can't win on this kind of thing, no, no. I can see the devious smile that the vendor's giving us. Unknown to him, the same but a much sinister smile also forms on my face.
I nudged Yui. "You wanna try?"
"Eh, I can? It looks pretty hard though…"
I shrugged. "Just try. Here, I'll even pay for it." I hand my 500 yen coin to the vendor. "Here." I leaned close to the glass box, using my other hand to touch it. Using a teeny weeny bit of chakra, I rearranged the positions of the strings. What I'm doing is the very basic knowledge of puppetry. Combat Puppeteers would use the same method to control their chakra strings as they manipulate their puppets into battle. What I did was similar, except I'm forming a string of chakra, I merely rearranged one of the strings that was tied to a shitty prize to the large, bunny rabbit doll plushy. I chose the string and motioned to Yui.
"Here, pull this."
"Eh, this one? Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I'm feeling lucky even though we haven't visited the shrine yet." I grinned.
"Alright, fine, I'll trust you." and it's not like you get to refuse this or anything anyway, I paid for it after all.
Yui takes the string off my hand and slowly pulls on it. I can see the smile on the vendor's face getting wider by each inch Yui is pulling. My smile remains.
"O-Oh! I got something! I got something!"
"E-Eh… how-I mean, c-congratulations!"
Heh.
After, hesitantly, handing us the wabbit plushy, we left the scene. Of course, the wabbit's all Yui's, since I don't really like rabbits. They remind me of a certain big, bad fox. I exited the stall in total victory, I can hear the vendor muttering things like 'how's it possible and 'but it's rigged' and things like that. Heh, that'll teach him to scam from little kids.
Hm? What's that, I'm being like this even though I'm a jerk?
Well, let's just say that I'm an even bigger jerk than he was. A jerk's jerk, I'm the jerk to the power of two.
Now that she's hugging the plushy, she's no longer holding the edge of my cardigan. We moved on the next two stalls from the one we were before. Unlike the one before, this one does not involve scamming the shit out of customers. However, those with diabetes are guaranteed to get worse if they buy anything from this stall.
It's a cotton candy stall. I told Yui that Komachi likes cotton candy, which she does, so I figured that we should get her one now that there's someone selling them here.
"Ooh! I haven't had these for a while."
I find that unlikely. Considering how active you are in school, I always thought that you're in some sort of never ending state of sugar rush.
"Which one should we get, Maki? The blue one or the pink one?"
Hm… I'm thinking of maids for some reason now. (6) But, meh, any will do. "Meh, any will do."
Yui takes out her purse. "Then I'll get one of each, then." She purchases two cotton candies, one pink and the other blue. She handed the blue one to me. "Here, this is for Komachi-chan."
I took it from her. Then, I took a bite from it.
"E-Eh, you're eating it, Maki?"
"I see nothing wrong with that." I shrugged. "After all, what belongs to the little sister also belongs to the big brother!" (7)
"What are you, Gian?!"
"Nah, I'm more of a Suneo kind 'a guy now. Minus the whole bitching, crying and cowering."
"I can't believe you still remember that show… it's been, like, forever ever since they aired that on TV."
One of the many perks of being an immortal and god-knows-how-old shinobi, Yui.
As we're about to resume our walk to browse the other stalls, a voice stops the both of us.
"Ah, Yui-chan, is that you?"
Yui and I turn around at the same time. To me, I'm just looking at three girls who are disturbing our festival-gourmet scene. But to Yui, she happened to meet her friends at the festival.
"Ah! Sagamin~!"
Yeah, this is the part where I sneak away stealthily to avoid getting any attention.
"Hey, isn't that Uzumaki-kun over there?"
Crap, too late!
Finding myself unable to retreat, I'm forced to return their attention. The three girls are undoubtedly students from our school, since one of them, the one with the gaudy purple hair, just mentioned my name. Due to my loner status, I don't really interact that much with the people around me at school, so I have no freaking clue as to who they are. But it took me on by surprise too. This is the first time somebody I didn't know about much less, approached me outside of the school.
"Yes, he's Uzumaki Naruto from our class." Yui says in my stead, confirming my identity to the three girls.
"Eeeh…" then, the purple haired girl, this Sagamin as Yui called her, smirks. And I don't like it. "What's he doing here with you? Don't tell me…"
Immediately, Yui goes red on the face and she's denying Sagamin's unspoken but not misunderstood words. "N-N-NO! I-IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!"
"Ohohoho? Really?~"
As Yui explains our particular reason for being here, I was giving Sagamin and her two friends a careful look. As Yui's explanation goes on, the sick satisfaction of seeing a 'friend' of theirs in a state of difficulty surfaces immediately. I knew that these girls are nothing more than trouble, both for Yui and me. The looks on their faces are just rich, as in the twisted sense. These types of girls, they're the kind of types that try to make themselves look all good, respectable and admirable in front of others. But on the inside, they're the anti-thesis of their own outwardly façade.
They're fake as fuck.
And I have enough of dealing with fake ass bitches thanks to a certain dead and penis-obsessed painter.
I find myself slowly getting disinterested at the girls', not Yui, attempt of making conversation. They're just reveling in Yui's situation, right now. Stepping forward, I tapped Yui on the shoulder.
"Hey, let's go. The fireworks are about to start."
I could hear them giggling at us. Mocking us.
"A-Ah, sure, I gotta go now Sagamin, everyone." She waves her hands, flashing them a sincere smile. "Bye~!"
I did not have to look back to guess what kind of face that they're making the moment we turn our backs towards them. We resume our walk, visiting different food stalls in order to get the things that Yui wants to give to Komachi. The number of people here are way more than the one further back to the entrance, maybe because the fireworks display is starting, after all?
"Ne… Maki?" in the middle of our walk, I heard Yui's soft voice uttering her nickname for me.
"What is it?"
"Uh… are you… having a good time right now?"
…I have to praise her bravery for asking such questions. If she was a certain violet haired, white eyed princess, she'd fainted right now.
I chuckled, before answering her. "I sure am." I raised the luggage of foods that I'm carrying on both hands. "I mean, who wouldn't have a good time carrying all of these foods, riiiiiiiight~?"
"Y-Y-You don't have to be like that Maki! Here let me carry some! You jerk!"
"You're wrong. I'm the jerk." I flashed my pearly whites proudly.
"Uwaaah you're a degenerate, Maki."
I snorted. "I'm even more surprised that the word 'degenerate' is even in your vocabulary, Yui."
"There you go again with being mean! Idiot Maki, stupid Maki, jerk Maki!"
"The… Jerk Maki."
"…pft."
"…pft."
We share a laugh.
At this point, we've reached a nice spot where we'll be able to see the fireworks and enjoy them fully. This particular place is just by the river banks, so there are quite a lot of people with picnic mats and chairs for them to sit on so that they can enjoy the display. Families are here, couples, friends… yeah, it's turning into a very crowded place in this festive night.
"Hey, let's find another place." I muttered. "I think I'm gonna be sick in this crowd."
"Ah, you don't like crowds after all do you Maki? C'mon, let's go." Now she returns to pulling my arm.
We retreated sideways to a more elevated area than the one before. This place has less people, but I think we both know why. There are chain link borders placed near the hill, looks like this place is VIP's only.
"Whoa… looks like we're not supposed to be here…" Yui mutters while letting go of my hand at the same time. "You gotta be super important in order to be here."
What was that? super important? "I'm, like, super important, Yui. Psh, let's just look at the fireworks from here. It's a better place than the one before."
"Yeah, I guess you're right."
From the distant, we hear something screeching off into the sky, followed by a loud popping sound. Redness and sparks light up the night sky for a brief instant, before eventually disappearing just as it quickly appears.
Ah. Now I know why people like looking at fireworks. Aside from the fact that they could appreciate the fancy and color lights, there's also beauty in watching something as transient as a firework. Though it lasts for no more than several seconds, their beauty is left to be admired for days or even years.
"It's starting!" Yui squeals. Looks like she's looking forward to the fireworks more than food, after all.
"Eeeh, Uzumaki-kun, is that you?"
I flinched.
No.
No, no, no.
This voice…
Yui turns around instantly the moment my name was called, but my reaction was a little bit delayed because I knew who called me.
Standing on the hill right on the VIP's side of the area, Yukinoshita Haruno is waving her hand familiarly over to our direction with a smile on her face. There was a brief gleam in her eyes, but it could just be the fireworks display reflected back at me. Her waving becomes that of a gesturing motion, compelling us to come to where she is.
If it was just me, I'd run away and never look back. But Yui's here and she wants to enjoy the fireworks, so I stepped into the devil's lair.
"Maa, who would've thought that I'd stumble upon you here, Uzumaki-kun?"
"Likewise."
"Moou, you're so cold, Uzumaki-kun."
I do not like Yukinoshita Haruno. While she's definitely not as threatening as Madara, Pain or Kaguya; she triggers that sense of unidentifiable fear in my being. It's hard to describe in words so let me bring out the names of two people in order to get a better grasp of what I'm trying to say.
Basically, she's like Anko-sensei and the Fifth Mizukage combined.
Baa-chan's still scarier than those two, hell she was scarier than Kaguya, but Yukinoshita Haruno is one of those people that I am not comfortable to be nearby with, which is why I'm letting Yui sit in the middle, acting as a barrier between me and the woman. Sorry for using you like this Yui…
"I came here representing my father for some boring family matters that I have to do." She starts off the conversation and she already mentions her family? Wow, what are you, the Capulet's heiress? "I'm glad that you're here, Uzumaki-kun."
Crossing my arms, my vision is focused on the display of explosive colors on the sky in front of me.
It's like the 4th of July, except less beer and more talking.
"I'm afraid I cannot share the same feeling, Yukinoshita-san." I replied with a flat voice.
"Maa, maa, you'll come to like me sooner or later." Why does she sound so confident when she says that? "Anyway, what are the two of you doing here? Are you guys on a-"
"No!" this is the second time Yui denies the possibility of me being on a date with her. Not that she's wrong, though. "We're just here to buy some stuffs for Maki's little sister."
"Oh? You have a little sister, Maki?" Yukinoshita Haruno sounds surprised, but I can tell that it's just an exaggeration.
"Not really." I answered. "She's not my real sister, but I consider her as one. We're close." I don't know why buy my willingness to speak is slowly diminishing the longer I spent my time around this woman.
"Eeeh, can't say I met people who are like that before." Yukinoshita Haruno giggles to the sleeve of her yukata. "But it's nice to see the fireworks from here, right? This is the VIP seats after all."
"Whoa… like celebrity's place?"
"You can say that." Yukinoshita Haruno answers after a fit of giggles. "Our father's job deals with these local government people a lot so I always find myself occupied in such luxuries." She leans in to me, invading Yui's space while doing so. The dangerous glint that I saw on her eyes earlier returned. "You may not be dating, but having an affair is a big no-no, okay Uzumaki-kun?"
"And who am I having an affair with?" I retorted, glancing at her.
"With Yukinoshita-chan of course!" this woman proudly says the name of her sister as if she's bragging about a trophy she won during high school.
"E-Eh?! You're in that kind of r-relationship with Yukinon, Maki?" urrrgh….
"Yui," I slapped my forehead, letting my palm remain there, "the day I date Yukinoshita is the day I confess just how much of a ramen fanatic I am." My voice's as flat as a wall. "Do you even pay attention to how that girl and I talk to each other at school?"
"Eh…" Yui looks up, as if recalling such events. Then, she returns, an awkward smile forming on her face. "I-I guess… yeah, but if you two are dating, I'm sure that your dates would be… interesting. Hahahaha…"
"Interesting." I snorted. "So, a date where you occasionally insult, curse, jab, mock and ridicule your significant other is interesting to you, Yui?" before she could deny, I'm already a step ahead of her. "Wow, you have a very weird fetish Yui, ewwwww~"
"M-M-Maki! Stop bullying me in front of Yukinoshita-san!"
"No way, as your clubmate and resident jerk, I have the rights to bully you whenever, however and in front of whoever I want." With a tone that carries verdict, I said this.
Our interaction elicits a chorus of laughter from Yukinoshita Haruno.
"U-Um…"
"Yes? Uhmm…" the older Yukinoshita makes a face of someone who's trying hard to remember something. "You're… something-gahama-san, right?"
Oi, oi. I mean, I know it's irresistible to bully her, but I just said the first part of her name like a few moments ago. How can you forget it, woman?
"It's Yuigahama."
"Oh right, now I remember."
"Yukinon didn't come with you today?"
It seems that she's itching to ask that question the moment we made our conversation. I mean, I can't blame her. I haven't seen Yukinoshita ever since… the end of the field trip.
"Yukino-chan's probably at home." probably? "I'm the one who usually represents our family on events like this, since I'm the older one." Oh, trying to pull out your superior household position, eh? "Our mother is pretty firm about that. You know, our mother is pretty strong-willed, stubborn in a way. She's scary."
Yeah, I kind of already get that during the first three words about your description of her.
But still, I asked. "Huh? Scarier than Yukinoshita and you?"
"Yeah. She's scarier than me." she smirks.
"Is that even humanly possible? No, on second thought, I don't wanna know." Now I have another person to add into my list of 'people who I definitely should not and will not meet'.
"Hahaha. Yukino-chan? Scary? You're rude, Uzumaki-kun." No, no, I'm just being honest here. "But yes, our mother is someone who forces others into following her. She's that stubborn and strict." Uwaah, I can only imagine what your household is like. "As her daughters, we're forced to negotiate and compromise with her demands. And Yukino-chan is not very good at it."
I smiled.
"Hm… I'm starting to see the pattern here. We have a hard assed mom who micromanages and decide things for their daughter and let me guess, her reason for doing this is because she just wants 'the best' for you two. Next we have a big sister who's concern and care for her little sister are straight up questionable, who's also a manipulative person with the tendency to convince other people with her words and looks. And finally, we have a little sister who's caught up in all of this, incapable of making her own decision, thus forcing her to rely on her older sister and mother's demand to make her life livable?"
It's safe to say that Yukinoshita Haruno is not smiling anymore at that point.
But I still am, though.
"You know, I'd be lying to you if I say that this is my first time dealing with this family or sibling to sibling feud." I sighed. "Well, it's because, this isn't my first time. The last time I got involved in something like this, it caused the death of one of the best and most respected person I know about. So… seeing you here throwing hints, not so subtly I might add, at me about how fragile your household is like raising an ominous flag."
I paused, and despite the fireworks going off in the background, things got awkward.
"Listen, Haruno-san," I made sure to use her name, "I don't like when you misdirect me into a path where you could use me to do things for your selfish gains." I can feel the cold hard look thrown at me from the supposedly older woman. "I do not doubt you for wanting Yukinoshita to be alright, but I'm afraid I must have to disagree with the way you... carry out your plans."
It's like, what, the twentieth firework that they've launched? And it's still loud.
"You're here talking to us, talking to me, cluing me about something that you want done for Yukinoshita. If it is what I think it is, then I admire you. But if it isn't, then I despise you."
My look turned cold.
"Do you know the saying that goes false hope really makes you cynical? Well, it's true."
I can't… for the nerve of this woman…
"If you continue to mislead Yukinoshita in that road you've paved, you'll end up screwing her life over."
Source: me.
I suppose I understand a little bit of what Yukinoshita Haruno is trying to do.
She wants to… help her little sister. She wants to show that she cares, to prove that she cares… but regret and all sorts of past sins are holding her back. That's why she results to this type of approach. She appears to Yukinoshita as a cold, beautiful and all around perfectionist; only showing her care when the moment calls for it. On the other hand, her own personal pride won't allow her to act how she really feels, hindering her from doing what it is that she wants to do.
You, know, it's funny.
A sister who wants to actually help her little sister is actually troubled herself.
Like, does it run in the family or something?
Instead of intensifying her glare like I had thought she'd do, she sighs and her expression mellows out.
For once, I saw her making her a truly helpless expression.
"Then… what should I do?"
If only Yukinoshita is here to hear how helpless her sister is. What's in front of me is not the meddlesome, mischievous or even the sinister heiress of the Yukinoshita name.
She looks no different than your normal big sister who sincerely wants the best for her younger sister.
"You do the things that you know is right… not the things that you think is right."
I felt like that is the best answer that I could give right there.
"Some of us have to run before we could even walk… some even have to fly before they could even run." I said. "But you know what they don't have to do? They don't have to do all of that alone. Yukinoshita… she's… not the most sociable type of kid at school, hell me too, and with her resident reputation of being an Ice Queen, it'll take a lot of effort for her to talk to someone with the pure intention of engaging in a normal conversation. She's not the type of kid who knows how to deal with a lot of people too, so she'll have to get comfortable with me and Yui first before she could even deal with others."
Especially those like Zaimokuza. Brr…
"But you know what; I think that she's… getting there. We're all getting there. If you know Hiratsuka-sensei as well as I think you do, then you know that this whole service club thing is not a mistake. We're on the right path. We are on the right path. You want to do something for your sister. Then go ahead and do it, but don't assume that she'll have to go through it alone. Remember, snowflakes do not fall alone, there are, like, a gazillion others accompanying it."
The roar of applause and cheers erupted from the crowd. The firework display has ended and so do the words that I have to say.
A lone tear slides down Yukinoshita Haruno's porcelain like cheek. She smiles and immediately wipes the tear dry, leaving not a single trace behind.
"Wow. I never thought that you'd actually give me an answer to my woes, Uzumaki-kun. I'm surprised."
Sucks to be you.
"But… thank you." she breathes out. "Thank you, Uzumaki-kun." She smiles.
…god…
"Psh, whatever. It's not like I'm doing it for you." God, I sounded like a generic romcom tsundere right there!
Giggling, Yukinoshita Haruno stands up, dusts off her clothing and smiles. "Well, I guess I'll be going now to avoid traffic."
Yeah, you better do that. I can already see people getting ready to leave. The way back won't be easy.
"Sure, we'll go back on our own." I said, giving Yukinoshita Haruno a knowing look.
"Aww, but I was just about to offer you two a ride back home. It's a limo you know?"
I saw Yui flinch.
And it seems that Yukinoshita Haruno knows why. "Ah, but didn't Yukino-chan tell you anything?"
I opened my mouth. "I see no need to ask her about something that's happened in the past. It was an accident, after all and besides, I'm okay now." I chuckled. "It's not like I died, right?"
For some reason, Yukinoshita Haruno is now frowning. "Moou, really, Uzumaki-kun, you really have no tact." She sighs. "Yuigahama-chan,"
"Y-Yes!"
"Take care of the meanie will you?"
Oi, I can perfectly take care of myself.
"Ah, yes!"
Don't get so enthusiastic, Yui.
"Then, I bid you adieu. Bye~!"
With that said, we returned to our respective methods of transport.
"Ne… Maki, can you… listen to what I have to say for a while?"
After dropping off at the station, I decided to walk Yui home. I mean it's dark and late in the night, I can't just let her walk home alone, right? Even from a jerk's point of view, I still can't allow that.
Walking, the both of us are accompanied by the distant sound of crickets and the starry moonlit sky of Japan. It's a nice night tonight, the warm breeze is definitely something that one could enjoy with a good ol' cup of ramen. Yes, ramen, you heard me right. Right now, we're in the housing area right where Yui lives and it's still quite a few distances away from my apartment, but it's nearer to Komachi's house, though.
I stopped walking when her question reached my ears, tilting my head, I asked. "Oh, sure, but it's getting kind of late… your parents must be worried."
But she shakes her head. "No, it's fine… I'm sure they'll understand. I did tell them that I'll be home rather late, after all." She flashes me a smile of reassurance.
"Sure, but don't blame me if your dad gets mad or something."
"Hahaha, let me worry about that, Maki."
Then, it got awkward.
Great.
I coughed. "Ahem, so what is it that you wanna say?"
She stops fidgeting, her posture becoming as straight as nails. Then, she blushes, stammering. "O-O-Oh, yeah, um… it's… about what you said earlier, to… Yukinoshita-san…"
"To Haruno?"
She nods. She fidgets some more and I'll be honest with you, I could wait here all night, but I'm worried that she'll be home late and her parents will be mad at her or something.
"About… us… the club, you, Yukinon… me… are we… right? A-As in, are we on the right path?" she whispers out, almost begging for me to answer her. "We have had our moments when we'd… y'know, fight and all, a-and especially lately, we haven't been talking to Yukinon that much, but… do you believe that we're not… hopeless?"
"No." I said it with so much conviction I might as well become a lawyer. "Because if this is wrong, then there's no way we'd be talking like this, right?"
I mean, think about it.
"If things didn't work out the way they did, then, I wouldn't have made any effort to try and talking to you or Yukinoshita much less. Sure, there were moments when we… eh… alright who am I kidding with, we threw insults and mock each other's mother like there's no tomorrow but it's probably thanks to those moments too that we're able to be where we are now. It wasn't the smoothest of rides either, I mean, we had to accept a lot of unreasonable requests from people but that's the whole point, isn't it? The Service Club's duty is to lend a helping hand for others… I don't see why we won't get closer after all the things we've been through."
Yes… it was not a mistake.
No, it wasn't.
The only mistake was when I doubted that this whole thing is going to be different. The only mistake that happened was my assumption.
"Ehm… Yui, you okay? You're getting kind of red…" I'm not sure it's healthy… so I leaned forward, and pressed her forehead against mine to get a better feel of her body temperature. "Hm… it's not hot… or anything but…"
Wait, what am I doing?
I pulled back from what I was doing after realizing what I just did.
Stupid Maki, idiot Maki, jerk Maki!
"S-Sorry, Yui, I wasn't thinking!" I raised my hand, pulling the plastic bag with me. "Whenever Komachi would get a cold I'd do that to her so, uh…"
"It's… fine, Maki."
Oh great, whew, I thought she was gonna go all Yukinoshita on my ass.
"B-But that wasn't the only thing I want to talk about."
Hm?
"You see, Maki, I-I-I… I…"
"Because, I love you, Naruto-kun."
"Because that's… my ninja way…"
Ah.
Ah…
…
"Yu-"
BZZZZZZZZZZZ
The both of us stares at the purse that Yui's carrying herself. Thankfully, I was the one to snap out of our trance. "You're not gonna answer that?"
She looks conflicted.
I'm sorry, Yui.
"Ah, I guess I should." She smiles. "Hello? Ah, mama?" okay, that's cute. "I'm just a few blocks away, I'll get back soon. N-No, it's fine, I'll walk! Sheesh… yeah I'll get back soon, I'm okay mama… okay… bye."
Lowering her phone from her ears, Yui pockets it back inside her purse. "M-Maki, I-"
BZZ BZZ BZZ!
Hm?
Well… isn't this strange?
Pulling out my phone, I checked the caller's ID.
Ori…moto?
I gestured my phone. "Do you mind if I…"
"Ah, sure!"
"Kay."
I picked up.
"Hello?"
"Uzumaki?"
"Yeah, it's me. What're you doing calling so late at night?"
"No, I just want to call you. Is there a problem? Oh, are you still on your date?"
"…no… I'm just about done here. What do you want?"
"…nothing, I just want to tell you… eh… good night."
"Uhm. Good night."
I hung up. "Sorry about that Yui but it's getting late. Could we talk again tomorrow?"
She shakes her head, smiling. "It's okay, it's getting late and mama's worried too." she says. "It should be fine from here, Maki. I can walk back on my own."
"Okay." I cannot say anything else here. "Then… see you tomorrow?"
"See you tomorrow, Maki. Don't forget to attend club, tomorrow!"
"Sure." I smiled, before scolding her. "And keep your voice down, you're disturbing your neighbor."
We share a small laugh before eventually parting ways.
Words could not express how bad I'm feeling right now.
It's bad enough that I just vented off to Yukinoshita's older sister earlier at the festival and now I just stopped a girl from doing the obvious.
Yui… why Yui, why?
What's there to like from this stupid, idiotic, and jerk of a man?
I'm not… dumb, but I sometime question that myself, and I most definitely knew what Yui was going to do back then. Why did I stop her? I mean, if she confesses to me, I'd have no problem with hearing what she has to say… so, why did I stop her? I could've brought up back the topic as easily as that phone call disturbed it… even after Orimoto's call, I could've still brought it up.
So why didn't I?
Gaaaaaah! Yuigahama Yui, I take back what I said about you, you're one of the most troublesome and confusing woman I've ever known.
I walked off the area and took a sharp left turn into an alley. As soon as I'm inside, with a careful and small spike of chakra, I can feel my body getting lighter and the next thing I knew, I'm inside another alleyway near my apartment block. I could've just transported inside my room, but there're security cameras checking for surveillance. If they checked the recording, they'll notice that something's wrong.
With a swipe of my keycard, I was able to unlock the gate to the apartment complex. I entered the lobby and through the use of my keycard, I took the elevator ride to my floor. Since this is a luxury apartment, each resident has a floor of their own so I when I said I'm taking a ride to my floor, I really meant my floor.
With a trademarked 'ding', the door slides open and I walked to my door. Swiping my keycard on the thingie on the side of my door, I entered my house, dropped the food on the floor and then jumping straight for my couch.
I lay there, staring at the ceiling.
…
…
"Ah, the food for Komachi!"
I didn't get much sleep, and it didn't help the fact that I had to wake up early in order to give Komachi the food she ordered. She told me not to worry about it since she could just heat up the warm food in the microwave. Thank you my (un)related little sister for being such a forgiving person. Your big brother loves you.
Anyway, the ride to school is as boring as ever. I mean, it'd be nicer if I'm riding a motorcycle but Japanese law does not allow teenagers under the age of eighteen to drive motor vehicles. And as an immortal who's posing as a high school student whose alleged age is sixteen years old, driving a motorcycle legally is not something that I'll be doing anytime soon.
Legally.
But that's not really a major concern or anything. What's concerning was last's night even, yesterday. I had a reunion with Orimoto, went on a date with Yui, met with one of the few people that I don't really feel comfortable to be around with and nearly got confessed to. Boy, any normal teenage boys would kill to be in my position. Heh, too bad they can't kill me.
Cuz they'd be dead first.
The bags underneath my eyes are the proof of my sleepless night. After what Yui just pulled, I could not sleep. My mind kept on thinking, going on autopilot searching for an answer to my dilemma. Why did Yui try to confess to me? Is she doing this out of pity? Is she doing this because I saved her dog's life last time? No… we got over that. We sorted that out, so that can't be it. And not to mention, there was also the thing with Yukinoshita Haruno. God that woman is something else. The… 'advice' that I gave her was probably not the best answer for her, but it was for me. Anyway, it's up to her whether or not she wants to take it. I did my part of saying what I know was the right thing to say at that moment… but right now, I couldn't help but feel slightly nervous.
"Uzumaki-kun."
Aaaand here's the reason why I'm nervous on the flesh.
Looking up, Yukinoshita's looking down at me from the top of the staircase. She still has that cold, hard look on face.
God I missed it.
Smiling, I crossed my arms.
"Good morning, did Haruno-san say anything to you last night?"
Her eyes widen in surprise, but not as much as I thought they would. "Nothing much, other than the fact that you're a scary person and that I should be wary whenever I'm around with you." she holds to the straps of her bag, fastening it better. "Of course, I already knew that so I ignored her advice."
I shook my head.
"It's good to have you back, Yukinoshita."
She looks surprised, but I only smiled.
"If you don't want to talk about it, then I won't ask you. But don't hesitate to speak with me either."
I walked up the stairs, moving past her.
"Thank you… Uzumaki-kun."
I'd answer her if it was not for me suddenly fainting and then falling down the stairs.
1: KONO DIO DA!
2: Classic anime/manga trope about main protagonists always sitting near the window.
3: I don't discriminate. If you sexually identify yourself as an attack helicopter, then who am I to change that?
4: Manzai is basically Japanese stand-up comedy with a Boke and a Tsukkomi, the joker and the straight man respectively. Search for Downtown Gaki no Tsukai! They're my favorite, personally.
5: Basically, if you're a member of the going home club, you're not involved in a particular club or whatsoever.
6: Reference to Rem and Ram from Re:Zero. Hmm… now what other franchise should I destroy?
7: Reference to Doraemon.
This chapter is the beginning of the vital changes that will soon be happening in this story. And changes will happen. You may not like it and I completely understand if you dropped this story. I introduced Orimoto so early into the story, but I have plans for her. So expect more drama from now on.
