As he and Seiko broke off from their hug, Yoshiro saw Sonosuke and Ruruka coming back with the food they ordered. Sonosuke handed over a cup of strong coffee to him, and also his plate of freshly cooked scrambled eggs and bacon. He savored the wonderful smell before eating it up. It's been a while since he's had this. Ah, it tastes just as good as I remembered it, he thought.

He looked across the table and saw Ruruka holding a frappuccino in her hand. He was surprised at the large stack of waffles (with whipped cream on top) on the plate in front of her. I didn't know Ruruka had that kind of appetite, if I'm being honest, Yoshiro thought.

She then took her fork and knife and began cutting up a few waffle pieces. She took a maple syrup bottle on the table and began pouring syrup on her waffles. Ruruka then turned her attention over to Sonosuke. "Hey, Yoi-Yoi, say ah," she told him. She took a small waffle piece with her fork and began to feed him. Sonosuke smiled as he let his girlfriend feed him. Okay, not what I expected, but… I'll admit, this is actually pretty cute.

Yoshiro went back and finished up the rest of his food, and then moved on to drinking coffee. Strong, not too bitter, but mostly refreshing. Ah...that really hits the spot, he thought. That's what I needed.

"So, why don't you tell us a little about yourself, Yoshiro?", Ruruka asked, mumbling as she took a bite from her waffles. "You know, all this time, you've been asking about us, but you haven't told us much about yourself yet."

"Oh...uh, sure. All you had to do was ask," he told her. "What exactly do you want to know? How I got here? What I do with my talent? Give me some specifics here."

"Sure, why not? Didn't your talent involve, oh, I don't know, deep sea diving, was it?", Ruruka asked.

"Eh...close. I specialize in marine biology. My talent involves me studying marine life and organisms, and how they interact with their environment. Although I often have to travel to the ocean to perform my studies," Yoshiro told them.

"What kind of sea creatures have you seen? Any sharks or anything like that?", Seiko asked him.

"Sharks, not so much. I tend to stay away from the larger predatory sharks in my research. But I did see many other sea creatures, though. There was one time I swam alongside a green sea turtle off the Gulf of Mexico, I also got to witness a pod of dolphins, even a manta ray. I could keep going for who knows how long," he told them.

"So how do you put that talent to use here at Hope's Peak?", Ruruka asked.

"That was an issue for a couple of months. When I first got here, I had to go to the local aquarium to perform my research. It wasn't exactly the best experience at the time. After a while, the school was able to approve of me going on diving expeditions near the ocean region. That was much better for my talent. Researching marine life in the wild is much more relaxing than studying them in tanks," Yoshiro said.

"I would suspect that. Getting to witness them, out in their natural habitat, interacting with their free range, all while not being trapped in a tank. Must be a unique experience going out into the ocean, isn't it?", Seiko told him. "I've never really been to the ocean before, Yoshiro. What's it like there?"

"Depends on where you're going. If you visit the ocean during the summer time when it's warm, the water feels absolutely wonderful. And depending on the shore you go to as well. I mean, I'm not sure how you would feel if you went to swim in the ocean, Seiko."

"Sounds like you have quite the experience under the sea," Sonosuke remarked, finishing up the last of his coffee.

"You could definitely say that, I guess," he told him. "Say, if we're on the topic of discussing each other's talents, how about you tell me a bit more about yours, Sonosuke? I've barely heard anything from you this entire time."

He looked at him with an irritated glance and crossed his arms. "I'm not exactly the talkative type, Yoshiro. You should know that."

"Come on, Yoi-Yoi, you can tell him. He's not trying to antagonize you or anything. He just wants to know more about you. Besides, your talent's history is very interesting!" Ruruka told him, giving him a head pat. Sonosuke sighed and cleared his throat.

"Fine. You already know I'm the Ultimate Blacksmith. But what you don't know is the history behind it. I'm a descendant of the Izayoi Clan. In case you aren't aware, my family bloodline is known as one of the most infamous blacksmith families in the nation. For generations, my ancestors specialized in top-notch weapon and armor forgery. In fact, our bloodline dates back to the Tokugawa period. That's when we specialized in feudal military weaponry the most. From samurai armor to shurikens, we've been able to create all kinds of blades," Sonosuke told him.

"The blacksmith tradition mantel has been passed down generation after generation. And when it was my turn to take upon my family's sacred tradition, I learned all that I needed to know about blacksmithing. Years of experience and hard forgery taught me that. But it's not just an ordinary family of blacksmiths. We have a strict oath that all of our clan must follow."

"An oath? What kind of oath are you talking about?", he asked him. Yoshiro was already interested in hearing more. He knew Sonosuke looked cool and could make awesome weapons, but he had no idea that he possessed such an intriguing family legacy.

"Once each member of the clan comes of age, we swear an oath to never wield any inferior weapons", he told him.

"Inferior weapons?"

Sonosuke pulled out a kunai from his coat and showed it to Yoshiro. "You see this? I can wield this weapon because I hand-crafted it myself. There is no honor in a blacksmith who uses weapons such as guns, grenades, or firearms. Our clan swore an oath to never wield a weapon that we haven't forged ourselves. That's why I keep these weapons in my coat at all times."

"And what happens if you break that oath?", Yoshiro asked out of curiosity. Sonosuke then looked at him as if he was going to kill him right where he stood.

"Should any Izayoi clan member break the sacred oath, they shall have no choice but to face the wrath of the Oni and be cast down into the depths of Jigoku," he said very dramatically. It gave both Yoshiro and Seiko chills. Ruruka didn't seem to be phased by it, though. She had already heard the story many times before.

"Wow...I never knew there was so much to your talent, Sonosuke. That's pretty amazing, actually."

"Damn straight," he told him, before finishing up his plate of waffles. Meanwhile, Ruruka began drinking her frappuccino, but she didn't seem satisfied with it.

"Meh, not enough caffeine in this to get me going," she grumbled as she placed it back on the table. "Hey, gal pal, you mind mixing me up some more caffeine into this? I'm feeling tired, and I really need to get going already."

"Ruruka, no. That coffee already has enough caffeine in it. If I gave you more, you would feel even worse than you do right now. Give it a moment to get into your system first," Seiko told her.

"Ugh...fine...", Ruruka grumbled, before resuming to drink her coffee. Yoshiro was also busy finishing up the rest of his scrambled eggs and bacon. For the next several ten or fifteen minutes, he and his friends began to finish their meal, while Seiko looked around the cafe and at him from time to time. Today's going pretty well for the most part so far, Yoshiro thought. Wonder what'll come next.

Sonosuke stood up and stretched for a bit. "I don't know about you, but I'm getting a little bored sitting around here. How about we finish up quickly and go somewhere a little more fresh?"

"Well, there is a nature park not too far from here. We can take a walk there. It would certainly be more enjoyable than sitting around here all afternoon," Ruruka told him. "There's a pathway with dozens of blooming cherry blossom trees that'll look absolutely beautiful. Besides, we'll have much more room to walk around together. What do you two think?" She looked directly at Yoshiro and Seiko when she asked that last question.

"Cherry blossoms...that would be delightful," Seiko said in a happy tone. "Would you enjoy that too, Yoshiro?"

Well, I haven't exactly gotten much of a chance to explore the city with all my work at Hope's Peak before, he thought. I think this could definitely work out. A walk through nature is probably what I need, anyway. I haven't been getting outside much in the past two weeks, anyway. "Yeah, I don't mind that at all."

"Alright then, let's finish up and get going then," Ruruka said, getting up from her seat, taking her frappuccino and grabbing Sonosuke by the arm. Seiko took the little treat box with chocolate with her. Yoshiro walked out with his friends out of the cafe and out into the city again.

*************(Approximately 20 minutes of walking later)********

It took a while, but Ruruka and Sonosuke lead him and Seiko through the city to Kamine Park. In front of them, there was a long, straight grey brick pathway that extended through the park. One each side of the path, there were large, oddly shaped trees that towered over the group, as well as short boxwood trimmed shrubs. Each tree was covered in light pink, luscious cherry blossoms that seemed to fill the park with life, and Yoshiro with amazement. He hasn't seen these kinds of trees before, so this was new to him.

Ruruka and Sonosuke lead the way, holding hands as they walked through the park. Yoshiro and Seiko tagged along behind them closely. He saw Ruruka rest her head against Sonosuke's shoulder. No matter where those two go, they're practically inseparable, he thought. He took the time to admire the scenery of this colorful park. The colorful pink tree blossoms, the wonderful melody of birds singing in-

Yoshiro unknowingly bumped into Seiko as he was distracted by the surroundings. He didn't knock her down or anything, but she did get startled from it.

"I'm so sorry, Seiko! I wasn't paying attention to where I was going!"

"Yes...I could tell that," she said plainly. She looked kind of annoyed that he wasn't looking where he was going. "What do you think of the park?"

"I'd say it looks...very scenic, I'll give it that. Sorry, I really don't know what to say right now," he told her.

Seiko then nudged his shoulder and handed over the little treat box into his hands. "Would you like to try your treat now?", she asked.

"Oh, sure! I almost forgot about that!", he told her. Yoshiro took out the peppermint bark and took a large bite out of it. Seiko stood beside him, seemingly waiting to see his reaction. Neither of them noticed the naughty smile that Ruruka made as she watched him eat it.

Immediately, he felt the intense flavor in his mouth, as he tried to make sense of how delicious this treat was. Yoshiro started feeling very weird. He felt strangely happy, but more happy than usual, and also felt unusually floaty and light-headed. It felt as if his brain was trying to process a million different things at once. It was drowsy.

"S-so, d-d-do you like it?", Seiko asked nervously. As soon as he set his eyes on her, he started to feel something else inside of his conscience. That drowsiness now turned into something like an irresistible urge. He felt drawn to Seiko. Just by looking at her, he couldn't help get his eyes off of her. He just wanted to look at her, to do whatever she wanted him to do, to listen to whatever she told him to do...

"It's amazing, Seiko. This is the best chocolate I've ever had" Yoshiro managed to say. She really knows how to make a scrumptious treat, he thought. He could see a spark of joy light up in Seiko's eyes as he said that. Yoshiro could see she was slightly blushing.

"A-ah, thank you! I'm really happy you enjoyed it, Yoshiro!", she said happily. He felt something different inside. Something in Seiko's voice, the wonderful way it sounded to his ears, made him want to listen to her more. It almost felt like music to his ears. What is this that I'm feeling? This can't be love, can it? I've only gotten to know Seiko for a few days already. What the hell is going on with my brain?

He wondered what was going on. I wasn't feeling like this at all in the cafeteria. Wait...was there something in that chocolate? No! Seiko wouldn't do something like that, would she? Why would she even do that?

"Uh, Yoshiro, are you alright? You seem to be spacing out again," Seiko asked. The questions in his mind disappeared when he heard her again. He was too entranced to think about it. In fact, he didn't even notice that he almost wrapped his arms around her.

"Is there something wrong, Yoshiro? You're acting...more out of place than usual," she told him as she tried to look at his face. She noticed that his pupils were dilated, almost as if he overdosed on drugs. This doesn't look normal at all, she thought. I'd better give him an antidote fast. She didn't understand what was happening to him.

*To be continued next chapter...*

P.S. - If you have any suggestions for what you'd like to see in a later chapter, (ex: smut, fluff, wholesome, etc.), please let me know.

All credit to that part about Sonosuke's backstory goes to Crestfallen_Vanity on Wattpad.