"Hey, did you hear?" Isanari barged into the doctor's office, finding Maruo packing up his things to organize his desk. "Sensei's going to... cool office." He said, getting distracted by the room.
"I don't recall giving you permission to enter," Maruo said, straightening some papers on the top of his table. "And yes, I already heard from Shimoda." He added, picking up a smaller envelope with an opened seal. "Someone, throw him out."
"Fucking Tsundere..." Isanari grumbled, stomping away and leaving the hospital after sending a text to Shimoda. It was then that he received a text from a completely different person. "Tonight, huh?" He muttered, chuckling to himself as he nearly walked back into the hospital to pester the doctor again.
"It's already next week," Miku said as the light danced around in the tank of fish she was standing beside. She and Fuutarou had gone out that weekend, just the two of them. "The festival, I mean. How are you feeling?"
"Honestly, I'm tired. I've been going around the entire school doing errands because I'm the class representative." Fuutarou groaned, looking at a school of fish as it swam by and broke the rays of light. "Manning two stalls might not have been such a good idea after all..." He sighed, walking around with Miku beside him.
"Well, they're serious about it, isn't that a good thing?" The girl asked as another fish swam by, getting excited and amazed gasps from the other people in attendance. "You'll be busy from now on, right? Feel free to stop by for a bite if you want to relax." With a sly smile, the third sister led the tutor around the aquariums. Fuutarou, though he was staring at the aquatic life that danced around them, seemed to be looking at something else entirely.
"Thanks... The workload is a lot harder to deal with than I expected. Even Yotsuba's close to being overwhelmed by it." Fuutarou walked forward as the two of them happened across a large crowd of people gathering around the penguins. His worried faded away for a moment, his hand pulling his phone out of his pocket and snapping a photo of the penguins as they waddled around, intending to show them to Raiha.
"Yeah. Sometimes I find her sleeping on the couch while still in her uniform. She's been coming home exhausted. I think I heard that she was also helping the drama club with their play." Miku looked over, finding that the penguins were all identical, their status as siblings confirmed by the one holding a microphone. "Something about being the antagonist.
"What? That girl's acting in the play? I... I don't know how that's going to go..." Fuutarou said, weighing all of the evidence of Yotsuba's deception attempts. On one hand, she couldn't lie to save her life the time Fuutarou had an upset stomach; on the other hand, she managed to keep her identity as the girl from six years ago a secret from him until they came home from Kyoto.
"You have a point. If it was Ichika..." Miku said, causing a few seconds of awkward silence between the two of them. He coughed, disrupting the strange aura for a moment as he organized his next sentence.
"Still, the two of us are getting pulled in all directions because the class couldn't decide on one stall. If she misses her call time, I'm counting on you, Miku." Fuutarou said, smirking as more people gathered to watch the penguins. "Anyway, there's something I want to talk to you about." He added as the penguins continued to play.
"I also have something I want to tell you. But you can go first." Miku said, placing her hands on the glass as she leaned forward. Fuutarou wondered if she was listening to him since she was so invested in the birds.
"Alright. I saw your scores on the prospect exam. You got a really good score. Well done." Fuutarou said, looking at her with a smile on his face and expecting one on hers as well. Instead, he found a conflicted look on the third's face.
"Fuutarou." She said, prying her attention away from the animals for a minute. "I..."
"You've come a long way from those scores from when we started. It's been a long road, and I was worried that we weren't going to make it sometimes. But seeing this, and knowing that the others are doing better too... if you were all able to get into a university, then it would all be worthwhile. The lessons I gave will have paid off." Her words reached deaf ears as he continued speaking.
"I'm not going to university," Miku said, catching him off guard. "I've been thinking about it for a long time, and I've finally made up my mind; I've finally built up the courage to tell you. I want to go to a culinary school." She said calmly and clearly. Her eyes burned with intent, resolute and confident. "I don't think that going to university is a bad thing, but I don't want to delay pursuing my dream any further. I've delayed too many things already." Finding his face conflicted, Miku turned her attention toward the penguins again. "Thank you, Fuutarou. I wanted to tell you because you're special to me, but you knew that already." She smiled, shutting her eyes.
"I see... if that's what you want, then I'll support you." He said, though, in the back of his mind, something started creeping around made his gut turn uncomfortably.
"It's your turn now, Fuutarou," Miku said before the penguins started to do a routine for the guests. The two of them enjoyed the rest of their trip to the aquarium, the fish truly taking their minds off of the serious topics they just discussed. Though his mind would wander back to them once they separated and he had to walk home after returning the bike to the cake shop.
"What did she mean by that?" Fuutarou muttered to himself, walking alone in the night before he heard a very familiar voice.
"Alright, the lighting is off. Let's get a better angle. You're getting shaky too, don't forget to breathe."
"Uesugi-senpai. Is this better?"
"Dad? Mutsumi? What are you two doing here?" Fuutarou asked as he approached the two of them. His father was currently looking over Mutsumi's shoulder as the girl held a camera in her hands, supported by her shoulder. In the distance, a single large cut out with a human stood under a street light. "And what is that?"
"Tsubaki-chan asked me to help during the festival. I'm asking Uesugi-sen... I'm asking your dad to help me out with the camera." Mutsumi said, her arms shaking slightly from having to hold something for so long.
"Don't they have something to keep it steady?"
"Sadly, no. Tsubaki-chan took a look at their inventory, so there aren't any gimbals or stabilizers in school." Finally breaking from all the pain in her arm, she changed the way she was holding the camera and handed it off to Isanari, who had multiple cameras in bags slung all over his body.
"Try this one next." Isanari took the camera from her, one that was was clearly made to record video, and placed it into one of the bags. He then opened up a different bag, pulling out an old DSLR camera.
"I haven't seen that in six years..." Fuutarou muttered, leaning against the wall of a nearby building. Mutsumi shot him a strange look before she took a deep breath and took the camera in her grasp for one last endurance test. She lasted for five minutes before her arms gave out again.
"Thanks for the help, Senpai." Mutsumi said, rubbing her shoulder as she walked over to return the camera. She then leaned over, whispering something into Isanari's ear before the two of them took a look at the camera. "That's what I need."
"Hey, why don't you rest at our place for a while, you must be pretty tired." Isanari offered, walking toward the old, rundown restaurant that the family called their home.
"If you're offering..." Mutsumi looked over at Fuutarou, her lips curling in discomfort as thoughts flooded her mind. "Who am I to refuse?" She said, unable to take her eyes off of him for the entire trip.
"What are you doing here?" Fuutarou asked as he opened the door to let the three of them in. Waiting for them in their home, sitting down while having dinner with Raiha, was Itsuki Nakano.
"Yotsuba asked me to give it to you since she nearly forgot about it." Itsuki pulled out a sealed envelope, one that the students and Isanari recognized. "It's an invitation to the school festival. Coupons for free or discounted goods are also included, so they're very handy to keep on you." The fifth sister turned her head slightly, noticing Mutsumi hoving behind the two Uesugi men. "Mutsumi?"
"Oh, I was just asking Uesugi-senpai for some help. It's not important." Mutsumi said before her sister could imagine anything strange.
"We're looking forward to the festival too. By the way, Itsuki-chan, nothing happened?" Isanari asked, getting both Nakano sisters' attention.
"What?"
"It's nothing. Don't mind me." He sighed, walking over to Raiha's side as the girl announced that the curry was ready to eat. The five of them ate quickly, the Uesugi's already somewhat used to having those two girls over, due to events in the past. After dinner, at his father's behest, Fuutarou accompanied the two to the street as they waited for a taxi to take them home.
"Is it okay for you to be doing something like this? I heard about your prospect." Fuutarou said, striking up a conversation to kill the time.
"Give him a break, I was busy today so I couldn't tutor her," Mutsumi said, leaning against the light post while letting out a long sigh. She then narrowed her eyes slightly, placing her hand on her chest to check her pulse as she mulled over her thoughts in silence.
"Even so, I won't give up!" Itsuki chimed in, reaffirming her stance on the matter. "No matter what, I will get into that university. I'm willing to forgo the festival just so I can dedicate myself to my studies." The two sisters heard a sigh from the tutor, who was absentmindedly staring up at the stars.
"I'm counting on you... it'd be a problem if you don't get in." His tone was empty and cold. "Because if you were to fail here, then everything I had done would be meaningless."
"That's not true." Itsuki scolded him sternly. "Would you consider the time you spent with Ichika, who's aiming to become an actress, meaningless? Would you consider the lessons you gave Miku, who was going down the culinary path, meaningless?"
"Life isn't all about academics." The sixth sister walked over to stand beside Itsuki as the two of them looked at the tutor. "We're past the point of teacher and student, we've crossed that line a long time ago. I'm sure that everyone would agree with me." Mutsumi took a step toward him, her eyes looking at him with a gentle kindness but still holding that firmness that her voice also carried.
"I'm sure that none of us would have any regrets. 'I wish I hadn't come to this school' or 'I wish I hadn't met him'" The fifth sister brushed her hair back with her hand as the wind picked up. "I'm sure that we all treasure the time we spent together." The cab arrived and the two girls entered it, leaving Fuutarou alone to think over everything. Miku's words, and what Itsuki and Mutsumi just told him.
"It's my turn now..." He thought to himself as he returned home and turned in for the night. The girls, however, wouldn't be sleeping for a few more hours.
"Dad? What brings you here?" Mutsumi asked, still somewhat sore from her activities. She and Itsuki walked inside to find the doctor with his back toward them, one closed folder resting on the table in front of him; it was filled just enough that it wasn't lying flat. His head was in his hands, clearly in deep thought over what the contents of the document.
"Mutsumi and Itsuki-k... Itsuki. Good evening." Maruo said, not moving a muscle. He picked up the file, placing it under his arm as he stood up to give the girls the table. "There is something I..." He paused, glancing back and forth between them and the folder. "No, nevermind. I'd just like to inform you that I will be attending the festival, though please understand that I may have to leave before the day is over."
"That's... okay..." Mutsumi muttered, her eyes drifting over to the folder. Knowing the doctor, and judging based on his actions, the contents somehow related to them. Mutsumi had half a mind to ask him about it, but the Maruo's hesitation, and ultimately his refusal of divulging the information meant that it was something far too important to talk about with Itsuki around. Maybe he was waiting for all six of them to be together, or maybe he wanted to tell them all individually; whatever the case may be, he kept quiet for a reason, and Mutsumi knew that his reasoning was sound. "Do you want to stay the night? It is your house, after all."
"I..." The doctor glanced at his watch, then his eyes narrowed as he entered a train of deep thought again. "I would like that." He said. Mutsumi offered him her room, asking Itsuki if she'd be okay with sharing a bed that night. The two of them entered the fifth's room, getting in five minutes of studying before switching off the lights and going to bed; Itsuki's scores were getting worse, and Mutsumi's guidance led her down the wrong directions.
A/N: I tend to pair up Itsuki and Mutsumi a lot, don't I? I wasn't really intending it at the start, but it just kinda works. I only realized it today, but it's like how the moon pulls the tides since their names are... anyway.
For the festival, my plan is: I'll do 2 chapters for it, making sure that all of the changes with the other sisters get shown. That way, only the key differences would be shown and the rest would remain the same as the original manga.