"Fukutomi-san came over to apologize?" mumbled Onoda.
"All the way from Hakone?" blurted Naruko.
"And he even brought us steamed buns," grinned Jin.
"That's worth points to you?!" snapped Naruko. Jin huffed.
"But why did he only visit you in September, Makishima-san..?"
"While his seniors were still in charge, Fukutomi's hands were tied, sho," explained Yuusuke. "They didn't even let him see Kinjou at the hospital, so they could pretend Hakone Academy had nothing to do with him. Once they retired and Fukutomi became captain, though, he came over the very next day, sho."
"That's so nice…" Onoda's shoulders relaxed.
"There's something I don't get, though," Naruko folded his arms. "It all ended well, right? Captain Shades agreed to race Fukutomi-san, and Arakita-san became vice-captain, and you even kissed and made up, so why are we having a secret meeting behind their backs, then?"
"Because Kinjou has healed, but Yasutomo's still not over everything that happened, sho," Yuusuke's smile faltered. "He's worked through most of his guilt, and he's been training harder than anyone so we would win this year, but unlike us, his dreams are more complicated, sho."
"What do you mean, Makishima-san?" Onoda furrowed his brow. Yuusuke sighed.
"Remember our dreams from last year, sho?" he began, his expression distant. "Finishing first, green sprinter tags, taking the peak… the three of us tend to set goals that center around us, and if we can't make it, we only have ourselves to blame because we weren't strong enough, sho. But Yasutomo doesn't work that way. He's an assistant to the core, so his dreams revolve around others. To take our ace to the finish line, and then cross it with me.. he can only do that if we survive. He needs us as much as we need him, sho."
Onoda and Naruko exchanged glances. Jin arched his head.
"Kinjou and Arakita are more eager to win than anyone else. Last year, they suffered and lost. Sohoku might have placed higher than before, but to fall just short of the podium was more frustrating than if we had fallen behind. But because of that, they now know the terror of defeat, and hunger for victory like no one else."
He paused. Onoda and Naruko stared at him mesmerized.
"We'd better make sure their dreams come true this year," concluded Jin, and when the first-years nodded gravely, their seniors finally smiled.
END NOTE:
For being such good sports, Yuusuke took out his love token collection and showed Onoda and Naruko his straw engagement ring from the Inter-high. Naruko thought it was kinda weird, and Jin couldn't refrain from muttering "gross couple" under his breath, but Onoda had "relationship goals" written all over his face.
After their visit, the first-years couldn't stop staring at Yasutomo's arms for a while. His second-degree burns healed well and faded with time, but up close, they noticed he had faint zig-zag patterns from his shoulder down to his elbow. Onoda and Naruko later told Sugimoto, who was shocked he didn't spot the scars sooner, being an excellent observer and all. I don't know what Onoda and Naruko expected to hear from him.