In the blink of an eye, 2 days had passed since the Kawasaki incident, so today is Thursday. One more day and it will already be the weekend.
Normally I would be happy about this, but unfortunately for me, Miura had already booked my Saturday, so my precious break will be used as time to be Miura's shopping porter.
I am currently on my way to Kawasaki school as it is my duty to walk her home, although this would not last long because we had agreed that I would keep her company until she recovered. In addition, I was able to observe an improvement in Kawasaki's condition so that it would not take long for her to recover.
Don't get me wrong, it's not that I got on badly with Kawasaki or anything like that. What's more, we got along very well, the times I was able to accompany her, we ended up talking about our younger siblings although we had little discussions about which younger sister was the prettiest.
It was more than obvious that I would always defend that there was no prettier younger sister than Rumi, although this made Kawasaki call me siscon.
Of course, I avoided asking her questions about her friendships since the last experience I had with it, I preferred to avoid that topic of conversation.
Without realizing it, I had already arrived at Kawasaki school, next to the door of her school I could see Kawasaki waiting for me.
Now that I think about it, if I hadn't injured Kawasaki, none of this would have happened, although I wouldn't know whether this was good or bad. Good because I was able to get close to Kawasaki, bad because it caused Kawasaki problems, even though sensei said injuries are something what can happen, I think I'm overthinking it.
"Oh, Tsurumi, you are late"
''I didn't know there was an exact time for my arrival.''
In this little period that we spent together, Kawasaki started teasing me. Until recently, she was a serious and lonely girl, she even seemed like a delinquent., it's not something that can be related to the current Kawasaki. I still have the feeling that there will be some event for Kawasaki to adopt that attitude, since, as I could observe all the time in the academy, Kawasaki is quite friendly with all the students, also in those moments she is quite approachable. What could make her change like this?
"Did someone mention that they would take responsibility, or am I wrong?"
Will you also use my own words against me? I guess I have to be more careful about the things I say.
I couldn't help but sigh at her words. "Okay, you don't have to remind me" I started walking towards Kawasaki's house.
''Cof cof ''
I could hear Kawasaki trying to get my attention.
I decided to turn to look at her. ''Kawasaki?''
Kawasaki proceeded to stretch her arm out. "Aren't you forgetting something?"
To think that Kawasaki would be the one to ask me for support in such a direct way, is not something I thought I would observe.
''I get it''
I proceeded to use my shoulder as support for Kawasaki, although she was no longer limping, so I figured it was no longer necessary, I guess it must still hurt a bit.
The road passed normally, I mean that we were discussing which younger sister was the prettiest, a common topic that two older siblings talk about.
While we were halfway there, Kawasaki's cell phone started making noise.
Kawasaki took out the cell phone and looked at the screen, she looked somewhat surprised for some reason.
"Tsurumi, we can stop for a moment, as it's rare for my mother to call me at this time."
''No problem''
We stopped, Kawasaki leaned against a wall and answered the call.
"Tell me, Kaasan"
...
"I understand, no problem, I'll go pick her up"
...
''Don't worry about it, I already feel a little better.''
...
"Okay, see you later, Kaasan"
That said, Kawasaki kept her cell phone.
"Taishi is busy, so he won't be able to pick up Keika, so I have to go pick her up."
From what I could recall from our conversations, because Kawasaki's ankle was hurt, Taishi would take care of picking up Keika, but it seems that today Taishi would be busy, so the task of picking up Keika would go back to Kawasaki.
''Is the place where you have to pick up your sister far from here?'' I didn't know where Keika was studying, if the place were far enough, we would have to take the train.
"Is near, about 10 minutes from here, although there is still an hour to go."
There was still enough time to accompany Kawasaki to her house, and then I would have to go find her sister after.
''By the way, T-T-Tsurumi'' Kawasaki's words snapped me out of my thoughts.
"Tell me" For some reason, Kawasaki seemed a bit nervous.
''I was wondering if'' It seemed that what Kawasaki was about to say was difficult. ''If you could accompany me to pick up Keika, of course I can't force you or anything, plus maybe you have something to do, I wouldn't want to bother you.'' Kawasaki started waving her arms. '' Better forget what I said.'' She seemed quite sorry for her words.
I couldn't help but laugh, when she behaves this way, it's fun to watch.
"Even if you didn't ask me, I had already thought about accompanying you." I was curious about her younger sister as I couldn't remember what she looked like. Several years have passed since I was born into this world, so I have already forgotten some of the faces of the characters in this story.
My words seemed to surprise Kawasaki.
"Okay" she just answered this, I could see a momentary smile on her face, but it quickly disappeared.
Hence, we began to head towards our new destination.
As we walked, I used my free arm to text Rumi.
Although her response was a simple ''Okay, could you bring some cans of Max Coffee, since they ran out.'' Rumi-chan, could you be more affectionate with your older brother and not treat him like a servant? I guess I'll stop by a store later.
I shouldn't have taught her how to drink that drink, as now that we both drink it, they tend to run out faster, and I have to go buy more at the store.
Putting that issue aside, although Kawasaki had already described her younger sister to me several times, I couldn't remember her, I could only imagine a small version of her, it was quite fun to imagine.
After a few minutes of walking, we arrived at the kindergarten where Keika was, now we would only have to wait, although I would rather do something so as not to get bored.
I could see that there was a restaurant on the corner, I suppose eating would serve to pass the time, and besides, I was a little hungry.
''Hey, Kawasaki, do you want something to eat?'' I pointed in the direction of the restaurant.
"I didn't bring any money with me." Kawasaki looked a bit sad, I guess she didn't think something like that could happen.
For my good luck I always carry money, because if I wanted to buy something, I would like to have the money to do it. Also, I still have some of the money that I got from those students, so it wouldn't affect my savings.
"Don't worry, I invite you"
"Are you sure? I don't want you to spend too much for me."
I would be lying if I said that I were not curious as to why Kawasaki behaves this way, always avoiding wanting to be a burden to others, I could say that this differs quite a bit from how it is originally known.
I can assume it is due to problems at her school due to how she behaved when I asked about her friends. I can dismiss the idea that she was bullied, given her personality and her appearance, so this is out. Even if I try to think of something, I get no answer, I guess this will be a mystery.
''Don't worry about it. Besides, this is some extra money that I got a long time ago, and I originally planned to spend it at a restaurant.''
After convincing Kawasaki, we decided to go to the restaurant.
Upon entering, we were greeted by the waitress.
"Good afternoon, table for two?"
I nodded at her question.
We followed the waitress to a table in the corner.
Once we got to the table, Kawasaki and I sat down.
On the table there were 2 papers and a bell, the latter seemed strange to me.
"These are the dishes available" said the waitress, pointing to the papers. "Once you've decided what to order, you can ring the bell, and I'll come to take the order."
''It's okay''
After the waitress left to serve other customers, I started looking at the menu, there were different dishes, from pasta to burgers, and the price was quite comfortable.
From the appearance of the restaurant, I thought it would be one of those restaurants that charge a lot for small plates, luckily, it did not seem to be the case.
I guess I'll order a burger since I'm not very hungry either.
"Have you decided what to order, Kawasaki?"
"Not yet, there are many dishes on the list that I have never tried, so I wouldn't know what to order."
"Choose for the one that catches your attention the most, after all, trying new things is a part of life"
"If you put it, that way, I guess I'll order pasta with lobster."
Once Kawasaki decided what to order, I rang the bell, after a few seconds the waitress came over and took our order.
"Your plates will be within 10 minutes." After saying this, she left.
It would still be 10 minutes until they bring the food. I can use this time to learn more about Kawasaki, after all, I have some curiosity about certain things.
"Kawasaki, since when do you practice karate?" Mentioning something she would feel confident about would be better.
''What is this question about?'' Kawasaki had a smile on her face.
''Only for curiosity''
''It's not interesting, sure you want to know?''
"We have time until they bring the food, it will also serve to pass the time." I would also like to know how good Kawasaki is at karate, I suppose she will have trained for years.
"I started practicing karate a year ago"
''¡A year ago!?" I couldn't help but raise my voice in surprise.
"Is it that surprising?"
"Considering how good you are, I thought you practiced for a long time, it's a surprise that with only 1 year you are so good at it."
I guess that can be called talent, unlike me, who had to practice for several years to get to the level I am at today. Thinking about it, I suppose it was also influenced by the fact that I practiced a branch that encompasses all fighting styles, and also that I had no talent to achieve it easily.
"You could say I have a talent for it" Kawasaki said proudly. ''Also, I guess he was also influenced by my father who practiced karate since high school.''
I guess she inherits the talent from her father, unlike me, since the only thing I inherit from my father is the hair color. After all, the psychological and logistical capacities are from my previous life, so you could say that apart from somebody's characteristics, I did not inherit anything from my family. It is not that I can do something to change it.
"So, your father motivated you to start practicing karate?"
I could notice that the expression on Kawasaki's face changed for a brief moment, but she quickly reverted to her previous expression. Did she remember something bad?
"You could say yes, I guess I'm grateful to my father." Kawasaki seemed happy to say this.
When I thought about asking her a few more questions, the waitress arrived with our plates.
Since the food came, I think it's time to eat.
"Itadakimasu"
"Itadakimasu"
Kawasaki and I thanked for the food before we started eating.
After we finished eating and paying the bill, we started our way to the nursery where Keika was, after all, the restaurant served to pass the time.
Upon arriving at our destination, I was able to observe several parents who, like us, were also waiting to go home with their children.
After waiting a few minutes, a teacher appeared and began to call the parents by their surnames so that they could pick up their respective children.
When the teacher mentioned Kawasaki's last name, she rushed inside to pick up her younger sister.
Thinking about it, since we entered the restaurant and returned to this place, Kawasaki seemed to have already recovered from her ankle. Now that I remember, this afternoon when we were going from her school to her house, I did not see Kawasaki limping at any time.
I guess she is better now, with that I no longer have the obligation to accompany Kawasaki, it is not that I have not enjoyed her company during these days.
After a few seconds of thinking this, I could see Kawasaki holding a girl identical to her, only in a small version.
"Hey, Tsurumi, I want to introduce you to my little sister, she is Kawasaki Keika." When she finished saying this, she pointed to the girl next to her.
Keika had light blue hair like her older sister and the same eye color as hers, you could say that Keika was a small version of Saki. Just to think that Saki was equal to her age seems funny to me.
I guess I should introduce myself to the small version of Saki.
"Hi, Keika, my name is Tsurumi Raiden, nice to meet you"
When Keika noticed my presence, she proceeded to hide behind Kawasaki's legs.
Either Keika is too shy, or I am too scary, I hope it is the first option.
"Come on, Keika, don't be disrespectful" Kawasaki tried to motivate her younger sister to greet me.
''Don't push her too hard, in her eyes I'm a stranger, so it's normal for her to be a bit shy.'' After all, her sister is only 4 years old, so it's normal.
Kawasaki seemed not to give up on Keika, she whispered a few words to her, and it seems they worked because Keika stopped hiding behind Kawasaki.
"I'm K-Keika, hi" Keika seemed quite nervous saying this, well, it's normal for a girl her age. Rumi at her age could also say a few words, like introducing herself and saying hello. Although I would be the exception since I learned the basic words at a young age and was able to communicate efficiently, I still remember my father's face when I could already speak correctly.
"Nice to meet you, Keika, I hope we get along" Before saying this, I moved a little closer to her while holding out my hand.
She seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then she took my hand, "It's okay, Rachan." Keika said this with a smile.
Rachan, huh?, she used the initials of my name, and then she added the chan to it. Keika is definitely too cute, if she were my little sister right now, I wouldn't hesitate to hug her, although if I did, I'm sure Kawasaki would hit me.
I could see that Kawasaki looked happy for some reason. I guess seeing her younger sister interacting with other people can be interpreted as a good thing for an older sister.
I couldn't help but use my hands as a way to entertain Keika, after all, children are easy to entertain.
''Hey, Tsurumi, how long are you going to keep playing with my sister?'' From Kawasaki's tone of voice, I could interpret that she was a bit jealous.
''Jealous?''
''Huh?! What do you mean by that? Why would I be jealous?''
''Because I get along quite well with your little sister, and maybe I could take her away from you'' I said this in a provocative tone, after all, it's fun to tease Kawasaki.
"As if it were so easy to do it, after all, Keika and I are sisters, we are united by something stronger than simply entertaining her like you."
"Hey, Keika, do you want some candy?"
''¡Yes!''
I took out of my pocket a candy that I had bought at school and gave it to Keika.
"Bribe a child, you are too mature"
"It is not a bribe; it is an incentive"
"Say it however you want, but if you give my sister a piece of candy, don't think it will make you her favorite."
"Kei-chan, do you want me to carry you on my shoulders?" Some years ago, when Rumi was a child, I used to carry her on my shoulders, seeing Keika reminded me of those moments.
''Yes!''
Keika seemed quite excited, I proceeded to carry her and put her on my shoulders.
"You shouldn't underestimate me, Kawasaki, after all, I already had a younger sister, so I know how to take care of them."
Kawasaki seemed quite surprised, I guess she didn't expect that I would befriend her little sister so quickly, although it wasn't that surprising, after all, I already looked after Rumi years ago, so I have experience dealing with little girls.
"Come on, Sachan"
Keika called out to her sister, who seemed to be lost in thought of her.
"Hey, Tsurumi, if my sister gets hurt, don't doubt you're a dead man" Kawasaki's tone was too terrifying.
"Don't worry about it, if I let Keika fall off my shoulders, I would have failed as a super big brother."
"Super big brother?"
"Exactly, that's what sets you apart from me, while you're a big sister, I'm a super big brother.
"That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard." Kawasaki laughed; I couldn't help but laugh at the nonsense I was saying.
The rest of the way to Kawasaki's house passed quickly, before I knew it, we had reached our destination.
"Hey, Kei-chan, we're already at your house"
I carefully held Keika and lowered her from my shoulders.
"Funny" Keika was quite happy, she had the same expression as Rumi did back then back.
Once Keika ran to the door of her house, I knew it was time to go.
"Tsurumi, thank you for today, both for the food and for playing with Keika. She's a bit shy, so it was a surprise that she liked you quickly."
"I guess I have a knack for that." Of course, she could attribute this to having raised Rumi as a baby.
"You know it sounded a bit wrong, right, lolicon"
"Don't interpret my words that way"
Kawasaki seemed happy after our little exchange of words.
I guess I should go home now.
''Rachan, Rachan'' Keika was calling me, while pointing to her door, this could be interpreted as an invitation to enter.
''Keika, Tsurumi also has a home to return to, it would be too much to demand that he spend more time with us''
Keika seemed about to cry after hearing the words of her older sister. Well, it is not that I had many things to do. Besides, there are still a few hours to go to the karate academy.
Before I could say anything, I could hear a voice coming from behind us.
"Nee-chan?"
When I turned to see where the voice was coming from, I could see a high school boy, he had dark gray hair in addition to having turquoise eyes.
"Taishi, you were early, from what Ka-san said, I thought you would be here later."
Keika ran quickly towards her brother's legs. "Tachan"
Taishi began to caress his sister, while responding to Kawasaki.
"I quickly finished the things I had pending, so I was able to leave sooner"
When he finished talking to his sister, Taishi noticed my presence. As far as I can remember regarding what Kawasaki told me, Taishi is the other younger brother of her and is 13 years old.
I guess the right thing to do at this point would be to introduce myself.
"My name is Tsurumi Raiden, I am a partner of your older sister, nice to meet you"
Taishi seemed surprised to hear who he was.
''Are you the one who defeated nee-chan at the academy?''
I guess I'm a little famous here, huh.
"That's right, I was the one who defeated your sister and became number 1 in the academy" I said this with a proud tone, after all, it is not bad to be arrogant sometimes.
"Unbelievable, is it okay if I call you Aniki?"
"Taishi, what do you think you are saying to Tsurumi? Tsurumi, I apologize for my brother. After telling him that someone defeated me at the academy, he was eager to meet that person."
Aniki, huh, I never thought that someone would call me that. After all, I did not have a younger brother to refer to me that way, and since I do not stand out or have friends, there was no reason for them to call me that. I guess being called that made me a little happy.
"Sure, you can do it" I said this while beating my chest as if it was an honor to be called that.
"Hey, Tsurumi, don't play my brother's game, and you, Taishi, doesn't you think it's a bit inappropriate to refer to him that way?"
"Okay, Kawasaki, actually, I like to be referred to that way"
"Don't let it go to your head, Tsurumi" Kawasaki seemed a bit puzzled by the current situation.
''By the way, Aniki, do you want to come in? I want to ask you some questions about karate, after all, Nee-chan refuses to let me practice and doesn't talk to me about it either''
Keika seemed to understand her brother's words, quickly leaned over to my legs and started tugging at my uniform as she pointed to the door of her house.
"I have some time, so I have no reason to reject it."
Keika looked happy, so I let Keika guide me. I could hear Kawasaki sigh.
Upon entering, Keika directed me to the sofa, after taking a seat, Kawasaki took Keika by the hand.
"Tsurumi, I'll go put Keika to bed since she looks pretty tired, while you can wait on the couch."
I nodded at Kawasaki's words.
Although I only know the layout of my own house, I could say that the Kawasaki house was quite normal. I don't mean it in a bad way, as their house felt cosy.
I could see some photos hanging on the wall where 5 people appeared. The two adults must be Kawasaki's parents and the children must be Kawasaki and her siblings.
This photo must have been taken years ago, since Keika was a baby in that photo.
After a few seconds, Taishi appeared and sat next to me, he had changed and was now only wearing a diver.
''Tell me, Aniki, what does it take to be good at karate?''
It seems as if Taishi was very interested in learning karate, but knowing how overprotective Kawasaki can be, she probably doesn't want him to get involved in this as he could get hurt.
''In my experience, all you need to do is push yourself and practice, but if you practice but don't push yourself, you won't achieve anything and vice versa''
"By the way, Taishi, why doesn't your sister want you to practice?" I was curious about this.
"She says it's still too early for me, plus I might hurt myself."
I guess it's okay for Kawasaki to care about her brother, but if she doesn't let him grow up, she'll end up hurting him.
As if it were a call sign, Kawasaki appeared, she was wearing a sweatshirt and a diver.
"Hey, Tsurumi, I hope you don't give Taishi weird ideas"
''Don't worry about it, I'm just saying basic things to him, and it also seems as if you're too overprotective, huh, Brocon.'' I said the latter in a mocking tone. Kawasaki seemed annoyed by my words.
When Kawasaki seemed about to respond to my words, Taishi cut her off.
"You two get along, huh, now I understand why Nee-chan talks about you every time she comes back from the academy."
Hearing this, Kawasaki's face turned red as she looked quite nervous.
"T-T-Taishi what do you think w-what are you saying?" Kawasaki was embarrassed by her brother's recent words.
"But it's true, every time you come back home, you usually talk about how you had fights with Aniki."
"You don't need to say it at this time." Kawasaki seemed quite nervous. I guess finding someone to compete with made her happy.
"It's also thanks to that that I became interested in practicing, since you never used to talk about how you were doing in the academy, but a few weeks ago you started describing your fights with Aniki, and ..."
Before Taishi could finish saying what he was saying, Kawasaki put her hand over Taishi's mouth so that he wouldn't continue speaking.
I couldn't help but laugh at such a situation.
The rest of the time we spent talking about some things about training methods and other things, but Kawasaki made Taishi promise that he would not practice until he was at least 14 years old.
Before I knew it, I had already spent a few hours inside Kawasaki's house, if I didn't come back now, I would be late for the academy.
''Hey, Kawasaki, it's time for me to go''
Hearing this, Kawasaki looked at her watch and realized that we had spent a few hours talking.
''Sorry, Tsurumi, I didn't think we'd be so focused as to forget about the passage of time." Kawasaki seemed a bit regretful.
''Don't worry, it's still early for me''
With that said, I proceeded to head towards the door.
"Aniki, I hope you'll come back another time, so you can give me more advice."
"Don't worry about it, I suppose I could come back another time."
"Hey, Tsurumi, don't just invite yourself to my house"
"Your brother is the one inviting me though." I made a mocking smile, but it doesn't seem to work on Kawasaki.
"So, if you come, at least let me know in advance"
This surprised me, I didn't think Kawasaki would agree so quickly that I could come to her house.
''By the way, Kawasaki, it seems that your ankle is already better, although you should take one more day just as a precaution.''
Kawasaki seemed somewhat sad at my words. After all, the fact that she recovered meant that I no longer had the need to accompany her in the morning or back home.
"You could say yes. I guess I'll take your advice and take one more day, but don't forget, tomorrow I'll have my rematch."
''Don't worry, although the result will be the same.''
After saying goodbye to Kawasaki, I started walking home.
Today's practice was normal as always. Since Kawasaki was recovering from her ankle, I dedicated myself to training alone. After all, both Watanabe and Tanaka did not want to face me, so these days those two became the center of attention, they looked quite happy about it.
Although I could notice something strange about them when I communicated to Sensei that Kawasaki would be returning to the academy tomorrow, given that she already recovered from her injury. Those two seemed somewhat annoyed upon hearing that news.
The academy aside, before I got home, I had to go to a store to buy a pack of Max Coffe since I had forgotten to buy it before.
Today the school classes went normally, I had lunch as usual with Miura, and she also reminded me that tomorrow, I should accompany her to the shopping center, not that I forgot.
After I got home, I greeted Rumi and went to my room to read until it was time to go to the academy.
Half an hour before the time to leave, I received a message on my cell phone. Apparently, Sensei had things to do today, so classes were suspended. Although the message was from Tanaka, it seems that sensei contacted him to take charge of communicating this to all students.
I guess that sets me free for the rest of the day.
Before reading further, I went to look for a can of Max Coffe, but to my surprise, there was not even one left. When I looked in the kitchen, I could see a note that was on the table.
''Onii-chan, today I'm going to have a pajama party with my friends, so I took all the cans of Max Caffe, I'll be back early tomorrow, don't worry, I already told Okasan and she agreed, by the way, don't forget that they are traveling, so they will still be back on Sunday, so don't get in trouble. With love, your little sister''
I guess I'll have to go back to the store to buy more coffee, is the thing that they call big brother responsibility?
After preparing, I went to the store closest to my house. To my bad luck, it was already exhausted, so I had no choice but to go to the other store that was further away from my house.
Rumi-chan, you should at least have left a can for your older brother.
"Aniki?"
A voice took me out of my thoughts, when I turned around, I could see that it was Taishi, he was holding a bag, so I guess he is back from the store.
"Hello, Taishi, what brings you here?"
''I came back from the store. By the way, Aniki, aren't you going to practice today?''
"What do you mean by that?" Didn't Kawasaki tell her brother that we weren't going to have practice today? After all, yesterday, I told them that Kawasaki would be back today.
"Did Kawasaki go to the academy yet?" I guess Tanaka forgot to communicate this to Kawasaki, even though it didn't make sense. I think I'm overthinking it.
"Yeah, Nee-chan came out a bit earlier as she was excited to get back to training." Well, I can't blame her for that, after all, Kawasaki has a lot of fun during practice. Although when she realizes that it is closed, she will surely be disappointed.
I didn't want to worry Taishi with that. I looked at my watch on my wrist as if I hadn't noticed the time.
"You're right, I guess I'm late, so see you later, Taishi''
"See you, Aniki, you better hurry, don't be late"
''Do not worry about it''
Kawasaki will have to come back once she realizes there is no practice today, so I don't have to go to the academy, and I have no way to communicate with her either.
So, I better go to the store and buy a can of Max coffee to come back home.
When Kawasaki was already near the academy, two figures could be seen looking at her.