Chapter 202: Miku's Wish
The small talk between Sakurai and Nakano Maruo didn't last long.
Sakurai soaked for a while and then left.
Coming out of the bath, at the entrance to the sauna area, he bought a can of coffee milk. Just halfway through drinking it, he saw Nino and Itsuki walking together.
"Sakurai-san?" Itsuki said in surprise.
Even though they knew this family trip coincided with Sakurai Saki's schedule, they didn't expect — it would be at the same hotel.
A trace of surprise also flickered in Nino's eyes.
Clearly, she hadn't predicted this either.
'Maybe… this is fate's guidance?' Nino felt a little lightheaded inside.
Nino: ( ˘͈ ᵕ ˘͈♡)
But that small joy didn't last long.
"I just met your father."
Nino froze.
'Dad?'
Itsuki asked curiously: "What were you two talking about?"
Sakurai didn't answer Itsuki's question directly: "Why did you guys come to Fukuoka? There's nothing fun here."
At most, it's just known for ramen and spicy cod roe mentaiko.
"Why not? The ramen here is really good, we already had some at lunch." Itsuki replied seriously.
Itsuki: (っ>ڡ<ς)
"..."
Sakurai realized—maybe he had misunderstood.
Itsuki probably genuinely liked ramen, which was why she agreed to Nino's suggestion.
This girl is truly obsessed with food, really too into eating. Next time if she gains weight, she better not complain.
As for Nino, Sakurai Saki honestly didn't know what to do with her.
"I wanted to cheer for you. The kendo match is held at the prefectural gymnasium, right? I looked it up." Nino said softly.
'Sneaking around like this, I'm definitely going to get scolded by him.'
(っ,,- ‸ - ,,ς)
She lowered her head slightly, bracing herself for Sakurai Saki's verbal lashing.
Unexpectedly, Sakurai didn't react at all: "Before the knockout rounds, I probably won't be on the field."
He had already made it clear to Daimon Saburou that he found the preliminary rounds boring and had no intention of playing unless they faced a strong opponent.
"Sakurai-san, anyway, we're also students from Shuchiin. Even if you're not competing, isn't it normal for us to cheer for the others?" Itsuki said while glancing at Nino: "Right, Nino?"
Nakano Nino glanced off into the distance: "I guess so."
In matches where Sakurai wasn't participating, to be honest, Nino wasn't interested at all.
She hardly knew any of the other kendo club members.
Nino was exactly the kind of girl who only watched soccer because there were hot guys—only knew one star on the team, clearly not there to watch technique, just simply… to look at faces.
To her, Sakurai was more important than the kendo tournament.
She didn't even understand the rules of kendo, but did that stop her from watching the match? Sorry, that had absolutely nothing to do with it!
"Eh! Nino, don't tell me you joined this family trip just because of Sakurai-san?"
Nino fell silent.
The reason she came, of course, was partly because of her four sisters.
After all, among the five Nakano sisters, she was the one who cared most about family.
But if she said she didn't come because she wanted to see Sakurai Saki… that would be a blatant lie.
While the three were still chatting, footsteps sounded nearby.
"Clack clack~"
Nakano Miku approached, carrying her yukata.
"Saki-kun?"
Her gentle and pleasant voice rang out beside him, and Sakurai turned to look.
Miku walked over to Sakurai and her two sisters, her face full of curiosity.
"Nino's not going in? You guys have been out of the room for a while now—have you been talking with Saki-kun the whole time?" Miku asked softly.
"No, we just… just came out here." Nino replied hesitantly.
"Sakurai-san, when you compete, I'll be cheering for you! Bye bye!" Hearing that, Nino's face flushed red. She quickly blurted out a line, then pushed Itsuki — who still had a face full of question marks — back inside.
(づ>/////<)づ( ╹ -╹)?𖠿
Nino felt so embarrassed she could die inside: 'It's been that long already? I didn't even realize at all…'
Miku didn't follow.
She lifted her head and looked at Sakurai, her gaze gentle as she said: "Saki-kun, on the day the tournament ends, there's going to be a festival nearby. Would you… like to go together?"
Sakurai didn't refuse, but instead asked: "Is this a request using the wish ticket?"
In this recent final exam, he had handed out two tickets to the top two students.
Even if Miku used one wish ticket, she would still have another left, because Nino still owed her one.
"If I don't use the wish ticket… would Saki-kun still go?" Miku lowered her head, speaking softly.
Sakurai thought for a few seconds, then answered honestly: "Probably not."
"Then… I'll use it." Miku said as she took out from the pleated skirt pocket a wish ticket handwritten by Sakurai Saki.
This simple piece of paper could be used to request Sakurai Saki to fulfill a wish — as long as it didn't go against his will.
Sakurai's gaze followed her movements.
Today, the girl was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt, paired with a black pleated skirt, without her usual black stockings.
Probably because it was too hot.
Wearing stockings in the summer—unimaginable. Truly hell.
Sakurai Saki picked up her wish slip and opened his mouth:
"I've received your wish."
"On the evening of July 31st, I'll go to the festival with you."
Upon hearing that, Miku smiled at him, "Umu~."
❀.(*´◡`*)❀
Seeing her smile, Sakurai froze for a moment, only snapping back to reality when she turned and walked into the bathroom.
A quiet kuudere-type girl, rarely showing emotions, suddenly acting like that—yeah, it was a bit shocking.
'This probably counts as a date, right? One guy, one girl, just the two of them.'
Sakurai thought for a few seconds.
'But Miku's feelings toward me aren't as strong as Nino's. Just walking around a festival shouldn't be a problem.'
He tossed the can of coffee milk he was holding into the trash bin, then got ready to head back.
———
The following training sessions weren't anything worth mentioning—just swinging swords and sparring day after day. Yagyuu Munehide, the guy Sakurai had once beaten down, still didn't seem to have accepted it. His personality was exactly like Miyazaki Kazuki—getting beaten and forgetting the pain. Sakurai Saki obviously didn't hold back, and while he was at it, he also dealt with the rest of his opponent's teammates from the same school.
A noob like that being team captain—Sakurai really didn't get it.
If the captain of a top 4 team was only at that level, then this tournament really wasn't worth watching anymore.
On the morning of July 28th, the members of Shuchiin's Kendo Club boarded a bus to the Fukuoka Prefectural Gymnasium to participate in the left-bracket qualifiers.
This had nothing to do with Sakurai. He didn't think he'd be stepping onto the field today.
In the stands, Kojima sat next to Sakurai.
The two of them looked no different from ordinary spectators.
"The Gyokuryuu-ki awards a Combativity Prize. The person who wins the most consecutive matches without losing will be granted the title 'Saigoku Musou' (Peerless of the West)," Kojima said. "Don't you plan on going for it?"
"Aren't you not going either?" Sakurai glanced at him.
We're both from Tokyo.
Even if you earn that Saigoku Musou title, there's no guarantee you'd make it out of the gymnasium alive. Though, I gotta admit, the title sounds pretty damn cool.
"Just so you know, the title has only ever been won by someone from Kyushu or Shikoku."
"Political correctness?"
"Not exactly. Just more of an unspoken rule. But you could try going for it. If you end up becoming a cop, that kind of recognition will open doors for you. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police really likes Kendo—they even have their own Kendo tournament." Kojima tried to egg him on.
"I'm not planning to work at the Tokyo police department." Sakurai glanced down at the Shuchiin team, who were warming up.
Right below them.
Currently, no fewer than 30 Kendo matches were happening simultaneously inside the gymnasium.
The pace at which participants were being eliminated was like a meat grinder—no different from a battlefield. Every few minutes, one school was kicked out of the competition.
Some poor bastards even pulled the jackpot in the opening match—going up against last year's top 8 or even top 4. Pure, concentrated bad luck.
Suddenly, the gym got noticeably noisier.
"Over there—someone got taken down," Sakurai commented.
"That big guy was last year's runner-up. Vice captain of Kyushu Academy's Kendo Club, a school in Kumamoto Prefecture," Kojima provided.
A black mascot suddenly popped into Sakurai's mind.
Honestly, his only impression of Kumamoto Prefecture was Kumamon. Aside from that, he didn't know a damn thing.