Seeing his confident expression, Shizuka didn't offer any words of discouragement or encouragement, like "You'll definitely pass." Instead, she silently shifted her gaze to the TV.
A few minutes passed.
After checking to make sure nothing was missing, Tsuna closed his notebook and said to Shizuka, who was absorbed in watching a TV series, "Mom, I'm going back to my room."
Shizuka waved him off impatiently.
Seeing this, Tsuna said nothing more and obediently went upstairs with his notebook. Japanese light novels typically have between 40,000 and 100,000 words per volume, with an average of around 60,000 to 80,000.
When the original Japanese version is translated into Chinese, the word count typically increases by about 150% to 200%.
For example, 50,000 words in Japanese becomes about 75,000 to 100,000 words in Chinese. This is due to differences in the proportion of Chinese characters and grammatical structure.
The first volume of "Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day" he wrote also had only 50,000 words and took about four days to complete. For the first three days, Shouko was by his side, watching him write.
Early this morning, Shouko was invited out shopping by Takagi and Ajitani.
Tsuna had originally considered giving up his writing and following, worried about Shouko's period, but Takagi and Ajitani both waved them off, promising to bring Shouko back safely.
Tsuna said she was fine and her stomach didn't feel any pain.
He finally gave up the idea and asked them to look after her. After watching them leave, he went back to the living room to write.
Back in his room, Tsuna tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep.
He had no interest in the games on his laptop. When he first got it, he'd studied them intently.
Then he realized they were just some card-based, turn-based, anime-themed games. As for the League of Legends games from his past life, there were none.
"Forget it! Let's go out and play." He suddenly sat up in bed, picked up the phone on the nightstand, and called someone.
"Beep...beep...beep..."
After about ten seconds, the call was connected, and a clear, puzzled voice came from the other end: "Hello? Who is this?"
"It's me, Shin-chan. Can you come out and play?" Tsuna leaned back and lay back on the bed.
"Unfortunately, I have a date with Ai today."
"Well—"
Tsuna was interrupted by Shin-chan on the other end of the line before he could finish his sentence: "But if you're in a hurry, I can tell her I'm busy today and make an appointment tomorrow."
Tsuna was touched by this. His brother would rather cancel a date with a rich woman for him.
"No, no, you and Ai have a good date. I'm hanging up first."
"No—"
Tsuna decisively hung up the phone before Shin-chan could finish his words.
After hanging up, Tsuna stared at the ceiling for a long moment before calling the next person, but the answer he got was always busy.
Masao was on his way to find Bo-chan, and Another had to help his sister run the store and couldn't get away for the time being.
As for Kazama, the call was not connected. He guessed that the other party was probably in cram school and his phone was on silent mode.
As for Nene, Chika, and Miu, he said that he was not that crazy yet.
Tsuna looked at the number interface and found that there seemed to be a clown just now, but he didn't say who it was.
In the end, there was only one candidate left, and without hesitation, he called decisively.
"Miyamura? What's wrong?" The other party answered immediately.
Tsuna was very confused when he heard the panting voice coming from the other end of the phone, but he didn't ask too much.
"Nishikata, do you have any plans today? Do you want to go out and play?"
"I'm doing push-ups. There are about ten left. Where are we going to play?"
"I don't know. Let's talk when we get out."
"Okay."
"Then let's meet at school."
"Yeah."
Tsuna hung up the phone, got up, went downstairs, said something to Shizuka, then changed into his outdoor shoes at the entrance, opened the door, and headed for the meeting place.
---
"Miyamura, where are you going?"
"Are you planning anywhere?"
Tsuna had just reached the school gate when Nishikata arrived. The two spoke in unison.
"How about we take the subway to Akihabara?" The two stood there, thinking for a moment, before Naoto suggested.
"Akihabara?" Tsuna had heard of it, but he hadn't been there in over a decade, so he hesitated...
"Yeah, I looked at the map before. Just take the Hibiya Line. It'll be there in about twenty minutes. What do you think?"
Nishikata pulled his phone from his pocket and showed Tsuna the route he'd marked on the map.
"Okay, let's go." Tsuna nodded. Looking at him, with his backpack on his back, he must have been prepared.
Nishikata's face lit up at the sight, and the two of them continued chatting as they walked towards the subway.
He'd wanted to go there for a while, but he'd never been able to find company, and he felt shy about going alone.
As for Tsuna, he'd had some prior knowledge.
Akihabara wasn't just a "holy land of otaku culture" but also a microcosm of Tokyo's diverse culture.
Whether it was buying the latest electronics, hunting for used comics, or experiencing the unique atmosphere of a maid cafe, there was something for everyone.
However, due to the lack of famous light novels, manga, and anime, Akihabara wasn't as famous as it had sounded in his previous life.
But what was missing was surely made up for by something else. It was, of course, a paradise for otakus and geeks.
It would be nice to go with Nishikata this time, and if possible, experience a maid cafe...
---
As the subway chimed, the two exited and followed the sign overhead towards Exit A. A few steps later, they saw the gates not far away.
Tsuna watched as rows of office workers and tourists, like precisely choreographed gears, swiftly and orderly swiped their cards to exit the station.
The clatter of leather shoes and high heels mingled with the station announcement, "Thank you for riding!"
"So many people..." Nishikata grumbled.
"Let's go! It's winter vacation, after all. Let's get in line and swipe our cards to exit." Tsuna patted his shoulder and hurried toward the less crowded line.
"Wait for me, Miyamura," Nishikata snapped back to his senses and hurried to catch up.
As they leisurely stepped onto the ground, their view was instantly captured by the giant sign of the electronics mall, its glass walls reflecting sunlight and the passing trains.
The aroma of takoyaki and the click-clack of gashapon machines wafted through the air, while vending machines selling used game cartridges lined the roadside.
On a nearby street corner, maids in maid outfits were handing out flyers.
They greeted passersby with the sweet "お帰りなさいませ,ご主様!" (Welcome back, Master!), their voices set against the backdrop of a fluorescent sign for an anime-themed cafe.
"This is Akihabara!" Nishikata's gaze fell on the maid handing out flyers, his gaze brimming with excitement.
Stepping off the Hibiya Line felt like falling into a cyber labyrinth of sensory overload.
The clatter of advertisements, the aroma of food, the neon lights, the flowing crowds, and the frozen fragments of time—all compressed into a microcosm of Tokyo.
(End of Chapter)