"Ah?!"
Amaori Renako's gasp escaped her lips, her eyes wide with disbelief.
The last time, she could explain it away as a fluke, but these two consecutive shots made her unable to believe it was a coincidence anymore.
If they weren't playing face-to-face, she would have suspected Kazama Haru of using some kind of cheat software.
"My goodness, Kazama-san, are you... are you really playing a shooting game for the first time? How on earth did you see the enemy in that smoke?"
"I've played plenty of shooting games, but it's my first time playing with a controller."
Looking at the stage clear screen, Kazama Haru smiled and took off his headphones.
After the "Shooting Game" skill reached LV3, Kazama Haru's dynamic vision and reaction speed suddenly increased several times over.
The game screen was in slow motion in his eyes, and with incredible focus, no information stream in the game could escape his brain.
"But it's still your first time! Kazama-san, there's a limit to how perfect you can be!"
Renako let out a wail of disbelief; it was bad enough that Kazama Haru was devastatingly handsome, but he even displayed cheat-like talent in games.
Did this guy save the entire galaxy in his past life?
She had originally intended to use her best shooting game skills to show off in front of him, but that plan was now ruined.
Listening to the girl's wail, Kazama Haru showed a pleased smile.
To ensure they both enjoyed the game and to fulfill Renako's wish to show off in front of him, he pointed to a copy of "Mortal Kombat" in the corner of the cabinet and suggested:
"Amaori-san, next, let's play a fighting game."
Amaori Renako snorted, "Kazama-san, you're really mean. Showing off your hidden strength in shooting games wasn't enough, and now you want to use a fighting game to beat me?"
While she said this, her body honestly got up and changed the cartridge.
"Haha, not at all."
Kazama Haru waved his hand, his eyes sincere: "I guarantee I've never played this fighting game before. I've only watched some edited videos and was interested in the game's highly violent aesthetic presentation."
"Hmph, you say that, but you're probably already planning how to combo me into the sky and keep me there."
Renako pouted. In her eyes, Kazama Haru's credibility was already comparable to a certain pro gamer who claimed to be "just warming up" right before a twenty-win streak.
Simply put, about as trustworthy as a side character's death flag.
Entering the game, Kazama Haru fully immersed himself in the screen.
As he had said before, Mortal Kombat was an extremely bloody and violent fighting game.
Every punch landed, every move drew blood.
The execution animations for various characters were so savage that they had to be censored; either eyeballs were gouged out and then stomped on, or a throat was torn out and swallowed.
It also frequently collaborated with famous IPs, making it highly replayable.
He hadn't expected Renako, who outwardly seemed so proper, to secretly enjoy such things.
This is... fantastic!
"Hoorah, take this!"
With a triumphant shout, the clown controlled by Renako slammed Kazama Haru's character onto a wooden sign, mercilessly riddling him with bullets.
"Kazama-san, why did you suddenly become so weak? Are you perhaps holding back to spare my feelings?" Renako taunted, raising an eyebrow.
This instantly made Kazama Haru see red, vowing to thoroughly pummel this complacent, annoying girl into the ground in the second round.
But he was not a hot-blooded protagonist from a shonen manga; anger and shouts could not give him strength.
Without fighting game skill proficiency, facing Renako, a veteran who had played console fighting games for over a decade, he could only be like a pathetic Tom, manipulated in her palm...
"Thank you for your hospitality today, Amaori-san. It's been a long time since I've had so much fun."
At the entrance of the Amaori house, Kazama Haru forced himself to ignore the painful experience of being mercilessly dominated by the girl for an hour, bowing deeply.
Although being bullied by a girl didn't feel good, no matter what, the game was played with smiles, and the joy gained was genuine.
Renako, standing opposite him, also bowed. Recalling her earlier " arrogance ," she suddenly felt a little guilty:
"Oh, it's good that Kazama-san had fun. I also shouldn't have been so rough on you earlier."
Hey, are you looking for trouble?!
Kazama Haru quietly clenched his fists, vowing to get his revenge the next time they played.
"Well then, I'll be going, Amaori-san. Tomorrow at school—"
"That!"
Amaori Renako interrupted Kazama Haru's farewell.
This method, identical to Sena Ajisai's last night, made him inwardly grumble: Do Japanese girls have some kind of underlying code? They always have to confess their feelings when saying goodbye.
However, grumbling aside, he still perked up his ears for what Amaori Renako was about to say.
"Ka-Kazama-san..." Amaori Renako clasped her hands over her chest, shyly looking into Kazama Haru's eyes, her words stumbling.
This atmosphere... could it be?!
"Kazama-san, there's something I absolutely must tell you today!"
"Especially... after playing games so freely with you in the room, these feelings... are even harder to suppress. If I don't express them, I'll definitely regret it!"
Haruna, her younger sister, who had been secretly peeking at them from behind the door, was so stunned by Renako's bold behavior that she almost gasped aloud.
She hadn't expected her older sister to be so brave; not only did she dare to bring home Kazama-senpai, who looked very difficult to handle, but she was also going to confess her feelings to him right at their doorstep?!
Go for it, Sis! Win over this handsome guy and live a rosy youth!
Amaori Haruna silently cheered her on, her fingers unconsciously digging into her constantly sweating palms, becoming nervous herself.
"W-well then. T-then I'll listen to what you have to say, I suppose."
Although Kazama Haru had been confessed to many times, the number of confession letters at school was so great that his shoe locker was full every day.
But this was at someone else's doorstep, and given Amaori Renako's serious demeanor, he couldn't help but feel nervous himself.
Renako took a deep breath and exhaled, gathering the greatest courage of her life, and met Kazama Haru's gaze.
"Kazama-san. Would you be willing to—"
" Gulp. "
Kazama Haru's shoulders trembled, and he swallowed a dry mouthful, holding his breath and waiting for Renako's final words.
"—become my best friend!"
"Yes, I will!"
Their lines overlapped in perfect synchronicity. Kazama Haru breathed a sigh of relief, not expecting the process to be so smooth. Amaori Renako was already... Wait, no!
"...best friend?"
"Yes, exactly!" Amaori Renako nodded vigorously: "Even someone as ordinary as me, after experiencing Kazama-san's brilliance up close, can't help but develop some unconscious feelings."
"You see, today Kazama-san happened to see me in a state of distress, so he kindly offered a hand, and then to help me cheer up, he specifically came to my house to play games with me."
Amaori Renako quickly explained, gesturing with her hands: "Although we're in the same class, normally, we wouldn't have any further contact, right? So, if we could be best friends..."
"..."
Kazama Haru and Haruna, who was secretly listening from the shadows by the door, were speechless at the same time.
He sighed, helplessly saying, "Um... if we go by 'normal' societal standards, people who spend an entire afternoon playing together in one room, especially if they're of the opposite sex, would definitely be considered best friends, wouldn't they?"
"No, the best friend I'm talking about isn't just that level!"
Renako's expression became even more serious, and she pointed a finger skyward:
"It's like a best friend, someone who knows your other side, who acts silly with you, gets excited with you, and when you're sad, you can quietly lean on them."
"That's the kind of relationship I want to have with Kazama-san!"