Yukinoshita Yukino felt that she didn't need their so-called "assist," and she wondered if they actually thought leaving her here all alone counted as an assist.
She didn't understand.
However, it wasn't completely ineffective. At least without those three around, Yukino could sit here and drink tea with Shinra and the others more comfortably.
Yuigahama Yui asked curiously, "Yukino, where did you go this morning?"
Yukino replied, "Tenryu-ji, Hogon-in, and Togetsukyo Bridge."
Hearing the names Yukino listed, Yui's face showed surprise.
"That's pretty much our route too!"
"There are only so many famous spots in Arashiyama; it's normal to overlap."
Originally, Yukino and her group planned to go to the Bamboo Forest path, but there were too many people, and just looking at the crowd was physically draining. So they checked online and found this place provided tea and snacks with a great view. The only drawback was that it required a ticket.
However, for Yukino's group, that wasn't even a drawback.
Families that can get into the Sobu High International Class are mostly middle-class and above; they don't need to worry about money. This small entrance fee was nothing to these young ladies, and even an ordinary family could afford it.
"Then should Yukino join us later?" Yui invited mindlessly.
Hearing this, Miura Yumiko became alert. Yukino is joining us too?!
Yukino glanced at Miura Yumiko as if sensing something and met her wary gaze. She said thoughtfully, "I need to ask my teammates for their opinion. Also, Yui-san, don't you need to ask your group members for their opinion?"
"Oh, right..." Reminded by Yukino, Yui's expression stiffened. Oops, I got a bit carried away and forgot Yumiko was right here.
She turned her head timidly to look at the stone-faced Miura Yumiko, thinking Yumiko would be very angry about this "presumptuous" behavior, right?
"Sorry, Yumiko..." Yui spoke carefully.
To her surprise, Miura Yumiko just waved her hand, speaking as if to Yui, yet also to Yukino. She said, "If she wants to come, let her come. It's not like I'm some petty person. Her legs aren't attached to me."
Better if she doesn't come! Miura Yumiko muttered viciously in her heart.
If she could, Miura Yumiko really wanted to sternly reject the proposal. But she knew clearly that even if she refused, it wouldn't change anything. With Yukino's pride, she likely wouldn't stay with them, but the problem was that Yukino not joining them didn't mean she wouldn't take Shinra away.
If the main target leaves, what's the point of her refusal? To create a world for just the two enemies? She wouldn't be that stupid!
Besides, she had already spent a whole day with Shinra yesterday (even if it was a group activity). It didn't matter if she shared half of today with Yukino. She'd just treat it as a victor's charity.
Thinking this, Miura Yumiko felt a bit better. Although it felt like self-delusion, you can't say it's wrong, right?
As for the third day's activities... she'd worry about that on the third day! Moreover, if Yukino could come, why couldn't she, Yumiko, go too? You started it first!
The tension between Yukino and Miura Yumiko was obvious to anyone with eyes. This led to a situation where, although everyone sat at the same table, no one spoke as freely as usual. Even Tobe, who usually had the worst sense of the room, was acting exceptionally cautious.
His fear of Yukino was actually greater than his fear of Kawasaki Saki.
After all, Kawasaki Saki just looked hard to talk to, but Yukino was genuinely hard to talk to—she was the woman who could scold Miura Yumiko until she cried.
If school relationships were a giant food chain, Miura Yumiko was undoubtedly at the top, and Yukino, who could make her cry, was clearly one level higher. The King of Kings!
Amidst the tense atmosphere, Shinra, the instigator, remained remarkably calm.
Seeing Shinra's composed manner, Hachiman couldn't help whispering, "What do we do now?"
"What do you mean 'what do we do'?" Shinra took a sip of matcha. Unlike commercial matcha drinks, the matcha provided here was traditional—slightly sweet with a hint of bitterness. The taste was quite good.
"You know what I mean." Hachiman was speechless. If those two really start fighting, let's see what you do.
But clearly, Shinra didn't see it that way. On the contrary, stepping in now would only make things more troublesome. Usually, in such situations, whatever you say is wrong. The safest choice is to wait until they reach some consensus before speaking.
Shinra wouldn't tell Hachiman this point of knowledge; the guy wouldn't need it anyway.
On the other side, Kawasaki Saki also felt the invisible smell of gunpowder in the air. She couldn't help whispering to Ebina next to her, "What's going on?"
"Mm... you know, Yumiko and Yukinoshita-san have a little conflict, so she might not be willing to act together." Ebina replied in an equally quiet tone.
"Then why not just say so?" Kawasaki Saki frowned.
Ebina smiled, then leaned into Saki's ear and whispered, "Would you directly tell someone that you like Shinra?"
Kawasaki Saki's pupils shrank, and two distinct blushes appeared on her fair cheeks almost instantly. She stammered, "W-what are you talking about!"
Because her reaction was so large, it directly broke the stagnant atmosphere and, unsurprisingly, attracted everyone's attention.
Feeling the gathered stares, Kawasaki Saki looked flustered. Fortunately, Ebina stepped in to diffuse the situation, "Sorry, sorry. I should have waited until you adapted before telling you these things..."
"What are you saying, Ebina? Proselytizing again?" Tobe reacted immediately, joking to close the distance with Ebina.
Ebina also smiled and said, "I was too hasty."
"Joking too far will get you hated~" Tobe imitated Hayama's "kind big brother" persona.
Hearing this, a light flickered in Ebina's eyes behind her glasses, but her smile remained. She said, "True... one might be hated."
When Miura Yumiko heard Ebina say this, she seemed to remember something. A suspicious expression appeared on her face, and she thoughtfully cast her gaze toward Tobe.
It seemed... she had overlooked something during this school trip? But it wasn't too late.
The thought flashed by, and Miura Yumiko spoke, "Jokes should indeed have limits. Not everyone can accept your feelings."
It seemed like she was talking to Ebina, but she meant someone else. Unfortunately, the person involved didn't understand.
As for Kawasaki Saki, although Ebina helped her out, she now looked quite restless after her feelings were pointed out. Several times she wanted to say something to Ebina, but she gave up after looking at the people around her. In short, her heart was in turmoil.
After this interlude, the atmosphere seemed to return to normal.
Yukino also confirmed her itinerary with her three teammates, stating that she would take a taxi to Kinkaku-ji with them first and then split up once they reached the destination.
"They don't mind?" Yui was surprised.
Yukino hesitated and said somewhat uncertainly, "They shouldn't mind?"
Their only requirement was for her to fiercely humble Miura Yumiko's arrogance. But as far as Yukino knew, Miura Yumiko hadn't provoked them, had she?
When she asked this, she got answers like "We are Team Yukino," "Opposed to third parties," and "Yukino owns the world"—meaningless phrases.
Considering the eccentric personalities of her three teammates, Yukino didn't dig deeper. But similarly, as long as Miura Yumiko didn't cause trouble for her, she wouldn't actively seek trouble with Miura either. That wasn't her style.
Next, Yukino went to find her teammates, while Yui sighed with a hint of melancholy, "Sigh, back to squeezing onto buses. I hope there are fewer people this time."
Even though she had a seat on the bus this morning, the crowd was so memorable that she still felt a bit shaken.
"In that case, why not just take a taxi?" Shinra suggested. "If four people split the fare, it doesn't cost much."
"What does Yumiko think?" This time Yui remembered to ask for Miura Yumiko's opinion.
"I agree." Yumiko had actually wanted to do this for a long time. If not for her friends' pride, she would have offered to pay for the whole taxi. While taking the bus allows for close contact with Shinra due to the vehicle's swaying, the crowded and noisy environment makes it hard to create any romantic atmosphere, not to mention the crowd of "third wheels."
"What do you think, Ebina?" Yumiko looked at Ebina.
"I have no objection. What about you, Saki?" Ebina looked at Kawasaki Saki.
Kawasaki Saki nodded distractedly.
OK, a unanimous vote.
As for Hayama's side, they decided directly without much communication. Clearly, squeezing onto buses wasn't a pleasant experience for them either.
"As for how to ride, we'll just divide by groups. Shinra's group will have one fewer person to split the fare. No problem, right?"
To everyone's surprise, Miura Yumiko didn't try to find a way to ride in the same car as Shinra this time, but assigned them crisply.
Shinra looked at Hachiman and Totsuka. Seeing neither had objections, he replied, "No problem."
Tobe felt it was a pity he couldn't ride with Ebina, but the plan arranged by Miura Yumiko was indeed irreproachable, so he had no objection.
After the arrangements were made, everyone moved quickly.
Once in the car, seeing only their own group members, Hachiman said tentatively, "Don't you guys think the atmosphere is weird?"
"A little bit..." Totsuka looked at Shinra carefully.
Seeing this, Shinra spoke directly, "Ebina knows Tobe wants to confess, so she privately asked for my help to stop it."
"Eh?" x2
Hachiman and Totsuka looked at each other. So the weird atmosphere was because of this?
Of course, it wasn't just because of that, but the other reason wasn't something you two could get involved in.
"O-oh, so that was the reason?" Totsuka smiled awkwardly.
"Clearly not entirely," Hachiman muttered. Noticing Shinra's unfriendly gaze, he added quickly, "At least not all of it."
Mm, as for why not all of it, that's a slide one shouldn't touch.
The current situation was: Yukino and Miura didn't get along, Miura and Kawasaki didn't get along, Ebina was worried about Tobe's confession, Hayama couldn't intervene due to his status, and Shinra had accepted Ebina's commission...
This wasn't a school trip; it was a Shuraba Trial.
Fortunately, it seemed to have nothing much to do with him... Hachiman felt secretly lucky and didn't forget to remind Totsuka, "But anyway, it shouldn't have much to do with us."
"Hard to say." Shinra shook his head.
Hachiman's face stiffened as he looked at Shinra. What does that mean?
Shinra spoke slowly, "Hikki, how do you think we should make a man recognize reality?"
...
"Saki, how do you think one should refuse someone without hurting them?"
Kawasaki Saki slowly typed a question mark. She thought for a while and said uncertainly, "Refusal is a form of hurt in itself. Maybe if you explain clearly, it can reduce the hurt?"
"Mm, you have a point." Ebina nodded in agreement.
Seeing this, Kawasaki Saki opened her mouth, seeming to want to say something.
Ebina smiled as if she had predicted it, "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."
Kawasaki Saki breathed a sigh of relief, but then heard Ebina say, "However, I also need Saki to do me a small favor."
"What favor?" Saki asked.
"Mm... I'll tell you when the time comes. It's not the right time yet, because I haven't decided whether to do it or not." Ebina smiled.
After speaking, she seemed attracted by the scenery in the distance and quickly merged with Yui ahead.
Miura Yumiko, who had been following Yui, slowed her pace and soon walked parallel with Kawasaki Saki.
Saki frowned, not understanding what she wanted, but she quickly thought of something and said awkwardly, "Sorry, I made you cry during the pillow fight yesterday."
Miura Yumiko, who was about to speak, flushed instantly.