Overflowing with excitement for Kuro to try her bento, Miyuki practically flew down the hallway and out the academy doors. With her speed, she reached outside in no time at all.
Continuing at her enthusiastic pace, she led him toward the training grounds, heading in the direction of one of the larger trees situated on the field. Its massive shade looked cool and inviting, especially with the wind blowing through its branches.
Separately, Kuro's desk mate had spotted him being led away. Takamura Shin couldn't help but think, He moves fast. It's just the first day and he already has a cute little crush chasing after him.
Because of Miyuki's excitement, her face was flushed and a sweet smile was plastered across it. Combined with the way she held Kuro's hand and led him somewhere with such determination, those watching couldn't help but think the same thing.
Soon, two other figures stopped beside Takamura Shin. It was Kurogane Satsuki and another young girl with sunny blonde, spiky shoulder-length hair and dark charcoal eyes. She was the same height as Satsuki, and both had paper bags in hand.
"Do you think we should join them, or wait a bit for them to cool down?" Satsuki asked, watching the pair disappear toward the training grounds.
"We should definitely give them some space," the blonde girl said with a knowing smile. "The girl probably wants to confess and promise to marry him in the future when they get older."
"Oh, you think so? That's so cute!" Satsuki giggled. "The girl definitely seems like the shy type, only currently emboldened by her feelings. That boy she's pulling that's your desk mate, Shin?"
"Yeah, that's him," Shin confirmed. "We were talking about forming a little study group, perhaps for after school and stuff."
Shin and Satsuki had met Himari, the blonde girl, yesterday at orientation and hit it off immediately. She was in one of the other classes as she had yet to unlock her chakra, being placed in the preliminary classes. The three of them exchanged glances before heading off to find their own spot for lunch, leaving Kuro and Miyuki to their moment.
Meanwhile, under the shade of the large tree, Miyuki finally released Kuro's hand and plopped down on the grass with a satisfied sigh. The spot was perfect cool, quiet, and far enough from the main training areas that they wouldn't be disturbed.
"Here! This is the best spot!" she announced proudly, patting the ground beside her. "The shade keeps it cool, and you can feel the breeze really well!"
Kuro settled down beside her, still holding the green-wrapped bento. "You certainly know the good spots."
"I come here sometimes during breaks in training," Miyuki explained, carefully unwrapping her own blue-wrapped bento. "It's peaceful."
She watched with barely contained anticipation as Kuro unwrapped his bento, revealing the carefully arranged contents. The rice balls were shaped neatly, each one slightly different. The tamagoyaki gleamed golden yellow, and the vegetable shapes while abstractly dog-like were charming in their imperfection.
"Wow," Kuro said, genuinely impressed. "You and your mother made all this?"
Miyuki nodded eagerly, her eyes shining. "Mm-hmm! We woke up early this morning. I helped shape the rice balls and cut the vegetables! The ones that look kind of like dogs I did those!"
Kuro picked up one of the rice balls, examining it. "Which filling is this one?"
"Pickled plum!" Miyuki said. "There's also salmon and seasoned kelp. Try whichever you like!"
He took a bite, chewing thoughtfully. Miyuki leaned forward slightly, watching his face with intense focus, trying to read his reaction.
After swallowing, Kuro looked at her with a small smile one of the few genuine expressions she'd seen from him. "It's really good. The rice is perfectly seasoned, and the plum has just the right amount of tartness."
Miyuki's face lit up like the sun. "Really?! You really like it?!"
"I do," Kuro confirmed, taking another bite. "Thank you for this, Miyuki. Your thoughtfulness saved me today, even though I could have still gotten something to eat from the academy."
"But this is better than plain noodles, right?" Miyuki asked hopefully.
"Much better," Kuro agreed. "This has care put into it. I can tell."
They ate together in comfortable silence for a while, the wind rustling through the leaves above them. Miyuki occasionally snuck glances at Kuro to make sure he was enjoying the food, and each time she saw him eat another rice ball or piece of tamagoyaki, her smile grew wider.
"Kuro-kun," she said after a while, "I'm really glad we're friends."
Kuro paused mid-bite, then nodded. "I am too."
"Even though we're in different classes, we can still eat lunch together sometimes, right?"
"Of course," Kuro replied. "Though..." He hesitated. "My desk mates were talking about studying together after school. If they organize something, would you want to join?"
Miyuki's eyes widened. "Really?! You'd want me to study with you and your Class 1-A friends?!"
"Why not?" Kuro said simply. "You're working hard to move up to Class 1-A anyway. Studying with students from that class would probably help."
Miyuki felt her heart swell with happiness. Not only was Kuro her friend, but he was already thinking about ways to include her with his other friends and help her improve. She'd made the right choice in bringing him the bento.
"I'd love to!" she said enthusiastically. "Thank you, Kuro-kun!"
They finished their lunch, and Miyuki carefully collected both empty bento boxes, wrapping them back in their cloths. As they stood to head back to the academy building, she felt a warm contentment settle over her.
Today was turning out to be a really good day.
Back in Class 1-A, Kuro settled into his seat beside Shin as students began filtering back in from lunch. The afternoon classes wouldn't start for another few minutes, giving everyone time to chat and settle down.
"So," Shin said immediately, leaning over with a knowing grin. "Enjoyed your lunch date?"
Kuro gave him a flat look. "It wasn't a date. She made me a bento because I forgot mine."
"Uh-huh," Shin said, clearly not believing him. "And she just happened to have an extra bento prepared? On the first official day of the academy?"
"She's thoughtful," Kuro said simply, pulling out his notebook for the afternoon session.
"She's cute," Shin countered. "We saw how she dragged you out to under that tree with that flushed, smiling face while holding your hand pretty tightly."
Before Kuro could respond, Satsuki appeared at their desk, arms crossed and eyebrow raised. "Are we talking about Kuro's admirer?"
"She's not " Kuro started.
"She definitely is," Shin interrupted. "Did you see how red her face was? And that smile? Classic crush behavior."
"I think it's sweet," Satsuki said, sitting on the edge of Shin's desk. "She seemed really genuine. Not like she was trying to attract attention or anything."
"She's just friendly," Kuro insisted, though he was starting to feel outnumbered. "I watched her training with her sister in the park and became friends. That's all."
"Friends who make each other special bentos," Shin said sagely, as if he were some kind of relationship expert.
Kuro sighed. "Are you two done?"
"Almost," Satsuki said with a grin. "But seriously, Kuro, tomorrow, you should eat lunch with us. Shin, Himari, and I were planning to eat together. You should bring your friend too. What was her name?"
"Miyuki," Kuro supplied. "Inuzuka Miyuki."
"Inuzuka?" Shin's eyebrows rose. "She's from the Inuzuka clan? No wonder she's so energetic. Those guys are intense."
"She's in Class 1-B, right?" Satsuki asked. "We should definitely invite her. It'll be good to have a study group that's not just Class 1-A students. Different perspectives and all that."
"Plus," Shin added, "Himari would love to meet her. She's in the preliminary classes, so she'd probably appreciate having someone closer to her level to study with. No offense to Miyuki," he added quickly.
"I'll ask her," Kuro said, finding himself agreeing despite his earlier reluctance. The idea of having a consistent lunch group wasn't bad, and Miyuki would probably be thrilled to be included.
"Great!" Satsuki said, hopping off the desk as their instructor began to enter the classroom. "Tomorrow, then. We'll meet at the same tree you two were at today Shin saw it and brought it to our attention. Looks like a good spot."
As she returned to her seat and the class began to settle down, Shin leaned over one more time.
"You know," he whispered, "for someone who says he's just friends with her, you sure agreed to include her pretty quickly."
Kuro didn't dignify that with a response, instead focusing on the instructor who was now writing on the board.
But internally, he had to admit Shin wasn't entirely wrong. There was something about Miyuki's genuine enthusiasm and thoughtfulness that made him want to maintain the friendship. She'd gone out of her way to make him a bento, after all.
The least he could do was invite her to lunch with his other new friends.
As the afternoon lessons began, Kuro found his thoughts occasionally drifting to the lunch under the tree, the carefully prepared bento, and Miyuki's bright smile when he'd told her he enjoyed it.
Maybe having friends at the academy wouldn't be so complicated after all.