The two walked side by side toward the academy, their steps synchronized, but their thoughts were different.
They had just passed the Hakutōmon (White Gate) not far and turned the corner near the academy entrance.
"Tsukasa, is... is my grandma alright?"
Tōshirō's voice was filled with uncertainty, trembling as he asked.
Although he trained with Suō Tsukasa, Tōshirō's experience in utilizing his spiritual awareness was ultimately not as rich as Tsukasa's.
Even though he hadn't detected any abnormality in his grandmother's soul state, some fears did not stem from rational judgment.
The night his grandmother was frozen and weak to the bone had always been the deepest and most persistent nightmare in his heart, causing his entire body to tremble even with an unintentional recollection.
Suō Tsukasa's gift was certainly not a sudden whim; he must have noticed something that Tōshirō had missed.
Excessive worry caused an uncontrollable tremor in his voice.
"Ah, she's fine."
Suō Tsukasa replied lightly.
"She's just a bit weaker than an average soul, but her fluctuations are stable. If she eats some meat regularly, she'll slowly recover."
Tsukasa felt a bit awkward, having not expected his action to frighten the usually calm Tōshirō like this, so he scratched his head and continued.
After Tōshirō received his first reward, the Hitsugaya family's situation would only improve, he just needed to pay a little attention in the early stages.
Some things involving his own secrets were inconvenient to explain too clearly, which resulted in this little misunderstanding.
"Ah... she's fine!?"
"That's good."
Tōshirō was stunned by the answer, clearly not having expected it.
He still had faith in Suō Tsukasa's judgment, and his tense body finally relaxed.
"By the way, can you handle spicy jerky?"
Seeing his expression, a little bit of guilt stirred in Tsukasa's heart.
So, he quickly found an excuse to change the subject. He had originally planned to share the snacks once they reached the school.
He rummaged through his package and pulled out a strip of low-spice jerky.
"Try this."
He snapped off a piece and handed it to Tōshirō to taste, putting the remaining half in his own mouth.
To prevent flavor fatigue, he had specially made several different flavors, and varying degrees of spiciness as well.
"Spicy? Never tried it."
Tōshirō accepted it. The half-strip of jerky in his hand had sparse little red dots on it. He looked at it, then put it into his mouth without saying more.
Although Rukongai had wasabi, horseradish, and chili peppers, they were relatively rare.
Given the Hitsugaya family's living standards in the past, Tōshirō hadn't tasted anything spicy until now, so he was a little curious.
"...It's okay."
Tōshirō felt fine during the first half of the chewing, only tasting the savory meat flavor and a mix of sweet and salty. He thought the flavor was nothing special.
"Hmm h... it tastes good."
In the second half, things gradually started to feel off. He immediately felt his throat tighten. Forcing down the urge to cough, he slowly said this with a frown.
"Definitely a kid's palate, how interesting!"
Watching Tōshirō's slightly reddened eyes, a hint of mischievous joy welled up in Suō Tsukasa's heart.
"Hmm, it seems this heavier flavor isn't quite right for you."
But he spoke seriously, taking out a pre-prepared oil-paper packet.
"This one is honey-glazed. Keep it."
"Fine..."
Feeling somewhat looked down upon, Tōshirō took the oil-paper packet.
He secretly vowed to find an opportunity to learn to eat spicy food so he wouldn't be underestimated again.
Having spent time with Tsukasa, he had realized that although Tsukasa treated him as an equal most of the time.
There were occasional moments when Tsukasa still treated him like a child, which truly frustrated him.
It was hard to confront him directly about it, as that would only make him seem more childish, leaving him at a loss.
As they spoke, the two had reached the academy gate.
After a simple return-to-school registration at the guardhouse, they continued along the familiar path toward the dorms.
Just after passing the last corridor, the small courtyard was in sight, and they spotted a tall figure leaning against the white wall next to the moon gate archway in the distance.
The striking red hair remained bold in the setting sun but seemed to lack some of the sharpness from the day before.
It was Renji Abarai, whom they hadn't seen in over a day, standing with his arms crossed, seemingly having waited for a long time.
"Tsukasa, it's that guy again."
Tōshirō stopped first, raised an eyebrow, and shot a look at Suō Tsukasa, clearly recognizing the person in front of them.
"It's alright. Doesn't look like he's here to pick a fight."
Suō Tsukasa was taller and had better eyesight, allowing him to clearly see the expression on Renji's face.
He completely lacked the hostility from the previous day, his face was quite calm, only showing some boredom from waiting.
As the two spoke, Renji Abarai also noticed them. The left leg that had been leaning against the wall subtly straightened, and his crossed arms relaxed and fell to his sides.
When the distance closed to about a pace or two, Suō Tsukasa stopped first and asked with a smile.
"Abarai-kun, were you looking for me for something?"
Same location, same words, only the addition of the title 'Abarai-kun,' and the two speakers had switched positions, making the situation entirely different.
"Heh..."
Hearing this, and recalling his hot-headed self from yesterday.
Renji Abarai let out a self-mocking chuckle at his clown-like behavior.
"I was wrong yesterday. I apologize, Suō-kun."
"I was out of line. Please feel free to hit me or scold me as you wish."
He then took a deep breath, straightened his body, and sincerely bowed to apologize to Suō Tsukasa.
Somewhat surprised by the other party's current candor and sincerity, Suō Tsukasa made a gesture of support.
"Raise your head. I didn't take it to heart, and I've already forgiven you."
"Thank you!"
Renji Abarai was stunned for a moment, then, as he straightened up, the emotion in his eyes was swept away, returning to his usual frank demeanor.
The next moment, Suō Tsukasa extended his right hand, clenched into a fist.
"I guess we met under fighting circumstances. Let's introduce ourselves again. Suō Tsukasa."
As the saying goes, it's better to make friends than enemies. Renji Abarai seemed like a decent person, and making another friend wouldn't hurt.
"Met under fighting circumstances... huh."
"That's quite philosophical!"
The other two people who heard this were inwardly shaken, and their admiration for Suō Tsukasa deepened slightly.
"Renji Abarai, please take care of me."
Renji Abarai understood his gesture, recognized the meaning, and sincerely bumped his own fist against Tsukasa's.
The two exchanged a smile, their fists briefly meeting in the air, officially making their acquaintance.
With a friend made, Suō Tsukasa noticed a bit of bandaging peeking out from Renji's right collarbone and casually asked.
"By the way. How's your injury, and what exactly happened yesterday? Can you elaborate?"
Tsukasa was confident in the measure of his attack, but was more curious about the reason for the challenge yesterday.
"The injury is fine, healing quickly."
"Yesterday, I'd been hearing rumors about you being very strong lately, and I was in a bad mood, so I decided to challenge you. My actions were impulsive."
Renji Abarai answered directly, briefly explaining the reason.
He didn't push the blame onto anyone else, only mentioning the mistake he made.
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