"Who are you?" Kato gumi's voice lost its warmth. "You're not my Azuma."
As soon as she said that—
Kato gumi took a step back.
She withdrew from the brightly lit classroom, retreating into the sowhat dim corridor.
The light and shadows obscured her face, making it hard to discern her expression in that mont.
The brilliant sunlight stread through the classroom window, casting a golden glow on the wooden floor.
Standing amidst such golden light, one would normally feel warmth.
But at that mont, Miyamizu Mitsuha felt a chill to the bone.
Outside the window, the crisp sound of strikes echoed.
It was the sound of a baseball being hit during practice at the baseball club behind the classroom building.
Along with that, there were distant cheers.
But in this mont, those chaotic sounds only made the classroom, where Miyamizu Mitsuha stood alone, feel even more silent.
"W-What are you talking about?"
Miyamizu Mitsuha's voice was tinged with confusion.
"Where is Yukima Azuma?"
"I-I don't know what you an..."
"Answer ! Where is Yukima Azuma really!?"
Kato gumi's voice pierced through the air, cracking with tension.
At that mont, Miyamizu Mitsuha's eyes slowly adjusted to the light.
She could now clearly see the figure of the girl hiding in the darkness of the corridor, a place the sunlight couldn't reach.
That fragile girl, like a gust of wind, now showed no expression.
But in her deep, dark eyes, there was an overwhelming sense of fear, anger, and confusion.
Her hand tightly gripped the strap of her backpack.
She was holding it so tightly that her fingers turned pale.
That delicate, fragile girl had disappeared.
Now, Kato gumi exuded an intense sense of pressure.
Miyamizu Mitsuha's breath seed to halt.
Though their interaction had been brief,
The image of Kato gumi's cuteness from before still lingered in her mind.
But now, the girl standing before her—
The gaze in her eyes.
In Miyamizu Mitsuha's life, she had only seen it once before.
It was the gaze of a friend she once knew—Suzu.
Suzu's mother had passed away when she was young, in a devastating earthquake.
The only things left for Suzu were a wooden chair missing a leg and an old phone that held a few photos and ssages.
One day, Suzu's phone fell from the top floor of the school building.
Suzu raced down the stairs, running madly to retrieve it.
But when she picked it up, the phone, which held all her important mories, was shattered.
It was an old model, one that couldn't be repaired anymore.
At that mont, Suzu had that sa look in her eyes.
The eyes of soone who had just lost the most important thing in their life.
Miyamizu Mitsuha couldn't quite recall the exact scene from that day.
But the expression of her friend had seemingly etched itself into her heart.
Not long after that, Suzu left Itomori town and transferred to another school.
Miyamizu Mitsuha had buried that mory deep within her.
She had always felt guilty for not being able to help her friend at the ti.
And now, that sa gaze appeared again before her.
Miyamizu Mitsuha's heart trembled violently.
She hoarsely said,
"I-I'm so sorry, I don't know how to explain it, but I'm sure Yukima-san is fine."
"We just swapped for a little while. He'll be back tomorrow."
Hearing Miyamizu Mitsuha's words,
Kato gumi's heart eased slightly.
But her brows quickly furrowed again.
At this mont, as Kato gumi looked at the person before her,
It seed like sothing had shattered.
The person in front of her, who had the appearance of Yukima Azuma, suddenly crumbled and transford into an adorable young girl.
Looking at her, she appeared to be around the sa age.
Kato gumi stared intently at this stranger.
Kato gumi took several deep breaths, trying to steady her emotions.
"So, what about you? Who are you?"
"I'm Miyamizu Mitsuha, from Itomori town, Gifu Prefecture."
Miyamizu Mitsuha felt that she couldn't keep the truth hidden any longer and decided to straightforwardly reveal her identity.
Hearing this, Kato gumi's heart stirred slightly.
Gifu Prefecture.
"Can you tell more about yourself?" Kato gumi asked further.
"Umm, actually I don't know much either. Since the day before yesterday, I suddenly swapped places with Yukima-san..."
Miyamizu Mitsuha honestly recounted everything that had happened in the past few days to Kato gumi.
She felt that anyone who could show such a deep emotion for Yukima Azuma surely deserved to know the truth about him.
Kato gumi listened intently as Miyamizu Mitsuha spoke.
anwhile, she quietly took out her phone, opened the map, and searched for "Itomori, Gifu Prefecture."
The search results matched exactly what Kato gumi had rembered.
During her trip to Hokkaido, when she witnessed the Charlotte cot split in two and fall, Kato gumi had sensed there was sothing Yukima Azuma had yet to tell her.
At that ti, she hadn't felt it was the right mont to ask more.
She understood that if Yukima Azuma was hiding sothing, it was most likely for their sake.
So, after returning from Hokkaido, Kato gumi had done a bit of research into the incident of the Charlotte cot fragnt falling.
And the truth proved that she wasn't wrong.
The fragnt of Charlotte had indeed fallen in the mountainous region of Gifu Prefecture.
But it had affected nearly a third of a small mountain town.
Around five hundred residents of that town had lost their lives because of this disaster.
Had she known about the tragedy she had witnessed during her trip, it would have certainly affected the rest of the journey.
And Kato gumi clearly rembered.
The town that had been devastated by the Charlotte cot fragnt.
It seed to be called Itomori.
The girl in front of her.
She was likely not just swapped in space but also in ti.
After grasping this, Kato gumi vaguely guessed what Yukima Azuma might have done in Itomori from the past.
Looking at Miyamizu Mitsuha, who still knew nothing, Kato gumi didn't say anything.
She took several deep breaths, fully calming herself.
Her voice returned to its usual gentle tone.
"I see now, I'm sorry, earlier I was too anxious and acted a little rude."
Upon hearing this, Miyamizu Mitsuha imdiately waved her hand.
"It's okay! It's really okay! You don't have to apologize!"
She sighed. "I understand. If I were in your shoes, I'd probably react the sa way."
Kato gumi blinked.
She really is a kind person.
At this point, whether it was for Azuma or for this person in front of her, she should treat her well.
"If that's the case, then Miyamizu-san, you're like a guest in Tokyo now."
"Let take you around a bit, show you Toyogasaki and even Tokyo itself."
Kato gumi said with a smile.
Miyamizu Mitsuha's eyes widened upon hearing that.
The girl in front of her.
Her words and actions.
They seed to eerily align with Yukima Azuma.
Just earlier, she hadn't ntioned anything from Yukima Azuma's notebook.
But Kato gumi's thoughts were nearly identical to Yukima Azuma's.
Miyamizu Mitsuha suddenly understood why Kato gumi had shown such emotions towards Yukima Azuma.
The two of them must be a very well-matched couple.
Not just emotionally close.
But it seed like their souls were in sync too.
While Miyamizu Mitsuha was still lost in her thoughts, Kato gumi waved her hand to get her attention. Without hesitation, Miyamizu Mitsuha rushed to catch up.
...
Kato gumi began to take her role as a tour guide seriously.
Toyogasaki Private Academy was a high school, but it truly rivaled any tourist destination. In addition to the usual facilities such as the large sports field, gymnasium, swimming pool, and other common anities, the school also had a small hill and an artificial pond at the back.
On the hill, there were no cherry blossoms, but instead, there were many fruit trees. Perhaps it symbolized the aning of "peach trees filling the world" (Note: aning a teacher of good caliber would have students everywhere – by ChadGPT).
However, due to growth issues, the trees that flourished the most were apple trees. During this season, although there were no fruits, the trees still had a unique beauty.
As for the pond at Toyogasaki, it was at its most beautiful right now because a variety of lotus flowers were blooming. From a distance, the scent of the flowers could already be slled.
In addition to the lotus flowers, there were also several swans on the pond. This was Miyamizu Mitsuha's first ti seeing swans. After just walking around the school grounds, she already felt thoroughly satisfied.
Before she knew it, under Kato gumi's guidance, Miyamizu Mitsuha had spent the entire day touring the Toyogasaki campus.
It wasn't until dusk that she snapped out of her daze.
"Umm..."
"I guess it's ti to head back, right?"
"Umu, you're right."
"Let's go, together."
"Eh?"
Miyamizu Mitsuha was taken aback.
Seeing her expression, Kato gumi explained:
"I've rented a room at Azuma-san's place, sotis I stay there."
This wasn't sothing that needed to be hidden. Although living together as high school students might be considered too casual by many, Kato gumi didn't care what others thought. She only cared about the opinions of those who mattered to her.
After hearing Kato gumi's explanation, Miyamizu Mitsuha couldn't help but widen her eyes.
Living together as high school students?
But then, thinking it over, Miyamizu Mitsuha felt that it made sense. The girl in front of her was incredibly cute, and she had a close relationship with the boy in question. It wouldn't be surprising if they lived together.
But then, just as she was processing this, Miyamizu Mitsuha recalled the girl with long, straight black hair whom she had t at Yukima's house.
"By the way… Is there anyone else at Yukima-san's house?" Miyamizu Mitsuha asked cautiously.
"Are you talking about Kasumigaoka-senpai? Senpai also rents a room at Azuma-san's place. You must have t her," Kato gumi blinked.
She was a bit surprised that senpai couldn't see through Miyamizu Mitsuha..
"Umm… Yes, I did et her once, but I barely managed to say a few words before I running away," Miyamizu Mitsuha blurted out.
Her mind was in a chaotic ss. The two girls in the picture on Yukima Azuma's phone—both were living with him. What was the relationship here?!
She was genuinely curious.
Reviews
All reviews (0)