THE MORNING OF THE fourth day of the school trip. We were going to return to school tomorrow.
As this was our second completely free day, we wanted to make sure it was a day we made the most of. The results of yesterday's spot tour were that 10 groups, or half of the total 20 groups, scored more than 20 points, and all of them earned 30,000 private points.
On the other hand, the mbers of Group 15, to which both Mii-chan and Miyamoto belonged, were disqualified because they failed to et the ti limit, so they had to sit for a study session at the inn. I felt a little sorry for them, but it couldn't be helped. As soon as the study session ends, I hope they get the opportunity to soak in the hot springs and enjoy their last day as much as possible.
It was cleaning ti in the main baths, so I quickly changed my clothes. I thought I would watch TV as I did yesterday, but it seed that Kitō was the first to return today, and he was staring at the screen as if he were devouring it. I didn't know the details, but it seed to be a feature on fashion that Kitō was interested in.
"Hey, Ayanokōji. They're going to have a snowball fight outside."
"Snowball fight?"
Watanabe, who had also finished getting dressed, showed his cell phone. It seed that there were a lot of people who wanted to have an unrestricted snowball fight.
"Sounds fun, let's go check it out."
"What about Ryūen and Kitō?"
Kitō was too engrossed in the TV to answer, and Ryūen didn't hesitate in going to the reserved seat in the room to make his pass explicit.
"Then let's go, just us two."
"Right."
We left Kitō and Ryūen, who mixed like oil and water, in the room, but I'll trust their maturity here. When I went outside the ryokan with Watanabe, a large group of students had already gathered.
"Good morning, Kiyotaka-kun, Watanabe-kun."
Yōsuke, standing near the entrance and clutching his cell phone, called out to us.
"There's quite a lot of people here. Was everyone that interested in a snowball fight?"
"I don't think it's simply that. It's like a snowball fight for private points. The only qualification to participate is to pay 1,000 points. The winning team gets the points from the losing team."
I see. So if you lose, you sacrifice little, and if you win, you get money to buy an extra souvenir or two. No wonder it was a very casual but reasonably exciting event.
"Is this okay? Even though we have a large space, it's on the inn's property."
"Yes. I asked them about it and they said it's fine since it's early in the day. I think the fact that it's a private place with no one staying here except us school students is also a big factor."
The rules remained the sa, simple and clear: no catching, only dodging. Students who are hit by a snowball must leave the field. However, the snowball must be of a certain size, and if, for example, it's in powder form and is thrown like a shotgun bullet, or if the ball scatters in the air, it would be invalid even if it hits. As for being hit by a snowball, it seems that both self-reporting and the referee's official judgnt will be taken into account.
Well, not many people would intentionally cheat for the sake of a few private points.
"How many are planning to compete?"
"About 30 people so far. Will you join in, Ayanokōji-kun?"
"No, I'm..."
I was about to decline, but then I thought that if I pass on participating this ti, I may never get another chance to have a snowball fight again in my life.
"I'd like to try, but I don't have a team."
"That's okay. I'll assign people to the teams that don't have enough people.
It seed that Yōsuke would take care of all the troubleso details, for which I was very grateful.
Or perhaps that was why he stayed near the entrance. It was a lot of trouble to take care of things on your own, but Yōsuke was probably more comfortable with having everything under control.
As I waited for the deadline, which was only about 10 minutes away, I saw Horikita, who must've heard about the snowball fight in the ryokan.
"I've heard about it, but there's quite a gathering here."
"Are you going to join us too?"
"Well, it's a very special school excursion. I'd like to join if there's space."
She originally had no intention of doing so, but she seed to have changed her mind when she saw that the event was more successful than she had imagined.
"Then let's play, Horikita!"
Ibuki ca out of the crowd and challenged Horikita to a ga, as if she had been waiting for her.
"You're here too, Ibuki. You really co out of nowhere, don't you? But that's okay. It's just a ga after all, and I can play with you if you want."
As soon as she replied, Ibuki clenched her fists.
"Losing is losing, no matter if it's just a ga or not. Don't co up with excuses later on like a little kid, okay?"
"I'm going to say that line right back at you."
Yōsuke seed to be watching the two of them closely, and when they stole a glance at their cell phones, they saw that they had been assigned to different teams. It wouldn't be very exciting if they were on the sa team.
While I was checking the teams, I whispered into Yōsuke's ear and asked him for a little favor.
"Good morning, everyone!"
Kushida appeared with Yamamura, Nishino, and Amikura.
"That's great, Kushida. You invited Yamamura and the others."
"Eh? Well, yeah."
I thought she was going to give her usual smile, but she averted her eyes and gave a muddled reply. However, she smiled imdiately thereafter.
"I said I wouldn't leave my room until Nishino-san and Yamamura-san went out, so it's a good opportunity."
"That's the right response."
We had spent ti as a group so far, and our relationship was improving, albeit gradually. Whether you participated or watched, it was more aningful to spend the sa ti together.
"Do you want to join us?"
Ibuki asked Kushida.
"Hmm? A snowball fight?"
"Yes. It's been decided that Horikita and I will fight."
"I see. But I don't think I will. I don't want to hit soone with a snowball. I can't throw that kind of thing because I'd feel sorry for them."
"Huh?"
Ibuki made a disgusted gesture, as if she was deeply offended by Kushida's attitude.
Seeing this, Horikita imdiately struck Ibuki's side with a chop.
"What the hell! What're you doing!?"
"I'm your opponent, right? If you keep thinking about anything unnecessary, you're going to lose easily."
"Of course I'm not going to lose. I'll make you cry for sure!"
I see. I had thought that the distance between Horikita and Kushida had decreased recently, but it seems that Ibuki was also involved. The three of them had a distorted relationship, but strangely enough, it may be having a good cleansing effect on them.
The number of participating students continued to slowly increase until finally there were 42 students split into six teams. Each team had seven students, and four teams were created by themselves.
Two teams were made up of stragglers like . We didn't play in a tournant format; instead, we just played one match each.
Yōsuke may have been thinking about the excitent of the event, so he assigned Ibuki and Horikita to the third and final match of the day.
First up was a seven-mber boys' team led by Ishizaki. On the other side was a team of seven boys led by Sudō. It was truly a clash of n.
As soon as they started, snowballs powerfully flew from side to side. With 14 snowballs being thrown at once, it was difficult for everyone to avoid them. Within 10 or so seconds, a total of six boys from both teams were eliminated.
Incidentally, Ishizaki, who had been so excited the whole ti, was also hit within 10 seconds.
On the other hand, Sudō seed to have put his frustration at being rejected by Horikita into the snowballs, launching them one after another. However, Ishizaki's team had Albert, who was agile enough to avoid the snowballs, and he had been working hard to defeat the other team.
Yamamura was quietly watching the exhilarating battle, so I drew a little closer.
"They're getting excited, aren't they?"
Her expression was the sa as usual, with very little change, but she seed to be enjoying herself.
"Ah, it seems so." Yamamura said so as she exhaled into her palms.
Her hands weren't wearing the gloves she had supposedly bought back at the ski resort.
"Perhaps you forgot your gloves again?"
"Yes, I did."
I tried to take off my gloves, but Yamamura stopped .
"I'm sorry, I'm just kidding. I brought my own gloves."
With that, she pulled her gloves out of her pocket. She was smiling, but only slightly.
"I didn't realize you were a codian."
"I suppose it doesn't really suit our relationship, does it?"
*Illustration
Instantly her smile faded and she concluded that it was an unnecessary comnt.
"No, it's fine. I feel like we've ford a bit of a bond as a group."
It was a change that would've been unthinkable, at least from the first day.
"I also felt that. I've always been in the shadows, so it was less likely that people would pay attention to anything I did...
Kushida-san, Nishino-san, Amikura-san. They all took a good look at and included in their group. I'm thankful for them."
Without the school trip, their impression of Yamamura would've remained tenuous until she graduated.
It was a good, morable school trip, both for Yamamura and for the other girls. There must've been a lot of students in other groups who were closing the distance in a similar way.
When Yamamura finished putting her gloves on both hands, she turned and held them out in my direction.
"It's not just the girls, it's the boys too. It was a little different from the image I had expected."
Unlike the first day we were in the group, Yamamura's deanor had a softness to it. Of course, this change was slightly less than that of the other students, but it was a clear change.
"So the school trip, which I thought was long at first, is over today?"
"Yes."
During a school trip spent with people you dislike, ti would definitely have felt terribly long and slow. However, just by recognizing them as mbers who aren't uncomfortable to be around, a change cos over you that makes it hard to believe that ti was passing normally.
"Surely you're not the only one that's changed. Kitō, Watanabe, Amikura and Nishino must've also changed to so extent after this experience."
The group had its share of trouble, but that had spiced things up in so ways.
"Little by little, I think Kitō-kun's curses for Ryūen-kun are decreasing."
"Hmm."
"Ever since we ford the group, he's been saying things like 'I'm going to kill you' and 'I'm going to send you to hell.'"
Those were very disturbing things to say. Well, it wasn't so much that the two of them had beco friends, but rather that they had bumped into each other so much that their senses have numbed.
However, the image I had of Kito changed a lot.
I originally thought that he wasn't the type to talk at all, but when I got closer to him, I found that he spoke a lot more than I expected.
There may have been a lot of problems with what he said, but it was understandable why. The students in Sakayanagi and Ryūen's classes were especially wary of each other.
There were almost no opportunities to see the other in a positive light.
"Kitō is also very close to Sakayanagi."
"Speaking of which, you seed to talk to him often while you two were together in the group."
Suddenly, I looked at Yamamura's profile and saw that the joyful look she had earlier had faded away.
The most accurate word I could use to describe her expression was "uninterested."
Either she was fond of Kitō, or she had sothing on her mind regarding Sakayanagi. Either one could be applied to her.
"What do you think about Sakayanagi?"
I asked this question not because I wanted to probe, but because I was genuinely curious about their relationship.
"Huh?"
Yamamura, whose attention was elsewhere when I asked, asked back in surprise.
"I was wondering how soone feels seeing a competent Class A leader from the perspective of their peers."
"Well, I don't really know. I'm not close to anyone in particular to begin with, and moreover, I've hardly ever talked to Sakayanagi-san."
She laughed to herself as she said this. She ant that she had no friends because of her own shadowy nature.
In other words, was it simply a feeling caused by admiration, like envying Kitō, whom Sakayanagi spoke too casually?
"Then why don't you take this opportunity to ask Kitō out? He might take you up on the offer."
"As expected, I don't have that much courage."
"What if he asked you?"
"Isn't this a conversation for boys?"
It was ant to be a light joke, but Yamamura pulled back more than I expected.
"My bad. Maybe I took it too lightly."
Even if they didn't think anything of each other, it was natural to be sensitive when it ca to matters of n and won.
"I don't mind. You said it for my sake. Thank you."
I looked at Yamamura and then around at the students present.
New people, new friends. Truth and lies, those who saw through and those who were seen through. The students were exploring each other's guts through the exchange of checks and balances.
Which class would be the winner in the future?
"I can't right now, but... I'll think about it for a bit."
Yamamura replied as she added at the end.
"That's good."
We stopped exchanging words at this point and turned our attention to the match. Albert was exhibiting his powerful arms, but his accuracy wasn't as good, so the winner was ultimately decided by Sudō's agility and precise attacks.
Sudō was a quintessential top-class athlete in any situation. Horikita also gave him a generous round of applause. At a distance, Onodera also seed to be cheering him on in an innocent manner.
The second match followed. The second match was a mixed-gender battle, but there were no students with outstanding athleticism like Sudō and Albert, so the ga was more like a friendly ga than a serious competition.
The round ended with the two sides praising each other for a good fight and saying that they had a good ti.
"It's ti for you to go on, isn't it? Good luck."
Finally, the third match. The battle between , Ibuki, and the Horikita team began.
"Let's do our best together, Yamamura."
"What?"
I called out to her, and she looked at with a vacant look on her face.
"I asked Yōsuke to enter your na as well."
"Eh, eh! Wow, I can't do that. I'm not an asset, I'm just a liability."
"If you lose, I'll make up the points, so don't worry."
"That's not the point. We won't win."
"I'm not worried about that; I'll make up the points if we lose. Let's go."
"Oh no..."
As I started to walk away, Yamamura followed , although she showed so hesitation.
"Oh, I don't really know how to play..."
"Don't worry. You saw the ga earlier; this is just a simple ga."
"But... It looks hard."
"I'm going to win!"
Ibuki, bursting with fighting spirit, picked up a snowball, grasped it, and began the sequence of actions to throw it.
I instructed Yamamura to move back to the very rear. The students in front of us would target us, so we would avoid them.
I wanted her to focus on enjoying herself for as long as possible rather than trying to hit soone with a snowball and eliminate them.
When the ga began, similar to the previous two rounds, many snowballs gathered on the students fighting on the front lines.
On the other hand, snowballs that missed or aid at the rear also flew in, but if you were careful, you wouldn't be hit.
"Wah, wah!"
Yamamura had no ti to gather and throw snowballs and was desperately dodging them. However, one of the several snowballs flew at an angle closing in on Yamamura's left hip.
"W-Wait...!"
In order to save Yamamura, I pulled on her right arm to avoid being hit, although I didn't have permission to do so.
"I'm sorry, thank you for saving ."
"The number of people is decreasing and the battle between the front lines is intensifying. Let's make snowballs while we can."
"Yes, yes, yes..."
The snowballs that she hurriedly gathered up turned out to be bigger than I had expected.
It didn't look like they were going to fly very far, but I didn't say anything because I thought it would be interesting.
"Eeeeee..."
With a noise that sounded far from spirited, a large snowball flew through the air.
It then landed with a thud in our allied zone.
"Ah..."
"Don't worry about it. You should throw a smaller one this ti."
"Yes, okay."
Yamamura hurriedly started collecting snow again. anwhile, the ga kept going on, and the students were getting knocked down and eliminated.
I wish I could let her beat at least one of them, but... When Yamamura completed her second snowball, she was so focused on throwing it that she threw it almost directly downwards.
"Ah, ugh!"
Three of our team's vanguard players were killed, and the opponents began to focus on Yamamura. I moved away from her to attract their attention and stepped forward.
I quickly gathered snow and hit Class D's Nakashini, who was trying to aim a snowball at . But this backfired. Yamamura, who had forgotten how to dodge and was looking desperately at the snow at her feet, was hit in the head by a snowball shot by Class A's Yano.
"Oh...!"
The snowball she clutched so tightly fell out of her grasp, and Yamamura hurried out of the area with her hands in the air. She was depressed and frustrated, and it showed on her face.
I wonder if she was able to experience at least a little of the snowball fight's tension and fun.
After that, as we repeatedly hit each other, we were eliminated one after another, and the only one left on the other team was Horikita.
On the other hand, there were two remaining on our side. The situation was naturally in our favor.
Ibuki stood behind and crossed her arms.
"You're in my way.
"I know."
Horikita shot a snowball, and I caught it with my hand rather than dodging.
The catch, of course, was illegal.
"What are you trying to do?"
"Ibuki wants a one-on-one. Our leader says we're going to win, so I think we should go with it."
It was only for a little while, but I actually enjoyed the snowball fight and I wanted nothing more.
Helping her to beat Horikita wouldn't be fun. On the other hand, I was genuinely interested in a showdown between these two, who weren't very different in ability.
"I don't like this one bit, but oh well. I can concentrate on Ibuki-san alone."
"You've got it, Ibuki. You're responsible for getting the souvenir money."
"Shut up and get out of here. There's no way I'm going to lose to Horikita."
With many people watching, the battle between Horikita and Ibuki was about to begin. In this battle, there was no rule for a draw. If the referee decided that the two were hit at the sa ti, it would an a continuation of the fight into overti. It was just a snowball fight, but for both sides, it was a fight they couldn't lose.
"There's nothing like a fight that's definitely black and white."
Ibuki, who had been wearing gloves for the snowball fight, took them off and clutched the snowball in her right hand.
It was probably a strategy to abandon the cold resistance and improve the accuracy of her throws.
Horikita seed to fight without removing her gloves, fearing that she would lose control of her fingers due to the cold.
For a short-term battle, Ibuki had the advantage, and for a long-term battle, Horikita did.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't help you at all."
Yamamura muttered, her shoulders still moving up and down, perhaps still a little out of breath.
"That's okay. Did you enjoy it, even just a little?"
"Yes. I wish I could've tried harder."
Saying this, Yamamura's mouth turned up into a smile, though only slightly. Even if it was impossible to have a snowball fight with the sa participants, there will be an opportunity to compete in so type of competition in the future.
I hope she'll hold onto her regrets until then and take revenge. Returning to the gallery, we focused our attention on the two girls facing each other one-on-one.
"This is a serious competition, isn't it?"
"Yes."
Ibuki wanted to settle the match quickly, but Horikita saw through that and prioritized evasion over attack.
"You're moving so much!"
Ibuki's irritation and the cold her fingertips felt were becoming increasingly unbearable. She began to show signs of impatience. As the battle began to drag on, Ibuki aid her eighth snowball at Horikita, and it grazed her cheek.
*Illustration
"You're gonna have to give the win!"
"That's not going to happen." Despite showing fatigue, Ibuki's gripped fastball headed for Horikita again.
While simultaneously avoiding it, she released a snowball that she had been holding for a while, as if it were a counter.
But as one would expect from Ibuki, she was very careful and didn't let her guard down even though she was tired. Despite her exhaustion, she remained on guard and dodged the snowball, even though it knocked her out of her stance.
"Your fatigue seems to be at its peak, so let's end this here."
Horikita, on the other hand, didn't seem to want to fight any longer, and seed to shift her focus to attacking.
In other words, both sides were prepared to give it their all. The battle dragged on. Horikita's snowball, coming toward Ibuki, dispersed mid-air.
Perhaps because her grip wasn't firm enough, it seed to lose montum. As a result, only the flying fragnts of the snowball hit Ibuki.
Horikita, on the other hand, tried to just barely dodge the snowball flying from Ibuki, but she couldn't avoid it completely and it passed through her left arm, covering her clothes. It was a solid hit.
Such a delicate maneuver. However, Yōsuke, not wanting to prolong the situation any further, made his judgnt.
"Horikita-san hit! Ibuki-san wins!"
"Hell yeah!"
Ibuki struck a strong victory pose and gave a big smile.
Horikita tried to act calm, as if it was simply a snowball fight, but her frustration seed to ooze out.
"Look, loser! Give 1,000 points, now!" Ibuki, not caring about her hands, trembling from the cold, took out her cell phone and stord over to Horikita.
"That's very annoying. You don't have to gloat so much; I'll give it to you."
"You lost! You lost, lost, lost! Loser!"
Were they good friends or not? For a while, Ibuki continued to frolic around Horikita.
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