[448] The Girls' Performances

Chapter 448: The Girls' Performances

"Wow, she's really amazing, Onee-san."

Hearing Yukino's whisper, Hachiman raised an eyebrow slightly.

As someone who knew the original story, he understood well that although Yukino had been chasing after her sister's shadow, there was no resentment in her heart towards her sister. Instead, she admired her sister greatly.

In Yukino's heart, her sister Haruno was perfect in every aspect, and it was because of this that Yukino strived to emulate her.

On the grand stage, Haruno, illuminated by the spotlight, appeared stunningly beautiful.

Under her excellent direction, the performers on stage also displayed their full potential, delivering a beautiful melody to everyone present.

Watching the captivating Haruno, Hachiman reached out and held the hand of the girl beside him, Yukino.

"Even though Haruno is outstanding in many ways, she still can't compare to you in my heart, Yukino."

Hearing this, Yukino felt a sweet sensation in her heart. She couldn't help but lean closer to Hachiman, resting her head on his shoulder.

And Hachiman, without hesitation, embraced her in return.

Because the entire gymnasium was shrouded in darkness, with only the spotlight on the stage, and everyone's attention was focused on the concert, their actions went unnoticed.

Cuddled together, Hachiman could smell the elegant fragrance emanating from Yukino's body, which made him feel a bit restless.

But this wasn't the right time or place for such thoughts. If their actions were noticed by others, they would surely receive some disapproving looks.

Unable to linger in this moment, Hachiman had to do something to divert attention.

Lifting Yukino's chin with his hand, Hachiman, under her surprised gaze, kissed her enticing lips.

Although Yukino was initially surprised by the kiss, she didn't resist and gradually began to respond.

...

As time passed, the music on stage reached its final segment.

Sensing this, Yukino gently pushed Hachiman away.

Adjusting her posture, her face slightly flushed, Yukino spoke up.

"Alright, let's go backstage."

"Okay."

Hearing her words, Hachiman nodded.

With the concert about to end, it was time for other performances, so the two of them, as members of the organizing committee, needed to go backstage for inspection.

The duo descended the stairs from the second-floor corridor and entered the backstage of the stage.

The final event of the cultural festival was a collective performance by various groups and clubs.

Upon entering the backstage, Hachiman and Yukino found several people already there.

Shizuka, the teacher overseeing the cultural festival, Meguri, the student council president, and Minami, the head of the organizing committee, were present. Along with them were Hayama and Tobe, among others, making final adjustments. It was evident that their performance was up next.

Hayama was fine-tuning the electric guitar, Tobe was waving drumsticks in the air, presumably envisioning himself playing the drums, while Ooka and Yamato were tuning their respective instruments.

Meanwhile, Yumiko was practicing vocal sounds nearby, evidently preparing for her role as the lead singer.

Yui and Ebina were managing logistics, preparing water and towels for the performers. It appeared they had formed a band.

Upon seeing Hachiman and Yukino enter, Yui waved her hand with a smile.

"Hikki, Yukinon, you're here."

"Yeah, Yui, you've worked hard," Yukino nodded with a gentle smile.

Yumiko naturally noticed the two entering, but when she saw Hachiman with Yukino, she felt a bit displeased and turned her head away.

Observing this, Hachiman felt somewhat helpless but still greeted Yumiko.

"Yumiko, how are your preparations going?"

"Hmph, I don't need to tell you, everything is ready," Yumiko replied confidently.

Though she said so, she wasn't entirely certain. After all, they would soon face the entire school, and it was natural to feel nervous.

Hachiman could sense her bravado and couldn't help but find it amusing. He approached her and patted her shoulder.

"Don't worry, there's nothing to be nervous about. Just imagine the people you'll see as cabbages or radishes, and you'll be fine."

Hearing Hachiman's words, Yumiko imagined the scene he described and burst out laughing.

"Get out of here with your cabbage and radish analogy."

But at that moment, the girl was surprised to find that she wasn't as nervous as before.

Could imagining the audience as cabbage and radishes really ease nervousness?

Of course not. Although this method had some effect, it wasn't as miraculous as imagined.

If nervousness could be so easily alleviated, there wouldn't be so many stage fright incidents.

In reality, it was because when Hachiman patted Yumiko's shoulder earlier, he infused a bit of holy light into her body.

The warm aura of the holy light effectively alleviated Yumiko's nervousness.

As it was well known, holy light had an effect on negative effects, and nervousness was considered a negative effect, so it worked fine.

Yes, that's how it is. Whether it's true or not, just take it as true.

Don't ask, just know that holy light is all-powerful.

...

Watching Yumiko preparing backstage, Hachiman suddenly had an idea.

In the original story, their performance was supposed to be the last one, and Minami was supposed to feign disappearance to save face, so Yukino and Yui hastily formed a band to perform a last-minute act.

But now that Minami didn't bail out, Yukino and the others' performance couldn't be seen.

That's a bit of a shame...

With this in mind, Hachiman suggested to Yukino, "Yukino, this is a rare opportunity. Would you like to perform a piece too?"

"Me?" Yukino was surprised.

But upon hearing Hachiman's suggestion, Yui's eyes lit up.

"Yeah, Yukinon, you should perform too."

Seeing Yui's enthusiasm, Yukino couldn't help but feel tempted, but she still hesitated.

"But... I still have organizing committee duties."

"Don't worry, if things go as I expect, after Yumiko's performance, there won't be any more duties for the organizing committee," Hachiman said, turning to Minami beside him.

"Minami, after Yumiko's performance, there are no more, right?"

Hearing Hachiman's words, Minami took out the program list and nodded.

"That's right, after Hayama and Miura, there are no more performances."

"See, I told you," Hachiman smiled and then turned to Yui.

"By the way, Yui, you should join too."

Wide-eyed with surprise, Yui exclaimed, "Huh? Me too?!"

"Yes, consider it something I want to see," Hachiman nodded.

"Hikki, you want to see too..."

Yui couldn't help but feel a bit excited, but Yukino spoke up directly.

"If you want Yui and me to perform, then you'll have to perform too."

Hearing this, Yui's eyes lit up. "That's right, that's right, Hikki, you have to perform too."

Not only Yui and Yukino, even Yumiko and Shizuka, who were also backstage, became interested because they hadn't seen Hachiman perform anything, not even singing, which was the simplest.

Upon the girls' request, Hachiman pondered for a moment and agreed.

"Sure, what kind of performance would you like to see?"

Seeing his confident demeanor, Yukino raised an eyebrow.

"Can we choose anything?"

"Of course, it's up to you," Hachiman replied confidently.

Wasn't he a bit too confident?

Upon hearing Hachiman's overly confident words, not only the girls but also Minami and Hayama were surprised.

He said they could choose anything? Does that mean he's capable of anything?

But since Hachiman said so, the girls didn't hesitate.

After exchanging glances, Yukino finally spoke up about the performance they wanted Hachiman to do.

"Since you said that, then we want to hear..."

"A piano piece!"

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