Taking Care of Itsuki’s Belly

Nino was staring at her while at school, and she didn't have a chance to buy anything. Itsuki had to take a long journey when the four of them separated, and went to the cafeteria to buy a meat bun before entering class so she wouldn't suddenly feel hungry and have no food on hand.

Seeing her holding the meat bun in her hand, Fumino took out a piece of chocolate from her school bag as if she had found a friend.

Itsuki smelled the aroma of the meat bun and sighed: "I just had breakfast not long ago, but I don't know why I'm still a little hungry."

Fumino snapped her fingers in agreement: "I get it~. That's why I put a lot of snacks in my school bag!"

Exchanging glances, the two girls smiled at each other, opened their mouths, and bit into the food in front of them.

"Ah—"

"Wait a moment."

Before that, Shinichi, who had risen, reached out his hand and snatched everything from their hands.

The girls stopped in their tracks, staring at their empty hands in amazement.

Then, they slowly shifted their attention to Shinichi.

"What are you doing."

The overlapping voices were very calm but hid anger.

Stared at by two pairs of cold eyes, Shinichi couldn't help but tremble, and almost reflexively returned the food to them.

To avoid giving up immediately, he raised the meat bun and chocolate into the air.

Then, like monkeys in the zoo, the two girls looked up and no longer looked at him cruelly.

Although relieved, Shinichi still felt a bit complicated.

...What are feelings about training pets?

"Weren't you just discussing weight loss?"

Taking advantage of the moment when their attention was diverted, Shinichi asked angrily.

Both of them were stunned, then woke up from their bad state and looked at each other in confusion.

"That's right..."

"What's with this?"

"This is a big problem!"

After making sure he wouldn't be bitten by two female tigers, Shinichi put his hands down and spoke to Itsuki while squeezing the meat bun:

"First of all, you said you wanted to lose weight, right? Do you know how many calories are in that meat bun?"

"This..." Itsuki blushed slightly, bit her lip, and tried to argue.

"It's just a meat bun! I eat two, three, four, or five of these every day. If I just eat one now, it shouldn't be bad!"

"What will happen?" Shinichi raised the corner of his mouth, sneering mercilessly:

"So, this is why you're getting fat, you fat monster!"

"What--!"

Itsuki's eyes widened and she froze in place, her face turning pale.

"As for you, Fumino." Next, Shinichi turned to Fumino. But before he spoke, she said first:

"I have no plans to lose weight now, please return my chocolate!"

"...Fine." Shinichi said nothing.

Fumino happily took back the chocolate from his hand, pouting and snorting sweetly.

"Besides, you won't let me go when I get fat, will you? At worst, I'll let you lose weight with me later. I can eat whatever I want now. It's my right!"

Seeing her reddish smiling face, Shinichi couldn't help but laugh: "Yes, everything you said is true."

"That's right!" There was a smile in her eyes, and Fumino pouted proudly.

Just as the teasing atmosphere between them was about to form, Shinichi's collar was suddenly pulled.

"Um, Asada-kun..."

After recovering from her shock, Itsuki was behind him, glancing at the meat bun in his hand, her expression hardening, and she spoke up.

Shinichi thought for a moment, then said first:

"Itsuki, do you really want to lose weight?"

"Of course!"

Itsuki nodded enthusiastically and immediately recounted her problem.

"The numbers on the scale have been getting worse lately, and there's a bit more fat on my lower belly. If I don't lose weight, I'll really be the fattest among my sisters!"

The more she talked, the more anxious she became.

"If that's the case, let me supervise you."

The conversation suddenly changed, Shinichi put the meat bun in his school bag, surprising Itsuki.

"Asada-kun, what do you mean..."

"It's quite simple." Shinichi spread his hands and explained, "I've read in a book that there are roughly two key points in losing weight. The first is food management, and the other is exercise management. If there's no one supervising, the management is very easy to slip. If you're lax, weight loss or anything else will just be talk on paper."

"That's true." Itsuki agreed.

It's difficult for her to control her appetite in this area. Simply put, she can't stand hunger.

Before, Nino had tried various ways to try to lose weight, but in vain, instead of losing weight, her weight increased. It was only because Itsuki couldn't stand the hunger, and she always took advantage of Nino's lack of attention, sometimes secretly eating high-calorie foods like potato chips, desserts, and meat buns.

Even if she only took one or two bites secretly, all of Nino's weight loss plans failed, and she had no choice but to give up.

Before she was hungry, she was determined. When she was hungry, she relied on food. After being full, she felt ashamed and blamed herself. Itsuki knew her shortcomings, but she could never fix them.

If she didn't rely on yoga to burn calories on regular days, Itsuki wouldn't be able to keep her weight within five kilograms of her sister's. As Nino said, she would become fat and no one wanted that.

However, yoga also has its limits. Just like now, her weight has reached a dangerous threshold, if her weight continues to increase, she won't be able to properly retaliate when Nino teases her.

"So, people without determination will need the help of others. Yotsuba is more professional than me in sports management. You can approach her. As for diet management..." Shinichi smiled.

"I'll supervise you today, and you won't be able to eat anything except the main food until school ends. You plan to go to the cafeteria for lunch? I can also help you choose lower calorie foods, so there's no need to order tempura. Adding pudding to rice will make you even fatter."

"This..." Itsuki imagined a situation where she couldn't eat this and couldn't eat that, and her expression of resistance unconsciously emerged.

Before she could say anything, Fumino asked in confusion, "Is this useful? Not to mention it's only half a day. What if Itsuki has to replace the uneaten part immediately after you leave?"

That's the same as doing useless work.

"I won't..."

Itsuki still wanted to clear her name, but she agreed to the statement in her heart, ultimately not arguing.

Shinichi shrugged.

"It's okay. I just want her to try to see if the situation will improve if someone other than her family controls her eating habits. Losing weight can only be done consciously, and no one can watch her 24 hours a day. So, if it doesn't work, then it won't work."

"But..."

Shinichi leaned forward towards Itsuki, smiled, and whispered.

"If you can't even control your appetite for half a day, I suggest you not even think about losing weight and just eat whatever you want, you fool."

A vein appeared on Itsuki's forehead, she lowered her head, and a faint black aura emanated from her body.

Seeing her remaining silent and unresponsive, Shinichi rolled his eyes and added:

"Don't worry, even though it's a meat bun monster, there are still people with unique tastes. Don't worry, no one wants it."

With a tone full of concern and a very sincere expression, Shinichi used his provocation to the extreme. Even Fumino, who was watching, wanted to punch him, let alone Itsuki, who directly accepted his provocation.

Clasping her hands tightly on the table, Itsuki took a deep breath and slowly raised her head.

"Asada-kun, there's no need to go this far, right?"

She maintained her dignity, even though she gritted her teeth, she didn't forget to be polite.

Shinichi smiled lightly, ignoring her anger, and casually took out the meat bun from his school bag and placed it on the table.

"If you really want to lose weight, don't get angry at my words. Get angry at yourself for hating my words but not being able to refute them at all."

His tone softened: "Turn your anger into determination, and you will realize that you can achieve many things, Itsuki."

"Determination..."

Realizing something from his provocation, Itsuki thought deeply.

"If you take back that meat bun, just treat it as if nothing happened, and I won't interfere in your affairs." While he pondered, Shinichi pushed the meat bun towards her and calmly said, "In the end, if letting me supervise what you eat isn't effective, why not ask Yotsuba to give you a series of hellish training first, and the results will surely be clearer."

"...Let's forget it. I don't want to be too tired to study."

After a moment of silence, Itsuki pushed the meat bun back towards him.

After careful consideration, she stared straight at Shinichi. The hesitation and doubt in her eyes had disappeared, and in the end, only seriousness remained in her eyes.

"If you can, I entrust it to you today!"

She agreed to Shinichi's proposal.

Doubts were cast aside. At this moment, Itsuki was truly "planning to lose weight", not just a fantasy.

After all, she couldn't make decisions on her own.

Whether it's about losing weight or making decisions about dreams.

Itsuki always understood that she wasn't that smart.

She was always confused and hesitant, if no one guided her, she would spin around and retreat, and it would take a long time to move forward.

Precisely because she couldn't learn by herself, when someone was willing to help and guide her in the right direction, she had to seize that opportunity and make full efforts to do so.

"Hmph..."

Itsuki suddenly chuckled.

With half-closed eyes, her gaze soft as water, she gently pressed her palm to her lower abdomen, and gave a mischievous smile to Shinichi.

"So, you have to take care of 'that' properly, right? Asada-kun~"

Her appearance was just asking Shinichi to take responsibility for the child in her belly.

Itsuki seemed to realize it, but she blushed and didn't retract her words. Instead, she smiled even more brightly.

"..." The students who happened to hear their conversation widened their eyes in shock.

Fumino felt like she was being NTR'd.

"..." Shinichi, who rarely saw Itsuki's mischievous behavior, was stunned.

Then, he sighed helplessly: "I'll do my best. Besides, your stomach is almost like a black hole, so it's quite difficult to take care of it..."

"..." Itsuki's smile tensed and was tinged with darkness.

"Hey, Fumino. Can you tell me how you made Asada-kun speechless earlier?"

"Of course! I won't feel hungry if you mention this. The first thing is the diaphragm..."

"Um, don't talk about dangerous things like that. Let's talk about the details of Itsuki's Weight Loss Plan..."

"Ugh, don't call me fat! Asada-kun, you...really lack courage!"

"..."

The lively and cheerful conversation sounded noisy behind them.

Too distracted to concentrate, Fuutarou placed the flashcards in his hand and rubbed his temples.

"That's enough. When can I change seats..."

Sitting in front of Shinichi was clearly the unluckiest thing in his life.