9. Fake
For example, love.
Now, Kotaro's legs were sprinting so fast that he would have been amazed if he had noticed. But his mind was steadfast, focused on finding his lost love—Mitsuri Kanroji.
A moment ago, when she was beside him, he took it for granted. "I want to enjoy my youth..." his excuse had been very convenient. He didn't want to make Mitsuri wait, and he couldn't take responsibility for her—all these excuses...
Now he realized that he had been running from his love.
Doesn't youth include love?
He wasn't prepared for it, and Kotaro knew that. But who is prepared for love firsthand? No one is. People experience it, they win, they lose, and they learn. That's how it goes. Just try it. As for the future... leave it to your future self.
Before he noticed, Kotaro reached the cherry blossom tree, the place where he had met Mitsuri. There, he saw a figure squatting, and the sound of sobbing reached his ears. He slowly walked over, recognizing that familiar long braided black hair, that familiar figure, and those mannerisms...
"Mitsuri!"
He called out, startling her. Mitsuri quickly wiped her tears and turned around to face him. Truthfully, she wanted to run away, not wanting to face Kotaro. But as she ran halfway, she realized she couldn't end this beautiful date in such a way.
This end... it was something very familiar to her. She had been scorned for her unusual physique, her strange hair, and now, after disguising it, she was caught.
This miserable end was something she had predicted from the start. But why... why did it hurt so much?
"K-Kotaro-sama!"
"Mitsuri. Listen! That was..."
Kotaro shouted, wanting to explain that his response was not her fault. He didn't hate her. But...
"I know, Kotaro-sama. It must have hurt you, facing someone fake like me."
To Mitsuri, no amount of excuses could mend her heart. To her, his excuses seemed like sweetly laced lies meant to make her feel better. After all, Kotaro-sama is a kind man.
"N-No, that's not..."
"I-I knew that I was not made for someone like Kotaro-sama. B-But I still wanted to try. I wanted to marry Kotaro-sama."
Humans grow through experiences. Sometimes they win, sometimes they lose. But when someone loses every time, they give up. And Mitsuri was now that person. After trying all these times, it felt as if she wasn't destined to be married.
Now, she had given up.
The eyes that had shed tears a moment ago filled with water again. From her two pale green eyes, tears started to fall. Yet, she stood before him with a smile. As if nature had helped her just in time, a wind blew, making the petals fall on her. But this time, this scene...
"I am sorry, Kotaro-sama."
...was not beautiful.
...
Pause.
All the answers Kotaro had thought of while running vanished. Now, he couldn't even mutter a single word in front of Mitsuri's sad smile.
Why? Because he realized that he had dated Mitsuri without any genuine intentions. Marriage? He hadn't thought of it. For him, this date was nothing more than a way to stop Aunt Aiko from meddling in his life.
And now, in front of Mitsuri's genuine and pure wish, his intentions seemed fake.
Mitsuri is fake? Now, Kotaro felt that he was more fake than her. To him, Mitsuri seemed more genuine than himself. But...
"Mitsuri!"
...that is not a reason for him to back out.
Yes, he hadn't gone on the date with the intention of marriage. Yes, he had schemed to reject her just like he had with others. He had done it all, acted, faked it all.
But... these heartbeats, these emotions, that pounding in his chest wasn't fake. This love... wasn't fake!
Before Mitsuri could turn and leave, Kotaro grabbed her hand and called out to her. Mitsuri didn't want to turn and used her abnormal strength to pull away. But Kotaro didn't give up.
Unknown to him, a small, unnoticeable golden spark generated throughout his body, giving him more strength than before.
"!!!"
Mitsuri was shocked, unable to pull away from Kotaro's hands. Though she didn't use all of her strength, the power she did use was enough to topple an adult. A sad smile spread across her face again. She couldn't help but think that Kotaro was truly made for her. Unfortunately, she was the one who was un---
Before she could disqualify herself again, Kotaro's words pierced through her thoughts, interrupting them.
"Mitsuri. You don't need to turn to face me. I just want you to listen."
The grip on her hand tightened, and Mitsuri could feel the tension. At this point, she had never heard such a soft yet serious voice from Kotaro.
"Since you told me your tale, I will tell mine."
And Kotaro began his sincere tale.
"I am a teacher. I teach small kids in a small town. One day, my Aunt Aiko asked me about marriage. Marriage? I indeed wanted to marry, so I said yes. But I never wanted to marry now. Do you understand, Mitsuri? I never intended to marry you."
Mitsuri's eyes widened at such a revelation. Her shock was evident to Kotaro, but he continued telling his tale.
"I thought, 'Why should I get married so early and become a father?' I was angry. In my time of youth, when I should be enjoying my free time, I can't get married. But Aunt Aiko didn't listen to me and arranged dates for me. And me? I attended all of them, only to reject them all with picky reasons."
"But... that was all before meeting you."
===
A/N:
I foreshadowed the existence of Hamon. Unlike my previous work, I intend to make Kotaro unaware of his cheat - Hamon.
I thought, if he knew about Hamon beforehand, wouldn't he train it?
Anyone among us who happens to be reincarnated and gains a power would train it, regardless of the circumstances, right?
So, I made him ignorant of his power. If he were aware of it, it would be illogical for him not to use it.
I wonder what was going through my mind when I originally gave Hamon to Kotaro from the start but didn't have him train it.