Nanao Akane

"Shou, Katase-san, drink some water and take a rest."

Turning her head to look at the two members who were walking away, Akane Nanao, who had relaxed her vigilance a little because there were only two of them here, was about to call out his name when she saw his pupils dilate, looking a little nervous, she quickly changed her words.

"Ah, um, thank you, Nanao-san."

"Hmm~"

Seeing him drinking tea with his head down and looking a little embarrassed, the girl knew that she couldn't stay here for too long, so she smiled and prepared to walk away with the bucket,

But this time, Shou-kun, who rarely spoke to her in the club, called out to her.

"Uh, Nanao-san, the person you went out to see earlier, he..."

Hearing this ambiguous question from her almost-boyfriend and knowing he was a bit jealous, Akane Nanao, glancing at the distant, focused club members, put down the water bucket and poured him a cup of water, smiling as she asked:

"Shou... kun, are you jealous?"

"Pfft~ cough cough~"

Just as he was about to use drinking water to cover his embarrassment, Katase Shouya choked on it, coughing it out.

Wiping the water from his mouth with his arm, he glanced around in a panic, and only after getting relieved that no one was paying attention he responded with his eyes darting around:

"I'm just... a little curious..."

Seeing her almost-boyfriend getting shy because of jealousy, Nanao Akane's heart filled with sweetness, which showed on her rosy cheeks as she tilted her head and said with a smile:

"Don't worry, I have nothing to do with him. I don't even know his name, and I probably won't see him again. Shou-kun, there's no need to worry."

"Ah, okay."

Hearing her reassuring words, the unease that had risen in Katase Shouya's heart due to his teammates' jokes slowly dissipated.

After glancing around, and then looking at the girl's slightly blushing and very delicate face,

Holding back the joy in his heart, he waved his hand with a smile:

"Well, I'll get back to training then, Nanao-san.~"

"Okay~"

.

.

.

Wham—

Hitting the thrown baseball back, the senior member who had been watching their interaction showed a smile.

'I don't believe you really don't like her.'

'There is no room for two tigers in one mountain; you're not at a loss either.'

Seeing Akane Nanao carrying the water bucket, her arms tightly holding her chest, making the white, bun-shaped parts even rounder, the senior member rolled his throat with a bit of heat and envy before turning away.

'A capable man need not worry about a wife. As long as I can lead the team to Glory... everything will come.'

Boom—

Unaware of the little story on the baseball field, Sasaki entered the Aikido club, glanced at the refreshing figure practicing with someone, and once again sat in his small corner.

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.

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Chapter Eighty-Four: The Simp Sasaki

Whap—

Throwing off the hand that was choking her, Natsuha Shinomiya's partner in the practice, seeing her distracted and occasionally trying to look back, teased:

"Natsuha, if you want to see your boyfriend, just go.

Anyway, practice is almost over; a few more minutes won't matter."

"Kouyou, you're talking nonsense again. He's not my boyfriend, and I wasn't trying to look." Retracting her stance, having explained this many times, Natsuha continued her weak explanation.

"Okay, okay, he's not your boyfriend then."

Not knowing if they were actually dating, but seeing that she cared a lot about the handsome guy, the latter casually agreed after her explanation:

"By the way, you can't see him today even if you want to. It seems he didn't come today."

Hearing this, Natsuha Shinomiya was startled and quickly turned around, looking at the usual spot where he sat.

It was empty, with no sign of him.

Not seeing Sasaki in the training hall, the girl, who had been making excuses for him in her heart, quickly ran to the changing room.

Bang—

Taking out the key and opening the locker door, Natsuha Shinomiya found her phone in her bag.

But seeing the empty screen without any notification, her heart felt as empty as the screen.

Holding her phone, the girl stepped back and sat on the bench in the changing room, staring blankly at the black screen.

A sense of loss and sadness for missing a happy thing welled up in her heart.

This feeling was faint, like the slight sadness of losing a favorite keychain.

For an ordinary person, they might feel sad for a while and then forget it, as it wasn't a big deal.

But for Natsuha Shinomiya, who had placed great importance on relationships since her father left, this trivial sadness was enough for her to savor for a long time.

Moreover, Sasaki not showing up without a reason meant breaking a promise.

And breaking promises and betrayal were the hardest things for her to endure.

Even if he had an urgent matter, not sending her even a comma showed that he didn't consider her a friend.

He had clearly promised her.

Ding—

Just as he was lost in thought, the sudden notification sound and the bright screen lit up the girl's previously dull eyes.

**18:54 "Read"**

Seeing a message from "Sasaki," Natsuha Shinomiya quickly blinked her pretty eyes to make sure she didn't misread it.

Once she confirmed it was from him, she started typing rapidly.

**18:54 "Read"**

**18:54 "Read"**

**18:55 "Read"**

**18:55 "Read"**

The moment he sent this message, she got up, holding her phone, and quickly opened the door to the changing room.

After turning a corner, she arrived at the large mirror in the shared area between the men's and women's changing rooms and immediately saw the familiar figure adjusting his hair in the mirror.

Hearing footsteps, Sasaki, who was looking in the mirror, turned his head:

"Finished with your business?"

"Yeah."

Casually walking to his side, Natsuha Shinomiya looked at herself in the mirror and similarly adjusted her hair:

"How long have you been here? Have you been waiting for a long time?"

Taking out his phone and glancing at the time, the boy responded casually:

"Not too long. I got here at 5:00 and then went to the washroom."

As he spoke, Sasaki, just like the previous days, took out a drink from his bag, which he had brought from the convenience store:

"Are you going to practice some more? We still have a little time."

Naturally taking the drink from his hands and opening the cap, Natsuha took a sip, feeling the refreshing coolness in her mouth.

She shook her ponytail, tied with a light purple hairband, and gave him a slightly annoyed look:

"Do you think I'm such a training fanatic?"

Just after saying that, feeling like she was almost whining to a boyfriend, the girl hadn't thought about how to deal with the possible puzzled look from Sasaki.

But the latter spoke nonchalantly:

"A training fanatic... Shinomiya-san just wants to have the ability to protect her family. That's something no one can deny or hinder."

"As long as it doesn't harm your body, even if you want to train all night, I will wait for you and then take you home."

"Training all night... and then becoming a healthy corpse? And who asked you to wait for me anyway, you're just deciding that on your own."

For the first time, her efforts were recognized by the opposite sex, and with Sasaki's sincere and calm expression saying such words that sparked her imagination, Natsuha Shinomiya, who was naturally strong-willed but ultimately still a girl, shyly squeezed the plastic bottle in her hand, making a soft cracking sound.

Although she had said she didn't like boys who were sweet talkers, as a girl, she still couldn't dislike sweet words from boys.

It's just that the method had to be right.

Due to her family background, Natsuha Shinomiya naturally disliked slick-talking people.

And such people had a common trait: they seemed unserious, frivolous, and liked to tease girls with physical contact.

So to win her favor, one had to avoid appearing frivolous.

Especially avoid that kind of grinning, wandering-eye look.

And when Sasaki is serious, his stern expression makes anyone unlikely to associate him with frivolity.

Thus, having reached a level of friendly goodwill and with his stern demeanor, he could slightly cross the line and say things that sounded like they had some hidden meaning.

So, turning his head to look directly into Natsuha Shinomiya's beautiful, wine-red eyes, the boy continued:

"I don't like breaking promises. I promised to take you home, so I will wait for you."

"As for becoming a healthy corpse..."

Up and down, he gave a once-over to the girl, who still wore her Aikido uniform, looking particularly spirited and beautiful, Sasaki said with a sincere expression;

"Even if it's a corpse, Shinomiya-san would be the most beautiful one."

Although Sasaki's words were not particularly pleasant, since she initiated this joke, it indicated that she didn't mind.

So, hearing Sasaki's words, Natsuha Shinomiya merely formed a small fist like a snowball and playfully punched him lightly.

"You guy, how could you say such things to a girl, honestly."

Though her words carried annoyance, the joyful look in her delicate eyes showed that she enjoyed Sasaki's unique compliment very much.

After all, the only male around her since childhood was Yamano Yuuta

And because that guy had his "Youth Training Manual" confiscated by Shinomiya when she was a disciplinary committee member in middle school, he knew that his childhood friend and crush didn't like off-color jokes or slick talkers.

Therefore, from childhood to now, Yamano Yuuta had never praised her much.

However, no matter how much she disliked these slick jokes, at the end, Shinomiya is still a normal girl.

Girls are more emotional than boys and thus enjoy hearing sweet words more.

Even if she outwardly dislikes it, her heart is honest.

Clearly, Yamano Yuuta didn't truly understand his childhood sweetheart.

Otherwise, Sasaki's rather clumsy compliment wouldn't have made her smile so broadly.

"I'm just telling the truth."

Smiling, Sasaki glanced at the Aikido members who were preparing to leave the training ground, then nodded toward the still-smiling girl:

"I'll wait for you outside."

"Okay, see you in a bit~"