Brushing off Mitsuha, who was clinging to his side and likely to cause trouble, Haruto walked toward the familiar figure ahead. The girl was absorbed in choosing fruit, unaware of his approach. With a smile, he extended his hand toward her.
Suddenly seeing an unfamiliar hand entering her peripheral vision, Shouko blinked in surprise. She followed the hand to its owner and, upon seeing Haruto's face, blinked again in recognition.
"Didn't expect to run into you here. Are you out by yourself today?"
Shoko gently put down the pear she had been holding and gave a small nod. She glanced around, her curious eyes lingering on him.
Raising her hand to sign something, Shouko suddenly paused. She remembered that Haruto probably couldn't understand sign language. Slightly awkward, she instead pulled out a small notebook from her pocket and wrote:
"I'm alone. Are you by yourself too?"
"Not today. I'm out shopping with my family. They came from the countryside to visit me and are staying at my place. We ran out of some daily essentials, so I came to restock. Is your sister home?"
Thinking of that boyish girl he'd met before, Haruto's lips curved into a small smile. The girl had been protective and wary of him, clearly not a fan—but he found her endearing in a way, especially since her bold, tomboyish demeanor was so different from Mitsuha's.
"Yuzuru's at home, taking care of our grandmother."
"Yuzuru… right, that was her name."
Seeing it written jogged his memory. It had been a while since he'd last seen her, and her name had slipped his mind until now.
"You're out alone just to buy fruit today?"
His eyes flicked to the fruit display. Shouko had just been holding a pear—two medium-sized Kosui pears priced at 698 yen.
Even though he was already used to the ridiculous fruit prices around here, seeing it again still made his eye twitch. Narrowing his eyes at the price tag, he sighed.
This was exactly why he rarely bought fruit.
"Kosui pears, huh? You thinking of getting these?"
There were three packs left on the shelf. When he looked at Shouko, she quickly shook her head—she had just been browsing, not seriously planning to buy.
Haruto mulled it over, then picked up a box of grapes. He didn't have a basket, so he'd have to throw them into Mitsuha's later. For now, he just held onto them.
"My sister's still waiting for me. I should head back to her."
Nishimiya's eyes darted slightly to the side, her gaze no longer on Haruto. Noticing the change in her expression, he instinctively turned to look over his shoulder—and saw a familiar figure peeking from behind a shelf, clearly watching them.
When the hiding figure noticed she'd been seen, she tried to duck even further, as if that would help.
"..."
Haruto sighed. That big pair of curious, sparkly eyes peeking through the display racks—sometimes he thought it was a waste for Mitsuha not to pursue comedy full-time. It was hard to believe this was the same girl who grew up to be the graceful, poised adult version he knew from the future.
"Stop hiding, Mitsuha. We saw you already."
He called out softly. Knowing she'd been caught, Mitsuha stepped out from behind the shelves and walked over to the two. She looked at Shouko curiously.
"This person... is she one of your friends, Onii-chan?"
"Yeah. Mitsuha, this is Shouko Nishimiya ."
"I'm Miyamizu Mitsuha. His younger sister. Nice to meet you."
Mitsuha smiled politely and extended her hand. Though a little shy around strangers, she was bolder with Haruto nearby.
Shouko hesitated before gently reaching out and briefly touching Mitsuha's hand, her grip light and uncertain. She quickly pulled away, making Mitsuha blink in confusion.
She glanced at Haruto, puzzled.
"Here. Take this and go find Mom. I'll meet up with you in a bit."
"...Okay."
Still unsure what had just happened, Mitsuha quietly left, sensing the subtle shift in the atmosphere.
Haruto watched her go, then turned to Shouko.
"Sorry about that. Mitsuha can be a bit... much. I hope she didn't make you uncomfortable."
Shouko quickly shook her head, gesturing that it was fine.
"Still… something felt a little off," Mitsuha muttered later as she wandered the store, eventually finding her mother, who was still browsing household goods.
Futaba picked up a strange-looking tool that wasn't sold in their hometown of Itomori.
"Mom, what's that?"
"This? It can be used to squeeze the food in the package. Not something we need every day, but it's useful sometimes."
A bit of a novelty item, but practical—and cheap. She decided to take one home.
Mitsuha had been ready to mock the purchase, but when she saw the price tag, she lost interest. Too cheap to bother commenting on.
"Where's Haruto? wasn't he with you?"
Futaba looked around, surprised to see her son wasn't nearby.
"He ran into someone he knew and stayed back to talk. He'll be here soon."
"Someone he knew?"
"Yeah, a really cute, quiet girl. Not sure what their relationship—ow!"
Mitsuha yelped as someone smacked her rear. She whirled around, furious—only to meet Haruto's exasperated stare. She had been just about to gossip about him, but now all the words got stuck in her throat.
Just her luck.
Whenever she had a conflict with this guy, she always ended up on the losing side.
"That girl just now—she's your acquaintance?"
"Yeah."
Haruto glanced at her, remembering how awkward Shouko had looked when she wanted to introduce herself but couldn't. Her hearing impairment must've made it difficult, especially around strangers like Mitsuha.
Still, he didn't blame Mitsuha. There was no way she could've known about Shouko's condition.
"She's... never mind. Telling you won't mean anything anyway. You'll be packing soon. The day after tomorrow, you're heading back."
"Huh?"
Just when she thought she was about to hear some juicy gossip, Haruto shut it down completely. Mitsuha's face scrunched up in frustration.
"You're the worst!"
He only smiled, saying nothing. He led Mitsuha and his mother to the register, checked out, and carried their bags back to the apartment.
As soon as they got home, Mitsuha—still burning with curiosity—sidled up to Haruto.
"Hey, about Shouko—does she have some kind of secret?"
"Don't be nosy. It's got nothing to do with you. Instead of worrying about others, maybe focus on how you're going to get into a high school in Tokyo."
"Ugh! You're the worst!"
Mitsuha had always yearned for Tokyo. Now that she'd spent some time there, experiencing its convenience and energy firsthand, her heart was more drawn to the city than ever. She found herself wanting to stay—to build a life here, just like Haruto.
But if she wanted to live in Tokyo like he did, she needed to achieve something—something real, something that could stand on its own.
Letting out a small sigh, she turned her head toward her mother. Futaba was sitting quietly at the edge of the bed, gazing out the window as if lost in some far-off view. What she saw out there, Mitsuha couldn't tell.
Bringing her eyes back to Haruto, Mitsuha's face twisted into a helpless little frown.
It wasn't going to be easy.
But still—she decided she would try.
Later that evening, Setsuna dropped by. She chatted with Haruto for a bit, and when dinner time rolled around, he told her he'd be staying home instead of going to the Kiyoura house.
Setsuna was a little surprised. She glanced at Mitsuha, who clearly looked hopeful, then simply nodded and respected his decision. After bidding Futaba goodbye, she quietly took her leave.
"Ughhh... this place is so boring. Don't you have anything here? Not even a TV?"
"I don't," Haruto replied flatly. "Because if I had one, the NHK [1]people would come knocking."
"...Are they really that bad?"
Mitsuha, who had heard vague rumors about it before, looked at Haruto with obvious skepticism.
"Oh, they're relentless. Perfectly legal harassment—if you can believe it. Unless you pay them 14,000 yen a year, they just keep showing up. Relentlessly. Heh."
He didn't need to say more. Mitsuha could already imagine the hellish cycle he was describing.
"Fourteen thousand yen?! Per year? That's outrageous!"
She turned to look at her mom, sitting calmly in the room. A thought popped into her head.
"Wait... do we pay for it every year back home too?"
"We do," Futaba replied with a nod.
"..."
Mitsuha's jaw practically dropped.
Seeing her stunned reaction, Haruto couldn't help but chuckle softly.
Snapping out of her daze, Mitsuha glared back and forth between her mother and Haruto, eyes full of betrayal.
"You knew?"
"Not many people come to visit, right? When someone unfamiliar shows up and asks a few questions, it's easy to guess. Besides, did you really think you could just watch TV for free if the household didn't pay for it?"
"I always thought it was free programming…"
"In the countryside, there aren't many entertainment options to begin with. Watching TV is probably the most common way to pass the time. Paying a little usage fee isn't such a big deal."
"Oh."
Mitsuha winced at the thought of over 10,000 yen going out each year, but after a moment, she realized it wasn't even her money. So she shrugged it off.
With nothing better to do, she wandered over to Haruto's desk. She picked up a book at random from the pile and started flipping through it.
"By the way," she asked without looking up, "aside from that magazine last time, haven't you submitted anything else?"
"Nope."
"But you got paid for that one, didn't you?"
"I told you already."
"I forgot."
"It was only ten, twenty thousand yen. I already used it for living expenses."
"Wait, that's more than enough to cover the NHK fee!"
"Wouldn't it be better to use it to buy some fruit?"
Speaking of fruit, he pulled out a bunch of grapes from the shopping bag, gave them a quick rinse, and placed them on a plate. Mitsuha, who had been flipping through a book, put it down immediately and joined him at the low table. She picked up a grape and offered it first to her mother.
After dinner, the three sat around quietly. With nothing to do, Mitsuha drifted over to Haruto's side. As he finished cleaning up and straightening the room, she practically leaned into him, hands resting on his shoulders, kneading gently.
"…If you want something, just say it. No need to punish my shoulders for it."
Her hands froze mid-motion. She narrowed her eyes at him with a touch of menace—but in the next instant, her expression softened into a sweet smile.
"Heeey, since we're not doing anything tonight, let's go out and walk around for a bit!"
"It's already late. Most places are closing. There's nothing to see around here."
Looking into her hopeful face, Haruto gently peeled her hands off his shoulders.
"Anywhere's fine! I feel like I'm rotting just sitting at home all day!"
"…Can we?"
Left with no choice, he turned to his mother for confirmation.
"Go ahead," Futaba said, "but don't stay out too long. Big cities can be dangerous at night. Stay alert."
"You're not coming with us?" Mitsuha asked.
"I'm already tired. Besides, I need to call back and check in with Yotsuha later. You two go on ahead."
"Oh."
The moment her mom mentioned chatting with Yotsuha, Mitsuha lost interest. She'd be seeing her sister the day after tomorrow anyway.
Grabbing Haruto's hand, she tugged her annoying big brother toward the front door.
The sky had only recently darkened. Under the glow of the streetlights, it didn't look all that different from daytime. Haruto, dressed quickly by Mitsuha and dragged out the door, looked around at the shadowy scenery.
"It's pitch black out here. What are you hoping to see?"
"Come on, this is Tokyo! Shouldn't it be lively even at night?"
Seeing how empty the street was, Mitsuha crept closer and hugged his arm.
Even with the streetlamps, the shadowy alleys and silence made her uneasy. Her heart started to race, and she instinctively sought comfort by clinging to him.
"Sure, Tokyo's lively—but that's downtown. This is a residential area. People are tired after working all day. You want to take away even their chance to rest? I didn't know you were so cruel."
"That's not what I meant!"
Her cheeks puffed in frustration. She wanted to be mad, but didn't have a good comeback. Sighing, she looked around again.
"How far is your school from here?"
"Why?"
"I want to see what it looks like."
"You're interested in a school… in the middle of the night?"
"Can I?"
Mitsuha's eyes sparkled as she looked up at him, completely serious. Haruto knew her well enough by now to realize—if he said no, she might just throw a tantrum right then and there.
"The gates are probably locked. We can only see it from outside. But if that's okay, then sure. Otherwise, just wait until tomorrow."
"Let's go!"
Just seeing where he studied would be enough. Who cared if it was from outside the fence? And besides, even if the gate was locked… there's always the option of climbing.
Seeing how her mood had instantly lifted, he didn't bother to object. He quietly let her cling to his arm and led the way.
It normally took ten minutes during the day, but in the dark, it took them nearly twenty to reach Toyosaki High School.
The moment Mitsuha saw the sleek, modern private school—so different from her own—her eyes lit up with admiration.
"So this is a city high school… It's totally different from Itomori's. Just standing here feels kind of magical. What's it like inside?"
"Yeah… It's not like your school."
"I knew it! City schools are on a different level. Back home, the track is just some scattered gravel. But this? It looks brand-new and super professional."
The front gate was locked, but they walked around the fence to the athletic field. Mitsuha's eyes sparkled with longing as she looked through the bars.
"When you get to high school," Haruto said quietly, "if your grades are good enough… I'll talk to dad. Try to convince him to let you come study in Tokyo."
"Really?"
She turned her head in surprise, looking up at him.
There was no light nearby—only moonlight illuminated Haruto's vague silhouette. Mitsuha wasn't sure if he'd actually keep that promise.
"By then, I'll be able to cover my own living expenses. Even your tuition wouldn't be a problem. So even if the family disagrees… it won't matter."
"You swear you'll do it?"
"Of course."
"Hmph! Then I'll definitely make it happen!"
"Good. I'll be looking forward to it."
[1] Japan Broadcasting Corporation