Part 2
The next morning, Makoto stepped out of the hotel he was staying at with Tanaka.
He looked like an absolute mess.
Trying to look intimidating with a shinai slung over his shoulder… and honestly, it worked, thanks to his tall frame, wild hair, and wrinkled clothes.
He looked less like a student and more like a delinquent who'd gotten lost in Okinawa.
Tanaka, on the other hand, looked like a walking tourist ad.
Short, skinny, dressed in clean white shorts and a perfectly ironed shirt. A camera hung from his neck like some kind of badge.
"Man, it's hot… though I gotta admit, the air feels cleaner here," Tanaka said, fanning himself with his hand.
"Heat is just an illusion created by the weak! A real man doesn't complain about the weather!" Makoto roared, drenched in sweat.
"…A real man wouldn't be spying on his little sister," Tanaka muttered.
"Huh? You say something, Tanaka?"
"Wanna grab an ice cream? Or maybe a cold drink?" he asked calmly, expertly dodging the topic.
"An ice cream sounds good… but we mustn't lose sight of our mission."
"According to Akari, the Seisen students have time off this week until the tournament," Makoto added, eyes still glued to his phone.
"Hey, stop ignoring me!"
"Sorry, Makoto. I was looking up nearby ice cream shops."
"Looks like the closest one is just that wa—"
He suddenly cut himself off, whipping his head in the opposite direction. As if he'd just seen something he absolutely shouldn't have.
"H-how about we go to the aquarium instead? I hear it's lovely this time of year… quiet…"
Makoto narrowed his eyes.
"What's going on, Tanaka? Weren't we heading for ice cream?"
The poor guy was sweating bullets.
"I think… maybe the aquarium is better. They have seals. You like seals, right?"
"Fine, but let's get that ice cre—am…"
Makoto froze.
He finally saw it.
There, at the ice cream parlor, sitting across from a silver-haired girl with an elegant, aristocratic air, was his target… Kisaragi Touma.
And while the girl wore no particular expression, the scene before them was undeniable.
The two of them were sharing a massive sundae—with two spoons.
A date.
Makoto gripped his shinai so tightly his knuckles turned white.
"That bastard…"
"Hm?"
"That lowlife's cheating on Akari with that foreign beauty!"
Tanaka sighed, unfazed.
"Well… technically, he's not even dating your sister."
The redhead spun around to face his friend head-on.
"I already told you! These pictures don't lie!"
"You said the same thing about that blond American, and he turned out to just be her classmate," Tanaka retorted, clearly fed up.
"This is different! Look—he used hearts in these pics! Hearts, you hear me?!" Makoto shouted, holding out his phone like it was courtroom evidence.
Tanaka stared at the screen, then let out a long, exhausted sigh.
"I see now… You're worse off than I thought, Makoto."
"You just don't get it. It's my duty as her older brother," Makoto declared, crossing his arms with an air of solemn pride that didn't quite land.
Tanaka lowered his gaze in silence, clearly re-evaluating some life choices.
"…That's true. I don't have any siblings, so I don't really get how you feel… but…"
Tanaka suddenly looked up and pointed toward the ice cream shop.
"Your target vanished, Sherlock."
"CURSE YOUUUU!!!"
Makoto dropped to his knees in utter defeat.
After that encounter, neither Touma nor the mysterious silver-haired girl were seen again.
The next day…
Makoto and Tanaka were hiding in the bushes near the exit of Seisen Academy, lying in wait for either Touma… or Akari.
"So what's the master plan now? Just sit around all day spying on this Kisaragi guy?" Tanaka sighed, visibly tired of everything.
"According to my source, he should be coming out around this time…"
"…Source?"
As if fate had heard him, Touma stepped out of the school gate at that exact moment… accompanied by a girl with pink hair and bright blue eyes.
Mirai looked like a walking dessert—soft, sweet, and pastel-colored from head to toe.
"Whoa… this girl's the total opposite of your sister," Tanaka muttered in awe.
"You're right… she looks like an angel."
Ahem. Makoto cleared his throat, trying not to sound impressed.
"B-but obviously, my sister's better!"
"Yeah yeah… whatever you say, man."
"Let's tail them!" Makoto shouted, rising from the bushes—only for a playful voice to stop them in their tracks.
"It's not very polite to spy on people, you know?"
They both spun around.
Behind them stood a man dressed head-to-toe in white, wearing a magician's top hat, watching them with a mischievous smile.
"Who said that?"
"It's considered quite improper to spy on students, young Tsubasa… especially within my institute grounds," the man said, his tone firm yet oddly gentle.
"Ha? Who the heck are you, you clown? What, did you escape from a second-rate circus?" Makoto snapped, trying to sound intimidating.
"My, my… kids these days have no respect," the man muttered, a vein bulging visibly on his forehead.
"It's the duty of adults to teach manners to the next generation."
"What'd you say, you old fossil? Mind your own business!"
Another vein popped.
The man snapped his fingers calmly.
Suddenly, hundreds of rabbits emerged from the bushes—each one with glowing red eyes and a very not-cuddly aura.
"Makoto, you idiot! Apologize! That's the headmaster of Seisen!" Tanaka shouted, practically shaking.
"THAT geezer?!"
Another vein burst across Headmaster Vergil's forehead.
"As a civilized man… I'll give you five seconds to run."
"Thank you for your generosity!!" Tanaka cried, bowing deeply before yanking Makoto by the arm.
Five seconds later, a horde of bloodthirsty rabbits was chasing them across campus.
The day after… the day after that…
"In the end, we managed to escape those killer rabbits," Tanaka said while playing a shooter at an arcade.
"Lucky for them I don't have one of those… 'Astra Cores.' If I did, I would've wiped the floor with them," Makoto scoffed, sharing the game with him.
"Later, I wanna check out this turtle-themed café…"
Makoto stopped shooting and stared at him like he'd just heard the worst joke ever.
"A turtle what? Do they serve turtle coffee or something?"
"Don't be dumb, Makoto. It's just a regular café, but they have an aquarium with sea turtles."
Just then, a familiar voice cut into their conversation—
"My redhead sense is tingling… The target is near!"
"That has nothing to do with being a redhead…" Tanaka muttered, setting down the toy gun at the arcade. "I'm leaving before something stupid happens."
Makoto followed the voice with intense determination.
And then he saw it.
Kisaragi Touma—again—with yet another girl. This time, it was a cheerful young woman with orange hair, dressed casually. The two of them were laughing together as they played a fighting game in the arcade corner.
"You're not escaping this time, you bastard!"
Makoto marched forward like a man on a mission—but didn't see the small girl in his path until it was too late.
He bumped into her, knocking her to the ground along with her precious ice cream, which splattered onto the floor in what could only be described as a tragic scene.
"Oh no…"
The girl immediately burst into tears. A few adults rushed over, staring at Makoto with stern eyes.
"S-Sorry! Don't cry! I'll buy you another one, I swear!"
And just like that—because the universe clearly had it out for him—Makoto caught a glimpse of Touma and the orange-haired girl walking off… still laughing.
But his oni-chan code of honor stopped him.
That little girl—she looked just like Akari had when she was small.
So he stayed.
The day after… the day after… the day after that…
In other words: today.
Makoto walked alone through the streets of Tenryu.
His only companion—the one person actually enjoying the trip to Okinawa—had gone to the beach, leaving him behind with his "mission."
According to his secret informant, Touma would be at the central plaza around 10:00 AM.
"You're not getting away today, Kisaragi…" Makoto muttered, his shinai slung over his shoulder like some kind of street vigilante.
And just then—Touma appeared.
Relaxed, smiling, chatting casually with… the American guy?
"That guy again? What is he, a thug…?" Makoto growled. "Wait... does Touma swing both ways? This guy has no limits!"
He spoke as if he'd known Touma for years.
As if he'd been watching him all week.
Because, well… he had.
"No matter. Today's the day. I'm going to confront him," he told himself, standing tall with resolve.
But then—as if a divine force had decided to up the chaos—everything spiraled out of control.
From the other side of the plaza came the orange-haired girl. And the pink-haired one.
Both ran up to Touma's group, smiling brightly.
"…Is this… a double date?" Makoto muttered, stunned.
And just when he thought it couldn't possibly escalate any further—
A sleek black foreign car pulled up.
A butler stepped out with expert precision, opening the back door.
From inside stepped a girl with silver hair, graceful as royalty, her every move radiating elegance.
"…What the hell is going on? Where did all these people come from?!"
"What is this, a harem comedy?! There's gotta be a limit, you know!!"
His scream echoed through the plaza.
Nobody reacted.
Makoto burst from his hiding place like a kabuki actor making a dramatic entrance, pointing his shinai at Touma.
"KISARAGI TOUMA… I CHALLENGE YOU TO A DUEL!!"
Everyone turned in his direction, wide-eyed.
Touma, still holding his shopping bag, blinked slowly.
Who was this tall, red-haired, sweat-drenched lunatic screaming at him in the middle of the plaza?
The answer came almost instantly.
They didn't look alike—not really—aside from the red hair.
But yes.
He was Akari's brother.
Touma realized it in that exact moment.
"…What kind of random event is this?" he muttered, a cartoonish sweat drop sliding down his temple.