"Since everyone's already gathered, let's head out," Kaito didn't mind. Since he hadn't gotten much sleep last night, he figured he could catch up on sleep on the bus later.
He did a headcount. All four members of the band were present, and including himself and Yumiko, that made six people as expected—no more, no less.
Originally, he had planned to bring along his secretary, Sakiko, for a fun outing too, but the girl had been invited to stay over at Mori Minami's house for a few days and couldn't get away.
The only slight issue was with Kirara at home, but the kitty was very understanding. Yesterday, it had meowed at him for quite a while, and after Kaito "translated," the general meaning was as follows, 'Boss, have fun with your women outside, nya~ Don't worry about meow~'
'If kitty gets hungry, it'll pick up trash and eat it! It's super tasty, nya!'
'Love you the most, boss~'
The kitty's so understanding. Doesn't give its owner any trouble. What a good kitty!
And the owner even remembered to say goodbye to the kitty before heading out. Such a good human!
A perfect episode of "Best Kitty with Best Human."
'On the way back, I'll bring it lots of dried little fish it likes,' Sitting on the bus, Kaito rested his chin on his hand and thought this.
The steel cityscape outside the window retreated at high speed, soon replaced by an endless stretch of lush greenery and fields.
The girls were either napping, chatting, or taking pictures. It was a lively scene.
In this joyful atmosphere of chatting and laughter, time passed quickly.
.
.
.
[Three Hours Later]
The bus stopped in front of a small town surrounded by mountains, this was their destination for the day: Hoori Town.
The shuttle from the hot spring inn had been waiting for a long time. Kaito, as always, didn't lack money, so he generously booked the entire place, making him the inn's top-tier client. Naturally, the inn gave their full effort and service.
"There really are so many tourists~"
The group got into the shuttle. Seeing the streets full of stylishly dressed young women, with an occasional couple here and there, Kita couldn't help but exclaim.
Hoori Town wasn't big, with only around one to two thousand permanent residents. Life here was slow-paced, or rather, somewhat behind the times.
But for tourists from big cities who were used to fast-paced living, this kind of slow, everyday lifestyle felt fresh and was even worth experiencing on its own.
"Maybe it's because of Golden Week?"
Nijika was holding her phone, looking at all sorts of travel guides on Hoori Town, "Actually, April and July are the busiest times here. There are grand festivals both months, and the entire town joins in. I heard there are a lot of fun activities, and even the shrine head shows up personally to bless the townspeople and tourists."
Yumiko showed interest, "The shrine head? I remember Hoori's Mochizuki Shrine is pretty famous. Isn't the current head super old?"
"Yep! Supposedly ninety-nine years old already, but she looks no different than an old lady in her sixties or seventies."
Nijika wanted to look for a photo, but couldn't find one, so she had to give up with regret.
The shuttle soon stopped in front of a quaint, traditional courtyard. A kimono-clad attendant gave a slight bow, confirmed their identities, and led the group to the front desk to check in.
Because they'd booked the entire place, they could pick any room they liked. And as if they'd planned it in advance, after Kaito chose a guest room deep on the second floor, the girls all knowingly picked rooms surrounding his.
Yumiko was the fastest, grabbing the room to Kaito's left. Ryou followed right after and took the room on the right.
Kita went for the room across the hall, while Bocchi and Nijika picked the rooms on either side of hers.
Although it was a remote-town inn, the lodging conditions were actually pretty good. Spacious rooms with excellent lighting.
The beds were wide enough for three people, and all kinds of appliances were available. Not much different from hotels in big cities.
After settling their luggage, everyone gathered in Kaito's room.
Since it was a rare chance to travel, they were determined to have fun.
Nijika had done plenty of homework before the trip and studied lots of travel guides on Hoori Town. Now, she naturally took on the role of tour guide, "There's a kagura dance performance every night in Hoori, hosted by the local Mochizuki Shrine. It's pretty famous. Almost every tourist who's seen it gave it a great review. It's in the town center plaza, but it doesn't start until 8 PM."
"8 PM... but it's only 1:30 PM now. We still have to wait forever."
Kita pulled out her phone, checked the time, and couldn't help rubbing her belly, "Also, I'm kinda hungry…"
To maintain her figure, she usually skipped breakfast. She had a few snacks on the road, but they didn't do much.
"M-Me too…", Bocchi timidly raised her hand beside her.
She didn't have the habit of dieting to stay in shape, but she had insomnia and was afraid of being late, so she completely skipped breakfast.
Even Yamada Ryou was rubbing her slightly flat belly, the meaning clear without needing words.
Of course, Ryou's reason for skipping breakfast had nothing to do with dieting or being too busy. It was simply because she was poor.
Among the girls, Nijika probably had the most normal lifestyle. Early to bed, early to rise, three meals a day. So she felt fine for now.
As for Yumiko, her body had been supercharged with protein, so you couldn't judge her with common sense.
The inn provided three meals a day, but the girls decided to go out and explore the town, and find something to eat while they were at it.
Originally, Kaito planned to let everyone do their own thing and meet up at night to watch the kagura dance. But the girls around him stuck to him like little tails. He couldn't shake them off, so he just went along with it.
Around the inn was the hot spring street, lined with local snack shops run by town residents. Takoyaki, crepes, grilled sweetfish… The streets were filled with mouthwatering aromas.
Nijika ran off and bought six skewers of grilled sweetfish, handing one to each of them. When it was Kaito's turn, the one she handed over was clearly a size bigger than the rest, "Kaito-senpai, careful of the dripping oil."
'Nijika, you've changed.'
'I highly suspect the only reason you bought six skewers of sweetfish is so you could righteously give it to the one you wanted to share it with.'
'But my suggestion is—go even harder!'
Ryou, once again mooching food, was fully satisfied. She let out an "Ah-woo" and took a big bite of sweetfish.
The shop owner's skills were good. The fish was crispy on the outside, cooked just right, evenly salted, smelled great, and tasted even better.
Kaito gave her a soft thanks and was rewarded with a radiant smile from the girl.
Kita saw this and looked thoughtful.
Then, unwilling to be outdone, she also "ta-ta-ta" ran over and "ta-ta-ta" ran back, bringing six crepes, one for each of them.
"Kaito-senpai, this one's yours!", Even as she said that, the girl's emerald eyes blinked and blinked, clearly expecting… something.
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