Later, Junko explained the whole story to Shizuka, and they finally understood why Takeshi wanted to beat him.
The reason why Takeshi wanted to beat him was not only because he wanted to rub Shouko's head, but also because of complaints from passengers, troubles in school, and poor grades...
The most important thing was that at dinner, the old man compared him with Tsuna, and it can be said that he was utterly defeated in every aspect.
The fuse was Junko's complaint.
"Pa!"
Shizuka, who understood the whole process, silently threw the belt on the tatami. The sound made Takeshi, who was kneeling beside her, startled:
"Alright, what's going on? Do you have to fight when you are drunk? If you fight at this time, you will not be gentle. Don't you know it?"
Shizuka stopped and said something to them before taking Tsuna and the other two out of the living room, closing the door behind them.
After all, she was already married, which was Takeshi's personal matter. Itohara's mother hadn't said anything, so she couldn't say anything either.
Just stopping them and saying something would be enough.
"Alright, you two should go back to your rooms and get your changing clothes."
Shizuka, holding their hands, walked to the room across the hallway, then released their hands, saying this before entering the room.
---
"So Good..."
That was the first thought that came to Tsuna's mind as he immersed himself in the hot springs.
It would be even better if no one else was around, but that would probably take until the early morning hours...
Thinking back to when she'd just come out with her change of clothes, and her mother seeing Shouko's swimsuit and making her put it back, he wanted to laugh.
She'd said that these hot springs are traditionally nude baths, and not even towels were allowed in the pool. And Shouko's bewildered expression made him want to laugh even more.
Such a strange Japanese culture...
It just so happened that I could get Shouko to change for me tonight, after all, she'd promised me a small favor this afternoon.
It wasn't too much to ask for her in that swimsuit?
Then, as I walked downstairs and passed the living room, I heard Itohara sobbing, which made me want to laugh even more.
Even though he was my cousin, I wanted to punch him in the face, especially when he tried to touch Shouko's head.
But Junko-san had already changed the subject, and she had apologized to Shouko on Itohara's behalf, so I couldn't say anything.
As for the thought of beating him up, it was nipped in the bud. After all, we were at my grandfather's house, and embarrassing my parents wouldn't be nice.
And the fact that he just wanted to touch Shouko's head wouldn't justify a beating.
But it felt good to have my uncle help me vent my anger, heh...
The hot springs were thick with steam, and Tsuna's hair was wet and stuck to his neck.
He stared at the moonlight floating on the pool's surface, his thoughts bubbling like bubbles at the bottom.
The comical way Itohara sobbed, the flickering curve of Shouko's eyelashes as her ears turned red, the instantaneous straightening of her uncle's back as his mother threw his belt... all these images mingled in the heat haze.
---
"Kid, wake up! Falling asleep in a hot spring is dangerous."
"Huh?" Tsuna, half-asleep, felt a slight jolt and opened his eyes to glance around.
Only a middle-aged man with a bald head was rocking him; no one else was around.
Raising his hand, wrinkled from soaking in the water for so long, he rubbed his hazy eyes, his tone still a little sleepy as he asked, puzzled,
"Thank you, uncle. And do you know what time it is?"
"Those people are really something," the middle-aged man muttered, thinking for a moment before speaking slowly,
"About 8:30 p.m."
Tsuna, about to get up, paused. Only about twenty minutes had passed.
On second thought, it made sense. Mom and the others would have called in to check if he'd stayed there too long.
"Thanks, uncle. I'm leaving now." Tsuna finally got up and went back to bed.
After all, he wasn't just staying for a day; he could come back tomorrow, too. He felt sleepy now, so he had to quickly maintain it and go back to sleep.
Then, after exiting the hot spring and rinsing himself again, all traces of sleepiness vanished without a trace...
---
"Tsuna, you're finally out!"
Tsuna heard Shouko's excited voice as he stepped out. Looking over, he saw Shouko sitting in the same spot in the hallway.
"How long have you been waiting?"
When she stopped before him, Tsuna raised his hand and rubbed her head, confirming that her hair was dry, before curiously asking.
Shouko took his hand, wanting to lead her upstairs, but she muttered discontentedly,
"About ten minutes. Auntie's already gone upstairs to rest. If I'd known you'd soaked so long, I would have been up there too."
Seeing her hypocritical expression, Tsuna suppressed the corner of his mouth that was about to curl up.
Returning to her room, Shouko sat down by the window, gazing at the nightscape outside. She asked, somewhat awkwardly,
"Tsuna, are you really planning on us sharing a room tonight?"
She felt her ears begin to heat up at the thought of a man and a woman sharing a room, sleeping together. She knew Tsuna wouldn't do anything, but she just felt awkward.
She'd thought nothing of it before, but now, back in the room, she felt uneasy.
Tsuna pulled out a blanket and pillow from the closet and spread them out on the tatami. He turned to look at the tips of her ears, which were already starting to turn red, and quipped,
"What? Are you scared now? You agreed to this before, didn't you?"
Before Shouko could say anything, he added, "How about I talk to Mom and let you share a room with her?"
Shouko quickly reached out to stop him. "No, no, no, we've slept together since we were kids. It's nothing. You sleep on one side, I'll sleep on the other.
Yes! It's nothing!" He repeated the last part as if to encourage her.
---
Meanwhile, in the room across from Tsuna and Shouko
Daisuke, who had sobered up and taken a shower, looked at Shizuka, who was lying on the bed scrolling through her phone, and said worriedly,
"Is it really okay to let those two kids sleep in the same room?"
"Do you not trust Tsuna or Shouko?" Shizuka paused the video on her phone and looked up at Daisuke in confusion.
"Besides, what can those two little brats do? If they could do it, they would have done it long ago. Why would they wait until now to prepare? That kind of work doesn't require any kind of ceremony or anything like that. Isn't that right, President Miyamura?" Shizuka said, flirting with Daisuke.
"That's right..." Daisuke felt a little embarrassed by Shizuka's blunt words.
"But!" Shizuka changed the subject: "Around ten o'clock, please go to the room across us and could you give me my lovely Shouko? Thank you."
"…" Daisuke was speechless.
---