"Thank you, Hiratsuka-kun," Yukinoshita Yukino says, her eyes filled with newfound purpose.
Hiratsuka Ryosuke, thinking she's just thanking him for lending her the money, responds, "You're welcome. It was nothing."
Swoosh... Boom!
A series of fireworks bloom in the night sky. Ryosuke and Yukino are standing at a distance from each other. They both look up at the sky as the brilliant fireworks illuminate their young faces. Perhaps because Yukinoshita Yukino has found her own sense of justice, a faint smile appears on her face.
As most people admire the fleeting fireworks, the stall owner notices something. Through the gap between the two young people, he sees a short-haired girl in a dark blue yukata watching them from a distance, her face expressionless. Yukinoshita Haruno stands quietly, the light from the fireworks reflecting on her beautiful face. Her true thoughts are impossible to read, and her usual bright, cheerful smile is nowhere to be found.
Did Yukino... really meet little Ryosuke? She's been standing there for a while. After realizing that Hiratsuka Ryosuke was her own kind, she hadn't wanted Yukino to have any contact with him. Her younger sister was still too naive. But when Haruno sees that smile on Yukino's face, she hesitates. She has never seen her sister look like this before.
Is stopping her from meeting little Ryosuke really the right decision? She would give up everything for Yukino.
She lets out a silent sigh and decides to continue watching them from a safer distance. Now that Yukino and little Ryosuke have crossed paths, she needs to keep a close eye on him for her sister. She has experienced Hiratsuka Ryosuke's aggression firsthand. She won't let little Ryosuke hurt her beloved little sister.
The first round of fireworks ends. Hiratsuka Ryosuke, holding the two cats, says to the girl beside him, "Yukinoshita-san, I have to go now. Goodbye."
Yukino bows in return and watches his figure disappear into the crowd. Just as she's about to leave, a surprised voice mixed with concern comes from behind her.
"Little Yukino, I've been looking for you for so long." Yukinoshita Haruno greets her sister with a smile, as if she has just arrived after a long search. She pretends she knows nothing and asks Yukino with concern, "Little Yukino, I heard your fiancé has also returned to Chiba. How about we find a time to meet him in the next few days?"
"I've already met him, sister," Yukinoshita Yukino replies seriously.
Haruno covers her mouth in feigned surprise, then teases, "Oh really? What kind of person is he?" She wants to know what kind of impression Hiratsuka Ryosuke, whom her sister has only met once, has left on her.
Yukinoshita Yukino thinks for a moment before answering her sister's question. He adopted a stray cat, so he's a kind-hearted cat lover like me. When I asked him a question, he answered generously and patiently, which shows his helpful nature. Combining this with what she already knows about him, she comes to a conclusion. Her eyes show no sign of confusion as she tells Haruno seriously, "He is a very admirable person."
Yukinoshita Haruno's expression is genuinely surprised this time. She knows her sister even better than Yukino knows herself. The fact that her sister, who is usually so reserved with most people, would offer such an unreserved compliment after a single meeting, makes Haruno silently raise Ryosuke's threat level in her mind.
"Is little Yukino very interested in him?" Haruno continues to probe.
Yukino shakes her head and looks at Haruno with a confused expression. "Sister, why are you talking so much today?" Having been teased by her sister for years, Yukino also knows Haruno very well. Her sister seems a little strange tonight.
"Haha, haven't I always talked a lot? Little Yukino, let's go home. Don't get lost this time." Haruno laughs it off and takes Yukino's hand, leading her home. She thinks to herself, I need to find a time to see little Ryosuke.
On the last evening of the Obon Festival, the "sending of the spirits" ceremony involves burning "farewell fires" and releasing small boats and lanterns into rivers and the sea to light the ancestors' path back to the underworld. Hiratsuka Ryosuke is crouching by the river, replying to an email from a certain blond dog. He hadn't checked his phone all day, and now he has a mountain of messages.
"Big dummy! Summer Comiket has already started. When are you coming back?"
"Idiot Ryosuke, you're not going to stand me up, are you?"
"You're... not flirting with other pretty girls in your hometown, are you?! (Shocked)"
"Hmph! Dummy, pig-head! I can go without you! (Seething with anger)"
"Please come back. Didn't you say we were partners?"
"I was wrong, I'll never call you a dummy again. Please don't leave me..."
Hiss~
Hiratsuke Ryosuke's scalp tingles as he reads the messages. This little blond dog has so much internal drama? He quickly replies to Eri that he will be back in Tokyo tomorrow. The moment he sends it, he gets an instant reply.
"Just stay in Chiba forever and don't come back! Dummy! Pig-head! The ultimate flight risk!"
Just as Ryosuke is about to reply again, a faint scent of lilies reaches him from the side. He turns his head and sees Yukinoshita Haruno's flawless face. This time, there's no trace of her usual playful expression.
"Ryosuke, you've met Yukino, haven't you?" Haruno's voice is unusually serious.
"What if I have?" Hiratsuka Ryosuke picks up a nearby lantern, gently places it in the river, and replies calmly.
Yukinoshita Haruno crouches beside Ryosuke and says, "Yukino is my most important sister. I don't want her to get hurt."
Hiratsuka Ryosuke frowns slightly. "We have no bad blood. Why would I hurt her?"
She hugs her knees and watches the small boats and lanterns floating downstream. "Ryosuke, that child, Yukino, is like a delicate porcelain doll. It's easy for her to break if you're not careful." She turns her head and looks Ryosuke in the eyes, her voice serious. "She met you yesterday and has a good impression of you. Yukino's personality makes it easy for her to get into conflicts with others. Can you promise me that you will never hurt her?"
"As long as she doesn't cross my line, I have no interest in holding grudges against anyone," Hiratsuka Ryosuke says, giving her his answer.
Yukinoshita Haruno seems to have received the perfect response, and her bright smile returns. Since I can't stop it, I'll just become her guardian. After all, she knows that Ryosuke saved Nishimiya Shoko. She needs to watch over her sister's fiancé while she's abroad.
"Little Yukino is so cute, right? She'll be continuing her middle school abroad, but she'll be back for New Year's. How about her big sister helps you two then?" She says this with a beaming smile, as if she's showing off a treasure, and begins telling Ryosuke stories about her sister's childhood.
Yukinoshita Haruno continues to talk, while Hiratsuka Ryosuke listens with a poker face. She laughs, sighs, and laments. Without realizing it, Ryosuke and Haruno get closer, their bodies almost touching. To an outsider, they look like a couple, leaning against each other and making wishes for the future as they watch the lights on the river. Just as Haruno is about to continue with her bright, cheerful smile, a cold, disbelieving voice comes from behind her.
"Sister, what are you doing here?!"