"So, you wanna come with me to Neon and check it out?"
At the hot spring inn, Gaio, dressed in casual clothes and jeans, looked at Fubuki sitting across from him.
Fubuki's cheeks flushed slightly. "Yeah, I mean, there's nothing going on around here anyway. Might as well see what the outside world's like. But let's get one thing straight—I'm not, like, desperate to tag along or anything. I just figured you'd make a decent tour guide."
Despite her slight embarrassment, her tone carried that familiar hint of playful pride.
Gaio grinned and nodded, then glanced at Tornado, who was floating nearby, glaring at him with a fierce look.
"What about your sister? She coming too?"
Fubuki instinctively turned to Tornado, half-hoping her sister would join but also worried she'd stir up trouble and make things awkward.
Tornado let out a scoff, crossing her arms with a scowl. "Hmph, like I'd go with you two. I'm not that free—I've got way more important stuff to do."
No way was she letting Fubuki get cozy with this shady-looking white-haired guy.
---
Earlier that morning, in City B's X Tower, Tornado had loudly opposed Fubuki's plan to get closer to Gaio. She'd even caused a huge scene—if Blast hadn't stepped in, City B might've been reduced to rubble by now.
Even though Blast managed to calm Tornado down, she still didn't approve of Fubuki's choice. But this time, Fubuki stood her ground, even pushing back with her own telekinesis—far weaker than Tornado's, sure, but enough to make a point.
It was then that Tornado realized her little sister wasn't the kid who needed protecting anymore.
Through it all, Fubuki felt her sister's care. Sure, Tornado's usual high-handed ways had often dictated her decisions, pushing Fubuki to find ways to break free from that control.
But in the end, it came down to two stubborn sisters who didn't quite know how to express their love and concern for each other with words or actions.
---
Gaio looked at the two sisters, finding the whole dynamic pretty amusing. A smirk tugged at his lips as he teased, "Well, Miss Tornado, if you change your mind, you're welcome to join us anytime. With you around, the trip might get a lot more exciting."
Tornado shot him a withering glance and snapped, "Don't act all chummy with me—I'm not falling for it. And let me warn you: if you try anything funny with Fubuki, you're done for!" As she spoke, the green aura around her flared up wildly.
Gaio stayed cool as a cucumber, smiling as he replied, "Whoa, why so tense, Miss Tornado? I'm totally sincere about Fubuki. Plus, with a sister as badass as you watching, I wouldn't dare step out of line."
Fubuki's face turned bright red—like a ripe apple—when she heard Gaio say he was sincere about her.
She coughed lightly, trying to play it cool. "Okay, okay, Sis, don't be so intense. Gaio… he doesn't seem like a bad guy."
Tornado stared at her sister in disbelief, her voice rising. "Fubuki, are you seriously taking his side already? You barely know the guy!"
Fubuki lowered her head, a bit embarrassed, and mumbled, "I'm… I'm just being fair, okay? Besides, back during the Monster Association mess, he saved me."
Gaio saw his chance to smooth things over. "Miss Tornado, I get that you're looking out for Fubuki—I totally respect that. But I promise I'll take good care of her. If she gets even a tiny bit upset, you won't have to lift a finger—I'll come to you myself and take the punishment. Deal?"
Tornado went quiet for a moment, then glared at him fiercely. "You better mean that. If Fubuki so much as loses a single hair, you'll see what happens when you piss me off!"
Her words were tough, but deep down, she knew her sister had her own mind now. Some things she couldn't just force her way through anymore.
Fubuki's heart lifted when she saw her sister soften a bit. She scooted closer, grabbed Tornado's arm, and said in a sweet, pleading tone, "Sis, don't worry. I can take care of myself. And who knows? Maybe I'll bring back some cool stuff for you when I'm back!"
Tornado sighed helplessly and gently patted Fubuki's hand. "Fine, fine. Just stay safe. If anything dangerous happens, you better reach out to me with your telepathy right away."
Fubuki nodded eagerly, her face glowing with a bright smile. "Got it! You're the best, Sis!"
Gaio watched the scene, chuckling to himself. Looked like his presence had helped these two prickly sisters patch things up.
He turned to Fubuki. "Alright, Miss Fubuki, go pack your stuff. We're heading out tomorrow morning."
"Tomorrow morning?" both girls blurted out at the same time, their faces full of surprise.
Fubuki, who'd been twirling a strand of hair, snapped her head up, eyes wide. "That soon? I thought we'd at least have a couple days to prep!"
Tornado dropped her guarded look, frowning slightly. "You always move this fast with everything?"
Gaio laughed at their synced reaction, scratching his head. "What's the problem? You guys don't seem super busy or anything."
He pointed at Fubuki. "Didn't you say you're just chilling here with nothing to do?" Then he turned to Tornado. "And you said you've got your own stuff going on, so heading out early won't mess with your plans, right?"
Fubuki's cheeks flushed again as she muttered, "Well, yeah, but… I at least need to go home and pack some cute outfits!"
She stole a quick glance at Gaio, worried he'd think she was being high-maintenance. Tornado didn't hold back, calling her out. "Oh, please, you're just not ready and making excuses."
"I am not!" Fubuki shot back, and a tiny spark of their usual bickering flared up.
Gaio cleared his throat to cut them off. "Actually, I'm the one itching to get moving. I've been out here for five days already, and there's someone waiting for me back home."
When he mentioned "someone," his eyes softened, losing all the sharpness he'd shown facing the Hero Association.
Tornado raised an eyebrow. "You've got family? Doesn't seem like it."
In her mind, a guy as ridiculously strong as Gaio was probably a lone-wolf type.
"Of course I do," Gaio said with a smile. "Can't just keep wandering around forever, right? Honestly, if I hadn't met Miss Fubuki, I probably would've left right after dealing with the Monster Association."
Both girls froze, exchanging a glance. The Hero Association's downfall really was their own doing.
The Jujutsu folks were already planning to leave, but McCoy had to go and act all high-and-mighty, trying to drive them out.
That said, even if McCoy hadn't pulled that stunt, if he'd tried to muscle in on Neon and take over the Jujutsu world later, he'd probably still have ended up crushed by Gaio.
Snapping out of their thoughts, both girls stood up.
Fubuki gave Gaio a polite little bow, saying softly, "Alright, Mr. Gaio, I'll go pack my bags." Her eyes sparkled with excitement for the trip ahead.
Tornado just huffed, arms crossed, saying nothing. In her head, though, she was already planning to tell Sitch and the others what Gaio said—and have a good laugh at those idiots still worried he wouldn't leave.
Gaio smiled at them both and said to Fubuki, "Cool, let's meet back here tomorrow at 10 AM. That work?"
Fubuki nodded. "Yup, Mr. Gaio, I'll be here on time!"
Out of nowhere, Tornado spun around, her voice dripping with that signature sass. "Hey, you want me to get Sitch to arrange a plane for you Jujutsu folks? Consider it a little 'goodwill' from the Hero Association."
Gaio waved her off. "Nah, Miss Tornado, I've got a faster way home. Planes are too slow."
Tornado raised an eyebrow, clearly curious about his answer but too proud to ask more.
She let out a "tch," her green aura flared, and she floated toward the door. "Whatever, don't tell me then. Just don't break your promise to take care of Fubuki, or else…"
Without finishing, she turned into a streak of green light and vanished into the sky, not even saying bye to Fubuki.
Fubuki gave a wry smile, then turned to Gaio with a respectful nod. "Mr. Gaio, I'll head out now. See you tomorrow!"
After the sisters left, Gaio chuckled, pulled out his phone, and scrolled through it.
A few messages from Marin Kitagawa were blinking on his Line app.
"Gaio-kun~ Why aren't you back yet?~ 😭"
"Gaio-kun, I took Kaguya and the others on a picnic today~ It was so fun!~"
Gaio's fingers slid across the screen, a soft smile creeping up as he pictured Marin's bubbly, energetic self.
He scrolled further and saw a message from Kaguya Shinomiya: "Gaio-kun, the professor was grumbling about you today, saying you've barely shown up since the semester started. I explained things for you, though. Looking forward to your return."
Kaguya's words carried her usual refined, ladylike tone, but Gaio could feel the deep longing woven into them.
Next was Yukino Yukinoshita: "Marin dragged me to some weird anime convention. All those crazy costumes were… hard to wrap my head around. But she was thrilled. I bet if you were here, you'd be right there with her, going wild."
Gaio couldn't help but laugh, imagining Yukino's deadpan face as she tagged along with Marin's cosplay adventures.
With a warm smile, he typed quick replies to the girls.
Soon, their responses came flooding back like a flurry of snowflakes.
Marin was the first, sending a string of excited emojis and a voice message: "Oh my gosh! Gaio-kun, you finally replied! I knew you were thinking of me, hehe~ I'm counting down the days till you're back!"
Her enthusiasm was like a little sun, radiating warmth as always.
Kaguya's message came next: "Welcome home, Gaio-kun. I've missed you." It was rare for her to be so direct with her feelings.
Yukino followed: "Seeing your message puts me at ease. Marin's been talking about you nonstop, and the house feels quieter without you. Safe travels, and come back soon."
Gaio could picture Yukino looking down, typing carefully with that gentle, slightly shy expression.
As he soaked in the sweet exchange with his girlfriends, another message from Marin popped up:
"Gaio-kun, guess what? We've got two new members at home! One's got the same hair color as me—blonde with pink tips—and her sister's got white hair like you! They're super cute!~"
Gaio's expression froze for a second.
Same hair color as Marin? And a white-haired sister? What's going on here?
It shouldn't be a threat—if anyone had bad intentions toward Marin or the others, he'd sense it.
After all, Artoria was still with them, and since he'd formed a contract with her, he could pick up on things through her.
Not to mention, he'd left a bit of his mana in Marin and the others.
Ahem, as for how he left it… let's just say the great crab god is watching from the void above.
"Oh, really? Guess I'll have to check them out when I'm back."
"Yup, yup! I'm gonna round up Kaguya and the others for a big shopping trip~ Gotta prep a huge feast for you tomorrow!~"
"Aw, thanks for the hard work, little dream."
"Mua! (╯3╰)" Marin sent another kissy emoji, and Gaio set his phone down, his expression softening even more.