Chapter 386: Preparing to Unleash a Massacre
"Why are you sitting here alone?"
Sakurai sat down next to her.
In front of them, the second-year group had already started running.
The Media Club had shifted their attention to them and was now narrating the situation.
"My sisters haven't finished running yet, so I'm sitting here waiting for them…"
Today, Yotsuba had run with the girls from the Track and Field Club.
The other Nakano sisters couldn't keep up with her pace.
"Not training today?"
"Umu, the marathon is enough. Running too much would actually be counterproductive for training." Yotsuba lightly lifted her calf, looking down at her toes.
She wanted to talk to Sakurai Saki about her future direction.
Even though he was no longer her tutor.
"Did you enjoy running?"
Sakurai Saki was waiting for Hayasaka Ai, and since he was free, he decided to chat with Yotsuba for a bit.
Ai-chan hadn't participated in the marathon today, as she was on her period and couldn't run.
Girls have those few days each month when their bodies don't feel comfortable.
"It was fun." Nakano Yotsuba tilted her face slightly toward him. "Sakurai-san, since you're no longer our tutor, have you found a new job yet?"
"Why do you care about that?"
"Because Sakurai-san must be short on money, right?" Nakano Yotsuba thought that back then, Sakurai must have taken the tutoring job for the money.
The salary for that job had been quite high — probably hard to replace with any other work.
"Do I really look like someone short on money?"
Sakurai Saki smiled bitterly; he had never been short on money.
Shuchiin Academy offered scholarships, and he had also saved quite a bit from his part-time jobs last year.
"…" Nakano Yotsuba blinked.
"If I were really short on money, I'd probably go work as a host in Ginza. That'd earn me way more than tutoring." Sakurai joked.
Back when he took part-time jobs, it was only because he wanted to lessen his mother's burden.
After all, back then he still thought Jinguuji Tamaki was just an ordinary woman running a wagashi shop in Kyoto — who would've thought her true form was actually a fox… and a super rich one at that.
"Ehehe." Nakano Yotsuba let out a few awkward laughs.
"You've been looking like you wanted to tell me something for a while now — what's the topic? Is it about what I told you before — trying to learn how to say no to people?"
"..."
"Looks like I guessed right."
"Recently, I received an invitation from a sports university…" Nakano Yotsuba hadn't told anyone else about this yet, not even her sisters.
Right now, she had two choices: one was to take the entrance exam for a liberal arts university, the other was to accept the offer from the sports university.
"I'm stupid, studying never sticks for me, might as well quit early." Nakano Yotsuba said with a discouraged tone, "I only have a bit of confidence when it comes to sports, so I want to develop in that direction."
"You're not stupid, who said you're an idiot?"
Yotsuba, if you're an idiot, then Itsuki would cry. That dumpling-head girl works so hard, yet her grades are only a little better than yours. Don't you ever think about how she'd feel?
"..."
Wasn't it you? You're the one who always calls me an idiot… Nakano Yotsuba grumbled silently in her heart.
"If the five of you were really hopeless, I would've run away long ago — I wouldn't have kept teaching you until now." Sakurai Saki said helplessly.
Seeing Hayasaka Ai's figure from afar, Sakurai stood up.
He turned to Yotsuba and said, "Whether you choose to take the exam for a regular university or go to a sports university, think it through yourself."
"Eh?"
Nakano Yotsuba had brought this up hoping Sakurai Saki would give her some advice, but instead, he threw the question right back at her!
"What else? You want me to choose for you? This is your life — I don't intend to interfere too much." Sakurai lightly tugged on the rabbit ribbon on her head, smiling as he said, "Learn to make your own decisions. Just going with the flow isn't a good thing."
Nakano Yotsuba snatched the ribbon back from his hand, replying softly, "I know that already…"
A few days ago, Ichika had moved out to live on her own.
After graduating from high school, the five Nakano sisters would probably drift even farther apart. Yotsuba felt that it was time for her to "grow up."
At the very least… she had to learn to make decisions for herself.
...
"What were you talking about with Nakano-san?"
Hayasaka Ai looked at Sakurai Saki as he walked over, curiosity in her eyes.
Even after quitting his tutoring job, he still kept in touch with them — it seemed he truly cared about those five sisters.
"Just stuff about the future."
"Didn't things like that already get decided in the three-party meeting?"
"Humans, you know — there are always unexpected situations."
"True enough. Talking with Shijo Maki earlier was for the same reason too, wasn't it?" — Hayasaka Ai smiled, her "wolf fangs" showing clearly.
Sakurai Saki's mind was scrambling for an excuse to explain.
"Ah, Maki? We just get along well, that's all."
"I've been wanting to ask — why do you two call each other so affectionately?"
"We don't."
"She calls you Saki-chan, and you call her Maki-chan… and you say that's not close?"
Lying with a straight face, huh?
Hayasaka Ai could tolerate Kaguya being close to her boyfriend — because she didn't want Kaguya to be harmed by the Shinomiya family.
She could also allow him to date Chika, out of guilt for having once broken the unspoken agreement between girls.
But letting Shijo Maki join this "big family"?
No way in hell!
"I'm wrong. I won't call her that again in the future."
"...I'm not mad."
Woman, do you really think I'll believe that 'I'm not mad' line?!
Sakurai stared straight at Hayasaka Ai.
"Really, I'm not mad. But a playboy like you… probably only an idiot like me would agree to date you." Hayasaka Ai emphasized once again.
Sakurai Saki felt like Ai-chan was manipulating his psychology.
But what she said… wasn't wrong either.
If it were another girl, they probably would've broken up long ago — who could stand their boyfriend always being ambiguous with so many people like that.
"You have to cherish me, okay? Don't make me bear any more burdens."
"Umu, I'll stay away from those weird girls."
"Good to know~"
Hayasaka Ai grabbed his hand.
— Let's just keep it this way, turn him into someone who belongs only to me.
But… would this kind of psychological manipulation even work on a playboy?
Ai-chan was a little doubtful about that.
...
The marathon competition ended.
Sakurai Saki returned home and took out the future diary.
What Shijo Maki said today made him a bit uneasy — the situation in Kyoto might affect this place as well.
If Shinomiya Kaguya got dragged into that… it wouldn't be strange.
Although he was worried, Sakurai Saki didn't write any overly difficult wish.
As long as Kaguya could safely get through this family dispute, that would be enough.
...
At the end of May, the rainy season was approaching.
The air became stuffy, the continuous drizzle made the humidity rise, making people feel uncomfortable all over.
The next morning, when he arrived at school—
Throughout the whole morning, Sakurai Saki didn't see any trace of Shinomiya Kaguya.
He sent her a message asking, only to learn that she had to return to Kyoto today.
Just as expected.
That was how the Shinomiya family operated — they never let go of anything that could be used.
[Today's Superpower: Death Note]
[Effect: Can curse to kill anyone in the world, and can specify the way they die — no matter how bizarre.]
[Side effect: None]
"So this is asking me to start a massacre, huh?"
Sakurai Saki looked at the blackboard in front of the class, spinning the mechanical pencil in his hand.
Recently, his ability to control powers had improved quite a lot — now he could maintain two types of abilities at once.
It could only be said… what a coincidence.
But before going on a killing spree, he still needed to consider Shinomiya Kaguya's feelings.
Killing a whole family just because of one disagreement didn't seem quite right.
...