Chapter 6. Now, a Trio
---
"Sigh... that kid is impossible. The more I tell him to rest, the harder he tries. Suma, is your younger sister like that too?"
Under the tree, at their usual spot, Kiyoshi was lying down with his head on Suma's lap. It had been a year, and in that time, not only had he grown, but Suma had also matured. Her childish features from before had begun to turn into the ones her future self had in Kiyoshi's mind.
"My sister? Kiyoshi-sama, she just learned to talk. But still, she is so cute and always comes running to me. And she often cries too. I think she is just like me."
Suma's face lit up with a happy smile as she spoke about her sister. She was overjoyed to have a younger sister and kept describing her nonstop.
"Of course she took after you. Suma, you cry over every single thing."
Before Suma could respond, another voice—brash and confident—cut in. A new member had recently joined the usual duo of Kiyoshi and Suma.
"Mou... Makio-san, you're so mean."
"Hmph! I just told the truth. And…"
Makio, the new addition to the group, looked at Kiyoshi resting on Suma's lap and bit her lip in envy. She too wanted Kiyoshi-sama to rest on her lap.
"Suma, if you just want to talk, then let Kiyoshi-sama rest on my lap! I'll massage his head!"
"Eh... but I also want to do it!"
The topic quickly shifted as the two girls began arguing over who would get to hold Kiyoshi in their lap. Kiyoshi looked at them, and honestly, he felt quite gleeful watching two beautiful girls fight over him—but now wasn't the time. He had been trying to get advice here!
"Alright, Suma and Makio, don't fight. If you keep going, I won't lie on either of your laps ever again!"
As soon as he said that, both froze like characters in a video game. Seeing them stop, Kiyoshi nodded and decided to choose the optimal solution.
"Today, Suma can continue. Makio, next time, I'll lie on your lap. Okay?"
"Wuuu! I knew Kiyoshi-sama would take my side!"
"You idiot! Didn't you hear Kiyoshi-sama promise to lie on my lap next time?! How is he taking your side?"
Despite saying that, Makio still felt slightly defeated. But she also knew not to cause trouble for her beloved Kiyoshi-sama.
Then, she felt a soft warm pat on her head.
"Huh?"
She looked up and found Kiyoshi-sama patting her head with a warm smile.
"Thank you, Makio."
Those words instantly warmed Makio's heart, and she nodded with a smile. As expected, Kiyoshi-sama truly loved her!
How could Kiyoshi not notice it?
If someone wants to build a harem, he has to take responsibility. He must treat every woman fairly. They're his wings!
"And…"
Kiyoshi leaned closer to Makio and pressed his lips gently against her forehead. Makio froze, feeling the warmth of Kiyoshi-sama's lips.
"A gift for being such a cute wife of mine."
"K-Kiyoshi-sama!"
The sudden gesture overloaded the boyish Makio's brain. She couldn't think straight. Kiyoshi-sama kissed her?! And he called her cute?! Aaaahhh!
"Ah! Kiyoshi-sama, a kiss for me too!"
How could Suma stay still after witnessing that? She wanted a gift for being a cute wife too! But—
"No! Suma, you already got Kiyoshi-sama on your lap this time!"
Makio could not allow her special gift to be shared.
"Eh? But a kiss and a lap are different!"
"How are they different?!"
Kiyoshi watched them bicker again and decided he desperately needed to find a mediator between these two as soon as possible.
…
"He's training again."
Kiyoshi watched Ren practicing his throwing skills on a tree. Ren was so immersed that he didn't even notice his older brother watching him. Seeing the determination in Ren's eyes, Kiyoshi knew his words wouldn't work. He turned around and went inside the house.
"The others… they must also be training like Ren."
He thought of the other brothers, especially Tengen. Even after all this time, he still hadn't managed to befriend a single one of them. They were truly cold-hearted.
"Should I train too?"
The thought crossed his mind, and he immediately snapped out of it.
Train? Why would he think that? Isn't he already being trained to death?
"Damn! These guys are influencing me to push myself even more!"
Kiyoshi took out a futon, set it down, and lay on it. Just like any person, he began to contemplate everything he had gone through.
Without realizing it, a year had passed. At first, he had been the odd one out, but after adapting, the days went by without him noticing.
This routine ninja life… it had taken a full year of his second life.
"It feels like I arrived just yesterday."
But as nostalgic as it felt, it reminded him of his ultimate goal. In his second life, he wanted joy and freedom—not the routine of a ninja.
And to achieve that, he first needed to leave this clan.
"Well, the time will come."
…
Before sunrise, everyone gathered for training again.
Unlike the simple uphill running and poison tolerance from the beginning, the difficulty had increased. Now they had to run uphill while dodging traps and attacks. And apparently, night training was about to begin as well.
Morning and night training… Kiyoshi was already thinking of ways to bunk this torture.
But then he noticed something bizarre.
"Huh? Where are the others?"
Out of all nine, only six were present. Kiyoshi didn't doubt that the others would bunk. After all, unlike him, these kids didn't think like that.
If they weren't here, then where were they—?
"Don't tell me—?!"
[The training had been so torturous that only two people survived in the end.]
"Are those three… dead?"