Chapter 47: The Mark Left on Miyuki

Friday, with the weekend just around the corner. Before Club activity time—

Miyuki sneaks up behind me as I’m absentmindedly scrolling through my phone. She peers over my shoulder to see what I’m up to.

“Why are you looking at barbecue grills? Planning to grill some meat at home?”

“Yeah. Apparently, this one’s good for yakitori too.”

“Yakitori, all of a sudden? Why?”

“You like it, don’t you?”

Mentioning yakitori like this implies an invitation to enjoy it together later. Miyuki catches the underlying meaning of my words, and her head coyly tilts down, bashful.

Ever since that night we spent together, Miyuki has been blushing more frequently when she looks at me.

It was always like this, but the frequency has definitely increased.

I expect this will continue for a while. On every rainy day, she’ll probably think about our night together.

“Um... Matsuda-kun.”

Her voice calls me as she nervously twists her body. I put my phone away to answer.

“Yeah?”

“I’ll be really late today because of the cultural festival preparations. We have to set up the gym.”

“Already?”

“It’s not ‘already,’ it’s ‘we’re already late’... So, after the club activities, you can go ahead.”

This wasn’t a perfunctory phrase, hoping for an assurance that I would wait for her. She meant it.

It might end around 8 or 9 o’clock. Waiting at school till then would be excessive. I’ll have to pick her up when the time comes.

“Text me 20 minutes before you’re done. I’ll come pick you up.”

“Even if you don’t—”

“Noisy. Just text me.”

“...Okay.”

Miyuki’s eyes slightly changed as she reluctantly agreed.

Using her thumb and forefinger, she lightly grasped a lock of my hair and brushed it from top to bottom.

“Your hair’s gotten a bit long.”

“I’m not cutting it.”

“Who’s asking you to? It just suits you, that’s all.”

Miyuki meticulously straightens out my fringe. I watch her in silence and finally lift one corner of my mouth into a smirk.

“Hey, Miyuki.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you want to stay at my place tonight?”

Her fingers, which had been clasping a section of my fringe, abruptly stopped. Her eyes, already wide, blinked once.

“Tonight?”

She’s regaining her composure much faster than when I suggested sleeping over a few days ago.

Holding her wrist, I bring her hand down.

“Why don’t we get up, take a break, and go catch an early morning movie? After that, I’ll drive you home. How does that sound?”

“Ah, um...”

The first time is always hard, the second time is easier.

You’re intrigued, aren’t you? I know you are.

Need a reason to make it easier to say yes?

Fine.

“You still haven’t returned the clothes you borrowed last time.”

“I, I was planning to give them back this weekend!”

“Give them back, and stay the night.”

“To bring them, I have to stop by my place first.”

“So stop by your place on the way.”

“....”

Miyuki seemed to grapple with something silently, her lips pursed in contemplation. After hesitating for a moment, she finally spoke, her voice tinged with resignation.

“Mom and Dad know your car model. If they see your car parked in front of our house, they’ll get suspicious. So...”

“So?”

“So... park it far away, okay?”

Her flushed face held a plea, and in her eyes lingered a tiny flicker of hope. I gave her a warm smile, let go of her wrist, and stretched as if invigorated.

“Okay.”

***

So, the foot positioning for Sangdanse is different from Jungdanse, with the right foot at the back and the left foot in front…?

Since striking with the left hand is the standard, it must be to extend the range.

While searching for Sangdanse tutorials on my phone, I peeked out over the hill.

No one’s around. The perfect setting for solo practice.

Let’s try a little before Chinami arrives.

I lifted the shinai above my head and awkwardly assumed the Sangdanse stance before attempting to push-step.

The fundamental rule of push-stepping is to move the foot in the direction you want to go first.

Keeping that in mind, I tried wiggling my feet slowly. It seemed to work well enough.

How should the strikes be executed?

Sangdanse is characterized by rapid attack speed and exhilarating strikes.

To enhance speed and destructive power...

‘Good.’

I mimicked the movements I visualized in my head.

“Haah!”

Inhaling deeply and then exhaling sharply, I pushed off with my right foot and took a large step forward with my left. At that moment, a surge of power flowed from my hips down to my thighs, and my left foot lifted heavily before slamming back down onto the ground with gusto.

Simultaneously, I brought down the shinai I was holding.

Whooosh—Thud!

A sound like tearing through the wind accompanied a heavy thud that reverberated off the floor.

‘Did I do it right?’

It felt somewhat similar to the head strike in Sangdanse that I had seen in videos, but with no one around to give feedback, I couldn’t tell if I had done it correctly or not.

Ignoring the tingling pain that started at my left foot, I prepared to launch another strike, connecting from the footwork. However,

“Ah, what!?”

I couldn’t help but pause when I heard Chinami’s horrified shout coming from behind me. Hastily, I dropped my stance, scratching my head as I saw Chinami rapidly approaching with her eyes wide open.

“Looks like you’ve done cleaning the bamboo swords.”

“I have! But Matsuda hubae-nim, what on earth are you doing!?”

“Practice… as usual?”

“As usual...? That’s strange. If it was as usual, you, hubae-nim, should have been practicing in Jungdanse. But I’m pretty sure I saw you using Sangdanse!”

“Must be a mistake?”

“No, it’s not a mistake. It was definitely Sangdanse.”

“That’s odd. Are you sure you didn’t see it wrong?”

“Hubae-nim...! Are you trying to lie to me!?”

Chinami places her hands on her hips, trying to pressure me. She aims for a stern look, but her face is too innocent, her stature too petite, and her voice too cute to exude any sort of intimidation.

Now that I’ve been caught, I might as well tell the truth.

I spoke, my bamboo sword sheathed at my side.

“Actually, you did see correctly.”

“I knew it!”

“Yes.”

“I’ve told you countless times not to do it, so why don’t you listen?”

“Well... because I want to?”

“.....”

Chinami wore a flabbergasted expression in response to my circular logic. I subtly moved closer to her, looked down, and spoke.

“While I understand the importance of basics, I think it’s crucial to find something interesting. Just practicing Jungdanse every day gets boring after a while.”

Of course, the basics are important. It’s not just in kendo, but in anything you do, you can never practice enough of the fundamentals. However, if the person learning those basics doesn’t find them interesting, it’s worse than not doing it at all.

These days, even boxing gyms start teaching one to two punches from the first day to spark people’s interest.

Give them a ‘carrot,’ make it fun, and they’ll develop perseverance. Overemphasize the basics, and you risk losing all your members.

But wait, why has this suddenly turned into a passionate sports drama? Let’s dial it back.

“I understand your sentiment hubae-nim, but in kendo, you should cleanse your mind and body...”

Yes, yes, cleansing the mind and body... very important.

“But don’t you think that this mental and physical cleansing works best when you’re free from distractions?”

“...That’s true, I suppose.”

She seems to be wavering. Time to press on.

“To be honest, when I first learned Jungdanse, I was skeptical. But after watching a video on Sangdanse and attempting a head strike, it was surprisingly fun. It ignited a passion in me.”

As I clenched both fists with dramatic flair, Chinami’s ears perked up.

“Really? Is that so?”

“Yes.”

“Hmmm...”

Chinami emitted a long, contemplative hum. She stared at the ground as if lost in deep thought, then offered a compromise.

“As hubae-nim said, interest is an essential factor. However, as I and Renka have pointed out, without mastering Jungdanse, your Sangdanse would be less than half-baked—easy prey for your opponent.”

“So, you’re saying Jungdanse is a must?”

“Yes. I’ll teach you Sangdanse, but you must focus primarily on Jungdanse for training. What will you do?”

“If you’re offering to teach me, then of course I’m in.”

“Great. In that case, show me the head strike you were practicing earlier. I’ll give you some feedback.”

“Let’s do it.”

With a laid-back response, I assumed the self-taught Sangdanse stance. Before Chinami could say another word—

“Hup!”

—I exhaled sharply and swung my shinai.

Whooosh—! Thud!

As the burst of speed came to an end, that weighty sound echoed. Believing my form was good, I quickly withdrew my shinai. Then, I turned to look at Chinami and asked,

“How was it?”

“...Huh?”

She blurted out a short gasp, her mouth hanging open slightly. Judging by her surprised expression, I might not have done it perfectly, but I clearly showed her something unexpected.

I must have talent after all.

That’s right, it wouldn’t make sense for the protagonist not to be special.

I approached the stunned Chinami,

“How was it? Did I do well?”

Pretending to ask for her opinion, I gently caressed the back of her neck just like I did before.

Then,

“Ah...! That stance just now... Ahhh...”

Chinami’s body seemed to lose all its strength, her eyes going wide.

It was like this last time, and this time too...

Such a pronounced reaction. Could this be a sensitive spot for her?

Or is she simply vulnerable to a man’s touch?

I’ll have to find out properly next time.

***

Click—

“I’m so sorry...!”

Miyuki apologized as soon as she climbed into the passenger seat. Seeing that it was almost 10 o’clock, I chastised her while starting the car.

“Why are you so late?”

“I told Matsuda-kun I would be late... What were you doing at home...?”

“Looking at lookbooks.”

“Lookbooks? Of men?”

“No, women. They were changing their panties while still clothed.”

At my brazen comment, Miyuki’s expression went blank. I stole a glance at her and burst into a frivolous laugh.

“I’m kidding.”

Somewhat relieved, Miyuki asked in a suspicious tone.

“Really kidding...? You don’t watch stuff like that...?”

“Is it okay if I want to?”

“That, that’s something Matsuda-kun should decide for himself...”

“So it’s okay?”

“...No. I’d prefer it if you didn’t.”

“Then you should show me.”

“Oh, what are you saying...! I’d rather die...!”

Miyuki’s head jerked in surprise, her eyes squeezed shut. She looked so endearing that I almost forgot I was driving and nearly leaned in to kiss her.

Hold on. Just hold on. Tomorrow’s the weekend. We won’t need to lose sleep over the stress of going to school. I can take my time melting Miyuki’s heart once we get home.

Just as I thought at the café, it’s important to gradually heighten the intensity to get Miyuki accustomed to things. Today, let’s not go overboard, but let’s take it a step further than last time.

“That bad, huh? You’d rather die? I’m hurt.”

“Why would you be...! Ugh, when I’m with you, Matsuda-kun, I just can’t control my emotions.”

“Being honest with your emotions is a good thing.”

“It’s not about being honest; it feels like I’m losing my mind.”

“Isn’t it better if we lose our minds together?”

Ignoring Miyuki’s love-filled complaint with a roguish air, I shifted my gaze back to the road, chuckling as she let out an exasperated laugh.

Nanase Chinami:

︵‿︵‿୨ * ୧‿︵‿︵

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