manga artist Kirito

Page 138

Oh, I almost forgot about Shizuka's urging. We've run out of drafts, and to avoid a hiatus, Shizuka is even planning to take Kiritani-kun to the best orthopedic hospital for a checkup…

In addition, there was a call from Machida Sonoko, who said that Kasumigaoka Utaha was almost finished with the fourth volume of "Love Metronome," and it was time to catch up on the illustrations...

However, Kiritani's arm injury has not fully healed yet.

...Actually, although he's not completely healed, he's almost fully recovered. It's just that he's still in a slump, so Kiritani-kun is pretending to still be feeling unwell...and the effect is naturally outstanding.

There's not much time left before school starts, and there's so much to do... I really wish the holiday could last longer.

Kiritani-kun, having casually tied his still-damp hair into a ponytail and changed his clothes, stepped out of the room and was immediately greeted by a smiling, pretty face... He was almost startled.

Reaching out to push that face away, Kiritani-kun calmly walked out of the room. On the sofa was Yukino Yukinoshita... After changing her style of dress, Yukino-chan's temperament had changed completely, and she looked like a Yamato Nadeshiko.

Yes, that's right, the person standing at the door just now was Yang Nai.

Furthermore, Haruno has been living in this apartment building recently, in Yukino-chan's rented room... She did come over for a meal a couple of days ago.

"By the way, weren't you going to help with the affairs of the Obon festival... um, your father's assistant, I think you held that position?"

I still remember what Haruno said a few days ago when they ganged up on Shizuka-sensei. Kiritani-kun remembers it very clearly.

Isn't an assistant and a secretary essentially the same thing?

"It's fine to handle things well in advance. We can deal with the rest later when we get there. It's not too late anyway."

Yang Nai seemed quite relaxed, and then circled around in front of Kiritani-kun, saying, "Young man, tell me your thoughts, the truth!"

After carefully examining Yui, Kiritani decided to give a fair answer: "She's like a woman now."

His fist clenched suddenly, dangling twice in the air. Finally, Yang Nai took a deep breath and said in a tight voice, "...Phew! I'll give you one more chance!"

Without saying a word, Kiritani changed his tune immediately, "Miss Haruno, I didn't know you could be so elegant."

Yang Nai nodded with satisfaction, giving her a knowing look. "Not bad, at least much better than the previous evaluation."

"...Hmm, I suddenly realize that the evaluation I received just now was definitely not just good."

Recalling Haruno's irritable expression just now, and Kirito's initial evaluation, Rita felt unusually satisfied with the two words Kirito had uttered.

"Hey there, Komachi's here!"

The door was not closed, and Komachi, dressed in a yukata, was still full of energy, while behind her was Hachiman, dressed in casual clothes.

With his mouth slightly open, Hachiman looked at Kirigaya-kun and felt betrayed. When Komachi asked him to wear a yukata before, he had refused, using Kirigaya-kun as an example. He never expected to be slapped in the face as soon as he went out... This traitor!

"Hachiman, where's your yukata?"

Similarly, Kiritani-kun had recently sought solace in Hachiman, only to be proven wrong when he opened the door.

"Casual clothes are fine, too much trouble."

Hachiman, with his deadpan expression, glanced at Komachi, who seemed oblivious to the issue, and then breathed a slight sigh of relief. "You look good in a yukata..."

Kiritani looked at Hachiman expressionlessly. "I'll call Shimotsuka and have him put on a yukata."

"Oh, Yukinoshita..."

"Hachiman Hachiman really does like to do the opposite of what others think..."

The dead fish eyes and indifferent gazes meet, and a distinctive way of greeting emerges.

Hachiman tilted his head slightly to look out the window, "Yuihama said she's waiting for us at the station..."

"time?"

"almost."

"Let's get ready to go."

The conversation, though seemingly simple, left the others with a somewhat unsettling feeling.

Before they could say anything more, the bathroom door opened again, and Asuna and Shiina Mashiro, both wearing yukatas, walked out.

Apart from Kirito and Hikigaya, everyone else present was a girl. Since they were all already very familiar neighbors, there was no situation where they were forced to be amazed.

But it must be said, it is indeed very beautiful.

In particular, Asuna's Yamato Nadeshiko-like temperament gives people a comfortable feeling.

"Okay, all set. We can almost set off... Well, the group seems a bit large?"

With a gentle tone, Asuna's face lit up with a smile.

P.S.: Please feed them—no slapping allowed!

311

【NO.308 Fireworks Show (Part 2)】

At the station, the huge queue split into three groups...

Yukino and Hikigaya were naturally dragged away by Triple Dango and Komachi, while Haruno had other matters to attend to and left alone after saying goodbye to everyone. What remained was Kirito and his group.

Although the team is much smaller now, for some reason, Asuna has a feeling that the team will soon grow in size.

Of course, chance encounters are bound to happen, and Asuna says that this is understandable.

"By the way, isn't someone missing?"

At the convenience store next door, Shiina Mashiro and Rita were picking out snacks. Sitting in front of the store watching the bustling crowd, Kiritani asked Asuna.

"Hmm, it seems someone is indeed missing... Ah, it's Akasaka-kun. It doesn't seem like he's planning to go out today."

Smoothing a strand of hair that had fallen beside her ear, Asuna held a folding fan in her hand and shook her head slightly. "Well, it would be strange if Akasaka-kun came to a place with so many people."

"makes sense."

Kiritani scratched his cheek. Judging from Ryunosuke's personality, it was really a brain fart to attend such a pointless party. Putting aside the bustling crowds, there was also the constant walking... Considering that Ryunosuke was already out of breath after 300 meters—he was doomed!

At this point, most people would say, "Only an idiot would go to a place with so many people."

Two blonde girls, their wooden clogs clicking as they walked out of the convenience store, had plastic bags hanging from their wrists, filled with snacks. Their pale fingers rested on their cherry-colored yukatas, as if they were a little unaccustomed to this attire.

...I didn't bring my sketchbook.

This was the first thing Shiina Mashiro thought of after buying the snacks.

"Asuna, picture book."

"Well, today's outfit isn't suitable for carrying a backpack. It's okay if you don't bring your sketchbook today, as long as Mashiro remembers the scene she wants to draw."

With gentle words, Asuna stood up with a smile, took Shiina Mashiro's hand, and turned to look at Kiritani, who was still sitting on the bench. "It's about time we set off."

Looking at Rita, who had just opened the packaging of the folding fan she bought from the convenience store, Kiritani-kun felt that the girl had become even more cunning after taking the folding fan in her hand.

As if sensing Kiritani's gaze, Rita opened her folding fan, slightly obscuring the lower half of her face, her crescent-shaped eyes brimming with a deep smile.

Neuropathy……

The neon-lit facades of the buildings, their mirror-like surfaces reflecting the rising moon and its soft, hazy light, gradually heightened the enthusiasm of those eagerly awaiting the fireworks display.

They were usually in groups of three or five, young men and women, walking and laughing loudly, revealing their joy.

Stalls displaying the names of various snacks line both sides of the road, while convenience stores and shops further inside display their goods in front of them. Soft music drifts from the street.

It must be said that if there were still cherry blossoms now, the scene of petals falling against the backdrop of this bustling street would surely be quite beautiful.

The Chiba citizens' fireworks festival is about to begin.

Slightly away from the busiest crowd, following behind the three girls, Kirigaya-kun idly reminisced about things, such as this time last year... like several years ago, under that bare cherry blossom tree...

But then again, it seems like girls really have an endless supply of topics to talk about.

Looking at the three girls in front of him, Kiritani smiled faintly. So, this kind of ordinary life is just fine.

Ah, it seems like it's been so long since I contacted Yezi...

Hmm, I'll go home another day and come back when school starts.

However, we need to take care of Rita's matter first.

…………

Atmosphere, ah, it's a terrible thing.

The snacks at the roadside stalls tasted pretty much the same as usual, but the prices were significantly higher. However, given the atmosphere, no one seemed to care.

"I want to eat this."

Shiina Mashiro was unusually in high spirits today, although her expression didn't change much.

"Boss, two orders of takoyaki, please."

"Ok."

Kiritani looked at his girlfriend with some difficulty. There were quite a few snacks in his hands at the moment, most of which Shiina Mashiro had eaten a little and then stuffed into his hands—was he her trash can or her stomach?

While munching on a bright red apple candy, Asuna slightly averted her gaze. "Well, it's not my fault that you didn't raise your daughter well."

Kiritani-kun rolled his eyes. "You're her mother, so you're also responsible for not raising her properly."

Rita stuck out her tongue. "This is so sweet! I feel like I'll definitely get fat if I keep eating like this... Ah, Shido, how about..."

"There is no inferiority."

Kiritani shook his head firmly, "Don't give it to me, I don't want it."

"Kazuto, over here, PS4!"

With his sleeve tugged, Kiritani looked up in the direction Shiina Mashiro was pointing and saw a pile of prizes, including a game console, as well as many other items that he could name.

...Hmm, a shooting game.

Feeling a strange sense of familiarity, Kiritani turned his head to look at Shiina Mashiro, "You want it?"

"No, yours."

Shiina Mashiro means, "I don't want it, this is what you want."

"Speaking of which, my PS3 is indeed getting outdated. This PS4... well, I'll go check on it later. The takoyaki isn't ready yet."

"Shido, I want cotton candy."

"I'm a nanny? Didn't you just say that eating too many sweets will make you fat?"

"Well... haha, actually I'm the type who doesn't gain weight easily, but I want to eat real white stuff too!"

"trouble."

His eyebrows twitched involuntarily. Kiritani-kun indifferently shoved what he was holding into Rita's hand and quickly went to a nearby stall to buy three balls of cotton candy...

Three times the size of a dumpling is a huge difference compared to a marshmallow!

"Ugh, it's sticky, like it's stuck to my face..."

"This marshmallow is bigger than your head... Can't you just pick it out piece by piece with a bamboo skewer?"

"No, that wouldn't be fun enough."

Asuna pouted slightly, and the corners of her mouth looked a little sweet, which was caused by cotton candy.

"Wow, girl, your drool melted the marshmallow, no wonder it's sticky."

Kirigaya reached out and tapped Asuna's forehead. He then checked his pockets, only to find that the yukata didn't have any pockets at all, meaning he couldn't find any tissues.

"Never mind, don't move."

"Well?"

Supporting Asuna's slightly flushed cheeks, Kiritani slowly leaned in and kissed the corner of her mouth, his tongue gently licking the spot where the marshmallow still clung to...

P.S.: Happy Mid-Autumn Festival... Although holidays are always much busier than usual.

312

【NO.309 Fireworks Show (Part 3)】

Kissing is something that Kiritani-kun doesn't consider commonplace.

Being a skilled ventriloquist doesn't actually have much to do with kissing—even though Kiritani considers himself to be a master of words.

But actually, we've kissed quite a few times...

It's not with anyone else, who else could it be but Asuna?

Even if you do, you absolutely shouldn't think about it when you're kissing a girl!

Like a small animal licking Asuna's sweet lips, the dog naturally caught Asuna off guard and widened her eyes in surprise.