My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 172

"I think it's still early, isn't it?"

No, things are probably not as optimistic as the Ministry of Revenue has described. Even from a distance, one can see a large group of students in black uniforms beginning to move slowly.

Anyway, let's get back quickly!

Urged on by Yuihama, we quickly ran back and joined the queue.

× × ×

We barely made it in and followed the students from Class F into the main hall. The hall enshrines the emanation deity Daikokuten, and there are also exhibits of iron shoes, a staff, and other items, but due to the large crowds, it seems we won't be able to touch them.

If you walk further ahead, you'll reach the Qingshui Stage.

Kiyomizu Stage truly lives up to its reputation as Kiyomizu-dera's most popular spot, attracting not only students taking commemorative photos but also a large number of general tourists.

"Wow, so beautiful..."

Yuihama leaned against the railing, exclaiming in admiration. From this spot, one could enjoy a panoramic view of the mountains ablaze with autumn colors, as well as the cityscape of Kyoto. I couldn't help but wonder what this view had looked like a thousand years ago. The Kyoto city area must have been quite different, but this exhilarating feeling of being high above the city must have been the same in every era.

Kyoto is a city that contains both things that remain unchanged and things that change with the times.

I somewhat understand why they chose this place for their graduation trip.

As I was admiring the beautiful scenery, Yuihama spoke up:

"Oh, right, let's take a picture!"

She quickly pulled a point-and-shoot digital camera from her pocket; its small, pink body matched her perfectly.

"Take a picture? Sure, give me the camera."

"what?"

Yui looked puzzled, but still handed me the camera. I took a few steps back, raised the camera, and pointed the lens at Yui.

"Come on, say 'peanut'—"

I pressed the shutter button, and Yui quickly made a somewhat incomplete reverse V sign. The next moment, the camera beeped.

"Okay, great shot. Remember to thank me for my photography skills."

I returned the camera to Yui, and she immediately looked at the photos. Digital cameras are so convenient; you can take a picture and look at it instantly. But what if the photo doesn't turn out well? Will she ask me to take another one?

"Let me see... Ah, it's really cute—wait a minute! Also, why say 'peanut' in the photo?"

"Didn't you know? People from Chiba Prefecture always say this word when they take photos..."

Stop lying.

This isn't a joke; I actually hope this can become a trend. From now on, when you take photos, remember to say "peanut" instead!

"That's not what I meant... It's a rare opportunity, let's take a picture together."

Yuihama's request to my face made it difficult for me to refuse. To be precise, I didn't really have a reason to refuse. Although I could use my superstition that taking photos would steal one's soul as an excuse, Yuihama was right. This was a rare opportunity, and since I didn't bring my own camera, I would have to find someone to take pictures with me.

"Okay, I don't mind taking a picture. Then, let's find someone to take it for us."

"No need to do that, this is fine."

Yuihama stood next to me, raised her camera, pointed the lens here, and prepared to press the shutter.

"If I don't get any closer, I might accidentally photograph someone else..."

She took another step closer and gently hooked her hand around mine.

"Let's take the picture! Here, cheese!"

Beep beep—the electronic sound rang out again.

My gaze was directed in the opposite direction from Yuihama's, so the dead fish eyes in the photo might look particularly bad. Unsuspecting people might mistake it for a ghost photo.

Yui released my hand, took two quick steps back, and then turned around.

"Thank you."

"There's no need to thank me."

That's right, it was just taking pictures, nothing more.

I looked around and saw a group of people gathered together, taking selfies. For high school students these days, this is probably commonplace. It's just taking a commemorative photo; there's really no need to overthink it. Boys and girls taking photos together isn't unusual; it's like taking a group photo with friends. People probably think it's normal.

It's all just me overthinking things.

"Yumiko, Hina, let's take a picture together!"

Yuihama invited Miura and Ebina, and the three of them hugged each other and took a gorgeous group photo with a "Yay!"

"Hayato-kun, you guys should come too!"

She then called to Hayama's group, and they immediately rushed over, including Hobe, Ooka, and Yamato.

"Yay! Let's take a picture!"

"Okay. But, this seems like there will be too many people..."

Ye Shan looked back at the classmates who were emerging from all directions and smiled somewhat awkwardly.

"Ah, otherwise we could divide them into several groups..."

The people at the scene were all talking at once, so Hayama probably didn't hear Yuihama's suggestion and went straight to me to hand over the camera.

"Can I trouble you?"

"……OK."

As soon as I took his camera, a long line of people appeared in front of me.

"And mine too."

"Take a picture of me too, even if it's just a penguin!"

"Please take care of mine too."

"Ah, me too!"

Wait, wait, I only agreed to take photos for Hayama, right? Then Miura, Tobe, Ebina, and Ooka also shoved their cameras at me. Hey, there are more than just these people!

Then, several more people asked me to take photos for them. When I took the last person's camera, I couldn't help but sigh.

"Hachiman, excuse me, could you please take a picture of me too?"

"No problem, leave it to me!"

There's only one photo of Totsuka that you won't find anywhere else in the world. I want to pour my whole soul into taking the best picture, a picture that captures the very essence of life! I feel like even my own being is attached to the photograph. Ugh~ Wouldn't that be a waste?

"...Oh, I'm so sorry, there's also mine..."

When Yui handed me the camera, she had an expression that said she didn't care what happened.

Her real purpose in finding Hayama and the others was probably to take a photo of Hobe and Ebina together. Unfortunately, since the whole class was now acting together, it was destined to turn out this way. Moreover, someone suggested a group photo of the whole class, so there was no way to back out now.

I took the camera and offered her some words of comfort:

"Okay. Anyway, let's try again tomorrow."

"Um……"

After giving a brief response, she walked to the stage railing and stood with everyone. I was also ready to take a picture.

That said, I have a lot of cameras, almost double digits.

I feel super popular, yay!

But why can't you just take a photo and then share it with everyone via email or Facebook? Shouldn't you make better use of online communication in this situation?

"Alright, let's start taking pictures. Come on, say 'peanut'—"

Okay, okay, peanuts, peanuts... I changed cameras one after another and pressed the shutter.

During this process, I noticed that Yui's expressions were very rich. Her expressions and poses were different in every photo, revealing her personality as she fully enjoyed the moment. Fortunately, the digital camera had an autofocus function; otherwise, most of the photos might have become blurry.

Miura knows exactly how to take good photos, and even though he changes his poses every time he takes a picture, his facial expression never changes.

Ye Shan acted very naturally; he was used to being the center of attention and looked good in photos without having to pose.

The Ministry of Revenue, being the Ministry of Revenue, deliberately struck poses that only magazine models would do. To put it more nicely, it could be considered natural. Gaia was probably whispering to him, urging him to shine even brighter (Note 40 is from the promotional text of the men's fashion magazine "MEN'S KNUCKLE": "Gaia is whispering to me, urging me to shine even brighter.").

As for Ebina, she maintained a smile from beginning to end. I've recently started to get used to her smile, but the fact that it remained completely unchanged from the first picture to the last has actually made me feel a little uneasy.

After leaving the main hall, we continued our tour along the way and arrived at Jishu Shrine.

Jishu Shrine, located within Kiyomizu-dera Temple, is also a popular tourist attraction. It's renowned for its god of love and marriage, and many people come here to pray for blossoming love. Young people visiting Kiyomizu-dera Temple will definitely not miss this place.

Needless to say, the students who came on their graduation trip surrounded the shrine, excitedly chattering and making a racket; my ears were practically deafened.

After the worship, the next step is to buy amulets and draw lots.

I didn't have anything I wanted to buy, so I used my secret technique: "silently following at the back of the line." Okay, it's true that you could draw a fortune stick, but in my opinion, the real fun of that kind of thing is seeing what fortune sticks we drew, so I've never had that habit.

I casually mingled into the crowd and observed my classmates. The most lively place was indeed the love fortune-telling stone.

"Okay, let's go!" Many girls lined up enthusiastically to take on the challenge, while their friends acted as guards to ensure the road was clear.

The love fortune-telling stones are two stones about ten meters apart. It is said that if you can walk from one side to the other with your eyes closed, your love will blossom. This explanation feels a lot like "If you succeed in the challenge, you'll get a million yen (Note 41, the slogan of the TV show 'Flame Challenger')."

Additionally, if they rely on others for guidance, like playing a game of cutting a watermelon, it means their relationship needs help from others.

Upon closer inspection, the young woman in the white suit walked smoothly to the Love Stone on the other side, receiving enthusiastic applause and cheers from the audience. Our club's advisor is truly remarkable…

While the female students waited in line, the boys would occasionally glance at them. If they saw a girl they liked also going to try, they would nervously anticipate, "Oh my god, she already has someone she likes... Could it be me?" Okay, I admit that I was the most likely one to think that way. It's okay to have a little anticipation, as long as you don't let it explode and act on it, it won't hurt anyone.

Some boys were anxiously gathering information, while others stood at a distance watching, looking like they wanted to take on the challenge. We can glimpse a cute side of boys from this.

However, the Ministry of Revenue, which was also in the queue, did not appear very dignified.

"Okay~ I want to touch it in one go!"

Tobe loudly proclaimed to the surrounding audience, while Ooka and Yamato clapped and cheered. He responded to the two with a fist bump, then closed his eyes and slowly walked like a zombie to the other side of the stone.

"Oh no, I can't figure out which way to go! Hmm... which way should I go, straight ahead?"

Ooka and Yamato watched the show with amusement, giving him a few instructions.

"Go straight, go straight."

"Ministry of Revenue, behind us!"

"Huh? What's next?"

Upon hearing this, the Ministry of Revenue reflexively turned his head to the back.

"What's the point of turning your head with your eyes closed...?"

Hayama couldn't bear to watch any longer. He sighed and muttered a complaint under his breath, which immediately burst into laughter that echoed for a long time. The scene was quite amusing.

The most important thing is to have fun. That trio of idiots are incredibly close, so Ebina doesn't need to worry about them at all.

I stared at them blankly. Yuihama seemed to be thinking the same thing and patted Ebina on the shoulder.

"Hime, don't you think their relationship is good enough?"

"Yes, that's good... but we absolutely cannot let our guard down until the very last moment."

Ebina lowered her head slightly. From where I was standing, I couldn't see her eyes behind her glasses, but I could hear a hint of disappointment in her voice.

Yuihama rarely saw Ebina so dejected, and looked at her in surprise.

"Huh? What does that mean—"

Halfway through her sentence, Ebina suddenly looked up, clenching her fists tightly. She interrupted Yuihama's question, gasping for breath as she cried out:

"It's decided! We must make sure they make it back to home plate on this graduation trip!"

What?! He's running back to home plate!

Ah, I almost forgot, regarding the results of the Ministry of Revenue's Divination Stone Challenge, he almost fell over at the end, and Ye Shan quickly went over to help him up.

The love fortune-telling stone activity came to an end, and the students in the class opened the fortune slips they had drawn.

"YES! That's great!"

Miura proudly made a victory fist gesture, displaying great masculinity. Yuihama saw her slip of paper and exclaimed in surprise.

"Wow! Yumiko is amazing!"

"I drew a very lucky number!"

Ebina also went over and clapped to congratulate her.