บท 849: Girls United
"So that's how it is."
Itsuki's expression turned serious, and she stared straight at Fumino.
"Fumino-san, can you tell me what you're thinking right now?"
"Thinking?" Fumino tilted her head in confusion.
Itsuki looked ahead. As the meeting time was approaching, most of the people walking on the same street as them were students from Shuchi'in Academy who came for today's autumn excursion.
In just their second year, almost everyone knew the quintuplets, both from their class and from the student council, so when they gathered, they always drew the attention of the other students.
Although speaking at a normal volume, the others might not hear the content clearly, but it felt like they were discussing a secret. Itsuki still lowered her voice and answered Fumino's question.
"A daytime phone call clearly seemed like a friendship had broken and war had been declared. But now, Fumino-san doesn't seem to hate us as much, and it seems like you haven't fully captured Asada-kun yet."
"It seems a bit off to say that, but oh well."
"Us and Asada-kun, you and Asada-kun, us and you, it's messy. I don't know how to sort out our eight-way relationship."
"But at least, I understand one thing clearly."
Itsuki shifted her gaze from the front and stared firmly at Fumino again, each word and sentence serious.
"I really don't want to lose such an important friend that I like very much just because of unclear relationship issues like this."
"So now, I'm going to ask directly. Fumino-san, do you indeed like Asada-kun?"
Fumino sighed and said helplessly, "Of course. If I didn't like him, why would I feel so stressed and heartbroken for him? Honestly, I feel a little regretful."
"That scoundrel, I should have crushed him to death with a math textbook!"
Listening to her complaint, Itsuki's serious expression relaxed, and she joked.
"When I found out Asada-kun was so cheerful, I also thought about choking him to death with a meat bun. Men who play with women's feelings are the worst!"
"Right, I can't hold it back..." Fumino opened her mouth, but she still didn't say the words to slap his face.
"...Besides, no girl wants to see the person she likes also liking another girl. Besides, I don't have that habit!"
"Fumino, it's the same for everyone." Yotsuba smiled and spoke gently.
"Even though we're quintuplets, we all hope Asada-san can only like one of us, rather than half-heartedly liking everyone."
"It's precisely because everyone has the same thought that conflicts arise, that's why they feel uncomfortable and want to try to make a change."
"As a result, everyone is no longer themselves..."
Yotsuba's initially upbeat tone turned somber.
Everyone looked at her, seemingly pondering on past events, and their expressions grew dull.
But not long after, Yotsuba with a smile on her face, and her bright voice echoed in everyone's ears.
"But I don't think this is a bad thing!"
"It's precisely because we can't understand each other that we want to understand each other."
"It's precisely because we can't understand each other that moments of reconciliation become the most precious!"
"Even though we've experienced many unpleasant things, moreover, things that make people happy happen thousands of times over!"
"So, whether now or in the future, the fact that we fall in love with the same person is clearly not an experience to regret or be sad about!"
"Um, that's what I think!"
Yotsuba lifted her head, the rabbit-ear hair tie on her head fluttered in the wind.
Her face with a determined expression shone, and she looked utterly foolish.
Everyone stared at her in surprise, then they all burst into laughter.
"Pfft, so there's a saying like that~"
"As expected from Yotsuba..."
"After her supportive speech, her words become so infectious..."
"Eh? Did I say something funny? Why is everyone laughing?" Yotsuba looked around in confusion, and her movements returned to normal.
"No, I think Yotsuba is really great." Fumino said with deep emotion.
"Come to think of it, my initial idea was quite funny." Ichika let go of Nino, gently tapping her chin with her index finger, looking up diagonally, and speaking unhurriedly.
"To monopolize Shinichi-kun, I planned to make everyone hate him, while I would never leave him and become the ultimate winner."
"Then, for various reasons, I abandoned the idea of monopolizing him... Because there's no way to be the only one, let's just take all the first places!"
"Although this seems to have failed, at least I kissed him briefly, and I'll take advantage of the time to suppress him later..."
Facing everyone's horrified stares, Ichika smiled and said with a innocent expression.
"Right, I almost forgot... Did you know there's a saying like that?"
"As expected from Ichika..."
"After her speech, her words become so contagious..."
"Huh? Did I say something funny? Why is everyone laughing?" Ichika looked around in confusion, and her movements returned to normal.
"Well, I've been wanting to ask you this for a long time, Ichika... Are you really that cunning?"
Ichika squinted her crescent moon-like eyes and recounted a famous quote she saw on the internet seriously.
"Girls, once you're involved in love, even a foolish girl can quickly evolve into a yandere!"
"I don't think you're a yandere from the start..."
Speaking about things she would never say in front of her before, Fumino said this while smiling.
"I'm almost the same, right? After seeing Asada-san daringly kiss Nino in front of us, I realized that we couldn't delay it any longer, and I had to capture him together with Rkcchan. Otherwise, he wouldn't choose both of us."
"Are you ready to go?" Nino looked at her in surprise.
Fumino nodded and said what Shinichi said on the ferris wheel.
Including her sincerity, including the fact that she likes many girls, and also including her ambition to try to become a big Japanese chaebol to fulfill her harem desires, etc.
It shouldn't be said. After all, it was her sincere confession to the two of them. No matter how silly or absurd it was, that sentiment deserved respect.
Fumino just didn't want to respect this annoying intention, and didn't want to understand the scoundrel who even thought of ways to deceive them.
So she spoke very passionately, perfectly using her literary talent and eloquence to vividly recreate the just mentioned "Scoundrel's Confession" scene.
At this moment, Miku and Rizu also walked hand in hand, listening to her recounting everything besides the slap in the face in the form of a story.
"..."
After the story was told, the girls were surrounded by silence.
They were still moving towards the meeting point, but each step felt heavy, and they almost stopped in their tracks.
The expressions of the quintuplets varied, but even Ichika couldn't smile now, and her expression turned dark.
Seeing such a scene, Fumino and Rizu exchanged glances, feeling very complicated.
What happened to this feeling of schadenfreude when finding out someone else had fallen into the same trap?
"...Did he really say that?"
After digesting Fumino's words, Nino's chest rose and fell, trying to calm herself by taking deep breaths, but the more she thought about it, the harder it was to calm down.
"Not to mention some of us, but I also like upperclassmen and teachers... He even checked which countries allow polygamy!?"
"Tsk, tsk, remarkable! He must be cunning, already planning a harem..."
Before her anger could fully erupt, Ichika stopped Nino just in time.
To prevent Nino from rushing against Shinichi, Ichika dragged her forward like this.
"Even though it's not a surprise, it still makes me feel very uncomfortable to hear it with my own ears..."
Ichika sighed, but a cold light seemed to shine in her dark blue eyes.
"Why did I fall in love with a playboy like him... No, the more I think about it, the angrier I get. It seems I'll have to find time to 'train' Shinichi-kun..." She murmured, the corner of her mouth curling into a grin.
"As long as Shinichi likes me and wants to be with me, I might be able to tolerate the rest."
Pushing her bangs forward, Miku lowered her head slightly and spoke softly: "I clearly think so. No matter how many people he likes, it has nothing to do with me... The dark feelings in my heart?"
Her blue pupils lost their light, and her initially expressionless face became even grimmer.
"I can't even support you in this matter, Asada-kun."
Itsuki frowned and puffed her cheeks.
"Even taking action against Kirisu-sensei. Although this can be understood, it's too contrary to common sense and lacks moral and ethical concepts! He's just a shameless animal!"
Seeing the dangerous atmosphere spreading, Yotsuba jumped out to calm the mood, not letting them get angrier.
"Don't be angry, please be optimistic and look at it from another perspective!"
Though there was also a subtle anger burning in her heart, Yotsuba understood that what she wanted to do now wasn't to share the same hatred and vent her anger, but to use this to let them resolve their long-standing feud.
"I think, if Asada-san likes everyone, we don't need to be love rivals, right?"
"It's like a referee insisting on calling both teams forward at the same time regardless of how the game goes because they don't want to see anyone lose. No matter how much they compete or face each other, it's just a waste of time. A very stubborn referee has decided the outcome of the match."
"So, um, in simple terms—"
"Because Asada-san is a scoundrel, we don't need to be love rivals!"
Seeing Yotsuba brainstorming, trying hard to arrange her words, trying to convince them, Nino and Fumino exchanged glances.
That's right. Shinichi clearly determined the outcome, yet they regarded each other as love rivals, arguing and confronting each other without permission...
They always felt somewhat foolish.
"...Puft!"
Fumino burst into laughter.
She had let go of all burdens, awkwardness, and discomfort, she smiled very naturally and said to Nino:
"Actually, I've been thinking about this since I got off the ferris wheel."
"Liking him is one thing, but it feels pointless to influence our interpersonal relationships for him."
"So, I want to apologize to you first, Nino."
Fumino lowered her head slightly towards her.
"What I said that afternoon was just to scare you."
"I only said it because I hated the fact that you kissed him in front of us and wanted to protest against that scoundrel."
"I know Asada-san will never leave you five. I also know, rather than fighting each other, he hopes we all get along, like working in the student council room."
"I'm sorry for worrying you all afternoon and wasting this autumn outing by saying those words."
Fumino scratched her cheek out of embarrassment.
"Thinking back now, what I said back then was really childish and too impulsive, haha..."
She smiled wryly and lifted her head, only to find Nino also bowing towards her.
"I just want to apologize!"
"Since that day, I've really wanted to say... I'll do anything for love. Right now, I feel like it's normal and reasonable to do so."
"But I've been cold to you, even if I met you in the hallway, I would avoid looking at you and treat you as if I didn't know you. I couldn't chat as usual or have tea together in the student council room. I even told you to break up with me..."
"I just realized that I actually regret it. I regret stimulating you like that, and I regret ignoring my friend's feelings for a scoundrel."
Nino bowed and said.
"I'm really stupid..."
She laughed at herself and stood up straight.
"They keep saying that love is paramount and they must move forward boldly for their own happiness, but I don't see who they like."
"I'm the same as you, we both like that super playboy!"
"Fighting over a scoundrel like that, talking about turning into enemies, turning friends into love rivals... Don't you think this is the stupidest thing this year?"
Nino took a deep breath, smiled, and spoke seriously.
"So Fumino, if you don't mind, can you still be my friend? I'll teach you how to bake."
The first confrontation seemed to take place at the barbecue lunch event in the school forest.
Fumino nodded eagerly, showing her brightest smile of the day.
"In that case, allow me, who ranks in the top twenty in grades, to teach you how to study? Your grades will surely improve rapidly!"
Upon arriving at the Sakura Pavilion, the quintuplets were very involved in their teaching.
Remembering all the experiences they had after getting to know each other, Nino and Fumino exchanged glances and smiled brighter.
The confrontational atmosphere during the phone call in the afternoon and the tense atmosphere during their recent meeting were no longer there, what remained now was just a newly growing friendship, filling the gap between them.
Itsuki watched this scene and smiled satisfactorily.
"...Almost there."
"What's the same?" Yotsuba looked confused.
"It refers to the emotional dispute between us and Asada-kun." Itsuki thought for a moment, then waved to the others, asking them to come closer.
Then she turned again and said to someone following them from a distance:
"Asada-kun, walk slower!"
"??"
Shinichi had a question mark on his face, but he slowed down as instructed, watching them sneak into the group as they walked forward, making a strange appearance like whispering in public.
"First, we must agree on one thing... Ahem!"
As the host of this "meeting." Itsuki clenched her palms and placed them in front of her chin like a microphone.
She cleared her throat first, then spoke in a deep voice:
"Everyone here has feelings for Asada-kun, right?"
Ichika, Miku, Yotsuba, and Rizu nodded without hesitation. After Fumino and Nino exchanged glances, they also shrugged.
"So..." Before she could finish her words, Miku's calm and gentle voice sounded from the side, interrupting her.
"Itsuki, are you finally admitting it? Do you also have feelings for Shinichi?"
Itsuki's expression froze, her face turning slightly red, and she quickly shook her head in denial.
"It doesn't matter what I say! Anyway, we're quintuplets. If you four don't want to leave him, sooner or later I'll... Oh, never mind, don't worry!"
Too embarrassing to continue speaking, Itsuki tried to change the topic; but judging from the sighs and teasing expressions on the others' faces, they probably already had a "consensus" about this.
"In short, everyone likes Asada-kun, and Asada-kun also says he likes everyone, and even more people... In this case, I'll follow Yotsuba's analogy, like in an athletic competition, no matter how many times you run, it's the same as being declared beforehand by the referee whether the participant will continue to run, or leave the track immediately."
"It's no longer about who will be the winner, but who is willing to endure and accept the outcome that everyone is a winner."
"So, let me confirm again, is there anyone disappointed with this competition and this referee and wants to leave?"
After speaking earnestly, Itsuki looked around at everyone seriously, but was surprised to find that they only shook their heads, showing no signs of doubt.
Miku smiled gently yet firmly.
"Besides, I've known for a long time that he's like that, even earlier than that, I've fallen deeply in love with him and don't want to part with him."
She lowered her head and looked into Itsuki's eyes.
"Itsuki, what about you? If you don't want to leave Shinichi, you should understand what we think, right?"
"Me?"
This time, Itsuki chose not to run away.
She thought seriously for a long time, then smiled just like everyone else.
"Yes, I've known it. He's a sentimental, gentle, and hesitant scoundrel who doesn't want to hurt anyone."
"Why hasn't my admiration for Asada-kun diminished at all?"
Asking this question to herself, Itsuki gently closed her eyes and whispered.
"Of course, I'll be disappointed, and I really hope he could be more dedicated and make serious choices... But now he's going to make strange choices, I'm not even surprised at all."
"There's nothing I can do about it, he's just like that. I've always watched his back, so I have to understand better than anyone else why he works so hard."
"I understand better than anyone else what he values and why he refuses to give up."
"In this case, I should think about how to share the burden with him so he doesn't always put on a sad expression in the student council room. Now, maybe that's what I'm thinking, right?"
After saying that, Itsuki herself felt funny and looked at the others helplessly.
"I might regret it in the future, but now, I just want to be by his side."
There was a small laughter around, and a sense of recognition connected the seven girls at that moment.
"We're all the same."
Itsuki said so.
"So, let's unite... As the 69th Shuchi'in Academy Student Council, and also as girls who love and are loved by him."
△
"..."
Separated from a distance, Shinichi, who never diverted his gaze but still couldn't read their discussion, suddenly felt his whole body tremble, and a bad premonition surged into his heart.
"What's happening? Is it because of them? Are they discussing how to eliminate the root of the problem and solve problems in the future forever?"
Shinichi felt anxious and alert, and various thoughts continued to emerge, but even though everyone had reached the meeting place and lined up by class to board the bus, no one wanted to answer his doubts.
The only thing that could make him feel comfortable might be the atmosphere between Fumino-Rizu and the quintuplets.
All the knots in their hearts had been untied, and their relationship was much more harmonious than usual, except that they seemed not to care too much about him, everything was moving forward in a positive direction.
Amidst Shinichi's confusing developments, the sky darkened. The bus drove for a while and stopped in front of a large hot spring resort.
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