I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

"Then we'll take our leave now, Hachiman-senpai. See you at school."

As if nothing had happened, the four said goodbye to each other and left in two different directions.

"Hachiman-senpai, what happened between you and Yuigahama-senpai?"

In front of the elevator, Qinglai broke the silence.

The reason for asking this question was because of Yui's obviously excessive avoidance earlier. It seemed to be an action of her own will, but in fact it gave the two of them a way out. Kiyoyori did not miss the moment when Yui and Hikigaya's eyes met. It was Hikigaya's rejection and Yui's hurt. If she had involuntarily withdrawn her hand, it would have led the two of them into an even more awkward situation, regardless of whether Hikigaya accepted her kindness or rejected it.

Yuihama is not as carefree as she seems on the surface.

"I don't know anything about what happened between the two of them."

Yukino shook her head. She had no interest in prying into other people's private affairs, let alone asking about them.

"Is that so..."

Kiyoyori did not press the matter further. Rather than a conflict between Yuihama and Hikigaya, it was more of a conflict between the entire Service Club, including Kiyoyori. When Yuihama suddenly entered their line of sight, or more precisely, when all three of them appeared in Yuihama's line of sight at the same time, this conflict seemed to intensify to some extent.

Has anything different happened in the department lately?

"Yuhihama-san hasn't been participating in club activities lately."

"A new commission?"

"Do not."

"That means she hasn't been to the activity room recently..."

“Yes,” Yukinoshita glanced at Kiyori, “just like someone else.”

"When did it start?"

"It should be after the internship in the workplace."

Workplace internships are a type of social practice activity that both first-year and second-year students are required to participate in. They can choose from locations provided by the school or submit their own applications and communicate with the organizations they want to participate in. Kiyorai happened to choose the latter, and she and Reina submitted applications to intern at the band where Touko was. Therefore, she was not very clear about the workplace internships of the other students.

However, she still remembers that as long as she chose a unit provided by the school, she would need to work in groups of three for the internship.

"Yuigahama-senpai and Hikigaya-senpai are in the same group?"

"Ah."

Yukinoshita seemed to be in a much lower mood than before. Although she was not a talkative person, Kiyoshi could hear a different emotion in her brief reply. The joy of attending the cat and dog show was gone, and she looked preoccupied.

Kiyoshi, who witnessed the accident, could probably guess some of it.

“That’s not your fault, senpai,” Kiyoyori said, leaning on the elevator handrail and looking down. As the elevator slowly ascended, the figures below gradually became smaller. “If we really want to investigate, senpai is also a victim.”

"But I wasn't the one who got hurt."

Yukinoshita looked up at Kiyoyori, who was standing in front of her.

"Some wounds don't show on the surface of the body. You're grieving over this, which is also a kind of injury."

"This is just an excuse to shirk responsibility."

Yukinoshita did not agree with Kiyori's statement.

“Escaping is shameful, but sometimes it’s an effective method,” Kiyoyori turned around and smiled nonchalantly. “But at least, I don’t think you did anything wrong, and you don’t need to blame yourself for it.”

With a furrowed brow, Yukinoshita seemed unwilling to continue arguing with Kiyoyori about this matter.

"However, indeed..."

Kiyoshi turned around and muttered to himself.

The senior is indeed a gentle person.

P.S.: It's so hot now that I need to turn on the air conditioning. All I want to do is stay home and be a couch potato... The thought of having to practice driving under the scorching sun in a while makes me feel terrible.

Chapter 48 You Look Delicious

Just as Komachi said, there was a long queue in front of the seemingly simple conveyor belt sushi restaurant. Fortunately, Kiyoyori had made a reservation in advance and led Yukinoshita through the crowd into the restaurant.

The interior layout wasn't as rustic as the exterior. Since it was a conveyor belt sushi restaurant, modern conveyor belts were a must. Several monitors hung above, and several chefs in white uniforms were working inside, skillfully making sushi. The seats in front of the counter were packed. If it weren't for the smiling waiter leading the two to some inconspicuous corner seats, Kiyoyori wouldn't have noticed that there were empty seats in such a hidden place.

Yukinoshita seemed a little out of place in this environment, which was filled with the aroma of food, but also with the scents of countless strangers. She unconsciously moved closer to Kiyoyori, and the shampoo scent that felt strangely familiar made her feel relaxed.

The two sat down in a corner near the wall, which was almost the innermost part of the store and also the corner of the conveyor belt. There were a few empty seats next to it, with signs saying "Reserved". It seemed that these were reserved seats, unlike the seats outside where people were waiting all the time. Although it was secluded, it was quiet.

"I didn't expect business here to be so booming. Are you alright, senior?"

It wasn't hard to spot Yukinoshita's "dizziness" symptoms. Kiyoshita glanced at Yukinoshita, who was rubbing her forehead and leaning back in her chair, and considerately handed her some chilled lemonade.

"What would you like to eat, senior? Let me order for you."

Kiyoshi stretched out his hand, his slender fingers moving across the screen.

"Can I order food?"

Yukinoshita had never been to a conveyor belt sushi restaurant, or rather, she rarely ate out. If she was dining with her family, it was either at home or at a more upscale restaurant. Until she entered high school and began living independently, she mostly cooked for herself in her apartment, since she was alone and had absolute confidence in her cooking skills.

Therefore, her impression of conveyor belt sushi remains limited to the word "conveyor belt".

“Of course,” Kiyoshi opened the menu, which had detailed categories from main dishes to fried and grilled snacks. “Sometimes we might not be able to get the sushi or other food we want, so we can just order from the menu. When the conveyor belt reaches the corresponding location, it will make a beeping sound. Of course, we will use special plates to order, so we don’t have to worry about others taking them by mistake.”

"Although sushi is the main dish here, the grilled items seem pretty good according to online recommendations. Would you like some grilled chicken skin, senior?"

Upon hearing the name of the food, Yukino frowned and shook her head without hiding her dislike. Kiyora, not caring much, ordered only one serving for herself.

Kiyoshi recommended a few dishes to Yukinoshita, but she seemed uninterested, only showing great interest in the sushi that was leisurely passing by on the conveyor belt.

"Just take these." With that, Kiyoyori took two tuna sushi pieces from the conveyor belt, the intricately patterned plates clearly indicating their expensive price.

Pinch one of the sushi pieces with your thumb and middle finger, slightly raise your index finger, and gently touch the sushi with the soy sauce mixed with wasabi. Then put it in your mouth. The belly is fatty but not greasy, without the fishy smell of seafood but seemingly carrying a slight saltiness of the ocean. The rice is firm but not sticky, yet slightly soft inside. Everything is just right.

"It seems there's a reason why this place is so lively."

Kiyoshi turned his head to look at the diners still waiting at the door. It was lunchtime, and there were more customers than usual, but even so, many people still insisted on queuing outside.

"really."

Yukinoshita nodded in agreement. She took a piece of foie gras and, unlike Kiyori, preferred to use chopsticks. She held her left hand loosely under her chin and used her right hand to hold the chopsticks and put half a piece of sushi into her mouth, chewing it gently. Her slightly puffed-out cheeks made her look like a cute hamster.

“It is not polite to watch someone eat without moving.”

After swallowing the sushi in her mouth, Yukinoshita took a sip of lemonade and gave Kiyoyori a warning glance.

Kiyoshi continued to gaze at the scenery, which was even more captivating than the sushi, without realizing it, until the grilled chicken skin they had just ordered was brought to their senses and a notification sound rang out.

He cleared his throat by clenching his fist to his lips as if to cover up his actions, then took off the golden-brown roasted chicken skin. Only four skewers of roasted chicken skin were placed on the delicate little plate.

"Would you like to try some, senior?"

Kiyoshi swallowed hard, pretending not to care, and lowered the few remaining dishes of food in front of Yukinoshita. His bright eyes looked at her, clearly saying, "If you don't want any, they're all mine."

Yukinoshita, of course, wouldn't miss the puppy-like look in Kiyori's eyes. She had been suspicious of this unprecedented food, but when she actually saw it, she found it wasn't as strange as she had imagined. So, with the intention of teasing Kiyori and her curiosity about the food, she naturally took a quarter of it under Kiyori's pitiful gaze.

Despite being chicken skin, it had a crispy texture when you bit into it. The slightly charred outer shell crackled between your teeth and wasn't greasy at all. The crispy shell had a chewy texture, which completely overturned Yukino's impression of this kind of food. The only drawback was that the cumin flavor was a bit too strong for her.

But for Kiyoshi, this was just the right amount of strong flavor, and the childlike way he enjoyed the food was quite adorable.

"Tachibana-san, what are your thoughts on Yuihama-san's situation?"

Yukinoshita, who doesn't have a big appetite, had already eaten about 70% full, while Kiyoyori, on the other hand, still had plenty of time to gesture on the ordering screen.

"Why do you ask that? Don't you have any thoughts on this yourself, senior?"

Yukino silently picked up a piece of sashimi with her chopsticks, while Kiyoyori patiently waited for her reply.

“I remember that Yuihama’s birthday is just around the corner.”

She is not good at expressing her inner thoughts; rather, she is better at hiding her true feelings. She is not good at getting along with others. When interacting with someone as outgoing as Yui, she is always the passive one, waiting for the other person to come to her and understand her. Although she is not stingy with her patience, she also has a headache about how to get along better with the other person.

She always waited, but this time, she knew very well that she could no longer choose to wait indifferently.

Because if she doesn't take the initiative, she will soon lose that noisy but adorable little sun that's always around her.

Kiyoshiro's lips curved into a smile as she understood the implication in Yukinoshita's words.

"Then let's go pick out a gift for Yuihama-senpai together tomorrow."

"Ah."

Yukino nodded, satisfied with the answer. Silence returned between them, not awkward, but something else seemed to be spreading between them.

"Hey, are you two on a date? That looks really hot~."

P.S.: I had to take an exam early this morning before I was even fully awake, and the result was a complete mess... I actually wrote this chapter at night, and I'm getting really hungry while writing it. But seriously, roasted chicken skin is really delicious, especially if it's roasted well.

Chapter 49: Surviving Between Two Sisters

The flippant yet familiar voice plunged the two, who had been in a pleasant atmosphere, into an icy abyss. The atmosphere that had been carefully eased and the gradual exchange between them instantly took a sharp turn for the worse, because they were so familiar with the voice that they could recognize each other without even needing to see the face.

Kiyoshiro's hand, holding the sushi, froze in mid-air as he pondered whether to pretend he hadn't heard and continue eating or to politely respond. Yukinoshita, on the other hand, covered her downturned mouth with a water glass, but her furrowed brows still revealed her displeasure.

Unlike the almost tangible resentment of the two who were disturbed, Haruno seemed oblivious to everything as she sat down in the empty seat next to Kiyoyori, smiling as she took the lemonade from the waiter and looked at the two stiff figures with great pleasure.

"What's wrong? Aren't you going to eat?"

Yang Nai pretended not to know anything and asked the two of them. She was mainly looking at Yukinoshita and intentionally or unintentionally ignored Kiyori, who happened to be sitting between the two Yukinoshitas.

Qinglai was unsure of the other party's meaning and did not speak rashly.

Yukino sighed with a headache, "Does my older sister really need to ask?"

"It's rare to see Yukino out with someone, chatting and laughing. Could it be..." Haruno shifted her gaze back and forth between Kiyori and Yukino, "...that they're on a date or something? It's so nice to be young."

Haruno rested her chin on her hand, looking at the two of them with an ambiguous yet complex gaze. Yukinoshita subconsciously avoided her sister's scrutinizing gaze, naturally unaware of the fleeting tenderness in her eyes. On the contrary, when Haruno and Kiyori's eyes met, it was like a silent war about to break out.

Of course, it was caused unilaterally by Qing Lai.

Yukino simply smiled dismissively and said, "Yukino, aren't you going to introduce her?"

Kiyoshi raised an eyebrow, quickly calming down. She really couldn't understand Yono's convoluted thoughts, nor did she know what the other party intended.