A youth story of a passerby at the end of the world

It was just a chance encounter one morning.

Oh, and in my spring dream came a pure laugh.

I woke up to a world of vibrant, colorful cherry blossoms.

Chapter 108: I'll Help

She is a beautiful person; that is the first impression she makes.

He is about 165cm tall, which is within the height range of Uesugi Genshin's ideal type of girl.

He hopes his girlfriend is around 1.67 meters tall, so that even if she wears 13-centimeter high heels, she will only be the same height as him.

Of course, in reality, 13 centimeters is already the limit for high heels, and most are below that.

The people next to him, Shiyu, is 1.68 meters tall, and Yukinoshita is about 1.6 meters tall. These are the only two stunning beauties who can be compared to the person in front of him.

Sakurajima Mai's composed face showed a curious expression as she looked at her, and she did the same.

A light yellow dress paired with a white knitted cardigan, the soft fabric of the loungewear revealing her figure, evokes a mature sense of weariness and allure.

The delicate collarbone extends into the soft curves of her hands, along with the fair skin exposed on her neck and calves.

Her long, glossy black hair, adorned with a playful pink bunny hair clip, added a touch of youthful cuteness to her otherwise sexy appearance.

Only then did I realize that she was a beautiful young girl, probably around my age.

After quickly looking each other up and down, their eyes met, and they saw their own reflections in each other's blue eyes.

Of course, the colors are different; the youthful one is clear like glass, while the young girl's is like a wandering night sky.

Uesugi Genshin and Sakurajima Mai stared at each other, as if they could read something from each other's eyes, their long eyelashes trembling slightly.

"Pfft, hahaha..." "Pfft."

Finally, someone burst into laughter, and the two of them laughed in unison; laughter is contagious.

"Well then, come up and sit for a while," Mai Sakurajima extended the invitation first.

“Okay.” Uesugi Genshin stroked his hair with his left hand and replied softly.

Feng Bin and Xiang had already let go of each other's hands. They stood between the two, constantly turning their heads to look at them, hoping to see some clues.

"Oh, what's wrong with her?" Her sister's calm demeanor actually made her breathe a sigh of relief.

Sakurajima Mai turned and walked towards the apartment, while Toyohama Waka followed beside Uesugi Genshin. "Don't you need to take anything?"

"We don't need anything, oh~, we have some canned food or other emergency rations, do you need them?"

"No, never mind. We haven't finished the food at home yet," she said, shaking her head. To be precise, she hadn't finished the food she had collected from the entire apartment.

Mai Sakurajima opened the apartment door, and the three of them went inside. This time, she entered through the main entrance.

Mai Sakurajima walked to the elevator, pressed the button to go upstairs, and the elevator opened. Since no one else had touched the elevator, it stopped on the first floor.

She went inside, first standing at the floor button, watching her sister and the man come in together, then pressed the button for the ninth floor.

"Ah~" Uesugi Genshin felt his ponytail being pulled from behind, or more precisely, by Toyohama Waka.

She pulled down the hair tie, and his hair came loose again. Toyohama Kazuka grabbed his wrist, lifted the hair tie, and put it back on Uesugi Genshin's hand.

It doesn't matter.

Thinking this way, I casually scratched my hair, and it basically returned to its original position.

Mai Sakurajima, who had originally planned to observe Genshin Uesugi's profile more closely, could no longer see anything.

"Hmm!" Looking at her masterpiece, Toyohama Kazuka nodded in satisfaction, and a sweet smile appeared on her face.

The elevator quickly reached the ninth floor. There was no one outside the elevator doors, but as soon as he stepped out and looked in the direction of Mai Sakurajima's house, which he remembered, four heads appeared through the open doors.

The moment they saw it, everyone on the other side came out, revealing their entire bodies.

"Hi~, brother." "Brother Xuanxin, you're here." People greeted him one after another.

"Yes, they're all very healthy."

“Of course!” Hirokawa Uzuki smiled naturally.

"Brother, you're the same as always! Ah! The sword is so cool." Anong Yae praised, putting her hands behind her back.

Uesugi Genshin placed his hand on the hilt of the sword, showing it off, "Isn't that right?"

"Come in quickly," Mai Sakurajima said to everyone from the doorway.

As he walked in, Feng Binhexiang nudged his waist and whispered, "Is this your first time visiting your sister's house?"

"Yes."

On the wall directly in front of the entrance hall hang a few decorative paintings with a gradient blue base and white branches. If you have to say, they are just decorations and have nothing to do with art.

The layout inside is quite different from the seventh floor, and the furniture style uses brown and yellow as the basic color to create a comfortable atmosphere.

"Sit down." After saying this as the hostess of the room, Mai Sakurajima went to the semi-open kitchen to prepare drinks.

"Coffee or black tea?" This was clearly a question directed at the guest, Uesugi Genshin.

"It's all right."

“I like drinking coffee,” Mai Sakurajima said.

"Ah, me too. But I'm really not good at black coffee. I prefer something sweeter, like a latte or a mocha."

The coffee is actually supposed to be added later, but he omitted it. If you order a latte in Italy without coffee beforehand, the waiter will only bring you a glass of milk.

"That's the same for me."

The two seemed to be having a chat, with Uesugi Genshin sitting on the sofa turning his head toward Sakurajima Mai, who was decisively preparing coffee in the kitchen.

"But there's no chocolate, so we can only add sugar and milk." In other words, there's no mocha coffee.

“It’s alright,” Uesugi Genshin said with a smile.

The espresso, brewed under high pressure by the coffee machine, was mixed with sugar and milk and brought to the living room. "Here you go."

"Thank you."

Mai Sakurajima, carrying her own portion, sat down next to her younger sister. "Waka has been talking about you a lot, hoping you'd come soon."

"Sister!" Feng Binhe interrupted her sister, feigning annoyance.

“Really? I just finished dealing with things on my end, and only then did I have time to come here,” Uesugi Genshin explained. “As for the timing… ah, I was wondering if you had already left.”

“How could that be!” Feng Binhe said. She would definitely wait, she had promised.

“That makes sense. I heard there’s a survivor settlement in Narita, and the Self-Defense Forces are there too.” Mai Sakurajima didn’t deny that she had plans to leave, of course, only if this person didn’t come, given her sister’s condition.

"It's not just Narita; I started from the port area, where there's also a survivor base. The leader there seems to be a decent guy. As for Narita Airport, I don't know much about it, maybe..."

There will be risks.

“I see.” Mai Sakurajima nodded. “After you left, I searched all the rooms in this apartment building. The survivors gathered together; there were about 17 people.” This number included the few of them.

"So much." Uesugi Genshin frowned. This was starting to deviate from his plan. He had originally thought he could go straight back this afternoon.

"Of course, a few of them came back from outside. In the first few days, there were no more people."

Mai Sakurajima used a series of elegant movements befitting a woman to bring her lips to the rim of the cup. The sweet and slightly bitter liquid entered her stomach, and its warmth made her feel relaxed.

"So what are your plans for coming here?" In other words, Mai Sakurajima wanted to ask for the other party's opinion.

"I was thinking of coming here to see how Toyohama and the others are doing, and to pick them up and take them to a safe place." He had received the idea from Soubu High School, but with Sakurajima Mai here now, she might not necessarily want to come with him.

“I see.” Mai Sakurajima stared at the cup with a troubled expression.

At this moment, Toyohama Kaori tugged at his clothes, "Well, the older and younger people in the apartment all actually regard you as their leader."

This is what's really troubling him. "What are your thoughts?"

“We definitely can’t stay here indefinitely. Even if we gather all the food from the apartment, it won’t last long.” Mai Sakurajima paused, exhaled a breath, and continued, “I’m not sure if the government will organize a rescue.”

"It's impossible in the short term." The cabinet has all flown to Okinawa, and they don't even know if the prime minister is alive or dead.

Neither Mai Sakurajima nor Genshin Uesugi thought that staying in the apartment building was a good plan, because their quality of life would drop drastically if the power and water were cut off.

Her plan wasn't even to use the apartment as a base to search for supplies in the surrounding area, but rather to relocate.

"I understand. I can't abandon them. If possible, I'd like to ask if anyone wants to leave."

"If that's the case, then we'll need to find a car." The implication was that he would help.

Their conversation was a constant test of each other's intentions, with each trying to understand the other's meaning through repeated contact.

Mai Sakurajima was unsure of the other party's intentions and bottom line, and whether they would help; while Genshin Uesugi was unsure of what he could do and whether the other party needed his help.

Since Toyohama Waka's older sister is here, everyone will definitely prioritize her, while she and Sakurajima Mai are not friends at all; this is their first meeting.

Originally, I thought that since the five of them were isolated and helpless, I should take them all to Soubu High School or Shuchiin Academy, which would be a proper way to fulfill our acquaintance. But now things are a bit unclear.

"Hmm." Mai Sakurajima's delicate eyebrows relaxed, and she smiled beautifully. She felt that the "friend" in front of her was probably a good person.

Chapter 109: A Man Suitable for Marriage

"We...we're planning to follow them. There are people all over there, right?" the man in the couple asked to confirm.

The room was full, with people gathered around that single sofa.

Sakurajima Mai sat on the sofa, while Uesugi Genshin stood with his arm resting on the back of the sofa, half-bent over, offering his seat to Sakurajima Mai.

"Yes, there are already a thousand people there, and they are well managed, so there is basically no danger," Uesugi Genshin admitted.

The couple exchanged a glance, then the young man said, "That's good."

“That’s true, staying here is just waiting to die.” A middle-aged man with a receding hairline muttered, stroking his shiny bald head. “Count me in.”

The middle-aged woman sitting on the sofa furthest away asked worriedly, "Are you sure there won't be any problems?"

"No problem. Food might be a bit scarce, but all other facilities are complete. There are high walls surrounding it, so it's very safe." Uesugi Genshin repeated what he had said before in a different way, but the meaning was the same.

"Food." She hesitated again; it was a good excuse or reason to prevent her from making a decision.

Without a strong motivation, people tend to be complacent and content with the status quo.

"What are you hesitating for!" a tall, thin, middle-aged man wearing glasses, who seemed to know her, scolded. "The food here will run out sooner or later anyway."

“That’s Aunt Jinchuan’s husband.” Sakurajima Mai looked up, covered her mouth, and whispered in Uesugi Genshin’s ear. Her warm breath was moist, and her ear became a weak spot, itching unbearably.

"But what about over there..." Aunt Jinchuan was about to speak when she was interrupted.

"There are more people over there, and everyone helps each other, which is much better than the two of us staying here and messing around."

In the end, the two reached an agreement and agreed to go together.

"That's okay with me too."

"Ah... me too."

"I'll follow."

Those who were hesitant at the beginning agreed, and those who were later mostly lacked their own opinions, so they simply followed the crowd and agreed.

but......

"I'll just stay here," a toothless old woman said last. "Anyway, I'm old and won't live much longer, so let this old woman stay here all by herself."

She was as kind as one's own grandmother, and seemed to be a gentle old woman.

"Grandma!" Mai Sakurajima urged worriedly, "Let's go over there together."

"I'm old, I'm just a burden wherever I go." The old woman said calmly, opening her toothless mouth. "Just leave me alone, you young people can go."

“It’s alright, the people over there are all very nice, they’re not a burden,” Uesugi Genshin added, as leaving this kind old man here was against his moral principles.

She just shook her head.

Even if Mai Sakurajima tried to persuade her again, her mind was made up.