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

"Um, Hiratsuka-sensei, me too. I'm also a little worried about my family." Another middle-aged, balding male teacher next to her quickly chimed in, as if afraid she wouldn't agree.

"I understand. I will stay here to take care of the students," Hiratsuka Shizuka repeated her previous reply.

"Yes, yes, please...please." The middle-aged male teacher kept bowing.

"please."

They then looked at each other and walked out of the building together.

Watching them leave, Hiratsuka Shizuka turned to Uesugi Genshin and asked, "Aren't you going with them?"

"Following them would be like being a deserter."

"You...don't say things like that." Hiratsuka Shizuka took a deep drag on her cigarette, exhaled, and the smoke obscured her face.

Uesugi Genshin knew that there was a saying that loyalty and righteousness were difficult to reconcile, which spoke of the difficulty of making a choice, and he had previously chosen loyalty.

"I know, I'll be back." Uesugi Genshin shook the car keys in his hand, his words seemingly directed at no one in particular.

Hiratsuka Shizuka said nothing and continued smoking her cigarette.

"Hiratsuka-sensei!" Hachiman's voice came from behind.

-----------------

Hachiman Hikigaya is following Yukino Yukinoshita and Shirokai towards the student council room.

"Really nothing's happening?"

"Are the zombies fake?"

"Isn't that the teacher they mentioned on the radio? It can't be fake, right?"

No one jokes about their career, and that's probably what this student was trying to say.

"Why don't we go out and hurry home? We can't go to class anyway," someone suggested.

"Eh? But, but..." The person in the conversation hesitated, mainly worried about being scolded by their parents.

"What's the point of staying here?"

At least it's safe, Hachiman Hikigaya thought to himself.

Before the final outcome, no one knew whether he was a hero or a fool, and the price he paid was his life.

The cost and reward are the things you should think about most clearly, Hachiman Hikigaya tugged at his collar.

They go out, leave the school, to go home, and go home because they feel that home is relatively safe, which is indeed a valid reason.

If his home weren't so far away, making it impossible for him to ensure Komachi's safety, he would have gone home to wait for rescue.

But does that mean the school is unsafe? If the passageways are blocked, and if "they" are indeed dead, then it is safe enough.

It's just a matter of moving from one relatively safe place to another that might be safe, but the stakes are incredibly high.

Now is not the time to act rashly and risk your life, young man...

The three of them continued forward through the stagnant crowd, but one person also squeezed through the crowd and went in the opposite direction.

“That’s…” Hachiman Hikigaya looked at the girl walking with her head down and gradually quickened his pace, only to be hindered by the slightly crowded people in the corridor.

"..."

As she drew closer, the silver-haired, green-eyed girl walked straight past Yukino Yukinoshita and Shiromaru.

As she approached Hachiman Hikigaya, she was blocked by the crowd on her left and bumped into Hachiman Hikigaya's shoulder, who was already trying to avoid her.

Without apologizing, he merely glanced at her and continued walking forward in silence.

But in that instant, that glance made her realize something, and she grabbed Hachiman Hikigaya, who was passing by her.

"what happened?"

"Are you... in our class?" She was wearing a short-sleeved school uniform from Soubu High School, with her jacket tied around her waist and her skirt the length of a Tokyo JK uniform. She looked like a delinquent girl, and her "don't come near me" aura was softened by the worry and anxiety between her brows.

Hikigaya Hachiman's eyes were fixed on the beauty mark under her right eye for less than a second.

"Ah, I am indeed from Class F."

"Did you see Hiratsuka-sensei?" the girl asked immediately afterward.

"The teacher is checking the roadblocks. What do you need her for?"

"My younger brother and sister..." the girl named Kawasaki Saki muttered, not intending to give Hachiman Hikigaya an answer.

This whisper made Hachiman Hikigaya's heart skip a beat.

Chapter Thirteen: Is it alright after the car crash?

"teacher."

Hachiman Hikigaya walked toward Shizuka Hiratsuka, followed by Saki Kawasaki.

There are pictures here, which can be viewed after the updated version

Unlike Hachiman, who had his hands in his pockets and a deadpan expression, Kawasaki Saki was visibly anxious and restless.

It seems that Hachiman's cute little sister Komachi and Kawasaki Saki's younger brother Kawasaki Taishi were junior high school classmates in the same class.

The matter was clear then, but Uesugi Genshin was still worried.

"Where's Yukinoshita?"

"I told her all the things I could think of that I should be careful about, so it should be fine."

That's what he said, but there was nothing he could do. It was a time when they should have been united, but instead, they were falling apart for their own reasons.

Uesugi Genshin is going to Tokyo to save Kasumigaoka Utaha, Hachiman has his most important younger sister, and Yukino Yukinoshita may be taken away by her family at any time.

"hope so."

He didn't say anything else, after all, Yukino Yukinoshita's still-unchanged, stiff attitude towards people was a bit worrying at this time.

Rather, I'm genuinely worried that the kind of "cold violence" environment in the class where she's isolated allows her to act on her own whims without restraint. A sharp, angular awl can pierce leather, but it's not smooth enough.

Now we can only trust that she can keep things stable until the two of them return.

“Teacher, my younger sister goes to a nearby middle school, and I need to pick her up. It seems her younger brother goes to the same school as my sister.” Hachiman turned to reveal Kawasaki Saki’s figure.

"Do you... understand the current situation?" Hiratsuka Shizuka retorted, feeling that Hikigaya Hachiman should be well aware of it. "It's not necessarily safe outside, and even so, are you still going?"

"Ah."

“I must go; my younger siblings are all in school,” said Saki Kawasaki, showing her eagerness as the eldest sister in the family.

"Younger siblings?" Hiratsuka Shizuka took a drag of her cigarette. "Are your younger siblings in middle school?"

"No, my sister is in preschool."

"...I'll drive you there. After all, you're my students." Hiratsuka Shizuka flicked the ash from her cigarette with her slender fingers.

Is this okay?

Hachiman Hikigaya didn't say it aloud; it was the best way for him and them. But if something happened after Soubu High, could Yukinoshita alone handle it?

But if they really went by themselves, ah, if they ignored Kawasaki's younger sister and he took Komachi directly back to Soubu High School...

Hachiman Hikigaya thought to himself, but inwardly he was somewhat mocking his own idea. He silently resolved to assume that they would act together if necessary.

"Oh dear, teacher, what should we do?" The first-grade girl who had been standing behind Ye Shan spoke up.

She asked the question with an air of nonchalance, as if it were something she had asked unintentionally, like asking her mother at home what to eat today, without any deeper meaning.

Judging from the ribbon at her neckline, she was undoubtedly a first-year student. Kawasaki Saki looked at her with a sharp gaze, though it was no different from her usual eyes, just like Hachiman Hikigaya's unique and dejected dead fish eyes.

"Ah, this is Iroha Isshiki, the manager of my soccer club. He just came to help out." Hayato Hayama chimed in for Iroha Isshiki.

This junior is really good at acting cute... But even if her cuteness is deliberate, it can't hide the fact that she is genuinely cute.

To be honest, she is indeed cute, and although her behavior seems a bit deliberate, she is still likable.

Speaking of personality, Uesugi Genshin knew that although some aspects of her personality were troublesome, her spirit of deliberately presenting a cute appearance was also endearing.

If someone stood on stage and shouted, "I am everyone's school idol—Iroha!" it wouldn't feel unnatural.

Moreover, she wouldn't stay in a safe room. Isshiki Iroha was indeed brave, and Uesugi Genshin also knew that she liked Hayama, whom everyone liked.

This is also why she became the club manager of the soccer club; it was all for Ye Shan.

Her cute and timid expression and the little devil inside her could make all the boys in the class scramble for their feet, so she must be the kind of person who gets along well with everyone. But if she really had the ability to tease the boys, then the girls in her class probably wouldn't like her to some extent.

"Greetings, seniors." She bowed obediently, with an innocent smile, shoulder-length flaxen hair, and eyes the color of acorns.

When Uesugi Genshin saw Hachiman frown, he realized that he had also seen through Isshiki Iroha's true nature at a glance.

People are complex. Even Uesugi Genshin himself could point out that he had many flaws. If you only listened to his flaws, everyone would say that he was a really bad person.

So Iroha Isshiki is already very capable. She's helping her teacher alongside Hayama, and whatever the reason, she's already taken action.

Like Saki Kawasaki, with her delinquent girl aura, it's hard to imagine that she's the eldest sister who took on family responsibilities early and cared for her younger siblings.

Isshiki Iroha may have a cunning and mischievous side, but she is essentially a kind and proactive girl.

“Now that every corridor is blocked, as long as we don’t move around, there shouldn’t be any problems.” This is also why Hiratsuka Shizuka helped Hikigaya Hachiman.

It's located within Chiba Prefecture, which is another reason. It's a quick trip, less than an hour's drive, so there shouldn't be any major problems, right?

"Sigh~" Isshiki Iroha was about to say something.

"Isshiki." Hayama Hayato called out to Isshiki Iroha to stop her from speaking, then said to Hiratsuka Shizuka, "We're fine here."

That's Hayama for you. He'll help those who need help, just like he's vouching for Hiratsuka Shizuka right now. He also wants to help the students of Soubu High School because they desperately need help.

"Well then, teacher, I'll be going now too." Uesugi Genshin shook his car keys.

He nodded to Hachiman in farewell, saying, "You're all safe and sound."

"Mm." Hachiman nodded in response.

"Iroha Isshiki?" Uesugi Genshin said to Isshiki behind Hayama, "Since you're a first-year student, could you go to the student council and help the student council president and Yukinoshita organize the first-year students?"

"...Huh, me?"

"Yeah, aren't you a first-year student? It's really brave of you to stand up now, so could I ask you for a favor?"

"Well, I can give it a try," she replied, giving an answer that wouldn't make a mistake.

Uesugi Genshin then turned to Hiratsuka Shizuka, who was stubbing out her cigarette, and asked, "Speaking of which, Hiratsuka-sensei..."

"what happened?"

The next sentence made Hiratsuka Shizuka's heart clench.

"If I wreck your car beyond recognition, and you can't even drive it back, is that okay?"

"You...you! What are you going to do to my car?!" Hiratsuka Shizuka asked desperately.

"What if the road is blocked, or zombies block the way? Should we accelerate?"

"This, this is my beloved car..." Hiratsuka Shizuka, her previous composure gone, began to sob and whimper, her face filled with heartache.

“Hey!” she made a decision. “It’s fine, go ahead and crash if you want, whenever you feel it’s necessary.”

Hiratsuka Shizuka's heart was bleeding. This was her most beloved car; the red Aston Martin she had fallen in love with at first sight when she bought it.

Following the classic aesthetic of the golden ratio, its elegant and refined appearance, along with its exceptionally orderly and pleasant engine sound, has always been her favorite car.

So at the end, she added, "If you can drive it back, try to drive it back..." in a voice barely audible.

"Hey! It's fine to leave it outside."

As expected, Hiratsuka-sensei was very hesitant. Uesugi Genshin was both amused and exasperated. "I'm leaving."

He turned and walked toward the exit, hooking the car keys in his hand.

Time is as precious as the golden fifteen minutes of an avalanche; every second counts, and he has already wasted time.

After he left, Hiratsuka Shizuka put the cigarette butt into the cigarette case she carried with her, took out her key pouch, and found another car key.

How many younger siblings do you have?

"3."