I play the wind instrument in Hokkaido.

Page 76

"So how do you think we should solve this?"

"Hmm—" Shinomiya Haruka said in a gentle but slightly serious tone, "This is really difficult. To solve it, we need to find the source."

Eri Kanzaki's origins lie in habits formed from childhood, which are not so easy to change.

"Enough talk, let's start cooking." Kitahara Hakuba stood up. "I'll do the rest, you can sit for a while."

Shinomiya Haruka didn't object, and took off her scarf to put it on him.

They cooked mostly home-style dishes: tomato soup, sea bream salad, and tomato pasta.

"Youth is wonderful. We may have made mistakes and said the wrong things, but so what? If you're afraid of making mistakes, you might shut yourself off from the world. Words can hurt, but they are also the best bridge to connect with those around us. I've always felt that they bring about new life rather than destroying it."

A sentence escaped from Shinomiya Haruka's lips, and a hint of calm gradually crept into her eager eyes.

It was as if the beautiful night was engulfing me.

Kitahara Hakuba pretended to take out his phone, his fingers flying across the screen.

"What's wrong?" she asked curiously, resting her chin on her hand.

"That's very well said. I'll remember it and tell the rest of the department another day."

Shinomiya Haruka revealed a set of white teeth between her lips, and a happy smile curled the corners of her mouth:

"Are you an idiot? I'd be even happier if you remembered the things I said unintentionally."

Kitahara Hakuba smiled and buried his head in his tomato spaghetti.

Is it really necessary to bring Nagase Tsukiyo back to the brass band in order to make Kanzaki Eri "happy"?

However, he didn't really want Nagase Tsukiyo to come back. Firstly, even if she returned to the club now, she might not have a place to stand. To be frank, if Nagase Tsukiyo's existence was not beneficial to the club, he would definitely stop her.

Secondly, even if they get in, the brass band club might immediately split into two groups: one represented by the third-year students, and the other by the first-year students, Kuno Tachibana.

Kitahara Hakuba never opposed "forming cliques," but he opposed "selfish pursuits."

However... he and Nagase Tsukiyo have a relationship similar to "sugar daddy/sugar baby," so it shouldn't be too difficult for her to talk to Kanzaki Eri.

Just as Kitahara Hakuba was lost in thought, he suddenly felt something swaying in his peripheral vision.

All that could be seen was Shinomiya Haruka with her legs crossed, and five pretty little toes lined up at the top of her feet, white with a hint of pink, crystal clear, like five pale cherry blossom petals.

It's...it's Arknights!

"What are you doing? Your legs are wobbling." Kitahara Hakuba said.

As if playing around, Shinomiya Haruka smiled knowingly and said:

"While having dinner with my girlfriend, my mind was elsewhere."

"You don't like thoughtful people? I find them charming," Kitahara Hakuba retorted defiantly.

Shinomiya Haruka's big eyes crinkled into pretty little crescents as she smiled, her delicate white feet swaying up and down in his line of sight.

Her charming and beautiful face revealed a mischievous smile, her eyebrows and eyes full of playfulness.

"Are my feet more beautiful, or are the thoughts in your heart more captivating?"

"These two things are completely incomparable. If you're eating with your feet up and barefoot, it really affects the taste."

He was referring to the texture of the food.

In order to deal with her, Kitahara Hakuba's thoughts wandered far away, wondering if there were aliens beyond Earth, where Kars was now, and whether he had been hit by a meteorite.

Shinomiya leaned forward, brushing a few strands of hair from her cheek, and looked up at him alluringly.

"It's all because you didn't eat properly in the first place."

"I admit defeat, I admit defeat, I'll eat it properly."

"Give me a foot massage later, it's so sore."

"Can't you do it yourself?"

"Is this something a boyfriend should refuse?"

Thursday, a pleasant June morning, while on the tram to Goryokaku Station, my sister, who lives far away in Tokyo, sent me another message.

Haruka Kitahara (Second Sister): Onii-chan, I'm out of pocket money, please~~ give me a little bit, just two thousand.

Kitahara Hakuba: Okay.

Kitahara Haruka (Second Sister): Chumi! I love you, Onii-chan!

Given that she is only in middle school, Kitahara Hakuma only sent her 2,000 yen, so he couldn't spoil her too much.

He's not obsessed with money anymore; as long as the members of the brass band are around, his money will keep flowing in.

Sooner or later, Kitahara Hakuba will lose his desire for money. For him, the purpose of life is to help girls reach the national tournament stage.

"Teacher Kitahara?"

Suddenly, a sweet voice rang out from behind him, and a tall girl blocked his view of the window. Her single ponytail, as black as night, swept past Kitahara Hakuba's eyes.

The girl's sharp gaze was fixed on him; her legs beneath her skirt were long and slender, and there were still blue labels on her white calf socks.

"As expected...::.Teacher Kitahara has always taken this same tram."

Yu Shou's body tensed up, and she raised her hand to touch her hair, a gesture that revealed the most innocent side of a young girl.

really?

Kitahara Hakuba looked puzzled, but still smiled and said, "This is the first time I've seen you here."

"Just curious..." Yu Shou said, her face flushed.

"what?"

A blush crept onto Yu Shou's face as she said somewhat awkwardly:

"It's alright, I'll do my best in the trumpet selection and repay my teacher's guidance."

Kitahara Hakuba said with a smile, "Don't talk about repaying, it's all thanks to Amemori-kun's hard work."

“Yes, it was you, Kitahara-sensei, who gave me the motivation to improve and the joy of having a goal…” the girl said, holding one hand to her chest. “I feel very happy.”

As the electric scooter traveled along the road, the trees blocked out the sunlight, leaving only a few scattered beams of light filtering through the gaps in the leaves and casting shadows on Yu Shou's skin.

"Huh?"

The people in the tram car frowned and looked over. The older woman who had been flirting with Kitahara Hakuba earlier...

Their gazes changed instantly.

If Kitahara Hakuba hadn't hurriedly said, "I've given you the goal for the national tournament," the surrounding crowd would probably have stepped forward and pointed at him, lecturing him, "How can you be so selfish as a teacher!"

“Rain Guard, I want to ask you something,” he said.

"Please feel free to ask, Kitahara-sensei. If I know the answer, I will definitely tell you."

To Kitahara Hakuba's surprise, Amemori seemed very enthusiastic, his eyes sparkling.

"Back then, was it you who challenged Tachibana Kuno's small team during the audition, or was it the entire third grade that was dissatisfied?" he asked bluntly.

Yu Shou squinted, watching the roadside trees rushing past the window, and said:

"It was Captain Saito who told me that she thought my trumpet playing was no worse than Kuno's, and that she would support me as the trumpet leader with everyone else."

"You agree?"

Under Kitahara Hakuba's questioning, Amemori's palms were covered in a thin layer of sweat, which she wiped directly onto her skirt.

"Well, it was probably my pride at the time that got in the way. I couldn't immediately accept a first-year student as the chief, so I agreed."

After Yu Shou finished speaking, he took a breath, a bitter smile appearing on his lips.

Kitahara Hakuba originally wanted to say, "You reap what you sow; the club's motto is to strive for excellence," but he felt that saying this now would be pointless and might even be interpreted by Amegami as a veiled insult.

Although the words were stuck in my throat, I decided to let it go.

"Minister Saito is such a kind person, always thinking of you all," he said.

"no."

Yu Shou's tone was exceptionally firm, and as he looked out, he saw a dazzling blue sky through the gaps in the white clouds.

“Saito has only ever been with Nagase. Whether it’s me, Isomoto, Captain Yukawa, or even Kanzaki, from the first year onwards, it was all a choice she had to make in order to maintain her relationship with Nagase.”

She said this in a very natural tone, as if she were stating a fact that everyone knows.

Kitahara Hakuba was somewhat stunned. What did it mean to make a choice he had no other choice about?

Chapter 88, Section 87: To Speak Out

“This doesn’t seem right? Vice-Commander Saito is always so considerate of everyone, I’ve seen it with my own eyes.”

Kitahara Hakuba said.

Yu Shou hesitated, her lips moved slightly, and her eyelids slowly drooped. She was also reflecting on whether she had been too presumptuous.

"This is just my personal feeling, because that's the impression Saito gave me. She wanted me to become the trumpet leader, but she just wanted me to step down when Nagase came back."

Kitahara Hakuba gazed at her beautiful profile and sighed softly in resignation.

When the tram arrived at Goryokaku Station, Amami didn't seem to intend to travel with Kitahara Hakuba. Instead, she bowed hurriedly to say goodbye and jogged away alone, her single ponytail swinging lively behind her.

From behind, Amami's figure is no less impressive than Kirishima's. Unlike Kirishima's unique softness, her lines are like a taut bowstring, full of elasticity and tension.

Kitahara Hakuba walked into Shin-Asahi High School and found several girls squatting down to take pictures in front of the horticulture club's flowerbed, but Kanzaki Eri was not among them.

After taking only a few steps, Kitahara Hakuba heard the soft tone of an oboe, its melodious strains drifting across the school building's exterior walls and blending into the June morning light.

That was the third movement of "Liz and the Blue Bird," and in this school, probably only Eri Kanzaki, who had the sheet music, was playing it.

"It feels a little different from yesterday?"

"No, I don't think there's any difference."

Although it was the same piece, some students thought it sounded beautiful, but those who were sensitive to music could tell that today's playing was completely different from yesterday's oboe playing.

Kitahara Hakuba raised his head and looked up at the audiovisual classroom on the third floor.

He entered the school building, stepped onto the sun-warmed stairs, and walked through the bright and clear corridor, where the sound of the oboe grew closer and closer.

Kitahara Hakuba carefully pushed open the door, and bright light streamed in through the square window. The person sitting inside was indeed Kanzaki Eri.

In front of her was a music stand with the sheet music that Kitahara Hakuma had given her yesterday. The girl's legs, which were unusually white, were visible beneath her school uniform skirt. With her legs together, her neatly trimmed cherry-colored nails revealed fingertips gently pressing the keys.