Chapter 332: Itsuki's Request
The Disneyland trip ended, and there was less than a week left of spring break.
The student council had to return to school two days early to prepare for the incoming freshmen, so their vacation was basically like Zhongli's wallet — shrinking fast.
Early April, the cherry blossoms were in full bloom.
Early in the morning, Sakurai Saki was sleeping soundly when he was woken up by a call from Itsuki.
After a short conversation, she suggested meeting up.
And what for? Of course, to talk about how to deal with Nino's situation.
The meeting place was the café where Gabriel worked part-time. Sakurai Saki planned to use the chance to see that useless little angel too, settling Gabriel's matter at the same time so he wouldn't have to make another trip.
...
In the morning, at the café.
Nakano Itsuki adjusted the star-shaped hair clip on her head.
"So slow~" she muttered softly.
Even though she was the one who initiated the meeting, he still dared to make her wait for more than ten minutes…
"Cling~"
Right after she spoke, the wind chime at the café door rang.
Sakurai Saki walked in, scanned the surroundings, then greeted the owner before sitting down across from Itsuki.
"I've already quit, and yet you still came to ask me for help."
Sakurai turned and called out, "Owner, one cup of blend coffee for me."
After speaking, he noticed Itsuki pouting, clearly unhappy.
"Nino's living at your place right now, and you still dare to say something like that?"
"Itsuki-san, can you be a bit more reasonable? Even if she wasn't staying at my place, she'd just rent a hotel room anyway. And besides, I'm no longer your tutor." Sakurai Saki spoke irritably.
"You said it yourself, after spring break, the next semester you'd officially quit. That means during this spring break, you're still our tutor." Nakano Itsuki tried to reason.
"Was that Nakano-san who said it?"
"Yeah. Dad already told me about it." Itsuki said as she pulled an envelope out of her bag. "This is the salary for the end of the semester. It's for you."
Sakurai Saki took it.
It was his own hard-earned reward — work done, pay received.
If it were someone else teaching, they'd accept the money without feeling guilty too.
Seeing him take the envelope, Itsuki hesitated for a moment, then carefully said, "Sakurai-san… can you continue to be our tutor?"
The fight between Miku and Nino originally started because of Sakurai.
Ever since that dinner together, the atmosphere between the two had dropped to freezing point.
"Alright." Sakurai Saki answered casually.
"Huh?" Itsuki froze.
Wait, he agreed?
Last time when Ichika and the others came to ask, he rejected them all — why did he agree when it was her turn?
Crap, could it be Sakurai-san has feelings for me?
"What are you thinking? I agreed because I'm not satisfied with myself. I've been teaching you five sisters for a whole year, and some of you still haven't improved at all."
Itsuki's face turned red, "I didn't mean it like that! I really am working hard to lose weight…"
Sakurai Saki glanced at the slice of cake on the table.
"Hey, that look of yours is way too rude, you know?"
"Heh."
How half-hearted! This guy clearly sees me as just a glutton, how annoying!
Itsuki was really pissed, but she couldn't find any argument to fight back.
She picked up a fork, stabbed a piece of cake, and bit into it hard as if to vent her anger.
"That's why, actually, there's nothing worth fighting about between Miku and Nino anymore." Sakurai Saki continued, "She's not coming back now, but the real reason is you."
"What does it have to do with me?"
"She said your tone was terrible, and it really pissed her off."
"Huh? That Nino brat! She already ran away from home, and now she dares to be mad at me?!"
See, this attitude was exactly what made people frustrated — always putting herself on the so-called "moral high ground," who could stand that?
Not to mention, Nino was never the type to quietly endure anything. If you scolded her, she'd definitely explode. Right or wrong didn't matter, she always reacted with anger. That was just her fiery personality.
"'If Itsuki calls to apologize and tells me to come home, then maybe I won't refuse.'" Sakurai Saki mimicked Nino's tone.
"She really deserves a beating." Itsuki clenched her fists tightly.
Sakurai Saki smiled and nodded. "Exactly."
"Itsuki, you always act like you're everyone's mom, and that's something Nino absolutely can't stand."
Nakano Itsuki lifted the coffee cup and took a small sip.
After a moment, she softly said, "Actually, a few years ago we weren't rich young ladies or anything like that. Before Mom remarried Dad, we used to live in poverty. Mom raised the five of us alone, and because she overworked herself, her body quickly broke down. Not long after remarrying, she passed away, leaving the five of us to rely on each other."
That was exactly why she wanted to take her mother's place and look after her sisters.
"Nakano-san really is a kind person." Sakurai Saki commented.
Raising five children who weren't even her biological kids and treating them as her own — where did this saint come from?
A faint sense of respect rose in his heart for Nakano Maruo, the man he had only met once.
"Umu." Itsuki lowered her head and softly said, "I wanted to take care of everyone like Mom did, but it never really worked out."
She couldn't cook as well as Nino, wasn't as athletic as Yotsuba, couldn't act like Ichika, and her ability to take initiative was even weaker than Miku's.
"Back then when you ran to apologize to me, it was because of this, wasn't it?"
"Umu, the five of us are sisters, we can't be separated. If one person makes a mistake, all five of us have to bear it together."
Hearing that, Sakurai Saki shook his head slightly. "No, no one is inseparable from anyone. Even if someone is gone, life still goes on — the Earth won't stop spinning just because it's missing one person."
Not to mention what she said next.
Taking responsibility together? This isn't ancient times — is she trying to pull some "shared punishment" nonsense here?
"I just want everyone to stay like this forever. The five of us together, no matter how hard things get, we can get through it."
Nakano Itsuki was the one who valued family the most among the five sisters.
"Then go apologize to Nino."
"Why should I? Why should I apologize to her? She's the one who's wrong! She ran away without saying a word. Does she even know how worried we were? Miku spent the entire night looking for her! She even turned off her phone, showing no sign of regret at all!" Itsuki said angrily.
A woman's face changed faster than flipping a page.
Sakurai Saki grumbled inwardly.
Just a moment ago it was "sisters united, nothing can defeat us," and now it turned into "we're not that close, just sisters in name."
After venting about Nino, Itsuki turned her guns on Sakurai. "And another thing, Sakurai-san, you're the tutor of all five of us, so why are you being biased? Why aren't you making Nino apologize to us?"
Sakurai: "..."
Women are such a pain.
Seriously, this was the first time Sakurai Saki ever felt women were this troublesome.
Why was he helping Nino? Soft, curvy, hot… ehem, there's no helping it.
If there really was a man who could stay rational in bed, Sakurai Saki would call him "Boss!"
"It's because you're closer to her, isn't it?" Itsuki said angrily. "But I've kissed you too! That was my first kiss! Don't you think you should help me?"
"Wasn't that just a misunderstanding?! An accident! It couldn't be helped!" Sakurai Saki noticed the weird look from the owner nearby.
Don't look at me like that, it's so embarrassing!
"Anyway, in this matter, you have to take my side!" Itsuki said with a red face. "If you convince Nino to come back, I'll let you kiss me again."
What the hell are you saying?
Itsuki-san, repeat what you just said. Are you sure those are the words a student should be saying to her tutor?
Even someone with as questionable morals as Sakurai Saki thought she was being problematic.
When even a scumbag thinks you have a problem, then you definitely have a problem.