In the middle of the festival, to make it easier to finish various snacks and drinks they bought along the way, they both had to release each other's hands.
They walked shoulder to shoulder, eating and drinking while passing various stalls. They bought delicious-smelling food and watched together with other visitors at interesting game stalls, enjoying a very relaxed and pleasant atmosphere.
They continued climbing along the sloping road. The plastic bags hanging on their wrists increased. The night grew later, but they didn't feel tired at all, even becoming more spirited.
"Senpai, you've passed so many fun game stalls, why haven't you tried even one?"
While biting the small spoon for her shaved ice, Iroha suddenly nudged him with her elbow and asked curiously.
They had just left the water balloon stall. They didn't participate, just sadly watched a little girl who successfully fished out a water balloon, jumped for joy, but accidentally dropped it back into the pool. After that, they continued to the next stall.
"You're the same though?" Yuu tasted his melon-flavored shaved ice and said vaguely, "That goldfish catching stall earlier, you must have been interested, right? Why didn't you play?"
Iroha glanced at him with a questioning look of 'Do you really not understand, or are you pretending not to understand?'
She pursed her lips and huffed with slight annoyance.
"This is a newly bought yukata, you know~ If it gets wet, it'll become ugly."
She stretched her slender arms to the side, flapping the sleeves of her light blue yukata with flower patterns. Her very slender waist swayed left and right, lively and cute like a butterfly flapping its wings.
Then she clenched her fists and placed them on her waist, deliberately putting on a serious face, looking up, and said firmly: "Unless Senpai is willing to take responsibility and buy me a new yukata, otherwise, today I won't do any movements that will wrinkle this yukata!"
"It's just a yukata, not a kimono worn at coming-of-age ceremonies..."
Finding it difficult to understand such stubbornness, Yuu shook his head without words.
Although he could afford to buy a new yukata, there was no need to force Iroha to play here and there, so just let her be happy.
...Wait, that's not right.
Suddenly realizing there was something unusual, Yuu was shocked, then glanced at Iroha with a slightly strange gaze.
Did that sentence imply...
It's okay to do things that will wrinkle the yukata, as long as you can buy me a new one and take responsibility?
That was the O-Bon Festival version of [Are you sure you can help me wear a kimono?]—for some reason, Yuu remembered this famous scene, but couldn't recall which work it came from.
Very strange.
He scooped another spoonful of melon-flavored shaved ice, clicked his tongue feeling slightly nauseated, and immediately cleaned the chemical sweet taste in his mouth with juice—It's decided. Even though it's not summer yet, tomorrow he'll buy a shaved ice machine and make several bottles of sufficiently natural fruit jam himself!
As for Iroha, seeing his innocent appearance, his face not flushing and heart not pounding, as if he wasn't thinking about that at all, Yuu discarded all the improper thoughts in his mind, considering nothing had happened.
"Although I can't play, I want to see Senpai play!"
The girl's shoulder nudged him lightly. She whined in a voice as sweet as melon jam: "Senpai~ Don't you want to show off a little in front of me? Iroha-chan will look at you with very admiring eyes, you know~"
Yuu was unmoved. He was still thinking about the jam recipe.
Seeing he had gotten used to her whining attacks, Iroha pouted in annoyance, then suddenly her expression changed. After a brief exclamation, she stared at him with apologetic eyes: "Ah, or could it be you're afraid of being embarrassed in front of me, so you don't dare step forward... Sorry, I didn't consider Senpai's pride..."
"Reverse psychology doesn't work on me," Yuu said lightly. "Besides, don't I look cool in your eyes usually? To the point I have to show off in front of you? You disappoint me, Iroha-chan. I thought you always admired me."
Her neatly styled eyebrow twitched. Iroha showed a warm and cheerful smile, but at the same time, threw out cold and cruel words: "Yes, I always admire Senpai's thick face that even a meteor couldn't penetrate. Is this what's called a pathetic cool guy?"
"I only heard the words 'cool guy' that you said." Yuu nodded satisfied. Then, under Iroha's contemptuous gaze, he stepped toward the shooting stall ahead.
"But since you already said so, I'll show you my skills."
Iroha's eyes immediately sparkled. She followed happily, laughing like a fox that successfully stole a chicken: "Hmph-hmph, turns out reverse psychology worked~ Senpai is indeed a man who really guards his pride!"
"What pride? I just don't want to disappoint my kouhai who admires me." Yuu said in an indifferent tone, handing the shaved ice and other plastic bags to her. He emptied both hands, took out his wallet, and paid for one round of the game.
"Don't steal it, I know you've long been eyeing my leftover shaved ice."
"Ah, I accidentally slipped and Senpai's shaved ice fell to the ground~ (said without emotion)"
"Just kidding. Just watch from behind."
Yuu smiled, picking up the toy gun on the table. He selected one rubber bullet from the ten bullets on the small iron plate and loaded it into the gun barrel.
His perfect level shooting skill immediately made him realize this gun's performance was slightly weakened. If the prizes at this stall were weighted down more, even with accurate shots, the prize wouldn't fall, at most just sway a few times.
But that didn't matter.
Although the method was cunning, the merchant would definitely do small tricks to avoid losing money. Yuu didn't intend to think too much about it.
After loading the bullet, he asked the stall owner sitting in a small chair fanning himself: "Can I use two guns at once? It looks cooler."
The uncle stall owner looked at the beautiful yukata-wearing girl behind the teenager. He observed the teenager's 'non-standard' gun-holding style, and the chuunibyou expression on his face that seemed to say [Give me a chance to show off in front of my girlfriend].
As if remembering his youth that he was reluctant to face, he shook his head with slight exhaustion, then showed a friendly smile and encouraged Yuu:
"You can, but you have to pay extra."
So, Yuu paid for another round. Holding two guns, with two plates of bullets in front of him, he turned and asked Iroha:
"What prize do you want?"
"Hmm..." Iroha ate shaved ice while furrowing her brow.
Initially she wanted to choose the biggest and most conspicuous Totoro doll on the rack, to deliberately make it difficult for him. But she saw several other visitors also trying hard to shoot that doll, but the results were just like scratching an itch.
She then pointed to a plastic model on the other side that looked easier to shoot, and smiled wickedly: "Just that! Hmph-hmph~ This is quite difficult, Senpai, you..."
If you can't shoot it, better give up now. I won't hate you for it.
Before she finished speaking, two pap-pap sounds were heard. Two bullets in succession hit the upper right corner of the model box, making it sway backward like a wobbly daruma doll. Just when it was about to stand upright again due to strange gravitational pull, the last bullet shot out, successfully delivering the final blow.
With a pap sound, the model box lay flat on the rack. Black fragments could be seen attached to the bottom, like a layer of iron powder.
"So it took three shots... Seems there's a magnet underneath."
Yuu muttered. With a cold gaze, he glanced at the shocked stall owner. The man broke out in cold sweat, turned away guiltily, and hurriedly took the prize from the rack.
Just giving an eye warning for the man not to go overboard, Yuu shifted his gaze behind, and smiled at her who still hadn't recovered:
"How about it? Cool enough, right?"
Iroha nodded dazedly. After a while, she finally spoke: "Like a technique in movies. Rather than cool... Senpai is too amazing, right? You shot three times in the same position, and the bullet loading speed was also super fast... Everything finished before I could see clearly."
"Well, just basic skills, no need to make a fuss. This small trick isn't enough to compare with Nobi Nobita."
Yuu shrugged nonchalantly, but there was clear satisfaction in his eyes. He was very pleased with the sincere high evaluation from his kouhai.
A man's pride.
He took two more rubber bullets from the remaining seventeen and loaded them into the gun barrels. His gaze explored the rack, and quickly locked onto the biggest and most difficult target—the Totoro doll.
"You originally wanted me to shoot this one, right? You just feared I wouldn't succeed, so you changed the target."
Iroha's eyes widened slightly: "Eh? Why does Senpai know..."
Yuu said in a gentle tone: "Because when you stole my shaved ice, I was also secretly watching you."
"..."
Iroha looked down at her melon-flavored shaved ice with only a little remaining. For a moment, she didn't know what expression to make.
Slightly moved, but couldn't be completely moved... What kind of feeling is this?
Ignoring her confusion, after loading bullets, Yuu held the remaining fifteen rubber bullets in his hand. He raised his gun barrel, and the aura around him began to thicken.
"Although bringing this thing home will be troublesome, I can't waste money for two rounds. At least I have to break even... Let me try, how many bullets are needed to knock this thing down."
One round of ten bullets was one thousand yen. Two rounds were two thousand yen—while this big doll, if sold at specialty stores at Skytree, might cost more than five thousand yen.
Added to the earlier model, if he could knock it down, the profit gained would be double the cost!
Yuu squinted, the corner of his mouth curved unconsciously. For the first time, he felt the joy and stimulation of facing a challenge.
"There's no way something that big can be knocked down with just bullets and a toy gun like this."
A couple who failed to get anything beside them said so while throwing down their guns, staring here with disbelieving looks wanting to see the commotion.
Initially Iroha had the same thought as them, but once she heard someone dare criticize Yuu with a condescending tone, she couldn't hold back the annoyance in her heart. After glaring at that couple, she firmly stood behind Yuu to cheer him on:
"Senpai, do your best! I believe you can definitely knock it down!"
Her pretty face flushed. She gathered courage and said: "As long as you successfully knock it down, I-I... will kiss you!"
"I thought you'd say something else, turns out it's this pure..."
Yuu laughed. Criticism from others, the stall owner's slightly tense expression yet appearing to try convincing himself not to worry too much, not a single one did he care about.
Only the girl's words, wanting to support him regardless of anything, echoed and made his chest warm.
"Alright, even if only for that kiss, today I must knock this thing down."
Perfect level shooting skill, used for the first time for someone's sake.
He poured his entire attention on the gun, letting his fingers and heartbeat become calm like freezing.
He had heard that some snipers would use mantras to hypnotize themselves before shooting, in order to maintain heart rhythm and bullet trajectory stability—
"I am the bullet. The bullet has no emotions—therefore, it will not hesitate."
With a serious and solemn expression, Yuu muttered softly, and his finger slowly pulled the trigger.
"It will only, fly toward the target."
*BANG!*
The sound of a low-quality gun rang out, and the rubber bullet shot out.
Almost without pause, the second shot sound followed. Two bullets floated in the air, and the teenager with eyes as cold as ice with lightning-fast movements crossed his hands. The rubber bullets in his right and left hands were deftly loaded into the gun barrels. Then, without needing to aim...
*BANG!* *BANG!*
The Totoro doll was initially hit by two bullets, and was pushed back slightly without being clearly visible.
Before it could stabilize, two more bullets hit the same place, almost colliding with the previous bullets, making its angle of tilt increasingly clear.
After that, continuous shooting sounds were heard, the rhythm very stable and accurate like a machine. The shooting position never missed.
Under the disbelieving gaze of the stall owner, whose fan in his hand unconsciously fell to the ground, that Totoro doll almost as tall as an elementary school child, like a banana leaf destroyed by a storm, slowly lifted both feet and fell backward.
Finally, the bullets ran out, and one toy gun was slammed onto the table.
Yuu put one hand in his pocket. The gun barrel pointed forward, and a smile reappeared on his face.
"Is this the time to shout, 'Tiro Finale (Closing Song)'?"
Unfortunately, young people nowadays don't know what their Senpai's finishing move is. They only know that Senpai has no head, cute and adorable.
While thinking so, the last bullet was shot carelessly, hitting the foot part of Totoro already lying on the rack, completing the meaningless final blow.
If this doll had life, it probably would have given up resisting with teary eyes, showing a resigned expression.
"Even as accurate as me, I still needed sixteen bullets to knock this thing down... Tsk, tsk. Sir, this biggest prize is too difficult, right? Or could it be that it's indeed not a prize prepared to be shot by customers?"
Yuu swung the gun barrel toward the stall owner who had already fallen silent there, and said with a friendly smile.
"If it's indeed not a prize, I apologize. If it is... I successfully challenged it, so it's not excessive if I ask for a small additional prize, right?"
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
In the end, Yuu only took a consolation prize lollipop, the model he successfully knocked down, and a pair of small ornaments. He left that stall accompanied by the stall owner's grateful thanks.
As for that Totoro doll, because Iroha said she didn't want to continue the date carrying such a big 'light bulb', the doll ended up not being taken home—the two thousand yen for playing the game was returned. This time, no one lost, everyone was happy.