No Title

The orienteering event went smoothly.

As they reached the halfway point on the mountainside, Yukino noticed a group of elementary school girls gathered by some bushes.

"What are those kids doing?" she wondered aloud.

"I'll go check it out." Hayato volunteered and jogged over.

Perhaps feeling it was awkward to be separated, Hayama and his friends slowed down and gradually joined Sukuna and the others.

However, the conversation became less lively. Sukuna didn't mind, but Yukino and Hachiman weren't interested in talking to Hayama's group.

After everything she had been through, Yukino no longer disliked Hayama, but she pitied him.

With Yukino and Hachiman not participating, Komachi chatted with Yui and Saika, and Sukuna enjoyed the scenery.

Hayama investigated and found a harmless snake. He gently moved it away from the path.

"It's okay, it's just a rat snake," Hayama reassured the girls.

"Wow, you're so brave!"

"You actually touched it!"

Hayama laughed along with the girls.

But Yukino and Hachiman noticed another girl.

She was clearly excluded from the group, standing alone and fiddling with a camera.

Yukino sighed.

"Seeing a reflection of your past self?" Sukuna teased gently.

"Well, sort of," Yukino admitted.

Hachiman, overhearing this, felt like he had stumbled upon something he shouldn't have.

"Aren't you going to do anything?" Sukuna asked.

"I'll wait and see."

The girls didn't seem willing to let Hayama go. They surrounded him. "Onii-san, where's the checkpoint?"

Hayama smiled. "Where is it indeed?"

"Let's find it together!" One of the girls suggested.

"Hmm..." Hayama pretended to ponder, then winked. "I'll help you out, but it's a secret, okay?"

"Yay!" x4

Hachiman watched in awe as Hayama effortlessly charmed the girls.

Sharing secrets, that's also a way to connect with others.

Hayama led the four girls to search for the checkpoint, while the lone girl trailed behind.

Yukino, wanting to see how Hayama would treat the girl, followed them.

As for Sukuna, he had disappeared.

Yukino didn't bother with him.

Who would I worry about, if not Sukuna-kun?

Maybe Gojo-sensei?

Putting aside Sukuna, Yukino followed the group and noticed several things.

The four girls would occasionally sneer at the lone girl.

Yukino wouldn't tolerate such treatment, but the girl simply continued to follow them.

Is she being threatened?

Yukino frowned.

When the group stopped for a break, the girl walked off, but Hayama stopped her.

"Did you find the checkpoint?" he asked.

"...No."

"Is that so? Then let's look together." Hayama didn't notice her awkwardness. "What's your name?"

"Tsurumi... Rumi."

"I'm Hayato Hayama. Nice to meet you."

Hayama put his arm around her shoulders and led her towards the other girls.

The four girls sneered as they saw Rumi approaching, but they quickly put on smiles.

However, the moment he turned away, they resumed their chatter, completely ignoring Rumi.

"Ha..."

Yukino sighed in disappointment.

She took back her earlier thought. She still hated Hayato Hayama.

The elementary school students reached the mountaintop before lunchtime.

They were going to cook their own lunch, using outdoor stoves.

It was a novel experience for most of them.

Hiratsuka quickly organized the students to gather firewood.

She seems experienced.

"Don't underestimate me. I used to go camping with my club members in college," Hiratsuka said proudly.

"It was just me building the fire, while those couples were getting all lovey-dovey next to me… Ugh, it ruined my mood!"

She quickly pushed those memories aside and started giving instructions. "Boys, start the fire! Girls, prepare the ingredients!"

"Okay~!"

Is she separating the boys and girls because of her past trauma? Is that okay? Hachiman wondered.

Lunch was curry rice. The rice would be provided, so the students only needed to prepare the curry.

Of course, the high schoolers had to cook their own curry as well.

"It's a very appropriate menu for an elementary school cooking activity," Yukino commented while chopping carrots.

Making curry wasn't too complicated, but it wasn't as simple as just boiling noodles either. It was a perfect balance.

And most importantly, there were no dishes to wash afterward.

Yui was clumsily peeling potatoes beside Yukino.

Yukino had been worried that Yui might cut herself, but seeing her technique, she quickly dismissed that concern.

She won't cut herself, but that potato is getting dangerously small.

"Homemade curry really reflects the cook's personality. My mom always adds weird things to hers, like tofu," Hachiman said, starting the fire for their stove.

"Yeah, yeah! Sometimes she even adds chikuwa!" Tobe chimed in from the next stove over, his loud voice making Hachiman flinch.

"Ah, oh..." Hachiman responded awkwardly.

Don't suddenly act all chummy with me! People will think we're friends!

"Housewife curry is like that. She even added some weird leaves once," Yui added.

"Those were probably bay leaves," Yukino said, then added, "Just to be clear, I mean bay leaves from the bay laurel tree."

Hachiman coughed awkwardly, then quickly changed the subject. "Speaking of which, where did Sukuna-sensei... Sukuna go?"

He hadn't seen Sukuna since the beginning.

"Who knows?" Yukino said casually. "He disappeared into the woods at some point."

"Eh? Won't he get lost?" Yui asked worriedly.

"Don't worry about him."

Worrying about Sukuna-kun is less productive than worrying about the bears he might encounter.

Although she said that, Yukino couldn't help but smile at the thought of the powerful Sukuna getting lost in the woods.

"R-really?" Yui looked at her, puzzled.

Why does Yukino seem happy about her friend getting lost?

Wait, what did Hikitani-kun just call Sukuna?

Yui had noticed something important!

"Wait a minute, isn't Sukuna-san the same age as us?!" Yui exclaimed, dropping the potato she was peeling. "And he's a teacher?!"

"Didn't I tell you?" Yukino looked at her strangely.

"No, you didn't!" Yui's face flushed. "You only said he was your friend!"

"Is… is that so?" Yukino thought for a moment. "Sorry, my mistake."

She blushed slightly. "But I wasn't wrong. Sukuna-kun and I are… friends. But there's also a teacher-student aspect to our relationship."

Yui's eyes widened in shock, bordering on horror.

T-teacher-student relationship?!

Yukino, you're so bold!

"And Sukuna-san... Sukuna-sensei looks so young! I thought he was the same age as us! At most, a year or two older!"

Yukino's cheeks reddened at Yui's words.

If what Sukuna-kun said is true, then we might need to multiply that number by a thousand.

But for various reasons, she had recently started to doubt the truthfulness of Sukuna's self-introduction.

Although she couldn't deny that Sukuna's words had a profound impact on her, she also knew that he loved to tease and provoke her.

In that sense, he was similar to her sister, making it difficult to discern his true intentions.

It was somewhat annoying.

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

Crackle, crackle.

Sparks danced in the air as the firewood burned.

Hachiman crouched by their stewpot, staring blankly at the flames, lost in thought.

"If you're free, go see if anyone needs help," Hiratsuka said, snapping Hachiman out of his daze.

"Well, it's not often we get to interact with elementary school students. Let's go." Hayama readily agreed and called out to his friends.

"I'll watch the fire," Hachiman quickly volunteered.

Hiratsuka's expression turned demonic. "No worries, I'll watch it for you."

"Uh oh..."

Scary, so scary!

I almost exorcised Hiratsuka-sensei as a curse.

Under pressure, Hachiman reluctantly got up and pretended to patrol the area, looking for students who needed help, then slipped away from Hiratsuka's watchful eye.

With those vision-blocking skills, she could be a pro gamer.

Making curry wasn't complicated. Even the elementary school students could manage with the guidance of the high schoolers.

And Hachiman, free from Hiratsuka's watchful eye, could finally indulge in his favorite activity: people-watching. Specifically, observing the isolated black-haired girl he had noticed earlier.

Rumi Tsurumi was washing vegetables alone.

"Do you like curry?" Hayama approached her with a smile.

Hachiman, watching from a distance, frowned and glanced at the group of four girls not far from Rumi. They were whispering amongst themselves while watching Rumi and Hayama.

Hayama, you're doing it wrong.

When approaching a lonely person, you have to be subtle and considerate, making sure not to embarrass them.

But someone like Hayama, who had always basked in the sunlight, naturally wouldn't understand the ways of those who walked the path of loneliness.

As Hachiman expected, Rumi noticed the mocking gazes of the other girls. She put down the vegetables she was washing and said flatly, "Not really, I'm not interested in curry."

Rumi turned and left the cooking area. Hachiman nodded in approval.

Good answer.

If she had responded enthusiastically, the others would have thought she was being arrogant. If she had been too cold, it would have seemed like she was looking down on them. Strategic retreat was the only option in this situation.

Hayama was taken aback, then turned to the four girls he had shared a secret with. "Let's add some unique flavors to our curry!"

"Me, me, me!" the girls shouted excitedly.

Well, since that girl doesn't want help, Hayama has no reason to force it, Hachiman thought.

But then he noticed Yukino approaching Rumi. He sighed and followed her.

Yukino couldn't stand watching Hayama's blunder any longer.

"You're being ostracized, aren't you?"

Rumi looked up, startled.

"My name is Yukino Yukinoshita."

"Tsurumi... Rumi."

"Why are you still hanging around those girls if they're bullying you?" Yukino asked bluntly.

"No..." Rumi shook her head.

"You're being too direct," Hachiman commented.

"I'm just trying to understand the situation quickly. Is there something wrong with that?"

You should be more considerate.

Hachiman thought, Yukinoshita is becoming more and more like Ryōichi-sama…

Yukino ignored Hachiman and looked at Rumi. "Do you want to get out of this situation?"

"...It's not a big deal."

That was why she had been enduring the bullying.

However, Yukino shattered her illusions. "It'll just happen again in middle school."

"...Is that how it is?"

Rumi clenched her fists.

"So, do you want to get out of this?"

"..."

Rumi nodded silently.

"Can you tell me what happened?"

After a moment of silence, Rumi spoke. "There was bullying before, but it always ended eventually."

"Someone always takes the lead, and now it's my turn."

Hachiman's expression turned grim as he listened.

This wasn't just Rumi's problem.

"I can't guarantee the future, but if you want to change, you have to start now," Yukino said.

"Change...?"

"You also participated in bullying others, right?"

"I already know that what we did was stupid..." Rumi mumbled.

"Knowing isn't enough. Start by apologizing to those you bullied."

"Apologize... but they did the same thing."

"You're different from them, right?"

Rumi looked into Yukino's clear blue eyes.

She suddenly felt disgusted with herself.

But at the same time, she felt empowered to change.

"I… I understand." Rumi nodded. "Then, what happens after I apologize?"

"Then, work hard to become a better person," Yukino smiled. "That way, you'll find true friends."

"That's what my teacher taught me."

Hachiman looked at Yukino, her smile shining brightly.

He remembered why Hiratsuka had forced him into the Service Club.

Do people really have to change?

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

The curry was ready.

But Sukuna was still nowhere to be seen.

"Yukino, what are you waiting for?" Yui asked.

"I'm waiting for Sukuna-kun."

"Why don't you call him?" Hachiman suggested.

Yukino nodded and dialed Sukuna's number.

But before the call connected, she hung up.

She saw Sukuna approaching, carrying something in his hands and something else around his waist.

As he got closer, she saw that he was carrying beer and had rabbits and snakes hanging from his waist.

"Yo." Sukuna grinned, showing off his loot. "I caught them in the mountains."

Yui and Saika's eyes widened with concern.

Where did this mountain man come from?

Hachiman stared at Sukuna, speechless.

"I can't believe you disappeared just for this," Yukino sighed.

Sukuna chuckled. "Don't eat it then."

"There's meat in the curry," Yukino retorted.

Sukuna built a makeshift campfire.

He set up a grill, skewered the rabbit, and placed it over the fire.

The flames licked the meat, the sizzling sound and aroma filling the air.

Suddenly, the curry rice didn't seem as appealing anymore.

Hiratsuka was drawn by the smell.

Sukuna pulled a can of beer from the bag and offered it to her. "Want some?"

"Sure!" Hiratsuka sat beside the fire.

Clink!

They cheerfully drank the beer.

"Ahh!" Hiratsuka crushed the empty can.

The students exchanged awkward glances.

Is it really okay for a teacher to drink like this?.