"Riddles. "

"Riddle!"

"Riddle?"

Ziongzong mumbled nervously to himself at the note.

This note was given to him by the mysterious uncle who had robbed him of his nine-section whip, something called a riddle.

But the scribbled, indistinguishable words made it impossible for Ziongzong to read it, to begin with.

So Ziongzong tried to look at the note from a different angle, horizontally, vertically, upside down ...... and backwards.

This actually worked.

After reversing the look, Ziongzong finally found something.

These turned out to be not words, but a very ugly sketch.

In simple terms, there is a toad, nestled in a funnel-shaped glass with some ice cubes in it. The glass is placed on a coaster, and on the side of the glass, there is a small hen staring at the toad in the glass.

Although the painting itself is abstract enough, but the abstract is not just that, in the painting, but also written all over a large number of meaningless, similar to 2-2-2; 4-3-2; 4-4-2; 6-2-2 and so on, completely incomprehensible combination of numbers.

--Toad.

--Funnel glass.

---Ice cubes.

--coasters.

--Chicks.

--Two riddles.

Ziongzong had no clue.

"Hey, the guy sitting by the window, don't get lost."

As she spoke, Mayumi Araki had thrown a piece of chalk, which grazed Ziongzong's forehead and hit the wall, not because Mayumi Araki didn't aim well, but because Ziongzong avoided it.

--Couldn't remember my name, so used "the guy by the window" instead ......

Ziongzong stuffed the note into his pocket, glanced at the question on the blackboard, which he knew how to do, and.

"Mr. Araki, I'm not lost in thought."

That was quite a big statement.

"Oh, really."

Mayumi Araki took off her glasses and clipped them to the breast pocket of her blouse.

"Then, please come up and do the questions."

Ziongzong stood up calmly and walked towards the blackboard.

"I want to say that, but before that. "

Mayumi Araki reached out with a smug look on her face and stopped Ziongzong in his tracks.

"What was the last word I just said? "

"What."

"No, it's the last word of the last sentence before I called you."

"......"

Of course Ziongzong didn't know this.

So, a minute later, Ziongzong appeared on the playground, running in circles without temper.

This was certainly not corporal punishment, because Mayumi Araki gave Ziongzong the choice of meeting her in the office after school or going to the playground to sober up now - Ziongzong chose the latter without hesitation, not only because he felt so reluctant to spend time with Mayumi Araki in the office Not only did he feel so reluctant to spend time with Mayumi Araki in the office, but he also had things to do after school.

It was time to get busy again.

Ziongzong was jogging and thinking about what the sketch on the note meant.

-- Toad ...... Toad ...... Swan Meat ......

- --Funnel ...... three hundred and sixty degrees without leaking ...... Towel ...... Cotton... ...

- Coasters ...... mats ...... bullets ...... slugs ...... brains ...... brains ......

-- little hens... ...little cockerel ...... little chick ...... chicken wings ...... baked wings ......

That picture is still too abstract for Ziongzong.

Plus the man also said "guess or will die" such irresponsible words.

What do you mean by "if you can't guess, you'll die"? Is there a time frame? Is there a range of places? Or is there a specific event?

It's not clear at all, it's all in a fog, with no answers in sight and very few clues available.

Ziongzong spent the whole afternoon thinking about the contents of this note.

*

In the afternoon after school, Ziongzong was walking down the stairs when he happened to see Yui Uesugi walking with Katagiri Mai.

--This is quite rare.

Ziongzong's rarity is not that the two of them are together, girls, it's not too strange to see them together, but Ziongzong's rarity is the attitude of Katagiri Mai, who is walking next to Uesugi Yui, as docile as a kitten, allowing Uesugi Yui to touch her head, hold her hand, hold her waist ...... and so on!

Ziongzong froze in place, standing dumbfounded for a long time, until ......

until a frivolous and slutty hand on his shoulder, Ziongzong came back to his senses and tackled the other party to the ground at the speed of sound less than the speed of light.

The speed of sound is less than the speed of light, it sounds fast.

"What are you doing? You're in such a special position right away!"

The moment he heard the voice, Ziongzong immediately let go and instinctively jumped back a small step.

The reason was simple: the owner of the voice was Eiji Hayamizu, and to ensure his mental (and physical) innocence, Ziongzong quickly pulled away from Eiji Hayamizu.

"Goodbye."

Then he said a quick goodbye, turned around and took a big step to leave.

"Wait a minute~"

But Eiji Hayamizu quickly stuck to him, like a leech! --No, that's disgusting.

But Eiji Hayamizu stuck to it quickly, like a slug! -- Uh, what's the difference between that and a leech?

But Eiji Hayamizu quickly ...... quickly ...... quickly ...... quickly ......?

Eiji Hayamizu was knocked out by a hand slash from Ziongzong He was knocked out by a hand slash from Ziongzong and put down against the wall.

--- Really, behind a large number of girlfriends are still chasing me, the guy who is too misbehave.

This is, of course, only the pure spit of Ziongzong uncle heart, so far, Eiji Hayamizu in Ziongzong still seems to be an inexplicable, impenetrable guy.

But one thing is clear to Ziongzong, and that is that there is no possibility of any super friendship between him and Eiji Hayamizu.

Absolutely.

Absolutely!

Absolutely!

*

Ziongzong, who unknowingly had a bunch of things on his mind, was walking fast on his way home.

But someone was walking faster than him ...... To be exact, that person was already running.

Uesugi Yui, jogging to catch up with Ziongzong.

"Hoo ...... hoo ...... what are you doing walking so fast."

"Uh, sister Uesugi?"

Ziongzong was surprised not because Uesugi Yui ran after him, but because her attitude towards herself had changed back to the natural one she used to have - instead of her cold and ignorant attitude.

In other words, she's not angry anymore?

Although Ziongzong still didn't know what she was angry about.

--What happened?

"What's wrong, such a surprised look."

"I thought ...... Yui-san would probably be home late today, so I was surprised to see you here."

--or maybe she didn't go home and went somewhere unknown with Katagiri-san ......

Such blunt and seemingly angry words, of course, Ziongzong did not dare to say, at this juncture of the compound.

"Why do you say that?"

"Because you seem to be very busy lately, and you don't pay much attention to me. "

Ziongzong is really a subliminal phrase with a high level of skill in cornering.

"Ah... ...... Yeah, that's really busy."

Ziongzong, who knew that she couldn't go deeper than that, let her get away with it.

After all, it was a long overdue after-school project to go home with Uesugi Yui, and it would be a waste to let a moment of curiosity spoil it.

--The first thing that happened was that there was something going on between Yui and Katagiri.

But, surface to surface, Ziongzong inwardly can't help but start analyzing the reason for the change in Uesugi Yui's attitude.

--But what exactly happened.

Ziongzong could not see any clues from Uesugi Yui, who was walking beside him.

--- The heart of a woman~

Know why there is no Nobel Prize for the heart of a woman, it is because it is an absolutely impenetrable field.

-- Anyway, since she's not already angry anymore, there's not much more I can say.

*

When there is a lot going on around you, you often forget important events that you should not, would not have forgotten.

But sometimes, it will feel like it's the instinct to escape, so that they are in the middle of a hundred things that they do not want to do deliberately forgotten.

However, even if Ziongzong prides himself on being a god in the world of self, he is just an ordinary person in the real world who has to be tossed around by various things.

Forgetting things is not the same as being able to get away with it.

When Ziongzong arrived at school early the next morning, he noticed that today turned out to be the day the midterm exams started.

If it was possible, he really wanted to find a random reason to skip the midterm, no midterm grade, affect the final grade does not matter - in any case, it is better than just take midterm test.

It was torturous.

"......"

There are times when people like to scratch their hair, scratch their heads, and try to hit the wall to see if it's solid.

"Hey, Kimura-san over there, what are you doing?

The reason is simple, because the person who said it is Mayumi Araki, and unknowingly, Ziongzong has been trained by Mayumi Araki that no matter what name she says, Ziongzong will reflexively take it as Ziongzong has been conditioned by Mayumi Araki to the point that no matter what name she says, Ziongzong reflexively takes it as his own.

And Ziongzong was a little flattered this time, compared to Yamada, Yamamoto and other names, the Kimura surname is really much more elegant.

He was really well-trained.

"I'm not doing anything, I'm just getting some fresh air. "

"Breathe your own fresh air, don't try to destroy public property. "

Ziongzong really looked like he wanted to bang his head against the wall.

"Yes~Yes~Yes~"

But people are afraid of pain, and Ziongzong is no exception.

However, we can't rule out the special kind of people who can get pleasure from pain, so we won't discuss it here.

"Speaking of which, the park we went to last time ......"

Mayumi Araki started a new topic with some hesitation.

"The park we passed by at night, what happened? "

There was something Ziongzong didn't know, Mayumi Araki's little weakness.

"Didn't we hear ......"

"Forget it, I'm going to get my exam paper.

Mayumi Araki, who wanted to ask something, just opened her mouth and then changed her mind and stopped the car just in time.

It's not a teacher's job to expose her weak side to students.

So she turned her head and walked away, cleanly.

"What the hell, half-talked. "

Of course, Ziongzong couldn't know that Mayumi Araki was still upset about the suspected haunting of the park, but she was afraid of ghosts but curious.

As for the 'ghost' in the park that has been turned into Buddha by Ziongzong, Mayumi Araki will probably never know about it.

*

There was less than half an hour left before the midterm exams started.

At this point in time, even if the Buddha's feet were willing to stretch out, Ziongzong would not have a chance to hug them. So before the start of the exam, he had been standing in the corridor, leaning against the guardrail, looking out over the atrium and playground below the building.

This is the open-minded senior mentality, but rather the helplessness of a broken jar.

Inadvertently, Ziongzong saw Yui Uesugi and Katagiri Mai walking shoulder to shoulder on the plastic track.

-- Hey, it's about to be midterm exams, and there's still a good mood to walk on the track.

-- Speaking of which, weren't these two stuck together yesterday ......

--- ...... adultery, adultery ......

Because the attention was drawn to them, Ziongzong was not too worried about the next exam.

The result is still there, and there is no escape.

With the bell ringing, the test, as scheduled.

Although in the moment of knowing that today's test had the feeling of losing everything, but Ziongzong is still very good at resurrecting the dead. For the need to prepare for the review of the natural enemy of the arts, Ziongzong is really no way. But the science subject is different, even if the test before the review, as long as the usual mastery, integration, then even if it seems to have the courage of the naked test, it does not have no chance of winning.

So, Ziongzong inevitably dwelled on the blank exam paper for two hours.

If Ziongzong's ability in science is at the level of the university's mathematics faculty, it is questionable whether Ziongzong's strength in liberal arts can go to kindergarten.

So, faced with the arts exam paper, Ziongzong did not try to struggle with anything and simply handed in a blank paper (and responsibly wrote his name on it).

Then, after a break at noon, Ziongzong had his long-awaited (one morning or so) science exam in the afternoon. The so-called science test is the battlefield where students and teachers go head-to-head, and the moment they see the question, they have to react to the test points of the question, and where the teacher will make a trick - for example, where to dig a hole and lay a trap, where to pretend to be pure and black-handed. See through the trap of the prey can sneak back to bite the hunter a bite, and unfortunately fall into the trap of the prey, it can only be obedient to the hunter to take the score.

That's how it goes.

Ziongzong happily settled the battle with the science subjects.

The result is already obvious once the science exam is over than the ambiguous answer speculation of the arts subjects.

Most people have to face the problem head on.

If you want to explain it, it is because in the case of knowing that you are going to fail the subject, people usually do not pursue whether they have failed miserably or not.

There are many people in this category, for example, Eiji Hayamizu who is hugging Ziongzong's shoulders, as heavy and painful as a little piggy who is terrified after seeing how meat loaf is made.

"Nah ...... Uesugi, I think I see heaven, what should I do? "

"Your heaven has hell written on its door."

Ziongzong spat relentlessly.

"Uesugi, do you want to go to heaven with me? "

But Hayamizu had been hurt too badly by the exams to feel Ziongzong's taunts at all.

"Just go ."

"Come on, let's go together."

"Don't be crazy, my testosterone and your hormones are mutually exclusive, get out of the way."

"Don't be so heartless, Uesugi. Come on, let's go eat together. "

If Eiji Hayamizu's gender was changed to female, then this kind of flirtatious conversation would naturally be a love story between lovers.

But Eiji Hayamizu is a man, and more of a man than Ziongzong.

But this does not seem to affect the above words as a love story?

This topic must be stopped here.

Otherwise it would be too bad to discuss it any further.

"What what, are you guys going to eat?! "

Ziongzong and Hayamizu were both already descending the stairs without realizing it, and in the meantime, someone happened to overhear their conversation.

To be exact, a certain animal, like a hamster, rolled round and rolled up the stairs ...... against gravity and rolled up the stairs.

The hamster named Kana Haramura, writing gourmet, pronounced as "True Eater".

"Yes, I'm going to eat something, Haramura. "

Hayamizu, who was having an affair with an uncountable number of girls, easily hooked up with this schoolgirl whom he met for the first time.

--

Ziongzong realized that he was too casual to assume that it was his first time with Haramura, and that he could underestimate Eiji Hayamizu in any way, but not his relationship with women.

"Are you a friend of Chef Uesugi, sir?"

"Yes, yes, I'm a close friend... Why do you call him Chef?"

"Because he can cook Chinese food."

"Oh really"

Although the words mentioned Uesugi, but Hayamizu did not look at Ziongzong to speak, so Ziongzong also ignored his sister, even if Hayamizu claimed to be his best friend Ziongzong also did not care, thinking to get out quickly.

"Sister ah ~ in fact, I also know how to cook, oh ~"

"Really!

"Yes, really."

Ziongzong felt that it was time to go, and even if he didn't break the lie that he could cook, Hayamizu wouldn't last for a few days, especially in front of Kana Haramura, a real foodie.

However, just as Ziongzong was sneaking around, he was ready to put his foot down.

"Where are you going, Chef Uesugi? "

Kana Haramura's hands caught Ziongzong's arm like a mouse trap, with a snap.

"Uh ...... home."

"What's the matter, don't you want to go together?

Kana Haramura was glued to Ziongzong's arm like glue.

This analogy seems a bit bad?

But we can't confuse the cute Kana Haramura with the slug-like Eiji Hayamizu, right?

As a result of the conversation, Ziongzong half-heartedly accompanies the two of them to eat together.

The eating scene was the opposite of what Ziongzong expected, as Eiji Hayamizu, who is a beautiful man, ate without any sloppy manners, and Kana Haramura, who is a self-proclaimed gourmet, really showed the elegance of a gourmet when tasting food.

This made Ziongzong, who had planned to open up his mind and eat a large piece of food, much more restrained.

Although it is just eating takoyaki.

But it should not be belittled because takoyaki is a civilian food.

Takoyaki is a delicious food, just as "masters are hidden in the people", so is the food from the people. The elastic and flavorful takoyaki is full of heat that spreads in your mouth and makes you want to eat more.

Ziongzong didn't take long to finish his share, and he noticed that Kana Haramura was eating more and more slowly, finally poking the last piece of takoyaki with a stick, with a kind of heartless expression on her face, and she didn't move her mouth.

"What's wrong? "

"Nothing ......"

"Can't eat anymore?"

"Not really. ......"

"Then let's finish eating and go."

"Well ......"

"Actually ......"

Ziongzong couldn't figure out what Kana Haramura was trying to say.

But don't forget that there is also Eiji Hayamizu, who specializes in relationships between men and women.

"In fact, you want to eat again but you don't have enough money, right? "

The promptness of Hayamizu's statement caused numerous flowers of gratitude to bloom on Haramura Kana's face.

Eiji Hayamizu took out his wallet voluntarily without needing to say anything more to Kana Haramura.

Unfortunately, unfortunately, his wallet was already so thin that not any cash in it .

So, it became a situation where Kana Haramura and Eiji Hayamizu were staring at Ziongzong together with pity.

"...... really.''

Ziongzong reluctantly paid for another takoyaki for Kana Haramura.

"Thank you very, very, very much, Chef Uesugi! "

"Okay, okay, okay."

Ziongzong stretched out his index finger and put it against Kana Haramura's forehead, so that Kana Haramura, who was desperately trying to get close to him, could not get close to him, but only waved his two arms in the air, spinning like a ship impeller.

"Stop sticking to me and eat."

"Yes~Yes~"

For Kana Haramura, food was really more attractive than boys.

She ate hot takoyaki on the rooftop of the school with the autumn breeze blowing, which was really pleasant.

Gradually, Kana Haramura seemed to have gotten comfortable to the point of turning into a soft, lumpy mass of something unknown.

Hayamizu took the opportunity to sneak up to Ziongzong and stuffed something into Ziongzong's hand.

"Hey, what are you doing sneaking around, it's disgusting. "

Hayamizu made a gesture of "Shhh...! The hand gesture, and then a slight smile.

The money that Hayamizu stuffed into Ziongzong's hand was the money from the takoyaki.

"What, you have it, why do you pretend to have no money again? "

Although he didn't know why Hayamizu told him to lower the volume, Ziongzong still cooperated with him and spoke in a low voice.

"There is a very deep reason ...... "

for this," Zongzong said, looking reluctant to explain.

"Well, whatever."

Ziongzong put the money into his wallet, and in the act of taking it out, he accidentally dropped the photo that was stuck in his wallet.

The picture was picked up before Ziongzong did.

"Can you take a look at it, Uesugi? "

"...... Okay."

Ziongzong was slightly reluctant, for the simple reason that it was a picture of Ziongzong with his parents, and there was always a subtle ...... subtle ...... sense of disgust if you showed such a picture to a boy.

"This is ...... your parents? "

"Well, yes."

"They seem to be quite nice people, why do you carry a photo from so long ago, and haven't you taken any more since? "

Parents are deceased is not something to brag about, so Ziongzong avoids the truth here.

"...... because, I like this one more. "

"It's nice, Uesugi. ...... Both parents look like gentle people."

"Yes. I think I'm lucky too.''

Walking and talking, Ziongzong was brought to the edge of the rooftop by Hayamizu.

"What are you doing here?"

"Looking into the distance and relaxing, after all, I have exams tomorrow."

"Rather than relaxing ......"

"Wouldn't it be more useful for you to get some more time to study, Hayamizu."

"You're right. ...... But I don't think I can read if I go back now."

--You're wasting your time and school, Eiji Hayamizu.

The cold autumn wind was blowing, and it was perfect for the occasion.

The end of the exam was at 5:00, and now it's already 5:30. The season is still in autumn, but the daylight hours are already shortening, and the warm sun has already disappeared, leaving only bright and dark remnants shining on the edge of the mountains, and the cold temperature in contrast to the warm evening sun.

"It's a little cold, so go home early, Hayamizu. "

"I think Kana Haramura has finished eating too."

"......."

The photo was handed back to Ziongzong when ......

"Eiji! "

The iron door leading to the rooftop was violently pushed open, and a girl called out Hayamizu's name and walked in.

The medium-length hair was slightly curly, casual, yet seemed like it was combed, scattered over her shoulders, and she was wearing the school uniform of Raiwan Industrial High School, a white shirt, tie, black jacket, and socks that reached above her knees, a dress that looked more mature than the junior high school uniform.

The high school student who abused the kitten in the alley at first was also a student of this very school, and Raiwan Industrial High School is known for its bad school spirit in this neighborhood.

However, more than that.

More than these background impressions, this girl's pair of eyes with an evil look is more concerning.

The upturned corners of the eyes, slightly curved but not purely smiling thin eyebrows, and, undisguised, but not half sincere smile, let people feel, only pure evil - unlike the maliciousness of the mist, she does not refuse to be approached, but rather to attract others to approach, there is a kind of play in the palm of her hand It felt like she was playing with them.

"I've been looking for you for a long time, why didn't you answer my phone calls or my text messages? "

This girl directly ignored the presence of Ziongzong and Haramura Kana, and opened the door to start a wave-like questioning.

Although she didn't look angry, instead she looked like she was enjoying the process of chastising Hayamizu.

"Because, I was taking an exam just now. "

"Your exams end at five o'clock, right? I called you at 5:03, 6:00, 7:00, and 18:00, and I texted you at 4:00, 6:00, 20:00, 21:00, and 22:00, so it has nothing to do with your exams, right? "

--Hey hey, that's a bit nerve-wracking, isn't it?

Hayamizu into a dilemma, Ziongzong in a side surrounded by quite happy, and the little hamster Haramura Kana was this sudden appearance of female high school students scared to hide aside afraid to show their heads, shiver and shiver......

"Because, because ... ..."

Hayamizu was stammering for an excuse. For Hayamizu, who was simply a fool, it was a very tricky thing to meet such a strong and thoughtful girlfriend.

--Is it too early to conclude that she is Hayamizu's girlfriend?

-- No, no, judging from this attitude, it's already asserted.

And now, this habitual thinking is not wrong.

--It's just that this girl is so scary.

"Because of what? "

"Because ......"

The girl who suddenly appeared in high school put her face in front of Hayamizu's eyes, and the tips of their noses touched.

"Forget it, it's enough to see you."

The girl tossed her head, her slightly curly hair was smoother than expected, and didn't whip Hayamizu to the ground like Ziongzong thought she would (if that had happened it wouldn't have been hair anymore) ...... The girl spun around and took a few steps back, putting distance between her and Hayamizu.

"Then again, the one standing next to me at a time I could not identify whether it was a man or a woman and finally saw that it was a rather 'beautiful' looking boy - in short, a little boy who is a human demon, who is it? "

After the conversation with Hayamizu ended, the girl finally noticed Ziongzong next to her, and as soon as she opened her mouth, she said a human demon.

Ziongzong's originally quite happy expression suddenly became very sorrowful.

"What? You don’t like to be called as a beautiful' looking boy? "

Ziongzong really want to take a roll of tape to tie up this girl's whole person, ah, no, is to seal up her mouth.

Tie her up the whole person is to do what.

Well, although with the times, pseudo-virginity is no longer a derogatory term, but for Ziongzong, who is not inclined to pseudo-virginity, this word really sounds harsh.

--I'll put up with it.

Just as fat people are always being called fat, at first very angry, and then slowly get used to it, for Ziongzong not very masculine looks to mock or tease people, Ziongzong has long been used to it, really, long been used to it.

"Why are you clenching your fist so tightly, little brother? "

"No, it's nothing."

In fact, Ziongzong still cared a lot.

"So, what's your name, little brother?"

"Ziongzong Uesugi, and although I'm younger than you, I hope you won't call me "little brother."

"You don't mind, little brother."

"......"

"Okay, okay, don't get mad, I'm just teasing you, I'm sorry~"

Like a person who lives with multiple masks, this girl's expressions change so much that Ziongzong, who always makes his first judgments based on people's expressions, was confused... -He couldn't understand what she was thinking.

"So, little brother Uesugi, do you think I am a very attractive person when you first meet me? "

"......"

In the face of her almost tricky language, Ziongzong frequently fell into silence, a sign of being vulnerable, but he had no way to fight against this unexpected guest

"Okay, Kaori, stop joking about him."

Hayamizu stood between Ziongzong and Onitsuka Kaori, speaking in a tone that became more subdued than the evasion just now ...... only with a hint of guilty bitterness.

"What, the heart of this pseudonym? "

"Whatever you say, but this bad habit of yours is better to change."

"I did it because I was worried you wouldn't like me."

"Yes, but even if you don't, I'll still like you. I like everything about you, including your strengths and weaknesses."

Eiji Hayamizu said with such seriousness and sincerity that the seriousness made the meaty lines natural - to the point that Ziongzong forgot that the guy named Eiji Hayamizu was currently having an affair with several girls at the same time.

"It's a little late for introductions, Uesugi. This is my friend, Onitsuka Kaori, a sophomore at Raiwan Industrial High School, and as you can see, a strange person.

--You said you like her, but why are you still friends?

"Strange? "

Before Ziongzong could agree and add his critique, Onitsuka Kaori interjected.

"Yes, it's strange. That's one of the things I like. "

It was the first time Ziongzong had heard such serious words of love, neither shyness nor affection, and if one were to listen to the voice alone without understanding the words, Ziongzong thought it was closer to the serious speech of a presidential campaigner.

Only, not as impassioned.

"So, what do you want to see me for, Kaori?"

"Because I want to see you~"

"So, ...... since you've already seen me, you can go now, as you can see, I have something to say to Uesugi."

"Uesugi. ~~~~ Uesugi-chan, okay, I'll leave now."

"Well, I'll be in touch by phone."

Onitsuka Kaori smiled and shook her hand at Ziongzong, which, of course, did not add to her impression score in Ziongzong's mind.

She turned around - looked like she was going to turn around, but instead turned violently and straddled the arrow, rushing in front of Hayamizu with one breath, her hand reaching for the position, the picture on Hayamizu's hand.

However, Eiji Hayamizu's movement was faster, and I should say he had already anticipated that Onitsuka Kaori would do so. He caught Kaori's straight outstretched hand in his arm, spun her around, and fixed her hand on her back.

That agile movement was not at all like the Eiji Hayamizu that Ziongzong knew.

Onitsuka Kaori's back was turned to Hayamizu, her hands were sealed and she could not move.

He put his mouth to Onitsuka's ear and said something softly, making Onitsuka, who was going to struggle, give up her resistance.

"It's just a picture, can't I even look at it? "

Onitsuka Kaori muttered discontentedly

Hayamizu gave Ziongzong a look.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"No means no."

"I want it!"

Onitsuka Kaori lifted her foot and stepped heavily on Hayamizu's shoe, using this brief moment of relief to turn around and try to grab the picture from Hayamizu's hand, but Hayamizu avoided it.

Padding up and jumping, Onitsuka Kaori bounced around like a cat pouncing on a butterfly, while Eiji Hayamizu raised his hands and moved from side to side, backing up to avoid Onitsuka Kaori's snatch.

He backed up, backed up, and reached the edge of the rooftop, the unprotected side of the barbed wire fence.

If he fell, there would be a five-story drop.

'Hayamizu, stop playing and watch your back.'

Ziongzong's warning distracted Eiji Hayamizu's attention, and the photo in his hand was finally touched by Onitsuka Kaori, and with a clash of wrists and misplaced fingertips, the photo floated in the air and fell out of his hand.

Ziongzong could only watch as his important photo, his important memories, were carried away from the rooftop by the wind, and flew to an unknown destination.

The sound of Hayamizu was stretched into unexplained syllables as Ziongzong's speed of departure increased, and Ziongzong reacted in the first instance by running downstairs.

Ziongzong had never been down the stairs so fast before. how long did it take, he thought it was a very short time, but it was very long.

Beads of sweat trickled down his forehead, leaving tilted wet marks on his face.

-- Where, where ......

Ziongzong tilted his head, his eyes turning rapidly, searching the sky for that which might be important, but he did not see it.

It was getting late and the sun did not kindly give Ziongzong, who was searching for the photo, some more light and sank down to the horizon in order.

Because of the wind, there was no way to predict where the photo would land, and finding a small photo in the huge campus was like looking for a needle in a haystack, with dimly lit buildings and dark skies - no light for Ziongzong to rely on - he looked around aimlessly and pricked up his ears, listening for sounds that couldn't possibly be there.

--I should have known.

He was anxious.

--should have taken the photo and left when Onitsuka Kaori appeared ......

He was panicked.

--should have said goodbye to Hayamizu after eating ......

He was at a loss for words.

-- should have refused him when Hayamizu asked me to look at the photos ......

Ziongzong regretted it.

But he also knew that regret was useless, so he could only tirelessly continue to search

Ziongzong searched for a long time in the nearby aisles, bushes, and tree trunks, but saw no trace of the photo. He walked around the campus in a depressed mood, and before he knew it, he was back under the school building.

"Uesugi."

At that moment, he bumped into Eiji Hayamizu, who had just come down the stairs.

"Did you find it?

"What do you think?"

--It's all your fault, you playboy.

"I'm sorry. ...... I really didn't know it would turn out like this."

"What can I do if I'm sorry?"

Ziongzong gradually lost control of his emotions, and his words became sharp.

"It's all my fault, I'll think of something."

"Then you think!"

"Give me ...... some time, will you?"

Eiji Hayamizu lowered his head full of apologies, his sincere voice still tinged with trepidation.

Ziongzong knew how ugly he must look at this moment.

But he could not quell his anger, both at others and at himself.

'I'm really sorry, Uesugi.'

Eiji Hayamizu bowed his head and desperately tried to admit his fault to Ziongzong, who, though he knew it was useless to be angry, was not able to be calm and forgiving now.

Even though he knew full well that venting his anger would only make things worse.

"At that time, I just thought it would be okay to play a little ...... I didn't think ......"

"I didn't think it would not be an excuse."

"No ...... I didn't think of it as an excuse ......"

"So what do you want to do?"

"I ......"

"I what?"

"I'll ...... find it for you."

"What guarantee do you have?"

"......"

Under Ziongzong's relentless questioning, Eiji Hayamizu gradually became speechless.

Eiji Hayamizu's silence, her cowardly appearance, finally made Ziongzong's anger extinguished.

"Never mind ...... find it together."

"Uesugi ...... you're not angry anymore? "

"Still angry."

Ziongzong has always disliked to talk in a roundabout way ...... so the speed water was once again silent, and the two of them went around the campus without saying a word, searching twice, but still no luck.

It was already dark, the streetlights were already on, and the dim light was not very effective under the shadows of the trees and the shadows of people.

However, Eiji Hayamizu searched with Ziongzong without a word of complaint.

Even though this desperate and tedious task had been going on for more than two hours.

"Hayamizu."

"What is it?"

Ziongzong's sudden conversation gave some relief to Hayamizu, no matter what he said, it was better than the silent anger.

"Your ......"

Ziongzong was going to ask "Where is your girlfriend?" but he changed his mind.

"Where is Onitsuka Kaori?

"...... her, she's gone. After that."

"Really."

"Yes, I'm sorry. ...... She didn't even apologize. "

"Never mind, I don't care."

I don't care means I don't care, I don't care.

That kind of inexplicable person, Ziongzong do not want to see a second time.

*

The time of silence slowly wears down the patience of both of them, anxiousness is the motivation to look, but this also consumes one's patience, in other words, this is the stimulant, at the cost of not reciprocating for a short time of high efficiency.

And now, the anxiety still lingers, but the body is tired of the constant repetition of the action.

While passing through the school gate, Hayamizu, who had been walking side by side with Ziongzong, lagged a little behind.

"What's wrong?"

"No, it's nothing."

A furrow creased between his eyebrows, and he hesitated.

They had been searching for two hours now, in this modest campus.

"Hayamizu, you go back first. "

Ziongzong sensed his mood.

"No, I haven't found it yet. ......"

"Don't mind."

Ziongzong interrupted his hesitant words.

"Don't mind, I'll do the rest myself."

"I'm still ......"

"I'll be fine by myself."

These two hours were enough as an apology.

The talkative and unorthodox Hayamizu, who was able to quietly and seriously search with Ziongzong for so long, had already made Ziongzong feel his apology sufficiently.

'You go back.'

Ziongzong repeated.

"Can you ......?"

"Yes, I can."

"I'm really sorry, Uesugi, along with Kaori's share."

Eiji Hayamizu bent down to Ziongzong with a straight ninety degrees, full of guilt.

"Then, I'll leave now."

"Yes."

Within twenty meters of his departure, he returned his head five times until he disappeared around the corner.

Ziongzong did not see him off, and after saying goodbye, he immediately continued his search.

After he was left alone, his emotions, confused beyond order.

Panic, anger, stability, calmness, regret, and the lost photo, together with a part of his memory, left a void in his heart that made him feel so bad that he wanted to kill or be killed.

"......'

Ziongzong did not have the memory of taking that photo with his parents.

And that was the only picture Ziongzong had with his parents.

Losing that photo is the same as losing the past for Ziongzong.

That's why he became irritable and irrational, uncharacteristically.

Anyone has a soft spot that makes him unable to maintain his usual appearance.

--Damn.

The sky is covered by clouds, not a single starlight. The darkness took away the temperature, the night wind that came late, still in a single in the demand for heat, cold wind blade cut in Ziongzong bare skin, leaving as if to tear open the pain.

-- So cold

Ziongzong pulled his school uniform tighter and looked up at the sky before he realized it was pitch black.

He hurriedly took out his cell phone to call Uesugi's house, but it was already too late.

"Duh ...... duh ...... click."

"Ziongzong?"

"It's me, Yukino-san, I'm sorry I ......"

"Do you know what time it is?

It's already 10pm.

"It's 10:00 p.m. ...... "

"It's not a matter of apologizing or not!"

"Do you know how worrying it is for you to do this?

Ziongzong didn't even have a chance to say a word, Yukino-san's unceasing scolding fell on Ziongzong like rain, and her voice kept increasing, making Ziongzong feel his ears stinging, but he still insisted on holding it to his ears.

Feelings increased with the volume, until it reached the place where Ziongzong felt that the load limit of the microphone was located, Yukino-san's voice with a crying voice, so that Ziongzong's heart was pulled tight, the claws of guilt squeezed his heart hard.

Ultimately, he was angry because he was worried about him.

Ziongzong could only listen to Yukino-san's repeated words in silence, listening to her say how worried she was about him, how nervous he was, how fidgety she was.

Until a few minutes later, Uncle Uesugi's low voice interjected, 'Nah, Yukino, it's almost good to talk' '...... sorry, Tano. "

"Hey, is that Ziongzong? "

"Yes."

"You know you're wrong, right?"

"Yes."

"Good, then come back quickly, you still have your dinner."

"Yeah, okay."

After hanging up the phone, Yukino-san's voice still echoed in Ziongzong's mind.

Yukino-san was very concerned about Ziongzong, which Ziongzong originally thought he knew very well, but now, he realized that what he knew was far from enough.

The Uesugi family had accepted Ziongzong as family, but Ziongzong was still standing outside the door.

Ziongzong, who does not have the concept of "home", is learning little by little.

*

Before leaving the school, Ziongzong took one last reluctant look.

Leaving would mean giving up, but he had done his best.

Can't ride on existing possessions for what has been lost.

Ziongzong walked quickly towards home, only, after his mind calmed down, his body also cooled down, and the night cold invaded him so that he began to think that he should propose to the student council to change out of his autumn clothes, so thin uniform is not able to keep out the cold ...... and other ideas.

In the end, he could not beat the cold wind and bought hot cocoa from a retail vending machine by the roadside. One mouthful of hot energy was poured into him, and the heat went straight down his throat to his stomach, and the warmth gradually spread, and his body, which was shivering, finally returned to normal.

Ziongzong held the remaining half of the can of hot cocoa to keep warm, and after a few minutes of walking, the two-story house of the Uesugi family finally came into view.

Once night falls, the tail end of autumn is completely invisible, all that can be felt is the blurred shadow of winter.

In such a cold night, Ziongzong does not want to stay on the road for a moment, want to go home as soon as possible.

Just.

Just, before that, the shadow of the street lamp, can vaguely see a girl's shadow.

White simple shirt as well as knee-length skirt, the form of a single shadow of her with such a thin clothing, by the low temperature of the night frozen shivering is not surprising. The uniform, which was the target of Ziongzong's comments, was a girls' uniform that was cooler than the boys' uniform, the girls' uniform of Dongxian Public High School.

In such a cold night, a person standing alone next to a telephone pole.

"...... hello."

So she saw Ziongzong.

This was her usual style of opening.

Stepping out of the shadows, she looked at Ziongzong with an expressionless face, her voice as cold as the bitter cold wind. Soft hair fell along both cheeks, medium-length hair tied into a small, thin ponytail at the back of her head.

"Katagiri...... How did you get here?'

--Katagiri Mai.

Even words like 'surprise' fade in this occasion, lamenting their powerlessness, I guess.

"Give it to me."

She spoke, but the language was so concise that Ziongzong could hardly keep up with her jumpy thinking.

The good thing is that she always makes up for it with her actions, like right now, she took the hot cocoa from Ziongzong's hand after she finished speaking, before Ziongzong understood and before Ziongzong agreed.

Gulp.

Without tilting his head, he just tilted the jar to a horizontal level, neither too crude nor so civilized as a normal girl's way of drinking. However, before looking into this, there seems to be a problem.

"That ...... can of hot cocoa I already drank. "

"So what?"

It's like aiming at Ziongzong will say so as no delay time accurate spitting, after a cold glance at Ziongzong, Katagiri Mai accurately threw the can into the trash can five meters away.

The jar collided back and forth on the wall of the metal-made cylinder, emitting a crisp clanging sound.

Is Ziongzong too precocious or is Katagiri Mai too late?

Or maybe it was actually Katagiri Mai who was ripe?

-- No, it should have been common sense to consider that she did something beyond common sense when she was with me long ago ......

-- but that cold can of hot cocoa .......

Even without the light of the street lamp, Ziongzong could clearly see that Katagiri Mai was shivering from the cold, with a more or less disappointed expression on her face.

She was deceived by the hot cocoa in Ziongzong's hand.

Originally, she had intended to draw some heat, even if it was what Ziongzong had drunk.

"I'll go get you another can."

"No."

"You're obviously still shivering from the cold ......"

"No."

Katagiri Mai forced her body to stop shivering, but her fingers gripped her arm even harder, her knuckles turning white from the excessive force.

The light was too dim, so Ziongzong couldn't see what it was at first, but after he got it in his hand and felt the unique texture of the photo, Ziongzong froze for a moment.

He couldn't believe the contents of the photo, his hands trembled with excitement, and even his eyes felt a wetness.

Endless joy kept pouring out of his heart.

"What's wrong?

Probably frightened by Ziongzong's excessive reaction, Katagiri Mai took several steps back.

"Where did you find this photo? "

A precious memory that was once lost was recovered.

"I found it on the roadside."

The reply from Katagiri Mai was so flat that she didn't feel any emotion, there was no conceit of taking credit, nor was there the joy of doing something good, it was just as natural as opening her eyes.

Cold without a trace of emotion.

Even so, Ziongzong is already grateful to her.

The photo that was thought to be hopeless and impossible to find reappeared in her hands and was handed back to Ziongzong.

The hole in his heart was filled and, in addition, new feelings were portrayed.

"So, when did you wait until now? "

It was already late, really late.

And the wind was shivering and cold.

On such a night, in such a wind, there was a girl standing by a telephone pole, waiting for a fool who didn't know when he would return.

The exam that ended at five o'clock - after five hours of becoming colder and colder - arrived at the present ten o'clock.

Far beyond the normal activity time for junior high school students, especially for a girl.

'It's none of your business.'

But she did not answer Ziongzong's meaning.

-- How could ...... it ......

Ziongzong almost opened his mouth to ask a rhetorical question, but reason took control of it before he did.

This is the style of Katagiri Mai, forcing her own common sense on her will only worsen the relationship.

-Just for me, is it necessary to go this far?

"Why did you wait until now when you can ...... return it to me tomorrow after you arrive at school? "

Katagiri Mai gave Ziongzong a very uncomprehending look.

"Isn't this photo very important to you? "

She answered as a matter of course.

Ziongzong saw her eyes for the first time other than cold and fierce, they were so clear that you could see the bottom of the kindness, as straightforward as a child.

--Yes, it is very important.

This photo is a symbol of the past for Ziongzong, a talisman that keeps him from speculating unwarrantedly about his parents, a talisman that allows him to rely on his efforts to persevere without giving up in the environment of growing up without parents.

It is an important thing that cannot be described no matter how one expresses it in words.

However, the 'importance' of knowing and understanding and experiencing it is only for Ziongzong alone, and any interference from others is just an irrelevant word.

So, how did Katagiri Mai help Ziongzong find the photo and wait for his return?

How did she find it? How long did she wait? Was it really just an understatement like "I found it by the roadside" or "It's none of your business"?

The faint scrapes on Katagiri's hands and the bruises on her calves made Ziongzong want to know more and more about the reality behind this cold face.

--Either the photo was blown into a tree, or she accidentally fell from the tree ...... Whatever the or, she won't say, right?

"Thank you, Katagiri, really, thank you very much. "

"Oh."

In response to Ziongzong's sincere thanks, Katagiri Mai only gave a response like water without waves.

"Let's go." "Wait a minute!"

Ziongzong subconsciously called her back.

She had already turned halfway around, her face was "ignore if you don't say anything in three seconds". Ziongzong, who opened his mouth without thinking, quickly scanned the surroundings, looking for inspiration to bring up the topic.

The moon was quietly hiding in the clouds.

"That ...... is already very late, let me take you back." "No."

Ziongzong sincere smile just straight into the cold wall, and the wall immediately turned to go.

"Wait a minute!" "What's wrong?"

Katagiri Mai put on a look of impatience.

"Wait for me here for a minute." "No ......"

Before Katagiri could say "No", Ziongzong stepped forward quickly and pressed her shoulders with both hands.

It was really a confession.

"Wait for me for a minute. "

Ziongzong looked into the eyes of Katagiri Mai, said this word by word, and quickly drew back and ran into the house.

Maybe Ziongzong's strong action scared Katagiri Mai, or maybe she really wanted to wait and see, anyway, when Ziongzong came out with a steaming paper cup after 45 seconds, Katagiri Mai was still standing there, like a pillar.

"Be careful with the heat."

"Freshly brewed instant coffee, the taste is not very good, if you don't like it, just hold it to warm your hands. "

"...... Oh."

Katagiri Mai took the paper cup, tilted her head, and gave Ziongzong a glance.

"Let's go."

"I'd better give you a ride, it's so late." "No, thanks."

This time, Katagiri Mai refused politely, but refusal is refusal, politeness will not change anything, so Ziongzong, who still felt uneasy, followed again.

"Wait for ......"

"Don't follow me, needy baby."

--What?

--That's really ......

Then, without waiting for Ziongzong's answer, Katagiri Mai sped up her walking speed and disappeared into the night.

She was as cold as ever.

Self-important behavior, vicious but non-malicious language, these are Ziongzong initially recognized Katagiri Mai.

But Ziongzong always felt that tonight, it seems to know her a little more.

*

The next day, the war called midterm exams was still burning.

The last of these is the one in which the person who is the best at science is Ziongzong, who has been transformed from yesterday's wailing little boy into the king of the four directions.

The last physics exam of the day Ziongzong turned in his paper early and did not go straight home, but ran to the rooftop and climbed to the top of the barbed wire fence - he did not come here to cool off and look at the scenery, the rope of time was around his neck and he knew it well.

Ziongzong took out of his pocket the note that recorded the The riddle of the note, again speculating.

Maybe coming back to this place to think won't bring any help, but try whatever you can.

There was no other way.

Ziongzong started working left and right, and began to sort out the information on the note.

The clear things on the note were toads, funnel glasses, ice, coasters, and little hens, which separately could not be seen to have any special meaning, and together could not produce any enlightenment.

Ziongzong, by contrast, is more concerned with the strings of numbers written on the notes.

-- than the riddle ...... which is simply a code.

He organized the number strings according to their positions and made a table.

Toad (1-1-1;3-4-1;5-4-1;2-2-2;4-3-2;4-4-2;3-2-3;5-2-3;6-2-2;6-3-2;)

Funnel glass (4-1-1;1-4-5;3-1-6;4-2-6;5-1-6;)

Ice cube (1-2-1;1-4-3;)

Coaster (2-2-2;4-3- 2;4-4-2;6-2-2;6-3-2;3-2-3;5-2-3;3-3-4;5-3-4;3-4-5;5-4-5;1-4-6;4-5-7;6-1-7)

Little Hens(1-3-1;2-3-1;6-4-1;3-2-2;5-2-2;2-1-3;2-4-3;1-4-5;6-1 6)

--no clue.

Ziongzong still can't find the entry point, need a clue, something like a wedge to open up ideas, or else you'll just be banging your head around outside the wall.

--Hoo ...... might as well find a way to catch the man.

Ziongzong tilted his head to look at the blue sky, the sky was so bright blue that his eyes felt a pain.

The "It's really here."

Another person entered the rooftop.

"Are the second year exams over?"

"Yes, it's over."

It was the familiar voice of Ziongzong, the class president who was a bit of a loner.

"So, what did you want to see me about, Ito Tomono-chan?

"You ......!"

"What's the matter, do you have something to say to your senior? "

Ziongzong had taken advantage of Ito Tomono's mouth not once or twice, and since Ito Tomono's reaction was always funny, he enjoyed it.

"...... One day, I'll bully him back."

Ito Tomono muttered in a whisper, with a high level of resentment in her gaze.

"Eh? Did you say something? "

"We've decided on a place to go for training."

"Oh, yeah."

"Yeah."

"Where?"

"Xiamen, China."

The speaker doesn't know what he's talking about.

For Ito Tomono, it wasn't a big deal, but for Ziongzong ......

it was a big deal.

There, he will be a different person.

In a short time, not as Ziongzong Uesugi, but, just Ziongzong.