I practiced as a monk alone in Japan.

Chapter 55 Summer Beauty (Seeking monthly votes~)

After returning from there, Tsukino Gen acted as if nothing had happened.

This was only a spur-of-the-moment decision, since we just happened to run into these two people.

He couldn't say he wanted to be some kind of mastermind behind the scenes, but simply letting Yamazaki Jihei die would be too easy for him. While becoming a vegetable would certainly torment him, his family, and even his backers, it still wasn't safe enough.

After all, there is still the risk of waking up.

It's obvious that with so much going on about him, the police couldn't possibly be unaware of it. But the reason this matter hasn't come to light yet is because someone is suppressing it all.

It's hard to say whether it was the school or someone else, but obviously we can't let him off too easily.

Gen Tsukino originally thought that since the police suspected his death might not be an accident, they would investigate everything behind it. However, the current situation is that in order to suppress these possible consequences, even the possibility of homicide has been ruled out.

Then let's make it bigger.

That way, there would be no worries about the future. Even if he were lucky enough to recover and regain consciousness, there would be little risk of him gaining his freedom.

"Hey? Is your friend a blogger? They seem to be filming."

The ramen has been served.

Kazama Sakura looked at the boy curiously.

Gen Tsukino shook his head. "You've mistaken me for someone else. I don't actually know them."

"Oh~"

The girl nodded vigorously.

Gen Tsukino raised an eyebrow. "Why do you look so disbelieving?"

Kazama Sakura has bright eyes and a sweet smile.

"How could that be? I believe you unconditionally!"

The more unfortunate and difficult things seemed to happen to him, the more it highlighted the boy's extraordinary nature. After all, it seemed that he could handle everything with ease.

Kazama Sakura chose not to try to understand these secrets on this obvious issue; if he wanted to, he would tell himself.

If it's something she doesn't want to tell herself, then she doesn't want to know.

My mother was not a happy woman. She made countless wrong choices in her life and complained about me a lot.

But she made a very good point.

So-called happiness is made up of countless lies and secrets. A wise person will not choose to expose them all.

Kazama Sakura is also willing to be a content girl.

"Alright, try the ramen first, and see if you can handle it."

The girl said with a smile.

Before him was a scalding hot, spicy tonkotsu ramen, and Gen Tsukino could indeed smell the pungent spiciness.

However, the boy didn't show any sign of distress; instead, he looked at Kazama Sakura with a provocative expression.

"Today I'll show you what it means to make a bowl of noodles in three bites."

After saying that, he picked up his chopsticks and began to eat.

Saying it's three mouths is indeed a bit of an exaggeration, but it's no more than five mouths.

Gen Tsukino ate very quickly, but even with such an exaggerated eating style, it didn't affect his good looks at all. How to put it... good-looking people, even when wolfing down their food, still make you think: how come he eats so deliciously?
The shop assistants, who were expecting to see a 'painful' expression on Tsukino Gen's face, were dumbfounded.

This boy not only ate quickly and with gusto, but he even devoured the soup and noodles together.

Even after eating and drinking everything clean, they were still marveling at it.

"It would be great if we had some bird's eye chili peppers, and how can we do without garlic?"

Eating noodles without garlic diminishes the flavor by half, don't you know?

When Gen calmly put down the bowl, his complexion was normal, not flushed. There wasn't even a bead of sweat on his forehead.

The staff member, somewhat bewildered, secretly asked the kitchen staff, "Did you not put enough chili in the hellishly spicy sauce I ordered?"

The kitchen staff looked completely innocent.

"Where did I put in too little? I even added some more! Does he have no sense of taste?!"

Spiciness is a sensation of pain, and it doesn't seem to have much to do with taste.

The shop assistant felt that the boy might not feel pain at all, and he even had the urge to take the boy for a medical check-up, fearing that he would die outside the shop as soon as he stepped out.

However, the necessary procedures still need to be followed.

"Congratulations on completing our shop's challenge! Here's a gift for you~"

The small gift wasn't particularly valuable; it was a small ramen model, perfect for a keychain.

Without a second thought, Tsukino Gen handed it over to the girl who was still elegantly eating her noodles.

Kazama Sakura only accepted the gift after confirming several times that Tsukino Gen was alright.

"I didn't expect you to be able to handle so much spicy food."

"I just realized that too."

Gen Tsukino's arrogant reply.

"Pfft. I just realized how good you are at showing off."

"Do I need to act cool? Coolness is a quality, and it just so happens to be etched into my genes."

"Don't make me laugh, I'll choke!"

After Kazama Sakura finished eating her noodles, the two left the ramen shop.

After watching the two leave, the clerk, still not believing it, said to the kitchen, "Make me a bowl like the one you made for that handsome guy earlier, and I'll try it."

"Really? Then don't blame me."

"Stop talking nonsense and let me try."

As the bowl of Hell Tonkotsu Ramen was prepared, the clerk took a deep breath, staring at the bowl that looked incredibly spicy. "I'll see if you're just faking it!" he hissed.

He put the first bite of noodles in his mouth and tried to chew and swallow it quickly, as if he were eating noodles normally.

But less than three seconds passed.

His face flushed red like a thermometer, and large beads of sweat poured from his forehead.

"It's so spicy! Water!! Give me water, you bastard!!"

Two young figures strolled along the bustling street, one on each side. The sun had already set, and night had blanketed the sky. Streetlights began to illuminate the night, and the vibrant nightlife of this bustling metropolis finally began to awaken.

"Officer Morita said that the evidence collection is almost complete, and the divorce proceedings will proceed quickly without any major problems. The division of property will be in the mother's favor."

"That's good."

“I visited my father today. He cried and apologized to me. He said he only acted impulsively because he didn’t want the family to fall apart. He said he would never do that again.”

"I feel sorry for him, after all, he's your father. Maybe he's been tormented by pressure, or perhaps he really knows he was wrong?"

Tsukino Gendo asked.

The girl's shoulder was beside him, occasionally bumping into his arm.

I don't know if this can be considered one of the little girl's tricks, but it's quite funny. It's like a kitten trying to knock over a perfectly placed glass of water in order to get your attention.

She lowered her head slightly and then swayed.

“I did feel a little soft-hearted and sorry for him. But I also understand that even if a broken mirror is glued back together, it will still leave a mark. These things can't be ignored. He has changed, he really has changed. Whatever the reason, I also told him that if he really regrets it, then it's best if we don't bother each other anymore and don't appear in each other's lives.”

Even an upright official finds it difficult to settle family disputes. Tsukino Gen didn't want to interfere too much in this girl's choices regarding family and relationships.

This is a good way to handle things; at least I didn't do this for nothing.

"That's good. Your father may have genuinely felt regret, and his rationality is more intact. However, once the monster within him is unleashed, the damage it causes can easily destroy decades of warmth."

Kazama Sakura looked down at her feet and saw Tsukino Gen's hand, which was casually waving at his side. She really wanted to grab it.

But it would seem abrupt.

How can I make it look natural?

She looked up at the boy.

“Sometimes I wonder if it’s really the pressure that my mother and I put on him that made him become like this. After all, society places more responsibility on men, right? So the pressure seems greater. And in order to shoulder the responsibility, they choose to bear this pressure silently, and over time, it makes them seem like a different person.”

Gen Tsukino smiled. "I'm glad you think that way."

"why?"

"Because that means you will be a very considerate wife in the future."

"Hello~"

The girl pouted, seemingly a little ashamed. After all, she was just a high school student; was talking about becoming his wife some kind of implication?

Can't we just be more direct?

Even her attempts at being cute and charming are somewhat unsuccessful.

Gen Tsukino said softly, "But that doesn't mean every man deserves such understanding, just as not every woman deserves a man's complete devotion. Most people in this world are struggling to survive, and you don't have to feel guilty because of other people's mistakes."

"Ah."

The girl nodded vigorously, then tentatively looked at him, "Will you change in the future?"

This question seems a bit difficult to answer, after all, I can't tell her all my secrets.

Unfortunately, my current identity is just that of a 'good student' in high school, so it seems I can't guarantee anything more.

He thought for a moment and said, "Who knows what will happen in the future? I'll try to keep things as they are."

At this moment, Kazama Sakura shook her head, feeling the hot summer breeze blowing on her face, and her heart seemed to be filled with something called warmth.

She finally felt that things no longer felt awkward, and the atmosphere was just right.

The streetlights shone on them, and the street they strolled along seemed endless.

Tsukino Gen didn't lower her head, but clearly felt the warmth covering her palm. Her slender fingers gently clasped his palm.

I tried to wrap it up little by little, but of course I couldn't.

The size of a boy's and a girl's hands is very different, so she chose to interlock her fingers.

I didn't look down, but only looked at her beautiful, rosy face.

she says.

"It's okay, just be yourself. No matter what stage of life you're in, or what you become, I want to stand by your side like this."

Gen Tsukino didn't break free from her hand, feeling the warm, damp breath of her palm.

She was also very nervous.

But the boy didn't stop, and just held her hand, naturally weaving through the crowd with her.

She felt happy.

Did Mother say something like that to Father?
It doesn't matter anymore.

He was indeed luckier than his mother; he seemed to dispel the quiet liveliness of the night.

They are all the lights that illuminate this dark night.

His voice was ethereal and distant, like a lighthouse on the sea, but his light shone directly upon me.

Summer is wonderful.

……

To those still talking about Rin, all I can say is, how about just a short storyline? If that's still not enough, then you can criticize me. Tomorrow is the last day of my IV drip. Goodnight.

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(End of this chapter)