Living in Tokyo, all I want to do is laze around.

"It's alright, it's alright, that was just your uncle tricking Hanabi," Uesugi Kai said with a smile, trying to comfort her. "Although your uncle probably knows about what happened this morning, he didn't do anything to me. I wasn't hurt, and I didn't end up in the hospital, so don't worry."

"R-really? Uesugi-kun, don't lie to Hanabi..."

"Will not."

"Hmm, Fireworks... I understand."

"Alright, is there anything else?"

The night breeze cooled the sweat on his forehead. Uesugi Kai knew he shouldn't stay in such a breeze for too long, so he turned and walked back.

Hanabi Hanabi's voice paused for two seconds before coming from the other end of the phone:

"there is none left....."

"Alright, then I'll—"

Just as Uesugi Kai was about to speak, he noticed a familiar figure approaching. Seeing the bamboo sword clutched in his hand, his expression froze, and he instinctively called out:

"Uncle Yu...Yu Shu?"

Hanamaru Hiroki held a long bamboo sword in his hand, his face heavy, staring at Uesugi Kai with an extremely hostile gaze.

For a moment, the air seemed to freeze under his aura.

Could it be that Hanamaru Hanabi's suggestion of being hospitalized is something that will happen in the future?

Another worried question came from the other end of the phone: "Uesugi-kun, is that... Dad?"

"It's alright, it's alright, I'll be home soon, don't worry." After saying that, Uesugi Kai immediately hung up the phone, put it in his hakama, and looked at Hanamaru Yuuki who was walking slowly towards him.

"Good evening...good evening," Uesugi Kai greeted somewhat stiffly.

"It's so late, and Hanabi still called you. She really cares about you," Hanamaru Yuuki's voice drifted over.

"No...no, I don't think so."

Hanamaru Yuuki gradually tightened his grip on the bamboo sword in his hand and said in a deep voice:

"It's so late, why didn't the girl call her father? The message she sent him was to tell him not to hurt Uesugi-kun anymore. Her father said he beat that kid into the hospital, and then the girl immediately stopped contacting him."

"Judging from the way she looks now, the girl called that kid to check on the situation, right?"

"..."

"It should be...yes."

For some reason, Uesugi Kai felt a strong sense of resentment lingering in the air.

"..."

The air fell silent for a moment.

“5290 days ago, the girl was born,” Hanamaru Yuki said in a deep voice. “From the first time her father saw her in the No. 3 delivery room of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Tokyo Hospital, he was exceptionally fond of her.”

Kai Uesugi composed himself when he saw Yuuki Hanamaru walking up to him.

"She cried loudly and clearly, but the moment her father first held her, she stopped crying, and her little face suddenly broke into a bright, beautiful, and touching smile."

"Although that radiant smile was fleeting, his father still remembered that moment."

Hanamaru Yuuki frowned as he stared at Uesugi Kai, who was standing upright in front of him.

"This reminded him of fireworks blooming in the summer night, which was also the first time he saw fireworks with his mother."

"A single beam of light is enough to illuminate the sky."

"In that brief moment, the dazzling fireworks left a breathtaking impression, illuminating all those who witnessed them."

"Her brief smile left a deep impression on me."

"So, I named her Hanamaru Hanabi."

Hanamaru Yuuki looked at Uesugi Kai in front of him, his voice growing increasingly low:

Do you understand what I mean?

"I....."

"No, you definitely don't understand. You brat, you actually touched her inappropriately on the train this morning. Even if you two are dating now, Hanabi is still a 15-year-old child. If you don't cherish her now, will you cherish her in the future?!"

“Actually,” Uesugi Kai paused, looking at Hanamaru Yuuki’s indifferent face, “it’s all a misunderstanding…”

"Alright! Don't try to justify your actions," Hanamaru Yuuki said sternly, giving him no chance to explain. "I approve of your relationship, but that doesn't mean I'll completely entrust my underage daughter to you."

As they spoke, Hanamaru Yuuki turned around, holding a bamboo sword in his hand, and glanced at him sideways:

"You brat, it seems I need to teach you a lesson in the rules of swordsmanship tonight. Come with me, and no protective gear allowed!"

As he finished speaking, accompanied by the sound of his heavy footsteps, Hanamaru Yuuki's figure disappeared around the corner of the corridor.

"Ugh....."

Kai Uesugi sighed, a rare sight for him, and had no choice but to follow.

......

......

"ha!!!"

With a loud shout, Uesugi Kai, wielding his sword with both hands, swung down in a vertical slash.

Bang!

Hanamaru Yuuki casually brushed aside the bamboo sword, which was trembling and shaking violently, and struck his waist with a grazing blow to the abdomen.

Pain! An unbearable pain.

Uesugi Kai grunted inwardly, immediately took a step back, and readjusted his stance.

His forehead was already beaded with cold sweat from the pain, and the waves of agony made him want to quickly cover his wound and collapse to the ground.

"Too weak! Your Qi He roar is too weak!! Like a sheep, completely lacking in power!!"

Hanamaru Hiroki's roar was menacing and oppressive, and the suffocating feeling that echoed in one's chest instilled fear.

"The way of the sword is to overwhelm with power! Without momentum, how can your weak attacks expose any openings in your opponent?! Do you think your opponent is a target?!"

"Keep going, keep going!"

"Yes!"

Uesugi Kai raised his hand, gripped his sword, held it at the top, mustered all his strength, and slashed down fiercely!

"ha!!!"

He roared again, aiming straight for her face.

But Hanamaru Hiroki reacted especially quickly, his left hand loosely gripping the bamboo sword while his right hand firmly held it, blocking it horizontally in front of him.

Bang!

The sound of the bamboo strips colliding was deafening and quite captivating.

"Not enough!!! Still not enough!!!"

Hanamaru Hiroki shouted, exerted force with both hands, pushed Uesugi Kai's bamboo sword backwards, and then straightened the hilt in an instant.

Then, in the next instant, he struck both sides of the Uesugi Kaitake sword in succession.

clap clap clap!

With each step and strike, he forced Uesugi Kai to retreat continuously, his hands becoming numb and weak from the impact.

"Striker!!"

Upon hearing the word "striker," Uesugi Kai quickly gripped the hilt of his sword and pulled his arm down, attempting to defend himself with the bamboo sword's string.

But Hanamaru Hiroki's movements were particularly clean and swift, directly causing the tip of the bamboo sword to land on the back of his hand.

Uesugi Kai frowned, instinctively loosening his grip on the sword due to the pain.

"Another mistake!!"

Hanamaru Hiroki shouted at him again, swinging his sword with both hands from left to right, striking the middle of Uesugi Kai's bamboo sword and knocking it away.

【Kendo Lv5 (8/10)】

###Chapter Fifty-Five: The Tamed Girl###

After the rain, the sky becomes even clearer.

The girl, with her flat chest held high and a shoulder bag slung over her arm, walked along the wide road and stepped into the small courtyard with the words "Hana Maru" written on it.

Under the eaves, on the wooden platforms propped up on either side of the door, two pots of pure white lilies rested quietly.

The girl walked in, peeked out, and gently sniffed the air.

"Mmm~~ It smells so good."

Rie Ayaka opened her eyes, looked at the center of the lily, and suddenly frowned: "Why does it feel like something's missing? It's so bare. But Hanabi-chan has actually started growing flowers?"

"Did you learn it from that Uesugi guy?"

Rie Ayaka's mind began to conjure up images of the Uesugi family's usual flourishing flowers.

"Well, putting everything else aside, Uesugi is quite skilled at growing flowers."

He nodded to himself, then subconsciously glanced at the Uesugi family next door.

The room with the blinds faces this side directly, it's very obvious.

Rie Ayaka pouted in dissatisfaction, "This guy..."

Then he rang the doorbell.

After a series of noisy dial tones, Hanabi Hanamaru's panicked voice came through the loudspeaker at the door:

"Ah! Riyo-chan, you're here so early? Please wait a moment!"

The door opened with the sound of hurried footsteps coming down the stairs.

Seeing Hanabi Hanabu leaning against the doorway, dressed in an oversized light blue casual outfit, Ayaka Rie happily nodded and greeted her:

Good morning, Hanabi-chan.