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

"Really?"

"Really, don't forget that Mai is also in the archery club."

"Then...who is standing in front of the senior now?"

She pointed to the girl who had just come out of the teaching building.

"..."

"I don't know, they're probably just ordinary classmates."

"I don't think so. The senior seemed to have smiled at her just now."

"He smiled? We've secretly watched him so many times, have you ever seen him smile?"

"No." The answer was decisive.

"So that must be your imagination! Mai also said that senior would never smile."

"I don't think it's my imagination..."

"definitely is!"

Uesugi Kai naturally couldn't hear the conversation between the two people in the distance, and even if he did, he would just ignore it.

Hanabi Hanabi stood beside him, holding the shoulder bag in front of her skirt with both hands, and looked up at his profile: "We can go now, Kai-kun."

Kai Uesugi turned around and asked, "Speaking of which, doesn't the art club have any club activities today?"

"some."

"Are you alright?" He knew that she assigned herself a drawing task every day to encourage herself.

"It's okay, Hanabi will try her best to make up for today's goal tonight."

"Could you draw me a picture?"

Hanabi Hanabi's little face seemed full of anticipation: "What kind of content does Kai-kun want?"

“You,” Uesugi Kai said to her.

"Fireworks?"

Hanabi Hanabi looked at him with a questioning look in her eyes.

Walking side-by-side with the girl in the black sailor uniform on the path beside the playground, and looking at the classmates walking directly ahead, Uesugi Kai continued, "Hanabi gave me a lot of drawings, right?"

"Mm." Hanamaru Hanabi nodded.

“I’ve painted landscapes, still lifes, flowers and birds, and even portraits of myself, but I’ve always wanted Hanabi to paint me,” said Kai Uesugi.

"Do you paint fireworks?"

"Correct."

Kai Uesugi agreed and then continued, "Your smile is beautiful and warm, so I want to see myself as depicted in your drawing."

"Own......"

Hanabi Hanamaru lowered her head, silently staring at the red scarf on her chest. "Hanabi... I've always felt useless... only capable of doing insignificant things..."

From a young age, she had a strange sense of inferiority.

“Don’t say that,” Uesugi Kai turned the quiver around and reached out to hold her small hand. “No matter how insignificant the thing is, as long as it’s made by Hanabi, I will remember every little detail.”

He took her small hand in his.

"If you ask why, it's because I like you, I like your existence, I like the softness of your little hands, and I like your bright smile that you've had since you were little."

Hanabi Hanabi raised her head again, met his smile, and whispered, "Kai-kun... have you always liked Hanabi?"

"Are you asking about the little firework that used to follow me around?"

"Ah."

"Although Little Firework is indeed clumsy and cries a lot, it's not that I hate her."

“Not now,” Hanabi Hanabi shook her head, her soft, short hair swaying slightly, “it’s always.”

"Always?" Uesugi Kai didn't think. "I have indeed always liked her."

Having received the answer, the girl smiled and said, "Thank you, Kai-kun."

Kai Uesugi recalled what Hanabi had said to him in the earth science classroom a little over ten days ago: "When did Hanabi start saying that she had always liked Kai-kun?"

Unexpectedly, Hanabi Hanamaru shook her head and refused to answer his question.

"Fireworks... I can't tell Kai-kun..."

###Chapter 108 Strange Identity###

Hanabi Hanamaru and Kai Uesugi met when they were three years old and spent their kindergarten, elementary, and junior high school years together, cared for by their respective mothers.

They were very close friends since childhood and never had any arguments.

Before junior high school, Hanabi Hanabi called him "Kai-nii".

But one day, without any warning, "Kai-nii" suddenly became the rather unfamiliar "Uesugi-kun".

Although the way they addressed each other had changed, the distance between them remained the same.

Kai Uesugi asked her why, but she remained silent.

Apart from that, there were no other changes.

------

Archery.

As Qing Youya was changing her shoes in the entryway, she bumped into Uesugi Kai, who had just come in.

He subconsciously looked up and greeted them.

"Good afternoon, Uesugi... uh... and who is this?"

The minister looked surprised when he saw the well-behaved girl standing next to him.

"Girlfriend," Uesugi Kai said casually.

"..."

I didn't react for a moment.

Qing Youya's surprised gaze swept back and forth over him: "Uesugi, girlfriend?"

These two keywords don't seem to apply to him.

Who would have thought that Uesugi Kai, who is usually cold and aloof and seems unapproachable, would suddenly find a girlfriend, and a cute one at that.

It's as absurd as the equally cold and aloof Asaka Ogata suddenly finding a 40-year-old man and sternly declaring him her boyfriend.

Hanabi Hanamaru didn't expect Kai Uesugi to directly reveal their relationship, but she quickly recovered from her initial shock and politely bowed her head in greeting.

"Hello, senior, my name is Hanamaru Hanabi."

“Hello,” Qing Youya also saw the shoulder bag she was carrying in front of her and nodded, “Qing Youya.”

Then, he turned his gaze to Kai Uesugi and asked what was going on.

Kai Uesugi replied languidly, "It's nothing, I just went home with Hanabi tonight, and I thought I'd bring her along to see her today."

Unlike his languid words, Hanabi's soft voice carried an apology, and her innocent appearance was quite pitiful: "I hope I haven't... disturbed everyone. If it's not alright, Hanabi should go back..."

Aoyuuya was also surprised that Uesugi Kai would talk to a girl with this kind of personality, but he didn't care about the disturbance at all: "It's okay, it's okay. The archery club is quiet and there are few people. Students often visit here, so it's not a disturbance."

"Yes, thank you, senior."

"Haha," Qing Youya also found her inexplicably cute, smiled at her polite gesture, and waved her hand, "Please make yourself at home."

Kai Uesugi arrived early today, so there were only a few members of the archery club.

Only Asaka Ogata, Sohei Sugita, and Masanobu Hirata arrived first.

They are already in their shooting positions, beginning today's training.

Hanabi Hanamaru, having taken off her little leather shoes, carefully stepped onto the shiny floor, her curious steps prompting her to peek around.

In her eyes, there was a bow, arrows, a shrine, gloves on a stand, the sign "Shoot with utmost accuracy" hanging directly in front of her, and wheat-colored straw on a shelf.

Everything was new and exciting.

Beyond the bright eaves lies a refreshing and spacious shooting range.

A wide, verdant lawn, cherry blossom trees swaying gracefully on both sides of the training ground, and a gentle breeze bring tranquility and lushness.

The only sounds that echoed here were the clear, distinct tones of the strings.

"The dojo... is so quiet..."

Listening to the pleasant sound that resonated through her eardrums, Hanamaru Hanabi's gaze lingered on Ogata Asaka, who was in the shooting position.

Her long, black hair was tied up, her expression was serious and earnest, her archery uniform was very stylish, and the longbow was slowly drawn, which made her whole demeanor calm and composed.

"Feel free to look around, it's just a small department anyway," Qing Youya said with a smile.

"Where's Kai-kun...?" Hanabi Hanamaru only then realized that Kai Uesugi had suddenly disappeared.

"Change your clothes, you'll be out soon."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Uesugi Kai, wearing hakama, came out.

He walked up to Hanabi Hanabi and looked at her upturned face.

A moment of silence.

"Kai-kun... he's so handsome..."

"Yes, I know." Uesugi Kai accepted the compliment without hesitation.

Aoyuya was not surprised by his answer at all, and smiled and said, "Many people join the archery club because they think the hakama uniform looks good."

Hanabi Hanamaru glanced at the bright dojo a few more times: "The archery club has a very nice environment, so why doesn't anyone join?"

“You should ask the minister about that,” Uesugi Kai said.

Qing Youya also explained, "It's precisely because there are fewer people that the environment is better; it was intentional."