I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

This time, Qingdeng's mind wandered.

Because of his worries about Souji's current situation, Aoto is feeling very anxious.

The turmoil in his mind caused Qing Deng, who was standing in a corner of the dojo doing basic exercises, to be unable to wield his bamboo sword steadily or correctly.

Suddenly, at that moment, a series of hurried footsteps sounded outside the dojo.

Everyone drawn by the sound of footsteps, including Qingdeng, stopped what they were doing and turned to look in the direction of the sound.

With a white headscarf wrapped around his head to protect him from the dust and a large broom in his hand, Abi strode into the dojo with a solemn expression as if he were about to go to the battlefield.

Abi did not come alone.

Saito and Harada stayed by Abi's side.

Both of them had a white headscarf wrapped around their heads like Ah Bi, to protect them from the dust, but the "weapons" they held were different.

Saito was carrying a winnowing basket, while Harada was carrying a large wooden ladder.

Abi brought Saito and Harada to the dojo... This was a rare sight indeed, and Shusuke hurriedly went to greet them with a puzzled look on his face.

"Madam, Saito-kun, Harada-kun, what brings you here? And with brooms, dustpans, and ladders... What are you doing here?"

“Zhou Zhu,” Abi said in a deep voice, “a nest of rats has moved into our place.”

"A rat?" Zhou Zhu was taken aback.

Abi nodded vigorously.

"I've been hearing strange noises coming from the ceiling for the past two weeks."

"I just took down the kitchen ceiling, and when I looked up... good heavens, a bunch of rat droppings."

“This rat can’t stay in the house, so I’m taking Saito and Harada, who happen to be free right now, around looking for rats.”

"Mrs. Kondo, leave it to me!" Harada interjected smugly as he forcefully lifted the long ladder in his hand. "Watch me bring all the rats in the Shieikan to justice in no time!"

“‘Bring them to justice’ isn’t used like that, is it…” Saito silently corrected Harada’s choice of words, whose level of cultural literacy could only be described as disastrous.

"Yes, I'm relieved to hear that." Abi nodded slightly to Harada, then turned to Shusuke and asked seriously, "Shusuke, have you heard any strange noises coming from the dojo's ceiling lately?"

“No unusual noise… there doesn’t seem to be any.”

"No unusual noises? Never mind, just to put my mind at ease, I'll still check it out."

Abi turned his head and glanced at the apprentices who were still practicing swordsmanship in the dojo.

"Is everyone still practicing swordsmanship...? Then I'll come back after the museum closes."

Having said that, Abi cleared his throat, then raised his head and loudly addressed everyone in the dojo:

"Everyone, please listen to me!"

"A nest of rats has moved into our test facility!"

"If any of you find rats in the testing center, please kill them immediately! Thank you!"

People are more likely to get sick in places with lots of rats—this is common knowledge that even an 8-year-old child knows.

Therefore, eliminating rats is everyone's duty.

As soon as Ah Bi finished speaking, all the apprentices echoed his words, saying, "We will definitely kill every rat we encounter."

……

……

That day, in the evening—

dong dong dong...

Qingdeng walked briskly, his footsteps making a "thump-thump" sound on the corridor.

If possible, Qing Deng would not like to interfere too much in Souji's family affairs, since it is best for the parties involved to handle their own family matters.

However, the current situation of the headquarters is truly worrying.

Souji's current condition is so bad that he even bumps into walls while walking...

How did Okita's negotiations with his sister go? Why has Okita been so absent-minded these past two days? Did they have a falling out? Even if they did, it shouldn't be like this... These questions lingered in Aoto's mind and heart, refusing to leave.

As evening approached and the Shieikan (Test Guard Hall) closed, Qing Deng finally couldn't sit still any longer.

He ran quickly throughout the Shieikan, searching for the commander.

Under Qing Deng's thorough search, he quickly found the Souji—who was sitting cross-legged on the veranda of the courtyard, reading an arithmetic book.

Qing Deng could tell at a glance that Souji hadn't actually absorbed the contents of the book.

The commander's gaze was fixed and vacant.

Although my eyes were on the pages of the book, my mind had already wandered off somewhere else.

"Okita-kun!" Aoto shouted Souji's name as he strode toward him.

"Tachibana-kun?"

Perhaps because he noticed that Aoto's expression was very solemn, Souji's voice carried a hint of doubt.

Qingdeng glanced around to make sure there were no eavesdroppers, then crouched down and sat down beside the chief.

“Okita-kun,” Aoto said in a low voice, enunciating each word clearly, “you and your sister…”

Upon hearing the words "your sister," the commander's expression changed instantly.

Before Qing Deng could finish speaking, Souji hurriedly closed the arithmetic book in his hand and stood up.

"Tachibana-kun, I'm sorry, I... I suddenly remembered something urgent I need to do..."

Without waiting for Aoto's response, Souji hurriedly fled from Aoto's sight, clutching his arithmetic book.

"Huh? Okita-kun? Okita-kun?"

Qing Deng hurriedly called out Souji's name repeatedly, but no matter how he called, Souji showed no intention of stopping.

Qing Deng, who was squatting in place, looked blankly ahead at the spot where Souji had disappeared, and then looked at the place where Souji had just been sitting.

"What's wrong with him...?"

……

"Saito, have you seen Souji?"

"No."

……

“Okita-kun, I’ve finally found you, you…”

"Um... excuse me! I need to use the restroom now!"

……

"Tsk... Where did Okita-kun go again... Ah, Harada, you've come at the right time, you..."

"Ah! Mr. Tachibana! You've come at just the right time! Saito told me today that the phrase 'bringing someone to justice' can't be used to describe catching a mouse. Is that true? Doesn't 'bringing someone to justice' mean 'using every possible method to catch you with a rope'?"

……

"Ah, Okita-kun! You..."

"Tachibana-kun, I'm sorry! I just remembered some urgent matters that I need to attend to immediately! See you later!"

……

……

Tonight is a clear, full moon night.

Just then, as the moon rose, the round, white moon hung high in the sky, and the clear moonlight pouring down from the heavens covered everything in its path with a thin layer of silvery frost.

At this moment, Qingdeng was standing on the veranda of the courtyard, arms crossed in front of his chest, looking up at the full moon overhead.

Although his eyes were fixed on the moon in the sky... Qing Deng didn't memorize the scene before him at all.

—What's wrong with Okita-kun...? Why is he avoiding me...?

In Qing Deng's mind, the scene of Souji hiding from him all day was playing on repeat.

Although Souji made up many excuses for himself, such as an urgent matter that needed to be dealt with immediately or needing to go to the toilet, it was obvious that Souji was deliberately avoiding Aoto and ignoring him.

—Is it because the outcome of your negotiation with your sister was so bad that you don't even know how to bring it up with me?

Although Qing Deng had come up with all sorts of possible answers... it was no use no matter how many answers he came up with. If he wanted to know the truth, he still had to go and ask Souji.

The more Souji avoided him, the more Aoto wanted to find out what had happened to Souji as soon as possible.

Souji's constant avoidance of him made Aoto feel quite troubled.

The biggest challenge facing Aoto now is how to create an environment where he can easily catch Souji, making it difficult for Souji to escape from him, while also allowing him and Souji to talk in peace.

An environment that meets both of these requirements... After thinking it over carefully, Qingdeng realized he had gained nothing.

The latter is relatively easy to handle, but the former is more difficult.

Perhaps it was because Qing Deng had come to see him too frequently during the day that Souji was now very wary.

He kept avoiding Qingdeng, and now he was nowhere to be seen. As soon as he realized that Qingdeng was approaching him, he would run away immediately, faster than a rabbit, and no one could catch him.

Let alone arrest him, it's difficult to even locate him because of his unpredictable whereabouts.

Thinking of this, Qingdeng closed his eyes in distress.

—Isn't there a place where you can absolutely catch Okita-kun...?

Just as Qingdeng closed his eyes, racking his brains to think about this problem—

"Mr. Orange! Do you want to go take a bath together now?"

A loud shout came from beside him from Harada, that big, silly guy who wasn't very bright.

When Aoto turned around, he saw Kondo, Hijikata, Nagakura, Saito, and Harada standing on the corner of the corridor beside him, each carrying a bathtub containing towels, soap, and a change of clothes.

Hijikata practiced his swordsmanship very late at the Shieikan today, so he decided to spend the night there.

It was common for earthen houses to stay overnight at the Shieikan.

If he stayed at the Shieikan for too long or too late, he would spend the night there because he was "too lazy to go back to his rented little shabby house."