In crossover anime, who isn't a childhood friend?

"Uh, you too..."

Kazusa's personality makes her social skills, which are completely opposite to her piano skills, quite lacking.

This is also the specific reason why she had declined several invitations from Minamoto Chiya to attend gatherings or visit shrines.

It's not that I don't want to go, it's that I feel I won't perform well even if I go, so in order not to leave a bad impression on him, I simply won't go.

However, when Kasumigaoka met Kazusa for the first time, she felt the same way as Yukino: jealousy and dissatisfaction over the photos circulating online and the tabloids that were trying to stir up trouble by pairing her up with Chiya.

But it wouldn't be so rude as to give someone a cold shoulder. First, Shi Yu is very clear that she doesn't have the right to do so at the moment. Second, she's not that stupid. She may not care about social etiquette, but that doesn't mean she doesn't understand it.

I'm already not getting along well with that blond idiot and the second young lady of the Yukinoshita family, so I can't just create another enemy out of thin air.

We all have long, straight black hair, so let's try to see if we can get along well first.

Her behavior, observed by Eriri who was not far away, elicited a low, disdainful murmur from her.

"Is it true? Her voice is so strained. I've never seen her speak in such a gentle tone before..."

Yukino heard what her friend said, but didn't say anything.

Rikka and Saeko also came over at that moment, and Eriri immediately smiled.

As she followed their conversation, Yukino glanced around the living room with a concerned look.

Qianye was nowhere to be seen at this moment.

Actually, he hadn't gone far; he was still in the courtyard with Shihua.

The highlight of today's celebration was the outdoor barbecue, with a generous supply of various barbecue ingredients.

He is currently helping Shihua move the barbecue grill out of the warehouse and set up the venue.

"Shihua, I'll carry all of these. You can rest for a bit. You've been preparing all morning by cutting meat and vegetables."

Yuan Qianye approached her, his hands seemingly unintentionally reaching out to the back of her delicate hands before taking the folding chair from her.

Shika paused for a moment, showing no sign of anything amiss, but as soon as Chiya turned around, she instinctively glanced inside the room.

Fortunately, from this angle, people inside the house can't see this side.

Yuan Qianye was secretly pleased. With the gradual progress over this period, Shihua had completely adopted a "do as you please, whatever makes you happy" attitude towards his seemingly unintentional physical interactions.

That's good; he needs to find an opportunity to take it a step further.

Come to think of it, didn't she say before that she wanted to go swimming with Haruno?

The weather is indeed getting hotter, so maybe I should find an opportunity to invite her to the swimming pool or the beach together.

With my body submerged in water and my vision obscured, I might be able to create some unexpected opportunities; it seems like the chances are incredibly high.

Shihua's guilty and shy emotions flashed by in an instant.

She's being touched by Chiya under various pretexts, or when she's cooking in the kitchen, he comes over and rubs his back on her while she's rubbing against something. Or when he's playing around with Rikka in the living room, he takes the opportunity to run over and put his arm around her waist, treating her like a mother hen, and then joins in playing a game like eagle catching chicks with Rikka... and things like that.

Although she was reluctant to admit it, she had really adapted.

Not only did I adapt, but I also secretly hoped that this kind of thing would happen, though I didn't say it out loud.

Even though I've read his diary and already know he's with Saeko...

No, no, now is the time to think about these things!

Takanashi Touka remembered something more important, took two steps forward, and taking advantage of this moment when the two of them were alone, said what she had long wanted to say.

"Chiya, if something like this happens again outside, please tell us as soon as possible. Your parents, me, and Rikka are all very worried."

Since she felt that she hadn't been hurt in the incident, Yuan Qianye didn't choose to tell her family about her situation immediately.

From his perspective, this was because he didn't want his family to worry about it.

But from Shihua's perspective, it's not like that at all.

She, Rikka, and their parents definitely still hoped that no matter what, they didn't want him to hide such a dangerous thing.

"Okay, I understand. If something similar happens again, I won't hide it from Shihua anymore."

Gen Chiya's answer was both straightforward and cunning.

Shihua's words included her family, while his answer only emphasized her, the implication of highlighting her as the main focus was self-evident.

Shi Hua's heart fluttered once again.

She wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but she felt that after she discovered Qianye's diary, his "offensive" towards her suddenly became much more intense.

However, it didn't seem to be just his imagination. After all, on the very night he finished reading the diary, she took the initiative to close the distance between them and gave him the comfort of a lap pillow to relieve his fatigue.

In other words, it's also possible that Qianye realized his initiative, which led him to make the same change.

Shihua had no idea what the future would hold if the current situation continued to develop.

But now, she simply couldn't bring herself to appear completely oblivious to Qianye's burning affections.

Even if I can't give a response right now, I shouldn't let myself become a source of worry and burden for him as he tosses and turns at night...

all in all.

Compared to the time before, Chiya is much more cheerful and looks much healthier now.

Let's just continue like this for now.

If just those little physical contacts in daily life can make him feel satisfied and motivate him to work harder, then...

Then her efforts have a positive meaning and are really nothing.

"There's no need for such a formal answer. You... you know it's enough."

"Ah."

Yuan Qianye smiled and agreed.

Shika helped secure the support pole, and Gen Chiya then opened the parasol.

The two then worked together to light the fire in the oven, and everything was ready.

"Alright, that's about right. We haven't really used this new folding chair yet. Shihua, come over and try it out and see if it's comfortable."

"What's the point of trying out folding chairs? They're all the same... Ugh!"

Muttering to herself softly, Shika sat down in front of the folding chair without any warning.

However, the breathable mesh in the middle of the chair seemed to be loosely secured, and she lost her balance and fell down in an instant.

"Danger!"

In this “crisis” situation, Yuan Qianye reacted quickly and steadily, holding her back with one hand and placing the other under her knees, firmly pulling her into his arms.

"It seems like I didn't assemble it properly. Sorry, Toka. Are you alright?"

Yuan Qianye held her tightly in his arms.

Even now that the crisis has passed, he shows no intention of letting go.

At the same time, his face showed concern, and his eyes were full of sincere apology and worry. He put on a very convincing act and was very serious in his attitude.

The acting skills that Shih-hua has honed could even allow him to debut as a stage actor.

He held Toka tightly in his arms, their bodies pressed together, the bouncy slime being flattened into a dorayaki shape.

Looking closely into his concerned and sincere eyes, she was momentarily stunned, genuinely believing it was just an accident.

But then she felt a slightly strange, subtle touch coming from her buttocks.

Her face immediately turned red.

That little rascal, he definitely did it on purpose!

For some reason, the phrase "absence makes the heart grow fonder" popped into Shihua's head at that moment.

I have a feeling that after this short separation of a few days, when Chiya returned from Fukuoka, he was noticeably more "unrestrained" in his behavior towards her.

This is not only evident now, but an even more obvious example is when he first arrived home today.

As soon as he entered the house, he hugged his mother tightly first, and then Rikka.

Up to this point, things were still normal, and Rikka even voiced her doubts, saying, "You're acting strange today."

After all, Qianye had never had the habit of hugging her family as soon as she got home before, let alone giving them such a warm hug.

Qianye replied, "In short, after experiencing some things, I suddenly realized that I should cherish every day."

His mother immediately understood that his words implied a near-death experience, and quickly spat out the words to signal him not to say such unlucky things.

Qianye did as he was told.

Everything is normal up to this point.

Then he hugged himself last.

Now for the important part.

Right beside her mother and sister, one had a loving expression, and the other was all smiles.

Right under their noses at such close range, he hugged them tightly.

His hand remained steady, resting against her back, and apart from the heat of his palm, there were no other movements.

But what her mother and sister didn't know was that at that moment, Toka could clearly feel Chiya's voice as he leaned close to her ear and sniffed her scent.

The heavy breathing faintly reached her ears. With each cycle, Shihua's delicate body trembled uncontrollably, and her legs trembled slightly, slowly closing together.

After that, he let go contentedly and followed his mother and Rikka to the living room, chatting and laughing.

But Shihua, her whole body flushed and feeling a little weak, went to the bathroom and then took a closer look.

As she expected, a slightly embarrassing situation appeared on the pale yellow, skin-hugging fabric.

Although it wasn't very obvious, it did happen.

And now, that familiar feeling has returned.

"I'm fine..."

"Are you really okay? Tohka, you just cried out. Are you hurt somewhere and it hurts a lot? Don't hide it from me."

"I was just startled by the sudden weightlessness. I told you I'm fine, put me down!"

How long are you planning to hug me?!