Tokyo Soft Rice King.

That's even more impossible.

Therefore, Kuroba Akira immediately thought of a special case.

In other words, the ability will fail when looking at an agent who is the same as oneself.

For example, you can't tell Saotome Fuyumi's talent and skill just by looking at her palms.

Tianyu Guang... Tianyu...

At this moment, Kuroba Akira remembered that Granny Kobayashi seemed to have mentioned that when she was entertained by the Tenyu clan, she had personally seen the deity that the Tenyu clan served.

The character is described as 'Kishinada-hime', a young girl with silver hair, cold and emotionless like a doll...

Isn't that describing Ame no Hikari?

In other words... Tianyu Guang isn't an agent, but the true god himself?!

Good grief, so it's a god personally participating in the high school girls' kendo tournament? What kind of bizarre plot would you only see in a yuri anime!

Now Kuroba Akira felt that Makoto's defeat was not unjust, after all, her opponent was a true god. Even if he looked no different from a human, he was not human in essence, but an extraordinary being.

But why would the god served by the Ame-no-Yu clan in Hokkaido appear in Tokyo and even participate in the human competition?

Are all gods such free-spirited beings?

Thinking about his unreliable cat god, Kuroba Akira suddenly felt that maybe gods are just very casual people.

As they pondered, Kuroba Akira's gaze met that of Amayu Hikaru on the podium.

Their eyes met, and neither of them looked away first, as if they were engaged in a boring competition where whoever looked away first would lose.

They gazed at each other like that until the awards ceremony was over. Hikari was still looking at Akira Kuroba, and Akira Kuroba was looking at her in return. Akira Kuroba was mainly curious about the true god.

Makoto Hikawa also noticed this and asked in bewilderment.

"Why is that girl named Tian Yuguang staring at you?"

"I do not know either."

"Then why are you staring at her? Is she really that pretty? Her face is quite delicate, but her breasts are so small! So you like this type?"

"No... Although she is quite pretty, I mainly noticed her because of her unusual hair color."

"Hair color? Isn't it just regular black? On closer inspection, it seems to have a slightly grayish tint... but it's not that unusual, is it?"

"Ok?"

Is it just an ordinary black or gray color to other people?

Oh, it's like Fuyumi Saotome's golden eye; only those involved can see the 'difference'.

This indirectly proves that she is indeed the deity worshipped by the Tianyu family, just as Kuroba Akira guessed.

"Could it be that she's fallen in love with you at first sight?"

"That's definitely not it. Maybe my cheering earlier affected her performance, preventing her from achieving a perfect match, so she's glaring at me."

"Is she really that petty? Oh well, whatever... She doesn't even blink, she's like a living doll, it makes me feel a little uncomfortable... The awards ceremony is over, let's go outside and wait for Zhen Cheng."

"Ah."

In the end, Akira Kuroba, who was pulled away by Makoto, turned around first and looked away.

So he didn't notice that when he turned around, the expressionless girl spoke his name.

"……bright……"

Meanwhile, the runner-up next to her, Saionji Masaki, heard her murmur and asked her a question.

"Tenyu-kun, do you know Kuroba-kun too?"

Hikaru Tenyu turned to look at Makoto Saionji, who had asked the question, and a hint of doubt seemed to appear on her unchanging expression.

"Kuroba...Akira? He is...Kuroba Akira?"

Combining the name that appeared in her mind with the surname she mentioned, Amayu Hikaru read out the name that sounded very similar to her own.

"Yes, Kuroba-kun's full name is Kuroba Akira. It feels somewhat similar to your name, Ame-kun. Ame and Kuroba, light and brightness..."

When compared in this way, they seem more like siblings' names, similar to Makoto and Makoto.

"..."

Then Tianyu Guang fell into deep thought, or rather, his mind went blank.

When Saionji Maju tried to talk to her again, Amayu Hikaru didn't respond. So Maju had to leave first to thank her teammates, coach, advisor, classmates and upperclassmen who came to support her.

Not far from the awards ceremony, Tian Yuchen also caught the brief conversation on the stage.

Although he arrived too late to see Akira Kuroba in the audience, he still felt the cruel trick of fate.

During his short stay in Tokyo, the 'exiled' Akira Kuroba still appeared near Hikaru Ama... As expected, the 'connection' between Hikaru and Akira is so strong that it can turn chance into inevitability.

But why didn't he come to see his sister?

Could it be that... he no longer considers this 'thing' that has been usurped and is neither human nor human to be his sister?

What Tian Yuchen didn't know was that the 'inside' of Hei Yuming was no longer the original body, but had been replaced by a 'corresponding entity' from another timeline.

After being forced apart, the brother and sister suffered similar fates and became strangers when they met again.

However, the strange bond that has not yet been broken continues to create opportunities, trying to reunite the brother and sister.

But not today.

……

Akira Kuroba and Makoto Hikawa waited for Makoto Saionji at the corner after descending the steps outside the Budokan.

A commotion erupted behind him.

Because they were quite far apart, they couldn't hear what they were arguing about, but Hikawa Makoto heard her sister's voice, so she decided to go back and check on her.

However, before she could walk back into the dojo, Saionji Machi, who had finished bowing and apologizing to the others, had already come up to the two of them.

"Sister, Kuroba-kun, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"Thankfully, we didn't have to wait long. But I just heard a lot of noise coming from your side, Zhencheng. Did something happen?"

Saionji Machen smiled and answered calmly.

"It's nothing, I just told everyone in the kendo club that I was leaving the club."

"Oh... so it's Makoto who's quitting the kendo club... Huh? Quitting! The kendo club?! Huh!?"

This time, it was Hikawa Makoto's turn to make a huge sound, exactly like the surprised sound from before.

She pressed down on her sister's shoulder again, offering words of advice with a puzzled expression.

"Why?! Is it because you lost the match?! But you've already done amazing things, Makoto! You were the runner-up in the national tournament! In a shonen manga, that's the final chapter! Losing to the strongest isn't shameful!"

Saionji Machen said with a wry smile.

"Sister, calm down and listen to me. I didn't want to quit the kendo club because I lost the match..."

At this moment, Kuroba Akira, who was standing to the side with his arms crossed, asked a pointed question.

"Makoto, are you giving up kendo?"

The only reason one can think of for someone to quit the kendo club at this critical juncture is that Saionji Masato no longer wants to practice kendo.

In response to Kuroba Akira's words, Makoto nodded and said...

"Hmm... I want to give up kendo."

"Real orange..."

Makoto didn't ask why, because she realized that the emotion in her sister's eyes wasn't the despondency after failure, but rather a sense of relief.

"Part of the reason is that I encountered a 'high wall' that I couldn't get over, but more importantly, this failure made me realize clearly that I don't really love kendo; I'm just using kendo as a 'shield'..."

"But it is precisely because I have seriously practiced kendo that I feel even more strongly that facing kendo with this kind of escapist mentality is a disrespect to the 'sword'."

"With this mindset, it's impossible to beat those who take Kendo seriously. Even if you win by chance this time, you'll definitely lose even worse later... So you might as well take this opportunity to put down your sword."

As she finished speaking, a gentle breeze brushed past Zhencheng's face and her ear, rustling the leaves.

She felt as if the tension in her heart had been gently loosened, and all the heaviness and worries had dissipated with the wind.

It felt like a huge boulder had been lifted from my chest, and even the air felt clearer.

"Maybe later, I'll resign from my position as student council president and leave the student council..."

“I pushed myself too hard before, and I endured it for a long time… Even though I achieved some success, I never felt happy.”

"So I want to remove all the 'labels' and become the most ordinary... and most authentic me again."

It seems that this battle has truly enlightened Saionji Machi, as if her soul has been cleansed and a feeling of lightness has filled her body.

Hikawa Makoto was deeply moved as she looked at her sister, who had become peaceful and serene. Her nose started to sting, and she felt like crying.

Akira Kuroba, on the other hand, felt that Saionji Masato was 'just right' in this state.

So he bluntly made the suggestion to her.

"So, Zhencheng, how about we take this opportunity to try developing in 'other areas'?"

Hey! Ming, you bastard!

Hikawa Makoto got a little anxious. She turned around and grabbed Kuroba Akira by the collar, trying to tell him to shut up.

She felt that her younger sister had finally shed all her shackles and was starting anew, following her own will.

With her current mindset, Zhencheng is capable of finding her own path and doesn't need to be forced to grow too fast.

However, once the topic was presented as bait, Saionji Mato immediately took the bait.

"Other areas? Do you have any suggestions, Kuroba-kun?"

"My suggestion... well, that depends on whether your sister will let me say it."

Kuroba Akira poked Hikawa Makoto's cheek with a wicked grin, while she herself was furious and wanted to kick Kuroba Akira over, slap his face, and then make him drink a pot of glacial holy water.

Saionji Machen tilted her head and asked her older sister.

"elder sister?"

"Um... well... Makoto, you don't really need to be in such a hurry... Look, there's still more than half of high school left, you can try other things first? Like dating or something..."