Ke Xue: I have a knife, and you still dare to fight me?

Page 3

"My name is Kurokawa Sakizuki, you can also call me Kurokawa-nii (older brother Kurokawa)."

Kurokawa smiled, resisting the urge to remove Sonoko's headband to catch a glimpse of her face. "No, I'll be seen as a pervert."

"Mmm, Kurokawa-nii-san."

Just then, a chubby little boy ran over and shouted, "Hey, Mori, I heard your mom ran away from home, and your dad is an alcoholic who only knows how to drink and gamble. What a terrible family, isn't it?"

Just as Sonoko was about to reprimand him, she discovered that Kurokawasaki Tsuki had already done it.

"Hey, brat, what nonsense are you spouting?"

Kurokawasaki Tsuki raised the can of orange juice in her hand and looked down at the chubby boy.

The chubby boy was startled when he saw the orange juice that looked like it was about to hit his head, and he turned and ran away.

Only after creating some distance did he cautiously look back and realize that Kurokawa hadn't caught up. He then forced a smile and managed to save face before continuing his run.

Of course, Kurokawasaki Tsuki wouldn't chase after him; why bother arguing with a little kid?

Little Ran cast a grateful glance at Kurokawasaki Tsuki.

"That Daisuke guy, he really knows how to make people angry!" Sonoko said fiercely, waving her little fist.

Although Xiao Xiaolan was upset, she comforted Sonoko, saying, "It's okay, Sonoko, that's really the case."

She truly deserves to be called a little angel.

Seeing this, Sonoko could only turn her anger towards the silent Shinichi Kudo.

"Hey, why aren't you moving? If you're a man, you should go up and punch him!"

Although he knew Sonoko was referring to Shinichi, Kurokawa couldn't help but think, "She's not targeting me, is she...? It shouldn't be."

Shinichi tossed out a "This has nothing to do with me" and then walked away with his hands in his pockets, looking all cocky.

Kurokawasaki Tsuki couldn't understand it. What was Shinichi up to? He hadn't realized he was this kind of person before.

When Little Ran heard Shinichi say that, her face visibly turned sad.

Sonoko clenched her fists, watching Shinichi's departing figure and gritting her teeth as she said, "That guy really is..."

Kurokawa Tsuki quickly knelt down to comfort Ran: "Shinichi is such a naughty child, and that brat just now too, he's such an ill-mannered brat. Is he also your classmate?"

"Yeah, his name is Daisuke, and he's a nasty guy," Sonoko replied with disgust.

"Oh, I see. Then I'll ask you to tell the teacher tomorrow. That brat deserves a good scolding from his parents when they get home."

Kurokawa knew that Ran was kind-hearted and probably wouldn't tell the teacher, so he turned to Sonoko for help.

"I will, I definitely will, it's so infuriating, and that Shinichi guy..." Sonoko couldn't help but complain about Shinichi Kudo again.

"Alright, alright, here you go, little Mori, have some orange juice." Kurokawasaki Tsuki handed the orange juice in her hand to Mori Ran.

"Thank you... thank you, Kurokawa-nii-san." Little Ran looked at the iced orange juice in her hand, feeling a warm feeling in her heart.

"Okay, then I'll take you home. Hmm... I can also tell you about the kendo competitions I've participated in over the past two years. I remember Ran was quite interested in kendo, right?"

"Eh? Kurokawa-nii participated in a kendo competition? That's amazing." Sonoko looked at him with admiration.

"It's just so-so."

Kurokawa was naturally very modest about this.

And so, as the two children listened to Kurokawasaki Tsuki recount the formidable opponents they encountered in the match (fake, they were all defeated in one strike), they occasionally let out exclamations of admiration. Little Ran's attention was also drawn to this, and she seemed to be less upset.

Chapter Four: Shinichi Kudo's Protection

Soon, Kurokawa Saki took Ran home and met Kogoro Mouri. As for Sonoko, she was picked up by her own driver.

After dropping Xiaolan off, Kurokawa started heading home, and on the way, he saw a familiar figure running down the street.

Kurokawa Saki narrowed his eyes: "Kudo Shinichi? It's you again, kid," and then chased after him in a few steps.

While still running, Shinichi Kudo suddenly felt a lifting force coming from his back, and then he found that his feet had actually left the ground.

Shinichi Kudo turned around and met Kuro Kawasaki Tsuki's handsome face as he leaned in. The two stared at each other in silence.

"Black, Kurokawa-nii..." Shinichi Kudo stammered, then seemed to realize something, and hurriedly hid something in his small hand.

This little action naturally couldn't escape the eyes of Kurokawa Sakizuki.

"What a coincidence, Kurokawa-nii, we meet again."

"Yes, what a coincidence! Kudo, didn't you just go home? Why are you out playing again so soon?"

"Um... Brother Kurokawa, could you please put me down first?"

"Sure, let me see what you're hiding on you." Kurokawa then reached out and grabbed at him.

"There is nothing!"

Despite Shinichi Kudo's efforts to hide, Kurokawa Saki feinted and easily snatched the item from his hand.

Having obtained the item, Kurokawa abandoned Shinichi Kudo and began examining what the kid had been hiding. Hmm? A photograph?

In the photo, Ran is wearing a kimono and yukata, with one arm linked with Shinichi Kudo's and the other outstretched, while Shinichi Kudo looks reluctant.

Kurokawa narrowed his eyes and immediately noticed a little boy in the corner. Wasn't this the ill-mannered chubby boy named Daisuke from earlier?

"No..." Shinichi Kudo jumped up and tried to snatch the photo back, but no matter how much he jumped, he still couldn't reach Kurokawasaki Tsuki.

Kurokawasaki Tsuki held up the photo, looking at Kudo Shinichi provocatively.

"What's going on, Kudo-kun?"

Shinichi Kudo's face turned red, and he lowered his head, stammering for a long time without being able to come up with a reason.

Without waiting for his explanation, Kurokawasaki Tsuki quickly pulled out his camera from his bag while Kudo Shinichi was having a brainstorming session. It was a birthday gift from Yumoto Tairou. He took a picture of the photo in his hand and also took a picture of the current young Kudo.

Then Kurokawa began to admire the photos he had taken with the camera, and his hand holding the photos unconsciously lowered.

"A good opportunity!" Shinichi Kudo thought to himself as he saw Kurokawa lower his hand. He then leaped up, snatched the photo back from Kurokawa's hand, and quickly turned and ran away.

Without turning his head, Kudo called out, "Kurokawa-nii, my friend is still waiting for me, I'm going now."

Watching Shinichi Kudo disappear in a flash, Kurokawasaki Tsuki raised an eyebrow, put away his camera, and silently followed.

Shinichi Kudo stopped in a small park, leaning on his knees and panting heavily.

Suddenly, a shadow fell over Shinichi Kudo. Kudo looked up and saw that the person who came was none other than Daisuke, the chubby boy.

Seeing Kudo panting heavily, Daisuke couldn't help but ask, "What are you doing, Kudo?"

"I...I'm fine..." Kudo said, taking a breath.

"Who cares about you? Hurry up and tell me what you want to talk to me about."

Kudo swallowed hard before recovering and said, "Actually, you like Mori, right?"

At that moment, under a tree not far from Shinichi Kudo, Tsuki Kurokawa peeked out with half his face. Hearing such explosive news, he thought to himself, "As expected, there's some juicy gossip. I came to the right place. Come on, Kudo, let's have a duel between men!"

When Daisuke heard Kudo's question, his face turned red instantly: "I...I don't like it at all, don't talk nonsense."

Shinichi Kudo smiled confidently: As expected!

Kudo held up the photo: "Here, how about this, if you agree to my request?"

Kurokawa Saki, standing under the tree, noticed the photo Kudo had taken out. After taking a closer look, the corner of his mouth twitched involuntarily: "Things are developing a bit strange... But Kudo is really willing to go to such lengths."

In the photo, Shinichi Kudo, who was originally being held by the arm, is gone. Only Ran, dressed in a kimono or yukata, and Daisuke in the corner are left. It looks like a photo of Daisuke and Ran together. As for Shinichi Kudo, who was being held by the arm, it seems to have been cut out and is now being hidden behind him.

Daisuke's eyes lit up when he saw the photo, and he agreed without waiting for Kudo to say anything.

Then the two of them secretly whispered and plotted something, and then they started heading towards the school.

Kurokawasaki Tsuki naturally chose to follow him to the end; after all, he was already here...

Then, Shinichi Kudo and Daisuke were seen sneaking back to school.

After sneaking back to school, Shinichi Kudo and Daisuke quickly returned to their classroom. Kudo took out a large white cloth and together with Daisuke wrapped a bamboo pole covered with signs.

Sasatake holds a unique place in Japanese culture.

During the Qixi Festival, people write their wishes on slips of paper and hang them on bamboo poles, which are called "sasa wishes," expressing their longing for a better future.

After wrapping the bamboo sticks, Shinichi Kudo and Daisuke carried them one after the other and hid them away, carefully avoiding the teachers who were leaving get off work and those on duty along the way.

Kurokawa Saki waited outside until it was almost dark, but he still hadn't seen the two of them. The school gates had long been closed. He stroked his chin and suddenly realized that the two of them might have slipped out from somewhere else.

Kurokawa Saki decided to wait and see; after all, if they slipped away from somewhere else, there was nothing he could do about it.

Before long, it got dark.

There was a commotion coming from the gate, and then Shinichi Kudo was seen climbing over the gate, while Daisuke was carrying a large object wrapped in a white cloth and struggling to throw it out the door.

However, it was not successfully thrown over.

"Hey, Kudo, hurry up and help!"

Kudo started thinking of a solution, and then he heard a soft laugh beside him.

Kurokawasaki Tsuki crossed his arms and looked at the two of them, leaning against the wall as he asked, "Kudo-kun, oh—and this little boy, do you need any help?"

"Kuro...Kurokawa-nii?" Shinichi Kudo exclaimed in surprise, "What are you doing here?"

Daisuke, who was inside the door, saw Kurokawa and, thinking of the can of orange juice from that afternoon, felt a sense of fear.

Kurokawasaki Tsuki came to Kudo's side: "Tell me, Kudo, what happened this time? Stealing isn't a good thing, you know."

Left with no other choice, Shinichi Kudo had to honestly confess to Tsuki Kurokawa.

It turns out that Qixi Festival is approaching, and today they are holding an event where people hang wishes on bamboo poles. He saw the wish written by Ran Mouri. Ran Mouri hopes that her mother, who had quarreled with her father, can come back. So they decided to take out the bamboo pole and put it at Ran's mother's door so that Ran's mother can see the wish she hung and come home to fulfill Ran's wish.

Furthermore, Daisuke also saw Ran's wish. Daisuke only bullied Ran because he liked her. Speaking of which, this brat's thinking is really strange. What kind of logic is this?

Having learned the whole story, Kurokawasaki Tsuki also agreed with Shinichi Kudo's actions. "Shinichi and Ran are such a great couple," Kurokawasaki Tsuki thought to himself.

It turns out that Shinichi was secretly protecting Ran in his own way, even when Ran couldn't see him.

"However, Kudo-kun, you shouldn't have treated Mori-kun like that this afternoon. Mori-kun will be very upset, you know?"

"And you, Daisuke, even if you like someone, you shouldn't bully her to get her attention. That's not manly behavior, it will only make girls hate you more."

Kurokawasaki Tsuki, too, didn't forget to teach a lesson he deserved.

"Yes, yes, we know we were wrong," Shinichi Kudo and Daisuke replied in unison, heads bowed.

Seeing that the two admitted their mistake, Kurokawa Saki didn't say much. He immediately jumped over the gate, helped Daisuke to get over the gate, and then picked up the bamboo stick on the ground and jumped back over.

After returning the bamboo shoot to the two of them, Kurokawa clapped his hands to brush off the dust.

"Then, let's set off and continue according to your plan!"

"Yes!" the two men shouted, carrying the wrapped bamboo.

.........

After finishing her day's work, Eri Kisaki, Ran's mother, returned to her apartment and suddenly found a bamboo grove leaning against her door.

"Huh? Why is there something like this at the entrance?"

Eri Kisaki approaches Sasatake.

"Huh? This is it?"

She quickly noticed the wish plaque written by Ran Mouri.

The note read, "Hope Mom comes home soon - Ran Mouri".

After reading it, Eri Kisaki felt a ripple of emotion.

"orchid…"