Aunt Xiangzi, how did you manage to live?

Could it be that Yana saw Anzu...?

"...Actually, he was also someone who traveled back from the future with Xiaojun?"

Chapter Ten: System Bacteria, Vanished Without a Trace?

Speaking of which, is it possible that Anna Hanami is actually a time traveler?

Nagasaki Motoyo remained silent, letting her extraordinary wisdom lead her towards a vague and ethereal logic.

It's obvious that Anna Hanami isn't as interested in musical instruments as the girls from Mujica and MYGO, and she's unlikely to be the kind of girl who plays in a band—but who knows what the future holds?

What if this guy is actually a friend from the future who traveled with Akatsuki?

Although there is no evidence to prove this at the moment, Su Shi's thoughts continued to wander aimlessly.

After all, all of this is really too strange.

The memory that Su Shi had of holding a young Xiao in her arms came from a photograph that appeared in that guy's bag. The video that awakened a small fragment of Le Nai's memory was also sent to her phone by an unknown account.

Even if she wasn't Xiao's companion who traveled back decades, she's at least someone he introduces to everyone as a friend.

Regardless, she is inextricably linked to Kazama Akatsuki's secret, and there's no escaping that.

"………etc."

Thinking of this, Su Shi's eyes suddenly lit up as if the clouds had parted to reveal the moon.

In any case, if she can become friends with Kazama's friends as well, she might be able to obtain more unknown information from Anna Hanami.

Moreover, every time one of them awakens their memories, it's because something unexpected happened to Hanami's side...

So, could Nagasaki Motoyo take this opportunity to grasp and control the frequency and timing of such "accidents"—in order to close the gap with Hatsuka?

Thinking of this, Su Shi couldn't wait to pick up the phone that was on the table.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"That's quite rare... Su Shi actually asked me to hang out."

Without hesitation, Nagasaki Motoyo immediately contacted Hachimi Anna and asked to meet. The two met at a beverage shop in a bustling shopping mall when they were both free.

"Oh, I'm so sorry... I don't really understand what girls in bands like to shop for when they go out. How about we just grab some desserts or something to kill some time and fill our stomachs?"

The blue-haired girl sitting opposite Su Shi smiled sweetly. She rubbed her stomach a little shyly, just using this subtle way to express her desire to eat.

"Apricot Girl, just order whatever dessert you like. Since I invited you out without telling you beforehand, you can just put the bill on my tab, hehe."

Su Shi smiled gracefully, covering her face, and put on the polite yet distant mask she often used when facing people she wasn't very familiar with.

"Hehe, I can't possibly accept that..."

The blue-haired girl said this shyly, but her fingers involuntarily flipped through the menu.

"If I remember correctly, Anzu-chan is usually closer to Chihaya-san, right? Have you two gone out together recently? When I rehearse with her, Chihaya-san occasionally mentions you~"

Su Shi tilted her head with a smile, her expression like that of an elegant and graceful long-haired cat, her tone still so sweet that it could give you goosebumps.

"Oh dear~ I haven't hung out with Aine-chan much lately. She said she needs to train hard so as not to embarrass herself in the next performance, so we've only seen each other a handful of times. Hmm, this avocado Basque looks delicious..."

Banami shook her head and smiled nonchalantly. She was actually well aware of Su Shi's social skills, but she still turned a blind eye and let Su Shi use such a seemingly gentle tone to interpret her feelings.

She could actually guess why Su Shi had called her out. All that small talk and inconsistency was just Su Shi's prelude to getting to the point.

This guy definitely called himself out because of Kazama's matter.

Banami saw Anzu thinking to herself, but she didn't bring up her thoughts to expose Suze's explanation. She simply maintained an attitude of seeing through things but not saying anything and let it pass.

Actually, during this time, Anna Hanami was intentionally keeping her distance from the group of band girls.

Although she still often chats and jokes with Kazama on social media, and occasionally goes out shopping and plays games with Aine, there is always a voice in her heart telling her that keeping her distance from most of the band girls is the best choice.

Strangely enough, the system's voice hadn't appeared in her mind for a long time.

Since Mujica's grand debut performance at the Budokan came to a spectacular end, even a typical high school girl like her, who only ever followed the trend of watching girl bands live, had heard the news. After that, the system never appeared in her mind again.

Could it be that Kazama's ultimate mission is to ensure that Ave Mujica successfully forms a group and performs well?

Occasionally, Banana would also think this way when she saw Anja.

But who cares—since the system's voice didn't appear, it means there are no tasks assigned to her.

Banami can finally continue her life as she used to, no longer bound by that voice.

Without the constraints of the system, she found that she felt no pressure or sense of incongruity when communicating with Kazama.

Even if it's just a silly emoji or a picture of the cute kitten Kazama taken on the way to school, he'll respond seriously and interestingly to any topic she brings up. Even when he's too busy with Ave Mujica's work, he'll always reply to each and every message from Hanami after he's finished, even if it's just some extremely boring daily rant or joke.

What a strange guy.

It feels really nice to be cared for and treated so seriously, but I wonder if this gentleness and attention is unique to her, or if Kazama is this considerate to everyone.

Even though they are two people who don't see each other often and their communication is limited to online exchanges, they can still chat casually.

Actually, if the system hadn't interfered halfway through, she probably would have naturally become friends with Kazama.

These are what Hanami has been thinking during this period of time.

However... Su Shi should not know about her private interactions with Kazama.

Thinking of this, the blue-haired girl rolled her eyes and slightly raised her head.

"Does Su Shi just want to ask me out for a drink and dessert? Or is it..."

"Hehe, of course, it's also something I've been thinking about, and I hope to get some answers from Xingcai Jiang."

Su Shi finally explained his purpose with a smile.

"Actually, I'm curious... have you ever received anything really strange before—like every time before?"

Chapter Eleven: Amidst the carnage, a three-way standoff!

Something very strange... Could it be referring to those objects that appeared out of nowhere before?

Although Anna Hanami appears to be a naive and carefree girl, she is actually quite perceptive—she immediately grasped what Suze was referring to.

Old photos that inexplicably appeared in her handbag, videos sent to her social media by unknown accounts... and a boy who looked nine or even ten times more like Kazama, also appearing in the photos and videos.

Anna had long suspected something was amiss, but she simply assumed it was a photo of the Kazama family that had been leaked by the system out of the blue.

Actually, she had a vague idea of ​​what was going on.

A boy who looks exactly like Kazama, an adult woman who resembles Sosei by at least seven or eight points, and a woman in her thirties or forties whose appearance is almost identical to that of the wildcat girl Kaname Rakuna.

There must be some intricate connection between them.

If it were before, Hanami Anzu would definitely have been overwhelmed by her own incompetence and wouldn't have wanted to think about it any further.

After all, she never wanted to waste her brain cells trying to figure out the relationship between the person in the picture and Kazama; the truth couldn't be any more outrageous than the existence of this system itself.

But recently... she's been reading quite a few system-themed novels.

Novels are often unrealistic, but at least they are logically connected. Real life, however, is often unrealistic and even completely different from reality, a fact she deeply felt after experiencing all these absurd stories.

I've even got a system on me... so maybe the relationships between these people are more complicated than I imagined.

These thoughts flashed through her mind as she buried her head in her tea.

For example, Kazama is actually the older brother of the little boy in the photo and video, and Sose and Rakuna are the close relatives of the two women.

These are fairly common-sense guesses, but they fall apart when certain details are considered.

For example, the little boy in the film is now affectionately called Akatsuki by the white-haired woman. Presumably, Kazama doesn't have a habit of addressing brothers with the same name within his family.

After her thoughts had wandered, Anzu had already vaguely glimpsed the truth.

While she was cramming on system-based online novels, she was also cramming on her movie viewing experience.

In fact, Anna Hanami had already envisioned the ending that was closest to the truth.

Could it be that Kazama, like the protagonist of "Back to the Future" or "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," is someone who is different from everyone else?

So, it seems she has never heard Kazama mention where he went to school, never met his family, and rarely heard him talk about his past.

Having already considered this aspect, Banami had more or less guessed something.

She simply didn't bring this up in public, nor did she deliberately expose it to Xiao to embarrass him.

Even at this moment, she was just pretending to be completely unaware as she ate the snacks and desserts on the table, using the act of eating to hide her myriad emotions.

However, Su Shi seems to be holding onto this point tightly and refusing to let go. It seems that she is even more bothered by it than Kazama.

"Since then, have any new videos or photos appeared?"

Su Shi smiled slightly and raised a question in a refined tone.

"Absolutely not."

Banami immediately shook her head in response, and of course, she wasn't lying at all.

During the period when the system was silent, those abnormal situations also disappeared.

Banami was certain that this anomaly was caused by the system bound to Kazama's panel, but she didn't know why Sose had brought it up in such a strange way.

"I see... I was still holding onto a sliver of hope, thinking that Apricot Sauce might know something. After all, both that photo and the video came from you, and I thought that maybe Mutsu also knew something... Ah, sorry. It seems I was overthinking it."

Su Shi smiled apologetically as her eyes crinkled at the corners—and her words, which she abruptly stopped halfway through, successfully piqued Banami's interest.

"Muto... is that Wakaba Muto? The one who's currently active at Ave Mujica?"

Her eyes lit up, not only because Mu was a well-known second-generation star, but also because Kazama had always shown special care for the child, which made Banami somewhat impressed.

"Yes, it's Xiao Mu."

Seeing that she had successfully aroused the curiosity of the eight eels, Su Shi kept the smile on her face gentle and charming.

Miss Ruoye Mutsu... Hmm, I always feel like the system hasn't given me anything about this little star.

After racking her brains for a while, Hanami realized that the leak of that photo and video was actually an accident, and she didn't remember any other accidents related to Wakaba Mutsu.

Despite her clear stance, Su Shi did not give up after receiving such a clear answer.

"Oh, that's great! Hehe. If you'd like any other desserts, please add them to the menu!"

"Oh, I can't accept this..."

"It's okay. I was actually looking forward to getting to know Ancho-chan, since we only met because of Xiaojun. We can take this opportunity to chat and get to know each other better, can't we?"

Su Shi's smile remained bright, but she had already devised a plan in her mind.

The series of unexpected events involving photos and videos were all caused by Banami's sudden circumstances, and she did not believe that it was just a coincidence.

If it happens once, it will happen twice, so the third time shouldn't be far off.

Misaka Chuka seemed to want to use Metis's power to balance the relationship between Mu and Akatsuki, but she still didn't have the foresight to see things from a longer perspective.

Nagasaki Motoyo smiled, a proud and arrogant thought sprouting in her mind.

Instead of taking the initiative like Hatsuka, she chose to "lie in wait" by Hanami's side.

Sooner or later, another unexpected event will bring new information, and at that time... she will be far ahead of Chu Hua.

Thinking of this, Su Shi couldn't help but smile slightly.

"So you mean we can play a little longer? Great! There's a shop over there that sells albums and all sorts of merchandise. If you don't mind, Su Shi, would you like to come with me?"

Banami Anzu seemed completely unaware of Suze's scheming, and even readily agreed with a smile.

She's such an easy woman to win over.

Nagasaki Motoyo was secretly delighted as well.

"Ah, but... hehe."

But before she could be happy for long, Banami chuckled a little embarrassedly and touched her rumbling stomach.

"...Could I also order a Basque cheese? Uh, or tiramisu would be fine too."

"...Please, please make yourself at home..."