Chapter 45: Bamboo Forest in the Dark
The third and final day of the school trip arrived quickly.
This day was also the most relaxed—it was the day where everyone was allowed to go off on their own.
Tamamo-no-Mae, who had disappeared to who-knows-where on the first day, also came back. Hikigaya Hachiman gave her a task: if, when everyone was returning, he hadn't shown up, she should use illusions to cover for him.
That was because, on the second day, Hachiman had already noticed the presence of jujutsu sorcerers nearby.
This was definitely related to the inspiration he'd received on the first night.
Unlike old and experienced god-slayers like Voban, Hachiman had a clear definition of what constituted an ordinary person. To him, anyone who couldn't use magic was a normal person. That excluded sorcerers.
Because of that, his attitude toward them would be completely different.
That morning, he indulged himself with a long, satisfying sleep. Although he vaguely remembered being woken up by Tobe and Hayama trying to get him out of bed, he just said something selfish like, "You guys go ahead, I'll catch up soon," and went right back to sleep.
After eventually getting up, dressing, and washing up, he casually picked out some clothes and started packing.
He hadn't planned to go out and have fun that day anyway. Since it was a free activity day, it didn't matter if he stayed in Kyoto or went off somewhere else alone—that was the official rule for the third day of the school trip.
It was a good rule. He intended to flush out the jujutsu sorcerers hiding nearby, and if they were up to no good, give them a proper lesson. Then, maybe, he could figure out what exactly had triggered his inspiration. With that in mind, Hachiman walked out of his room yawning.
"Good morning, Hachiman."
Seeing Miura standing at the door stunned Hachiman.
What was going on?
Also, what was with this sudden shift in tone and style? After her strong-girl and strong-bottom modes, was this a new costume she'd put on?
"Come on, let's go!"
While Hachiman was still frozen in surprise, Miura, acting like a lively, energetic girl, took his arm and linked it with hers. She seemed oddly cheerful, completely different from the night before and even yesterday.
"Oh, breakfast, huh… is it at the big dining hall? Was it on the second floor?"
"Breakfast has been canceled!"
"What?"
Canceled breakfast? What kind of nonsense was that? How could such an important thing be arbitrarily canceled?
"Skipping breakfast isn't good for your health."
"You're oddly serious about weird things…"
Miura sighed helplessly, but quickly got back into gear and pushed Hachiman back into the room.
"Alright, hurry up and pack your stuff. Let's go."
"Wait, something's not right…"
Hachiman desperately wanted to call "pause" like in a game.
His luggage was already mostly packed anyway. Urged by Miura, he returned to the room and picked up his things.
"Put it in front of the main gate, then let's head out."
"I guess putting it at the gate is fine, but what about breakfast…"
Miura wasn't just energetic today—her mood also seemed really upbeat. She was humming a tune and completely ignoring Hachiman's words, skipping off ahead.
Come on, even god slayers need to eat!
Ever heard of the saying: "Eat a good breakfast, a full lunch, and a light dinner?"
Anyway, first came the luggage drop-off procedure.
Each night of the school trip had been at a different accommodation. The third night's location was Arashiyama, one of Kyoto's premier scenic spots.
But no matter how beautiful the scenery was, you couldn't eat it. Hachiman still preferred breakfast over a view.
He followed Miura for a while after leaving the hotel. The streets were interwoven, and each intersection formed a right angle. Watching Miura's skirt sway with her cheerful steps, Hachiman couldn't help but wonder whether Japanese girls had some sort of terminal condition that required school uniform skirts to be short.
Then, a white building that looked like a café came into view.
"Ah… I think that's the place."
"What?"
"For breakfast."
"Oh? So we're not eating at the hotel?"
"I told you, I already got the teachers to cancel it."
Saying that, Miura returned to take his arm again and led him into the café.
Inside, the style was pure Japanese, complete with a courtyard. They headed to the outdoor seating, where to Hachiman's surprise, not only were Hayama and the others already there, but Yukinoshita Yukino was also calmly sipping coffee.
However, the resident fujoshi and Yuigahama Yui were nowhere in sight.
"You're late," Yukinoshita said upon seeing the two of them.
"You're here too?"
Hachiman asked curiously.
"How rude. Did you forget I'm also a member of the Service Club?"
"So annoying," Miura muttered, clearly not getting along with Yukinoshita. "If we're here to discuss Ebina's situation, let's get on with it."
She called over a server and efficiently placed her order.
Though dragging Hachiman to sit beside her seemed a bit excessive.
"Yui took Ebina somewhere else. Let's use this chance to talk things over."
"Tobe ended up going with that plan after all."
Now Hachiman understood what was going on.
Tobe's confession plan had been finalized, and the location had been decided.
No wonder Yukinoshita was here too. After all, she'd been there when Tobe first asked for help, and she was the one who accepted the request.
Just then, their breakfast arrived.
There was bread, ham, fried eggs, salad, coffee, and juice—all arranged beautifully on the plate and very appetizing.
"Let's dig in."
"Yeah, I'm digging in."
"I'm digging in."
Everyone pressed their palms together and began to eat.
As they ate, they listened to Yukinoshita explain the day's itinerary.
"First, we'll go to Fushimi Inari Taisha."
"The Thousand Torii Gates?"
"The one they show on TV!"
Everyone chimed in excitedly. Yukinoshita nodded.
That place was very famous. The layers upon layers of vermilion torii gates were breathtaking and popular among women.
What came to Hachiman's mind, though, was Tamamo-no-Mae. One of her vessels was tied to Japan's worship of the god of harvest, Inari.
Very few youkai had ever managed to achieve that.
"Next, we'll stop by Tofuku-ji, since it's on the way back from Fushimi Inari."
"Then we'll visit Kitano Tenmangu," Yukinoshita continued.
It was clear she'd received very strict training in etiquette. Even while talking, the way she ate was elegant and pleasing to watch.
But what stood out even more was her organizational ability. Even Hayama, who usually took the spotlight, was just listening quietly.
Hachiman once again sensed the presence of a jujutsu sorcerer.
He looked toward the source of the magical energy that had leaked out. It was a man in a wrinkled suit—someone he'd noticed earlier during breakfast. When their eyes met, the man quickly left.
After breakfast, Hachiman went along with the group to begin the third day's schedule.
He was in no rush now. He decided to act that evening.
However, it seemed not everything in Yukinoshita's itinerary was related to Tobe's confession plan.
They spent the whole day just having fun. What stood out to Hachiman was Miura's unusually high spirits, as if she were trying to vent all the emotional buildup inside her.
Finally, night came.
Everyone arrived at Arashiyama.
Arashiyama was known for showcasing all four of Japan's iconic seasonal sceneries—spring cherry blossoms, summer greenery, autumn leaves, and winter snow—and also had hot springs.
They all enjoyed the full charm of Arashiyama's autumn scenery.
Tobe had chosen to confess at a place called the Bamboo Grove Path.
Because in this world, there wouldn't be another Hachiman Hikigaya to step in and help.
He absolutely won't do the same mistake twice.
If Yukinoshita had a way to deal with it, she had to make full use of it.
While everyone was nervously waiting, Hachiman slipped away quietly. He had no intention of watching Tobe's inevitable rejection—just as he had little faith in Yukinoshita's plan.
He walked into the bamboo forest.
The sun set, the moon rose, and pale moonlight bathed the surroundings.
Far down the Bamboo Grove Path, lanterns lit up one by one, clearly visible to a god-slayer's eyes.
That was the stage prepared for Tobe.
But the entire bamboo forest—was Hachiman's stage.
He stopped walking.
"Come out," he said.
Unlike how he acted around his classmates, this version of Hachiman was cold and indifferent.
From the dark forest, a figure emerged.
It was a young man in a wrinkled suit—the same one Hachiman had seen during breakfast.