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Itohara noticed that the cute girl was suddenly blocked by his cousin, and he felt inexplicably unhappy.
He admitted that he had been deeply moved the first time he saw her. It was the first time he had seen such a petite and cute girl in real life. She looked like the type with a delicate body and was easy to push over. He had only seen her on TV before. As for the girls in his class...
Sorry, his father, Takeshi, had enrolled him in an all-boys elementary school.
"Pa..." While he was still thinking, a large, rough hand slapped him on the head mercilessly, interrupting his thoughts.
Before he could look up, he heard his father's gruff voice: "Why are you standing there like an idiot? Come here!"
The action naturally attracted the attention of everyone around.
Seeing her brother about to smack Itohara the head, Shizuka quickly stopped him. "That's enough! We're all family, so what's the difference? It won't hurt if you don't!"
"Pa..."
Because Shizuka had stopped him verbally, not physically, the slap landed gently on Itohara's head.
Takeshi quickly withdrew his hand, his eyes unconsciously glancing at his sister, Shizuka's expression. Seeing no change, he breathed a sigh of relief.
With his father's loving concern, Itohara regained his composure and hurriedly called out to Shizuka, Daisuke, and Tsunayoshi.
Finally, his gaze fell back on Shouko, who was standing behind Tsunayoshi. He began to hesitate and falter. He had no idea what to call this lovely girl...
"You haven't told Itohara yet, have you?"
Shizuka noticed his hesitation and immediately guessed the reason. She looked up at Takeshi and asked in confusion.
Seeing her brother's expression change instantly, she immediately guessed the answer.
Reluctantly, she reached out and pulled the reserved Shouko behind Tsuna, introducing her to Itohara:
"This is Shouko, whom I adopted as my goddaughter a few years ago. She and your cousin are childhood sweethearts—"
She paused, turning to ask Takeshi about Itohara's birthdate before continuing:
"Shouko is a year younger than you. Just call her cousin."
The slight resentment that had been bubbling in Itohara's heart instantly vanished after hearing what Shizuka had said.
She was my aunt's goddaughter, so there was no way she could end up with my cousin, right? Didn't this mean he had a chance? Hehe...
He completely forgot about the four words Shizuka had emphasized in Miyamura's previous words.
Tsuna looked at his cousin, with his buzz cut and slightly dark skin, and laughed inexplicably after hearing what Shizuka had said.
He was a bit confused by his train of thought. What was so funny about that?
"Ahem."
Tsuna's attention was drawn to the sound of a cough. He saw his grandfather slowly say after finishing,
"Okay, enough small talk. Go back to your rooms, unpack your bags, and get some rest. You've been on the road for hours."
"Okay, Daisuke, don't you have something to talk to Dad about? You guys go ahead and chat. I'll take your backpack back to your room."
Daisuke nodded and handed the backpack to Shizuka, who took it and tossed it to Tsuna without hesitation.
"..." Tsuna was speechless. After nodding to the others, Shizuka led Shouko and Tsuna out of the living room and, following Takeshi's instructions, walked to the end of the second-floor hallway.
This second floor was reserved for the family, so there were no tourists. At the end of the hallway were two rooms facing each other. Bamboo wind chimes hung on the doors, tinkling softly in the wind.
Shizuka stopped, and Tsuna behind her also stopped. Before Tsuna could express his doubts, he saw his mother let go of Shouko's hand, and a sly look flashed in her eyes.
Then she said seriously: "Shouko, there are only two rooms. It happens that your uncle and I have one, and you and Tsuna have another. What do you think?"
"This, this, this..." As soon as she finished speaking, a blush quickly climbed up on Shouko's cheeks.
After Tsuna glanced at Shouko, who was clearly showing signs of embarrassment, he wondered when this child would completely recognize his mother's taste for bad jokes. He sighed silently and was about to step forward to speak for Shouko, hoping to ease the temperature on her face.
As soon as he took a step, the blush on Shouko's face quickly moved to Tsuna's ear tip.
"Okay." Shouko's response was as thin as a mosquito's hum, so Tsuna's ear tip was instantly dyed crimson.
Tsuna reacted instantly, and seeing that she wanted to say something else, he hurriedly stepped forward, pinched her face, and complained:
"What, Shouko, can't you see that Shizuka is teasing you?"
He was afraid she would say something fierce and foolish.
"Hehe..." Shizuka looked at the two of them blushing, covered her mouth, and chuckled:
"Who said I was teasing Shouko? Since Shouko thinks there is no problem, then it's a happy decision."
As soon as the words fell, Shizuka reached out and took the backpack that Tsuna was holding, opened the wooden door on the left without hesitation, and walked in.
The two of them were left alone in the corridor, surrounded by the silent, cool air of the house.
"I... let's go in...?" Tsuna hesitated for a moment, and seeing that Shizuka still hadn't come out, he turned his head and asked cautiously.
"Uh-huh..." Shouko nodded quickly, a little afraid to look him in the eye.
Seeing this, Tsuna opened the wooden door on the right, and what came into view was a room with green tatami on the floor, a chandelier hanging from the white ceiling, and a brown sliding-door wardrobe on the far left.
There was also a wooden-framed glass window for ventilation and nothing else.
The quilts and other items used for sleeping should be in that wardrobe, to be taken out and spread on the tatami when it was time to rest at night.
Tsuna's first impression was simplicity, very simple.
Retracting his gaze, he stretched out his hand to hold Shouko's, but stopped mid-air.
He suddenly felt that it was important to let Shouko calm down and cool off first. Otherwise, if he held her hand at this time, he was afraid she would have some kind of stress reaction.
"Let's go... let's go in and put down the bags first." Shouko noticed him reaching out his hand out of the corner of her eye, and without hesitation, she put her hand on his, waiting for him to lead her in.
The two walked into the room and casually put down their backpacks. Tsuna, who had almost recovered, turned his head and asked Shouko with concern:
"Shouko, do you want to take a break? I saw you napping non-stop in the taxi."
Shouko looked up at him embarrassedly, and then quickly lowered her head: "Shall we sleep together...?"
"No, if you are tired, take a rest first. I want to go for a walk around the neighborhood." Tsuna rejected Shouko's invitation to sleep together without hesitation.
"Then I'll go with you. I also want to go for a walk around the neighborhood."
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