"Thump…!"
The young Girl did not get the answer she wanted; instead, she heard a thump on her head.
Seeing the boy across from him rap the Girl's head without hesitation, the stall owner thought they were about to argue. For a moment he wondered if he should quickly pack everything for them, as long as they didn't cause trouble in front of his stall…
Just as he was about to speak up to mediate, he watched the boy shake his hand and say, full of distaste, "Your hand is very dirty. Why are you licking it?"
Shouko ignored him. She gently rubbed the spot on her head and looked at the young Girl behind the stall. "Pack them all up for me."
She took three hundred yen from her wallet and handed it over, not forgetting to respond to Tsuna's earlier comment:
"My Tsuna is always fragrant and not dirty at all."
"..."
Tsuna refused to fall for her trick. After wiping the spot she had licked with a wet tissue, he took out his phone and sent a message to his mother.
"Mom, Shouko and I will be home late today. No need to prepare dinner for me."
"(OK.jpg)"
Tsuna put away his phone after receiving the speedy reply. Shouko, who had watched the entire exchange, immediately mimicked him.
"Here, arigato!"
Tsuna noticed she was still replying to messages, so he took the food from her. With his other hand, he took her hand and walked toward the next stall.
The afterglow of the sunset washed over the sports field, now far less crowded. Everything was painted in a gentle orange-gold hue that softened the remaining bustle and lingering liveliness.
Even the wind felt calmer, carrying the scent of grass and the final traces of grilled sausage.
"Ah~"
Tsuna unhesitatingly picked up a piece of lotus root, which she disliked, and tried to feed it to her. Shouko tilted her head aside, dodging it with a resentful glare.
"Tsuna, you're so annoying…"
"Hai, hai, hai…"
Tsuna smiled, giving up. The lotus root ended up in his own mouth instead.
Around them were the sounds of stalls closing, plastic crates dragging across the grass with a "clatter-clatter".
Seeing Shouko put away her phone, Tsuna handed her the oden. They wandered aimlessly, the evening temperature pleasantly mild.
"Tsuna, here, I can't eat anymore…"
He accepted the oden she returned, glanced at what was left, and immediately understood: it wasn't that she couldn't eat anymore, but that she didn't want to.
He expected this. Without commenting, he finished the rest quietly, occasionally nodding to the chattering Girl beside him.
Passing a yakisoba stall, two Boys struggled to lift a huge greasy iron wok onto a trailer.
One of them, drenched in sweat, noticed the pair walking by. His eyes lit up. With his last burst of enthusiasm, he shouted:
"Students! Students! Last box! Yakisoba! I'll sell it for 300 yen, take-out! It's usually 500!"
As if afraid they wouldn't believe him, he slapped a slightly squashed paper box nearby. It was indeed full, sauce nearly overflowing.
Tsuna still had a piece of radish in his mouth and intended to refuse, but Shouko beat him.
She nodded, paid, and took the box in one smooth motion. Tsuna looked at the extra yakisoba and silently calculated how much he would probably end up eating…
Shouko opened the lid without hesitation. A fragrant aroma of sauce mixed with the wok's heat drifted out.
The boy chuckled as he counted the money. "We sold almost everything today. This is all that's left. Cheaper to clear it out! I didn't skimp on the ingredients!"
Tsuna looked over. Indeed, shredded cabbage, carrot strips, and minced meat were piled high, drenched in thick sauce.
This was definitely the "value-for-money" last box.
Saying nothing more, Tsuna and Shouko turned to continue browsing. The yakisoba was placed in a plastic bag to eat later on a bench.
"Club… President…?"
As they wandered, Shouko's steps suddenly stopped. She called out in surprise.
The blue-haired Girl who had been called turned her head while still chewing something. She carried several plastic bags of food.
The sight left a strong impression on Tsuna, who had never met her before. She reminded him of the carefree Girl Miu Matsuoka from elementary school.
"Yo!" The Girl swallowed and greeted them cheerfully.
"..."
"President, why… are you here?" Shouko walked forward in confusion. "Didn't Senior Yuki say you had something important to deal with?"
Her gaze drifted over the many bags of food the president was carrying, and the answer began to form in her mind…
"Yabai…"
The blue-haired Girl suddenly froze, panic flashing in her eyes.
She stared at her food, then at the yakisoba in Shouko's hand, trapped in an internal struggle.
After a second of hesitation, she gritted her teeth, thrust the bag of takoyaki into Shouko's arms, and turned to run away at full speed.
As she fled, her voice trailed off in the wind:
"Shouko-chan! Remember you didn't see me, and I didn't see you either!!"
"..."
Shouko, who had intended to introduce Tsuna, stared at the still-warm takoyaki, completely bewildered.
"Let's go. Let's keep looking around." Tsuna took her hand and guided her toward the stalls still open.
He had already confirmed that the takoyaki was a bribe.
Afterward, they tried all the mini-games one by one: balloon darts, ring toss, goldfish scooping, the Rubik's Cube speed challenge. The small prizes in their hands increased steadily.
Their stomachs expanded along the way. Whenever they found food that looked interesting, Shouko would take a few bites, then feed the rest to Tsuna.
Because he was carrying so much, she even thoughtfully fed him by hand. It earned only a look of mild exasperation from him…
————
"I'm full, I'm full…"
The long bench, gilded by sunset, made a soft "creak" as the two sat down.
Shouko gently patted her slightly rounded belly and naturally took the plastic bag of snacks Tsuna offered.
"It seems Takagi-chan and the others already went back," Shouko said, watching people pack up in the distance. "Tsuna, should we sit for a bit and then go back too?"
Tsuna nodded and checked his watch. It wasn't even seven yet. Not late at all.
"How about we take a walk outside the school?"
"Let's go!"
Shouko instantly prepared to stand, but Tsuna quickly grabbed her hand.
"No rush. Sit and rest for a while. Don't you feel a bit stuffed?"
Shouko looked at him with confusion, gently rubbing the soft flesh on her lower belly. "Not stuffed. Just a little full. Walking is no problem."
"..."
Tsuna pinched her cheek, expression helpless. "I'm stuffed, aren't I?"
"We didn't eat that much. Tsuna, you're so weak…"
"..."