Butler Suzuki was driving the same familiar luxury van.
While he went to fetch the car, Kazuma and Nanjō Honami stood beneath the eaves of the Matsuya main entrance, watching the steady drizzle of the rainy season together.
A light breeze carried a familiar scent of white plum blossoms to Kazuma's nose.
"The fragrance of white plums in the rain really is intoxicating," he remarked.
Nanjō smiled. "I'm glad you like it, Sensei."
At that, Kazuma felt a sudden wave of complicated emotions.
Up until now, Nanjō had always called him Kazuma-kun—which gave things a nice youthful, romantic vibe. But now? Just one Sensei, and the whole atmosphere had shifted.
It was like he'd suddenly become Tripitaka from Journey to the West, and Nanjō had become his senior disciple. Poof—romantic mood? Gone.
In fact, if this kept up, it wouldn't be long before they'd be trudging along with her carrying a yoke of baskets while he led a horse, greeting the sunrise and bidding farewell to the setting sun.
Kazuma seriously wondered to himself: Wait… did I get shortchanged here?
Noticing his silence, Nanjō asked curiously, "Sensei, is something wrong?"
Kazuma really wanted to ask, Are you trying to withdraw from the competition? But of course he couldn't say that—that would make him sound like a total jerk.
After thinking it over, Kazuma sighed inwardly. Fine. Sensei it is.
Besides, Nanjō would probably still be coming to the dojo regularly anyway. And with Nanjō Hiroshi unlikely to restrict her anymore, she'd probably be spending even more time there.
Looking at it that way… actually, that didn't seem too bad. Up until now, the only beautiful girl always around the dojo had been Chiyoko. If Nanjō became a regular fixture too, the scenery might just improve a little.
And if Nanjō was around more… the class rep would probably start showing up more often too...
Hmm. This could actually be pretty nice.
Watching the shifting expressions on his face, Nanjō tilted her head in puzzlement. "Sensei, your expressions are all over the place."
"I just thought of something funny," Kazuma replied, brushing it off.
"Oh? What's so funny? Tell me too~" Nanjō scooted a step closer to him—close enough that something soft brushed against his side.
Kazuma suddenly thought… Being Sensei might not be so bad after all.
Just then, Suzuki pulled up in the van.
Kazuma stepped forward and opened the rear door, giving Nanjō a gentlemanly "please, after you" gesture.
After she climbed in, Kazuma slipped into the front passenger seat.
"Huh? Why?" Nanjō asked.
Kazuma blinked. "Why what? You weren't planning to do something to your Sensei, were you?"
"No, of course not, but…" Nanjō trailed off, turning to look out the window.
Suzuki let out a hearty laugh from the driver's seat. "Haha, seeing this scene puts my mind at ease."
He started the engine and smoothly merged into traffic.
After about a minute of quiet driving, Suzuki spoke in a more serious tone. "I truly must thank you for everything this time, Kiryu-kun."
Being addressed so formally by someone much older felt a little awkward to Kazuma.
But Suzuki didn't seem to mind at all. He continued, "You protected Ojou-sama while also maintaining our relationship with Councilman Asakura—no, this went beyond maintaining. You've essentially helped the Asakura and Nanjō families form a verbal alliance."
"To be honest, when I brought you along today, I didn't imagine things would go so smoothly."
Nanjō spoke up from the back seat, her voice full of genuine admiration. "Sensei, you're amazing."
Kazuma puffed out his cheeks slightly—he still wasn't great at handling such direct praise. "It was nothing. I just did what I could."
Suzuki smiled. "And the fact that what you can do is enough to change the whole situation—that's proof of how powerful you really are. If you truly plan to take on the Kanto Union alone next year, count me in."
—Wait, no, don't! That would cancel out my buffs!
Before Kazuma could refuse, Nanjō piped up from the back. "Me too! I'm going!"
Both Kazuma and Suzuki immediately responded in unison: "No way!"
Nanjō pouted. "But I can fight too, you know. If I train more…"
Kazuma shook his head. "This is my fight. My war."
"I see… then I won't say any more." Suzuki accepted this without argument. "If something really does happen, I'll make sure to look after Kiryu-san. You needn't worry."
Why is everyone so eager to take care of Chiyoko? I'm starting to think your motives aren't exactly pure…
Though Kazuma grumbled inwardly, he replied outwardly with thanks. "I'll be counting on you, then."
As they chatted, the car soon reached the front gate of the Kiryu Dojo.
In this era, Tokyo traffic was still light at night, so the trip went quickly.
Chiyoko was already standing at the gate, anxiously waiting. The moment she saw the car pull up, she rushed out without even grabbing an umbrella.
Kazuma got out first, and Chiyoko threw her arms around him in a tight hug.
"I was so worried about you!" she exclaimed.
"It's not like I went to fight anyone." Kazuma chuckled. "I just went to have a reasonable discussion."
"Yeah, right! You always use your fists to 'reason'!" Chiyoko retorted, then glanced around. "So? Where's Nanjō-senpai?"
Kazuma looked back and saw Nanjō just stepping out of the car.
Suzuki was holding an umbrella for her.
Chiyoko shoved Kazuma aside and rushed over to hug Nanjō.
"Senpai! I'm so glad you're okay!" she cried, burying her face against Nanjō's chest—only to pause. "Huh? What's this? Something hard…"
"Oh, that's my wallet." Nanjō casually parted her kimono and pulled a rather stuffed wallet from between her cleavage.
The thing looked practically bursting.
Kazuma frowned. "Uh… what is that?"
"My runaway funds! But looks like I won't need them after all." With that, Nanjō cheerfully stuffed the wallet into Chiyoko's hands. "This should cover about three years' worth of tuition."
Chiyoko beamed. "Really? Then I'll take it, okay?"
"Better ask Sensei." Nanjō glanced playfully at Kazuma.
Kazuma thought it over—it didn't seem like a problem. He nodded. "Go ahead and accept it. Just make sure you draw up a proper contract. From this day forward, Nanjō-san is officially a student of our dojo for the next three years."
"Yay!" Chiyoko cheered. "Now we have some money! Not a lot, but enough to cover our urgent needs!"
"Oh? I thought you'd be running off to buy watermelons with it," Kazuma teased.
"As if! We're not that rich!"
"Actually… I do have…" Nanjō rolled up her kimono sleeve, revealing her left arm.
Kazuma spotted a row of luxury watches strapped around it and immediately facepalmed.
Suzuki also looked troubled. "Ojou-sama… those are your father's prized collection. If Kiryu-kun were to sell them, it would cause no end of trouble—and cast doubt on his character."
"Ah—oh no, sorry!" Nanjō quickly covered her arm again, then looked at Kazuma and gave a sheepish smile.
Kazuma sighed.
If this were a light novel, the title would totally be "My Disciple Can't Possibly Be This Cute."
(End of Chapter)