Yukinoshita Haruno entered a state of coquetry. "Please, Shizu-chan. I originally wanted to give this task to Hayama, but unfortunately, he and Yukino aren't in the same class. So I had to find you, our enthusiastic and beautiful homeroom teacher!"
"...."
Haruno continued, "Three rounds of drinks, plus one meal at a three-star restaurant."
Hiratsuka Shizuka picked up her coffee. "That's not what I meant. It's just that Yukino has grown up. She should have her own life. Constantly watching her... might not be a good thing."
Yukinoshita Haruno pouted. "Honestly, Shuchiin is a mixed bag. What if Yukino really gets snatched away?"
Hiratsuka Shizuka chuckled. "Don't worry. If Yukino really does get involved with any boy, I'll take the initiative to pay attention."
"Then I'll be counting on you for information sharing!"
"But it's impossible, isn't it? Haruno, you're just overthinking. Don't you know your own sister? If she really does get too close to a certain boy, you won't have to treat me to a three-star restaurant. I'll treat you!"
"...."
Yukinoshita Haruno fell silent. Her gaze suddenly shifted to the window, her pupils visibly widening, as if she had seen something astonishing.
"What's wrong, Haruno? What did you see?"
Hiratsuka Shizuka followed Haruno's gaze and slowly turned her head. With a splutter, the coffee in her mouth accidentally sprayed out.
Putting down her coffee, she rubbed her eyes hard. Hiratsuka Shizuka couldn't believe her eyes. It had only been a week since school started.
That Yukino, who was usually like a block of ice... Yukino, who didn't even have female friends, let alone male ones... was actually on a date with a boy on the weekend!!
At the entrance of the shopping center, Yukinoshita Yukino calmly walked into the crowd with a boy, disappearing from sight.
Yukinoshita Haruno's eyes narrowed. She stood up and walked straight out the door.
"Shizu-chan, help me pay the bill. I'm going to see what's going on!"
On the other side, after entering the shopping center, Yukinoshita Yukino took Uchiha Ryo to the pet store on the third floor.
"This one, and this one. Hmm, I need this one too!"
Does a ninja cat like Enyun-chan really need things for ordinary cats? Ah, let's forget about the cat entertainment supplies. That creature is already inseparable from its phone.
"As for the high-quality canned cat food, let's start with thirty cans."
As expected of the second daughter of the Yukinoshita family, she was very generous. But just as Yukinoshita was about to take out her credit card to pay, she was stopped by Uchiha Ryo.
"The items have been chosen. I'll pay. If I let a girl rush to pay when we're out, I'd look down on myself."
Yukinoshita Yukino shook her head. "Pointless male pride. You're an external student, right? The cost of this high-quality cat food and cat supplies is not low."
"Even if I'm an external student, I can still afford this much."
Uchiha Ryo rushed to buy the items first. It turned out this pet store offered home delivery for single purchases over 300,000 yen, which was quite nice.
After buying the items, with the delivery expected to arrive at the apartment building in the afternoon, Uchiha Ryo looked at Yukinoshita, who was standing outside the pet store.
"What's next? Do you want to continue shopping for other things, or go straight back?"
"Are you asking me to go shopping with you? Then please allow me to refuse."
"...Then let's go back."
It seems the task of raising Yukino's affinity should be left to Enyun-chan. I have no interest in making a fool of myself like this.
I bet even Hiratsuka-sensei is easier to capture than Yukinoshita Yukino.
As Uchiha Ryo was thinking, he saw Yukino in front of him suddenly stop, her gaze fixed on a pet-related merchandise shop.
It seemed some new plush toys had been released, and along with the promotion, a prize-winning game booth had been set up.
"Let's go, let's go take a look."
Yukino didn't move. Uchiha Ryo, however, changed his course and walked towards the shop.
"Hm? You..."
Yukinoshita Yukino had indeed seen many interesting cat dolls and a Mr. Pan the panda plushie, but these were all prizes from the event, not things that could be bought with money.
If they could be bought with money, Yukinoshita would definitely not give up on the cute Mr. Pan plushie. But... arriving in front of the shop, Yukino looked at Uchiha Ryo beside her.
"Wouldn't it be better to just go back?"
Uchiha Ryo looked at the booth in front of them and, while calling the owner over, said.
"You seem to like it a lot. Just consider it a thank you gift for helping me with the cat supplies."
[Yukinoshita Yukino's affinity for you has slightly increased—G-Points +5]
After a short while, a portly middle-aged man walked over, holding a box of plastic kunai and pointing at the balloons on a foam wall about four meters behind him.
"500 yen for four throws. If you can pop three balloons, you can take a plushie."
Perhaps the new plushies were very popular. In front of Uchiha Ryo, there were already many passersby throwing plastic kunai at the balloons. Among them were high school students like them, middle-aged people, and even elementary school students who had stopped at the booth.
"Boss, is there something wrong with your plastic kunai? Why don't they pop even when I hit them?!"
The middle-aged boss frowned. "How could that be? Look."
With that, the boss picked up a kunai, walked over to a balloon, and lightly poked it with the tip. The balloon immediately popped.
"Boss, give me 500 yen's worth to start."
Uchiha Ryo slapped down the money, and Yukinoshita could only sigh and stand behind him.
"Thanks for your support! Your girlfriend is so pretty, young man. You have to win her the biggest plushie."
Yukinoshita raised an eyebrow and was about to retort when she saw Uchiha Ryo had already thrown the first kunai.
The foam wall was not small, but the balloons on it were only fist-sized. Moreover, the balloons were not densely packed. For an ordinary person, it was indeed difficult to hit them.
The kunai accurately embedded itself in the foam, a short distance from the nearest balloon. The boss immediately sighed in relief and pulled it out with a grin.
Uchiha Ryo's expression was blank. The weight of the kunai is off. The overall balance has been tampered with. The usual throwing method won't work.
The boss cheerfully handed the kunai back to Uchiha Ryo. "Hehe, not a bad throw. Just a little off, what a shame."
On the second throw, the kunai grazed the side of a balloon, but the balloon didn't pop. It seemed the edges of the kunai had been blunted. To pop the balloon, one had to hit it precisely with the tip.
"You're pretty good, young man. It's alright, you still have two more chances!"
Yukinoshita walked up and pulled on Uchiha Ryo's sleeve, whispering.
"These limited-time events that only run for a day or two are mostly rigged. It could be the kunai or the balloons. In any case, it's better not to waste money."
Uchiha Ryo smiled. "Trust me."
Yukinoshita was stunned for a moment. It was the first time she had noticed that Uchiha Ryo's eyes seemed different from others'. It was an indescribable feeling, but for a moment, Yukino seemed to see two shining stars.
[Yukinoshita Yukino's affinity for you has slightly increased—G-Points +5]
"Boss, with only two chances left, I won't be able to win anything even if I hit. I'm starting to suspect your kunai are rigged."
"How could that be? Didn't I just test it? Right? And you almost hit it on your second try."
Uchiha Ryo narrowed his eyes. "Is that so? But from what I see, no one else around here seems to be able to win one of your plushies."
The boss looked at Uchiha Ryo, then at the seven or eight people who had already played and gathered around.
"Uh... hahaha, every customer is a guest! How about this, I'll give you a discount. 500 yen for seven throws. Counting the two you have left, give me another 500, and you can throw nine more times."
Uchiha Ryo smiled. "Really? Then I get to throw nine times."