Chapter 330: The Target Is Nanami After All
Chapter 330: The Target Is Nanami After All
What does it feel like to like someone?
That question was too hard for Himekoji.
Or maybe, he didn’t really want to know the answer.
Anyway, after he started thinking about that feeling, Himekoji only got worse – it was a disaster.
“Y-You said you had something to tell me all of a sudden… w-what is it?”
His stutter was worse than before.
“Well, um… It’s… sort of important… probably.”
Even Nanami started acting strangely.
“…”
“I… I-I-I… I…! H-Have had something I wanted to say to you!”
Stuttering seemed contagious. Nanami’s voice deepened, slipping into her native Kansai dialect.
“Fine. Stop. That’s enough for today.”
Yukinoshita raised her hand to cut them off. She was all about efficiency. Today being the first day, the two leads clearly hadn’t found their groove.
If this kept up, continuing would be a waste.
“Th-That ‘pretend it’s your own confession’ direction is just too embarrassing!”
Her face beet red from shame, Nanami tried to defend herself while looking downcast, her eyes seeming on the verge of tears – so shy she might cry.
“This is no good. If you want things to go smoothly…”
Yukinoshita gave blunt criticism, stricter than anyone expected.
“Aoyama will be fine. Definitely, definitely fine.”
Even though he was probably the reason Nanami messed up, Himekoji shamelessly cheered her on.
“R-Really?”
Hearing Himekoji, Nanami stopped sulking and glanced at him with a strange look.
“Of course!”
Mistaking her meaning, Pervert-kun brazenly guaranteed it.
“Well, since Pervert-kun is so surprisingly motivated, both of you, please proceed with special training according to my plan.”
“Eh? Special training?”
Nanami and Himekoji both looked at Yukinoshita in surprise.
…
Unsurprisingly, Yukinoshita’s “special training” was full of her personal style.
No cunning tricks, no shortcuts, no easy path.
Practice. Practice. Practice!
Doing it again and again, always, nonstop!
Practice until you die. After you die, keep practicing until you come back to life. That was the whole of Yukinoshita’s special training.
Himekoji knew this method well. You could just call it “die and come back to life.”
She’d used it when teaching Saika tennis.
That’s why, after they accepted the special training mission, even when they went home after school, they squeezed out all their free time to practice over and over.
…
“Nanami. Bath time.”
Finally, after their seventh failure today, their special training was interrupted.
It was Mashiro who spoke, having watched the whole time beside them. She seemed displeased, occasionally puffing her cheeks as she went “Wumu~.” Though this little pout was adorable, it gave Himekoji an uneasy feeling like thorns were poking his back.
Mashiro pushed Nanami forward from behind, shoving her toward the bathroom.
“H-Hey, wait! I haven’t gotten my change of underwear yet!”
Suddenly remembering something, Nanami cried anxiously.
“Use mine,” Mashiro said, utterly calm.
“And what about you? What will you do?”
“I don’t need any.”
Mashiro said this with confident coolness.
“Please need it properly! If you do that, it’ll just benefit that pervert in the end!”
Nanami could only complain.
…
Nanami and Mashiro went off to bathe together. Left alone with time on his hands, Himekoji sat cross-legged in the living room, script in hand as usual.
Repeated failures hadn’t dampened his spirit.
After all, he’d boasted about how Nanami could rely on him…
If he couldn’t handle it now, wouldn’t that be embarrassing?
He wanted to support Nanami with all he had. He wanted Nanami’s efforts to be rewarded.
Himekoji flipped through the script, deciding to try practicing by himself against the wall.
“You said you had something to tell me all of a sudden… What is it?”
The first line went smoothly. Surprisingly, no stumbling at all like earlier.
“I see…”
“Me too. I feel the same. I… Like you too.”
He… He actually said it?!
“Got it in one try!”
Overjoyed, Pervert-kun subconsciously clenched his fist, celebrating silently.
Just as he was basking in this personal victory, suddenly… a scream rang out from the bathroom.
“Waaaah!”
It was a perfectly executed high-pitched triple scream, sounding utterly pitiful. What happened was unclear, but what was clear – it was Nanami’s voice.
Had she slipped in the bathroom?
Himekoji scrambled to his feet, calling anxiously toward the bathroom.
“Hey, Aoyama! What happened? Are you okay?”‘
“Okay? Not okay! Akito! Emergency!” It was Mashiro who answered Himekoji.
“What emergency?!”
Himekoji’s heart lurched. Without thinking, he sprinted toward the bathroom.
“Nanami’s chest has grown again. My undergarments don’t fit her now.”
“Huh?”
Himekoji, who’d rushed to the bathroom door, nearly tripped upon hearing Mashiro’s remark.
“Shiina, are you kidding me?!”
This was the so-called emergency?
What a ridiculous emergency!
Even if Nanami’s chest stopped growing forever, it still wouldn’t fit into your undergarments, Mashiro!
“Mashiro! Stop talking nonsense!”
Nanami shrieked, her voice thick with embarrassment and irritation.
“It’s not nonsense. It’s true.”
“Mmmph! Ahh~~ Stop! No! Not there!”
Listening to this suggestive conversation, Himekoji could practically picture the messy scene unfolding inside.
“M-Mashiro! Why are you… ahh… still touching?!”
Nanami seemed desperate to scold Mashiro firmly, but the strange, breathy gasps mixed into her words robbed them of any authority.
“Because it feels nice,” Mashiro answered plainly.
“I can’t stop.”
……
Standing right outside the wooden door, Himekoji felt a wave of restless heat.
Feels nice…
His lips even started to feel a little dry.
“Akito, do you want to try too?”
After enjoying herself inside, Mashiro unexpectedly thought to include him.
“Ahem, well then, I humbly submit to your kind offer,” Himekoji joked.
“Mine or Nanami’s?”
Could he say he wanted to touch both?
But Nanami’s flustered, panicked voice cut in before Himekoji could.
“No touching! Absolutely not! Not hers, not mine… not anyone’s!”
Nanami’s reaction was overly dramatic. Her voice sounded like she was near tears, which was rather pitiful and cute.
Probably Mashiro had been touching her way too wildly inside the bathroom…
Who knew where Mashiro had learned such techniques.
Seeing this, Himekoji quickly tried to explain.
“I figured Aoyama could tell… I was just joking earlier.”
“Joking isn’t allowed either!”
After saying this, Nanami immediately added,
“And! You absolutely have to forget everything you just heard! Any imagining or picturing things… that’s especially forbidden!”
“I haven’t started imagining anything yet!”
“So you were planning to start soon?!”
“N-No! I wasn’t!”
Himekoji promised quickly.
Luckily, there was a door separating them, so Nanami couldn’t see his guilty look.
The truth was, Himekoji had already started imagining things earlier…
“So Himekoji, are you just going to stand there eavesdropping?”
“I wasn’t! I only rushed over because I heard your scream and got worried! I thought something serious had happened!”
“Well, you can relax now, can’t you? Your sentry duty isn’t needed anymore! Hurry up and get out of here!”
Having an all-too-noticeable guy standing right outside clearly hearing every single sound while she was bathing… no matter how you looked at it, that situation would feel incredibly awkward!
“R-right, I got it.”
Though still feeling like he hadn’t had his fill of teasing her, Himekoji knew now wasn’t the time to push Nanami further.
If this kept up, her conservative nature might truly make her cry.
“Wait!”
Himekoji had barely turned away when Nanami’s voice called out to him again.
“Hmm? What now? If it’s just bugging me to hurry… please, don’t bother. I’m already obediently leaving.”
“N-no… um…”
Seemingly struggling to say something hugely embarrassing, Nanami stalled.
“Um?”
“Erm… could you bring me…”
“Bring you what?”
“Himekoji, you know what I mean! Stop pretending not to! Do you really get such a kick out of forcing a girl to say such mortifying things?!”
“Huh?”
A mass of question marks filled Himekoji’s mind. He honestly had no clue what Nanami was talking about.
Forcing a girl to say embarrassing things? Had he done that?
He felt unfairly blamed once again.
“No, seriously, I genuinely have no idea…”
Himekoji didn’t consider himself good at solving riddles.
“Ahh! You’re just awful! Go get my underwear and pajamas!”
“Ohh, that’s what it is!”
Understanding finally dawned on him.
This issue had come up when Nanami was pushed into the bathroom by Mashiro earlier.
“Happy now? Hearing me make such a shameful request… did that satisfy Himekoji’s weird little hobby?”
“What hobby? Where did that come from?”
Himekoji looked utterly wronged.
“If that was all it took to feel satisfied, Shiina would have satisfied me countless times over by now…”
“So what Himekoji is saying is… that I can’t satisfy you?”
Uh oh. This conversation was veering dangerously off track. Seeing the peril, Himekoji quickly beat a retreat.
“Um… I’ll go get them. Just a second.”
…
Just grabbing a change of clothes shouldn’t take much time at all. Very soon, Himekoji Akito held Nanami’s underwear and nightgown, arriving at the bathroom door.
He placed the items by the door, then lifted his hand, ready to knock and inform the person inside the shower.
Unexpectedly, right at that moment, Himekoji heard the annoying prompt sound of the System once more—
[Ding!]
[Choose!]
[A: Continue Training! Rush in right now and practice your lines with the naked Nanami!]
[B: Continue Training! Pick up Nanami’s underwear right now and practice your lines with her underwear!]
“Hmm…”
Himekoji lowered his head, looking at Nanami’s blue and white striped underwear, lost in thought.
[Ding!]
[Status Skill Activated!]
[Temporary Actor!]
…
“Himekoji? Have you got them?”
Nanami waited left and right, hearing no response, so she peeked her head out the bathroom door to see for herself.
As a result, when she poked half her body out through the door gap, her gaze collided with Himekoji, who held her underwear and was practicing his lines.
“I… I’ve liked you for a long time too!”
What Nanami saw was Himekoji, his face totally focused, holding her underwear, his expression tender and deep like the ocean. He delivered his lines with feeling and perfect inflection.
What Himekoji saw was Nanami clutching a towel to her chest with both hands.
The girl had just finished showering. Steam still rose from her body. Her skin was fragrant, soft, and flushed pink all over, dotted with little beads of water – impossible to tell if it was shower droplets or sweat. Her long, wet hair draped over one shoulder, dewy and incredibly enticing, stimulating Himekoji’s visual nerves without limit.
This Nanami stood frozen, eyes wide with shock, simply staring at him. Perhaps she was too shocked. After a stunned silence, she suddenly lifted both hands to her head, letting out a piercing scream.
“Waaahhhhhhhhhhhh! Himekoji! I guess I underestimated just how much of a pervert you are!”
However, Himekoji’s scream followed immediately after, no less piercing despite Nanami’s training as a seiyuu—
“Waaahhhhhhhhhhhh! Aoyama! And I guess I underestimated just how open you are!”
Nanami was only holding the towel to her chest with her hands. The moment her grip loosened, it gave up any dream of staying put and slumped lazily to the floor.
Himekoji saw the whole thing!
And, because the girl had just showered, the visual impact of her bare chest was completely out of this world!
If he wasn’t afraid of censorship stopping him from describing it in detail, Himekoji could have sworn he could stretch just that one sight into half a chapter!
Countless words, countless descriptive phrases surged frantically out of his mind right then.
“Open? What are you saying, you pervert?! Stop changing the subject!”
Nanami still didn’t seem to realize she’d uncovered herself.
Himekoji had no choice but to point a finger towards her chest, offering a friendly reminder.
“You didn’t need to go this far just to prove you’ve really grown up…”
Nanami looked down in the direction Himekoji pointed.
“Waaahhhh—”
“Pervert! Pervert pervert big big pervert!”
THUD!
The bathroom door slammed shut heavily by a deeply embarrassed girl.
“I-I-It’s all Himekoji’s fault! Doing something so perverted made me forget I was holding the towel…”
Then came a flustered, stammering voice from behind the door.
“It’s your fault! It’s your fault!”
Nanami’s voice sounded both mortified and sulky.
“Right, right, my fault.”
Himekoji could only soothe her gently. After all, he’d gotten the better end of the deal.
“So! What exactly were you doing holding my underwear?!”
“Um… Practicing my lines… Sorry. I got carried away without meaning to.”
“Practicing your lines…?”
Nanami repeated the words slowly. Then, over half a minute of silence fell from within the bathroom.
“Soooo… did you practice well?”
Her voice finally returned.
“Almost there. There shouldn’t be any more problems. Next time, it will definitely go smoothly!”
As if seeking self-redemption, Himekoji thumped his chest confidently.
“Then… why not show me how it goes now?”
Maybe this way, they could forget the earlier embarrassment easier, Nanami suggested.
“Mm-hmm, okay.”
“Well then, begin, please.”
So, for reasons they couldn’t quite explain, the two of them started practicing through the door.
Himekoji adjusted his slightly too-fast breathing—
“You, y-y-y-you said suddenly you had something to tell me… i-i-i-i-is it?”
The moment he opened his mouth, Himekoji realized things had gone terribly wrong.
What happened?
He failed again?!
He’d just done fine practicing to the wall and the underwear!
Oh no! He’d just boasted about it! And now he’d crashed and burned already?
…
…
The atmosphere instantly froze solid.
“T-That’s not it! That doesn’t count!”
Himekoji snapped out of it first, scrambling to excuse himself awkwardly,
“I practiced with the underwear… N-No! I practiced with the wall just fine! I said it perfectly naturally! And super smoothly!”
“Oh? If it was like that, why does it suddenly not work now?”
Nanami seemed completely fed up with his terrible performance; the coldness in her voice was unmistakable,
“It’s… p-probably because… it was with Aoyama.”
“Oh, so I’m the problem now. Got it.”
“I didn’t mean that!”
“Then what did you mean?”
“Th-that…”
Himekoji, scratched the back of his head behind the door, stammering.
“That?”
“I mean… even though I know it’s just practice… this part always makes me feel like Nanami is actually confessing to me… It makes me feel… shy.”
“Huh?! Hey! What kind of weird thing are you saying?! What do you mean it’s like I’m really confessing?!”
Over in her bathroom prison, Nanami started panicking too.
“No! I told you! I know it’s practice! It’s just a feeling! Just a feeling!”
“Oh… oh…”
Her reply sounded strangely absent-minded. Inside the bathroom, Nanami caught sight of herself in the mirror: her whole face a vibrant, dripping red.
Her cheeks were hot. Her ears were hot. Her neck was hot. Her chest… also felt hot.
Her entire body was blazing. Freshly showered, Nanami suddenly broke out into a heavy sweat again.
“U-umm, Himekoji…”
“Y-yes?”
“Feeling shy… does that mean… umm… that you don’t dislike it?”
“Dislike?”
Himekoji Akito was flustered by her tone and didn’t catch her drift.
“I mean… the feeling when you think I’m confessing… Do you dislike it? Of course! O-Obviously it’s not a real confession! Just the practice one!”
“It w-wouldn’t be possible for me to dislike it… since it’s Aoyama…”
In a moment of carelessness, Himekoji spoke the truth hidden in his heart.
“Not dislike it…”
Behind the door, Nanami covered her cheeks, both secretly delighted and bashful.
Her heart was beating so fast!
That little heart of hers felt like a female fawn trapped inside its enclosure, watching all its friends bound free, while she remained stuck inside, facing the fence… jumping… jumping… jumping…
Not getting out, yet persisting in the leap.
…
…