Chapter 228: Hahahahaha
Who is Sara?
Anyone who lives in the town knows that name—it belongs to none other than the current general of the Tenryou Commission.
And now, someone actually had the guts to say, "Put it on Miss Kujou Sara's tab."
That can only mean one thing…
"Hm?"
Upon seeing the man's appearance, Kanbei suddenly understood everything.
As a long-time businessman in the town, he'd heard the rumors ages ago.
Apparently, Miss Kujou had a boyfriend.
Not only had the two of them been spotted shopping together at Ogura Textiles & Kimonos in broad daylight, but they had even shared a single skewer of dango side by side at Uyuu Restaurant.
Even the Kujou Clan head himself, Kujou Takayuki, had turned a blind eye to their public displays of affection. For a time, people even speculated that the two were already engaged.
But then, the man with the Bai surname suddenly disappeared, and the rumors eventually faded away.
And now, just like that—he was back.
"Heh, thank you for your patronage, young man."
With that thought in mind, the shopkeeper no longer questioned it. If the rumoured Miss Kujou boyfriendsaid to put it on Miss Kujou Sara's tab… then so be it.
"Whew, that was close. If you hadn't shown up, I—cough, I mean, this boss definitely would've figured something out eventually! But still, thanks a bunch."
Now walking side-by-side into a quiet alley, Arataki Itto kept up his bravado.
Of course, Bai Luo knew full well what would've happened. Given that Itto was an oni, if the Tenryou Commission had gotten hold of him, this wouldn't have ended as simply as skipping out on a meal.
Fortunately, the shopkeeper seemed to be a sharp one. He probably wouldn't go out of his way to report it, but he'd definitely make Itto wash dishes for half a day to make up for it.
"Let me introduce myself. Name's Bai Luo—known far and wide as a generous soul and a local legend in ten districts."
"Hahahahaha! Destiny really does work in mysterious ways! Your fame must have reached my ears through the winds! Let me return the favor—I am the one and only Arataki the Undefeated, Supreme Overlord of All Things Awesome, Sumo King of the Oni Clan, Beetle Battler Extraordinaire, Card Game Champion Without Equal, and Above All, the Man Who May Lose but Never Admits Defeat—Arataki Itto! Hahahaha!"
Don't be fooled by that hearty laughter. Judging from his slightly dazed expression, reciting that entire string of titles might have left him a little oxygen-deprived.
"Actually, if you want, you could take the first two characters and the last two characters, and call me—"
"'Hahahaha'?"
In his long-winded title, the first two characters were 'hahaha', and the last two were also 'hahaha'. Technically, Bai Luo wasn't wrong.
"…Forget it. Just call me Itto."
"Alright then, Hahahaha."
"..."
"Inazuma City doesn't usually have a lot of oni walking around. You get separated from your friends or something?"
Seeing this cheerful oni, Bai Luo put aside the teasing. He got the feeling this guy wasn't supposed to be alone.
If he remembered correctly, there was usually someone else with Itto.
"Yeah… Shinobu was right there next to me just a while ago. No clue how she disappeared on me. Honestly, what kind of right-hand woman makes her boss worry like this?"
Itto sighed deeply.
If it weren't for her, he wouldn't be in this mess. Looks like he's going to have to give her a serious talking-to when they reunite. After all, how could the boss of the Arataki Gang let himself be humiliated like this?
"..."
Bai Luo said nothing, simply glancing back toward the entrance of the town street.
If he wasn't mistaken, when he passed by earlier, he'd seen a small green-haired girl who looked quite a bit like Yoimiya—minus the hair color—wandering around anxiously asking passersby if they'd seen an oni guy.
What she said… sounded suspiciously similar to this guy.
Though between the two of them, it was clear who really got lost.
"Anyway, what were you doing eating over there of all places?"
Without making a fuss, Bai Luo calmly led Arataki Itto away from the entrance of the town, heading in the opposite direction.
Curious, Bai Luo spoke up.
"According to what I've heard, aren't you usually hanging around Hanamizaka?"
"Oh, well, that's a long story. A few days ago, the Arataki Gang planned a trip to Ritou for a bit of fun, but they had a checkpoint set up over there—wouldn't let just anyone in or out—so we turned back. On the way, though, we stumbled upon a leftover campfire... and some grilled lavender melons."
At the mention of grilled lavender melons, Itto paused briefly, then continued.
"Anyway, we did eat them—but we left some Mora by the nearby fox statue, y'know, as thanks. I remember running into a shrine maiden around there once, probably her doing. But… one of the melons was all discolored. Super sour. That thing messed me up for a good while! It was worse than beans, I tell ya. So today…"
Hmm?
Right—today, he was supposed to be out shopping with Shinobu.
Shinobu had told him to stay put while she went to buy lavender melons. And what did he do?
He followed the smell of udon straight into a place called Shimura's.
"Oh no! It's not Shinobu who got lost—it's me!!"
Grabbing both sides of his head, Itto wore a look of absolute panic.
Only now did he finally realize he was the one who had gotten separated. But by the time he thought about heading back to find Shinobu, he found himself in completely unfamiliar surroundings—dragged away by Bai Luo.
"Uh… bro, where are we?"
"A good place. Just follow me."
Back when Itto had mentioned the campfire and grilled melons, Bai Luo had already pieced things together.
There was no doubt about it—the grilled "lavender melons" they found were the leftovers he had left behind.
After all, that shrine maiden's place was right along the route from Ritou to Narukami Island.
And the discolored one? That was actually a sunsettia.
He didn't expect anyone to seriously eat that thing thinking it was a lavender melon…
So technically, he did cause Itto a bit of trouble without meaning to. That only made it right for him to do something in return.
As far as Itto was concerned, Bai Luo had paid his tab back at Shimura's—that was already proof enough.
A bro who pays your bill? That's a good bro.
And if he says it's a "good place," then there's no way it's a trap. Definitely not.
Besides, since he was already lost, he might as well stick with Bai Luo and see what happens.
Maybe—just maybe—Bai Luo would treat him to a proper meal.
Under Bai Luo's lead, the two avoided the Tenryou Commission patrols, hopped over a stone bridge, and skirted along a cliffside path until they reached a tall wall enclosing an estate.
"Whoa! This wall's massive! Must be a rich family's place, huh?"
As a bold and free-spirited oni, Itto had his fair share of wall-scaling experience.
But not even the Tenryou Commission HQ's walls were this tall.
Wait… could this be the Kujou Tengu's place?
Yeah, probably only her estate would have walls this ridiculously high.
Itto pressed an ear against the wall, listening closely. Once he confirmed there was no one nearby, Bai Luo leapt effortlessly up and perched atop the wall, waving at Itto to follow.
"Climbing the Kujou Tengu's wall, huh? Heh—this is nothing for the mighty Arataki Itto!"
With a wide grin, Itto pounded his fists together, struck a sumo pose, and charged the wall with full oni spirit.
. . . . .
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