I was expecting to die once I returned to my senses, but in the end, I took a bath after Grandpa Hashirama finished. I should probably mention this just in case, but of course, I went in alone.
The Uzumaki household's bathroom was an incredibly average bathroom, and had both a bathtub and a place to rinse off. In the bathtub floated some Japanese iris. The Japanese iris season had already passed long ago, but considering how the bath water felt like it had a lot of things added to it, it was clear that this family customarily threw lots of things into the bath. This was a Japanese iris bath. They had used high quality Japanese iris, and it was a bath that relaxed my nerves and lower back. Although… I was probably a little too young to appreciate that relaxation… hmm… but just the pleasant smell alone was good enough. The refreshing fragrance and the steam… It wasn't bad at all. It was a rather cramped bath in a rather average household, but it had a certain air of elegance to it. I quickly washed my body, and rinsed the bubbles off in the shower. And then finally, with great anticipation, I stuck a leg into the Japanese iris bath…
"Agh, hooooooot!" Plunging into the bathtub in one go up to my shoulder, I shut my eyes tightly. The tingling, burning sensation on my skin slowly subsided, and then gradually turned into pleasure.
"Ooooohh…" I was warmed right down to my core. Soaking slowly in warm water was good, but this type of hot bath had its own appeal. I rested the back of my head on the edge of the bathtub, and let out a long sigh. "Alright… so, what's going to happen tomorrow?"
Yasaka had said that she was going to help with the Halloween event or whatever. So I guess I would do that too. For the time being, I would see this event through to the end. I was also looking forward to seeing what kind of witch that girl would make. Also, it's not like I hated helping out here at this store. How do I put it… working hard and dripping with sweat was just an activity that seemed to agree with me. Finishing work and soaking in a hot tub like this gave me a feeling of satisfaction that was difficult to replace with anything else… Also, it seemed that this weekend was shaping up to be not bad at all.
And I won't have to come face to face with a certain annoying sister either.
A smile spontaneously broke out across my face. Like that, as I soaked pleasantly in the tub…
Rustle rustle.
I heard the rustling of clothes. Hm? Is someone in the changing room? I could see a silhouette on the other side of the steam-obscured glass. The person… seemed to be undressing… huh? Wha—eh…?
"W-wah… don't tell me she seriously is…!"
Rustle rustle rustle.
As I became more and more disturbed, I stared at the changing room. Is she an idiot!? Did she really take the joke that seriously!? Uwaah… What should I do? I-if this were an eroge, this would probably lead to an event CG!
I tightly grasped the edge of the tub. I-I mean, it's not like I'm nervous or something. F-for now, I should probably wrap myself in a towel at least. The instant I began to move to do that, the door to the changing room opened.
"Yooo! Haruto, let me wash your back!"
"It was you!?" I threw the wash basin at the intruder.
Bang!
It hit the Marukome priest right on.
"Agh, ow!"
It's probably not necessary to mention that the boy who had bent backwards from taking my attack was Menma. Hah, so that's how it is… that's how it is… I had thought it would turn out to be something like this…
"D-don't screw with me! You… you… do you have any idea what you did!?"
"Haruto, why are you half-crying and getting so angry so suddenly!?"
"As if I know!"
After getting out of the bath and getting comfy again in the living room, I saw Grandma Mito coming into the room.
"Haruto-chan, I laid out your futon for you in the usual room."
"Mmm, thanks."
The "usual room" was my mother's old room when she still lived here. I used it whenever I came over to this house to stay over.
"Ah, is it already this late…?"
Looking up at the clock, I saw that it was around ten. Perhaps it was because they had to worry about the shop, but the Uzumaki household went to bed early. I should probably also retire to my room soon.
"I'm going to go to sleep soon."
"Ah, well, then I'll go back to my room too…"
Following me, Yasaka also stood up. By the way, at this point we had both already changed into our pajamas. A little while ago, Yasaka had just gotten out of the tub and her hair was still slightly wet.
"Hee hee… being together here with each other just before going to sleep… How long has it been?"
"Hmm. Probably around four years, I would say."
We talked as we walked down the hallway. Yasaka took the lead and went up the stairs and we ascended to the second floor. The closest sliding door led to Yasaka's room.
"Well… good night."
"Ah, g'night." Seeing Yasaka off into her room, I slid open the door to my own room.
"W-wha!" Suddenly, the breath caught in my throat.
The futon that Grandma Mito had laid out for me was there. Except, there were two. A pair of futons were very neatly laid out next to each other. A so-called "husband and wife" arrangement.
"W-what the hell is this?! W-what—"
"What's wrong?"
"Ehh!?"
When I looked back, Yasaka was right behind me.
"W-why are you here!?"
"Y-you don't have to be that surprise. Uhh, well, for some reason, my futon disappeared… I went back into the hallway to figure out what was going on and I saw you standing so stiffly over here… umm, is there something interesting in the room?"
"Don't look! Don't look in the room!"
My warning didn't seem to make it to her in time, and behind me, Yasaka also peeked into the room.
"Eeehhh!?" And she also stiffened. Her body seeming to convulse, Yasaka pointed at the two futons. "W-what is that supposed to be!? T-that… that's my futon, isn't it!?"
"… That… appears to be the case." I nodded solemnly. Yasaka raised her voice.
"Did you lay these out!? You wanted to sleep next to me!?"
"N-n-n-n-nooo! What the hell are you saying!? A-are you an idiot!? Who would do something like… don't come to such a strange misunderstanding!"
Having been completely shaken, we began to act rather dodgily. We had even forgotten the events from a few minutes ago.
"B-but but! Look at how they're right next to each other! It looks like something a newlywed couple would use!"
"F-for now let's just calm down! C-c-calm down and let's figure out what's going on! Mm, yes, there's no mistaking it, this is my doing…!"
"Haruto, calm down! There's so much that doesn't make sense with that!"
"Ugh! To think that the day would come when you would be the one retorting against me!"
I mean… It's not like I had to calm down and think about it calmly to realize that Grandma Mito's doing. That old hag… with her "Haruto, I laid out your futon for you in the usual room"… putting on such a kind expression but then going and doing something so unnecessary like this!
"Hah. Well, for now, shall we put the futon back where it belongs?"
"Eh? We're putting it back?"
"That's obvious, isn't it!? What's up with that surprised expression!?"
"I don't mind… even like this… it's fine…"
"We're putting it back!"
Flatly cutting down that inappropriate line of thought, I began to pick up Yasaka's futon. However, at that time, I heard an anguished "Guooh!" from behind me.
"W-what?!"
When I turned around, I saw Grandpa Hashirama crouching in the hallway, grasping his chest. He was mumbling something like "the futon… the futon…"
Yasaka hurriedly rushed to his side. "Ojiichan! Are you alright?!"
"A-ahh… I'm alright. No need to worry… it's just that when I saw Haruto trying to carry the futon, it triggered some wartime trauma for me and I had a few heart spasms."
What the hell was up with that outrageously specific trigger? He's joking, right? Exactly what in the world happened to him during the war? Also, gramp, you were hiding and watching us, weren't you? Otherwise, you wouldn't have been able to time this so well. As I thought, you're an accomplice to this crime.
Grandpa Hashirama spoke with an exaggerated expression, "If you don't line those two futons up by each other, I will be killed by the pumpkin's curse."
He's just saying whatever the hell he wants. My eyes half closed, I glanced at him, and once again picked up the futon.
"Ugooh!? Gyoeeeeeeeeeeeehhhhhhhh…!?"
… Let's try putting the futon down then.
"… Haah, haah, haah… t-that was close. I barely escaped death that time. I saw Baa-chan on the other side of the Sanzu River."
"Obaa-chan is downstairs watching television, isn't she!?"
Hey gramp, there's a limit to how bad your acting can be, you know… feeling blood vessels popping on my forehead, I once again picked up the futon. As expected, he once again grabbed his chest.
"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh… ! Uwaaaaaaah…?!"
"Alright! Alright, I got it, so cut it out!"
"Cough, cough… really?"
Don't look at me with upturned eyes like that! Completely stunned, I could do nothing but nod. He was a terrible actor, but if I made him go through that act a few more times, he seriously might die.
"Ah, ahh… she can sleep here. It's not like it's a big deal… right?" Looking to Yasaka for confirmation, I saw her gently return a smile.
"Yeah, I'm fine with it… if even Haruto is fine with it…"
How should I put it… it was an incredibly ordinary response. W-well… it's not like I didn't know she would respond that way…
Hey, Yasaka. If you make such lackadaisical responses to other guys, I'm absolutely certain they would misunderstand. And for that reason… in the end, I ended up sleeping lined up with Yasaka in the same room. Of course, we jerked the futons apart so they wouldn't look like they had been arranged for a married couple.
"It feels like… we're kids again, doesn't it…?"
"Now that you mention it, it does seem that we always slept like this next to each other back when we used to stay over at each other's houses."
"Yeah… to think that we would be sleeping together like this again even though we're much older… I never would have guessed something like this would happen."
Both lying down, we exchanged glances and smiled wryly. If I gave her the benefit of the doubt, Grandma Mito might have laid these futons out like this for no other reason than because we used to sleep like this. Although, there was no room to doubt that she was not nearly as innocent. Well, it's not a big deal. If it were any other girl, there would be a lot more to be concerned about, but this is Yasaka we're talking about.
"… I'm going to sleep now. Good night."
"Mmm… good night, Haruto."
I turned off the lights and shut my eyes. In the silence, only the regular ticks of the clock echoed through the room. One minute, ten minutes… probably more than that passed. My consciousness of the time passing faded away…
"… Haruto. Are you… still awake?" Yasaka muttered into the silent room.
"… I'm still awake." After I responded like that, there was a period of silence, and then…
"Umm… it would be nice if we could go to the same college, wouldn't it?"
Hey hey. Why are you bringing that up now…? It's too early talking about that. I managed to keep myself from responding in an overly surprised manner.
"… Yeah, it would be." I responded. It didn't matter if we were talking about unnecessary or meaningless things right now. That's what I thought. So I also started speaking aimlessly.
"If after we graduate from high school, we go to the same college… I wonder what would happen then."
It was a very vague question. But at the same time, it was also something I always thought about. It's not like I was expecting an answer. It wasn't a question that had any particular aim, after all. Yasaka seemed to be thinking about it for a little while.
"Probably… not much would change, I think."
On one hand, her response was noncommittal and vague… it was a carefree response I would expect from her. But, in a way, it was also the response I was looking for.
"Ah, maybe."
When she told me that, "yeah, maybe" is what came to mind. After we graduate from high school, start attending college, many things will change. But at the same time, there would be many things that would not change.
"Heh, I feel that even when we're graduating from college, you would say the same thing." I smiled wryly. Glancing next to me, I saw Yasaka blinking with surprise. But then, she smiled.
"Mm… I guess so… I'll be saying the same thing forever, won't I…?"
I wonder how far into the future she's envisioning… but her tone of voice was soft. For some reason, her words left a strong impression on me. They were reassuring, I think.
We both once again fell into silence.
Yasaka was the first to break the comfortable silence.
"Back in the day, we used to always go to each other's houses, and stay over… like this, didn't we?"
"…?"
I felt like we had talked about a similar topic already.
"But recently we haven't… I mean… so…"
What exactly is so hard for her to say here? Yasaka seemed to be searching for the right words for a while, but at last…
"… Sorry. It was nothing."
And she pulled her blanket up to her mouth. I watched the situation in front of my eyes…
"Well, next time, want to come over to my house?" I suddenly said that. I remembered that it had been quite a while since Yasaka had been over to my house. Girls were creatures that never directly said what they wanted. That was a fact that I had come to have quite a bit of first-hand experience with lately. Thanks to a few girls I've dealt with recently.
So this was something that the old me would never have said. Do you want to come over to my house next time? Having been asked that, Yasaka seemed very surprised and opened her eyes wide, blinking rapidly. Next, with her mouth still hidden under her blanket, she nodded.
"Umm… yeah… I'd like to go."
I couldn't see the look on her face because it was hidden under the futon. But just by the happily thinned shape of her eyes, I didn't need to see the rest of her to know.
"Ah, alright. Then sooner or later, we'll do it."
And the night advanced exceedingly lazily.