Tokyo Rebirth: Start From Picking Up Sayu

In a blink of an eye, the summer festival is here.

Kato Yusuke put on his yukata, came to a shrine near Takadanobaba, and waited quietly in front of the torii gate.

It is now five o'clock in the afternoon, and there is still half an hour before the scheduled meeting time.

Although it is already late summer, it is still early for sunset.

Children ran around the shrine grounds with marshmallows and candy apples in their hands.

In the park adjacent to the shrine, several couples in junior high or high school were chatting and laughing shyly.

In previous years, this festival would have ended long ago, but this year it is said that the scale has been expanded, so the opening date has been postponed.

Kato Yusuke looked around, thinking that it would be interesting to end August with a festival.

After waiting for a while, others arrived.

"Yusuke! We are here~"

Ying Lili was the first to notice him, her two thin white calves crossing each other quickly, running towards him like a deer in the jungle.

Hasumi Kanoko and Shiha followed her, strolled slowly and stopped under the torii gate.

Hasumi Kanoko: "I'm sorry, Kato-kun, for keeping you waiting."

Shiyu: "It's only five-twenty now, Yu-chan, are you here early?"

Kato Yusuke looked at the three of them blankly, and said dumbfounded: "...Didn't I say you want to wear a yukata? Why are you all in casual clothes??"

Seeing his reaction, Hasumi Kanoko smiled a little guiltily.

"I'm sorry, I met with the game designer before I came here. It was too late to change into my yukata when I got home, so I had to come here like this."

"Huh?" Kato Yusuke twitched his brows, "You mean the designer named Matsumoto? Is there something wrong?"

"No, that's not the case." Hasumi Kanoko shook her head, "I briefly explained our conditions to the designer, and he said he would think about it and give me a reply later."

"It's pretty cool." Kato Yusuke said casually and looked at the other two people with a sigh, "What about Shi and Eiri? Did you forget to wear a yukata?"

Shiyu clasped his hands on his chest and said calmly:

"We are a unit, and we should take care of each other no matter what we do. Since Kano-chan can't wear a yukata, Sawamura and I can't just care about ourselves. That's unfair."

"????"

Kato Yusuke listened to this with a confused face, couldn't help but speak loudly, and was so shocked that he couldn't speak.

Hasumi Kanoko said in a troubled manner: "Actually, I also said that there is no need for this, but Shi-chan is very slender in this place, so I'm sorry, Kato-kun."

Kato Yusuke came back to his senses, scratched his cheek and said: "Well, although it is indeed a bit regretful, there is no need to apologize..."

Hasumi Kanoko smiled and said a little slyly: "In order not to spoil the atmosphere, we still choose a nice dress for now. What do you think, Kato-kun?"

Kanoko Hasumi wears a shirt and skirt in a casual style, Shiu wears a white dress in a pure lust style, and Eiri wears a British style dress.

The three women stared at someone with burning eyes, either curious or looking forward to his answer.

Kato Yusuke's eyes turned around on them, and then his shoulders dropped weakly.

"That's not the point. If someone told you that tonight's dinner was crabs, and what was served was crab sticks, would you accept it?

Of course, you are all dressed up beautifully, but as a layperson, I have too high expectations for yukata. Forgive me for not being able to express my better thoughts for the time being. "

Seeing his extremely disappointed look, the three girls couldn't help but look at each other and sneered.

Hasumi Kanoko: "Sure enough, boys still like yukata~ Otherwise, how about the three of us wear yukata and accompany him to the festival next time?"

Yinglili couldn't help but nodded, agreeing with this statement.

Shiyu curled her lips and said, "...Senior Nakano hasn't arrived yet? Maybe someone else will come wearing a yukata later."

Just as he was talking, the voice of the person involved came from behind.

"——I'm sorry, everyone, have you been waiting for a long time?"

Ryoko Nakano walked in, wearing a light green cardigan and a double-breasted dark blue skirt, which looked very stable. She was also dressed in casual clothes.

"...Nakano-senpai?"

"Ah, it's Nakano-senpai here."

"Long time no see, Nakano-san~"

Shiyu, Eiri, and Hasumi Kanoko turned around and greeted each other.

Ryoko Nakano smiled and greeted them, and then said, "Thank you for inviting me to the festival today. I hope I won't disturb you."

Shiyu immediately replied: "Senior, you're welcome. We are very happy to have you here. To be honest, Yuu-chan is looking forward to seeing you."

"Ah~ is that so? Yu-kun." Ryoko Nakano blinked and looked towards Yusuke Kato.

"...Well, that's true, but it's because we are talking about a certain topic."

"That's it~ What are you talking about?"

"Oh, that's it, senior." Shiyu teased: "Someone here is complaining because he didn't see the girl's yukata."

Kato Yusuke: "Little poem!?"

Nakano Ryoko couldn't help but laugh, looked at him up and down, and said: "...Yu-kun is wearing Jinbei, it suits you very well."

Kato Yusuke lowered his head, and a black yukata with hexagonal snowflakes printed on it came into view, and there were wooden clogs on his feet.

He originally wanted to cooperate with everyone, so he wore a yukata, but he didn't expect that it made him special.

"...Thank you, senior sister. This is the gift Yinglili gave me last year."

He raised his head and looked at Yinglili with some nostalgia, recalling the agreement he made on New Year's Eve last year.

"Even if you are going to the festival with others, you must first see you wearing this yukata! Absolutely!"

Speaking of which, when he joked about not inviting her to the festival, Eirili became angry.

I don't know if she thought of the same thing, but Yinglili wrinkled her nose at him, then turned away with a hum, and the corners of her mouth slightly curved upward.

Hasumi Kanoko said softly: "Well~ the performance here seems to start in an hour, let's take a stroll first."

Everyone nodded and walked towards the shrine together.

There are rows of stalls on both sides of the passage, and the afterglow of the dusk falls lightly on the simple stone steps of the shrine, adding a bit of haziness and poetry to the prosperous evening scene in front of you.

People came out in large numbers, old and young, wearing Yukata suitable for the festival. The flow of people was overwhelming, and the atmosphere was full of excitement for the festival.

Although the dusk period has just begun, the vendors setting up stalls have already started lighting up.

The streets were very lively, and the vendors were shouting and shouting. Tourists lingered between stalls, and there was laughter and laughter everywhere.

Kato Yusuke looked at this grand scene, and distant memories suddenly appeared in his mind, reminding him of the light-footed girl he once was.

The next second he shook his head, shook off those inappropriate thoughts, and took the initiative to ask: "Everyone, is there anything you want to eat?"

Shiyu gently pinched his chin and thought: "It's still a little early, isn't it? Food should be eaten during the fireworks show."

Hasumi Kanoko said: "If someone feels hungry, there is no need to worry too much, just eat what you want."

Yingli looked around, her eyes wandering between the food stalls, "I can eat something light, like grilled chicken skewers."

Shiyu was speechless: "Is that something light to you?"

Ying Lili said: "Otherwise, chicken cakes can also be eaten, so everyone can share them."

Shiyu said: "I want to save this kind of food that can be shared for later."

Yinglili was annoyed, "Why are you so particular? We are visiting a festival now! It's so disappointing."

Ryoko Nakano watched their interaction with a smile and said, "Kasumigaoka-san and Sawamura-san have such a good relationship."

""That's not good. ""

Shiyu and Yinglili retorted in unison.

At this time, everyone was laughing happily.

In the end, they didn't buy food. Instead, they went to play target shooting, caught a lot of bouncy balls, and finally bought a few bottles of drinks from the stall because they were thirsty.

As time goes by, the festival music that resounds throughout the shrine becomes more lively.

Kato Yusuke looked at his phone and found that it was already 6:15, so he suggested: "Let's just hang out here first, let's go watch the show."

"Oh." Shiyu lifted her hair from her ears and said with her usual expression: "Speaking of which, it seems that Shinjou-san will dance at the festival?"

"Huh?" Eirili opened her eyes in surprise, "Shinjou-san is here too!?"

"Yeah, otherwise why do you think Yuu-chan would come here specifically for the festival?"

Hearing Shiyu's words, Kato Yusuke couldn't help but rub his nose angrily, "...Anyway, should we go there directly? Or do we want to buy something to eat?"

Yinglili thought for a moment and said, "I just saw a stall selling waffles. I want to eat that...but there seems to be a queue there."

"Otherwise, this is better." Hasumi Kanoko said, "Kato-kun, you go buy waffles, and I'll go find a seat at the performance venue first."

Nakano Ryoko said: "It's hard for Hasumi-sensei to occupy a seat alone, so I'll go with you."

"Okay." Kato Yusuke nodded, "Thank you for your hard work. We will go over after buying the waffles."

Hasumi Kanoko and Nakano Ryoko waved their hands and walked deeper into the shrine.

Kato Yusuke and three other people came to the waffle stall and queued up. After waiting for a while, it was finally their turn.

He asked: "Xiaoshi, Yinglili, what flavor do you want to eat?"

Ying Lili stared at the sign on the stall and thought for a moment, "I want cream."

Shiyu: "Original flavor."

"Then have a portion of each kind, and you can share the meal." Kato Yusuke suggested, and then took out his wallet to pay, but the girl in charge of the cashier kept staring at him.

"...Mr. Kato? It's Mr. Kato, right~!"

For some reason, the other party suddenly shouted in surprise.

Kato Yusuke couldn't help but be stunned, and then asked with some uncertainty: "...Are you, Miss Muzi?"

"Haha, it's Mr. Kato as expected~! I was shocked. You came here to participate in the festival? It's been a long time! Didn't Miss Kato come with you?"

"Hmm... Megumi has something to do, um, I'm sorry, please give me two plain waffles, one each of cream and chocolate waffles, here's the money."

"Ah~ OK, boss, two portions of original flavor, one portion each of cream and chocolate." Muzi shouted to the boss behind him, and then pushed the money back.

She smiled brightly and said: "Mr. Kato, you don't have to pay. Thank you for taking me in. I have a job now. In return, please let me treat you today."

Kato Yusuke frowned slightly, hesitated for a moment and then said: "...Thank you, then it's better to be respectful than to obey."

"Ah haha, you're welcome, you're welcome." Muzi waved his hand nonchalantly, "The waffles will be ready soon, please wait nearby~"

Kato Yusuke nodded in greeting and walked aside.

Eirili immediately asked: "Hey, Yusuke, is that girl Muzi taken in by the association?"

"Yes." Kato Yusuke confirmed: "It's her."

Shiyu stared at the stall for a while and said thoughtfully: "Is she working here? I remember that her mental state seemed to be very unstable? I can't tell it at all now."

"Yeah..." Kato Yusuke followed her gaze and felt a little emotional as well.

Although he and Muzi had only met once, he could still see the changes in each other. That cheerful and optimistic state is completely different from before, exuding a positive feeling.

‘Perhaps the establishment of the association is not such a bad thing. ’ he thought involuntarily.

at this time--

Click, click, click, click~

A crisp sound of clogs slowly approached and then stopped.

"Eh... Brother Yu?"

The girl's hesitant voice reached Kato Yusuke's ears.

He turned around in response and met Serizawa Yu's eyes. The girl looked at him with earnest and praying eyes.

"...Xiao Xi?"

"Ah~! It's indeed Brother Yu!"

Serizawa Yu called him in surprise, stepped on wooden clogs that she was not used to wearing, and rushed over quickly, giving him a big hug.

"Great, Brother You, I heard Xiaoxiang say that you are really here!"

She was wearing a white kimono in the Taisho Roman style, and the large morning glories stretched out their vines eye-catchingly, blooming everywhere, dazzling and gorgeous.

The usually long straight hair was tied up high today and decorated with a hairpin, making it very feminine.

Kato Yusuke held the girl in his arms with a slight wry smile. He was finally sure that this was Serizawa Yu herself, and said, "Xiao Yu, say hello to others."

"Hmm? Say hello...ah, it's Miss Kasumigaoka and Miss Sawamura, good evening to both of you~"

After being reminded, Serizawa Yuu embarrassedly left Kato Yusuke, and obediently bowed to Shiha and Eiri, who also nodded friendly in return.

Kato Yusuke was about to speak——

"Xiao Xi~"

"Idiot, don't run so fast alone."

The two girls called Serizawa Yu's name and hurried over from a distance.

As we get closer and closer to the stall...

"Huh……"

One of them suddenly stopped, his clogs made a crisp sound, and he remained motionless on the spot.

Then, the cherry lips that had been protected by lip balm murmured softly, as if it had been several years.

"Yu-suke...?"

Kato Yusuke raised his head, his eyes suddenly trance-like.

…