[bright] time

(light side)

Just two hours ago, this year's Beidou Cup ended.

The misunderstanding that Gao Yongxia underestimated Xiu Ce was solved as early as after the first Beidou Cup.

But my desire to win against Gao Yongxia is still unabated.

Because that guy has thoroughly studied the game records of the Edo period—the golden age of Japanese Go history.

Melted into his own chess style.

It made me want to beat him even more.

In April, when I heard that this year's Beidou Cup was the last time for Gao Yongxia to participate, I vowed to win the right to challenge the Korean generals and beat Gao Yongxia in the special season of May.

This is the last chance.

In any case, I want to play against Gao Yongxia in the official game.

The leader of the Hokuto Cup this time is Mr. Ashihara.He asked the three of us to play against each other to decide the team.I won the chance to face Gao Yongxia as a general.But in the battle against the Chinese team, they lost two games in a row and became three generals.

Funny result.

When the list came out, there were many incomprehensible voices from the auditorium.

This atmosphere reminds me of the first time I played against the Beidou Cup. However, I can turn a blind eye to any doubts and doubts and turn a deaf ear to them.

The moment I picked up the fan,

I can think about nothing but the outcome of Go.

However, I can't beat Gao Yongxia.Can't beat him.

I took the sunspot that I was good at, but I still couldn't beat him, it was completely a matter of strength.

Feeling disappointed, after the awards were presented, Hikari went back to Nihon Kiin first.

***

The sky in early spring in May is a clear blue, and the air before the rainy season is moderately dry and humid, with warm and strong winds blowing.

Lying on the roof of Nihon Ki-in, looking at the clear sky, I think of today when I was 14 years old.The carp banner fluttering in the wind, the season of saying goodbye to Zuo Wei, the fifth of May.

Hikaru's gaze was drawn from the sky to the carp streamer hanging on the top floor of the opposite building.

"A carp banner...

It's great to be a carp streamer.No setbacks or troubles.Just float around.

I'll also find a day to become a carp banner.If only I could. "

Thinking endlessly, muttering to himself.

At the beginning of April, the storm in Liang's house was not long over, and the Big Dipper Cup during the Golden Week in May was immediately followed.Guang just immerses himself in Go, thinking about how to win two games.

All the omens and premonitions are like being sealed, and they are still in place without any development.

Just wait with bated breath,

Waiting for the day when the seal is torn off.

Waiting for the moment when the storm rolls up.

Looking at the carp banner, Hikaru sighed, this was the moment the seal was torn off.

Just thinking of the song Xiao Ming sang last week... and Xiao Ming's confession...

Xiao Ming, who was promoted to the third year of high school, started to attend cram school, and the end of get out of class was ten o'clock in the evening.

These days, Guang goes to Mr. Kuwahara’s library to read chess records every day, and the time to go home is about the same as that of Xiao Ming.

Just hearing from Mitsuko that there seemed to be exhibitionists in the community recently, he took Xiao Ming home as a matter of course before walking back to his apartment.

On this day, Xiao Ming suddenly said that he thought of the nearby children's park, which was the place where Guang and Xiao Ming used to play when they were young.Xiao Ming sat on the swing, swinging gently, and then sang the nursery rhyme "Carp Streamer" with a voice like a silver bell.

甍の波と云の波,

重なる波の空空を

Tangerine かおる Chaofengni,

High く swimming ぐや, carp の ぼ り.

开ける広きの口に,

船をもけまん様见えて、

ゆたかに振う骁にには,

物に动ぜぬ节あり.

Mokase no Taki を ascending りなば,

suddenly chiryu ni nari ぬ べ ki,

わがbody nilike よや man と,

Kong ni yue ru や carp no ぼ ri.

"Do you remember this song?

It was Guanggero's grandmother who taught us to sing!That was the first time I went to Guang's grandmother's house.

I often think about that time recently...

Maybe it's because May [-]th, the boys' Children's Day, is coming soon? "

"Well, I remember."

Light sat on the railing around the swing and smiled.He thought of himself in the fourth grade of elementary school.

Holding the remaining two tickets of Youth [-], I plan to go to Gero to see the little civet cat that Takeshi caught in the mountains.

Go to the station without fear.After Xiao Ming found out, he insisted on following.

On the way, she came to a completely strange place and saw a lot of strangers. She began to feel scared, and then cried.

At that time, I just felt angry and felt that girls were troublesome.

"Xiao Ming!It is you who love to follow the road and cry again! 』

"But..., just saying that I'm going alone, I'm worried. 』

"Then what if you're here?"Not just crying. 』

"Woo... um... Hikari is good or bad... Hikari is the most annoying... Ugh.... 』

"Tsk, well, don't cry!Wait for the police to come, let alone Gero, we will be sent back! 』

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu... 』

Xiao Ming's crying became louder and louder, so I quickly dragged her to a place where there were few people.

"Don't cry, Xiao Ming.Alas~. 』

With no other choice, I firmly held Xiao Ming's hand, raised it up to her eyes, and said to her:

"I'll take your lead, okay?I will always hold your hand and never let go.

If a bad guy comes, I will drive him away.You just have to follow me all the time.OK?let's go! 』

Xiao Ming burst into laughter, held Guang's hand tightly, and let him lead him to where he wanted to go.

"Although Guang was shorter than me at the time, he raised his head and said these words to me with piercing eyes. It looked really reliable and made me feel at ease. I always hope... that Guang will always be like this. my hand."

I suddenly understood what Xiao Ming was going to say next.

I began to think about how to answer better.Answer this question that you never thought about.

"Do you know the meaning of the lyrics of the nursery rhyme just now?"

Guang didn't speak, just shook his head and listened to Xiao Ming's words very quietly.

Xiao Ming first raised the corners of his mouth and smiled, then his eyes sank, and he continued:

"The lyrics say that the carp banner flying in the sky is flying in the sea of ​​clouds.

It opened its mouth so wide that it could swallow even a boat.

Carp Banner has been working hard to swim through many waterfalls and fly to the sky without any regrets.

Until it flew out of the sky and turned into a dragon.

It has been flying, flying to the high and far sky, flying to the outside of the universe,

Fly to... a place that Xiao Ming can't reach anyway... "

When the words came to a heavy point, Xiao Ming paused, took a deep breath and continued:

"Light...can no longer hold my hand like before? Do you understand?

I...I really like light..., have always liked.... "

Xiao Ming whispered in a nasal voice and the few crystal clear teardrops hanging on the eyelashes made people feel distressed.

"..." Guang looked at Xiao Ming silently.

Xiao Ming is a very important childhood sweetheart,

We have a common childhood, common memories.

I hope she is happy, I hope she can always smile carefree,

It's a girl I absolutely don't want to hurt.

So I couldn't help but say to her "Let's date and see" with a half-toned mood,

Like I used to say to other girls.

I can only…

"I'm sorry, Ming."

Xiao Ming lowered his head, tears fell into the soil one by one like broken pearls.

***

I think I like Xiao Ming.

A liking without craving..., without desire.

If Xiao Ming is wronged, I will stand up without thinking about it, without asking for anything in return.

But for me, such liking is not love.

I know that I am not such a philanthropic and desireless person.

On the day I rejected Xiao Ming,

I seem to already vaguely know the reason why I can't cherish her properly,

Knowing my own mind... I have lost that night in April that was full of sense of loss.

When I realized that I couldn't fit anything in my heart except Go,

I put away all the sensory nerves in this aspect of love, and decided not to fall in love for the time being, to let myself go empty.

Unexpectedly, everything happened so suddenly.

I found myself longing for this person in The Impossible.

The more tolerant he is to me, the more he lets me see him outside the chessboard, the more dissatisfied I feel.

A strong desire that I have never felt roared in my head....

That night was the tipping point, right?

The pain of loss, the shared memories, the interaction with each other,

Everything filled my head in an instant like a revolving lantern.

I thought it was just because Taya was too important and I was too afraid of losing him,

That's why I was temporarily confused, and couldn't help holding Taya's luxurious waist,

He hugged his body, which was much thinner than it looked on the outside, into his arms.

After that, the days went on for one day, two days, three days... like it would go on forever....

The lingering warmth... seems to be engraved into my arms and chest, making me recall the events of that night many times.

This kind of throbbing... Is it the feeling you should have for friends of the same sex?

No.

Absolutely not.

I just found out...

I am already dying...

already…

I fell in love with Taya.

Guang closed his eyes in pain, and hummed the long-forgotten nursery rhyme sung by Xiao Ming.

The carp broke away from the flagpole and jumped into the sky, but the sky... was covered with a heavy curtain of darkness, and it was black.

***

Guang hummed the same song unconsciously dozens of times. With this simple melody, Guang's mood gradually settled down.The cyan sea where the carp streamer swims is gradually being dyed a faint pink-orange color.

(Japanese Nursery Rhyme - Carp Streamer)

"Wow, that's bad!"

Just thinking about it, today I have to arrange a game record on Toranojiro's chessboard for Zuowei as in previous years. I hurriedly sat up and picked up the suit and tie that were put aside.

The place where Hikari is located is the highest part of the roof of Nihon Ki-in, directly above the stairs, on the concrete building with the water tower. When he climbed up, he obediently climbed up the stairs on the concrete wall. As for coming down?He has never had that kind of patience, just like the Hulk descending, he jumped and stood at the entrance of the stairs leading to the top floor with a loud "freeze".

"It's forbidden to enter there."

Standing on the other side of the no-entry line at the entrance, Ryo stared at Ryo with a sullen face, as if he was about to spew flames from his eyes.

The roof of Nihon Ki-in started to be greened a few weeks ago, and the yellow tape was pulled up to block it.Although the project has come to an end, the turf has not yet grown solidly, and it must be repaired for a while before it can be opened.

"Less be scary!" The guy was as elusive as ever.

"I'm just standing here, and it's you who jumped down that surprised me."

"Oh, I'm so sorry."

Looking at Liang standing behind the prohibition line, Guang suddenly had an idea,

"Come out and have a look, Taya. The wind is cool, and you can see the carp streamers hanging on the opposite building clearly. How about it?"

Light urged Liang to cross the prohibition line between the two of them, and urged him to cross the prohibition line to come to the world of light and see what he saw.

Born in a family of Go, with a serious and upright personality, what would Toya Ryo, who does not allow himself a slight deviation, do?Light thought about it in his heart.

"I've already said it's forbidden to enter there."

The tone is inexcusable....

"Just don't step on the turf, right?"

I persuade again...

"You can see it here too."

There is no wavering in those dark pupils...

Sure enough, just like I guessed.

Hikaru sighed inwardly, and changed the subject without embarrassment.

"Since when have you been there?"

"'Carp Banner'... I heard you hum it about ten times."

"Puchi...hehe. Isn't it so nice? My singing voice. It made you stand here for so long?"

"Don't be kidding me."

"I'm not joking." I was seriously amused.

"Why isn't your phone turned on?"

"I want to be alone. But you, how do you know I'm here?"

"Your things are in the staff room, and there is no one in the chess academy, so there is only this forbidden place left."

"You're amazing, Taya. I won't win if you play hide-and-seek with you. Hehe." Hikari cracked his mouth and smiled.

But Guang's smile seemed to offend Liang's nerves,

"Shindo Hikari!! What's your dissatisfaction with Waki?"

When Taya is angry, he always exhausts all his strength to get angry, and his usual rationality and calmness are completely burned at that moment. He Gu often said that it was scary, but I don't hate it, because it makes him seem like a lot of people .

"Of course I'm dissatisfied. My ego is black!

All the formula battles, I haven't lost with sunspots for nearly half a year.Can't it be a big hit?

Besides, who, like the first Beidou Cup, told me not to have ugly results?

You're talking about it, Taya fifth dan? "

I am rising, and Taya is also rising. There will always be a gap of two ranks between us in terms of titles.In the current formula battles, my winning rate against Taya is only [-]%, and the wins are all when I hold the sunspots.After chasing him for five years, not to mention surpassing him, it is not even considered as keeping pace with him, which makes me feel very anxious.

Too much excitement made me fear that I would lose control, so I turned my eyes away from Taya's face and looked back at the sky.The field of vision became lower than when we were on the concrete roof just now, and only the tail of the carp streamer could be seen, appearing and disappearing on the other side of the fence, swinging up and down with the strong wind.

Liang's right hand passed through the yellow line, pulled over Guang's left shoulder, and turned his face to face him,

"I didn't find it ugly twice! Shinto! Why do you have thorns all over your body like this when it comes to this season, take the victory so seriously, and don't give yourself any retreat? It's not like you at all!"

"Not like me?"

Guang used his nose to sneer: "What do you know about me, Taya?"

With one hand in his pocket, Hikaru turned his body, his back was facing the dazzling sunset, his face was covered with black shadow so that Ryo couldn't see his current expression clearly.

"Shindo?"

Everyone has a dark side, and light is no exception, and this is the first time Ryo has seen it.

"Aha, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Are you startled? I just said it casually. How? You should have something to do with me, right?" What am I doing?It's useless to say that to Taya.It was me who fell in love with him casually, and it had nothing to do with him!

"Why don't you talk? Are you really scared?" I am an idiot!

"no."

"Then what's wrong with me?" Guang raised the corners of his mouth, trying hard to restore himself to his original appearance.

"Today, Serizawa-sensei's seminar is going to review the Hokuto Cup chess records. I want to ask you if you can go."

After starting to help clients play guiding chess and going to and from the library of Mr. Kuwahara’s house, due to time constraints, Hikari has become less likely to go to the seminar in Serizawa.Liang only went there when he heard that there were special chess records.

Seeing that Liang didn't seem to care anymore, Guang finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Go, of course. But... I want to go to my grandfather's house first when I have something to do. Let's go separately!"

"Alright. What about dinner?"

"... Shall I eat it at my grandpa's house? You... remember to eat it."

"You don't need to worry about it. I'll go down first." Liang turned and went downstairs, suddenly thought of something, turned his head and said to Guang:

"Shinto, since there is a seal here, it means there is danger inside, otherwise there are things that cannot be destroyed. You are a professional chess player, don't keep doing such knowingly crimes, it will make your reputation worse."

Taya knows more about the Go world than I do, and often gives me a lot of reminders and opinions.When I first started playing chess, he was the one who told me the basic rules of modern Go (that ancient man Zuo Wei didn’t understand at all), the method of holding chess pieces, the enthusiasm for Go, and the fighting spirit when playing chess. I learned it from myself.

I also apply this knowledge to myself irrefutably and become a unique chess player, but there is only one thing that I can't learn, and that is "care about other people's eyes".

My worth is determined by myself.

The expectations of others and the recognition of the outside world are as insignificant to me as the sand on the side of the road.

I can't take the time to pay attention to these things like Taya.

Maybe this is where I am naive than him.

"Got it." My ears got it.

"If you know it, do it! Go down together!"

Knowing that this sentence is a perfunctory usage of Shinto Mitsuru, it is a plan to delay the attack when there is no way to make a promise, and he doesn't want to listen to the other party's continued insinuation.Liang is also very clear, that's why he said this.

Light smiled helplessly,

"I still want to look at the sky for a while, it's very stuffy inside."

After listening to my words, Taya still had doubts in her pupils.

"Ah! You think I'm going to jump?"

"Idiot." Taya tossed her hair and walked downstairs.

It wasn't until the sound of Ryo's footsteps could no longer be heard that Hikari passed through the yellow tape that said no entry was printed and returned to Nihon Kiin.