Substitute Toyokawa Shoko, you can become stronger by breathing

Just as Kujo Renji thought.

Chihaya Aine is a person who lives for "others".

She is afraid of the underworld.

Afraid of anything unusual.

She is afraid of the dark, vain, showy and timid.

Even if she saw someone with tattoos on the street, she would lower her head and not look at the other person, and try to walk away from them.

For a girl like this who is full of the weaknesses of an "ordinary person", it stands to reason that when she senses the possible "trouble" and "danger" of "Toyokawa Shoko", the most important thing she should do is to stay away from her and protect herself.

But she didn't.

She took the initiative to participate in Nagasaki Suye's "fantastic" "rescue plan." She was willing to face her inner fear and approach "Xiao Xiang", who might bring trouble, in an attempt to understand the truth and to offer help.

why?

Because Xiaoxiang also helped her.

She is a grateful person.

She is someone who will muster up the courage to stand up for her friends even when she is extremely scared.

So, she wanted to know what kind of trouble Toyokawa Shoko was in.

So, she was willing to take the risk, even if she might get dragged into it.

At this moment, she lowered her head and looked at the turbid noodle soup left in the bowl. The oil floating on the soup reflected her hesitant and struggling face.

Deep down, the timid voice in her heart was screaming "Run! Mind your own business!", but another voice, the voice that belonged to her "friend", was encouraging her to "Ask! Help her!".

After a long while, she seemed to have finally made up her mind. She took a deep breath and raised her head. A courage to risk everything flickered in her grey eyes. She was about to open her mouth and ask the question that had been lingering on her mind for a long time.

However, just as she was about to speak, the blue-haired girl opposite who had been looking at her quietly, seemed to see through her thoughts and spoke first.

The tone was calm, with a hint of elusive meaning.

“Aine.”

The girl called her name softly.

"What do you see on the label on my head?"

Like a bolt from the blue!

These words fell lightly, but set off a huge wave in Chihaya Aine's heart!

She suddenly raised her head, her eyes widened instantly due to extreme shock, and her pupils contracted violently!

Eh?!

Xiaoxiang, how could she know?! How could she know she could see the "label"?!

Could it be... Could it be that Soyorin has already told her?!

Aine's mind went blank, she had no idea how to respond.

She subconsciously raised her head, and her eyes uncontrollably glanced at the top of the girl opposite her again...

[Master of Yutenji Wakamugi][Kanto Underground Emperor][Yakuza Arbitrator][Black Gold Manipulator][...]

The string of words that still hung there, filled with all kinds of terrifying and completely incomprehensible words, burned her eyes like red-hot irons!

These... these labels... how should she respond?!

Should I say, "Xiaoxiang, I see there's a label called 'Kanto Underground Emperor' on your head. What does that mean?"

I'm afraid I'll be sunk into Tokyo Bay in the next second, right?!

Aine trembled with fear, and quickly lowered her head, her eyes evading in panic. Her hands nervously clutched the hem of her skirt, and she stammered for a long time, unable to utter a word:

"My label, what label... I, I don't quite understand..."

Looking at the girl's panicked look, trying to play dumb but with so many loopholes, Kujo Renji already had the answer in his heart.

It seems that what Nagasaki Suyo said was true.

Chihaya Aine does have some ability to "see" other people's information, and she seems to have really seen something that she shouldn't see.

However, he didn't dwell on this awkward topic any further. Pressuring the issue wasn't his style, and now wasn't the time to delve into the specific meanings of these labels.

What he needed to do was to calm the little girl who was frightened by his secret, dispel her doubts and fears, establish initial trust, and lay the foundation for possible subsequent "cooperation" or "exploitation".

Then, the expression on his face softened again, and he even winked at Aine playfully. In a lighthearted tone, he suddenly changed the subject:

"lets change a topic."

He stood up and picked up the canvas bag beside him:

"The weather is so nice, how about we go... fly a kite?"

"Eh? Fly a kite?"

This extremely abrupt and even somewhat "childish" proposal once again stunned Chihaya Aine, who was still immersed in fear and confusion.

.

On the river bank in the summer evening, the breeze blows away the heat of the day.

The setting sun dyed the sky and the river a warm orange-red. Groups of people were scattered on the grass, enjoying this rare and pleasant time.

Chihaya Aine held the kite string in her hand, and looked absentmindedly at the kite in the sky with a cute cartoon pattern printed on it. Under the skillful control of Kujo Renji, the kite flew higher and higher.

What happened in the ramen restaurant just now was still lingering in her mind.

A series of questions and worries prevented her from fully immersing herself in the fun as usual.

Her smile was a little forced, and her eyes occasionally drifted towards the blue-haired girl next to her who was looking up at the kite.

Kujo Renji didn't seem to notice her absent-mindedness, or rather, he noticed it but didn't point it out.

He just focused on controlling the kite string, adjusting the angle from time to time to make the kite draw a beautiful arc in the air.

The two walked slowly side by side on the grass, silence spreading amid the summer breeze and the laughter coming from afar.

After a while, Kujo Renji casually brought up the previous topic again.

“Aine…”

He turned his head and looked at the girl beside him who was obviously distracted, and said in a calm tone:

"Did I scare you at the ramen shop just now?"

“Eh? No, no!” Aine waved her hands quickly, trying to cover it up.

Jiujo Renji smiled and didn't expose her: "About the 'label' thing..."

Aine's heart suddenly rose to her throat.

"Actually, I think...it's quite interesting."

Jiujo Renji's tone was very relaxed, as if he was talking about some newfangled toy:

"Everyone is labeled by the outside world from the moment they are born until they go to the grave, isn't it?"

"[Good student], [Bad boy], [Excellent student], [Poor student], [Introvert], [Extrovert], [Rich person], [Poor person]..."

He listed offhandedly:

"These labels are both good and bad. Some are imposed by others, while others are chosen by us. In a sense, your ability, Aine, is quite 'practical'. It's like directly visualizing other people's 'impressions' or 'summaries' of a person."

Aine nodded, not quite understanding, and felt a little relieved.

"but..."

Jiujo Renji changed the subject and looked at the kite flying freely in the sky:

"I don't think so-called 'labels' will follow someone for their entire life. I also don't think these labels can truly define a person."

"Other people's opinions, external evaluations, and the labels we place on ourselves... they may reflect our state at a certain stage, or others' partial understanding of us, but they... cannot represent all of us."

"Just like..." He paused, turned back, a sly smile in his amber eyes: "Just like that bowl of ramen."

"Some people find it 'bland,' while others find it 'amazing.' These different evaluations stem from different tastes and standards. But the bowl of ramen itself remains unchanged by these evaluations."

He looked at Aine, his tone becoming gentle and sincere:

"Aine took me to that ramen restaurant, and I was very happy. Because I knew that it was something you really liked and wanted to share with me."

"But what makes me happier is that in that 'stubborn dad's' ramen shop, you were able to let go of all that 'catering' and 'pretense' in front of me, and show a little bit...real preferences and relaxation that you might not even realize."

He was referring to how Aine, though a bit reserved at first, gradually relaxed at the “hardcore” ramen shop, and even joked with him and shared memories of herself and her father.

"So, I hope..."

Jiujo Renji's gaze became particularly serious, as if it could penetrate people's hearts:

"At least between us, we don't need to care too much about those so-called 'labels', okay?"

"Whether it's the 'label' you see of me or the 'label' others put on you... it doesn't matter."

"Because, we are not made of those labels."

"You are Chihaya Aine."

"My favorite friend, Chihaya Aine."

His voice was clear and firm, and every word he said was like a stone thrown into the lake of Ain's heart, rippling out layers of warm ripples.

Chihaya Aine stared at him blankly, looking at those sincere and warm amber eyes reflecting the afterglow of the setting sun, and felt that something deep in her heart that had been tense seemed to... quietly loosen.

She has always tried to play the role of a "popular live-action girl," trying to meet other people's expectations and trying to fit in... She is afraid of being isolated, afraid of being disliked, afraid that she is not "good enough"...

The gazes and comments from the outside world were like an invisible net that bound her tightly.

And now, someone told her...those labels don't matter.

She is her, Chihaya Aine.

The one who was considered a "friend", Chihaya Aine.

An indescribable warmth instantly surged through her body, and her eyes became slightly hot uncontrollably.

at this time--

"call--"

A strong summer breeze suddenly blew across the river bank!

The wind was so strong that the kite on the grass was shaking violently!

"ah!"

Jiujo Liansi exclaimed softly, and the kite string in his hand suddenly tightened, and then...

pat!

The taut line broke!

The kite, freed from its restraints, was like a bird that had escaped from its shackles. It was carried by the strong wind, rising rapidly and becoming smaller, heading towards the setting sun, flying farther and farther away... and finally disappearing into the orange-red skyline.

Only the broken thread was left, floating weakly in the wind.

...

PS: This chapter is 9,500, which can barely be considered a five-in-one?

Chapter 91 Jealousy (4K)

The evening breeze, carrying the moist scent of the grass on the river bank, gently brushed Chihaya Aine's cheek.

The last rays of sunset disappeared below the horizon, and the sky was filled with a soft violet.

The kite that broke free from its restraints has long since disappeared, leaving behind only a broken string and a faint melancholy in the air, belonging to a summer evening.

But Aine's mood was not as lost as that of a kite with a broken string.

"Xiaoxiang's" words about "labels" and "being yourself" were like a beam of warm light, illuminating the corner of her heart that had been shrouded in darkness.

All the anxiety, confusion and self-doubt caused by caring about the eyes of others seem to be alleviated and comforted to some extent in the sentence "You are Chihaya Aine, my favorite friend, Chihaya Aine".

Yeah, labels...are they really that important?