OreShura: Volume 3 Chapter 7

Chapter 7 Double Date in the Movie Theater is Mayhem

—Why are you betting everything?

This was at the station square where we agreed to meet for the date.

When I first saw Fuyuumi, who was already waiting there, that was my first impression.

She was in normal clothes.

She had on a cute pale pink camisole and denim shorts, with a sleeveless lace dress on top. With slight changes in the light, the camisole occasionally became transparent, that somehow makes me nervous. She was revealing her white shoulders that were normally always hidden under her uniform. Somehow I don't know where to look.

Why apply this kind of effort?

This obviously isn’t a date. It’s merely just some friends going to watch a movie.

"Y-You’re late. I already waited around five minutes!"

Fuyuumi pouted and turned her head to the side showing the usual "tsun". Great, on the inside, she was still the same disciplinary committee member.

"Sorry, I was a little late leaving the library."

"Oh, really?! It’s so great that you’re putting your mind so much into studying! You study-idiot!"

After Fuyuumi turned to me, she suddenly lowered her head and said shyly:

"U-um, K-K-K-Kidou-kun?"

"Y-yes?"

Because she was that nervous, somehow it even affected my own voice, strangely.

"What do you think of my outfit? Does it look weird? Do I look like a bad student?"

"Bad student?"

What are you talking about? That white lace dress looks nothing like the fashion sense that bad student’s should have.

"Because you said before, ｢Wouldn’t it be better to wear normal clothes?｣......"

Oh right. Now that I think of it, this was something we chatted about at the family restaurant?

"Hmn, Don't worry, don't worry. It's definitely not like what a bad student would wear."

"R-Really......?"

"It's more of the opposite, I think it’s really cute and very feminine."

It's been a while, but I noticed that Fuyuumi caught the attention of all the men on the plaza. If I arrived just a bit later, Fuyuumi probably would have been incessantly hit on.

Then—

"F- Fuyuumi, is something wrong?"

Fuyuumi suddenly blushed, and she even grabbed my handed tightly and started waving it up and down!

"O-outside!"

"Eh?"

"I’m, just a little, I’m going to run outside—————!"

Why are you dragging me along as well?

"Calm down, Fuyuumi! We’re already outside!"

"No way?! Then, where am I supposed to run?"

"Don’t run! Kaoru is almost here, let's just wait here quietly!"

Probably because of the effect of my words, Fuyuumi stopped shaking my hand. Ah, she almost dislocated my shoulder.

Fuyuumi lowered her head for a while, and her shoulders rose and fell with a breath. Finally, she regained her composure.

"......Nee"

"What is it this time?"

"Don't you remember?"

"What?"

Fuyuumi clutched my hand, and her face grew increasingly red.

......So cute.

For some reason, her behavior has been really cute today.

"Holding hands like this, something from before, Don't you remember?"

"Heh?"

Just "when" are we supposed to be speaking off?

There it was no holding hands when we were at the family restaurant…… nor when we were picking restaurants? Or when we were at the cafeteria?

I could feel Fuyuumi’s hands continuously get hotter, and while I rapidly tried to search through my memories—

"Koteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee————!"

A cry suddenly echoed through the square!

I instantly let go of Fuyuumi’s hand!

And after only a few milliseconds, the place where our hands were at was hacked through by a rapid moving shinai.

Only one person in the world would do such a thing!

"Ahahahaha, Ei-kun's dodging has always being magnificent—but next time I’ll aim at the chest, eh—?"

Harusaki Chiwa smiled widely and stood with her legs astride, even as she threatened to kill me. Naturally, her eyes weren't smiling at all.

"C-Chiwa, what a coincidence— . Why are you here—?"

I suppressed my fear, and approached Chiwa as stipulated in Masuzu’s battle plan.

Step 1: Chiwa ｢coincidently｣ appears at our meeting place for the date. 

Step 2: ｢I’ve always wanted to see that movie! Why don’t we go together since I just happen to have free time?｣ 

Step 3: ｢Sure, it’s better if there’s an even number of boys and girls.｣ 

Step 4: Kaoru: ｢If Eita really thinks so…｣ Fuyuumi: ｢I guess it can't be helped.｣

—Yeah, the plan originally went something like that, but—

"Why are you here, Harusaki Chiwa?! To wave around a shinai on the streets, you delinquent!"

"And what are you supposed to be doing, Fuyuumi Ai?! You’re even holding hands with Ei-kun! Indecent! Indecent!"

Ermh—

For some reason, I keep getting this ｢it's ruined｣ feeling?

"W-what’s so Indecent!? You actually dare to say that to a disciplinary committee member?! You of that Self-Performing Group has no right to say that to me!"

"You have nothing to do with the Disciplinary Committee in the summer! That being said, what are you wearing? Wasn’t that outfit an advice from ｢Pachi Lemon｣?! Yai, a copy cat! A copy cat!"

"Wh-w-w-w-who is copying what————?! Baka————! This is obviously an outfit that Ai-chan spent a lot of effort to come up with on her own—————!"

This isn't any better than a children’s quarrel already.

Because it was summer time, there were a many families in the plaza. To kids passing by, these two must have seemed like a nice show.

Please, someone stop them…….

"Ah, sorry I’m late—————— Hey, why is Chihuahua-chan here?"

When Kaoru appeared five minutes late, Chiwa and Fuyuumi were already pinching each other’s faces.

Chiwa seemed to finally remember the battle plan, and she abruptly left Fuyuumi and forced an unnatural smile:

"Hey, uh, Kaoru-kun, hello! I heard you were going to the movies?"

"Yeah, we’re going to see an action movie called ｢Ashura Fight｣."

"Great—I always wanted to see that movie— Hey, can I go with you?"

"Eeh?"

Fuyuumi and Kaoru cried out almost simultaneously.

They were really surprised.

Well, it was no surprise that Fuyuumi, who was the complete opposite of Chiwa, acted like that. But even Kaoru who was supposed to have a good relationship with Chiwa reacted in the same way.

"A-A—Ah— but we only have three tickets—"

"Of course I’ll pay for the ticket myself."

"R-Right— ah, you got me there……"

Kaoru scratched his head while looking at Chiwa and Fuyuumi’s faces.

Then—

"A-chan, can you come over hear for a moment?"

"Huh? What for?"

"C'mon, it's just for a while."

Kaoru pulled strongly on Fuyuumi’s hand, took her a little further away. It seemed like he was whispering carefully to Fuyuumi.

While I was guessing what he was saying, Chiwa pulled on my ear and said:

"E~i-ku~~n~ ~~? Why were you holding Fuyuumi Ai’s hand?"

"Ouch, Ouch! There is no reason! It just that this and that happened!"

"...... If you are serious ｢I'll kill you｣. I already said that, right?"

"No you didn’t! At least the kill part! Still, I wasn’t even serious! This was the battle plan!"

"Battle plan?"

"Masuzu’s battle plan of making Fuyuumi captivated with me and seize her weaknesses!"

Even though what just happened had nothing to do with the battle plan, lets just say it was the same thing.

Chiwa finally left go of my ear and said:

"But when I see Fuyuumi’s face, I don’t see that."

"Even if you tell me that, it bothers me too."

Fuyuumi’s expression was definitely unusual.

It felt like a very serious, a facial expression that carried a lot of weight, with a very profound air.

What did she want me to remember anyways?

—At this point.

｢Can you hear me? Eita-kun, Harusaki-san?｣

Masuzu’s voice came through small earphone.

Chiwa and I brought the mike & headset, and installed in our sleeves to our mouth to speak:

"No problem, I can hear."

"Same, I can hear—"

"Good. From now on I will give comments like this…… Furthermore, Harusaki-san, please do not make sudden ruckus. The plan was nearly ruined by that little scene."

"Eh, you saw that? Where are you?"

"Behind you on the right side of the station, I’m sitting next to the fountain."

We looked in the direction that she described, and Masuzu dressed like a detective from a TV show waved slightly. Her conspicuous silver hair was hidden in a hat, and her blue eyes were covered with sunglasses.

At this time Kaoru brought Fuyuumi back, and Chiwa and I hurriedly cut off our communication.

"Sorry to keep you waiting— so Chihuahua-chan is coming with us?"

"It’s okay? Sorry for showing uninvited."

"We can go in pairs, so it's perfect when we thought about it. How should we match up?"

Fuyuumi was inexplicably twitchy, and Kaoru pushed her back towards me.

"W-Why is Fuyuumi paired with Ei-kun?"

When Chiwa made the complaint, Masuzu’s voice immediately came through.

｢What are you saying now? This is just as planned.｣

"Well...... I guess that’s true."

Chiwa reluctantly kept her mouth shut. Great, it seemed like she still had some bit of rationality left in her.

"Well let’s go then, Chihuahua-chan ♪"

Kaoru casually pulled on Chiwa’s arm and started off.

"Uuuu, Ei-kun, don’t stay so close to Fuyuumi."

Even though Chiwa looked back several times, she was still led away. Ah— Kaoru was so impressive. He can even keep that Chiwa in check.

"Then how about we go too?"

"I-It can't be helped. I guess I'll accompany you!"

"Oh, thanks."

Many people tend to start off their sentences with ｢Ah｣ or ｢Ermh｣, but I only know one person who says ｢It can't be helped｣, and that is Fuyuumi AI.

And I’ve become completely used to it.

♦

｢Ashura Fight｣ is adapted from a bestselling novel of the same name and an international film.

The male lead was a young businessman named Eiji (age 25). It was about a month after he was married to his childhood friend, Tina (age 25). However, when the former lover Amy (age 25) who was presumed dead at sea a few years ago appeared, their fates completely changed. Amy and Eiji had once vowed to marry each other, so Eiji’s heart was unsteadily torn between his two beloved women—

Reading the synopsis would make one think it was a romance film, but it was actually classified as an ｢Action Film｣. Tina and Amy could use paranormal powers, and their fights could make the earth shake and sea torrent. Eiji can only clutch his head and worry. Not considering the budget for the CG and martial arts scenes, it seemed like it hit a blockbuster record since it was released last week.

In either case, the most interesting part of this film was—

"Eh, an open voice event?"

I couldn’t help but ask at the ticket office. Kaoru nodded with a smile on his face.

"It’s the same as when you attend a sports competition. It’s okay if you laugh, cry, or shout in the middle of the movie; I even heard there were people who cheered for some of the characters in the film."

Such a ground-breaking approach."

This activity really undermined the idea of going to a movie from the past.

"Of course, for people who want to watch a quiet movie, there’s another section for that type of screening too. But this is a rare opportunity, so let’s try this one."

"Ah! I want to try! I want to try this one! It seems very interesting!"

Chiwa’s eyes sparkled with excitement, probably because she was a sports-loving person. This kind of activity seemed to go well with her.

"Well, I’m alright too...... Fuyuumi?"

"I- I am fine with it too, either way!"

Fuyuumi lowered her head like usual and said shyly.

As to why she was so shy, it was probably because the boys around us were staring at her. There was even a couple that came together, but the boy kept staring at Fuyuumi, causing his girlfriend to pinch his face. When Fuuyumi wore her uniform, she wasn’t nearly so eye catching, but it her appeal when she was dressed up was clearly immense. If the people at school saw Fuyuumi as she is right now, she would probably be a worthy rival in ｢popularity｣ to that Masuzu.

Incidentally, speaking of Masuzu, she was in the nearby concessions stand, wolfing down a large bucket of popcorn. She must be venting and overeating, probably because she was surrounded by couples everywhere.

After the staff exchanged our pre-sale tickets with seat tickets, we entered the theater. We sat in the middle of a theater of about four hundred seats, in the order from right to left facing the screen: Kaoru, Chiwa, Me, and Fuyuumi. Although I didn’t know where Masuzu’s seat was, she was probably sitting somewhere she could see us.

Just when I was thinking this—

｢Eita-kun, why are you just staring blankly? Engage in conversation with Fuyuumi.｣

—could heard this small voice.

"What should I say?"

｢Of course you should talk so that she gets hooked with you, wasn't that clear already?｣

……T- t-talk so that she gets hooked......

｢Make sure that Fuyuumi-san becomes captivated, and also don’t say nor do anything I would consider cheating. Quite simple, isn't it?｣

"The degree of difficulty is way too high————!"

I couldn’t help but shout.

"What’s wrong? The movie hasn’t even started yet."

Fuyuumi couldn’t help but ask with her head tilted and puzzled from next to me.

"S-sorry, urmh......"

I racked my brain to find something to talk about:

"What kinds of movie does Fuyuumi usually watch?"

"Ah— I rarely watch movies."

"I see—"

"............"

"............"

The talk that gets her hooked with me, thus concludedッッッ

Without a moment of dealy, Masuzu made contact:

｢What are you doing? Is that the limit which your conversational ability can muster?｣

"Even if you say that, I just can’t think of anything to say!"

｢In these situations, the topic you chat about doesn’t have to relate to the movies. Any topic with any background is okay, so come up with something.｣

If any topic is okay……

If that’s the case, then there’s that.

"Fuyuumi....."

"What?"

"Did you see yesterday's ｢Magure Punishment Extreme｣?"

｢You are bringing up that again———————————!?｣

What a surprise, for Masuzu to play the part of the tsukkomi.

On the other hand, Fuyuumi nodded her head:

"Mh, I guess you could say I saw it."

"Really! Then you are someone who knows what I'm speaking off!"

If that’s the case, it’s time to charge!

"Yesterday, in the episode called ｢Nabe again｣, it focused in police protagonist Yasu-san boss and section chief named Manabe. I think this episode was the best emotional drama in the entire second season. Although Nabe-san is typically someone who just is harsh with his subordinates and is really not that likable, this time he was completely different than usual. Normally, he pushes everything off to Yasu-san so he can drink tea, but this time he personally set out to investigate a criminal who attacked a child in the street. He even took the initiative to set up an ambush, the reasoning being ｢my only daughter was killed in a traffic accident｣. It was really interesting! It’s something really rare in this contemporary structure of drama, and it’s godly I'll tell ya!— a godly drama!"

I finished in one breath, and finished the coca cola I bought from the concessions stand.

Whuu—so happy! Just so happy!

I didn’t realize carbonic acid after talking about ｢Maguke｣ was that refreshing!

—Well, with regards to Fuyuumi’s reaction:

"Kidou-kun."

"Y-Yes!"

"Nabe-san isn’t a section chief. He’s a division chief, right? Wasn’t he promoted at the end of the first season?"

"......Oh, right."

Fuyuumi said softly:

"I think that Nabe-san was portrayed as a pretty honorable person the past. For example, in the third episode of the first season, when Yasu-san was locked in solitary confinement as he searched for drugs, Nabe-san turned a blind eye and even shielded Yasu-san in the hallway."

"......I guess you could see it like that……."

"Also, it wasn’t the first time that the plot point about Nabe-san’s daughter appeared. ｢Maguke｣ used to not be weekly show, and when they stilled broadcast the episodes in special programs, they explained this plot point once. Maybe because many recent fans don’t know about the content from the specials, they re-explained it."

"A-Amazing! Fuyuumi is so well informed! I’m really impressed!"

"Really? For a fan, this is common sense though."

"............"

"............"

The talk that gets her hooked with me, thus concludedッッッ

At this time, I could heard another one of Masuzu's messages

｢Yai, she beats you, she beats you—｣

"Shut up! You are so freakingly annoying———————!!"

At this time the sound informing that the movie was about to start echoed through the cinema.

"We’ll talk later, Masuzu."

I hurriedly turned off my phone. Although shouting was allowed, it wasn’t good to have phone calls during the film.

After about five minutes of commercials & advertisement notices, the main feature began.

The screen started with a closeup shot—a closeup of a very scary zombie. Although it was an action movie, this was a really confusing opening.

"KYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!"

The sounds of four women’s screams in the audience pierced through, and their noise actually scared me. I see. This was the reason they allowed shouting.

Then, Fuyuumi’s fingers touched my left hand.

I whispered:

"Are you afraid, Fuyuumi?"

"O-O-O-O--Of course not. With only this much."

Although she said this verbally, she tightly gripped my left hand.

I felt it was a little embarrassing, but at this time another set of small fingers touched my right hand.

"Gyaaaaaaaaaaghhhh- Ouch, Ouch————"

Chiwa had clenched my hand with all her strength, and suiting a person from the Kendo club, she had an incredibly strong grip.

"Hey you, Chiwa! what are you doing?"

"I determined it was cheating! What? Such infatuated behavior."

"I was not infatuated!"

Then Kaoru issued a ｢cough｣ loudly and cleared his throat:

"Although the event doesn’t prohibit chatting, you should still probably try to be more quiet."

Chiwa and I both hurriedly shut up, and nodded to those around us in apology. However, everyone was already looking forward to shouting, they didn’t notice.

And just like this, the story continued to develop.

Precarious on the edge of life and death, Amy had returned from her accident. However, because her former boyfriend was stolen by Tina, she erupted in anger and the battle finally started.

"Get rid of her, Amy!"

Ai-chan shouted with her fist held up.

"What Tina! this short women isn’t your equal! Your looks, brains, and personality are all superior over hers! Superior! Superior! The childhood friend is so pretentious, you should just beat her up!"

For her own part, Chiwa was also screeching at the top of her lungs:

"Do your best Tina-chan! That woman called Amy is the worst! She’s actually taking advantage of her position and trying to steal him! Don’t argue with her, just hit her already!"

It seems like Fuyuumi was with Amy, and Chiwa was with Tina. They both empathized with those characters.

The two of them began fighting in the center of a large city. Amy fired lasers and burned buildings, while Tina’s beam sword cut open the earth. In between them, their beloved Eiji kept rushing about back and forth in panic. His behavior made the audience laugh.

From the middle of the laughs, I could hear the taunting voice of one woman.

"How miserable, Eiji. Is that what you call a man? How come your ex-girlfriend’s butt excites you to that extent, you hideous pervert! Women’s Toilet Overdrive! You Doppyun serenade! Underhanded! Kidou Eita!"

"THE LAST PART WAS CLEARLY MY NAME!! OI, COME, SHOW YOURSELF ALREADY!!!"

I turned away from the screen, and shouted into the audience, but I couldn’t see a trace of Masuzu. Damn! Where was she hiding?

On the other hand, Chiwa and Fuyuumi's excitement was escalating.

"It’s your chance, Tina-chan! This is your chance to defeat Amy! Show her that the bonds of childhood friends are the strongest!"

"Amy won’t lose! If it’s the bonds, you have them too! What’s important is the depth of the relationship, not the length!"

"Whether it’s the length or depth, of course the childhood friend is where is at it!"

"That’s just YOUR OWN conceit!"

I felt the situation had developed very strangely.

Although they were watching the screen…… However, they obviously weren’t arguing about the characters on the screen.

"It has nothing to do with conceit! Because we are always together, and we have always lived together every day!"

"So every other girl has to step back? And just has to give up?"

"Hmph! Just what can you understand about Childhood friends?"

"IT IS YOU WHO COULDN'T POSSIBLY UNDERSTAND!"

Fuyuumi’s tone suddenly changed.

I couldn’t help but turn around, and I saw Fuyuumi’s eyes slightly tearing.

"How could you possibly understand the feelings of a girl who wasn't allowed to become a childhood friend!!"

Chiwa stared at Fuyuumi, stunned.

Kaoru also stared at Fuyuumi with a strange expression.

"Er-What is it, all of sudden?"

I timidly asked her, but Fuyuumi coarsely wiped her face with her arm.

And then she returned to her original unyielding expression:

"Right there! Amy, give her the final blow!"

—Fuyuumi acted as if nothing happened, and again began to cheer.

Chiwa stared at the side of Fuyuumi’s face for a while, and as the plot moved on and the battle scene ended, she then looked back at the screen; Kaoru did the same.

I also turned back to the movie screen— but I couldn’t remember what happened in the movie after that.

However, Fuyuumi’s words, ｢Wasn't allowed to become a Childhood friend｣, lingered in my ears.

♦

So after all this—

After saying farewell to Fuyuumi and the rest, I met with Chiwa and Masuzu in the nearby café. I asked if she had any photographs that could be used as ｢Fuyuumi’s weakness｣—

"After thinking about it, isn't forbidden to take pictures in movie theaters, right?"

"......"

"......"

With nothing to say in front of us, Masuzu knocked the side of her head and said:

"The episode of Masuzu-san epic fail, Tehe ♪"

"ARE YOUUUUUU MEESSSSING ARRRROUUUNDD WITH MEEEEEEEEE————!?"

Seize the disciplinary committee member’s weakness! Heartbeat? Heartbeat! Date battle!

E·p·i·c · F·a·i·l·u·r·e·!

---

Notes

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