In this special training that took place in just one week, Nao and Shumi have completed it perfectly.

Although Shumi did not make it to the second stage of training, it was already very hard for a girl who has only been in karate for two years. With three dojo training sessions a week and club training four times a week, Shumei is making rapid progress and has broken through the bottleneck that everyone must reach before she becomes a black belt. At the current rate of progress, she will surely be able to wear a black belt when she enters the first year of high school in the future.

In addition to special training, Nao also went to participate in the karate level test of the Tokyo Metropolitan Gokushin Association this week, and now Nao has worn a blue belt. Although the Cordon Bleu is still a bit different from her skills, for a first-time competitor, such a quadruple jump is quite fast. There will be a practical test in the grade test after the blue ribbon, and although Sakurako's grandmother Jian yì Nao skipped to the second bar of the tea belt with her strength in the next test, Nao herself was not too enthusiastic about it. For her, since she can skip a grade, it is better to take the black belt test directly when she turns 16, so that she can save the cost of taking a test.

Sakurako couldn't deny Nao's words, but she quietly smiled out of sight.

Although the three of them live in Matsuda's house temporarily, Aiko is responsible for all the expenses of food, clothing, housing and transportation, and she also buys them not only the tuition fees of Nao and Natsu, but also the uniforms and violins for club training. Even if Aiko and Jinhei don't care, Nao and Sakurako always feel a little sorry in their hearts. For this reason, Nao once proposed to work at a nearby convenience store, but was rejected by the formation with contempt.

"Your guardian is me, my daughter. How can a father in the world let his daughter pay for it?" Jinping spit out a smoke ring, and smiled at Nao with a smile in his eyes, "If you really feel embarrassed, you'll help me pour cigarette ash and sweep the room every day!"

"I'm not embarrassed!"

Nao's red hair almost exploded, and her increasingly strict face also tended to match the color of her hair. Jinpei squinted his eyes and grinned, almost admiring Nao's rare shy expression with pleasure, "If that's not the reason, then why do you need to work to make money?"

"Because ......" Nao opened her mouth, and the flush on her face faded. She bit her lip and didn't speak, her eyes lowering. What could she say? Obviously, it was just to keep Aiko and Jinpei from burdening them too much—not only to buy clothes for herself and Natsu, but also to pay for Natsu's violin lessons. But in the face of Jinping, he seemed to see through his eyes, but he subconsciously retorted, and he couldn't say anything.

"Little Nao—" Jinhei extinguished the cigarette butt in the ashtray and reached out to pull her head to eye level with her. He stared at her eyes tightly, and his round and dark pupils like grapes were full of tenderness, "Didn't I say it, you don't need to have too many scruples in this family, you are the daughter of our family." All you need to do is worry about studying and club activities like a real thirteen-year-old, and all you need to think about every day is 'will he get fat' and 'will he like me' that girls should consider. ”

"But......" Nao frowned.

"There's nothing to do, your opinions are all dismissed!" Jinhei pressed her head hard in dissatisfaction, "I'll take care of the rest." I just need you to be able to smile like a fool at all times, and to be able to show a full face wherever you are, and that's enough. ”

Nao felt as if someone had punched her on the bridge of her nose, and the heat in her nasal cavity rushed towards her eyes, and her vision gradually blurred.

Jin Ping looked at her for a while, and suddenly grinned and rubbed her Liuhai.

"Do you know how I felt when I first saw you?" he let go of Nao's head and lit a cigarette, "You were probably six or seven years old at the time, in the photo." Her messy hair and skin are tanned, and she holds Natsu's hand tightly like a hen guarding her cubs, and she can't tell that she is a little girl at all. At that time, I just thought, 'Ah, so thin!', really like a monkey with too much sun, and Natsu is so much more beautiful than you. ”

"Natsu is already beautiful. Nao sniffled and said in a muffled voice.

"Yes, yes, Xiao Natsu is the most beautiful!" Jin Ping laughed, the smoke obscured the corners of his crooked eyes, "Later, when I saw you holding Xiao Nazu and Aunt Sakurako at the airport, I suddenly became unrecognizable." I've grown a lot taller, my skin is much whiter, and my red hair looks vibrant, but the only thing that hasn't changed is that I'm as thin as before, and I'm as protective of Natsu as before, but I'm finally like a girl. Although you didn't notice it when I approached, you were looking left and right vigilantly, the green eyes that were much sharper than when I was a child, and the tape on my chin, no matter how I looked at it, I looked so good, how could I be so obedient now!"

As he spoke, he reached out and gestured to rub Nao's hair again. Nao dodged in a flash, squinting at him with red eyes.

"I'm really sorry for the fierce look I look!"

"Haha, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Jinping blew out a puff of smoke and rubbed his chin that already had a stubble, "but I still think you're better now." Although I have only lived in Tokyo for less than half a year, I am not at all as thin as a monkey, and I have something else in my eyes. How so...... Yes, it seems that he has finally evolved from a monkey to a human, and he will not be as vigilant as a hedgehog when facing a living human. Although Mom and Aunt Sakurako didn't say anything, they were very happy with the way you are now—not 'Natsu's sister' or 'Sakurako's granddaughter', but you, Saotome Nao herself. ”

"But I've always been Natsu's sister and grandmother's granddaughter. ”

"That's true, but first you have to be an independent person, not an appendage of anybody. Jin Ping shook his finger, "A person must first identify with himself in order to be recognized by more people." Do you think that you are just Natsu's older sister? If you don't have Natsu, do you have a goal in life? It's right to be a good sister, but you also have to feel that little Natsu wants to be a good sister. What is the purpose of my sister? It is to stand up when my sister needs comfort and companionship, instead of letting my sister endure loneliness and watch you work alone for the so-called 'sister's benefit'. ”

Nao nodded as if he didn't understand, causing Jinping to sigh helplessly.

"How long has it been since you've talked to Natsu? You didn't ask about her at school, did you?"

"No, no...... Nao shook his head weakly, "I've just been busy with club affairs lately, and ......"

"And want to find a place to work?" Looking at Nao's expression, Jin Ping knocked on her head with a smile, "Don't think I don't know what you're thinking, I said you don't need to worry about family affairs." Don't you know that my salary is very high, and my mother's illustrations are also famous all over the country. I can still afford the cost of your karate level exam and Natsu's violin tuition. I'm not allowed to talk about it in the future, so I'll talk to Natsu more when I have time in the United States! You don't know about her joining the tennis club, do you?"

"Tennis club?!" Nao opened her mouth wide, "And what about her orchestra club?"

"Just guess that you don't know anything, talk to her more when you have time, little Natsu is also a little pitiful. Jinpei extinguished the cigarette butt in the ashtray, raised his hand and looked at his watch, "Well, it's almost time for the end of Natsube's work." Be a good sister and pick her up from school. ”

"Today is a day off, and the elementary school students' club will also work on Saturdays?"

"Go ask yourself, I have something to go out!" Jinping shook his hand with his back to Nao, and walked towards his room, and his muttering voice came from the corridor, "Tsk, I actually did a confidant brother for an afternoon......"

"It's a bosom uncle. Nao whispered in the direction he had gone, a faint smile on his face.

She stood up and patted her face, exhaling as if relaxed, "Next, pick up Natsu and pick up Nazu-"

When the clock pointed to four o'clock, the neatly dressed Nao was already standing at the school gate with the words "Ice Emperor Kindergarten" written on it.

There was no one on the Ice Emperor campus on the weekend, and even the administrator who was watching the gate was nowhere to be found. Nao was standing there carrying the hand-rolled sushi that he had brought to Natsu, and was looking affectionately at the gate of the Ice Emperor Elementary School—

"That guy can't be a liar, right?"

Nao angrily took out his portable phone, ready to scold the bad young man who tricked him into coming to the Ice Emperor. But just as she was about to dial the number, the text message rang impartially. Nao raised an eyebrow as she looked at the name that jumped on the screen, and pressed the read button at the bottom of the screen.

[Nao, do you have a sister named 'Saotome Natsu'?—— ByGakuto]

"It's Yueren, how would he know?" Nao said to himself, not replying to the text message immediately, but directly dialing the phone number of Xianghiyueren. It didn't take a few seconds for the cheerful bell to ring, and the person on the other end of the line immediately picked up the phone.

"Moximosi, is that Nao?"

"I said, at this time, you should say, 'Hey, I'm Xiangri', right??, who called whom!" Nao couldn't help but laugh when she heard Xiangri's voice.

"But you rarely call directly, and it's been less than a minute since I sent a text message! How do I know if your family dialed it to prevent me from texting......" Yue Ren said with some grievances on the other end.

"Hey, I'm Nao, okay?" Nao shook his head secretly amusedly, "Tell me, what's going on with that text message you just sent." ”

"What's going on, of course I met someone with a name similar to yours, so I'm asking you!"

If I'm not mistaken, Natsu should be in a club at school right now. ”

"It's a club activity! We're now instructing the Elementary School's tennis club, right on the tennis court of the Ice Emperor's Nursery House!" Yueren's voice sounded very happy, "So, that Saotome Natsu is your sister?"

"Wait a minute, isn't the gate of the Ice Emperor's primary school closed?" Nao glanced at the gate with a chain hanging behind him suspiciously, "I'm at the door of the primary school now, how can I get in?"

"Ahh......——h

On the other side of the phone, Yue Ren shouted into the distance, and then the phone was cut off before he could finish shouting. Nao listened to the "beep" on the other end of the phone in a bit of a daze, and Fuer closed the phone with a wry smile.

"Who's stupid, I just said at the school gate......"

She slipped her phone into the pocket of her coat, reached out and pinned a wisp of Ruhai that fell next to her cheek behind her ear, turned around and looked through the closed iron door at the school where Natsu was—

Blue roof, white brick walls. Clusters of flower beds surround the pedestal where the statue stands, but the word "Emperor" on the pedestal, which is more than half a person high, is very eye-catching. Behind the statue is a school building that looks like an English architectural style, with new wall tiles and transparent glass that reflect the sun's brilliance.

It's a fairly young school, at least much younger than the century-old Kakudo Middle School. But Nao, who had carefully checked the situation of the Ice Emperor for the sake of Natsu at the beginning of the school year, knew that this beautiful private college was founded in 1919. Time has not left any mark on it, but it is more glamorous and beautiful than some schools that have only been established for a few years. But it has more than just appearance, it is also the school with the best admission rate and club competition results among dozens of schools in the region, and many students are sent abroad every year, and many excellent international students are also recruited.

Xiuwai Huizhong, a famous school of civil and military - Ice Emperor School Park.

The thought of her sister and her first friend in Tokyo attending this school suddenly gave Nao a strong sense of affection for her.

As Nao was about to take a closer look at it, the sound of Si Suo stepping on the lawn suddenly came from behind the fence next to the iron fence, as if a man was running from far and near the end of the fence. After a while, when Nao was about to poke his head out of the iron door to look, a crisp shout from the wall floated out of the wall when the young man exerted his strength.

"-Hey!"

A cluster of fiery red climbed over the high wall, spun gracefully in the air, and landed firmly on the ground. Xiang Riyue patted the team uniform jacket without a trace of dust, and showed a big smile to Nao, who was stunned for a moment.

"Good afternoon, Nao!"