When the bus passed by Uji Bridge, Toru Watanabe rang the bell and got off here with Rin Kiyono.

Uji Bridge, the oldest surviving Japanese-style bridge in the island country, is 153 meters long and was built in 646 AD.

Today, although the bridge is inevitably made of reinforced concrete, the railings still retain a wooden structure, which is very historical.

Next to the bridge stands a stone statue of Murasaki Shikibu, the author of The Tale of Genji, and under the bridge is the Ujigawa River, where Kumiko usually practices playing the bass horn.

"Is there anything special here?" Rin Kiyono asked, holding on to the railing.

"It's nothing special, I just want to take a walk by the river with Kiyono on an autumn afternoon." Toru Watanabe looked at the rolling water.

"Lies."

Toru Watanabe smiled and said, "Actually, it's because of the beautiful reeds here." As an oboeist and a professional reed artist, he has a good impression of the reeds that are used as raw materials for reeds. ”

"It's such a boring reason."

"Bored?" Toru Watanabe turned his head and looked at Rin Kiyono looking into the distance, "There are people in this world who like the sky, there are people who love flowers, and there are people who are fascinated by trains, do you think they are all boring?" ”

"Nope." Rin Kiyono denied in a casual tone, "I'm just trying to be sarcastic about you, and I'm not interested in knowing what other people like." ”

"It's so cunning, R-san, if you say that, even if you are sarcastic, it will be difficult for me to be angry."

Rin Kiyono turned his head and looked at Toru Watanabe.

She tucked her hair behind her ears and said with a smile, "This is one of the things you will do to make you like me." ”

The Ujigawa breeze swept across her cheeks, her long hair swayed gently, and there was a scent that made Toru Watanabe very comfortable.

"If you tell me the purpose, I won't be moved at all."

"It's okay, it's too simple, I don't want to do it." Rin Kiyono said confidently.

"Admire." Toru Watanabe nodded, and his gaze returned to the rushing waters of the Uji River, looking into the distance.

Far away on the river beach, a bird with snow-white feathers was parked, and something was still in its mouth.

Toru Watanabe poked his head out of the railing in order to see clearly.

Rin Kiyono glanced at him, and compared to him, the wooden railing seemed too low, and he always felt that people would easily fall down.

She subconsciously reached out and gently tugged at the corner of his school uniform.

"Pond herons? Herons? Or an egret? Toru Watanabe turned his head, "Kiyono God-sama, look at what it is?" ”

Rin Kiyono quietly let go of his hand, followed his gaze just now, and said, "You catch it first so that I can see it clearly before I can tell you what it is." ”

"Let's go! I can already imagine the scene when the grease drips on the charcoal and bursts into flames when it is roasted. ”

The two of them walked down the stairs next to the bridge.

"Kiyono-san's barbecue, do you like chili powder? I've heard that some people like to eat it with sugar, which is an unimaginable perverted behavior. ”

"When I eat roast suckling pig, I occasionally try the perverted behavior that Toru Watanabe-san said."

"When I think of Kiyono-san's appearance of eating it with sugar, this way of eating is also cute."

The two leaned over while chatting.

Unfortunately, before the two of them could get closer, the white bird raised its long neck, swallowed the fish in its mouth, flapped its wings on the water, and flew away.

The two continued to stroll along the riverside, walking along the stone-paved embankment.

The leaves of the maple trees grow luxuriantly, revealing the sun's rays. There are benches placed along the river, where joggers or tourists rest.

"Fusang is the autumn sunshine, and the maple leaves are like Dan shining on the tender cold." Toru Watanabe chanted aloud.

"Who wrote it?"

"Lu Xun."

Rin Kiyono nodded quietly, looking into the distance.

In the light of the sun, the surface of the Uji River shimmers with colorful sparkling water, which hits a stake or stone, splashing white droplets.

In the distance, the peaks of the maple season are dyed red and yellow.

She retracted her gaze and noticed Toru Watanabe snapping a miscanthus from the weeds around her, waving it as she went.

I don't know why, she suddenly became happy, and a faint warmth filled her chest.

"Watanabe-san, would you like to hear my story?" In this emotion that she had never felt before, she said this.

"I'm not interested in other people's pasts," Toru Watanabe stopped waving miscanthus and turned his head to look at her, "except for R-san." ”

Rin Kiyono didn't say anything about this sentence.

"I've been living without expectations." She said, "I don't associate with anyone, and I don't expect a response from others when I do anything, and I don't need a response from others." ”

Toru Watanabe didn't say a word, staring at the reeds not far ahead.

"When I was a child, everyone laughed, and I didn't even want to stir my eyebrows, maybe I couldn't provoke it more precisely, because what caused the laughter was some outright lies, and I just felt disgusted."

"I can probably guess this past." Toru Watanabe nodded.

The two of them, in the shadow of the maple trees, made their way towards the reeds.

"At that time, I would be merciless in pointing out to people's faces that others were lying. At first, people treated me like a child and laughed out loud without caring at all, but after more than a few times, they couldn't laugh anymore and looked at me with the eyes of a weirdo. ”

There were two girls sitting on the edge of the river, and Rin Kiyono stopped narrating.

When she was far away from the two of them, she laughed at herself: "The people around me began to stay away from me, teasing me for being pretentious, including your Meiji." ”

At the end of the sentence, she smiled and glanced at Toru Watanabe.

Toru Watanabe embarrassedly threw the miscanthus into the river and clapped his hands.

Rin Kiyono smiled and said, "I didn't blame you, after all, it has nothing to do with you." ”

The two walked over to the reeds, and Toru Watanabe sat down on an old bench. He patted the extra seat next to him and motioned for Rin Kiyono to sit down as well.

Rin Kiyono pressed the pleated skirt and sat beside him in a very ladylike manner.

The two sat in the shade of a tree and watched the rushing Ujigawa River side by side for a while.

"I don't think it's with you." Toru Watanabe said, "You are inherently different from them, you are the flower that bloomed in the wrong season. ”

"The wrong season?"

"The focus should be on the flowers, right?" Toru Watanabe looked at her, "I like you very much...... of character. ”

Rin Kiyono put his hand on his chin and laughed happily with a hint of mischief, "Tell me about it separately?" ”

"Don't even think about it, I like Mei Ji." After decisively refusing, Toru Watanabe looked back at Ujigawa, "I thought you would be in a very negative mood right now, but I didn't expect you to be joking." ”

"The world doesn't be gentle on negative people, Watanabe-san."

"Makes sense, and I've learned again." Toru Watanabe nodded solemnly.

He wanted to say something comforting, but Rin Kiyono wasn't weak enough to need comfort, and he wasn't talking to him to win his sympathy.

What's more, he has never had the same experience, and no matter how he puts himself in his shoes, the comfort he says is also a layer away.

The breeze was blowing, and the leaves rustled overhead.

A red leaf fell on Rin Kiyono's lap.

She gently picked up the leaf, greeted the sunlight squeezing in from the leaves, and whispered in the voice of a clear spring:

"The wind is blowing, do you want to try to live? No, it doesn't have to be. ”

Toru Watanabe suddenly became sad, and he realized that Rin Kiyono's past was more than what she had just said.

He picked up a relatively intact leaf from the ground.

"It's because of the decay of these maple leaves that when next spring comes, the cherry blossoms will bloom even more beautifully."

Rin Kiyono laughed and withdrew the hand holding the maple leaf.

"I just remembered this sentence suddenly, and Watanabe-san didn't need to be in such a hurry to comfort me."

“...... I'm just talking about it, you're thinking too much. ”

"Watanabe, you really like to lie." Rin Kiyono smiled helplessly, and her slender hand turned the petiole of the maple leaf briskly.

"I'm so sorry to live the way you hate." Toru Watanabe apologized without apologetic at all.

"Sometimes even if you hate it, you still have to be patient, life is like that."

"Indeed, but I am a little sad when you say that."

"As I said, I don't expect anything from anyone, do I?" Rin Kiyono looked at him.

"Yes." Toru Watanabe threw the leaves in his hand under the bare cherry blossom trees.

"This attitude lasted until you showed up, Watanabe-san, and I had expectations for you—although I was reluctant to admit it."

"What kind of expectations?"

"I don't know." Rin Kiyono turned his gaze to the river, revealing a thoughtful expression, "This feeling is very vague, if you have to say it...... It's like I'm falling into the Uji River right now, and I don't expect anyone to come to save me, and I don't care if they will come to save me, but if you don't jump down and save me right away, I should be angry. ”

"The water is so urgent, and there are so many stones, what should I do if I drown?"

"Then you can't jump?"

"What's there to say about that." Toru Watanabe replied, "No matter when or what kind of river you fall into, I will not hesitate to jump in to save you." ”

"Then you have to practice your swimming skills, with my caution, if you really fall, it will definitely be the most dangerous river." Rin Kiyono smiled slightly.

The smile was like a cloud in the distance, flowing in the air like quicksand.

"I can't guarantee it, but," Toru Watanabe picked up a stone from the ground and threw it with all his might, "even if the wind rises, life will not give up." ”

Rin Kiyono caught up with the stone.

Until it disappeared from view, the stone did not fall.

"Watanabe-san, you are obviously very smart, but you deliberately pretend to be very stupid and casual, somewhere deep in your heart, you must look down on everyone and think that everyone is an idiot, right?"

"There is absolutely no such thing." Toru Watanabe flatly denied it.

"Well, I'm lying again." Rin Kiyono said with a smile.

The surrounding area is overgrown with weeds, and unknown flowers bloom everywhere, and reeds that are almost as tall as people are swaying comfortably in the wind.

The sun went a little wester, the shade of the trees overhead was off, and the two of them bathed in the sun.

......

On the way back to Kyoto from Uji, Rin Kiyono had been sleeping.

The sky is clear, and the train car is shining.

......

Back at Higashiyamaso, Toru Watanabe went to the boys' shop in Class 4 to take a look, intending to spend the last time together if someone was playing cards.

As a result, there was no one who played cards, but there was a "corpse" of Kunii Shu.

Toru Watanabe looked at him and asked Keisuke Saito, who was playing a game on the side, "Failed?" ”

"'I appreciate Kunii-san's gentleness, and I also like to play games with you, but, socialize...... Let's be friends.' Keisuke Saito pinched his throat and spoke in imitation of Aoi Ichiki's tone.

"It's noisy!" Lying on the tatami mat with his back to them, Osamu Kunii smashed the pillow over.

Looking at the pillow that was rushing towards his head, Toru Watanabe had to reach out and stop it.

Keisuke Saito didn't care, his fingers were still frantically pressing the button of the switch, and he said: "It's just a failure to confess, there is not much chance in the first place, you should have been mentally prepared a long time ago." ”

Toru Watanabe glanced at him.

This guy, obviously before he confessed, was the most active person who instigated Kunii Xiu, but now he is watching jokes.

But being able to stay here is already a way for boys to express their friendship.

"Kunii." Toru Watanabe walked over with a pillow, "Get up." ”

Osamu Kunii didn't say a word.

Toru Watanabe kicked him in the ass.

"What?!" Kunii said impatiently.

"Take you out for a walk."

"Don't go!" Osamu Kunii put the quilt over his head.

"If you don't go, I'll tell everyone in the school that you like Kazuki-san and that you've been rejected."

"You want to talk about it!"

"And the type of movie you like."

"You ——!!!" Osamu Kunii lifted the quilt and glared at Toru Watanabe.

This guy Kunii Xiu likes the sister and brother type, the kind of pro.

"A Kui Kazuki is a trivial matter," Toru Watanabe tossed aside the pillow and wrote lightly, "to be known about your interests, you have been in high school for three years, no, you can't have a girlfriend in college." ”

"Go, I can't go!" Kunii Shu gave up on himself.

"Look at your little bit of interest." Toru Watanabe scolded with a smile, "Isn't that just a girlfriend?" You studied at Tokyo's premier private high school, with a national academic record of 3,000, developed motor nerves, and a beater who went to Koshien in your first year of high school, and you are still worried about not being able to find a girlfriend? ”

"Why did Ichiki-san reject me?"

"Don't like baseball?"

"And what does she like?"

"Rugby?"

"Then I'll join the rugby club next year." Osamu Kunii picked up his school uniform blazer and put it on with a depressed face.

"Wait, how do I know what Aoi Ichiki likes? You have a little bit of your own judgment, okay? ”

Waiting for Kunii to get dressed, he walked up to Keisuke Saito and snatched the game console.

"What are you doing! I played for twenty minutes and still haven't saved! Give it back! ”

Kunii Shu sneered and turned off the phone mercilessly.

"I, I...... For the sake of your broken love, Uncle Ben doesn't care about you today! ”

The three of them walked out of the shop and walked towards the gate.

On the way, Toru Watanabe said to Osamu Kunii: "It's not bad to fail once, if a person wants to become great, failure is a necessary process." ”

Osamu Kunii stared at the ground and walked, not saying a word.

Toru Watanabe didn't care about his reaction, and continued: "Even if I am as great as me, I used to just want to live and go through some unbearable things for ordinary people to get rid of my previous meaningless life in one fell swoop and want to become an amazing person. ”

"How about getting by?" Keisuke Saito asked.

"Suppose that the standard for the average person to be wealthy is 10 million yen or 20 million yen a year, then the standard that I can pass is at least 100 million yen or 200 million yen a year."

"Are you doing this?" Kunii Shu didn't have a good airway.

"There's no way, the bottom line of doing my business is relatively low, and I am known by other peers, my annual income is only 100 million yen, and I am estimated to be laughed out of my big teeth."

"What profession? Can you introduce me to it? Keisuke Saito said curiously.

"Tokyo handsome guy."

"Isn't it just a little white face?" Kunii said disdainfully.

"I ...... Forget it, the little white face is also within the scope of our business. Watanabe put up with him.

When the three of them walked to the door, they met unexpected people - Rin Kiyono and Aoi Ichiki.

Keisuke Saito laughed squeezingly and poked Kunii Shu's flank with his elbow.

Kunii pushed him away.

When Yimu Kui saw the three of them, his expression was also a little embarrassed.

Toru Watanabe stepped forward: "Where are you going?" ”

"Kazuki said that there is a very accurate divination club and wants to go and see it." Rin Kiyono replied.

"Divination?" Toru Watanabe thought for a moment, "Can we go together?" I just didn't think of where to go. ”

"Watanabe!" Kunii Shu walked up quickly and shouted in a low voice.

Toru Watanabe said to Aoi Ichiki, "Kazuki-san, don't you mind if we are together, right?" ”

"Ahh Yimu Aoi was late and answered.

So, the five of them walked out of Dongshan Villa together, preparing to go to the divination club.

The three boys were left behind.

"Watanabe, what are you doing?" Kunii asked in a low voice in a frustrated voice.

"It's embarrassing to confess a failure?"

"You're not talking nonsense!"

"You are classmates, you will meet all day in the future, maybe you will be in the same class in the second year of high school. Instead of waiting for embarrassment in the future, it is better to take advantage of the present to deal with all the sadness and embarrassment after failure, and these negative emotions in one go. ”

"I'm ......" Osamu Kunii looked at the back of Aoi Ichiki in front of him.

Toru Watanabe followed his line of sight, glanced at Aoi Ichiki, and quickly moved his gaze to Rin Kiyono.

"Don't thank me," he patted Osamu Kunii on the shoulder, "After all, as Ultraman, it is my mission to guide humans compulsorily. ”

"Don't be handsome there! You're obviously a card face to play the pie! Osamu Kunii patted Toru Watanabe's hand away.

"There is no difference, there is no difference, they are all partners in justice."