Starting again from Lake Miyama and riding back along the road they came, Naruse and Hikaru Takikawa were much faster, and it took less than half an hour to return to the vicinity of Aoyagi.

It was already past ten o'clock in the morning, and Naruse secretly estimated that they should be able to reach the mouth of the Iwaki River at about one o'clock in the afternoon, and then return home by five o'clock.

"Ah, by the way, let's go get some gas." Hikaru Takikawa remembered.

"Hmm."

After riding along the riverside road for a while, when they reached the Akane Bridge, the two of them turned around and drove towards the city.

Naruse's fuel tank was not full, and he also added some fuel by the way.

"Chunhai's car has a really large fuel tank capacity, almost four times that of mine."

"After all, the displacement is also large."

Starting again, the two of them returned to the road by the river and rode downstream.

After about ten minutes, he stopped in front of a bridge, and the road in front of him was divided into many options, and Hikaru Takikawa turned his head to look at Naruse.

"Spring Sea ......"

"I know."

They have to choose a path that is closer to the river but more winding.

Fortunately, it is a motorcycle, and where people can pass, the motorcycle can basically be ridden.

The red light turned green, and the two crossed the intersection and rode onto the path close to the river.

"It's a bit bumpy......"

The road conditions on the trail were obviously not as good as the smooth county road, and the potholes were full of potholes, and the speed of both of them slowed down.

"Are you okay?" Naruse looked back at Hikaru Takikawa.

He's riding a race car with excellent performance, and it's only a little bumpy on the road.

"No problem."

Takikawa Hikaru followed him closely, and even had the strength to smile at him, "I suddenly feel that the motorcycle is really a great invention." ”

Naruse also smiled and didn't say much.

Riding a little further, the road widened, and she followed.

"Are we off-road now?"

"Off-road...... Barely count. ”

"I've seen the kind of motorcycle rallies abroad, and I even have to cross them in the desert."

"Dakar Rally?"

"It seems like the name...... How does Harumi know everything? ”

"Read more books."

"And that's in the book?"

"Well, here's what I saw on TV."

The trail is long, but it eventually comes to an end, connecting with the prefectural road that crosses the river.

Riding onto the prefectural road, Naruse raised his eyes and quickly made a choice, "Let's cross the river to the other side, there is a path close to the river over there." ”

"Okay."

The two crossed the bridge and turned back onto the path.

"This is like a riverside park." Looking at the large green space in front of him, Naruse said.

The trail is paved with asphalt, and although the road is a little broken, it is still easier to ride than the previous one.

"yes."

However, after riding all the way to the end, the two found that there was a confluence of two rivers in front of them, and beneath their feet was a delta sandwiched between the two rivers.

There is no way.

“…… Let's go back. ”

Hikaru Takikawa smiled, "Okay." ”

The Iwaki River basin is more than 100 kilometers long, and there are many tributaries in the middle, and I have hit one of them.

After riding back for a while, before turning into another road, Naruse pulled over and took out his phone to look at the map.

He didn't mind accompanying Hikaru Takikawa on the long road to the river, but he didn't want to take too many unjust roads that needed to turn back, so it would be more reliable to look at the map first.

Hikaru Takikawa followed and stopped next to him.

"Chunhai can install a mobile phone holder on the front of the car, so that navigation is also a little easier."

"Install it when you need it."

He looked at the map, "Except for today, I probably won't ride too far for a while." ”

She smiled, didn't say anything, and turned her head to look left and right.

Riding this side, the surroundings are already very unfamiliar.

"Where is this...... Well, there seems to be a small shrine over there. ”

Naruse had already seen the same, and pulled the map back to its current location and zoomed in to take a look.

"Well, the map says that it is a shrine on a moonlit night...... It's quite rare. ”

"See you on a moonlit night...... The shrine of the Tsukiyomi adult. ”

"Hmm."

"I don't have a sense of existence."

"After all, the god doesn't even have an accurate statement of whether it is male or female."

After confirming the route, Naruse put away his phone and continued to ride in front to lead the way.

At the next intersection, the two rode to the other side of the Iwaki River.

"We're already out of the confines of Tsuzen City." Naruse said suddenly.

"Huh?"

"The river is the dividing line. There is Tsumae over there, Itanyanagi Town on this side, and Tsuruta Town on that side. Naruse explained.

Takikawa looked at the other side of the river, "Before I knew it, I had already ridden so far." ”

"Where is this, far from the Thirteen Lakes."

"Okay."

Naruse said again: "At least once you turn around, you can't see Mt. Iwaki, so it's relatively far." ”

She glanced back and smiled.

"In this way, I feel like I'm still very close."

"Because we're taking a long detour."

On the rest of the road, every time he rode forward, Hikaru Takikawa would look back.

And they have been riding by the river, and their vision is also wide, they can see far away, and every time they turn back, they can still see Iwaki Mountain.

It's still there.

Still behind.

Still visible......

Although it was always visible, the mountain that stood in the distance became more and more indistinct.

Until she turned around one time, Iwaki Mountain suddenly "disappeared".

“……”

Hearing the sound of sudden braking behind him, Naruse also stopped the car and glanced back.

"Light?"

Hikaru Takikawa propped himself on one foot and turned his head to look behind him.

The wide and majestic mountain has become a darker part of the sky in the distance, and the snow-capped peaks at the top of the mountain blend into the clouds without any sense of disobedience.

It can still be vaguely recognized now, and the next time I look back, I will probably be completely invisible.

"I can't see Mt. Iwaki anymore...... It's almost out of sight. ”

Naruse glanced into the distance, then raised his gaze, and focused more on the sky overhead.

"The weather wasn't very good today...... Otherwise, you should be able to see Mt. Iwaki here. ”

Hikaru Takikawa turned around: "Where have we been?" ”

"Gosho Kawahara City."

She blinked, "You've ridden this far?" ”

"Hmm."

Naruse nodded, "If you start with Aoyagi, we're already halfway there." ”

Hikaru Takikawa took out his phone, looked at the time, and touched his stomach again.

"It's almost twelve o'clock...... No wonder my stomach is a little hungry too. ”

Naruse smiled, "Then take a break and eat something by the way." ”

"Okay."

The two continued to ride forward, and when they reached the intersection, they turned into Goshokawahara City and stopped in front of the nearest park.

Naruse brought the bento made by his girlfriend, but Hikaru Takikawa went out empty-handed.

"There's a ramen shop in front of you, and there's a set restaurant, so let's go over there, I'll eat bento here."

She looked at his lunch, didn't say no, and rode over.

After finding a place to sit in the park, Naruse took a photo and sent it to Naoko.

Naoko: Where?

Naruse: Gosho Kawahara.

Naruse: I'm hungry, so let's have lunch.

While they were talking, the sound of motorcycles sounded outside again.

He looked up, and Hikaru Takikawa appeared with a bag from a convenience store, and he was quickly spotted as well.

"Ah, I found it."

She came and sat down, took out the bag of water and sandwiches, and ate them beside him.

“…… That's all you eat. ”

"It's not fun to eat alone in a restaurant."

Naruse opened the bento, put some food on the lid of the bento box, and handed it to her.

"Let's eat together."

"I don't have chopsticks......"

"With your hands, lick after eating."

"Okay!"

(End of chapter)