On the eighth day of the practical exam, it had been two days since the rainstorm. The mud-drenched roads had dried back to normal under the sun.
Yukio still hadn't seen Horikita's so-called Class D ace, though it wasn't hard to guess. If D had a trump, it'd almost certainly be Koenji or Ayanokouji.
Given Ayanokouji's low profile, he'd only shown himself after Yukio and Sakayanagi ganged up on him last time; Horikita couldn't persuade him to help. That made Koenji the likely candidate.
Horikita wasn't wrong that, checking the tablet, the top five spots were still dominated by Yukio's class.
The surprise was first place: Shiina's squad. Yukio was second, and the third was Ryuen's fighting team.
Yukio had assumed any task he took part in would net first place—his efficiency should be highest. Other class teams had more members but didn't necessarily secure first every time.
He didn't expect Shiina's team to have such potential, but it made sense: scholastic events had Shiina and Kaneda, top scholars of their year; physical events had Ishizaki, Ibuki, Nishino—higher scoring efficiency wasn't shocking.
But sixth place was Koenji, solo. His score was dangerously close to fifth and fourth—if Yukio's class relaxed for a moment, two of their top-five slots could drop.
Realizing this, Yukio made an announcement the sixth night when everyone returned to the harbor: don't be careless; push when it matters.
The class promised to give it their all.
When Yukio moved into a designated scoring area that day, he was surprised to find he'd come in second—someone had arrived before him.
This area was near the sea: mostly ocean, a small uninhabited island. Yukio parked on high ground and scanned the view, spotting his classmates quickly.
Shiina's team had reached this spot first. The six of them sat on the cliff edge, gazing at the sea and resting—no wonder. Whoever lived closest and had a car would get there first.
Yukio smiled and walked over. Maybe it was intuition, maybe the long acquaintance between them.
As he approached from behind, Shiina turned first. Seeing Yukio, the corner of her mouth lifted and she waved.
Her silver-blue hair fluttered with the sea breeze. Ibuki also turned when she saw Yukio and gave a small smile.
Ishizaki was the loudest and most excited. "Big bro! Come on over, the view's great!"
His shout made Kaneda beside him clap a hand to his ear and glare; he sighed out of habit but said nothing—apparently used to it.
Yukio nodded at Ishizaki and sat between Shiina and Ibuki. Shiina shifted to make a little space for him.
When Ibuki saw Yukio sit down she looked pleased; she'd wanted to scoot closer too, but since he was already seated she didn't press it.
Shiina even took out a fresh handkerchief, clearly intending to put it down to sit on. Yukio waved her off. She withdrew it and lightly took his hand. Although they met each night back at the harbor, this was their first accidental daytime encounter while on the move.
They sat in a line; their clasped hands were hidden by the bodies, so the others couldn't see.
Still, Ibuki seemed to sense it and took Yukio's other hand. Seeing his fingers closed, she pried them open a bit and linked pinkies; satisfied, she let out a small sound of contentment.
Shiina didn't comment—she was relaxed and didn't want to think. She just wanted to hold Yukio's hand and watch the ocean.
Understanding Shiina's mood, Yukio gently squeezed back, holding her small hand while he looked toward the distant sunlit horizon.
Far off the sea met the sky; closer in, waves crashed into the island cliffs, breaking into white foam like a web of white on the nearshore waters.
Whenever Yukio took in scenery like this, he felt an involuntary ease. And in that good mood he didn't forget the people beside him.
He glanced at Ibuki on his left and Shiina on his right and smiled again, like the tide rising over the blue sea, petals drifting on the breeze.
"Thinking about something? You look so happy," Ibuki asked, curious—she couldn't share Yukio's inner feeling. Youth doesn't yet have the slow-accumulated perspective that comes with time.
Yukio applied a little pressure with both hands and stared at the sea. "Not really smiling at anything in particular. It's just...beautiful."
"When you're a kid and you see the ocean for the first time, you're ecstatic—you lie on the sand, soak up the sun, stare at the endless blue."
"When you grow up and get some pay, you have to steal time to go to a decent beach."
"Or you spend half your life working until you can travel whenever you want—Maldives, Hawaii, whatever—do those seas look different? Maybe after a lifetime, people realize it doesn't matter which sea is blue or beautiful. What matters is who's watching the sea with you."
Shiina blinked thoughtfully—she seemed to understand. It was like the line in a book about an older character: only after seeing many scenes do you gain those quiet insights.
Ibuki gripped his hand a little tighter. From the start she'd been curious about Yukio—his eyes held unfathomable stories, yet his smile was bright and unweathered. She didn't know his past, only that she wanted to stay by his side.
"Don't hold on so tight," Yukio noticed Ibuki's grip and smiled. "I was just feeling sentimental for a moment. Don't read too much into it."
"It's fine~" Shiina tilted her head in a breezy manner but said with a solemn tone as if making a vow. "From now on, we'll all watch the sea with you, Yukio-kun."