Sizzle, sizzle. The glistening oil, the faintly glowing charcoal, and the humming exhaust fan.
Indeed, yakiniku was best enjoyed in a smoky, rustic joint like this to get the most authentic experience.
"That piece of meat is mine!"
"Bullshit, it's mine."
"Good chance! Chomp, huff huff huff... hot, hot, hot!"
"Miyahito! You bastard!"
Watching Miyahito panting from the heat, Ishikawa Tooru gritted his teeth, his eyes practically shooting flames.
Meanwhile, Miyahito, who had successfully snatched the last piece of pork loin from under his best friend's tongs, adopted the attitude of a dead pig unafraid of boiling water—I already ate it, so what are you gonna do?
This pissed Tooru off so much he nearly jumped up to beat the crap out of him.
However, considering Miyahito's history of single-handedly taking on the entire Kendo Club, if Tooru actually did that, the one getting beaten... might, oh wait, definitely would be Tooru.
Hmph, this weakling with a combat power of only five.
Swallowing the pork loin in his mouth with great difficulty, Miyahito cast a provocative glance at the entirely-unintimidating Tooru, then triumphantly raised his hand.
"Please give me another serving of beef skirt!"
"Coming right up."
"Another one!?"
Hearing Miyahito order yet another serving, Tooru was completely dumbfounded.
That was already the fourth serving of beef skirt, not to mention the mountain of empty plates piled on the table.
Is this guy a starving ghost?
Aaaaaah... Forget about this week's allowance. At this rate, Tooru would have to dip into next week's and the week after's allowance too.
Unable to stop Miyahito from devouring the food, Tooru silently pulled out his phone, aimed the camera at Miyahito, who was burying his face in his meal, and called out.
"Hey, Miyahito."
"Hmm?"
Catching the exact moment Miyahito looked up, Tooru swiftly pressed the shutter button.
Yep, a photo of 'Miyahito with his cheeks stuffed so full he looks like a pig'—secured!
Miyahito looked at Tooru, who was looking down and tapping on his phone, then looked down at his own table setting. Combining the shutter sound he just heard with his current appearance...
"Why did you take a picture!?"
"None of your business."
"Delete it!"
"Sorry, Miyahito-kun, it's too late."
"Hah?"
Wearing a triumphant smile, Tooru flipped his phone around to show the screen to a bewildered Miyahito, his tone completely deadpan.
"I already sent it to our group chat. Mhm, I should ask if Kasumigaoka has been starving you."
"..."
'Are you a demon?'
Meeting Miyahito's horrified gaze, Tooru's lips curled into a pleased smirk.
That's right, I can't beat you in a fight.
But don't forget, Miyahito-kun, I know the one person who can keep you in line.
"Oh, Kasumigaoka-san and the others replied. Let me see."
"'If·Miyahito·dares·to·leave·a·single·grain·of·rice·for·dinner·tonight·he's·dead,' says Kasumigaoka."
"Mhm, Hori replied with a snickering emoji. Oh my, Yoshikawa sent you a 'good luck' message."
Adding insult to injury... adding insult to injury!!!
Not only are you reading the messages out loud with a smile, but you're spelling them out word by word!
Staring blankly at their group chat interface, then looking at the grill covered in a thick layer of meat, and the raw meat the waiter had just brought over...
Miyahito suddenly felt his life turn completely bleak.
....
Meanwhile.
"Hmm?" Devouring a parfait and occasionally sharing a bite or two with Kei-nee sitting next to her, Ayase caught her sister looking at her phone with a smile out of the corner of her eye. Her big eyes blinked curiously as she asked,
"Onee-san, what's up?"
"Mhm, come here, Ayase." Looking up, Utaha smiled and waved at the little angel. "Let me show you your brother's embarrassing photo."
"!"
Hearing this, Ayase swiftly shoved the huge scoop of ice cream on her spoon into her mouth, only to get a brain freeze.
"Ehh, ehh, ehh, are you okay, Ayase?" Startled, Kei quickly leaned over and reached out to rub Ayase's head.
Watching this intimate little interaction between the two girls, Kaguya, whose eyes were full of envy, practically had her eyes popping out of her head seeing how gentle Kei was.
Seeing Ayase clutching her head with a pained expression, Utaha facepalmed, shook her head, and stood up. She moved to sit next to Ayase, smiling faintly as she pulled the little girl into her arms.
Gently massaging her head, she said helplessly,
"I told you not to eat so fast. Is it feeling a bit better now?"
"Mm...."
At this moment, the overflowing gentleness and doting affection on Utaha's face, along with Ayase's pained but blissful little face, made Kei incredibly envious.
So this is what an older sister is like? That's so nice... I really want to be taken care of so gently by an older sister too.
!
In an instant, Kaguya, whose gaze had never left Kei, seemed to catch the crucial point.
First, she looked at the gentle Utaha and the blissfully shy Ayase leaning against her senior's ample bosom.
Then, she turned to look at Kei, whose face faintly showed envy. For some reason, Kaguya looked down at her own chest.
Her gaze reflected her slender, athletic, golden-ratio figure. Then she looked back up at her junior, who was burdened with a pair of heavy, plump assets.
Defeated—
Shinomiya Kaguya is unable to continue.
...After a bit of noisy fuss.
"Pfft hahaha... Big Brother looks so lame."
"Yeah, yeah, Miyahito-nii looks really funny like this."
Holding the phone and admiring the embarrassing photo of her brother with Kei-nee, Ayase was laughing so hard she couldn't even sit up straight.
Compared to Ayase's exaggerated laughter, Kei's reaction was a bit more reserved. Even so, the two girls were still leaning against each other, their heads touching as they snuggled together.
On the other side, the two older sisters... well, to be precise, only Utaha, who was dating Miyahito, could be called "older sister." As for Kaguya...
Let's just call her the "sister-in-training."
Both of them had one arm crossed over their chest and the other hand resting on their cheek, looking at their respective little sisters with equally gentle and doting gazes.
Good grief, why is Ayase (Kei) so cute?
As if reading each other's minds, the exact same thought welled up in Utaha and Kaguya's hearts at the exact same time.
Faintly sensing that the other shared the same thought, the two girls tacitly turned their heads and looked at each other.
Then, without saying a word, they silently exchanged a look of mutual understanding, the corners of their lips curling into the exact same meaningful smile.
'So Senpai (Utaha) thinks the same way? Mhm, mhm, not bad, not bad.'
Afterward, they withdrew their gazes and looked back at their own little sister (future little sister).
Just then.
"By the way, Kei-nee, how come you suddenly had time to go shopping today?"
"I remember when we were chatting on LINE the night before last, didn't you say you had to go to the Student Council to handle some things on Saturday?"