Chapter 83

Seeing that Gojo Satoru was unusually flustered, Hato Kazuma didn't press further but instead thanked him sincerely.

In other words, he didn't actually intend to seek a definitive answer to this question.

Gojo Satoru mumbled a couple of responses, his head still turned outwards, staring at the cars speeding past one after another, as if the scene had suddenly become novel and interesting.

Then, the more he thought about it, the more something seemed off.

...Wait a minute, it's just a simple gift of a few pieces of clothing to a good friend, right?

Why did he suddenly become so guilty?

The five insights, realized belatedly, lingered in my mind, and I secretly gritted my teeth.

Even if he has never done this before, it doesn't mean he can't do it now. He just suddenly wanted to give the other person clothes to wear, so what?

How could he let that kid's question throw him off balance? Now he's caught in a dilemma, and that feeling of having a marshmallow stuck in his chest is back...

Damn it, I'll make him feel guilty sooner or later!

As they approached the intersection, Gojo Satoru stared out the window at the cars stopping and starting, growing increasingly dissatisfied with his avoidance of eye contact, which immediately diminished his imposing presence.

So he turned his head angrily, wanting to silently complain to the instigator with a direct look in his eyes.

—As a result, the moment those blue eyes turned back, they met the gaze of Kazuma Hatori, who had been watching him the whole time.

At this moment, the sky outside the window had already darkened, and the neon lights flashed by like a flowing, dazzling galaxy, reflecting the constantly pulsating, warm light in those dark eyes, making them extremely gentle and focused.

Gojo Satoru didn't want to admit it... At that moment, his heart skipped a beat.

"...What are you laughing at?"

He opened his mouth, but felt his words suddenly become dry and lifeless, like a deflated balloon.

The imposing manner he had just displayed, the determination to make him look inferior, had completely vanished.

The owner of those dark eyes tilted his head slightly at him, looking puzzled, as if to say, "[I wasn't laughing, was I?]"

The eye contact that completely fails with Xia Youjie is perfectly accurate with Wu Tiao Wuyi's every glance.

“You still say you didn’t laugh,” he muttered. “Your silliness is practically tangible and it’s hitting me right in the face. No amount of pretending to be cool can hide it.”

It's like a little bean sprout, making him want to touch it all the time.

After staring at Kazuma Hagoromo for a few more seconds, Satoru Gojo looked away.

Yes, it really is a black Shiba Inu.

Kazuma Hatori was a little confused by Gojo Satoru's series of reactions.

"...?"

I have a feeling that he's been labeled in a very subtle way by the other party... It can't be just my imagination.

…………

During periods of economic stagnation, Tokyo's commercial zoning has become relatively fixed, and shops in prime locations do not change hands frequently.

Therefore, ten years later, when Kazuma Hato followed Gojo Satoru to the shops he frequented, it turned out to be the same few shops.

But compared to the busy Daigo who has little personal time and buys things by simply glancing at them before packing and paying, the pretty Kogo, who has more time, likes to browse slowly, hands in her pockets, looking at each item one by one.

Moreover, her style isn't entirely the simple and casual look from the first playthrough; she also likes to buy some cool clothes.

I also bought several cool outfits for Kazuma Hatake, all with similar styles.

Is this the difference in aesthetic appreciation that comes with age...?

Kazuma Hatori thought to himself, his hands full of shopping bags.

I almost got shoved into a shirt full of holes and chains by Wu because I was too curious. Luckily I did.

"Try this one—"

Gojo Satoru, in high spirits, bent down slightly to take off one of the clothes, and casually pushed the sunglasses that had slipped down to the tip of his nose back.

Kazuma Hatori noticed this.

When I leaned on his shoulder to rest before, my sunglasses seemed a bit unstable and would easily slip off with any big movement.

“After we buy this dress,” Kazuma Hatori thought for a moment, “I will give you a gift in return.”

Upon hearing the word "gift," Gojo Satoru became curious: "What is it?"

Kazuma Hagoromo: "I won't tell you yet."

"Keep it a secret? We'll find out soon enough."

Gojo Satoru chuckled and nudged him with his elbow, then hooked his arm around Kazuma Hatori's neck and pulled him in front of the mirror to try on the coat in his hand.

"Are you planning to buy me the same outfit too? Hmph, you little rascal, you're already giving away your little schemes with your uniform."

The fact that Gojo Satoru could conceive of and successfully apply calculus to his techniques through self-study demonstrates his unparalleled intelligence and keenness; how could he possibly overlook such a small detail?

In response, Kazuma Hatori simply blinked his black eyes, pretending to be focused on putting on his coat and not understanding what the pretty little Satoru was saying.

But half of those deep blue eyes peeked out from behind the sunglasses, staring intently at Kazuma Hatake, forcing the latter to respond.

"Eh, is that so?"

"...Ugh, the acting was terrible."

"…cough."

—After Gojo Satoru casually paid the bill with countless zeros, he followed Hagoromo Kazuma out of the store, waiting to receive the gift he had been eagerly anticipating.

With Gojo Satoru by his side, Kazuma Hato and Gojo Satoru navigated through the shops based on their previous memories until they stood in front of the eyeglasses shop.

This is the place that Satoru brought him to during his first playthrough.

Since it's a store that Wu frequents, it at least means that the lenses and frames here are probably the kind that he really likes, right?

When Kazuma Hato stepped into the store, Satoru Gojo's azure eyes widened as he immediately realized what was happening.

"Huh, are you planning to give me sunglasses?"

Kazuma Hatake nodded: "These sunglasses don't really suit you."

It might be that the size or weight is slightly off, which is why it easily slips down.

"If you put it that way, then yes, there is a bit of that."

Gojo Satoru, gripping the temple of his sunglasses, took them off—his round, azure cat-like eyes blinked, and his pure white eyelashes fluttered in a beautiful arc, like a white crane landing on a lake, its wings slowly folding.

"I didn't actually wear sunglasses before I came to the college. I bought these on a whim before I came to school... I saw them while I was strolling around on the street, and they seemed pretty good, so I just bought them."

Actually, sunglasses with round lenses like these are quite rare. Most sunglasses are oval or nearly semi-circular, with a more fashionable and unique design, and the frames are often made of gold wire or leopard print.

He bought these sunglasses because he liked their unique design.

Of course, the sunglasses are also very effective at blocking vision, which is one of the key factors in reducing the pressure on [Six Eyes]!

After hearing the explanation, Hajime thought to himself, "As expected, Satoru is like this no matter what age he is. He buys things based entirely on his feelings and preferences, and doesn't care about money at all."

It can basically be summarized in one sentence: neither particular nor compromising.

"That's perfect, why don't you pick out a pair? There should be some sunglasses that suit you here."

He glanced at the various picture frames displayed in the counter and said to Gojo Satoru.

Although he could also simply take out the style that Meili Daigo had bought and say to him, "This one will definitely suit you well."

But just as people's aesthetic sense doesn't remain unchanged for decades, the beautiful 15-year-old Xiao Wu also has his own preferences and thoughts at this moment.

He wanted to give a return gift as a token of his gratitude, but it didn't mean he wanted to impose his preferences from the first playthrough onto the second playthrough.

"OK!"

Gojo Satoru was overjoyed to have been so touched, he almost hummed a cheerful tune. As for his determination to make the other person feel guilty in the taxi, he had completely forgotten it.

Ah, why did Yi-zhen suddenly want to give him sunglasses? Well, of course, he deserves a new pair!

Gojo Satoru's lips curled up high as he leaned on the counter, picking through the items one by one.

On the other side, Kazuma Hatake also spoke to the boss who came to serve him.

"His lenses need to be custom-made, the higher the light-blocking power, the better."

He handed over the sunglasses that Gojo Satoru had casually placed on the counter as an example.

"It needs to have at least a higher level of light blocking than this."

"It's even higher than this... It's basically pitch black there, won't that obstruct your view?"

The boss took it over to try it on and exclaimed in amazement.

"no problem."

Gojo Satoru nodded in response, his voice still light and visibly cheerful.

"Even if I can't see it at all, that's fine—"

"Haha, it would be a bit bad if we couldn't see anything at all."

The boss, who was ten years younger than Kazuma Hatake in his memory, laughed heartily twice. "However, it's not impossible to customize one if you want it. It will probably take two days to arrive."

"Yay!"

Gojo Satoru narrowed his azure eyes in delight, then pointed to the style of the round-lensed glasses.

"I want this one!"

The frame is pure black and thin, with no decoration on the temples. It looks like the most ordinary frame style no matter how you look at it—except that the lenses are still round.

This is a style that older people usually like to buy. The shop owner was quite surprised and confirmed it once before taking out the frame for him.

Kazuma Hatake thought it suited him quite well—the beautiful white fur paired with the pure black sunglasses created a strong contrast, and the round lenses added an extra touch of playfulness.

In short, it was a critical hit to him.

Moreover, it's clear that 15-year-old Satoru prefers the round lens style, while 28-year-old Satoru prefers oval lenses.

Gojo Satoru put it on, looked in the mirror, and thought it looked good. He then jumped around a few times, rubbed his head against Hagoromo Kazuma's shoulder, and after confirming that it was much more stable than the previous one, he happily decided to keep it.

Having found a style that Satoru liked, Kazuma Hatori happily paid the bill and arranged to pick it up in two days.

The price wasn't cheap, but it certainly couldn't compare to all the clothes Wu had bought for him.

After leaving the shop, Gojo Satoru was clearly in an exceptionally good mood. He put his arm around Hato Kazuma's shoulder and asked with a smile where they were going next.

Jay and Glass will be here in a while. If they hurry, they can visit two more stores!

Kazuma Hatori thought for a moment and then took him to the coffee shop on the corner.

"Eating sweets while waiting for them to come? Hmph, not a bad idea."

Gojo Satoru, who had just sat down, glanced at the menu and immediately raised his hand.

"I want this, the coffee Mont Blanc!"

"Coffee Mont Blanc?" Kazuma Hagoromo asked curiously. "Is it bitter?"

"I don't know either,"

With his elbows resting on the table, Gojo Satoru propped his chin on the heel of his hand, gently swaying his head as he gazed at the night view along the street.

"Try new styles, I quite like Mont Blanc."

“I see.” Kazuma Hatake nodded.

After all, Wu really enjoys trying all kinds of desserts... as long as it's not a spicy curry flavor that's out of the ordinary, it shouldn't matter.

"What do you want to order?" Gojo Satoru asked him.

Kazuma Hatori paused for a moment, then looked down at the menu.

In the end, he ordered himself a raspberry cheesecake.