Chapter 149
When Kazuma Hagoromo returned to the Pansei-kyo wearing that patterned haori hakama, Ayako was slightly startled.
She had never seen the other person dressed so solemnly and dignifiedly, like a cold and precipitous peak standing in the night—proud, indifferent, and utterly awe-inspiring.
In other words, Ayako Sakami found herself feeling as if this outfit was tailor-made for Kazuma Hatori, perfectly complementing his cool composure and precocious nature.
She almost forgot that the boy with the deep black eyes was not yet eighteen years old.
Perhaps it was because she mentioned needing to change into an outfit that better suited the image of the Holy Child that Kazuma Hatori went out to buy it...?
Ayako Sakami thought to herself.
But she didn't have time to ask Hatori Kazuma for confirmation—the latter ignored Ayako Sakami's surprise and went straight back to his dormitory.
What Kazuma Hatake relayed to Satoru was both a reminder and a test.
By this point, his phone had been vibrating in his pocket for quite some time.
As an indigenous religion that originated a thousand years ago, no matter how peculiar or trendy the exterior of Panxingjiao is built, its interior decoration remains no different from traditional Japanese decoration.
As a religion that needs to follow some inexplicable dogmas to create a sense of ritual for so-called "devout faith," this chapel of the Holy Son is draped with many translucent gauze curtains, which, under the elongated shadows cast by several candles, exude a hazy, warm yellow glow.
Kazuma Hatori, barefoot on the tatami mats, picked up one of the lamps and candles, patiently walking around the bedroom several times, picking up and putting back items one by one, relying on the game's item descriptions to check the items placed there.
If the evaluation given is "unremarkable xxx", there is no need to be wary.
He even tapped the soft cushion under his feet and spent a lot of time slowly feeling his way along the gaps.
After thinking for a moment, he raised the lamp higher and even touched the ceiling and beams above his head.
Its level of detail is comparable to clicking through every item and corner of a scene with a mouse when you can't find any clues in a puzzle game.
Only after confirming that the [cult leader] had not used any means such as talismans, incantations, or shikigami to eavesdrop on him did Kazuma Hatake call back.
"how?"
He asked in a low voice.
“I’ve already spoken to Jay—and he agreed to my plan.”
Gojo Satoru sat cross-legged on the bed, holding a phone in one hand and a black Shiba Inu doll he had brought back from Hato Kazuma's dorm in the other.
While answering the phone, his fingers unconsciously played with the soft, large doll, occasionally kneading it a few times.
Kazuma Hatake: "A plan?"
He only asked Wu to help remind Xia Youjie to be careful of subsequent conspiracies and schemes; he didn't have any "plan" to convey.
Speaking of this, proud Go immediately puffed out his chest as if to take credit, and told Hato Kazuma again about the plan he and Jie had discussed.
Kazuma Hagoromo's dark eyes lit up slightly as he listened.
Wu had the same idea as him and helped persuade Xia Youjie to cooperate in advance.
However, this plan is too passive, and based on what I saw last week, what the [Cult Leader] really wants is probably the (deceased) Xia Youjie, rather than a lively Xia Youjie.
"As expected of Wu, he always comes up with such clever countermeasures."
Kazuma Hatori immediately offered heartfelt praise, making Satoru Gojo extremely flattered, his blue eyes almost narrowing into two thin, curved lines like a lucky cat.
Even his playful response, "Yes, I am such a nice guy who cares about Kazuma, Gojo Satoru," was laced with a light and cheerful laugh, making him sound extremely happy.
He must be incredibly cute, it's a pity he can't see it now.
Kazuma Hatake thought with a hint of regret on the other end of the call.
However, Wu doesn't remember what happened last week, so he doesn't know why the [Cult Master] needed Xia Youjie and devised the "simply let Jie go undercover" plan.
Although Kazuma Hatori didn't know why the [Cult Leader] wanted the deceased Natsuyuki, it was clear that if they kept following the enemy's lead, they would be put on the defensive.
"I've come up with an idea; perhaps we can modify the plan slightly."
Kazuma Hatori said this to Satoru, successfully arousing his curiosity.
What is it?
“We don’t need to wait until the conspiracy is right in front of us before we deal with it. Besides, it’s not easy for us to tell which task the enemy deliberately assigned to Xia Youjie and which one it wasn’t.”
The main concern is that Xia Youjie might die unexpectedly in some solo mission deliberately planned by the [patriarch], allowing the other party to easily obtain his body.
In this situation, it would be difficult for him and Wu to arrive in time to rescue them.
Kazuma Hatori pursed his lips slightly.
“If Jie agrees, we’ll take the initiative and let Xia Youjie… well, we’ll find a way to gradually change his attitude, and then find an opportunity to pretend that he wants to leave the world of sorcery.”
If Xia Youjie insists on staying at the vocational college, it will be difficult for [the patriarch] to find an opportunity to make a move.
Instead, it's better to proactively expose yourself to high-risk areas and forcefully disrupt the enemy's original planned rhythm.
Even if they can't lure out the true identity of the [Cult Leader], Xia Youjie can simply disappear into some remote corner of a foreign country for several years without showing up, and the [Xia Youjie (deceased)] that the other party wanted in the previous playthrough will be lost.
These thoughts, which had been quickly weighed in his mind, were something that Kazuma Hatori couldn't bring himself to tell Satoru.
However, Gojo Satoru still keenly grasped his thoughts.
“Not bad, you’ve got my style too,” Gojo Satoru praised with a smile, “Much more cunning than you look… no, much cleverer.”
He quite liked this fighting style of taking the initiative and catching the enemy off guard!
"It's all thanks to Teacher Gojo's excellent teaching."
Hato Kazuma, in his habitual modesty, used the same address he had used for him in the previous game, which startled Gojo Satoru.
"Gojo-sensei...?"
He murmured, his two beautiful light-colored eyebrows unconsciously furrowing.
Why does this title feel so...familiar to me?
He was so familiar with it that he almost mistook himself for a teacher, someone who was already quite adept at teaching...Grizzly Teacher GTG?
Wow, I said that word so naturally, without the slightest hesitation.
"Enlightenment?"
Seeing that Wu hadn't responded for a while, Hato Kazuma called out to him.
What did you just say?
The murmured words were too indistinct for Kazuma Hatake to hear clearly.
"Oh, it's nothing,"
Gojo Satoru temporarily put aside the inexplicable sense of familiarity that had surfaced in his mind, and his tone returned to its usual lightheartedness.
"I'll tell Jay, you can rest assured that you'll leave this to me!"
"..."
"…………"
"Is this your reason for suggesting I enroll in an acting training course?"
Xia Youjie was incredulous after hearing the improvement plan, and was speechless for a length of time, as if the entire basketball court was occupied by it.
The teacher for this class, Ms. Moth, is away on a business trip and hasn't returned yet. They also don't have any tasks at the moment, so they decided to treat it as a semi-free activity class and come here to play indoor basketball.
An open space also helps prevent eavesdroppers.
Shoko Ieiri wasn't particularly interested in playing basketball, so she took the opportunity to go play with the girl named Anka on the training field.
"What's wrong with acting training classes? Do you look down on them?" Gojo Satoru blinked his blue eyes. "You lost to me in the previous [Tenchi Riko role contest] because your acting was so bad."
On the return flight, they discussed for a long time who should impersonate Naruto Riko.
Xia Youjie: "..."
Xia Youjie said curtly, "I didn't really want to compete with you for this back then."
"Omitted—Your acting is just bad. You can't even act out a farewell scene. Everyone's been saying you look like a fish that's just been pulled ashore."
Gojo made a face at him.
"...That's two different things!"
Xia Youjie's fist hardened as well, and he retorted sharply.
"Don't you think you overdid it with your performance? You almost knocked Riko, who looks like Kuroi, to the ground, and then you rubbed her head against her and wailed loudly, almost attracting the attention of the staff!"
"That proves my acting skills even more! I fooled the staff!"
"Riko had a very obvious speechless expression at the time!"
"She's trying hard to portray a mature and reliable Kuroi!"
"How come Kuroi usually has that expression where she doesn't even know how to speak!"
"Isn't it normal to be so heartbroken at the moment of parting that you can't speak?"
—The two of them were fighting over the basketball that was bouncing around in the half-court, while engaging in a long, elementary school-style argument, until they both stopped to catch their breath, panting heavily.
Gojo Satoru rested one hand on his knee and waved the other at him, "Anyway, if you agree to this plan, you absolutely can't mess it up."
They still have an intelligence advantage, but if the enemy notices something is wrong, all their efforts could be in vain.
“I think I understand what you and Yizhen are thinking,” Xia Youjie nodded, also panting. “I will think about how to make the most reasonable change.”
Gojo Satoru reminded him: "You still need to let that [patriarch] know that you've changed."
“Given that Ichishin said there are also people at the higher levels assisting,” Xia Youjie pondered for a moment, “did someone mention before that we would hold a sister school exchange meeting between the Tokyo and Kyoto schools after the summer vacation starts? We can try starting from there.”
Accidents that happen there are the easiest to spread.
"Oh—you're not bad at all."
Gojo Satoru gave a thumbs-up, but was met with a hesitant glance in return—the expression didn't seem to be directed at the compliment, but rather resembled a curiosity-driven desire to explore.
It's as if to say: The serious plans have been discussed and settled; now it's time for some lighthearted gossip.
"Um?"
Wu Tiaowu raised one eyebrow in confusion.
Xia Youjie hesitated for a moment, but couldn't resist asking him secretly out of curiosity.
"By the way, are you planning to meet with Kazuma again, and... continue using that method?"
He subtly made a gesture commonly used to coax a puppy over, which was used to refer to the act of [Ichijin disguised himself as a black Shiba Inu and then sneaked into the college].
After all, it's a whole summer vacation... How could Satoru possibly resist seeing Ichima completely?
Gojo Satoru stared at the sign language for a moment.
Five points to understand in a second.
"Oh dear—why did I have to tell Jay—"
Gojo Satoru raised his eyebrows and suddenly smiled, looking like he had no intention of telling Natsumi Yuuki at all—he even winked at the other person.
"This is between me and Kazuma... um, how should I put it, [fun] oh."
Xia Youjie: "..."
Xia Youjie, who suddenly felt his eyes burning, truly regretted asking that unnecessary question.
However, he was right. How could Gojo Satoru possibly choose to return to the Gojo family in Kyoto alone during the summer vacation, and be separated from Hato Kazuma for a full two months?
Don't even think about it!
On the second day of summer vacation, Ayako Sakami went to the San-den where Kazuma Hatori was to report on her work.
Her gaze fell in surprise on the pure white, long-haired cat lying lazily on his lap, in his arms—or more precisely, on the cat that was stretching lazily on his lap.
The pure black, solemn haori hakama was now covered with streaks of pure white cat hair, making it extremely conspicuous.
But the black-haired boy, who was ruthless when dealing with the leadership, was now unusually indulgent towards the cat's unruliness, not restraining its behavior at all.
"This...this is?!"
Kazuma Hatake glanced down at the blue-eyed cat winking at him with one eye, then raised his gaze with feigned composure.
"It is a god who will bring me luck and victory."
Ayako Sakami: "..."
Ayako Sakami: "???"
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