Saku genuinely couldn't figure out why Haruno had suddenly latched onto him.
With no better option, he ended up bringing her back with him to the inn where the school was staying.
The moment they reached the entrance, they ran straight into Yukino and the others.
Yukino, Yui, and Hikigaya were all members of the Service Club, so seeing the three together made perfect sense.
For some reason, though, Hayama Hayato was standing beside them too.
Based on the original story, that guy rarely appeared without bringing trouble along with him.
Saku could already predict another headache was coming.
"Yahallo! Yukino-chan, Yui-chan, Hikigaya, Hayama."
Haruno cheerfully waved.
"We meet again."
Seeing Haruno casually hanging onto Saku's left arm immediately irritated Yukino.
Her acting as though there was nothing unusual about it only made things worse.
"Nee-san."
Yukino's voice cooled.
"I thought you had actual business to handle."
"Don't tell me you traveled all the way to Kyoto just to play around with us."
She felt slightly guilty saying it.
When they'd met yesterday, Yukino had genuinely assumed Haruno was simply bored and had come to watch the drama.
If not for Saku's inner voice earlier, she might never have realized her sister was actually here on business.
Haruno's smile froze for a fraction of a second.
She didn't particularly want to admit it, but her little sister really had grown.
Her gaze unconsciously shifted toward the boy beside her.
If something had caused this change in Yukino, then Jinnai Saku was undoubtedly involved.
It seemed her sister really had met someone important.
For some inexplicable reason, a faint sourness appeared in Haruno's heart.
Along with the tiniest trace of jealousy.
Why was Yukino allowed to look so happy?
Haruno wanted that too.
The brief emotional fluctuation made her unconsciously tighten her grip around Saku's arm.
Naturally, everyone noticed.
Several expressions changed at once.
Yukino's and Hayama's changed the most.
Before Haruno could even answer, Yukino stepped forward with a cold expression, pulled her sister away from Saku, then physically placed herself between them.
"Nee-san."
"Stop treating everyone like one of your toys."
Her tone was so sharp it almost sounded as though she was ready to tear into Haruno for real.
Hayama hurried forward to smooth things over.
"Okay, okay. There's no need for everyone to argue."
"I'm sure Haruno-san didn't mean anything by it. Yukino, you don't need to—"
"When did I give you permission to call me by my first name?"
Hayama froze.
Even under Yukino's obvious anger, Haruno herself remained completely unfazed.
If anything, she thought her little sister looked rather cute, bristling like an angry kitten.
Hayama's interruption, however, clearly ruined the sisters' exchange.
The smile disappeared from Haruno's face.
"Hayama."
Her voice remained calm.
"When did you gain the right to interfere in a matter between us sisters?"
Watching the scene, Hikigaya swallowed hard.
Terrifying.
Both sisters had frightening presences.
Haruno in particular radiated a pressure that reminded him of some kind of smiling demon finally revealing its fangs.
Hayama's heart sank.
He knew he'd overstepped.
Haruno normally wouldn't speak to him this way.
But whenever she did, it meant she was no longer addressing him casually.
She was speaking from the position of someone above him.
Hayama wasn't even technically a retainer of the Yukinoshita family.
What right did he have to interfere in an argument between its two daughters?
"I'm sorry. I was wrong."
A chill ran down Hayama's back.
He immediately bowed ninety degrees, apologized, and stepped aside.
Neither Haruno nor Yukino showed the slightest surprise.
To both sisters, his retreat seemed perfectly natural.
"Yukino-chan, I think you've misunderstood me."
Once Hayama withdrew, Haruno's smile returned.
"Saku-kun is the little brother I just adopted."
"He's certainly not some toy."
She spoke slowly and pleasantly.
"So if you say things like that, both your sister and Saku-kun are going to feel terribly hurt."
"Are you hurt?"
Yukino ignored her sister and looked sideways at Saku instead.
"Huh?"
Saku blinked.
"Not particularly."
He awkwardly answered, then gave Haruno a helpless look that clearly said he couldn't save her.
「So this is a battle between sisters? Nice. I love it. Fight!」
「Nothing better than watching girls argue. Go on, let the blood flow!」
「Get her, Pika—Yukino! Use Hair Pull!」
Saku was perfectly happy to fan the flames internally.
He knew they weren't actually going to fight, so naturally he could indulge his imagination.
The corner of Yukino's mouth twitched.
She desperately wanted to turn around and punch this man.
She knew Aikido.
She was reasonably confident she could put Saku on the ground.
Here she was defending him, and this bastard was mentally turning her into entertainment and actively cheering for her to fight her sister.
He nearly made her explode.
"Hmph."
Haruno rubbed at her eyes as though trying to force out a tear.
"Looks like Saku-kun really does like Yukino-chan more."
"Your big sister is so hurt."
Unfortunately, not a single tear appeared.
"Don't slander me. I like big ones."
"..."
Both Yukinoshita sisters fell silent.
Somehow, Saku always managed to drop a conversational bomb exactly where nobody expected one.
The two sisters had originally been ready to keep competing.
Suddenly, neither of them felt like it anymore.
"Oh my."
Haruno recovered first.
"Did you hear that, Yukino-chan?"
She deliberately stretched the wording.
"Our little brother likes big... sisters, see?"
Her mood visibly improved.
Haruno no longer felt like arguing with Yukino here.
More importantly, if nearby students filmed the sisters fighting and uploaded it online, it could damage the Yukinoshita family's reputation.
"All right. I'll stop teasing you."
Haruno waved lightly.
"I really do have business to handle, so I'll be leaving."
Then she turned toward Saku.
"Saku-kun, I'll come see you again tonight."
"Remember to wait for me."
"Got it."
Saku smiled.
"Good luck with work, Big Haruno-oneesan."
Haruno had barely turned around when the nickname nearly made her stumble.
She immediately looked back at him in dissatisfaction.
"Call me Haruno-oneesan, Haruno, or even just Oneesan."
"Anything is fine."
"But stop putting 'Big' in front of it."
Her smile became threateningly sweet.
"Otherwise, Oneesan might have to punish you properly."
"Understood, Big Haruno-oneesan!"
"..."
Haruno stared at him.
Saku clearly wasn't taking her threat seriously in the slightest.
In the end, she could only smile helplessly, give up, and walk away.
Once Haruno had gone far enough, Yukino finally relaxed.
Then curiosity got the better of her.
"Why do you insist on calling her Big Haruno-oneesan?"
"Because she's not small!"
Yukino immediately regretted asking.
She should've known better.
Expecting a normal explanation from him had been her first mistake.
Hayama quietly watched the interaction between Saku and Yukino.
His gaze lingered on Saku for a long moment.
Previously, Hayama had only disliked Saku because Saku had openly disliked him.
Now things were different.
He'd begun regarding Saku as a romantic rival.
For one simple reason.
Saku was far too close to Haruno.
More importantly, Hayama had never seen Haruno treat another boy like this.
Hayama understood Haruno better than most people did.
That meant he could tell when her attitude toward someone was different.
And her attitude toward Saku was unquestionably different.
There was even a faint indulgence in the way she treated him.
Until now, Hayama had only ever seen Haruno display that kind of emotion toward Yukino.
How could he possibly remain calm?
The realization left him both shocked...
And deeply jealous.
…