NTR Kousuke

Chapter 164

Chapter 164: A Changed Girl [side Yukari Tomonaga]

???: "Hehehe! Don't you want to hear what an outsider thinks about the story so far?"

The one who spoke up was a first-year. I don't know this girl...

A pretty cute girl with bouncy, chestnut-colored, curly hair.

With her big, sassy-looking eyes, this girl, looking totally amused,

???: "Right now, I can give you advice from a strategist's perspective!"

Satsuki: "...I'm not really into people who go on about strategists or generals, you know? Pass!"

Satsuki instantly shot her down with a hand gesture, but the girl kept sneaking glances at us like an abandoned puppy...

Ugh, I'm weak to this kind of thing... I just can't ignore it...!

"Hey? Are you a first-year? Were you listening to our conversation?"

The girl answered without a hint of guilt,

???: "Yup, from start to finish!"

Satsuki: "Wow, what's up with this kid?"

???: "Hehe! I'm Hinako Ootori from Class 1-1, just enrolled last week!"

Huh? Her way of speaking is a little...?

The girl played with her bouncy hair and said,

Hinako: "Ah, I was living in Hong Kong until last month. My pronunciation is a bit mixed and weird. But if I speak slowly, it's fine and I'll get used to it quickly."

Satsuki: "So you're what they call a returnee? Acting all high and mighty... I don't like it!"

Satsuki loves fashionable things and status, but... she can't stand it when someone else has them...

Ootori-san stared off into the distance and said,

Hinako: "Hong Kong... in the far, far corner, so the security was bad! Everything was old! The language was a chaotic mix of English, regular Chinese, and Cantonese, so it was tough... Even over there, I was called a foreigner, and now that I'm back in Japan, I get treated like 'the girl who just came back from abroad!'"

Ootori-san's face clouded over.

I tried to cheer her up,

"But? As a returnee? And as pretty as you are, Ootori-san? I bet the boys can't leave you alone, right?"

Ootori-san looked sad and said,

Hinako: "My first accident introduction... oops, I mean self-introduction? I tried to win them over by saying 'My hobby is Romance of the Three Kingdoms!' but... They just treated me like I was something dangerous... Papa said Japan's in the middle of a Three Kingdoms craze, with even the generals turning into girls and stuff..."

Papa... that's just impossible.

Ootori-san cleared her throat and said,

Hinako: "Since I'm your junior, please call me Hinako. Senpai, about what you were just talking about... Are you guys sluts?"

"...N-no. Um, that's...?"

It's hard to say... Not that I can't say it, it's just hard to explain.

Hinako went on.

Hinako: "But? You had a guy you liked and switched sides right away, didn't you?"

Satsuki: "Switched sides... That's a pretty rude way to put it... You sound just like Kousuke. Since you talk about strategists, maybe you'd get along?"

"...We're getting nowhere with this. Look..."

I skipped the details and told her what I'd done, about the stuff from summer to fall.

Then a bit about what happened after that, about Satsuki, and about Osada-san.

And then, according to Hinako,

Hinako: "I smell a conspiracy...! Everyone's intentions and schemes are hidden in this picture someone painted...!"

Is she maybe a little drunk?

Is this girl okay?

Hinako: "That 'Kousuke-kun' is definitely the key person!"

*Well, yeah, that's true.

Hinako declared, looking just a little smug.

Satsuki, exasperated, said,

Satsuki: "A conspiracy? Like we'd be up to something like that, as high schoolers..."

Then Hinako scooted right next to Satsuki and said,

Hinako: "The world is full of conspiracies, you know. Corona, the stock market, even the delay in the linear motor car project!"

Satsuki: "Too close, too close! You don't have any friends, do you?"

*Pot calling the kettle black.

Hinako's face turned gloomy.

Hinako: "I lived in Japan until sixth grade. Back then, talking about Romance of the Three Kingdoms would get all the boys hooked... But now, if I bring it up, everyone just keeps their distance and looks at me like I'm some kind of weirdo... Daidarabotchi, was it?"

Satsuki: "That's a Japanese monster, you know?"

Hinako: "Ahaha, oops, my bad♪"

We just met, but Hinako is so bubbly and a bit sheltered—I've already grown fond of her.

Hinako refuses to budge from her conspiracy theory.

Hinako: "Going back to the start, meeting at just the right moment, seducing, and getting someone to fall for you so easily... Even easier than Xiaopei Castle... I sense someone's intentions here. Want to investigate with me?"

*Xiaopei Castle... a castle that kept changing hands early in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Satsuki: "How?"

Hinako, full of confidence, said,

Hinako: "We ask around, of course! Ask anyone involved. There's no other way, right?"

Satsuki: "...You're really getting on my nerves..."

For all her wild talk, her method is solid and obvious.

"...But for me and Satsuki... Kousuke-kun is...?"

Hinako made a gesture to say she understood,

Hinako: "I don't have any friends and I've been bored all week at this school. Leave it to me, okay? So, the key people are... that 'Kousuke-kun' and 'Osada-san,' right?"

I warned her not to use my or Satsuki's name directly—that it would be a problem if she did, and not to be too direct. Hinako nodded up and down.

Satsuki, looking exasperated,

Satsuki: "Kousuke always dreamed of being a strategist, so maybe you two would get along?"

Hinako, seemingly intrigued, asked Satsuki about Kousuke-kun's characteristics and stories, checked Osada-san's details, and after nodding, spun around on the spot like she was dancing,

then held her palm in front of her face,

Hinako: "'The wandering Fengchu... encounters the Crouching Dragon...!'"

Satsuki: "Fengchu? Is that like houtou noodles?"

"...Who knows?"

Hinako, looking like she was about to cry,

Hinako: "Fengchu means 'phoenix chick'! In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Fengchu is Pang Tong and Crouching Dragon is Zhuge Liang. They were the two great strategists, and it was said that if you got either, you could rule the world!"

Satsuki: "So what's with the phoenix chick thing?"

Hinako: "You're so dense... My last name is Ootori, and 'Hina' is in my first name! Japanese language education is seriously declining..."

Satsuki: "Excuse me, my Japanese is fine!"

Hinako: "That just makes it worse..."

We'd just met, but I thought Hinako was adorably dumb.

☆ ☆ ☆

Background

Here comes the energetic returnee first-year, Miss Hinako Ootori, w

This is for those who wondered, "It's a new school year, but why haven't any new first-years shown up yet?" She's the girl I remembered.

When I first thought about writing a novel, Aru's very first heroine? She was the beautiful girl who was supposed to be the protagonist.

Aru: "Should I go with 'Strategist Girlfriend' or 'The Story of Falling for the Class Rep'? I prefer Rena Kashii, with her bad habit (sniff sniff)..."

And so, Miss Hinako Ootori ended up sealed away, never seeing the light of day (lol)

But since I wrote a side story, she finally got to appear. It's kind of emotional...