Chapter 278: Kasugano Sora's New Neighbor
In the end, they piled on nearly four hundred pounds of weight plates and battled for another twenty minutes, but Machio still couldn't hold on. The muscles in his arm trembled violently, a proof of the sheer, unrelenting strain. Because it was a standard, controlled push-up and not a rapid one, the nearly five hundred pounds of crushing weight became an impossible burden to sustain. The slower the movement, the more excruciating the effort.
At that moment, Sakura Hibiki and the others could only stare, their minds struggling to process what they were seeing. These two weren't human; they were monsters in human skin.
Ren, with just a light sheen of sweat on his forehead, offered a relaxed smile. "Machio, you've really improved a lot."
Machio looked down at his own slightly shaking hands, a grin spreading across his face despite the exhaustion. "Sir! I still have a long way to go! I must continue to train!"
"We'll see," Ren replied, his tone casual. "Just maintain your current training volume for now. But in a way, Machio, your strength is truly terrifying."
"Hahaha! Thank you for the compliment, Sir!" Machio boomed, his energy returning. "Well, Sir! I'm off to get some lunch! I have students to train this afternoon, but I'll make time to visit your shop later!"
"Alright. You're always welcome, but remember, my place is a night restaurant."
"I always remember that! Goodbye, Sir!"
As Machio Naruzo made his powerful exit, Kirari watched him go, a flicker of genuine surprise in her eyes. "This is the first time I've ever seen someone do push-ups like that, and for such an absurdly long time..."
Sakura Hibiki and the others nodded in fervent agreement.
Ren paused, a thoughtful expression crossing his face. "It's not that difficult, really. It just takes a bit longer, that's all. But... have we forgotten something?"
Kirari felt the same nagging sensation. After a moment of thought, her eyes widened in sudden realization. She immediately turned and strode towards the treadmills. In her mind, she pictured the scene she was about to find: Kasugano Sora, collapsed in a heap on the machine, on the verge of total exhaustion.
But when she saw the reality before her, Kirari swore that she had already used up her entire lifetime's quota of surprises for one day.
She saw Kasugano Sora, still walking steadily on the inclined treadmill, showing no signs of distress whatsoever. While there was a light film of sweat on her skin, it was a world away from the puddle of exhaustion Kirari had imagined.
"Uh... Sora?"
"Huh?" Sora looked up, her eyes slowly focusing. "Kirari-nee, what are you doing here? How far have I walked...? It's not still a long way, is it...?"
Kirari shook her head, a bewildered smile playing on her lips. "No... Sora, you've already walked seven kilometers."
"Ah?! That far?!"
Only then did Kasugano Sora's gaze drift down to the mileage display, which read just over seven. She froze instantly, her mind going blank. Kirari walked over, pressed the stop button on the treadmill, and looked at her with a mixture of shock and amusement. "I never would have guessed it, Sora. You're quite impressive."
As Kasugano Sora stepped off the machine, her head felt light and dizzy, but her face was still a mask of disbelief.
Ren observed the stunned girl and chuckled. "Not bad. As expected, letting Sora use her phone while walking on an incline is the perfect way to make her forget she's even tired."
"Brother Ren, you did that on purpose!" Sora pouted.
"That's right," he admitted without a hint of shame. "Alright, we've trained enough. Kirari, help Sora stretch her legs. After that, we're all heading over to Sora's place to help her move. If nothing unexpected happens, Shion should have the person in charge of the move deliver some coffee to you."
Kirari nodded, then gave Ren a sly, knowing smile. "Ren, you're the one who really wants the coffee, aren't you?"
"It's alright."
"What do you mean, 'it's alright'?" she pressed, amused.
"It's not bad, I think it's good. Abbreviated, 'it's alright'," he deadpanned.
Kirari simply smiled and rolled her eyes at his terrible joke, then gently pulled the wobbly Kasugano Sora towards a nearby sofa. Ren gave a nod to Soryuin Akemi, who had just finished her own workout, before heading to the changing room to shower and change.
The reward for his efforts, he mused, had already been received.
When Ren and the others emerged, they found Kasugano Sora in the middle of her leg stretches. Her pained expression told a clear story: the sudden, intense exercise after a long period of inactivity was making the post-workout stretching an agonizing experience.
"Ah, ah, ah! Kirari-nee! Why do my legs hurt so much when you stretch them?!"
"It's because you haven't exercised in a long time," Kirari said, her voice firm but gentle. "It'll get better! Come on, there's still one more leg. Finish up so you can go wash and change!"
"Nooo!"
"Then you can go walk for another hour."
"I'll stretch my legs!" Sora yelped, immediately surrendering.
Sakura Hibiki and the others sighed as they watched the dramatic scene unfold. In a way, it was rare to see someone react so theatrically to simple stretching.
"You... you guys walk slower..."
Kasugano Sora trailed behind Ren and the others, looking utterly miserable. Her small face was a picture of pitifulness. First, she had walked an impossibly long distance, and then she'd been subjected to leg stretches. Now, her legs felt so sore and weak that every step was like floating on clouds of cotton.
Ayaka sighed sympathetically. "Sora, you really need to exercise more. Even Hibiki's stamina is better than yours..."
"Hey!" Hibiki protested. "Why do I feel like that wasn't a compliment?!"
"I wasn't complimenting you," Ayaka shot back playfully.
Kasugano Sora paid no attention to their banter, instead asking with genuine curiosity, "So, what are we doing now?"
"Going to help you move," the group replied in near-perfect unison.
"Oh... Huh?! We're going to my house...?"
Seeing the sudden panic on Kasugano Sora's face, Ren and Kirari seemed to realize something at the same time. Kirari let out an exasperated sigh. "You, girl... It's not what I'm imagining, is it?"
Kasugano Sora wanted to argue, but the thought of them seeing her apartment in its current state made her deflate. She nodded silently, then whispered, "I didn't have time to clean up... and I can eat those things now, too..."
Ren sighed, a hint of resignation in his voice. "This is only okay because we have a solution. If we didn't, you'd be waiting for a lecture from Yumiko."
"If there was no solution, I wouldn't be moving to your place, Brother Ren..."
"That's true," he conceded.
"But," Sora added, her expression turning thoughtful, "it seems a very strange neighbor moved in recently. I wonder if she's home today..."
Kirari paused, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Male or female?"
"Female, of course! And she lives alone. When she first moved in, she came over to ask me for the addresses of the nearby supermarkets and things like that."
Kirari nodded, the tension in her shoulders easing. To be honest, she knew that Sora had been the only resident on her floor, and she had always worried that some man who deserved to be shot might move in and harass her. Hearing it was a woman was a small relief.
Akemi asked curiously, "I've never lived in an apartment building like that, but isn't it normal for new neighbors to ask about nearby places? Why do you find it strange?"
Kasugano Sora hesitated, trying to find the right words. "It's not that kind of strange. It's just... I often see her carrying piles of things inside, and she doesn't seem to know how to cook. Everything she eats is instant food. She also stays up very late but still looks full of energy the next day."
She paused again, her brow furrowed. "But the strangest thing is that she's always saying things like, 'Even when at home, one shouldn't neglect their studies,'and'If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask me.' She seems to be a teacher, and a good one at that. However... it seems her students are quite troublesome."
"What's wrong?" Kirari asked.
"Because she's always on the phone, giving advice and counseling people. It sounds like a really tough job..."
[Akarin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me and keeps these daily updates flowing!
Want to read 50 chapters ahead or just want to help keep a shameless translator alive? (My livelihood actually depends on this, haha 😭). You can support me directly here:
(P.S. Just remove the brackets and replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters): patreon[.]com/AkarinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/AkarinTL
🔗 All My Links: linktr[.]ee/AkarinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]