Under the relentless effort of the four of them rushing their work, time passed in the blink of an eye, and it was soon time for dinner.
It just so happened that all four were tired of drawing. So, after eating dinner together, Tsushima Kagami looked at the current progress of the manuscripts, which was a bit less than optimistic, and made a suggestion.
"Since we've finished eating, let's continue drawing."
Having said that, Tsushima Kagami prepared to return to his room, but he was immediately pulled back by Sayuri.
"Oh my, since when did Kagami-kun become such a workaholic?"
"After dinner, naturally, we have to go soak in the hot springs first."
Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko both nodded in unison.
Tsushima Kagami furrowed his brows and spoke with a stern expression.
"How can you bring yourselves to soak?!"
"At this stage of rushing manuscripts, how can you have the peace of mind to take a bath?!"
"Do you have any grit at all?!"
The three of them were stunned; they had never seen Tsushima Kagami look so serious before.
Scolded into silence like cicadas in winter, the three hesitated, stammering as they tried to say something.
Finally, Sayuri shrank her neck back and looked at Tsushima Kagami.
"Umm, after all, we were sweating when we arrived, and then we spent the afternoon in the room... we kind of want to take a bath."
Only then did Tsushima Kagami react. Girls love cleanliness, after all.
He slapped his forehead and immediately said, "Sorry, I didn't consider that. You girls go soak first then. I'll go back and finish drawing the remaining backgrounds."
After speaking, just as Tsushima Kagami prepared to turn and leave, he was grabbed by Sayuri again.
"What is it now?"
Sayuri leaned in close and said, "There is a mixed hot spring here, you know. Doesn't Kagami-kun want to try it?"
Tsushima Kagami gave a faint smile.
"What mixed hot spring? Isn't that the kind of place only old men, old ladies, and monkeys go to soak?"
"I'm definitely not going."
Having said his piece, Tsushima Kagami prepared to leave again.
"Hey, hey, hey!"
He was dragged back by Sayuri once more. Sayuri looked helplessly at Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko beside her, wearing an expression that said, 'I'm out of ideas, you guys hurry up and help.'
At this moment, Machida Sonoko also walked over and spoke.
"Today's mixed bath has been reserved by Akane, so if we soak together, it will only be us."
"How about it? Do you want to 'bare it all' together with us?"
Machida Sonoko leaned close to Tsushima Kagami's ear, incessantly breathing hot air onto it.
Tsushima Kagami moved away a little, scratched his ear, and looked at Machida Sonoko with a straight face.
"Senpai, the only person you should 'bare it all' to is someone you like who also likes you back."
"You absolutely cannot casually 'bare it all' with other men, not even in a mixed bath, which might be considered a social convention."
"You must have self-respect!"
What? He said I don't have self-respect?
How did I suddenly become a woman with no self-respect?
Hearing Tsushima Kagami speak about her like this, Machida Sonoko stood there in a daze, mumbling something under her breath.
"No self-respect, no self-respect, no self-respect..."
Sayuri, standing to the side, felt like she could almost see Machida Sonoko's soul leaking out of her mouth.
She looked helplessly at the club president—Kosaka Akane.
Kosaka Akane finally approached Tsushima Kagami as well, speaking in the gentle tone of a Yamato Nadeshiko she usually reserved for specific occasions.
"Kagami-kun, mainly we are afraid that while soaking in the hot spring, other guests might accidentally barge in, so we wanted Kagami-kun to accompany us."
"Then couldn't you just go to the female bath?!"
Tsushima Kagami choked Kosaka Akane into silence with a single sentence.
"Isn't it because we didn't want to be with so many strangers that we reserved the mixed bath, which usually has no people?"
Sayuri hurriedly covered for her from the side, and Kosaka Akane quickly nodded.
"Right, right, right."
Tsushima Kagami looked at Sayuri and Kosaka Akane, and finally hesitated for a moment.
"Then we'll soak for a while. You girls try to stay inside, and I'll just soak on the outer perimeter."
"Yay!"
Hearing that Tsushima Kagami finally agreed, the two of them jumped up happily.
Inside the mixed bath reserved by Kosaka Akane, the dense steam shrouded the three bodies, making them appear indistinctly visible.
To the side, Machida Sonoko, who had come back to her senses, spoke indignantly.
"Really, how could Kagami speak to me, his Senpai, like that? In what way do I lack self-respect!"
"My first kiss, first hug, first holding hands, first... they are all still here!"
"Oh, come on, alright. Kagami-kun wasn't deliberately targeting you. Although, what he said wasn't wrong either."
Sayuri hurriedly comforted Machida Sonoko from the side.
"Hmph, it's practically giving him free fan service, yet he still puts on such a reluctant face!"
Machida Sonoko, still unwilling to let it go, slapped her hand onto the hot spring rocks at the side.
At this moment, Kosaka Akane also spoke up.
"But indeed, did you noticed?"
"Noticed what?"
Sayuri and Machida Sonoko looked at Kosaka Akane together.
"The look in Kagami-kun's eyes when he usually looks at us."
"There isn't a shred of the look that a guy usually has when looking at a girl."
"Then what kind of look is it?" Sayuri asked.
"Desire? Adoration? Panic?"
"Oh my, isn't it a good thing that Kagami-kun is a gentleman?"
Sayuri spoke up in defense of Tsushima Kagami.
Kosaka Akane sighed and said, "It's not that. It's just... I feel like the three of us aren't exactly ugly, right?"
"Drawing doujinshi with him every day, even exchanging dirty jokes with each other, yet he doesn't have any thoughts at all?"
"Now that you mention it, Akane, I suddenly remember what Kagami-kun's usual gaze reminds me of."
Sayuri and Kosaka Akane looked curiously at Machida Sonoko again.
"Like..."
Machida Sonoko furrowed her brows in thought.
She recalled the smile Uncle Watanabe, who had a very good relationship with her, used to give her when he took her out to play as a child—a look of doting affection.
"I feel like Kagami-kun usually looks at us the way an elder looks at a junior..."
"Benevolent?"
After listening, the other two came to a sudden realization, and then looked at Machida Sonoko with an expression of disbelief.
Just then, the door to the mixed bath opened.
"I'm coming in."
The three of them quickly turned their heads in unison to look at the entrance of the hot spring. Tsushima Kagami walked in with a bath towel wrapped around his lower body.
"Sayuri, you guys just stay inside and don't come over. I'll just soak here."
"Okay."
Seeing Tsushima Kagami enter, the three nodded to each other.
Just as Tsushima Kagami was about to get into the water, Kosaka Akane let out a scream that wasn't too loud but wasn't too soft either, followed by the sound of splashing in the water.
Sayuri's anxious voice came through at that moment.
"Kagami-kun, it's bad! Akane-senpai has a leg cramp! Hurry over and help!"
"Alright, I'm coming now."
Tsushima Kagami, who had just taken off his towel to enter the water, immediately went around the side to where the three were soaking. Then, he froze.
The three of them were soaking in the hot spring together, looking at him triumphantly.
"Akane-senpai, you..."
Before Tsushima Kagami could finish speaking, he saw Sayuri grit her teeth and swiftly yank Tsushima Kagami's bath towel away...
Then, Kosaka Akane, Machida Sonoko, and Sayuri covered their faces with both hands, peering expectantly through the gaps in their fingers at the spot where the bath towel was about to fall.
The bath towel hit the ground. The three were stunned, followed by looks of disappointment.
Tsushima Kagami was wearing a pair of loose boxer swim trunks, grinning as he looked at the three of them.
"It's a prank competition, isn't it, Senpais and Sayuri?"
"Seeing how mysterious you were acting, I knew it!"
"And you talked about 'baring it all'? Dishonest."
Tsushima Kagami looked at Kosaka Akane in her white one-piece swimsuit with cutouts at the midriff, Machida Sonoko in a bold black two-piece bikini, and Sayuri in a... well, it was truly kawaii ne.
"Ahaha, well, Kagami-kun got to see our swimsuits anyway, so consider it an apology."
Kosaka Akane slowly sank into the hot spring, laughing awkwardly.
"Since the prank game is over, I'll go soak over there. Don't soak too long; we still have to hurry back and rush the manuscripts!"
"Okay, okay, we know!"
Once Tsushima Kagami returned to the area near the entrance to enjoy the hot spring alone, Sayuri, Kosaka Akane, and Machida Sonoko huddled together.
"What do we do? The hot spring plan failed!"
The two looked at Machida Sonoko.
Machida Sonoko thought for a moment and smiled.
"It doesn't matter. I still have Plan B!"
____
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