There is a beep beep in the ear, full of mechanized waiting sound. Every time it beeps, people's hearts will become more impatient.

Just when he was about to hang up the phone at the next moment, there was a clear ring, and Nako's face, biting her lip, suddenly became clear.

"Moxi Moxi~ Hi~ I am Nako, is this the old butler Watanabe?"

"Hey~ I'm here to attend Takiichi-chan's birthday dinner. Because there was a thunderstorm on the road, the train was delayed."

"I have now arrived at the entrance of the village. The road ahead is too dark. It is inconvenient to be alone. Could you please send someone to pick me up? There are also some gifts here."

It's not that I don't know the location of Taki's family, and I ignore the three or two private houses rising up on the left and right sides. The end of the road below is the real terminus.

But...the endless night always brings inexplicable fear to people.

Although the security here is not as chaotic as that in downtown Tokyo, it is difficult for Nako to convince himself to muster up the courage to go there alone when he arrives at night for the first time.

Fortunately, on the phone, the old housekeeper Watanabe did not blame her for being late, but spoke gently.

"The young master is taking a bath in the hot spring. I will tell him about this immediately and ask Miss Nako to wait there for a moment."

"Hey, I'm sorry to trouble you."

When the phone was hung up, Nako tightened her clothes, and the next thing she had to do was just wait.

It spanned nearly five hours, and this period seemed as long as five days.

Nako leaned quietly under the tree, thinking about the comfort of old housekeeper Watanabe over and over again.

Under the dim street lights, the petite body waited silently for the person he wanted to appear.

The consciousness in the meninges seemed to be filled with a cloud and became turbid.

If Nako hadn't appeared here, most of Nako's day would have ended with running activities.

In that deep consciousness, I gradually felt that something like an hourglass appeared in front of my eyes, shortening time bit by bit.

Takiichi mentioned many times in text messages that he was the most important, but... the number of people who came to participate this time was far more than he thought.

If Sakura were here, no matter who they were, they would not take away Takiichi's mind at the banquet.

But this time Sakura's absence has invisibly given opportunities to others.

"Kanna, Asuka, and Mitsuki, did you three come together because you saw an opportunity?"

(Guess who Kanna and Asuka are, hint: girl group members, actors, one was born in 1999 and the other was born in 1998.)

A weak, imperceptible sigh quickly merged with the silent night.

While following Takiichi on the road, the familiar calming thing in the air made Nako feel that something like seeing things and thinking about them happened to him at some point.

At his feet, Taki was playing happily with a petal blown by the wind.

The faint footprints of men on the ground seemed to indicate that someone had stopped here not long ago.

In fact, Takiichi did leave his footprints here.

The time difference between the two intertwined shadows is only three hours.

At this moment, time begins to flow backwards.

"Click..."

"Click..."

Slowly press the shutter button with your finger, stop when you encounter the scenery, and record every moment with the SLR in your hand.

This is a habit that should be integrated into daily life.

After leaving the platform, Takiichi strolled along the path beside the fields. He only had to turn his head slightly to see the water channel below.

All the water here comes from the only man-made sluice in the village.

After entering the village, you are greeted by endless green. In fact, there are some areas where corn is grown.

These are the sources of income for the villagers to maintain their daily lives. In the distance, two children of similar age can be seen faintly, walking among them, playing games that only they know and understand.

With their thick colors, standing on the side of the road like this and looking from a distance, you can still catch their presence.

In the past, I would come here with Sakura several times. After we were tired from playing, we would support each other, take off our shoes, and step barefoot in the water channel next to it to clean the soles of our feet.

Losing an important person sometimes feels like losing the whole world.

We are strangers to Sakura. In fact, from the beginning, fate has already written the final ending with pen.

If one day in the future, the two parties are destined to meet at the next intersection, I wonder if I will still be like this at that time.

"Woof woof..."

In the fields, the barking sounds of several farm dogs could be heard. Every dog ​​in the village knew Takiichi, and their names were always engraved in his heart.

As if calling himself, he turned his head and looked at the source of the sound. It was still the same one from before, standing far ahead.

The figure became increasingly blurred and finally disappeared on the steep hillside.

Every scene and thing here, even an unknown local dog, has a trace of contentment.

Taki held the strap on his shoulder and walked towards home.

Although it was in the countryside, the middle of the road was covered with electric wires, and two trams came and went, staggered in their respective directions.

I have been walking this road for almost twenty years, and a map has been imprinted in my mind for so long.

There are only a few restaurants, a small bookstore, and a small clinic in this village.

Convenience stores are not open 24 hours a day, so people in the village opened them with the support of Takiichi's father.

There is only one dance academy with only five or six students.

Four years ago, Momo and Bonai left this dance academy and went to JYP in South Korea to receive more professional and systematic training.

You have to wait for about an hour for the tram here to arrive.

As for buses, they only run two or three times a day, and even... the weather forecast on TV only reports for Kyoto City.

When walking in Sanshanmu Village, if you use the map to search, you will only see prompts such as missing data.

If you are used to the bustling life in Tokyo, people from big cities will not want to stay here for a moment.

The unique tranquility of the small village will always belong only to the people living here.

"Taki is back again, happy birthday~"

An old man carrying a hoe and a local dog leisurely passed by Taki, squinting his eyes lazily, and turned back to say congratulations.

"Thank you~"

Takiyi frowned and grinned slightly, as if he was smiling, but more out of helplessness because he was distracted.

He was lucky that there were no big trucks passing by on such a country road. Well, it should be said that it was a bit difficult to even see the traffic light.

From a long distance away, the top of the Japanese-style hot spring hotel house began to enter Takiichi's sight.

In front of his home, outside the door of the only hot spring hotel in the village, a figure stood quietly, looking forward to it.

"Thank God, you are finally back."

Waiting there for a long time was an old man in a tuxedo, about sixty years old.

Takiichi hugged her naturally, and the two hugged each other for a long time before they separated.

"Grandpa Watanabe, where is my mother?"

In Takiichi's memory, Watanabe was the housekeeper of the Hirai family, with a son and a daughter by his side.

Oh, I also have a younger brother who is active in the film and television industry of Sakura Country and is considered an incredible figure.

Putting aside these things, Hirai Takichi was brought up by his father, the old butler.
Chapter completed!