Part 4
After the pottery experience, we headed back to Central Avenue.
"This is the end of the townscape of storehouses. There are famous temples and Jizo (stone statues) ahead, but among them..."
As I spoke up to that point, the sound of an out-of-place guitar echoed from the old man's chest.
"Excuse me. There's a phone call."
It seemed to be a ringtone, so he quickly took out his cell phone,
"Yes, what is it... Yeah, okay"
After a minute or so of some sort of business call,
"I'm sorry, I've got some business to attend to, so this is the end of the tour. I'm sorry I ended the tour in the middle."
He bowed so politely that we felt rather terribly sorry for him.
"Not at all, we enjoyed it very much."
"Yeah, if it had been just us, we never would have been able to make such a solid tour."
Together, we told the old man our honest thoughts.
It all started with a reckless request from the owner of the coffee shop, but I was more than satisfied with the exquisite degree of guidance that got right to the point.
So I had no complaints at all,
"No, at least if I can guide you to one more place... that's right."
The old man took out the phone again,
“Would you like to join me for lunch?”
"Eh... yes, by all means."
I inadvertently nodded at the sudden invitation.
"Thank you very much, may I have your phone number so I can tell you where to find the restaurant later."
"Ah, well, here you go..."
As I was told, I displayed my cell phone number and showed it to the old man.
"Thank you, I will contact you in about an hour. Good day."
With another exemplary bow, the old man quickly disappeared into the crowd.
"He's gone..."
"Yeah, that sounded like a job."
I wonder if there was a great man with an urgent need to show us around.
With the person who had been leading the way until just now gone, we suddenly lost sight of where we were going.
“First, what should we do now?”
Do we go to the temples and shrines and Jizo (stone statues) that the old man mentioned, or do we stop at a cafe on the street for a rest?
In any case, we will meet up with the old man again in an hour. I wanted to think about Tsurayuki, but that would have to wait until after lunch. I couldn't get it out of my head the whole time I was sightseeing, and I needed somewhere to organize my thoughts.
As I was considering these options, Nanako,
"You know, Kyouya... I have a place I want to go to..."
Surprisingly, she clearly indicated where she wanted to go.
However, she was fidgeting a lot, and not making eye contact with me... No, her action was a bit strange.
"Okay, but where?"
“I-I want to go there for a bit!”
Is it such a hidden place?
Well, it wasn't like there was anywhere I wanted to go on my end, and I had no reason to say no.
"Yeah, then let's go. Do you know the way?"
When she heard that, Nanako nodded and said,
"I checked the pamphlet just now, so it's okay!"
This time, her face turned red as she pulled my sleeve.
"Let's go!"
"O-Okay"
I don't know why she was so hyped up, but I followed Nanako's lead and started walking to that destination.
From Central Avenue, exit further north and turn east after a short walk.
I noticed that the number of tourists, which had decreased as we passed the kurazukuri district, suddenly increased the moment we entered this street.
"He~e, are these people going to that place too?"
"Y-Yeah... maybe not!"
Nanako still won't tell me the destination.
Looking closely, I noticed that there were many couples among the tourists walking along the same road. Earlier, there were many families and school students on school trips, but the situation here is very different.
(Maybe that's the kind of...)
I wondered if it was a place for people, just about the time,
"Ah, here it is..."
When I turned my head at Nanako's voice, I saw a large forest and a torii gate sitting in front of it. And in the middle of it, the roof of a building that looked like the main shrine could be seen.
"Shrine...?"
Nanako nodded.
"I heard it was called Hikawa Shrine. I saw it in a pamphlet and heard it was a famous place, so I thought I'd like to visit."
She gave a strangely energetic introduction.
A lot of couples, shrines and famous places.
I guessed why this shrine had become a popular spot.
(It seems better not to say what I just deduced...)
Knowing Nanako, I was sure she would have blushed up to her ears and fallen silent.
As we approached, it was clear that the place was large enough. A security guard was directing traffic in front of the entrance and alerting cars driving down the street.
I wonder if its predicted "efficacy" is what is attracting so many people.
First, we went to the shrine.
The Hikawa Shrine was not that large in size, but the number of visitors was clearly greater than at other shrines.
Almost 100% of the people who came to visit were a couple of people. Some people came alone, but they were women.
"It's pretty crowded"
Among these, the omikuji and amulet booths were at the point where queues were forming. (Note: are random fortunes written on strips of paper at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples in Japan)
"Then Kyouya, let's go pray!"
"Ah, yeah..."
“We have a lot of things to pray about and stuff, you know.”
Of course, there are many things that I want God to fulfill, not only concerning Tsurayuki, but also concerning our works. And to go even further, there are many things I want to see come true for the future of all the staff members as well.
After purifying myself with hand water, I got in line for worship, which was relatively empty. In front of the magnificent shrine pavilion, there was a line of four people each. Naturally, couples lined up with each other.
The two of us lined up and gradually moved forward. A sign posted on the side of the building said a lot about its efficacy.
The most eye-catching of these was written in large letters,
(“Fulfillment of love, marriage” huh…)
As expected, this was the main reason, apparently. No doubt, I decided to pretend not to notice, as it would be very difficult to retort.
"Hey, Kyouya, what do you ask?"
"Eh, me? Hmm..."
It's probably something I was thinking about earlier, but it's quite difficult to narrow it down to just one. Right now, more than anything else, it's about Tsurayuki.
"Since we're here, let's pray a lot."
"Well, if we pray a lot of things, maybe one of them will get granted."
It must be a huge nuisance to the gods, but Nanako is right here.
"Yeah, let's ask for 500 billion yen or something a little bigger!"
She said, smiling at me. If I get that many, I'm going to be in mortal danger.
I chuckled and looked toward the main shrine.
The sound of clapping hands is an interesting echo in the bustling precincts of the temple.
(I feel a little better)
Thanks to Nanako's talk about this and that, I was able to get Tsurayuki out of my head, which has been lingering in my mind for a while.
(Ah...)
Perhaps Nanako is.
Part of why she wanted to come here, I suppose, but it was more than that,
(I guess she was trying to cheer me up...)
If so, I would feel sorry before I would feel happy or grateful.
It is my fault in every way, but every time I see Nanako's cute little face, I feel irresistibly guilty.
It's not like I'm dating Shinoaki, and I don't have a specific person in mind, but I feel sorry for my situation where I can't decide "who".
(Nanako, you no longer hide your affection for me...)
I remember the welcome party for Saikawa the other day.
It wasn't just that she was drunk from unfamiliar alcohol. Nanako was clearly revealing her feelings toward me at that time. She is still shy more often than not, but the number of times she is aggressively coming on to me is steadily increasing.
Our turn came. We made a monetary offering, bowed twice, and then clapped our hands twice.
(I wonder what Nanako is asking for...)
As I bowed my head, I quietly stole a glance at Nanako's expression.
Quietly closing her eyes, she mumbled something. As expected, I could not read the contents of the words, but it was already clear to me about what she was wishing for.
(I'm sorry that I can't answer anything right now)
I think a future where I dated Nanako and had a family instead of Shinoaki would have been possible. No, perhaps it will happen in the future, but I didn't have time to think toward that future at the moment.
After dropping her hands and bowing deeply again, the prayer ended.
Nanako's expression seemed to have changed to a somewhat clearer one, as if she was having some sort of thought.
Part 4
After the pottery experience, we headed back to Central Avenue.
"This is the end of the townscape of storehouses. There are famous temples and Jizo (stone statues) ahead, but among them..."
As I spoke up to that point, the sound of an out-of-place guitar echoed from the old man's chest.
"Excuse me. There's a phone call."
It seemed to be a ringtone, so he quickly took out his cell phone,
"Yes, what is it... Yeah, okay"
After a minute or so of some sort of business call,
"I'm sorry, I've got some business to attend to, so this is the end of the tour. I'm sorry I ended the tour in the middle."
He bowed so politely that we felt rather terribly sorry for him.
"Not at all, we enjoyed it very much."
"Yeah, if it had been just us, we never would have been able to make such a solid tour."
Together, we told the old man our honest thoughts.
It all started with a reckless request from the owner of the coffee shop, but I was more than satisfied with the exquisite degree of guidance that got right to the point.
So I had no complaints at all,
"No, at least if I can guide you to one more place... that's right."
The old man took out the phone again,
“Would you like to join me for lunch?”
"Eh... yes, by all means."
I inadvertently nodded at the sudden invitation.
"Thank you very much, may I have your phone number so I can tell you where to find the restaurant later."
"Ah, well, here you go..."
As I was told, I displayed my cell phone number and showed it to the old man.
"Thank you, I will contact you in about an hour. Good day."
With another exemplary bow, the old man quickly disappeared into the crowd.
"He's gone..."
"Yeah, that sounded like a job."
I wonder if there was a great man with an urgent need to show us around.
With the person who had been leading the way until just now gone, we suddenly lost sight of where we were going.
“First, what should we do now?”
Do we go to the temples and shrines and Jizo (stone statues) that the old man mentioned, or do we stop at a cafe on the street for a rest?
In any case, we will meet up with the old man again in an hour. I wanted to think about Tsurayuki, but that would have to wait until after lunch. I couldn't get it out of my head the whole time I was sightseeing, and I needed somewhere to organize my thoughts.
As I was considering these options, Nanako,
"You know, Kyouya... I have a place I want to go to..."
Surprisingly, she clearly indicated where she wanted to go.
However, she was fidgeting a lot, and not making eye contact with me... No, her action was a bit strange.
"Okay, but where?"
“I-I want to go there for a bit!”
Is it such a hidden place?
Well, it wasn't like there was anywhere I wanted to go on my end, and I had no reason to say no.
"Yeah, then let's go. Do you know the way?"
When she heard that, Nanako nodded and said,
"I checked the pamphlet just now, so it's okay!"
This time, her face turned red as she pulled my sleeve.
"Let's go!"
"O-Okay"
I don't know why she was so hyped up, but I followed Nanako's lead and started walking to that destination.
From Central Avenue, exit further north and turn east after a short walk.
I noticed that the number of tourists, which had decreased as we passed the kurazukuri district, suddenly increased the moment we entered this street.
"He~e, are these people going to that place too?"
"Y-Yeah... maybe not!"
Nanako still won't tell me the destination.
Looking closely, I noticed that there were many couples among the tourists walking along the same road. Earlier, there were many families and school students on school trips, but the situation here is very different.
(Maybe that's the kind of...)
I wondered if it was a place for people, just about the time,
"Ah, here it is..."
When I turned my head at Nanako's voice, I saw a large forest and a torii gate sitting in front of it. And in the middle of it, the roof of a building that looked like the main shrine could be seen.
"Shrine...?"
Nanako nodded.
"I heard it was called Hikawa Shrine. I saw it in a pamphlet and heard it was a famous place, so I thought I'd like to visit."
She gave a strangely energetic introduction.
A lot of couples, shrines and famous places.
I guessed why this shrine had become a popular spot.
(It seems better not to say what I just deduced...)
Knowing Nanako, I was sure she would have blushed up to her ears and fallen silent.
As we approached, it was clear that the place was large enough. A security guard was directing traffic in front of the entrance and alerting cars driving down the street.
I wonder if its predicted "efficacy" is what is attracting so many people.
First, we went to the shrine.
The Hikawa Shrine was not that large in size, but the number of visitors was clearly greater than at other shrines.
Almost 100% of the people who came to visit were a couple of people. Some people came alone, but they were women.
"It's pretty crowded"
Among these, the omikuji and amulet booths were at the point where queues were forming. (Note: are random fortunes written on strips of paper at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples in Japan)
"Then Kyouya, let's go pray!"
"Ah, yeah..."
“We have a lot of things to pray about and stuff, you know.”
Of course, there are many things that I want God to fulfill, not only concerning Tsurayuki, but also concerning our works. And to go even further, there are many things I want to see come true for the future of all the staff members as well.
After purifying myself with hand water, I got in line for worship, which was relatively empty. In front of the magnificent shrine pavilion, there was a line of four people each. Naturally, couples lined up with each other.
The two of us lined up and gradually moved forward. A sign posted on the side of the building said a lot about its efficacy.
The most eye-catching of these was written in large letters,
(“Fulfillment of love, marriage” huh…)
As expected, this was the main reason, apparently. No doubt, I decided to pretend not to notice, as it would be very difficult to retort.
"Hey, Kyouya, what do you ask?"
"Eh, me? Hmm..."
It's probably something I was thinking about earlier, but it's quite difficult to narrow it down to just one. Right now, more than anything else, it's about Tsurayuki.
"Since we're here, let's pray a lot."
"Well, if we pray a lot of things, maybe one of them will get granted."
It must be a huge nuisance to the gods, but Nanako is right here.
"Yeah, let's ask for 500 billion yen or something a little bigger!"
She said, smiling at me. If I get that many, I'm going to be in mortal danger.
I chuckled and looked toward the main shrine.
The sound of clapping hands is an interesting echo in the bustling precincts of the temple.
(I feel a little better)
Thanks to Nanako's talk about this and that, I was able to get Tsurayuki out of my head, which has been lingering in my mind for a while.
(Ah...)
Perhaps Nanako is.
Part of why she wanted to come here, I suppose, but it was more than that,
(I guess she was trying to cheer me up...)
If so, I would feel sorry before I would feel happy or grateful.
It is my fault in every way, but every time I see Nanako's cute little face, I feel irresistibly guilty.
It's not like I'm dating Shinoaki, and I don't have a specific person in mind, but I feel sorry for my situation where I can't decide "who".
(Nanako, you no longer hide your affection for me...)
I remember the welcome party for Saikawa the other day.
It wasn't just that she was drunk from unfamiliar alcohol. Nanako was clearly revealing her feelings toward me at that time. She is still shy more often than not, but the number of times she is aggressively coming on to me is steadily increasing.
Our turn came. We made a monetary offering, bowed twice, and then clapped our hands twice.
(I wonder what Nanako is asking for...)
As I bowed my head, I quietly stole a glance at Nanako's expression.
Quietly closing her eyes, she mumbled something. As expected, I could not read the contents of the words, but it was already clear to me about what she was wishing for.
(I'm sorry that I can't answer anything right now)
I think a future where I dated Nanako and had a family instead of Shinoaki would have been possible. No, perhaps it will happen in the future, but I didn't have time to think toward that future at the moment.
After dropping her hands and bowing deeply again, the prayer ended.
Nanako's expression seemed to have changed to a somewhat clearer one, as if she was having some sort of thought.
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