Chapter 387
"Um! Can I do you a favor?"
"I knew it!"
Tanaka Asuka, standing next to her, tapped her forehead with her finger, shook her head, and sighed, as if she had already anticipated that Asuka would say that.
"Please speak."
"Could you please give me some pointers on my Saxophone tomorrow?"
"Guide?"
"Hmm! I want to improve my bass Saxophone skills, and I hope Himemiya student can give me some advice!"
She clenched her fist and placed it on her chest, her expression serious, her eyes sparkling.
To her surprise, he readily agreed.
"That's easy, you can do it."
"Please... eh?"
I said yes.
"That's wonderful, Haruka ~"
"Get out of my way!"
She scoffed at the goofy guy, still a little confused, "Is it really okay?"
"It was nothing, don't mention it."
Thank you so much!
"..."
"Alright, we've finished eating, let's go!"
After resting for a while, Tanaka Asuka stood up and raised her hand, calling out, "Those who want to go home, go home; those who want to be together, be together! I'll be the general guide, let's go!"
"Oh~!"
X N.
"Honestly, you guys have no passion at all! Is it all gone already?"
She pouted, dissatisfied that the combined volume of several people's voices couldn't even match her own.
Final.
The guide team has been confirmed to be led by Tanaka Asuka, with two other third-year students and Kōsaka Reina as subordinates – a truly impressive lineup!
Tanaka Asuka goes without saying, as does Nakasako Kaori... Ogasawara Haruka is probably trying to build relationships in advance for tomorrow's guidance, while Kōsaka Reina's motives are unclear.
Although Kumiko Oumae wanted to follow the others and Kōsaka Reina, she left with them after seeing the tired and pleading looks in her two friends' eyes.
The passenger group consisted of only Himemiya Chihaya... which gave off a strange sense of déjà vu for a certain four-man band.
"Even so, Uji actually quite small, and there aren't many particularly fun places to visit. I think you can see most of the famous attractions in half a day, especially after you've explored the Yamashiro."
"You can see the rest using navigation. By the way, you're not planning to go to the tea plantations, are you?"
As she pushed her bicycle, Tanaka Asuka asked him for confirmation.
"That's probably what the locals would say everywhere... Well, it's all up to you!"
He laughed in response, then remembered something.
"Oh, right! I want to go to the bank to withdraw some money first, otherwise I won't even have money for accommodation tonight."
"Really? Then I'll go with you first. Which bank do you want to go to?"
"..."
She wasn't exaggerating at all. To put it simply, Uji City is small enough to be explored in an afternoon by bicycle.
The Yamashiro Comprehensive Sports Park seemed far away in the mornings, but if it weren't for the students traveling in groups, you could walk there.
Because its straight-line distance to the city center is only about five or six kilometers, and it is closer to Kitauji, although the road distance is farther.
With a total area of less than 80 square kilometers, it's certainly not remote, but it's definitely small. That's Uji City...
Chapter 396: Sightseeing in Uji.
Most interesting attractions are located outside the city center; this is almost an ironclad rule when traveling.
Before starting your tour, it's worth noting that although Uji City's main urban area is a mountain city surrounded by mountains on all sides...
However, the northwest of Kitauji, where they are located, is right outside the mountains and adjacent to Kyoto. There are no hills separating the two, only roads and buildings—meaning that compared to Uji, their area is basically the outer city of Kyoto.
Furthermore, although the city is not large, there are actually more places to see than Tanaka Asuka said.
At least in terms of the number of temples and shrines, Uji has a lot; you definitely can't see them all in one day.
Kyoto, as the ancient Heian-kyō, has a density of ancient-style buildings that is unmatched anywhere else, and Uji, which is attached to it, is no exception.
But when it comes to ancient temples and shrines, you can basically see a few famous ones and you'll be pretty much the same.
Considering the opening hours of public attractions, they did not go to the attractions near Udo, where the school is located, first. Instead, they parked their bicycles nearby and took Himemiya Chihaya's car to the city in the mountains.
"Himemiya student, you really drove here?"
Tanaka Asuka stared at the car's interior with a mixture of silence and curiosity, touching and examining it.
"This car... must be quite expensive, right?"
The other two third-year students were also ashamed.
"..."
Kōsaka Reina remained silent.
Although none of the other people in the car knew anything about cars, not even the car logo, their intuition told them that this car must be very valuable!
"It's borrowed from a friend, don't worry about it."
After saying that, he opened the navigation and began entering the location name.
"Speaking of which, I have a question that's on my mind... it's about the guitar, isn't it?"
Sitting in the back row with two senior Senpai, Kōsaka Reina held the heavy, fiery red Electric Guitar and asked blankly.
Her purpose in following the group was to gain a better understanding of this unusual person's way of life, for reference.
But she never expected that reality would give her a sinus so quickly after she got on the bus.
No, it's one thing to say your main profession isn't Saxophone but Keyboard, but why do you have a guitar in your car?
A stringed instrument, a woodwind instrument, a Keyboard —are these even related?
Wow~ It really is! What a cool color!
Tanaka Asuka, who was acting as the main guide in the front row, turned around and saw the exceptionally cool and trendy musical instrument. Her eyes lit up as she dangled it back and forth.
"Can I take a look? Wow, it's so heavy!"
Ogasawara Haruka, taking the instrument for the first time, was caught off guard by its heavy weight and her face fell. "Is a guitar really this heavy?"
That's Electric Guitar.
While keeping an eye on driving the car out of the parking space, Himemiya Chihaya.
"I told Asuka and the others at the stadium before that I prefer rock Wind Instrument Music."
"Ah, I think I did say that!"
After thinking for a moment, she recalled and continued curiously, "This is a rock instrument, it's definitely much more eye-catching and cooler than the instruments in the Wind Ensemble Club..."
"Asuka."
Ogasawara Haruka looked helpless; how could anyone belittle their own family so readily?
"Yes, the guitarist in the band uses this instrument."
He nodded in affirmation.
"Huh? So you actually formed a band?"
No, that's not true.
"Phew~ Thank goodness. If you had kept going like that, I would have seriously started to doubt whether you were even human."
"But Himemiya student should be able to play, right?"
Nakasako Kaori gently stroked the guitar's soundboard, feeling its cold, smooth surface.
"Of course I will..."
"Just how many musical instruments do you know...?"
After the others voiced their thoughts, the passenger in the next seat raised his right hand and exclaimed, "Teacher! I want to hear it!"
"Let's talk about it at school tomorrow. Can you take me around the city today?"
His tone was helpless.
As mentioned before, his first priority here is to build good relationships with them, but it's also very important to relax, have fun, and recharge!
"It's a date!"
Tanaka Asuka readily agreed.
"..."
"..."
Although it's a city in the mountains, most of the attractions aren't located here, but rather on the northern side of the mountains where they were originally situated.
With the help of a car, they arrived at this mountain city in just ten minutes.
The group quickly visited several places, including Chōfukuji, the tea factory, the Nagatani Sōen's Former Residence, and the specialty street. After taking a few photos and experiencing the local customs and culture through the street scenes, they headed back.
They spent about two hours visiting these places.
Fortunately, the remaining places are all within a one-kilometer radius, so it's quick to explore them.
They drove the car back to its original location, and the group got out and began their walking tour.
"This is Byōdō-in, the most famous temple garden in Uji. It was originally Fujiwara no Michinaga's villa, which was later converted into a temple by his son."
Tanaka Asuka proved that she hadn't eaten his lunch and dessert for nothing.
She described each attraction to him with great familiarity, her words as detailed as a professional tour guide's.
"As you can see, the building is quite beautiful. Its most famous feature is the National Treasure Phoenix Hall... ah, the one pictured on the 10 yen coin."
"That's its shrine over there..."
"..."
"This is the Byōdō-in Omotesando. Many people from other places say it's as beautiful as a paradise. What do you think?"
"The shopping street is lined with old buildings on both sides, connecting trams, bridges, temples, riverbanks and many other places. Even if you don't buy anything, it's nice to come and enjoy the scenery."
"..."
"This is Zenpōji, but it's not as amazing as Byōdō-in..."
"..."
"Alright! Now for the most important location!"
She trotted to the front, raised her arm to the side, and excitedly introduced, "Gentlemen! Please look!"
"This is the famous Uji Bridge, one of Japan's three great ancient wooden bridges!"
"After the renovation, cars and people can now drive on it! Isn't that amazing?!"
"Below lies the Uji River, a place of stunning beauty. Whether it's filming a romantic movie of lovers kissing, watching a fireworks display, or even taking wedding photos... this is a perfect place!"
"..."
Himemiya Chihaya leaned out from the bridge, her expression one of curiosity.
Although this bridge looks rather ordinary, only a little over a hundred meters long, it can't compare to large, modern bridges like the Tamagawa Sky Bridge, which is over 600 meters long and connects Tokyo and Kawasaki. However, it has a quiet and leisurely charm reminiscent of the old countryside.
But...