Chapter 245
"Diary."
"Name."
"The King of Diary."
"Name."
"Mr. Diary."
"Name."
Stubbornly, she pressed for her name.
It carried a hint of relentless determination to achieve one's goal.
"..."
Anyway, these days you can just grab any first-grader, point at him, and he'll tell you their name.
Somewhat helplessly, Asakusa Toru gave up on fighting Shiina Mashiro and gave his name:
"Asakusa Toru."
"Asakusa Toru." Looking at Asakusa Toru's face, she repeated the name, as if trying to memorize it and his appearance. Shiina Mashiro nodded. "I've got it."
"... It's best if you don't remember it." Asakusa Toru with a hint of helplessness.
It wasn't that his name was anything shameful, nor was it that he disliked Shiina Mashiro.
If we really have to categorize her, Shiina Mashiro could be considered a God-man to some extent.
Unable to take care of himself, emotionally blank, yet possessing unparalleled skill.
A favorite among those who love natural beauty products.
But there won't be any problems in her life.
No matter how incapable of taking care of oneself, no matter how naturally naive one's personality may be.
As long as she can still draw, as long as she can still draw.
Her life was completely smooth sailing.
... The only issue to consider is...
Beware of bad people.
They can't even be considered villains. Insidious villains weigh the pros and cons and consider all sorts of issues; they do have some brains.
But a rotten person is different; a rotten person is rotten from head to toe, decaying and stinking to the core.
Most of them come into this world with resentment, and their purpose from beginning to end is not to make themselves better, but to make others worse.
Ironically, many of the worst people in this world seem to be "leftover women in their late twenties".
It seems to be something that people say often.
The least problematic aspect for so-called "leftover women" is usually their age itself.
The real reason she became a "leftover woman" was clearly something else entirely.
That's right, Asakusa Toru wasn't just talking about Chabashira Sae teacher of Class D; he was also talking about that good relative who was supposed to be Shiina Mashiro's temporary guardian but instead casually dumped her on someone else.
Sengoku Chihiro.
As it stands, Shiina Mashiro is alone, indicating that she arrived at the Advanced Nurturing alone.
Shiina's parents, who live far away in the United Kingdom, know Shiina Mashiro well, and her good roommate is also aware of her problems.
It's obvious that no one would leave Mashiro to travel alone.
In other words, they must have asked someone they felt they could trust for help.
She was trusted, but then betrayed that trust, leaving Shiina Mashiro alone.
That older single woman is the only one left.
Ha, so this is Advanced Nurturing for one person.
Given Shiina Mashiro's personality, the danger involved is self-evident.
... They might die on the way.
He should be thankful that Shiina Mashiro, or rather, all of Japan should be thankful that Shiina Mashiro was able to reach Advanced Nurturing on her own.
Otherwise.
Oh.
In short, Asakusa Toru's reason for responding in this way is quite simple.
Trouble.
Deepen relationships, engage in in-depth exchanges, and forge so-called bonds.
This kind of intervention in another person's life and interference in their future.
... It's not that it's impossible.
He doesn't dislike Shiina Mashiro; in fact, he once liked Shiina Mashiro, from a reader's perspective.
However, if that's the case, he will have to take on the responsibility of Shiina Mashiro's life.
This isn't just some cool and handsome-sounding confession.
Instead, it must be concrete and truly involve intervention in people's lives.
From painting to daily life.
To fulfill her desires, to meet her needs, to dress her, to feed her—this responsibility will never change and will be imposed upon you.
... That's a bit too heavy.
Anyway, as long as we give them a warning or a reminder, and make Shiina's parents pay more attention, there shouldn't be any major problems.
Asakusa Toru has always been willing to solve problems for others.
However, there are many ways to solve this problem, and it doesn't necessarily mean sacrificing your life for it...
"Why?" Asakusa Toru's thoughts were interrupted by her clear words.
Looking up at him directly, Shiina Mashiro asked, "Why?"
"I'll remember that," she said. "I'm your fan."
She was asking for an answer, but she wasn't so eager to get it, rather than wanting it to be available sooner or faster.
Shiina Mashiro really wanted to do was 'confide'.
"I love your story, I love your writing, I love the campus you described and presented to me."
Shiina Mashiro spread her arms, made a circle, and just as the circle closed, she smoothly and naturally grabbed the Diary from her hands.
You have many stories.
"I have a pen."
"I want to draw them all as comics."
They were saying they wanted to become God-man, and they were here for the sake of becoming so-called God-man.
But upon seeing Asakusa Toru, she seemed to have completely forgotten all those things, pouring out her most genuine feelings.
"..." Asakusa Toru his head away, his gaze meeting Hoshinomiya Chie's on the side of the track. Ignoring his homeroom teacher, he said softly, "You can draw a lot of things."
"You don't necessarily have to find a story about me."
Asakusa Toru had considered Shiina Mashiro's situation a long time ago.
Why not find an original script to adapt?
With such superb drawing skills but a terrible plot, it's clear that the best approach wouldn't be to start with an original story, but rather to try adapting, retelling, and learning from and understanding how others create 'stories'.
Yes, that's right Shiina Mashiro's meaning at this moment is very simple: she wants her to be the original scriptwriter.
But if that's the case...
Even if it's not myself, it's okay, right?
To put it bluntly, there's been no interaction, no emotional foundation whatsoever, yet they're saying things like, "I can't live without you."
... It really does seem like an emotional scam.
"Step back." Looking at Asakusa Toru's profile, Shiina Mashiro suddenly uttered this word.
She stood up and moved so close to Asakusa Toru that she could easily reach him with her outstretched arm.
Then, he raised his hand and pressed the Diary in his hand onto Asakusa Toru's body:
You weren't like this before.
"Raising her head," said Shiina Mashiro.
As if she knew him very well, Shiina Mashiro spoke these words as if it were perfectly natural for her to be his childhood friend.
There was a hint of grievance in her words.
"You need to be more free, more spontaneous, more able to do whatever you want, more—"
I don't care about a little bit.
You, who do things that seem meaningless to others in the name of self-satisfaction, shouldn't care about the weight of life you're supposed to be carrying.
Shiina Mashiro is unaware of Asakusa Toru's past, nor does she know what Asakusa Toru did before enrolling in the school.
So, she didn't say that last sentence, or rather, that sentence never even came to mind.
She couldn't say it; she couldn't have imagined such a thing.
But some people can say that.
"Even less concerned." Ichinose Honami, who had appeared at some point and had been listening to the conversation for some unknown period, picked up the sentence and added the unspoken part:
"As long as it satisfies myself, whatever I do is none of anyone else's business."
Shiina Mashiro is a world-class painter.
Her arrival was highly anticipated, and her presence was closely watched.
At least, as the Hoshinomiya Chie would always keep an eye on her in the audience.
Therefore, when she saw Asakusa Toru walk directly towards Shiina Mashiro, Hoshinomiya Chie's heart skipped a beat for a moment.
It wasn't because I was worried about Shiina Mashiro, of course.
Why is she worried about Mashiro? There are plenty of people who would worry about Mashiro; it's none of her business.
What she was worried about, of course, was Asakusa Toru, the biggest star in her class.
Hey, be careful! Don't hurt or bump into a genius painter.
If something really goes wrong, teacher, I really can't protect you.
Chie is just a lousy part-time worker. The only thing she wants to do in this life is to pester my best friend to death. You absolutely have to lead Class A to crush Class D!
I prayed, worried, and thought about it for a long time.
She decided to bring Ichinose Honami over and have her Ichinose Honami up and keep an eye on things.
But to her utter surprise, as Honami watched...
... They've entered.
"Yes, that's exactly right, that's exactly how it is."
She said.
"There's no need to delve too deeply into the logic behind their actions, nor is it necessary to force a reason or justification." Ichinose Honami took a step forward, seemingly trying to block the gap between Asakusa Toru and Shiina Mashiro:
"He did it simply because he wanted to."
"So, the answer is obvious, isn't it?" Ichinose Honami said, "He doesn't want to, he refuses."
"It has nothing to do with whether or not things change; it's simply because he has absolutely no interest in such matters."
It's not something as simple and crude as 'If you have a ○, don't you want to grass?' Shiina Mashiro's 'step back' cannot be simply explained by that logic.
Codes of conduct are complex and diverse, and standards for treating people and handling affairs are ever-changing.