A Kiss

Compared to Rukia and Kanazawa, Hinamori was more easygoing and popular within the Student Council.

The moment she arrived late and entered, she immediately became the center of attention.

And when they saw her take the initiative to sit beside Xin, with Hisagi Shūhei even giving up his seat, they could not help but read more into it.

Hinamori seemed to realize that her actions might have been a little bold. After sitting down, she could not help glancing at Xin beside her, only to see him enthusiastically talking to the vice president about something.

Kasumi Oji Gorō kept shifting away with obvious distaste.

There were many noble students in the Student Council, but there had never been any conflict between nobles and commoners, nor was there any cliché of nobles looking down on others.

As the student from the most illustrious background, Kasumi Oji Gorō was practically the leader of these noble members.

And as for Xin, the Student Council President, what he had accomplished gave these nobles no reason to look down on anyone.

At first, Kōgorō had been dissatisfied with Xin appointing Shūbīng and Kanazawa as the heads of the Organization Department and Discipline Inspection Department. But after observing them for some time, he found that the two were indeed capable of handling the positions.

Both of them were diligent, conscientious, and responsible. Even while holding high positions in the Student Council, they had been able to silence all criticism through their own abilities.

Overall, the atmosphere within the Student Council was actually quite good, and this drinking party brought everyone even closer together.

"Kasumi Oji, you're a great contributor to our Student Council! We can't do without you! If you graduate this year, what will our Student Council do?" Xin said tirelessly, repeating himself over and over.

Kasumi Oji Gorō knew exactly what Xin was thinking. This guy was just after his money.

He was one year ahead of Xin, so he was bound to graduate this year.

Xin had also considered one issue: who would be next year's vice president? Though he wanted Shūbīng to fill the vacancy, that probably would not pass approval. The vice president would inevitably have to be a noble as well.

There were quite a few nobles in the Student Council, but aside from Kōgorō, Xin was not very familiar with most of them.

Besides, Kōgorō was a decent person, and Xin found him agreeable. If Kōgorō left, would it still be so easy to fleece someone in the future?

"Why not repeat a year? Think of it as being for our Student Council. This is our life's work!"

Kōgorō's face darkened. What nonsense was this brat talking about? Repeat a year? He could not afford that humiliation, and neither could the Kǎxiá Dàlù Clan.

As they spoke, someone suddenly approached Xin, holding up a cup of alcohol. He had come over from another table.

"President, I'd like to toast you. I truly admire you..."

Xin looked up and saw that it was Izuru Kira.

After Kira joined the Student Council, Xin had paid attention to him. But Izuru Kira had always been mild and unassuming, not one to stand out, and he had little presence in the Student Council.

Countless people had already toasted Xin during the banquet. Aside from the late-arriving Hinamori and Kōgorō, Shūbīng, and Kanazawa, only Izuru Kira had yet to offer a toast. He had probably worried that refusing to do so would make him seem unsociable, or disrespectful toward the President, so he had come over himself.

Xin smiled obligingly. "Kira, I remember you performed quite well during the Student Council assessment. But why have you become so quiet after joining the Student Council?"

Kira said somewhat stiffly, "I'm only a junior. It's enough for me to learn from my seniors."

"Don't say that. The Student Council will still have to rely on juniors like you in the future."

After sharing a drink with Izuru Kira, even though Xin had a good tolerance, he was the central figure of the banquet and could not withstand so many people taking turns to toast him. He felt his thoughts growing faintly sluggish.

Letting out a long breath, Xin felt that he should talk less.

"President."

A cup of tea was offered from beside him. Hinamori Momo looked at him with a bright smile.

"Hinamori, thanks."

Xin took a sip, then heard someone start teasing, "Why is Hinamori treating the President so well?"

"Yeah, I've had too much to drink too. I want some water. Will someone bring me a cup of tea?"

"Hahahaha!"

Xin shot a sidelong glance over. The one leading the teasing was Aoshika.

Hinamori's cheeks grew slightly warm as she protested softly, "Senior Aoshika!"

She secretly glanced at Xin's reaction again.

Xin merely pretended not to hear and shifted into a more comfortable position. There were no chairs or stools in the private room, and many people were kneeling formally, but Xin alone sat utterly without decorum on his floor cushion.

"Isn't it perfectly normal for a subordinate to care about the President?" Seeing that Xin said nothing, Hinamori defended herself.

"So that's how it is."

Aoshika suddenly stood up and respectfully offered Xin a cup of tea with both hands.

"Mr. President, please have some tea."

They were already a group of drunken boys, and seeing such a farce, they eagerly joined in. Aoshika and Xin were on good terms to begin with, which was why he dared make such a joke.

Everyone burst into laughter, making Hinamori's cheeks flush even redder.

Xin looked at Aoshika with a smile at the corner of his mouth. "Aoshika, you want to join the Fourth Division after graduation, right?"

Aoshika froze.

"Then we'll still have a long time together in the future."

Cold sweat immediately broke out across Aoshika's forehead. "Xin, I was wrong!"

With that, he hurriedly returned to his seat and dared not make a fuss again. Seeing this, everyone else began to jeer.

But that joke seemed to have made certain things clear. Quite a few members looked at the sweet and lovely Hinamori and quietly lamented their misfortune.

Yet when they looked at Xin, seated at the center of the gathering and treated like the moon among stars from start to finish, they felt that this was only natural.

After drinking so much alcohol and water, Xin felt an urgent need in his abdomen, so he rose and went to the restroom.

The merriment at the table continued, while Kanazawa, who had hardly spoken all evening, quietly left as well.

Hardly anyone paid much attention to her, but Hinamori watched her retreating figure with a thoughtful look.

Having relieved himself, Xin hurried out of the restroom and was washing his hands when he suddenly heard a set of footsteps.

"Kanazawa?"

He chuckled. "You came to the restroom too?"

Kanazawa's expression was calm. She merely leaned against the doorframe and looked at him.

"Is something wrong?"

Light shimmered in her beautiful eyes, as though she had something to say. Xin vaguely sensed that something was amiss.

Her thin lips parted. "You remember what you promised me, right?"

"What?"

Kanazawa did not get angry, merely reminding him, "You asked me to perform today and said that afterward, you could fulfill one wish of mine."

Xin suddenly remembered. "Right, I promised all three of you."

"..."

"What do you want me to do?"

Kanazawa suddenly fell silent. She bit lightly on her lower lip without saying a word, as though hesitating over whether to speak.

And the more she behaved like that, the more Xin felt that what she wanted was probably no small matter.

"Xin..."

"..."

The restroom was not far from the private room. He could hear that they had probably started another drinking game over there, and the atmosphere remained noisy and lively.

In contrast, it was very quiet here—so quiet that Xin could clearly hear Kanazawa's uneven breathing.

"..."

Xin believed he had never deliberately provoked Kanazawa. It was not that he was unwilling; it was mainly because Kanazawa's name was not in the system.

Perhaps Kanazawa had never been an important person in the original story's history.

He remembered Kanazawa's original fate. During Kira, Renji, Hinamori, and the others' first Soul Burial training exercise, they encountered a Hollow, and Kanazawa died during that training.

And behind that training exercise, Aizen had certainly been pulling the strings, testing Kira and the others' talents.

If she had not died, then with her strength and talent, she would definitely have become an Upper Seat Officer in some Division a few decades later.

She had a reserved nature, worked earnestly, and always wore a serious expression. Combined with her current position as head of the Discipline Inspection Department, she seemed even stricter and more unapproachable, making many people keep their distance from her.

She had always respected Xin—respected all of his ideas. At the same time, she wanted to help him, to do many things for him.

She did not like fighting over things. She felt that with how outstanding Xin was, no one could keep up with him.

But Xin's easygoing nature had drawn many people to his side, and Kanazawa suddenly developed an inexplicable and intense sense of crisis.

If she did not fight for him, she might lose him.

Feelings were meant to be exclusive. She did not like anyone else.

"Xin." Kanazawa suddenly called his name.

Xin suddenly saw a radiant smile bloom across Kanazawa's face, like ice and snow melting away.

"..."

"I want to kiss you."

"..."

Xin did not look particularly surprised or shocked. He merely stared blankly at Kanazawa. It was the first time he had seen her smile, and it was even more beautiful than he had expected.

Perhaps that lovely face should have smiled more often.

Kanazawa waited for his response. She had wanted to see some surprise on Xin's face—surprise that she had made such a request, surprise that she had hidden such feelings all along.

But she did not see it, and not seeing it meant...

He had noticed long ago.

Kanazawa pursed her lips as she looked at him, panic beginning to rise within her. She felt that she had been too impulsive.

"Momoko, what are you doing here?"

A voice suddenly rang out in the corridor beyond the corner, instantly breaking the mood outside the restroom.

"N-Nothing..."

A set of hurried footsteps retreated, and then Rukia's little head poked around the corner. Upon seeing Xin and Kanazawa standing there, she immediately fled the scene as if running for her life.

Kanazawa grew even more flustered. She suddenly felt utterly at a loss, standing there without knowing what to do.

She could no longer maintain her inner composure. Her mind was a mess, so chaotic that even Xin's figure before her seemed to blur.

She did not even notice him approach until his face came closer and closer.

Xin leaned in and gently kissed her forehead.

"Let that count as fulfilling your wish. Don't tell anyone."

Leaving behind those airy words, Xin departed.

When he returned to the gathering, Xin found Hinamori sitting beside Rukia with her head lowered.

Xin took his own seat, and the people around him immediately invited him to join their game.

"President, you took way too long!"

"President, we were waiting for you!"

Xin laughed heartily, cast aside all distracting thoughts, and joined the drinking game as well.

Kanazawa returned rather late. Just as no one had noticed when she left, her return was equally silent.

Shūbīng looked at her slightly flushed face, then at Xin beside him, and then at Hinamori, who had moved to the other side. He could not help smacking his lips.

It was as though he had seen through everything. He picked up his cup and took a drink by himself, then smiled bitterly.

How unfair...

That brat Xin!

There was too much to deal with during the New Year, so this is the only chapter today. Sorry about that, and I wish everyone a happy New Year.