I Sealed Sukuna’s Finger#362+363: Crowded Place, Yuuma's Sneaking Around Again

The night drenched in hawthorn blossoms passed just like that, and time swiftly arrived at the next day.

Beep beep beep, beep beep beep—

As the bright morning sunlight filtered through the curtains into the bedroom, the somewhat vintage alarm clock broke the silence that had settled through the entire night in the top-floor bedroom of the luxury apartment building on the west side of downtown Itogami Island.

"Mmm..."

Someone seemed to squirm a couple times in the visibly disheveled covers, making reluctant sounds from their throat.

Then two pale feminine arms stretched out, fists clenched and raised high into the air in a forceful stretch, as if trying to wake a body not yet fully emerged from sleep.

"Bokue, let go of me..."

On the bed, Asagi Aiba mumbled unclearly in a whining tone, then rubbed her eyes and turned slightly to the side, barely opening them to look at the young man beside her in the covers, still with eyes closed and breathing evenly.

He looked like he was still asleep.

But Asagi knew perfectly well—this guy was definitely faking.

After all, the certain something brazenly poking at her garden gate under the covers proved this point quite well.

While it was normal for teenage boys to raise their flag in the morning, if he were really asleep, he would've reacted when she squirmed earlier, not remain as immovable as a mountain like this guy.

"...If you keep pretending, I'm going to twist it off."

Seeing her repeated reminders had no effect, Asagi's voice carried a thread of threat as her leg positioning under the covers shifted slightly.

Not that she'd really twist it off, but it was just so annoying—clearly awake yet insisting on pretending to sleep...

"Ugh..."

The blonde girl had barely finished speaking when Bokue slowly opened his eyes.

He moved the hand that had been around Asagi's waist all night slightly lower, poking through the girl's soft belly at her youth center, which remained somewhat swollen even after a whole night.

"Besides, you talk like you could actually bear to do it."

"What's there to not bear? Hmph..."

Asagi knew what he meant, pouting with a red face.

"And stop poking. If you keep going, Mom's going to have to wash the sheets again today."

"...Is it that full?"

Bokue raised an eyebrow quizzically.

If he remembered correctly, they hadn't gone that hard last night—mainly just the time after getting home from dinner. After returning from Yuuma's place, since it was getting late and Asagi was pretty tired, they hadn't continued.

"It's not about being full..."

Asagi silently rolled her eyes, resisting the urge to give this guy a knuckle sandwich.

"Did you forget I drank a lot of water before bed last night?!"

Though drinking lots of water before bed could easily lead to slight facial puffiness the next morning, she had no choice—she'd been left with a parched throat and practically dehydrated after nearly two hours with someone last night.

So after drinking her fill to replenish fluids and successfully falling asleep, by the time she woke up, all that water from last night had now transformed into bladder pressure.

The female youth center was actually located just behind and slightly above the bladder. Normally, either one being full wasn't too problematic, but if both were in a rather full state, the physical pressure suddenly doubled.

Thinking of this, Bokue suddenly had a bold idea.

"If I suddenly went in now—"

"I absolutely won't forgive you!"

Before this guy could finish, Asagi glared at him with a completely red face.

Even without Bokue saying it, she knew—that would definitely be "the most explosive episode."

But the current situation didn't allow for it.

"Then never mind, yawn~"

Genuinely yawning, Bokue fished his phone out from the corner of the bed by the pillow, lighting up the screen to check the time.

It was exactly 7:03 AM.

So early...

"So why did you set your alarm so early today, Asagi? It's only seven o'clock."

"What else? Work, of course. Work~"

As Asagi turned over in the covers, she wrapped her arms around Bokue's neck and pressed down on him, dragging out her answer.

"Don't tell me you forgot I'm actually an employee of the Itogami Island Management Corporation? Though I don't usually need to be on-site thanks to personal efficiency, I still have to go to the Keystone Gate once a week."

"Today?"

"Today."

Lowering her head to actively kiss her boyfriend's lips, Asagi propped up her body with a red face.

But the next second, the girl couldn't help letting out a soft hiss.

"Ow, it hurts a bit..."

"Where?"

"Where else could it be..."

The blush on Asagi's face hadn't faded as she rolled her eyes in exasperation.

Really, always going so hard every time. She wasn't made of rubber... wait, even rubber people couldn't handle being treated like that. It was like she was being used as a mortar for grinding medicine, with all that pounding and grinding. Then the next day, her whole body would ache.

Deadly.

But there was nothing to be done. Since the ship had already sailed, Asagi could only accept this reality.

So she rolled off Bokue, lifted the covers, sat up at the edge of the bed, supported herself with one hand on the bed frame to stand up, and tentatively stretched.

Good—though slightly uncomfortable, at least going to work normally wouldn't be a problem.

Just as the girl was thinking this, her peripheral vision caught Bokue also sitting up on the bed and coming to the edge to get down.

"Bokue, wait... really, I can't. I said I have to go to work today...!"

Asagi's mouth twitched as she quickly waved her hands, about to signal that this really wasn't happening.

But Bokue just glanced at her, then bent down to pick up the scattered clothes from beside the bed one by one.

"I know. I'm just planning to take you to work later."

"...Is that so?"

"Yeah. Should we teleport there directly or take a car?"

"...Let's take a car."

After thinking for a bit, Asagi said softly.

That way they could spend a bit more time together.

❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁

Time quickly arrived at 8:30 AM.

In the very center of downtown Itogami Island, the area in front of the Keystone Gate was bustling with people as always.

"Alright, go to work then, Asagi. I won't go in with you."

In front of the Keystone Gate's main entrance, Bokue stopped and looked up at the towering building above.

"Okay."

Asagi nodded without asking for more.

After all, her workplace was in the government facility below the Keystone Gate. Under normal circumstances, it was absolutely impossible to enter without an employee card.

"Oh right, what time should I pick you up this afternoon? Same as last time?" Bokue asked.

"Hmm~ about the same. Five o'clock."

After thinking briefly, Asagi made an OK gesture.

Then, not caring that they were at Itogami Island's busiest location, she stepped forward directly, stood on tiptoes with her arms around the young man's neck, and raised her face for a kiss.

Though it was just a brief touch, it was enough to tinge the girl's cheeks with an evening glow ahead of schedule.

After this operation, Asagi staggered back half a step, shyly pressing her lips together before quickly waving.

"Alright, I'm going to work. See you this afternoon."

Then she turned and walked briskly into the building without looking back.

She actually got shy.

Bokue touched his just-kissed lips, thinking to himself.

But since she wouldn't be off until five in the afternoon, he should head back for now and check on Nagisa...

With this thought, Bokue turned to leave.

But just then, a familiar girl's voice came from behind.

"Oh? Bokue, why are you here too?"

Huh?

Bokue turned back while looking up.

The newcomer was Tokoyogi Yuuma.

For some reason, she'd also happened to come here. Seeing the young man notice her, she smiled with narrowed eyes, putting her hands behind her back with a shrug.

"Really, what a coincidence."

<><><><><><><><>

Neither had expected to suddenly meet again at this moment, yet the atmosphere held not a hint of awkwardness.

Even though they'd just experienced intimate skin-to-skin contact at the hotel yesterday...

"Hmm? What's wrong, Bokue? Why so quiet?"

Seeing the young man fall silent, Tokoyogi Yuuma smiled slightly and closed the distance in two quick steps, tilting her head to the side.

"Still thinking about yesterday? Oh come on, stop dwelling on it. Didn't I say I just wanted to experience it? Now that I have, that's that. Besides, we only kissed twice—nothing else happened. I was just fulfilling a small wish... yeah, exactly—leaving no regrets!"

"Oh right, I just saw you dropping Asagi off. What's that about—taking your girlfriend to a beauty salon for a facial?"

Just like in the hotel suite, Yuuma quickly explained her actions then immediately changed topics, giving the young man no chance to follow up.

Bokue shook his head.

"What facial? Asagi's just going to work. She's doing programming at the Itogami Island Management Corporation."

"Oh~ That's impressive."

Yuuma nodded seriously, but immediately shifted gears again.

"So what time does she get off?"

"Around five in the afternoon."

Bokue answered casually.

"Five o'clock..."

Yuuma thought for a moment, then a lightbulb appeared above her head.

"But it's not even nine in the morning yet. That's over eight hours until five. Do you have any plans, Bokue?"

"I do, actually."

Bokue hesitated but decided to be honest.

"I was planning to check on Nagisa..."

"Great! I'll come too!"

Before he could finish, Yuuma excitedly raised her hand.

??

Two large question marks appeared above Bokue's head.

It was... quite unexpected. He'd thought Yuuma would ask him to play tour guide around Itogami Island all day, using the opportunity to extend her so-called "girlfriend experience card."

But he never expected Yuuma actually wanted to meet Nagisa.

"What's with that look? Are you that surprised?"

Noticing the young man's surprised expression, Yuuma narrowed her eyes and pouted.

"Didn't I mention at the BBQ place yesterday? I'm really interested in that Fourth Progenitor. After all, she was the hot topic the whole world was discussing recently, and there's still no conclusion—not a single report or interview. Now that there's a chance, of course I want to meet her... Um, consider it your dear childhood friend's once-in-a-lifetime request, okay?"

"Is it really that dramatic..."

A drop of cold sweat rolled down Bokue's forehead.

But it wasn't like he couldn't do it.

"Fine, if you want to meet her, let's go now."

The young man said while placing his hand on the short-haired girl's shoulder.

"Yes yes!"

Yuuma nodded happily, even scooting closer to him.

"Don't worry, I really just want to meet her. I have my own sightseeing plans—after meeting her, I'll leave. I won't waste your time~"

"...I didn't say that."

Something about the girl's words carried the tone of a small animal being rejected. Bokue was momentarily speechless but still activated the teleportation spell.

With a flash of golden light, the two vanished from the Keystone Gate entrance.

❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁

Scene shift—

Bokue and Yuuma had appeared in the hallway of an apartment building on Itogami Island's east side.

The almost instantaneous, unannounced scene change made the short-haired girl freeze. Going from the blazing sun downtown to inside an apartment building, she looked around somewhat bewildered, her voice carrying obvious incredulity.

"Th-this is..."

"Just pressed F to skip the travel cutscene. We're here."

Bokue released his hand from his childhood friend's shoulder and walked to the apartment door on the left side of the corridor, directly pushing it open.

Clink clank~

As the security door opened at the entrance, the crisp sounds of pots and pans colliding came from the living room inside.

When Bokue stepped into the entryway, the living room air still carried a faint aroma of food.

Looking to the left, he saw Akatsuki Nagisa and Yukina Himeragi busy cooperating on dishwashing in the kitchen.

Especially Nagisa—she had her sleeves rolled up with her hands in the sink, while Yukina behind her was draining the clean plates and placing them on the rack.

Hearing the door open at the entrance, Nagisa almost instinctively looked up first. When her gaze met the familiar young man's face, she couldn't help showing a joyful smile.

"Good morning, Big Brother! Perfect timing—Yukina and I are almost done. After washing dishes, we can start... uh..."

Nagisa's excited words stopped mid-sentence.

Behind Bokue at the open apartment door, another short-haired girl peeked in.

"Um... hello?"

"Y-you are...?"

Nagisa's mouth twitched with some apprehension.

There was someone else here—she'd almost said something very dangerous out loud.

"She's a friend from my childhood—what you'd call a childhood sweetheart—Tokoyogi Yuuma."

Bokue explained first.

"Asagi knows her too. We happened to run into each other yesterday and had dinner together. During dinner, we mentioned you, Nagisa, and Yuuma was interested, so she said she wanted to meet you."

"Big Brother's... childhood friend, huh."

Though speaking, Nagisa's hands never stopped moving.

She finished processing all the breakfast dishes, then came to the door to face the two.

"Hello, Miss Tokoyogi. I'm Akatsuki Nagisa—just call me Nagisa."

"Oh hello, hello! I'm Tokoyogi Yuuma—same here, just call me Yuuma..."

Still her usual straightforward manner, but after speaking, Yuuma suddenly stepped forward.

Eh?

Nagisa froze slightly, not reacting in time.

The next second, she'd been lifted up by the short-haired girl's hands under her armpits.

"Wow~ So cute, so cute! I never expected the legendary Fourth Progenitor to be like this—and so small too, uwuu, it's so touching!"

Like a girl getting her beloved plush toy, Yuuma actually held Nagisa and started nuzzling her face against her like petting a cat.

This left Nagisa somewhat at a loss.

"Um... Miss Yuuma?"

She meant to ask Miss Yuuma to stop, but the completely absorbed Yuuma couldn't care less anymore.

"Uwuu, girls really are cuter when they're smaller! So much better than that cow Asagi."

...Asagi?

Did she mean Sister Asagi?

Nagisa paused slightly.

"Does Miss Yuuma also think girls are cuter when they're smaller?"

"Of course!"

Yuuma declared righteously.

"Being small has its own appeal! Breasts are just accumulated fat—if big breasts could do whatever they wanted, wouldn't three-hundred-pound fatties be the most attractive people in the world? Like your Sister Asagi—always acting superior just because she has big breasts. So infuriating!"

"I-I see..."

Nagisa nodded.

Though they'd only exchanged a few words since meeting, just from their shared aesthetic regarding female figures, she understood.

They were comrades!