Chapter 5

Hoh—! Hup hup hup—!

(Okayyy… And when the next ball’s up in the air… Yuuta-kun!)

(I gotcha, Aniki!)

Here I go…!

Ya~y, we did it! How was that? Did we pass, Hibiki-senpai?!

Hmm, just barely.

Just barely, huh… I was hoping you’d say something like, “As expected of Hinata-kun and Yuuta-kun. Splendid, you’ve really gone above and beyond!”

But I was getting a little ahead of myself there, wasn’t I?

Hinata-kun, the camera is still rolling. This is no time for rest.

Come, stand up now! Please show me more and more of your Amazing feats… ☆

Okay, Hibiki-senpai! This time for sure, I’ll do my best to blow your expectations out of the water…!

Wonderful, Hinata-kun! You really are everything I had hoped you would be…☆

We’ll stop here with the swap tricks. Let’s move on and have you try your hand at spinning plates!

Huh? Didn’t the difficulty level just drop a lot?

That may be so… However! Is our goal not to liven up the downtown area?

And so, as you pass by the various shops, you will be spinning a great deal of plates while introducing various specials.

Look, just like this! Spinning the plate atop such a long pole…☆

Oh, I see. It seems pretty easy, actually. Is it kinda like this…? Hup ♪

Hey, Aniki, don’t just stand there all dumbstruck—come join in!

Don’t rush me. You don’t have to nag at me. …And, hup~☆

Perfect! But this measly show won’t be enough to shake the city to its core!

How about an additional five plates? You can rotate them across various parts of your body, like me!

Whoa, it’s like Hibiki-senpai is turning into a human sushi train!¹ Uh, hang on—! Aren’t you dizzy at all~?!

Worry not! For I have long since accustomed myself to these kinds of acrobatics~ ♪

Wha—he even switched hands with the plate to wave to us, and he’s not even breaking a sweat… We don’t hold a candle to his sense of balance or physical strength.

With the arts, such feats only come about via the training you do. You must practice every day, and enjoy it, in order to procure each and every Amazing!

I–incredible… I guess that’s what you’d expect from one of the Three Oddballs. Not just your art, but also your attitude toward it are first-class…!

Y–yeah, incredible… I really am impressed. But wouldn’t it be a little too much? People might just get turned off by it.

Ahahaha, you certainly have a point! It appears I was too caught up in my own art!

Then what about this? I’ve brought some instruments, so you can form a marching band to get the customers excited.²

You both are in the light music club, so you can play, yes?

Of course we can!

Then first, try out this harmonica.

Got it. We have to play the flute to wake Sakuma-senpai up, so this should be easy.

All right, now I’ll add a guitar and a trombone. Top it off with some castanets for a light-hearted, sprightly rhythm ☆

…Huh?! Just how many instruments do you want us to play, Hibiki-senpai?!

Fufufu. They do say quality over quantity, but in some cases quantity is quality! Because it is surprising, and that is what is known as Amazing!

There, let more and more sounds and timbres resound! Aim for even greater heights!

Ah, and while you’re at it, Hinata-kun, please carry this drum on your back ♪

Urrghh, so heavy…

A–Aniki, you okay~?!

Hah… Phew…

Phew…

S–sorry, I can still m–move… so… ugh…

Huff, huff… Don’t do anything stupid, Aniki~ I’m dead tired, so I know you can’t even lift a finger right now.

Even so, it’s not like we can afford to take a break…

We can barely pull off the swap trick, let alone the other things he taught us… Hibiki-senpai’s gonna be disappointed in us at this rate.

He has high expectations for us, so I can’t let him down…

Ngyah?!

A–are you okay? You’ve gotta be seriously exhausted for you to fall over out of nowhere…

And it’s not just us. Anzu’s on the brink of collapse from working the camera.

I know it sucks that we couldn’t get any good shots, and it’s probably only going to get worse from here out…

What that child says is correct. Neither of you are meshing well; it’s almost painful to watch.

I’ve been watching you while I read the script over. The precision and accuracy of your techniques have declined as compared to when you started.

I see no point in you continuing to practice the same thing over and over.

Uu, Itsuki-senpai might be right…

Aniki, can you stand? Need a hand?

Thanks, Yuuta-kun. But I’ve got enough strength for this at least, so I’m good.

…I’m sorry, Hibiki-senpai.

Why are you apologizing? Regardless of the outcome, you both have done exactly as I asked up until the very end.

There is nothing to apologize for.

Hinata-kun, Yuuta-kun, you’ve done well. Let us part for today. We can continue practice tomorrow.

Anzu-san and Shu, thank you for accompanying us.

I’ll remain here and clean up, so please feel free to take your leave without me.

S–see you tomorrow~

Yes, goodbye~ ♪

……

(Hm… I wouldn’t say I know 2wink inside out, but I do believe I have a grasp on their capabilities.)

(So why, then, didn’t anything work out?)

Wataru.

Oh, Shu. I see you’re still here.

I’ll be leaving shortly.

Wataru. …You are their director; shouldn’t you have a broader perspective?

Well, I’m sure you’ll realize that on your own, so you have no need to hear it from me. Now then, if you’ll excuse me.

Yes, yes, I’ll see you again tomorrow~☆

(As their director, I should have a broader perspective… is it? …Ah, it seems I’ve forgotten the most obvious thing.)

(They are not “Hibiki Wataru.”)

(Because they had both the courage and the talent to try and stand beside me, I misjudged what they could handle.)

(Thank you, my old friend. Because of you, I believe I’ve realized what I need to do.)