Akari and Friends' Leisurely Shopping District Summit - Memories Found During Shopping District Patrol!

Monday, after school. Akari found herself thinking back to what Rei had said the day before. —*Why don't we walk around the shopping district together sometime?* (Alright, if I'm gonna do this, it's now or never!) Akari sprang to her feet and grabbed her phone. She fired off a barrage of stamps to Rei and Misaki. **Akari:** Emergency summons! We're doing a shopping district patrol today! **Akari:** We're gonna actually walk the stamp rally course! **Akari:** And while we're at it, we're investigating Yukimura-san too! The replies came instantly. **Rei:** I told you to make friends with her, not investigate her. **Misaki:** Sounds good, sounds fun~ Akari grinned to herself. * One hour later. The four of them had gathered at the eastern edge of the shopping district, in front of the torii gate of Asagiri Shrine. "Okay, here! My predicted stamp station layout map and safety measures manual!" Akari began handing out a fluttering stack of papers. Her bob cut, trimmed neatly at the shoulders, bounced with every movement. Beneath the bangs pinned back with a red clip, her round brown eyes sparkled with anticipation. The papers were crammed with explanations written in colorful markers. "...Item one: 'How to Wash Off Stamp Ink If It Gets on Your Skin'?" Rei stared intently at the paper. Her straight black hair reached all the way down her back. Her bangs were cut in a perfect line just above her eyebrows. Her sharp, cool eyes narrowed with exasperation. "Yeah! First, rinse thoroughly with water, then soap for thirty seconds! If that doesn't work, add a few drops of olive oil!" "...Item two: 'Quick Reference Chart for Allergic Reactions from Free Samples.' Is that even related to a stamp rally?" "It's totally related! If we use food as prizes, what if someone has a buckwheat allergy?! If we get sued, the whole shopping district is finished!" "There isn't a single shop in our district that uses buckwheat flour." Rei swept her bangs aside with her left hand. It was a habit the shopping district regulars called "Rei-chan's Bangs Time." "Akari-chan went to all the trouble of making it, so why not?" Misaki let out a soft laugh. Her gently waving black hair reached her waist. The strands tied with a white mizuhiki cord swayed softly in the breeze. Her kind brown eyes, which turned into crescent moons when she smiled, were about halfway to laughing today, as always. "This is quite an impressive document. However, Item eight: 'Estimated Compensation Calculation in the Event a Stamp Station Is Blown by the Wind and Strikes a Passerby'... what is this based on?" Rin was staring at the manual in her hands with a serious expression. Her silver bob was cut sharply at the jawline. Her bangs were swept diagonally to one side. Her intelligent, calm gray eyes gazed at Akari. She was the only person in the shopping district who kept potted herbs in front of her shop. Today, too, the faint scent of lavender drifted around her. "Um, about that! The estimated weight of a stamp station is three hundred grams, wind speed at ten meters per second, the walking speed of a person is—" "Wow, Yukimura-san, you're actually reading that?" "Yes. How should I put it... it's very interesting." Rin's lips relaxed just a tiny bit. Akari felt her heart skip a beat at the sight. (Yukimura-san can smile like that too...) * "Alrighty then, let's move out!" At Akari's command, the four of them started walking. Tuesday afternoon. Sunlight still streamed into the shopping district's arcade. Thirty-two shops lined both sides. First was the traditional Japanese confectionery "Asagiridou," located just down the stone steps from Asagiri Shrine. It was the shop run by Misaki's grandfather, famous for its dorayaki. "If we put a stamp here, it might be good to put a bench for the elderly to sit on too~" "That's so thoughtful, Misaki! Next is—oh, it's Tama!" Akari pointed ahead. In front of the confectionery shop, inside a cardboard box set out for sunbathing. Tama, an estimated nineteen-year-old calico cat, was sleeping comfortably. The shopping district's unofficial mascot and everyone's idol. "Hey, hey, what if Tama licks the stamp pad ink?! That ink's gotta have ingredients that are totally bad for you, right?!" "Tama's not that stupid." "But she might get curious and just take a lick! When she was a kitten, Tama even licked up the ichimi pepper Rei dropped!" "...How do you even remember something from that long ago?" "Fufu, now that you mention it, Tama couldn't stop sneezing after that. It was quite a scene~" "I think we should just let Tama do as she pleases. After all, this child is the shopping district's eldest and an honorary member." Rin crouched down and gently stroked Tama's head. "...Yukimura-san, you really do dote on Tama, don't you?" "Yes. This child is a customer, after all." Akari's heart wavered again. (Maybe Yukimura-san really isn't a bad person after all...) (But if she's a spy, maybe she's using the cat...) "You're agonizing over whether she's a spy again, aren't you?" "H-how did you know?!" "Because it's written all over your face." Rei sighed. * They walked further. Next was Rei's family's greengrocer, "Yaotoku." Fresh vegetables sourced directly from local farmers were lined up out front. "Obviously, the only option here is a vegetable assortment as a prize." "Nice! Like, five kilos of potatoes or something!" "No one could carry that home. It's too heavy." Next door was Akari's family's butcher shop, "Ishikari Meat." The smell of their famous menchi-katsu, a hundred and fifty yen each, wafted from the fried food corner out front. "How about we make the stamp here shaped like a menchi-katsu? I love those!" "You're just promoting your own shop, aren't you?" "I am not! I'm thinking about the whole shopping district!" Akari put both hands on her head and went "Aaaah!" It was her habit when she was flustered. Rin was gazing up intently at the shop's sign. "How many years has Ishikari Meat been in business?" "Fifty-two years! My grandpa started it! My dad's the second-generation owner now, and our specialty is menchi-katsu!" "I see. It's been around for a long time, then. ...Places with this kind of history are worth preserving, I think." Akari caught her breath at Rin's words. (Maybe this person really does care about the shopping district.) Her heart wavered again. * Around the middle of the shopping district. It was when they stopped in front of the old-fashioned dried goods store, "Yamada Kanbutsu-ten." "Come to think of it, Akari-chan did something amazing here a long time ago~" Misaki said it as if she'd just remembered. "W-wait a second, Misaki! What are you about to say?!" Akari's face rapidly turned pale. "It was back when we were in kindergarten, you see~ Akari-chan saw a 'Closing Sale' sign posted in front of this shop and made a huge misunderstanding." "Stop! Stop, stop, stooop!!" "She got it into her head that the shop was going to disappear, and she burst into tears right here. 'Don't let the shop go away!' she screamed, clinging to the owner's leg and refusing to let go." "Huh... seriously?" Rei's eyes went wide. "Seriously. It turned out the sale was just for renovations. Akari-chan became a bit of a celebrity in the shopping district for a while." "Uuuu... please forget about that old story..." Akari crouched down on the ground, looking like she was about to cry. "So that's why you're so ridiculously terrified of anything disappearing from the shopping district!" Rei clutched her stomach and burst out laughing. The sound of knives chopping somewhere in the district, the voices calling out to customers—all of it felt distant now. Only Rei's laughter echoed in Akari's ears. (I'm so embarrassed I could die...) "A-anyway! Let's keep going! We still haven't decided on all the stamp locations!" Her face bright red, Akari started walking as if fleeing the scene. That's when it happened. "—Akari-san." Rin gently caught Akari's arm. Her fingertips were cold. But the strength of her grip was kind. "So ever since you were little, everything about this place has been precious to you." It was a quiet voice. A voice so gentle, she'd never heard it before. "The reason you're always worrying so much at our meetings... is because you're afraid of losing this place." Akari stopped dead in her tracks. She hadn't even realized it herself. (Afraid... of losing it?) Worrying about a spy in the shopping district. Having her head so full of prize ideas. Even worrying about a stamp station being blown away by the wind. All of it, all of it— "...Maybe you're right." A gentle warmth spread deep in her chest. No one had ever said that to her before. She'd never thought of it that way herself. "...So that's why you were always so desperate." Rei had stopped laughing. She was looking at Akari with a serious expression. "Almost all of Akari-chan's crybaby stories are about the shopping district, huh~" Misaki's eyes were kind, too. "When Tama got lost, Akari-chan was the one crying while searching for her. And there was that time she stayed up all night the day before the shopping district Christmas party, preparing because she was worried no one would show up." "Jeez... don't spill everything..." Akari couldn't help but laugh. Her voice was trembling. But it wasn't a bad feeling. "...That part of you is a huge pain in the ass, but." Rei murmured. "I don't hate it." Akari's eyes widened. "...Rei..." "What's with that face? Stop it, you're grossing me out." "So mean!" The four of them laughed, the sound echoing through the shopping district arcade. * After that, they continued their slow walk through the district. In front of "Marusen Fresh Fish," the owner, Senda Koutarou, was calling out to customers in a booming voice. "Welcome! We've got horse mackerel, just came in!" "Senda-san's voice is the loudest in the whole shopping district! Okay, how about we put a 'Loud Voice Stamp' here?" "That makes no sense." "It might be funny, though~ Senda-san looks happy about it." In front of "Kadoya Hardware," the chairman, Kadota Genzou, was dozing off in front of the shop. "The chairman's asleep. Let's leave him be." "He's always like that, so it's fine." In front of "Boulangerie Konayuki," Rin slowed her pace just a little. "Would it be alright to put a stamp at my shop as well? As for the operation name... let's see, something like 'The Wheat Trap.'" "Huh?! An operation name?! Rin-san, are you copying me?!" "No. It just seemed like it would be fun." Akari was dumbfounded. (A spy wouldn't make jokes like this.) (Because she's totally enjoying herself right now.) Akari's spy suspicions crumbled audibly. And finally, "Café Hidamari." This was the usual meeting place for Akari and her two friends. "A cup of their blended coffee is four hundred yen. This place has a nice Showa-era atmosphere, doesn't it?" "Huh, Rin-san, you come here too?!" "Yes, when I get tired from testing bread recipes, I often come here for coffee. The master is a man of few words, but the coffee is good." "I totally agree! Their Napolitan spaghetti is really good too!" "So it seems. I'll have to try it sometime." Rin's lips relaxed just a little again. (Ah, she smiled again.) Akari's heart felt just a tiny bit warmer. * They finished their walk at the western edge of the shopping district, at the Hinagi Station rotary. The setting sun was slowly dyeing the arcade's glass a warm orange. In just one day, they'd found so many candidate locations for stamps. The confectionery shop at the eastern edge, Rei's greengrocer, Akari's butcher shop. The dried goods store, the fishmonger, the hardware store. Rin's bakery, and the café— "Alright, we got a ton done today! Great work, everyone!" "You're the one who tired me out the most. You never stopped talking." "But it was fun, wasn't it~" "Yes. I feel like I've come to

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Episode 3

Name: Akari and Friends' Leisurely Shopping District Summit
Author: Novelia

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