She didn't finish the sentence, only waving her small fist; the threat was self-evident.
Seeing her like this, Imaizumi Keita finally couldn't help but chuckle.
He nodded, walked to the pile of fireworks, bent down to pull out a few smaller Handheld fireworks, and then chased after the direction Koma Chihana had gone.
...
The small path leading away from the Camping area had no streetlights; only the moonlight filtering through the gaps in the trees barely illuminated the path.
Imaizumi Keita didn't walk fast, because given Koma Chihana's personality, even at a time like this, she wouldn't run too far.
Koma didn't want everyone to worry or be tense over someone like her for no reason...
Sure enough, at a corner less than two hundred meters away, he saw that small figure curled up by the roadside.
Koma Chihana was squatting on the ground alone, quietly looking at the ground by the light of the moon.
Her shoulders were trembling slightly, clearly not having fully calmed down from her emotions just now.
Imaizumi Keita lightened his steps and slowly walked over, standing still beside her.
Squatting on the ground, Koma Chihana noticed the sound of footsteps coming from beside her, and her body trembled slightly.
She slowly raised her head, following the pair of shoes that appeared before her eyes to judge exactly who had come to find her.
"W... why is it you, Imaizumi, who followed me?"
Her voice still had a nasal quality, sounding somewhat raspy, and her tone was full of obvious disappointment.
Imaizumi Keita looked at her reddened eyes and didn't mind the offense in her words, asking curiously in return, "Then who did you think it would be?"
"...Anyone."
Koma Chihana lowered her head again, fixing her gaze back on the group of ants that were working hard to carry food crumbs, her voice muffled.
"It... it doesn't matter who followed me. As long as... as long as it lets me know that someone still... still cares about me, that's enough."
She paused here and then added a sentence.
"It's just that, seeing you, Imaizumi, I... I can't help but remember what you said on the beach before."
"That's a separate matter."
Imaizumi Keita's tone remained flat, not showing any emotion due to Koma's words. "Speaking of which, looking at your current state, Koma, it seems you're almost fine."
"After all, you can even be so focused on observing ants moving house."
These words, which carried a hint of teasing, successfully caused a look of shame and annoyance to appear on Koma Chihana's face.
Koma Chihana shifted her body to move a little further away from Imaizumi Keita, then retorted in a small voice, "...Scumbag."
"Hm?"
"I said, you, Imaizumi, are an out-and-out Scumbag."
Koma Chihana's voice got a bit louder. "Always using that seemingly gentle tone to say things that make people misunderstand. Even though you know everything, you still watch with your own eyes as others fall into a trap."
She couldn't help but look up at this point, her eyes staring straight at him.
"And, you always have that 'I warned you already' expression."
Listening to this evaluation, which could be called a 'tearful accusation,' Imaizumi Keita raised his eyebrows with interest.
"Oh? Is that the image I have in your heart?"
"Is... isn't it? Imaizumi, you... you might even coax Yanami like that."
"Not really."
Imaizumi Keita shook his head and naturally squatted down beside her. "Yanami doesn't have that 'wanting someone to protect her' feeling that you do, Koma."
"Eh?!!!!"
This sentence made Koma Chihana freeze in an instant.
Before Koma Chihana could run away from him because of those words, Imaizumi Keita handed the plastic bag to her.
"Tonight, you don't seem to have played with the fireworks much yet."
His voice sounded exceptionally gentle in the night.
"Let's play together. Anyway, there's nothing better to do."
Koma Chihana looked at the plastic bag, which contained a few fireworks she had seen earlier but hadn't been in the mood to play with.
She hesitated for a moment, but eventually reached out and took the bag from Imaizumi's hand.
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