After returning home once to prepare, Haruto made his third visit to the Toujou residence. Standing in front of the magnificent mansion as always, Haruto pressed the intercom button.
Almost immediately, a response came through.
"Coming~! Is that you Ootsuki-kun?”
"Yes, it's Ootsuki. I'm here for the housekeeping job."
"We've been waiting for you~! Ryouta~! Your onii-chan is here! Why don’t you open the door for him? Sorry, Ootsuki-kun, Ryouta is coming to unlock the door, so please wait a moment."
"Yes, thank you very much."
Just as Haruto finished expressing his gratitude, the entrance door swung wide open.
"Onii-chan!"
"Hey there, Ryouta-kun. Hello."
"Hello! Onii-chan, hurry! You won't believe how amazing the fishes are!"
With Ryouta's excitement skyrocketing, he grabbed Haruto's hand, pulling him enthusiastically toward the living room.
"Welcome, Ootsuki-kun."
Upon entering the living room, the first person to rise from the sofa was Ayaka's mother, Ikue. She wore a warm smile as she greeted Haruto.
"Pardon for the intrusion."
"Hey there! Ootsuki-kun! Thanks for coming!"
Next, Ayaka's father, Shuuichi, welcomed Haruto.
At his feet sat a rather large cooler box.
Haruto turned his gaze to the large cooler box at Shuuichi's feet and mentioned, "I heard from Toujou-san that you caught some yellowtail, sea bream, and mackerel today during your fishing trip."
As he said this, Shuuichi's face lit up with excitement.
"I'm glad you asked! Let me tell you about it! There's a client of mine who has sportfishing as their hobby. I often go fishing with him on his boat, and today, oh boy, it was a blast! When that yellowtail bit the hook, I initially thought I snagged the riverbed! No matter how hard I cranked the reel, it wouldn’t budge! It wasn’t until I managed to reel it in to about 20 meters that it started thrashing again, and the drag went out at an incredible speed. It was a real battle! It took me about 15, no, maybe 30 minutes to reel in this yellowtail..."
"Dear, if you keep talking for too long, these fresh fishes would probably rot by the time you finish.”
Shuuichi had been passionately recounting the thrilling moment he caught the yellowtail, his eyes gleaming with excitement. But Ikue's words cut him off mid-sentence.
"Ehem, you're right. We wouldn't want to waste the freshness of these excellent fishes. We should let Ootsuki-kun get to work on them right away."
"Of course, leave it to me,” Haruto responded, nodding with a wry smile, as Shuuichi reluctantly stepped aside.
“These are some really fine-sized fish. This sea bream’s size, for instance, looks absolutely delicious.”
Haruto said as he peered into the cooler at Shuuichi's feet. Sensing his opportunity, Shuuichi launched back into his story.
"And that sea bream! At first, I suddenly felt the reel getting light, and I thought, ‘Huh, what’s this?’ Afterwards, I immediately pulled in and baam! It was perfectly caught! It kept thrashing about, but it was all futile…”
"Dear?"
"Ah, well... Ehem. So, Ootsuki-kun, can I leave the cooking to you?" Shuuichi said as he looked a bit dejected from getting interrupted by Ikue again.
"Then, shall we take this cooler to the kitchen for now?"
Haruto decided to prioritize the freshness of the fish, although he felt a bit sorry for Shuuichi, who seemed eager to share his fishing adventure. He immediately grabbed the handle of the cooler but it turned out to be heavier than he expected.
"Let me help you with that."
"Ah, sorry about that. I appreciate it."
The yellowtail was about 70 centimeters long, the mackerel around 60 centimeters, and the sea bream about 40 to 50 centimeters. Along with the ice in the cooler box, it was not impossible for one person to carry, but it wasn't easy.
Haruto and Shuuichi carried the cooler box to the kitchen together.
"Thank you very much. That was a big help. Now, shall I start preparing the fish? Do you have any preferences for the dishes?"
As Haruto inquired, the living room door opened, and Ayaka entered the room.
"Oh, Ootsuki-kun. You're here. Um... Welcome."
"Ah, yes. Um... Pardon the intrusion."
Still with the recent events from the home center fresh in their minds, the two exchanged slightly awkward greetings.
Noticing the change in their interaction, Ikue astutely observed and gazed at her daughter with a sly smile.
"Wh-what?"
Under her mother's gaze, Ayaka asked, her voice slightly stuttering.
"Ootsuki-kun is about to cook us a meal filled with love. Ayaka, what would you like?"
"F-filled with l-love? H-how can you tell he's doing that..." Ayaka replied, frowning at her mother's words.
Ikue, clearly amused, turned her attention to Haruto.
"My, I can definitely tell! Right, Ootsuki-kun? Your cooking is so delicious, not just because you're skilled, but also because you put so much love into it, right~?"
"Uh, yes... I always do my best to put my heart into every dish I make.”
"See, Ayaka? Ootsuki-kun puts his heart into cooking just for you!”
"Err, well… It’s not just for Ayaka, but for everyone..."
"My, Ootsuki-kun, you're so kind."
"No, no..."
Haruto realized that Ikue was the most formidable member of the Toujou family and couldn't help but smile wryly.
"Hey, hey, onii-chan, I want sashimi!"
Whether Ikue was joking or serious, Haruto, who was caught up in her ambiguous words, received Ryouta's request. Seeing an opportunity to escape from Ikue’s teasing, Haruto crouched down to meet Ryouta's gaze and answered.
"Okay. I'll make you sashimi with all three different types of fish.”
"Yay!"
Ryouta joyfully responded to Haruto's words. Shuuichi also nodded and said, "Indeed, fresh fish like this should be eaten as sashimi. After all, we're Japanese."
"I understand. So, for dinner, we'll have sashimi with yellowtail, sea bream, and mackerel. Is that okay with you two, Ikue-san, Ayaka-san?"
Haruto asked the two for their approval.
"Yes, of course! I'm looking forward to it."
"I'd like some sashimi too."
With everyone in the Toujou family agreeing, Haruto immediately started preparing the meal. Just then, Shuuichi entered the kitchen, holding a plastic bag in one hand.
"By the way, Ootsuki-kun, I originally planned for sashimi too, so I bought various utensils and vegetables that might be useful."
"Oh, really? May I take a look inside?"
Haruto accepted the bag from Shuuichi and checked its contents. Inside, there were tools for scaling fish, a julienne peeler for making daikon radish garnishes, and various vegetables like carrots, daikon radish, cucumber, and shiso leaves for accompaniments.
"Thank you, Shuuichi-san. All of this would really add more touch to the sashimi."
Haruto expressed his gratitude while Ikue smiled teasingly at Shuuichi.
"My, my, dear… You bought all of these, but out of all things, you just had to forget to buy wasabi.”
"Hahaha, maan~ Thanks for buying wasabi in my stead."
In response to Ikue's teasing, Shuuichi scratched the back of his head, looking somewhat embarrassed.
Haruto felt a little relieved to learn why Ayaka had gone to the supermarket specifically to buy wasabi, and he continued, "Alright, I’ll get started right away."
Haruto picked up the tail of the yellowtail, placed it on the cutting board, and lightly poured a bit of water while removing the scales. Once all the scales were removed, he cut off the head, removed the gills, and opened the belly to remove the innards. Afterward, he filleted the fish into three pieces.
Shuuichi was impressed as he watched the yellowtail being filleted. "You're really efficient at this. It's satisfying to watch."
"Thank you. I was a bit worried if I could handle this properly, considering I've never filleted such a splendid fish before. But thanks to this knife, it's very manageable."
Saying this, Haruto lifted the deba knife he was using. It was a knife he was borrowing from the Toujou family and it had a beautifully engraved name on the base of the blade, indicating it was quite a high-quality knife. Its sharpness was exceptional, allowing Haruto to fillet even a large and bony fish like the yellowtail with ease.
After filleting all the fish into three pieces each and removing the bloodline and belly bones to make them easier to eat, Haruto prepared the sashimi.
"Amazing. I kind of want to learn how to fillet fish from you, Ootsuki-kun," Ikue said, sitting at the dining table while watching him in the kitchen.
"If you're okay with it, I'll be happy to teach you."
Haruto replied as he held up a filleted piece of skin.
"My, really? Then, I’d like to learn from you some time later. How about you, Ayaka? It might be useful when you're married and need to cook fish for your future husband."
"Eh? No, well, I..."
Ayaka, looking a bit bewildered, hesitated to respond. In contrast, Ikue smiled slyly.
“Ufufufu. You don’t want to? Ah, but if someone like Ootsuki-kun becomes your husband, it shouldn't be a problem then, right?"
"Wai–! Mom! What are you saying?! Ootsuki-kun is here!"
Ayaka’s cheeks turned bright red at her mother’s bold comment. Ikue, noticing her daughter's reaction, calmly added, “My, I just said 'someone like Ootsuki-kun,' you know?”
“...I hate you, mom,” Ayaka pouted, showing her annoyance at Ikue’s teasing.
Ignoring Ayaka's sulking, Ikue cheerfully addressed Haruto, “Ootsuki-kun, I apologize if my daughter got the wrong idea. Ayaka can be a bit naive, but please continue to get along with her.”
“Ahahaha, I hope we continue to get along too.”
While cutting the fish into fillets, Haruto couldn't help but notice Ayaka glaring at her mother, radiating an aura of ‘I’m upset,” so he just shrugged it off with a laugh and give a safe response, though it was clear her mother wasn't fazed by her sulking in the slightest.
Then Shuuichi, stroking his chin with a serious look, suddenly spoke up, “So, if Ayaka marries Ootsuki-kun, he would become my son-in-law... hmm, that’s a possibility. But still, giving away my precious daughter…”
Lost in his own musings, Shuuichi muttered to himself, causing Ayaka to forget her protest against her mother entirely.
“Dad! Stop with the weird fantasies!”
Unlike Ikue’s playful jabs, Ayaka knew it was just jokes, so while she pouted or acted annoyed, she wasn't genuinely upset. It was more like playful banter between mother and daughter.
However, Shuuichi's recent comment seemed quite serious. The way he mumbled to himself, lost in thought, made it feel like he was genuinely considering it.
Panicking, Ayaka tried to pull her father out of his delusional state, but just then, an even more innocent yet troublesome voice interrupted.
"Onii-chan, are you going to marry onee-chan?"
"Wha...? Eh? No, that's not..."
"Hey now, Ryouta! Don't say something super distracting to Ootsuki-kun when he’s holding a knife! It's dangerous!"
Ayaka took her brother's hand, gently pulling him away as he stood beside Haruto, watching him skillfully use the knife.
"But if onee-chan marries onii-chan, then onii-chan will become my real onii-chan, right?"
Ryouta’s words seemed like he was imagining what it would be like when Haruto became his real older brother. He looked at Haruto with an excited expression. In response, Ayaka couldn't help but avert her eyes, flustered.
"T-there's no way we're getting married! We're still high school students!"
"My, but if there's parental consent, you can get married, you know?"
"Geez! Mom, stop it already!"
For a while, the Toujou family's home turned into a scene straight out of a romantic comedy. Sensing that getting involved would only cause trouble, Haruto decided to escape into the task at hand and focus entirely on preparing the fish in front of him.
After completing all the preparations, Haruto carried a large plate with the sashimi.
"Um... For now, I'm done making the sashimi, but..."
Haruto hesitantly carried the plate to the dining table. Meanwhile, the Toujou family's chaos had escalated.
Shuuichi was deep in thought, seriously contemplating the idea of Haruto becoming his son-in-law. Ryouta kept questioning Haruto about marriage, and Ayaka tried to stop him, her face turning red. Ikue was entertaining herself by occasionally adding fuel to the fire, seemingly amused.
In the midst of this, Haruto cautiously addressed the Toujou family, "Um, I also made some yellowtail soup, please enjoy."
Thank you for the release! 😄
ReplyDeleteAra Ara better in my opinion. Thanks for the chapter!
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