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418 Yukinoshita Haruno Still Loves Her Little Sister Today
🕑 Added 2025-08-01 15:00:22 +0000 UTCWhen Kyousuke re-entered the Service Club room, Kuroda and his friend had already dashed off without a second glance—clearly eager for their second round of cross-dressing.
Maybe, for him, being loved by his best friend and then personally turning them down was a strangely novel experience.
Even though it was way too embarrassing to say out loud now, perhaps years down the line, when they all had sons or even grandkids.
It might become one of those stories they suddenly bring up.
Three old men, full of youthful spirit again, reenacting a life-or-death duel, while their grandmas look on in exasperation and their grandkids cheer at the top of their lungs.
Of course, that was only if they managed to survive the current crisis and keep their friendship intact.
Kyousuke ignored the two ecstatic idiots and turned his attention to the unusually quiet Yukino.
She was acting strange, and he wanted to know what she had to say.
But Yukino looked flustered, avoiding his eyes and instead glancing toward YSakura and Shouko.
“Do you need some alone time?” Sakura asked with a delighted grin. “We’ll leave right away!”
“No!” Yukino immediately denied it, then lowered her head and stared at her bag beside her.
As she looked at the bulging bag, her thoughts began to drift.
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“Yukino-chan, if I remember right, this is the first time you’ve ever received a gift from a friend, isn’t it?”
Yukino didn’t respond.
She only lifted her head slightly and watched the elevator numbers change above her.
“No, wait… Let me think… wasn’t the last time when Hayato gave you something?”
Still no response.
Her grip on the paper bag tightened, as if the souvenirs Kyousuke had generously handed out had suddenly become ten times heavier.
“How strange… I clearly remember something like that, but I can’t recall at all what Hayato gave you. Weird. Maybe I drank too much and my brain’s getting fuzzy?”
Haruno took a step forward, leaning over her little sister’s shoulder.
Her face was so close, her nose nearly touched Yukino’s pale cheek.
“So, did I remember it wrong? Or… was it a gift only you received, so I don’t have any memory of it? C’mon, Yukino-chan, tell me.”
The heavy scent of alcohol lingered in her breath as it brushed against Yukino’s face.
Even someone who couldn’t drink would find the fresh scent of good liquor appealing—but not after it’s been in someone’s mouth a while.
That smell was undeniably unpleasant.
Yukino wrinkled her brow and turned her face to the side.
But strangely, she didn’t move her feet.
“Ahhh, you’re so cold, Yukino-chan! If you treat me like that, your adorable big sister might just die of heartbreak~ Really, I’m gonna die~”
Haruno had completely abandoned any semblance of adult dignity. Her flushed cheeks and whiny tone made her look like nothing more than a drunken idiot.
“Ugh—”
Yukino tried to ignore her sister’s immature antics, but those words got to her. She let out a long sigh, like wringing every drop of air out of a soaked towel.
“That was during the summer vacation in our first year, when both our families went to Shonan. He made a flower crown out of flowers from the garden.”
Her voice was cold—like a computer reading a file from a database.
“Oh, how lovely. I guess for girls, receiving flowers really is the happiest thing, isn’t it?”
Haruno rested her head on her sister’s bony shoulder and whispered wistfully.
If anyone saw such a beautiful older sister speak with that kind of dreamy expression, they’d probably empty their wallet right then and there to bring her the most gorgeous bouquet they could find.
And if they didn’t have money? Well… they might just splatter a blood flower instead.
But the long-haired girl only sighed again.
Her expression grew colder, and her voice was completely devoid of emotion.
“That flower crown was for you. I got a dandelion.”
“Huh? Hayato was that sweet once? Wow, what a throwback. He was way more interesting back then.”
Haruno straightened up, hands in her pockets, twisting her upper body left and right with boredom—like she wasn’t the one who’d just been jealous over a flower crown.
Yukino bit her lower lip and pressed her lips together tightly.
Her grip on the paper bag tightened again, the delicate bones of her fingers pushing against her pale, translucent skin.
Her sister had always been like this—effortlessly getting things others struggled for, only to toss them aside like trash.
In conversations like these, Yukino could never tell whether Haruno truly forgot, or if she was just messing with her on purpose.
She hated it. She hated this side of her sister.
What she didn’t say was that Hayama Hayato hadn’t even planned to give her anything at first.
That entire afternoon, Hayato had stood under the blazing sun picking flowers—carefully choosing the best ones for a crown.
The garden floor was littered with rejected blooms.
And that tiny yellow dandelion she received—so common you could crush five in one step—wasn’t even given to her with any sincerity.
Drenched in sweat, beaming with excitement, Hayato had presented the flower crown with both hands to her sister, who was lounging in the air-conditioned living room watching TV.
When she casually placed the crown on her head and asked, “Does it look good?” that boy, clothes soaked through, was so excited he couldn’t even speak.
He looked like a monkey being invited onto Noah’s Ark by Adam himself.
“What about Yukino-chan’s?” That was Haruno’s second sentence. She had already tossed the flower crown onto the glass coffee table.
Hayato’s face paled like he’d been dropped into Antarctica.
The whiplash from intense heat to freezing cold hit him so hard, his expression crumbled instantly.
‘Geez… It’s not like I even cared…’
“I-I’ll go pick one right away!”
The monkey who’d mocked Noah’s invitation was now scrambling desperately for a second chance as the floodwaters rose.
But Haruno didn’t even glance at him. She simply pulled her sister close, gently brushed aside the sweaty bangs stuck to her forehead, and said:
“You poor thing, Yukino-chan.”
That’s what she said.
“It’s fine. I don’t care,” Yukino replied.
Then Hayato rushed out of the living room, and Haruno picked up the phone and called for their butler, Mr. Yamada.
“Pick all the flowers in the garden and fill the pool with petals,” she said calmly, like she was just placing an order for dinner.
Mr. Yamada looked troubled. The garden had always been personally managed by their mother.
“Hello, Mom? No, nothing’s wrong, I just thought we could change up the flowers in the garden a little.
Why? Well, it’s always the same kinds, and it’s getting kind of boring, don’t you think? Maybe we should switch them out a few times a year?”
Just like that, Haruno easily persuaded their mother.
She solved the butler’s dilemma and got rid of the "sad garden" that had hurt her sister in one bold move.
Their own flowers weren’t even enough to cover the pool, let alone fill it.
So Haruno dragged her sister next door to the Akashi family’s house.
The lady there was a well-known writer, and every morning Yukino would see her sitting on the porch, breathing in the scent of flowers as she wrote.
Her husband would prepare tea and sit nearby, cradling a yellow cat, silently watching her work.
Occasionally, the two would lift their heads and exchange a glance.
Then the cat, as if on cue, would nimbly leap from Mr. Akashi’s lap onto the table, stepping gracefully around the teapot, paper, and pen.
With quiet elegance, it would hop gently into Mrs. Akashi’s arms, purring sweetly and nudging its head up, asking for affection.
Once Mrs. Akashi had rested enough, she would return the cat to Mr. Akashi’s lap and resume her writing.
A vibrant, blooming garden. A glass teapot gently steaming. A plump and well-behaved cat. A couple basking in the morning light, so clearly in love…
It was like something out of a dream, and the image carved itself deeply into young Yukino’s mind.
It became one of the few reasons she looked forward to their family vacations every year.
Even if she could only admire them from afar, just watching Mrs. Akashi and her husband made her incredibly happy.
That’s why… wasn’t this going too far? Wasn’t it rude to impose like this just for her own sake? Yukino had thought so at the time.
"Eh? But I did it for myself, you know. Just because I wanted to," her sister had replied with a carefree smile.
R–really…? So she hadn’t done it for her?
Even their strict mother had been swayed by her sister's confidence—let alone the ever-gentle Mrs. Akashi.
Within three minutes of her sister latching onto the woman’s arm without hesitation, she had agreed.
Even as a child, her sister had always been a social powerhouse.
Soon after, Mrs. Akashi joined them at the pool, and together they filled it with flower petals from not one, but two whole gardens.
Soft, dewy petals clung to their skin in the cool water, washing away the summer heat in an instant.
Even now, when Yukino looked back on that day, she still didn’t know whether her sister had truly meant it when she said it was for herself—or if she was simply trying to protect her little sister’s pride.
In the end, neither their parents nor Mrs. Akashi ever found out the real reason why all the flowers in the garden had been picked.
It was all because Yukino hadn’t received a gift.
All they knew was that it had been one of Haruno’s “spur-of-the-moment” whims.
The only ones who knew the truth were Hayama Hayato—who had hastily picked a tiny yellow flower from the corner of the garden and herself.
A monkey who wasn’t allowed on Noah’s Ark.
Not even brave enough to pick up the flower someone had tossed aside.
“So boring~,” Haruno muttered as she stepped forward, impatiently jabbing the elevator button over and over.
“Come on, don’t act like a kid, Haruno-neesama.” Yukino tugged lightly at her sister’s sleeve, clearly a little embarrassed.
“Yeah, yeah. Yukino-chan, you’re sounding more and more like Mom,” Haruno grumbled, tilting her head back to stare at the elevator.
But a small smile tugged at the corners of her lips—she had clearly softened at her sister’s gentle tone.
Yukino is just too cute~
When the elevator finally arrived, a well-dressed woman in a fur-lined coat stepped out.
Elegant and poised, she gave Yukino a smile of recognition.
She was Mrs. Koyanagi, a neighbor from the floor above.
Yukino remembered visiting her with her mother when they first moved in.
Yukino nodded politely, returning the smile. But her sister went a step further—lifting her hand in a cheerful wave.
“Koyanagi-san?”
“Oh? Haruno-san? It’s been a while!” The woman’s tone instantly brightened, completely different from the brief politeness she’d shown Yukino a moment ago.
“School’s been keeping me busy—no time to mess around lately.”
“Ah, university already…”
“Not that I’m really that busy, honestly. It’s just—”
As Yukino stepped into the elevator, she noticed Mrs. Koyanagi, who had just come down to the lobby, following them back in—clearly just to keep chatting with her sister.
“I’ll be sure to message you next time there’s a get-together!” she said with a laugh, just as the elevator doors were closing.
“Mm-hmm!” Haruno nodded, beaming.
The moment the doors shut, however, her smile vanished completely. Yukino caught the unmistakable look on her face—those words written plainly across it: “So boring.”
Back in the apartment, Yukino quietly bent down to tidy up her sister’s shoes, which she’d kicked off messily by the door.
She didn’t say a word to the person now sprawled on the sofa like a—
No, not like a cat. Comparing her sister to a cat was unfair… to cats.
Sorry, dear kitty.
Without acknowledging her sister, who now resembled a sluggish caterpillar more than anything, Yukino headed straight for the bath.
“If someone gives you a gift, remember to return the favor, Yukino.”
The voice called out behind her. She turned, but only saw the back of the sofa.
“I don’t need you to tell me that,” she replied coolly. “I already know.”
What kind of person did her sister think she was? As if she didn’t even understand basic social etiquette.
“Ohh~ so you do know. That’s a relief. I thought maybe you’d never received a gift before, so you didn’t know.”
Yukino bit her lip and said nothing.
“After all, you never gave Hayato a return gift for that little yellow flower he gave you.”
...
So she did remember that! She said all that on purpose! Yukino felt a pang of regret—she’d let her guard down. Tricked again.
She’s awful… compared to this devil of a sister, cats are basically saints.
“...That was different.”
Hayama only gave her that flower because her sister had told him to. There wasn’t any sincerity or meaning behind it. It didn’t even count as a real gift.
“Ohhh?”
With a drawn-out, teasing hum, Haruno suddenly sat up and leaned over the back of the sofa.
“So gifts aren’t all equal, huh?”
Annoying people say annoying things. Of course gifts from different people mean different things.
Yukino didn’t respond. She simply turned and walked back to her room.
Haruno watched her sister’s retreating back, eyes narrowing into a fond smile.
This time, it wasn’t a teasing or smug expression—it was filled with genuine big-sisterly affection. But Yukino didn’t see it. Maybe she never would.
If Hojou Kyousuke were here, he might have said: “That’s just how cats are.”
When you ignore them, they’ll do everything to get your attention. When you finally want to play, they pretend like nothing ever happened and walk away. Over and over again.
Yukinoshita Haruno… really was the most cat-like of all.
Elusive, temperamental, and mischievous to the bone.
“I’m going to bed.”
After her bath, Yukino emerged in her pajamas and addressed her sister curtly.
“Eh? But it’s still early! It’s the weekend, you know! Keep your adorable big sis company~ I’ll get lonely all alone in this big, empty place~”
Even with the sofa armrest blocking her view, Yukino could clearly see her sister’s long, pale legs tapping impatiently in protest.
Honestly… she’s acting like a child again.
It was because she was here that Yukino wanted to go to bed early in the first place. Still drying her hair, she walked over to the sofa.
She took a seat on the opposite end.
The TV was playing some singing show she didn’t recognize.
Her sister returned from her own bath soon after, hair wrapped in a towel tied into a huge bow.
She wore just a t-shirt and shorts, leaving her long, fair legs completely exposed.
Seriously—dressed like that with the AC blasting?
Yukino sighed and reached for the remote, turning up the temperature just a bit.
