I play the wind instrument in Hokkaido.

Page 42

"Hey! What are you saying! That's so unhealthy!" Nagasawa Mia's eyes widened, while Goto Yu's face turned bright red.

However, Kuno Tachibana couldn't deliver any verbal impact to Kitahara Hakuba at all, because she didn't have the same figure as Shinomiya Haruka to match her alluring words.

So whenever she says those suggestive things, I just find it funny, like a little devil squeezing a plain with both hands and then mocking you—

"You've never seen anything this big before, have you?"

Next, Kitahara Hakuba began to train Nagasawa Miyako and others.

Although they couldn't perform before the music festival, the A editor of the All-Road Tournament hoped that the two girls he had raised could perform.

◇

After school in the afternoon, the band borrowed the basketball court in the gymnasium to practice their dance steps.

"Unqualified, unqualified, unqualified—!"

"There are no details, and the legs are not straight, so it doesn't look good at all."

"It's not that you can't do it, it's that you don't want to. Because you've always been doing the easiest things. I admit you're all very beautiful, but wouldn't you feel ashamed if you were with a bunch of college students?"

Haruka Shinomiya's words were utterly merciless, and her strictness was beyond imagination. The originally scheduled half-hour practice time was extended by a full hour.

Thinking about it that way, Kitahara Hakuba seemed much gentler, to the point that the girls started complaining—

"How come he's even stricter than Kitahara-sensei!"

Despite complaining, I still have to practice, not for any other reason than to be able to go to Sapporo on company-funded money.

The moment Shinomiya Haruka disappeared completely after going to the restroom, many people sat down on the ground and took out tissues from their pockets to wipe away their sweat.

"Everyone has worked hard."

Kitahara Shirama pulled over a small cart used by the cafeteria staff, which was piled with three boxes of drinks.

"I bought some drinks for everyone. Help yourselves to whatever you want."

"Teacher Kitahara—!"

"Savior! I'm so thirsty!"

"I love you so much, Kitahara-sensei!!"

The members, who had endured the brutal training of Shinomiya Haruka, looked at Kitahara Hakuba as if he were a god who would save them from dire straits.

Buying a few cases of water cost some money, but it was nothing compared to the amount of money his colleagues gave him.

"Teacher, let me help you divide them." Saito Harutori walked over, her eyes lowered, looking very mature.

"Row."

Because some members were introverted and shy, they didn't dare to come and get water, so Kitahara Hakuba and Saito Haruka had to distribute the water bottle by bottle to make sure everyone had some.

"Give."

"Thank you......"

The words that reached Kitahara Hakuba's ears suddenly sounded a bit out of place, because the other club members were all saying, "Thank you, Kitahara-sensei!"

He looked up and saw Yu Shoukan holding a plastic bottle in both hands, looking at him with flushed cheeks.

"Uh, ah, it's okay, everyone has some." Kitahara Hakuba paused, bewildered.

Shouldn't it be...right?

Saito Harutori suddenly said with great satisfaction:

"Everyone worked so hard today, it feels a little strange."

“This should become the norm in the future,” Kitahara Hakuba said.

"That's true, we still have the goal of winning the championship at the National Tournament."

"As long as you practice diligently, you will definitely be able to advance to the next stage. Don't always think about the National Tournament. You are actually capable of showing even greater strength."

Saito Harutori didn't answer, but just squinted her eyes and drank water, her captivating eyes reflecting the hearty laughter of Kuno Tatsuka.

Chapter 47. The Ensemble That Decides Whether to Stay or Leave

Time flies, and it's Saturday.

Kitahara Hakuba proposed a ensemble performance on Saturday afternoon after school on Friday, and everyone had to come.

At 8:00 a.m. sharp, Yuka Isomoto opened the door to the group practice room and found that all the members of the bass section had arrived.

strange.

"Yu Xiang——"

Someone called her name, and Yuka Isomoto looked over and saw that it was Haruka Saito.

"What's wrong? What kind of look is that?" Saito Harutori said with a faint smile. "Let's practice a bit before the ensemble. We can't let Kitahara-sensei's hard work these past few days go to waste."

Yuka Isomoto swallowed hard and nodded with an obedient expression.

These past few days, she's been going home with Mr. Kitahara after school every afternoon and practicing privately until after 11 p.m.

Last night, for some reason, halfway through playing the flute, Mr. Kitahara suddenly got excited, stopped practicing, and dragged her out for a late-night snack.

Although he's made it a habit not to eat after 8:30, he seemed quite happy.

"Isogen, you've really done a lot. You're already stronger now than you were five days ago."

Yuka Isomoto fell into deep thought. Under Kitahara-sensei's guidance, had she really changed compared to her former self?

No, there has definitely been change, but the question is how much has changed?

The thought of playing the ensemble parts and testing her performance made her extremely nervous.

"As is customary, we'll start with tuning."

Saito Haruka turned on the computer in the practice room to play electronic music. As instructed, the bass voices of more than ten people needed to produce the same scale and blend with the electronic music.

As Yuka Isomoto carefully blew on her mouthpiece, silence suddenly filled the small space, weighing heavily on her shoulders.

The score for the bass part given by Mr. Kitahara is not complicated, but it clearly expresses a beautiful timbre.

From the speakers, the electronic sound symbolizing B came out. Yuka Isomoto put the mouthpiece in her mouth, and the high-intensity practice had completely eliminated the previous sense of disharmony.

The sounds of the euphonium, tuba, and double bass blended together seamlessly, echoing throughout the practice room.

Until the F note, symbolizing a clear interval, appears.

Yuka Isomoto's lips left the mouthpiece, her face flushed as she stared at the gilded euphonium in her hand.

Not only her, but the other members looked at each other with delight; they hadn't played harmonics in a long time.

Only when overtones are produced during playing can the produced notes have a harmonious and moving effect, and this requires mutual listening between the various instruments.

That's the beauty of an "orchestra".

It's done...it's finally done...

With excited mutterings to herself, Yuka Isomoto's tense expression suddenly relaxed, and her hands felt hot as she pressed the keys.

To dispel the sudden surge of heat on her skin, she quickly grabbed the metal pipes of the steel chair; the metal surface was shockingly cold.

For the first time, Yuka Isomoto realized that she had caught up with the chorus; she had never been so aware of this before!

And all of this is thanks to Mr. Kitahara!

“Everyone seems to have heard it very clearly,” Saito Harutori said with a smile, putting down the instrument she had been holding up.

"Yes!" Hiroka Isomoto and the others responded with great enthusiasm.

To their surprise, Kitahara Hakuba was able to help them grasp the knack of producing overtones with just a short period of instruction.

"I'm definitely going to teach Kitahara-sensei a lesson this afternoon!"

"That's right! Actually, it's not that hard to blow!"

The members' murmurs rose intermittently. After all, Kitahara Hakuba's guidance was not as gentle as his face. It was common for girls with low stress tolerance to break down and cry after being repeatedly corrected by him.

Yuka Isomoto blushed as she looked at Haruka Saito. Her slender legs were visible beneath her skirt, the curves of her thighs and calves were exceptionally beautiful.

"How do you feel about your playing?" Saito Haruka asked her quietly.

"Excellent!" the girl exclaimed excitedly.

Saito Harutori's gaze lingered on her shoulder, and she said gently in a low voice:

"You have a big responsibility this time, so I don't need to worry about you."

Yuka Isomoto felt an itch on her shoulder, and the euphonium in her hand shone with an innocent light.

She made a gurgling sound in her throat, then scratched her cheek and laughed:

"Well, when I think about how important this music festival is for Kitahara-sensei's debut, I start to worry about what will happen if I make a mistake while playing. He takes such good care of me, I would be too embarrassed to face him if I didn't play well."

"......"

Seemingly surprised by her words, Saito Harutori's smile faded for a moment, and after a few seconds of silence, her seemingly soft and boneless hand cupped her cheek.

"Yuka, the competition is important, but that's not an excuse."

"Eh?"

Saito Haruka ran her fingers through her radiant hair, as gently as if stroking a house cat, and said:

"Show your strength and bring back the moonlight, that's the important reason for our competition."

Yuka Isomoto's thoughts were as silent as a bus late at night.

It wasn't until this moment that Yuka Isomoto understood what she meant: to demonstrate her strength and let Tsukiyo Nagase know how much the brass band had improved so that she could return.

She began to feel lost, wondering who she was practicing the euphonium for all these days.

But the girl's face seemed to possess endless charm, completely negating Kitahara Hakuba's painstaking companionship, and reminding Isomoto Yuka of her original intention.

An inexplicable sense of dependence slowly seeped through my skin, so warm.

"Well, I'll do my best."

"Yuka, you're so kind." Saito Harutori smiled.

◇

in the afternoon.