How To Eat Life:Chapter 1

#1 / Horizontal Falling Down

#1-1_otogiri_tobi / Why do flowers bloom

"Otogiri..."

The teacher with black-rimmed glasses called out in front of the school gate. Otogiri Tobi glanced at him but continued walking without stopping. "Otogiri..." the teacher with black-rimmed glasses groaned again.

"That teacher is quite persistent," the backpack chuckled with a ke ke sound.

"Well, it's his job, isn't it?" Tobi replied quietly.

Since enrolling in school, that teacher had given Tobi guidance countless times. He wasn't in charge of his homeroom or any of his subjects, and Tobi didn't even know his name.

"He's always nagging about things like 'that bag doesn't meet school standards' or 'those socks are too flashy' or 'your bangs are covering your eyebrows.' What's the point of school anyway? Trying to fit everyone into molds?"

Baku grumbled, but Tobi ignored him and entered the school building. He changed his shoes at the shoebox.

"Do you remember, Tobi? More than a year ago, that teacher used to bother you every morning about your hair, and you..."

"I don't know. I forgot," Tobi replied.

Tobi climbed up the stairs and entered the classroom for Class 3 of Year 2. His seat was by the window, the third one from the front. He placed Baku on his desk and sat down, resting his face on Baku.

"Sleeping right after entering school? You must be pretty free with no one to talk to. Wouldn't it be nice to make a couple of friends?" Baku commented.

"Baku, just be quiet..."

"Hey, hey, Tobi. Be careful. You might end up being that weird guy who talks to himself."

"I..."

Tobi lowered his voice as much as possible.

"...I'm not speaking loud enough for people around me to hear anyway."

"Why not let them hear? You might get a chance to talk to them that way."

"...That would be even more bothersome."

"Well, you're one of those types, right? The kind of guy who thinks being a lone wolf with no friends is cool?"

"...I don't think that way."

"Nuh-uh, you do. You know what that's called? 'Narcissism.' In Japanese, it's 'jiko tousui.'"

"Yeah, yeah, say whatever you want."

"And I will. I get bored when you keep me zipped up anyway."

"........."

"Just saying, if you think I'll be quiet just because you are, you're greatly mistaken," Baku mockingly laughed.

"As long as you live, I'll never be silent. Don't forget that, Tobi. We share the same fate. We are one, body and soul."

I won't forget.

Tobi muttered inwardly.

I've never forgotten.

"Well, sometimes I've wondered what would happen if I burned Baku until you turned into ash..."

"Hey, I can hear you!"

"...Your ears must be playing tricks on you."

"And where exactly do I have ears?"

"...I dunno."

"By the way, what's the matter with my hearing?"

"...I said I dunno."

"How cold... You're such a cold person. Your heart is at subzero. It's literally freezing at this point."

If only it would actually freeze. Tobi thought to himself. Saying it out loud would only add fuel to the fire. He should just ignore Baku's teasing. He knew this, but couldn't help reacting. He needed more discipline.

"...Discipline for what exactly?"

Tobi had always been a fast eater. He would demolish his lunch in no time, except for the bread which he left untouched. He would quickly clean up and leave the classroom with the bread. On days when the main course was rice or noodles instead of bread, he would leave empty-handed.

Initially, his homeroom teacher would try to stop him, saying, "Wait a second, Otogiri-kun..." But after being ignored, he stopped saying anything.

Today was a bread day, and specifically butter rolls.

Tobi carried Baku on his back and walked briskly down the hallway.

"You like them, don't you? Butter rolls."

"Huh? Not particularly."

"Liar. Your steps are too light."

"...Well, I don't hate them. I don't really have strong preferences."

The hallway was empty. The middle schoolers were still obediently eating their lunch in their classrooms. Nonetheless, Tobi lowered his voice, just in case.

"Tobi, you've always preferred bread over rice, right?"

"I'm a 'whichever one is good' kind of guy."

"You're more of a fish fan than a meat fan, aren't you?"

"I genuinely don't care."

"Then kinako or red bean paste?"

"Red bean paste."

"Red bean paste, huh? That was a quick response."

"...I'm not fond of powdery things."

"I understand, right? No, wait, what would I know? What am I thinking? I'm just a backpack! I've never had red bean paste or kinako."

"How would I know..."

"What kind of tone is that? You and I are buddies, aren't we? What kind of buddies are we?"

"I really don't know."

"We share a rotten fate. Yeah."

"Yeah... that might be it."

"Is it rotten? This fate that binds us. Isn't there a nicer way to put it?"

"You're the one who said it."

"Then correct me! Tell me I'm wrong. I'm lonely!"

"You're lonely, huh..."

"Just a bit, okay?"

Tobi exited to the courtyard. It was a sunny day. The courtyard had a lawn, benches, and flowerbeds, and it was usually bustling during lunch break. However, no one was there yet. It was deserted.

"You're going to do it again?" Baku said, appalled.

Tobi held onto the metal fixtures securing a pipe installed on the outer wall with his middle and ring fingers. With his fingers and toes, he hooked onto other pipe fixtures, gaps between pipes and walls, and grooves on the wall, climbing up swiftly.

"Good grief. People say idiots and smoke or something like that."

Tobi paid no mind to Baku's teasing. He reached the roof of the three-floor building in no time. Today was a good day. He didn't get lost or stuck at all. It went incredibly smoothly. This might be a good route.

In truth, one could reach the roof from inside the building. However, the door to the roof was locked, probably for security reasons. Without a key, there was no way to access the roof except by climbing. As far as Tobi knew, no one else would go through such trouble to reach the roof. He was the only one.

The roof had a flat, unfinished concrete surface. There were low walls on the perimeter, known as parapets. Tobi placed Baku at his feet and sat on the parapets. He tore open the plastic wrapping and took out the butter roll, taking a bite and closing his eyes.

"Does it taste good, Tobi?"

"...Not really. It's just average."

"Can't you be honest and say it's tasty? You're such a contradictory person."

"Yeah, yeah, it's so tasty, really tasty, very tasty, super tasty, tasty, tasty, tasty, tasty, tasty."

"Don't say it so many times. You sound completely fake."

"Like I said, it's just average."

"Koppe-pan and butter rolls, which one would you choose?"

"Butter rolls."

"See?"

"...See what?"

"Do I really need to explain?"

Tobi finished the butter roll in three bites and gazed at the pale sky and fragmented clouds. Soon, he grew bored and turned his attention back to the school building.

The school Tobi attended had a U-shaped building with a courtyard in the concave part. The roof he was on belonged to the special classroom building, facing the classroom building. The first floor housed the third-year students, the second floor was for second years, and the first years occupied the third floor.

The chime signaling the end of mealtime rang, marking the beginning of the lunch break. Students filed out into the hallway of the building facing the courtyard. Occasionally, around one in ten or even fewer, some students had peculiar things perched on their heads or shoulders. Despite noticing them, Tobi didn't turn his head to wonder what those things were.

For instance, three girls walked together in the second-floor hallway. Tobi couldn't recall their names, but they were all second-year students like him. The girl in the middle had a creature clinging to her that resembled a bat or perhaps a flying squirrel. It was possible that the girl had a peculiar pet that she adored so much that she brought it to school. However, Tobi had seen that creature before. In fact, it always clung to the girl. Despite this, neither teachers nor students ever brought up the topic.

It seemed that the girl herself was oblivious to the creature's presence.

"Weird..." Tobi muttered.

"Huh?" Baku responded immediately.

"What's weird?"

"Oh, nothing."

"It's not nothing. You said it was weird. I heard you clearly. So, what's weird?"

"...Well, to be precise, it's you, Baku."

"Hah? What's so weird about me?"

"Do you have no self-awareness?"

"You!"

"Ehh—"

Tobi's gaze shifted downward to the courtyard.

The one who yelled "You!" wasn't Baku.

A man in work clothes was looking up at Tobi. He was the school janitor.

"...Me?"

As Tobi pointed to himself, the janitor shouted, "Yes, you!"

"No matter how you think about it, it's you! There's no one else there, is there?!"

"Ah, I suppose so."

"Not 'I suppose so'!"

The janitor was younger than most of the other staff members. Perhaps it was his facial structure or his perpetually friendly smile. He always greeted Tobi when they crossed paths, but Tobi found it annoying and ignored him. Despite that, the janitor never learned and continued calling out to him.

"Listen, Otogiri-kun, that roof is off-limits, got it?! And about that, you've done it before, haven't you? Sometimes you appear on the roof! I always found it strange. How did you even get up there? The door is locked, right? I'm going to check it! Do you happen to have a copy of the key?!"

"I don't have a copy or anything."

"Exactly! If you went ahead and made a copy of the key, that would be a huge problem! Anyway, get down immediately!"

"You mean jump down?"

"Of course not! No, absolutely not, okay? Ahh, whatever, Otogiri-kun, just stay there! I have a lot to ask you, I'm coming up!"

The janitor hurried off toward the school building. He was probably going to retrieve a key from the staff room and climb to the roof using the stairs.

"Now what, Tobi?" Baku asked, half-laughing.

"What else is there to do?" Tobi lifted Baku up.

"I'm not waiting. It's a hassle, anyway."

"Sure is."

"I was kinda enjoying this place, though..."

With a sigh, Tobi straddled the parapet. Descending along the outer wall took no more than ten seconds. Naturally, when the janitor arrived, Tobi was nowhere to be found.

After school, Tobi was summoned to the staff room by his homeroom teacher, Harimoto-sensei, and received guidance. Specifically, the guidance primarily focused on the incident on the roof, but Tobi let Harimoto's words go in one ear and out the other. Well, not all of them, but most.

"Are you listening, Otogiri? Give a response," Harimoto would check every few minutes.

And Tobi would answer, "Yes" or "I'm listening."

Harimoto, around forty years old, always wore a red track suit except for formal events. With his name being 'Harimoto' and his hair spiked back, he was called 'Harinezumi' or more affectionately, 'Harry' behind his back.

TL note: harinezumi means hedgehog

"Sensei doesn't want to be here nagging you about warnings either. But you know, Otogiri, at the very least, the very minimum, there are rules in society that you have to obey..."

When Harimoto finished his lecture and they walked out of the staff room, it was already past 4:30 PM.

"Pah!" Baku grumbled resentfully.

"He just went on and on, that bastard Harry. I'm tired of staying quiet."

"Don't call him 'Harry'..."

Tobi briskly exited the school. He wasn't particularly in a hurry, but he didn't have a habit of walking leisurely. He either walked slowly with large steps or restlessly fast-walked. That was basically all he did.

"That way of walking. Are you race-walking?"

At Baku's jab, Tobi unconsciously slowed down before the school gate.

"...Shut up."

"You're so restless. Why don't you take your time and try living a more easygoing life?"

"I said shut up..."

Tobi looked at his watch. It took him 15 minutes to reach the facility on foot. There was less than an hour left before curfew, as Harimoto's lecture had consumed 40 minutes of his free time. Taking the bus to the area Tobi used to live took 20 minutes.

"...Can't make it today, huh."

He arrived at the school gate seething with anger.

The gate was less than 2 meters tall. It would be easy to climb up, but that wasn't enough to cheer him up. Tobi kicked off the tile-covered gate and used the momentum to jump up.

"Yes—"

Without thinking, Tobi pumped his fist slightly. Just as planned, he had gotten up the gate without using his hands. He had done well.

"Tobi... ummm...? There are rules in society you have to uphold, you know?" Baku laughed, quoting Harimoto's lecture.

Tobi was about to say something back but forgot what he was going to say.

On the other side of the school gate stood a female student. She gazed up at Tobi.

"Ah..."

With sharp, bold features and her long hair in double buns, she looked familiar.

Or rather, she was a classmate.

Rare enough for Tobi, he remembered her name. It was a bit unique, and he had committed it to memory after seeing it written out once.

Her surname is Shiratama.

Shiratama Ryuuko seemed surprised and blinked several times.

Tobi was surprised as well. Why was Shiratama here? The school gate was deserted. No one else was here. And a girl from the same class, at that.

Tobi sucked in a breath and pursed his lips.

What should I do?

Baku said nothing. This is the time you should say something, Tobi thought from the bottom of his heart. Some stupid nonsense, a mocking tease, an unfunny joke, anything. Say something. Though even if Baku did speak, Tobi would've been the only one to hear him.

Why was Shiratama remaining silent as well?

This is awkward.

Tobi looked closely at Shiratama for the first time. He had the impression she had a sharp face, but her eyes, nose, and mouth weren't particularly big, nor were they strangely small. They weren't distorted or off-kilter at all. How would you put it? They were well-ordered. Everything was in its rightful place; not a single feature was misshapen. You could keep looking at that face and never feel unpleasant. It was a form you never got tired of.

Maybe because of that, Tobi and Shiratama locked eyes. As if they were having a staring contest or something, he couldn't turn his gaze away.

To be honest, Tobi was embarrassed. He should've just looked away, but somehow he couldn't.

What is this?

What time is it?

"Hey you...!"

At that moment, someone shouted from afar. It was the janitor.

"Get down from the gate! Oh, Otogiri-kun! It's you again?!"

The janitor's yell seemed to release him from his spell. Tobi turned around. In front of the entrance to the school stood the janitor, brandishing a broom.

"'Scuse me."

As Tobi lightly bowed his head, the janitor jumped up.

"Didn't you just get scolded by Harimoto-sensei? You didn't reflect on yourself at all!"

"I already apologized..."

Tobi jumped down from the gate. The janitor seemed ready to chase after him, so he sprinted away from the gate.

After making two turns, he turned around. No one was there, so Tobi stopped running.

"What a pain in the ass, that janitor..."

"Looks like you've completely caught his attention."

Baku chuckled with a "kuhehe," causing Tobi to scrunch up his face in annoyance.

"Give me a break," Tobi replied.

"Don't tell that to me. How about you tell him directly?" Baku suggested.

"What should I say?" Tobi asked.

"Well, something like, 'I'm just a pathetic eighth grader, all alone in this world, trying my best to live admirably without turning to delinquency, so please leave me be,' or something," Baku suggested mockingly.

"I don't think of myself as pathetic, though," Tobi responded.

"Isn't it a convenient excuse? You look plenty pathetic just by being all alone in this world, you know?" Baku retorted.

"Anyway, I'm not all alone in this world," Tobi stated.

Whenever Tobi mentioned his brother, Baku would immediately fall silent. Baku had never met Tobi's brother; when he had met Tobi, they had already been separated.

Checking his watch, Tobi realized it was already 4:40. He had to make it to the facility before the 5:30 curfew, so he decided to take a slightly longer route. Tobi's idea of a detour simply meant walking a more roundabout path. He wanted to spend as little money as possible since he didn't have much to spare.

The facility provided middle school students with 3000 yen as pocket money each month. Tobi wasn't sure if that was a lot or not, but a one-way bus ride cost 220 yen, and a round trip took away 440 yen. The money disappeared quickly, and he didn't want to be left without any in case of an emergency. So he tried his best to avoid spending money.

As a result, Tobi had never been to a burger place or donut shop. He was afraid of accidentally buying something unnecessary, so he also avoided entering convenience stores.

However, Tobi didn't mind walking. As long as there weren't many people around, he had Baku to talk to.

"At least I'm completely free," Tobi remarked.

Baku sometimes seemed to read Tobi's mind with his comments.

"I'm basically just being carried around by you anyway," Baku responded.

"Do you want me to throw you?" Tobi asked playfully.

"You shouldn't do that, even by accident," Baku replied.

"Wouldn't it be fun to fly through the sky, though?" Tobi pondered.

"Just a moment. Throwing can't be considered flying. Even though your name is Tobi, don't you know the meaning of the word 'fly'? Next time, try looking it up in the dictionary. No, not next time, go look it up today! There's nothing written about being thrown in the word 'fly'," Baku explained.

Tobi turned into an alley from the road, then entered another street. He tried to take paths he believed he hadn't walked before. However, he soon realized that he was mistaken; it was a road he was familiar with. Having spent over a year walking around near the school, there were probably very few paths he hadn't traversed.

The middle school Tobi attended was in a district called Ourai-chou, while the facility was located in the neighboring district called Asakawa-chou.

Asakawa-chou, as the name suggested, had a river named Asakawa. The river was wide, but as long as the water level hadn't risen due to rain, it was shallow enough to cross on foot.

"But really, Tobi, don't you think the naming is lazy? Just because there's a shallow river, they named it 'Shallow River',"

Asakawa River flowed in a north-to-south direction. Tobi turned away from the setting sun and began crossing the bridge that spanned the river. The road was becoming crowded, but the sidewalk remained clear. Tobi agilely climbed up the bridge's railing.

"You're doing it again..." Baku said in dismay.

Tobi ignored him and continued walking along the railing.

He could feel the wind more intensely here compared to the sidewalk. Whenever Tobi's body swayed with the wind, Baku let out an exaggerated "Uoooh!"

"I won't fall."

"Who knows? Don't you know the saying 'Carelessness is your greatest enemy'?"

"Of course, I know that much. But I'm not being careless."

"You're pushing the limits just because you're used to it. You know, acclimation can be scary. People who think they're perfectly fine end up having accidents."

"Why are you being so cautious? You're Baku."

"Being cautious is just my nature."

"Born like that, huh..."

"Is that a problem?"

"It's not a problem or anything. I was just curious about how you came to be."

"Huh? That was up to you—"

Nnnngh. Baku growled as he pondered.

Tobi remembered that man. The tall man with a top hat and one eye. That man had left Baku in front of Tobi. However, Baku didn't seem to know much about what happened before he started talking.

Tobi stopped and turned to face the river. As he sat down on the railing, he felt the urge to take off his shoes, as they had lost their purpose.

"Hey, Tobi. If you do something like that here, people will think you're about to jump."

"I'm not going to jump. Even if I fall, there's a river down there. I can swim anyway."

"But it's a shallow river. Just the Asakawa, after all."

"It'll be fine."

"Be careful, okay?"

"Mm."

Tobi nodded as he swayed his body back and forth. Baku became agitated.

"Hey! Tobi, I just told you to be careful...!"

"We won't fall just from this."

"You don't know that, do you?! That's what you call being careless!"

"I wasn't being careless. I did it on purpose."

"Is that so? On purpose. You did it on purpose, huh. Don't do that on purpose. Don't do it. Do not. Do it."

"Even if you tell me not to..."

"I am not joking. I'm done. Stop fooling around and come back already."

"Eeehh..."

"It's almost curfew anyway."

"Well, that's true."

"Don't you want to go back?"

Tobi pretended not to hear and didn't answer Baku's question.

Ke ke. Baku laughed.

"So you still can't come to love that place, huh? That facility."

"Not really... I don't like or hate it."

"Other residents tentatively come to call the facility 'home,' but you're different, aren't you? You don't see the facility as your home at all. You just can't think of it like that."

Tobi let his legs dangle. Before he knew it, his back was hunched, and he was looking downwards. He didn't feel like straightening his back. He didn't want to face forward or upwards.

"It has nothing to do with the facility. It's just—"

"Just?"

"It doesn't suit me."

"Really? What doesn't suit you?"

"People."

"Simply put, you hate people, then."

"I don't hate them. They just don't suit me. That's what I said, right?"

"What a troublesome person you are."

"Shut up..."

"By the way, Tobi."

"Yes?"

"Have you noticed?"

"Noticed what?"

"She's here."

"Huh? Who?"

"Over there."

"Where?"

Tobi lifted his head.

He looked to the right and then to the left.

Only a meter away from him—of course, not on the railing but below it, on the Asakawa Bridge sidewalk—stood a female student. She was wearing the uniform from the middle school Tobi attended. She had a remarkably bold face and long hair tied in double buns.

"...Eh—"

Strange things could happen.

Just a little while ago, something similar had occurred. Well, not exactly "just now," but recently.

Shiratama Ryuuko gazed at Tobi. Her eyes weren't particularly wide, but it was a gaze that seemed to capture its subject and hold it in place. And that subject was Tobi.

In the past, when Tobi was young, a teacher at the facility had instructed him to make eye contact when speaking to someone. Tobi had followed the instruction and looked the teacher in the eye. But for some reason, the teacher no longer looked Tobi in the eye. Instead, the teacher had shifted their gaze to his nose or mouth.

For some reason, making direct eye contact felt uncomfortable.

In a book from the facility, Tobi had read that cats disliked making eye contact with humans. In most cases, an unbroken gaze was seen as a sign of hostility.

However, Shiratama Ryuuko seemed to be merely observing Tobi. Was the creature known as Tobi such a rare sight? What kind of form did he possess, and in what ecosystem did he reside? That was the inquiry her gaze seemed to convey.

Ah, this person.

She was just here a moment ago.

And now, she's here again.

Was it a mere coincidence? That couldn't be completely ruled out, but it was peculiar. A curious occurrence.

Or rather, it was unsettling.

Tobi felt the urge to run. If he hadn't been sitting on the railing, he might have taken off without a second thought.

Yes, let's run.

He could run along the railing or jump down and escape. If he wanted to get away, he could do it right now. So why didn't Tobi? He didn't know himself. It was similar to what happened at the gate. Looking at Shiratama like this, for some reason, he couldn't divert his gaze.

"Um."

At the exact moment Tobi uttered those words, Shiratama called out his name, "Otogiri-kun."

"Yeah," Tobi nodded instinctively.

"...Huh? What?"

"Do you know me?"

Shiratama continued to gaze at Tobi as she asked. She hadn't blinked the entire time. Didn't her eyes feel dry? Tobi suddenly felt curious about that.

"I... I do know. You're Shiratama-san, right? We're in the same class. Shiratama Ryuuko."

"So you do know. About me."

Finally, Shiratama blinked, two, three times.

Then, she lifted her chin slightly and narrowed her eyes, a faint smile forming at the corners of her lips.

"That's great. I was afraid you wouldn't have any interest in other people."

"...Well, I generally don't."

"You don't?"

Now she widened her eyes and pressed her lips together. As her expression shifted, Shiratama transformed into a different Shiratama. Yet, she was still herself.

"Then why did you know about me?"

"Well... your name is a bit unusual."

"It's a combination of Shiratama and Ryuuko, so I've heard that before. But Otogiri-kun should be just as, if not more, rare than me."

"Is... that so. Well—"

"Tobii."

Baku chuckled with a "hehe."

"Speaking of rare, you having a conversation with a friend from school is quite a rare sight, isn't it?"

She's not my friend. Tobi was about to retort, but Baku had intentionally used that term to provoke him. Furthermore, he couldn't shout at a backpack to be quiet in front of Shiratama.

"It's true that my name isn't very common either—"

Suddenly, Tobi noticed something odd.

Shiratama wasn't looking directly at Tobi. Even though her gaze was directed towards him, it wasn't focused on him. What was Shiratama looking at?

It was the backpack slung over Tobi's left shoulder. Shiratama was staring at Baku.

"...What's wrong, Tobi?" Baku sounded suspicious.

Without replying, Tobi adjusted Baku and held him close to his body.

"It's not... a common... name... Eh? What...? Is something... wrong...?"

Shiratama didn't answer and continued to stare at Baku.

"What—"

Baku was also starting to feel flustered.

"What—what's happening? It can't be, she can see m..."

"You know,"

Shiratama interrupted. She seemed to be fixated on Baku, not taking her eyes off him.

"I wanted to talk to you, Otogiri-kun. That's why I waited for you."

"...Waited."

For a moment, Tobi was unsure of what she meant. But as he recollected, he understood.

"Oh... you mean just now, at the school gate?"

"Yes."

Shiratama nodded without looking at Tobi.

"However, you angered Haizaki-san and ran away, so I followed you."

"...Haizaki-san?"

"The janitor from our school."

"So that person has that name, Haizaki..."

"Haizaki-san always greets everyone and engages in friendly small talk. He's a very amiable person."

"Huh..."

To Tobi, it didn't really matter. The janitor's name or personality had nothing to do with him.

Instead, why had Shiratama been waiting for him? Why did she bother to follow him? What did she want to talk about? And why was she still staring at Baku? That was what Tobi was intensely curious about.

"So... Shiratama-san. Do you... need something from me?"

"If I didn't need something from you, I wouldn't have waited for you or followed you all the way here."

Shiratama finally looked at Tobi instead of Baku and smiled.

Tobi turned his face downward. He couldn't help but look down. There was nothing particularly noteworthy below. He stole a quick glance upward at Shiratama.

"Um. About that..."

Shiratama raised her right hand and pointed.

"...the backpack."

"...Eh—Baku?"

"Ba-ku,"

Shiratama said, tilting her head.

"Bakku? Baku? It's a bag, so B-A-G. Technically, 'bag'?"

"Ah... um, my... English isn't that..."

Tobi had started calling Baku "Baku" because Baku referred to himself as a backpack.

It had been quite some time ago, and Tobi didn't recall the exact conversation. But he was certain he had asked, "What are you?" and Baku had replied, "I'm a backpack." Or perhaps it had been "I'm backpack-sama." Regardless, "backpack" was long and somewhat difficult to say, so Tobi had abbreviated it to "Baku."

"My Baku, no—I mean, my backpack... a bag, huh. Um, so, my back... I mean, Baku... um, my bag, what about it?"

"Otogiri-kun, you often converse with that bag, don't you?"

"With my bag..."

Tobi almost lost his balance on the railing.

"W-with my bag? Me? Talk. Huh? W-why? I don't... talk to it, though..."

"Is Otogiri-kun skilled at ventriloquism?"

Shiratama asked matter-of-factly, posing an odd question.

"Ventriloquism..."

Tobi attempted to perform ventriloquism. Wait. It's pointless. I mean, this is strange. Trying ventriloquism when I've never done it before. I can't do it anyway. No need to attempt it here.

"I don't have any experience with ventriloquism or anything like that."

"In that case, whose voice is it that often speaks to you and doesn't belong to Otogiri-kun?"

"Hey, Tobii..."

Baku whispered in a low voice.

"It seems my voice has been heard. She found us out."

"That voice..."

Shiratama nodded.

"That's correct. I've discovered you."

Seriously?

Tobi couldn't help but think about that.

"...Are you serious?"

He uttered the words unconsciously.

Shiratama puffed out her chest, and a broad smile adorned her finely shaped face, as if adorning it with colorful flowers.

"Yes, I am serious."