Evening.
Todo and Hayashi shared a room.
Of course, it was a twin-bed setup—Hayashi and Todo slept separately.
The hotel? Five-star, naturally. He was flush with cash now, after all.
In the luxurious suite, Hayashi lounged on the white bed by the window, right hand scrolling through his phone, thumb flicking up and down.
"Spicy crayfish, buy two get one free—nice. I'll order twenty pounds to chow down, plus some happy fat soda. Life doesn't get better than this." Hayashi placed the order quick, just waiting for delivery.
Splash, splash, splash~
Water rushed in the bathroom. Todo Aoi was showering, humming a tune.
He lathered shampoo into his hair, scrubbing away. After a bit, one hand groped around—looking for the soap.
"Got it." Todo gripped the slippery bar, ready to scrub down.
Then—it slipped from his hand, hit the floor, and skidded out of the bathroom.
Hayashi, sprawled on the bed, caught a glimpse of a white soap bar resting quietly on the floor nearby.
Todo fumbled around on the bathroom tiles, searching blindly. After a while, he gave up, crouched low, and shuffled out into the room, hands still patting the ground.
Hayashi bolted upright, staring at the naked, slightly ridiculous Todo Aoi. "What the hell are you doing?"
"Oh, the soap slipped. Couldn't find it anywhere. Help me look—grab it if you spot it," Todo said, hands still flailing across the floor.
"Can't you rinse your head first, then wash your body? What's wrong with you?" Hayashi's mouth twitched. He wasn't thrilled about helping with this.
But Todo groping around aimlessly wasn't solving anything either. And the soap? Right behind his ass.
"It's behind your butt," Hayashi pointed out.
Todo spun around, patting the floor, and soon nabbed it. He stood up triumphantly.
Hayashi's gaze landed on a certain spot, eyebrows jumping. "Todo, you definitely need a tall, big-hipped girl. Most women wouldn't handle that."
"Huh?" Todo blinked, confused. "What's that mean?"
"Nothing. Go wash. I don't wanna go blind," Hayashi muttered, rubbing his forehead and turning back to his phone.
After Todo finished, Hayashi took his turn.
By some cosmic joke, his soap slipped too.
Hayashi wasn't buying it—this soap was cursed or something. He started groping around, but found zilch. Eventually, he shuffled out to the main room, hands on the floor.
Todo, fresh from blow-drying his hair, turned and saw Hayashi—naked, squatting, hunting for soap.
"Worthy of a best bud! Even our soap hunts sync up!" Todo praised, beaming.
"Shut it! Tell me where the damn soap is!" Hayashi was losing it. He'd just reenacted Todo's soap fiasco—unbelievable.
"No need to snap. A man needs patience. With enough patience, I'm sure they'd—"
"Tell me where it is, or I'm chucking you out the window," Hayashi growled, eyes shut tight as shampoo suds stung them.
"Behind your ass."
"Got it."
Hayashi snagged the soap and stood.
Todo eyed him. "Hm, you need a tall, big-hipped girl too. Otherwise, they won't hold up."
"Shut up!"
Hayashi stormed back to the bathroom with the soap, rushed through his shower, then marched to the window. Gripping the bar, he wound up and hurled it into the night.
The soap rocketed off like a missile, piercing the darkness, landing with a plop in a distant pond.
"Sweet relief."
"Feels good."
Todo and Hayashi sighed in unison, satisfied.
Minutes later, Hayashi dried his hair, slipped into school pants, and flopped shirtless onto the bed.
Ding-dong!
The doorbell chimed.
"Hello, this is HungryNow delivery. Your order's here—please open the door."
A woman's voice.
Hayashi hopped up, opened the door.
"Hi, here's your—" The delivery girl, maybe in her twenties, froze mid-sentence. Hayashi's bare torso—muscular, powerful—paired with his sharp, handsome face left her stunned.
"Thanks." Hayashi grabbed the hefty bag and shut the door.
"Todo, time for some good eats," he grinned, setting the load on the table. For most, lugging that weight would've been a chore.
"What's this? Smells amazing," Todo sniffed, leaping off the bed.
"Summer specialty. Can't visit China without treating you right." Hayashi unpacked box after box of crayfish. "Sit down—dig in."
"If I'm guessing right, this is lobster?" Todo gawked like it was a rare specimen. Japan had lobster, sure, but they barely ate it.
"You're a genius," Hayashi quipped, clapping his hands. He handed Todo disposable gloves, donned his own, and cracked open a box.
The five-star suite's massive table was soon buried under crayfish.
Todo sat, gloved up, and tried one. His eyes lit up.
"Not bad! People here eat this a lot?" His appetite roared to life, and he tore through them.
"Yeah, tons of folks love it. Here, don't just eat—have some cola." Hayashi popped a can and passed it over. Todo chugged it in one go.
They devoured with gusto, the table piling up with shells until it overflowed. They tossed the extras on the floor.
An hour later, the feast was done. They slumped in their chairs, burping, fully satisfied.
"Tasty, but I feel kinda off," Todo said, patting his face, puzzled.
"Same here. Never felt this before…" Hayashi paused, then remembered—this was his first crayfish in this world. Last time was a past life.
Then—
Todo's phone rang.
"Hello?" He picked up.
A woman's voice came through. After a quick chat, he hung up.
"Mai said the exchange meeting starts tomorrow. Told me not to be late," Todo said, checking the time—past 10 p.m.
"Tomorrow?" Hayashi blinked. That soon? He'd figured they had a couple days.
"Book the tickets—earliest flight," Todo said, slapping his face to shake off the weird feeling, then washing up in the bathroom.
"Got it."
Hayashi wiped his mouth with a napkin, booked a 6:30 a.m. flight to Japan, and washed his face. Felt better after.
By the time he stepped out, Todo was already snoring under the covers.
"Guy sleeps like a rock," Hayashi muttered, then activated his spacetime mirror right there. Time to harvest points, swing by Longyuan for jujutsu lessons, and head back to Tokyo tomorrow—ready to face the enemy.