The watermelon, placed 500 meters away, had indeed disappeared.
In its place, a figure was walking toward us.
"What on earth are you doing!?" Izumi stormed over, furious. "Playing around with precious food like this is absolutely unforgivable! You must treat ingredients with respect!"
"True…!" Hifumi blurted, then froze, realizing the problem. "W-wait, do you even have the right to say that!?"
Indeed, from their previous encounters, Hifumi had gained some understanding of Izumi's temperament. I felt somewhat relieved.
"…Is this… a difference in values?" Azusa frowned slightly. "If your intent was to obstruct us, we wouldn't forgive that either."
"W-why has this escalated like this…?" Hifumi made a crying face.
Although Izumi had arrived with great bravado, her defeat was even more miserable to behold.
Even without Tsurugi participating, facing the combined assault of Azusa, Mashiro, and Hifumi, Izumi had no chance to resist.
Relying on her tenacious will and robust physique, she endured as the target for over a minute. Finally reaching her limit, she let out a bitter roar:
"Ugh… I won't accept this…"
Biting her lower lip, she refused to yield or plead: "Even if I fall, I will never tolerate playing around with food like this!"
The gray-haired girl gazed at us, golden eyes flashing with determination: "Remember this… one day, when you stand at a crossroads, you will…"
But before she could finish the cool line, she wobbled and collapsed.
[Like roaring lions marching everywhere, yet herbivorous. Dirt is fine too]
A new muttering appeared. I froze, staring at the gray-haired girl, face buried in the sand as she fell forward.
Could it be… mockery?
"W-what's going on," Hifumi panted, "I feel… so frustrated…"
Mashiro murmured: "Even though we clearly should have won, it doesn't feel like it… I think this student's passion for food far exceeds ours."
Hifumi awkwardly replied: "N-no, I'm not talking about that…"
Clearly, they weren't on the same wavelength.
Anyway, feeling a bit embarrassed by Izumi's words, we did our best to collect the watermelon pieces from the smashing game.
Most of the ones split by Tsurugi's bare hands were recoverable, around 70–80%. Azusa's carbine shots destroyed a bit more, though a few remnants remained.
As for the ones hit by Mashiro's anti-materiel rifle and Hifumi's tank main cannon… well.
During this, the unconscious Izumi seemed to smell the sweet scent of watermelon juice. She drooled, awakened, and naturally joined the collection effort.
Fighting starts for no reason, and enemies become friends for no reason, that's truly Kivotos.
Afterward, we all returned to the seaside café together, enjoying the delicious watermelon.
"Ah∼ munch munch∼"
Hifumi bit into her slice, smiling with eyes half-closed in delight: "This watermelon is so cold and refreshing, it's delicious!"
Mashiro nodded and agreed: "Yes. Even though it has a little sand on it, it's sweet and really good."
Holding the watermelon in her hands, clearly tasty but with some unavoidable grit affecting the texture, Hifumi felt conflicted:
"Ugh… somehow… I feel like I brought this on myself…"
"Hmm… think of it as punishment for wasting food?"
Izumi nodded emphatically, righteous indignation in her eyes: "Sensei is right!"
"Haha… so, Azusa, how do you feel?"
Azusa considered and gave her typical analytical response: "It's good for hydration. But taking in this much water at once this way is easy to overdo. How to handle the sudden diuretic effect is something that needs careful thought." (T/N: Increase in urine production.)
"Ah, ah ugh!" Hifumi shouted in panic. "D-don't talk about that! Se-sensei is still here…!"
Exactly, how could one discuss such a stimulating topic in public?
I quietly crossed my legs.
Azusa's pupils dilated, she glanced at me quickly, cheeks flushing, muttering: "…Guh, I didn't think this through…"
Seeing her react this way, Hifumi calmed down, whispering gently: "It's fine, Azusa. Now you know."
Ignoring Azusa's glance, she happily resumed eating her watermelon.
Meanwhile, Tsurugi entered a strange state of excitement:
"Wa-wa-watermelon… eat… with sensei… guh hehehe… hehe hehe…"
Clearly, her crush on me was speaking.
And Izumi continued to showcase her remarkable creativity:
"This watermelon is delicious! Whether with salt or sugar, it's great! Hmm… maybe mustard would pair well too?"
"W-what!?" Hifumi exclaimed, imagining that flavor. "Mu-mustard!?"
"Yes!"
Without hesitation, Izumi squeezed mustard onto her slice, bit into it, and her eyes lit up: "Mmm∼ delicious!"
I had long wondered how Izumi's taste buds even worked.
Seeing her eat mustard-covered watermelon with such relish, I strangely recalled that previous muttering.
If there really were a creature in this world that could calmly eat dirt, surely it would have taste perception beyond normal comprehension.
I increasingly felt that Azusa's ability, though uncontrollable and obscure, might be far more valuable than I imagined.
I should have Arona record everything as a memo.
But for now, I would just enjoy this summer afternoon by the sea, peacefully sharing delicious watermelon with these adorable girls.
Time flew, and in what seemed like a blink, everyone had eaten their fill.
"Then, let's move on to the next task on the checklist," Hifumi said. "According to the list from Hasumi-san, only two tasks remain: beach volleyball and fireworks…"
"Fireworks would be better to do at night, right?"
"Yeah." Hifumi nodded. "So, let's play beach volleyball first!"