#255
Okinawa Peace Memorial Park.
Officially known as the Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Park, this park faces the bay and is famous for its natural scenery with the scent of the sea, the sound of waves, and the vast ocean that can be seen.
In Japanese history, this place has become one of the significant end points, and the memorial stones are inscribed with numerous names.
As time goes on, memories and experiences from the past are fading in today’s world, and these memorial stones play a crucial role in conveying the tragic and sad aspects of war to high school students in their adolescence.
Upon arriving at the park, the students disembarked from the bus and gathered by class.
Starting from Class 2-1, a female guide began explaining the history and the circumstances leading up to the construction.
“This memorial stone has the names of approximately 240,000 people inscribed…”
240,000, an incredible number.
If my memory serves me right, our town has just over 100,000 residents.
That’s more than double, the number of names on this stone.
Within the park’s grounds, curved memorial stones stand in rows, dozens, even hundreds of them. Even the sight of this alone is extraordinary, but when you consider the total number, words fail.
The students listened to the guide with various expressions, but few of them seemed genuinely engrossed.
They probably ignore it as simple story from the past.
For today’s youth, the word ‘war’ has become something they can’t even imagine as it feels too far removed from their reality.
Even I, who observes the students as if I understand, am no exception.
I’ve seen this topic in documentaries and read about it in books, but being here in person makes it all the more real.
This peace memorial park, filled with the names of so many, truly brought home the importance of students like us visiting this place.
We mustn’t take living in a peaceful world for granted, and even someone as sensitive as Shizuku can’t hide her sadness upon hearing the number mentioned by the guide.
Kirasaka, too, showed no signs of her usual sharpness in her eyes.
However, the female guide didn’t dwell on dark topics and emphasized the park’s natural beauty.
At the end of the park, a fence was set up, and beyond it was a breathtaking view of the sea.
“Amazing…”
“Our town is near the mountains, so I’ve never seen such a beautiful sea in my life!”
We walked up to the fence, and upon seeing the breathtaking view, Shizuku let out her amazement.
The sunlight from the clear sky reflected on the sea surface, creating a dazzling shimmer.
While I had always imagined the sea as a deep blue, the sea in Okinawa was closer to a light blue or even emerald green.
I squinted at the water’s surface and noticed the fish swimming beneath it.
“Is that fish delicious?”
“We didn’t come here to judge fish. Can’t you say something more romantic?”
“Your eyes are as beautiful than those fish over there… I mean, they might be, but I can’t see their eyes.”
“That’s the worst compliment.”
I complimented Kirasaka with a charming line, but she looked at me half-consciously and replied in a angered tone.
Beside me, Shizuku had turned her gaze away, her shoulders trembling slightly.
“Is something wrong?”
“No, I just thought your eyes are probably quite ‘beautiful’.”
“Indeed, those fish have more beautiful eyes than whatever murky stuff you’ve got.”
“Oh, really?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
When Shizuku provocatively directed her words at Kirasaka, the latter retorted just as fiercely.
There was a brief pause, and then the two of them brought their faces incredibly close, almost touching foreheads, emitting an intense aura of displeasure as they glared at each other.
…This was certainly an unexpected turn of events.
What on earth is happening? What kind of battlefield have I stumbled into?
The other students from our class, sensing the dangerous atmosphere, quickly started moving away.
I tried to find Yuuto for assistance, but he had distanced himself a little and was gazing at me with compassion.
Has your danger detecting ability gotten better lately?
It’s really infuriating that his gaze seems to tell me ‘Do your best!’
Moreover, somewhat surprisingly, Miyashita had slyly positioned himself beside Yuuto.
She typically hovered around Yuuto but had now decided to sit there amidst the escalating tension. She must be more calculated than I thought.
“Are Kanazaki-san and Kirasaka-san always on bad terms?”
“Well, if you ask me, they usually do… but it gets exceptionally tense under certain conditions.”
“I see…”
A few meters away, Miyashita asked Yuuto.
Yuuto responded with a wry smile, and Miyashita nodded as if somewhat convinced.
Not that I wanted her to be convinced.
“At any rate, the mere fact that you met alone in the morning violates the rules for this school trip. Not to mention it’s different from the conversation I had with you earlier.”
“There’s no reason for you to be bound for an early morning walk, is there?”
“…?”
Returning my gaze from Yuuto and the others, I found that the conversation between Shizuku and Kirasaka had already shifted away from the fish swimming leisurely underwater.
When Shizuku inquired about the incident of us basking in the morning sunlight in the courtyard, Kirasaka, who seemed completely unconcerned, answered straightforwardly.
Why were the two of them fighting on this school trip, anyway?
Or rather, the root of their argument was the joke I made to Kirasaka.
Well, there was no other reason, so I’ll just stand by without interfering until they calm down.
“Since this might take a while, how about you two take a stroll in the park?”
I suggested to Yuuto and Miyashita. This had nothing to do with their feelings; it was just a waste of time for them to remain in this situation since they were in the same group.
Fully aware that my help wouldn’t be needed and might even make things worse, I made the proposal. Yuuto let out a small sigh and nodded.
“Yeah, let’s do that for a while.”
“Y-Yes!”
Fortunately, the other group led by Nakayama had been completely absorbed in taking photos of the current view, so they didn’t notice that Yuuto and Miyashita were about to leave.
The situation wasn’t to my liking, but it was working out well her.
Yuuto was behaving naturally, escorting her like a host leading his guests to the entrance.
I watched them leave with a smile, thinking he was quite skilled at handling girls. The situation was quite favorable for her.
“…”
“…”
When I turned my attention back to Shizuku and Kirasaka, who were now looking completely relaxed despite the recent tensions, instead they were looking at me calmly.
“What happened?”
“No, I should be asking, ‘What happened?’… Did you resolve everything?”
Shizuku’s inquiry was met with my own question, and Kirasaka casually responded.
“That was all just staged.”
“It’s better if we can leave them alone, right?”
It seemed that their argument had been part of their own calculations, and both their actions and my response had been within their expectations.
“Oh, I see… that’s how it is.”
It was as though they were telling me that their plan to isolate Yuuto and Miyashita on this trip was more straightforward and less risky than anything I could come up with..
BrutalBot Tl 