[【Off Collaboration】I’ve heard that a takoyaki party is the best way to get close! #KainohIzumi#KogaSuzuha#TsurusakiTsukasa#KaguyaAoba#StarsFlow]
“Well, it turned out pretty well.”
The finished takoyaki looked decent, just as Tsurusaki said. There weren’t any burst parts, and the signature smell of takoyaki was strong enough to whet my appetite given that I’d just woken up.
Of course, it didn’t compare to store-bought takoyaki, but that was to be expected since we were cooking it ourselves.
“Shall I take a picture first?”
“Oh, sure!”
Koga pulled out her phone and clicked it. After the click of the shutter, her phone displayed a mouthwatering photo of the takoyaki.
Every time this happens, I can’t help but notice that girls seem to really love taking pictures. Just look at Koga, and Tsurusaki and Kaguya are taking pictures too. Even Mom and Yuyika like to take pictures and send them to me.
I often find myself amazed by this and think, “Man, I really have a stronger masculine spirit…” Of course, Koga and the others are taking photos for the viewers of the broadcast too.
“Tada! Looks super delicious, right?”
“To be honest, I thought they’d burst 100%, so I’m relieved!”
– Looks super delicious!
– I want to be there too!
As we shared our thoughts, Koga and Tsurusaki broadcasted the photo on the screen.
Four takoyaki sitting on a plate, topped with a perfect harmony of Worcestershire sauce and mayonnaise that tempts the appetite…
…Huh?
No matter how I look at it, the takoyaki in the picture looks way more delicious than the one in front of me.
Is this the power of editing?
– Seeing it made so neatly really shows their girl power.
– It’s clear that Mei-chan didn’t touch it.
– If Mei-chan had touched it, it would have burst 100%!
– Mei-chan… her girl power is seriously low…
“Sto-stop attacking me all of a sudden…!”
Well, I did just provide the place for the takoyaki party!
“Basically… everyone has a role that suits them, okay?!”
In other words, my role is to provide a space for the takoyaki and then eat deliciously.
Most importantly, why is everyone focused on me when Kaguya hasn’t touched the takoyaki at all?!
As I thought this and looked at Kaguya…
“…”
For some reason, Kaguya was quietly hesitating, glancing between her phone and the broadcast screen.
It seemed like she wanted to say something…
But if I stepped in and she wasn’t really thinking about anything, wouldn’t that just make things awkward for no reason?
…Still, I should give it a shot.
Since we’re broadcasting on my channel… and I’m Kaguya’s senior, after all!
“Hey, K-Kaguya…”
“Aoba. Is there a problem?”
“Ah, um…”
But just then, maybe because she was closer to Kaguya, Tsurusaki asked a question first.
Yet it seemed Kaguya also caught my call, as she eyed me briefly.
I signaled that I wanted to ask the same thing as Tsurusaki, and she nodded once, then spoke up.
“Well… I was thinking about showing you a photo I took, but I figured it was better not to.”
“Hehe… I want to see it!”
Upon Tsurusaki’s enthusiasm, Kaguya hesitated but eventually handed her phone over.
– Aoba-chan is cute!
– This boss tends to play weak at these moments.
– I love this gap moe!
“Hehe… it looks really well taken to me?”
“I’m not saying I took a bad picture. There’s no way the photo I took could be weird.”
“Then, can I see it too?”
“Ah, me too…”
To our requests, Kaguya shyly revealed the photo.
There it was, a well-taken picture of takoyaki.
But it was definitely….
“…There’s absolutely no problem, right? As Tsukasa said, I think it turned out really well…”
Then Koga casually said that, and Kaguya let out a soft sound.
Of course, I lightly slapped the table.
Not so hard that it hurt—but just enough to redirect attention…
“I-I understand, Kaguya!”
“Eh?”
The three were surprised at my words.
Koga and Tsurusaki wore expressions of confusion, while Kaguya looked hopeful, as if asking, “Really?”
Don’t worry, Kaguya. I really do understand.
“K-Koga and Tsurusaki’s photos are far, far better!”
“Eh?”
Koga expressed her confusion, but Kaguya nodded her head, blushing.
And Tsurusaki, to some extent, seemed to grasp my words as she clapped her hands.
…I knew it!
Kaguya didn’t take a bad photo. It was just that Koga and Tsurusaki took theirs with such skill!
When we compare Kaguya’s take alongside theirs, there’s no way to avoid that comparison…
– What’s with that cute reason?
– They don’t match at all!
– So Aoba-chan was just another girl after all?
“Ha?! Of course, I’m a girl too! A strong yet delicate and cute girl, okay?! What have you all been thinking of me this whole time?! And don’t call me Aoba-chan! Call me Aoba-san or Boss instead!”
– Damn, you’re annoying!
– Such a middle schooler!
“Those jerks…!”
Watching Kaguya start a full-on battle with the chatroom, Koga asked me.
“Was that really the reason, Izumi?”
“Yeah…”
“Since we’re all gathered here having fun, don’t you think there’s no need to worry about it?”
…Well. People like Koga, who are so social, could never understand the feelings we feel here.
Thinking that made me feel like I’d won some kind of battle….
“Pfft…”
“Huh?”
“K-Koga, you really don’t know anything, do you? Hehe…”
“No, I really didn’t want to know any of this…”
– Our Boss is the best!
– Aoba-san is the coolest!
“Yeah! That’s exactly it!”
And thankfully, it seemed Kaguya had won her battle with the chatroom.
★
After around 30 minutes of enjoying takoyaki, the moment finally arrived.
“Everyone, shall we reveal it? Starting with Izumi.”
– Thump thump
– Is it really that nerve-racking?
“Ha…”
I took a deep breath, then pulled out what I had bought from the mart earlier and placed it on the table.
[Cocktail Shrimp]
That’s right.
We agreed that each of us would bring one ingredient that we wanted to add to the takoyaki instead of octopus.
It’s totally boring to eat plain takoyaki all the time.
And I was the first one up—proudly choosing cocktail shrimp from the store.
Cocktail shrimp takoyaki is a well-known dish that specialty shops already sell.
“Cocktail shrimp? That’s way too ordinary…”
“W-Well, ordinary is good!”
Bringing something weird would simply be wrong!
Even with my protest, Koga sighed as if she didn’t like it, and Tsurusaki just smiled, looking at me without saying anything.
And Kaguya…
“…Hmm. It really is good to have at least one ordinary option…”
Quietly, she whispered, just below the broadcast’s sound level.
Wait a minute. Having one ordinary option is good…
What’s up with these people? Did they all bring safe ingredients?
What on earth did Kaguya and the others bring for us to be saying this…?
– It’s great to have cocktail shrimp in takoyaki as a drinking snack.
– The unique texture of the shrimp surprisingly matches well.
Thankfully, my choice was met with favorable reactions in the chatroom.
Yeah. I knew I’d be fine!
“Hmm. Then it’s my turn….”
After displaying my cocktail shrimp on the broadcast, it was Koga’s turn to reveal what she had brought.
And there it was…
“Pineapple, huh?”
“Yeah. I was wondering what it would taste like if I added pineapple. I really like pineapple.”
There was pineapple, all prepared enough to fit into takoyaki.
Koga, I really think that you could pass on such options…
But I couldn’t do anything about it since it was already brought.
Right. Besides, there are pineapple pizzas, right? I can think of it in a similar way.
Who knows? It might just taste good?
For the record, I hate pineapple pizza!
– I wonder if this is really okay…
– It’s at least acceptable.
“Is it my turn now? Here’s what I brought!”
Next up was Tsurusaki.
Since Tsurusaki is somewhat of a sensible person, she’d surely bring something I could eat normally.
[Milk Chocolate]
Nope.
Thinking that way was just silly.
“Isn’t the chocolate just going to melt?”
“It’s fine. I asked Sakuya and brought chocolate that doesn’t melt easily.”
“Oh. If a maid said that, I guess it should be okay.”
No… seriously? Why are we chatting like it’s all normal here…?
Am I the only sane one here?
– I’m disappointed. You’re playing with food. I unsubscribed.
“W-Why?!”
It’s not like I did anything wrong, right?!
After all that drama, we finally reached the last one. It was Kaguya’s turn.
Kaguya raised her hand confidently before slamming her hand on the table, shouting.
“This is it!”
[HaruX]
And there sat a gummy bear with a bear cartoon drawn on it.
“Are you serious with that kiddie taste?!”
– Hahahaha!!!
– The only one who brought a good ingredient was Mei-chan. Why?!
– Clearly, there’s something wrong with all of them…
Fine. You know what? I’ve decided.
I’ll never do a Yaminabe with these people again…
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