Immediately after finishing his high school entrance examination, Kenji refused to take a break for once. He rushed home, grabbed his belongings, bid farewell to his parents, and hurried to the nearest train station.
Typically, the journey from Wakayama to Tokyo took about five hours, but on this special occasion, he opted for the bullet train.
As the train sped along its tracks, Kenji calmly sat by the window, his mind preoccupied with a single thought.
"Hey, Kaoru… If you were still alive, which school would you attend?" he whispered.
While his primary reason for visiting Tokyo was to pay tribute to Kaoru on the 10th anniversary of his passing, Kenji didn't head straight to the cemetery park. Instead, he first rang the bell at his uncle's house, leaving his belongings there as he planned to stay overnight before visiting Kaoru's grave the next morning.
And so, the morning in question arrived.
"How was your entrance exam, Kenji-kun?" his uncle's wife asked, placing a bowl of white rice on the table as she sat down.
"It went well," Kenji replied.
"That's good to hear. I hope you get accepted."
"You've always been a brilliant kid. I have no doubt," his uncle chimed in with a proud smile on his face. "Have you thought about which university you want to attend after that?"
"It's too early for that, honey. Kenji-kun hasn't even experienced high school yet."
"It doesn't hurt to plan, right?"
Kenji chuckled and nodded lightly. "Well, there are a few on my list. They have different majors, but they're all in Tokyo."
"Does that mean you're considering moving here?"
"Um."
Shortly after breakfast, Kenji left his uncle's house to buy items for the offering at the cemetery. Then, he headed to the nearest bus stop and took a route that would drop him off just a short distance from the cemetery park.
As soon as he filled a wooden tub with water from a nearby tap, he entered the cemetery park.
Kenji was walking along the stone path inside the park when he noticed a boy picking up a mini 4WD toy from the ground in front of Kaoru's grave. The boy happily passed by him, and although Kenji initially thought nothing of the encounter, he soon realised he was mistaken.
"That…?"
Despite it being a solitary tombstone, Kaoru's grave was well-maintained, adorned with fresh flowers in the vase and recently lit incense sticks.
Without a moment's hesitation or even a word, Kenji swiftly turned around. From his vantage point, he saw the boy leaving the cemetery park with a friend at the entrance gate.
Kenji wanted to call out to the boy, hoping to see if there were any resemblances to Kaoru. He even opened his mouth to speak, but his voice failed to escape.
And until the boy vanished from sight, Kenji remained silent, unable to utter a single word.