Chapter 359: Drunken Girls
"Never tried shark meat before, quite intriguing, but it tastes similar to chicken."
"Chicken flavor, crispy."
"Haha, protein content is six times higher than beef."
"..."
Enjoying the delicious food, the girls were in high spirits and couldn't help but chat about some fun topics.
Shizuka even brought out some beer and distributed it to everyone present.
"How can we enjoy barbecue without beer? Come on, everyone, help yourselves."
Seeing Shizuka offering beer to the students, Mafuyu frowned.
"Hiratsuka-senpai, isn't this inappropriate? They're still kids; they shouldn't be drinking alcohol."
Upon hearing this, Shizuka smiled.
"Oh, come on, Kirisu-sensei, lighten up a bit. We're not at school, and besides, they've had beer before."
"And it's just beer, they won't get drunk. Here, have one too."
With that, Shizuka handed a can of beer to Mafuyu.
Looking at the beer can in her hand, Mafuyu was momentarily stunned, then suddenly realized, staring blankly at the girls around her who were already drinking beer with expertise.
Wait a minute... they don't seem like delinquents, and their grades in class are all above average. But why do they seem so adept at drinking?
"Do you guys drink often?" Mafuyu asked quietly.
"Well, don't worry, Kirisu-sensei, we don't really drink much. We just had beer once when we came to the beach last time," Hachiman, who was grilling meat nearby, chuckled and replied.
"But Erina and her friends, being chefs, do have regular exposure to alcohol."
Hearing this, Mafuyu breathed a sigh of relief.
After all, as a teacher, she naturally didn't want her students to turn into troublemakers.
But last time they came to the beach, there were so many girls and Hachiman-kun here together?
Thinking of this, Mafuyu couldn't help but feel a bit curious.
But she didn't dwell on it too much. Instead, she looked at the can of beer in her hand.
Beer... she had never had it before. No, she had never drunk any alcohol at all.
The opportunity was rare. Should she give it a try?
Mafuyu couldn't help but feel a bit tempted.
Seeing her looking eager to try, Hachiman smiled.
"Kirisu-sensei, why don't you give it a try? Beer and barbecue do go quite well together, but if you can't handle alcohol, it's okay."
Upon hearing Hachiman suggesting that she couldn't handle alcohol, Mafuyu, feeling a bit embarrassed, retorted.
"Ridiculous!"
"Don't underestimate me. I'm your teacher, already an adult. How could I not handle alcohol?"
As if to prove her point, she directly popped open the beer can tab and took a big gulp of beer.
"See, I can handle it!"
Watching her in this state, Hachiman shook his head, suddenly finding his teacher quite adorable.
Thinking this to himself, he handed over the second batch of meat he had grilled: "Here, please help yourselves. The second batch is ready."
Taking the meat, Mafuyu thanked him with a slightly flushed face. "Th-thank you, Hachiman-kun."
But she didn't hog it all for herself; instead, she shared the meat with everyone.
And so, the meat grilled by Hachiman was enjoyed by all.
As the girls ate the grilled meat bite by bite, the beer in their hands gradually diminished.
"Indeed, grilled meat is perfect with beer."
"Yes, yes, Hiratsuka-sensei is right."
"Although it's still a bit bitter, well, I don't mind it."
"Haha, don't worry too much about the details, chug chug chug..."
The barbecue party was in full swing, with batches of meat coming off the grill and the beer flowing more and more. The girls, after arriving, also got into the spirit of the occasion, disregarding any rules about only being allowed one can of beer.
At this point, Hachiman also set aside the grill and officially took a seat.
Seeing the host arrive, the girls surrounded him.
"Thanks for your hard work, Hachiman-kun," Kotonoha handed him a towel.
Although he wasn't sweating, Hachiman still took the towel and wiped his forehead.
"Thank you, Kotonoha."
Handing the towel back to the girl, Hachiman thanked her with a smile.
"Here, Onii-chan, here are your chopsticks," Komachi also handed him a pair of chopsticks.
Hachiman accepted them with a smile. "Thank you, Komachi."
Just as he picked up the chopsticks, another girl approached with a plate of grilled meat.
"Here, have some grilled meat."
Not only that, but another girl opened a can of beer and handed it to him as well.
"Here's your beer."
Watching the girls, Hachiman felt a bit overwhelmed for a moment.
"Why do I feel like I've turned into an ancient landlord, having others wait on me even for a meal?"
"No need to be so formal, join us for the meal too."
Accepting the beer, picking up a piece of grilled meat, Hachiman also called out to everyone.
Seeing him like this, the girls glanced at each other and raised their beers.
"Come on, Hachiman, let's have a drink."
"Yes, let's toast together."
"I'll be upset if you don't drink."
"..."
Watching them seemingly planning to pull off the same trick again, Hachiman shook his head helplessly.
Did they forget what happened last time? None of them managed to get me drunk, so they think they can do it this time?
Naive.
Well, let me show you with facts that this won't work at all.
With that in mind, Hachiman raised his beer.
"Cheers!"
Everyone raised their glasses in unison.
As the atmosphere became more and more lively, they drank more and more.
"B-bastard, we'll... keep going."
"You annoying... your drinking... is unexpectedly good."
"I... I told you this wouldn't work. We failed last time, but you didn't listen."
"..."
As expected, several of the girls, led by Yumiko, now looked quite tipsy.
But what caught Hachiman's attention was that even Yukino seemed to have had quite a bit to drink, her cheeks flushed.
Sensing his gaze, Yukino couldn't help but give him a glare.
"What are you looking at?"
At this moment, Yukino's eyes lacked their usual coldness and instead seemed a bit hazy, giving her a kind of charm that Hachiman had never seen before.
Just as Hachiman was about to say something, he suddenly felt a hand patting his head.
Looking up, he saw Mafuyu with flushed cheeks, squinting her eyes as she continued to pat his head while offering words of encouragement.
"Hachiman-kun, you're really amazing to cook so much."
Before Hachiman could respond, Mafuyu's next words of praise came out.
"Hachiman-kun, it's really amazing that you're so proficient in kendo."
"Hachiman-kun, it's really amazing that you have so many girls accompanying you."
"Hachiman-kun, it's really amazing that you've managed to live until now."
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