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It was the day after their first confrontation with Endo, when Nirei accidentally caught Suo repeatedly slamming the back of his hand against the concrete bridge.
"Suo-san!"
A single panicked cry was enough to make the boy stop, his expression one of rare surprise.
"Oh, Nirei-kun--" Suo turned around, flashing his wide smile after a moment of frozen silence. "Your cheek is scraped. Did your group get into a fight?"
That day, they had patrolled as usual, but in different teams. After finishing, they had their regular training schedule, which was why the two of them were now standing by the riverbank.
"Do you still have your band-aid?" Suo asked again, completely ignoring the fact that the blood dripping from his own hand was more concerning.
Nirei quickly opened his small bag, pulling out a first-aid kit that was fairly well-stocked for basic treatment. Suo initially refused, but Nirei firmly took his hand to treat it, and sometimes the child’s intense gaze was something that couldn’t be argued with.
"Why did you do that?" Nirei asked later, while tying a thin bandage that Suo thought was overly excessive.
"Hmm... practice?"
"It doesn't look like it."
Sakura might believe any nonsense Suo spouted, just like Umemiya. Sugishita might sense the lie, but choose to remain silent. Still, Nirei wasn’t that indifferent.
“You... you are angry, aren’t you?”
Nirei could always sense it, how Suo had become more tense since last night. How Suo's smile wasn't as light as usual, how his hands were clenched tighter than they should be. Nirei knew, because he shared similar emotions and thoughts. Whatever provoked Suo to act this way was also something that had been burning in his heart since the other day.
'You're better off alone.'
Endo’s words, spoken without intent to insult, still hurt those who cared about Sakura.
"... A little."
"But don’t do something like this again!"
Suo chuckled, linking his pinky finger with Nirei’s, which had already been extended. "Alright."
Next, Nirei explained how his group had been tasked with finding a cat, and that was why he had a small scratch on his cheek, a mark from when the escaped pet was caught and struggled.
Suo then tended to Nirei's wound, before they began practicing without mentioning the remaining bandages, tape, and betadine that were neatly stored away.
Omake
"Why are you spacing out like that?" Sakura scolded the next day, when he saw Nirei staring blankly at his warm sandwich.
"Just... I was thinking about something unimportant," Nirei replied, laughing awkwardly. "Suo-san was really angry because that person spoke carelessly about you. I don't remember ever seeing him that angry before."
Sakura scratched his head.
"Really...? But, he was once angrier than that night."
Nirei furrowed her brow. "Huh, when?"
Sakura wore a complicated expression. He suddenly remembered that Nirei had been unconscious when Suo had beaten the enemy who had knocked him down without stopping.
Omake 2
"Suo-san...?! How did your hand heal so quickly?!" Nirei was amazed when the boy appeared with his bandage removed, and the bruise was almost gone.
"I have a miraculous wound ointment sent by my teacher~"