Synopsis

As they walked home, Kakeru and Musa encountered Fujioka Kazuma, the reigning champion. The casual greeting quickly devolved into a barrage of unkind remarks from passersby that Kakeru struggled to dismiss. Fujioka, with quiet resolve, patiently guided him through the negativity, offering a steady counterpoint. He spoke of his past with Haiji—the weight of shared burdens carried in solitude, and the response he had given to Fujioka then. Through these words, Kakeru began to glimpse the true mean