Volume 3 Chapter 37 Sports Meet (Pre-K) ②
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
While enduring the pain, I wash my hands and pat them dry. The nurse gently coaxes the torn flap of skin back into place before applying a thin layer of Vaseline. She follows up with one of those bandages rumored to help wounds heal without scarring, then wraps my hand securely in spiraling layers of gauze to keep it from peeling off. Aside from that hellish period immediately after my birth, this might be the sharpest pain I’ve felt in this life. Looking at the state of the raw skin, I feel nothing but despair. How am I even supposed to handle taking a bath?
”How about this?” the nurse asked.
”I’m okay,” I replied.
”And this?”
”Nothing in particular…”
I thought the treatment was over, but the nurse began lightly prodding my arm. Apparently, she suspected I might have broken a bone. My mind had been so consumed with Suu-chan at the moment of the fall that I honestly don’t remember how I hit the ground. Given how much skin I left behind on the dirt, I can only assume I put a massive amount of weight on my right hand when I went down.
”How exactly did I fall?” I asked.
”You took a flying leap, landed hands-first, and went straight into a somersault,” Mitsuhisa replied.
Mitsuhisa-san had come by to check on Suu-chan and drop off a fresh set of gym clothes for me. He reenacted the scene with gestures, but I couldn’t imagine myself actually pulling off a move like that. I would have to check the video later. As for Suu-chan, her treatment was already finished. She had bandages on both knees and had changed into her spare clothes. Since she had fallen skillfully, it seemed she escaped with nothing but scrapes.
”Maa-kun,” Suu-chan whispered.
”I’m okay,” I said.
Her eyes were still rimmed with red. This was a far cry from the fun day we had envisioned, and she was completely dejected. Using my uninjured left hand, I stroked her head as she clings to me, refusing to let go. When Mitsuhisa tried to pick her up to comfort her, the look she gave him as she turned him down sent a chill down my spine. Even the teacher could only manage a strained, wry laugh.
”He doesn’t seem to be in much pain, so I don’t think anything is broken,” the nurse said. “He was quite clever with how he broke his fall.”
”Oh, thank goodness,” Mother breathed.
In kindergarten, seeing a kid with their arm in a sling is a daily occurrence, so it isn’t exactly a rare sight. Still, casts are inconvenient and look itchy, so I was relieved we avoided that. The teacher suggested a hospital visit later just to be safe. She also mentioned I should consider sitting out the afternoon events, but I wanted to do the race with Mother. More than that, I had to show Suu-chan that I was perfectly fine. Personally, I thought I was good to go as long as I could ignore the throbbing in my palm. If it turned out there actually is a problem… well, I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it.
”See, Suu-chan? I’m fine,” I said, giving my right arm a little wave to prove my point. (Ow…) The blood rushed to my palm and the pain spikes. I really should have skipped the theatrics.
With the medical drama over, Mother and Mitsuhisa headed back to the spectator stands. We waited near the first-aid tent, watching from the sidelines as the rest of the Small Class finishes their heats. By the time they start clearing the field, Suu-chan had calmed down, and we rejoined the Rose Class.¹
”Suzuki, Makoto, are you guys okay?” Jun asked, looking genuinely worried. We actually won the race, but the mood was too heavy to celebrate. It wasn’t anyone’s fault, but I felt a bit guilty for ruining the vibe. “I’m fine. Look, Suu-chan and I aren’t going to lose next time either, so you’d better be happy for now. It’s only for today, anyway,” I said.
”O-oh! Yeah! We won’t lose next time either!” Jun shouted.
In moments like this, I was glad Jun was such a straightforward kid. I just wished he would think a little before he acted.
”Suu-chan, are you okay?” Shiho-chan asked, leaning in. “You almost beat Jun!”
”Mm, I’m okay,” Suu-chan replied.
Shiho-chan was a good friend, trying her best to cheer her up. I had really been blessed with good people. After fending off the rest of my classmates who kept trying to peer under my bandages, we watched the footraces for the middle and older kids. Unlike our class, theirs were obstacle courses—crawling under nets, vaulting boxes, balance beams, and even climbing walls made of old tatami² mats. I had seen them practicing and thought it looked fun. If it were a race like that, I might actually have a winning shot. Jun and the other kids who loved a good chase were losing their minds with excitement, standing up and screaming their lungs out. I wished they would chill out just a little.
Next up was the dance performance—one of the crown jewels of the Hinomori Kindergarten Sports Day. Clutching pom-poms made of shredded plastic tape, the entire grade danced to a routine they had practiced a thousand times to a familiar cartoon mouse’s march. Ever since summer break ended, almost every outdoor PE class had been dedicated to this. The teachers clearly had their hands full trying to keep a bunch of restless toddlers interested in choreography when all they wanted to do was run wild.
”Suu-chan, let’s cheer for Mio-san with our dancing, okay?” I suggested.
”Mm!” Suu-chan nodded.
I had been worried about her, but those words seemed to do the trick. She started dancing adorably. I couldn’t wait to see the footage Mitsuhisa took. The middle kids’ performance was even more lavish, adding flags into the mix. Finally, the oldest kids came out for the fife and drum corps. This was the “famous attraction” everyone talks about. You can’t scoff at it just because they are preschoolers; nearly sixty kids played and marched in perfect sync to a hit song by a famous girl group. It was actually quite a spectacle. Suu-chan watched with her mouth half-open, mesmerized by the older kids.
”The big kids are amazing, aren’t they, Suu-chan?” I asked.
”Mm, amazing… Hmph!” Suu-chan huffed.
Seeing her get fired up made me break into a smile. A grin definitely suited her better. And so, the morning session of the Sports Day came to a close—all to the soundtrack of growling stomachs echoing from every corner of the field.
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Summary:
Makoto receives first aid for his hand injury sustained during the footrace. Despite the intense pain, he maintains a brave front to comfort a distraught Suzuki. The morning session concludes with various performances, including an impressive fife and drum corps display by the older children.
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Trivia:
- Makoto’s maturity stems from being a reincarnated adult, which is why he analyzes his fall so clinically.
- Suzuki’s red-rimmed eyes indicate she was crying significantly off-screen.
- The ‘Mickey Mouse March’ is a recurring staple for kindergarten performances in Japan.
- The fife and drum corps is considered a ‘prestige’ event for the graduating class
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Character Insight:
Makoto’s protective nature toward Suzuki overrides his own physical suffering, showing his self-sacrificial tendencies. Suzuki’s coldness toward Mitsuhisa reveals her singular focus and emotional reliance on Makoto.
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Behind the Scenes:
The use of wet-healing bandages (hydrocolloid) is a modern medical preference in Japan for reducing scarring.
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TL Notes:
Notes:
• Mitsuhisa – 184 cm, 71 kg, 33‑year‑old IT specialist with slick‑back hair and a deep, often scowling voice. Breadwinner of the Totsuka family, doting husband of pregnant Mio and father of Su‑chan. Reserved with Akari, family photographer using DSLR and tripod. Close to former college‑athlete Makoto, sharing playful‑sometimes‑sinister humor and gaming lag. Desk‑working salaryman, surprisingly toned, protective yet occasionally lonely as kids grow independent, now working from home.
• Makoto – Maa-kun, a 93 cm, 13 kg three-year-old boy in a neat shirt and cap with short hair and a backpack, sits in a booster seat at Hinomori’s Rose Class—he’s the reincarnated 30-year-old salaryman protagonist, now living with the Totsuka family, secretly wielding architectural expertise, social acumen, and hidden English fluency. Nicknamed by Suzuka-chan and the Rose Class’s quiet leader, he’s cool, emotionally detached, yet surprisingly athletic—his right palm recently injured, his calm demeanor cracked only during Sports Day. Narrator of the group, he mediates among children, protects Suzuka-chan, and navigates kindergarten life with adult wisdom, all while his mother calls him Maa-kun.
• Suzuki – Suu‑chan, 4, daughter of Mio and Mitsuhisa, sports a topknot, braided pigtails, sleepy sparkling eyes, pink rain boots and a tiny umbrella. Competitive yet nervous, she’s Makoto’s Jungle‑Gym queen — hugging, pouting, coordinating his things. Close friend Maa‑kun (sandbox leader, sings, chopsticks pro). In Hinomori’s Younger Class she’s shy, socially anxious, sits in a booster seat, clings to Makoto. Seaweed stuck on her tooth during an intimidation battle; she tripped in the Rose‑Class footrace, eager to excel for her pregnant mother.
• Jun – Energetic, restless boy of the Imai family, youngest of the Naughty Five, in Rose Class. Fast from mountain life, high‑appetite, ultra‑competitive, idolizes his mother while older brother warns of germs and Makoto reins him in. Heroic, physically gifted.
• Shiho – Three‑year‑old Rose‑Class girl with shoulder‑length hair in a side‑up ponytail, wearing a white kitten‑themed placemat and training chopsticks. Sleepy, she leans on Makoto’s “secret” advice and makes mud dumplings. Neighbor of the Yoshikura family, classmate and peer of Makoto, younger sister of Hina, friend of Suu‑chan and Yuma. Older sister in the senior group, quietly competes with Suu for Makoto’s attention, wishes happiness for the Tanabata deities, overcame a childhood fear of water to love swimming, and is kind and considerate of Suzuka’s feelings.
• Mio – 28‑year‑old pregnant mother of Suu‑chan, round belly, bed‑resting; wife of Mitsuhisa (164 cm, 57 kg, baby‑faced, G‑cup curves, elegant in gray). Former relay runner and badminton star turned teacher, cook, photographer who bakes strawberry shortcake and chirashi‑zushi, adores babysitting Ma‑kun, subtly pushes his marriage to Suu‑chan, avoids crowds, devotes herself to her daughter’s education, playful, theatrical, neighbor/family friend in a joint‑destiny child‑rearing unit. Suzuki’s mother, a beauty maintaining a romantic bond with her husband.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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