I play the wind instrument in Hokkaido.

Page 259

The two put on their shoes at the door. Yushou ran down the stairs, while Yukawa Sakura shouted after her not to run, but she ran after him to catch up.

When they arrived at the club building, they ran right into Kitahara Hakuba.

"What's wrong? Why are you rushing? I could hear you running downstairs," Kitahara Hakuba said, frowning.

Since becoming a teacher, he has really disliked students running around in the hallways and stairwells.

"No, no." Amemori's face flushed red. "Taibahara-sensei, are you alright?"

Kitahara Hakuba was even more confused:

"What can I do?"

“We saw you surrounded by a lot of people in the music classroom.”

Sakurako Yukawa blushed, but not because she was shy about meeting Kitahara, but because he had seen her, as the club president, breaking the school rules.

“Oh… that?” Kitahara Hakuba said with a nonchalant smile. “I’m fine, go on up, the list will be announced at nine.”

Yu Shouli: "Mm."

Yukawa Sakurako: "?"

One of the girls suddenly became obedient, while the other looked bitter. They followed him upstairs.

I wonder what it will be like.

"I think it should be no different from the National Tournament, because the number of spots for the National Tournament auditions was not much different from the Hakodate Tournament."

"I hope so...:::"

.

At 9:00 a.m. sharp, the first music classroom was already full of members.

Various whispers came from the girl's mouth, while the cheerful boys seemed to have come to terms with it, hiding in a corner and playfully pushing and shoving each other.

Crack.....

The music classroom door was opened, and the members all shut their mouths and turned their heads away.

Kitahara Hakuba said somewhat strangely:

"There seems to be something wrong with this door?"

“Yes, that’s how it was yesterday,” said Sakurako Yukawa.

"Never mind, let's just make do for now."

Kara...:

Kitahara Hakuba went inside, closed the door, and strolled forward with his slippers on, his gaze sweeping over each face.

"Minister Yuchuan, is everyone here?"

“All ninety-eight club members who participated in the audition have arrived,” Yukawa Sakurako replied.

Kitahara Hakuba stood on the command platform, and the eyes of his team members were all fixed on the light green folder in his hand, where the results of this national selection were kept.

"Good morning, every body."

Kitahara Hakuba flashed his usual cheerful smile, but the members' responses were more tense than usual.

"Good morning."

Kuno Tachibana's heart pounded. She didn't know what choice Kitahara-sensei would make, but she knew that this was her last chance.

She glanced at Nagase Tsukiyo beside her. The girl's face was expressionless, except for her drooping ring finger, which was trembling slightly.

Kitahara Hakuba opened the folder and began to speak:

"This is the last audition for the department this year, so I won't keep everyone in suspense. But I still want to make one thing clear: I will not accept any objections to the results. When I was deciding the members, I did not favor anyone. Whether your name was called or not, you should all do your job well, understand?"

Everyone knows that Kitahara-sensei was giving everyone a shot in the arm.

"Yes!"

After the members responded in unison, there was a deathly silence, and everyone was on edge.

"Very good, now let's announce the list of A-level candidates. There are 55 people in A-level, and 55 qualified candidates. We'll start with the trumpet section."

Kitahara Hakuba's gaze fell on the list, and he spoke with an air of composure.

"Third grade, Yu Shou."

"Yes!"

"Third year, Nagase Tsukiyo."

"Yes!"

"Third grade, Komatsu Tamari."

Yes, yes!

"Second grade, Sunflower Junxia."

"Yes!"

"First year, Kuno Tachibana."

"Yes!"

At that moment, the trumpet section suddenly emitted a sobbing sound.

A young girl seemed unable to hold on any longer; her bones seemed to go limp, and she collapsed to the ground, covering her face and weeping bitterly.

It was Takahashi Ruka who performed at the National Tournament. She made it to both the Hakodate Regional Tournament and the National Tournament, but ultimately did not make it to the National Tournament.

Nagase Tsukiyo knelt down and hugged her to comfort her, letting the scarf on her chest get soaked with tears.

Last time, Komatsu Tamari, who played the trumpet, cried because she wasn't selected for the National Tournament, but this time she was selected.

Every trumpet player wants to be on stage.

Matsuoka Nobuyuki clenched his fist tightly, slammed it against the wall, producing a dull thud, and muttered under his breath:

"How can one cultivate one—!"

Tianhai Cang looked at him with a puzzled expression. He had been playing games all day, so why was he feeling guilty?

Small ripples spread through the music classroom. Kitahara Hakuba's expression remained unchanged as he let the rejected girl weep, continuing in a solemn tone:

"Above the trumpet part, the next is the tuba—"

"Third-year student, Yuka Isomoto."

"Yes!"

"Third-year student, Saito Harutori."

"Yes!"

"The above two are followed by the larger one—"

Kitahara Hakuma's overly casual tone left Kurosawa Maki stunned and standing there for a moment. It turned out that all these days had been her delusion.

Drawing a circle around one's own name is, upon closer reflection, impossible.

The fingers that had been tightly gripping the hem of the skirt relaxed considerably.

As Kitahara Hakuba continued to read out the names of the brass section members, trembling sounds occasionally echoed in the classroom.

The girls' throats seemed to be squeezed, and their breaths were not very clear. Some of the girls had already squatted on the ground, covered their faces, and cried loudly, disregarding their image.

For some of them, this is the last chance; if it's gone, it's gone.

However, Kitahara Hakuba remained unmoved, not even glancing at them, and continued reciting:

"Next, read the list of the woodwind section—"

The clarinet section was exactly the same as the national tournament, with Sakurako Kawakami, Miyako Nagasawa, and Yu Goto unsurprisingly selected for section A.

Because they were very familiar with the abilities of the other members in the same section, this result didn't really affect them.

Kitahara Hakuba finally looked away from the documents and towards the oboe section.

"Next, I will read out the names of the oboe and bassoon parts. Third year student, bassoon, Watanabe Hama."

"Yes!"

"Third-year student, Kanzaki Eri."

"Yes."

"Second year student, Eto Kana."

The moment Kitahara Hakuba uttered those words, many students exclaimed in surprise, their eyes widening in disbelief. Then, the classroom fell into a deathly silence.

All eyes turned to Kana Eto, who seemed quite shocked, even thinking she had misheard.

A sudden chill ran down my back.

Eri Kanzaki lowered her eyelids slightly and touched her wrist.

Kirishima Mai, standing to the side, stared blankly ahead, like a beautiful statue devoid of all senses.

“Eto-kun, give me an answer,” Kitahara Hakuba said sternly.

"...Yes, yes!" Her response sounded as if it were covered with a film of water, and her voice cracked slightly.

Neither Yukawa Sakurako nor Nagase Tsukiyo expected this selection result.

Kuno Tachibana, in particular, was completely stunned. It felt as if a wild, unrestrained chill was repeatedly assaulting her heart.

If it were any other teacher, she would have already refuted and questioned them.

But that won't do; only Kitahara-sensei is someone she can't question.

"Next up, saxophone section, third-year student, Sana Akamatsu."

"Yes!"

"Third-year student, Matsumoto Sakura."

"Yes!"

"Third-year student, Takino Mashiro."