Chapter 129: B - Miori, the disgrace of the Yukinaga family (2)

"What the hell is going on here?!" Sakura screams, completely panicked.

Jiro rushes to his mother and hides behind her.

"Miori attacked me just because I came home a little late! S-She punched me in the face and then threw me to the ground on purpose to injure my shoulder and stop me from playing in the high school basketball tournament final!"

Sakura’s blazing eyes snap toward Miori.

"That’s complete bullshit! A friend of mine punched him after finding out Jiro had secretly taken a nude photo of me!"

"Mom, you’re not actually going to believe this lunatic, are you?! Why the hell would I take a nude picture of my own sister? I’m not some sick pervert like she is!"

"I know, Jiro... I know, my dear," Sakura murmurs.

Then she gently strokes her son’s head.

"Unfortunately, you know as well as I do that your sister has serious psychological problems. All we can do is be patient until she finally leaves this house. She’s almost finished with university — it shouldn’t be much longer."

She says it in that overly sympathetic, pitying tone, as if she were talking about someone with a terminal illness.

"Stop calling me crazy! Stop it! Stop it! STOP IT!" Miori explodes.

She slams her fist into the wall hard enough to split her knuckles open and leave streaks of blood across the white paint.

"You are, and you’ve been that way since you were a child!" Sakura hisses. "That useless pediatrician told us to enroll you in martial arts so you could channel your anger and learn discipline, but all it did was make you even more violent! You’ve gotten to the point where you’d injure your own brother just because he came home a little later than usual — that’s completely unacceptable. Honestly, I’m afraid for myself and everyone else in this family having to live under the same roof as someone as dangerous as you."

"I already told you that bastard took a nude picture of me and showed it to his friends! What was I supposed to do, congratulate him and give him a hug?!"

"You seriously expect me to believe your brother would do something like that? Oh, please — he’s not a reckless idiot like you are! Maybe you should be asking yourself whether it’s normal to injure his shoulder when you know that in two days he’ll be playing the most important basketball game of the year and that, because of you, he could end up letting his entire team down! And let’s be honest: even if it were true that he photographed you naked and showed the picture to his friends, what’s so scandalous about that? Back in high school, half the boys in Kyoto had already seen you naked. Those disgusting rumors about you got so bad that we were forced to move because of them! Or have you conveniently forgotten what they used to call you?"

"Mom, please stop bringing that up..." Miori cuts in, her voice cracking as her legs tremble uncontrollably.

But Sakura ignores her plea.

"God, what an embarrassment... I’ll never forget all those friends of mine who came up to me and said, Did you know my son came home with your daughter last night? You can’t imagine the noises coming from his room. I heard Miori screaming like she was possessed, shouting things I’m too ashamed to even repeat. Poor Sakura. A refined, respectable woman like you shouldn’t have to endure such humiliation. Despite everything your father and I did for you, despite all our efforts to raise the perfect, flawless eldest daughter of the Yukinaga family, you’ve turned out to be a failure in every possible way. And tonight you’ve proven it once again."

At those words, Miori’s already trembling legs finally give out.

She collapses to her knees with a desperate, heart-wrenching cry beneath her mother’s icy stare and her brother’s guilty one, consumed by remorse over what Miori is suffering because of him.

"M-Mom... Miori is telling the truth... this is all my fault. She didn’t punch me in the face, and the story about the photo is true. I only lied because I was angry at her. Please... don’t say those things to her anymore..."

"My sweet little Jiro, you’re far too kind. You’re even taking the blame to cover for what Miori did to you."

"But Mom, I’m telling the truth—"

"Ssssh... that’s enough," Sakura cuts him off. "That girl who unfortunately happens to share your last name doesn’t deserve your kindness. Save it for the people who truly care about you and are doing everything they can to raise a respectable young man — one who doesn’t make me ashamed to belong to the venerable Yukinaga family."

"That girl... who unfortunately happens to share your last name..." Miori stammers, devastated. "Y-You’re my mother — how can you even think something like that about me?! What kind of mother calls her own daughter a psychopath and a whore?!"

"What kind of mother, you ask? The kind of mother cursed with a daughter like you — that’s who! Any other mother would’ve given up on you after everything you’ve put me through over the last twenty-one years, and yet I kept trying to fix you! But enough is enough. It’s obvious that someone like you needs a firm hand. From this moment on, you’ll go straight to your room and stay there until you graduate. No gym, no going out with friends, no university. I’ll hire private tutors to prepare you for your final exams. And once you graduate with top marks, your father will find you a position at one of his companies overseas... and you’ll leave this house forever. That will be your life for the next year — whether you like it or not."

"Don’t worry, Mother... you won’t have to wait that long to see me out of this house. Tonight, I’ll disappear from your life forever. I promise."

"Stop talking nonsense and go to your room!"

Miori ignores her and walks toward the front door at a slow, steady pace.

"I told you to go to your room! Don’t make me repeat myself!" Sakura shouts, stepping between her and the exit.

Once again, Miori doesn’t react.

And then... SLAP!

Sakura’s hand leaves a bright red mark across Miori’s cheek.

Yet the blow doesn’t move her an inch.

"Mom — no, Sakura — get out of my way right now, or I’ll kill you."

A shiver runs down Sakura’s spine when she sees her daughter’s eyes fixed on her.

Empty. Glassy. Completely devoid of emotion.

She has no choice but to step aside at once, watching helplessly as Miori walks out the door and crosses the vast garden surrounding the villa.

"Where do you think you’re going?! Get back here right now, Miori! And don’t think I won’t cancel all your credit cards this instant! This is your last warning, Miori! And you, Jiro — where are you going?!"

Miori stops when she hears hurried footsteps behind her.

A moment later, two arms wrap around her in a desperate embrace.

"S-Sis, please don’t go... please..." Jiro begs.

He clings to her, crying against her back.

"This is all my fault. I blamed you because I was scared Mom would get angry at me, but if you come back inside, we’ll explain everything and I’ll make her cancel that ridiculous punishment! Please... don’t leave me here alone. Without you... I can’t do this place on my own..."

Miori lowers her gaze as tears run down her cheeks.

She lets out a shaky breath, then turns around and pulls her brother into an embrace just as tight, cheek pressed against cheek as they both cry in each other’s arms.

Behind them, Sakura watches in silence.

"I’m not angry at you, little brother... but please... don’t let that woman do to you what she did to me. For me, it’s already too late. But you still have time..."

"If you really care about me, then stay!"

"I’ve made my decision, and nothing is going to change it. But you need to go back inside, or Mom will take it out on you too."

"No! I told you I don’t want to stay here without you! If you’re not coming back, then I’ll leave with you!"

"I love you, little brother... more than anything. Good luck."

And then... THUD!

A precise strike to the side of Jiro’s neck drops him instantly.

Miori catches him before he hits the ground and gently lays him down on the cold marble just as Sakura comes running toward them in a panic.

Meanwhile, Miori passes through the gate and leaves the Yukinaga estate behind.