Gyroaxia L★R Rock Battle After Story

 

Gyroaxia made their way to a Japanese inn after being invited by the management of the L★R Rock Battle. Although there was no coordination among the members, they all took some time to relax, whether it be with food, entertainment or enjoying the hot springs.

“I’m glad Nyankotaro could come too,” Ryo said as he sat himself down with Nyankotaro in his arms, his outstretched legs hitting Reon in the process. Reon seemed as if he’d lose his balance but he managed to keep his footing.

“Ryo-san! You’re too tall to be lounging around like that. You’re making it hard to walk around!”

“Huh? But Nyankotaro is lounging around too?”

“Cats and humans are different!”

“It’s fun going on trips with everyone, isn’t it, Nyankotaro?”

“Listen to me! Hah…man, I can’t believe this guy.”

“Hey now, Reon-kun. Calm down. We rarely get to rest like this and you’re just gonna tucker yourself out by getting angry,” Miyuki said as he placed a hand on Reon’s shoulder, only to be shaken off immediately.

“...If I’ve got time to rest then I’d rather be practising.”

“Haha, you’re so serious, Reon-kun.”

“It’s none of your business.”

Reon was feeling tense but his mood completely turned around when Kenta returned to the room with a laptop in hand. 

　

“Ah, Kenta-san! Are you all done with that meeting?”

“Yes. We’ll be going on another tour once we’ve finished with our break. I’m trying to sort out as many details as I can right now.”

“...Even during a break, Kenta-sensei is still as busy as ever.”

Kenta ignored Miyuki’s remark and handed the duo a flyer.

“Miyuki, Reon, why don’t you head over to the hot spring district if you’ve got some time to spare?”

“Is this a flyer for an event?”

“Yes, the inn staff gave it to me earlier. There’s going to be lots of stalls and I hear it’s pretty crowded.”

“You’re not going to go, Kenta-san?”

“I have some emails I need to respond to so I’ll be skipping out this time. Nayuta, could I talk to you?” 

Instead of replying, Nayuta only stared at Kenta.

“The date and venue for our next live has already been decided. This is going to be a pretty long tour so I suggest that you use this break to rest your throat as much as possible.”

“Don’t tell me what to do.”

“What’s your problem…!?”

“Okay okay, calm down, Reon-kun. No fighting during our trip, okay? Onii-chan will buy you something from one of the stalls so turn that frown upside down,” Miyuki said, hurriedly moving to stop Reon who seemed like he was about to grab at Nayuta. Although he heard Miyuki, Reon still shot Nayuta an unpleastant glare nonetheless.

“Uhh…alright then, me and Reon-kun will go check out that event. Ryo-chin, are you coming too?”

“I think I will. Kenken, I’ll bring you back a present.”

“Alright then.”

Miyuki and Reon left the room with Ryo in tow. Once they were out of sight, Kenta turned his attention towards his laptop. After a while of sitting in silence, Nayuta slowly rose from his seat.

“Nayuta? Are you going out somewhere?”

Nayuta slammed the door shut without an answer

 

---

 

Ren begrudgingly shoved down the desire to sing as he walked throughout the hot spring district. It seemed they were holding some kind of event. The delightful music that drifted through the streets of the district only fueled Ren’s itch to sing even more.

“I can’t sing…I can’t sing…I promised Wataru I wouldn’t. I need to rest my throat during our trip so no singing.”

This wasn’t the first time Ren had been banned from singing but that didn’t make it any easier. This time around, he had devoted himself to doing somersaults in their room to help fight back the urge to sing. However, Yuto couldn’t bear to watch and suggested that he go outside to distract himself and get some fresh air.

“It’s not much of a distraction when I can hear such happy music…”

It probably wasn’t a good idea to look at the ground while he walked since the moment he lifted his gaze he bumped into someone. Ren held his forehead as he rushed to apologise before releasing he had collided with a familiar face.

“Huh…Nayuta-kun!?”

　

Before Ren stood Asahi Nayuta, the vocalist of Gyroaxia. Ren recalled that the members of Gyro were staying at the same inn as them and called out to Nayuta with a smile. However, unlike Ren who was meeting his gaze, Nayuta immediately furrowed his brows and clicked his tongue.

“Nayuta-kun, what a coincidence! What’re you doing here?”

Nayuta didn’t respond. Happy to have crossed paths with him, Ren followed after Nayuta and struck up a conversation.

“I’m just out on a walk. To be honest, I’d rather be singing in one of the inn’s karaoke booths but Wataru said I’m not allowed to sing during our trip…”

“......”

“I know it’s so that I can rest my throat but it’s pretty annoying trying to fight the urge…”

“......”

“That reminds me, Nayuta-kun! Have you been to hot springs? Me and the other members of Argonavis went to the baths—”

“Oi.”

“Yeah? What’s up?”

Nayuta stopped in his tracks and looked over his shoulder with a heavy sigh.

“Quit following me.”

“Huh? Oh, sorry!”

Watching Nayuta continue walking with his back turned to him reminded him of the LR Rock Battle in a way. Fantome’s music, Furai’s music, Epsi’s music…and Gyro’s music. It was a special place where the unique characteristics of every band’s sounds came together as one. The exhilaration he felt there wasn’t something you could forget so easily. Not to Ren, at least.

“...Hey, Nayuta-kun. I had a lot of fun at LRBattle. I didn't think I’d get the chance to sing with everyone again like that but I’m glad I did. Gyro, Furai, Epsi, Fantome…everyone put on such an incredible live…they all really left an impression on me. Of course, you did too, Nayuta-kun. I want to sing on the same stage as everyone again someday.”

Upon hearing Ren’s words, Nayuta clicked his tongue for what felt like the 100th time that night.

“What’re you talking about?”

“Huh?”

“Singing on the same stage? I have no interest in something like that. How many times do I have to say it? I have my sights set on the world and I’ll crush anyone who stands in my way. That’s all.”

“Nayuta-kun…”

“If you don’t have the will to fight then move. You’re just getting in the way.”

“...I won’t move.”

“Huh?”

“Your ‘fighting’ and my ‘fighting’ are two different things. I’m sure Futa-kun, Shu-kun and Felix-san all have different definitions of what ‘fighting’ means to them too. It’s a good thing, if you ask me. We’re all different which is what makes every band's music amazing.”

“What the hell are you saying?”

“When I stood on stage with everyone and sang, I finally realised what ‘fighting’ is to me. That’s why I’ll keep on singing. So that I can fight. So that I can sing with all my strength.”

“...Suit yourself.”

Nayuta wanted to utter, “This has nothing to do with me,” but stopped short. For some reason Ren wasn’t meeting Nayuta’s gaze, but rather was looking behind him. Nayuta furrowed his brows and called out to him with an oi. 

“Nayuta-kun, look! There’s a stage over there! It looks like they’re using it for the event!” Ren exclaimed with the innocence of a little kid.

“...Ah?”

The moment Ren saw the stage, he knew that it was too late to stop the desire to sing that he had locked away. His “Singing Ban '' completely vanished from his mind as grabbed Nayuta’s arm in excitement.

“Nayuta-kun! Let’s sing together!”

“Oi…!

.

 

---

 

Meanwhile, Wataru had decided to visit the event in the hot spring district. With an ice cream in hand, he wandered around and looked at the stalls, accompanied by cheerful music and the smell of grilled corn, cotton candy, yakisoba and the faint scent of the hot springs. Feeling in the holiday spirit, Wataru decided to buy something for Yuto and Ren, who had chosen to stay in their room.

“...There’s so many people. I’ve lost sight of Kikyo and Banri-kun.” The moment he mumbled that to himself he bumped shoulders with a stranger, causing him to stumble. Thankfully, he’d been able to avoid taking a huge fall in front of such a large crowd, however he hadn’t been able to avoid smearing ice cream on his clothes.

“Ugh…this is the worst.”

His happy mood had been ruined within an instant and he stood dumbfounded for a moment before someone he recognised popped into view before him.

“Huh? Matoba?” Kohei called out to him. 

“...Kohei-san?”

Taking a look at his clothes and the ice cream in his hand, he instantly seemed to know what had happened. He offered him a sympathetic smile before he reached into his right pocket and rummaged around for something. Eventually he pulled out a handkerchief with the words “big catch” written on it.

“Where are my pocket tissues…? Ah, that’s right, I gave them to Futa earlier. Sorry Matoba, but we’ll have to make do with this.”

“Huh, are you sure? Won’t it get dirty!?”

“It’s fine, handkerchiefs are meant to get dirty.”

“But…”

“Stay still for a moment.”

Kohei gently wiped off the ice cream from Wataru’s clothes in a practised manner before pulling a candy out of his left pocket and placing it in the other man’s hand.

“Huh? Huh!?”

He was treating him like he was a child. Kohei was shocked by Wataru’s baffled expression.

“...Sorry. It’s a habit of mine.”

“A…habit?”

“Yeah, I didn’t mean to do that. Sorry if I weirded you out.”

“No, not at all! Thank you,” Wataru said, offering him a smile after noticing his troubled expression. At his core he was a gentle and kind person. For some reason, he felt relaxed when they were together so he knew he could trust him. It was like he was the perfect image of an older brother.

“Kohei-san, you’re a lot like a big brother, y’know.”

“Really?”

“I’m guessing you’re used to looking after people…?”

“Futa, Aoi, Yamato, Misaki…there’s quite a few of us who drop food, spill drinks, cry, fight and get into trouble.”

“R-Really…? That sounds tough.”

“Sometimes I wonder if they’re actually elementary school kids. I mean, can you believe it? They’re really university students, despite how they may seem…”

“Ah–....”

Wataru thought about the energetic members of Furai and offered up a small reply that neither agreed or disagreed with him. There was no question that being around them led to a lot of moments when you just wanted to hang your head in your hands.

“You’re way more pulled together in comparison to those guys. Just what you’d expect from Satozuka’s little brother.”

　

Hearing the words ‘Satozuka’s little brother’ instinctively made Wataru frown. Noticing the grimace clouding Wataru’s expression, Kohei slapped his hand across his mouth as if to say “oops.”

“Ah…sorry. Could it be that you don’t get along too well with Satozuka?”

“...It’s hard to explain. We’re not really on good or bad terms. If I had an older brother like you I’m sure we’d get along though.”

“You think so?”

“Yeah. You’re kind and someone I can rely on.”

“Satozuka seems reliable to me? I can’t say whether or not he’s kind though.”

“I’m not sure…wh– hey!”

Kohei stroked Wataru’s hair, noticing how gloomy he was.

“Well, all brothers are different, aren’t they? Try not to overthink it, alright?”

Wataru felt an indescribable feeling thinking about how long it had been since he’d last had his head pat. He felt embarrassed yet happy at the same time.

“Speaking of…isn’t that Satozuka?”

“Huh?”

The person Kohei was pointing at certainly was the man in question. After spotting the duo, Kenta leisurely made his way over to them.

“Alright then, I should be meeting back up with Futa and the others. I’m a little worried that they’ve gotten themselves into trouble.”

“Um, Kohei-san. Thank you.”

“No problem, see ya.”

With a quick hello to Kenta, Kohei disappeared into the crowd of people.

“Hayasaka and Wataru…what an unusual duo.”

“We just happened to run into each other. He helped me out with some stuff”

“Really?”

“Nii-san, what’re you doing here?”

“I finished up with my work and thought I’d come by to relax…we’re going on tour once this trip is over so this is my only chance to have a break.”

“You’re as busy as ever, I see.”

“Not really.”

Wataru stared at the side of Kenta’s face. He bore the same expression as usual and couldn’t tell what he was thinking in the slightest.

“...What did you think of the LR Battle?”

“It was incredibly interesting. All the bands have come so far.”

“Right.”

“However, they’re no match for Gyroaxia.”

“...I thought you’d say that.”

“How are Nanahoshi-kun and the others doing?”

“I told Ren to try and rest his throat during this trip.”

“I see.”

“I feel kinda bad watching him trying to hold back from singing though…”

Just as Wataru said that, loud cheers erupted from the direction of the event stage as the sound of two familiar voices reached their ears

“Is that…?”

“…Nayuta and Nanahoshi-kun.”

“Sigh…I told him he was banned from singing.”

“I told Nayuta to try and rest his throat too…it seems that all vocalists are the same.”

“I guess it’s useless now.”

“Aren’t you going to stop him?”

“I should be asking you the same question.”

“There’s nothing I can do to stop Nayuta.”

“Same here. Once Ren starts singing there’s no stopping him.”

The event stage drowned in enthusiasm as everyone’s excitement grew more and more. Despite their dismay, Wataru and Kenta stayed until the song ended and until the echoes of their encore resounded, all the while listening intently to the singing of their respective vocalists.