Hisoka Mikage/Quick, Quick

Flexible Guidance

Backstage Stories

Part 1Part 2

Izumi	Alright, today’s practise will go up to here.
	Let’s finish off with some stretching.
Homare	Indeed, good idea.
	Shall we split into our ballroom dance pairs then?
Tasuku	Yeah, got it.
Guy	Could you give my back a push, Yukishiro?
Azuma	Sure thing.
Tsumugi	There, and… ow, ow, ow…
Hisoka	Ah, sorry. I pushed too hard.
Tsumugi	Ah, no. I’m fine. Thank you.
	But will I be alright with such a stiff body…
	I feel like I should be softer in order to give the dance more elegance, but…
Hisoka	Don’t worry about it. You’re dancing just fine, Tsumugi.
Tsumugi	Even so, I don’t want to drag you down as your partner, Hisoka-kun.
	…Oh right. Your body’s really supple. Is there anything you do to maintain your flexibility?
Hisoka	Nothing, really. I’ve always been this way.
Tsumugi	I see…
Hisoka	But I'll see if I can figure out a way to improve your flexibility.
Tsumugi	Really? Thanks so much, Hisoka-kun!
Hisoka	I mean, we’re a pair this time. It’s important to help each other.
Tsumugi	Fufu, I’m glad.
	I'll do whatever I can to help you too.
Hisoka	(That’s what I said, but what can I do for him…)
	*Munch*… *munch*…
Kazunari	Is something on your mind, Hisohiso?
Hisoka	…Why’s that?
Kazunari	I noticed you’re chomping down on your marshmallows a bit slower than usual.
Hisoka	…Impressive.
	You have a sharp eye, Kazunari…
	…Tsumugi’s worried over how stiff his body is, so I was thinking of a method to help soften it up.
Kazunari	I see~. Tsumutsumu had a tough time during the flexibility battle Summer troupe, Tsumutsumu, and Itarun did in the past.
	You joined us back then too, right, Hisohiso!
Hisoka	That may or may not have happened…
Kazunari	Hey, in that case, why don’tcha guys hold another flexibility battle?
	I felt like I loosened up just by doing that for a bit!
	Plus, you might figure out a better way to soften your body as you go along!
Hisoka	A flexibility battle…
	Yeah, you have a point.
	I’ll give it a try. Thanks, Kazunari.
Kazunari	No problemo! I hope it works!
	Ah, since we’re both here, let’s put our heads together and come up with how the battle’s gonna go down!
Hisoka	Sure.
Izumi	All of us have gathered, Hisoka-san. Are we doing something?
Hisoka	…We’re going to hold a flexibility battle to soften up Tsumugi’s body.
Tasuku	A flexibility battle?
Tsumugi	Ah, like that one we did with Summer troupe a while back?
Hisoka	Yeah, exactly.
	The rules are simple. Each of us will compete with our flexibility, and the one who’s the most limber wins.
Guy	Mhm, I see.
Azuma	It sounds like it’ll be great exercise too.
Hisoka	Right. And we might figure out a good method to improve our flexibility as we battle.
	I got that advice from Kazunari.
Tasuku	Will it really work out that easily…?
Tsumugi	Well, I’d like to do whatever I can, so…
	Please start us off, Hisoka-kun!
Izumi	(Hisoka-san asked for advice and put a lot of thought into this for his partner Tsumugi-san.)
Homare	You’ve declared a battle—however, what are we going to do?
Hisoka	Kazunari and I came up with that too.
	There will be 3 rounds in total.
	The first round is limbo dancing.
Tsumugi	Ehh, limbo dancing?
Azuma	You said a flexibility battle, so I thought we'd be doing something like forward folds…
Tasuku	That’s way different than I imagined…
Izumi	Errm, by the way, Hisoka-san. What should I do…?
Hisoka	I want you to be the referee.
Izumi	Oh, okay.
	No problem, leave it to me!
Hisoka	I even borrowed a limbo dance set from the Manager.
	Let’s start right away.
Homare	Well then, shall I go first!
	I am quite limber, if I do say so myself.
Guy	Hm, you seem confident.
Homare	Why, of course.
Izumi	Alright, I've set the bar up over here. So please bend back and get to the other side without falling.
	Aaand, start!
Homare	Ho… muu… guh, guhh…
Tsumugi	He’s balancing really well.
Azuma	You got this, Homare.
Homare	Mumumu…!
	There!
Izumi	Ohh! He got to the other side!
Tasuku	He barely made it.
Hisoka	You’re not as soft as you said you were.
Homare	Do not compare my flexibility with yours!
Guy	Alright. Would you like to attempt it next, Tsukioka?
Tsumugi	Sure, I got it.

Tsumugi	Alright, here I go…!
Hisoka	For now, Tsumugi, you just need to be aware of bending your body, even just a little bit.
Tasuku	That’s a sound comment from Mikage.
Guy	Mikage is considering how to help in his own way.
Azuma	Fufu, how adorable.
Izumi	Okay, Tsumugi-san’s attempt: start!
Tsumugi	Hah… uh… there…
	Uhh… I think I’m at my limit already…!
	Woah, woah!
	*falls*
Tasuku	You fell way too quickly, you know?
	You didn’t even get under the bar.
Hisoka	No, Tsumugi tried his best.
Homare	Hisoka-kun, your attitude is radically different from my turn, is it not?
Izumi	Sorry to say this, Tsumugi-san, but you don’t get any points…
	Great job with the limbo dance match, everyone!
Hisoka	The second round is this.
Azuma	Is that an alarm?
Izumi	What are we going to do with that?
Hisoka	Stop the ringing alarm with your foot.
Tasuku	Stop it with your foot…?
Guy	What do you mean by that?
Hisoka	Watch me.
	First, you set up the alarm like this.
	Then you place the alarm by your feet and lay down.
	And so…
	*alarm rings*
	…
	*alarm stops*
Izumi	!
Hisoka	You stop the alarm with your foot.
	Like this.
Tasuku	Uh. “Like this”, you say…
Tsumugi	That’s… it looks like you need to be quick and agile rather than flexible.
Homare	Hisoka-kun is the only one who can accomplish such a feat.
Azuma	Hmm, I bet Guy might be able to do it though.
Guy	I think it would be hard to match Mikage’s speed…
Izumi	What should we do, Hisoka-san?
Hisoka	…There’s no point in arguing. It might not work out for a match, and I have one last idea anyways. So let’s switch gears.
	We’re changing locations. Follow me.
Tsumugi	Here…?
Hisoka	First, turn off the lights.
	*lights flick off*
Homare	My word!
Tasuku	This is what I made a while back, isn’t it?
Hisoka	Yeah. If you can make it through this space without touching the infrared lights, you win.
Homare	I had no idea.
	You built this contraption under our noses, hm?
Tasuku	Hyodo consulted with me during the Phantom Thief play, and I made this to help him prepare for his role.
Tsumugi	It’s quite authentic.
Azuma	Alright, so who wants to start us off?
Guy	I’ll go.
Hisoka	Got it.
Izumi	Okay, then Guy-san’s attempt: start!
Guy	Hmph.
	If it’s this level, then I should be able to pass through easily.
	…
Homare	Ohh…!
Tasuku	He’s getting through without a hitch.
Tsumugi	Amazing. I expected no less.
Izumi	Guy-san—goal! Challenge complete!
Guy	I’m glad I made it.
Tsumugi	Alright, I’ll give it a try next.
Hisoka	Go for it, Tsumugi.
Izumi	Okay, Tsumugi-san’s attempt: start!
Tsumugi	There, we go…
	Pass through here…
	Next… ummm… maybe over here?
	And up… urk…!
Homare	It looks like he made progress in the beginning, but…
Tsumugi	W-what do I do…
	I have no idea how to move from here…!
Tasuku	He’s stuck already, huh?
Hisoka	You can place your right hand forward and swivel around.
Tsumugi	As much as I appreciate the advice, I doubt I can do that…!
Izumi	Ah… Tsumugi-san hit the lights…
Azuma	It’s a shame, but you failed the challenge.
Tsumugi	Urgh… that was harder than the limbo dancing.
Tasuku	You didn’t accomplish much in either of them.
Hisoka	Tsumugi would’ve died about four times just now if that was an actual battle.
Izumi	Don’t say something so disturbing, Hisoka-san!
Guy	All the members took on the laser challenge.
Hisoka	And so, this concludes our flexibility battle.
	Good job, everyone.
Tsumugi	Thank you for putting so much thought into this for me, Hisoka-kun.
	I feel like my body has loosened up today thanks to you.
Azuma	I’ve warmed up quite a bit as well.
Homare	Indeed, that was splendid exercise.
Tsumugi	Since you went out of your way to teach me, I think I’ll keep trying to get past the lasers for a little while.
	Maybe there’s a chance it’ll soften my body up.
Hisoka	Yeah. I’m sure you’ll feel a change if you do that.
Tasuku	I never thought those infrared lights would come in handy like this.
Homare	Well then, I suppose we shall wrap it up here for today.
Azuma	Sounds good. Let’s head back to our rooms.
Guy	Good job, everyone.
Izumi	Thanks for your hard work!
	You took on a lot too, Hisoka-san.
CHOICE 1: It looked like everyone enjoyed themselves. [+] Izumi It looked like everyone enjoyed themselves. Hisoka Yeah. We cheered and gave each other advice. It was pretty exciting. Izumi Yeah. That was different from regular stretching, so it felt refreshing. Hisoka Tsumugi even said he felt his body loosen up. I think we should practice going through the infrared lights again together. Izumi I’m sure Tsumugi-san would love that.
CHOICE 2: Hisoka-san’s flexibility was no joke. [+] Izumi Hisoka-san’s flexibility was no joke! You got through both the limbo dancing and the lasers with ease. It was incredible. Hisoka I think I have a limber body. Izumi Taking advantage of that unique skill of yours—. It might be nice to throw in some dance poses and stretching poses that you can do because of your flexibility in the upcoming play. Hisoka Yeah, that might be possible. Would you watch me practise and give me some advice another time? Izumi Of course!
	(Anyways, I feel like I’m forgetting something…)
	Ah! That’s right. How were the results of the contest?
Hisoka	It doesn’t look like anyone cares, so it’s enough as long as they had fun.
	Thanks for spending your time with us too, Director.

Anna