My name is Katsuobushi Dashihiko. I used to be the homeroom teacher for Class 4 of the 2nd grade at Kamishiro High School, and now I'm Katsubushi Dashihiko. I used to be a kasaya.
　And now, he has a lot of free time and boredom on his hands.

　I'll tell you why in a nutshell. It's because Sugiura isn't here.

　Aya Sugiura, the proprietress of the Kamishiro Ryokan and a student of mine, is usually the kitchen keeper, and she's always there to talk to me. It's fair to say that my life in the kitchen has revolved around her. She is no longer in the kitchen. In fact, she is no longer at this hot spring hotel.
　Sugiura and the rest of the students headed west. This was because they learned from adventurer sources that other students might be trapped in the west. At this time, the hot spring inn was in the midst of renovation work to make it a new base of action for the second year and four groups, but it had already been turned into a robust fortress by the large number of tomatoes that had been placed there for defense purposes. So Sugiura and the others decided that it would be safe to leave it here and head west.

　I was left behind, though.
　I wasn't the only one. Honno-san was left behind, too.

　No, I know that. They were going into a dangerous fight. A bonito-flavored pork chop and a book won't do much good in a fight. So they had every right to leave us behind. It's not that I have anything against it.

　But what can I say? To be honest, it's sad.

　I'm a fist pump, I have no hands, no legs, and I can't even move. On top of that, I'm left in the kitchen, which is rather hellish.

　Sugiura is a pretty sweet kid, and he was going to take us with him, but I dressed it up. Don't worry about it. We'll be in the way if we go with you, won't we?　Go show me what you guys can do and grow up,'' he said.
　It is so sad that I regret saying that right now, but at least I'll be able to keep up appearances as an adult. It's the nature of being an adult to want to dress up in front of kids, and even more so when it's a cute student. I'm an adult, and Sugiura was a cute student. It's not much of a choice.

But it's boring........

　I looked around the kitchen on the cutting board.

　The kitchen that Sugiura uses is well organized and comfortable. The orderly arrangement of things is probably due to his personality. Sugiura had a tendency to complain out loud since his human days, but he was a sincere and firm soul.
　His diet here at Vernetus had improved greatly over the previous years, not only with the vegetables from the vegetable garden in Hanazono, but also with the fresh seafood from the fish dwellers and the meat from the wild boar (wild boar) found in the mountains. This is probably due in large part to the character of the students who created the inn.

''How long has it been since we came to this world?''

　Suddenly, Honno-san called out to me from the top of the shelf.

"Five months...... I'm not sure if it's still that long, or if it's already been that long.

　Five months is more than a semester's worth of time, and that means we spend nearly half the year in this mysterious, alien world. When I think about it, I can't help but feel sorry for my students.
　They're doing their best to live their lives now, so maybe it's misguided to feel sorry for them. Still, they will have given up a sixth of their youth to live in a peaceful world. If the rest of us can make it back to Japan safely, I'll do my best to take care of them afterwards.

I wonder how long this journey will last. Will we ever return to the world?
It's a shameful story, but you'll just have to trust the students on that one. They'll do it, I'm sure they'll do it.

　I have a feeling that this otherworldly adventure will not be long in coming. It's just a hunch, of course.
　The turning point has passed, and the second half of the game has come and gone. I have a feeling that no matter how it ends, I won't be spending the same amount of time here as I have spent in the past five months. Well, my intuition is often off, so it's not very reliable.

　I had been thinking about this for a while when Motono-san said something unexpected.

"You don't want to tell your students about yourself?
What?
'The reason why your teacher kept it a secret that he was reincarnated as a katsuobushi was because he didn't want to upset his students... right?
.........

　I cringe at the words.

　Yes, that's right.

　Only a handful of students in my class know that I've become a bonefish. I've explained to the people around me that the reason I haven't made it known to everyone is because I feared my presence would cause unnecessary confusion and upset.
　Of course, there are those reasons as well.
　And now that my students have grown up to be much stronger than I expected them to be from the beginning, I don't need to hide my identity like I did before. I'll tell Sugiura to throw me out in front of everyone and say, 'I'm Katsugari Dehiko!　I've been reincarnated as a katsuobushi! If I shouted, "I'm sorry," it would be all right.

　But I had a tremendous amount of hesitation in telling them who I was.

"....after all, you can't dress up as a katsuobushi.

　I mumble, self-deprecatingly.

'Huh.'

　Honno-san laughed.

''........Is it funny?''
'No. I can see why you'd want to bravado in front of your children. You're an adult.

　After all, I'm simply embarrassed to expose my katsuobushi to my students.

　No, it's embarrassing, right?　I didn't do anything wrong, did I?　This is the normal way of thinking, right?
　Maybe the truth is that it's best to lead my students with powerful words. I just haven't been able to get to that point yet. It's a shameful story.

　Now, when we were talking about that.

'Ooh!　Hey, there's somebody in there!　You've all left already!

　The sound of heavy footsteps running around with a thud could be heard from outside the kitchen. At the same time, the piercing voice of a middle-aged woman's dignified body language echoed. Honno-san and I looked at each other. No, we didn't even have a face to look at each other.

　I know the owner of that voice. He was one of the five strongest members of the Adventurer's Guild, one of the Five Divine Stars. "The Lion's Head Star, Giant Mama.
　Of course, that's not her real name. But it is true that her name is a mama with a giant body, as if it were a body. When you hear such a name, it doesn't matter what her real name is, she's the kind of woman who doesn't seem to fit in.

'Mama, over here!　We're here!

　I yelled out loudly and loudly, and my mom poked her head out of the kitchen doorway.

　She had a large, square face, with strong, age-worn features. Her lips are thick, and her makeup is thick. Her hair was blond and lush, as if she were a high-rise tower. If you include that, she's a giant mama with a huge frame that would reach about 250 centimeters.
　Even if she's a monster, she has a personality that doesn't discriminate between them, and ever since she met Sugiura and the others by chance after the transfer, she's helped me in any way she could. I can say that he is a benefactor for me as well.

Oh, Mr. Katsubushi. You and your friends have been left behind, haven't you?
You'll be slowed down if you go with them. They're gone.

　And what do we have to hide? It was this giant mama who gave Sugiura and the others information about the other students.

　Apart from the adventurers' information network, it seemed that the Five Divine Stars and other comparable high-ranking adventurers had their own network to exchange information with each other, and Mom had heard about the other students from "Nameless", one of the Five Divine Stars.

'Well, it's a good thing. A child is not a child forever. They grow up.

　With that, Giant Mom put her huge buttocks on the chair with a thud. There was a disgusting sound of squirming.

　Although this mama had easily invaded this fortress inn, which is supposed to have a robust defense mechanism, it was still a clear indication that the three tomato plants placed outside were not enough to hold back the forces of the Five Divine Star class. Well, Giant Mama can function as a defensive force more than the tomatoes, so as long as she's here, I don't mind one bit.

'You're so much more than just a momma, so you have children, right?
Yeah. About twenty years ago. My husband and I were adventurers, and we moved here to Verneus when the big deal was settled. We didn't have kids until after that.

　Mom looks up at the ceiling at Honno-san's words and gives her a faraway look.

'Kids and, well, we were kids back then, too. Well, it wasn't just me, though. A stubborn gravarita, a brave little girl, an acting knight, and a remix. We were all kids. It brings back memories.
You've been through a lot, haven't you?
It was. It's a long story and we're all grown-ups now. Some of them have gone before us, though. That's why children aren't children forever. They're getting tougher and tougher, and they're leaving the nest.

　I can feel what my mom said. Yeah. They're not children anymore, I think.
　Sugiura, Hanazono and the Fishermen. I'm sure that even when I'm not looking, they are getting over various hardships and growing up to be great.

But I think they have even more hardships ahead of them.

　I said.

　They've grown up. But it's more like a running start to get them over a bigger hurdle. It's up to them to decide if they can jump.
　I'll have to settle with the Bloods.
　Plus, I hear there are still forces out there that want to kill my students.
　I wonder if they've developed enough strength to overcome all of these obstacles.

　I'd like to believe that we're on to something.

"...in times like these.
Yeah.
It's a hard thing to do, after all.
Because it's a katsuobushi?

　I nodded at my mom's words. I didn't have a head, but I nodded with my mind anyway.

'Sir, even if you weren't a katsuobushi and were something else, or even if you were still human, I'm sure you wouldn't be able to do anything about it.

　When she says this, Giant Mom's words are harsh, but contain some gentle notes.

'Adults have no choice but to watch their kids grow up from behind. No one else can help them jump over the hurdles.

　That line is slowly seeping into my somewhat frustrated mind.

'I'm no match for you. Not to your mom.
Of course. I don't know how long I've been doing this. You don't have the same life experience as me.
But it's been 20 years since you told me...?

　Calmly, I ruminate on what Giant Mama said earlier, for she was still a kid 20 years ago, and I guess she was not much older than my students at the time, given that she said she was still a kid. In other words, she was about 16 or 7 years old.
　That would mean that this mama's current age, which for all intents and purposes looks like 40 to 50, is actually about 36 or 7 years old. They say that white women age quickly in appearance, though. No, but Her Majesty the Queen of the Knight's Kingdom was about the same age, but she looked so much younger.

You don't want to think something rude, do you?
No, no, it's not...

　Mum glares at me with a guileless stare, and I hurriedly deny it.

'For now, I kind of understand what you said, Mom. Maybe there's nothing more I can do to push those guys back.
Not for nothing. If the kids are afraid to jump a hurdle, they can at least help them find their courage.

　In other words, it's not much different from what I've been doing.
　I wondered if my students would still be able to understand my education policy, which was based on the taste of dashi and momentum.

　As I was thinking about this, Mr. Motono was shivering in some sort of vague way.

What's the matter?　Honno-san.
I'm impressed. You're both looking great.
'No, I don't think that's... not even...

　Aside from Mum, I'm not even close. Life experience, Mom said, and that's exactly what she said.
　If she's right, it's only been five years or so. What is this thickness? No, I'm not talking about physical things.

"Don't worry too much about it, doctor.

　As if she knew what was on my mind, Giant Mama smiled.

"Adults are always learning and growing, you know. I'm sure your journey in this world will mean something to you, too.
That's... Well, don't think.

　Even though I'm just sitting here in the kitchen making my students drink dashi (Japanese soup stock), I still have a lot to teach them. I am their teacher and they are my teacher. I'm a teacher and they are also my teachers.

Well, I'm going to go now.

　Giant Mom slowly stood up and slyly pulled what looked like a huge piece of bacon out of the backpack on her back.

'I've got a little extra bacon for Kates. I'll leave some for you. Tell Aya I said hi when she gets back.
No, I don't know when I'll be back.
Not really. I'll be back soon.

　Bam, Mom gives a lousy wink.

'We have information that a horde of monsters left the city of Zelneus this morning. I heard there were roughly fourteen or five of them.
Really?
It's true. The students you raised are safely together and pulling together.

　Good!　I wasn't worried by any means, but when I heard those words, I was relieved from the bottom of my heart.

　If they come back safely, it's as if my job is already done.

"I've got to make sure I have a good dashi to greet them again...!　I'll do my best.
Is that something that can be worked out through hard work?

　Honno-san asked in a quizzical voice. But I was so excited that I shouted back, "I'm Katsuobushi.

'I'm a bonito fist. I'll do something about it. I can feel the glutamic acid inside me amplifying...!
The glutamic acid is the kelp broth. The bonito broth is inosinic acid...
'Whoa!　Sugiura, come back quickly!　And you're going to cut me down!

　Giant Mama laughed with a 'poof' and then left the kitchen. Eventually, the empty inn is empty, and for a while, my screams, which only increased in tension, echo through the inn.

　Later, Sugiura comes back with Soraki, Gourin and the others. It had been a long time since we'd had a home-cooked meal prepared by Sugiura, and their expectations were quite high. Sugiura scraped me more than usual and made a very good nimono soup stock.
　It was very popular.