I play the wind instrument in Hokkaido.

Page 198

The members of the brass band actually see him every day, but now the girls are all getting excited, their eyes sparkling.

"So handsome..." Yu Shou's cheeks flushed, and he blurted out unconsciously.

Nagase Tsukiyo gripped the small tuner in her hand tightly. Although it made her heart flutter a little at first glance, she couldn't say it out loud like Amemori.

"Oh no, Jia Hui, punch me!" Akamatsu Sayaka covered her nose, making an exaggerated gesture as if she was about to bleed.

However, Suzuki Yoshie was stunned and completely ignored her.

Looking at Kitahara Hakuma's profile, Shinomiya Haruka smiled with satisfaction, her spirits filled with an unprecedented sense of fulfillment. "Kitahara-sensei!"

"Teacher Kitahara! You've finally arrived!"

"Wow, that suit looks great!"

From the moment Kitahara Hakuba appeared, the girls' voices, like larks emerging from a valley, chirped and chattered in his ears.

The initially somewhat timid atmosphere was instantly calmed by his arrival, as if giving all the members a powerful dose of reassurance.

He was about to speak when he heard a staff member's voice behind him:

"Now I'll close the door, and then everyone can do the sound check. Thank you for your cooperation."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

The door to the practice room was closed by the staff. Kitahara Hakuba walked forward with an upright posture, clapped his hands, looked around at the team members, and said:

"In a little while, everyone will be officially on stage. Here, I am very grateful to everyone for persevering and getting to where we are today. Compared to the spring, everyone's will is more determined and you are working harder. I am very impressed with you."

Kitahara Hakuba's words made everyone take a deep breath. The atmosphere, which had been relaxed because of his appearance, became tense again under Kirina's presence.

"For Shenxu Private High School, although they make it to the All-Age Tournament every year, they always only get a bronze award. But in reality, no matter how badly they boast, they still manage to get the minimum bronze award. I think everyone understands that..."

But I hope everyone won't put too much pressure on themselves, won't focus on the judges' scores, and won't care about the results of other schools. For you, this is actually a brand new beginning, your first All-China Congress.

Please approach this with the mindset of a "performer." Our only enemy is our past selves, so be proud! We are the Shin-Eu High School Brass Band.

His voice was clear and warm, making the members' eyes sparkle and their faces beam with excitement.

They all spoke with great enthusiasm:

"Yes!"

For the club members, Kitahara Hakuba's words this time were different from his emphasis on certain victory at the Hakodate conference.

Perhaps due to the difference in intensity between the branch meeting and the national meeting, if Shenxu High School wants to secure a spot in the national competition, it will have to push its own limits.

Kitahara Hakuba let out a barely perceptible sigh of relief, though he was still somewhat nervous inside.

Since he wasn't the one playing on stage, even after teaching them for months, he couldn't help but worry about them making mistakes on stage.

But as a mentor, he couldn't show his nervousness.

"Alright, let's start tuning now, principal."

Kitahara Hakuba's gaze found the figure of Chief Rain Guardian in the crowd.

Although the current first trumpet player is Tsukiyo Nagase, the task of helping the brass band with tuning and conducting is still performed by the orchestra's principal.

Rain Guard raised his trumpet, put it in his mouth, and blew a Bb.

Immediately afterwards, a brass and woodwind instrument played the same note as hers, from which overtones arose, along with the mineral water bottle placed on the ground.

Ripples were generated.

The deep bass, powerful enough to shake one's soul, bounced back and forth on the ceiling and carpet in the rehearsal room.

After holding this position for a few seconds, Kitahara Hakuba raised his hand and made a gesture to mute the sound.

The sounds from the brass instruments gradually dissipated in the room.

"There's still some time before we go on stage, so let's focus on practicing the opening sequence now."

"Yes!"

Once again, I flipped through the sheet music that I had read countless times. Pieces that I used to practice to the point of tears, I now hoped to keep practicing forever, and that the All-Road Tournament would be an endless end.

But the practice time went by unexpectedly quickly.

After it was over, all the members stared blankly at Kitahara Hakuba, seemingly waiting for his next instructions.

"Are you still nervous?"

Looking at those tense little faces, Kitahara Hakuba couldn't help but chuckle, and continued,

"Actually, when I'm nervous, I use the 478 breathing method to adjust my state. It may not be very useful for everyone, but if you can, you can learn it from me."

Many people have never heard of the 478 breathing method, but they almost always believe whatever Kitahara Hakuba says.

"Inhale for four seconds first."

Kitahara Hakuba slowly raised his palm upwards.

Following his instructions, the members' lungs gradually expanded, and their chests, which were of varying sizes and covered by their uniforms, gradually rose up.

"Seven more seconds to get angry—" Kitahara Hakuba clenched his fist.

For the members of the wind band club, holding their breath for seven seconds is a piece of cake; their lung capacity is actually not much worse than that of the members of the sports club.

Especially with euphoniums, Yuka Isomoto can hold her breath for almost a minute and a half.

"Slowly exhale for eight seconds—" Kitahara Hakuba lowered his palms slowly.

Immediately afterwards, the girls' breasts seemed to shrink, and soft, panting sounds filled the air.

Wow, it works!

"Yes, a little bit. My legs were shaking from the tension, but now they're fine."

"A few more times!"

At this moment, Kuno Tachibana raised his arm and shouted:

"Teacher Kitahara! What are the benefits of doing this?"

Kitahara Hakuba explained with a smile:

"When the exhalation time exceeds the inhalation time, a parasympathetic nervous system in the body is activated, and its function is to relax the whole body."

"I get it! As long as I stay at 478, I won't be nervous!" A girl had a flash of inspiration.

"There's no such saying... In fact, I don't feel that this method is very useful at all."

Kitahara Hakuba said with a wry smile,

"When your brain tells you to be nervous, you should still be nervous."

Members: "Hahaha!"

Kitahara Hakuba smiled back at everyone; now it was time to wait for his turn.

“Teacher Kitahara, may I say something?” Sakurako Yukawa asked, raising her hand.

"please."

"Thank you."

Sakurako Yukawa stood up, gripping the clarinet with both hands, and turned to face the club members, saying:

"After nearly half a year of practice, we're finally going to take the stage. Since I became the head of the department last summer, I've experienced a lot, and I've witnessed the changes in the wind band from beginning to end—"

Sayaka Akamatsu said with a smile, "The brass band isn't finished yet, is it?"

Many people chuckled softly.

"Um... I'm sorry."

Sakurako Yukawa tilted her head somewhat awkwardly, then said with a serious expression,

"Actually, when we entered our third year this year, I didn't have any particular vision for the brass band. I felt that it was fine for everyone to maintain the status quo. Even during the first month that Mr. Kitahara came, I had the same idea..."

At the time, Tsukiyo's departure from the brass band had everyone feeling uneasy. I even thought that winning the Hakodate regional tournament was a pipe dream, let alone qualifying for the national tournament...

Suddenly reminded of Nagase Tsukiyo's body, she gently bit her lip.

Sakurako Yukawa tilted her head back, her eyes reflecting the lights of the practice room, which were not dazzling at all.

"However, all of this was corrected by Mr. Kitahara. We are able to get to where we are today thanks to Mr. Kitahara sacrificing his own rest and accompanying us in practice day and night."

Her gaze fell on Kitahara Hakuba, and even the other members turned their eyes to her, each of them showing an expression of approval on their small faces.

Sakura took a deep breath, and through her uniform, her breasts could be seen swelling high.

The girl with the three braids bowed deeply to Kitahara Hakuba and said:

"Teacher Kitahara! Thank you!"

Soon, Kanzaki Eri, Isomoto Yuka, Amemori, Kuno Tachibana, and Nagase Tsukiyo all stood up and bowed deeply to him.

Encouraged, all the members stood up and bowed in the direction of Kitahara Hakuba.

Seeing the scene before him, Kitahara Hakuba silently held his breath.

An indescribable emotion welled up from the bottom of his heart, eventually getting stuck in his throat, causing a sharp pain and burning sensation.

He feigned helplessness, raised his hand, pinched the bridge of his upturned nose, and pressed it up against the corner of his eye, saying:

"This is all thanks to everyone... I was just doing what I was supposed to do."

Akamatsu Sayaka, standing in the front row, was the first to notice the change in Kitahara Hakuba's expression, and said with a laugh, as if egging him on:

"Teacher Kitahara blushed and became shy."

Her words immediately drew the attention of all the members, who had never seen Kitahara Hakuma blush before.

But now, the girls could truly see this usually gentle teacher raising his hand to cover his face with iodine.

His ears turned a little red.

"She's shy! Kitahara-sensei is shy!"

"Duck~~~!"

"Oh no, there's a strange sense of contrast! So cute!"

As if they had accomplished something remarkable, the members felt a sense of joy and happiness, their faces beaming with delight, and they even forgot about the upcoming general assembly.