[There we go. Let's get that tree all nice and secure. Kai gave it a long, considering look as he did so. All of those very adamant messages about Shinji had not been forgotten, but that date really confirmed his suspicions. Gosh, Kyoko. Just going all out for the birthday boy, huh.]

Ah, yeah, I think he does... [Though natives eager for new research were probably the bigger obstacle here if they wanted to be sure to be timely.]

We can go take a peek at the houses and see. I think the odds are pretty in our favor.