Hideyoshi's Gender Is Hideyoshi

This time, the reward was pitifully small...

When Shinnosuke returned, everyone stared at him with numb expressions. Ever since he arrived, they had lived in fear every day, and the more timid among them had even begun thinking of fleeing Green Vine...

Shinnosuke paid them no mind, assuming they were under too much pressure. A guy like him, who lazed around all day, couldn't understand how that felt.

Just then, the door suddenly opened, and Kinoshita Hideyoshi walked in. The moment he entered, every boy's eyes lit up. Kinoshita Hideyoshi walked straight over to Shinnosuke and spoke to him.

"Hey, Nohara. You're not hurt, are you? I heard Sugihara-senpai came looking for trouble..."

Shinnosuke scratched his head... He lay sprawled over his desk, not wanting to move a muscle.

"Yeah... It's already taken care of."

Although Kinoshita Hideyoshi had more or less guessed as much, he was still startled.

"Even Sugihara-senpai was no match for you... You're so strong, Nohara..."

"I just got lucky..."

Shinnosuke spoke without even lifting his head.

Kinoshita Hideyoshi smiled, pulled a huge bento box from behind his back, and spoke to Shinnosuke.

"Hey~ My sister made me a super-sized hamburger steak bento today, but I can't eat it all myself. You don't seem very interested, though... I guess I'll just have to give it to someone else!"

Every boy shot to his feet and frantically raised his hand.

Shinnosuke turned and glared at them, and everyone froze... He snatched the bento box from Kinoshita Hideyoshi's hands.

Kinoshita Hideyoshi covered his mouth and smiled, then reminded Shinnosuke:

"You can't eat it now. Wait until lunchtime, okay?"

Shinnosuke waved him off impatiently.

"I know, I know. Why do you nag like an old mother hen..."

Kinoshita Hideyoshi shook his head and walked out, looking helpless.

Once he was gone, Shinnosuke quickly opened the bento. Four enormous hamburger steaks lay over the rice, drenched in thick sauce! The meat juices and sauce had soaked thoroughly into the rice, making it impossible not to dig in!

Shinnosuke wolfed down the food in front of him, paying no attention to the others' stares.

"If Kinoshita gave me that bento, I'd treasure it! I'd sniff it every day!"

"Maybe the cloth around the bento smells like Kinoshita too..."

"If he gave it to me... I'd gladly give up ten years of my life!"

Their words reached Shinnosuke's ears, leaving him stunned... He swallowed the rice in his mouth and spoke to them.

"You're lusting after his body? But he's a guy..."

All the boys were mortified and furious! How could this guy be so crude?! If they could beat him, they would definitely teach him a lesson!

"Wh-wh-wh-what are you talking about?! Besides, Kinoshita isn't a boy, he's Hideyoshi!!! You don't understand anything!"

One boy suddenly worked up the courage to roar at Shinnosuke. Once his bravado faded, he regretted it and slumped to the floor. Fortunately, Shinnosuke paid him no mind. Instead, he scratched his head and said:

"Oh, right, his name is Hideyoshi... But he specifically told me he was a boy..."

"Ah, no... We call his gender 'Hideyoshi.' The bathrooms at Green Vine have three entrances... men's, women's, and Hideyoshi's..."

"Hiss..."

Shinnosuke sucked in a breath, too shocked to speak...

Meanwhile, Sugihara Kei, lying in the infirmary, had long since woken up. He stared blankly at the ceiling, unable to say a word for a long time...

Inoue Ryushi, who sat beside him, looked at him calmly, then walked over and opened the window. He lit a cigarette, leaned against the window, and took a drag.

"So? Shinnosuke's strong, isn't he..."

Sugihara Kei continued to stare blankly at the ceiling. After a long while, his eyes flickered, and he sighed softly.

"I lost... and I lost completely... If we'd fought one-on-one, I might have lost even worse."

Inoue Ryushi glanced at him and took another drag.

"I chose to follow him for more than just our agreement... I have a feeling Shinnosuke can lead us further... We might even be able to take on Suzuran..."

Sugihara Kei stared at Inoue Ryushi with wide eyes, his voice trembling slightly.

"Y-you've got to be joking... I admit Nohara's strong... but only from our point of view! Everyone at Suzuran is a monster... especially Bouya Harumichi, the man at the top of Suzuran! I saw him once, and that guy was so strong he was practically inhuman!!!"

Sugihara Kei could hardly believe it. The guy in front of him followed Nohara far too blindly! He spoke to Inoue Ryushi, his tone slightly admonishing.

"Suzuran's monster Zetton took down more than twenty people by himself! And there's Hanaki Guriko, who's even stronger than him! Those people are all on a level we can only look up to!! Nohara alone couldn't possibly..."

Sugihara Kei looked at Inoue Ryushi's utterly calm eyes and suddenly found himself unable to continue. Then the man in front of him spoke.

"You must have noticed that Shinnosuke doesn't have much experience fighting. I noticed it the first time I fought him. Aside from his speed and extraordinary determination, the guy didn't have much going for him."

"But it's only been a few days since we fought him, and he seems to have gotten stronger again... He's on a completely different level from a few days ago. If Taro hadn't told me, I would have thought he'd held back against us..."

Hearing this, Sugihara Kei frowned and lowered his head. After a long while, he squeezed out a sentence.

"Anyway... I'll never believe we could fight Suzuran..."

Inoue Ryushi smiled faintly, turned, and walked out, leaving him with one last sentence.

"Then just wait and see..."