Kamio Tatsuya thought of a scene from a manga he had once read.
The first written test of the Chunin Exam in Naruto had questions that even some genin could not answer. In reality, it was testing the ninjas' ability to gather information.
The more Kamio Tatsuya thought about it, the more certain he became that his guess was right.
Otherwise, there would have been no reason for students like Sudo to enroll at all.
Learning was a gradual process, yet only twenty short days had passed between the school's rules being revealed and the Midterm Exam.
In such a short time, getting a student who could only score a dozen or so points to pass was simply too difficult, no matter how he looked at it.
If that was the case, then just like that information-gathering exam, there had to be someone in the school who possessed the correct answers.
Once he thought of it that way, the answer was obvious.
Since the First Year students did not have the answers, they had to be in the hands of the upperclassmen—in other words, in the papers they had received when they enrolled the previous year.
That meant it was possible that the Midterm Exam and entrance test in the first semester of First Year had been identical last year, or even the year before.
And of course, that was still true this year.
In that case, the way to pass the exam was to get those papers.
No matter how difficult the questions were, having the answers beforehand would make things much easier.
Was this the result you wanted, Chabashira Sae?!
Chapter Forty-Nine: The Way to Pass the Exam
There had originally been two ways to pass this exam. One was to obtain last year's papers, while the other was naturally to study, build up his knowledge, and pass the exam.
Kamio Tatsuya had chosen the second path.
But someone had deliberately blocked that path.
That was why Kamio Tatsuya was furious, while also feeling a lingering sense of fear.
He had discovered the problem by chance. If he had not noticed it, and had continued studying according to the wrong exam scope, he might have failed this subject outright.
The odds were not high, but Kamio Tatsuya had no intention of gambling on something like this.
Failing meant being expelled, damn it!
There were many things Kamio Tatsuya did not care about, but expulsion was the one exception.
This was his Main Quest. How could he fail it for no reason?!
And they still wanted me to help Class D rise to Class A?
What the hell!
Seeing Kamio Tatsuya's expression change repeatedly, Kamuro could not help worrying.
"What's wrong?"
Hearing Kamuro's voice, Kamio Tatsuya let out a long breath.
"Nothing. I just thought of a few things concerning this exam."
Since he had his suspicions, he could simply verify them.
As the saying went, appropriately troubling someone could bring people closer together.
So Kamio Tatsuya did not hesitate to send a message to his Second Year senior, Asahina Nazuna, asking about the papers from last year's entrance test and first-semester Midterm Exam.
Before long, Asahina Nazuna replied.
"You're pretty capable, Junior Kamio. You actually figured it out so quickly. Even Miyabi didn't discover it until the week before last year's Midterm Exam."
Just as he thought!
After receiving Asahina Natsumi's confirmation, Kamio Tatsuya's spirits rose.
"Then could you give me the papers, senpai? I can pay you in Points."
"I'll look for them when I get back tonight. As for the Points, forget it. Doesn't your Class D no longer have any Class Points? Consider it a gift from a senior to her junior."
After sending the message, Asahina Natsumi also found it strange.
If he had seen through the truth of this exam, why had he still let Class D score zero on the first month's Behavioral Ethics Exam?
She really could not understand what this junior was thinking.
"What's wrong, Natsumi?"
"Nothing. I've just discovered an interesting junior."
After receiving Asahina Natsumi's reply, Kamio Tatsuya put down his phone and sighed in relief, but he immediately lost the desire to study.
Even so, he picked up his textbook and began reviewing.
Even if he could pass this exam easily with last year's Past Exam Papers, things would not necessarily be so easy in the future.
Ultimately, forging iron still required one to be strong oneself.
If he wanted to avoid failing, he could only study properly.
That evening, after eating dinner with Kamuro, Kamio Tatsuya had planned to return to the dormitory with her. However, he received a summons from his Asahina-senpai.
"Sorry, I might have to go to the Second Year dormitory first."
"Second Year?"
"I asked a senior from Second Year to help me find something."
"I didn't expect you to already have connections among the Second Year students."
Kamio Tatsuya shrugged, then parted ways with Kamuro Masumi at the intersection in front of the dormitory.
As promised, Kamio Tatsuya waited downstairs at the Second Year dormitory for a while before seeing Asahina Natsumi emerge from the building.
"Sorry for the wait, Junior Kamio."
"I just got here too."
He really had just arrived, but even so, quite a few people had already noticed him after he had stood there for only a short while.
"Here's what you needed."
"You really don't need any Points? Class D's Class Points were all deducted, but I've personally managed to save up some Points."
Taking the stack of Past Exam Papers from Asahina, Kamio Tatsuya felt a little embarrassed.
He felt as though he had been troubling her quite a lot lately.
"No need. Consider it my investment in you, Junior Kamio. Perhaps I'll need your help someday."
The implication that she might need his help in the future made things a little awkward. Kamio Tatsuya scratched his head.
"As long as there's no risk of expulsion, I'll act depending on the circumstances."
"Then it's settled."
Kamio Tatsuya's personality was actually quite simple: if you treated him well, he would treat you even better.
If Chabashira Sae had not used such a disgusting method, Kamio Tatsuya might have occasionally offered Class D some countermeasures on a whim.
But now, there was no chance of that. He even wanted to trip Class D up once.
After parting ways with Asahina Natsumi, Kamio Tatsuya opened the Past Exam Papers in his hands, and an idea surfaced in his mind.
After putting the Past Exam Papers into his bag, Kamio Tatsuya headed toward the dormitory. Quite a lot had happened recently, and he planned to return and get some proper rest.
For some reason, though, many things always seemed to happen all at once.
Sure enough, just as Kamio Tatsuya was about to return to the dormitory, he saw Ayanokoji Kiyonaka furtively hiding in the distance, apparently watching something.
Then, just as Kamio Tatsuya approached, that guy suddenly shot out like a leopard.
So fast!
Gossip was human nature, and Kamio Tatsuya was no exception to the urge to watch the excitement. He quietly made his way over, hiding in a corner to observe what was happening.
"That's enough. Let go of my hand."
"That's what I should be saying."
Two different voices reached Kamio Tatsuya's ears. One belonged to Ayanokoji Kiyonaka. As for the other, it sounded familiar, but he could not quite remember where he had heard it.
Quietly changing his position, Kamio Tatsuya got a clear view of what was happening.
There were three people involved, two men and one woman. He was fairly familiar with two of them: Ayanokoji Kiyonaka, who had just rushed over, and his desk mate, Horikita Suzune.
As for the last person, he was Horikita Suzune's older brother—the current Student Council President, Horikita Manabu.
At that moment, Ayanokoji was locked in a standoff with Horikita Manabu, while Horikita Suzune leaned weakly against the wall as if she had been completely broken.
What was going on?
Several question marks appeared in Kamio Tatsuya's mind. He had no idea what was happening.
Just as he was trying to sort out the chaotic relationships, Horikita Manabu suddenly attacked Ayanokoji.
It was unclear whether he had trained in something, but his attacks were extremely fierce, each one aimed straight at Ayanokoji's vital points.
However, Ayanokoji finally revealed a flaw in front of Kamio Tatsuya.
Facing Horikita Manabu's fierce attacks, the expression on his face never changed. He looked completely at ease.
And he claimed he had never trained? How could an ordinary person possibly dodge Horikita Manabu's attacks?
At the very least, Kamio Tatsuya knew he could not do it.
Moreover, judging by Ayanokoji's appearance, he probably had not even used his full strength.
Chapter Fifty: The Way to Leave Class D
While the two of them were fighting, a phone slowly emerged from the corner and silently recorded the entire scene.
After exchanging several moves, Horikita Manabu realized that he probably would not be able to take down this guy in a short time, so he simply stopped attacking.
"Not bad. You managed to avoid my attacks several times in a row. Impressive." Horikita Manabu looked at Ayanokoji approvingly. "Not only that, you were able to predict my next move. Have you studied anything?"
"I've studied piano and calligraphy. I even won first place in the National Piano Competition when I was in elementary school."
Tch, you sure knew a lot. Didn't you say tea ceremony last time?
How many secrets did this guy have?
What was he trying to accomplish by hiding his strength?
Class D really was too dangerous.
While Kamio Tatsuya was thinking about this, Ayanokoji suddenly turned his gaze toward him. "You over there. Aren't you coming out?"
Had he been discovered?
Kamio Tatsuya was startled. It was so dark, and he had deliberately controlled his breathing. Had he still been detected?
But he quickly understood. My shadow betrayed me!
Should I go out?
No. There were no cameras here. What if I got beaten up too? I didn't have Ayanokoji's absurd skills.
With that thought, Kamio Tatsuya jumped out from behind the bushes and immediately turned to run.
This time, not only Ayanokoji but Horikita Manabu noticed him as well.
The two of them were instantly dumbfounded.
This matter absolutely could not get out. That was what both of them thought, and they chased after him in perfect agreement.
Even Horikita Suzune, who was leaning against the wall, had gone completely blank. Her thoughts, however, were relatively simple.
It's all because of me. Because of me, my brother is going to...
As for Kamio Tatsuya, the moment he leaped out from the bushes, he sprinted toward the dormitory building.
Although the two people behind him were incredibly fast, Kamio Tatsuya had the advantage of a head start, and the dormitory entrance was very close.
In the blink of an eye, he made it into the first-floor lobby of the dormitory.
Before you continue