Ibuki Mio's gaze never wavered. She looked like someone who was utterly convinced of her own innocence—because she was.
"Even though Sakura helped clear things up for me just now, you boys are still suspicious of me, aren't you?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka listened to Ibuki's heartfelt confession, his expression still blank. "I believe you're not the culprit, Ibuki. Otherwise, you wouldn't have gone out of your way to come warn Hirata."
"I see..."
The atmosphere fell silent for a moment.
Just as Ayanokoji thought he'd managed to fool Ibuki—
A gust of wind shot straight at his face!
Ibuki had suddenly raised her right leg and kicked at him with incredible speed!
Ayanokoji was a little surprised, but his mind raced in an instant, and he chose the most appropriate response: pretend to be scared, close his eyes, and fail to block the kick.
Ibuki balanced on one leg, standing perfectly steady.
Her right foot stopped just three centimeters from Ayanokoji's left cheek. His hands had only just reached his shoulders; there was no way he could have blocked it in time...
Ayanokoji opened his eyes and stepped back to put some distance between them. "Ibuki, what was that supposed to mean? I'll have to—"
"Haha, it's fine, it's fine! Sorry! I just wanted to scare you. I'm sorry, Ayanokoji. Now I'm sure you really weren't suspicious of me."
Ibuki bowed. "I really am sorry. And thank you."
"...I understand. Please don't do that again. If another classmate saw us, it might be hard for me to explain myself, especially since I'm a guy."
"Being a boy in Class D sure sounds tough. Especially after what happened with Yamauchi Haruki."
Ayanokoji nodded, showing little interest in continuing the conversation. Seeing that, Ibuki took her leave.
After Ibuki had gone some distance,