The Missing Witness

Natsukawa's eyes flickered slightly.

Because of his intervention, Sakura Airi's life had taken a decisive turn.

At that critical moment, she hadn't gone to the Special Teaching Building to take pictures. Back then, she had been worn out by the harassment from her obsessive fan, and nearly everything she did revolved around asking for help and training for morning runs.

In a way, although he had saved her from the depths of being stalked, he had also indirectly erased the possibility of her becoming a key witness in this incident.

However...

Natsukawa Sosuke felt not the slightest stir of emotion over it.

For one thing, he had no interest whatsoever in helping Class D rise to Class A. Whether Class Points went up or down made no difference to him.

On the other hand...

He glanced at the Special Teaching Building in the distance, his gaze deep.

The trap Ryuen Kakeru had laid seemed flawless, taking advantage of Ken Sudō's hair-trigger temper and the head start gained by deliberately exaggerating the injuries. But in reality, this little trick had far too many holes. It was laughably crude.

A little scrutiny was all it took to uncover its illogical points.

In his eyes, this didn't even qualify as a real fight. It was nothing more than the kind of provocation children played at. Nothing to worry about.

"Natsukawa! Sorry to keep you waiting!"

Kushida Kikyo finished talking with her friends and jogged back to Natsukawa, an apologetic smile on her face.

"Still no leads... Let's go ask over there! I think that's the Photography Club's room. Maybe someone happened to take a picture of something!"

As she spoke, she naturally prepared to take Natsukawa along to the next place.

This time, Natsukawa Sosuke didn't move. Looking at the girl before him, who maintained a hundred percent of her energy and enthusiasm at all times, he calmly asked:

"Kushida."

"Hmm? What is it?" Kushida tilted her head and looked at him innocently.

"Why did you specifically ask me to come along?" Natsukawa's voice was flat. "With your social skills, you'd be much more efficient investigating on your own."

His question was direct, and even a little tactless.

"And," he paused, his deep gaze seeming to pierce her perfect disguise, "why are you so invested in this?"

Kushida Kikyo was momentarily taken aback by his question. Her lively eyes blinked, and then she gave him a slightly playful, adorable smile that was enough to get her out of trouble.

"Hehe."

"Why do you ask?" She lightly tapped a finger against her lips, pretending to be troubled. "Of course it's because I don't want our Class Points to get deducted down to nothing! You might not know this, Natsukawa, but I've almost run out of points from treating everyone to meals and trying to get along with them! If this keeps up, I might have to go hungry next month! So of course I have to work hard!"

As she spoke, she even patted her flat stomach pitifully, playing the part of an impoverished beauty to perfection.

It sounded like a perfectly airtight excuse.

Natsukawa Sosuke looked at her and did find it somewhat reasonable. After all, maintaining a huge social network like hers, spanning the entire year and reaching every class, had to be incredibly expensive. Meals, karaoke, little gifts... Each one cost points.

He was even a little impressed by her money management skills. She'd managed to hold out until now before nearing bankruptcy.

Seeing that Natsukawa seemed to accept her explanation, Kushida Kikyo secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Of course, she wouldn't tell him that the real reason was simply that she wanted to spend more time with him.

Ever since the incident last time, Kushida's curiosity about this boy and her desire to learn more about him had reached their peak. She longed to understand him better, to see what kind of heart lay hidden beneath his calm exterior.

Investigating for the class together was undoubtedly the most legitimate excuse available—and the least likely to make him wary.

"Come on, let's go, Natsukawa! If we wait any longer, we really won't find anyone to ask!"

With a coquettish tone, Kushida successfully changed the subject and once again led Natsukawa toward the next place they planned to investigate.

And so the two of them hurried around campus, asking more than a dozen people, until the clock hands slowly pointed to five.

The setting sun stretched their shadows long.

In the end, they still came up empty-handed.

"Aw... It looks like there's no hope today." Kushida stopped and sighed, a little dejected, but soon put on another smile. "That's okay! We'll keep trying tomorrow! Let's call it a day for now!"

She turned to Natsukawa with genuine gratitude on her face. "Thank you so much for today, Natsukawa! You've been running around with me for ages."

"It's nothing." Natsukawa's answer was as brief as ever.

The two walked side by side in silence along the tree-lined path back to the dorms. The afterglow of the sunset lent their brief journey together a warm, hazy golden hue.

The next afternoon, before the last echoes of the dismissal bell had fully faded, a lovely figure once again made her way to the back of the classroom as if she knew it by heart.

"Natsukawa, let's go!"

Kushida Kikyo wore that familiar, sweet smile full of vitality, as though yesterday's fruitless search hadn't dampened her enthusiasm in the slightest. She was even more proactive than the day before, leaning forward slightly and looking at Natsukawa expectantly, as if she'd burst into tears the moment he said no.

Natsukawa Sosuke looked at her flawless, exquisite face and couldn't be bothered to figure out how much of her enthusiasm was genuine and how much was an act. He simply put his last book into his bag and stood up.

However, just as the two had left their seats and were about to exit the classroom, two figures came rushing over from the front and intercepted them.

"Kushida! Natsukawa! Where are you going?"

Kanji Ike looked at Kushida anxiously, his sense of danger practically spilling out of his eyes. The day before, he'd already noticed that Kushida seemed a little too enthusiastic toward Natsukawa, who usually kept to himself. Seeing the two of them about to head off alone again sent his vigilance into the highest alert.

Yamauchi Haruki, standing beside him, looked eager to join in the fun. "Yeah, yeah! How can you leave us out of anything good?"

Ike completely ignored Natsukawa, staring intently at Kushida as he spoke in a rush. "Kushida, if you're going to investigate that thing with Sudō, count us in! The more people, the better!"

As he spoke, he also grabbed Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who had been about to quietly slip away and pretend he hadn't seen anything.

"And Ayanokoji! There are four of us now. We can all go help!"

Ayanokoji, dragged into the group against his will, wore a helpless expression.

Seeing the three extra chaperones, Kushida Kikyo's smile stiffened slightly, but only for a moment before she resumed her perfect, considerate expression.

She was, of course, a hundred percent unwilling. She'd finally managed to create a chance to be alone with him, and these oblivious guys had ruined it just like that. But her persona wouldn't let her refuse.

"Sure!" Kushida sounded delighted and touched. "It's wonderful that Ike and Yamauchi are willing to help! With more people, maybe we really will find some clues!"

And just like that, what had started as a two-person "date" instantly turned into a five-person investigation team.