The Deceptive Matsushita

"Are you okay, Sakura?"

Eito looked a little surprised.

He'd thought Sakura would be much more flustered, considering it was the girl's first kiss.

But after a slightly awkward start, she grew bolder and bolder. In the end, he could only follow her lead.

Could Sakura be a pervert?

Who knew?

He shook his head and helped her sit up.

Once Sakura had recovered, she leaned against him. To his surprise, not long afterward, she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Um..." He wanted to explain what had just happened. If Sakura didn't mind, he was willing to take responsibility for her.

But Sakura spoke softly:

"I don't mind... I just want to stay by your side... If you don't want to, we can pretend it never happened. We—we can still be friends."

Sakura felt anxious. It was the first time she'd ever said anything that sounded so much like a confession.

He was so outstanding, and there were so many girls around him who were a hundred times prettier than her. The chances of him liking her were slim.

What would she do if he turned her down?

Could they still be friends?

Would he think she was a shameless woman?

The more she thought about it, the more she regretted what she'd said.

In the end, she wished she could find a hole to crawl into.

She should've kept quiet.

Feeling the increasingly gloomy mood beside him, Eito said:

"Of course we can. Because I like you."

"...Mm."

"Sakura, what's wrong?"

Looking at the girl with her head buried completely in her arms, he asked.

A muffled voice came from below:

"It's nothing... Mm... I'm happy. Don't worry about me."

"All right." He patted Sakura's head.

To his surprise, she was burning up, and damp vapor rose from the top of her head.

That must mean—

Eito had a pretty good idea. She was embarrassed.

And so he leaned quietly against the big tree.

Now and then, the commotion in the distance reached them. Ike and Shinohara were the loudest.

They were probably arguing over how to divide things again.

And Hirata, as the peacemaker, was playing his usual role.

Class D really did have one problem after another.

But that was exactly what made it so interesting.

A life of always following the rules was dull. Conflicts, arguments, disagreements, and surprises were the spices of life.

Eito cared about the results, but he enjoyed the process too.

Without the Three Idiots, Class D would be awfully boring. They were what made this story exciting.

Chapter 40: The Deceptive Matsushita

Sometimes, you shouldn't go too far.

But that wasn't one of the principles Eito lived by.

He did what he liked and said what he liked. Even if it meant risking a girl's dislike, he would act on his curiosity.

"Sakura, how did it taste earlier?"

Though quite a while had passed, Sakura's skin still had a faint pink tint. Her smooth, glowing complexion made her look like a girl who'd just experienced something like that.

At his words, Sakura froze for a moment. Then, as if recalling something, she curled up like a hedgehog and hugged her legs, resting her chin on her knees. Her cheeks puffed out slightly.

"...You just like picking on me."

How could she possibly say something like that out loud?

But Eito did:

"I thought it was really sweet. Soft and smooth, like jelly."

"...Mm."

"Sakura, what's wrong?"

"N-nothing..."

Sakura turned away. Eito didn't see that her face had gone bright red. She pressed both hands to her rising and falling chest, eyes closed, as if reliving the sensation from earlier—or trying to calm herself down.

Eito smiled and stopped teasing her.

But peaceful moments never lasted long before someone came along to interrupt them.

"What are you two doing, hiding out here?"

Kikyo bent forward slightly, one hand braced on her leg, and smiled.

Sakura didn't move at all, as if she hadn't heard her.

Eito glanced at her.

"Taking a break. Want to join us?"

"No, I have a lot to do. How about you come help me, Eito?"

"What is it?"

"Did you figure me out? Actually..." Kikyo said, "there's a girl in our class who hurt her leg, and the girl with her can't carry her. We're looking for a boy to help."

"Is she really that heavy?"

"Heh, I can pretend I didn't hear that." Kikyo smiled. "Girls aren't very strong to begin with, and we don't know what to do in a situation like this. What if we make the injury worse?"

"Then why not ask Hirata? He'd definitely help."

"We did ask Hirata, but she said she'd only let you carry her."

"Oh?"

"Do you think she likes you?"

"I hope so." Eito stood up. "Come on, take me to her."

He turned back and reminded Sakura:

"Sakura, don't wander off. Be careful, or some bad guy might kidnap you."

"Okay."

When he reached the spot, Eito saw a girl crouching on the ground. She had long, waist-length, wavy brown hair, and a bruise on her exposed lower leg. It looked as if she'd bumped into something.

She was pretty. Although she wasn't quite on the level of stunning beauties like Suzune and Kikyo, she wasn't far off.

And Eito already knew her name.

Matsushita Chiaki. She was part of Karuizawa's group, had excellent grades, and was outstanding in every area, even if she wasn't quite at the very top. She also had a habit of keeping a low profile. No one knew what she was really capable of.

Eito wasn't sure what she was after, but he had a vague idea.

He went over to the girl and asked:

"What do you need me to do?"

Shinohara said, "She seems to be in too much pain to stand. Could you carry her?"

"...Get on."

Eito crouched so Matsushita could climb onto his back.

"Then... I'll leave it to you."

Matsushita wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her chest against him. He supported her thighs and stood up.

"Let's go."

The campsite was still some distance away. Shinohara and Kikyo walked ahead, chatting.

Then Matsushita leaned her head toward him and whispered in his ear:

"Do you think I have a nice figure, Takeda?"

"...Why do you ask?"

"Come on, don't boys all like talking about this stuff? Just be honest with me. I won't tell anyone."

She had a nice figure.

But he wouldn't say that. If he did, he'd be at a disadvantage.

If he showed his true perverted nature right from the start, he'd only be letting her toy with him afterward.

"Matsushita, are you pressing your body against me on purpose?"

Matsushita blinked and said:

"I am. Can't I do it to thank you?"

"All right."

A brief silence fell.

Matsushita spoke again, this time in a lower voice:

"Hey, Takeda. Are you hiding something?"

"Why would I hide anything?"

"I don't know." Matsushita continued, "You deliberately got the same score as last time on the exam, didn't you? To do that, you'd have to know every answer to the questions. I could just barely manage that myself."

"I guess I was lucky."

"And I've always found the Sudo incident strange. Someone like him actually apologized on his own, and before that, there were rumors that you'd beaten him up. Later, I got the feeling he treated you differently from everyone else. If I'm right, you must have had something to do with it."

"You're pretty observant, Matsushita. Do you like me, or are you just bored?"

The girl rested her chin on his shoulder.

"That's only natural, isn't it? You're the most popular boy in class after Hirata. And if my guess is right, Maya likes you, doesn't she? As her friend, I ought to get a good look at your character."

"So what's your verdict?"

"I approve. I'll leave Maya in your hands."

"...That's not up to you."

"Sigh." Matsushita sighed. "Looks like she doesn't stand a chance. You seem to like Kushida more."

"Is that so?"