Saving Sakura Airi

"Okay, I'll give it a try. If I can help Sudo, that would be great."

After school, Kikyo found Airi Sakura.

"Airi!"

Airi Sakura froze in place when she heard her, then looked at Kikyo in a panic and asked,

"What is it, Kikyo?"

"Well, I wanted to ask if you had any evidence about Sudo's incident. If you do, could you help him?"

Airi Sakura replied nervously,

"I don't know. I don't know anything, so please don't come to me."

With that, she tried to run away. Unfortunately, she was so panicked that she tripped and fell, sending the camera in her hand flying.

Airi gasped and hurriedly got up to retrieve the camera, but pressing the power button several times did nothing.

"How could this happen..."

"I'm sorry, Airi. You wouldn't have broken your camera if it weren't for me."

"No, it was my fault. I should go."

Watching Airi walk away, Kikyo glanced back at Kiyotaka, who stood in a shadowy corner, and shook her head.

The failure had been expected. Otherwise, there would have been no need for Kikyo to approach her; Airi would have come forward to help on her own. Now they just had to figure out how to uncover her secret and put it to use.

Kiyotaka left once he'd made up his mind, leaving Kikyo behind with a despondent expression.

There was a somewhat popular amateur model online. Other than her hair color, which matched Airi Sakura's, she looked completely different.

But the model was actually Airi Sakura. Sitting in her dark room, she admired her own photos while browsing her fans' comments. One fan was particularly passionate, leaving a comment beneath almost every picture.

"Airi-chan, you're getting prettier and prettier."

"Airi-chan, you finally posted again! I feel like my life has lost all meaning when I can't see you."

"Airi-chan, I think I know where you are. I'm breathing the same air as you right now. I'm so happy."

"Airi-chan, I can't help wanting to come find you. Wait for me. I know who you are now."

His comments grew more and more deranged, frightening Airi Sakura so badly that she shut down the computer and didn't dare look any further. The room plunged into darkness.

On the weekend, Airi Sakura went to an electronics store at the mall to get her camera repaired.

"Hello, I'd like to get my camera fixed."

"Sure, I'll be right with you."

The person who answered was a greasy-looking middle-aged man. When he saw Airi, he seemed to recognize something and hurried over.

"What's wrong with it? Let me have a look."

Airi handed him the camera. The greasy clerk gave it a cursory inspection, then said,

"Some parts inside are broken. It'll take two or three days to fix. Go fill in your information, and I'll let you know when it's ready."

Airi Sakura picked up a pen numbly and asked,

"What information do I need to write down?"

The greasy clerk looked up at Airi Sakura and said,

"Your name, phone number, and... address." At the end, a leering, unsettling smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

Airi Sakura stared at the clerk in fear. She wanted to run, but the camera was in his hands, and she didn't know what to do.

"Oh, okay. This is all I need to fill in, right?"

Just as Airi was at a loss, a cold voice rang out. Someone took the clerk's pen and swiftly filled in his own information.

"I've filled it out. You can contact me when it's ready."

The greasy clerk gave a barely perceptible click of his tongue when someone suddenly cut in, but he didn't dare make a scene in front of everyone. He reluctantly put away the form and left.

"Ayanokoji... What are you doing here?"

Only then did Airi Sakura look at Kiyotaka, still shaken.

"Ah... I was passing by. I saw you were in trouble, so I came to help."

Was that really the case? Of course not. When Airi Sakura broke her camera, her worried expression made it clear how important it was to her. Since this was the only electronics store in the area, Kiyotaka had been waiting nearby for a chance to approach her.

"Thank you, Ayanokoji. If you don't mind, could I buy you a drink?"

Airi Sakura lowered her head and spoke timidly.

"Sure. I'd be happy to."

Kiyotaka continued to look straight at Airi, his gaze completely devoid of emotion. Yet those empty eyes somehow put her at ease, and she no longer felt so tense.

At a drink shop on the mall's first floor, Kiyotaka wrote down a number on a slip of paper and handed it to Airi Sakura.

"This is my contact number. When your camera's fixed, or if you have any problems, you can get in touch with me."

Airi stared blankly for a moment, then blushed slightly and hurriedly said,

"I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking. I should have given you my contact information."

After a flurry of fumbling, the two finally exchanged contact information.

After a few sips of coffee, Kiyotaka looked at Airi Sakura, who had relaxed a little, and asked,

"I want to ask you something. Do you have any evidence that could prove Sudo is innocent?"

Airi Sakura's expression, which had been fairly relaxed, immediately tensed. Without realizing it, she tore at the slip of paper with the number on it.

Seeing her like that, Kiyotaka knew it wasn't the right time. He said,

"But it's okay. Forget I asked. I have something to do, so I'll be going."

Airi Sakura watched Kiyotaka leave, her expression deeply conflicted.

Saving Airi Sakura

It was the fifth day, with only three days left until the Student Council's ruling.

But they still hadn't made any progress.

Kiyotaka and Horikita had arrived at the school building where Sudo had gotten into the fight.

"This place is so secluded, and there aren't any cameras nearby. No wonder there are no witnesses or relevant evidence,"

Horikita said after surveying the area.

Kiyotaka also looked around the school building, seemingly lost in thought.

At the same time, in a shadowy alley somewhere,

Airi Sakura was backed into an alley by a man, slowly retreating.

"Airi-chan, it's me. What are you scared of?"

"Weren't you happy to interact with me before? Why are you so scared now?"

Airi Sakura looked panicked as she backed away, staring in terror at the man before her. She recognized him: he was the clerk from the electronics store.

In desperation, she took out her terminal and called Kiyotaka, whose number she'd saved only a couple of days earlier. But before the call had been connected for long, the greasy clerk snatched the terminal from her and hung up.

"What are you doing? Don't let other people ruin our time alone together, okay, Airi-chan?"

Kiyotaka stared at the call that had connected and then been abruptly ended. After a moment's thought, he called their homeroom teacher, Chabashira.

"What is it?"

"I want to buy Airi Sakura's terminal location."

Chabashira paused in surprise, then a smile tugged at her lips.

"Interesting. I've sent it to you. Take a look. The corresponding points have already been deducted."

After hanging up, Kiyotaka told Horikita to go back first, then headed for the location.

Fortunately, it wasn't far away. Kiyotaka arrived in just a few minutes.

The greasy clerk had Airi Sakura cornered against the wall. Seeing that she had nowhere left to go, he let out a leering laugh.

"Heh heh, Airi-chan, you're mine now."

"Excuse me for interrupting."

The greasy clerk jumped and spun around. Seeing those golden eyes, he instantly flew into a rage.

"You again, you brat! You're always ruining things for me. Drop dead!"

With that, he charged at Kiyotaka like a mountain of flesh.

Kiyotaka first glanced up and spotted a camera overhead, just as he'd expected. He waved at it, then easily dodged the greasy clerk's charge and casually kicked him into the wall.

"Look above you. There's a huge camera right there, and you still thought you could get handsy? What's wrong with your brain?"

Kiyotaka paid no attention to the greasy man's condition. He walked straight over to Airi Sakura, who was still trembling with fear, and took off his jacket to drape over her shoulders.

Feeling its warmth, Airi Sakura quietly thanked him. Then, with Kiyotaka supporting her, she left.

The shock had left Airi Sakura's legs weak, so she leaned against Kiyotaka as they walked. Her soft, full breasts inevitably swayed against his arm. Airi Sakura's nipples hardened, and the pleasant fragrance coming from Kiyotaka made her blush. She felt a strange sensation stirring inside her.

Kiyotaka felt Airi Sakura trembling faintly beside him. Thinking she was scared, he said,

"It's okay. He won't dare come after you again. There are cameras all over the place where we were. If this gets out, he'll be in serious trouble."

Airi Sakura nodded distractedly. For some reason, her mind was filled with Kiyotaka's pleasant fragrance, and she felt both an inexplicable sense of security and a strange, electric thrill.

The more she thought about it, the softer and hotter her body seemed to become. She lowered her head and murmured,

"Ayanokoji, could you walk me back to my dorm?"

Kiyotaka glanced at her and nodded without a word.

They walked in an eerie silence. The only unusual thing was Airi Sakura's increasingly flushed face.

Kiyotaka safely escorted Airi Sakura back to her dorm. Seeing her sitting on the bed, he said,

"Get some rest. I'll be going. Call me if you need anything."

With that, Kiyotaka turned to leave, but a small hand caught hold of him.

Kiyotaka turned back to look at Airi Sakura. She had been keeping her head down, but now she looked up, her face flushed, her lips parting and closing as she panted softly.

"Ayanokoji, do you have a girlfriend?"

Kiyotaka calmly looked at Airi Sakura and nodded.

"Yes."

Then he thought of Kikyo and added,

"And more than one."

Airi Sakura hadn't expected Kiyotaka to be so honest, let alone to have more than one girlfriend. She couldn't help staring at him in surprise.

"You're just going to tell me that so honestly?"

Kiyotaka shrugged indifferently.

"It doesn't matter. You're one of my targets, too."

Kiyotaka spoke calmly as he looked at Airi Sakura. Now that he'd laid his cards on the table, there was no need to keep up the act.

But Airi Sakura gazed at him dreamily and smiled.

"So I'm one of your targets, too? That's good. As long as I'm not the only one who feels this way. I don't care about anything else."

With that, Airi pressed Kiyotaka down into a chair and settled sideways on his lap. Her cool, red lips trembled slightly as they covered his, clumsily seeking his saliva. Her slender hands roamed restlessly.

Because of her position, Airi felt a burning sensation in a sensitive spot. After a little thought, she realized what it was.

"Kiyotaka... May I call you that?"

Kiyotaka nodded.

Airi lowered her head shyly and asked,

"Does it feel uncomfortable? I can help you."