Internal Strife

"Hey, why do you keep staring at me? Keep it up and I'll kill you."

After Nagami returned to the base, he kept staring at Ibuki, lost in thought.

"Ah, sorry. I just figured something out. Thanks, Ibuki."

"What are you talking about?"

Ibuki looked puzzled, having no idea what was going on. It all seemed so bizarre.

(Two spies? This dead end just turned into a winning hand. Thanks, Ryuen.) Nagami felt grateful to Ibuki.

"Do you have a moment, Ayanokoji?"

"Sure. What's up?"

"How should I put it? Horikita really has it rough. She's sick but still forcing herself to take the exam—or maybe it's precisely because she's sick that things will be easier."

Ayanokoji remained expressionless, as if he'd known all along what he had to do.

"Mm, I'm a little... confused."

"We can apologize afterward. What do you think, Ayanokoji-kun?"

"You've got a twisted sense of humor."

"Come on, we're thinking the same thing." Nagami broke into an awkward grin.

Ayanokoji didn't answer. He lay on a rock, absorbed in watching the stars move across the sky. The Big Dipper, the brightest constellation, glittered in the night sky.

"The stars are beautiful," Ayanokoji said.

On the morning of the third day, no one from Class C showed up for roll call. It seemed they had given up on the points and withdrawn as a group.

"Looks like they spent two carefree days blowing all their points. I guess we know who's coming in last this time," Yamauchi said.

"I'm so jealous. We should use Koenji's map to improve our meals. We can't keep eating fish forever. Let's have roasted corn today." The Three Idiots began celebrating optimistically.

Hirata was still working to resolve conflicts within the class. After weathering the chaos of the first two days and securing a stable base, everyone seemed to choose, without a word, to take it easy and conserve their strength.

Everything seemed to be going well, but no one realized that a crisis was just around the corner.

(If only things could stay this peaceful.)

"Hey! Boys, get up!" A girl's voice rang out early in the morning, full of anger. There was also some quiet sobbing.

"Is something wrong?" Hirata was the first to come out and find out what was happening.

"One of Karuizawa's bras is missing. A boy must have stolen it! Let us search your luggage," Shinohara shouted, as if afraid the culprit might get away.

"Hey! Why assume a boy stole it? What if a spy from Class C did it?" Sudo retorted.

"Why would a girl do something like that? It had to be some lecherous guy," Shinohara insisted, as unreasonable as ever.

"What did you say? Watch your mouth." The Three Idiots were the first to stand up for themselves, indignantly protesting the accusation.

(Common sense says Ibuki is the most suspicious, but Class D has no common sense. I can't blame the girls for not sticking together. They know better than anyone what the boys in Class D are like. They've pulled all kinds of creepy stunts. Even I think they're perverted, and I'm a pervert myself. Like that ranking of girls with the biggest boobs, the hidden-camera footage from the changing room, the weird poses they used to peek at the girls swimming, and all the fantasies they talked about having after dating a well-endowed girl.)

(In other words, the girls have put up with the boys' creepy behavior for long enough. This is the breaking point.)

(So here's the question: if they suspect the boys in Class D, does that mean they have common sense or not?)

"Catch the culprit right away, or we won't be able to sleep tonight. Who knows what that pervert might do to us while we're sleeping?"

"Exactly!" Shinohara, Sato, and the other girls chimed in.

"Then I'll search everyone. If you trust me," Hirata offered, trying to defuse the situation.

"Agreed!"

"Hirata-kun is definitely a good person." Most of the girls approved of Hirata's suggestion.

The boys also began opening their bags inside their tents.

"Holy crap! Why's there a bow bra in my bag?" Nagami quietly picked up the garment and slipped it into his pocket, wondering what to do with it.

"Sorry, Ayanokoji." Nagami stealthily slipped the stolen item into Ayanokoji's pocket, moving incredibly fast.

"Wait, this is..."

Ayanokoji remained expressionless, merely glancing at Chang Shui Jing.

"Nothing wrong with the luggage. You can all relax," Hirata explained.

"You can hide things in your clothes, too. Check the clothes!"

"Don't push it!" Shinohara demanded that they be frisked as well, drawing protests from the boys.

(Damn Shinohara. I'll remember this.)

Standing beside Nagami, Ayanokoji suddenly moved his hand with lightning speed and slipped the bra into Nagami's pocket.

(That speed! Amazing.)

Rather than worry about being mistaken for a pervert, Nagami was amazed by Ayanokoji's precision and speed.

To calm the girls down, Hirata agreed to search the boys himself.

"Sorry, Nagami. This'll only take a moment."

Hirata reached into the pocket where Nagami had put the garment. He froze for a moment, but said nothing. His gaze toward Nagami grew complicated.

It was as if he were saying, I never thought you were that kind of person.

"I'm innocent." Nagami looked Hirata in the eye with a determined expression, showing not the slightest sign of guilt, and spoke softly.

"I've finished searching the boys. I didn't find anything. The culprit really wasn't one of them," Hirata explained to the girls.

"Is that so? If that's what Hirata-kun says, then fine."

"But from now on, the boys can't cross over to our side. We'll use the middle as the dividing line."

"But then the girls won't be able to handle some of the heavy chores."

"We can pick two boys who are allowed to come and go freely," Kushida suggested.

"I nominate Hirata-kun, and..."

"Ayanokoji." "Nagami."

Horikita and Kushida spoke at the same time.

"Nagami looks stronger. Wouldn't he be a better choice?"

"You just like him, don't you? Ayanokoji is the one most of the girls would feel comfortable with. A lot of girls are scared of being around someone called a violent thug."

"Hey! I'm a refined and gentle guy. I nominate Ayanokoji. Thanks for the kind thought, Kushida."

"Wait... I—"

"Then that's settled."

Ayanokoji seemed to want to stay out of it, but Hirata suddenly made the decision, leaving him no way out.

(Some guys who've never been with a girl might think this is a great chance to get close to soft, sweet girls. But as far as Nagami, Tokyo's number-one romantic, is concerned, working hard for them won't make girls like you. They'll just see you as a convenient backup.)

(If you want to pursue a girl, first figure out what she needs. Maybe the security that comes from good grades or points, the instinctive attraction to good looks, a connection through shared interests, or admiration for someone strong.)

(Come to think of it, I really miss the yacht. It's such a pain not being able to change my jacket here.)

"Hirata-kun, you really put yourself out for the class."

"I trust you, Nagami. Give me the bra first. We can look for the culprit later." Not long after Hirata left,

"Nagami, don't tell me you think I'm the culprit?" Ibuki shamelessly walked over just then.

"Aren't you giving yourself away?"

(In this Special Exam, I'll make Class C lose so badly they'll look like clowns desperately performing in a circus.)

"Don't talk to me, you know?"

After saying that, Nagami headed to the cornfield to grab some roasted corn. First come, first served.