The Furious Ken Sudō

"Coward."

"Trash."

"Class D losers."

Every word echoed in his mind, refusing to fade.

"I'll fucking—"

Ken Sudō finally snapped.

His fist shot out like a cannonball, whistling through the air before landing squarely in the blond boy's face.

"Boom!"

The next moment.

The blond boy flew backward like a kite with its strings cut. He spun halfway around in the air before crashing heavily to the ground, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

An ordinary person couldn't hit that hard.

Clearly.

The other guy had gone along with it on purpose.

"Holy shit!"

"He really hit him!"

The crowd erupted. People gasped; some instinctively stepped back, while many more stayed put, excitedly raising their phones to record.

"Quick, get it on video!"

"This is huge news!"

"Someone from Class D is attacking people!"

The chatter rang out from every direction. Someone even whistled, as if they were watching an incredible show.

Watching the scene unfold.

Sudō pressed his knuckles together, looking a little dazed himself.

When had he gotten this strong?

Over on the Class C side.

The two remaining boys exchanged a glance, then grinned smugly and kept taunting him.

"Hey, hey."

"You've got a death wish or something?"

"You dare hit my buddy? You Class D loser, you're asking for it. I'll beat you until you piss yourself."

Of course.

They talked big, but had no intention of fighting back.

At that.

Sudō glared at them, his temper flaring again. He raised his fists and charged at them furiously.

They didn't even try to dodge.

Instead, they moved toward him.

They let his fists rain down on them.

"Thud, thud, thud!"

Dull impacts rang out one after another.

Sudō completely lost control. His eyes were bloodshot as he swung wildly with both fists, throwing every punch with almost all his strength. His breathing grew faster and faster.

He didn't care about anything anymore.

He just wanted to vent, to teach them a brutal lesson.

"Raaaah—"

With a beastly roar.

Sudō kicked one of them in the stomach, forcing him to curl up on the ground.

And yet.

The boy who'd been kicked was smiling.

Blood ran from the corner of his mouth, and his face was covered in bruises, but his smile was subtle and malicious. His vicious gaze seemed to say, You're dead.

It worked...

He thought to himself, while putting on a show of crying out in pain.

At the edge of the crowd.

Airi Sakura clutched Xu Nuo's sleeve tightly. Her body trembled slightly, and she was pressed almost entirely against him, her chest squeezed out of shape against his arm.

"Xu Nuo..."

The girl didn't notice, her voice trembling a little as her blue eyes filled with unease and fear.

"Should we... go over and stop him?"

The violent scene had clearly frightened her. The sounds of fists landing, and the ferocious look on Sudō's face, both terrified her.

At the same time.

She recognized him as one of their classmates.

At that.

Xu Nuo shook his head and stood quietly in place, watching the scene before him with an even gaze.

His pupils were black.

"No."

"This is his own choice."

Airi froze. She didn't quite understand what he meant, but she instinctively felt uneasy.

Xu Nuo...

He was so gentle.

And yet so cold.

The girl bit her lower lip, a complicated emotion flashing through her blue eyes as her thoughts swirled.

Clearly.

She didn't understand.

Why was Xu Nuo so gentle, yet so indifferent to what was happening to Sudō?

It wasn't that she felt sorry for Sudō.

She was afraid Xu Nuo's kindness might be fake.

If so.

Would he treat her with the same coldness one day? She couldn't bear the thought...

Airi was filled with anxiety.

Suddenly, she seemed to realize something.

Wait,

or maybe...

Am I special?

Airi blinked, and her cheeks instantly grew hot. She stole a glance at his profile.

Before long, she was gazing at him, entranced.

He was so handsome!

As for the red-haired delinquent who was fighting?

Irrelevant.

Just then.

Seeing the girl's unsettled expression.

Xu Nuo seemed to realize he'd come across as too cold, so he shrugged helplessly.

"There's nothing we can do."

"With our little frames,"

"we can't hold back Sudō when he's lost it. If he sees red and starts hitting us too, we really won't be able to do anything."

Of course, that was a lie.

If this red-haired delinquent dared to lay a hand on him.

Heh...

"I see!"

And yet.

Airi believed him. Her face lit up with understanding, and she felt ashamed of her earlier thoughts.

That was true.

I'm so ordinary. Why would Xu Nuo...

"Everyone, stop!"

Just then.

A stern shout came from beyond the crowd.

Immediately afterward.

Several figures pushed through the crowd and rushed into the middle of the fight. People hurriedly cleared a path for them.

Clearly.

They were from the Student Council.

At their head was a tall boy wearing glasses. He had a stern expression, and a sharp, cold air about him. His eyes were keen as a hawk's.

It was Horikita Manabu himself.

Seeing that the fighting continued despite his order.

"Pull them apart!"

Horikita Manabu frowned. At his command, several Student Council members behind him immediately sprang into action.

They moved quickly.

Two to a person.

They soon subdued Sudō and the other boys.

"Let go of me!"

Sudō struggled.

His eyes were bloodshot, and he thrashed like a madman, still trying to charge at the others. He had clearly lost himself in his anger.

"I'll kill those bastards!"

"Let go!"

His voice was hoarse, thick with rage.

Then.

He even mistook the Student Council members holding him for enemies and slammed an elbow back at one of them.

"Ugh—"

Caught off guard.

A Student Council member took the blow to the stomach and sucked in a sharp breath, his face twisting in pain.

"This guy..."

The next moment.

Horikita Manabu stepped forward himself. He raised a hand and executed a precise joint lock, seizing Sudō's arm before twisting it sharply with a deft movement.

"Crack—"

A joint made a faint popping sound.

Sudō cried out in pain and was forced down onto one knee.

"Ah..."

The pain finally brought the redhead back to his senses a little, but he still refused to back down.

He glared viciously at the boys he'd beaten.

At the same time.

The surrounding students backed away, their eyes full of fear and disgust as they looked at Sudō.

"He even dared to attack the Student Council."

"How scary..."

"Is he some kind of delinquent?"

"How did someone like that even get into this school?"

The Class C boys covered their injuries and groaned on the ground. Their faces were bruised and swollen, but they wore triumphant smiles.

After all.

You couldn't expect petty thugs to be good actors.

But.

They'd succeeded.

They'd successfully provoked Sudō from Class D into attacking them in front of everyone.

Now...

All they had to do was wait for the school to deliver justice.

"Everyone, move along!"

Horikita Manabu spoke coldly, sweeping his gaze over the crowd. His tone left no room for argument.

"It's over. Go back to what you were doing."

As he spoke.

His gaze paused on someone.

Xu Nuo...

The Student Council had received a report of a mass brawl here. Could he have been the one who planned it?

No, he was in Class D too.

He was probably just passing by.

Having reached that conclusion, Horikita Manabu had no intention of exchanging pleasantries. He simply looked away and turned his gaze toward the crowd.

The students were somewhat reluctant to leave.

Although they still wanted to watch the commotion, they scattered under the pressure of the Student Council President.

However.

The videos and photos on their phones were still there.

It probably wouldn't be long.

Before this spread throughout the entire school.

"President."

A Student Council member stepped forward and reported quietly, "These students from Class C have injuries of varying severity, both internal and external. They need to be taken to the infirmary."

"As for this guy..."

He paused and looked at the red-haired youth, who still hadn't realized the gravity of his mistake and was glaring indignantly.

"We've confirmed he's a student in Class D."

"His name is Ken Sudō."

"He doesn't have a single injury."

"I understand."

Horikita Manabu pushed up his glasses, his tone utterly impassive. "I'll handle this personally."

With that.

He looked at the redhead who was being restrained, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Take him to the Student Council Office first."

Class D.

So he was from Class D. That guy had been there and hadn't stopped them. There had to be more to this...

Soon.

The crowd gradually dispersed.

Xu Nuo was no exception. He gently took Airi Sakura by the wrist and left with the crowd.

Student Council Office.

Ken Sudō was held down in a chair, with two members standing close by and keeping a watchful eye on him, afraid he might fly into another rage.

Only now.

Had the fury and aggression finally ebbed away.

With his emotions no longer running high, Ken Sudō realized what a stupid thing he'd done. He'd gotten into a fight in front of everyone, with all those people watching.

For a moment.

Remorse and unease filled his heart.

"Ken Sudō."

"Class 1-D."

"Assaulted people in public, leaving three injured."

Just then.

Horikita Manabu spoke. Seated at the head of the table, he looked at Sudō without expression, delivering each phrase one word at a time, every word sounding like a verdict.

"Do you know what this means?"

"..."

Sudō opened his mouth, then fell silent.

Clearly.

A sliver of hope still remained in his heart.

Maybe it wasn't as serious as he imagined.

However...

"Expulsion."

Horikita Manabu pushed up his glasses. His merciless words extinguished the last spark of hope in the redhead's heart. "According to school regulations, you'll be expelled immediately."

In an instant.

Sudō's body went rigid.

Expulsion?

His mind went blank. Only those two words echoed through it, and his lips began to tremble.

No...

He couldn't be expelled...

If he was expelled...

Then he'd have nothing left. His dream of playing basketball, all his hard work—everything would be gone...

"No!"

At the thought of that outcome.

Sudō trembled all over, his eyes reddening as his emotions surged. But this time, it wasn't anger. It was fear and despair.

"You..."

"I know I was wrong. Please don't expel me..."

Usually stubborn, he finally lowered his head. His voice was humble and fearful, carrying a note of pleading.

"..."

Horikita Manabu looked at him in silence.

Although it was obvious someone had set him up.

Still.

There was no point feeling sorry for a fool.

The only reason Horikita Manabu had paid him any attention was that he was in his younger sister's class.

"Hah..."

After a long while.

He pushed up his glasses and said succinctly, "I'll investigate this matter thoroughly."

"But."

"If you're at fault."

"Then you should prepare yourself for expulsion."

In truth.

The matter was more or less settled. After all, attacking someone in front of a crowd had caused a terrible disturbance, and the security cameras had recorded the entire incident.

It had started as a simple argument.

Ken Sudō had thrown the first punch.

During the fight.

The other side had done nothing but take the beating.

The security footage was ironclad evidence of his guilt. There was basically no way to overturn the case.

However.

They still had to wait for the medical assessment of the injuries.

There was room to maneuver depending on Class C's wishes—in other words, whether they chose to file a lawsuit.

Then.

Without a moment's hesitation.

Horikita Manabu got up and left the office.

All that remained was Ken Sudō, slumped in his chair in despair, as if every last bit of strength had been drained from him.

Clearly.

As for whether he was the one at fault.

He knew the answer perfectly well.