Kushida

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Kikyo Kushida
Gender	Female
Affiliation	Class D, Advanced Nurturing High School
Occupation/Role	Student; leader of a small girls' group in Class D 28
First Appearance	Chapter 13

Background / History

Kushida was already known across classes as an approachable, highly social student. Kaneda described her as easy to talk to and said she wanted to befriend Kitazawa Minya, while she also provided him information on the isolated Suzune Horikita and Horikita's desk-mate, Kiyotaka Ayanokoji 13.

After Kitazawa suspected her of leaking information about his position on a wealthy-student ranking list, Kushida denied involvement and presented herself as hurt by the accusation. The two nevertheless agreed to become friends, with each promising not to betray the other 27.

She then exchanged intelligence on Ayanokoji for Kitazawa's promise to introduce her to Kakeru Ryuen. Kushida identified Ayanokoji as the only classmate who regularly spoke with Horikita and speculated that he was intelligent enough to have earned Horikita's attention 27.

During the midterm-exam crisis, Kushida obtained a separate set of past papers from a third-year student. When its answers conflicted with the set distributed by Yosuke Hirata, she and Horikita met privately with Hirata; Class D ultimately attempted to memorize both versions 33.

Appearance

Kushida is described as a cute and eye-catching girl who puts effort into her casual clothing 13 26.

• Her emotional displays can quickly draw the attention of people nearby 27.
• Kitazawa regards her as a “social butterfly” and considers dealing with her troublesome 26.

Personality

Kushida is intensely social and proactive about forming connections. She repeatedly frames her approach to others as friendship, including with Kitazawa and Ryuen, and openly states that she leads a small group within Class D 27 28.

Her friendliness is paired with a playful, probing manner. When Kitazawa asked her to introduce him to a capable girl, Kushida briefly nominated herself, then revealed that she had only wanted to see his reaction 28. She also shows persistence in Class D's problems, encouraging classmates to search for evidence that could support Ken Sudo's claim of self-defense 39.

Abilities & Skills

Social Network

Kushida has Class D's broadest network and is capable of gathering information from students across classes 34.

• Maintains a small group of girls within Class D 28.
• Was able to obtain information about Kitazawa through a third-year student 27.
• Visited Class A and successfully acquired a suspicious practice paper from its lost-and-found area 50.

Information Brokerage

Kushida trades information and introductions to advance her connections.

• Provided Kitazawa with her observations of Ayanokoji and Horikita in exchange for an introduction to Ryuen 27.
• Offered to introduce Kitazawa to a capable Class D girl, pending that girl's permission 28.
• Obtained a separate set of past exam papers through a third-year student 33.

Class Cooperation

Despite her reportedly poor private relationship with Horikita, Kushida works with her when Class D's interests require it 33 34.

• Consulted with Horikita and Hirata when the class received conflicting past papers before the midterm 33.
• Helped mobilize Class D's private points to save its failing students after the exams 33.
• Supported efforts to find an eyewitness for Sudo's fight with Class C 39.

Relationships

• Kitazawa Minya — Became his nominal friend after denying that she leaked information about his wealth; they exchanged intelligence on Ayanokoji for Kitazawa's promise to introduce her to Ryuen 27.
• Suzune Horikita — Reportedly has a poor relationship with Horikita, but cooperates with her for Class D's benefit, including during the midterm-paper crisis 33 34.
• Kiyotaka Ayanokoji — Kushida identified him as Horikita's only regular conversational partner and suspected he was intelligent 27.
• Kakeru Ryuen — Kushida wanted to befriend Ryuen and asked Kitazawa to arrange an introduction 27.
• Yosuke Hirata — Worked with him and Horikita after their two sets of past papers conflicted before the midterm exam 33.
• Ken Sudo — Supported the search for evidence that could substantiate his self-defense claim against Class C 39.
• Daishi Ishizaki and his group — Invited them out shortly before the hearing concerning Sudo's case 44.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Kitazawa's Class D Intelligence Gathering

Kushida becomes Kitazawa's first direct Class D contact. Their friendship is immediately transactional: she shares details about Ayanokoji and Horikita, while Kitazawa agrees to facilitate her contact with Ryuen 27.

Midterm Paper Crisis

Kushida's past-paper set conflicts with Hirata's shortly before the exams, creating suspicion that one of them supplied false answers. She works with Horikita and Hirata to respond, though the resulting confusion still leaves several Class D students at risk 33.

Sudo Dispute

During negotiations with Class C, Kushida challenges Kitazawa's demand for 1.5 million private points in compensation and continues encouraging Class D to seek testimony supporting Sudo 39.

Class A Practice Paper

While visiting Class A, Kushida notices and takes a discarded practice paper that Class A students had ignored. Its discovery becomes part of the renewed investigation into the earlier fake-paper incident 50.