Expulsion Controversy

Time flew by, and the days passed one after another.

Ever since their encounter in the alleyway, Horikita Suzune acted like a mouse seeing a cat whenever she caught sight of Onizuka, dodging him from far away.

The stiff, awkward way she turned around sometimes made him want to laugh.

Since their seats were relatively close, whenever Horikita Suzune returned to her desk, she would always keep her head down and walk quickly, fearing that Onizuka might strike up a conversation again.

However, it felt a bit impolite to keep avoiding her, so he forced himself to endure the urge to tease her every time.

It was a bit unfair to her, he supposed; he had intended to exact a small revenge, issue a warning to her brother, and probe Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, but in the end, the person who suffered the most—and the only one who truly suffered—was her, the "bystander."

But if he could turn back time, Onizuka would still do it all over again.

In this school, lacking strength is the greatest original sin!

Soon, the midterm exams were over, and it wasn't long before the day of the results arrived.

After handing the past exam papers over to Horikita Suzune and Ayanokoji, Onizuka hadn't asked about the matter again.

He didn't even want to spare a single thought for it.

The entire set of midterm exam papers was remarkably similar to the past papers; although he hadn't looked at them closely, others claimed there was an eighty or even ninety percent overlap.

In particular, the final few ultra-difficult, high-point questions had been copied word-for-word onto this year's midterm exam.

Kikyo Kushida and her group hadn't delayed at all; they had called back the seven students at risk of expulsion the very second their deal with Onizuka was completed and handed the papers to them.

Beyond that, to prevent any other "dark horses" from falling into the failing range, they had announced the existence of these past papers to the entire class after the last class meeting.

They let all students sign up according to their needs, and the points required to purchase the papers were split equally among all those who signed up.

In the end, naturally, almost everyone chose to "group buy"—after all, no one likes unexpected surprises.

Furthermore, Yosuke Hirata and his group held study sessions from time to time, just to be safe.

Surely, with so much time to prepare, memorizing a few sets of exam papers would be a piece of cake...

"Sudo! You failed the English exam!"

"Huh?????????"

It was as if he had heard something incredible; Onizuka couldn't help but cry out.

The entire class turned their gazes toward him.

"Onizuka-kun, is something the matter?" Sae Chabashira asked.

"Sorry, a bug crawled onto my textbook, and I was a bit startled just now."

Looking at Onizuka's desk, which was as clean as a blank sheet of paper, Sae Chabashira's mouth twitched.

"Very well, Onizuka-kun. Please be careful not to disrupt class discipline next time."

With that, Sae Chabashira continued with the topic he had interrupted.

"The school's passing line is not fixed; it is determined by dividing the average score of each class by two."

"Your results this time were simply excellent. Nearly half the class scored full marks, which brought the English average up to 87.6."

Sae Chabashira, looking as if she were watching them try to be clever, smiled and continued.

"Therefore! Your passing line is actually 43.8. Rounded up, that makes it 44. Sudo, with a 43, has failed!"

The classroom fell deathly silent, followed by a heated discussion about Sudo, though no one could come up with a solution.

Sae Chabashira raised her hand to check the time, then slammed her hand against the desk.

"Alright! Quiet down!"

"The first period is about to start, so get yourselves together! Sudo, enjoy your last day of school life. Come to the faculty office after school so we can process your withdrawal."

After announcing the results, Sae Chabashira left the classroom, leaving the students to their own devices for the moment.

Onizuka: ...

He truly hadn't realized that the passing line was calculated in such a way.

And he certainly hadn't expected that someone could have the past papers and be given so much time to memorize the answers, only to still score a 43!

Although he had a way to save that one point for him, there was no need to do so.

Onizuka was not such a kind person, nor did he care whether Class D moved forward or not.

He only needed to ensure that Sato, Shinohara, and Inogashira passed the exams successfully; as long as he didn't break the contract, that was enough.

Whether Sudo was expelled or not, Onizuka didn't care.

But clearly, others did.

While everyone was discussing Sudo's expulsion and trying to comfort him, Horikita Suzune ran out, looking hurried.

Not long after, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka followed right behind her.

Seeing such a scene, Onizuka wasn't surprised in the slightest.

After the conversation he had with Horikita Suzune last time, if she still couldn't find that path, then she might not even be qualified to be a marionette.

Not long after, Horikita Suzune and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka returned to the classroom together, bringing back the news that Sudo would not be expelled.

The classroom erupted into another round of commotion.

However, Onizuka noticed that when Ayanokoji Kiyotaka returned, he was clutching his side, looking as if he were constipated.

There was no need to guess whose handiwork this was; sometimes, Onizuka couldn't help but think maliciously: could this guy be a masochist?

Coldly ignoring the praise from the others, Horikita Suzune returned to her seat, sat in a daze for a long while, and then turned her head to look directly into Onizuka's eyes.

"Onizuka-kun, thank you for your reminder last time. I think if it weren't for you, I might not have been able to accomplish anything this time."

"Although what you said last time was very hurtful, I don't mind it anymore."

"Even if the paths we choose to move forward on are different, I think we should still be able to work together, right?"

Looking at the chattering Horikita Suzune, then turning his head to look at the expressionless Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.

Onizuka's mind wandered, recalling how the two of them were often stuck together.

Well~ sometimes, two masochists being together has a certain unique flavor, doesn't it?

Onizuka expressed that he didn't understand, but he respected it.

"Onizuka-kun... Onizuka-kun..."

Coming back to his senses, having not heard a single word, Onizuka looked at the hand Horikita Suzune had extended and the somewhat hesitant expression on her face.

Without a shred of hesitation, he reached out and shook it, flashing a friendly smile.

Although he didn't know what had happened, this was truly an unexpected turn of events.

Looking at Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, whose mouth was twitching at the side, he knew that who exactly stood behind the marionette was still far from decided.