The next morning, during homeroom.
As the bell rang, Chabashira-sensei walked into the classroom without hurrying and went up to the podium.
Just then, Hondo suddenly broke the silence below, shouting in agitation:
"Chabashira-sensei! When are our points going to be issued? You clearly said yesterday that our Class Points weren't zero!"
"Yeah, exactly!" another student chimed in, their voice full of anxiety and discontent.
The classroom erupted in an instant, and the students were suddenly up in arms.
Seeing this, Chabashira-sensei's lips curled into a faintly mocking smile, a glint of amusement in her eyes.
"Quiet down!" she suddenly raised her voice, her tone carrying unquestionable authority.
At her rebuke, the students settled down, and the room filled with oppressive silence.
"Today, as it happens, I came to formally inform you about this."
Chabashira-sensei spoke, but her tone was no longer as casual as before. It carried a hint of seriousness.
"Three students from Class C have accused Sudo of beating them unilaterally. Since this incident took place last month-"
She paused slightly, sweeping her gaze across the classroom to make sure every student was listening carefully.
"-we'll have to wait until the incident has been resolved before calculating the Class Points and issuing your individual points according to the outcome. That's all!"
Chabashira-sensei announced to the class from the podium why the points were being delayed, then left the classroom, leaving the students to do as they pleased.
The classroom immediately erupted into heated discussion, voices rising all around.
Sudo slammed his desk and jumped to his feet, his face flushed.
"I was acting in self-defense! How many times do I have to say it? Self! De! Fense!!"
But his roar failed to draw his classmates' sympathy. Instead, it made the atmosphere even more hostile, pushing it to the opposite extreme.
"Ah~ Sudo, well, that explains it," one student said sarcastically, and those around him joined in.
"Yeah, isn't that just the kind of person he is?"
"Tsk, looks like this month's points are gone again. This is disgusting."
"Why hasn't he dropped out yet? All he does is drag us down."
Seeing that this was how his classmates treated him
Faced with their mockery, Sudo's mood grew heavier, anger churning inside him.
Just as he was about to let it out, Yukimura Teruhiko's words from the previous night seemed to resurface in his mind.
For a moment, Sudo was lost. He stood where he was, looking dazed.
The mockery around him gradually blurred. He didn't know how to respond, as if everyone's eyes were swallowing him up.
Seeing that things were taking a turn for the worse, Kushida hurriedly stepped forward.
"Everyone! We've looked into this, and Sudo really isn't entirely to blame."
As soon as she finished speaking, Hirata stepped up to the podium beside her, his expression serious.
"Everyone, please hear me out. What we should be doing now isn't blaming Sudo. He's actually a victim too."
"We should do our best to help Sudo and minimize our losses!"
Hirata's words seemed to open a floodgate. The atmosphere in the classroom eased slightly, and everyone turned to look at him.
Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief, his clenched fist slowly relaxing where no one could see it.
"Has anyone been to the special teaching building recently? Or does anyone know someone who's been there? Things would be much easier if there were an eyewitness."
Hearing Hirata say this, the students began discussing it among themselves, trying to recall where they'd been recently.
Just then, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka noticed something.
The only person in the class who seemed nervous was a girl wearing glasses. She kept glancing back toward him, looking anxious, as if she were hesitating over something.
If he remembered correctly, this girl was called... Sakura Airi?
A girl who usually went almost unnoticed.
Usually, Sakura Airi gave the impression of being quiet and having almost no presence.
Ayanokoji had no connection with her, and the same went for Horikita Suzune, who sat beside him.
Then it could only be Onizuka, who sat behind him?
Although he didn't know what connection those two had, it was obvious that it had something to do with this incident.
If so, things might be a lot easier for him. After all, a peaceful life was hard to come by.
Meanwhile, Onizuka, sitting behind him, felt helpless too.
Looking at Sakura Airi's nervous expression, he couldn't help sighing inwardly.
Her ability to handle psychological pressure was far too weak. Even a question that didn't point to anyone in particular could make her so nervous she could barely keep herself together.
Onizuka took out his phone, opened LINE, and sent Sakura Airi a message.
Don't be nervous, Airi. I'll take care of this. Don't worry.
Feeling her phone vibrate, she saw Onizuka wave his phone at her and quickly took hers out of her skirt pocket.
After reading Onizuka's message, Sakura Airi hesitated for a while, her fingers slowly moving across the screen.
Onizuka saw the words "typing" appear again and again in his chat with Sakura Airi.
At last, after a long while, Onizuka saw the message Sakura Airi had sent.
I understand, Tsukasa.
Onizuka knew full well that Sakura Airi was hiding some kind of secret, but out of respect for him, he had never asked.
He had thought things might improve as time went by.
But he hadn't expected her discomfort to grow worse and worse. If things continued like this, he might have to take some sort of action.
The class discussion also came to an end when the bell rang for the start of lessons.
Hirata told everyone to ask around and see if anyone had witnessed what happened to Sudo, and then the matter was dropped.
After school.
Sakura Airi packed up her things, thinking about what had happened to her in recent days. She didn't notice Onizuka quietly approaching behind her.
Suddenly, she felt a warm breath brush against her ear.
"Airi, want to go shopping together?"
"Eeeek!!!!"
Startled by the sudden voice, Sakura Airi jumped to the side. She didn't notice the schoolbag at her feet, lost her balance, and pitched straight toward the floor.
She closed her eyes and thrust out both hands, trying to lessen the impact.
But the pain she expected never came.
An arm wrapped around her waist and, once again, lifted her up in an all-too-familiar pose.
"Sorry, Airi. I didn't think I'd scare you, but you didn't have to react that dramatically, did you?"
Sakura Airi's heart raced, and her cheeks grew slightly warm. Her panic gradually gave way to warmth.
"I... I was just... startled all of a sudden..."
She stammered her explanation, her voice so quiet it was almost inaudible, as if she were embarrassed by her own reaction.
"So, do you want to go? Shopping?"