Condemnation

The next morning, during homeroom.

As the bell rang, Chabashira walked into the classroom at a leisurely pace and stood at the podium.

Just then, Hondo suddenly broke the silence from below, shouting excitedly:

"Chabashira-sensei! When exactly will our points be distributed? You said yesterday that our class points weren't zero!"

"Yeah, that's right!" another student chimed in, their voice filled with anxiety and dissatisfaction.

The classroom erupted instantly, the students suddenly stirred into a frenzy.

Seeing this, a mocking smirk curled the corner of Chabashira's mouth, a glimmer of amusement flashing in her eyes.

"Quiet down!" she suddenly raised her voice, her tone carrying an unquestionable authority.

Following this reprimand, the students in the classroom obediently settled down, and the air became filled with a stifling silence.

"I happen to be here today to officially notify you about this matter."

Chabashira spoke immediately, though her tone was no longer as relaxed as before, but rather tinged with seriousness.

"Three students from Class C have accused Sudo of unilaterally assaulting them, and since this incident occurred last month..."

She paused slightly, scanning the classroom to ensure every student was listening carefully.

"...we must wait until the incident is resolved. The calculation of class points and the distribution of personal points will proceed according to the final outcome. That is all!"

Chabashira announced the reason for the delay in point distribution to the entire class from the podium, then left the room, leaving the students to their own devices.

Immediately, the classroom was filled with indignant voices and overlapping discussions.

Sudo slammed his desk and stood up excitedly, his face flushed red.

"It was self-defense! How many times do I have to say it! Self! Defense!!"

However, his roar did not garner the students' sympathy; instead, it made the atmosphere even sharper, pushing it to the other extreme.

"Ah~ Sudo, well, that's no surprise then," a student said with a sarcastic tone, and those around him chimed in as well.

"Yeah, isn't that just the kind of person he is?"

"Tsk, looks like this month's points are down the drain again. How disgusting."

"Why hasn't he dropped out yet? He's just dragging us down."

Seeing that this was the attitude the students held toward him...

Facing such ridicule, Sudo's mood grew increasingly heavy, his anger surging within him.

Just as he was about to lash out, the words Yukimura Teruhiko had spoken the previous night seemed to resurface in his mind.

For a moment, Sudo felt lost, standing in place with a dazed expression.

The surrounding mockery gradually blurred; he didn't know how to respond, as if he were being drowned out by everyone's gaze.

Seeing that things were taking a turn for the worse, Kushida quickly stepped forward.

"Everyone! We have already looked into this matter! It really isn't entirely Sudo-kun's fault."

As soon as she finished speaking, Hirata followed suit, walking up to the podium with a serious expression on his face.

"Everyone, please listen to me for a moment. What we should be doing right now is not blaming Sudo-kun; he is actually a victim as well."

"We should try our best to help Sudo-kun and minimize the losses!"

Hirata's words were like opening a floodgate; the atmosphere in the classroom softened slightly, and everyone turned their attention toward him.

He let out a sigh of relief, his tightly clenched fists slowly relaxing where no one could see.

"Has anyone here been to the special building recently? Or does anyone know someone who has? If there are any eyewitnesses, the situation would be much better."

Hearing Hirata say this, the students below began to discuss among themselves, recalling their recent schedules.

At this moment, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka noticed something.

The only girl in the class wearing glasses appeared very nervous, glancing back toward his direction from time to time. Her expression was anxious, as if she were hesitating about something.

If he remembered correctly, this girl's name was... Sakura Airi?

A girl who usually had very little presence.

Normally, Sakura Airi gave the impression of being silent and almost invisible.

Ayanokoji had no interaction with her, and the same went for Horikita Suzune, who sat next to him.

Then, could it be Onizuka, who sat behind him?

Although he didn't know what connection those two had, it was clearly related to this incident.

If that were the case, he might be able to have a much easier time; after all, a peaceful life was hard to come by.

Meanwhile, Onizuka, sitting in the back, was also feeling helpless.

Watching Sakura Airi's nervous state, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

Her psychological resilience was truly too weak; even a question without a clear target was enough to make her almost unable to hold herself together.

Onizuka took out his phone, opened LINE, and sent a message to Sakura Airi.

"Don't be nervous, Airi. I'll handle this matter, so there's no need to worry."

Feeling her phone vibrate and seeing Onizuka waving his own phone at her, she hurriedly took her phone out of her skirt pocket.

After seeing the message Onizuka sent her, Sakura Airi hesitated for a moment, her fingers slowly sliding across the screen.

Onizuka watched as the words "typing..." repeatedly appeared in the chat box with Sakura Airi.

Finally, after a long while, Onizuka saw the message Sakura Airi had sent.

"I understand, Tsukasa."

Onizuka was well aware that Sakura Airi must be hiding some secrets, but out of respect for her, he had never asked.

He had originally thought that the situation would improve as time went on.

But he hadn't expected this sense of unease to grow increasingly severe; if things continued like this, he might have to take some measures.

The discussion within the class came to an end as the bell for the start of the official class rang.

Hirata asked everyone to try their best to find out if anyone had seen Sudo, and then the matter was left at that.

After school.

Sakura Airi packed her things, her mind preoccupied with the events of the past few days, completely unaware of Onizuka silently approaching from behind.

Suddenly, she felt a warm breath rush against her ear.

"Airi-san, shall we go shopping together?"

"Ehh-ehh-ehh!!!!"

Startled by the sudden voice, Sakura Airi jumped violently to the side, failing to notice the school bag at her feet, and losing her center of gravity, she tumbled straight toward the floor.

She closed her eyes and desperately reached out her hands, attempting to cushion the impact with the ground.

However, the expected pain did not come.

An arm wrapped around her waist, lifting her up in an all-too-familiar posture once again.

"Sorry, Airi, I didn't mean to scare you, but was such a big reaction really necessary?"

Sakura Airi's heart raced, her cheeks flushed slightly, and her panic was gradually replaced by warmth.

"I... I was just... suddenly startled, that's all..."

She stammered in explanation, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible, as if she felt ashamed of her own reaction.

"So, are you going? To go shopping?"