Tsukishiro: I Really Did My Best (Continued)

This can be seen from the distribution of research topics found on GPS; almost all of them are concentrated on the southern side of the island.

Most importantly, I2 is not listed as the second-to-last location on the itinerary, so it can be confirmed that I2 is a separate instruction location sent by Tsukishiro using his backend privileges to Ayanokoji's group.

On the way from H3 to I2, there is a very narrow river. Looking at the river in front of him, Shuichi Kanda was speechless.

"Should we just cross the river? It doesn't look deep."

Looking at the crystal-clear river in front of him, Ayanokoji turned to look at Shuichi Kanda beside him.

"We have to cross a river?" Shuichi Kanda's face was full of reluctance. "Fine, I'll just hang my shoes out to dry after I get across."

Although it was possible to find something like a bridge built by the school upstream, that was too far away, so Shuichi Kanda didn't plan to take the long way around.

By then, the shoes would have dried in the sun.

Upon reaching the other side of the river, Shuichi Kanda immediately took off his shoes, shook off the water, and placed them in the sun.

The two then sat down against a tree to rest.

Shuichi Kanda took a bottle of water out of his backpack, took a few sips, and tossed it to Ayanokoji. Ayanokoji, unsure whether he should drink it directly.

In the end, he poured it into his own plastic bottle before drinking it.

Taking this opportunity, Shuichi Kanda tied Black Belt around his neck and then covered it with a loose sports t-shirt.

Although Tsukishiro had never lied, Shuichi Kanda wasn't naive enough to completely trust him; he still needed to take necessary precautions.

An hour later, around 10:30, Shuichi Kanda put on his dried socks and half-dry shoes and prepared to leave.

"Kanda, I hope you won't have to intervene before I'm defeated."

Kanda Shuichi Kanda Ayanokoji Shuichi Kanda look, but seeing the determination in the other's eyes, he nodded.

"I see."

Since Ayanokoji intends to make his own decision, Shuichi Kanda will naturally not let him down.

The two walked together north of I2 for more than ten minutes, then emerged from the forest and arrived at a beach.

"You can stay here, Kanda."

Shuichi Kanda nodded, then put his backpack on the ground and sat down on the beach.

Before them stood two people: one was Tsukishiro, the Acting Chairman they already knew, and the other was Suma Norinori, the homeroom teacher of Class 1-D, whom they had met before.

"You've certainly taken a rather forceful approach, Acting Chairman Tsukishiro."

Ayanokoji walked along the beach, heading towards the two of them, and said this.

"Things haven't been going smoothly for a while, and this is the most extreme measure I can take."

Ayanokoji also sensed this, because the exams after the second year, including the Class Vote at the end of the first year, were actually aimed at him.

Tsukishiro simply hadn't expected that there would be a student on the waiting list for dropping out in her class.

Moreover, with someone like Shuichi Kanda in the class, it's practically impossible for Ayanokoji to get Ayanokoji through conventional means.

Thinking about this, Ayanokoji felt somewhat fortunate that she and Shuichi Kanda were in the same class.

But as the saying goes, it's easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow in the dark.

You can't guard against thieves forever if you're a thief for a thousand days.

Therefore, in order to defeat and send Tsukishiro away in one fell swoop, Ayanokoji decided to go to the meeting alone. Anyway, he had someone backing him up, so what was there to be afraid of?

The situation is now quite clear: the other party wants to use force to subdue him and take him away, as evidenced by the small boats moored on the beach.

However, Ayanokoji had also requested outside help, so what he needed to do was not even to defeat Tsukishiro and Suma, but simply to stall for time.

However, sometimes the more you hold this mindset, the more likely you are to run into problems. After all, there's a saying that makes a lot of sense, "If you hold on for too long, you will lose."

The only way to completely eliminate the threat posed by these two is to defeat them completely.

Just like that saying goes, as long as I kill everyone who sees me, I've achieved perfect infiltration!

Sitting outside the woods watching the three people facing off, Detective Shuichi couldn't help but laugh.

Tsukishiro was currently wearing sportswear that seemed completely out of place for him, making him look rather comical. However, it wasn't entirely incomprehensible, since suits weren't really suitable for fighting.

He probably judged that Ayanokoji was very strong, so he had to unleash his full power.

Not only him, but also Suma Norinori, who was standing next to him, did the same.

"So, what are you going to do to me next?"

"If possible, I don't want to resort to violence. As long as you obediently follow instructions and board the ship with us, you can suffer less."

"If Kiyotaka Ayanokoji voluntarily announces his withdrawal from the exam, the matter should be resolved satisfactorily," Suma Norinori added.

"That sounds like a great suggestion, but I refuse."

Ayanokoji rejected Tsukishiro and Suma's suggestion, then assumed a fighting stance.

"It seems you intend to use force to resist us."

Faced with Ayanokoji like this, Tsukishiro also took a stance. "Although I could easily take you down with a weapon, my mission is to bring you back unharmed, so I'll have to settle things with my fists."

While getting into position, Ayanokoji analyzed the entire surrounding situation.

Although Tsukishiro said he would go empty-handed, the possibility of the other party using weapons could not be ruled out. After all, Sun Tzu's Art of War states that "all warfare is based on deception."

It would be foolish to easily believe Tsukishiro's words.

Next are the enemies: besides the two in front of us, there's also the driver of the small boat on the beach, meaning we only need a maximum of three people.

Next up is reinforcements, but Ayanokoji isn't worried about that, because the reinforcements have to pass through Shuichi Kanda to get here.

However, facing two people is quite a challenge; it's no exaggeration to say that two fists can't fight four hands.

Moreover, since he was chosen by Tsukishiro as an assistant, Suma Norinori must have some skills.

Even though it was two against one, Tsukishiro and Suma did not let their guard down. Instead, they moved their feet to surround Ayanokoji from both the front and the back.

"Don't say we're being despicable by ganging up on you. You can call for reinforcements anytime." As he spoke, Tsukishiro glanced at Shuichi Kanda.

Taking advantage of Tsukishiro's glance at Shuichi Kanda, Ayanokoji immediately lunged forward, intending to take advantage of the opportunity to eliminate Tsukishiro first.

However, Tsukishiro was clearly no pushover; it would be too humiliating for him to be taken down so easily by Ayanokoji.

At the same time, Suma Norinori also attacked Ayanokoji.

And so, the three of them engaged in a chaotic battle.

Aren't you going to help?

Shuichi Kanda, heard the sound coming from beside him.

"Heh, so you've finally decided to come out? Kiryuin- senpai."

Not long after arriving at the beach, Shuichi Kanda noticed a familiar presence behind him.

"You didn't get lost and end up here, did you?"

"What if I said yes?" Kiryuin threw the bag he was holding on the ground, crossed his arms, and looked at Shuichi Kanda with great interest.

Shuichi Kanda turned his head and looked up at the other person.

Hmm, from this angle, the sun looks huge.

"Then I'll have to make fun of you properly, getting lost on an island like this."

Hearing Shuichi Kanda's smiling words, Kiryuin was momentarily at a loss for words.

"You little brat, you're really annoying."

"Kid?" Shuichi Kanda eyebrow. "Want to give it a try?"

"Oh? You seem quite confident." Kiryuin raised an eyebrow, his expression mirroring Shuichi Kanda's. "But aren't you really going to help? Your friend is about to lose."

Upon hearing Kiryuin's reminder, Shuichi Kanda glanced at the battle situation over there and then shook his head.

"That's his understanding. I won't make a move until he falls. Don't be so clueless."

Kiryuin gave Ayanokoji a strange look, then shook his head.

"Men..."

Since Shuichi Kanda wasn't in a hurry, Kiryuin naturally wasn't either. In fact, she was more interested in Shuichi Kanda than Ayanokoji.

Facing Tsukishiro alone, Ayanokoji didn't think he would lose at all. As the White Room's masterpiece, he was confident that he could defeat any ordinary person in terms of strength.

"That was really dangerous just now, Acting Chairman Tsukishiro. You were indeed hiding your strength."

"Heh, what's the use if it doesn't work? As expected of a masterpiece, it even anticipated this."

Undeterred by his failed attack, Tsukishiro calmly increased the distance between himself and Ayanokoji.

This scene was naturally witnessed by Ayanokoji and Kiryuin.

"Old ginger is spicier, Tsukishiro almost succeeded just now."

"Heh, I Ayanokoji Ayanokouji was terrified."

"Maybe, anyway, I can't tell from his expression."

While Ayanokoji was trying his best to maneuver, Shuichi Kanda and Kiryuin were making unrestrained comments and criticisms.

"Those three are really something, Ayanokoji. Just who is he?" Kiryuin turned to look at Shuichi Kanda.

"Who knows? Why don't you wait until they're done fighting and then go up and ask them?"

"Hehe."

Kiryuin chuckled twice and stopped talking. At the same time, she was quite surprised because Tsukishiro and Suma's movements were incredibly nimble. If she were to go up there herself, she could hold her own against them for up to a minute, but after a minute, she would probably be at a disadvantage.

After all, she was a woman, and her strength was not as great as the other party's, but Ayanokoji was able to survive for so long while being attacked by two people.

While it was partly due to his constant dodging, the fact that he was able to evade their attacks speaks volumes; Ayanokoji is no ordinary person.

Just as the two continued watching, the situation on the beach changed again.

After dodging Suma's attack, Ayanokoji quickly unleashed a flurry of punches, landing several blows on Tsukishiro's nose with lightning speed.

Although the force wasn't great, anyone whose nose was hit would tear up.

Tears would temporarily obscure his vision, and taking advantage of this opportunity, Ayanokoji did not press his advantage to finish off Tsukishiro. After all, Suma Norinori might take advantage of the opportunity while he was dealing with Tsukishiro to eliminate him.

Therefore, after temporarily taking Tsukishiro offline, Ayanokoji immediately turned around and started fighting with Suma.

However, such a short time was clearly not enough for him to deal with Suma, so although both Tsukishiro and Suma suffered some injuries, the situation returned to what it was before.

"I admit I underestimated you. You are undoubtedly the greatest masterpiece of the White Room."

"I don't usually like using harsh methods, but I'm just so happy..."

Tsukishiro smiled, finding it amusing, and then assumed his fighting stance once more.

However, Tsukishiro did not immediately attack Ayanokoji; instead, he took a few steps back. Then, he glanced briefly at the sand beneath his feet.

"Oh dear, Acting Chairman Tsukishiro is about to resort to underhanded tactics."

Tsukishiro's actions did not escape the notice of Shuichi Kanda.

"The mastermind?"

Seeing Shuichi Kanda's interested expression, Kiryuin raised an eyebrow. Her attention was entirely on Ayanokoji, and she didn't notice Tsukishiro's subtle movements.

Upon hearing Kiryuin's question, Shuichi Kanda revealed a mocking smile.

"You're really hopeless. Tsukishiro just glanced at the sand under his feet, right?"

"He's going to use sand to block Ayanokoji's view?"

"Probably, but I think Ayanokoji has probably noticed it too."

With that, Shuichi Kanda stood up and took a few steps forward. With the Black Belt, he could cover a distance of about ten meters in less than two seconds, even if he accelerated from a standstill.

Are you going to make a move?

"Because regardless of Ayanokoji can block the next attack, it should be over."

That's true. If Ayanokoji can't handle it, then Shuichi Kanda will step in. If Ayanokoji can handle it, then he can definitely take down one of the two.

The remaining one wouldn't be a match for Ayanokoji either, and the battle would end there.

As a witness, Shuichi Kanda naturally had to go as well.

Just as Shuichi Kanda predicted, after deliberately taking Ayanokoji's attack, Tsukishiro took advantage of the moment when Ayanokoji's strength was still waning and stuck his left foot into the sand.