Slightly Better

Watanabe Hayabara wasn't moved. He could easily control such a small desire, so he looked around the class, deliberately lingering on Horikita Suzune and Kushida Kikyo.

Little Kikyo really is the most intimidating.

"Alright—everyone, gather around!" A booming voice rang out, and a burly, muscular man appeared before the students. His muscles were sharply defined and perfectly proportioned, drawing admiring looks.

At the call, the students gathered around, curiously eyeing their new teacher.

"Alright, starting today, I'll be your swimming instructor." The muscular teacher smiled. "Here's the plan for today: we'll start with some simple warm-ups, then head to the pool and show off what we can do. I want to see how well you can swim."

Just as everyone excitedly prepared to warm up, a shy-looking boy raised his hand and stammered, "Um... Teacher, I'm not very good at swimming..."

The teacher looked at him and reassured him, "That's okay. Since I'm your teacher, I'll make sure you learn to swim before summer. Don't worry!"

However, the boy didn't seem to appreciate the reassurance. He shook his head and said, "You don't have to force me to learn. I'm not going to the beach anyway."

The teacher's expression turned serious. "That won't do. Even if you're not good at swimming right now, that's fine. I'll help you overcome the difficulties. I guarantee that knowing how to swim will come in handy someday."

Oh? A little tip.

Everyone followed the swimming instructor through some warm-up exercises. Once they were done, he told the class to swim one lap around the pool. Those who couldn't swim were instructed to walk around the pool with their feet touching the bottom.

Watanabe Hayabara finished a lap in a flash, then stood by the pool and watched as the other students swam one by one and climbed out.

"Heh heh heh, that was easy for me! Did you see my amazing swimming skills?" Kanji Ike swam the final stretch with quick strokes, then climbed out with a smug look on his face. He stood at the edge, bragging to his classmates about his speed and technique as if he'd just accomplished something incredible.

It seemed that nearly everyone in the class had managed to finish the lap without trouble, which surprised Watanabe Hayabara. He'd expected at least a few students to struggle with swimming.

"Teacher, that was way too easy! Back in middle school, everyone called me the nimble flying fish!" Kanji Ike exclaimed, his face beaming with confidence.

The teacher smiled. "Oh, really? That's impressive. But since everyone did so well, let's skip the small talk and move on to a competition."

"A... a competition? Really?" Some of the students cheered excitedly, while others looked worried.

"That's right, a competition! The boys and girls will each race fifty meters freestyle," the teacher announced. "And I'll give the winner five thousand points as a special reward. On the other hand, whoever comes in last will have to attend extra lessons, so you'd better be prepared."

For students confident in their swimming skills, this was exciting news, and they cheered. But those who weren't so sure of their abilities were devastated and complained bitterly.

"There are fewer girls, so we'll split you into two groups of five. The student with the fastest time wins. For the boys, the five fastest swimmers will compete against one another," the teacher explained.

Aside from the trainee and one student who couldn't swim, there were sixteen boys and ten girls competing. Since the girls were going first, the boys sat excitedly by the pool to cheer them on—or, as it really was, to take in the view.

Tch.

Watanabe Hayabara wasn't interested in watching. He found a small chair beside the pool and sat down, closing his eyes to rest.

"Kushida, Kushida, Kushida. Hah, hah, hah." Kanji Ike looked completely crazed.

"Kushida's so cute! And her chest really is huge!"

Watanabe Hayabara chose to tune out this useless information.

"Now, the first group of boys, get into your lanes!" the swimming instructor called.

Watanabe Hayabara slowly opened his eyes and stood up, looking toward the pool. Even though he wasn't in the first group, he wanted to see how skilled the boys in his class were.

Sudo swam fifty meters with astonishing intensity and lifted his face above the water. Boys and girls alike cheered in admiration.

"Nice work, Sudo! You did it in only twenty-five seconds," Kanji Ike remarked. "But you'd still be no match for me."

He's got nothing but athletic ability, but he did pretty well.

"Why are you holding back, Ayanokoji?" Watanabe Hayabara pushed up his glasses.

"Uh, Watanabe, I'm not holding back. That was my best," Ayanokoji replied, then fell silent and walked away.

Why is he paying so much attention to me? Is Watanabe Hayabara an assassin? Ayanokoji Kiyotaka wondered.

Watanabe Hayabara shook his head.

A chorus of excited shrieks rang out nearby. Watanabe Hayabara glanced over and saw that Yosuke Hirata was in the second group. His lean, wiry muscles clearly had a strong appeal for the girls.

"If you dare beat me, I'll crush you with everything I've got. My full strength!" Sudo shouted.

The teacher blew his whistle, and Hirata dove into the pool with a graceful form. Every time Hirata's arm swept through the water, the girls gathered beside the pool erupted in cheers.

"He's surprisingly fast."

Sudo said it calmly. Hirata really was fast—there was no denying that he was a cut above the other four boys swimming alongside him. The girls screamed even louder.

Hirata lived up to expectations and reached the finish line first. The girls' loud cheers rang throughout the indoor pool.

"Teacher, what was his time?" Kanji Ike asked.

"Hirata's time was... twenty-six point thirteen seconds."

Watanabe Hayabara's expression remained blank. No one could tell what he was thinking.

As soon as Yosuke Hirata climbed out, a girl brought him a long white towel. She was a blonde with a ponytail, and after thinking for a moment, Watanabe Hayabara remembered her name—Karuizawa Kei.

Another group of girls gathered around.

"Hirata, you were so cool just now! You're good at more than just soccer—you're great at swimming, too."

"Is that so? Thanks."

"Hey, why are you flirting with Hirata?"

"What? You're the one flirting with him!"

"Please don't fight over me. I belong to everyone. Just watch and see how someone with real ability swims." Kouenji suddenly chimed in, apparently assuming they were arguing over him.

"Hey... why is Koenji wearing a Speedo...?"

"W-who knows?"

That familiar confidence.

"Third group of boys, get ready!"

Watanabe Hayabara rolled his neck and walked toward the pool.

"Hayabara boy, you're the only one who poses a threat to me, though you still can't match my beauty," Kouenji said with a smile.

"Is that so? You're a little too confident, Koenji."

The students listened to Watanabe Hayabara and Kouenji Rokusuke trade challenges, growing eager to see what would happen.

Perhaps because Watanabe Hayabara had been away from the pool, many of the girls were only now getting a good look at his perfect physique.

"Wow, Watanabe's body is amazing! I'm falling in love!"

"I want to touch him!"

The girls shrieked, and some of them were already blushing.

"Kushida!" Watanabe Hayabara called.

"Hm? What is it, Watanabe?" Kushida Kikyo asked, her face slightly flushed.

"Could you hold my glasses for me?"

"Y-yeah, sure!"

Watanabe Hayabara took off his glasses, ran a hand through his hair, and handed them to Kushida Kikyo. The girls shrieked again.

"Watanabe looks even more handsome without his glasses! And he was already so handsome! Without them, he could take first place in the boys' best-looking ranking. He'd jump straight from fourth to first!"

"Hayabara boy, I'm more familiar with you looking like this," Kouenji Rokusuke remarked.

"Everyone ready? At the sound of my whistle, we'll start!" The swimming instructor was excited for the race, since Watanabe Hayabara and Kouenji's physiques and presence made it clear they wouldn't be slow.

At the whistle, Koenji dove into the water with textbook form. Watanabe Hayabara leaned forward the instant the whistle blew and plunged into the pool.

Kouenji Rokusuke's swimming was aggressive, like a tiger shark hunting its prey.

Watanabe Hayabara's swimming style was bizarre. It had no discernible pattern or technique, yet his speed was absurd.

I can rule out the assassin theory. That's a swimming style I couldn't imitate. Watanabe Hayabara, why were you sent to Class D? Ayanokoji's interest was piqued.

"Whoa! They're fast!" Sudo exclaimed. Even he, with his twenty-five-second time, couldn't keep up with them.

Yosuke Hirata stared at the two, dumbfounded.

The two swimmers sent sprays of water flying in every direction.

The teacher watched them intently and pressed the timer, but his expression was one of disbelief.

"T-twenty-two point nine one seconds!!!"

"T-twenty-three point two two seconds!!!"

"My abs, back, and lower-back muscles are in as good shape as ever. Not bad. But Hayabara boy still didn't go easy on me."

Koenji climbed out of the pool in one smooth movement, wearing an unruffled smile. He swept his hair back and looked toward Watanabe Hayabara.

"I'd say it was about the same as always. I edged you out." Watanabe Hayabara's expression was cool.

"Hayabara boy, let's have some fun together again next time. There's a pretty girl looking for you." Kouenji Rokusuke turned and walked away from the crowd.