Try Another Hundred Years and You'll Surpass Me

Tachibana Akane: "???"

Her mind went completely blank. She wanted to say something, but had forgotten everything.

It wasn't just her. Everyone present was dumbfounded.

The list in Nagumo Miyabi's hand silently slipped to the floor.

Yamauchi was so furious he laughed instead, then shrieked:

"Pervert!!!"

"You tore a girl's clothes and still made her thank you?!!"

"I fucking..."

"Senpai, if I were you, I'd definitely sue him for molestation!!!"

Katsuragi, on the other hand, focused on something entirely different.

"Such good teeth?"

Why was Uchiha able to block them?

"Impossible!"

His expression changed as he was about to unleash a second volley of arrows.

But Uchiha moved.

He settled grudges on the spot, never overnight.

"Is this all you've got?"

"Alright, get lost."

He crossed the distance in three quick strides and arrived before the bald man.

A huge hand descended, catching all three wooden arrows in his palm before giving them a light squeeze.

Crack, crack, crack—

The arrows snapped at the sound!!!

"You!!!!"

In that instant, Katsuragi felt utterly stifled.

What could an archer do if he couldn't fire arrows? How could he not feel stifled?!!!

As the saying went, archers feared being closed in on most of all. What they feared even more was a high-damage tank getting close!!!

Hm?!!

Katsuragi's face turned livid. What was he doing with half a broken arrow?!!!

In the blink of an eye!!!

"This is my return gift."

"Fair enough."

Uchiha tapped Katsuragi's shoulder with an arrow.

Bang!!

Katsuragi's eyes flew wide open. A tremendous force struck his shoulder, as though he had been sideswiped by a speeding dump truck!!!

Boom!!

His entire body was blasted away!!!

He spun two and a half times in midair!!!

"Nani?!!!"

The onlookers stared in utter disbelief?!!

H-how the fuck was that possible?!!

Katsuragi had been defeated so easily?!

It had even happened too fast for them to see clearly!!

In truth, they hadn't gotten a clear look at Tachibana Akane-senpai's exposed skin either!!!

Yamauchi kept a tense face. "That monstrous strength again!!"

Kushida bit her fingernail. "He got to show off again."

Everyone else: "..."

Thud!!!

Katsuragi crashed to the ground.

He clutched his shoulder, his face filled with utter disbelief as bows and arrows scattered across the hall.

He lost?!

He had actually lost?!

And he had been sent flying by an utterly ordinary Jiahao using his own broken arrow?!!

[Passion +636]

[Passion +544]

[Passion +791]

[Passion +725]

[...]

Uchiha looked at the Passion points and laughed like mad inside.

President Horikita, you're my great benefactor. Thank you for bringing me to the student council.

At that moment, Horikita was gritting her teeth in fury, her hands having already crumpled the venetian blinds into a ball!!!

He coolly adjusted his glasses and turned to leave the office.

"What a mess. I still have to clean it up."

Back in the hall.

"N-no way!!"

It hurt! It hurt! It hurt!!

But he could still endure it!

Katsuragi gritted his teeth and stubbornly kept silent. His shoulder stung badly, as though it had been hit by a bullet.

But what hurt even more was his pride.

Sakayanagi Arisu from his class must be secretly laughing at him!!

No, she was openly laughing at me!!!

This would seriously damage my prestige in class!!

Damn it!!

I barely squeezed into the top three of the rookie assessment!!

Yet before I even officially joined, I was sent flying with one strike by someone who wasn't even on the list.

He couldn't accept it.

"Who the fuck are you supposed to be?!!"

Uchiha tossed aside the broken arrow, his expression unchanged.

"The defeated have no right to know."

"I told you, the person who invited me ranks third in the school. Can't you figure it out?"

Katsuragi's cheeks twitched nonstop. He looked exceptionally agitated.

"Stop talking nonsense!! What do you think the student council is? Is this somewhere you can use connections to get in through the back door?!!"

"I admit that, as a secretary, you've got some ability, but that doesn't give you the right to skip the assessment and break the rules!!"

"So what if you're personally strong?!! Do you know how much hardship we endured and how much professional theory we studied?! Do lone wolves like you know how to mediate student conflicts without damaging their self-esteem?!"

"You don't understand anything!! You used a little background to enter through the green channel!! Selfish people like you will drag down your companions sooner or later, be isolated, be despised, and be expelled!!"

As Katsuragi spoke, he suddenly looked at Nagumo Miyabi. The last time Nagumo had invited him to dinner, he had said his strength ranked third...

Could it be... Nagumo had played both sides? He had taken fifty thousand points from him and another fifty thousand from Jiahao?!

What the fuck!!!

Nagumo Miyabi!!! I'm going to kill you!!!

The moment those words came out—

Ichinose and Sakayanagi fell silent.

They were shocked by Uchiha's strength.

But—

Katsuragi's heartfelt words did make sense.

The Advanced Nurturing student council was no ordinary organization. In the future, they would face troublesome, sinister, terrifyingly intelligent troublemakers.

We were in the open while the enemy was in the dark. Sometimes, certain special incidents could become extremely difficult to handle.

Given equal intelligence, troublemakers who occasionally fired arrows from the shadows were even more dangerous. That was why student council members operated in teams.

A team had at least three people, and whenever there was a mission, they tried to move out together.

The ideal team composition included a level-headed leader, an enforcer who dealt damage, and logistics personnel who allocated resources...

If someone joined the council rashly without passing the assessment, relying on nepotism and believing a little strength made them invincible, then sooner or later, their teammates would be dragged to their deaths!!!!

"..."

Uchiha glanced at Katsuragi.

Pitiful people must have something hateful about them.

Katsuragi: "You..."

"Shut up."

Seeing that the bald man was about to spout more bullshit, Uchiha cut him off directly, his expression calm.

"Stop making excuses for your incompetence and weakness."

"After saying all that, don't you just hate that you aren't strong enough?"

"Keep it up, kid. Try another hundred years and you'll surpass me."

Everyone: "???"

W-what an outrageous flex!!!

Try for another hundred years? Do I have to keep trying after I'm in a coffin?!!!

This was simply...

Too damn awesome!!!

You won... so whatever you said made sense!!!

After all, history was written by the victors!!!

The masked boy calmly extended a hand toward the bald man.

"There is no end to learning."

"There is no end to becoming stronger either."

"Get up. Don't let people laugh at you."

"..."

Katsuragi stared blankly at the other man's hand for several seconds, then laughed outright.

He couldn't beat him in a fight, nor could he win an argument. What else could he do? All he could do was laugh bitterly.

It seemed he had untied the knot in his heart. His hand tightly grasped Uchiha's, like a man floating at sea climbing aboard a tiny boat. Though it still rocked unsteadily, at least his life was no longer in immediate danger.

"Th-thank you."

Seeing Katsuragi bow and apologize to Uchiha—

Nagumo Miyabi's expression shifted slightly.

Baldy, don't tell me you've been turned against me?!

Suddenly, footsteps came from the end of the corridor.

A cool voice rang out:

"You've all made enough trouble, haven't you?"

A black-haired man approached, holding what looked like a stack of memorials in his hands, moving as silently as a gentle rain.

It was Horikita Manabu!!

He rarely appeared in person.

For something as minor as rookie registration, subordinate student council members could usually handle it.

So when they saw him appear, several people wondered whether they were hallucinating.

Little did they know, Horikita had been observing in secret for quite some time, waiting only to wrap things up.

He turned to Nagumo.

"Wasn't Katsuragi eliminated in the previous round?! Why is he on the rookie list?"

Nagumo lowered his head without speaking, his blond hair hiding his expression.

Katsuragi immediately realized what was happening. He gritted his teeth and erupted.

"President, I want to report someone!! And I want to report this man to the chairman as well—Nagumo Miyabi!!"

"He took fifty thousand points from me and said he would guarantee my entry into the student council!!"

Then Katsuragi carefully recounted the entire bribery process.

After finishing, he stared at Nagumo Miyabi with a cold sneer.

Just wait!!

Even if I don't join the council, I'll drag you down with me.

Nagumo brat, spit out my fifty thousand points already!!

Then—

"..."

Nagumo Miyabi raised his head in surprise and said innocently:

"Katsuragi, what did you say?!"

"What good would framing me do?!"

"Chairman, please see the truth clearly. I swear here and now!!"

"If I have embezzled anything, I will withdraw from school voluntarily."

The entire venue fell silent in an instant.

The turn of events had come far too suddenly!!

Everyone wore bewildered expressions.

"???"

So the question was...

Who exactly was lying?!!