Are You Sure You Want to Arm Wrestle Me?

"Setting the chuunibyou stuff aside, I didn't expect you to be such a narcissist."

"Do you know that talking like that is a great way to get beaten up?"

"Hah, even if every man in the world disappeared, I still wouldn't like you. Give up already."

Horikita's voice trembled with anger. Since she had become old enough to understand things, she had never been this angry in her life.

Just her luck. How had she ended up seated next to Jiahao?!

She unzipped her pencil case and pulled out a compass, threatening him with adorable ferocity.

"Disrespect me again, and I won't mind having a blood-soaked person full of holes in this class."

You were seriously doing this?!

Uchiha swore he never hit women or the elderly, so he quickly raised his hands in surrender.

"Sorry. Don't worry, I'm more mature than I was before."

Horikita looked doubtful, her beautiful eyes fixed on him. "Really?"

Uchiha raised a finger with a wicked smile. "If I'm lying, I'm a puppy."

"I used to offend three people with one sentence. Now, at most, it's two and a half."

Horikita: "..."

Why did listening to more of his absurd boasting only make an even greater nameless anger surge through her heart?!

With such a huge commotion going on, Ayanokoji, seated in front of them, naturally kept a low-key watch on things.

More commonly known as eavesdropping.

He turned back to look. What a handsome man and beautiful woman—sharp tongue paired with hidden darkness. They might as well get married.

Just as Uchiha was about to get stabbed, that man like a true god came to save the scene again!

Yamauchi popped out from who knew where, his face dark and gloomy.

"Wow, I finally found you!"

"You little bastard, you got me screwed over!"

While his icy desk mate was distracted, Uchiha hurriedly turned the sharp end of the compass toward the horse-faced classmate.

Well, damn!

He had been calling him "Master" and "sir" just moments ago, and now he was calling him a bastard?

See what happened? They said striking up conversations was risky, that it took talent...

But he just wouldn't listen, and now he had suffered a huge loss.

Uchiha raised his head in mock silence. When he saw the dark bruises around Horse Face's eyes, he could no longer hold it in—

"Hehehe, hahahaha—"

"Honk honk honk, I'm hungry~"

"H-hungry. I said I'm hungry. I wasn't laughing at you..."

"Sorry, I've had professional training. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't laugh unless I couldn't hold it in."

The next second.

His laughter gland exploded!

"Pfft—"

"Hahaha, I really can't hold it in..."

The grating laughter became demonic noise ringing in his ears, and Yamauchi's face turned even greener.

He grabbed Uchiha by the shoulder and viciously pressed down with his fingertips.

"It's all your fault!"

"I nearly got blinded by that white-haired girl!"

"Bakayaro, how are you going to compensate me?!"

Uchiha's mouth fell open and his eyes widened.

That beret-wearing girl had poked him directly in the eyeball with her cane?

That was some serious attack power. He liked it!!

He tilted his head, staring at Horse Face's savage expression and the ugly sight of his flying spit.

Feeling the pleasantly firm pressure on his shoulder like a massage, he had to marvel—what an insanely powerful arm!

Let him torment him however he wanted; let the winds blow from east, west, south, and north—he would remain as unshaken as a breeze brushing over a mountain ridge.

Shaking his head in disappointment and pity, Uchiha had not expected Horse Face to hold such a grudge.

Uchiha stared steadily at the stunned fool before him.

"Once upon a time, I was just like you—narrow-minded, young, lacking restraint, easily worked up..."

Before he could finish, Yamauchi rudely cut him off.

Yamauchi thought he was subtly mocking his performance in that department. The veins bulging on his forehead became particularly obvious.

"A man can't say he can't do it!!"

Then.

His movements paused slightly as he turned to look at the group of laughing boys arm wrestling without a care for the atmosphere.

A pure malicious thought rose within him.

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth!

You embarrassed me today, so I'll make you humiliate yourself too!

The humiliation I suffered will be repaid tenfold!

No, a hundredfold, a thousandfold!!!

Yamauchi let go and did his best to make his expression look kinder.

His smile grew wider, his tone full of mockery.

"Do you dare compare arm strength?"

"Even though that red-haired guy has already won seven matches in a row, I think he's just all show and no substance—a useless wreck that only looks impressive."

"Boss, I think you could take him down in three seconds!"

Seriously, bro?!

Uchiha stared blankly at him, wondering how someone could be so nasty and have such low emotional intelligence.

Didn't people talk badly about their classmates behind their backs?

And besides.

Everyone could see through his intentions.

If he wanted to play tricks, could he at least stop writing his thoughts all over his face?!

Horikita nearly rolled her eyes into the back of her head. Her disgust for Horse Face instantly surpassed her disgust for the mask-wearing guy.

There were too many problem students here. She should keep her distance, lest she get assimilated by them!

Quickly putting away the compass, she repeatedly chanted in her heart: Focus on studying, focus on studying...

But.

In an environment like this, she simply could not study.

Actually, she kind of wanted to see Jiahao make a fool of himself.

Ayanokoji blinked and immediately marked Yamauchi as a key tool.

A super tool that could be repeatedly used to great effect.

Uchiha laughed silently and politely declined.

"I'd better not. I'm all skin and bones, completely powerless. Even carrying a bag is exhausting—I really don't want to make a fool of myself!"

"I have something important to do, so forget it."

The teacher had asked him to help carry materials. Who had time to play with some pathetic guy?!

Ayanokoji kept glancing at him.

Completely powerless?

Even carrying a bag was exhausting?

His eyelids twitched furiously as he suddenly remembered that terrifying punch capable of shattering stone.

What a liar who didn't even bother making up a proper excuse!!!

"If you're scared, just admit you're scared. Why keep acting tough? Who are you trying to fool?!"

"Either admit you're not a man, or kneel and apologize to me. Choose!"

His ugly true colors were on full display!

Yamauchi continued mocking him.

It felt a little like being tickled.

Having experienced life's greatest highs and lows, Uchiha felt this level of taunting was merely so-so.

It was nothing but a clumsy attempt at provocation.

It was not even as good as the keyboard warriors back home. Their exquisite verbal abuse could make plenty of foreigners cry on the spot!

Fine, as you wish.

He was still short quite a lot of boldness points anyway, so he would use this guy for a little test run.

"Oh my, you're right. You're completely right. You're invincible, you're amazing. Then why don't you arm wrestle that blond classmate?"

I'll provoke you with the very same tactic you used on me. Now that's putting what I learned into practice, right?

Yamauchi's face twitched repeatedly as he hovered on the brink of exploding with rage.

He felt extremely stifled, but he did not dare act rashly.

Koenji Rokusuke was not someone to mess with.

He was not blind.

The blond guy's hulking, powerful muscles were far too eye-catching. Who would dare challenge him?

Besides, with his feet propped on the desk, humming while casually clipping his nails, he looked like some sort of transcendent being.

"Tch, if I hadn't upset my stomach this morning, I'd definitely fight him for three hundred rounds!"

"Hmph, if I want to win, not even Jesus can stop me!"

"My name is Yamauchi Haruki. You'd better remember it, because it'll become the nightmare you can never escape for the rest of your life. Mark my words!"

"How about this? Arm wrestle me. I'll go easy on you and only use twenty percent of my strength. Whoever loses buys the other milk tea."

"If you don't even dare do that, I'll call you a coward every time I see you from now on!"

Yamauchi was soft all over, except for his mouth!

Hehehe.

That was exactly what he had been waiting for.

Time to build a grand stage for him.

"What?!!!!!!"

Zero-frame opening move!

Uchiha abruptly raised his voice to an ear-splitting pitch, and his thunderous shout instantly spread through the entire room.

"Classmate Yamauchi, you said you wanted to arm wrestle me, and that whoever loses has to buy milk tea for the entire class!"