Bring Me Something Blunt

He really had no idea how to make up an excuse anymore.

Haruka Hasebe laughed. "You weren't looking? Then where were you looking just now? Your eyes were practically glued to her..."

As she moved, the fabric over her chest swayed too. She was on par with Sakura-another strategic weapon that couldn't be underestimated, with lethal firepower. Kazami's gaze automatically homed in and locked onto its target.

Noticing Kazami looking at her in the middle of her lecture, Haruka Hasebe nearly laughed in exasperation.

"You little..."

Kazami Saku coughed and turned to look at the ceiling.

"Sorry. I'll make sure to be more careful from now on."

Haruka Hasebe sighed. "Little pervert."

Fine, little pervert it is. I'm still far too susceptible to this sort of thing.

Haruka Hasebe walked over to Sakura Airi and took her hand.

"I hate it when people keep staring at me there. It feels like they're looking at some rare animal."

Haruka Hasebe glanced at Kazami, her tone softening.

"But since you spoke up for Sakura last time, I'll forgive you this once. Don't let it happen again."

Kazami immediately stood at attention and saluted. "Yes, ma'am! Mission success guaranteed!"

Hasebe seemed to remember something, then asked curiously, "By the way, Kazami, what exactly happened between you, Kushida, and Horikita just now? Neither of them looked very happy."

Kazami briefly explained how he had courted disaster with his joke.

After hearing him out, Hasebe didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "I thought I had a pretty nasty mouth, but you're even worse."

"No, what you did just now was pure mischief. You've got a nasty personality," Kazami countered. She was clearly much worse than him.

"Now I see why Horikita is willing to spend time with you." Hasebe was speechless. "You really are hard to like."

"Yeah, and you're annoying and not cute," Kazami shot back.

Emotion Points from Haruka Hasebe +6.

Hasebe's expression darkened. "A normal person would say 'annoying but cute' there!"

She then reached out toward Sakura beside her and called, "Sakura, bring me something blunt!"

Sakura looked bewildered, but obediently brought over a broom anyway.

Hasebe picked up the broom and tested it. "Perfect." Then she swung it straight at Kazami. "Take this!"

Sakura: !!

I've actually become an accomplice. So she wanted something blunt to beat Kazami with.

Kazami scrambled out of the way. Why do all the girls at this school like getting physical?!

"Getting physical is one thing, but why bring a weapon into it? Doesn't that get you disqualified for breaking the rules?!"

"So you're finally admitting defeat?" Hasebe pressed forward relentlessly.

Just as the two were chasing each other around, a teacher's deep voice suddenly rang out. "Are you two putting on a professional wrestling show?"

The burly swimming teacher looked at them helplessly. "Even if you're not taking part in swimming practice, don't openly horse around in the stands."

Kazami nodded in wholehearted agreement. "Exactly. Hasebe, you're being very disrespectful to the teacher."

"Shut up!" Hasebe glared fiercely at him. As if this has nothing to do with you.

The burly teacher looked at the two of them. Kids these days actually make me part of their little game.

"Since you have so much energy, Kazami, don't leave after class. I'll give you some extra training."

"..."

Kazami turned to stone on the spot, wanting to cry but unable to shed a tear. Hasebe had clearly been the one chasing him, so why did he end up having to do extra swimming practice with the teacher? Wasn't this far too much of a double standard?

The burly teacher's decision made Hasebe laugh out loud.

The burly teacher turned to Hasebe. "I won't make you do extra training this time, but make sure you take class seriously next time. Try to learn how to swim before the break."

Hasebe nodded obediently. "Understood, sir."

Swimming class ended, and the other students dispersed and left, but Kazami Saku's extra training continued.

The one thing that made Kazami Saku very happy was that, although the teacher hadn't made Hasebe do extra training, she had been given the additional task of staying behind to clean the entire place. Though he had been made to stay too.

Only the two of them remained in the huge facility, with all the sweeping and mopping left to them.

Broom in hand, Kazami Saku swept the floor leisurely, unable to hold back his gloating laughter. "Haha! That's what you get for chasing me around and hitting me during class. Out of luck now, aren't you?"

Clutching her mop, Haruka Hasebe shot him a fierce glare, looking utterly speechless. "You've got the nerve to talk? You didn't get away either, and the teacher gave you such an enthusiastic workout. Who was half-dead after all that nonstop, high-intensity swimming practice?"

"..."

Just mentioning it left Kazami mentally exhausted. What should have been a peaceful time after school had been forcibly turned into hellish training by a bout of horseplay. He hadn't usually exercised as much in a week as he had today.

"We don't need to mention that." Kazami Saku quickly waved his hand. Better not to revisit painful memories. He changed the subject. "Let's hurry up and finish cleaning. We still need to have dinner."

With that, he picked up a mop and turned to start cleaning.

Perhaps his swing was too wide, or perhaps the angle was too awkward, but the other end of his mop happened to lift Hasebe's skirt as she turned beside him.

The pale blue skirt flipped up in an instant, revealing a brief but clear glimpse before the girl quickly pulled it back down.

Kazami Saku froze, his brain crashing. Uh, what did I just see? What should I say at a time like this? Compliment her excellent taste? I'd probably get hit. Maybe apologize...

The air fell deathly still for a moment, and awkwardness instantly filled the entire swimming hall.

Hasebe's cheeks turned scarlet. Embarrassment and anger rushed straight to her head, and she completely bristled.

"Don't look!!"

She immediately clamped both hands over her skirt, furious and mortified, her glare fierce enough to devour someone.

Kazami Saku's survival instincts kicked into overdrive. He instantly raised his hands to cover his eyes, his movements precise and swift, apologizing all the while.

"I was wrong, I was wrong! It was an accident! I didn't get a clear look at anything!"

His exaggerated movement lifted it again. The more he panicked, the more mistakes he made, and the wider his movements became.

"Hold it right there!" Hasebe's anger exploded as she roared through gritted teeth, "Put the damn mop down first, you bastard!!"

Flustered, Kazami fumbled to put it down immediately. With Hasebe tugging at him too, his limbs wouldn't cooperate, and as he raised his arm in a panic, his elbow suddenly thrust upward.

"Mm." A faint, muffled sound came.

The back of his hand struck something exceptionally soft, squarely and solidly.

Kazami Saku's mind went blank, leaving only a head full of Huh?

What is this feeling? It feels even softer than cotton candy...

Just as the two stood in their bizarre pose, the atmosphere awkward and neither knowing how to bring things to an end, soft footsteps sounded at the swimming hall entrance.

Sakura Airi, who had come specifically to help clean, stood in the doorway holding a stack of neatly folded clean towels, just in time to catch this incredibly delicate scene.