Disclaimer: I do not own Mahou Sensei Negima
Restart
Chapter 3: First Day of Class
Suspicious.
That was the first thing that popped in Asuna Kagurazaka's mind when she saw the new teacher enter. For one thing, no one in the faculty would even think of dressing like that, nor would they bring something that was apparently not related to their lessons. What kind of teacher would being a box to class anyway?! Unless he's planning to read manga while he gives us tests, that is.
While Asuna was having her thinking session, the rest of 1-A have already started causing a bit of a ruckus. So, on the moment when Asuna decided to turn her attention to her classmates, she found that all of them had left their seats except for her, Yue, Chisame, Mana and a few others.
The orange-haired girl only raised an eyebrow when she saw her classmates going nutso on the guy in the same manner they did when it was Negi who had been standing at the front. The rest of 1-A was currently cornering the new teacher behind the teacher's table, firing question after question with Kazumi holding a mike next to the teen's mouth.
"Where did you come from?!"
"How did you get here?!"
"Are you living with someone right now?!"
"Where do you live now?"
"Umm...One question at a time please! We have more than enough time to tackle all this so please don't ask all at once." He said as he put up his hands in defense of the already screaming girls, who instantly quieted down, eager to hear what he'll say next. "Erm…as for where I came from…I was born in Wales but I finished my high school studies here in Japan. As for college…well…my father said I should finish in Wales so I did it in a year…"
"Wales?!"
"That's where Negi-kun is!"
"Do you know Negi-kun, sensei?!"
"Negi-san…" Asuna's eyes widened as she heard Negi's name. Don't tell me this idiot is related to him? But, weren't Negi's credentials fake?
"Negi-san had graduated after my first month in the University. So…you can say that I'm his kohai." The boy smiled uneasily, causing even more curiosity on the orange-haired girl's part. "A-Actually, he was the one who recommended me to teach here."
Various squeals erupted from the girls as they tried to contain their excitement.
"I can't believe it!!"
"Negi-kun's kohai, our high school teacher!!"
"More than that, he's a total bishounen!"
"Now…I wonder what he'll look like without the formal clothes…"
"Misa!!"
"Geez Kugimin, I'm just wondering what he'll look like with casual clothes on instead of the uniform!" Misa giggled. "Naughty girl! What did you think I was thinking?"
"Sh-shut up! And I told you not to call me that!" Madoka said, blushing a little at her friend's antics.
"Um…since when did this become a conversation about wardrobe…?" He asked, feeling uneasy around the girls, who were currently talking about how good-looking the teacher is.
Crap. Now I feel sorry for him. Once you get those girls to start on looks, they're probably gonna want to experiment…Asuna mentally sighed. She stood up, walking over to the small crowd, but she was surprised when Ayaka beat her there.
"Now, Sakurai-sensei." Ayaka said in a formal tone. So…she isn't interested at all huh…what a shotacon. Asuna thought to herself. "Can I ask one question?"
"F-fire away Miss."
"Does Negi-sensei have any strange habits that he hardly shows to anyone at all? Especially not to girls?" Ayaka asked in a sing-song manner, apparently only giving a damn about the teen because he has a connection with their former teacher.
"Errr…" The dark-haired boy adjusted his tie as he tried to answer, looking like a deer caught in the headlights of a car.
"STUPID IINCHO!!" Asuna said, hitting the other girl in the head. Wait…That kid looked at me like he expected me to do something…Hm…that makes him even more suspicious.
"Now, Asuna-san, is that a way to behave when a teach--"
"SHOTACON!"
"You want to have another go, you stupid monkey?!"
"You're still not denying it!!!"
"500 yen on Iincho!"
"600 yen on Asuna!"
"Um…sensei?" Ako said as she tapped the teacher's shoulder; both of them were amidst the crowd that had started betting on the brawl. "Shouldn't you try and stop this fight? They're throwing things at each other now…"
"Oh! Err…Right." The boy smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Thank you for the suggestion Izumi-san. I was too nervous to think about a solution to this." He then headed towards the crowd, unable to see Ako's blush.
"And since when did you care about a younger teacher!?"
"I am telling you that I just wanted to stop the ruckus!"
"Oh…that's very smart Asuna-san! Trying to stop the ruckus with a fight with me! Oh well, this solution can only be expected from a monkey like you!!"
"Um…girls…I think you two should stop this…" Touma came up from behind Asuna, causing the orange-haired girl to look back. Ayaka, who didn't see the teacher among the crowd, threw a nearby bag at Asuna, hitting her right on the head. This caused the orange-haired girl to stumble forward, falling.
Asuna landed face-first on the floor, instead of being caught by the teacher, who had moved quickly to the right as if to dodge her…
…which caused five full seconds of exposure for Asuna's underwear.
Nodoka's eyes widened. Didn't he catch me before?
==ssalC fo yaD tsriF==
"Damn, I can't believe him!!" Asuna said as she ate her lunch in the same manner she ate her breakfast. "I am definitely not going to let myself be taught by that…that creep!!"
"Wasn't that the same thing you said when it was Negi-kun?" Misora said, reluctantly accepting the bit of food Cocone held up in front of her. Ugh…vegetables… It was now lunch break, and she, Asuna and Cocone were on the rooftop, a common place where the girls involved with magic meet up to relax or, in this case, eat. As usual, Cocone was sitting in between her legs, leaning against her chest as the smaller girl held up small bits of Misora's lunch for the bigger girl to eat. "You know Cocone…I can still live a day or two without vegetables."
All the spiky-haired girl got was a blank stare, at least, in Asuna's eyes.
Misora rubbed the back of her head. "Oh come on…I'll still grow."
Another blank stare.
This time, Misora chuckled, patting the younger girl's head. "Now, now Cocone…it's rude (and dangerous) to talk about a person who's right in front of you."
"You two were talking?" Asuna raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah. We understand each other well, don't we?" Misora grinned. Must not tell her that Cocone was making me eat vegetables so that I don't wind up on becoming a shorty like her, I might get killed if I do. Either way, I have to change the subject. "Anyway, what were you saying about Sakurai-sensei?"
Asuna frowned immediately after hearing the name. "He's an idiot, a creep, dense, annoying, irritating, annoying, an idiot, and I'm pretty sure that he only agreed to come here to peep on the girls!"
"Didn't know you care that much about Touma-kun, Asuna. Itadakimasu." Kazumi, who had arrived at the rooftop together with Sayo, Kaede, Ku Fei, Haruna, Nodoka and Yue while Asuna was ranting, said as she started eating.
"You said idiot and annoying twice-de gozaru." Kaede pointed out as she sat down beside Misora. "Ah. Hello Cocone-dono."
"That just means he's twice the idiot and twice as annoying!" the orange-haired girl said angrily, crossing her arms now that she had finished eating.
"Well then, it looks like your going to enjoy the after-school session later." Haruna said, smiling.
"Huh?"
"Oh, don't you remember the activity earlier?"
Asuna frowned. "What activity?"
==First Day of Class==
"OK. Now that you're all seated…" Touma started as he scratched his cheek. Asuna had stormed to her seat immediately after she tripped, effectively putting some sense into her classmates as well as erasing their cause of excitement. That caused Ayaka to regain her composure and order the rest of the class to go to their seats, which they did. "I've set up a little activity."
Excited voices filled the air once again, this time even Ayaka couldn't tame the class. A little glad that the girls reacted in such a way, Touma then went to the table and put the box on the middle. "This box contains thirty-one pins. Each of them has a number, ranging from one to thirty-one. Everyday after my class, I'll pick four pins from the box, and the four girls with the same class numbers on the pins can see me in the faculty room after school, and ask me anything so long as they do it individually and it's not too personal."
Touma smiled as he pat the box once. "Now, can we pick the first four?"
He got cheers and squeals in reply, causing him to smile. "Now…for the first four…" Touma put his hand inside, blindly feeling for a pin. He eventually found one, and then repeated the process until he had four in his other hand. The black-haired boy looked at the first pin. "Who's…number 26?"
Groans of disappointment erupted from the class as Touma looked at his copy of the class list. "E…Evangeline A.K. McDowell? Is…Is McDowell-san present?"
"I'm sorry sensei, but it seems she's excused from class today." Satomi explained as she pushed up her glasses.
"Well, she's going to have to be excused for later too then…too bad." The teacher then looked at the next pin. "Number fifteen…" He immediately looked at the class list, oblivious to how silent the class had become ever since he said 'fifteen'.
Touma's eyes widened as he found no name beside the said number. "Um…why isn't there a number fifteen?"
His eyes scanned the expressions of his students, all having reactions ranging from plain to nostalgic to downright sad. No one said anything for quite a while before Nodoka stood up, nodding to her classmates (who nodded back in encouragement) before replying with a warm smile. "Sensei, student number fifteen was a part of our class in Middle School, but due to some…unfortunate…events, she is no longer with us. Having that slot empty only shows that she is as important and irreplaceable as anyone of us here, and reminds us of everything we had with Setsuna-san, even if it was only sitting beside her or asking her about homework."
"You should've met her! She's really strong-aru!" Ku Fei said, punching the air.
"A valuable comrade-de gozaru." Kaede added as she smiled as she opened one eye.
"…saved my butt for more than two times last year." Chisame mumbled.
"She was cute when she wore that maid outfit!" Sakurako winked.
"Cute? She was hot."
"Misa!"
"Calm down, Kugimin. Did you see the way the upper and lowerclassmen looked at her during the school festival?"
"Speaking of school festival, wasn't she the hero unit with wings?"
"Yeah, I wonder how they made her fly with only CG…"
"Angel." Zazie said as she tossed another pin, getting curious looks from her classmates.
"I…see. She must be really important to you girls…" Touma nodded as he made a strange expression. It can't be helped…I really am…Ugh…
"Sensei?" Fumika said, a little worried causing her teacher to suddenly realize that he was still in the classroom.
"Eh? Oh…I'm sorry…right…onto the third girl." He then looked at the third pin with the class list on his other hand. "Number…8. Asuna Kagurazaka?"
His students pointed to the orange-haired girl who was too busy glaring at him to notice that they were actually doing something in homeroom.
"So that's Kagurazaka-san…" Touma smiled uneasily as his cheeks colored a bit, remembering what had happened earlier. Seconds later, he snapped out of it and he then checked the fourth pin. "Number 13…Konoka…Konoe."
"Konoka-san is excused from classes today as well." Satomi immediately replied among the disappointed groans of her classmates.
"Thank you erm…" he looked at the class list. "…Hakase-san. Well, it looks like Kagurazaka-san will be the only one to see me later. See you tomorrow girls." Touma picked up his small book and box and then headed for the classroom door.
After the door closed, Nodoka immediately stood up, running out of the room. After the door slammed shut, Makie resumed eavesdropping with more encouragement from her more curious and assuming classmates.
"Sensei!"
"Huh? Oh, Miyazaki-san. What is it?"
"About your handkerchief…"
"What handkerchief?"
"The one you wrapped around my arm during summer vacation. It is a handkerchief, right? Normal pieces of cloth don't usually have scents on them."
"Ah, right. Don't worry about that."
"I'll return it to you the day I get called. Will that be all right?"
"Actually, I wasn't expecting on seeing you again. But if you want to return it so badly, then all right."
"Thank you, sensei."
"No, thank you, Miyazaki-san."
A few seconds later, Nodoka entered the classroom again, and was immediately ambushed with questions with the words 'handkerchief' 'scent' 'summer vacation' and even 'date'.
==ssalC fo yaD tsriF==
"Eh? I was too busy glaring at him to notice." Asuna blinked, and then frowned. "So I'll be seeing this freak in the faculty room later? He knows Negi, so he must be a mage, right?"
"Well we can't assume things like that…" Kazumi said as she tapped her chin. "He may be someone who doesn't have magic but knows about magic."
"He has magic." Yue said firmly.
"Eh? Yuecchi?"
"He performed a high-level spell when he healed Nodoka's arm." Yue pointed out as she started to frown. "He was in the Magic World, and I felt his presence as well as Negi-san's."
"Wait! Negi?!" Asuna said incredulously. "So Negi was assigned to escort this dork to the normal world?!"
"It must be." The blue-haired girl then took out another juice box. "You did say Anya-san disappeared when we arrived right? That just means that escorting Sakurai-sensei was their job. That also means that if Negi-san was assigned, he should be very familiar with that boy, hence the part about Sakurai-sensei being his kohai might be true too."
"By the way, Nodoka, aren't you being a bit too friendly with Touma-kun?" Haruna teased, causing Yue to frown while Nodoka to almost choke on her food.
"G-geez Paru, it's not like that! I just wanted to return the handkerchief to him." The purple-haired girl defended herself as Kazumi then remembered something.
"Come to think of it…Negi-kun told me once that when a gentleman gives a handkerchief to a lady in distress, she is to return it over some sort of date…" The red-haired girl said, causing some of the girls to blush. She then noticed that Sayo's body was giving off more heat than usual. "Hey Sayo-chan, is there something wrong? You've been awfully quiet this lunch…should I get Hakase?"
"No, that's all right Asakura-san…I'm fine." Sayo said as she looked down. I think…
"Well, I told you he probably came to this school to get a girlfriend! Just look at the way he acts!" Asuna crossed her arms. "He's a damn flirt!"
"Well, I see you girls are having a lively conversation."
"T-Takahata-sensei!!"
"Hello." Takahata smiled. "I told you girls that you'd like him, it's the first day and you're already talking so loud about him."
"You know him, sensei?" Yue raised an eyebrow.
"Touma-kun is an old friend of Negi-kun's and mine. Negi-kun met him at school but I knew him when he was little." He then took something out of his pocket, giving Asuna a letter. "Here you go, Asuna-kun. Well, I'll be seeing you girls."
"A letter from Negi?" The orange-haired girl said as she looked at the letter. "But he said he'll write next week."
"He must've had free time-aru!" Ku Fei said, already finished with her Chao Bao Zi lunch.
"Yeah…maybe." Asuna then opened the letter and she unfolded the paper inside, causing a hologram of a Negi holding flowers to show up.
The rest of the girls, who were all watching behind Asuna's shoulder, chuckled as it seemed as though Negi was unaware that the letter had started, and they were right.
"Oi, Negi! It's starting!" Anya's voice came out of nowhere, startling the auburn-haired boy.
"Eh?! Err…Hi there, Asuna-san!" Negi waved with his free hand. "Anya and I were given a few days off duty, so I decided to write to you. I'm sorry for not writing to you because I had been assigned a lot of escort missions for the past month, so I was too tired and busy going back and forth from the Magic World to Wales to write to you. Well, everything is fine now and we're going to visit Setsuna-san at the hospital in the Magic World."
The hologram smiled uneasily, receiving worried looks from the girls. "Don't worry, it's nothing major. Her sister said something about a sparring accident and they needed a specialist to look at half-demon injuries because something might happen if they treat her with demon medicine. She's going to be stuck there for a week so we decided to visit! Look, Anya even thought of bringing flowers! She was so worried about Setsuna-san she got this many--"
"Ahh! Negi!! Don't tell them that!!" A red Anya then entered the group's vision, and many of them could tell that she was really flustered.
"But I was just telling them how good of a friend you were! I mean you only knew Setsuna-san for about a yea--"
"Anya Flaming Kick!!"
"Wait, don't do that! You might hit--"
The hologram ended with half of the girls snickering /chuckling about what just happened. "Ahaha…Anya-chan is so cute when she's flustered."
"My, my…A crush on our Sakurazaki-san…" Haruna said as she grinned. "She sure is growing up."
"Moreover, it seems Sakurazaki-san's becoming quite popular on the other side." Kazumi added. "Anya-chan is one thing, but have you seen her fanclub?"
"Fanclubs." Haruna corrected. "I peeked at Chisame-san's laptop during a break and saw her checking the Ala Alba fanclubs. Sakurazaki-san has three major clubs as well as a few small ones, and all of them fighting over which should be the official club. But you know what the funny thing is?"
"What Paru-chan?"
"Most of one of the major clubs as well as all of the two major clubs were girls." The glasses-wearing girl smirked.
"Well, her looks is bound to attract a few girls." The red-haired girl agreed. "Combine that with her attitude, she's gonna be a full-fledged lady killer once we graduate."
"Oh come on guys, I don't think Setsuna-san's like that…"
"Oho, what's this Nodoka?" Haruna turned to the purple-haired girl with a glint in her eyes. "I was wondering why you defended Sakurazaki-san earlier but to actually call her by her first name? Did I miss something important?"
"I was only defending her because Asuna-san was too angry to do so, and Konoka-san is away." Nodoka replied in a calm tone.
"Ahh…speaking of Konoka-chan, have you seen the Konosetsu fanclub on the other side? You've seen how large it was, right Yuecchi?"
The purple-haired girl only smiled at the change of topic, happy that she didn't have to tell her classmates about that one memory. She told me to call her by her first name the night before we went back to Wales.
==ssalC fo yaD tsriF==
I can't believe I'm doing this.
Asuna sighed as scratched her head. It was already fifteen minutes after classes, and she was standing by the door to the faculty room. To think that the reason why I'm here is to ask Yue's 'clue-giving, identifying' questions…Remind me to hit her on the head if she winds up as my patrol partner later.
The orange-haired girl took a deep breath, and then stepped into the room wearing the calmest frown she could muster.
Anger management, don't fail me now.
==ssalC fo yaD tsriF==
"So…how did it go?" Haruna teased as she sat in the waiting room outside the Dean's office, grinning as she winked.
Asuna only frowned, casting an intimidating glare at Yue. "I hate you. The faculty practically thinks of me as insane now."
"Well, you didn't have to ask them all." The blue-haired girl said, unaffected as she took another sip on her grey juice box. "I only wanted at least three answers."
"You ONLY gave me THREE." The orange-haired girl replied, grabbing a seat.
"I did?" Yue raised an eyebrow. "My bad."
"Oh, YOUR BAD all right." Asuna said as she tried to control her temper. She immediately calmed down when a pair of hands grabbed her shoulders, giving them a hard rub.
"Now, now Asuna. Yuecchi was only trying to find out who our enigmatic teacher is." Kazumi said as her face was close to Asuna's ear.
"Enigmatic?"
"Mysterious, Asuna-san." Sayo said as she continued rubbing for a few seconds until she was signaled to stop.
"Haa…thanks Sayo-chan." Asuna said as she stretched, now relaxed and showing no signs that she was going to pummel someone in a few seconds.
"Now, care to tell us what happened?" Kazumi grinned, winking at Haruna, who then elbowed Yue.
"Well…it was like this."
==First Day of Class==
"Ahem."
Touma looked up from his book, closing it as he took off his reading glasses. "Ah, Kagurazaka-san. Good Afternoon."
"Afternoon." Asuna repeated, frowning as she made her way to his desk.
"Oh? No 'good'?" The black-haired boy raised an eyebrow, wondering why she was in such a bad mood.
"Yes, no 'good'." It's never a good afternoon when you get to see your pervert teacher privately.
"Err…OK." He said as he immediately put away the glasses and the book. "So…shall we start then? Please take a seat."
"It's fine with me." She replied as she did what she was told. Heck. No it's not. I'm just doing this to get those answers.
"Right." Touma nodded, and then looked at a nearby clipboard with Asuna's file on it. "It says here that you're from the Art Club?"
Asuna nodded.
"Ah, and you transferred from overseas?"
Asuna nodded again, this time with her frown deepening. Argh, it's already on the file, you dummy!
"Oh, and it says here that you're going out with one of your kohai in the said club?"
That got Asuna active.
"WHAT?! I AM NOT!!" Asuna immediately stood up, placing both her hands on the desk that separated her from her teacher.
"Kagurazaka-san! Please be reminded that this is a faculty room and not a stadium!"
"No, it's all right sensei, it was my fault." He chuckled. "Just checking if you were listening. I'm sorry, Asuna-san."
"Asuna-san?" The orange-haired girl raised an eyebrow. Since when did we get to a first name basis?
"Oh!! Errm…Sorry! I meant Kagurazaka-san! I used to calling-- people the same age as me by their first name but--Anyway, do you have anything to ask me? I-I'm finished with my questions."
Asuna looked at Touma with a half-angry, half-curious expression. "Fine. I've only got three."
"O-OK. Ask away then."
"Can I…see your wallet?"
"Huh? Oh, um, sure…" The boy said, uncertainty in his voice as he pulled out his wallet from his right pants pocket.
Asuna then looked inside and outside of the normal, brown wallet, blushing as the teachers who were in the room looked at her with curious stares. Yue, I am going to kill you for this! There's nothing in here but-- hey…a picture of Negi and Anya-chan in the Magic World…WHAT THE HELL?!
The orange-haired girl then glared at the black-haired boy, who pulled at his collar. "Is um…something wrong, Kagurazaka-san?"
"You know these two?" Asuna said, half-glaring at Touma as she showed him the picture.
"Well, I did say I was Negi-san's underclassman, so it should only make sense that I am Anya-san's underclassman too…or kohai in your terms." The black-haired boy explained. Asuna then put the picture back in and returned the wallet. "So…second question?"
"Can I see your phone?"
"Oh, I'm sorry, but I don't have one." He rubbed the back of his head as he smiled sheepishly. "I broke it before I left Wales."
"I…see." The orange-haired girl only nodded as she herself couldn't understand what kind of teenager doesn't have a phone. Then if what Yue says is true then he's probably from an old-fashioned organization…maybe some old group that Negi's been talking about…come to think of it, he said they didn't use modern stuff either…But if he did break it--
"Um…Kagurazaka-san?"
"Huh? What?"
"What was your last question?"
"Oh…right." Asuna sighed. Might as well get this over with. "Can I look around your desk? And your bag if you have one?"
"I guess. I have nothing to hide from you if that's what you're thinking." Touma shrugged, standing and taking a step aside to give the girl access to his desk.
Once again, Asuna rummaged through her teacher's stuff, her cheeks heating up as the faculty, even Takahata, gave her strange looks. She was practically dying from embarrassment as she searched through each drawer, only hearing her teacher's voice as he tried explaining what was going on. I guess he's dying from embarrassment too. You don't get a student who wants to rummage through your stuff everyday after all.
She then found a backpack under the desk, and began searching through it as well. After five minutes of poking her head into the said bag, she closed the zipper, stood up, said a quick goodbye to Touma as she exited the faculty room, not bothering to say goodbye to the other teachers who probably thought of her as insane now.
Well…he didn't have anything perverted with him. I can give him that.
==ssalC fo yaD tsriF==
"So you say that the desk is completely empty?" Yue said, brows furrowing at the information she was given.
"Aside from the normal papers, nothing out of the ordinary." Asuna replied, frowning. "I checked his backpack too. No age-changing pills. His pockets are to small too hold anything but something as big as a wallet so you can count out the fact that he had some in there, too."
"No 'teenage boy' books either?" Kazumi asked. Looks like we've got quite a situation here.
"Porn? Nothing. As much as I hate to admit it, he's clean." The orange-haired girl crossed her arms. "Though we can't be sure of that. We haven't seen where he lives yet. Got any leads on that?"
"I asked Takahata-sensei that same question, but he only said he doesn't know yet." The red-haired girl scratched the back of her head.
"He doesn't know or Touma-kun doesn't know?" Haruna said, frowning as well. Man, this sure is a lot of work.
"Asuna-chan, Kazumi-chan, Haruna-chan, Yue-chan, Sayo-chan. The patrol meeting will start now, please enter the Dean's office." Shizuna then suddenly appeared in front of the girls, obviously coming from the said office. "The other girls are there too, so please hurry up."
==ssalC fo yaD tsriF==
"So, what is it today Eva-chan?" Asuna said as they entered the room, seeing Mana, Nodoka, Chachamaru, Kaede and Ku Fei. "Where did Konoka go after training?"
"She's in the infirmary with the old man." Evangeline, who was sitting on the Dean's desk, replied. "It seems there was some sort of accident with some of the Elementary Mage Apprentices."
Yue groaned. "I leave them for one day and they get in trouble…"
"Don't worry, brat. They said it was only a scratch from falling off a broom." The vampire waved it off. "You shouldn't have any doubt in your friend's abilities after all."
"But still…isn't it part of a teacher's job to worry about their student's also?"
"Awww…" Nodoka said as she wrapped her arms around Yue's neck. "You know Yuecchi, you're starting to act like Negi-kun."
"I was just worrying about my students." Yue then glared at Haruna. "Get Dark Nodoka off me. NOW."
"You're no fun Yuecchi." Both Dark Nodoka and Haruna said as the former disappeared, with the real Nodoka entering the Dean's office at the same moment. "But you have to admit, you are acting a lot like him these days."
"I'll have to agree with you on that one Paru-chan."
"Well, if that's the case, then I agree with Ayase-san."
The girls' eyes the widened, looking at each other as they realized that the voice didn't belong to any of them.
"Oh, right." Evangeline rolled her eyes. "I forgot we got a new one on patrol. I assume all of you brats know him since you were in class a while ago? Come out, boy."
"Good Afternoon." Touma greeted the girls, causing most of them to greet him back while Asuna frowned. The black-haired boy seemed to notice this, and he smiled uneasily. "I did say I was Negi-san and Anya-san's kohai…right?"
"I knew it." Yue mumbled.
"Whatever." Evangeline said, completely ignoring the tension that surrounded the girls the moment their teacher entered. "There are a few low-class entities that have entered the school premises. You ten will be divided into pairs to cover more ground."
The vampire smirked before flipping her hair and getting off the desk. She then made her way to the door. "Chachamaru, I'll leave it to you to announce the pairs."
"Yes, Master." The green-haired robot said, looking at a piece of paper. "Today's pairs will be: Nagase-san and Asakura-san."
"I'm looking forward to working with you Nagase-san." Kazumi winked.
"As do I, Asakura-dono." Kaede said as she wore her usual expression.
"Tatsumiya-san and Saotome-san."
"Let's do this, Tatsumiya-san!"
"Just don't get in my way again." Mana gave Haruna a serious look. "But if you do, I'll have to shoot you with a tranquilizer. So no worries."
"O-Okay." No worries…for you. Those tranquilizers hurt…
"Miyazaki-san and Ku Fei-san."
"Let's do our best, Nodoka!" Ku Fei gave the purple-haired girl a thumbs up as she winked.
"Yes!"
"Ayase-san and…" Chachamaru squinted. It looks as though Master was in a hurry when she wrote this part…I knew she should've done it before she went sparring with Konoe-san.
Me me me me me me me… Asuna said in her head, not noticing that Sayo was giving off more heat than usual and that her teacher had a blank expression. I said I was gonna get payback for what happened a while ago.
"Ah. Sorry." It seems Master rewrote it on another part of the paper. "Ayase-san and Aisaka-san."
"Cooperation is the key in beating low-class demons so let's work together, okay Aisaka-san?" the blue-haired girl turned to Sayo, ignoring the mentally thrashing Asuna behind her. Disaster avoided.
"R-right…"
"And Sakurai-sensei with Kagurazaka-san."
"It looks like it's just you and me again, huh, Kagurazaka-san?" The boy grinned, trying to ignore the aura Asuna was giving off.
I HATE YOU FATE.
==ssalC fo yaD tsriF==
"There's some over there. Can you feel them, Kagurazaka-san?" Touma pointed to a group of trees near the Middle School building.
"A little." A frowning Asuna nodded, summoning her sword. I can't believe this dude is actually a mage…And he's really underestimating me. She then noticed a couple of demons on the rooftop. Seeing that as an excuse to get away from the boy, she summoned her sword as she turned her back on her teacher. "I'll just get the demons on the roof. You can handle the demons there right?"
"If that's what you want--"
"Right. See you."
"Just remember to meet up with me when you're done!" was the last thing she heard as she headed towards the building, causing Asuna to roll her eyes. I just hope I never finish.
In less than a minute, the orange-haired girl arrived at the location of the demons, finding three of them. She frowned as she saw the talismans on their faces. They've been summoned. And from the looks of things they were left to rot for the rest of their lives… She thought to herself as she saw the old pieces of paper. Either that or somebody killed their master and forgot about them…Oh well, time to put them to rest.
Asuna jumped, dodging the charging demon that saw her, somersaulting as she landed on her feet, then headed for that same demon, slashing it and its talisman in half, resuming her fighting stance as the second, and third began moving towards her. She ducked as one of them decided to chop off her head with its claws, and then moved to the side as the other tried to do the same. She swung her sword upwards as she went back to her fighting stance, slicing the second demon effectively. The orange-haired girl then prepared to charge at the last one, but a stray beam of energy hit her before she took another step.
Crap!! Asuna thought as she was practically knocked off the roof, throwing her sword, which hit and literally nailed the demon to the roof, killing it. Now I don't have anything to hang on to…think, Asuna, think…Ah! Ki on one hand, Magic in the other, bring them togethe--
The orange-haired girl was then caught, interrupting her completely. Asuna blinked. "…Eh?"
Black. Wings.
"Asuna-san! Asuna-san!!" Touma said as he looked at the girl in his arms. "Are you all right?"
"Why are you--how--?" Aside from that…why the hell do you have wings and why are you using my first name?!...Well this was a little complicated so I'll let it slide…FOR NOW.
"Well…remember what Ayase-san said about students? The same is true with friends…You're both, so it's double the worry, Asuna-san." The black-haired boy chuckled.
"Wait a minute!!" The orange-haired girl frowned as something popped in her head. "Just who the hell are you and what connection do you have with us?! And I don't mean us, I mean the Ala Alba!! You know Negi, and since you have black wings, you are a crow demon: the same as Setsuna-san!" Asuna's eyes widened. Setsuna-san! He's an assassin sent to kill her…and he's gathering information about her--No, he's going to lure her here!! She angrily gripped his collar. "What kind of connection do you have with her?! I swear I'll kill you if you're from an enemy tribe of her tribe!!! You can't find anything about her here! We won't tell you any--"
"Calm down." The orange-haired girl stopped in her tracks, frozen by the cold glare she received from her teacher. "If you want to find out who I am, then keep quiet for a moment."
She glared at him. So you really are an enemy.
"Oh, and please take your hands off my collar and keep them to yourself."
I'll deal with you when we're on the ground. She thought to herself as she silently dismissed her artifact, getting ready to fight as they descended. She was then caught off guard as she suddenly lost her eyesight, being helped to a standing position and was then dragged by the hand. "WHERE ARE YOU TAKING ME?!"
"Please keep quiet. I can silence you so fast that even Ayase-san won't be able to hear you. Take note that this is a request, Asuna-san. I promise I'll give you a chance at a fair fight once you are filled in."
She only glared at where she was facing. Oh, yes. It is a fair fight when I can't see!!!
They then walked in heavy silence, with Asuna thinking of how to beat this man once she is given that chance of a fair fight or during the moment she detects any offensive moves against her. I'll use that new technique Albireo taught me the other day…then top it off with my artifact. If that won't work…maybe a combination of Eva-chan's and Takahata-sense-- "Eh?" Asuna blinked. This is…3-A. "Why are we here?"
"The Dean gave me a copy of every key to every room in the school." Touma had his back turned to her, looking out the window that let the moonlight shine on the room. "Back to the topic. That friend of yours…Setsuna…san…was it? Asuna-san…she's done a lot of bad things."
Like I'd believe you! Setsuna-san would never do anything that doesn't have a justice to it! "Look…whoever you are, we, Setsuna-san's friends, are never going to abandon her!" She glared at his now normal back. "Just watch! When I spread the word, this whole school is going to be against you. Heck, even Japan's Magic Organizations!"
"Did you really think I'd get here without the Dean's approval? And, would Takahata-sensei even let me within an inch of you girls if he knew I was an enemy?" A frowning Touma then faced the orange-haired girl. "I am not your enemy, Asuna-san. Can't we please leave it at that?"
"No, we certainly can't!" Asuna raised her voice a little as she crossed her arms, anger pouring out of every pore. "What right do you have to say such things?!"
"Because of who I am." The boy said, his face wearing the same cold expression as before.
"Then tell me who you are so I can tell if I shouldn't kill you right here, right now!!"
His expression changed from cold to serious. "Are you sure about this?"
"Heck yeah I am!!"
"Then you leave me no choice." Touma said, emptying his pockets and taking off his vest, revealing a small blade, his wallet and a few other small things. "There. I am completely unarmed. Now, Asuna-san…"
"Please hug me."
Asuna blinked, almost summoning her artifact. "Excuse me?"
"H-Hug me." The boy looked away. "This is the only way you can find out, do you understand?"
"Are you serious?!" The orange-haired girl said incredulously. You give me all this drama just because you wanted a hug?! Pervert!!!
"Well…it doesn't need to be a hug…Just put your ear to my chest while your hands are on my back."
She groaned. "But the only way to do that is through a hug!!"
"So…you're not going to do it?"
Wait! There was relief in his voice! So he doesn't want his identity to be revealed huh!! But if I hug this guy I'm probably going to be groped or something…Aargh, this is so confusing…Asuna mentally sighed. "F-fine. But no groping…okay?"
"You have my word."
Let's get this over with…She then did everything mentioned as she frowned, reluctantly putting her hands on his back as she put her ear against his chest. This is disgusting. Hey…an irregular heartbeat.
"Now, please close your eyes and don't move for a few seconds. Once this is over, then you can decide on whether you'll kill me or not."
She did what she was told, eventually ignoring everything as she listened to the strange heartbeat.
A few seconds after that, she heard Touma speak, in a weird tone.
"You are Asuna Vesperina Theotanasia Entheofushia, better known as Asuna Kagurazaka. You may be dumb, but you're strong and brave and you always stand by your friends. You hate being called by your surname and are good at fighting. But, most of all, you are Negi Springfield's official partner."
Note: (It seems I've been found out…) The same as with the last chapter, please don't spoil. Otherwise, keep reading. Everything will be clear next chapter. As always, feedback is welcome. Question: Would you like me to post a oneshot on the night before they left Wales (a.k.a. The moment between Nodoka and Setsuna) ?
Character Profiles: Batch 2
Asuna Kagurazaka-age 16;
-Her inheritance is paying for her tuition fee now, so she doesn't have to get up early in the morning.
-Currently training under Takahata, Albireo and Evangeline.
-The strongest Ministra in the school, but her magic skills still need a little work.
-Nowadays, she's extremely sensitive about her height.
Chachamaru Karakuri-age 15(on student database)/ 4(years since activation);
-Like the rest of the Ala Alba, she is a part of the Mahora Academy Defense group. Being second-in-command, she organizes the patrol shifts and the patrol groups/pairs.
-She keeps a database of every intruder that has ever crossed Mahora Academy borders, for future reference and Satomi's research.
-Nowadays, she is always seen with either Satomi, Evangeline, Chisame or a member of the Ala Alba.
-She and Sayo have been going to the lab more frequently recently.
Konoka Konoe- Age 15; Class 1-A.
-She is currently honing her skills as a healer and as a mage, under the guidance of Konoemon Konoe and Evangeline A.K. McDowell respectively.
-Unlike the Ala Alba members, she is now a healer at the school infirmary instead of begin in the defense group.
-She is usually excused for her classes whenever she has important training, and is smart enough to catch up and be one of the top students of Class 1-A.
-She was the one who insisted that 3-A be put in the same class in High School, and was also the one who insisted that they leave slot number 15 open.
-She's still cheery, but there's something about her that doesn't make her look truly happy.
Evangeline A.K. McDowell- age unknown;
-Leader of the Mahora Academy Defense Group, she is the one who chooses which members get excused from classes to patrol.
-Often teaches any member of the Ala Alba who is willing enough, for a price that is.
-Now a high school student, her 'growth' had made her look more beautiful, and taller than usual.
-She is too lazy to do her own homework, so she asks Konoka to 'help out' in exchange for her training.