"I could tell by the sound—that you won against a formidable enemy. You've really gotten far, class. You've grown."
"Korosensei!"
As soon as the shock of having actually succeeded wore off, the students rushed inside the dome to go join their teacher. Ame heaved out a small sigh of relief upon realizing that they still had some time left until the laser was fired, and that their plan had gone without a hitch, for once. The thought made her smile inwardly, though.
Of course it worked—we're used to planning against a super-creature who can escape from any pinch, so we've gotten used to formulating all sorts of contingency plans on the spot. In the end, as formidable as Craig Houjou was, he simply can't compare to Korosensei.
"I see," mused Korosensei once everyone finished explaining the situation. All eyes turned to the night sky, in which shone a faint, red light. "That's the light of the laser… So they'll be firing it just before midnight. That much power would even shut down my Absolute Defense Form."
"No way!" gasped Kataoka.
"Korosensei, let's find a way out of here!" urged Kurahashi. "We'll be your hostages—or whatever it takes!"
"There's no stopping that laser now—not when people know I'm out there." Everyone tensed up a little at that. "Even if I don't explode, you can't expect all these nations not to be afraid of a creature like me. Sooner or later, they'll want to snuff me out. It's only reasonable—"
"It's not," snapped Ame, gritting her teeth. "We can find a way out of here, and then we can simulate your death! You'll go into hiding, and we'll- we'll figure something out! Anything!"
"Naoki-san, you know as well as I do that it wouldn't work," replied gently the octopus.
She instantly lowered her head at that, gritting her teeth.
Damn it…
"There might have been a way if only we'd acted sooner…" choked out Fuwa, clenching her fists. "Like breaking the barrier projectors, or making the rounds online and on TV to plead our case!"
"How? You were sequestered for the last few days, if I've heard correctly," pointed out Korosensei, unperturbed. "And that would have gotten you labeled even more dangerous, and you might have been placed under stricter surveillance. Besides, the projectors have impregnable defenses. There are anti-aircraft weapons in place if I so much as throw a rock at them. With your current capabilities and equipment, you'd likely get caught along the way." His face turned orange, with an approving circle. "That is how perfect this plan was. They spared nothing, pouring in tech and time and people. This assassination, this crystallization of the world's wisdom and efforts, surpasses my own abilities, for which I offer my respect and am honored to have been its target."
"But then… then, all our hard work getting here—that was all for naught?" wondered Yada, saddened.
"Is anything ever truly wasted, Yada-san?" mused Korosensei. "You went all the way to space to find out that the probability of my exploding was less than one percent. That brought the light back to a darkly sinking E-Class, and the month that followed was short, but very sweet. That process, your hearts—that's what's important." He placed a tentacle over his tie—under which they knew his heart was hidden. "You used every last bit of what you learned to come see me. As a teacher, there can be no greater happiness."
"… so what if time's up?" Terasaka clenched his fist, glaring. "It's just one percent! That's a risk we'll take—and gladly! Why won't the government and the rest of them hear us out, when we're the ones who've been closest to you!? This octopus… Okay, he's a perv, but he's not dangerous!
"We won't listen to what those kids have to say. We'll just pity them instead," mimicked Hazama, scowling. "It's downright insulting."
"Like we can shut up and take this…" grunted Muramatsu.
Yoshida nodded, also glaring. "Next time I see those goons, I'm gonna—"
At once, Korosensei appeared before the four students, using his tentacles to make them look at him. They spluttered, taken aback by his sudden movement, and he chuckled lightly.
"Terasaka-kun, and all of you… Let me give you a piece of advice." He suddenly reappeared at the front of the entire group, so everyone could see him. "As you go through life, the mighty current of society is bound to get in your way, and there will certainly be times things won't go as you'd hoped. When this happens, do not look to society for a cause. Do not renounce society. Frankly, you'd be wasting your time. Instead, just say 'That's life!' and muddle your way through with frustration. Once you're past it, consider: if society's swift current is tossing you around, how should you be swimming there in its midst? You should have learned how, here in the E-Class, in this assassination classroom. You don't always have to stand and face it head-on. You can run, and you can hide. If it's not against the rules, you can try a sneak attack. You can use unconventional weapons. Stay determined—not impatient nor discouraged—and with repeated trial and error, you're bound to reach a splendid outcome eventually." His smile then widened, if possible. "That's because each and every one of you is a top-tier assassin who can do just that."
"… geez." Terasaka lowered his head, giving in. "A lesson, really? Now?"
"Niryufufufu! Now's the time for this particular lesson," confirmed Korosensei. "An educator never misses an opportunity to teach. But, you know, for you to try so whole-heartedly to save me…" At once, he reached out and used his tentacles to gently ruffle the hair of each of his students, and Ame found comfort in the familiar, gentle gesture. "I'm so happy, I've been holding back tears this whole time." He carefully wiped said tears away, his usual broad and taunting grin now small and soft. "I mean it."
Ame's guts churned painfully as his tentacle retracted from her head. The loss of the contact suddenly made her all the more aware that the end of their story was nearing and, no matter what Korosensei said, it simply didn't sit right with her.
If only I hadn't been so stubborn, so prideful. If only I had enlisted the Zodiac's help, then maybe—
"Naoki-san?" She startled, looking up, and her teacher's knowing grin made her mind blank. "I'm well-aware of what you might be thinking right now… but know that I've already spoken with your Leader. Even if you had asked, he would have refused to land you a hand—on my behalf, and at my request."
"… I see. Looks like you, too, had everything planned out."
Her tentative joke fell flat, and she didn't have the heart for it, anyway. Korosensei didn't add anything else, though, and turned to face her blonde friend instead.
"By the way, Nakamura-san, your footsteps were awfully gentle, even during that pitched battle," he remarked. "And… do I smell something sweet?"
"Sharp ears and a sharp nose, uh?" Heaving out a half-amused, half-exasperated, sigh, Rio kneeled down to open the bag she had been carrying. "It's been exactly one year since the day the moon exploded, right? As I recall, Yukimura-sensei made today your birthday." She pulled out a small, but beautifully decorated strawberry cake, and Korosensei instantly started salivating at the sight. "Feel free to praise my skill in getting this here in one pi—oi! I'm talking!"
"But… it's just…" His skin had turned pink as he fully focused on the cake before him. "It's my first sweet anything in a week!"
"Ew, you're drooling!" Rio quickly shook her head. "Come on, guys—let's get singing!"
When Rio had shared her plan with her, Ame had been amused, but didn't think she'd actually pull through. However, her friend had proven her wrong and, as such, the black-haired girl admitted defeat by singing along with the rest of her friends.
Happy birthday to you~
Happy birthday to you~
Happy birthday, Korosensei~
Happy birthday to you~!
"Yeah!"
"Yatta!"
"Happy birthday!"
"Come on, blow it out, Korosensei!"
"There's only one, so make it count!"
Nodding, Korosensei pulled away a little, ready to blow his candle… until a dark red tentacle suddenly shot out of the shadows and crashed right onto the birthday cake, ripping it apart. All of the students instantly tensed up as two familiar figures slowly made their way out of the forest where they had been hiding, and Ame internally cursed herself for having forgotten about them in the first place.
Of course Yanagisawa would try his luck one last time! How could I be so careless!?
"Happy birthday," he stated plainly, sarcastically. For once, he wasn't wearing his mask. "The time is ripe. Let me give you the gift of the world's cruelest death."
The man beside him was… strange, to say the least. Completely unrecognizable, there was a mass of dark matter constantly moving around him, and he slowly zipped down the suit to reveal two bright, glowing eyes.
"Sensei… You know who I am, don't you?"
"Why don't I reintroduce him—to your students, too," mused Yanagisawa. "He's the man who stole the name The Reaper from that octopus. And, as of today… he's the new Korosensei."
A Shinigami—a God of Death.
There was simply no other way to describe the actual monster who now stood before them. An inhuman mass of dark matter and tentacles, animated with only the will to kill and the drive to hurt. The bloodlust emanating from it was sick and twisted, and a chill ran down Ame's spine as her mind quickly connected the dots.
If that's the man who stole Korosensei's title, then that means it's his traitor of an apprentice… and the former Inu.
The man who betrayed her.
The man who put her name on the dark list.
The man who sold her out to Tanaka Sho.
The man who shot her with the full intent to kill.
The man she once considered her friend.
In the end… I never even knew his real name…
"That's…!"
"It can't be!"
"That's the guy who attacked us!?"
"Reaper 2.0…"
"Before, it was just his face—now his whole body is a monster!"
"He's just had the same modification as the octopus," replied plainly Yanagisawa. "The only difference is that he begged for them. Completely unlike the botched Itona, or my little sister over there…" Itona gritted his teeth, and Kayano glared hotly. "Can you even imagine? A man who overpowered you singlehandedly even as a human now has both incomparable tentacles and hatred. The destructive power…!"
"DIE!"
"RUN AWAY!"
The monster pounced, and the students instantly ran for cover, while Korosensei took the brunt of the assault in order to protect them.
"Sonic Boom. His tentacles have an initial velocity of Mach 2, and they can reach a top speed… of Mach 40," explained smugly Yanagisawa, while the two creatures started duking it out, their movements too fast for the human eye to follow. "In short, his basic performance is doubled. 2.0's superhuman kinetic vision and intuition are amplified via his tentacles, making him readily adaptable to a supersonic world. Unlike some amateur children, he took to his tentacles readily—just like version 1.0 over there. But, the greatest difference is that unlike you and that octopus, those tentacles were designed with continuous operation in mind. You see, he needs no upkeep. He's disposable. In exchange for only three months to live, I've made it so he can tap into this tremendous energy—and there's not even any danger of him exploding at death. Ah, ah, ah! A safe and flawless weapon, is it not?"
Korosensei was barely able to keep up with the monster his first student had turned into, and the students of the E-Class could only watch with growing horror as they realized that, as he was now, their teacher couldn't win. And adding to that all of Yanagisawa's boasting…
"You always do this…" growled out Kayano, earning his attention. "Always hurting others—from your safe spot away from it all!"
At that, Yanagisawa's smirk fell, and he took off his hood. "Is that what you think?"
Then, much to everyone's horror, he pulled out a custom-made syringe in the form of a gun, to which was attached a fairly familiar container, for those who had seen it before. Just as he was about to plant it into his neck, though, the syringe was harshly knocked out of his hand and slid onto the ground, a few meters away.
"What—"
"Sheesh, you really talk too much," huffed Ame, lowering her foot. "You know, for a guy who prides himself on being a genius, you didn't realize one second that I was getting closer and closer to you the more you talked. I mean, I get that your ego is the size of this mountain, but did you really think I was letting you run your mouth because I wanted to hear you fawn over your monstrous creation?" She rubbed the back of her neck, cracking it a bit as she smirked defiantly. "You should really know me better than that, at that point."
"Tche. Naoki Ame, always getting in the way…" he growled out, visibly annoyed. "Though I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, now that I know what you are. Your ex-colleague over there shared everything with me."
"At that point, it really doesn't matter," she snorted, unperturbed. "Go ahead, tell the entire world—but who are they going to believe? A freak who uses human experimentation to fuel his greed for recognition, or a junior-high-school girl who's been traumatized by her year spent under the threat of her monster teacher?"
He gritted his teeth a bit at that. "Always have a solution to every problem, don't you? But, it doesn't matter—you will die here tonight, along with your beloved teacher!"
He pounced, faster than anyone actually expected, but not on Ame. Instead, he spun on his heels and crossed the distance separating him from the syringe she had kicked out of his hand earlier and, with a sickening laugh, he lifted it up high in a triumphant manner.
"Akari! I'm not prepared to die, is what you think, isn't it?" he taunted. "But that's where you're wrong: I don't give a damn about my life anymore! Not if I can kill him, who stole everything from me… and her, who keeps on getting in my way…" At once, he planted the needle into his neck, his grin widening even more. "Joints, muscle fibers, spinal cord, nerves: it may not be my entire body, but if I can gradually implant tentacles in these key places, I can become superhuman while retaining my human faculties…!"
"Well, in that case, it's a good thing that's not tentacle seeds you just injected yourself with, isn't it?"
…
…
…
Yanagisawa paused.
Blinked.
"Eh?"
Ame simply tilted her head, smiling. "Have your parents never told you not to pick up syringes off the ground when you were little?"
As if on cue, all of Yanagisawa's muscles locked down and became completely unresponsive, and the man collapsed at once, spasms running through his entire body every few seconds. The students could only gape, dumbstruck, before snapping their eyes at Ame, next to whom was now standing… Okuda?
"Good job, Okuda," grinned Ame, exchanging a high-five with the girl. "You did great!"
"It- it was your idea, Ame-san…!"
Understanding finally dawned on the rest of the E-Class.
"Wait, you're telling me you had Okuda switch the syringes!?" gasped Rio.
"No, just the contents," replied Ame, showing them the little container Okuda had just handed her—the one containing the tentacle seeds.
Takebayashi's eyes widened slightly. "That's brilliant. In this class, Okuda-san is the one with the less presence, and Yanagisawa was so busy arguing with Ame-san…"
"That there was no possible way he would detect Okuda while she switched the contents of the syringe," completed Kataoka, nodding appreciatively.
"Exactly. And now?" Ame pulled up a small bag that had been attached to her hip since the beginning of this venture, but that none of them had noticed up until now. "It's time to lend a hand to our dear teacher."
"What? How? Have you seen that monster?" protested Yoshida.
"Right, we don't stand a chance!" nodded Mimura.
"We don't need to get anywhere close to him," assured calmly Ame, pulling out containers similar to the one with the tentacle seeds. In them, a strange, translucent-blue liquid could be seen. "If we can inject him with a considerable dose of these, then we'll be able to even the gap of power between them."
"What is this, exactly?" asked Sugino, a tad wary.
"Well, after so many run-ins with people with tentacles, I became a tad paranoid and deemed that, in the worst-case scenario, we'd have to fight one last tentacle-controlled monster," shrugged Ame. "So, I had Hana, our poison and drug expert, look into it. In the end, she managed to create a special substance which, in theory, should weaken the tentacles. Of course, it was created for a scenario where Korosensei would have to once again pull out tentacles from an unwilling victim but, as it is, it still ought to be enough to at least weaken 2.0 a bit, and give Korosensei the opening he needs to land the final blow."
"How many of those do you have, Ame-san?" asked Isogai, determination settling in his gaze.
"Twenty-nine of them—in other words, one for each of us. Of course, not all of them will actually reach their target, but the more the better." She pulled out one of her guns, her eyes reflecting her resolve. "This is our last shot at saving Korosensei. If you don't want to, go take cover in the classroom so you won't get accidentally caught in the crossfire. If you're up for it, then grab a container and gear up—we're moving as soon as everyone's in position."
They had already gotten that far—what was one more life-threatening endeavor, really? All determined to at least help out their teacher one last time, every single student of the E-Class grabbed one of the containers/bullets Ame had brought, and even Ritsu was given one—which was placed in the drone she was controlling. Just as they were splitting up, though, none other than Karasuma and Irina showed up, a little out of breath, and definitely scared out of their wits by Korosensei's opponent.
"Well, you guys sure took your sweet time, didn't you?" Ame mused.
"What- what is that monster—"
"The Reaper. Or rather, Korosensei's ex-apprentice, and the guy who shot me a few months ago," summarized the girl, before gesturing to the white-cladded man still lying on the ground. "We managed to paralyze Yanagisawa, and he won't be getting up any time soon, but that monster is too strong for Korosensei to handle on his own. So, we're going to help him out." After a moment, she thought of something. "You guys want in on it?"
"But- but how!?" protested Irina, pale. "That monster—"
"Here." Ame offered them two containers. "I actually kept those for backup, but seeing as you're here now… These should at least weaken 2.0 enough for Korosensei to gain the upper hand, if only briefly. It's not much, but… it's all we can do, at that point."
After a moment, Karasuma sighed and grabbed one of them. "Do I even want to know how you got your hands on such a substance?"
"What can I say? I have talented friends."
Irina snorted, taking the other one as she pulled out her gun. "That's an understatement, brat."
Glad their other two teachers were joining in on the fun, Ame quickly directed them to different locations around the battlefield, where the rest of the students had already settled down and were now lying in wait, awaiting her signal. If they wanted even the slightest chance to hit, then they needed to wait for the monster to stop moving long enough for them to fire, but…
"This isn't gonna work," grumbled Terasaka. "It keeps on moving—we can't fire like that!"
"We need a distraction," reasoned Itona. "Something big enough to make it stop moving, and to give Korosensei a break."
Ame nodded. "It was my idea. I'll—"
"Leave it to me!"
"Wha—Kayano-san!?"
Despite Nagisa's attempt to stop her, the green-haired girl suddenly ran out smack in the middle of the battlefield. Ame gritted her teeth, but stood her ground. If she, too, rushed ahead of danger, then it'd cause more trouble for everyone, so all she could do was trust in Kayano and hope for the best.
"Hey, Ugly!" Kayano fired an anti-BB bullet at the monster, and he and Korosensei instantly parted ways, the battlefield falling eerily silent. "Look over here! Korosensei, run away and take a breather! I'll distract him!"
"N- no! Kayano-san—!"
"I'd regretted it all this time," she then admitted, gritting her teeth. 2.0 wasn't moving, staring at her as if he was gauging his new opponent—probably wary because of her former status as a tentacle-user. "That it was my fault the class learned the truth. That I snatched away the fun times we'd had together. So at least… let me protect you… as your student!"
"Ame!?" pressed Rio.
"Not now. Just wait a little more!"
"You were right!" exclaimed Korosensei, who bowed despite being thoroughly beaten up. "Thanks to your actions, the class got to learn what was truly important!"
"I'll protect you!"
This time, Kayano fired with the special ammunition Ame had provided.
"NOW!" barked Ame.
It was the opening they needed. At once, shots were fired from all around the battlefield, almost in perfect synchronization. Ame didn't know how many of them hit their mark, but it was well over half of them, which bode well for them. However, just as she was about to order a tactical retreat so Korosensei could handle the rest… Kayano decided to recklessly rush ahead and pounced, a rubber knife in her hands.
"Akari, don't!"
It was too late. Despite being already weakened by the substance, 2.0 was acting on instincts alone and, as soon as Kayano got close enough, she was pierced through and through by one of his tentacles. Numerous, horrified screams echoed in the background as her blood filled the air like red cherry blossom petals.
As for Ame… she froze.
It's my fault.
It was my plan.
She got hurt because of me.
Korosensei slowly dragged himself over to where her body had been unceremoniously dropped and, despite being paralyzed, they could hear Yanagisawa laughing. Well, it was more like breathless wheezing than anything else, seeing as even his vocal cords were paralyzed, but it only made it all the more horrifying. Frankly, Ame was tempted to run over to him and shove her knife smack into his skull… but that thought was quickly forgotten as a bloodlust much greater than her own suddenly washed over the battlefield.
Ko- Korosensei…!?
Even when Nagisa had almost died at the beginning of the year when he tried his luck with that kamikaze assassination attempt, Korosensei hadn't been that angry. She unconsciously took a step back, frightened, but it quickly became evident that all of their teacher's anger was now solely directed at his foe.
"We- we have to get out of here!" urged Nagisa, who had picked up Kayano's body in the meantime. "Let's get out of the way!"
"R- right!"
It didn't take long for the E-Class to come back together and, while many spared horrified glances for the body of the green-haired girl, none of them commented on it, their attention soon drawn back to the ongoing battle. At once, Korosensei clashed with 2.0 and, after a few seconds, a white light suddenly filled the battlefield.
"A- a white light?"
"But- but his tentacles are still black!"
"No… it's yellow," gawked Nagisa.
"Nuh-uh—it's red!" countered Terasaka.
"Green," choked out Rio.
"Blue!" gasped Kataoka.
"And back… to white…" murmured Ame.
It was an actual rainbow of colored lights, until it became too blinding for any of the students to see anything. A violent gust of wind picked up, forcing them to close their eyes and, when they finally opened them again… it was over. 2.0 had been entirely wiped out of existence by Korosensei's newfound power, and the final boss had been dealt with.
As joyous as the thought was, though, no one shouted in joy.
More than one life would be lost that night, and it wasn't something to celebrate.
"Ko- Korosensei…" choked out Nagisa as their teacher appeared before them. "Kayano…"
"Class… The past you've lost will never come back," stated plainly Korosensei. "I myself have made so many mistakes… But, we can learn from the past, so we don't repeat it."
Then, much to everyone's shock, thinner tentacles appeared behind him, and Ame's eyes widened when she saw the large, red sphere they were holding. Upon looking closer, it was obviously blood—Kayano's blood.
"These are Kayano-san's blood and somatic cells. I gathered them up before she fell to the ground, and stored them in a sterile membrane I made with compressed air," he explained. He shot a brief glance at Ame. "After what happened to Naoki-san a few months ago, and what happened to Yukimura Aguri… I decided to no longer be caught unprepared."
"In- in the middle of the battle!?" gasped Sugaya.
"I'd set aside the tentacles meant for protecting you." Gently, Korosensei lifted Kayano's body from Nagisa's arms. "Those were the only ones I didn't use for fighting. Now, to string all these cells together, one by one… Faster, more accurately…" He got to work, a white light emanating from Kayano's wound as he started patching her up. "I've been improving my skills all year long—so if the same thing happened again, it wouldn't have the same tragic ending. That technique wasn't ready when Naoki-san got shot, but it is today. Now, some cells can't be repaired, so instead I'll leave gaps, and fill them with my mucus. Within a few days, her own cells should regenerate and replace it." He then grunted. "I'm a tad low on blood. Type AB donors, please!"
Ame didn't hesitate in stepping forward, extending her arm. She still felt guilty for what had happened even if, rationally speaking, she wasn't at fault for Kayano's reckless action. Itona and Karma also stepped forward, letting Korosensei's tentacles suck out as much blood as he needed.
"Nakamura-san!" he then called out urgently. "Gather up that birthday cake and put it in my mouth!"
"What!? But it's a smashed-up pile of dirt-covered garbage now!" she protested.
"I need to replenish my energy! And I wanted to eat it that whole fight! I call the thirty-minutes rule!"
"It's thirty seconds!"
Then, after what felt like an eternity, the glow finally diminished, until it fully disappeared and, at last, Korosensei gently lowered Kayano to the ground, her wound now closed. In fact, there wasn't even the slightest scratch left. Though, as soon as Korosensei removed his tentacle from her arm, a wave of dizziness washed over Ame, and she stumbled back a bit. Kurahashi and Yada were quick to catch her and help her sit down, for which she was grateful. While Korosensei had been careful not to draw out too much blood, it was still an abrupt blood loss.
"Now, once her heart starts working, she'll come back to life," the octopus announced, wiping some sweat from his forehead. He then showed them a copy of What To Do For a Gut-Shot Student, by Korosensei. "It should go perfectly, according to the manual."
"Who'd even anticipate such a disaster!?" snapped Sugino, Maehara, and Okajima.
Ame started raising her hand—
"And you don't count!" warned Maehara, pointing accusingly at her.
She instantly lowered her hand, rolling her eyes.
"I can say this now, but if your bodies were ever torn to pieces, I was prepared to put them back together," Korosensei then admitted, electricity now sparkling at the tip of his tentacles. "As long as I'm around, that is."
On which he sent a shock through Kayano's body to kick-start her heart. At first, nothing happened, and everyone watched with bathed breath… until Kayano suddenly gasped, her eyes snapping open. Slowly, she sat up, glancing around with confusion.
"Did you save me… again…?" she asked hesitantly their teacher.
"As many times as it takes," Korosensei simply replied, swiftly tying her hair back into the usual twin ponytails. "Your sister would have done the same."
There was a moment of silence.
Then, at once, all of the students finally gave in to their relief and burst out in joyous shouts and cheerful, relieved exclamations, many of them rushing up to Kayano to hug her, while a few others cried their hearts out. Ame simply slumped, glad to know her friend was safe and sound.
"Kayano, thank goodness you're alright!" beamed Nagisa.
"Nagisa—achoo! What- what's with this getup!?" she gasped, only now noticing her ripped clothes and her uncovered chest.
At once, most of the boys averted their eyes with faint blushes on their cheeks—tough Kataoka had to be a tad forceful with Okajima so he'd look away.
"Don't mind, don't mind," chuckled Maehara, simply dropping his coat over her shoulders. "Korosensei even fixed up your hair for you."
"Thank you… but I wish he'd fixed up my clothes first…"
"You- you know, Korosensei's so generous with his care and all, you might've come out of that a little bustier than before—gurk!"
"One more word and I'll ensure the Okajima name dies with you," warned darkly Ame, having just thrown a rubber knife at a specific part of his anatomy.
"Dah ah ah… Ah ah ah…" All students tensed up as, all of sudden, a wheezy, mad laugh echoed, and all eyes snapped to Yanagisawa's paralyzed body. "Impossible… Unconceivable… By targeting the students, your greatest weakness… A hindrance… We should have won… You should be dead—!"
Korosensei was suddenly before him, towering and menacing. "Those students risked life and limb to try to save me, and overcame obstacles to meet me here. That process, those hearts—they're the greatest gift a teacher could receive. They're not a weak point, and they're not a hindrance. They're my students! And I'm proud of each and every one of them! What's more… protecting one's students is a teacher's natural duty—I couldn't possibly die when I had to look after them."
Before Yanagisawa could add anything, he was harshly knocked out by Karasuma, who had walked up to him in the meantime. While the special agent put him in cuffs, Korosensei slowly walked back to the group of students, seemingly about to say something else… but he suddenly collapsed, much to everyone's horror.
"Korosensei!"
"Are you okay!?"
"Phew… I'm beat," admitted the creature, who appeared strangely satisfied despite his beaten state, for some reason. "Now, class. What kind of assassins would let a dying target escape?" A heavy silence ensued as understanding slowly dawned on the students. "Can't you see? It's killing time."
Ame inhaled sharply at that, her legs shaking a bit as she forced herself back to her feet. She knew it was coming, she knew they didn't have much time left—and, not for the first time ever since she joined the E-Class, she felt helpless. She had grown used to pulling off downright miracles, but it would appear she was now fresh out of stock.
"Fun times… are bound to end. That's what a classroom's all about."
She gritted her teeth, her throat tight and dry as she lifted her eyes to the sky. Through the dome, she could see the swelling light of the laser. It was a clear sign that it would fire right on schedule despite what had happened, and that the endgame was now.
"Everyone…" The students turned to Isogai, who sported a solemn expression. "We have to decide this for ourselves. We could choose to stay out of this and leave it up to Fate…" After a moment of hesitation, he took a deep breath. "Show of hands: who doesn't want to kill Korosensei?"
It didn't take long for all of the students to raise their hands, Ame being one of the firsts. After a moment, Isogai nodded somberly.
"Okay. Hands down. Now: who wants to kill Korosensei?"
She didn't want to kill. Hell, all Ame wanted to do was run away and escape reality, if only for one more night. However, she was also painfully aware of a single, simple fact: amongst all of the students present, she was the only one who had killed before.
My hands are already tainted anyway… and I don't want any of them to have to carry that burden—not if I can take it myself.
Keeping her eyes firmly locked to the ground, Ame raised her hand. After a few seconds, though, she realized with a mix of sadness and relief that, once again, all of her classmates had also raised their hands again—and understanding dawned on her.
It's not about killing, or about accomplishing our mission. It's about graduating on our own terms, and salvaging what we can of our bond with Korosensei. It's about giving sense to the year we spent together, giving meaning to all of our hard work and all of our efforts.
It's about giving Korosensei what he wants—to die at the hands of his precious students.
Slowly, the students of the E-Class gathered around their teacher and, one after the other, they all crouched down to take a hold of his tentacles. Of course, it's not like he was going to make a run for it at that point, but they all needed to do this. Gritting her teeth, Ame sat down on one of the larger tentacles he used as an arm.
"You can't move like this, right, Korosensei?" asked plainly Rio.
"Exactly so, Nakamura-san. I am worried about your weak grip, though," mused the octopus.
Reacting instinctively, the students instantly tightened their grips, though their hearts clearly weren't into it.
"Your heart is under your tie, right?" recalled hesitantly Kataoka. "Who's going to…"
Ame stiffened, much like the rest of the students—though, those were because none of them had thought about it until now. As for her, though… she was angry at herself. As much as she wanted to take on that burden, to land that final blow so none of them would have to do it and live the rest of their lives with their teacher's blood on their hands… she couldn't do it.
No matter how good of a person she wanted to be, she was too selfish for that.
"You guys, please—let me do it."
At once, the attention shifted to Nagisa, who was now coming out of the building with a rubber knife in his hands. Ame was ashamed of how her entire body relaxed as the boy volunteered himself for the task, but she mostly admired his resolve.
"No complaints here," assured Terasaka, smirking a bit.
"You're the head of this class, Nagisa," added Karma. "Do what you want."
Nodding, Nagisa carefully climbed over the creature's body, until he straddled his chest and positioned his knife right over the tie. Korosensei then started talking of his connection with the tie, and also how he needed to thank Karasuma and Irina as fellow teachers.
"But first, I need to say my goodbyes to these teachers. Irina-sensei, are you sure you don't want to join in? This is your chance at that bounty," he calmly pointed out.
At that, she lowered her eyes. "I've gotten enough already. So many ties, so much experience—from you and the children both. This assassination… is the bond between you and those kids."
"I see. And you, Karasuma-sensei." The agent straightened up a bit at being called out. "You, too, have made these students what they are today. Please continue to offer your guidance."
"Aa. You may have caused me no end of trouble, but this is one year I'll never forget." His back straight, his chin held high, he leveled the octopus with a solemn, respectful gaze. "Farewell… Korosensei."
The octopus's smile widened slightly at that—it was the first time Karasuma ever called him by his given name. However, time was now running out, and they needed to wrap things up.
"Now then, class, it's about that time. Twenty-four hours wouldn't be enough time for me to say my goodbyes to each of you in turn. We can't talk long… so instead, I'll take attendance one last time. Please, look me in the eye and answer in a loud voice. Once you've all responded, you can kill me." There was a moment of silence, before panic took over his expression. "No- nobody left early, did they!? Naoki-san isn't skipping again, right!? If someone didn't respond now, of all times, I'd kill myself!"
"Just do it already!" snapped the rest of the students, briefly falling back into the routine.
"Very well. In that case, let us begin attendance: Akabane Karma-kun."
"Here."
::
There, on the desk, was an octopus, stabbed right through the head.
Seriously?
Ame scrunched her nose and turned to Karma, who was sitting at his place, a satisfied smirk on his lips.
"That's just nasty. Was that really necessary?"
"Why do you assume I'm the one did it?" mused the red-haired boy.
"'Cause you're the only one who'd try something like that. The others wouldn't be able to stomach it," she retorted, gesturing to the rest of their classmates. They were all silent, unable to look at it. "You really think that's going to be enough for Korosensei to lose it?"
"Maybe, maybe not. Only one way to find out, right?"
::
"Isogai Yuuma-kun."
"Here."
::
"You should be careful, you know?"
The black-haired girl cracked an eye open, glancing down from the branch she was lazily lying on. Below was a boy from her class. The official class representative of 3-E, right?
"I never fall," she simply replied, closing her eyes again. "And even if I did, I'd probably break my neck and die on the spot, so I wouldn't feel the pain anyway."
The boy sweatdropped a little. "That's… not exactly better."
"Meh. That would depend on one's point of view," she shrugged. Then, realizing she wouldn't be able to relax anymore, she sighed heavily. "Great, now I'm fully awake."
Clicking her tongue in annoyance, she simply rolled off the branch. There was a startled gasp from the boy, but she simply ignored it and flipped in midair, thus easily catching her fall and landing on her feet with practiced ease.
"Isogai-kun, was it?" she remarked, ignoring how he gaped at her. "Thanks for waking me up. How nice, really."
"O- oh! You're very welcome, Naoki-san!"
::
"Okajima Taiga-kun."
"Here."
::
Slinging her bag over her shoulders, she was about to leave through the window while Korosensei wasn't around to stop her, but a small whimper caught her attention. A tad confused, she glanced back… and sweatdropped upon noticing none other than Okajima, slumped over his desk with a dark cloud of misery floating around him.
After a moment of hesitation, she walked up to him and lightly tapped him on the shoulder.
"Ugh, what…"
"Okajima…?"
Upon hearing a feminine voice, the boy instantly perked up and lifted his head—and his jaw dropped when she offered him the small, red box.
"Don't take this the wrong way—it's not a confession or anything," she warned, sincerely hoping she hadn't just dug her own grave. "I bought it out for myself since the price was cut in half for Valentine's Day, but, erm… you look like you need it more than I do."
"Is- is this for real…?" He carefully, almost reverently grabbed the box… and then started crying. "This is the most wonderful day of my life! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
"S- sure…"
::
"Okano Hinata-san."
"Uh-uh…"
::
"All right. Okano, I want you to surprise me."
"W- what? Just like that?"
"Yep. I won't fight back, merely evade. You've got to land at least one hit."
"Okay?"
Unsure, she took her stance. Ame simply nodded reassuringly. Nodding back, the brunette then darted forward. Ame easily stepped out of the way.
Surprise her…
She needed a move Ame hadn't taught her, then.
…
…
…
I know!
She moved fast, her knife aiming for the orange-eyed girl's face. Ame stepped back, just enough to avoid it from hitting her face. However, it wasn't far enough to avoid the sudden kick from her opponent. Okano executed a perfect cartwheel, hitting Ame right under the chin. It's only once she fell back on her feet that she realized she had actually hit the teen.
::
"Okuda Manami-san."
"H- here…!"
::
"Hey, Okuda."
The bespectacled girl jumped at the voice, snapping her eyes to the source.
"Na- Naoki-san!"
The black-haired teen nodded in greeting, before sitting in front of her. The shy girl bit her lower lip, reporting her attention to her current work. She hadn't expected Naoki Ame, of all people, to come and talk to her.
"So…" Ame leaned back in her seat. "I've heard what you said to Korosensei."
"O- oh?"
"Yeah. Anyway, you're pretty great when it comes to poisons and stuff like that, right? But as you said yourself, you can't do it when it comes to surprise attacks and the likes. Which is kind of sad, considering poison is only effective when the target doesn't know they took it."
"Right…"
"But! I've got an idea."
At that, Okuda finally dared look back to her. There was a glint in Ame's eyes, and the shy girl couldn't help but be curious.
::
"Kataoka Meg-san."
"Here."
::
"Wait, Ame-chan!" The teen stopped in her tracks, turning to Hara. "I was wondering… if you could help me."
"Help you?"
"Help us, actually," nodded Kataoka, smiling a little. "We've seen how you handle knives and hand-to-hand combat, and we'd really appreciate it if you could show us a few tricks."
The rest of the girls nodded their heads in agreement. Ame stared at them for a few seconds, truly taken aback. Then, her lips stretched by themselves, and she found herself beaming at them.
"Sure! It'll be fun!"
::
"Kayano Kaede-san."
::
"A- Ame-chan…" Snapping back to reality, the girl looked over at Akari. She was on the verge of tears, but for a completely different reason, now. "I- I'm so sorry… You tried to warn me… You- you tried to show me the truth, and yet I've said—I've told you such horrible things… And I hurt you…"
"Maa, maa, don't worry about it, it's fine—"
"No! No, it's not fine!" snapped the girl, gritting her teeth. "I know- I know you're quick to forgive, I know you rarely hold grudges when it comes to the people you care about… but I hurt you, Ame-chan—in more ways than one, and that's not okay." Akari met Ame's surprised gaze head-on, before bowing deeply. "I didn't mean anything I said to you earlier. I was completely driven by my anger and my pain, and all I sought was to also make you suffer, but I didn't mean a single word of it—but even so, I hurt you, and- and…"
"I think that what she's trying to say is: think a bit more about yourself, Ame," intervened Rio, lightly hitting her friend over the head. "Despite what you think, it's not okay for people to hurt you, even if they're people you care about. We won't think any less of you if you get angry or snap back."
"I understand," nodded Ame, offering a tentative smile at Akari. "Since you were honest with me, I'll be honest with you: every single thing you said was true—that's why it hurt. I can't blame you for calling it as you saw it, really, but I'm not mad about it." Her smile widened, and she reached out to pat her friend on the shoulder. "I'm just really glad you're okay, now! So, let's finish the year together, everyone—without masks and without acting, to enjoy whatever time we have left. Alright?"
::
"Kanzaki Yukiko-san."
"Here."
::
"How did you get here before us anyway?" then wondered Sugino, scratching the back of his head. "When we got here, we ran into Kanzaki and Kayano who were panicking and telling us you were facing the guys by yourself…"
"I was passing by when I saw you guys were in trouble," admitted the teen. "I simply followed the van here."
"But… earlier, that guy…" Kayano lowered her eyes, fiddling with her fingers. "He said that he stole the itinerary on the train, but that someone took it back from him… That was you, wasn't it?"
"… Aa."
"Why didn't you tell us, Naoki-san?" frowned slightly Kanzaki.
"I didn't want you guys to worry for nothing," sighed the girl. "I thought I had handled everything and that you'd be fine and I didn't want you guys to stress needlessly. I'm… sorry about that. I should have told you. Maybe if I did, then this wouldn't have happened—"
Kayano grabbed her hands, startling the girl, who looked back to her. The green-haired teen then beamed at her.
"You shouldn't apologize for wanting to help. Thank you, for saving us!"
"I… I just…"
"Aa. Thank you," added Kanzaki, now smiling softly.
"… Ain't nothin'," mumbled the girl, averting her gaze. The adrenaline was now slowly disappearing, leaving her in a somewhat dazed state. "Though I gotta say, that wasn't how I pictured our school-trip would go."
::
"Kimura Justice-kun."
"Here!"
::
"Ugh, I hate the thought of another public execution come graduation," admitted the boy. "My parents are police officers who were so high on Justice that they named their son after it! And being my parents, they'd just smack me if I complained about it. They didn't think about how much a kid could get teased in school."
"That's parents for you," then remarked Hazama. "Me, with this face—I'm Kirara. Kirara! Do I look like a Kirara to you?"
"N- no…"
"My mom lives in her own little fantasy world, but if something happens that she doesn't like, she goes into screaming hysterics," pursued the scary girl. "That's the kind of stress-filled house I grew up in. No way was I going to grow into my adorable little name."
"You've sure got it rough, saddled with such weird names," mused Karma, going to join them.
"Ah! You're one to talk," snorted Ame.
"Me?" The boy quickly wrote his name on the board. "I rather like my name. Guess some kids inherit their folks' strange tastes. Though, what about you, Ame?"
"Me?" She thought it over for a moment. "Well, 'Naoki' is for 'honest' and my name's written with the character for 'rain'… My grandmother told me its because my parents met on a rainy day or something like that. I never really thought over its significance, though."
"Eh? That's so romantic!" gushed Kurahashi.
"More or less meaning 'honest as rain', uh…?" Karma grinned a little. "Don't know if the shoe fits, though."
"Whatever."
::
"Kurahashi Hinano-san."
"Heeeere…!"
::
"AME-CHAN!"
At the exclamation, the black-haired teen turned around, just in time to catch Kurahashi, who had jumped into her arms. She blinked a few times as the younger girl in her arms beamed brightly.
"I'm so glad you could come!" The ginger jumped back on her feet, apparently excited. "I asked the others but they were all busy, so it's just going to be the two of us. Is that okay?"
"Uh, sure. Though, it's more like three of us…"
"Uh?"
It's only then that Kurahashi noticed the little boy hiding behind Ame's legs. Her sudden appearance had apparently startled him and he didn't even dare to look at her.
"This is my younger brother, Jackie," introduced Ame, gently patting the kid's head. "Jackie, this is the friend I was telling you about, Kurahashi. Come on, say hello."
He slightly lifted his head, mumbling under his breath what seemed to be a greeting.
"Aw, you're so cute!" grinned the ginger. She clasped her hands together. "I'm glad you're with us, Jackie! It's going to be fun, you'll see!"
He seemed to perk up a little at that, nodding slightly. Ame smiled softly, glad he seemed to be coming out of his shell. Kurahashi was a cheerful spirit, he'd surely warm up to her in no time.
"So, Kurahashi, what exactly is bug-hunting?"
::
"Shiota Nagisa-kun."
"Here."
::
"So? Decided to become an assassin?"
He chuckled nervously at that. "You're really perceptive, aren't you?"
"Part of the skills you pick up as an info-broker." She stared at him for a moment, then sighed. "The Zodiac is, first and foremost, a group of info-brokers. Sure, we have a few members who are assassins and who take individual contracts on the side, but it's not the primary focus of the organization. If you really intend to become an assassin, I'm sure we'd be able to open up a spot for you once you've finished your training… but I don't know if it's the kind of life that would suit you, Nagisa-kun."
"And yet, my only talent is in assassination," he replied, a tad bitterly.
"There's no denying that, out of all of us, you've got the greatest potential and skills when it comes to assassination," she nodded. "But it's not your only talent. You have many others, but you just haven't learned to properly exploit them." Her expression darkened a bit. "Becoming an assassin… it's not the kind of decision that you can back out of. As soon as you've killed someone, it stays with you for the rest of your life. Are you really sure you can carry that burden?" He didn't answer, and she reached out to pat his shoulder. "Just because you're good at it doesn't mean you should do it. Life is all about overcoming obstacles and giving the middle finger to adversity, right? So, even if it's troublesome, look a little deeper into it, and think a little harder about it. If by graduation, you've truly made up your mind about becoming an assassin, then I can promise you a place in the Zodiac, in the future—but know that we won't welcome a half-hearted member with a half-assed determination. You'll have to be absolutely certain, alright?"
At that, he nodded, smiling a bit. "Alright. Thank you, Ame-san."
"Of course."
::
"Sugaya Sosuke-kun."
"Here."
::
"Either way, we're gonna have to beat them to get by," replied Terasaka, cracking his knuckles.
"Exactly right, Terasaka-kun," confirmed Korosensei, surprising many. "And that weapon Naoki-san brought will do the job perfectly!"
"That weapon…?" Curious, Ame looked through her bag before pulling it out. "You mean the katana?"
Everyone flinched as the blade glinted under the neon light. It was obviously very sharp—and probably very much lethal, too.
"Gah! Why'd you bring that thing?" protested Yoshida.
"Why do you even have a real katana in the first place!?" added Sugaya, about to tear his hair out in frustration. What's up with this girl!?
"I- I actually meant the stun-guns," sweatdropped her teacher. "I didn't know you had that."
"Well, you just had to be more specific," huffed the girl, putting away the sword.
::
"Sugino Tomohito-kun."
"Here."
::
"Dammit… Guess my ball won't do the trick after all," he sighed.
"Sugino…" Nagisa didn't know what to say to cheer him up.
"Already giving up?"
They both jumped a little, snapping their eyes to Ame, who was now standing behind them. One of her eyebrows raised and with her bag slung over her shoulder, she didn't look all that impressed.
"W- well…"
"You shouldn't," she cut him off bluntly. "It's a good idea. If we want to kill that damn octopus, then we have to get creative. Don't give up just yet."
She patted Sugino on the shoulder before moving ahead, heading back to class to get the day started. The two teens stared at her retreating back, confused.
Sugino scratched the back of his head. "… Did she just talk to me?"
Nagisa frowned. "I think so?"
::
"Takebayashi Koutarou-kun."
"Here…"
::
"Wait, Ame! You already have a plan!?" gasped Rio, her eyes going wide.
"Well, not a plan, per se," admitted Ame, scratching the back of her head. She then looked over at Takebayashi, much to everyone's surprise. "I was actually discussing the matter with Takebayashi earlier, and I've realized that we both came to the same conclusion."
"Which would be?" asked impatiently Terasaka.
Takebayashi pushed up his glasses, clearing his throat. "Are the world's leaders really only thinking about killing Korosensei? Neither of us thinks so. After all, their original goal is to save Earth. Along with their research on killing him, they must be doing research that doesn't involve killing him, too."
"In other words, there is the possibility that the world's leaders are also looking into the creation of a serum, for example, or a way to contain or entirely stop the explosion," explained Ame, crossing her arms over her chest.
"It's true: the world's top science facilities have formed project teams focused on saving the planet," confirmed Karasuma with a firm nod. "Of course, that information is all top-secret. It would be tough for you to find out what they're studying."
"Tough, but not impossible," countered Ame, pulling out her phone. She started typing something as she pursued with her explanation. "Takebayashi shared his theory with me earlier in hopes that, with my contacts, I might be able to confirm the existence of such a research, along with its contents. As it was, we were all rather busy with the whole 'Kill or Don't Kill' debate, so I asked one of my colleagues to look into it. Of course, he couldn't possibly break through all of the firewalls and systems protecting the information, so Ritsu helped him out while we were fighting. And, apparently, they found something."
::
"Chiba Ryunosuke-kun."
"Here."
::
"Ritsu?" Ame snapped her eyes to Chiba. "You recorded the attempt, right?"
"Yes: all of the assassination, with a high-speed camera whenever possible," confirmed the purple-haired program.
"I knew the second I fired that I'd missed," admitted the boy, lowering his head. "That my bullet couldn't kill him."
"I can't say for sure," replied Ritsu, going over some calculations. "The exact time it took him to move into that form is unclear. However, if your shot had been 0.5 seconds faster, or if Hayami-san's had been 30 centimeters closer, you would have had a 50 percent chance of killing him before he noticed."
"… I was so confident. I mean, in rehearsal, we practiced firing from even less stable spot—and I didn't miss. But when the time came, my fingers stiffened and my vision narrowed."
"Same here," nodded curtly Hayami.
"The pressure of absolutely not being allowed to miss. That crucial now-or-never moment…"
"To think it'd be this different from practice…" muttered the female sniper.
Chiba simply gritted his teeth.
"It's not your fault." They lifted their heads in surprise as Ame approached their table, a serious expression over her face. She reigned in her unusual giddiness, but couldn't stop her mouth from moving. "It's no one's fault. The plan failed, and that's that. I understand it's easy to blame yourselves for what happened, but none of us think you're at fault. We worked hard, and you should be proud of the result. We did something amazing tonight, and you guys are the only people who ever got so close to killing him—in the entire world, including the pros." She turned to the rest of the group, crossing her arms over her chest. "This is just a minor set-back. We still have half of the school year left, and now? Now, we know what to expect, we learned to use our strengths, and we learned about our weaknesses. Next time, we'll be more prepared. Next time, we will kill him. Got it?"
::
"Terasaka Ryoma-kun."
"Yo."
::
Ame was angry. So, so angry. How could they be so fucking blind!? "Stop acting like God damn morons! Why can't you just trust me on this!?"
"Oh, like you trust us?"
At that, the teen's anger deflated somewhat. Her eyes met Terasaka's, who was glaring at her with barely restrained annoyance.
"Look, I don't really get what's gotten into you, but I'm done having you look down on us," he pursued, arms crossed over his chest. "You've been treating us like god damn idiots since the first day of school, never letting anyone get close and always acting as if you were better than us—"
"I never—"
"—but now, you see that we're finally catching up to you," he continued, getting fired up by his rant. "We're all getting better and now that we actually got a chance at reaching your level, you hate it. Is that why you're trying to turn us against that weirdo? Because of your stupid ego-complex?"
"Terasaka," Isogai interfered, frowning. "That's enough—"
"You never considered any of us your friends, or even your damn equals, 'til now." Her eyes widened at the accusation. "And now you're asking us to trust you? Without even giving us any reason to? Any proof? We should just, what, take your word for it? And have you insult us on the whole way, too? You're selfish and self-centered, and we're supposed to just follow your every order without even the right to ask why? That's bullshit and you know it!"
::
"Nakamura Rio-san."
"Yep!"
::
"I- I beat you, Ame," she choked out, her hand trembling a bit as she lifted her knife. "I win…!"
And she brought down her knife. At the exact same moment, though, a gunshot echoed… and red and blue paint mingled together as a heavy silence followed. Rio could only gawk as she only now noticed the gun Ame was holding in her left hand, and with which she had just fired, effectively hitting her friend right in the heart.
"You- you used a gun…?"
"W- well, I knew no one would expect it," grunted Ame, heaving out a sigh of relief as Rio finally released her. "Though, you used a move I totally didn't expect."
"Karma- Karma taught me, just before the game started… He knew it was the best way to take you off guard, since we're so used to fighting each other…"
There was a moment of silence as the two of them sat on the ground, mulling over everything that had just happened. After a few seconds, though, the pressure became too much for Rio, and she turned a teary-eyed gaze at the black-haired girl beside her.
"Ame, I'm sorry—"
"Don't be." Without hesitation, Ame wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulders, and she gently pressed their heads together, smiling lightly. "You fought well, Rio."
"… you too, Ame."
They stayed like this for a short while, regaining their breath and taking a moment to simply calm down and properly think things over. In the end, they were just glad that they managed to understand each other, even if they had to come to blows for it.
In Rio, Ame saw the determination to protect the bond the E-Class shared.
In Ame, Rio saw the need to become a better person.
In the end, they understood each other, and it was all that mattered at that point.
::
"Naoki Ame-san."
She let out a shaky breath, before offering him a wobbly smile. "Not skipping."
He let out a small chuckle.
::
"Now… Naoki-kun?"
The black-haired girl she had met in the mountain lazily got up. Her orange eyes were somewhat dull, and Yukimura couldn't help but notice the ring the girl was wearing on the middle finger of her left hand as it caught the light.
Arms crossed over her chest, the girl seemed rather annoyed at the whole situation.
"The name's Naoki Ame. I'm fifteen. I have difficulties with math, and my hobbies are… well, I like sports, I guess. Who cares, really?"
::
I truly changed a lot since that time, uh?
"Hazama Kirara-san."
"Here."
::
"Aim for the goal! Pass to Kanzaki! Go back!"
Rio's English calls were confusing, and distracting. Sometimes the girls followed her instructions, other times they didn't, and so their opponents no longer understood what their game plan was. To be frank, though, that was kind of the point. A confused or distracted opponent was one easily overcome, after all.
"Hazama!"
Hazama blinked in surprise when the ball suddenly landed in her hands. Half-a-second later, three of their enemies were before her, ready to take it away. A dark grin spread on her lips, and an even darker aura suddenly surrounded her.
"Feeling up to bring some darkness into your lives, girls? You can already taste your defeat, can't you?" she taunted just as darkly.
Chills ran down the three girls' spines, freezing them in place, and Hazama used the opportunity to score.
::
"Hayami Rinka-san."
"Here."
::
"We were heading for the shooting stand ourselves," then stated Hayami, though it didn't really surprise anyone. She offered a small smile at the little girl. "Rin, right? You can come with us if you wish."
Rin glanced at Ame, who simply shrugged. "If you want to, then go."
"But Kiba's right, for once—"
"Oi!"
"—this is a family outing. Why are we splitting up?"
"Well, I brought you guys here so we could all have some fun," shrugged the teen. "And since I've got Leo with me, I'm afraid I won't be able to do much. Plus, instead of wasting your time on things you don't like, you can go and spend it on things you're sure to enjoy. In the end, though, it's up to you."
"… then I'll go. Thank you for the offer…?"
"Hayami Rinka," completed the sniper. She jabbed a thumb at the boy beside her. "And this is Chiba Ryunosuke. Let's go."
"Aa."
::
"Hara Sumire-san."
"Here."
::
"We too have to play, right? Against the Girls' Basketball Club… What's our game plan?"
"Ame-san… I don't mean to offend, but I seriously doubt we actually have a chance at winning this," pointed out Kataoka. "Most of us don't even know how to play."
"And the girls in that club are scary!" added Kurahashi, sweating nervously. "They're really tall and strong!"
"Let's just count on the boys to win this round for us, all right?" proposed Hara.
Ame looked at each of the girls. All of them, even Rio, seemed pretty convinced they wouldn't be able to win. She felt her guts churn, a weird taste invading her mouth.
It wasn't exactly defeated. More like… disappointment.
"So what, you're giving up without even trying?" She scoffed, leaning back in her seat. "That's pathetic."
::
"Fuwa Yuzuki-san."
"Here!"
::
"Right! So walk around acting like those kids, looking down your noses at the whole world!" instructed Korosensei. "High and mighty but still mysterious! You know things other people don't know! You're above everyone else! That's how you have to act."
As one, all of the students turned to Ame. It took the girl a few seconds to notice how they were all staring at her but, once she did, she scowled.
"Aa? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"You fit the bill perfectly," sweatdropped Kimura.
"Ne, Ame-chan, have you ever come here before?" then wondered Yada.
"Ooh, that could explain a lot!" remarked Fuwa. She was suddenly before Ame, her eyes sparkling. "Oh my God, are you actually the heiress of a super-duper important company who got involved with those shady deals, but then you were disowned as you tried to break away from that dark world and that's how you ended up with no money!?"
"… no?"
"Dang it!"
::
"Maehara Hiroto-kun."
"Aa."
::
"Hey, Naoki!" then called Maehara, coming to her. "How'd you know we wouldn't be able to hit him?"
"He had experience and you didn't," she shrugged, cracking her neck. "Plus, you weren't even holding your knife correctly."
"What?"
Her lips twitching a little in faint amusement, she gestured for him to show her his hold. More curious than offended by now, he did as told. Nodding, she then showed him her own hold, comparing the two.
"You're holding it too far from the blade," she pointed out. "If I do this—"
Without warning, she harshly brought her knife down on his, and easily knocked it out of his grasp. He gaped, startled.
"It's not balanced, so it's easy to disarm you," she pointed out, picking it up and handing it back.
"You took me by surprise. I'll hold it tighter in a fight—"
"Then not only will you lose focus, but you'll also lose strength and last less long in a fight," she cut him off. "You'll be focusing on holding it tighter, maybe even unconsciously, and the strength you'll use for your blows will be far bigger than if you simply handled it correctly."
"Okay, okay, I get it," he chuckled, properly humbled by her lesson. "So what, I do it like this?"
She placed his fingers with practiced ease, before comparing their holds. This time, they were much more similar, and she nodded in confirmation.
"Exactly. Try hitting me."
"What?"
She rolled her eyes. "Dude, just try it."
Understanding she was serious, he hesitated for one more second, before bringing down his knife on her. Her arm snapped up instantly, her own rubber weapon blocking his with practiced ease.
"See?" she grinned as he stepped back. "Had you been holding it the way you were a minute ago, your knife would have been knocked out of your hand and you would have found yourself weaponless."
"Yeah, I saw the difference," he confirmed, weighing his knife with newfound interest. He grinned at her. "Thanks a bunch, Naoki!"
"Just call me Ame," she shrugged, not really caring. "And sure thing. I'm up for a spar any time if you're interested."
::
"Mimura Kouki-kun."
"Here."
::
Ame was heading back to the girls' room but, as she passed the boys', she noticed they were all still awake. She couldn't help but wonder what they were talking about, considering it was getting rather late. So, without a noise, she slipped in between the half-opened doors and casually went to sit just behind Takebayashi and Kimura. None of the boys noticed her, completely engrossed by whatever they were doing and a paper that was going around.
"—Well, I just want to know who likes who," remarked Mimura.
"I can't pick just one!" cried Okajima in the background.
"Other than you, Okajima," sweatdropped Sugaya.
"Hey, who do you like, Nagisa?" then wondered Maehara.
"Uh? I- I—"
"What about you, Maehara?" then retorted Sugino, saving his friend from the embarrassment. "Anyone?"
"Who, me?" He chuckled, shaking his head. "My lips are sealed."
"That pisses me off! And when I think of how popular guys like you are, it pisses me off even more!" protested Mimura.
::
"Muramatsu Takuya-kun."
"Yeah."
::
"Incoming!"
"I got it!"
Kurahashi jumped but missed. Ame instantly threw her knife, hitting the ball with enough strength to return it to their opponents. Too surprised by the impromptu move, they didn't react fast enough to stop it from hitting the ground.
"Hey, that's cheating!" protested Muramatsu.
"Never heard of a rule stating you can't throw your knife," shrugged Ame, smug.
::
"Yada Touka-san."
"Here!"
::
"… that's it?" blinked Rio, confused. "Don't you have an actual strategy, or—"
"A strategy that involves me doing this alone? Yes," retorted bluntly the girl. "Pass me the ball and there shouldn't be any trouble."
On that note, she headed to the middle of the field so that they could start the game as fast as possible.
"… We really let her down, haven't we?" then remarked Yada, lowering her eyes.
"I can't really be helped, though," pointed out Okano, rubbing the back of her head. "I mean, look at us! There's no way we can win against that."
They all looked back to the enemy team, which had now spread on the field. Ame was having a stare-down with the Club Captain, who was one good head taller than her, at least.
"Ugh, let's just get this over with," sighed Rio, heading on the field. "The faster the better."
Wanting this to be over as soon as possible, the rest of the girls nodded in agreement before going to take their positions.
::
"Yoshida Taisei-kun."
"Here…!"
::
"What are we gonna do!?" Yoshida was straight-out panicking. "At this rate, a lot of us will die! Damn it, we didn't come here to be killed!"
"None of us will die or be killed!" snapped Ame, harshly hitting him over the head to knock some sense back into him. "Get your shit together! Isn't the answer simple? We know where our target is and we know what's on the line. What are we still doing here, then?"
"W- wait!" protested Fuwa. "Didn't he say to only send you and Nagisa?"
"It's too dicey to do what he says," replied Terasaka, shaking a little. "Send the smaller guy and the girl with a target on her back? We'd be basically offering him hostages! First off, I'm pissed at anyone who would even do this kinda thing. No one lays a finger on my cohorts!"
"You can say 'friends' you tsundere," replied flatly Ame.
"Shut it! And I say we ignore his demands! Let's get everyone to a Tokyo hospital!"
::
"Autonomous Intelligence Fixed Artillery—Ritsu-san."
"Here."
::
"Naoki-san!" she greeted. "Have you forgotten something?"
"Actually, I'm here for you." Ame went to stand before her, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'll cut to the bullshit right now: we both know your creators are coming over as we speak, and they're going to turn you back into a lifeless machine. Unfortunately, we can't do anything about this."
"But Korosensei has upgraded me. He has made me even stronger," pointed out Ritsu, confused. "Why would my Master not approve?"
"Because you're no longer a killing machine solely focused on the assassination," replied bluntly the teen. "And look, having you on our side could be a pretty great advantage. Plus, as you are now, you're more than just a robot. Whatever Korosensei did to you worked, and you've developed an actual consciousness. You've realized it too, haven't you?"
Ritsu lowered her eyes. "… yes. But what- what can I do? I cannot disobey my Master. I must do what he asks of me—"
"Ritsu, parents don't always know what's best for us," retorted Ame, rolling her eyes a little. I can't believe I'm treating her like an actual person, but might as well go all the way now. "As children, it's our place to learn by ourselves too, be it through our successes and our failures. Look, I'm here to help you so that you don't become a good little box o' bolts again. Whether you decide to accept my help is up to you, but you have to choose now. We don't have much time."
The purple-haired girl bit her lower lip, before nodding slowly. "Very well. Please, do what you must. I trust you, Naoki-san."
At that, a small smile graced Ame's lips. "You got it."
::
"Horibe Itona-kun."
"Here."
::
"Itona-kun?" The boy glanced at her, obviously still a little in shock at what had just happened. "I'm Ame, one of your new classmates. I was just wondering… do you have any place to stay?"
He frowned at that. "I used to live in the lab, but now…"
She grinned at that, grabbing his hand. "Then come on! You can stay at my place"
"… uh?"
"What a wonderful idea, Naoki-san!" nodded Korosensei. "That way you can come to school together tomorrow. I'll drop off some uniforms at your house. See you tomorrow!"
And he was gone in a flash. Itona blinked a few times, making Ame laugh.
"You'll get used to it," she assured.
"… why are you doing this?" the boy asked, frowning slightly. "You're the girl Shiro tried to kill, aren't you? And I helped him…"
"Maa, maa, who hasn't tried to kill me?" she joked, dragging him along. "It's all water under the bridge, don't worry. Though, I can't really lie and say I don't have an ulterior motive… But no matter! For now, let's just go home. You can spend the night, and we'll take more in the morning about your situation. How about that?"
"… It sounds manageable," he finally agreed.
"Great! So, while we're heading there, why don't you tell me more about Shiro and that Organization, hm?"
::
Ame shuddered slightly as memories washed upon her, one after the other. There were many things she had expected from her third year of junior-high-school, but an assassination classroom, a world-saving mission, and a monster teacher had not been part of those. Her secrets had been unraveled one after the other, she had become a target herself for a while, and her life had been put in danger more times than she cared to count… but she couldn't bring herself to regret a single bit of that wonderful, insane, amazing year.
"It was a really… really fun year. I'm so happy… to be killed by you all."
It was time. Ame could only watch as Nagisa lifted his knife… before freezing in place, his hands shaking too badly for him to hit his target. After a few tensed seconds, Korosensei reached out and, with a single tentacle against the boy's neck, he managed to calm him down.
"Don't kill me feeling like that," he chided lightly. "Calm yourself. Smile."
Instead, Nagisa cried. He sobbed but, through his tears, he finally managed to find the strength to straighten up… and smile.
"Goodbye, Korosensei."
"Yes—goodbye."
And, at last… Nagisa thrust his knife forward and struck true, the rubber weapon slipping through the tie and hitting its target head-on. A moment later, a golden glow started emanating from the wound, and then the octopus's entire body lit up. Gentle sparks as soft and round as snowflakes made of golden light started rising, and the students momentarily forgot their pain and their regrets, captivated by the beautiful spectacle.
"Congratulations on your graduation."
And then…
Then, it was over.
Just like that.
Ame could only stare dumbly at the ground on which she was now sitting. The tentacle she had been straddling had disappeared entirely, and so had their teacher's entire body—only his clothes and his tie remained. In the background, she could faintly make out the sobs and cries of her classmates, and Nagisa's particularly agonized shouting… but she couldn't move. She wanted to get up and go comfort them, to do something, but her entire body was frozen in place and all she could do was stare down.
A wet splotch fell on the dirt underneath her. Then another, and a third one.
Funny… I didn't realize it was raining…
Her eyes were burning. Why were her eyes burning? She could hardly see anything now, her sight all blurry and watery—
Oh.
Slowly, she straightened up, bringing a shaking hand up to her face. After a few seconds, she pulled her fingers away, and the moisture she found on them made her realize that she wasn't dreaming—she was crying.
I can't remember… when was the last time I cried…
Not for her parents' death. Not for Yukimura-sensei's death.
Not when Inu betrayed her. Not when she almost died.
But she was crying now, and the pain kept on building up in her chest, the pressure growing too great to bear, and she was starting to have a hard time breathing oh god I can't breathe what do I do what do I do—!
"Ame-san." She stiffened as two arms wrapped around her, her breathing short and ragged, and she looked to the side, where she found Isogai kneeling beside her, his embrace warm and tight and comforting. He, too, was crying. "It's- it's okay. Let it out."
Let it out.
There was no reason to act tough, no reason to try and hide her pain. As if a dam was suddenly broken by those simple words, an agonized wail clawed its way out of her throat and echoed throughout the entire field, and the tears kept on pouring out as she cried—for all the things she never got to tell him, for all the times she could have done something more, for all the people she never cried for in the past. She cried for Korosensei, and for the almost unbearable emptiness his loss now left in her heart.
She didn't know for how long she cried, nor how she somehow ended up crying in Isogai's arms the whole time and, while she would have usually been embarrassed by the unexpected contact, she decided to simply roll with it and welcome the much-needed emotional support. And, after a while, the class eventually settled down. Now that everything was said and done, exhaustion had caught up to them and, as if reality hadn't truly sunk in for any of them yet, they all slowly rose back to their feet and, on a silent accord, found their way back to their classroom.
Once there, they found three things on each of their desks none of them expected: a diploma, a yearbook, and Korosensei's Rules to Live By.
"What the hell…" muttered Ame, her voice hoarse and tired.
She was amused, exasperated, and also nostalgic. The two books on her desk were twice the size of the guide Korosensei had made for them that time they had to assassinate him in Kyoto. At that point, everyone had stopped crying and just felt… well, numb, so they all sat down in silence to contemplate the gifts Korosensei had left for them. The incredibly thick book of advice started with a personalized, easy-to-read manga, but after that… Well, it derailed into way too many details, and everyone quickly got fed up with them.
As the students around her all started falling asleep one after the other, though, she fought off sleep a little longer to take a look at the yearbook. In it, over hundreds of pictures had been carefully edited and put together, and her heart clenched as memories crashed upon her once again. The good times, the bad times, the fun ones and the tough ones, their failures, and their successes… All of those pictures were proof of how much they had learned, but also of how much they still had to learn.
Unfortunately, Korosensei would no longer be there to teach them.
::
"So? Did you finally decide what you wanted to do, Naoki-san?"
"I'm going to turn this world upside-down, Korosensei! So you better watch carefully as I rise to the top!"
"Niryufufufu! Wonderful to hear, Naoki-san. Though, as per usual, you gave me an answer without truly giving me one… As expected of a professional info-broker, I suppose. In any case, I look forward to watching you grow even more, Naoki-san."
"You can count on it!"
::
Korosensei… At that time, you already had an idea of what kind of Fate awaited you, didn't you? In the end, all you truly wanted was to die at the hands of your students… But, even if you're no longer there to guide me, I swear… I swear I'll become… an adult you can be proud of…
Goodbye, Korosensei.
Rest well.
Holy crap.
I had tears in my eyes just re-reading that chapter. Didn't help that I was listening to the original soundtrack, though... Well! That's that, people. The next chapter will be the last, a chapter/epilogue.
Once again, if you're interested in a sequel, let me know with the poll I put up on my profile. I'll leave clues in the last chapter for the people interested if you want to try and figure out what anime I have in mind for the sequel. Know that I haven't started writing anything, though, so it might be a while before I actually post it.
Please, don't forget to review, and thank you all for your continued support! See you all one last time in a week!
PS. I tried to do something with the flashbacks, before realizing that Ame didn't actually directly interact with all of the students, so I did my best with what I had.
Toddles~!