Ame did end up going to the hospital. As promised by the Principal, all fees were covered by the school. Of course, her grandmother had been much more worried about why she ended up there in the first place rather than the money, but Karasuma calmly handled the situation and explained that a few higher students had ganged up on Ame. The teachers had interfered as quickly as possible, and the "students" had been expelled on the spot.

Unfortunately, it didn't make the old woman feel all that much better. The school was supposed to be a safe environment, right? She knew about the E-Class system but never believed it could get so bad. Yet, when she reunited with her granddaughter, her worries were quickly pushed aside by the teen: Ame had smiled, promising she was fine. And, while Asahina Ami knew how her granddaughter always lied about that sort of things, she couldn't help but believe her this time around. Because, even though she was now lying in bed, covered in bandages, she had that special spark in her orange eyes.

A happy light.

When was the last time I saw that light in your eyes, Ame-chan?

So, deciding not to probe and push for more answers, her caretaker simply dropped the subject, deciding to instead nurse Ame back to full health.

If that E-Class managed to get that light back in her eyes…

Then maybe… maybe it isn't so bad for her, after all.

Ame stayed at the hospital for five days. For those five whole days, she was visited by the kids, of course, but also surprisingly by many of her classmates. Most she only saw once, a few dropped by only for a dozen of minutes, but seeing them made her feel less lonely, even if they probably came because they felt bad more than anything else. Of course, Hana and Saru dropped by too. Hana thoroughly scolded her, while their Leader praised her for standing up for her friends. The two older members then left her with the promise that the hospital was watched at all times and that, if the need ever arose, they'd easily get her to safety before any kind of threat could reach her.

And, when Ame finally returned to school, she was greeted by Korosensei.

"Good morning, Naoki-san! Are you feeling better?"

"Uh? Yeah, no worries," she assured. "You were right about the concussion, too. Good call, the doctors were able to treat it instantly instead of waiting a few days to see the symptoms."

"Niryufufufu! I am happy to hear that." They started heading up the mountain. "Will you be able to go back to training soon?"

"Ugh, I have to wait a whole week," she huffed, shoving a hand in her pocket, the other holding her bag over her shoulder. "So annoying…"

"Though this might be for the best. Some rest never killed anyone, you know?" mused her teacher.

"Meh, there's a first for everything. For all you know, I could suffocate myself with my pillow by accident."

A nervous sweat rolled down the octopus' face. "Please don't say such dark things so casually."

She simply shrugged. It was true, wasn't it?

Though I guess he's not wrong either… I was beaten up pretty badly, uh?

But the pain wasn't anything new for Ame. Danger was the usual for her, had been for many years now. She was simply glad it wasn't the case for her classmates.

"AME!"

"Rio—ugh!"

Both girls fell on the floor, Ame's body softening Rio's landing. The black-haired teen groaned in pain.

"Ow… Rio, da ya want ta send me back ta da hospital or somethin'? Damn…"

"Ah ah, sorry!" laughed the blonde, getting off of her. She extended her hand to help her back on her feet. "I'm just happy that you're back! Class isn't the same without you, you know?"

Ame grabbed her hand and let her pull her back up. She then dusted herself, smirking knowingly.

"More like you missed someone who appreciates your horrible English puns."

Rio sighed dramatically. "You know me too well!"

There was a moment of silence during which they stared at each other. Then, the two girls started laughing. Rio then pulled Ame into a proper hug.

"Seriously, though: I'm glad you're back."

"Glad to be back."

They separated, before going to sit to their desks to chat about what Ame had missed in the last few days. It wasn't much, and they mostly laughed about Korosensei's usual antics. Neither of them mentioned the… the incident, but maybe it was for the best.

"Ooh? Look who's finally back."

"Karma!" Ame bumped her fist against his. "How's it going?"

"Meh. Classes were a little boring without you around," he shrugged, sitting on the desk in front of hers. "Anyway, I heard you got a pretty rough beating, uh?"

Students were slowly starting to fill the classroom. Many waved to Ame or greeted her, welcoming her back. Ame simply waved or greeted them back with an easy-going smile, before reporting her attention on Karma.

"Yeah, it wasn't exactly the best day of my life," she admitted, rubbing the back of her head. "I got a mild concussion, a few cracked ribs, and my nose was broken too. But I'm fine, now! Don't worry about it, 'kay?"

He stared at her for a few seconds, searching for a sign indicating she was lying in her eyes, but she seemed genuine, which made him click his tongue in annoyance.

"You got beaten to a pulp to protect people who don't even care about you." The air in the classroom suddenly became heavier as his words reached all of the students present. "That's pretty messed up, wouldn't you say?"

Ame narrowed her eyes at him, her smile dropping instantly. "It was my choice, and also my mistake. Don't go blaming anyone other than me for what happened."

"Your mistake?" He lifted an eyebrow, unimpressed. "You tried to help, but they wouldn't listen, and you ended up in the hospital because they were too weak to handle themselves. How can this be your fault?"

"I'm the one who decided to provoke Takaoka!" protested Ame. "You're being unfair! I'm the one who challenged him and who kept taunting him, and I'm the one who told him to—"

"The only reason he managed to trap you is that he used the class against you, isn't it?" the red-haired boy cut her off with a knowing look, crossing his arms over his chest. "And yeah, maybe you were too stubborn to back down—but that's nothing new. What I don't get is why you tried to hard to protect everyone despite everything."

"Of course ya wouldn't get it," retorted Ame, growing angry. "Ya weren't even there in da damn first place!"

A silence.

A heartbeat.

Then, Karma lowered his head.

"No. No, you're right, I wasn't there. But… I should have been. I'm sorry, Ame."

The black-haired girl's anger deflated in the span of a second. The proud boy was apologizing? What for?

"I wasn't there. But… I should have been."

He feels guilty, she realized, her eyes widening a little. He was skipping while the whole class was dealing with Takaoka—while I was dealing with him. This is stupid. He couldn't have known. Has this… How long has this been on his mind?

"Karma…"

"He's right, Ame-san."

She jumped a little, turning to Kataoka. The girl's expression was closed off, but she could easily read the regrets in her eyes.

"You tried to warn us. You tried to help us. But… we wouldn't listen." The taller girl then bowed deeply. "I'm truly sorry it had to come to this. Had we trusted you… maybe things wouldn't have ended this way."

"But…"

She trailed off as the rest of the students followed Kataoka's example, bowing lowly before her.

"WE DEEPLY APOLOGIZE!"

The black-haired teen gaped at them for a few seconds, unsure of what to do or say. Of all things, she hadn't expected this. When they came to visit her to the hospital, they had all acted to cheerful, as if nothing had happened… While she was happy to see them, she frankly thought it was more out of pity, or guilt.

She didn't think they actually cared.

"I… I should be the one apologizing," she let out, averting her gaze. She stared down at clenched fists. "I know I'm not exactly a good friend, or even a good person altogether, but... Terasaka was right in doubting me." That earned her many surprised and startled looks, and she glanced at the mentioned boy, who was watching everything happen in the corner farther away with a blank look on his face. "Logically thinking, none of you guys should have trusted me. I never gave you a reason to do so. And… in a way, I didn't trust you guys either. So, I'm the one who's sorry. For… not realizing this sooner."

She bowed her head. A tensed moment of silence passed.

Then, Kurahashi let out a sob, instantly breaking the tension.

"You- you were hurt so badly because of me!" she cried, latching her arms around Ame's neck. "I'm sooooorry! Wah!"

Ame blinked repeatedly, startled. Then, a small, relieved laugh escaped her lips, and she patted Kurahashi's head in comfort. The sweet girl looked up to her, tears in her eyes.

Ame simply smiled at her. "I'm just glad you're safe. Don't worry about the rest, okay?"

…

…

…

"WAAAAH!"

Kurahashi started bawling her eyes out, hugging Ame tightly. The black-haired girl shook her head in amusement, while the rest of the class started laughing and trying to comfort the poor girl. Ame then glanced at Karma, who hadn't said a word for a while.

"Karma?"

"Hmm?"

"Next time you want to skip, you could at least have the decency to invite me."

The red-haired boy gaped at her for a second, eyes wide.

Then, he chuckled, before his usual smug smirk settled on his lips. "Will do."

.

.

"Phew! Helter swelter! I understand this is what it's like in Osaka when a heat wave hits."

"So hot… Why's he got us out here on the back of the mountain?" groaned Sugino.

"If he's looking for a pool, there's one at the main campus," informed Ritsu. "However, it's not in this direction, is it?"

"Nope," confirmed Ame, fighting back a wince. Ugh, I need to sit down for a bit. My ribs are killing me! "Though I'm ready to bet he has something else in mind."

"But he made us wear our school swimsuits," pointed out Rio.

The black-haired girl shrugged. "Maybe he built us a pool?"

That made her friend snort. "Yeah, right. As if Korosensei would build a pool—"

"All right, we're here! Behold!" He pushed some bushes out of the way… revealing a pool. "A pool I made specially just for the E-Class!"

Rio facepalmed, while Ame snickered a little. It would seem their teacher had gone out of his way once again to surprise his students. However, the shock soon turned to joy. A break at last, after such a stressful week? They could work with that. Throwing aside their jackets, the students wasted no time in jumping into the pool. It was hot and the water was nice, and they truly couldn't have asked for more at the moment.

"Hey, Ame-chan! You're not coming in?" then wondered Kayano, already settled on an inflatable ring.

"Actually, I can't," admitted the teen. She did sit on the edge, though, putting her legs in the water. She then pulled up her shirt a little, showing her bandaged ribcage. "If I go in, the bandages won't hold."

"Ooh…"

"Hey, Ame! Reflex!"

Without thinking, she threw one of the rubber knives at the inflatable ball flying in her direction, effectively sending it back to Rio, who caught it with a grin.

"Seems like you're recuperating well, uh?" she mused.

"Please, I could throw those things with my eyes closed and still hit dead center," snorted the black-haired girl. "Piece of cake, really."

"Hey, Ame!" She tilted her head Maehara's way. He was pulling something out of his bag—"I picked those up after you left. They're yours, right?"

She blinked a few times, surprised, as the boy handed her back the sharp needles she had used against Takaoka a few days prior. To be honest, she had completely forgotten about those until now, which made her think she really ought to take better care of her equipment.

"Yeah, they're mine." She took them back, before offering him a small smile. "Thanks, Maehara."

"Uh? Sure thing!" He then offered a sheepish grin, rubbing the back of his head. "Though, you might wanna clean them up before putting them back in your hair…"

"What? Why…" She trailed off when noticing the few traces of blood on them. Her eyes widened, and she instantly looked at his hands. Three of his fingers were bandaged. "Shit, is it yours? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm totally fine!" he assured, still grinning. "It was just an accident. I didn't think they'd be sharp. You know, considering how you threw them so easily…"

"But that's because I'm used to them and know how to handle them," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Though I can't say I didn't cut my fingers the first few weeks… Look, it's actually pretty easy. You take it between your thumb and those two fingers, and there's this one spot that's blunt so that you can wield them. Then, you take your position and—" She threw it at the inflatable ball Rio was still holding, and it instantly popped in her hands. "—throw. See? Easy peasy."

"Thanks, Ame," drawled the blonde girl, the now deflated ball still in her hands.

"Whoops, sorry about that. Hey, can you bring me back my needle?"

"Sure, sure…"

Rio, having done this before, grabbed said needle with practiced ease before it could sink any lower in the pool. It wasn't the first time Ame used those around her, and so she knew how to pick them up without hurting herself.

"Man, that's really cool," then mused Maehara. "Mind if I try?"

"Throwing?"

"Yeah!"

"Well, I don't mind showing you how," accepted the girl, before smirking. "Though, you might wanna wait until we're not surrounded by people?"

He paled a little at that. "Right. Maybe later?"

"Sure."

"Great!"

"Ne, Ame-chan!" Kurahashi suddenly swam up to them, just as Rio reached them too. "How come you're so good at this? Can you throw anything? Do you always hit your targets?"

"I trained, more or less, and yes," answered the teen without missing a beat.

"What? No way you can always hit your target!" then refuted Yoshida, hanging out a little farther with Muramatsu and Hazama.

She smirked at that. "Wanna bet?"

"You're on!"

Before she could really understand what was happening, Ame found herself displaying her throwing abilities. She began with the anti-sensei knives and her sharp needles before the other students soon started bringing her more and more things to throw, along with more and more challenging targets. At first, she had to throw rocks, then other inflatable balls they found lying around, and also a kickboard at some point.

And yes, she did hit all of her targets.

"Man, I have no idea of how you do it," groaned Okajima. "This is crazy!" His eyes then widened. "Are you secretly a ninja?"

"Ah! As if!" The girl grinned, throwing yet another rock, and this time hitting the dead center of the 'no running!' sign on the other side of the pool. "I've just trained a lot. And, well, I guess it comes naturally."

"Hey, Ame!" Karma suddenly handed her anti-BB balls. "Can you throw those at Korosensei?"

"I could, but it'd be a waste, considering he'll see them coming," pointed out the orange-eyed girl. She then glanced at the octopus, who hadn't move from his chair since they got there. "Ne, Karma? Would you mind checking something out for me?"

His eyes glinted a little at that. "Ooh?"

"Kimura-kun! No running on the poolside!"

"Watch the breath-holding, girls!"

"I'm confiscating this camera, Okajima-kun!"

"Hazama-san, stop reading—go swim!"

Korosensei was obviously enjoying being at the top of his little world. He was being fussy, though, and it did put a damper on everyone else's mood. However, no matter how much he pushed the students to follow the rules, he never came down from his chair to actually come and scold them. Narrowing her eyes, Ame signaled for Kurahashi to move. The orange-haired girl nodded, before approaching their teacher. Once, she was close enough, she grinned up at the octopus.

"Korosensei! Don't be such a stick in the mud! Have a splash!"

She tried to splash him with water. Instantly, a weirdly girly scream followed at their teacher backed away, trying to avoid the drops as much as he could. There was a moment of confused silence. Taking the opportunity, Karma moved in. Grabbing the ladder, he started shaking the chair to try and make their teacher fall off.

"Karma!" panicked the yellow creature. "Stop it! I'll fall in! I'm going to fall! Do you hear me!? I'll fall in! PLEASE!"

I was right, realized Ame, biting back a victorious grin.

Without a sound, she rose to her feet and started heading for the chair.

"I- I just don't feel like swimming, that's all," informed their teacher, obviously lying. "It's not like my tentacles get all swollen so I can't move or anything…"

Now!

Karma and her exchanged a glance. Then, in a single movement, they both kicked the chair, instantly making it fall forward. Korosensei screamed but managed to escape his fate at the last second, using his tentacles to hold himself above the water.

"Whew, that was a close call…" He then lifted his head at the two students, who were smirking at him. "That was uncalled for, Karma-kun, Naoki-san! I will—"

"Say, I thought it was a kickboard," mused the girl, holding… his snack. "But it's actually a wafer. Anyone wants some?"

The students instantly started cheering, lifting their hands, while their teacher panicked once more. His snack! His precious snack! But, first… he needed to find a way out of his current and rather precarious position.

Gah! Damn your diabolical minds, Karma-kun, Naoki-san!

.

.

Ame was sleeping on her desk, Rio playing mindlessly with her hair while some of the other students talked with Korosensei about motorcycles. Yoshida was obviously glad to finally have someone sharing his interest and was talking excitedly. Korosensei ended up building a model of a famous bike out of wood.

"Are you serious, Korosensei!?" exclaimed Yoshida, gaping. "It's just like the real thing! It's—"

"The hell are you doing, Yoshida?"

The boy stiffened at that, turning his head to Terasaka, who had just come in. The boy was obviously already ticked off, and Yoshida felt a nervous sweat roll down his temple. Whatever was coming up next, he seriously doubted he'd find a way out of it.

"H- hey, Terasaka!" he greeted, deciding to act as per usual. "Korosensei and I were talking about motorcycles the other day, since no one else around here is into them, and…"

"Not only am I a grown-up, but I am also a capital-M Man among men," assured the octopus, patting the model he had just built. "I've been known to dabble in this kind of hobby. And this baby can hit 300 kilometers an hour! Maa, what I wouldn't give to ride the real thing one day…"

"You're kidding, right?" retorted Yoshida with a snort. "It'd be faster just to hold it and fly!"

At that, the rest of the students started laughing. However, it seemed to be the wrong thing to say, for Terasaka's eye twitched violently. Then, his anger taking over, he harshly kicked the model Korosensei had built, making it crash on the floor.

The loud noise instantly startled Ame awake.

'SHTUNK'

The sound of something making impact drew all's attention back to the angry boy, only to find Terasaka frozen in place, with a sharp needle embedded in the wood of the doorframe, just a few centimeters away from his head.

Too close! The students paled, while Terasaka gulped.

"Urgh…" Ame slowly straightened up in her seat, half-glaring at him. "Did you have to wake me up like that…?"

"Did ya have ta try and skewer ma damn face!?" snapped back the boy.

"Trust me, if I had actually tried to hit you, you'd already be down for the count," she scoffed. Then, her eyes landed on a sobbing Korosensei, and confusion swirled in her eyes. "Wait, why is Korosensei crying?"

"Gah! You made him cry!" exclaimed Rio in horror, pointing an accusing finger at Terasaka.

"Apologize to him!" ordered Okano.

"Yeah! That was uncalled for!" agreed Okajima.

The rest of the students followed suit, aggravating their classmate more and more until he reached his breaking point.

"You guys are just buzzing like a bunch of bugs…" He grabbed something hidden under his desk and suddenly threw it on the floor between him and the rest of the students. "Time for an extermination!"

Smoke instantly filled the classroom, though the smell was sharp enough to hurt their noses. Most closed their eyes, unsure if it was toxic.

"What was that!?"

"I can't see!"

"A bug bomb?"

A cloth held over her mouth and her nose, Ame narrowed her eyes at the scene. It wasn't a normal bug bomb, it shouldn't have open so easily. Plus, the substance was simply wrong. It shouldn't create smoke like that, or at least not that dense.

"Terasaka-kun!" exclaimed Korosensei, now angry. He placed a tentacle on the boy's shoulder. "Pranks are pranks, but this is going too—"

Terasaka instantly shoved him off. "Don't touch me, monster. You're beyond creepy—and so are all of you, getting pulled into being all buddy-buddy with a monster!"

Silence ensued his exclamation, all unsure of what to make of it. Ame simply kept silent, wondering where exactly this was going.

"What's got your knickers knotted, uh?" then mused Karma, who was leaning against the wall. He seemed amused by the whole ordeal. "If you don't like it, just kill him. I mean, that's kind of what we're here for."

His voice was condescending on purpose, the orange-eyed girl could easily tell. He was baiting Terasaka, pushing his buttons and trying to get under his skin—probably so that he'd reveal whatever scheme he had in mind.

"You trying to start somethin'?" growled the misfit. "Fine by me! From day one, you've been—"

He barely took one step in the red-haired boy's direction, before being stopped in his tracks as Karma harshly grabbed his face, keeping him in place with ease.

"Now, now, Terasaka." Karma's eyes glinted. "If you want to fight, actions must come before words."

"Let go!" Terasaka slapped his hand away, stumbling back. "Bunch o' losers…"

He then stomped out of the classroom, sliding the door shut behind him. Ame sighed slightly, glancing to her red-haired friend.

"That was a little cruel, Karma."

"Maa, maa, he'll get over it," shrugged the boy, walking up to the door.

He then proceeded to pull the needle out of the doorframe, careful not to cut himself while doing so. A moment later, he handed it back to her, clearly amused.

"I think you've lost this. Again."

"Aa. Thanks."

With practiced ease, she placed it back in the small holster hidden under her sleeve. The rest of the students sweatdropped at the sight.

She's not even bothering hiding her weapons anymore! They all thought.

"Anyway, what was that all about?" then wondered Maehara, bringing back everyone's attention on the current situation.

"He just has to stir things up," sighed Isogai.

At that, Ame exchanged a glance with Karma. They both knew Terasaka was acting rather suspiciously but, no matter how she thought about it, she simply couldn't find an answer.

Well, I guess we'll see when it comes up, uh?

.

.

The door of the small café slammed open, the bell ringing loudly. Too used to it to actually make a fuss about it, though, none of the workers even startled.

"Hi everyone!" exclaimed Ame, running past them to go to the farthest table.

"Hi Ame!" they called back, followed by some usual customers.

Ever since that first time Ame hid in the café, she started coming back, until it became the perfect hideout. All of the workers knew her well by now, and so did most of their clients. And of course, she was a classmate of their dear Isogai, so that did help her reputation.

"So, what kind of trouble did you get into this time around, mm?" mused a brown-haired woman, reaching her table.

"Err… None? Can't I drop by to see my favorite waitress, Nara-san?" replied the teen, an angelic smile on her face.

"Psh, please," Nara-san rolled her eyes. "We both know you like Isogai-kun better. He's in the back right now. I'll call for him—"

"I FOUND HER!"

"Oh, crap," paled Ame.

"Nevermind. How about you go find him yourself?" proposed the woman, unperturbed.

"Ah ah, right…"

Ame wasted no time in leaving the table. Jumping over the counter, she then ran into the kitchens. She waved to the cooks as she passed by, and they only chuckled in amusement as she swerved around, avoiding people and ovens swiftly.

"The door's unlocked, as per usual, Naoki-chan!" called one of chefs. "I knew you'd drop by soon enough!"

"Thanks, Chichi-san! I'll come by later and pay you back!"

"You do that! Stay safe!"

"No promises!"

The teen finally escaped the kitchens, and the door closed shut behind her. After a moment of silence, the rest of the workers started laughing. It wasn't the first time Ame had to escape from whatever trouble she had gotten into, and it surely wouldn't be the last either. Most wouldn't have accepted such a troublesome customer, but she did bring more clients in thanks to her little stunts. Plus, she actually paid them for letting her use the café as a hideout of some sort, so it's not like they could really complain. Money was money, right? Plus, well, maybe she had grown on them a little. But who could blame them? Naoki Ame might be a troublemaker, but whoever said she didn't make things interesting was, simply put, a liar.

.

.

The following day was a bright, beautiful day. It made Ame kind of regret having resigned herself to not skip classes anymore, or at least not as much as before. What she'd give to be able to go out for a walk and enjoy the day!

Though I wouldn't enjoy it all that much, considering I'd have to watch my back constantly.

That did kill her joy somewhat. Ritsu and Usagi still hadn't been able to take her name off the list, and she held no doubt that other assassins would come after her soon enough. Plus, in the state she was in, she wouldn't be able to properly fight if the need arose. She still needed a few more days of rest.

The first classes of the day had been boring, but she did her best to pay attention to the lessons. She was still a little bitter about her failure during the exams, and her determination hadn't wavered in the slightest. Sure, it had been a while since she actually studied and worked for stuff like that, but she was slowly getting back into it.

And Korosensei's been giving me extra classes too for a while now…

Ame still wasn't an academic genius but, right now, she was fairly confident in her growing abilities. Plus, well, it would be hard to score worst than during the mid-terms, considering she had been dead last.

"Hey, Ame?"

"Mmm?"

The black-haired girl looked up from the Japanese notes she had been reading without really understanding whatever she had written. She'd have to make sure she could actually read whatever she wrote down next time around.

"Don't you think Korosensei is acting kind of… weird?" pointed out Rio, frowning a little.

"Weird?"

Curious, Ame looked at the front of the class. As per usual, their teacher was behind his desk, correcting some homework… but he was sweating.

Like, a lot.

"You're right," agreed the girl, closing her notebook. "He does look a little weird—holy crap! What's happening?"

The sweating had increased, and some sort of yellow liquid was now flowing out of their teacher's eyes as he whimpered pitifully and tried to wipe it away with a tissue.

"What's with all this crying over nothing?" wondered Irina, a tad annoyed by the noise. She had decided to eat with the students that day, but she now regretted her decision. "What is it?"

"No, no—this is my nose," answered Korosensei. "I'm not crying, my nose is running. My eyes are here!" And he pointed at two exactly identical holes.

"Who can tell!?" protested most of the students.

"I've been feeling a little off since yesterday," he then admitted.

Yesterday? Ame quickly thought it over. The only thing that happened yesterday was Terasaka's outburst. Might this be the work of whatever bug spray he spread in the classroom?

As if on cue, the door of the classroom slid open, letting enter the boy in question. She narrowed her eyes at him, somewhat suspicious. What was he planning exactly?

Korosensei suddenly pounced on him.

"Terasaka-kun! I was worried you wouldn't come in today!" exclaimed their teacher, the yellow goo running from his nose splattering all around.

"This is disgusting," murmured Rio.

Ame nodded but focused on whatever was now happening. Obviously ticked off, Terasaka however somehow managed to keep his cool and wiped off the snot using their teacher's tie. Once he was done, he glared up at the octopus and rudely pointed at him.

"Oi, monster… It's time we killed you for real!" he claimed. "Come to the pool after class! After all, water's your weakness, right?" He then turned to the rest of the classroom. "You all come and help! I'll knock him smack into the water for you!"

"Terasaka…" Maehara suddenly rose to his feet. "You haven't helped with anyone else's assassination attempts and now, when it's convenient for you, you're ordering us around? Do you really think anyone's going to jump at the chance to help you?"

"Tche, like I give a damn anyway," scoffed the brute. "Hell, I'll be happy to have the ten-billion-yen prize all to myself."

On which he left as quickly as he came in. After a few seconds of stunned silence, Yoshida sighed heavily.

"What's his deal, seriously?"

"I can't keep up," agreed Muramatsu.

"Well, I'm not going," assured Kurahashi.

"Same," nodded Okano.

"Now, now, let's all go!" exclaimed cheerfully Korosensei.

"Gah!" exclaimed Rio, jumping to her feet.

"Oh my God!" Ame wasted no time in climbing on her desk.

Because… their teacher's yellow snot was now overflowing into the classroom—which was disgusting. Ame quickly wiped off whatever sticky goo had gotten on her shoes, scrunching her nose as she did so.

"Gah, it's hardening!" suddenly exclaimed Maehara.

"We're stuck!" panicked Kaede.

"Terasaka-kun is now ready to assassinate me! This is the perfect chance for everyone to kill and make up!" insisted their teacher, not really caring about the mess he was creating.

At that point, his entire head was covered in that damn liquid. They couldn't see his eyes or his eternal grin anymore, and Ame felt a little sick when seeing that.

"Fine, we'll go!" she finally snapped. "Just stop this already! You're fricking gross!"

As everyone voiced their agreement, their teacher laughed heartily… which only made more snot come out, and which drew everyone's cries of utter disgust.

.

.

In the end, they did go to the pool after class to help with Terasaka's plan. Soon enough, everyone saved for Ame, Takebayashi and the instigator of the assassination attempt were in the water, waiting for whatever would happen next.

"I seriously have my doubts," mused the bespectacled boy. "I don't—"

"Just shut up and get in already!" Terasaka merely kicked him into the pool.

The rest of the students started muttering about his tyrannical persona while Takebayashi came back to the surface, spluttering incoherently. Completely ignoring them, Terasaka turned around to look at Ame, apparently entertaining the thought of making her suffer the same fate. Ame stared flatly at him, unimpressed.

"You try that shit with me and you will find yourself a head shorter."

He scoffed but didn't approach her, and she simply went to sit under the shade of a tree to watch the show. She still hadn't figured out whatever Terasaka had planned, but something seriously didn't feel right. After all, while she was far from being best friends with the boy, she knew him well enough to know that complicated planning wasn't his kind of thing. Hell, just the bug-spray from yesterday couldn't possibly have been his idea.

But if I'm right, then who is he working with?

Before she could ponder over it any longer, Terasaka was joined by Korosensei, whose nose had finally stopped running—thank God for small miracles.

"So, how are you planning to knock me into the pool?" mused their teacher. He gestured at the gun the boy was holding. "This won't make me move a step."

"Whatever. You ready, monster?" grunted the teen, turning around to properly face him.

"Of course," assured the octopus.

Terasaka pointed his gun at Korosensei. Ame clicked her tongue quietly at that, not really wanting to watch that part of the assassination. Guns always made her jumpy, after all.

"I've always hated you," then admitted Terasaka, traits deformed by his anger. "Wanted more than anything for you to disappear."

At that, though, the teacher's face covered itself in green stripes. "Yes, I know. After this assassination, we'll have a nice, long talk."

Unable to help it, Ame looked back at the two… and found herself frowning. It had been a while since she last properly looked at a firearm, but the one Terasaka was holding looked weird. Like, it was almost exactly the same as the ones they used to fire anti-sensei balls, but she couldn't shake off the feeling that this one was… fake.

This is a distraction, she realized. We obviously can't hit him with this, even less head-on. What is he planning, damn it!?

She was thinking fast, trying to come up with different scenarios, but nothing seemed to make sense. If she at least had an idea as to who Terasaka was working with, then maybe she'd be able to see through his plans, but she simply couldn't understand who would want to work with the brutal idiot.

Wait, work with? No, no one wants to work with Terasaka. But what if… What if he's being used instead? What if someone exterior to the class used him for their own assassination attempt?

The girl started looking around, warier. If she was right, then an assassin, if not many, were out there and already surrounding them. However, she also knew that Korosensei wouldn't have knowingly put his students in danger, meaning he couldn't sense anyone else around.

Then where? Where is the assassin?

Terasaka fired at last, a vein bulging on his forehead. Ame flinched instinctively… but instantly noticed the flash of red at the tip of the barrel of the gun.

Wrong. BB-balls are pink. Her eyes then widened. That was a signal—

Suddenly, the wall at the other end of the pool suddenly blew up, earning startled cries from the rest of the students. The pool instantly started emptying itself, the current too strong for Ame's classmates to fight it as they were swept away.

Ame jumped to her feet, horrified. "No!"

She couldn't jump in, that would have been stupid. Instead, she took out two knives and quickly tied up a wire around the handles, before throwing them across the pool. They deeply embedded themselves into the rocks, allowing the students to grab the wire and stop themselves from being swept away. Korosensei, in a state of panic, started quickly pulling them out of the water. However, most were already too far gone, and their teacher was forced to go after them, leaving Ame, Terasaka and an empty pool behind, along with the four or five students who had managed to grab the girl's wire earlier.

"N- no… That wasn't- that wasn't me…" murmured the rude boy, apparently in shock. "I didn't—it wasn't supposed to do that…"

"What did ya do!?" exclaimed angrily the girl, stomping up to him. She roughly grabbed him by his collar and shook him a little, somewhat snapping him out of his shock. "Who're ya workin' for!?"

"I- Itona was—he was supposed to come… I was supposed to- to push the octopus in the water and Itona would come…" let out the boy. "I- I didn't—"

"Yes, ya did!" she snapped, shaking him harder. "What were ya thinking, workin' with him and Shiro!?"

"D- don't blame me! I'm not—I didn't—"

"Yes! Yes, I blame ya!" she retorted, seething. "Ya can't just go around pointing fingers, damn it! Ya made a fuckin' huge mistake right now and you're either gonna own up ta it, or get da hell out of here, ya hear me!?"

"Ame, calm down!" stepped in Rio, one of those Korosensei had managed to pull out. "We need to go and see if everyone's alright!"

"Fine! Let's go!"

Releasing him, she did however punch him in the guts. He stumbled back, the air knocked out of his lungs, but she didn't linger on him any longer and started running in the direction the rest of their classmates had been swept toward. Hopefully, Korosensei had saved them all before they reached the small waterfall—

Wait. Water is Korosensei's weakness! Shiro planned on him taking too much water in when saving his students and, since his mucus that usually serves as protection is all gone because of that damn spray, he won't be able to protect himself!

It was a genius plan, that much was for certain, and even more so when the assassin involved was Itona, since he had the same abilities as their teacher—which put him at a great advantage. However, putting the lives of her classmates in danger for the realization of the said plan was simply a no-go in her books.

Now, Shiro was on her personal shit list.

"Look, over there!"

Ignoring the soreness in her ribs, Ame went to stand at the edge of the waterfall. Everyone had apparently been saved in time but, now, Korosensei was stuck below. Facing Itona while his tentacles were full of water and thus slowed down –plus, Ame didn't doubt they put something else in the water to make things even more difficult-, Korosensei was obviously having a hard time keeping up with his "brother". Next to them, watching everything unfold with a relaxed posture, was Shiro—and Ame saw red.

"OI!" she called, almost shaking in fury. "SHIRO!"

He either didn't hear her or completely ignored her. She wasn't fine with that, though, and so she grabbed a few more of her knives and threw them at him. The first one hit the ground just before his feet, the second one flew just before his eyes, and the third one ripped a part of his clothes before embedding itself into the nearest tree.

This time, he did look up to her.

"Naoki Ame," he recognized, his voice carried by the wind. "I was hoping you would show up."

"Yeah? Well I guess we both got our wishes granted," she grunted. "I've got some questions for ya, and ya better answer them!"

He stared at her for a few seconds, before turning back to the ongoing fight. "Itona."

The boy harshly slapped their teacher away with one of his tentacles. Before Korosensei could get back up, one of the teen's tentacles… suddenly grabbed Ame's ankle. Her eyes widened, and she suddenly found herself lifted in the air, the screams of her classmates echoing behind her.

For a few seconds, it felt as if she was flying.

Then, she started falling.

.

.

Karma had heard the explosion at the pool and had quickly run there to figure out what had just happened. Had they actually managed to finish off Korosensei? He seriously hoped not, else he'd be thoroughly disappointed to have missed it. His churning guts, however, told him otherwise. Something had happened, and it wasn't a good thing. When he arrived at the pool, though, it was only to find it empty and with none other than Terasaka kneeling on the side, his eyes wide as he muttered under his breath. After understanding the boy had actually served as a pawn to none other than Shiro and Itona, Karma left him to go check up on their classmates.

"OI!" That was Ame's voice, not that far ahead. "SHIRO!"

What is she doing? Is she trying to help Korosensei again? What's her game?

But just as he arrived at the end of the forest and to the edge of the waterfall where everyone had safely gathered, startled screams escaped from the students. Looking up, his eyes widened when he saw Ame being lifted in the air by one of Itona's tentacles, before being brought down. He quickly ran to the edge of the cliff, dreading the sight that would greet him… and exhaled in relief when realizing Ame had reached the ground in one piece. Itona had brought her down rather abruptly, but not enough to break something.

The problem, though, was that she was now facing Shiro. Alone.

"Damn it…" he cursed under his breath.

"What are they going to do to Ame?" asked Okano, pale.

"Do you think he's getting back at her for what happened in class last time?" wondered Kaede, worried.

"We need to do something!" exclaimed Maehara. "Korosensei won't be able to help her, he's already occupied with Itona!"

"And Hara is in danger too!" added Kataoka. "Look!"

"Even Yoshida and Muramatsu are in trouble!"

Effectively, Hara wasn't in an any better position than Ame. Holding on tightly to a branch so as not to fall, said branch was however starting to crack under her weight. If they waited too long, then the branch would break and she'd fall. Just below her, barely managing to hold onto the slippery rocks of the cliff, were the other two boys. They were obviously having a hard time not to slip, and they also wouldn't last much longer.

"There wasn't that much water, though!" pointed out Rio. "Why can't Korosensei save them? Is he really that weak to it?"

"No." All startled at the sudden appearance of Terasaka. He was staring at the fight with a frown. "It's not just the water. There was something else in it, to numb his tentacles or some shit like that. Also, he can't just go up and save them. That'd leave his back open and then not only would he be killed, but he wouldn't be able to protect them anymore."

"Terasaka…" Isogai gritted his teeth. "Don't tell me they roped you into doing this!"

"That's right!" confirmed the boy, shaking a little. "Shortsighted guys with no vision and no goals are doomed to be played by smart guys like him. But you know…" He pulled on his collar, now serious. "At least lemme pick who's pullin' the strings. I've had it up to here with those jokers, and I sure don't like the idea of 'em walkin' off with the prize. So, Karma—why don't you try to control me? Gimme a strategy outta that shrewd noggin of yours! I'll pull it off perfectly and save all of them!"

"Sure, but can you even handle one of my plans?" mused Karma. "You might die."

"Oh, I'll do it, alright. I'm the perpetrator who gets results," assured the brute.

"Gah, look down!" suddenly exclaimed Kurahashi. "Ame's in trouble!"

Ame winced as Itona unceremoniously dropped her on the ground before going back to his fight with Korosensei. Her ribs were starting to protest against the rough treatment she was putting them through after being expressly told not to push herself.

However, now wasn't the time for that.

"Shiro," she greeted flatly, getting back to her feet.

"How rude," he mused plainly. "Is that how you address all elders?"

"Just those I don't like." She then pulled another of her knives and pointed it at him. "Now, I want answers! What do you gain from putting a target on my back?"

"I did no such thing," he assured, not even bothered by her weapon. "Though I am concerned about the information you seem to possess."

"I don't have any info!" she snapped. "It was all just guesswork and a shot in da dark, and ya simply confirmed it! Now take ma name off da Dark List!"

"Oh, don't worry too much, I will… by bringing your head back."

"What—"

Something heavy was fired but, before she could react, a wire had already wrapped itself around her, pinning her arms against her body. The blow sent her crash on the ground, near the water and, when she tried to free herself, she realized she couldn't move without cutting herself. The wires had been made of a special material usually used to cut through things, and she held no doubt that mere flesh wouldn't be much of a challenge for it.

"I didn't do anything!" she snapped as Shiro started approaching her. "This is crazy! Are ya really so low ya put ma name on da Dark List just so ya could kill me without gettin' punished for it? Just 'cause I pissed ya off a few weeks ago? What da hell is wrong with ya!?"

"I told you, didn't I?" His foot slammed down on her to keep her still, earning a strangled yelp of pain as her ribs bent under the pressure. "I'm not the one who put your name on it. Too much of a hassle, and so many variables I couldn't keep control of… No, I'm not the one who started the fire, but I am the one who will put it out." And suddenly, the barrel of a gun appeared in her line of sight, barely a few centimeters away from her face. "Kill two birds with one stone, if you will."

"I didn't do anything—"

"No, maybe not. However, I'm afraid you are too… perceptive, for your own good." He placed his finger on the trigger. "I'll make sure whatever information you found out will not be shared, and I get to get rid of an annoying brat that just won't stop getting in my way. Plus, I get paid for it. Couldn't ask for more, really."

She bared her teeth at him. "If ya kill me, there will be no place for ya ta hide! No matter where ya go or what ya do… ya will not rest peacefully 'til you're dead! They will find you!"

"Whoever they are, I shall take my chances."

He cocked the gun, and Ame knew here and there that she was going to die, and she wouldn't be able to stop it. However, she had already had a run-in with death not that long ago, and she had made up her mind. Unlike last time, she'd look at death in the eyes with anger instead of fear, no matter how terrified she felt inside.

Her lips twisted into a snarl.

"We'll meet again in hell, Shiro…" Then, she grinned a madly as she could manage, ignoring her shaking hands. "See ya soon, asshole!"

Just as he pulled the trigger, though, something hit him in the arm. Ame's eyes widened as the shot he fired at her hit barely a few centimeters to the right of her head. Growling lowly in annoyance, Shiro looked down at his arm, where the white cloth was now turning red thanks to the needle embedded into it.

That's one of my needles! But who—

"If you want to get to her, you'll have to get through us first!"

Both Ame and Shiro looked up at the top of the waterfall, where the rest of the students were standing. Rio, a hand on her hip, was glaring down at the man, another needle in her hand.

That's right, I taught her how to throw them, recalled the teen, exhaling in relief. Thank god for small miracles.

"Oi!"

That voice was much closer. Twisting her head so as to get a proper look, she saw none other than Terasaka now standing in the water, not that far away.

"Terasaka-kun…" recognized Shiro, mindlessly pulling out the needle from his arm and throwing it aside.

"You tricked me but good!" remarked the boy.

"Maa, don't get so upset," replied the asshole clad in white. "We just pulled your classmates into it a little. Perfect for a fellow who stands out in the E-Class like you."

"A little?" He pointed at Ame, who still couldn't move because of the wire and Shiro's foot still crushing her ribcage. "Ya were 'bout to frickin' kill her!"

"Yes, well, she is another matter entirely—"

"Shut up! I ain't gonna forgive you for what you did!" He then took off his shirt and went to face the two battling monsters. "Itona! You and me, one on one!"

"Stop that, Terasaka-kun! He's not someone you can win against!" warned Korosensei.

"Stay outta this, octopuff!"

"Ah, how cute. A real hero, eh?" But Shiro's amusement vanished in an instant. "Itona, finish him."

There was a moment of silence. Then, Itona sent one of his tentacles at the boy and hit him square in the chest, apparently indenting to knock him out with one blow. Terasaka took the hit head-on, wrapping his shirt around the tentacle, and somehow managed to stay on his feet. He then released both his shirt and the tentacle.

"Oh? You held on quite well," mused Shiro. "Itona, send another one."

But just as the monster-boy was about to do so… he sneezed.

Once.

Twice.

Suddenly, he just couldn't stop sneezing, as if he had just caught a cold. Ame's eyes widened in understanding, and she snapped her eyes back at the cliff, where they met Karma's. The boy smirked, waving at her a little.

That fricking genius… Terasaka's wearing the same shirt as yesterday, so it got directly hit by that weird spray, which means he could use it against Itona!

Itona's tentacle on which was still hanging Terasaka's shirt was now covered in mucus that kept on coming out. Using the opportunity, Korosensei vanished for a few seconds to go and save Hara before the branch finally gave in.

"Yoshida! Muramatsu!" exclaimed Terasaka, holding his sore stomach. He grinned, hitting the water. "Give me a big one!"

The two boys grinned back in understanding, before jumping off the side of the cliff and landing into the water, effectively splashing water everywhere. A moment later, all of the students had jumped too, landing in the water and effectively drenching Itona from head to toe. His tentacles instantly started absorbing it. Shiro's foot lifted somewhat, and Ame immediately used the opportunity to shove him off of her. She still couldn't use her arms properly, but she managed to roll away and take a hold of the bloody needle that had fallen to the ground. Not wasting any time, she planted it into his foot, earning herself a pained curse as he stumbled away.

"That's quite enough from you!" he snapped.

He cocked his gun at her once again but, before he could fire for the second time, he was suddenly shoved to the ground by none other than Maehara. Isogai appeared not a second later and went to Ame's side, quickly helping her back on her feet. He was holding one of her knives and, in a few seconds, he managed to cut through the wire, thus freeing her.

"You alright, Ame?" inquired Maehara, quickly coming back to them and holding Shiro's gun.

"Yeah, I'm fine now—ugh!" She stumbled a little when pain flared in her ribs. "Damn it…"

Shiro slowly rose back to his feet while Isogai put the girl's arm around his neck so as to properly support her. Maehara glared at the man, cracking his knuckles. Behind them, in the water, Itona was still frozen in shock, his tentacles growing more and more useless each passing second. The rest of the students were ready to act, and Korosensei was also ready to go all-out if needed.

For a few seconds, everyone stood still, not moving.

"Well, now what?" All eyes snapped to Karma, who smirked a little. "We don't want you to claim the prize money, for one. Your plans also almost got all of us hurt in the process, Terasaka got all beaten up, and you even tried to openly kill Ame. If you want to keep going, we're going to need to have a hardcore splash party."

Itona stiffened, only then realizing he was surrounded.

"… well. You got us. We withdraw," announced finally Shiro, dusting himself a little. "Let's go, Itona."

"Well? Wasn't that a fun time with everyone?" then exclaimed Korosensei. He was talking to Itona. "Why not join us—for real, this time?"

"Itona."

The boy tensed at Shiro's commanding tone, before jumping out of the water and landed next to his master. The two of them walked passed Ame, Isogai, and Maehara without even another look, and the orange-eyed teen gritted her teeth.

"Wait!" she then barked, making them stop. "You said… You said you're not the one who put my name on the list. If not you, then who? Who did it?"

"… I do not know. I merely took the opportunity when it presented itself. I'd suggest you watch your back carefully, Naoki-san," mused Shiro. He started walking away again. "Someone extremely powerful seems to be controlling the strings, and you surely won't be as lucky next time around."

After what, he and Itona disappeared from sight. After a few more seconds of tension, seeing they truly weren't coming back, the rest of the students finally relaxed.

"Thank God we managed to drive them off," sighed Sugino, relieved.

"It's a good thing we managed to save your life, right, Korosensei?" mused Okano.

"Niryufufufu! I'm grateful, of course!" agreed their teacher. "Though I still had a few more tricks up my sleeve."

Suddenly, a little farther away, Terasaka dragged Karma down from his dry spot and threw him in the water. Instantly, the rest of the students joined in, trying to soak the red-haired boy as much as manageable. Ame chuckled a little at the sight, though her smile quickly twisted in a pained wince when her ribs cried in agony.

"Are you alright, Ame-san?" worried Isogai.

"Would you believe me if I said yes?" she half-joked.

"Come on, sit down for a bit," proposed Maehara.

She nodded, and the two boys helped her back on the ground. She knew the pain would be gone by the next morning since Shiro hadn't actually broken anything, but she seriously hoped no other problem would come up until she could at least put up a decent fight.

"Still, this was kind of weird," then remarked the flirt, crossing his arms behind his head. "Why would he target you specifically? I get that you kind of pissed him off last time, but…"

The girl cringed a little at that. Obviously, the whole situation would look weird to her classmates. Why wouldn't it? Someone had just tried to kill her, after all. However, what could she answer to that? Could she actually tell them everything?

If I had done so before, though, would all of this have happened?

Sometimes, ignorance was bliss. Other times, though, it was more of a nuisance than anything else.

They could be put in grave danger because of her, and… they at least deserved to know the truth.

"Korosensei?" she called softly.

The teacher heard her easily over the chaos and appeared beside her in a flash.

"Yes, Naoki-san?"

"I'm ready. To tell everyone, I mean."

He simply nodded at that, his eternal smile growing a little bigger.

"All right, class!" exclaimed the octopus. "Let's all head back to the classroom, if you don't mind. Naoki-san wishes to shed some light on today's events."

At that, the students exchanged some curious looks, but finally decided to go along with it. Who knew? Maybe Ame was finally starting to trust them.

.

.

Everyone had changed back into their uniform and had gathered in the classroom. Karasuma and Irina were also present, having been made aware of the situation.

Finally, it was time for Ame to spill.

"I'm guessing you guys all remember how I interfered with Shiro and Itona's first assassination attempt, right?" she started off dryly. They all nodded, curious as to where she was going with that. "Well, turns out that, as Rio and Karasuma-san feared, I had to suffer the consequences. Not a day later, we discovered that… my name was on the Dark List."

"… what's the Dark List?" asked Kurahashi, confused.

"The Japanese Government's special hit list," resumed the girl. "Otherwise said, I'm now as much a target for assassins as Korosensei."

…

…

…

"WHAT!?"

"We haven't been able to take my name off of it yet," pursued the girl, unperturbed. "Ritsu's been working hard, but even she can't do much about it."

"… today wasn't the first attempt on your life, was it?" then realized Karma, frowning.

"No, it wasn't," confirmed the teen, twisting her hands a little. "At first, we thought it was Shiro who put my name on the list. Today, though, he told me it wasn't him and… well, against all common sense, I believe him."

"Why tell us now, though? It's been weeks since this happened, so why today?" pointed out Maehara.

"Because I realized things could have gone way differently had I told you everything earlier," she replied, lowering her head. "Terasaka might be dumb and an awful brute—"

"Oi!"

"—but he's not completely clueless either. He wouldn't have trusted Shiro if he had known what was going on. And- and you guys might all be in danger because of me, now." She bit her lower lip. "Had I told you sooner… then you would have been able to help me. I thought I could do this on my own, but I was wrong, and I'm sorry. I should… I should have trusted you."

After a few seconds, Rio suddenly walked up to her, and lightly tapped her head. Ame blinked in surprise, looking up to her.

The blonde grinned. "You really are the worst trouble-magnet I've ever met, you know?"

"I—"

"You're the only one who could manage to piss off someone powerful enough to pull that kind of stunt against you, seriously," snorted Karma.

"I guess that explains a lot," simply mused Maehara.

"We'll help!" assured Fuwa, beaming. "However we can!"

"Don't worry! You can count on us!" added Kaede, pumping her fist in the air.

As the rest of the students started agreeing, Ame felt tears prickling her eyes. She instantly rubbed them, hoping no one would notice. She honestly hadn't expected such a positive reaction. Normal people wouldn't want to get involved into that kind of mess, after all.

But, then again, they're not normal people, she mused, a smile slowly stretching her lips. None of us are, really.

We're the E-Class, after all.