Standing before me were the "Ultimate Students" that had been hand-picked by the school. I looked around at everyone who'd gathered there, taking in their faces one at a time. Maybe I was just imagining it, but I swear I could feel a kind of aura coming from each of them…

I then spoke up as to not be rude. "Um… How's it going?" I greeted. "My name's Naegi Makoto. Sorry I'm late. A bunch of stuff happened, and them all of a sudden I was just… Asleep."

"Whoa, you too?" Asked the student with the frizzy hair in shock.

"Things just keep getting curiouser and curiouser…" Mused a student with long, black, tornado braids.

"So strange…" Said the overweight student. "I declare beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is a strange situation indeed!"

"Um… What are you talking about?" I asked him. "I honestly have no idea what's going on right now."

"Just a moment!" Yelled a student with large, bushy eyebrows and a white uniform. "There's something else we must address!" He then pointed at me furiously. "Naegi! Your tardiness is unacceptable! Surely you were aware the meeting was to start at 8 AM sharp! To be late on your first day is unspeakable! I must report you, and you must accept your due punishment!"

Just then a student with large pigtails spoke up. "What's your problem?" She said. "It's not like he wanted to be late. He didn't have any control over it.

"Everyone just calm down!" Yelled a student with a red jacket and a ponytail. "Listen, why don't we all go around and introduce ourselves?"

"The hell!?" Complained a student with a black coat and a strange-looking haircut. "Now's no time for friggin' introductions!"

"Maybe, but it may be good to at least find out who we all are before digging into the bigger problem here." Suggested the student with long, black, tornado braids. "I mean, how are we even supposed to talk to each other if we do not know each other's names?"

"That's a good point…" The short student with blonde hair shyly said.

"Okay, so let's get introductions out of the way, then we can move on to whatever else. Sound good?" Said a student with long, blue hair.

I'm still totally lost, but I think it's best to just focus on getting to know each other for now. So I guess this is as good a chance as I'm gonna get. I already looked everyone up on that online thread, but I still don't know what kind of people they actually are.

Time to find out…

Everyone else besides me lined up against a wall and I started to go down the line.

"I'm Ishimaru Kiyotaka. I believe in bold simplicity!" Said the student with the large, bushy eyebrows and the white uniform. "Let's work together on our educational crusade!"

So that's Ishimaru. According to what I saw about him on that thread, he went to a privet school and won top honors every year. He's basically a flawless honor student. He's also known for the work he's done with his community's Public Morals Committee. They say he respects rules above all else, earning him the title of Ultimate Moral Compass.

"Anyway, you said your name was Naegi Makoto, right?" He asked. I nodded. "That's a good name, a strong name! You should thank your parents for giving you such an excellent name. And to keep that name from losing its value, you must devote yourself every single day! Life is worth putting every ounce of effort into it! Right? Right!"

This guy is… Kind of annoying.

"N-Not that you'll remember my n-name anyway, but…" Stammered a student with long pigtails and large glasses. "F-Fukawa. Fukawa Toko."

Yeah, she wrote a novel when she was ten that got everyone talking and launched her literary career. Then two years ago she released "So Lingers the Ocean", a love story said to be her masterpiece. The book was such a hit with women, that fishermen quickly shot to the top of every "Hottest Men" poll. Despite her age, she's won countless literary prizes and all her books are instant best-sellers. Which is why she's come to be known as the Ultimate Writing Prodigy. What else would you call such a young and talented author? But I figured she'd be a lovey-dovey type, what with her masterpiece being a romance and all…

"Wh-What? I-It's not polite to stare, you know." She said before getting angry. "Stop staring at me like I'm some filthy creature!"

"F-Filthy creature?" I stammered" No, I just thought-"

"I-I know what you "just" thought…!" She interrupted. "You just thought you've n-never seen such an ugly woman. You just th-thought it was sooo funny…!"

"N-No, that's not what I was thinking at all…"

"Don't bother trying to l-lie to me!" She angrily exclaimed. "Otherwise, you… I know you can't stand looking at me! Wh-Whatever, I don't care. I'm used to it…"

Wow, talk about an inferiority complex. I was waaay off about what a successful author would be like…

"Hi, I'm Maizono Sayaka." The student with the long, blue hair cheerfully said. "I look forward to getting to know you!"

The way she moves is positively mesmerizing. And that peasant scent I can't quite place… Maizono Sayaka… When I saw her name in that thread online, frankly, I was pretty surprised. She's in a pop group famous all across the country. In fact, she's their lead singer! As the Ultimate Pop Sensation, she's in high demand to appear on TV and in magazines everywhere. But actually, that's not the only reason I was so surprised to find out she'd be going to this school. I'm sure she doesn't remember, but… Well, never mind. No matter how you slice it, she's really beautiful. Almost like a doll or something…

"I'm not a doll you know. I'm alive!" She said suddenly.

"Huh?" I gasped in surprise. "Did you hear me!?"

"I'm psychic." She said seriously before going happy again. "I'm kidding! I just have a really good intuition."

She's a sharp one…

"Huh?" She said suddenly. "Hey, by any chance…?"

"Now what?" I asked curiously.

"…Yeah, it must be. I'm sure of it. Hey, Naegi. Did-"

Before Maizono could finish her sentence, she was interrupted by Ishimaru's banter. "Jeez, you guys! How long do you plan to waste our valuable time with this ridiculous back-and-forth?!"

"S-Sorry." Apologized Maizono. "Just got carried away, I guess…"

Self -introductions are for introducing yourself, not bumbling through a bunch of idle chit-chat!"

"Y-You're right." Maizono said embarrassingly. "Sorry, Naegi. We can talk about this later."

It sounded like Maizono really had something she wanted to say. But it's not like we'll never see each other again. Like she said, we can talk about it later.

"Yo!" Greeted a student with red hair and a chain necklace. "The name's Leon Kuwata. What's up?

I recognize that name. he played for the national high school chaps as their cleanup hitter. The Ultimate Baseball Star… And that superb athletic specimen is…

"You? Seriously!?" I accidentally blurted out.

"Huh? What's wrong?" Leon asked in concern.

"N-Nothing, I'm just… Surprised." I said. "I figured with you being the Ultimate Baseball Star and all…"

"What, were you expecting some kid with a shaved head?"

"Shaved head…?" I began. "No, I was expecting more of a, you know, sporty-looking traditional baseball player type. I mean, when I found that article and picture of you online, that's how you looked then."

"What!?" Leon said in disbelief. "Aw man, you found that picture of me playing baseball? Seriously!? I hate that picture! This is not cool. This is SO not cool… I'm like, mega embarrassed right now. I didn't have a choice, okay? Shaving your head like that is part of national championship regulations! But now I refuse to cut my hair. And I'm not gonna dye it back to normal either! Actually, can I be totally honest with you? I don't like baseball. Like, at all. I've never gone to a single practice."

That last line completely shocked me. He's never practiced, and he was still his team's star player? He's some kind of prodigy…

"And as soon as I got accepted here, I quit baseball for good!" He exclaimed proudly. "I have my own dreams for the future!"

"A dream… For the future?" I asked is disbelief.

"My only path in life is getting into music! You can feel that star-quality aura I have, right?" He explained. "I'm gonna be a singer, so all I need is a songwriter and someone on guitar, and we're set! This new version of me that's chasing after my dream is, like, super cool to the max!"

I can't believe what I'm hearing. I never imagined I'd hear something like that coming from a baseball all-star…

"I… Am Yamada Hifumi." Greeted the overweight student. "But if want to call me by my nickname, "The Alpha and the Omega", I don't mind. By the way, how much do you know about the world of 2D art?"

"World of… 2D?" I asked confusedly.

"Well, in that world, I am well known and supremely well regarded as the Ultimate Fanfic Creator." Yamada explained. "I once sold 10,000 copies of one of my fan comics at a school festival. The event has passed into legend… Some of them didn't get it, of course, saying I'd "tainted" the event. How stupid can you be?!"

That's too bad about the, but selling 10,000 copies like that is pretty remarkable.

"The words of such idiots mean nothing to me." He continued. "I am like Van Gogh; utterly unappreciated in my time. I am a soldier, serving night and day to destroy all mindless preconceptions about fanfiction. I'm sure you were to observe my work, Mr. Makoto, you would comprehend its greatness immediately. For my work is filled with deepest meaning…"

"What… What kind of meaning?" I asked.

"It's about embracing our basest urges…" He said mysteriously.

I don't think I want to comprehend it…

"Heya!" Greeted the student with the red jacket and ponytail. "I'm Asahina Aoi! But my friends just call me Hina. 'Sup?"

Asahina Aoi… She's been breaking records in every competition she'd been in since elementary school. She's even been chosen as an upcoming Olympic cadet. She is, without a doubt, the Ultimate Swimming Pro. The combinations of her ability, appearance, and um… Proportions has been wildly discussed online…

"So uh…" She began embarrassed. "What was your name again? Sorry, totally forgot!"

"Naegi Makoto." I said.

"Oh yeah, I knew it was something like that!"

"No, not "something" like that." I explained. "It IS that…"

"Sure, sure, got it!" Asahina cheerfully said. "Here, I'll hammer it into my brain right now! Naegi… Makoto… Naegi… Makoto…"

She just kept repeating my name and moving her finger across her palm like she was writing something…

"What are you doing?" I eventually asked.

"You don't know?" She asked confusedly. "If you wanna remember someone's name, you gotta write it on your hand three times!"

"I've never heard that before in my life…"

"Hey, by the way… How do you spell your last name?" She asked.

"You spell it exactly like it sounds." I explained.

"Hmm…" She said whilst rubbing her chin before laughing. "Well, I have no idea. Hahaha! I'll just figure it out later and write it down. Anyway, glad to meet ya."

"S-Sure, same here…" I stammered. Well, one thing I learned is she's totally easygoing and bursting with energy.

"Hello, nice to meet you." The short student with blonde hair shyly said. "I'm Chihiro Fujisaki… Sorry, I get kinda embarrassed whenever I introduce myself like this… Anyway, I hope we can get along…"

"Same here." I said while shaking her hand. "Nice to meet you."

"…Huh?" Chihiro gasped suddenly. "Maybe it's just my imagination, but… Have we met before?"

"Um, I don't think so." I said. "We just met for the first time. Which is why I said "nice to meet you"."

"Oh, yeah. Good point. Sorry…" She said.

"Y-You don't have to apologize for that." I said.

"Oh, yeah…" She said as she slowly perked up.

Chihiro Fujisaki is known for all the cutting-edge programs she's created. She's the ultimate programmer. She's also got that timid little bunny type thing going, which has endeared her to her legion of fans.

"Hey, so listed…" Chihiro finally said. "I-I'm really sorry."

"Huh?" I gasped confusedly. "What are you apologizing for now?"

"Well, just cuz… You seem upset." She explained. "You must be mad at me, right?"

"No, not at all!" I explained. "I was just lost in thought about something."

"Huh? Lost in thought…?"

"Yeah!" I cheerfully said. "It had nothing to do with me being upset or anything."

"Oh, that's good. I was afraid maybe you didn't like me." She giggled. "Hehe… I'm glad!"

I'm starting to understand why her fans are so into her… Anyways, after shaking hands with Chihiro again, I moved down the line.