Chapter 5: 16/05/2016


Part 1: Showtime

As one would have expected, the day of the interview that would break the stale silence Shujin Academy had to all news outlets and other media corporations had befallen the Trickster. Who am I, you wonder? Just an observer, nothing more of note. The selection of students from the Shujin community who were brought along to a TV studio at one of Japan's most notable news networks were invited on the premise of seeing how a TV studio works. Their grades, behaviour and attendance/punctuality were put into consideration too meaning Sakamoto-san was left out. Several groans and complaints from the attendees were lobbed towards the teachers who steadfastly held their ground and only revealed the true purpose of their excursion upon arrival. After the mandatory tour of the studio, the students were designated to sit in on a live segment. Two green rooms were allocated to the Shujin party, one for males and one for females in order for them to get prepared. As the second segment was soon to rear its head, Kawakami entered the male room with a suit bag for Ren who attentively watched Kobayakawa answer his set of questions solo.

"Oh, hey Kawakami-sensei."

"He's doing quite well up there…"

"The curtains have begun to close on my time at Shujin. I don't deserve to run such a wonderful institution with the egregious lapses in judgement I've taken lately." the principal eloquently stated.

"And you feel now is the time to leave, whilst the many parents and students want answers and actions to be taken to prevent such a tragedy occurring again?" the male host named Ken Sakuma asked.

"You misunderstood, Sakuma-san. I won't be leaving until I clean up this situation and personally vet a suitable successor to the same standards I myself was vetted." he answered.

"It's those sorts of contradictions that parents heard from you and their own children about ongoing complaints." the female host named Rie Sasaki responded with her take on the comments.

"Adding a power vacuum to the current list of problems Shujin faces would all but remove another school from the nation."

"It's not like there aren't enough schools around. Wouldn't the effort be better focused on helping to send students elsewhere? Furthermore…" Kawakami turned down the TV and as Ren silently opened up the suit bag, he was highly disappointed at the contents. Inside was a familiar Shujin uniform, fully pressed and placed onto the hanger with absolute care. This was what his measurements were taken for? What an absolute waste of my time…I could've just used my own he thought to himself.

"Thoughts?" Kawakami asked, rather proudly.

"It's…a fresh Shujin uniform. No offence but I don't know why you're so proud to present this to me." he answered apathetically. Kawakami put the truant student in his place.

"Amamiya-san…That studio audience out there do not have the faces and names of Shujin students - they are right now viewers just as the members of our nation who tune in are. And today is no ordinary interview. This is the interview that opens Shujin up to other interviews and articles. The source that will be referred back to again and again for months, maybe even years to come. You will be on many front covers. Will they be large prints? Maybe not. But there will be several who use your face and your appearance for a quick buck. Those hosts will try to tear you limb from limb to weaponise your responses to divert away from what matters to us and more importantly, our alibi. Your appearance is the first impression that they will have of you and if there's even the slightest thing they can catch, they will catch it. We need you looking your absolute best and having a custom made, tailored outfit just for the occasion will convey just how serious we are."

"...I never would've thought about it like that." Ren answered. Being so knowledgeable considering his age was wonderful but there were many things he would never be able to understand right now because of his age.

"It's perfectly fine. We're here for these sorts of things, after all." Kawakami soothed before changing her tone to a serious one.

"I will be there with you so you won't be heading into the lion's den alone. We've done all the prep we can so just give it your best shot, Amamiya-san."

"They're gonna come at us with everything…"

"It'll be fine. I'm sure of it. Don't look so guarded." And with that, she left the room and went to converse with her colleagues. Ren continued to watch as his principal took on questions, turning the TV back up:

"We will ensure our full co-operation with the SIU department to let our students speak freely and without interjection. Our offices and classrooms will be free for them to investigate and the true brevity of Kamoshida's crimes will see the light of day."

"What noble words. Will that really happen?"

"Negotiations are in place to work out the particulars of how to let them set up whilst allowing for students' education to continue unharmed. As for the sports clubs that Kamoshida oversaw or had any involvement in, they will be reviewed carefully…" After getting changed, Ren was now seated in front of the dresser with a look of certainty on his face when a knock on the door came his way and Ann's voice followed.

"It's just me and Shiho. You changed?"

"Yep. Head on in." The two girls entered the room to provide some words of encouragement they believed Ren would appreciate before they needed to be seated. When they saw what Ren had to wear, the comments couldn't have been any more different.

"If they wanted you to wear a Shujin uniform, couldn't you use your own?" Ann queried, concurring with Ren's stance.

"I know, right? Said the exact same thing to Kawakami."

"Well, hopefully you didn't use that tone with her." Ann knew her leader's thought process all too well and wouldn't let him earn her sympathy. Meanwhile, their girlfriend investigated every thread of the new uniform Ren wore.

"Tailored outfits really suit you…" Shiho commented, mostly for herself.

"Made just for this. A shame…you should see me in a 3 piece suit." Ren jokingly answered, trying to mask his worries. Ann voiced her thoughts:

"There's no way they'd be reckless enough to try anything against you or anyone you're close to." Follow up aside, Shiho kissed him on the cheek and looking him dead in the eye with a strong gaze of confidence:

"Don't fuck this up." She gave her command shooting a wide grin his way.

"...When you put it like that, how can I?" he retorted. They'd kissed for a little while to the behest of their shared girlfriend. It was put into words that their relationship, whilst somewhat public in Shujin, wouldn't become a tell-all for the nation to see.

"Make me and the others proud, leader." Both Ann and Shiho made their way back to their seats and before everyone knew it, the principal's segment was out of the way. Kawakami came to fetch Ren and did final touch ups for appearance and whatnot - straightening his shirt collar, aligning the blazer correctly. She opted to wear a red blazer, silver blouse, black skirt and black tights along with red high heels. Her makeup was also matching the scheme she was going for: red eyeshadow with some red lip gloss to finish off. Ren happened to have one thought regarding the scheme:

"That's a lot of red." he stated.

"I see you're not nervous about this at all." she responded back rather unsurprised, pretty much expecting an answer like that. The time for joking around was long gone, of course. There was no way they couldn't be, not when they were about to kick off a massive cover-up.

"Our next set of guests are here with the hope to demonstrate the good that a proper education can provide. Living with the ramifications of his circumstances, the young man happened to overcome many a trial under the convicted paedophile Kamoshida and played a significant role in the plan to put him behind bars for good. They are here to remove the fogginess surrounding the epicentre of Suguru Kamoshida's crimes along with several other highly respected coaches. Please put your hands together for Sadayo Kawakami, a full time teacher with 5 years under her belt and Ren Amamiya, a second year transferring student." How triumphant…Ren silently the audience members bathed in the host's introduction, he made his way to the interviewee sofa along with Kawakami to his right to an abundant wave of applause with a single declaration in his eyes: Let the games begin. Indeed, the corroded mindsets of those seated on the stage saw this farce of an interview as nothing more than a game with multiple players and multiple ulterior motives. Who would come out with the most to gain and who'd be the biggest loser? The chance for a promotion and a better co-host, the chance to take on solo hosting duties, the chance to sell Shujin to my parents, the chance to keep the lights on at Shujin…As everyone plastered the smiles to look good, the first bout of the night began on a seemingly innocent note.