Donut Friendship – Chapter 22: Helping out at the Kimetsu Academy
Another school day was over and Tanjiro and Nezuko were about to head home.
"Alright, I still have some things I need to do. Please tell mom that I will be back home before it gets dark!" said Tanjiro as he looked at Nezuko
"Will do!" Nezuko replied with a smile
As they were about to part ways, Nezuko wanted to ask her brother something.
"Tanjiro? Before I go, can I ask you something about the bakery?" she asked
A few days ago, Tanjiro told his mother and Nezuko that due to some problems at the academy, he wouldn't be able to help out in the bakery. Both of them were surprised as they heard that.
"Oh! Don't worry! Next week, I will be able to come back!" Tanjiro replied
Hearing that, Nezuko smiled.
"That's great! Looking forward to working together with you again!" she replied and said goodbye
After she left the academy, Tanjiro took a deep breath.
"Alright, here I go!" he said and went straight to the teachers' room
…
A FEW DAYS AGO, INSIDE THE TEACHERS' ROOM
"Kamado…" said a male voice
"Here!" replied Tanjiro
"Agatsuma." said the voice again
"H-Here…" Zenitsu replied scared
Tanjiro and Zenitsu were called over to the teachers' office by the PE teacher, Tomioka. Now, both of them were sitting in front of him, with him reading some papers.
"…" he looked up and glanced at them
"…"
"…"
"We have a problem here…" he said
"What is it?" Tanjiro asked
"After looking at your attendance, I found out that you two don't have enough credits…" Tomioka replied, with a plain expression
"W-What?" Zenitsu mumbled confused
"Oh! Yeah… My family owns a bakery, and they need my help. That explains why my attendance is so low…" Tanjiro replied, a little bit embarrassed
"Well, good for you, but if you don't get enough credits, you will fail this semester…" Tomioka replied
"How the hell can I have a low attendance? I was only sick for like 2 or 3 days…" Zenitsu said confused
"Your class attendance is only 60%." Tomioka replied
"Well… I am the disciplinary officer, so I am tasked to patrol the hallways and make sure that everything is in order." Zenitsu replied
"…" Tomioka just stared at him with a blank expression
"…"
"…"
"Are you… telling me that the time I spent as the disciplinary officer doesn't count as class attendance?" Zenitsu asked
"No." Tomioka replied
"…"
"…"
"But… you told me to do it…" Zenitsu mumbled
"Are you saying that it is my fault?" Tomioka asked
"Well, yeah? You told me that I should be the disc-AAAAARRGGHHHHH" Zenitsu screamed as a fist hit his face
"DON'T BLAME YOUR TEACHERS FOR YOUR OWN FAILURES AS A STUDENT!" Tomioka screamed as he knocked Zenitsu with his fist out
Now, Zenitsu was on the ground, in a puddle of his own blood.
"Ah! Zenitsu! Are you alright?!" Tanjiro asked as he looked down
"Ahhhhh…" Zenitsu mumbled
"Anyway…" said Tomioka as he sat down again
"You two need to earn some more credits, or you will be forced to repeat this semester. Lucky for you, the teachers here at the academy need all sorts of help, so you can go ask them if they need help with something…" Tomioka explained
"AH! Y-Yes! We will do that! Thank you very much!" Tanjiro replied
"Aghhhh…" Zenitsu mumbled as he lied on the ground, barely conscious
BACK TO THE PRESENT DAY.
The last few days, Tanjiro and Zenitsu have been helping the teachers with their problems and earning themselves some credits. If everything continued without any problems, then the two would have earned enough credits within a week.
Previously, they helped the art teacher Tengen Uzui clean up his classroom, the music teacher Kyougai find his lost drum, the history teacher Rengoku to re-enact a battle for his class and the math teacher Sasami with the correction of some tests. Now, they were almost finished and today, they were about to help the biology teacher, Kanae…
As Tanjiro was about to head into the teachers' room, he noticed Zenitsu waiting outside.
"Zenitsu!" he said
"Ah… hello…" Zenitsu replied annoyed
Hearing his response, Tanjiro laughed.
"Come, we are almost done! Smile a little!" said Tanjiro
"ARGH! How can I smile if I have to do this crap because of that stupid maniac Tomioka!" Zenitsu replied with anger in his voice
"It's all his fault! First, he tells me to be the stupid disciplinary officer, and now he tells me that because of that, my attendance is too low… I hate this!" Zenitsu added
Tanjiro laughed and replied.
"Don't worry Zenitsu, today we help Kanae Sensei."
"Ah… You're right… Kanae Sensei…" Zenitsu replied and smiled as he thought about her
The two opened the door and walked in. Immediately, they spotted her and went straight to her desk.
"Kanae Sensei!" said Tanjiro
"Oh! Hello!" Kanae replied and smiled at them
"Hellooooooo… hihihi…" said Zenitsu as he saw her
"I don't know if you were told by Tomioka Sensei, but we came to ask you if you need help with something?" said Tanjiro
"Oh my! Yes, he told me something about two boys in need of credits…" she replied as she thought about it
"Yes! That's us! Do you need help with something?" Tanjiro asked eagerly
"We would do anything… ANYTHING… for you… Kanae Sensei…" Zenitsu said with a seductive smile
"Hmmm… let me think… oh, I know!" she said and looked around
"Could you please hand me that book?" she asked Tanjiro and pointed at a book that was on another desk
"Oh! Sure!" Tanjiro replied and handed her the book
"Thank you! And you…" she replied and looked at Zenitsu
"Yes!" he replied
"Please throw this piece of paper into the trash!" she said with a smile and handed him a piece of paper
"Ok!" he replied and threw it out
"Thank you!" Kanae replied and smiled
Both Tanjiro and Zenitsu smiled and nodded
"…"
"…"
"…"
"So you helped me, and you got the credits, do you need anything else from me?" Kanae asked
"Huh." both of them mumbled confused and looked at each other
"I don't need any help, so I gave you these two simple tasks so you can earn your credits!" she replied
"What, really? Thank you so much!" Tanjiro replied with a smile
"What?! That's it?! I am glad that we got the credits… but I was hoping to spend some time with you!" Zenitsu replied disappointed
Kanae just smiled and laughed.
"Well… at least we got enough credits." said Zenitsu annoyed
"Oh no…" said Tanjiro, as he was reading his report card
"What is it now?" Zenitsu asked annoyed
Tanjiro showed him his report card and spoke up.
"We helped every single teacher here… and we are still short on credits!" he said
"WHAT?!" Zenitsu yelled as he heard that
"We still need to help one more teacher, but there is nobody left!" said Tanjiro as he checked the list
"So, are you telling me, that all the work we did in the last few days was all for nothing?!" Zenitsu panicked
"I don't know! We need to ask Tomioka Sensei!" Tanjiro replied
Hearing the two, Kanae spoke up.
"You don't need to help a teacher to earn credits!" she said with a smile, to which both of them looked at her
"You can also help a student who is a chairman of a club! They have the authority to give you some credits! And lucky for you, I know someone who could use some help!" Kanae explained
…
…
…
"We're here…" said Tanjiro as he stood in front of a door
"The pharmacy department…" Zenitsu read the sign next to the door
Kanae Sensei told them that the pharmacy department would need help with something and that they should visit it. Tanjiro knocked on the door and slowly entered.
"Hello? We're coming in." he said
"Of course! Come on in!" said a cheerful voice from inside the room
Tanjiro opened the door and walked in, with Zenitsu behind him. They were greeted by an older girl.
"Hello! Hmmm? Oh, you're that boy from the bakery! I heard that your family bakery is pretty popular at the moment! Anyway, what brings you two here?" said the girl
"Shinobu Senpai!" the two said
In front of them was the chairman of the pharmacy department and Kanae's younger sister, Shinobu Kocho. She smiled at the two and waited for a reply.
"Shinobu Senpai, we need your help! Well… we need to help you!" said Tanjiro, to which Shinobu looked at him confused
"We need credits and Kanae Sensei told us that you need help with something!" Tanjiro added
Shinobu looked at him confused and thought about it.
"Well maybe, but… why do you come to me? I am not a teacher." she replied
"Kanae Sensei told us that as a chairman, you can give us credits if we help the pharmacy department." Tanjiro explained
"Oh, really? I didn't know that! That is quite interesting!" Shinobu replied with a smile
"Yes! So, if we help you, will you give us the credits as the chairman of the pharmacy department?" Tanjiro asked with a smile
"Sure! I don't mind!" Shinobu replied
"But there is one problem. I can't think of anything that you could do to help me…" she replied
Both of the guys looked at her and their smiles left.
"What. What do you mean, you can't think of anything?" Zenitsu asked
"Kanae Sensei told us that you need help with something…" said Tanjiro
Shinobu thought about it and looked around the room, trying to figure out what she meant. She had everything she needed. She had all kinds of ingredients, she had a room and she had all the books she needed. The only thing that was missing was…
"Oh! Now I remember! I know what she meant!" Shinobu said and faced the two
"I will give you the credits if you help me with something… but it won't be easy. Are you up for the task?" Shinobu asked
"Yes!" both of them replied
Hearing that, Shinobu smiled.
…
…
…
"Convince her friend to join the pharmacy department? How are we going to do that?" Zenitsu asked as he walked besides Tanjiro
"I don't know… but I might have an idea!" Tanjiro replied
"If you say so…" Zenitsu replied and thought about it
They were told that they could often find her friend outside the academy, sitting on a bench. As the two were walking, Zenitsu spoke up.
"Do you even know her?" he asked
"Yes! She often visits the bakery, and I met her during my vacation with Nezuko! You met her brother, Rui, when we rescued Nezuko from that con-artist, remember?" Tanjiro asked
"Oh… that guy… yeah." Zenitsu replied
Meanwhile, outside the academy, two girls were sitting on a bench. One was playing with her phone, while the other was talking.
"…and then he told me and Rui to clean up the broken window!" she said
"…" the other girl just listened, with an annoyed expression
"And Rui was so good at cleaning!"
"…"
"And while we were cleaning up the broken glass, he even told me to be careful!"
"…"
"And… and… while we were doing that… our hands touched by accident!" the girl said while blushing
"…"
"And that was the time, I realized that-" the girl continued talking, while the other girl was still playing with her phone
"Please… Please… Please make this stop…" the other girl thought to herself, as her eye twitched
The two were once again Mukago and Rui's sister. As always, Mukago did the talking while the sister listened to her. Luckily for her, a voice could be heard.
"Excuse me! Ayaki!" said Tanjiro
"OH MY GOD, THANK YOU! Uhm… I mean… I like chatting with you, but I need to go. Sorry, see you later!" said the sister as she got up and waved at Mukago
"Oh! Sure! See you later!" Mukago replied with a smile and also got up, walking away
After making sure that Mukago was out of sight, the sister faced Tanjiro and Zenitsu.
"Ugh… I don't mind talking with her… but all the talking about my stupid brother makes me want to punch her… Anyway, what's up?" she said, to which Tanjiro laughed
"I need to talk with you, it's important! Oh, by the way, this is my friend, Zenitsu!" said Tanjiro
"Hello." said Zenitsu
"Oh… hello." the sister replied and looked at Tanjiro again
"The thing is, we wanted to ask you if you would like to join the pharmacy department!" Tanjiro explained
"…" the sister just stared at him with a blank expression
"…"
"…huh?" the sister mumbled, as she tried to process his words
"We spoke with your friend, Shinobu, and she said that she would love it if you could join the pharmacy department!" Tanjiro added
Hearing that, the sister's eye twitched.
"Friend?" she said in disbelief
"Yes!" Tanjiro said with a smile
"…ehm… how do I say this and be nice? Well… how about this? No way in hell am I joining the pharmacy department with that freak." the sister replied, with a serious expression
"What? Aren't you two friends?" Tanjiro asked concerned
"NO! That girl is just a weirdo that keeps bugging me every day, asking me to join her stupid pharmacy department!" the sister explained
"Well… even if you don't like her, she would love to have you there. You could just join for fun and hang out with the other members." Zenitsu suggested
"There are no other members! We would be the only ones! And I don't give a crap about alchemy or… whatever that it is that she is doing!" the sister explained
Tanjiro and Zenitsu looked at each other concerned, as they realized that this is going to be way harder than expected.
"And if I join, she would just use me as her lab rat! Trying all kinds of different potions and poisons on me! And one day she would kill me!" the sister added
"…" Tanjiro didn't say anything, he just thought about it
"…" Zenitsu just stared at her
After not getting a response from the two, the sister spoke up.
"If that's that… I am going. Sorry, but I am not doing it."
"How about we make a deal?" Tanjiro asked
"A deal? Sure, give me a bag of donuts from your bakery once per week and I join… haha." the sister said mockingly
"Deal!" Tanjiro replied with a smile
"…"
"…"
"What…?" the sister asked confused
"If you join the pharmacy department, then I give you a bag of donuts once per week for free! Every week from now on, until the end of the year!" Tanjiro explained
"I was kidding… but… are you for real?" the sister asked confused, to which Tanjiro nodded
Thinking about it, the sister didn't know what to say. If she joined the pharmacy department, then she would have to suffer Shinobu, but she would get a bag of donuts for free every week. Only for herself… a whole bag of donuts. For free.
She glanced at Tanjiro and spoke up.
"If I join that stupid pharmacy department, how many times per week would I need to go there?" she asked
"I don't know, you would need to ask Shinobu! But I would guess once or twice per week?" Tanjiro replied
Thinking about what to do, the sister pointed at Tanjiro.
"One bag of donuts. Once per week. For the rest of the year." she said
"Deal!" he replied with a smile and shook her hand
"Ugh… I can't believe I am actually doing this… If I die, tell my brother that he can't have my room." she said and shook her head in disbelief
Hearing her response, both of them smiled
"We did it!" Zenitsu said with a smile
"Yes!" Tanjiro replied
…
…
…
BACK INSIDE THE PHARMACY DEPARTMENT.
"Aw! You two actually did it!" Shinobu said surprised and with a smile
"I am so glad to have you here! We will have SO much fun together!" she added as she faced the sister
"Yay…" the sister replied annoyed
"I have so many new potions and poisons I would like to try out…" Shinobu said with menacing smile
"…" the sister just stared at her with a blank expression, as she already knew what was in store for her
"But don't worry! I also have many different antidotes! I can't wait to see which ones actually work…" Shinobu added
As Shinobu was thinking about her future endeavors, Tanjiro interrupted her.
"Ehm… Shinobu Senpai?" said Tanjiro
"Oh, right! You need the credits! Of course, here you go!" said Shinobu as she signed their report cards
"Thank you!" Tanjiro replied
"Thanks!" said Zenitsu
After she handed the two their report cards back, she faced the sister again.
"So, let's begin! Are you familiar with wisteria poison, hmmm?" Shinobu asked with a smile as she held a small bottle in her hands
"…" the sister just stared at her with a blank expression
…
…
…
Outside the room, Zenitsu celebrated.
"Finally! We are saved! We have enough credits! Now I can go back to enjoying my life while you can go work again at your bakery!" Zenitsu said with a big smile
"Oh no…" said Tanjiro as he read his report card again
Zenitsu's smile left him again as he heard that.
"WHAT." Zenitsu asked with a murderous expression
"I think I miscalculated…" Tanjiro replied
"…" Zenitsu just stared at him
"We already had enough credits… So we could have stopped a few days ago…" he replied as he glanced at Zenitsu
"…"
"…"
"…" Zenitsu just stared at him, thinking about all the hours he wasted working hard and helping the teachers…
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I wanted to write a chapter about the reason why Tanjiro wasn't present at the bakery the last few chapters. I was thinking about the two helping Kanao, Tengen or Rui, but then I decided to go with Shinobu and Spider Sister! Anyway, I hope you don't mind a chapter outside the bakery! See you next time!
