Chapter 21: Everyday Life…without the Ultimate Hope?!
What's going on ladies and gentlemen; boys and girls; Ultimates of all ages?! It's wesst1 back again, once again and today, oh reader, mine, today, I have some news you might find interesting.
To begin, I need to announce that I have changed my plans, I will in fact be including the Student Council, Ikue, and Asano in the story. Yes, these lucky girls are joining Makoto's harem at a future date, I think I'll mix them in with the V3 girls and the others. It might be a bit of a challenge, but I promise to give it my best shot. I hope I can make something you can all enjoy.
It seems that most people who responded want the lemon story to be unrelated to the island story from last year. I can respect that, so it will be a stand alone AU.
Now, this chapter, and maybe a few others, will be a bit more light-hearted than the others. Will Makoto actually leave the dorm? What will the girls do to keep him? Can they get by without him if he does leave? Did I give away any of the answers in previous chapters?
All this and more will be answered in this chapter, so let's get to it!
Dinner at the dorm was ordinarily a lively affair. That was to be expected really, with so many different people gathered under one roof.
That wasn't the case this evening though, as everyone at the table listened with rapt attention as Naegi told them of his meeting with the Headmaster.
"…and then they made the 'Ultimate Hope' title official. It's kind of embarrassing, it's not like I'm anything special."
A few of the girls chuckled at that, Naegi's obliviousness when it came to how special her really was could be endearing.
"That wasn't all he wanted to talk about though, right?" Enoshima asked, reminding Naegi what he told her on their way back to the dorm.
"I was offered a position at Hope's Peak after graduation. Headmaster Kirigiri said he thinks I could be headmaster myself one day," Naegi added.
*Clang*
When Sonia heard that, she dropped her utensils and almost began to cry. "But Darling, how can we rule Novoselic together if you become the headmaster?" Sonia couldn't believe it. Did she do something wrong? Did her Darling not care about her?
"I didn't accept, I told him I'd need time to think about it. Hope's Peak is going to be going through some major changes soon, after all," Naegi said hurriedly. Naegi didn't bother to correct Sonia on the other point. I can't exactly say with certainty that I'll be ruling Novoselic either but telling Sonia-senpai that right now seems…counterproductive, Naegi thought.
Just as Sonia was calming down, Kirigiri made a point that the others would have preferred to ignore. "That's probably for the best. We still don't know if there will be a Hope's Peak Academy two years from now, much less when my father retires."
Everyone knew Kirigiri didn't bring that up out of malice. She was a realist and that was a very real fear that the entire student body was feeling right now. Hope's Peak was in a precarious position right now. The school needed to try to prove that it was deserving of the second chance it got, and if it failed it would get shut down and the staff and students would be forced to go their separate ways.
Attempting to dispel the gloomy mood, Naegi decided to continue talking about his meeting with Headmaster Kirigiri. "There was one more thing Headmaster Kirigiri wanted to discuss, something about the living situation. He didn't get a chance to elaborate though. It's my fault really, I was late, and he had other appointments. I have another meeting with him next week to discuss it," Naegi told the girls.
It didn't exactly have the girls smiling, but Naegi had managed to get rid of the dark cloud hanging over everyone's head. At first at least.
During the meal, some of the girls were disappointed that Naegi wouldn't be taking care of the dorm anymore if he was placed with the boys. It wasn't the worst thing in the world, the had to admit, but still, they had grown accustomed to Naegi handling things for them. Some of the girls decided to try to shake the rust off starting tomorrow, while others needed to see if they could manage without Naegi at the dorm at all.
After dinner and after thinking it over, the girls thought that if Naegi's living situation changed, he would finally be free to date. As more and more of the girls came to that conclusion, the mood at the dorm brightened up considerably, with the exception of one idol and one teacher, who suddenly found themselves falling behind the others in the race to win the affections of the lucky student. They would have to make him fall for them in the next seven days.
However, soon that feeling of dread spread from those two to the rest of the dorm just before lights out. It seemed that in their excitement, the other girls overlooked a very real possibility until they were alone in the dark with an even darker thought. He might not choose me!
Sunday
Naegi was stirring after a restful night. He needed to get up soon and prepare for both his day and for breakfast. At least, that's how his day would have started. Instead, he was treated to the smell of something burning.
His eyes shot open, and he sat straight up. What's burning?! Is everyone alright? Is the dorm on fire?
Naegi didn't have to wait very long to get an answer to these questions as his door opened. I always forget to lock that door, he thought as he saw Mioda walk in with a tray of…something. Whatever it was, it was clear that it was the source of the burning smell.
"Good morning, Makoto-chan! Ibuki made you breakfast in bed! Actually, in was in the kitchen, but Ibuki brought it for you to eat in bed," Mioda said with bright smile. Naegi had to admit, Mioda looked adorable with her pink and blue, split down the middle apron over her normal clothes. He wondered if she made that herself too.
"That was nice of you, Mioda-senpai. What's on the menu?" Naegi asked. It was a serious question as he couldn't recognize anything on the tray.
"Ibuki made steamed rice, miso soup, grilled fish, with tsukemono on the side!" Mioda chirped happily.
Naegi listened to Mioda but when she pointed to the food all he could see was burnt mess number one, two, three, and four, not that he would ever say that out loud. "I guess I'll start with miso soup." It was less a matter of anything looking appetizing and more morbid curiosity about how Mioda burned what was supposed to be a clear soup. His curiosity increased when instead of a bowl, Mioda placed a large plate in front of him. His confusion must have been obvious because Mioda began to frown.
"Ibuki knows it looks terrible. Ibuki just wanted to show Makoto-chan what she can do," Mioda said sadly.
In response to that, Naegi picked up his spoon and began eating. Once he swallowed, he smiled a shaky smile and said, "Yummy!" It wasn't, but she didn't need to know that. If it made Mioda happy, Naegi couldn't care less about the consequences.
It worked. Mioda's smile was brighter than the sun. Naegi couldn't help but notice how beautiful Mioda's smile was in that moment.
Naegi finished his meal, and if his blurring vision and the pain in his stomach were any indication, his meal had every intention of finishing him.
Once Naegi had completely lost consciousness, Mioda shouted, "Hold on, Makoto-chan! Ibuki will get Mikan-chan!"
Tsumiki's morning had gotten off to an interesting start. Stomach aches were a common complaint in many schools, particularly when exams were involved, but even the real cases were simple enough for her to resolve. Not so much today though.
When Tsumiki had seen Mioda in the kitchen, she hadn't really thought much of it. At least not until she smelled smoke. There was no fire, just burning food. Tsumiki figured she should prepare herself for the poor victim of Mioda's culinary exploits. She didn't have to wait long, as Pekoyama had volunteered to fall on that particular sword.
"I think I'm dying," Pekoyama had managed to get out before she collapsed from pain. Tsumiki was glad that Owari had offered to carry Pekoyama to the infirmary, she doubted she could carry the swordswoman herself.
One stomach pump and a pack of crackers later and Pekoyama was no longer in pain, but Tsumiki advised her to rest for a while.
I wonder who Mioda-san was making that for…Beloved! Tsumiki realized. She got up to return to the dorm and warn Naegi, but then she stopped. If he ate that food, he'd end up in the infirmary. If he was in the infirmary, he would have to spend time with her. She needed to get ready.
Tsumiki was proven right when Ogami had brought an unconscious Naegi to the infirmary. Once again, she got the stomach pump and intubated Naegi to protect his airway before getting to work.
The procedure was over quickly enough, but Naegi didn't seem to be waking up anytime soon. What kind of ingredients was Mioda-san using? Tsumiki wondered as the symptoms she was seeing went beyond normal food poisoning.
Tsumiki checked to see if the coast was clear before she crouched down and reached under Naegi's bed. Whatever it was she was looking for, she couldn't find it.
"Looking for something?" Pekoyama asked.
Tsumiki jumped to her feet. How did I forget about Pekoyama-san? she asked herself. As she turned and guiltily faced Pekoyama, Tsumiki found the item she was looking for in Pekoyama's hands, a sledgehammer.
"As a former yakuza bodyguard, I have a decent idea of what you were planning," Pekoyama said.
Tsumiki whimpered.
Pekoyama sighed and said, "I should tell him, but I won't."
Tsumiki looked at her in confusion.
"I admit, that in my weaker moments, I've thought of ways to always keep him near me," Pekoyama said with a red face. "As your friend, I know you didn't have it easy. And I know what people will do when they don't want to be separated from someone important. Just promise to never harm Naegi-sama and I'll forget this."
Tsumiki nodded tearfully but happily.
Pekoyama gave a warm smile. She didn't exactly blame Tsumiki. She didn't want to be separated from Naegi either, not after everything that happened to her. Her life regained purpose thanks to Naegi and the more time she spent with him, the more clearly she understood her own budding feelings for the boy.
Tsumiki, meanwhile, remembered something important. Right! A nurse doesn't hurt her patients, she comforts them! With that in mind, Tsumiki crawled into bed with Naegi cuddled. She made sure the right side of his head was nestled against her chest.
A vein appeared on Pekoyama's forehead. I wish I had thought of that first. Well, even if Naegi-sama doesn't need me as a weapon, I suppose it's alright if I act as his security blanket, she thought. With that, Pekoyama crawled into the infirmary bed, set her glasses on a nearby table, and mirrored Tsumiki as she cuddled with Naegi's left side.
"Mmm, Beloved," Tsumiki sighed happily as she fell asleep.
"Naegi-sama," Pekoyama whispered as she to drifted off to sleep.
A half-hour later, Naegi woke up and once he realized his position, he stammered out a question. "W-w-what a-are you two doing?"
Once Naegi had untangled himself from Pekoyama and Tsumiki, tracked down Mioda, and managed to convince her that he was alive and not a zombie, he stopped by Souda's workshop. The Ultimate Mechanic was fixing the dorm's vacuum and he had assured Naegi that it would be done today. Souda assured the younger student it would only be a few more minutes and he asked Naegi to take a seat.
Naegi was more than happy to relax for a few minutes. Between waking up in the middle of two beautiful senpai and being felt-up by another in an attempt to see if he still had warm blood in his body, and boy, was he feeling that blood in one particular part of his body in both of those situations, Naegi felt he needed to calm down.
As if on cue, a cup of green tea was placed in front of him. Naegi turned to thank whoever it was who put it there and came face to face with…was that Sonia? Naegi wasn't sure, the girl in front of him was wearing a pink kimono, geta sandals, and had her hair in a nihongami style complete with "wings" and topknot.
"Sonia-senpai?" Naegi asked.
The girl bowed and said, "Forgive me for not announcing my presence earlier, Darling, but I am not to speak until spoken to."
That's Sonia-senpai alright, only she would commit to…whatever it is she's trying to do that much. I hope that particular part doesn't last though, Naegi concluded. "I have to admit, you look good as a yamato nadeshiko, but how did you find a stylist today?"
"Class 76 has an Ultimate Hairstylist. They said they were more than happy to work on my hair," Sonia said.
Fair enough, working on a princess's hair is a pretty helpful thing to put on your resume, Naegi thought as he drank the tea. It was bitter, but cold. "Sonia-senpai, how long have you had this cup of tea?" Naegi asked.
"I made it early this morning. I would have given it to you at breakfast until Mioda-san said you required immediate medical attention," Sonia explained. Naegi didn't miss the pride in Sonia's voice when she said that she had made this tea.
*Clang*
"SONIA-SAN!" Souda wailed as he finished work and finally noticed Sonia. He couldn't understand why Sonia would go so far for Naegi. Yamato nadeshiko didn't particularly appeal to Souda, but that wasn't the point! Why was a princess serving some lucky bastard tea?
Seeing no good way out of this, Naegi decided to bite the bullet and ask, "Is-is the vacuum fixed, Souda-senpai?"
All emotion left Souda's face at that question before he answered. "Yeah. Yeah, it's ready. I fixed that suction problem that you mentioned. Hope you like it."
"Uhh, I'm sure I will," Naegi said as he went over to Souda's workbench to grab the vacuum cleaner. Naegi set the vacuum in the upright position before picking it up and asking Sonia, "Would you like to come back to the dorm with me, Senpai?"
"I would be glad to accompany you, Naegi-kun," Sonia answered.
"Let's go," Naegi said as he and Sonia set off for the dorm. Right away, Naegi noticed something was wrong. Sonia was not walking beside him. Did she change her mind? Naegi wondered. He had heard her sandals though. Naegi looked behind him and saw Sonia trying to catch up to him. "Are you alright, Senpai?" Naegi asked.
"I believe I understand why a traditional Japanese woman walks behind a man. These sandals are 'totally killing' my feet," Sonia explained.
"I don't know if that's true, but why are you doing this, Senpai?" Naegi asked. While he found Sonia's commitment to the role cute, some of the more…outdated concepts that went with it conflicted with many of Naegi's own values and his belief in chivalry.
"I wanted to show that I can be a beautiful and elegant woman in the traditional Japanese sense," Sonia explained. While that was partly true, she was more interested in showing Naegi that she was his perfect match by any cultural standard.
"You're already a beautiful and elegant woman, Senpai. You don't need to prove it. Yamato nadeshiko is charming in its own way, but I think I like Sonia-senpai as her natural self the best. And to be honest, 'the whole not speaking until spoken to', and 'walking behind the man' makes me feel uncomfortable. Maybe it's weird for someone like me to say this to a princess, but at school we're equals, aren't we?" Naegi asked.
*Doki Doki!*
Darling…you always know just what to say, Sonia thought with a blush on her face. While many people wouldn't have thought much of it, many people weren't the princess of Novoselic who dreamed of being treated like a normal, Japanese, teenage girl.
"Are you able to make it back to the dorm with those sandals?" Naegi asked.
"It may be difficult, but I think I will be alright," Sonia said.
"I could carry you, if you want. It might have to be piggyback with this vacuum and all, but it shouldn't be too much trouble," Naegi suggested.
Sonia had stars in her eyes as she nodded furiously.
Crouching down, Naegi motioned for Sonia to get on. Once she was in position, he stood up, managed to pick up the vacuum, and headed back to the dorm.
Sonia leaned into her Darling's back, unable to remember the last time she had felt so happy.
Once Naegi and Sonia returned to the dorm, Sonia went off to her room to put her normal clothes back on. Naegi thought he heard her ask if he would like to help her change, but he told her he needed to vacuum. With a cute pout, the Princess left the common area. Naegi had to admit that it was a tempting offer, but he was feeling overstimulated today already. Pekoyama and Tsumiki had seen to that.
As Naegi plugged in the vacuum and stood up, he saw Saionji there with the vacuum handle in her hands. "I-I can do this, Naegi-nii," Saionji said.
"Are you sure, Saionji-senpai? I really don't mind cleaning. I did agree to do it at the start of the year," Naegi reminded her.
"I know, but you deserve a break every once in a while. I'm someone who looks out for her servants," Saionji told him.
"Well, I guess I still feel a little sick from this morning. Just be careful with that," Naegi cautioned.
"I'm not helpless you know! If I need to, I can take care of other people!" an embarrassed Saionji shouted.
"I know. I'm sorry," Naegi said before he sat on the nearest couch and leaned back. He felt something…soft.
He turned his head and found that he had leaned back into Enoshima's breasts. When did she get here? No, forget that! "Sorry, Enoshima-san!" Naegi said as he tried to get up. "Tried" being the key word as Enoshima wrapped her arms around him.
"Don't be," Enoshima said simply.
"B-but I-I…" Naegi stammered.
"Let go of him, bimbo!" Saionji ordered.
"No! Onii-chan is going to be spending time with Junko-chan!" Cutesy Enoshima argued.
"E-enoshima-san, w-we r-really sh-shouldn't," Naegi stuttered.
"Shh! Just relax. Relax on Junko-sensei's chest," Professor Enoshima told him.
Be careful, Junko-chan, I don't think it's healthy for him to be that red, Ryoko warned.
"I said let go!" Saionji shouted as she marched over to the couch.
"Don't you have something to do? You did tell Naegi-kun you would vacuum for him, didn't you? Are you a liar, Senpai? That's really depressing that you would lie about something so simple," Depressed Enoshima told the older girl.
Saionji grit her teeth. As much as she wanted to get Enoshima off of Naegi, she had said she would take care of this. Maybe if she was lucky, the noise would drive Enoshima away.
Naegi continued struggling to escape Enoshima, but it didn't do much good. He saw that while Saionji was distracted, part of her kimono got under one of the vacuum's rollers. "Saionji-senpai, wait, before you turn that on-"
*Rrrrriiippp!* *Crash!*
Souda had done something about the suction on the vacuum alright. It was so strong that two things happened. Naegi had expected Saionji's kimono to get caught in the vacuum. He had not expected the vacuum to tear it off completely and still be strong enough to pull itself forward into the nearest wall. Naegi's eyes went from the damaged wall to Saionji, who was standing in her underwear, still trying to process what had happened. It didn't take long.
"EEEEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKK!" Saionji shrieked as she attempted to cover herself.
Naegi attempted to turn away and got a full view of Enoshima's cleavage. "AHHHHHHHH!" Naegi said as he passed out, the morning's stimulation having been too much for him.
Enoshima couldn't help but laugh. Looking on the bright side was new to her, but if there was a bright side, it was at least Naegi's nose hadn't started bleeding until Enoshima had laid him down on the couch by himself.
Naegi came to about two hours later, and the first thing on his mind was, What is going on with the girls? He didn't have time to ponder that too much, as Maizono sat down next to him.
"So, Naegi-kun, did you have a nice nap?" Maizono asked with an edge in her voice.
"I don't know if fainting is the same as taking a nap, Maizono-san, but I suppose it was nice to wake up and not be in a compromising position," a semiconscious Naegi said.
Maizono, who had already been annoyed with Enoshima's bragging about having Naegi, in Enoshima's words, "entering the world of dreams on her perfect breasts," knew she would regret asking this. "What do you mean 'compromising position'?"
So, Naegi recapped his day for Maizono. Naegi thought he imagined it, but he swore that the temperature in the room dropped throughout the story.
Maizono was pissed! How dare the others get so familiar with Naegi! It was cheating! And if she was honest, she hated that she hadn't thought of any of it herself. Well, I can't throw myself at him thanks to my idol career, I never know when I'm being watched, but I can at least dote on him, Maizono thought, not that she knew where to start with her idea.
As if to answer her question, Naegi's stomach began to growl. Guess I shouldn't be surprised. It's getting close to lunchtime and after getting my stomach pumped, all I've had in it is Sonia-senpai's green tea.
"I can make us lunch if you'd like?" Maizono offered, not willing to let this opportunity slip by.
"I can help," Naegi offered.
"After everything you've been through, you should probably relax. Maizono Sayaka-chan is on it!" was Maizono's enthusiastic reply.
"If you insist," Naegi said. He would have pushed the issue a little more, but he still felt a little off. It didn't help that certain memories from this morning kept entering his mind and distracting him. He probably shouldn't be working near open flames or with sharp objects at the moment.
"You stay here, I'll call you when everything is ready," Maizono told him as she dashed off towards the kitchen.
An hour later, and Maizono finally called Naegi for lunch. Naegi had thought that given how long it had taken that Maizono was making something special, but what he hadn't expected was a four-course meal for lunch. An appetizer of hiyayakko, a large salad, a large serving of tonkatsu, and a large stack of manju. Naegi didn't think anything of it at first, but soon realized that there was a problem.
"Maizono-san, there's only one place set at the table," Naegi pointed out.
"Oh, I ate before you woke up. I eat lunch early when I can. It helps when you have a demanding schedule," Maizono explained.
"I guess that makes sense. Although, I wonder if you overdid it if I'm the only one eating," Naegi said sheepishly.
"I-I really worked hard on this for you," Maizono said as she began to tear up.
"No, no, I'm more than happy to eat, I just am afraid that I can't eat it all. It all looks so good, it would be criminal to waste any," Naegi said hurriedly as he sat down.
"Don't worry, Naegi-kun, I'm sure once you taste it, you won't be able to stop until it's all gone," Maizono said as she sat down in next to Naegi and grabbed his utensils.
"Maizono-san?" Naegi asked.
Instead of replying, Maizono took a bit of the hiyayakko and said, "Say 'Ah!' Naegi-kun!"
"M-maizono-san, I ah-" as Naegi fumbled with his words, Maizono took the opportunity to put some of the appetizer in his mouth. He had to agree with Maizono, after tasting her food, he didn't want to stop eating it. "This is really good, Maizono-san, but I can feed myself you know," Naegi said, no one was around, but he still managed to be embarrassed.
Seeing Maizono both glare and pout at him, Naegi said, "On the other hand, being fed by Maizono Sayaka isn't something to be turned down."
With a smile, Maizono continued to feed Naegi. Naegi felt overstuffed afterwards, but to make Maizono happy, he figured it was a small price to pay.
Naegi was glad that the girls had given him his space for the rest of the day, he didn't think he could handle much more of…whatever it was that was going on. He felt bad for thinking that way, he knew they didn't mean any harm and some of it was just bad luck. And I really have no business complaining about others having bad luck, Naegi reasoned. He knew that, but he still enjoyed the space he was getting when he had made dinner and finished cleaning up afterwards.
Once Naegi was done with that, he headed to the common area and saw Kirigiri on the couch, looking over some files.
"Kirigiri-san?"
Kirigiri perked up when she heard Naegi and greeted him. "Good evening, Naegi-kun. I'm just looking over something my father asked me to look into. When it was discovered that the Steering Committee was selling student research on the black market, just about every law enforcement agency in Japan was tasked looking into that. They're hoping to gather evidence on some of the more elusive organizations operating in the country."
"Makes sense, I suppose. Don't you usually do this in your room though? Not that I'm not happy to run into you, but wouldn't you be more likely to get distracted down here?" Naegi asked.
"I've been a little stuck and thought a change in my surroundings might help," Kirigiri explained. That, and I was waiting for you, not that you need to know that, Kirigiri thought.
"Has it? If I can help, don't be afraid to ask," Naegi offered.
"I think I'd like that," Kirigiri said with a small smile as she patted the seat next to her. Everything was going according to plan for her.
Naegi sat down and Kirigiri handed him a file. As Naegi was looking through it he felt a weight on his shoulder. Kirigiri was leaning her head on his shoulder! "K-Kirigiri-san, wh-what are you-?" a red-faced Naegi stuttered.
"I haven't looked over that one yet, I'm glad we can look over it together," Kirigiri answered.
"I am too, b-but isn't this a little…intimate?" Naegi asked.
"Why? Am I distracting you, Naegi-kun?" Kirigiri asked as she snuggled into his shoulder.
"N-no, I just-,"
"Good. Now, let's get back to work," Kirigiri said happily.
Naegi wasn't sure what game Kirigiri was playing, but it was pretty obvious that she beat him. Well, if it helps her then it's fine, Naegi reasoned as he went back to looking for clues. After a while he thought he heard purring. Oddly enough, Miyabi and Grand Bois were nowhere to be found.
Monday
Naegi woke up the next morning feeling a bit tense. Between getting sick and all the attention he was getting yesterday, it made sense that he would be a little on guard. He hated feeling that way, it's not like Mioda meant to make him sick and the others were only trying to be nice. Still, he was reminded of a particular saying about good intentions and the road they pave.
Compared to that, his current problem was barely an inconvenience. As he was cleaning up after breakfast for the dorm, Naegi noticed that his hair kept getting in his eyes. Thankfully, it hadn't been long enough to get in the food, but it had become rather shaggy.
"Do you need help, Naegi-kun?"
"Hmm?" Naegi turned to find Asahina in the kitchen doorway. "Oh, Asahina-san. I'm okay, but my bangs are making it hard to see clearly. I guess I need to go see a barber," Naegi explained.
"It's a good thing I came to check on you then. I cut Yuta's hair a lot back home, I can cut yours too! I can do it this evening," Asahina said excitedly.
"Are you sure? It would save me a trip back home to my usual barber shop, but if you have other things to do later…" Naegi did find the offer tempting. It beat having to rework his schedule this weekend. I probably should have found someone close to the school, but at the beginning of the year, one trip a month to the barber back home didn't seem like a big deal. Granted, I've gotten much busier since then, Naegi thought.
"It's no problem at all! I can do it before dinner! Oh, I should check to see if I have everything now, just in case! "Asahina exclaimed as she ran out of the kitchen.
"Hmm, I never would have guessed that Asahina-san knew how to cut hair," Naegi said to himself as he got back to washing dishes. Wait…Yuta-kun and Asahina-san are both athletes. Is Asahina-san going to shave my hair off! She really does like Jason Statham. I can't do a buzzcut! No, no Asahina-san wouldn't do that without my permission. It'll be fine, Naegi attempted to convince himself. Asahina always gave 110%, Naegi just hoped she'd give him the trim he asked for.
Naegi's attempts to convince himself failed, but he couldn't bring himself to break his appointment with Asahina either. She had just been so excited when she said she'd cut his hair. What's the worst that can happen? Even the worst barbers on the planet can't prevent hair from growing back. Besides, no one here will make fun of me. Even if they do, I'm sure Kimura-senpai can make something to regrow my hair if the worst should happen, Naegi told himself. Before Naegi could dwell on the subject further, someone picked him up, threw him over their shoulder, and began to carry him. To where, he didn't know.
Naegi tried to put what Kirigiri taught him the previous night to use to deduce the identity of his kidnapper. From what he could see, they had long, tan legs; were wearing a red mini skirt; and had a shapely… he probably didn't need to note that last part to figure out who was carrying him.
"Owari-senpai, where are we going?" Naegi asked as he tried not to stare at what he could see of Owari.
"There's a gymnastics competition over summer break and the Old Man has won't let anyone fight me if I don't train for it. Since you were asking me about it a few months ago and since I don't want to train by myself, I wanted you to watch," Owari explained.
I guess that makes some sense. I would like to see the Ultimate Gymnast in action. Still, it would have been nice if she asked, Naegi thought. "Owari-senpai, could you put me down?" he asked.
"It's faster if I carry you," Owari said as she picked up speed as she ran towards the gym.
Naegi couldn't argue with that, but he could have done without the increasingly bumpy ride on Owari's shoulder.
Naegi did what he could to set the gym up for Owari to practice. He volunteered for that job when Owari had tried to bring him into the girls' locker room, tempting though that offer was. Owari's lack of shame was going to get him in trouble one day, he felt certain of that.
"I'm ready to go!" Owari announced as she exited the locker room.
Naegi turned to look at her and immediately turned away. Her leotard left nothing to the imagination.
Owari had changed into a leotard the same color as Naegi's jacket and the poor outfit's material was being pushed to its limit. That was intentional on Owari's part. I just wish it wasn't so hard to breathe in this thing. I hate training in this outfit, but if I don't follow the rules, I can't get money for the lil' ones. And it seems to have gotten Naegi-kun's attention, Owari thought with a sly smile.
Owari made sure that Naegi had a full view of her dynamic stretching before she got started training for the competition. I think I remember hearing that guys like flexible girls, seems Naegi-kun does at least, Owari said to herself.
Naegi got a bit of a break when Owari went through her routine for the competition. At the moment at least, Owari couldn't go overboard showing off her curves without sabotaging herself. Whether it was her competitive spirit or her love for her siblings, she was focused on her floor routine, her vaulting, and the uneven bars over seducing Naegi.
Naegi's reprieve ended soon as Owari began to do some static stretches. Owari-senpai sure has a nice…range of motion, yeah, that's it! Naegi thought as he tried to think of anything else besides Owari in her leotard.
That poor fabric was not going to survive. As much as Naegi hated to admit it, if he was honest with himself, part of Naegi was looking forward to that.
"Naegi-kun, can you help me? Stretching can be more effective if done in pairs!" Owari said.
Naegi did as Owari asked and began to help her stretch, but soon his luck reared its ugly head. As the two were stretching their hips, although to anyone just entering the gym it might have looked like they were trying a fusion dance, a loud sound echoed throughout the gym.
*RRRRRIIIIPPPPPPP!*
Owari's outfit had finally given out and tore along the side. As it fell to the floor in between the two, Naegi couldn't help but notice that Owari had not been wearing underwear.
With all the willpower he could muster, Naegi removed his jacket and passed it to Owari before passing out and experiencing yet another nosebleed.
After putting on her normal clothes, Owari made sure to take Naegi back to his dorm room. She also made sure to continue to wear his jacket for the rest of the day, much to the annoyance of her rivals.
Naegi regained consciousness once classes ended for the day. As Naegi took in his surroundings, he noticed that he was back in his room. I guess Owari-senpai brought me back here after…down boy! Are classes over for today? Naegi wondered. He hoped he hadn't missed anything important, and he also hoped that this wouldn't become a pattern for the rest of the week. Think unsexy thoughts, Makoto! Naegi told himself. Easier said than done considering his living situation.
*Knock! Knock!*
"Coming!" Naegi said as he opened his dorm room door. Standing in the hallway was Asahina with a school bag in one hand and electric hair clippers in the other.
"Ready for your haircut, Naegi-kun?" Asahina asked.
Naegi would have agreed if he wasn't so focused on the electric clippers in Asahina's hand. "W-what are you going to do with that?" Naegi asked nervously as he tried to protect his hair.
Asahina was taken aback by how nervous Naegi was before she followed his line of sight. "Oh! No this is for the back of your neck!" Asahina attempted to reassure Naegi.
"You're not going to cut it short?" Naegi asked timidly.
"Not unless you want me too. Don't you trust me, Naegi-kun?" Asahina asked, sounding hurt.
Naegi calmed down and said, "I'm sorry, Asahina-san. I do trust you. It's been a crazy two days and I guess I'm just on edge."
"Why don't you sit down and tell me all about it," Asahina said as she set the school bag on the table and pulled out scissors and a comb.
Naegi placed a chair in in the middle of his room and grabbed a towel to wrap around himself. "Well, it all started yesterday morning…" Naegi began as Asahina got to work on his hair.
The trim went well. Naegi would even call it relaxing. Although when Naegi told Asahina about Pekoyama, Tsumiki, Enoshima, Saionji, Kirigiri, and Owari, Asahina did pull on his hair a little hard. Naegi also had to keep from squirming when Asahina pressed her chest against his back. On the whole though, it was what Asahina had promised, and Naegi certainly enjoyed it.
When she had finished, Asahina grabbed a mirror out of the school bag and asked Naegi, "What do you think?"
Naegi looked and he thought that Asahina had done a good job for her first time cutting his hair. She cut it a bit short, probably for summer, but he had no complaints. His hair was still fluffy and his ahoge was still standing proudly.
"I like it! You did a great job, Asahina-san," Naegi answered after taking in Asahina's work.
"I-I'm glad you like it, Naegi-kun," Asahina replied.
"Do you mind if I ask you to do this again? Do you take walk-ins or is it appointments only?" The first question was serious, but Naegi couldn't help but make that joke.
"For you, Dahling, I'll cut your hair whenever you want," Asahina joked back, feeling a little bolder.
"I'm very well may hold you to that, Asahina-san, but for now, is there anything I can do for you?" Naegi asked.
"It's fine, Naegi-kun. You don't need to repay me," Asahina said with a blush.
"I want to, though. How about we have your favorite for dinner? Would that be okay?" Naegi asked
"I-if you insist," Asahina answered, Naegi's offer being too tempting to turn down.
Owari might have gotten Naegi's jacket for the day, but she didn't get Naegi to make her favorite meal for dinner. While the girls glared at Owari throughout the meal, Owari was glaring at Asahina, something that the Ultimate Swimmer thought made the food that much tastier.
Tuesday
Naegi was happy that the next morning had gone smoothly, he hoped that the rest of the week went that way, he would need it to if he wanted to make up for lost time. He must have been making his concerns obvious, because the girls had stopped eating breakfast to look at him.
"Naegi-kun, are you alright?" Celes asked.
"Hmm? Oh, I'm fine, Celes-san. I'm just thinking. I'm a little behind on my chore list," Naegi explained.
Some of the girls hung their heads at this. Most of them knew that their attempts to help or impress Naegi had backfired and left him unconscious for long periods of time. The few that didn't were more than eager to offer help.
"Could we help?" Nanami asked.
"I feel bad asking," Naegi admitted.
"I'm not the kind of lady who would refuse to help her knight, what can I do?" Celes asked.
"Well, I try to break up the laundry so I can do it over the course of the week, but I need to do a few loads to make up for lost time. If someone could help with that and the ironing it would help a great deal," Naegi explained.
"I can wash clothes…I think?" Nanami offered and wondered.
"I can iron them," Celes announced.
"I can handle dinner," Maizono said.
"I can clean up afterwards," Kirigiri added.
More offers followed and Naegi was grateful for it. It felt like a great weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. Still, Naegi couldn't help but feel uneasy, but he thought that maybe he was just being paranoid from the events of the previous days.
In the morning, Naegi and Nanami were in laundry room with Naegi starting a few loads of laundry to walk Nanami through the process. Around lunch, they returned with Naegi walking her through how to work the dryers. Once classes ended, Naegi grabbed the clothes from the dryers, switched loads and started new ones.
"Usually, I try to keep everyone's clothes separate, luckily, we have multiple washers and dryers to work with, but for the uniforms, well, to get a full load they all have to go together. I wrote down all the settings for the machines for everyone's clothes, and I taped it to the walk by the door. Are you sure you're okay to do this, Senpai?" Naegi asked.
Nanami puffed out her cheeks in frustration at the question. "I've done laundry loads of times!" Nanami loudly insisted.
"Alright, alright. I believe you," Naegi said in an attempt to pacify Nanami. When she finished pouting, Naegi grabbed a basket of clothes and said, " I had better take these uniforms to Celes-san. I'll be back to pick up the rest in a few minutes and then I'll leave you to it." And with that, he left.
Once she was by herself, Nanami decided to kill time by playing a game. "The Virts" was an old favorite of hers and it was better than any notebook as far as household chores was concerned, if you asked Nanami, at least.
*Ding!*
*Buzz!*
Nanami didn't know how much time had passed but looked up from her game when a washer and dryer finished at roughly the same time. Nanami was impressed that Naegi had timed them so well. As Nanami switched loads she checked both Naegi's note and her game. "Okay I have the proper settings for my things, but how much detergent do I need?" Nanami asked.
While Nanami had been waiting for the washers and dryers to finish, Naegi had been helping Celes get set up so that she could iron the school uniforms.
"I can't thank you enough for this, Celes-san," Naegi said to his classmate.
"It is no trouble, Naegi-kun. A proper lady should help her knight," Celes assured him.
"Even so, you volunteered for a job that even throws me off sometimes," Naegi told her.
"What do you mean? Ironing clothes is simple enough, no?" Celes asked.
"Ordinarily, yes. But sometimes sorting the school uniforms by student can get a bit confusing," Naegi said as he held up two uniform jackets. "It took me forever to notice the differences between your jacket," Naegi said as he waved the jacket in his left hand, "and Ikusaba's jacket," Naegi finished as he waved the jacket in his right hand.
Celes couldn't really tell the difference at first glance. After a while she noticed that Ikusaba's jacket was slightly longer. With a small cough to mask her initial confusion, Celes asked, "How do you differentiate between the uniforms?"
"Well, as you saw, you and Ikusaba-san share the same jacket width but not the same length. But there are other ways to tell. You see…" And Naegi listed so many minute details that Celes could hardly keep up.
"Never empties her pockets…blah, blah."
"Mmm hmm," Celes nodded.
"Ogami-san…blah, blah…simple enough."
"Mmm hmm."
"Owari-senpai and Asahina-san…blah, blah…wider, For obvious reasons."
"Mmm hmm."
"Now as for the skirts…blah, blah…"
"Mmm hmm."
This continued for some time before Naegi said, "It took me a while, but I figured it out. You will too, I'm sure."
"Huh? Oh, yes, of course!" Celes agreed after snapping out of her stupor.
"Now, I need to check on Nanami-san and hopefully start folding the rest of the clothes. I'll be nearby if you need me," Naegi said as he left the room.
Once he was gone, Celes took a deep breath to steady herself before getting to work. There is no need to worry. I am quite observant, I will pick up on what uniform belongs to what student quickly enough, Celes assured herself as she ironed her first jacket.
After the first few, Celes began to attempt to sort the ironed jackets. Setting the iron down, she tried to remember what Naegi said.
"This size belongs to…who, exactly?" Celes asked herself. She tried to remember what Naegi had told her but couldn't remember a word of it. She tried her e-handbook, that usually had an unsettling amount of detail about her and her fellow students. Chest size and height! Both helpful to an extent, but that didn't tell her everything.
As minutes passed with no solution to her problem, Celes began to get agitated. "Why the hell are there so many uniforms in the wash? We barely wear the damn things!" Celes screamed as her mask slipped and Yasuhiro Taeko took her place. Had she been able to remain calm, Celes might have noticed the smoke rising from behind her.
As Naegi made his way back to the laundry room, he noticed something disturbing. White foam was coming out from under the door. "Are those soap suds? Oh no!" Naegi said as he threw the door open and found himself up to his waist in suds.
"Nanami-senpai, are you alright?" Naegi asked.
Nanami, who had been in the room, was faring slightly worse than Naegi was. The suds had almost been up to her neck before Naegi had opened the door. At least my handheld is still dry, she thought. "I don't understand. In my game, they always use lots of detergent…I think?" The suds and Nanami being wet made it difficult to tell, but the tone of her voice made Naegi think that Nanami had been crying.
Naegi wanted to tell her that there was a big difference between her game and real life, but he figured that Nanami probably felt bad enough already and simply said, "That's my fault, Senpai. I should have been clearer in the directions. Now, are you able to help me clean this up?"
Nanami nodded and wiped something from her eye, although Naegi still couldn't tell if it had been a tear or some suds. Whatever it was, Naegi pulled her into a hug, both to comfort her and to keep from noticing that the now transparent white shirt under her hoodie had gotten soaked.
As Naegi and Nanami cleaned up, Naegi could swear he smelled something burning. Excusing himself, he went with his first instinct to check the kitchen. Not only did he not have any luck finding the burning smell, Maizono pouted for Naegi even suggesting that she would burn dinner. Maizono did admit that she smelled something burning too, but she couldn't tell where it was coming from.
Naegi went back to his search and found himself near where he had left Celes and the school uniforms. Naegi's fears were confirmed when he opened the door and saw trying to dispose of a uniform and a skirt.
"Celes-san, what happened?" Naegi asked.
Celes hid the burnt clothes behind her back and hastily said, "Nothing is wrong. Why do you ask?"
"Celes-san, I could smell something burning from the laundry room and the smell led me here," Naegi said with a knowing look on his face.
With a sigh, Celes let Yasuhiro Taeko out and said, "No point lying when I've already been caught, but I thought it was worth a shot," as she held up a uniform jacket and skirt with the telltale signs of ironing burns.
"What happened?" Naegi asked again. He wasn't mad, his tone was one of understanding.
"I was trying to match some clothes and I set the iron down instead of standing it up. Next thing I know this happened. I thought I could get rid of these and come up with a convincing story later," Yasuhiro admitted.
"How many did this happen to?" Naegi asked.
"Just this skirt and jacket. After that, I just gave up on trying to match," Yasuhiro admitted.
"You did match. And I don't think you'll be needing that story either. The jacket and skirt are both yours, oddly enough," Naegi told her after a quick examination.
After looking at Naegi and then at the clothes, Yasuhiro began to laugh and then began to cry. She had tried, she really did. And then when things went wrong, she had gotten herself so worked up about it. She had feared looking incompetent in front of the others and in front of Naegi, the latter of which still happened. Now that she realized that she hadn't destroyed someone else's property, even by accident, it became too much for Yasuhiro/Celes.
Before she knew it, Naegi had come over and enveloped her in a hug. "It's okay, m'lady. Accidents happen. Your knight is here for you," Naegi said, playing along with Celes's fantasy.
Once Yasuhiro Taeko had calmed down and decided to put her mask of Celestia Ludenberg back into place, she and Naegi quickly sorted the uniforms and put the whole mess behind them. Naegi had thankfully sorted quickly enough to return and help Nanami in the laundry room and put that mess behind him and Nanami as well.
While Naegi was grateful for their efforts, he suggested that he finish up the laundry himself while the two girls rested up before dinner. After the experience they had, the girls quickly agreed.
Wednesday
Despite a few snags, Naegi had managed to catch up on his chores thanks to the girls' help. Unfortunately, by Thursday, he realized that he was facing another problem. His frequent bouts of unconsciousness earlier in the week had put him behind in his studies and exams were coming up. Thanks to the various assassination attempts, hostage situations, unscheduled vacations, and mass protests, all the students were behind, and their teachers were stuck playing catch up with mixed results.
Naegi had it worse than the other students, but he supposed he couldn't complain. The reasons he had fainted were rather pleasant. Don't think about the Infirmary! Don't think about the vacuum incident! Don't think about Owari-senpai in the gymnasium! He ordered himself as he tried to focus on the notes his classmates loaned him. During his free time during lunch, he decided to try and catch up to the others, even if it was just a bit and so he had gone straight to the library after he finished eating.
"Do you need help, Naegi-kun?"
Naegi looked up to see Yukizome looking at him in concern. "I certainly wouldn't turn down help, Sensei. Notes that my classmates took for themselves can only get me so far," Naegi admitted.
"I can help you, come to my room after dinner and we can have a cram session!" Yukizome offered.
"That would be great. Thank you, Sensei!" Naegi said, his voice full of gratitude.
"It's a date then!" Yukizome exclaimed happily.
"Shhh!" the librarian shushed.
"Sorry," Yukizome said sheepishly.
Later that evening, after Naegi finished cleaning up after dinner, he made his way to Yukizome's room and knocked on her door.
"Come in!" Yukizome called.
"Sensei, I brought everything I'm having trouble with and…" Naegi trailed off. Standing before him was Yukizome but not in her normal outfit. She was wearing her old school uniform and, as Naegi couldn't help but notice, her jacket was open, and her shirt was barely buttoned. She was also wearing fake glasses for some reason, high heels, and she had lacey underwea- Eyes up, Makoto! Naegi told himself.
"I always wanted to do a study date! I even wore my old uniform for the occasion! We have a lot of subjects to cover, so here are my notes from my school days and I have energy drinks ready too!" Yukizome said happily before her expression turned dark and she pinched Naegi's cheek. "And call me Chisa-chan when we're alone, remember," Yukizome reminded him.
"Hai, Chisa-chan," Naegi acquiesced.
"Good boy. Now, let's go at it all night!" Yukizome exclaimed happily as she pumped her fists.
Naegi joined her, but less enthusiastically. Is this really going to be okay? he asked himself.
It went smoothly enough at first, Yukizome's notes had been written like a teacher's lecture making them easy for Naegi to follow and there were even recent additions with even more helpful advice. If Naegi had any complaints, it would be that Yukizome was sitting across from him leaning forward. Meaning her breasts were on the table and not that Naegi would ever ask, but if he had to guess, Yukizome's chest had grown since her school days if her shirt buttons were any indication.
Try as he might, Naegi couldn't help being distracted. Don't look. Yukizome-sensei is helping you. Don't ruin her fun, she doesn't mean to distract you, Naegi told himself.
Little did Naegi know, that was exactly what Yukizome meant to do. Chisa-chan will teach you lots of things, Makoto-kun. Biology. Chemistry. Health, Yukizome ticked off in her mind. She even thought that the tight shirt was worth it, although she didn't plan for it. Yukizome couldn't tell if her chest grew or if it was the results of Naegi's meals, but whatever it was, it was working in her favor at the moment.
*Snap! Snap!*
Okay, maybe not, Yukizome thought as her two top buttons went flying off of her shirt. Both buttons hit Naegi in the forehead, drawing his attention from the notes.
The last thing Naegi noticed was that Yukizome wasn't wearing a bra before darkness took him.
Yukizome sighed and said, "I guess I overstimulated him. I hope you have some nice dreams at least, Naegi-kun." With that, Yukizome pulled her uniform jacket shut and carried Naegi to his room.
Thursday
When Naegi woke up that morning, he thought it would be a good idea to see if Hanamura had been around the dorm. He couldn't help but notice that some of the girls were acting strange and he needed to know if the food was the culprit.
Hanamura denied any wrongdoing, but he had made Naegi a few offers that Naegi wished he could scrub from his memory.
I didn't realize there were so many innuendos involving food. I think I was happier not knowing, Naegi thought. He didn't have time to dwell on it though, he had a promise to keep. With a box in his hand, Naegi went off to find Koizumi.
"Koizumi-senpai, the parts came today. We can get started as soon as you want!" Naegi told his senpai.
"That's great! We can finally fix it," Koizumi acknowledged as she led Naegi to her room. She had been waiting for this ever since she smashed her camera on that man's head to save Saionji. I'm happy we can fix my camera, but I never thought I'd have a boy in my room, Koizumi thought as she blushed.
Parts. Instructions. Tools. The camera. It all looked overwhelming all placed in front of them both.
"Koizumi-senpai, where exactly do we start? I've never fixed a camera before," Naegi admitted.
Koizumi took a deep breath and began to list all the parts of cameras. Naegi had to admit, he might have gotten lost around the time she began to talk about the pentaprism and the half silvered mirror, but he thought he understood.
It wasn't the easiest job Naegi had ever done, but he and Koizumi managed to get the job done. Once the had finished, Naegi felt Koizumi's head on his shoulder as she said, "Practice shots!"
*Click!* *Click!* *Click!*
"People might think those are couple selfies," Naegi half-joked, although he did believe that those pictures would give people that idea.
"If only," Koizumi quietly said to herself.
"Hmm?" Naegi asked.
"I-I said that I only got two of those pictures. The memory card is full," Koizumi hurriedly explained.
"I can get a new one. Where do you keep them?" Naegi asked.
"In that drawer over there," Koizumi pointed out. When she heard Naegi get up, she remembered something. She had recently been keeping some "special pictures" in that drawer. "Wait, Naegi-kun!" Koizumi shouted in an attempt to stop him.
It came too late as Naegi opened the drawer and saw new memory cards but also a large quantity of pictures of himself. "Wow, I didn't think I was that interesting of a subject," Naegi said innocently.
Seeing an out, Koizumi said, "Oh, yeah. You seem to find your way into just about everything. It helps that you have some great reactions."
"I see a lot of these are from this week. This week hasn't exactly been me at my best, has it?" Naegi asked as he flipped through pictures of him with the girls throughout the week. He didn't seem bothered that Koizumi took these in secret. He just chalked it up to her wanting her subjects to act natural.
"W-well, everyone has days or even weeks like that," Koizumi tried to reassure him.
Naegi yawned and said, "Sorry Senpai. I do think these are excellent, but they also remind me of how exhausting this week has been."
"Yeah, I guess I did manage to capture you're fatigue at those moments," Koizumi said, feeling proud of the reaction but worried for Naegi. As much as she would have liked him to stay longer, Koizumi said, "We're done here if you want to rest, Naegi-kun."
"I think I'll do just that. I'd like to talk more Senpai, but this week has been rough," Naegi admitted as he went back to his room.
Koizumi did want him to stay, but at least she had those new pictures to enjoy. "He's so cute when he's surprised," Koizumi said to herself as she admired the latest additions to her collection.
Friday
The next day had been quiet. Almost too quiet, Naegi thought, but he wasn't going to complain. The whole week had been strange and exhausting and Naegi was grateful for whatever peace he could get. He didn't blame the girls, he knew that Hope's Peak was a crazy place where crazy things were constantly happening. He didn't blame anyone, but that didn't exactly give him any energy back.
Naegi managed to make it through dinner but he couldn't shake how tired he was. He had decided to head to his room after doing the dishes, hoping to fall asleep early so that he wasn't worn out for his meeting with the headmaster tomorrow. That plan almost ended prematurely when Naegi was climbing the stairs and missed a step. Naegi may have fell face first onto the stairs had someone not caught him by the back of his hoodie.
"Are you alright, Naegi-kun?" Ikusaba asked as she helped Naegi back to his feet.
"I'm alright, Ikusaba-san, just tired. It's been an exhausting week," Naegi said with a yawn.
Ikusaba frowned before she said, "So I've heard. We appreciate all you do for us, but you need to take care of yourself too, Naegi-kun."
"I know. I will. I promise. It's just…yawn!" Naegi yawned.
"You need to relax. I think I know what to do. Wait for me in your room," Ikusaba ordered as she helped Naegi up the stairs and to his door.
Naegi nodded and went inside. He had no idea what Ikusaba was going to do, but given how things had been going this week, Naegi was more than a little worried. He refused to disappoint Ikusaba though and forced his concerns to the back of his mind. Soon, Ikusaba entered.
"Sorry Naegi-kun, it took me a while to find everything," Ikusaba apologized.
"If you needed help-," Naegi began.
"No, no. I found everything. You relax and let me take care of everything," Ikusaba reassured him.
"Take care of what?" Naegi asked.
Instead of answering, Ikusaba said, "First, let's head over to your bed." As Ikusaba sat down, she then said, "Sit next to me and lie down. Put your head on my lap." Ikusaba kept her composure as she said this, but when Naegi complied, her face turned scarlet.
Naegi had been too tired to question it at first, but then he saw what Ikusaba had in her hand. "Is that an earpick?"
"Yes. I'm going to clean your ears for you," Ikusaba answered.
"T-that's kind of intimate, isn't it? Isn't there anything else…?" Naegi began to ask.
"Nope. I'm cleaning your ears and you're going to relax while I do it," Ikusaba ordered.
"Yes, ma'am!" Naegi said as he tried to salute while laying on his side. That got a giggle out of Ikusaba. Her thighs are softer than I expected. What am I thinking? Naegi thought. It was true though. The Ultimate Soldier was someone Naegi associated with tough muscle, but here Naegi was, using her lap as a pillow and finding it quite comfortable.
"If you're comfortable, then I'm going to get started," Ikusaba said as she began to clean Naegi's ears.
Naegi couldn't help but notice how gentle Ikusaba could be. There had been indications of that, of course, but as much as Naegi hated to admit it, he was always mindful of Ikusaba's title and what it meant she could do if she was so inclined. It was dumb of me to think that way. Ikusaba has shown she can be gentle when she wants to be, Naegi told himself as he felt all the stress and fatigue from the week fade away.
"You're my first you know. I never did this for anyone else," Ikusaba shyly admitted.
Naegi gave a peaceful sigh before saying, "I'm flattered, Ikusaba-san."
As soon as Ikusaba finished Naegi's right ear, she said, "Turn around, Naegi-kun."
Naegi's response was some light snoring.
"Hm. You must be pretty brave to fall asleep in the Ultimate Soldier's lap," Ikusaba commented. "You know I can be pretty dangerous. I've killed more people than you could possibly imagine," Ikusaba added.
Naegi gave no indication that he had hear that.
"Not that I ever would again though. It's because of you that I can be more than a soldier. Sleep well, Naegi-kun," Ikusaba whispered with a soft smile. With little difficulty she flipped Naegi over and cleaned his other ear. Once she had finished and tucked him into bed, she let herself out, doing her best to ignore how inviting his lips looked.
Saturday
The girls were less than thrilled when Saturday had come. Today was the day Naegi would meet with the headmaster about his living situation and none of them were any closer to their victory than they had been the previous week. Even their Saturday morning classes didn't take their minds off their impending loss.
When the final bell rang, half of Class 78 began to go their separate ways. Just as Naegi was getting ready to leave, Maizono came up to him and asked, "Naegi-kun, do you want to walk back to the dorm together?"
That question received a great deal of glares. The girls were busy glaring at Maizono, while Kuwata's eyes were boring holes into the back of Naegi's head. "I'd like that, Maizono-san, but I need to meet with Headmaster Kirigiri," Naegi answered.
"Oh, well, I don't mind waiting," Maizono replied.
"Are you sure? I don't know how long this will take," Naegi said.
Before Maizono could respond, she was interrupted by a rival.
"Darling! Would you care to join me for lunch? There is a Novoselic themed restaurant that has just opened in town," Sonia suggested.
"Well, that does sound good, but I need to-" Naegi began.
"Excellent! Come, let me treat you to the delicacies of my homeland the way you have treated me to yours," Sonia declared as she grabbed Naegi's wrist and began to drag him. Before she got too far though, a scalpel whizzed past her head and lodged itself in the wall.
"M-my hand s-slipped. I'm sorry!" Tsumiki wailed, although she didn't sound as sincere as she usually did when she apologized. Everyone had been so focused on Naegi and Maizono, that they didn't hear the female half of Class 77-B gathering outside of Class 78's classroom.
"If you guys are getting food, I want to come!" Owari exclaimed.
"M-me too! I hear Novoselic desserts are really good. I want to compare them to donuts," Asahina added.
"Like I was saying, I would love to, but I-" Naegi began.
"Naegi-kun, you need to come back to the dorm. There's still some material we need to go over," Yukizome said.
"But I-"
"Naegi-kun, I need some royal milk tea, if you wouldn't mind?" Celes asked/ordered.
"I will, but I-,"
"Naegi-kun!"
"Naegi-kun!"
"Naegi-kun!"
"GIRLS!" Naegi shouted. The girls went silent at that, Naegi had never lost his patience with them before. "I will be happy to do whatever it is you want me to do, within reason, but not right now. I have to meet with the headmaster," Naegi reminded them.
"He's right girls. There's no point in putting this off," Enoshima agreed.
"Thank you, Enoshima-san," Naegi said as he collected his things and headed for Jin's office. "I'll see you all later, alright? We can hang out when I'm done," Naegi called back to them.
"I mean, it's not like we'll never see him again," Koizumi began.
"Of course. He just won't be living with us. Not much else will change," Kirigiri agreed as she began to back her way down the hall after Naegi.
"Don't move you frigid bitch," Saionji said as she noticed what Kirigiri was doing. Once Kirigiri stopped, Saionji began to run down the hall after Naegi.
"Aww, Ibuki wanted to be the first to go after Makoto-chan," Mioda said as she ran after Saionji.
"I must go. My young master may need me," Pekoyama said as she followed after the other two.
The other girls began to join them, some made excuses, but others didn't see a point. They needed to know what the future held.
"Walking back to the dorm was the best you could do?" Ikusaba asked Maizono as the girls sprinted down the hall to the Headmaster's Office.
"I didn't see you come up with anything," Maizono shot back.
"I should have kept my beloved in the infirmary this week. I could have prevented this. I'm sorry!" Tsumiki cried.
"Naegi-kun would have tried to meet the headmaster even if you had, Tsumiki-san. I think?" Nanami attempted to comfort her friend.
"We're getting close girls," Yukizome informed them as the girls all skidded to a stop outside Jin's office. It seemed his secretary was out at the moment, probably for lunch. So much the better for the girls. Less questions this way.
The girls tried to get the best spots to listen at the door, but it was decided that with her superior hearing, Mioda would be the best pick to eavesdrop.
Mioda tried as best as she could, but she could only hear bits and pieces of the conversation. "Next year…." "…new students…" "…unusual living situation." "Setbacks."
"Ibuki can't tell what they're saying," Mioda told the others.
"Move. Let me try," Owari said as she pushed Mioda out of the way.
"I did surveillance in Fenrir, I should listen," Ikusaba said as she fought Owari for her spot.
"Let me listen," Asahina said as she joined in the scuffle.
"No, me."
"Me."
"Me!"
Jin, Kizakura, and Naegi had stopped their conversation when they heard a commotion outside the door. "What is that? Is someone out there?" Kizakura wondered.
"Was there anyone else out there when you came in, Naegi-kun?" Jin asked.
"Not that I could see, but I think I recognize the voices," Naegi answered as he figured out what was going on. What is up with the girls this week? Naegi asked himself.
Before any of the three could move, Jin's door was torn off its hinges and the girls fell in a pile on top of it.
"Can I help you young ladies?" Jin asked slightly shocked but mostly amused by the development.
"O-oh! Headmaster Kirigiri, w-we were just-," Yukizome began, attempting to make the situation better in any way she could. My boss just caught us eavesdropping and we destroyed his door! How can anything I say fix this situation? Yukizome asked herself.
"Don't take Makoto-chan from us!" Mioda begged.
"What?" Kizakura asked.
"If space is an issue, I can request the finest architects and construction companies from Novoselic to build new facilities for the school. New dorms in exchange for my Darling is a fair trade, correct?" Sonia asked.
"Girls, I think that-" Naegi tried to say.
"We're helpless without him, we found that out this week," Saionji admitted.
"Everyone, I think there's been a misunderstanding," Jin announced.
That caught the girls' attention. What did they misunderstand?
"It is true that our original intention was to place Naegi-kun in the proper dorm when repairs were completed at the boys' dorm. However, due to…let's say, forces beyond our control, we no longer believe that such a course of action is possible," Jin explained. It's the strangest thing I've ever seen. I don't know whether it is Komaeda-kun's luck or not, but something does not want Naegi with the other boys, Jin thought. Whether it was equipment failures, inferior materials, or just mindless destruction, everything that could have happened to prevent the repairs at the boys' dorm had happened.
"Knew it!" Enoshima declared as she leaned against the doorframe to Jin's office.
"Junko-chan, how long have you known?" Ikusaba asked.
"I swung by the boys' dorm a few days ago for…reasons," Enoshima admitted.
"Like scoping the place out to find ways to pay Naegi-kun late night visits. Or barring that, you would find a way to wreck the place just enough so that he would get sent back," Otonashi reminded Enoshima.
"I saw that repairs hadn't been going well and realized that Naegi-kun was going to be sticking around for at least the foreseeable future," Enoshima said.
All the girls began to laugh nervously. They threw themselves at Naegi in some way for a week and it was all unnecessary.
It's great that we've grown closer… Pekoyama thought.
…but why did I have to have something so embarrassing happened when Naegi-kun was around, Koizumi thought, unknowingly finishing Pekoyama's thought. As well as the thoughts of the other girls.
"Having said all of this, Princess Sonia did manage to remind me of a problem we are facing," Jin began.
"What problem is that?" Kirigiri asked.
"Space. It seems that more people are willing to give Hope's Peak a chance, and as such, we've been seeing a record number of applications. Now, I hate to ask a student for favors, but since the government has decided to punish the actions of the Steering Committee by cutting our budget and we've had to refund most of the exorbitant amount of tuition money that the Reserve Course was charged, I don't know how we're going to accommodate them. We did receive a generous donation from the Togami Conglomerate, earlier this week for the school buildings and equipment," Jin began as he remembered how that conversation had gone.
Jin was sitting in his office going over applications with Kizakura when the door to his office swung open and Togami Byakuya marched in with an older man, who Jin assumed was his butler.
"I was invited to this school as the Togami heir, I will not have any school I deem worthy of my time to suffer from lack of funds," Togami said as he snapped his fingers and the old man that was with Togami handed Jin a check for… Jin had no idea that many zeros could fit on such a tiny piece of paper. Kizakura, who had been looking over Jin's shoulder at the amount passed out from shock.
"Headmaster, I expect proper acknowledgement for this act of charity," Togami said as he and his butler walked out.
I guess the Togami Conglomerate's contacts in the government told them about the cuts, Jin reasoned.
"I shall make some calls and get crews here as soon as I can! Provided my Darling stays with me at the dorm," Sonia said.
"Naegi-kun will be staying with you girls for a long time. Just be sure to help him out next year, the new students won't know about this arrangement," Jin told her.
The girls, who had started the day feeling so sad, now happily jumped at Naegi and tackled him to the floor. Even Enoshima, who had figured out what was really happening, joined in.
Ow! I wish the girls had told me what was bothering them, but maybe my wording was bad. Either way, I'm glad to see them so happy. It seems my everyday life with Ultimate girls will continue! Naegi thought happily as he struggled to get up. He couldn't help but wonder what the future held for him and his friends.
And that's the chapter!
Sorry for the delay in getting it out. After weeks of writer's blocks, emotional breakdowns, and improper time management, we are finally within sight of the summer vacation arc of the story. So I guess my question is, Novoselic trip or beach trip first?
Keep in mind, I won't be using the whole cast in most of the chapters going forward. I need to give everyone a chance to shine and with a large main cast like I have been using, small groups are probably better. Some chapters will demand the use of the whole cast of course, like a trip to the beach, but if your favorite girl doesn't show up in some chapters, I promise I didn't forget about her.
As I said at the beginning of the chapter, I have reconsidered and will be adding the Student Council girls as well as Kanon, Ikue, Asano, and Hiroko, and maybe others. Provided of course, I can think of things for them to do. And I do have some ideas for these girls right now.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Read and review and until next time, stay frosty!
