Kawakami entered the principal's office with a gentle knock. "Principal Kobayakawa? It's Kawakami. I need to speak to you," she said, entering the office cautiously. The Principal looked up from his papers, regarding Kawakami with an inquiring look. "Ah, Kawakami. Of course, what's going on?" asked Kobayakawa, looking surprised to be interrupted.
"Some of the other teachers have talked about Sakamoto's grades slipping. They're thinking of putting him under suspension considering his failing academics and his...incident with another member of our faculty," began Kawakami carefully, weighing her next words.
Kobayakawa nodded in agreement. "Yes, I had heard that was under consideration. Were you thinking to move that along?" he asked mildly, though there was a nasty gleam in his eye that she didn't quite like.
"No, I actually had a different plan. See, our school could use a reputation boost. Some good PR would help us get some more funding and raise our prestige in the eyes of the public," replied Kawakami, a little more quickly than she would've liked.
Kobayakawa frowned. "That's true enough. But how could Sakamoto and our reputation be connected?" asked Kobayakawa, his eyes boring into Kawakami.
"We could rehabilitate him. If we could somehow turn him around and make him a straight A honor's student and get him into a good university, the press would probably not be able to help themselves. Then there would come all the articles and blog posts about the school that didn't give up on it's wayward student. So if we can take a screw up like Sakamoto and turn him around, we'll be sure to get some good PR out there to combat the weird rumors surrounding...certain faculty," blurted Kawakami, a little breathless after giving her spiel.
Kobayakawa toyed with a pen between his fingers as he considered. For a moment, the office was dead silent except for the tapping of the principal's pen. Then he spoke.
"So how are you planning on rehabilitating Sakamoto?" he asked finally. Kawakami suppressed her triumphant smile, pleased with her little success. If this worked, not only would Ryuji and the school benefit, she thought to herself, but she'd get a nice little boost as the teacher who saw the potential in him.
"Simple. We pair him up with our shining example of academic success, Nijima," she said, her eyes sparkling in spite of herself. Kobayakawa looked taken aback.
"You'd have our student council president partnered with someone like Sakamoto? That's ridiculous! There's a hundred other students she could tutor," protested the principal. But Kawakami didn't back down, knowing she had Kobayakawa hooked already. All she needed to do was reel him in.
"Yes, but consider this: no other student has had that kind of public altercation with our faculty. Nijima could tutor other students, but partnering her with Sakamoto is certain to ensure that A) Sakamoto really does study and B) That we give Ms. Nijima exactly the kind of college essay she needs to get into a top school. With that kind of essay about rehabilitating a broken student and your recommendation, she'll be able to go to any school in Japan," finished Kawakami, looking at the principal. She allowed herself the smallest of smiles.
Kobayakawa looked away, fiddling more with his pen as he obviously tried to think of a reason he shouldn't go along with the plan. But after a moment, he gave up. "Well, I can see that your plan has merit. I'll call Nijima here today and explain what her role in this is," he said with a sigh, setting his pen down in defeat.
Then Kobayakawa looked at her sharply. "But I want you to keep an eye on them. Be their faculty mentor if you will. Nijima is perfectly capable of rehabilitating someone like Sakamoto, but I don't want to take the chance that this somehow reverses on us and Sakamoto ends up becoming a bad influence on Nijima. We can't afford to lose one of our best and brightest because she got too close to a thug like Sakamoto," finished the principal with unusual vehemence. Kawakami's eyes widened slightly but she nodded. Maybe she had underestimated his distaste for Sakamoto?
"Alright Kawakami. If there's nothing else, let Sakamoto know that he's to have mandatory study hours in the library with a partner. Since we know he won't have one, the school has assigned him one," finished Kobayakawa, waving a hand to dismiss her. Kawakami inclined her head slightly and left, her breathing a little elevated. She had managed to convince the principal. Now all there was left to do was tell Ryuji about her plan and hope it worked.