CHAPTER 7:

Chiba Academy

The day dawned crisp and clear, with rays of sunlight lighting up their room and a chorus of melodic birdsong drifting in. He roused the others and proceeded to the window, where he unzipped the curtains, allowing more light to flood their dorm room. He then opened the window to greet the breeze, which was gentle and cool.

The regressed mortal looks out at the rosy-hued sky, realizing another day has passed as the dawn brought new hopes and aspirations. Kent turned around to see that his dormmates were still wrapped in the warm blanket of sleep.

He tried to wake them up for the second time with another sighed, but the sound of groaning and grumbling greeted his ears as he saw them trying to push him away to get more sleeping time.

A single drop of sweat fell from his cheek, and another sighed escaped from his lips as he approached his wardrobe and took out a towel to take his morning shower.

Following that, he changed into his new school uniform, which consisted of a white shirt with black and orange stripes on the collar, a black trouser, and matching socks.

He finished getting dressed when Hans and Adama awoke, groaning in their wakes before blinking their eyes open when they saw him all dressed up.

"It's almost eight o'clock." Kent smirked as he told them.

Hans' eyes widened in surprise as Adama rushed to his alarm clock to confirm the time.

"How come you didn't wake us up?"

"I did it twice, but it appears you guys would rather miss orientation day." Kent shrugged as he walked towards the door with a schoolbag in his hand; the regressed man then came to a halt to remind them. "Ah, you guys better get going or you'll miss your morning prayer."

That did the trick as he watched them rush to the bathroom, but because there is only one available in each room, Hans was forced to wait before he could take a bath whereas Kent left the room.

The latter was walking down the corridor, heading to the cafeteria for some breakfast before heading to the meeting point.

Since each student was given a schedule for today's activity, the young man realized they still had enough time until the school principal's orientation speech.

"Chiba Academy, huh?" He murmured to himself as he read the school module that the dorm receptionist had handed him from yesterday.

The exchanged students are required to abide by a few guidelines, and as with most school policies, disobeying them will result in consequences.

He read the module until he realized he was in the dorm cafeteria and then put the guidebook back in his bag.

Kent then enters and observes the densely packed, noisy, and disciplined students; each student was given a Japanese set meal, which included rice, miso soup with ohitashi, and a glass of water that they could get at the bar.

After taking a seat, Kent ate his breakfast quietly while oblivious to those around him. After all, he wasn't particularly interested in making new friends, so why should he care?

"Is this seat taken?"

He turned to look at the source of the voice and caught the gaze of a tall, fair-skinned high school student with long, rosy hair as she questioned in a familiar, gentle voice. The teenage high school girl wore the Chiba Academy female school outfit consisted of a black blazer over a caramel-colored sweater on top of a white blouse with a red ribbon, and a matching dark colored skirt.

Kent was frozen in place, unable to take his gaze away from her despite the wrenching pain spreading in his heart. He tried to regain his bearings but was unable to do so as he closed his eyes and shook his head in response to her question.

The rosy-haired girl took her seat and was grateful for his kindness, but the reaction he gave earlier startled her, but instead of freaking her out, she was curious to learn more about him; she didn't know why, but he seemed rather familiar to her.

"Umm…are you sure you're, okay?" The pinkette asked, her voice filled with concern as she noticed him staring at his food instead of resuming eating it.

Kent flinched when he heard the question, he shakily grabbed the chopstick and tried to eat his breakfast but failed rather miserably.

"Is it because of me?" she pondered aloud, tilting her head to the side and offering him an apologetic smile. "I didn't mean to bother you; if my presence made you uncomfortable, perhaps I should take a seat elsewhere...?"

"No, it's fine...sorry, I was just umm..." He stares at his miso soup for a moment, pondering the appropriate words to use; once he found the appropriate word, he continued to finish his sentence. "I was just nervous...just a little nervous!"

He cursed himself for stammering, but at this point he was broken beyond repair because the last time he saw her was...from that time; the time she gave her life to save someone she truly loved and cherished.

A silent reigned between the two, the awkward atmosphere was inevitable as he could feel her staring at him. The latter hummed in thought before realizing her mistake.

"Oh, pardon my rudeness," she started politely, earning his attention as he saw her offering another apologetic smile whilst clasping both of her hands and introduced herself. "I'm Sakura Yae..."

"Kent Azhar..."

Following that, they conversed for a while...Those few minutes brought back so many memories; to her, it felt like only a few minutes had passed, but to him...it felt like an eternity.

She was the first person, aside from Elysia and Dr. Mei, to accept him into the MOTH, and she taught him her Setsuna technique, for which he was grateful.

Sakura Yae was kind, charming, and beautiful...

However, her kindness was also the reason she was used and betrayed.

He despises this.

The fact he could see her again for the second time was perhaps a blessing but a part of him wished, and he knew it well enough; deep within his heart he wishes she would remember her past life too.

It was a foolish thought, but from the start of this conversation, without her knowing, she was more than an acquaintance, she was a dear friend, a teacher that has saved his life many times and right now due to remembering all that, he was in turmoil with himself after all his affection towards her also plays a huge role in the turmoil rotting him from the inside.

"Azhar-san?"

"Hmm?"

"I have to get going."

He heard her say it with an apologetic smile on her face.

"Is it really that late?" The time-leaper pondered, glancing at the wall clock before noticing her shaking her head.

"No..." She shook her head. "We still have plenty of time."

He could only nod his head as silence fell between them.

Even though he dislikes saying goodbye, he realized he cannot keep her waiting.

"I'll catch up with you later, Sakura." The young man replied with a smile before realizing his mistake, which made her stifled a laugh.

"Let's meet up after orientation, Kent." Sakura nodded her head, a small smile on her face, and quickly stood up from her seat, walking away with the tray of dirty plates in her hands.

Kent then observes her retreating form from the dorm emotions within him were like a roller coaster; at the start of their conversation, it was sadness that promptly turned to happiness, and at the end, a longing expression dwelled on his face as he found himself staring at his food yet again, contemplating his decision in this life and assuring himself that no one would die this time.

But for a brief moment, a question ran through his mind.

Would he be willing to risk the fate of the entire world to save the people he cherished but failed to protect?

Deep in thought, the Strongest human had not noticed that his friends had joined him at his table.

"Looks like you've got some competition, Hans," Adama joked, playfully nudging his friend's shoulder, causing Hans to frown and grumble to himself, protesting to Adama that he doesn't have a crush on Sakura Yae while Kent remained silent in his seat. After they had breakfast, the three dormmates walked to their meeting point, which was near the school assembly building, and they were apparently the last students to arrive.

Khalil scowled, his eyes irritably glaring at the three of them.

"Look who finally decided to show up."

Kent simply scoffed, while Hans and Adama exchange worried glances, wondering if they were late, but looking at the time, they still have enough time.

Aside from Khlalil Amrabat, there are four other students, and with him and his dormmates, there are a total of eight students from Banda Aceh High School.

Their school guardian teacher, Hendra Arhan, coughed, drawing his students' attention.

Their teacher is a man in his thirties with a smooth, hairless scalp, a height of 5 feet and 8 inches with light tan skin, and a well-built body. The man was dressed in a business suit, with a white long-sleeve shirt underneath his black-expensive-looking blazer, black pants, and matching black shoes.

"I'll call your names now; please remember that we're here for a school program, so please don't tarnish your school's name in any way." Mr. Hendra chided his students while staring at them. Hearing no complaints, their Guardian teacher nodded satisfiedly but also finished his sentence with a frown. "The study tour would be halted until ME resolves their current problems."

After all, he was disappointed with the recent news involving their CEO, and the program itself is under threat as a result of the current situation. If nothing changes, the program may be canceled, forcing all exchange students to return to their home country.

Kent nodded his head in response to his teacher's warning, and no one tried to make a fuss because time is of the essence. The teacher then called each of their names, starting with Adama Julianto, and after that Hans Bamantara, then the school bully Khalil Amrabat, Mohammed Ikram, Rifki Batubara, Faiz Nursaliem, Udin Setiawan, and finally him.

"Kent Azhar."

"Here." Kent responded, rising his hand and answering his teacher call.

Once the absent was done, the teacher walk ahead with them following behind his back, entering the assembly hall and headed towards their designated seats. However, he noticed Sakura waving her hand at him.

"Over here Kent!" Sakura called out with a smile, causing him to sweat dropped at how happy she was and decided to join her side whilst ignoring his teacher voice and of course, he acted oblivious to the reaction of his fellow friends.

"That fucking bastard." Khalil growled underneath his breath, seething in anger mixed with jealousy as he could only watch Kent took a seat beside her.

"You sure this is alright?" The MANTIS asked his friend.

Sakura glance at him and shrugged her shoulders. "I see no harms," she replied though she exchanged a quick glanced at Khalil. "But it seems someone isn't too happy."

"Just ignore him." Kent pleaded which caused her to nod her head in agreement.

After a few minutes, the school assembly was packed with the exchanged students, and after a few more minutes, the school principal arrived with some teachers and a lone female student walking right behind them whom he recognized as Mei Raiden herself.

Mei Raiden is considered beautiful by many. She has long dark purple hair that she dons in a ponytail with her bangs framing her face and mesmerizing indigo eyes. She was taller than most girls her age, with a slim and athletic figure. The Raiden family's only daughter was dressed in the female Chiba Academy uniform, which included a caramel sweater, a white blouse underneath it, and a dark grey skirt with black shoes.

The principal wasted no time in commencing his speech, addressing specific issues concerning the exchange students' programs, in which each of them was divided into different classes based on the results of the exam they took earlier at the start of the program and the regulations they must follow in this Academy, while also apologizing to them for their President's current predicament.

It had been thirty minutes since then, and now it was her turn to speak, after the principal had finished his speech.

Mei Raiden could feel everyone's gaze on her, and her anxiety was growing as a result of everything that was going on with her family's transgressions. But she also has a responsibility right now, so she exhaled deeply, then released the air, attempting to calm herself down before stepping forward, grabbing the microphone and adjusting its position before clearing her throat to silence the exchanged students.

"It's nice to meet everyone here, my name is Mei Raiden," Meii began her speech by introducing herself, her eyes scanning the assembly hall for the second time, and she continued with a small smile. "I'm the president of the school council... I hope you all have a wonderful time and learn a lot during your time here at Chiba Academy."

He could see the bags beneath her eyes and the troubled expression written all over her face throughout her speech; she sounded hollow and empty, forcing herself to be here in the center of the stage and acting oblivious to the situation around her; but he knew her better than anyone.

She might not be the same Mei from his timeline, but he could still see the similarities shares between them.

And for someone so unfortunate, she handled herself well; that is something he praised her for...if he were to compare himself to her, he would be a paper that can easily be shredded by a simple cut, whereas she persisted under such pressure, but he knew one day...she, too, would be cut, and those pent-up emotions would overwhelm her.

The clock continued to tick as her speech progressed, covering a variety of topics and providing information about their assigned classroom, extracurricular activities, and clubs they could join during their stay; the list went on and on until she was finally finished an hour later. Mei then looked at the students before looking at the principal, who simply nodded his head, causing her to clench her lips in defeat.

"Thank you for your time, and I hope everyone has a good time..." The plum-haired schoolgirl trailed off, hesitant at first but quickly dismissing the thought because this is the sin she bears as Raiden Ryoma's only child. "Before I finished my speech..." she stopped for a moment, bowing her head and exclaimed. "I'd like to apologize to everyone present because the Study Tour had to be suspended due to the scandal my father... R-R-Raiden Ryoma caused...I truly apologize for everything that cannot be undone!"

Kent's eyes narrowed and his right hand clenched.

That was superfluous.

When Mei stepped down to return to her seat, she could hear the students whispering right behind her ears, causing her to cast her gaze down, disgusted with herself and saddened by the fact that everyone is now against her.

"That was...horrible." Sakura muttered, pitying Mei and Kent nodded in agreement.

With that, the exchange students' orientation day came to an end, and everyone was dismissed with a piece of paper in their hands. He looks down at the paper, staring at the number 2-B, assuming he will attend classes with the academy's second-year students.

"Can you tell me what your classroom number is?" Sakura nudged him on the shoulder, her gaze fixed on him.

"2-B"

The Pinkette nodded.

"I guess we'll be classmates," she said, making him smile.

Hans and Adama approached him before they could continue their conversation.

The two informed them of the class to which they had been assigned, while he simply repeated what he had told Sakura.

"How come you're the only student from our high school who goes to classes with second-year students?"

"I'm not sure." The MANTIS shrugged, which wasn't unusual for him because the knowledge he possesses is beyond his current age. But perhaps what surprises him is how he didn't get the third year. Maybe...just maybe the school thought it would be strange for someone who had just started high school to be placed with the third-year seniors.

While he was deep in thought, Sakura was approached by Khalil and his goons; the former introduced himself while Sakura raised an eyebrow; she wasn't eager to participate in starting a conversation with the chubby student, so she hastily grabbed Kent's arm, snapping him back to reality.

"Let's go to class, Kent!" Pinkette exclaimed, pulling him alongside her. Ignoring the enraged Khalil, while Kent was startled by her sudden action of pulling his arms.

"Wait, Sakura, we still have a break before we can join the class-"

He was interrupted when he noticed her index finger pressed against her lips.

"Sshhh, just follow me." She chimed, causing him to sigh and nod, while the rest could only watch in silence.

"Let's go with them, Hans!"

Hans simply nodded and wasted no time chasing after Kent; even though he was envious of how close Yae and Kent had been, it's far better to stay with someone who treats him as an equal than to stay with these hypocrites who usually looked down on him.

Kent splits up with Adama and Hans after their short break, while Sakura waves her hand at them and watches their retreating form. Then she walked alongside him in blissful silence towards their next destination, neither side saying anything until they arrived at their classroom, the door closed but they could hear the commotion inside.

It wasn't very pleasing because it appeared that they were bullying a student.

How bizarre.

"Should we step in?" Sakura inquired, glancing at him from the corner of her eyes as he nodded and grabbed the door handle, sliding it open with a force that startled everyone inside.

"W-whaa?!"

The students inside were alerted, fearing for their academic future, only to sigh in relief when they saw it wasn't their teacher, but fellow students like them.

Kent sighed and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"I apologize, senpai." He apologized, causing many to grumble at him, some even berating him, while he simply ignored their threats and averted his gaze to look at the girl being bullied. The latter was sitting in the front row, face down, her dark-purple hair wet all the way down to her blazer.

"Were you guys bullying her?"

Mei Raiden flinched as the others snorted.

"So what? She deserved it. Even the principal agreed," A girl sitting behind her stated, ignoring Sakura's look of disbelief, the latter was seething in anger, she despises this kind of act, seeing her mad Kent extended his hand to stop her.

"Is that correct? Just because her father did it?" He replied with a question, "I'm disappointed; she did nothing wrong, and it's not her fault that she's received such treatment; if you want to blame someone, blame her father! Not her!"

Everyone, including himself, was taken aback by his abrupt shift in tone.

Mei, on the other hand, was taken aback...this was the first time someone actually defended her.

"Mei Raiden." He called out, causing her to flinch and look up to find him standing beside her. The plum-haired schoolgirl tensed as she noticed him getting closer, then felt his hand resting on her back as he gave a gentle thrust. "At the very least, you should try to defend yourself." He sighed quietly, patting her back and channeling his power to drain the water from her.

Mei was taken aback; for some reason, his action went unnoticed by others, including his friend, who appears perplexed by his sudden action of patting his senior on the back.

"I'm Kent Azhar." He introduced himself with eyes glaring at the other seniors. "If anyone dares to bully her again, I promise everyone will regret it!"

It was a threat he hoped would deter them from bullying Mei.

It was wishful thinking, but it was enough to break the cycle for now.

"Ahem, it appears that everyone is already acquainted with each other." A feminine voice interrupted, causing everyone to turn to see a beautiful woman with pale silver hair pulled back into a neat bun. The woman was dressed in a uniform that included a black blazer with gold accents, a white blouse underneath, and a black skirt that fell just above her knees. She also wears black stockings and simple black heels. Her outfit is both stylish and practical, giving her an air of authority and elegance.

The older woman then looks around the room. "Now everyone returns to your seats," she said as she walked towards the white board, the sound of her heels clacking causing everyone to watch her every step as she grabbed the black marker and wrote her name on the board. "I'm Cocolia, and I was born and raised in the Russian tundra. Before we begin our lesson, I'd like to warn you that bullying in any form is not acceptable...! So, buckle up and behave! Raise your hand if you wish to complain!"

A student in the back seat raised his hand, causing Cocolia to smirk.

"All right, get out of my class!"

The students were stunned and could only watch him leave in silence.

"Is there anyone else?" Cocolia inquired, her voice echoing in everyone's ears for a moment as the only thing she hears is the awkward silence and with a nod she slammed her hand on the table. "All right, then open your book and turn to page 251!"

Author Note: Hey, it's been a while, and I apologize for the delay in updating...this one is a little longer than previous ones, I believe, and I hope everyone enjoys reading it. Before I conclude the author's note, I'd like to thank everyone who has supported me with this fic, and I hope everyone will stick around until the end. If you have any questions, please be specific, and I will do my best to answer them. Regarding the pairing, do you think adding Sakura to the harem is a good idea? I mean she's a great character that has a terrible ending, aside from her, Elysia will obviously be the first, then comes Sakura, Mei, Kiana, and I think Eden...before anyone starts complaining about the harem thingy, I assure you the harem won't intervened with the lore of this fanfic. Well then without further ado I shall now get going, make sure to drop a review and tell me what you think!

Next Update: God of Shinobi.