Monday, May 31st
Akira was running purposefully late.
To him, there was no point in showing up for his homeroom if they were going to leave within mere minutes. Besides, Inokashira Park was damn near right next to LeBlanc, so it was just easier in the long run.
Mona, however, wanted to still go to school to meet up with Kasumi—as expected—and Ryuji wanted to go to see their exam scores.
Akira emerged from the shower to see a notification from Ryuji, a text message of course.
Before opening the message and shooting a reply however, Akira threw on the dress code for the clean-up. Considering that all they had to wear was their gym uniforms, it was a quick endeavor and before he knew it, he was already in the lobby, heading out the front door when he finally opened the message.
Ryuji: Dude! Check this out!
It was a picture Ryuji and Ann had taken in front of the exam scores. The two of them were smiling since they managed to notbe in the bottom percent of the scoring.
Almost as if he was a father, a proud smile slid onto his face.
Akira: Congrats.
Akira: Guess you two owe Haru another celebration.
Ryuji: So do you asshole!
Akira: Huh?
Ryuji sent another picture, his finger directly on the board where his name was.
Ryuji: You're in the Top 20% dude!
Akira: Woah.
Akira: WOAAAHHHHH
Akira: Aw man that means I'm gonna have more attention on me…
Ryuji: What's the big deal? That ain't nothin new.
Akira: Fair…but still. More annoying bullshit I guess.
Ryuji: You gotta stop being a downer dude. Besides, you got me and Morgana. You won't be dealin with the bullshit alone.
Akira:...eh. Volleyball team say anything to either of you so far?
Ryuji: Pfffttt as if. They're a bunch of losers. All I've been gettin is some weird stares but that's literally every day sooo
Akira would've sent a reply, but the pungent scent of cigarettes at Shibuya crossing infiltrated his nostrils, much to his dismay, "Gross…"
Akira looked forward, finding the public smoking section when a set of red hair caught his eye.
Though she wasn't alone… clearly she wished for it to be that way as some slimy-looking middle-aged man had her attention.
Is that Kasumi's dad or something?
If that was her dad, I don't think her body language would be saying that…
Resigning to his gut feeling, Akira pushed forward, trying to hear snippets of the conversation, "You go to Shujin Academy, right? I heard that school has been a real mess ever since the incident…I can only imagine how it's been affecting a poor girl such as yourself…do you want to go somewhere and talk about it?"
Kasumi respectfully bowed as she shook her head, "No sir, I think…I think I'm fine. Excuse me, however, I'm in a rush..." She shifted her weight, trying to move away from the man. Though that didn't do much as he lurched forward, snatching her wrist, "S-Sir?"
A few onlookers turned their attention to the mismatched duo, just observing as the elder man's voice took on a possessive quality, "C'mon miss, you don't have to be like that. Whatever gotcha in a hurry can wait…your mental health isimportant…so let's talk."
He leaned forward, a gross sneer etched into his face, but Kasumi pulled away, wrenching her wrist away as her voice slipped into anger, "Stop it…"
The gross perv advanced on her, his expression rife with venom as he raised his hand.
Of course, his potential assault was ignored by everyone in the crowd.
Everyone but Akira Kurusu of course.
No matter where I go… there are always gross assholes, huh?
A slip slipped from his lips as he gently pushed her out of the way, taking the slap and nearly doubling over.
Geez, that was a little more powerful than I thought.
Wait…is this going to bruise?
Aw man! More attention today!
Morgana, you owe me for this.
"What the? You brat! The hell are you doin'?!"
Akira winced as he rubbed his battered cheek, "Ah…oh you know, just stopping a pervert from messing with my junior. And considering the fact you just slapped me, I think this can get really bad for you, sir."
His eyes narrowed as he flicked them between the two Shujin students and the crowd, "Fine, fine. No need to get all riled up. I was just jokin'."
Uh–huh.
Yeah, just joking.
Who the hell tries to slap someone in the middle of the street?
After he walked off, Akira let out a sigh as he examined himself through his camera, "Aw man… first the knuckles…now the cheek. Every time I intervene in these situations I get injured somehow…"
At least it's better than the first time…
Yay for a normal high school experience, amiright?!
Yoshizawa sighed as he turned around to make sure she was okay, "Uh…what's with the sigh? Did I do something wrong or—"
"No! Thank you so much!" She bowed, "It's just…why did you…help? Are you okay?"
He rubbed his cheek, "Considering I broke my nose not that long ago, a slap on the cheek isn't so bad." He chuckled, "And I helped because I think Mona would be pissed if I didn't."
Her face went scarlet, "Wha–"
"Relax. In all seriousness…I just hate the idea of people sitting on their asses while someone needs help, contrary to what the entirety of Shujin may think."
A thought formed in Yoshizawa's head as she took a gaze at the time, "Shoot! I still need to go back home and get my gym clothes!" She turned to leave but paused, electing to dig inside her bag, brandishing a bandage, "And…I think you may need this so people will leave you alone for the day…" She gave Akira another bow as she ran off.
Huh.
I guess I can see why Morgana's so sprung.
Akira: Senpai? Were you able to figure anything out yet?
Tora-senpai: Regrettably, no. The council—Niijima-san especially—has only been hyperfixated on the clean-up. We've been swamped with our affairs and duties…which means no free time for any of us really.
Akira: Crap…
Tora-senpai: I promise I'll find something. Granted if today goes well, we should be able to have a relatively easy week, which means if Yusuke does call her or she calls him, she's more likely to take it and mention it to us if it conflicts with a meeting or something similar.
Akira: Jeez. You already know how you plan to extract information.
Tora-senpai: If I didn't, I wouldn't be working with Ohya, now would I?
Akira: Fair. Thank you, though. You don't have to do this but here we are. No matter what, I owe you.
Tora sent a thumbs-up as Ryuji and Mona strolled up to him, "Should I even ask why the hell you have a bandage on your cheek?"
Ryuji simply shrugged the sight off, "Akira's always doin' shit when we're not around, I'm not surprised anymore to be honest."
Akira elected to ignore his brother as he heard Ann's voice, "There you guys are! I was looking all over!" Ann made her way to the group, still in her Shujin uniform for some reason, "Ready to clean up some trash?"
"I guess…big whoop. And uh…are you plannin' on doin' the clean-up in your normal uniform? Ain't that uncomfortable?"
Ann groaned at Ryuji bringing her outfit to the forefront, "I thought I could do it here in the bathroom but uh…" She pointed beyond Akira, revealing a restroom that had an ungodly line of Shujin women waiting, "Yeah."
"Ah."
"I see. That…that sucks ass."
"I'm not sure if you should use that language at a school-sponsored event, Sakamoto-kun."
Akira already knew who it was as he turned around, "I'm surprised to see you here, Maruki."
Maruki chuckled, attempting to give a reply as Ryuji scolded Akira, "Dude! You can't just call a teacher by his first name! That's hella rude–" He turned to the counselor, realizing his mistake without the help of Maruki himself, "Sorry."
Maruki waved it off, "It's fine, Sakamoto-kun. I asked Akira to refer to me casually during our meeting. Which is a courtesy I extend to you all. I don't want you guys to think of me being a stiff rigid adult that you can't be yourself around." He shifted in Akira's direction, "It shouldn't be surprising that a faculty member wants to participate in the clean-up."
Ann quirked an eyebrow, "With those clothes? You're almost as bad as me."
Maruki rubbed his nape, "Not ex—"
A few girls came up to the group, seeking Maruki, "Maruki-senpai? We're about ready to set up…"
He nodded meekishly as he looked at Akira's group, "I'm a part of the cooking group so…look forward to some of my delicious miso soup once you're finished!" He set off, but paused at the last moment, a question reforming, "Ah! That's why I came over here in the first place!"
He turned to the two Kurusus, " By any chance…do you two know where Sakura-san is? He also signed up for the group and he was supposed to be at the school before dawn but…"
Oh, that's great, my guardian is nowhere to be seen.
Huh. For once, I don't mean that sarcastically, that actually might be great.
The brothers shrugged, "We haven't seen Sojiro since Saturday so…but I can call him. Knowing him he's probably just…I dunno, preoccupied."
Maruki looked a little concerned, but it turned into sincere worry once he spotted the bandage on Akira's face. Somehow, he hadn't noticed until now, "What happened to your face?"
Akira gave a huff of humor, "I got bitch-slapped by…a massive pussy."
Maruki flashed a frown as the group of girls beckoned him by calling his name, Ryuji couldn't help but narrow his eyes at the guy as he retreated towards the cooking area, "Dr. Popular, amiright?"
Ann shrugged in agreement, "Yup. But I can't lie…there issomething about a guy in a lab coat."
All three of the boys looked at her with an intense amount of disbelief, "What?"
Akira was the first to speak, "Nothing it's just…huh. Never thought I'd hear words leak from your mouth that implicates you're attracted to…well…something."
"Lab coats? Deadass? Those are like…the blandest things in the world!"
Yeah, that too Ryuji.
Ann waved their bullshit off, "I'm not like you living hornballs so I don't—and quite frankly can't—go around talking about sex and hormones 24/7."
Even Morgana felt offended, "Hey! We don't talk about that stuff all the time!"
She shifted her weight, crossing her arms as she eyed him skeptically, to which Morgana relented, "Okay, Idon't talk about that all the time."
"Are you really throwing your brother under the bus? Seriously?" Akira turned to Ann, "Point still stands, we don't talk about it a lot—"
"Since Ryuji stayed over for…two days, what did you guys first talk about?" Akira was ready to answer but Ann put her hand up, "Wait, scratch that. In the last twelve hours, have you guys talked about anything remotely sexual?"
Mona discreetly shuffled away, getting back to his perch atop the railings as Ryuji and Akira stammered…something from their mouths.
Didn't matter though, Ann knew it was complete and total bullshit. A soul-crushing snicker came from her mouth…they knew it was over.
She had this over them, and she wasn't going to let it go for a while, "Ah, how predictable. I hope it wasn't about Ryuji's boring romance."
"Hey! And we were talkin' about Akira's—" The aforementioned Kurusu clasped his hands over Ryuji's mouth, giving him a look that screamed, SHUT THE HELL UP MAN ANN DOESN'T NEED TO KNOW THIS.
Somehow, Ryuji picked up on the implication and decided to keep his mouth shut.
Though, that didn't mean Ann was ready to let go of it just yet, "Uh, what—"
"Good morning, Shujin Academy students and staff!" Much like something out of an ethereal nightmare, Saya's voice reverberated in Akira's head.
At first, he thought he was hallucinating. Honestly, that seemed to be a much preferable route for the day to take.
Maybe Sojiro snuck Takemi into the apartment and she drugged him once again and he was dealing with a prolonged dosage that kept manifesting throughout the day!
…I hope to God she never does that.
And judging by the reactions on both Morgana and Ryuji's faces…no, I'm not hallucinating.
Fuck me.
Did you really think she wouldn't be here?
She's a part of the STUDENT COUNCIL.
Y'know that Uber important engine in the car of student democracy? Or the mirage of student democracy that Shujin blatantly doesn't give a shit about?
To make matters even worse—or better depending on Akira's viewpoint of the day—Saya handed the megaphone to Makoto, "I'll take my time explaining everything! Starting off, please take a look at your Shujin email account for your group members and which area of the park you're assigned to! Your group assignments will vary between three and four! If you gaze around, you'll see designated spots all around the area. Whichever area, or areas, you're assigned to, please make sure to thoroughly remove all trash that you can spot."
An indescribable level of fear slithered within Akira's skull.
What…
What if I have a group with Saya…?
Or even worse….Makoto?!
He quickly pulled his phone from his pocket, immediately jumping to the mail app as he refreshed his inbox seven different times. The service was always terrible here.
Come on! Come on! COME ON!
Makoto kept talking but honestly? Akira couldn't care less.
Finally, an email popped up.
Akira scrolled and scrolled, eventually seeing his name attached to—
Ryuji groaned, "Aw hell, you ain't in my group man."
Ann lifted her head from her phone, "You sound almost disappointed to have me and Ohya group with you."
"Nah…just that I know me and Akira would at least make things hella fun. But nope…I gotta deal with Ohya being weird probably and Mishima…"
Ann tapped Akira on the shoulder, "Who do you have?"
"Hm…it's me, Yoshizawa, Tetsuo…huh."
Ryuji nodded, "Sounds alright. Isn't Tetsuo in your section? Pretty nice bondin' time if you ask me."
Akira wanted to turn to his brother, seeking to make a joke about Kasumi being in a group with him but his eye caught sight of Saya Nagase seemingly walking in their direction.
Oh no.
Uh, special bullshitting time I think.
"H-Hey, I think I'm gonna go find my group! You guys…uh…have fun!"
Mona and Ryuji looked at each other as Akira ran in the opposite direction of his listed area on the PDF. Something was wrong, and one look around revealed it.
So, deciding to play into their roles of being the Secretary of Squirt and Cream, they elected to distract Saya or something similar.
What was Ann doing?
Being confused.
Makoto didn't quite understand why Haru was cleaning.
For the most part, their group didn't need to clean, considering it was the Student Council President and Secretary alongside her. If they really wanted to, they could've just gone with the cooking team and wasted time.
With all of that being said, as Makoto watched the heiress get on her knees and painstakingly remove garbage from the grounds, she felt a little odd.
"Um…Okumura-san?"
Haru picked up a discarded " Bprite" can, "You don't have to call me that, Makoto."
Makoto mentally chastised herself, "Right, I forgot, but um…Haru…you don't have to actually pick up the garbage today, I know it sounds counterproductive to what I said earlier, but Kobayakawa—"
Haru tilted her head in intrigue as she eyed Makoto, pausing from her cleaning spree, "Why wouldn't we pick up trash? Just because of who we're related to?" She pointed her trash grabber to the rest of the student body collecting disregarded items, "I don't really think that's fair…"
Haru's observation stumped Makoto for the moment, because as of late…Sae's words from weeks ago kept subtly influencing her. Perhaps it was okay to take advantage of the rewards your work provided you with.
Perhaps that was another reason why she was okay with Ohya.
Though, she didn't have much of a chance to dwell on it as a siren went off, signaling a partial break, "Haru, mind walking with me to the cooking team? I want to check on Kawakami-sensei."
As before, Haru thought it was strange Makoto avoided an answer as before, but shrugged it off, "I'd like that."
With ease, the girls made their way toward the table. Though, before they could make their way to Kawakami, Maruki beckoned the girls over, "Good morning, how are you two doing so far?"
The two spared kind remarks here and there, until Maruki placed his spoon down, relenting from stirring the soup to give the girls more focus, "This is specifically for Niijima-kun, so I apologize for wasting your time Okumura-kun, but have you seen Sakura-san? He still hasn't shown up yet."
Makoto curled an eyebrow, looking around the cooking table and confirming his statement to be truthful, "Huh…have you asked…his family?"
"I did before I came, but they haven't heard anything as well. So…"
Almost on cue, Sojiro came rushing through the park, hastily dressed—though no matter what he could've done, nothing could've fixed the wrinkles on his jacket and dress shirt.
Passing Makoto, a familiar scent filled her nose.
Smells like…
Wait, what?
She shot him an inquisitive stare as he grabbed the nearest apron and tied it around his waist, "Sorry…what did I uh…what did I miss?"
Maruki chuckled, "Oh you know, just half of the event at this point. Food's basically done so—"
Sojiro took a spoon, taking it into the miso soup for a taste test, "Hm…" He took a sniff before putting it into his mouth, "This is…"
"Good?" Maruki couldn't help but nervously smile, "My girlfriend used to l—"
"Nope. Well, it's not bad…just a little bland."
The school counselor tried opening his mouth in protest but he relented, "I see…"
"Mighty funny of you to come almost an hour late and criticize Maruki-sensei's soup, Sakura-sensei."
For some reason, there was a sense of hesitation as Sojiro turned his attention to the young Niijima, "True…but I did sign on as a head chef so—"
"Which begs the question of what made you so late, sensei."
Sojiro simply stared at her, blankness enveloping his entire expression until Haru finally spoke, "Oh! Makoto, there's Kawakami-sensei! Come on!" The heiress pushed her towards their former teacher, apologizing on Makoto's behalf silently.
Sojiro finally sighed, leaning on the table as support, "Jesus she really is like her…"
"What was that?" Maruki barely caught wind of Sojiro's murmur.
He waved him off, "Oh nothing. You uh…you ready to watch a master cook in action, Maruki-san?"
A smile broke onto his face but quickly wavered, "I hope you're better at cooking than um," He flicked his eyes at Sojiro's neck, "hiding those."
Sojiro slouched in irritation as he readjusted his collar to hide his…beauty marks, "Oh for the love of God." Readjusting and straightening up, he met Maruki's eye, "Can you please promise to…not mention or say anything about this?"
Maruki couldn't help but laugh, "No worries over here my friend. Besides, we were both hired at the same time…so I think that warrants some brotherhood between us." His form went below the table, grabbing some of the seasonings collected below, "You think these'll do?"
Sojiro took a gander at the collected bottles, "Uh…yeah, these might actually be perfect. Good eye, Maruki."
"Kind of have to when I have glasses, for some reason people have these odd expectations of us…"
Putting a dash of the seasonings in the soup, he laughed, "I might have to use that on the kid…"
"Akira I assume? I can only imagine how a battle of wit goes with him…"
The band director took the spoon from Maruki's hand, taking over the stirring duties, "Sounds like you've had a run-in with the 'terrifying' delinquent."
Another laugh slid from his lips, "Yeah, terrifying. I had a session with him on…Friday, if my memory isn't slipping."
"Oh…so that's what he meant by having to skip practice. Thanks for taking my star trumpet player away."
"Anytime, Sakura-san."
Sojiro lightly shook his head as he took his glasses off, some of the steam fogging up his lens, "Ah, just call me Sojiro. And uh…" He looked around before dropping his voice to a whisper, "I know you're not supposed to say anything, but did the kid say anything about…well, anything bothering him?"
Maruki examined his face, taking in every detail of his expression, "You're correct, Sojiro…I can't say anything."
Sojiro, as expected, seemed disappointed but understanding took a hold of his voice, "Ah. Well it's not—"
"But…you're his guardian and he has…special circumstances so I don't think it'll hurt for me to say…that it wouldn't do him any harm to reassure him. Got me?"
The two freshly hired staff members lingered in each other's eyes before Sojiro broke the contact, moving his vision back to the pot as he mindlessly stirred, "Yeah…I think I do."
The two sat in silence until Maruki spoke, "Right, uh…Sojiro you might wanna get some cologne or something. You smell…like Teen Spirit."
Sojiro's energy shrunk as he meekishly—and more intensely—stirred, "Noted."
Ohya barely talking to me…?
Check.
Mishima just annoyin' me with his presence?
Check.
Mishima's existence in general remindin' me of his PAAG?
Check.
Other kids shittin' their pants when I come for 'effin' garbage?
Check.
Aw hell yeah! I hit the Ryuji Sakamoto bingo!
What'll be my prize today?
Absolutely nothin'!
Well, at least until the end of the event.
That'll be when I yell bingo!
Ryuji overheard Jin and Ichiyumi complaining about women behind him and a possible way to get some, seemingly some idiotic scheme that Ryuji and Akira would come up with if they had the time to.
Huh.
They get no bitches.
It seemed that Ryuji's zoning out caught the attention of Ann since she made her way to the bench he was sitting on, "You okay?"
"We're essentially doin' PR work for Kobayakawa, you think I'd really be good?"
Though it'll be worth it soon…
She took a seat, a satisfying sigh coming from her lips as she discarded her bag of collected 'treasures' away for the moment, "Nope, butyour reply let me know if you're actually good or not. That's the one thing I can still consistently do with you."
Ryuji chuckled as he leaned back, "And the Ann Takamaki verdict is?"
"You're doing surprisingly well for someone whose girlfriend is currently avoiding him." The two had their gazes linger on the form of Ohya, who was currently chewing Mishima's ear out for…something.
Ryuji blew a raspberry, "Pfft, she's not ignoring me, she's just…okay let's talk about some other shit."
"Yeah, like why Akira ran from Saya? Starting to make me think he's women repellent."
"Oh, that's just bec—" It dawned upon him, "Hey! You didn't come here to check up on me! Oh, you're evil! Evil!"
"I'm surprised you caught on that quick…maybe you are hanging around Mona and Akira too much…anyway, c'mon and tell me."
Ryuji narrowed his eyes, obviously telling her no.
"C'mon…you know you wanna. C'mon!"
Ryuji snapped his attention away from her, instead electing to look at his phone.
Though, that probably wasn't smart in hindsight as she started poking him in the face, constantly whispering his name.
"Fine! For 'effs sake! Frizzy-chan took some wonderful advice from yours truly and kinda fumbled the bag, now he's avoidin' her." He went back to his phone.
Ann snatched said phone.
Her voice came out in a thin line laced with sheer…hatred, "Don't you dare… daretell me you told him to go mess with that girl."
Fear snaked through Ryuji, "Pfft! What? No…"
Her fierce eye contact never wavered, "Ryuji."
"…Uh…"
"What did you tell him." It wasn't a question. It was a command.
Ryuji's voice was meek and small, "I might've…told him to go…get some coochie…?"
Ann's face contorted with disgust, "Ryuji!"
"What?! You've practically told him the same thing!"
She jabbed a finger in his face, "No! No, I did not! I told him to talkto other girls! TALK!Not to go around and kiss them and do stupid shit that only Ryuji Sakamoto would think is cool!"
Whaddya mean stupid?!
"Hey!"
"Don't 'hey' me I'm pissed at you!" She stomped her foot into the pavement, which made him wince, "Ugh, did you just forget about Haru? Come on the two of them are practically ogling each other and you thought it was a smart idea for him to kiss S—"
Ryuji clasped his hands over her mouth, "Shh! I don't think Akira would be happy with you yellin' his business out!"
Huh.
I just made a valid point.
Awesome.
Ann gave an exasperated sigh as she ripped his hands off her mouth, "So, I assume he regretted the kiss and now he's avoiding her?" Ryuji nodded, "Great…real mature."
Ann leaned into the bench, frowning as she crossed her arms.
It didn't take genius-level intellect to tell she wasn't in a talking mood anymore.
I feel like I 'effed up.
For the most part, Akira had been quietly doing his duty. Though that didn't stop kids around him from talking behind his back.
As usual.
In the corner of his eye, he saw Tetsuo. Akira wasn't entirely sure what he expected him to look like, but a really tall spiky short-haired kid wasn't one of them.
Jesus, he could be with the basketball team instead.
Time to be a good section leader, I guess.
And to question my comfort in my height again.
"So, you're uh…a trumpet player?"
"…yup."
"Is it bad I'm just realizing that?"
"…if I say yes, will you feed me to an army of poisonous frogs like the rumors say?"
"No, I'll just have my army of deadly infants I've trained since impregnation to murder you."
Tetsuo paused as he reached to pick up a piece of trash, "O-Oh."
Akira sighed, walking over to the younger boy, "That was a joke."
He meekishly replied, "Oh…right."
That went well.
Wait, I can't just say a stupid joke and get away, he's literally in my section.
Akira shook his head, "That was stupid. Sorry, I uh…I make jokes to deal with stuff. Seriously though, my bad for not noticing you're literally in my section until now."
Tetsuo sighed as he stopped his garbage collecting, hearing the siren for their break, "It's fine. I'd be surprised if you did notice me. I'm not that great as a player."
The younger boy sat in the dirt, seemingly dejected. Akira followed suit, "What do you mean?"
"I uh…nah, I don't want to talk about it. Just something stupid."
"Nah, don't say that, you're in my section, and—despite the kinda shitty job I've been doing at it—that means I care. So, spill."
Tetsuo paused, surprised at the sincerity on display, "Um…well, I feel like I'm not playing to my fullest ability. That's all. I just don't wanna…fall to the wayside, y'know?"
"Ha." Akira patted him on the back, "Trust me, kid, I know that feeling way…way too well."
"How'd you deal with it?"
"When I figure it out, I'll tell you. The only idea I have for now? Keep pushing. Keep putting in the effort, you hear?"
Tetsuo laughed, to which Akira gave him a confused stare, "What's so funny?"
"Nothing, I just…I don't know, I guess I got swept up in the rumors, I kinda expected you to be terrifying."
A smile formed on the delinquent's face, "I have my moments, but no, you shouldn't believe everything you hear, Tetsuo."
Giving Akira a nod, he spoke, "Noted, senpai."
From one senpai to another, Akira heard the voice of Kasumi behind him, "Senpai?"
Hearing her voice, Akira turned around and stood up, "Oh, hey Yoshizawa-kun. What's up?"
"Do um…do you mind if we talk?
Sure, though, are you sure you want to be seen with a delinquent?"
Kasumi waved her head, "That doesn't matter to me."
Fair enough.
Akira followed behind her as she sat down on a bench, he followed in suit of course, "So, what's so important?"
She cleared her throat, "I just wanted to properly thank you for this morning. I truly appreciated it."
Akira timidly rubbed his bandage, "Ah, it was nothing."
Kasumi snapped her sights directly onto Akira, a sense of vigor taking over her voice, "No! It was more than that! You did something nobody else even tried to do! And for that, thank you so much!" She gave a little bow as Akira nervously smiled.
She's very energetic, huh Morgana?
"Okay, okay…I get it Yoshizawa-kun. You're welcome."
She paused for a few seconds before continuing, "That also leads me to my second point…I'm so sorry for how I've treated you. I should've known better after the incident on the train, but Kamoshida's words and the rumors got to me…I should've listened to Mona…"
Akira snickered, subconsciously relaxing as he leaned back on the bench, "Aw…so my brother gushes about me when I'm not around? I'm so flattered."
Kasumi stifled a laugh, "I'm not sure if gushes is the right word…" Though the humor on her face faded away as she became serious once more, "I truly do apologize. And if it's any consolation, I'd like to get to know you."
"Huh. I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to."
"No, no I'm being sincere. Plus…with how you conduct yourself and what you said back at Shibuya Crossing, I think I might be able to learn a thing or two from you."
Akira tilted his head, "Don't you do gymnastics? What good will a subpar trumpeter do?"
"I'm referring to the mental aspect, senpai. I think you really could help."
Akira paused for a moment, pondering on the idea.
Hm…I could say no…and risk being in the doghouse with my little brother again and enjoy that can of worms.
OR I could say yes and make him happy since he's head over heels for this girl.
Hm…
What a difficult decision.
Akira shifted his weight as he retrieved his phone from his back pocket, handing Kasumi his phone with his contact information on display, "Got it?"
She nodded as she shook his hand, "Thank you senpai! I think Mona will be excited over this!"
"Oh no, he'll hate it."
"H-Huh? Bu—"
"Only because I'll feed you all the most embarrassing things he's ever done and I'll send you all his baby pictures."
Kasumi giggled as she thought of a baby Morgana, an interesting enough prospect to this already intriguing set-up.
Ever since the break finished, Mona had been primarily picking up trash and joking around with Shinya, although he kept noticing his good friend seemed to be…weary of the third-year in their group.
"Dude, are you okay?"
"Y-Yeah."
Mona's eyes narrowed, "There's no way you're scared of Iwai. There…is no way." Maybe it was because of the mess that had been Morgana's life in the last couple of months, but Iwai was the furthest thing from terrifying.
"…He's terrifying! Look at those eyebrows! It's like looking at a villain!"
Morgana stifled a chuckle as he looked at Shinya, "Okay, so Iwai doesn't smile. Neither do I…or my brother. Doesn't mea—"
"I'm alsoafraid of your brother. And you do smile, it's just when you're with Kasumi."
"Shut up." Mona grabbed Shinya's arm, pulling him towards Iwai, letting go when they appeared in front of the quiet senior, "Hey Iwai, mind if you do me a favor?"
He sighed, popping the lollipop out of his mouth, "You're lucky I like you more than your brother, what is it?"
Mona couldn't help but smile upon getting the confirmation that he was, in fact, the more favorable Kurusu, "Absolutely nothing."
"Hu—"
Mona started poking at Iwai's stomach, continuing to do so as he turned his head to Shinya, "See? He's not terrifying at all. He's kinda like a…panda. Big and menacing with no bite!"
"Kid…" Iwai's voice had irritated grafted onto it, but Morgana shushed him.
I really might be the best Kurusu around—
"Is this really what you Kurusus do in your spare time? No wonder your program needed Madarame's help…"
Oh, you have to be shitting me.
Morgana rolled his eyes, he didn't even have to guess.
A simple turnaround revealed—to no surprise—Kazuhiro and Shigeo.
"Yay…the dickeating duo."
Huh, I wonder where the third one's at?
Morgana sighed before he continued, "You know we've been going a good job of staying out of each other's way…why are you annoying us now?"
Kazuhiro paused, "Hm…I dunno, it's not like all the balls belonging to the volleyball just magically popped! It's also not like I keep seeing you frolicking around with Yoshizawa-san!"
"Tsk, tsk, color me surprised, I didn't know you could use big words. Though, I think you might have cheated on that one."
Morgana felt Iwai pull on his sleeve, "C'mon kid, not now…this ain't the place."
He looked back at Shinya and Iwai, their faces clearly telling him no, "Eh…no place is ever really gonna be the right place, and considering they did try to jump and beat my brother in the hallway…I think I'm more than justified handling dumb and dumber."
I had a repeat of this Saturday…
And I just had Sae Niijima by the balls, these two aren't gonna scare me.
Mona's gaze refocused on the two volleyball members, "If only you retooled this energy on some bitches. Though, with the way your volleyball strokes are…it's no wonder you guys have no girlfriends."
As before with Akira, it took a moment for Kazuhiro to catch onto the sneak diss, "You little—"
"Jeez, I thought Akira was joking but you really are dumber than Ryuji."
Akira's always made this look easy.
I got this.
It's just some cliche bullies.
The miso soup was pretty good.
For the past couple of minutes, Akira had been peacefully consuming his soup while having conversations with Kasumi. Well, he was also texting what he hoped and prayed to be Yusuke's number.
Akira: Hi! This is uh…this is Akira Kurusu.
Akira: I…know the last time we talked, I uh…said certain things.
Akira: It's been a couple of days, and I sat on it…and thought it was pretty horrible of me to say.
Akira: Coming at you like that? It wasn't fair and I…would react the same if I was in your shoes.
Akira: And considering we have a competitive but friendly event coming up, I didn't think it would be right leaving things like that.
Akira: So I asked Niijima-senpai for your number and…here we are.
Akira: Just…get back to me when you can. I'd like to talk in person if it isn't an issue.
A few minutes had perspired since Akira sent the texts, his mind fixating and hoping for a reply as Kasumi went on and on.
Shit…I've been ignoring her, haven't I?
Akira suddenly felt a tinge of regret since Kasumi wasn't a bad person.
Which, being honest, wasn't much of a surprise.
Morgana was a decent judge of character.
Better than me, to be honest.
Akira pulled himself from his thoughts, remembering the last thing she mentioned, "So, you have a siste—"
It didn't matter as Ryuji came running up, Ann right behind him, "Hey! Dude, you think you can come with me right now?"
Akira's face was flat, "Dude…I'm in the middle of a conversation."
"Right, yeah, cool, you should still kinda…hurry it up. You seen Mona anywhere?"
Akira looked at Ann for a sort of explanation, she didn't know either, plus she was looking at him with a disappointed face, "No, I haven't seen him since this morning. Why are you in such a rush man?"
Ryuji checked the time, "Shit…you haven't seen Haru either have you?"
Akira narrowed his eyes in suspension, "What did you do?" His voice was clear and straight to the point.
"I…I just did somethin' you'll love. But uh…you won't like it if we're still here in like five minutes—"
A few students started running past them, seemingly to the edge of the park near the lake, something that Akira thought signified bad news.
He was proven correct upon hearing a mention of 'a delinquent'.
Oh for the love of god. The hell did that kid do now?
Wait…
The Volleyball Team!
It seemed Ryuji came to the same conclusion as the two of them made a mad dash, leaving Ann and Kasumi behind.
After literal seconds, Akira was greeted with the sight of Iwai and Shinya being forced to stay put by Shigeo and a really buff kid who was probably older than Akira. Multiple years.
There was also the sight of Morgana being held up by his collar, it was some kid with a set of long shaggy black hair so messy it even rivaled Akira's. Although it was pulled back out of his face for the most part. To his side was Kazuhiro, seemingly taunting Morgana.
That sent Akira over the edge.
"Hey! The fuck do you two think you're doing?!"
Morgana gave a few chuckles, "It's about time you came! I was getting tired of cracking jokes!"
Akira stomped his way over, Ryuji faithfully following, silence emanating from the two as they stood tall against the two volleyball members.
The raven-haired kid snickered, "I assume you're Akira?" He dropped Morgana flat on his ass and chuckled, "These are the 'Delinquents of Shujin Academy' ? What a joke."
"We're a joke? It'll be a joke when we shove our fists up your ass!" Ryuji, of course, threw out an insult as he helped Morgana to his feet.
God, there's no way we're about to maybe get into a fight...
In front of everyone...shit.
It's okay, just stall for time. The Student Council have to be coming soon, right?
Akira sighed, "Since you're with this dumbass, I assume you're Ren?" he took a glance at his body, his lanky build mirroring his own, "No wonder you sent your brother to do your work, he has bigger balls than you."
Kazuhiro almost lunged at the group but Ren stopped him, "You know…despite what I had Kazuhiro say, I was actually going to let things be. You seem smart enough to let things be, but…considering that we have noballs for our meets and matches? Nah."
"Wow, now you guys match all across the board! Who did the castration for you guys, I think I might have to pay them a visit with Noyama."
Ren stared Akira dead in his eyes, his gaze cold and focused, "For someone with the reputation of being the worst person in Shujin, all you do is bark and never bite." He paused, "I wonder if that's because you're still Niijima's little bitch. Or are you that rich bitch's lapdog now? Can't really tell…just seems like you're passed around like a five-dollar whore."
Ha.
Funny.
Akira took a deep breath as he slowly attempted to keep a level head, "Y'know Renny…mind if I ask a question before you seemingly pummel me and my friends?
Ren looked a bit confused but shrugged, "If you think you're gonna try to dis-"
"I assume your mother and father are together, right?" Ren blankly stared at him, "Okay, so I'll take that as a no. Fatherless individuals are the ones with the most problems. But...I'll do you a kind favor. I can step into your life and utterly fuck the brains out of your mom. That way, I will be an upstanding father to you two, and a true manifestation of a MILF Hunter. Deal?" Akira stuck his hand out with a grin on his face.
Mom jokes.
Little immature, but considering I could punch his teeth out, I think this is fine.
Surprisingly—or unsurprisingly—Kazuhiro was the one infuriated with the joke, and went barreling towards Akira, "Damn it Kazuhiro! Wait!"
Kazuhiro's muscular frame easily scooped Akira's slim frame up, driving him directly into the dirt, and disorienting the elder Kurusu. That singular motion caused chaos as Ryuji tried throwing a punch at Ren, but it failed as that buff kid from earlier sucker punched him from behind. Morgana, however, immediately kicked the steroid kid in the balls.
This is totally unfair.
We're in two different weight classes?!
Well…I guess I'm laying in the dirt now, huh?
Wait, Morgana just did the smartest technique in the world!
Meat-check asshole!
With as much intensity and motion as he could summon, Akira utterly removed all chances of Kazuhiro producing children, causing him to roll over in pain, "Fuck off!" Akira threw his head around, seeing Morgana helping Ryuji to his feet, only for Ren to push Mona to the ground, "Mona!"
Surprisingly, and frighteningly, Kazuhiro's nut-check wasn't enough to keep him down as he threw his hand out, tightly gripping Akira's ankle as he tried to run to Ryuji and Mona's help–causing him to fall on his face.
His entire face strung, his eyes seemed to have it the worst. He could barely open them without pain, a sign that dirt or something was sneaking its way into his eyelids. As he rolled over, he felt an almost rock-solid object come speeding into his stomach, completely eliminating the wind of his lungs as he struggled to draw a breath.
Kicking a man while he's down? While he's blind?!
KICKING A MAN AFTER YOU GOT KICKED IN THE NUTS? WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?
WAIT, THERE'S NO TIME FOR SNARK, GET YOUR EYES OPEN!
"Oh, what's wrong Akira? Got nothing to say now? Nothing about fuckin' moms? Look at you! Crawling on the floor gasping for air!"
"I don't think you can really say anything either, you're kinda parading over a piece of shit. A blind one, but still a piece of shit. Have some honor."
While he couldn't see where he was, for the first time Akira felt grateful for Iwai's terrifying and mind-numbing existence.
What Akira didn't and couldn't see, was Iwai standing guard over his body while Kazuhiro stared daggers at him, "The hell are you doing Munehisa-senpai? Get the hell outta the way!"
Iwai sighed, "Yeah, yeah, I'd do it but…the kid takes care of my brother and he works at my shop…so…kinda can't have you beatin' him to a plup. Not yet."
Akira spat out a few raspy words, " Fuck…you…"
"Love you too, kid." Kazuhiro advanced on Iwai, the former throwing out punches only for the latter to dodge and counter each other, "I'm too old for this shit…"
As Akira struggled to gain his bearings, he didn't get to see Morgana become encircled by the buff Man-child and Ren, Ryuji–regrettably had gotten kicked in the ribs as well by the Man-child.
The Man-child went in for a right hook, but with surprising agility, Morgana dodged it…but that dodge only served for him to directly back up into Ren's arms who had him in a grab.
He shot a few jabs into Morgana's chest, the cries serving as more fuel for his older brother who–despite opening his eyes finally after wiping away the dirt god-knows how many times–had a body that wouldn't bend to his will. Not yet.
But it didn't matter as Ryuji regained his bodily functions with a rejuvenated sense of anger as he tackled the sheer sack of muscles to the ground, straddling him as he sent a few jabs of his own towards his face, "Alright asshole! I'm gonna kick your 'effin' ass!"
Things seemed to be going well for Iwai as he finally replied with a singular punch to Kazuhiro's multiple, sending the Volleyball savant over the railing and into the lake.
Bringing Iwai with him as well as he grabbed his sleeve at the last second.
Well…at least two assholes are gone…
Just like Iwai, Ryuji's luck didn't last for long as the man-child completely reversed their positions, seemingly suffocating Ryuji with his mass as he shot two right powerful hooks to Ryuji's face. The last one causing an influx of blood to leak from Ryuji's nose. A bloody cough came not long after.
Oh…you know you done fucked up right pal?
A sluggish groan of willpower slipped from Akira's lips as he finally brought himself to his feet, spurring speed into his legs as he conjured a head-start to his destination; Man-Child's chin.
With a yell, Akira sent a kick directly to the Man-Child's chin, sending him flopping to the ground as Ryuji clutched his ribs, coughing a little more.
Was that the end of Akira's adrenaline-filled surge of anger?
Nope.
Ren had released his hold on Morgana, turning him around to send a few punches to Mona's stomach. A few punches tried to land on his face, but Mona had a decent defense that–from the looks of it–wasn't going to last long.
"C'mon Kurusu! What happened to all that talk! Brother can't save you now!"
Ren had gone for an uppercut, effectively breaking Morgana's guard and leaving him vulnerable.
All where Ren had wanted him.
This euphoric surge, the animalistic drive for battle, and his ego had all led Ren to activate a sort of…tunnel vision.
A tunnel vision that caused him to completely and utterly ignore the sheer killing intent of Akira as he appeared beside him. His fist pulled all the way back and he used the momentum from his dash to funnel his strength into his right hook.
Oh, this is gonna be good.
With unprecedented speed, Akira's fist connected with Ren's jaw, the impact reverberating through his face first before the sheer velocity caused his feet to dislodge temporarily from gravity as he fell to the ground.
It seemed that little exchange caused everyone to pause as they stared at Akira, who was trying to stand up still as his legs buckled, causing him to fall to his knees with Morgana coming to his aid, lugging his arm around his shoulders to carry him. "Jeez…when did you gain all this weight…"
"Ha…you're funny."
Unluckily for them, the teachers and the Student Council broke through the circle that had been formed. Even Kasumi and Ann made it as well.
Shit.
Ann's expression of confusion quickly dissipated into worry as she ran to Ryuji's writhing form on the ground, trying to give him some form of care.
Perhaps in any other case, Kasumi would've done the same, but she just simply stood transfixed in the crowd, staring in shock at the two Kurusu brothers. Much like everyone else.
Everyone with the exception of Makoto, her face was cold and harsh. To her? This wasn't anything new.
She knew something like this would happen.
Akira's antics–and those around him–would lead to a completely avoidable confrontation.
As she fished Iwai and Kazuhiro out of the lake, she couldn't help but hope this would lead Haru Okumura to the point of realizing that the 'Delinquents of Shujin Academy' weren't as good as she thought.
Haru had broken through the barrier as well, seeing everyone's–especially Akira's–battered forms. She opened her mouth to speak as she ran towards the eldest Kurusu.
A sight that surprised Akira and especially the Student Council President.
She kept her voice low as she worriedly flicked her eyes between the two Kurusus, "A-Are you two okay? W-What happene–"
Akira shook his head, essentially telling her to hold all questions for later as he saw Makoto safely retrieving both men safely from the water.
Makoto finally spoke, her voice taking on a tone that was scarily similar to the other women in her family, "Do any of you…thugs mind explaining what was the meaning of this? Who caused this?!"
Oof. Thugs?
That's...
Ren, who was still sprawled on the floor, weakly pointed a finger at Akira who flashed a nervous smile, but before he had a chance to defend himself, the park's sprinkler system came online.
Ryuji's entire demeanor became shackled with remorse, "Oh no."
Massive spurts of water lathered the entire student body of Shujin, soaking everyone's gym uniform. Leaving everyone incredibly more frustrated than they were moments prior.
Though that wasn't the end as the water was soon replaced with blobs of paint being sent everywhere.
And thus, Shujin Academy's park clean-up ended with a Ryuji-Sakamoto-sponsored bang.
Akira, Ryuji, Morgana, Iwai, Shinya, Ren, Shigeo, Kazuhiro, and Mako (which was his name apparently) stood opposite each other, covered in paint as they waited outside of Kobayakawa's office.
No matter how reinforced the walls were, Kobayakawa's yelling could be heard and felt.
Ren was the first to speak, though it was a bit sluggish as he was on pain pills and had an ice pack against his lower face, "You do know no matter how Sakura-sensei tries to spin it, you three will get expelled right?" He chuckled, "It wasn't exactly how I wanted it to go, but this works. Good luck knowing you failed your program…"
Ryuji was the first to bite back, "Oh shut the hell up, pretty boy! Your bitch ass brother threw the first punch! All it means is that you're gonna have to get the worst of the boot!"
Kazuhiro bit Ryuji's bait, "What did you say?!"
Mona took a swing, "I'm surprised you can speak with how hard my brother kicked you in the balls. I thought your voice would be like Ann's considering it's all smoothed over down there."
Kazuhiro tried to make a move but thought better of it, "You're lucky we're in front of Kobayakawa-sensei's office."
Akira snorted, "You try to touch my brother again and I'll beat the dog shit out of you. You won't have any balls to mourn when I get done with you."
Everyone shuddered at the thought as Sojiro opened the door, "Akira, Amamiya-kun, come in."
The two leaders of their respective organizations eyed each other disgustingly but abided by Sojiro's command, walking into Kobayakawa's office and standing far from each other.
Sojiro sighed as he closed the door behind them, "May I say it, Kobayakawa-san?"
Kobayakawa gave a nod, to which Sojiro took his position in front of the boys, "Look…I just had a long conversation with your principal and Yamaguchi about this," The mention of his coach made Ren pause, "Which is why I don't want to hear any back talk. From each report you all have given us, and some accounts, the blame on this is a little muddled. However," Sojiro turned to Ren, "You and your brother's constant attempts to provoke the Kurusu brothers proves that you two were seeking an altercation—"
"But—"
Kobayakawa spoke on Sojiro's regard, "Hush!"
"Thank you, but Akira you could've just as easily taken Morgana and left. With all of this being said…neither of you will be suspended or expelled due to the high-caliber events coming up for our respective parties. However…our two organizations need to have peace."
Sojiro got closer to the two boys, "Shake on it." The two boys paused before eventually coming around, seeking to leave this situation as soon as possible.
"Good. Tell your club members this as well…and another thing. You two will have detention for the entirety of next week."
"What?!" That was something the two boys seemed to agree on.
Sojiro raised his hand to silence them, "You're leaders, right? So bear the sins of your post. And if I hear anything about any fighting, arguments, or anything between our two organizations I will not hesitate to allow Kobayakawa to suspend you two and both clubs for however long he sees fit. Understood?"
Ren rejected the entire idea, "What?! Yamaguchi-sensei wouldn't agree to this! This is crazy!"
Kobayakawa shook his head, "Amamiya-kun, your coach agreed to all of the terms. He even suggested the suspension. If you have a problem, I suggest you bring it up with him."
Ren clenched his teeth as he begrudgingly nodded, "…I understand."
"Good. You were always such an understanding student." Kobayakawa turned to Akira, "Do you understand as well, boy?"
Akira nodded, "I…I do."
"Good. Now, leave my office and please go home and get yourselves clean."
Akira sighed as they left the office, Sojiro electing to stay behind to speak some more.
As the two groups hit the crosswalk of Itchome, on the verge of going their separate ways, Ren paused. Walking over to Akira's group as he instructed his brother and lackeys to continue walking.
"What do you want, man?"
"I…I don't know what Sakura-san did…but just know…this shit isn't over. I told you to lay in the dirt and I meant that."
Akira narrowed his eyes, "Why don't you come and join us, pretty boy." He raised his voice a bit, trying to make sure the other members heard as well, "Come one, come all!"
Ren simply scoffed as he walked off.
Sure, the fights were over…but that was just one side of this pathetic feud.
And Akira knew that.