Chapter 13 – "It'll be fun being class reps together~!"

The weather was calm and peaceful on the first day of the new semester.

When Tsukune greeted the morning, he hoped it would be a sign that the rest of his high school life would remind him of this serene blue sky. It certainly wouldn't, but he could still have hope, right? That hope managed to last through the morning as he walked to classes with Kurumu, Moka, Yukari, and new guest Mizore, parted ways with Kurumu and Yukari along the way, and walked into class.

It was shattered the instant he saw who else had joined them in class.

"Tch! You should be flattered that I'd give someone like you the time of day!"

"Who the hell would find what you just said flattering!?"

"What? You saying you don't have a nice rack? Come on!"

"Grrrr...! You'd better watch your mouth! I won't spare you like Shuzen-san did!"

Komiya Saizou had returned. Akatenno Maiko was the newcomer. Saizou was seated and Maiko was standing in front of him. She looked livid and ready to tear his head off. And while he appeared calm, Tsukune could tell that his muscles were tense and that he was more than ready to jump into a fight on day one of the new semester.

...wait, she just called Moka Shuzen-san, didn't she?

Tsukune turned to Moka and saw her surprised face alongside Mizore's apathetic expression.

Judging from the faces and whispers from the other students, the two of them weren't the only surprised ones. Although quite a few of them were focused on him instead.

Speaking of focus, Maiko noticed the trio first. As soon as she looked over at them, Saizou's gaze finally left her and he looked the same way. He chuckled. "Well, well, look who it is~! Man, you're worse than a cockroach, hahaha!"

Tsukune blinked, confused.

Saizou laughed at his reaction. "Yeah, I'm talking to you, chump! I'm surprised you of all people made it out alive back there. I thought for sure that you'd eat it, given how weak you are!"

...of course, he didn't escape alive, but there was no way Saizou knew that, so Tsukune laughed it off. "Hahaha... I'm just lucky, I guess. That and I have great friends by my side." He turned towards Moka and Mizore who both smiled at him – Moka brightly and Mizore in a subdued manner. "But what are you doing back here, Saizou-san? I'm surprised you didn't run off while you could."

"Tch! I tried, but that weird bus driver caught me."

"The bus driver?" asked Tsukune. "Really?"

"Yeah, yeah..."

"Serves you right!" declared Maiko at the delinquent.

"Hmph! Don't mind the brat, she has bad manners. She must have gotten it from her mom, heh."

Maiko's youkai aura flared up at that, and the other students backed away as much as they could. She reached out and grabbed Saizou by the collar and brought his face in close to hers. "Excuse you? I don't think I heard you correctly. Do you want to try that again?" she said in a harsh whisper.

His smirk widened, and he responded by intensifying his own aura. "You heard me, brat~!"

By this point, a terrified Nekonome-sensei had walked in. "P-please don't fight, nya~..."

But they ignored her, and looked about ready to transform and destroy the classroom in the ensuing brawl. Tsukune was now starting to wonder if the restriction on transforming wasn't just for getting better at blending in with humans, but for stopping fights from getting out of hand. Their homeroom teacher was trembling and hiding behind Moka, not even bothering to try and intervene. Moka, for her part, looked ready to step in, moving a hand towards her rosary.

Tsukune stopped her before she could take it off.

She gave him a confused look. "Tsukune-kun?"

"Let me," he said, trying to project confidence he didn't feel.

Both she and Mizore gave him skeptical looks. "...are you sure?" asked Mizore. "Kurumu-chan wouldn't like it if something happened to you."

"I wouldn't like that either, haha... just... let me try something. You can both step in if it doesn't work."

At that, the two were willing to let him go, and he was the sole soul brave enough to approach the two warring youkai. This time, Saizou noticed him first. "Huh? What do you want, chump?"

Maiko then turned her gaze on him. "Beat it, Aono. You don't want any part of this."

Tsukune laughed, nervously. "Well, that's right. None of us do, to be honest. We'd like to start class if you don't mind."

Only once they were reminded of the other classmates did Maiko and Saizou realize they were making a scene. Maiko let Saizou go, but swore that she'd rip his head off if he crossed her again. Saizou just laughed in response. He didn't try to counter her threat at all, just minimize it. He relaxed in his seat while Maiko went up to the front of the classroom, as if waiting for something.

Or rather, someone, as Nekonome-sensei became brave enough to step out from behind Moka. "O-okay, let's get ready for class everyone! T-to your seats, nya..."

Everyone else complied, several of them shooting Tsukune appreciative glances as they got seated. Tsukune, for his part, just took his seat and hoped that the rest of the day would be more peaceful. Maiko, as a transfer student, introduced herself to everyone – her last name drawing in people's attention – and was granted a seat by the window, where she sat in a huff while glaring daggers into Saizou's back. But at least her attention was on someone else now...

"Okay everyone! We need to elect a class rep to help deal with School Festival dealings! Also, you all need to figure out what you're doing, nya~!"

She also mentioned that the class would also need to select a vice rep and two secretaries. So, this sounded to Tsukune like it's just the same as in a human high school. Several students laughed, and one mentioned casually that they should've had one already, much to the teacher's ire. After a bit, a student brought up Moka as a potential class rep, since she did have the highest test scores in the class. There was some promptly some chatter around selecting her and other smart people as the candidates. As he was not among them, Tsukune was able to relax...

...until Mizore opened her mouth.

"Ummm... I think Tsukune-kun would make a good class rep as well."

Since Mizore was normally dead silent in class, everyone's eyes were on her. She shrunk into her seat, but didn't retract her suggestion. To make matters worse (for him), someone else even agreed with her! After all, he did get Saizou and Maiko to stop fighting... and wasn't he an important part of the News Club... and didn't he also expose that creepy photographer and that creepy teacher... oh, and what about that thing with the Enforcers...

Tsukune tried to interject that he would be a terrible manager, but was instead accused of being humble and so even more worthy of the position. They absolutely ignored everything he said to try and get out of it... the only thing that might work was revealing that he was a human (and so couldn't possibly represent them), but there was no way he would do that here and now.

As such, he got stuck as the class rep. At least Moka was kind enough to be his vice rep and Mizore to be a secretary. Maiko then volunteered to be the other secretary for some reason, and the class then spent the rest of homeroom coming up with ideas for the school festival.

Tsukune allowed himself to check out of the conversation, and spent that time on some quality internal panic.


Kumuru, on the other hand, was absolutely ecstatic at the idea of her beloved being a class rep. After all, she had been elected to be the rep for her class as well. When she met up with him, Moka, and Mizore for lunch, she latched onto his side and tried to encourage him as they went over to get food and find Yukari.

"Come on, Tsukune! It'll be fun being class reps together~!"

Tsukune grumbled a bit, but with his lover's overwhelming positive aura surrounding him, he became resigned to his fate. He sighed.

"I sure hope so... but what I don't understand is why Maiko-chan went along with it..."

Kurumu blinked. "Maiko-chan?" Her eyes then widened, and her grip tightened. "Is she in your class!?"

"Y-yes... owww..."

"Ack! S-sorry..."

"It's okay." It wasn't, but he'd suffered worse.

"Other than starting that fight with Komiya, she mostly kept to herself," noted Moka.

"That's because everyone was afraid of her," added Mizore. "Oh, and she was also glancing over at you a lot, Tsukune-kun."

Kurumu's aura briefly flared, and Tsukune leaned into her embrace to calm her down. "Well, if she wants to avenge her brother... she might go after both of us. So, we'll have to stick together during class."

"But you'll be alone at the boy's dorms..." said Kurumu.

"Well, I have Gin-sempai... ah, maybe I should find someone more reliable... Monokuro-kun and Kusashi-san would definitely help me if they knew. I'll ask them tonight."

"Oh, maybe we should start inviting them to lunch?" asked Moka. "I'm sure Aoshiro-san would... oh!?"

Naturally, Moka and Mizore saw the scene first with their keen eyes. Moka's gasp then drew in Kurumu's and Tsukune's attention. Yukari had found a place with space for all of them, and had cleared it out for them... except that they had an uninvited guest: Akatenno Maiko. Maiko was very relaxed and was trying to chat with a clearly unprepared and panicking Yukari. Maiko noticed their group first and waved them over with a wide smirk on her face. Yukari at once turned to face them and silently begged for help.

Moka and Mizore sandwiched Maiko while Kurumu and Tsukune sat down next to Yukari.

"Oh, thank the gods..." muttered Yukari, who then actually started eating.

Maiko frowned. "Come on, I'm not that bad..." she grumbled.

Kurumu glared at her. "Maiko-chan, why are you here? I told you I would meet with you later..."

Maiko glared back, but it wasn't as intense as the first time they'd met. "And don't think that I've forgotten about that! I just... need some time to prepare for that. Besides, can't I just hang out with my class representative? He'll need all the support he can get to properly represent people like us, yeah?"

Maiko said that so casually that it took a moment even for Moka to realize what she was getting at. She knew full well that Tsukune was a human.

Tsukune blinked. "If you know, then why are you...?"

"As long as you're here, someone has to keep an eye on you to make sure you don't put more youkai in danger. Though I have half a mind to have you expelled-!?"

Kurumu's aura exploded as soon as Maiko mentioned expulsion. Other youkai sitting nearby slid away. Eyes glowing red, she started straight into Maiko's eyes. "Don't. You. Dare."

To Tsukune's surprise (and also relief), Maiko walked it back. "A-alright... s-since you're so eager to cooperate, I, uh, won't do anything to your boyfriend. But if that ever changes..."

"Hmph! It won't!" Kurumu then dug into her meal, and so did the rest of her friends and also Maiko. Trying to break the tension, Tsukune asked Maiko about herself. She didn't answer much, but what she did reveal was illuminating. She was raised by her adoptive human parents, not having found out she was a youkai until later in childhood. She had also been content to attend human schools, only coming here since her father forced the Chairman's hand. Just what kind of political power did that youko have...?

If they didn't do something about him, then it wouldn't matter much if they defused Maiko or not. Of course, they still should, and he trusted in Kurumu to figure that out. But there had to be something he could do to help... he'd have to visit the library later. Kurumu herself tried to get Maiko to warm up to the group, but she was pretty clearly resentful of having been sent here. Maybe one day she wouldn't feel that way, but that day wouldn't be today.

The rest of lunch passed peacefully enough.

Then he came around.

Not Saizou, this time. A new threat. He was a massive guy, walking around with a dumbbell in one hand. Araiko was trailing behind in the distance, yelling at him to stop, but he didn't listen. You might have expected him to focus on Moka or Maiko, but instead his gaze was levelled squarely at Kurumu. The reason why was obvious the instant he opened his mouth.

"Hey, you the succubus what wasted Kuyou? Yer name's Kurumu-chan, yeah?"

Kurumu flinched, and Tsukune drew her in. Maiko, Moka, and Mizore all tensed up, while Yukari hid behind Moka.

"Y-yeah!?" said Kurumu.

Big mistake. The man, with his free hand, tried to karate chop Kurumu!

Thankfully for her, Moka, Maiko, and Mizore acted at once. Moka swapped with her Inner Self, and deflected the karate chop with a kick of her own. Maiko and Mizore, whether intentional or not, launched a combined fire and ice attack, knocking the young man back.

"CHOPPER!" shouted Araiko at him as she arrived on the scene, followed by a small crowd. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? I told you, she's not a fighter!" She then bowed to Kurumu and her group. "I'm so sorry this happened! We were discussing ideas for the School Festival and your name came up, and so this idiot just had to come and challenge you!"

"Tch! Didn't do nothin..." he got up, mostly unfazed by the blow, though he'd need a new shirt. He pointed at Kurumu. "And this chick is a fighter, whether she admits it or not. Before her friends stepped in, I saw a glance of it in her eyes. Those are the eyes of a killer, for sure."

Kurumu shuddered, and Tsukune took her hand... and also noted that for later.

The silver-haired Moka stepped in the way. "Be that as it may... it's not your place to make her fight. Either do things properly or go away."

Chopper nodded. "Guess ya got a point. Name's Chopper Rikiishi. I'm here to..."

"...do nothing and leave that girl alone!" shouted Araiko over him. "I told you, if you want more fights, then we need to run that tournament. Which means you need to help us plan it!"

With a sigh, he grudgingly agreed, and said he'd see Kurumu there. Kurumu, for her part, didn't respond to that, instead asking what Araiko meant. "Oh that? All us martial arts clubs are thinking about doing a group event for the School Festival. Naturally, doing a tournament open to all the students was one of the first ideas to come up. Oh, Moka-san, would you mind signing up?"

Moka smirked. "Not at all. Though I'll likely be the winner."

Araiko laughed heartily. "Ha! We'll see about that. You haven't fought me, Chopper, or other people like us. We might not be as strong as Kuyou was, but we're no pushovers!"

Moka swapped back to her pink-haired form. "Don't worry, I'll make sure the other me takes this seriously."

With a big smile, Araiko thanked Moka and (forcefully) led Chopper away. Tsukune had hoped that with this settled, the trouble was over.

Of course, he was wrong about that.

Once afternoon class ended, he, Moka, and Mizore decided to head for Kurumu's classroom instead of going right to the News Club room. Good thing too, as several youkai were trying to harass Kurumu despite Deshiko also being on the scene, armed and ready. The three of them (admittedly, mostly Moka and Mizore) extracted Kurumu and dashed away with Deshiko covering their escape route. They found Yukari and Gin waiting for them, and got to work. Not long into it, Araiko appeared, apologetic once more.

Here, Gin had an idea, and managed to get Kurumu to agree to it.

The next day, a special issue of the newspaper was released – one containing a letter of challenge from Kurumu herself! (It was actually written by Moka and Araiko.) Anyone who wanted to fight the "legendary youko-slaying succubus" Kurumu had to sign up for and then win the Youkai Academy All-Martial Arts Tournament, which will be held during the School Festival. Anyone who broke this rule would be dealt with harshly.

It worked, and Kurumu knew peace for a few days.

But only for a few days.


Naturally, Maiko would see that issue of the newspaper and take issue with it. That youko that was slain was her brother after all! But while Kurumu was sympathetic, the rest of the club and Araiko refused to retract the letter of challenge.

This would only infuriate her further, so it was no surprise that she demanded one day that Kurumu met her at midnight outside the girl's dorms alone.

"Kurumu, are you sure about this?" asked Tsukune during the News Club meeting that day. "You know you don't have to do this alone."

Kurumu giggled and kissed him on the cheek. "Oh, Tsukune, I don't think you'll need to worry. I don't think Maiko-chan is like Kuyou. I'm sure we'll be able to work something out!" she declared, trying to project an optimism she didn't actually feel. Maybe if she projected hard enough, she'd actually believe it and get through to Maiko. "Besides, I'm sure Moka-chan or Mizore-chan will sneak out and follow me anyway~!"

Moka tried to deny it, but Mizore flat out admitted that she would be doing just that.

As it turned out, Tsukune, Moka, and Yukari would all be joining Mizore in hiding. Gin, of course, told them to have faith in their fellow News Club member... which may have been what he actually felt, but was definitely also an excuse for him to stay out of the whole thing. The four of them kept back a good distance and trailed Kurumu and Miako as they left the dorms and went out where the PSC used to be based.

They went to the place where Tsukune and Kuyou both died not that long ago.

Kurumu shuddered and tensed up as they drew close. The scent of blood was still in the air, even this far out. If she looked at her hands, she might see chars from Tsukune's body or drops of Kuyou's blood, so she kept them out of sight.

"M-maiko-chan, there was no need to go all the way out here..."

Maiko shook her head, and then turned to face Kurumu... who avoided her gaze. Maiko growled and walked over to Kurumu. "On the contrary, there was. Only here could I see your guilty expression, you murderer!"

Kurumu flinched... but didn't reject the claim. Maiko walked over to Kurumu, and grabbed her hands roughly, holding them tight. "These were the hands that killed my brother, weren't they?" They were... soft. Soft and comforting (but why?). It was actually rather nice to hold Kurumu's hands... not that Maiko would say that out loud.

"Y-yes. They are..." Kurumu admitted, shaking. "I... ah..." She was remembering that day. That awful day. Only taking a moment to breathe and think about her darling Tsukune and her many friends allowed her to continue. "I want to tell you how that happened. I have to."

Maiko nodded, and let Kurumu's hands go. "And I want to know. I have to." She needed to know if she really had to kill this girl or not. She needed to know if she even could.

"So, tell me."


Tsukune, Moka, Mizore, and Yukari watched from a distance as Maiko and Kurumu lay on the ground, the stars shining brightly above them, and Kurumu started telling Maiko about her life since coming to Youkai Academy. Other than that brief flare-up of Maiko's aura when she growled at Kurumu, things had been peaceful. Maiko was entirely focused on Kurumu, and so things were still peaceful.

And Tsukune was able to breathe a sigh of relief. So too did everyone else.

Of course, Maiko might reject Kurumu's words in the end, but they now had time to prepare. If she attacked, Mizore and Yukari could counter-attack from a range, while Moka and Tsukune moved in close. Tsukune would bring Kurumu away from the battle and towards Mizore and Yukari, while Moka engaged Maiko in close combat. Sure, Maiko seemed strong, but Moka doubted she was at the level of her brother. Maybe some of her silver-haired self's overconfidence was bleeding into her, but the pink-haired Moka believed that she wouldn't have any issues, whether as herself or as her other self.

All seemed like it would go well...

...up until Mizore suddenly stood up and turned her attention towards the distance.

"Mizore-chan? Did something happen?" asked Tsukune.

"I left an ice clone behind... someone just destroyed it," she said, wary. "Someone's coming this way...!"

They glanced over at Kurumu and Maiko saw that the two of them were still talking peacefully. If either of them had noticed anything, they had yet to display any signs of it. And with things going so well, they couldn't let anything interfere. So, Yukari and Moka went ahead towards where Mizore left her ice clone while Kurumu and Mizore stayed behind with Kurumu.

And as they walked there...

"Hehehe... what a pleasant surprise~! It's the beautiful Akashiya Moka~!"

...they ran into none other than Saizou.

But he was not alone this time. No, he was with a tanned young man with short blond hair, looking like it was dyed. He was in an unbuttoned green long sleeve jacket and black pants, but wore no shirt this night. "We're not here for Akashiya, Saizou-kun. Keep focused," the man said.

"Yeah, yeah... but maybe she knows something. She is smart..."

The man nodded. "Fair enough..." He turned his attention towards Moka. "Hey, you two, you see a youko girl come through here?" he asked.

Moka narrowed her eyes, and stepped in front of Yukari. "What if she has?" she asked with a hand on her black rosary. "Maybe she's busy."

Saizou laughed. "Only thing she'd be busy with right now is killing that succubus friend of yours, and there's no way you'd just let that happen!"

His companion nodded. "Indeed, that's why we're here. I wanted to talk to her and work something out. Despite Saizou-kun's attitude towards her, I hold no ill will towards her. So, I was hoping that we could work something out." He then narrowed his eyes. "You on the other hand... I do have a problem with you, Akashiya... or perhaps I should call you by you real last name, Shuzen."

Moka's eyes widened. "H-how do you...?"

"Know about you? A whole lot of people do, and some of them are willing to talk for the right price. But enough about that. My rep will skyrocket if I can take out a so-called super vampire like you...!"

"H-hey, Boss Midou, we're not here for her, remember?" asked Saizou as his boss's aura started boiling over.

Midou forced himself to calm down. "Yeah... we're not." He breathed in deeply. "So, if you're just watching over her, you shouldn't have any reason to stop us. We'll be on our way..."

"H-hold it!" shouted Moka at the two men before they could walk away. "I don't understand... sure, I fought with Komiya once, but that was so long ago... and you must know that he started it by attacking me. So why do you..."

Midou spit on the ground. "Come on, Akashiya, think! It's not about what happened back then. It's about who you are. You're among the purest of the pureblood vampires. Hybrid youkai like us get looked down upon by people like you. We get used as your tools and then thrown away." He then looked over at Yukari, and considered her presence for a bit before continuing. "Sure, you may not do it now, but one day you will. You'll grow up into it, just like your father."

But Moka stood her ground. "I... I won't! I would never!"

Saizou laughed and Midou scoffed. "I'll believe it when I see it," said Midou. "I have yet to."

He then paused for a moment.

"...are you trying to distract us?" he asked, an eyebrow raised.

Moka and Yukari managed to hold in a gasp. They looked at each other, and Yukari continued to hang back while Moka spoke. "...okay, yes, we are. We can't afford any distractions right now."

Midou chuckled. "Heh, trying to talk things out too? How appropriate... but I can't afford to have that happen!"

But instead of attacking Moka and Yukari, Midou and Saizou dashed ahead, forcing the two to give chase.


At first, Kurumu and Maiko noticed nothing was amiss.

Kurumu was focused intently on Maiko, trying her hardest to get through to Maiko and convince her that she should be shown mercy. Maiko was focused intently on Kurumu, searching through every word for signs of hidden malice, or anything at all that would permit her to make her first kill. Maiko, of course, knew that she didn't have to sit and listen to any of the succubus's tale. By all accounts – even Kurumu's – she was well within her rights to simply rip her head off here and now. Yet, she did not, and continued to listen to Kurumu's story. But why...?

The answer would not come to her immediately.

Especially, not when she was distracted by the sudden flaring of a youkai's aura!

No, not just one – several!

She sat up, and Kurumu followed her lead. The two of them immediately noticed Saizou and another man dashing towards, partially transformed, dodging attacks from the silver-haired Moka and her Witch companion Yukari.

Maiko faced Kurumu, a growl ripping through her. She stood and yanked Kurumu up with her as well, her hands having transformed into fox's claws. "You bitch! I told you to come here alone!"

Kurumu nervously chuckled. "Ehehe... Maiko-chan, you should know that I can't really stop my friends if they want to keep me safe..."

This was immediately followed by several ice shards nearly impaling Maiko in the chest. Only a quick dodge and letting go of Kurumu allowed to her way scamper back unscathed. The ice attack was followed up with another, and another, but Maiko's blazing claws kept her safe.

In the meantime, as Mizore pressed the attack, Tsukune went over to Kurumu's side. "Kurumu!" He glanced over his girlfriend, worried, looking for injuries. "Are you okay? Nothing broken?"

Kurumu glanced sadly over towards Maiko and Mizore, and sighed. "Just the trust I was trying to build..."

Tsukune drew her in for a hug. "It might not have worked this time, but maybe you'll get another chance."

"Oh, Tsukune... oh! Let me try to take that chance now!" She then broke their close embrace, and turned towards the fight. "Mizore-chan! Maiko-chan! Please stop fighting!"

Luckily for her, both of them stopped at once, much to Maiko's chagrin. "Tch! You've no right to order me around!" said the youko girl.

Kurumu nodded. "You're right, I don't. But I... ah!?"

She was interrupted by the man accompanying Saizou suddenly crash-landing next to Maiko and Mizore. Maiko stayed where she was, but Mizore took that opportunity to retreat closer to Kurumu and Tsukune. The blonde had the imprint of Moka's foot on his chest, which was a huge slab of twisted muscle along with his arms. "Man, she's got a killer kick... owww... oh, it's you, Maiko-chan. How lucky for me~."

She glared at him. "And what is a friend of Komiya doing addressing me with such familiarity?"

He chuckled, and got up, paying no mind to a Saizou that was being thoroughly trashed by Moka now that he was on his own. "This Midou is a man who wants to make an ally of you. We have a common enemy after all."

"Huh? I have no issues with Shuzen-san."

Midou chuckled. "Oh? And you suppose she'll just let you kill her best friend?"

She huffed. "No, but I can handle her! She ought to understand my position, given her family."

He shook his head, knowing full well that Maiko was wrong on both counts. "Look, if it makes you feel better, I'm doing this of my own accord, as a member of Anti-Thesis. Your dad's got nothing to do with it."

That made her relax a bit, though she tried not to show it. "Hmph! Well, if you're serious... then Komiya must apologize to me and be my lackey for a month."

Midou grinned and Kurumu gasped. "M-Maiko-chan!?" she blurted out.

Maiko focused on Kurumu's sorrowful face. She remembered that she was supposed to kill that girl. That she could kill the girl. That she should do it. ...but once again, she didn't move.

Instead, she scoffed, trying to project malice. "Don't 'Maiko-chan' me! Your story is just that – a story. It doesn't change what happened and what you did to me and my family!"

Judging from Kurumu's reaction, she succeeded. The succubus started crying into her human boyfriend's shoulder, while he and the yuki-onna glared at her. Let them! It didn't hurt her at all. (It hurt her quite a bit, she had to ignore it for the sake of her brother.) This – avenging her brother by killing Kurumu – was what she had to do. (This is what he would want, right?)

Unfortunately, she wouldn't get to do it tonight. Not only had she lost the stomach for it, but Saizou had been thoroughly trounced. She and Midou were no match for Moka and her pals.

She dropped her transformation. "That said... if you're serious about his whole tournament thing... I can wait until then."

Mido relaxed transformation as well. "And I didn't come here for a fight, either. We'll be meeting again soon... and we can have a proper bout then, Shuzen Moka."

Mido then departed, dragging the unconscious Saizou with him.

Maiko made moves to leave as well, but not before Kurumu interjected.

"Maiko-chan! I... I'm not going to give up on you!" she declared. "We can work things out!"

Maiko turned to face Kurumu, a neural face masking her true feelings. (Could they?)

"...we'll see."

She then left Kurumu and her friends behind in the dark of the night.


The next day, Saizou was gone from class. Maiko was still there, but she kept her distance from Tsukune, Moka, and Mizore. She didn't join them for lunch either, something that Yukari appreciated but that made Kurumu sad. She and Maiko... were the two of them doomed to fight, with one dying in the end? There had to be something she could do to stop this tragedy, right?

But she had no clue as to what to do.

And a new development would soon arrive and require all of her attention.