I know this is really sudden and all but I'm gonna delete my other fic for now. Not only does it need a re-write, but honestly I'm blank right now in terms of how I'm supposed to continue, really sorry about this. I'm not quitting on this one though, I plan to finish this story. Anyways I guess I'll now address recent reviews.
Teracotta Tortilla: Yeah I can understand where you're coming from, it's not really everyone's cup of tea in terms of how Hachiman chooses to act in this fanfic. I just couldn't resist all the possibilities of sex jokes. I mean come on, 'Service club'? That just screams out sex jokes. But as I said I can see where you're coming from and I don't blame you. Thanks for your review.
Dixon16: Gracias por los elogios y todo lo que escribo, pero nada de lo que escribo puede ser mejor que el original. El anime original era una obra maestra. También estoy usando el traductor de Google para responder a su revisión, por lo que en realidad no sé qué tan precisa es mi respuesta.
Isuckatnaming: Congrats on your story man, I hope I can finish mine soon. But yeah the PS5 is a real beauty, also unexpectedly common all of a sudden.
Renekton Time: Nah don't think too much of all the references, this fic is probably going to be full of references by the time I'm done. But yeah, I felt Zaimokuza would be obsessed with Ai Hoshino if both anime's shared a universe. I don't know why though. Guess it's because Zaimokuza is a complete Chuunibyou.
But seriously though can someone give me an idea for a better title and summary please? My naming skills are complete shit. Thanks.
Chapter 9: A novelist's ambition
"Hey it's him. He's the guy that fought with Yumiko."
"Whoa, he still has guts to come back to school after yesterday? Fire queen is gonna make his life hell."
"That's him? Who does that loser think he is? Talking to Yumiko-Chan like that."
"Man, respect to that guy. I sure as hell wouldn't have the balls to talk to Miura like that."
"Well. Looks like I'm famous." I quietly commented to myself, ignoring the chatter and mixed looks of curiosity, disgust and respect from the sea of side characters."
"You left yourself open!" A sudden shout announced. Instinctively, I ducked down. A bag flying over my head as a result of my quick thinking.
"Really Yugahama?" I deadpanned. "Who loudly announces their own sneak attack?"
Ignoring my question completely, Yui walked past me and picked up her now slightly dirtied bag. "Whoa Hikki. That was cool! How'd you do that?"
"Two words for you Yuigahama. Ultra instinct." I smirked, receiving a completely clueless expression in response. "Seriously? You never watched Dragon Ball? I know girls aren't that into anime but come on Yuigahama, Dragon Ball is a classic. You have to at least heard about it?"
"Wait it was an anime?" Yui asked with complete surprise by the revelation. Much to my confusion.
"Wh-what are you talking about? It's always been an anime?" I asked. What kind of bootleg did she watch to get this confused?
"No it's just, I always thought Dragon Ball was a live action movie." Yui explained.
"A live action movie...?" A horrifying realization quickly dawned upon me. "Uh Yuigahama. What was the movie's full name?"
"Hmm. I think it was Dragon Ball Evoluti-"
"And there is where we drop the subject." I abruptly cut off, not wanting to be reminded of the god awful 2009 live action movie. Honestly how did she even find out about the foreign movie adaptation first before the original anime in the first place? "So let's talk about current events instead shall we?"
"You seem kind of bothered by it Hikki." Yui pointed out. Oh she has no idea how much that shitty adaptation bothered me. "I never watched it before, is it really as bad as everyone said?"
"Yui...I once had the displeasure of walking into Zaimokuza naked in the bathroom while he was re-enacting scenes from a magical girl anime. I'd rather watch that again instead of Dragon Ball Evolution." I retorted.
"Gross...current events it is then." Yui sweat-dropped. That foolish girl will never understand the horror of watching Dragon Ball Evolution will she? "It seems you're kind of famous right now Hikki."
"Hmm? Oh. Yeah, word quickly spread." I commented, noting the stares we were currently receiving. "Looks like public reaction is mixed though. You certain things between you and Miura are fine?"
"Don't worry Hikki. Yumiko already forgave me for what happened." Yui reassured, although the fact that Yuigahama had to gain Miura's forgiveness was most displeasing.
"*Sigh* Yuigahama, I can't believe I'm saying this but you should ask Yukinoshita for help in terms of your confidence." I said. "You can't let Miura continue to walk all over you."
"What?! It's fine Hikki don't worry." Yui reassured. "Yumiko's actually really nice when you get to know her."
"When you bow your head to her you mean." I retorted, earning a rather forceful head chop from Yuigahama in response.
"I'm serious Hikki. She's a lot nicer than you think." Yui claimed.
"That remains to be seen Yuigahama." I replied. "By the way, you seem to be in an awfully good mood today. And you're quite energetic as well."
"Why wouldn't I be?" Yui asked.
"No it's just surprising considering the shit Zaimokuza writes is really another form of psychological torture. I'm impressed you could handle that cursed manuscript so well." I explained with a raised brow. "Because there is no way in hell I'd be able to even stay sane after reading one of Zaimokuza's works in a single sitting."
"W-well...Its...There's actually a really good explanation for this..." Yui nervously laughed.
"You didn't read a single page did you?" I deadpanned. Her embarrassed expression told me everything I needed to know. "It's fine Yuigahama, I didn't read it either."
"Wait what?!" Yui said in shock by my words. "But what about your promise to Chuuni-Chan?"
Again with that nickname. Why does she even call him that?
"Don't worry about it. You'll see soon enough."
~ Service Clubroom ~
"Afternoon Yukinon." Yui greeted as we entered the clubroom. Inside, we were greeted by the rare sight of a dozing Yukinoshita.
"Hmm...?" Yukino slowly opened her eyes. "Oh, thank you for coming. Good afternoon to the both of you as well."
"Rough night?" I asked, placing my bag onto the floor.
"Yes but not to worry. Now that you have made your putrid presence known to me. My sleepiness is now completely gone so I thank you." Yukino mocked with a straight face.
"I wish my presence had to opposite effect and put you to sleep forever instead." I retorted.
"Come on you guys, don't pick a fight..." Yui tried to serve as the mediator.
"Very well then."
"Fine."
"Great. See you two. You can both get along if you try." Yui claimed.
"More like tolerate if I'm being honest." I pointed out.
"I am in agreement." Yukino added.
"Well...I guess we gotta start from somewhere..." Yui muttered. "By the way Yukinon. That script really gave you a hard time by the looks of it."
"Yes, it's been quite a while since my last all-nighter." Yukino replied. "I only wish it was for something more meaningful rather than the review of a degenerate's inner fantasy."
"Yeah. I couldn't stand it too." Yui lied.
I don't think lying to the ice princess is a good idea Yuigahama. If I were you, I'd quickly read through a few pages before the school's resident Discord moderator arrives.
"And what about you Hikigaya-Kun?" Yukino turned to me. "What do you have to say about the novel?"
"Oh boy." Yui quietly muttered.
"It depends really. What does every teenage male have to say about Boku No Pico?" I sarcastically asked.
"Uh? Hikki? What's Boku No Pico?" Yui nervously asked.
"An insult to the entertainment and media industry." I answered. "Just like Zaimokuza's series of 'literature' if you can even call it that."
"You seem to be well informed of Zaimokuza-San's series of literature." Yukino commented.
"Oh yeah, I am." I replied. "In fact. I've had the 'privilege' of being the only individual in this godforsaken city to have read his 'masterful' works. Including The Demon Blade Academia Chronicles."
"The Demon Blade Academia Chronicles?" Yui asked, confused by the specific mention.
"It's the prequel series." I answered.
"I assume it's just as awful as the sequel?" Yukino asked.
"Probably. Not that I would know considering I didn't bother reading even a single page." I replied, earning both a look of disbelief and shock from Yuigahama and a disapproving glare from Yukinoshita. "Don't give me that look. I may not have read a single page of the sequel story but even I still know Rias wasn't truly killed by Stella."
Looking rather surprised by my claim. Yukino spoke. "How did you..?"
"Rias Gremory is one of his favorite characters in fiction. There is no way he'd kill off his favorite character in any scenario, and yes, he did 'source' most of his characters from other popular media." I answered. "By the way, does Naofumi finally make his appearance in the Celestial Sages arc like how Zaimokuza kept yapping to me about? Or did he decide to debut him earlier?"
"Actually Naofumi appears somewhere in the middle of the Demon Village arc where he...*sigh*...he..." Yukino stopped for a second. Her embarrassment clear to all present. "I don't even want to continue."
"W-why? Is it something really gross?" Yui asked with a raised brow. You ignorant and sweet child. You have no idea.
"Where he does the 'deed' with Kotori am I right?" I sighed.
"Yes..." Yukino quietly confirmed. "Three whole pages of intercourse. How can someone be this perverted to such a degree?"
"You should be grateful Kotori is at an appropriate age this time. If I remember correctly, the sequel is supposed to take place 5 years in the future so that would mean she isn't a minor in this one." I shuddered.
"Yeah I'm starting to feel less bad for not reading the novel." Yui said, revealing her lie.
"Apologies I didn't quite catch that?" Yukino asked.
"No, it's-it's nothing. Sorry." Yui quickly covered up. Lucky girl.
"Well in any case I would have preferred that you at least read a page." Yukino chastised. "As disgusting as his manuscript is, we still need to provide our input."
"Don't worry, you'll see soon enough." I defended. The door sliding open abruptly halted our current conversation. "And speak of the devil..."
"I am entering the room like a normal person!" Zaimokuza loudly declared like the abnormal abomination that he is. "I thank your guild for their assistance in this trifling matter of mine, now. Let me hear your thoughts."
"...So...Ladies first?" I asked.
"Very well then." Yukino agreed. "Before I provide my criticism, I must first apologize due to my lack of knowledge in fantasy literature."
"Ah, there is no need to worry fair maiden. You are free to deliver your judgement." Zaimokuza said dramatically, much to Yukinoshita's increasing annoyance.
"Will you please stop talking like that?" Yukino glared. Intimidating Zaimokuza into a temporary state of normalcy.
"Oh...I'm sorry about that." Zaimokuza apologized with a nervous tone. Sweat starting to trickle from the sides of his face. "So can I get your opinion please?"
"*Breathes in* To put it bluntly, it was 150 pages of pure garbage." Yukino coldly stated, much to Zaimokuza's chagrin. "This manuscript should be used as a torture device to extract information from war criminals, not published to the masses."
"P-pure garbage?" Zaimokuza sulked, dropping to his knees. "M-may I know what was so terrible about my novel?"
"If I critiqued every single flaw in this novel. We'd be here for a whole day so I shall simply summarize your main problems." Yukino said with no regards to Zaimokuza's feelings whatsoever. "First off, your phrasing. Why would you inversion rather than the participles of writing? Did you not attend Elementary school as a youth?"
Sheesh, the review just began and she's already being so harsh. Well, I should have expected that much. I might actually sympathize with Zaimokuza for a bit.
"W-well, I used inversion in order to make the words more familiar when compared to plain wording." Zaimokuza futilely tried to defend himself.
"Shouldn't you have a firm grasp of the Japanese language first before you make such an attempt?" Yukino questioned. "And this..." She pointed at a specific line. "Bloody Nightmare Slasher...Where did the nightmare come from exactly? Actually why even call a technique 'Bloody Nightmare Slasher'?"
"It-it's called that in order to reflect the ever growing darkness of the main character! It was named in such a way to add a twist to the battle!" Zaimokuza tried to claim.
"Fine then, let's go on." Yukino flipped a page. "And this scene right here. Why would the heroine take all her clothes off in the middle of a fierce battle? In fact, why are there three whole pages of sexual intercourse in the Demon Village arc? Are you some sort of sex crazed degenerate that I should be wary of?"
"W-well, in order for the heroine to utilize all her power. She needs to remove her clothing." Zaimokuza claimed, furthering Yukinoshita's disgust. "As for the Demon Village arc. It was to display the love the main characters had for each other. It adds to the development of the characters."
"Characters that you stole from other sources of media." I quietly muttered.
"Spoken like a true sexual predator." Yukino sighed. "Honestly. Next time when you write a novel, you should at least have a semblance of language skills first before you proceed. Or better yet, quit entirely due to your gross lacking of common sense."
"My heart! The wounds to my heart..." Zaimokuza proclaimed, dropping flat to the floor."
"Alright Yukinoshita, that's enough for now. If he starts crying I'm leaving you to handle the mess." I requested. "And trust me, you do not want to be left alone in a room with a crying Zaimokuza."
"But I haven't finished." Yukino protested.
"Don't worry, what I have in store for him will be more than enough." I said.
"What you have in store for him?" Yukino asked.
"As I said earlier on, you'll see soon enough." I claimed, turning to call out to a dozing Yuigahama. "Yuigahama, it's your turn."
"What?" Yui immediately sat upright. "Oh, sorry. Uh...well...there's...uh?" Yuigahama tried to come up with a response. "There's...there's a lot of difficult Kanji?!"
Really Yuigahama? That was the best you've got?
"Lot of difficult Kanji?" Zaimokuza whimpered. "What kind of compliment is that?"
"Uh...Hikki it's your turn." Yui claimed while secretly shooting a disgusted look at the sulking Zaimokuza.
"H-Hachiman, my brother." Zaimokuza whimpered. "You've read my works before right? You understand what I am trying to do?"
"Sorry Zaimokuza, but I have no idea what you're talking about. I didn't even read a single page." I stated with a rare grin, much to Zaimokuza's distress.
"Wh-what! B-but your brotherly promise? H-how? How could you violate your oath?" Zaimokuza dramatically asked, kneeling to the ground as he clutched his shirt tightly.
"This was your idea?" Yukino snarled. "I should have expected this much from a cretin such as yourself Hikigaya-Kun."
"Hikki. I'm disappointed in you." Yui added.
"What? You didn't read it either." I defended, receiving a look of betrayal from Yuigahama in response.
"Y-you too?" Zaimokuza whimpered. "No, this-this is a nightmare."
"Hikki. You betrayed me!" Yui pouted, quickly noticing Yukinoshita's judgmental look. "I-I can explain..."
"Spare her the icy stare your highness. It was kind of your fault for expecting Yuigahama of all people read through 150 pages of Zaimokuza's inner workings in the first place." I pointed out. "Besides, not all is lost. I told you I had an idea."
"And what would that be exactly?" Yukino sarcastically asked.
"I'm happy you asked." Turning to Zaimokuza who was had begun to wail, I continued. "Alright Zaimokuza, if you would please stop acting like a man-child for 5 minutes. I would like you to login to your email account."
"M-my email account?" Zaimokuza asked, still sulking. "V-very well then but why..." He abruptly paused, his sulking quickly changing into complete horror. "No...you-you didn't..."
"Uh Hikki? What did you do?" Yui asked as she nervously stared at Zaimokuza.
"What had to be done Yuigahama." I simply stated while uncaringly observing Zaimokuza.
"No! He's read it...Cipher...He's read my manuscript..." Zaimokuza wailed in both panic and horror. "My life is over..."
"You-you sent his manuscript to a reviewer?" Yukino asked in disbelief. "That was rather unexpected Hikigaya-Kun."
"Hikki..." Yui gave me a disappointed look. "I'm so disappointed in you. How could you do that to him?"
This coming from the one who didn't bother thinking of alternative methods to solve the issue?
"It was easy really, all I needed to do was use Camscanner. After that it was simply a click of a button. The only hard part was scanning 150 pages in one go." I sarcastically joked, furthering Yuigahama's disappointment. "Look, eventually he's going to have to accept the inevitable. What kind of novelist can't stomach reviews anyways?"
"But still-" Yui protested.
"But nothing Yuigahama." I interrupted. "But nothing. Now the remaining question is. What happens next?"
A moment of tension quickly passed before Zaimokuza unexpectedly stood up. "Very well then." Zaimokuza said with surprising determination. "I shall face this challenge and prove my worth as a writer."
"You plan on continuing even after that reviewer you seem to fear so much most likely left harsh and unforgiving comments?" Yukino asked.
"Yes, if I back away from this challenge. Then I have completely failed as a writer." Zaimokuza replied with clear conviction in his voice. "It was past time I faced my demons anyways."
"Wow you seriously came to that realization after one year of forcing manuscripts on me?" I asked. "Well it doesn't matter to me in the end. Good luck Blade Master General or whatever the hell you call yourself on Discord. In all honesty I hope Cipher doesn't drive you to quitting from his harsh comments."
"No, I shall take any harsh words he may have in store for me as a lesson. That way I can better myself and prepare for the competition." Zaimokuza turned to leave, but not before asking one final question. "Hachiman, my most trusted comrade. Will you someday read my story again?"
"Hmph...Never..."