Sorry that this chapter is shorter than usual, it was meant to be longer, but I wanted to get something out before Christmas. I hope that all of you who have followed this story for the year enjoy this early Christmas present, and I can't wait to continue our adventure next year! Here we go!
Shiho did not consider herself a remarkable girl.
That wasn't self-deprecation on her part, she just genuinely didn't believe that she was special in any particular field.
She wasn't pretty, like Ann. Even if she weren't covered in bruises all the time, she'd still consider herself average at best.
She wasn't overly intelligent. In their last exam, she had to look a long way down the scoreboard to find her own name. She still beat Ann though, so ha!
No. She was nothing more than an average schoolgirl. She woke up, went to school, went home. Just like everyone else. In terms of being remarkable, she didn't have much.
But she did have volleyball. Volleyball was the one thing that she was good at. It gave her purpose. Made her feel special. So when Kamoshida, an Olympic-level volleyball player came to Shujin, she thought that she was lucky.
It took only one session of training for her to realise just how wrong she was.
Kamoshida was everything that a coach wasn't supposed to be. He was cruel, harsh, and demanding. He pushed her and her team members way beyond their limits. He insulted and abused them for the tiniest of mistakes, and he...looked at the girls on the team with eyes that made her want to run home and take a cold shower.
With his status as a famous athlete, any attempts to reach out, to ask for help, were unsuccessful. Parents, teachers, even the police didn't do anything. Nobody cared for them. Nobody would save them. Kamoshida was untouchable in his abuse. Someone whom mere teenagers couldn't possibly overcome. Eventually, they stopped trying, broken by the man's diabolical treatment.
It was an awful time, and it only became worse when he started singling her out. He became even more critical of her very minor mistakes and brought her on for more matches against him than she could handle. She had become intimately familiar with the sensation of a volleyball hitting her face at eighty miles an hour.
Every day, she was called in for more training, unable to take even a single day off.
Every day, she woke up with new bruises on top of her old ones, while dreading the afternoon to come.
And every day, she felt herself get farther and farther away from her best friend.
Those halcyon days of chatting about insignificant nothings in the mall with Ann while they ate crepes felt so far away.
She missed them so much.
And now...she feared the possibility that they would never return.
Mishima had just spoken to her, told her that Kamoshida wished to see her in his office. Amongst the volleyball team, there were rumours about what happened if Kamoshida invited you in there. None of them were good.
Needless to say, the girl was utterly terrified. She stayed sitting on the bench in the courtyard, staring ahead at nothing while her anxieties devoured her from the inside.
What was Kamoshida going to do to her?
Shiho barely registered Mishima as he scurried away from her. He knew what part he had played, and he immediately tried to distance himself from it.
Mishima always was easy for Kamoshida to control. He got almost as much "extra training" as she did.
She grit her teeth desperately. How she wished that she had the option of running. How she wished to flee from Kamoshida's grasp and never return. But she couldn't. None of them could.
She found herself digging into her pocket and pulling out her phone. Numbly, she navigated to her contacts, where Ann was at the top of the list. Fifteen missed calls from her and nine text messages. All of them ignored by her.
She was so stupid. Ann had been beyond worried for her, and all Shiho had done was ignore her. Even now, when all she wanted was to hear her best friend's voice, her finger refused to hit the Call button. Refused to even type out a single message. She had no courage left.
If only Ann was here right now. Maybe if she were, Shiho could tell her everything. About the abuse, how sorry she was, how much she wished to run away from all of this.
...but Ann wasn't here.
She was all alone.
All alone.
He ran through the streets, his mind frantic. He dodged and weaved through the people in his way and dashed through crosswalks without waiting for the green light. He had no time to lose. He was a couple blocks out from Aoyama-Itchome. Come on!
Shiho curled up on the bench and let tears fall while resting the phone on her forehead.
"Ann..." She whimpered.
Maybe...maybe this was for the best? All she had been to Ann was a burden. Perhaps it was time for her to be removed.
Ann would be alright, right? After all, she had Sakamoto. And Kurusu. That wonderful boy who tried to help her in the match today. She would always be grateful to him for trying in that regard, but in the end, taking down someone as powerful as Kamoshida was a naive goal. A naive, beautiful goal.
Still, he'd be able to protect her, and maybe even watch as she became the greatest model who ever lived. Ann deserved that much.
Yeah...it was better this way. If only she could trick herself into believing that.
She should go. Kamoshida punished tardiness. She tried to dry her eyes to make it look like she hadn't been crying. Kamoshida also punished tears.
The girl slipped her phone back into her pocket and stood up from the bench. She took a moment to steel herself. She needed a lot more than a moment, but that was all she would get.
And so, the young girl with dragging feet and lifeless eyes made her way out of the courtyard...
He could see the turn at the end of the street! The turn into Aoyama-Itchome!
She walked down the near-empty halls of Shujin Academy...
He skidded to a stop, his shoes scraping the pavement for only a moment before he turned left and continued to run as fast as his legs could take him...
She took a look up the stairs and shivered slightly before ascending them. The irony of going up a level only to descend into Hell was not lost on her...
Shujin! Shujin was right there! He was exhausted, with lungs and legs screaming in pain, but he pushed forward. He couldn't stop. He couldn't!
She arrived at the second floor and looked down the hallway. She could already see the blue door to the P.E. Faculty Office. Suppressing one last wave of dread, the girl walked forth, accompanied by nothing but the sound of her shoes on the wooden floor.
He burst through the Shujin gates, pushing by and frightening any students who were leaving late. He couldn't care less it spurned several new rumours about his delinquency. All he cared about was the fact that he was nearly there...!
Shiho stood before the blue door, abuzz with anxieties and nerves. Kamoshida was behind it, waiting, like a spider with its web. And Shiho was the fly that was about to walk straight into it.
The horrors that awaited her in there...she knew she wouldn't be coming out the same girl. And even if she shouted to the heavens about everything that happened in this room today, no one would believe her.
No one would care.
She knocked.
"Ka-Kamoshida-sensei...? I'm here for... special training." She announced with a voice barely above a whisper. She had hoped that maybe Kamoshida hadn't heard her, and that she would be given an excuse to flee. But all hopes of escape were crushed as the door was slid open, and the towering, imposing figure of Kamoshida appeared before her.
"Ah, Suzui. So glad that you could join me. Please, come in. We have a lot to talk about concerning today's match..." Kamoshida gave her a dangerous smile as he gestured into the room. Shiho couldn't help but notice that the other hand was positioned directly on the door's lock.
She swallowed. There was no turning back. No escape. No salvation.
So, into the web she walked, the door closing behind her...
But before it fully slid closed, a hand suddenly slipped through the crack and gripped the door like it was a rock in the middle of a stormy ocean. Then, it was thrown back open with a resounding crash that echoed through the hall.
"SUZUI!"
And standing in the doorway haggard and panting, but with eyes alight like molten metal, was Akira.
He'd made it. He'd made it!
The relief that he felt as he saw Shiho staring at him in stupefaction was unimaginable. Nothing had happened yet, she was untouched. She was alright!
On the other hand, Kamoshida's shock at the sudden intrusion quickly melted away into a cold fury, similar to the one that he'd incited at the match earlier.
"Kurusu." He snarled. "So, you must've been listening in on my chat with Ann too. Clearly, the youth of today aren't big on privacy."
Akira didn't dignify that statement with a reply. Instead, he reached out and gripped Shiho's wrist before she could even squeak in protest. He then dragged her behind him, shielding her from Kamoshida's gaze and his attempts to pull her back towards him.
"K-Kurusu?" Shiho whispered. "What's going on?"
"It's okay, Suzui. You're gonna be just fine." Akira replied without glancing in her direction. He kept his face locked with the infuriated Kamoshida, who was barely managing to keep his cool.
"Kurusu, what exactly are you doing?" The coach practically growled. "Suzui and I have a very important meeting today, and your presence is neither welcome nor required. Leave. Now." He commanded in a low voice.
Akira glared at the man and dug his feet into the ground. He had to be prepared in case this got physical.
"No." He stated firmly. "I'm not going anywhere. I'd rather die than leave her in the hands of a scumbag rapist like you."
He heard Shiho gasp behind him. Deep down she knew that was what would most likely happen to her, but to hear it said out loud made her skin crawl nonetheless.
If she made it through this, then she'd be thanking every single god she could think of tonight for Kurusu's timely rescue.
Akira's declaration caused Kamoshida's expression to switch to feigned innocence. "Hey now, I'd be careful what kinds of accusations you throw around. You could probably piss the wrong people off. I mean, me? A rapist?"
"I was listening in on your conversation, remember? I know exactly what you were planning on doing to Suzui." Akira hissed.
"Hmpf, you must have misheard. Or you're just stirring up the pot like the delinquent you are." Kamoshida scoffed. He was trying to get a rise out of Akira.
He needn't have bothered. Akira had already reached the very limits of his tolerance towards the despicable man.
"I didn't mishear. Unless you want to tell me that "Cocksleeve" is just how you address your right hand." Akira jabbed.
Of course, that remark pissed Kamoshida off and he leaned in closer, almost enough that Akira was able to gag on his foul breath.
"You think you're a smartass, huh? Well that conversation's not proof of anything. If you think it can be used as evidence against—"
"I didn't come here to throw proof at your feet just so you could sweep it under the rug like you always fucking do." Akira interrupted. "I'm here to save Suzui. Now back off. Or else."
Akira's warning was met with a condescending chuckle.
"Cute." Kamoshida gave Akira a sadistic grin. "You actually think you can do something to me. Well, let me tell you this: this is my school. My word is law. I can take whatever I want...and that includes your future."
Akira's glare darkened further. "You'd expel me?"
Kamoshida's grin only grew wider. "Once they see that you've violated your probation, you'll be sent straight to juvie. Who do you think the jury will listen to, a shitty delinquent, or a renowned volleyball coach? No one will listen to a criminal like you." Kamoshida told Akira gleefully.
"And while I'm at it, I'll push for Sakamoto and Takamaki's expulsion as well. They're no use to me. May as well send them to the gutter!" He added.
"A-Ann!?" Shiho squeaked. "No! You can't do—"
"Shut up, or you'll be next on the chopping block, Suzui!" Kamoshida snapped at the girl, who gave a quiet whimper.
Akira felt his fury rise by yet another level. It looked like Kamoshida wouldn't be satisfied until he had ruined all their lives.
"But I'll tell you what, Kurusu. Since I'm feeling generous, I'm willing to let this clear infraction on your part, go. All you have to do is turn around, pretend this never happened, and leave Suzui and I be." He said. "Surely, even an imbecile like you should know what the right move is..." The man gloated.
Oh, this felt good. Kamoshida had done this many times before. In fact, he took genuine joy out of it. To manipulate innocent youths, to throw them into situations where they would be forced to make impossible choices and turn on each other.
And the kid before him definitely deserved some of that mental anguish.
But then again, it wasn't like his choice would matter anyway. There was only one way this kind of thing went: the Kamoshida way.
For a minute, all was silent.
Kamoshida stared down the kid, waiting for that determination to leave his eyes, to watch those silly fantasies of heroism bleed out to be replaced by visions of imprisonment.
Yet Akira didn't back down. Didn't say anything in response. He just looked at him like he was the scum of the earth.
How dare he look at him with eyes like that! Where was the dread? Where was the fear? Was this kid messed up in the head?
Kamoshida finally lost his patience. If the brat was just going to stand there like a dumbass, then he was just wasting his time. He was tossing him out of here.
"Didn't you hear me?" The man grunted and took one final step forth, reaching for the front of the brat's blazer. "Take a fucking hike, you piece of-"
SWISH!
"Guh!?" Kamoshida gave a startled grunt as he suddenly found his right arm held in a vice-like grip, turned inward slightly to put an uncomfortable amount of pressure on his radius and ulna. His eyes widened as he realised that Kurusu had moved, and now held his wrist in a staggeringly tight grip.
"What the fu—?"
"I said..." Akira growled, staring into Kamoshida's eyes with enough rage to make them melt.
"Back...OFF!"
He unleashed a vicious palm strike against Kamoshida's chest, which sent the man stumbling backwards.
"ACK!" Kamoshida grunted. He found himself falling to one knee with his hand pressed against the area that was struck. The fuck was that!?
Akira gave the briefest of glances behind him to look at Shiho. The girl looked beyond shocked at what Akira had just done, but there wasn't any time to address it. She had to leave.
He didn't want her to see what was about to happen anyway.
"Suzui, get out of here, now! Get out of Shujin, call Ann and get yourselves somewhere safe!" He instructed her.
"K-Kurusu...?" Shiho whispered. He wanted her to leave him behind? With Kamoshida?
"Y-You little bastard! You think you can—gah! Shit!" The teacher gasped in pain as he tried to get to his feet.
They couldn't wait any longer.
"NOW, SUZUI!" Akira snapped.
The girl gave a startled yelp, but the urgency in his voice reminded the girl that this was no time for hesitation.
"R-Right. Th-Thank you, Kurusu." She said quietly. Shiho took one final glance at Kamoshida, who stared at her saviour with hatred. Then, with a small whimper, she sprinted down the hall and towards the stairs, running as fast as she could to get the hell away from here.
It wasn't until he heard the distant, rapid tapping of someone running down the stairs that Akira let some of his tension fade. She was safe.
"That...was a mistake, Kurusu," Kamoshida grunted, drawing Akira's attention back to him. He watched as the man stumbled to his feet with an impassive stare
Yet, of course, some tension still remained in the form of that rat bastard. If the rats would even take him.
But foul as he was, Akira knew that he had just placed himself in a very difficult situation. Kamoshida held absolute authority over him, and he had not only let his prey get away but struck him while doing so.
Akira completely believed Kamoshida's prior threat. Completely understood the ramifications that his actions came with. The position that this put them in was overwhelmingly in Kamoshida's favour. For as pathetic as this man was, the system that he'd go whining to definitely wasn't.
He'd be incarcerated. His friends would be expelled. Kamoshida would continue torturing students unopposed. Fuck, even Morning Glory would suffer if they looked too hard into his case, making all he'd done for naught.
But a mistake?
No.
To let Shiho suffer, to let Kamoshida reign, to let his own anger fizzle out and his inner self be silenced.
Beyond anything else, that would be the greatest mistake of all.
Akira was done letting shitty adults push him and his friends around. And if Kamoshida thought he could quell that...
Then he'd find himself torn asunder by the claws of a wrathful dragon.
Akira fully stepped inside the room and slid the door shut. The action seemed to confuse Kamoshida, as if he were silently asking why Akira wasn't running.
"The only mistake I made was not beating your ass black and blue the first time I saw your disgusting face!" Akira shot back.
"You son of a—"
"And that's a mistake I'll gladly correct here and now. You've hurt way too many people, Kamoshida. It's about time your sins caught up with you." Akira growled.
"Tch! You think you're hot shit just because you beat me at volleyball?" Kamoshida snarled. "We're not on the court anymore, you bastard. No spectators for protection..." He warned.
Akira smirked. "Good, because I don't want anyone to see just how badly you're about to get your ass kicked.
He swore he could almost hear the livid steam racing out of the man's ears while his face turned a furious red.
"You know what's funny?" Kamoshida spoke up with a voice just below shouting. "After I was done with Suzui here, I was going to have her throw you under the bus. Let you take the blame for raping her." He declared with a beyond devilish expression. "It wouldn't have mattered what either of you said, I'd have made sure that you'd never see the light of day again!" Kamoshida told Akira. His face stretched into a smile, but looked more like a grimace to the teen.
"But, you know, assaulting a teacher would work well too. Maybe even better. I can send you to the hospital first before you get locked away like the shitty criminal you are. How's that sound, huh!?" The man gloated.
Akira suppressed a surge of rage. He had to stay calm. A calm fist won many more battles than a frenzied one.
"Sounds like you're too much of a pussy to fight your own battles." Akira retorted. "No wonder I beat you at volleyball. You can't do shit by yourself!"
Kamoshida's expression twisted into an ugly fury.
"Oh, you're fucking dead, you little bastard!" Kamoshida barked. The man took a few threatening steps towards Akira before he wound back his arm. He was clearly intending to strike with all his power.
Well, Akira wasn't interested in holding back either.
The teen braced his body and brought his fists up, entering Brawler Style without a second's delay.
"It's time for some disciplinary action, shitheel!"
"I couldn't agree more, Kamoshida!"
SUGURU KAMOSHIDA
EX-OLYMPIAN
Akira casually swayed out of the way of the punch, the familiar whoosh of a misguided fist rushing past his ear.
Kamoshida was initially confused when his fist didn't meet flesh, but he simply wound back his arm and swung again. Akira weaved around the man's second attack, positioning himself in the middle of the room.
Kamoshida turned to face him, looking utterly pissed. Again, he swung his fist at Akira's face, another blow that was simply sidestepped.
"Gah! Fuckin'!" The man hissed. As Kamoshida's momentum carried him forward, Akira seized the opportunity to retaliate.
His right hand shot out like a viper, and his fist buried itself into Kamoshida's gut. The coach immediately let out a pained hack and stumbled backwards.
He wasn't given a rest though, as Akira followed through with a couple of jabs, striking him in the kidney and across the face, whipping the man's face to the side.
"ARGH!" Kamoshida gasped in pain and backed up to a safe distance, his hands raised protectively in front of his face. He raised his leg and tried for a Spartan kick, only for Akira to block the strike with nothing more than a grunt.
He then delivered a kick of his own, roundhousing the man in the side of the ribs, causing Kamoshida to stumble away with a snarl of pain.
Akira would not deny the sheer satisfaction he felt by landing those blows, to feel them crash against Kamoshida's body. Just as satisfying as the Metaverse version.
With all the shit he had been through in recent weeks, it just felt good to kick someone's ass because they deserved it. Akira would unload his fury unto its cultivator here and now.
"F-Fucking...shit!" Kamoshida cursed and spat on the floor. Akira watched as the man slowly stood straight, and then rushed at him again.
He sidestepped the following punch, but the teacher had wizened up and used the momentum to aim a knee in Akira's gut. Akira quickly raised his own knee to block the strike, causing their legs to crash into each other.
Akira retaliated with an elbow strike, aiming for Kamoshida's face. The teacher raised an arm to block, but the force of the strike pushed him back.
Kamoshida growled and rushed at Akira, arms held open for a grapple. But Akira ducked underneath the grab at the last second and used his position to launch a palm strike straight up at Kamoshida's chin.
The man went staggering backwards into his desk, sending papers fluttering everywhere. He gasped in pain, grabbing his chin in one hand, and in the other, the leg of an ordinary plastic chair.
He pushed himself to his feet, bringing the chair with him, and swung the damn thing just in time for Akira to dodge backwards and divert from causing more punishment.
Kamoshida wasted no time in bringing the chair up again and slamming it down on top of Akira. He half expected the brat to dodge, but Akira stepped into smashing range and reached up to grab the chair to stop the swing.
Both Kamoshida and Akira struggled over control of the chair, holding it above their heads. Both their canines were bared, and both pairs of eyes carried nothing but hatred for the other.
"Let. Go!" Kamoshida roared, putting all his strength into trying to overpower the boy, only for him to continue keeping the chair elevated.
"You...first!" Akira grunted and reared his head back.
Kamoshida didn't realise what was going to happen until it was too late.
Kamoshida had terrorized the students of this school. Using his authority when it suited him, and when that failed, his brute strength and athleticism. He used both to do unforgivable things, like breaking Ryuji's leg.
Akira rammed his head forward, smashing his forehead into Kamoshida's nose. There was an audible crack and a waterfall of blood.
"AAAUGH! SHIT! SHIT!" Kamoshida screeched, his hands immediately moving to cradle his bloody nose. Tears of pain welled up in his eyes and ran down his cheeks.
He wouldn't even have the chance to wipe them away.
But Akira was not Ryuji. And Kamoshida was not the big fish he thought he was.
Akira took the chair, now uncontested, spun on the spot and jabbed the top of the chair's back straight into Kamoshida's gut. The coach cried out in pain, doubling over in agony.
He had assumed that taking the fight off the court would change things, that he would be Akira's superior, as he was to everyone else.
He couldn't have been any more wrong.
Akira didn't waste a second as he then raised the chair above his head, just like Kamoshida had done, and brought it down upon the scumbag's vulnerable back, shattering the chair into a couple of metal poles and dozens of plastic shards.
Kamoshida collapsed to the ground with naught but a silent cry.
Because the battlefield was Akira's domain. And here, Kamoshida wasn't worth shit.
"Urrrgh..." The man moaned in pain. He tried and failed to get to his feet. He was dizzy, disorientated, and every part of his body felt like it was on fire.
What the hell was this kid?! Was he raised by ninjas or something?
He watched blearily as Akira tossed the pieces of the chair aside, the broken metal clattering to the ground. He watched as his leg pulled back.
And the next thing he knew was a kick in the gut.
"GAAAH!" Kamoshida yelped. The kick flipped him over onto his back while giving him a bit of airtime. The collision with the floor had the man seeing stars.
Akira wasn't finished with him though. He reached down and grabbed the man by the collar, pulling the bastard to his feet. Kamoshida tried to take a swing at him, but it was so pitifully weak that Akira didn't even need to block it. It just bounced off him.
He dragged Kamoshida over to his desk, gripped his unkempt hair, and slammed his head down onto the desk, eliciting another cry of pain and leaving the surface of the desk bloody.
"How does it feel, motherfucker?" Akira asked.
Slam!
What was he feeling now?
"How does it feel to be in the same position you put so many innocent youths in? How does it feel to get your ass kicked by someone you couldn't hope to match?" Akira added with a growl.
Was he actually afraid of this boy?
"Fu-Fucking..." Kamoshida stammered, his sore jaw and discombobulated mind unable to form anything smarter.
Slam!
"Answer me, before I put you through this fucking desk!" Akira shouted
He couldn't be... He couldn't be...!"
"N-Not good...?"
And yet his words. His tone. Both contradicted that notion.
""N-Not good?" The fuck you think this is? Kindergarten?!" Akira gripped the man's hair tightly and dragged his face along the desk, knocking it against books, file trays, and a megaphone before finally tossing him aside, causing the coach to fall flat on his ass against the photocopier.
Kamoshida gasped and sputtered, his face contorted in pain. In fear.
Akira came up to him and leaned in close, his voice a venomous whisper. "You're a bully, Kamoshida. A bully and a coward, nothing more. And your days of tormenting students like Ann, Shiho, and all the other members of the volleyball team; they're done."
Kamoshida gasped heavily. Everything hurt. His head was ringing, his body a temple of scorching agony. He had been so thoroughly beaten that it was almost an insult to the word.
Out of reflex, he tried to retort. "I-I swear... I'm gonna—"
"Shut the fuck up." Akira interrupted with a hiss.
"I'll—"
"You can't do shit, Kamoshida. It's over."
It...was over?
He couldn't do anything?
No...no that couldn't be right. He was Kamoshida. He was the king of the school, He could do whatever he wanted! He couldn't let some random punk walk all over him!
Kamoshida desperately forced his right arm to move. He forced his hand to form into a fist, forced himself to ignore its phantom pain. Then he forced his arm to move, striking Akira across the cheek.
It was after pain shot through his knuckles and staring at Akira's entirely unamused expression that Kamoshida realised he had properly fucked up.
Akira slowly reached for Kamoshida's wrist and gripped it. It started soft, almost gentle. But the grip kept growing stronger, more vice-like, until the man was grunting in discomfort.
Akira removed the fist from his face with little to no resistance, holding the arm in his hand.
"I could break this, you know," Akira growled at Kamoshida.
"Wh-What...?" The man gasped.
"One snap, a sharp twist, and you'll never throw a volleyball straight again. Sound familiar?"
All Kamoshida could do was grunt, tugging on his arm with all the strength he could muster.
"I know in that slimy little heart of yours that you genuinely care about volleyball, at least when you're not perverting the sport to work out your aggression against high school kids." Akira slid his knee under the man's outstretched elbow. "Ryuji cared about running too, didn't he?"
Kamoshida winced as he felt pressure shoot up his arm. He could feel it flare up with that same strange pain. Then he realised just what position he was in.
No...he wouldn't!
Kamoshida reached up with his left arm to try and claw at Akira's face, but it was the desperate struggle of a wounded animal. Easy for Akira to avoid.
"No...don't! If-If you—..!"
"I'll be sent to juvie for breaking your arm instead of being sent because you feel like screwing me over?" Akira asked mockingly. "I know which option I'd prefer..."
The pressure on Kamoshida's arm grew further, and the man tensed up, unable to move for fear of provoking Akira into a snap. "Wait!" He gasped. "Wait, wait wait!"
Kamoshida didn't know what level of hell that Kurusu had crawled up from, but he could safely say that right now he was more terrified than he had been in years. This lone student had brought him to his knees and now held his future at the barrel-end of his mercy, just like Kamoshida had done for so many others. He was in no position to appreciate the irony.
"I'm sorry! I-I won't do anything! I won't report you a-and I'll leave everyone alone; Sakamoto, Takamaki, and the rest of the team!" Kamoshida pleaded. "Just don't break my arm!" Kamoshida begged, looking up at Akira with desperation.
And the only thing he got in return was a cold stare.
Akira didn't believe for a second that Kamoshida was genuinely apologetic so much as he was just trying to save his own skin. Nor did he have any guarantee that he would keep his word, which already held about as much weight as a wet paper bag.
But at the same time, if there was any chance that he could get away with what he had done; any chance to keep his friends safe, he'd need Kamoshida's cooperation.
Damn it... What should he do?
That was when he heard the door slam open.
"H-Holy shit!"
For a second, Akira felt panic shoot through him. Whatever the context, stumbling upon the school delinquent standing over a teacher beaten black and blue was beyond damning.
But then he placed the voice and turned his head to see wide eyes and dyed blond hair.
"Ryuji?" Akira asked, his tone unable to hide his relief. He got a few seconds of silence in response as the blonde processed the scene. Akira could almost see the cogs turning.
Kamoshida glanced towards the newcomer with a pained grimace. Of all the people that had to see him in this state.
Damn it, he'd take what he could get.
"Sa-Sakamoto...call the cops. Th-This guy's a lunatic!" He grunted, raising a finger towards Akira.
The teen in question turned his attention back to Kamoshida with a blank stare. "Seriously?" He asked. Kamoshida had no business asking Ryuji of all people for help after what he'd done.
He glanced at Ryuji, who still seemed like he was having a hard time putting this all together. Akira didn't blame him. He had given Kamohida a beatdown the likes of which Ryuji had probably never seen before, at least in real life. Coming to terms with everything was probably the main thing that was on his mind right now.
"A lunatic, huh?" The blond boy eventually said, his lips stretched into a line and his eyes narrowing. "I ain't seeing any lunatic. I just see a miserable excuse for a man who played with fire and got burned."
"Gah!" Kamoshida hissed. "Call the police right now, or I'll expel you too!" He snarled, pressing himself up against the photocopier, but failing to get onto his feet.
The threat made Ryuji ball up his hands. "E-Expel?!" He cried. "Where do you get off?! The only one who I should be callin' the cops on is you!" Ryuji declared. "God, how pathetic can you get?"
Akira forcefully let the man's arm go and got to his feet. "Save your breath, Ryuji. This bastard's got no shame left to give." He said, turning towards the blond.
"Doubt he's got much left of anything if that's any indication." Ryuji gestured to the teacher's battered and bruised form. "This remind you of anything, Kamoshida?!" He scoffed.
"Fuck you!"
"I uh...kind of already used that line..." Akira sheepishly admitted
"Whaaaaat!? Dude, come on, if anyone was gonna tell him that, should have been me. You shoulda waited!" Ryuji complained almost childishly.
"I didn't even know that you were coming!" Akira held up his hands defensively. "Cut me some slack."
Akira decided to change the subject. "Speaking of which, what are you doing here? Where's Ann?" He asked.
Ryuji shifted on his feet a little and looked sideways in recollection.
"Well..."
Earlier...
Ann was panicking, and Ryuji couldn't blame her.
Not ten minutes ago, she had been made aware of Kamoshida's plans to sexually assault Shiho. That bastard was so intent on ruining her that he was going after the lone person that she had left at that sorry excuse for a school.
So delirious from panic, she barely registered as Ryuji dragged her through the streets of Shibuya, onto the Ginza Line and onto the first available train to Aoyama-Itchome.
Truthfully, she wished that she had mustered the means to run the whole way as Akira had done, because the waiting that she was forced to endure for the train to arrive and then travel was utterly torturous. She felt like she was gonna throw up, and cramming her into a tight space surrounded by tons of apathetic people was not helping to manage her stress.
It was a trip that they had taken hundreds of times before, but now every second felt like an hour to the blonde, who was feeling a panic attack grow ever closer.
Ryuji was having his own problems, not only due to his own anxiousness, but since the trains were so busy and crowded, they had been forced to stand the entire time, which killed his bad leg.
Ann could hear his teeth grind, his leg bouncing with anxious energy, and the way he glared out the window was nothing short of murderous. His glare and overall punkish appearance actually had a few passengers give him a wide berth.
"I can't believe that piece 'a shit. He's gone too far." He grunted, watching the scenery rush past. Intending to rape an innocent girl. That was unforgivable. But then again, Kamoshida wasn't unfamiliar with territory like that.
"Come on, come on!" Ann whimpered as the train sped along the track. She gripped the hanging strap above her head hard enough to make it squeak, as if that would make the train go faster.
In between the duo was poor Morgana, who was being jostled and jabbed every which way within Akira's bag. It wasn't a pleasant experience for anybody.
"Why...?" The girl whispered, barely audible over the rumble of the train. "Why did I have to go and open my stupid mouth!? Why!?" Ann whimpered, burying her face into her hands.
She could have prevented this. She could have kept her big mouth shut and kept Shiho away from Kamoshida's sadistic desires. Why did she have to go on that big speech? What good did it do her to tell that stuff to Kamoshida of all people?
"Ann," Ryuji spoke up. The blonde's blue eyes peeked over the tops of her hands and stared up at him. Ryuji stared back seriously. "Listen to me. This wasn't your fault. None 'o this is on you." He told her.
"B-But..."
"Kamoshida is a sick, twisted, scumbag. He's the one who's makin' the choice." Ryuji emphasised.
Ann's face scrunched up. "But if I had just—..!"
"Ann." Ryuji cut her off. He took her by the shoulders and made her look him in the eye.
"Kamoshida is the bastard here, and he's gonna pay for all the shit that he's done. You don't gotta apologise for not wanting to deal with his shit anymore." He declared.
Ann's tear-filled eyes stared into his own, and he could see the girl trying to fight down her despair. But Ryuji hadn't spoken a single lie. Her hatred should've been aimed at Kamoshida, not herself.
"And remember, Akira's hauling ass over as we speak. He'll probably get there before we do. And we both know that he won't let anything happen to Suzui." Ryuji reassured her.
"But will he even be able to get there in time?" Ann asked desperately. She knew that Akira was athletic, but to run all that way in so short a time? He couldn't have had more than five minutes to sprint there faster than a train could take him.
To that, Ryuji had no answer. Every part of him wanted to say that it was possible, to console Ann in a way that only the knowledge of Shiho's safety could. But as horrible as it was to think about, he couldn't discount the possibility that their efforts may be all for naught.
All that they were able to do was hope.
Thankfully, he would be spared from needing to give an answer as at that moment, the students' ears were graced with the squealing of brakes and a familiar pull of the train coming to a stop.
"Aoyama-Itchome. This is Aoyama-Itch—"
"Finally!" Ann cried as the train doors hissed open. The girl immediately beelined for the exit with Ryuji in hot pursuit. They ended up pushing through and even knocking over a few people, but they couldn't stop for anything more than a few curt "Sorrys" and "'Scuse us'"!
The pair eventually worked their way out of the crowd and stepped out onto the platform. The moment they did so, they sprinted for the stairs leading up to street level.
Unlike the train, the stairs and street were thankfully not as packed. The only thing that slowed them down was the checkpoint where they needed to scan their student passes.
Besides that, it was simply a matter of how fast they could run.
They rushed out of the underground and down the sparse street. The wind rushed by their ears and blew Ann's twintails like flags.
They ran by the alleyway where they had met Akira, and for a moment, Ryuji wondered if they should take the shortcut to Shujin. But the last time that they did that, they ended up in Kamoshida's Palace. They still knew next to nothing about the app. For all they knew, returning to the same spot may just pull them back in and waste valuable time.
If that were the case, then Ryuji prayed that Akira made the same choice that they did.
"Gah! Shit, I'm so outta shape...!" He gasped, not from exhaustion, but pain. His weak leg was really starting to act up with the strenuous dashing and it caused him to lag behind a little.
"Come on, we're nearly there!" Ann called back, sounding breathless. She turned the final corner leading down the street where Shujin Academy was located.
Her lungs were burning, her stomach was churning with anxiety and sweat ran down her face. But she paid her body no heed. All she could think of was "Please let Shiho be safe."
"Please let Shiho be safe!"
"Please let Shiho be safe!"
The tears started to fall.
"Please let Shiho be unharmed!"
"Please let Shiho be safe!"
Her heart hammered in her chest.
"Please let Shiho be alright!"
"Please let Shiho be safe!"
"Please let Shiho be okay!"
"Please let Shiho be safe!"
"PLEASE LET SHIHO BE SAFE!"
Ann stopped. The soles of her laced boots screeched in protest against the pavement.
She blinked her watery vision away long enough to notice a figure pressed against the concrete wall outside of Shujin's gates.
A figure that she recognised all too well.
The ponytail, held up by a pink band.
"Sh...!"
The white turtleneck that she always kept rolled up to her elbows.
"Shi..."
And the pale face marred with brutal bruises brought on by punishing volleyball "practice."
"Shiho...!" Ann whispered.
For a few seconds, Ann was struck with disbelief. She watched as the clearly rattled girl dug into her pocket and pulled out her phone. Shiho swiped at the screen for a few moments before tapping it once and then raising the phone to her ear. She raised her head to take a breath...
And met Ann's gaze with her own, her frenzied expression quickly turning to shock.
It was like either girl couldn't process that the other was before her, but a brief and familiar 'Ting-a-ling-a-ling' coming from Ann's pocket snapped the duo back into reality.
And then, with a small, quiet whimper, Shiho spoke.
"A-Ann...?" She asked tentatively.
"Shiho...!" Ann responded, her voice trembling.
Shiho's face slowly started to scrunch up, and her brown eyes were soon lined with tears. They silently fell and stained the battered girl's cheeks as relief flooded into both her and Ann.
The latter didn't hesitate any further.
"Shiho!" She cried before sprinting up to the girl. "Shiho!"
"A-Ann!" Shiho sobbed out. Her body sprung into action as she raced to meet her.
The two girls crashed into each other like freight trains, immediately latching their arms around each other in a bone-crushing embrace.
"SHIHO! Oh god, oh god! I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!" Ann whimpered into her friend's shoulder. Her own tears soaked into the fabric of Shiho's sweater.
"No...No, I'm sorry. Ann. I-I was so stupid! I'm so sorry!" Shiho immediately replied through her own tears.
"Y-You better be, you big dummy...doofus...dummy!" Ann squeaked. She held onto Shiho tighter, as if she'd slip through her grasp like sand.
There was no word in any language that could accurately describe what the pair were feeling right now. All their misery, their anxiety, were slowly siphoned away by their togetherness. It was honestly a really sweet scene, and that's why a certain teen and cat decided to hang back a little and not be third wheels.
The girls continued to hold each other in a death grip as they audibly wept, the late afternoon sun reflecting off them. Ann's mind couldn't help but be flooded with images of what Kamoshida may have done. But Shiho was here, seemingly fine and unsullied by that bastard's hand.
Though...she had to be sure...
"Shiho...h-he didn't...?"
It took a few moments for Ann's almost hesitant question to click with the other girl, but she seemed to understand. And to Ann's further relief, she shook her head no.
"N-No...he didn't get the chance to. K-Kurusu a-arrived just in time and g-got me away from him..." Shiho sniffed, trying to quell her crying. "H-He told me to call you and get somewhere safe."
Yet another wave of ease crashed into Ann's mind like a tsunami. Kamoshida hadn't touched Shiho. He hadn't defiled her.
All thanks to Akira. If he hadn't left when he did...
God, between the car ride, the Palace, the guard detai;, the volleyball game and now saving Shiho, she owed Akira more than she could ever repay. All less than a week after she'd met the guy.
"Sonnovabitch actually made it in time. What an amazin' dude." Ryuji spoke up, finally injecting himself into the scene now that the pair seemed to have calmed down a little. There was no admiration spared in his tone.
Then, he noticed something, probably the main something that hadn't been addressed yet due to the waterworks. "Wait, he ain't here with you?" He asked.
Shiho looked over at Ryuji. If she was surprised at his presence then she didn't show it. Her expression did twist into obvious concern, however.
"K-Kurusu stayed behind with Mr. Kamoshida while I got away. I think...I think he's still with him now." She explained, with her body tensing up a little.
Ryuji frowned in response. Obviously, Akira wasn't trying to talk Kamoshida down.
He knew that he probably had nothing to worry about. Akira could hold his own against literal Shadow Knights with armour and swords and shit, so Kamoshida shouldn't have been too much for him to handle.
But still, he didn't like the idea of Akira facing down the bastard alone, whether they were in the Palace or the real world.
"Ann, I'm going to back Akira up. You get Suzui somewhere safe." Ryuji ordered. "We'll text you when things settle down. Can ya do that?" He asked.
Ann would've been lying if she said that she wasn't a little hesitant. To take Shiho away while leaving Ryuji and Akira to face Kamoshida. It almost felt like a trade.
But realistically, she knew that they had a better chance at handling Kamoshida than anyone else, Akira especially. So she nodded her head. "Yeah. I'll take her to my place." She answered.
"Good," Ryuji replied in a satisfied tone before he quickly turned tail and sprinted towards the Shujin gates.
"Be careful!" Ann called to him.
"Don't need to be. I got an Akira!" Ryuji quipped right back. With his back turned, he missed Ann's eye roll.
Shiho hadn't lost that concerned look on her face, even with Ryuji's little joke. She, of all people, knew how violent Kamoshida could be. And Akira had put himself right in that man's firing line.
"Are you sure he'll be ok?" She asked her friend, whom she had yet to release.
Ann looked to Shiho and gave a nod and a firm, yet reassuring "He'll be fine. Akira's strong. I've got complete faith in him." She answered, giving Shiho a confident smile.
After what he had done for how, how could she not?
That put Shiho at ease, but only a little. "O-Ok..." She relented.
"Now come on. Let's go to my place. It'll be safe there." Ann told her. She finally started to let go of Shiho, and Shiho did the same, but instead of fully letting go, the girl traced her hands down Ann's arms until she was holding her hands.
"Sh-Shiho...?" Ann asked.
Shiho swallowed anxiously and looked up at Ann. Not fifteen minutes ago she believed that she would be defiled by a horrible man. But she had been saved. Saved and delivered into the arms of her best friend. The best friend that she spent the past couple of days worrying with her stupid silent treatment.
And she couldn't help but recall that thought on the bench. This time though, Ann was here.
She wasn't alone.
"If you feel bad about making her worry, maybe you should talk it out. And I guarantee that however that talk goes, Ann will still be your friend at the end of it."
"Ann...I have to tell you something. I have to tell you everything..."
"So, Suzui got away safely. Thank goodness." Akira sighed. To be honest, he hadn't been fully assured of her safety until now. It was good to know.
"Yeah, man. You really came through for her." Ryuji replied. "You're some kinda crazy, you know that? He asked, smiling fondly.
"No, I didn't, please elaborate." Akira cheekily shot back.
Ryuji sighed and gave his head a small shake. Then he glanced towards Kamoshida's beaten form and frowned.
"You know, I had a feeling something like this might happen, but, damn, seeing it up close..."
Akira sighed. "Yeah, it's not pretty, is it?" He replied. He wouldn't apologise for a single punch though, much less everything else he'd put the man through.
Still, having Ryuji see this side of him left a bad taste in Akira's mouth.
With a stare that bore holes into Kamoshida's skull, the blond's face scrunched into a snarl as his anger started to bubble up again. "Fuckin' bastard. This is what you get for all the shitty things you've done!
Kamoshida glared right back at Ryuji, but messed up as he was, it was too painful to retaliate. Right now, the man was desperately hoping to find a way out of this situation.
As Ryuji turned away, Kamoshida lulled his head to the side. And that was when he saw it. A baseball bat leaning against the photocopier. It was just barely out of his reach, but if he could just shuffle his body a little...
"So, for real though," Ryuji continued, "what're we doing with him?" He asked.
And truthfully? Akira didn't really know. If they just left, there was always the chance of Kamoshida telling everyone what happened here today. He promised that he wouldn't, but Akira didn't trust his word in the slightest.
He needed some way to keep Kamoshida in check. He needed insurance.
...
He glared at Kamoshida silently. The man was facing to the side, his arm shifted behind him. Akira narrowed his eyes but didn't address the peculiarity.
He advanced towards the man with a threatening stare. "Kamoshida." Akira addressed him in a cold tone.
The man's vision darted towards him. "Wh-What...?" The bastard grunted bitterly.
"Listen to me very carefully. Because this is what's going to happen." Akira told him. "First, you're going to stop abusing the volleyball team. I don't want to catch wind of you abusing anyone."
Kamoshida grunted in response, but he didn't say anything.
"Second, you're never going to come near Ann, Ryuji or Suzui again. You're gonna delete Ann's number from your phone and let her live her life."
Akira stepped even closer, staring down at the man like pond scum.
"And third, you'll tell nobody what happened here today. Not the police, not the principal, nobody."
With a groan, Kamoshida slowly opened his jaw. Akira could tell that the man was stubborn, but he was definitely intimidated.
Good.
"And...A-And if I don't do that stuff?" The man growled.
Akira raised a brow. "Come on, Kamoshida. You're a scumbag, but you're not stupid. What do you think's going to happen?" He asked. He gripped his fist tightly, causing his knuckles to crack, a sound that made even Ryuji and Morgana wince.
Kamoshida flinched and sucked a breath through his teeth. Akira could see that the man was weighing his options. Finally though, he lowered his head with a defeated look on his face. "Fine...you win..." He practically spat.
"Good answer," Akira replied in a condescending voice. He took a step back and glanced over at Ryuji.
"We're done here." He told the blond.
Ryuji let out a huge sigh, letting his shoulders sag. "Finally. It was getting hard to breathe with all this—"
Ryuji's sudden pause, the widening of his eyes and the shuffling noise behind him was all the warning Akira got. His instincts screamed at him to turn back and face Kamoshida.
Like a flash, Akira whipped around to find the battered man on his feet, with a baseball bat in hand.
Mid-swing.
"WAS THAT WHAT YOU THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO SAY!?" The man roared crazily, swinging the bat with what must have been the last of his strength.
It was a dirty move, a devastating attack that would have brutally knocked down any lesser man.
"Essence of..."
Akira was not a lesser man.
While his mind needed a second to catch up, his body certainly didn't have that problem. Countless hours of training and a strong muscle memory ensured that he wouldn't be caught on the back foot, at least not to something like this.
His right arm swiftly windmilled in time to Kamoshida's swing of the bat. He noticed the minute widening of Kamoshida's eyes, yet it was too late for them to divert their paths.
Thus, at the same time the bat would have connected, Akira's palm faced out and grabbed at its handle, using the force of his wind up to act against the inertia of the bat, cancelling both out and allowing Akira to catch the weapon in his hand, curling his fingers at the grip above Kamoshida's hands.
The entire room stilled as the echo of the bat meeting Akira's palm rang out. The motion was so smooth, so precise, that for a moment, nobody could comprehend exactly what had happened.
Ryuji and Morgana could only watch in astonishment as Akira stood completely unfazed, while Kamoshida's murderous glare fizzled out into horror as he processed the fact that the young man had just caught his last-ditch effort to do harm like it was a feather.
He stared into the teen's grey eyes, expecting an angry state, but the look that greeted him wasn't quite what he expected. It was a calm, but intense glare, unnervingly so.
The boy's head tilted as he stared down Kamoshida, the bat still being held between them.
And that small movement was all the indication that Kamoshida needed to let him know that he was well and truly screwed.
"I-I'm so—" Kamoshida stuttered out something that was probably supposed to be some kind of plea for mercy.
He wouldn't finish it.
In one fluid movement, Akira tugged the bat out of Kamoshida's grip and twirled it around his wrist. He spread his feet and wound up, resting the bat on his opposite shoulder.
Then he swung, and Kamoshida didn't even get the chance to cry out.
"...Home Run Reversal!"
With a loud and meaty TWHACK, Akira struck Kamoshida across the face with the bat hard enough to leave a dent in the metal and send the man flying across the room
"GAAAAAAAH!" Kamoshida bellowed in agony as he crashed against the whiteboard on the opposite side of the room before sliding off, hitting the floor with a sickening thud.
"Oooh!" Ryuji couldn't help but audibly wince. Sure, he hated the man, but watching someone get clocked across the face in real life with a bat was just brutal.
Bashing in Shadows with his pipe couldn't compare.
The man groaned and hissed while blood could be seen leaking from the fresh bruise on his face. "Guh...Ngh...ugh...!" He groaned pitifully.
Akira took a moment to look over the bat for any signs of blood, but he found nothing that would indicate assault other than the dent, which wouldn't prove much.
Both he and Kamoshida should count their lucky stars that Akira wasn't meaner with the bat. He could have easily knocked out a tooth or two.
Akira sighed and let the bat fall onto the ground with a clatter. Kamoshida definitely didn't have any means of fighting back now.
Akira was about to step towards the man, but quickly remembered that he had an audience. And with what he was planning to do, he would really prefer if his friends didn't see it.
"Ryuji, please leave. I'll shoot you a text when things are finished here." Akira insisted, looking at the blond.
"Hu-Huh?" Ryuji squawked. "Dude, I can't just—"
"Please, Ryuji. Trust me, you don't wanna see what I'm about to do."
"What I'm about to become..."
"Wh-What you're about to—?" Ryuji asked with a small voice. "Akira, y-you're not gonna—"
"No, I'm not," Akira assured him. "Just trust in me and get out."
Ryuji stared at Akira apprehensively and his mouth opened and closed a few times. Ryuji's hesitance on the matter was clear, and for a moment he looked ready to protest. Eventually though, he relented with a sigh.
"I trust ya, man...j-just try not to kill him... yeah?" He muttered. "There's no Plan B if he's... y'know."
"I do. Don't worry." Akira replied flatly. "I'll give you the details later, but for now..." Akira balled up his fist. "... Kamoshida and I need to have a private chat..."
Ryuji gulped audibly and found himself once again thankful that Akira was on his side. He bit his lip a little and then looked up at his friend. "A-Alright." He complied. Then he began to step towards the door.
Kamoshida, even through a haze of pain noticed the boy leaving and the amalgamation of bruises that was now his face grew panicked.
"Sa-Sakamoto...! You c-can't...you can't leave me...with h-him..." The man's plea came out as little more than a pathetic whimper, a far cry from the man he was ten minutes ago.
Ryuji paused in his retreat, his hand gripping the door frame. Slowly, he looked back with a hate-filled gaze within his brown eyes.
"Can and will, asshole."
With that final word being said, Ryuji stepped through the door and closed it.
Leaving Akira and Kamoshida alone.
And the latter swore that the room grew several degrees colder...
Akira stepped towards Kamoshida, his expression tight. "Looks like your head was so far up your ass that you couldn't hear me the first time. So, I'm going to make this very easy for you to understand, you worthless, despicable slimeball." He growled.
Back when Akira lived on the streets, he had seen many horrible people. Crooks that would shake down innocent civilians, punks that beat on stray animals for no better reason than that they were bored.
At the time, he hadn't been anything close to a vigilante; he was far too focused on looking out for himself, but he at least made it a point to take from the people who rightly deserved it. Those punks who believed they could do whatever shitty stuff that they wanted.
There was one thing that unified the bastards, however. Each and every one of them were cowards. As soon as they were met with Akira's overwhelming might, they sobbed, they pleaded for mercy, and a couple even pissed themselves.
Mercy didn't cow those people. Fear did. The very thought that they may run into someone like Akira again had them seriously reconsidering their life choices.
And now it was time to impart that fear unto Kamoshida. A coward who'd met his superior. He'd crushed his body. His spirit came next.
It was an ugly part of himself, a part that he wished no one else would see. A drastic reminder of what had been the lowest point of his life.
He took a second of introspection, seeking the chilling, yet comforting presence of his rebellion personified.
Was this staying true to who he was?
"Unsightly as it may be, it is no less a part of thou than I," Arsené replied.
That was that.
With steady steps, Akira approached the quivering man, not unlike a wolf stalking its prey. His shadow fell over Kamoshida, like a blanket of dread.
He raised his leg and slammed his foot against the cabinets right next to Kamoshida's head.
"Gah?! Fuck!" Kamoshida yelped. He tried to lean his body away, but he was in too much pain to even do that.
"People like you get into positions of authority and suddenly think they're untouchable. But this is the reality, Kamoshida. You. Ain't. Shit." Akira growled.
"Y-You're crazy!" Kamoshida grunted. "I'll... I'll call the cops. Pr-Prison's the only thing ahead of you! You won't get away with this!"
"Oh, I definitely won't," Akira admitted, causing Kamoshida's eyes to widen. Akira lowered his leg to the ground. "Everybody's eating out of your palm, nobody's safe from you. The cops would come to arrest me..."
Akira narrowed his eyes. "But that won't stop me from getting to you..." Akira snarled.
"Wh-What...!?" Kamoshida gave a small squeak.
For now, Akira didn't elaborate, but instead, reached out and started going through Kamoshida's pockets.
"Wh-What are you...get away from me, you bastard!" The man barked. His weak, feeble body didn't offer much resistance though, and soon, Akira had withdrawn something brown and leather from the man's right pocket. His wallet. Kamoshida tried to reach for it, but even reaching out was too much for him.
But Akira wasn't interested in cash or anything like that. The only thing that he wanted stared back at him from behind a plastic slot.
Kamoshida wanted to ask what he was doing, but that question was answered before the man had even asked it as Akira plucked out a familiar, rectangular card, and held it up to his face.
"3-8 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku."
Kamoshida's blood froze as he heard Akira read out his home address.
"That's right, fucker. I know where you sleep now." Akira said as he tucked the licence back into the wallet before tossing it aside. "And if you think that the police will protect you, they won't be able to. Not from me. I will tear through as many officers as I need to as long as you're at the end of the chain."
Akira got to his feet and glanced at Kamoshida's ruffled desk, searching for an implement that would assist him in furthering his point.
He found them in a small cup amongst pens, and markers. A pair of scissors. He withdrew them from the cup like a tanto from its sheath. "Of course, I can also take care of this problem right now..." He murmured in a low voice.
The implication was not lost on Kamoshida. "N-No...!" He begged in a terrified tone. It would fall on deaf ears as Akira walked back over to the man, gripped his unruly locks and forced him to look up. He could see Kamoshida's eyes rapidly darting left and right as the man desperately flailed as much as he could. But it wouldn't be enough, not to escape from him.
Akira squeezed the handle of the scissors and slowly raised them above his head. "You know what the worst part about this is, Kamoshida?" Akira asked.
"Pl-Please, I beg of you...!" Kamoshida whimpered; terrified tears having sprung to his eyes.
"However much I've hurt you, it's nothing compared to how much you've hurt them." Akira finished.
In a flurry of motion, the scissors were brought down...
...stopping only a few centimetres from the man's eyeball.
Kamoshida barely had a moment to process how close he'd come to losing an eye, possibly his life. His pupils contracted, staring at the blades. His mouth opened and closed as if to screech, but terror had seized his voice, keeping him from crying out. Cold sweat soaked his skin, his breathing quickened, and his heart raced in a panic.
Akira held the scissors in place, not a single twitch or shudder betraying his thoughts. "Of course, killing you would make a lot more mess than I'm willing to clean up. There's a far happier ending for both of us, if you do what I say."
Akira slowly brought the blade of the scissors closer until the distance between them and, Kamoshida's eye couldn't have been more than a centimetre.
"Stop abusing the volleyball team."
"Stay the fuck away from Ann and Suzui."
"And keep your fucking mouth shut about what happened here today."
Akira listed off his demands icily, returning the terrified stare that the rapidly paling man was giving him.
"Follow those instructions, and we can let bygones be bygones. Fail to do so..."
Kamoshida flinched as the scissors were swiftly moved away from his eye and brought further down. His ears retched as he heard the dull clang of metal.
Slowly, he looked downwards and stifled a gasp when he saw that the scissors' tip was buried slightly into the tiled floor...between his middle and ring finger.
"I will take your fingers..." Akira whispered.
He reached back and tapped one of Kamoshida's sneakers with his knuckles.
"I will take your toes..."
And finally, he reached back and firmly gripped Kamoshida's jaw eliciting a grunt from the man
"I will take your teeth!"
With grey eyes boring into his Kamoshida's terrified ones, Akira leaned close. "Do. I. Make. Myself. Clear?"
"Y-Yes...!" The man squeaked. He didn't dare nod his head for fear that even that minor motion would force this...monster of a student to make good on his promise here and now. "Y-You do...! P-Perfect sense! I swear! I-I'll do whatever you want! Just please...please let me go!"
Akira stared silently at the man for a moment longer, his gaze searching for any lingering deception. Thankfully, he found none and let go of the man's jaw forcefully, like he was disgusted that he had touched it in the first place.
That look on Kamoshida's face... That was a man who was scared half to death, and more importantly, a man who would keep his word for fear that one mistake would bring untold suffering down upon him.
Akira slowly got to his feet. He was pretty sure that he could do no more here. He had put the fear of God into this man, and now, it was time to leave. He'd drawn this out long enough.
As Akira made his way towards the door, he heard Kamoshida exhale an audibly relieved sigh, which suddenly stopped halfway through, as if Akira would take it as an insult, and turn around.
But no, he simply stopped in front of the door and glanced at the defeated man critically.
"Kamoshida, you've looked down on everyone in this school, as if you're the king of a castle. Treating everybody like they're your little bitches who only exist to satisfy your ego...or libido." He spoke.
He reached out to grab the handle of the door. "But no longer. You're not at the top of the food chain here anymore. I am. You know what that means, don't you?"
Kamoshida said nothing as Akira slid the door open.
"It means that from here on out, you're my bitch, Kamoshida."
Akira stepped out of the office, but not before leaving the beaten, broken man with a final, chilling promise.
"I'll see you tomorrow, Sensei."