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Chapter 104 – Hiwa Arina Will Never Give Up
“Got it? Don’t take it too seriously, just think of it as a warm-up.”
I warned Masao right before I grabbed the rope. This guy was kinda slow-witted, so I had to remind him that he wouldn’t exert too much strength in this event. However, as soon as the referee signaled the start of the match, the Berserker shouted.
“UWAAAAHH!!”
It was less of a roar of the beast but rather a startled cry. Since I was right in front of him, I immediately looked behind me to see him open his mouth wide like a hippo while making a funny noise. Honestly, I suspected that he was soiling himself or something.
The dude stood in the last row, his feet propped up on the ground as every muscle in his body tightened up. His giant forearms looked terrifying.
In any case, thanks to him our team managed to win the match.
Everyone, regardless of friend or foe, was astonished by his monstrous strength.
On our way back, I could hear people speculating about his identity, more specifically which club he belonged to. Was it not obvious that he belonged to the going-home club? What? What did you mean that the going-home club wasn’t a real club? Alright, off to the electric chair you go.
*   *   *
Arina’s PoV
“What is this even?”
I participated in the scavenger hunt and managed to get a good start and was the first one to get my clue, but

What the hell was this?
[Actually bald.]
What did that mean? What kind of clue was this? So, was I supposed to look for someone who pretended that they weren’t bald? Someone wearing a wig?
I couldn’t even tell if someone was wearing a wig or not and I definitely didn’t have the courage to ask them. If the ‘actually’ part wasn’t there, this would be a piece of cake. After all, one of the teachers got a skinhead and he wasn’t the least ashamed of showing it off.
Suddenly, as I started getting impatient, I heard someone calling my name.
“Arina! If you’re looking for tomato juice, I got some of them here!”
I almost yelled at him for speaking nonsense but I managed to hold myself back.
Ignoring him, I tried to look around.
“Someone wearing a wig
 Someone wearing a wig
”
I glanced around to look for the person I was looking for. I found a lot of middle-aged students and elderly teachers near the broadcast booth, so I decided to go there.
But when I came face to face with those older men, I was at a loss of words. Yeah, I couldn’t say it! There was no way I could ask them whether they were actually bald or not, c’mon! Whoever came up with this clue, I swear I will bring this grudge to my grave.
[Oh, Hiwa Arina is coming to the broadcast booth! What exactly is she looking for here?]
Said the broadcaster.
At that moment, an idea came to my mind. I immediately grabbed the microphone.
“Actually, I’m looking for someone wearing a wig!”
*   *   *
Sui’s PoV
Arina’s voice echoed through the ground.
Then, the vice-principal’s hair fell off.
His whole hair fell off. Not a single strand or two, everything slipped down from his head.
It was hard to describe such a scene since it was the first time I had ever seen it.
Suddenly, everyone around me started to let out muffled sounds. Seeing this, the vice-principal said something that shook the core of my existence.
[Since it’s for the sake of the students, I’ll volunteer.]
In that instant, all the students started laughing.
They were holding their bellies, some of them were even pointing their fingers at the vice-principal who was running to the goal with Arina. Even the teachers followed suit as the whole place filled with laughter.
This atmosphere was brought about by the sacrifice of a brave man.
He was the epitome of an educator. I could feel it in his voice, he wasn’t actually willing to do this. I could hear his pain, his reluctance and his sorrow. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Should he bear with the shame and indulge his student’s wishes or stay firm and protect his honor? In the end, he picked the former option.
It didn’t take a lot of time for him to decide that. Barely a few seconds passed since Arina spoke to the mic and he managed to make a life-changing decision in that instant. For a single student, he sacrificed his honor, something that I could never do.
Thanks to him, I learned what it meant to be a proper human being. Every educator in this world should learn from him. Not everyone was able to pull out a noble act like this.
“Sui, why are you clapping your hands?”
Said Makoto, who had been laughing like an idiot.
“I’m applauding a brave man who didn’t falter for the sake of his beliefs.”
“I don’t understand what you are trying to say
”
Don’t worry, vice-principal. Even if the other students can’t understand your pain, I can. Please ignore those who were laughing at you. I will definitely show them what it takes to be a man during the relay.
After that happened, I was free as a bird for the time being since it was the other classes’ turn to compete. I was staring at the clouds that were being swept away slowly by the wind when Intelligent Takazo suddenly peered into my eyes.
“This is the scene where I would cry of happiness if you were a super beautiful girl.”
“I’m sorry, but that’s impossible. Statistically speaking, it’s impossible for a girl, even the beautiful ones, to be categorized as ‘super beautiful’. Well, plastic surgery can fix it, but by the time your average girl has the financial means to undergo it, they wouldn’t be a–”
“If you speak anymore nonsense, I’ll make you pay me a hundred yen per word. What are you doing here, anyway?”
“Let me speak with Niwatari Tsuru.”
“Tsuru?”
“I’ve been trying my hardest, but I never beat her academically. I’m curious, what kind of person she actually is? Also, I want to see if there is something I could learn from her.”
“I see. She should be standing by at the broadcast booth with the rest of the student council members.”
“Understood. Let’s go, Sui.”
“Eh? I’m going too?”
“I need a middle-man. I’ve never talked to her before, after all.”
I understood his feelings. Yeah, it would be hard to talk to someone from a different world than you. Honestly, I doubt that I could get along with people who repeatedly yelled ‘Woe! Woe!’ like cicadas.
In any case, I decided to help him out.
When we arrived at the broadcast booth, we found Tsuru there. She was standing under the shade.
“Tsuru. Are you busy?”
“Oh my, it’s Sui. I’m not, what’s up?”
She had star tattoo stickers on both cheeks. This girl really was in the mood for the festival, huh? By the way, those tattoo stickers were cute. Was there a tomato-shaped one?
“This is Niwatari Tsuru. The unquestionable number one student in our year. She may look like a girl who can’t add or subtract things to save her life, but her ability to study is like a divine blessing.”
I introduced Tsuru to Takazo. She complained a little about my introduction but I ignored her.
“My name is Nakamura Takazo. I’ve always been wanting to talk to you for a while now.”
Hearing that, Tsuru approached me and whispered in my ear.
“You know I’m not looking for a boyfriend right?”
“I know. Don’t worry, he’s just interested in your brain, not you as a person. Besides, aren’t you familiar with him?”
“Well, I know his name, he’s always behind me in rankings, but that’s it.”
She muttered that arrogant word and somehow Takazo managed to catch it.
“Hm
 Behind you, huh? That’s right.”
“Got a problem with that?”
“No, no, you are correct. I’ve always fallen behind you in terms of grades.”
Holy sh*t, they were at each other’s throats already.
“I’m here to see what kind of person you actually are.”
“Like this~”
Tsuru stuck both index fingers into her cheeks and started acting like a pretentious girl. Sakaki Sui, who hated this type of people, felt a sudden urge to kill her at that very moment, but he managed to endure this urge by cutting a cross. By the way, he wasn’t a Christian. We needed to clarify this so that the devout believers wouldn’t be offended.
“I see, so this is the kind of person you are.”
“Yes~”
“May I ask you something?”
“Syure~”
Ugh, I really wanted to punch her. C’mon, brain of the going-home club, show her your prowess! Don’t bring shame to your name, Intelligent Takazo!
“Your word choices, isn’t it foolish?”
What the heck? Takazo, what were you trying to pull? I braced myself for a big fight but, surprisingly, Tsuru smiled at that question.
“I know, right? It’s annoying sometimes.”
What did you mean? What? What was this conversation even?
“Got it, then, I’ll leave it at that.”
“You’re an interesting one aren’t you, Takazo-kun? Well, see ya later~ Capiche~”
Chaos. That was the only word that I could use to describe this conversation. They were clearly speaking Japanese, but it felt like they were using another world’s language to converse.
Dear vice-principal, could you hear me? I’m contacting you directly to your heart. What were those two saying? By the way, why didn’t you pick up your wig?
On our way back, as I was idly watching the other classes’ match, Takazou opened his mouth.
“Niwatari Tsuru is not an idiot. I know that much at least.”
“Eh, really? Why do you think so?”
“I asked a question that hid the meaning of my real question, ‘Are you choosing your words according to the level of the intelligence of the other person you speak to?’. An idiot would mistake it for an insult, but she understood me.”
“So, her answer basically meant that it’s annoying to keep it up sometimes, is that what it meant? But wouldn’t that mean that she’s looking down on other people?”
“No, there’s a deeper meaning behind it. Mind you, she isn’t looking down on other people. What she found annoying is that not everyone could understand her words and she’s having trouble expressing herself freely. Only a handful of people understand this part of her. That girl isn’t as simple as one might think
”
I see. You lost me there, chief.
Was something like that worth worrying about, though? I mean, people told me that I was incompetent at communicating sometimes, hell, even Ugin told me that to my face, but I could still live my life peacefully.
Well, I would lose that privilege if I were to start talking like a baby everywhere. Even my lovely sister wouldn’t be so kind to me if I were to do that.
“I might develop a liking for Niwatari Tsuru.”
“Huh? What?”
Sure, but don’t let that evil intention of yours distract you from the relay, okay?
Well, I doubt that it would affect your performance, though.
TL: Iyo
ED: Dodo