Vol 6 Chapter 8 (2/2)
Shouko passed all the booklets to the homeroom teacher, who thanked her back courteously
“I'll be off first”
After saying goodbye to the teacher courteously, Shouko went back to the classrooo home Since she couldn't say much to Yuuji today, she would sayabout this, she heard voices from the classroom that's supposed to be empty
“THAT damnED SAKAMOTO HID HIS OUTDOOR SHOES! THAT bastard!”
That was a a voice that was completely different from her classmates
Feeling that this eird, Shouko peeked in from the corridor
“THAT GUY MUST BE BULLIED OFTEN THEN! SINCE HIS SHOES ARE GONE, SOMEONE MUST HAVE HIDDEN THEM SINCE HIS INDOOR SHOES WERE GONE IN THE MORNING!”
“Wouldn't it be too much to mess up his locker if that's the case?”
“IT'S ALRIGHT, IT'S ALRIGHT! WHO ASKED THAT bastard TO BE SUCH A twat!?”
“THAT'S RIGHT! IT'S TO EDUCATE OUR JUNIORS!”
There were three boys , and she had never seen theraders
But ould sixth graders appear in a fifth-grader's classroom?
Without realizing that Shouko was looking with doubts in herfrom their pockets
“LET'S JUST WRITE THINGS FULL OF BAD STUFF ABOUT HIM!”
“HOW ABOUT, HE CHEATED IN ALL HIS EXAMS!?”
“OOH—! THAT'S NOT TOO BAD!”
They took out an oil-based ets were a notebook and sports attire from the locker
(Ah? Tha, that's from Yuuji's locker)
The locker that was opened was undoubtedly Yuuji's In other words, they wanted to bully Yuuji
So about this, Shouko couldn't re that they're upperclassmen
“Tha, that”
She walked into the classrooe to speak up
Thus, all the upperclassmen knew that someone was at the scene of the crime, and trembled They turned to look at Shouko
“Who are you?”
A boy said ly
Shouko didn't dare to look at him in the eyes as she lowered her head and protested softly
“Tha, that's Yuuji's, stuffdon't, do that to him”
She said that so softly that it didn't sound like a warning To Shouko, this was a warning that she could th, but it was too weak to control a group of boys ere older than her
“What do you want?”
“It has nothing to do with you, right?”
Facing Shouko's feeble resistance, the boys said that even forcefully
“But, Yuuji will be pitiful if you vandalize his things, and also”
“AND WHAT!?”
“Yuuji's my friend, so it does involve me”
Shouko said that with a faint voice
There's no otherto these words,
But it didn't feel the same to these boys
That guy's a lowerclasses froh He has no friends
That's the one advantage the boys thought they had over Yuuji
But this girl in front of them declared herself to be Yuuji's friends She was treainst doing so That girl had a stunningly pretty face, and she looked like a pushover The 3 growing boys realized that besides friends, it's iender who they can view as an important part of their lives' This fact made them feel really inferior
“Oi! Ignore this girl and hurry up!!”
“That's right! Finish the job properly!”
The boys turned fros One of the boys took off the marker and aiets ready to draw all over it
“Sto, stop!”
Shouko couldn't ignore the prank that's to be done in front of her, and subconsciously reached her arms out to stop his hand
“St, stop bothering us!”
“NoYuuji will be really pitiful!”
She continued to grab onto the boy's hands that were trying to shake her off
If anyone else in class knew of it, they e' Of course, Shouko doesn't want to see Yuuji hurt, but she didn't want to see Yuuji getting used to it until he doesn't bother with it
“OI, LET GO!”
“ARE YOU DONE YET!”
“Uu!!”
The other two boys rab Shouko and pull her off But even so, Shouko continued to hang on as she continued to try and protect Yuuji's personal belongings
Those boys anted to vandalize Yuuji thoroughly seeirl as they tugged at her
“This twerp's really annoying!”
The one who finally broke the balance of poere the boys, on the power struggle A boy wrapped his arm under Shouko's armpit and opened her chest wide open to restrain her—her hands being held up
“Haahaaago, mess her”
The boy holding the marker was finally released, and took a deep breath
And then, he subconsciously looked down at his own body to check the state he was in, and the white shi+rt that was dirtied becaht
“WHAT! HOW DO YOU INTEND TO REPAY ME NOW!? LOOK! MY shi+RT'S ALL MESSED UP ALREADY!”
The hand holding the marker and the elboere okay, as they could be washed off since they're oil-based However, the trails on the shi+rt would be bad He couldn't possibly wear this shi+rt again
“Thatwasn't my fault!”
Shouko glared at him and forcefully tried to break off
“You twerpFINE! I'LL LET YOU EXPERIENCE HAVING YOUR shi+RT VANDALISED TOO!!”
After saying those words, the boy moved the marker near Shouko's shi+rt
“THEN I'LL DRAW ALL SORTS OF THINGS ON YOUR shi+RT LIKE THAT SAKAMOTO!”
“THAT'S RIGHT! LET'S DO THIS!”
The boys' enthusiasance went up a notch once they robbed her of her freedom
To the boys, it was just vandalism, just a little act on others
“Do, don't do this”
But to Shouko right know, it couldn't be just treated as a little vandalism
It wouldn't matter if it was just a few streaks of the marker lines, since she could find an excuse However, it would be different if it were an all out vandalis, it means that the stains on the clothes weren't an accident, and the outcome—would be the best proof that Shouko was bullied at school No matter how hard Shouko tried not to avoid it, she would have to transfer schools
“Don't”
Shouko kept trying to curl her body up, but still couldn't avoid thein on her
At this moment, the marker was even scarier than a knife
“II DON'T WANT TO TRANSFER SCHOOLS!”
Yuuji quickly walked back to the classroom
The reason why he did so was because he was so engrossed with the book he randoot the time
(That book was really interesting Anyone other than me would have found it hard to understand that book)
Yuuji recalled the contents of the book he was still reading just now as he e, but that ti Also, what intrigued him more was that the content couldn’t be understood by anyone other than himself
Fro himself, but Yuuji’s immature mind wasn’t able to realize that
(Then, did those guys mess up my locker properly?)
He i his own classroom
He would check the situation out before calling the teacher over He would check if theyfor trouble if he didn’t check it before bringing the teacher over
He softened his footsteps and looked into the classroo on inside, but he could hear voices
(Those guys sure are idiots Well, blaet)
Yuuji was grinning after seeing that his plan was a success He was 99 certain that the plan was a success, but for precaution, he went to check for evidence to see if there was anything that could be used as evidence, so he approached the classroom further
And then, he looked into the classroo totally unexpected happened in front of him
“OI, LET GO!”
“ARE YOU DONE YET!”
“Uu!!”
Shouko was curled up as she tried her best to protect so The fahened her hair and grabbed her arms She just looked bullied out there
(Eh? Eh? What’s going on? What happened?)
This completely unexpected situation stunned Yuuji
Yuuji had never seen Shouko being bullied by anyone, and neither did he hear anything about her having a proble to do with Shouko at all were definitely bullying the weak her
The only connection she had with them was,
(Isis it because ofbullied because of me?)
Yuuji did not kno this happened Is it because Shouko saw the that prank and went out to stop the trivial and got into a quarrel with the else?
However, the only undisputed fact was already right in front of hiot involuntarily involved in the personal squabble between Yuuji and the 3 sixth-graders, and was a victim because of it
(I, I have to save her!)
The childish sense of responsibility and justice proirl as being bullied in front of him as fast as possible I want to save her like an aniuys are all idiots, and I'm the smart one here, the most special one here I'm different from them There's no need to be scared
There's no need to be scared
(Ughuumm)
But Yuuji could not take that step forward
The only thought he had was that they could not beat hied up on hith to beat the enemies instead of a mind that could accurately seek out an answer He was just a fifth grader, and the trio were older than him The difference between those two sides was obvious
(Yes, that's right! I just need to call in a teacher!)
It was different fro case If he reported it to a teacher, those guys would becoet his objective Wouldn't that be what he wanted?
Yuuji thought about this, and got ready to storm towards the staff room
(Waitbut if I do thiswhat'll happen to Shouko?)
The sixth graders ere bullying would be brought to the staff room, and told off by their parents once they returned home, which was fine However, ould happen to Shouko as bullied?
(If I report it to the teacher, the school will also contact her parents In that case)
In that case, perhaps Shouko's parents would know that she was bullied at school? Then, even if Shouko doesn't want to transfer schools, she would be forced to do so No matter how much she tries to explain that this was all a coincidence, and that she had never been bullied on other schools before, Shouko's family would definitely not believe this To Shouko, she would rather avoid having this situation develop instead of being bullied
In other words, if he called the teacher here, it would force Shouko into despair
(Wha, what should I do? What am I expected to do here!?)
There’s a girl who’s bullied because of him
If he ran out to call for help just to save her, she will end up being hurt
But even if he went alone to save her, his opponents were three upperclassmen In contrast, he was alone, and a lowerclassht before The outcome of the battle could already be seen
(Wh…why did it end up like this? I just wanted to take revenge on them!)
Even if he called the teacher here, it wouldn't change the fact that he caused Shouko to be bullied
But if he didn't do so and leave while pretending like nothing happened, the strong guilt would continue to torment his conscience
And even if he used all his strength to stop them, he would be beaten up
No matter what he chose, he couldn't retreat completely, and there would be an emotional or physical scar
His ical reasoning of his couldn't operate at all Yuuji wanted to cover his head, squat down, not look and ignore it
(What should I doso cry could be heard in his mind
Actually, Yuuji already knew that if there was only one correct choice, it would be to sue and take the first step forward However, fear distracted hi him to be unable to make the correct decision
(daraders Three of them…I can’t beat them on my own!)
Would he be beaten up by them? Would he be walloped by them? Would he cry because of the pain? Yuuji’shih, even if he rushed forward, there wouldn’t be any benefit at all
But while thinking about that, another thought crept into Yuuji’s mind
(Whybullied because ofresponsibility for that! Why as here!)
This was the first time Yuuji felt so ashamed of himself Whether it’s the hero of ani so ridiculous Even though they knew that they couldn’t beat the eneer without hesitation just to save the girl But right now, he could only stand outside and tre in the face of those idiots he looked down on, rooted to the spot He was, he was the one who caused that girl in front of him to be bullied
Thinking more into it, he found himself pitiful, sha hi he had to do, soht for, but yet hiselse Was that his so-called intellect? If that’s true—wouldn’t the stupid guy who doesn’t think and get angry when appropriate be the cooler person to him?
Yuuji bit his lower lip so forcefully until tears were about to come out from his eyes, yet he just stood there, unable to take the initial step
Just when Yuuji was having that internal conflict inside his head, there seemed to be a new development to this incident
“Don’t…”
Shouko’s feeble cry entered his ears
As he was hiding, Yuuji didn’t really understand as going on in the classroo Shouko wide open from behind, and another one boy with his arm out at her chest
At this moment, Yuuji suddenly remembered what Shouko said the day before Shouko did rew Would there be a prank of that kind happening?
(She’s a girl There’ll be emotional scars on her if they really did that!)
Children at this age would only vaguely understand things about the opposite gender, so Yuuji didn’t kno irl
(Just call for help, Shouko! I’ll get sensei to save you once you shout for help!)
Once Shouko’s willing to call for help, it’ll be what she wanted At that point, Yuuji just needed to get the teacher to solve the proble Even if she were to be forced to transfer, it would be hersuch a decision, and it wouldn’t be Yuuji’s fault
People forced into desperation would often co
(So what about transferring schools? At least it’s better than being hurt…so just hurry up and call for help!)
Yuji kept waiting for Shouko to voice out
Just one sentence, one ic spell that could save him and Shouko Once she said it, he would be freed, and he would be freed once he heard it
Trying to run away frouilt and terror, Yuuji continued to wait for that sentence to pop out A ‘savewould do Anyway, he just hoped for her to call for a third party—especially an adult—to interfere He would rather have her choose this, since he preferred her to transfer out than to be bullied
Yuuji just kept wishi+ng, wishi+ng and wishi+ng…
And then, Shouko finally opened her mouth,
“II DON'T WANT TO TRANSFER SCHOOLS!”
“Oh, OHHHHHHHHHHHHH WHAT ARE YOU DDOOOOIINNNNGGG!!!”
That voice made Shouko doubt her ears
The owner of that voice shouldn’t be here He shouldn’t be here to save her Even if he’s here, it shouldn’t be him
The person overturned all these possibilities that shouldn’t have happened; the most important friend to Shouko stood up for her to save her
“WH, WHO IS IT!?”
The boys all then looked over They looked so aard, probably because they thought of the possibility that it could be a teacher
Thanks to this unexpected passer-by, the force holding onto Shouko relaxed
“…u!!”
In that ot away But to the boys, it seeot away now
“The, THERE ARE THINGS THAT CAN BE DONE AND THINGS THAT CAN’T BE DONEEE!! YOU GUYS ARE THE WORST!!!”
That’s a shout from Yuuji that was never heard before, and it was loud and treine this Yuuji in front of the with such a panicked tone
“Wh, what, so it’s Sakamoto”
“I thought that sensei was here……you scared me, you punk!”
“Oh, just nice of you to be here We were looking for you”
The boys got arrogant after knowing that Yuuji came alone The excitement they had in the little scuffle is now overwhelmed by the superiority they feel as they threatened him
“I…have nothing to say to you”
Yuuji got overwhelot softer
Even though they’re not so bad that they can be called delinquents, the three boys were neither cowards nor kind folks They won’t back away after seeing a lowerclassmen
“You don’t, but we do”
“You’re too haughty, twit”
The three of the
“I’o, Shouko”
Yuujiher to leave
“I TOLD YOU TO HOLD IT THERE!”
An upperclassrabbed Yuuji forcefully on the shoulder, and the other two boys stretch their ar Now that their prey cao easily
“What? I’m busy here…oi!”
Yuuji wanted to swing that arm aside, but the boy wasn’t so weak as to be pushed aside with just one hand He was finally shoved aside with both hands, but the other two boys blocked his exit He couldn’t escape no matter what
Yuuji stood in front of Shouko to hide her behind, and whispered to her without looking back
“Shouko, you…go back”
“…But”
“GO BACK!”
Yuuji shouted with a tre voice Shouko was so shook up to the core, and she found Yuuji’s fist shaking as well
“Yu, Yuuji…”
“JUST LEAVE ME ALONE AND GO BACK! YOU’LL ONLY MAKE TROUBLE FOR ME HERE!!”
Yuuji gritted his teeth and shouted out the thoughts in his , as the terror of the three bigger and stronger upperclass his entire body to tremble
“…I, I’ll call sensei here—”
“SHUT UP! JUST HURRY UP AND GO BACK!!”
Yuuji kne Shouko wished to stay in this school, and he knehat Shouko’s grandfather would do if this situation was voiced out Since it happened, he couldn’t let Shouko call the teacher over
Also, , yet if Yuuji was only worried about himself and let her call the teacher over, it would end with her transferring schools, and that would be too eht to cover his head and treot bullied’
Cowering in fear of the upperclassirl he should be saving; these were enough to crush Yuuji’s cockiness yesterday completely
The co ot involved in this
“I…I was able to study well, so, I thought I wouldn’t lose to adults, I thought I was so…”
“…Yuu—ji…”
“But it wasn’t like that…no es I learnt, I’ll still be afraid, scared that I’ll be beaten by these guys who’re doing such things…!”
Shouko couldn’t see Yuuji’s expression fro down Yuuji’s face
He could only stand down there and i beaten down by therit his teeth with regards to that inevitable outcome and his own uselessness
Seeing Yuuji like that, Shouko forced herself to hold back her own tears and answered back
“…Un…, …I, I’ll be…going…first…”
Most likely, Yuuji didn’t want to let others see hiet beaten down like that He probably didn’t want to ad on the floor like that Shouko held back the frustration of having to leave Yuuji behind and running away, and escaped the classroom as what Yuuji had told her to do
“U…uu…UWAAAAAAHHHH—!!”
Running away from Yuuji, who screamed and cried as he attacked, Shouko’s tears continued to fall
“Welcome back, Yuuji”
Like usual, Yukino welcoot home
“…”
Yuuji wordlessly took his shoes off and stepped into the house
Yukino stared silently at her son, who didn’t explain anything, and asked
“The school called…you had a fight with the upperclassmen?”
Yukino’s words made Yuuji stop
“Did so happen?”
“…Nothing…nothing at all”
Yuuji answered without looking back
“Soht with your upperclassmen”
“I just didn’t like those guys, so I beat them up No special reason, none”
He repeated the same reason he said at school The teachers at school were asking ‘did soht’, but Yuuji just continued to stubbornly answer ‘I beat up theraders didn’t deny that too Though the teachers ondering what the sixth graders were doing in a fifth grader’s classroo the same answer, they couldn’t pursue the matter further This incident could only be treated as a scandal caused by Yuuji, a scandal of arecommended to a famous school
“They irritated you…is that why you fought?”
“Yeah, so!?”
“Moood”
“…”
Ignoring those words, Yuuji wordlessly went up to his own room upstairs
Yuuji only , and then he was beaten badly Of course, he couldn’t say that, and it was only because of a teacher walking by coincidentally that he was saved He didn’t say anything once he was brought to the classroo about what happened before the fight as well
“Hey, Yuuji, wait I haven’t—”
“SHUT UP! I JUST BEAT THEM UP BECAUSE I FOUND THEM ANNOYING! THERE’S NO OTHER REASON!’
“Ah, Yuuji”
He grumbled as he ran up the stairs, and then, a loud slam of the door could be heard
“So you beat them up because they irritated you, is it…”
She repeated what her son just said The words that should have only ill intent in them were etched on her mind
“…Aunty…”
Realizing that Yuuji wasn’t around, Shouko walked out fro room Yukino told her not to appear in front of Yuuji
“I’ you hear mother and son quarrel, Shouko-chan”
“…Unun It was, because of me…”
“Ara, Yuuji didn’t say that He just said that ‘I beat theuys irritated me’,”
“…But it’s because Yuuji was protecting me Yuuji—”
“Un I understand You already told me what really happened, Shouko-chan”
Shouko ran out of the classroom, found the school’s number at a public phone booth, made an anonymous call to the office, and came to Yuuji’s house to explain what Yuuji really did
“…Aunty Why didn’t Yuuji tell you what really happened? He saved uy…”
Perhaps considering Yuuji’s future, Shouko’s expression darkened
But as a mother, Yukino said to Shouko without any malice,
“I think it’s best for that child”
“…Best…but, he’ll be a bad guy…? He finally ot recommended to shi+ht…?”
“U~n…perhaps that ht happen”
“…Wou, wouldn’t Yuuji be, sad or so…?”
“I don’t really know about that, because that’s a choice that kid did after thinking it through As a ”
Perhaps Yukino ht have see, but Yukino’s expression was completely different from what she said—it was a kind expression anyone could comprehend
“…? Yuuji couldn’t go shi+mozuki Middle School anymore, but aunty looks so happy…”
“Yes I’ve never been so proud of being that kid’sa kid who can study”
Yukino gave a bright s full marks for an exam, first in a national mock exam, the scandal today made Yukino more proud than ever
“…Yuuji’s…so kind…”
Notany excuses for anyone, Shouko murmured to herself
‘’Yuuji protected me’’
‘’He couldn’t fight, he suffered, he was treated as a bad guy, yet he did that all to protect me He even lied to his mother for that cause’’
On thinking about this, a gradually expanding erew up inside her
“…excuse me, aunty”
“What is it, Shouko-chan?”
“…I want to be Yuuji’s bride when I grow up”
“Ara ara, that’s too early”
“…I’ll definitely, definitely make him happy”
“Fufu, that’s soht?”
“…That’s not true”
“Then, I hope that Yuuji would say that to Shouko-chan one day Aunty will cheer you on”
“…Really?”
“That’s right As long as Shouko-chan won’t hate Yuuji, right?”
Once Yukino asked that, Shouko again confirs for Yuuji cool one day? Would she lose her feelings for this boy who protected her while tre? She continued to ask herself
And then, she told the answer she got clearly to Yukino
“…No problems I will love him forever, definitely”
That’s—a firm belief that could be a prophecy of her own heart