One Against A Hundred

The next day, all of Sakurasaki Academy students witnessed a strange sight. From early in the morning, every single delinquent had their nose buried in their books and notes. They weren’t listening to the teacher just like usual, but instead of spacing out or talking to each other, they were poring over their notes with nearly religious fervor.

Even when it was lunch break, none of the delinquents left their seat except for toilet break or buying lunch. They were all diligently studying away.

“Just what in the world is happening here?” Shou stared at the delinquents with amazement.

He wasn’t the only one who thought that way. All normal students were stealing glances toward the studying delinquents with burning curiosity. But none of them were brave enough to approach and ask the delinquents.

“Ryuuji-kun, do you know what they’re doing?” Reikou turned to me.

“Studying.” I answered jokingly.

Reikou pouted at my obvious answer. “I know that! It’s just—”

“Ryuu.”

Reikou instantly shut her mouth when Yuuji, a delinquent who was in my class, approached me.

“Can you teach me about this part?” Yuuji showed me his Math textbook. “I don’t understand how this formula works.”

“Yeah, sure. It goes like this…” I started teaching him patiently.

Seeing that, the other delinquents in my class also rushed toward me for help.

“Ryuu, teach me about this one!”

“I don’t get this part, it’s impossible to understand!”

“Me too!”

“Wait a minute, you guys, I only have one mouth! Go wait in line!” I yelled at them in irritation.

As the delinquents scrambled to make an orderly line in front of my desk, I saw the amazement in my classmates’ faces. They seemed surprised that the delinquents would listen to me so meekly.

“U-Um…Shiba-kun.” Minami approached me hesitantly.

“Ah, sorry, Minami-san. We must’ve bothered everyone else.” I quickly apologized to her. “We’ll just move to another…”

“C-Can I…can I help out too?”

Minami blurted out words that I never expected from her.

“Huh…?” I stared blankly at her.

“I-I mean…if it’s alright with you, I want to help out too…since everyone seems eager to study…” Minami explained in small voice.

“That will be great!” I grabbed her hand and answered excitedly. “You’re really going to help us, Minami-san?”

Minami nodded. “May I…?”

I turned toward the delinquents. “Okay, Minami-san will help us out. Please tell her which part you’re having trouble and she’ll explain to you. Listen to her closely, okay?!” I glared at them, warning them not to mess with Minami who was trying to help.

“Yes!”

Few delinquents broke out from the line and made a new line in front of Minami. I kept an eye on them while teaching the delinquents in front of me. At first Minami seemed really nervous, facing the ill-reputed delinquents. But as she helped them study and they listened well to her words, her confidence grew and Minami started interacting with them more naturally.

“Can I help out too?” Reikou approached me and volunteered.

“Make it the two of us—though we’re not as smart as Minami.” Shou also tagged along with her.

I laughed. “Don’t worry, the materials aren’t as hard as our final test. Feel free to help.”

Encouraged by those three, the other students also started volunteering one by one. By the time I noticed, the delinquents had mixed in with other students naturally, as if they were normal students. It made me realize that we were all students of the same class, regardless of our differences.

“I’m sure that this is the ideal school life that Sakuya-san envisioned.” I thought as I looked around the classroom. “Where the delinquents are accepted by other students, and no longer be an object of terror. I wonder if she feels the same way about her family, since she went as far as to hide her identity.”

*****

After the school ended that day, the delinquents who took the remedial test were separated into three different classrooms, according to their respective grades. Sakuya and I were chased out by the teachers, so we simply waited in the hallway until they finished their test.

“Do you think they’ll be okay?” I asked Sakuya anxiously. I finally understood how parents felt when their child was about to take their first test.

“Don’t worry. We’ve drilled into their heads everything they need to know. The rest is up to them.” Sakuya’s confident answer helped ease my nerves. “Putting that aside, I heard about what happened during lunch break.”

“Ah, that time when the whole class helped them study? I don’t know how that happened, honestly.” I scratched my cheek. “Minami-san came forward to help out, and the next thing I knew, everyone was helping out.”

“It’s all thanks to you.” Sakuya turned toward me and said earnestly, “You showed them that delinquents weren’t scary, and you brought them all together. Ryuu, that’s something I’ve been trying to do all this time, but you succeeded so effortlessly.”

“It’s not just because of me.” I shook my head as I recalled the time when I also thought that delinquents were an incomprehensible, violent, and scary bunch. “It was you, Sakuya-san. You desired a future where even delinquents can be accepted by everyone else. You strove so hard to achieve that future, and your resolve moved everyone’s heart, including me.”

I put a hand on my chest and gazed at Sakuya’s ruby eyes.

“Everything that you did up until now laid the foundation for that future. My action was simply a trigger that pushed everything into motion. So please believe more in yourself, Sakuya-san.” I declared.

“You’re really…” Sakuya smiled helplessly. “You might not say the things I want to hear, but you always said the things I need to hear. If it’s you, perhaps even my family…” Could change for the better.

“Hm? What’s that?” I strained my ears to hear Sakuya’s last sentence, but her voice was so small that I missed it.

“No, it’s nothing.” Sakuya shook her head. “Hey Ryuu, what are you going to do after you graduate?” She quickly changed the topic.

“Go to college, graduate with the best marks, and then get a stable job.” I answered instantly, without any hesitation.

“That’s so like you, I guess.” Sakuya laughed in amusement.

“What about you, Sakuya-san?” I glanced at her. “What do you want to do?”

Upon hearing my question, the mirth in Sakuya’s eyes vanished, replaced with a hint of sadness and helplessness.

“What will I do after I graduate, I wonder…” Sakuya stared at the blue sky through the hallway’s window. “It will be nice if I can fly freely in the sky like a bird.” She whispered, as if talking to herself.

“Huh?” I tilted my head. “What’s that supposed to—”

My sentence was abruptly interrupted by a deep rumbling sound, as if thunders struck from the sky repeatedly. But the sky was completely clear, so where did that sound come from?

I took a step forward, just as the ground started to tremble.

“A-An earthquake?!” I looked around in high alert.

The delinquents who were taking their test and the teachers inside the classrooms were also alerted by the tremor.

“No, that’s not it.” Sakuya, however, had her sight locked somewhere else. “I knew it. They’re coming.”

Without explaining any further, Sakuya took off and instantly disappeared from my sight.

“Sakuya! Wait—!” I reached out my hand, but failed to grasp anything. “Damn it, why is she so fast?! Sakuya-san, wait a minute!”

I ran after her blindly, asking everyone I passed by if they saw Sakuya. By the time I finally caught up with her, Sakuya was already standing in front of the school gate. With a wooden sword in hand, she looked like a general ready to sweep through the battlefield.

“W-What the…” I unconsciously backed away when I saw the sight before me.

“So you’ve come.” Sakuya flashed her usual fierce grin. “You ignorant rascals from Takamine Academy.”

In front of her were an army of Takamine Academy’s delinquents. They were so numerous that they completely blocked the road in front of school. By quick estimation, there were around a hundred delinquents besieging our school. Them marching toward Sakurasaki Academy was the cause behind that rumbling sound and trembling ground.

“This is ridiculous…” I gulped nervously. “We have to take on a hundred delinquents?!”

“There’s no ‘we’ in this situation.” Sakuya cut me off flatly. “I’ll take all of them on my own.”

“What?! But…!” I was about to protest when I realized our current situation.

I turned around and saw the classroom where our delinquents were currently taking their test. We couldn’t depend on them to fight with us—they had their own battle right now. If they were to leave their test halfway just to get involved in inter-school delinquent war, the teachers would disqualify them from the test. Sakuya had to stop them at any cost on her own—which was Natsuhiko and Shijima’s aim from the beginning.

Natsuhiko, who stood at the forefront of his army, grinned maniacally. “How do you like it, Kagura? It seems that yesterday I didn’t bring enough playmates to satisfy you, so today I brought all of the delinquents in Takamine Academy. Don’t worry—we’ll take extra good care of you.”

As the delinquents behind Natsuhiko started jeering and laughing mockingly, I clenched my fist in frustration. Was there really nothing I can do to help Sakuya?!

“Aniki! Are you insane?!”

From one of the classrooms’ window, Takashi tore the window open and shouted loudly.

“Hey, you! Stop that and come back to your seat! The test is still ongoing!” The teacher admonished him, but Takashi didn’t pay him any attention.

“Don’t you have any pride as a Banchou left?! How could you attack us at this timing?! It’s so cowardly of you!” Takashi screamed.

“Hah! Everything is fair in love and war, little bro.” Natsuhiko scoffed at him. “I don’t want to hear that from you, considering you also used dirty tactics to corner Kagura and still lost to her!”

“Urgh…!” Takashi bit his lips as he couldn’t refute his brother.

“Kagura-san! We’ll help you out!” From the next class’ window, Ouji’s face popped out. “We won’t let you face them alone!”

“That’s right, Sakuya-chan! How could we let them touch our precious Banchou?!” Hiiro pushed Takashi away and took over his spot at the window.

“All of you, shut up and do your test! Don’t you have any awareness that you’re taking an exam right now?!” The teacher scolded them in exasperation.

As more and more of the delinquents approached the window and voiced their resolve to help Sakuya, Natsuhiko smirked victoriously. No matter which way this situation rolled out, it would be his win.

“Everyone, shut up.” Sakuya turned her head and shot an icy glare toward her subordinates. “This is an order. Shut up and do your test properly. If you fail because of this trivial thing, I’ll personally beat you up.”

Sakurasaki delinquents fell silent, but they still looked dissatisfied.

“You don’t need to worry about me.” Sakuya returned her attention toward Takamine delinquents and waved her hand dismissively. “I won’t be defeated by mere rascals. If you truly want to defeat me…”

Sakuya let out an oppressive bloodlust, forcing Takamine delinquents to step back in fear.

“…then you’ll need at least double this number.”

Natsuhiko’s face changed at this provocation. “Let’s see if you can still say that after we thoroughly beat you up! Get her!!!”

With a loud war cry, Takamine delinquents rushed toward Sakuya.

“Ryuu!” Instead of facing them, Sakuya turned at me instead. “Close the front gate and defend it with your life!”

I snapped into my senses and nodded. “Leave it to me, Sakuya-san!”

Sakuya smiled slightly before brandishing her wooden sword. In the blink of an eye, Sakuya dove into the wave of delinquents coming after her. Even though her opponents were armed with baseball bats, chains, and knives, she didn’t falter at all. By taking advantage of the chaotic field, Sakuya mowed down delinquent after delinquent effortlessly.

“Damn, she’s so fast!”

“Hey, she’s over there! Quickly grab her!”

“What are you talking about?! I can’t see her!”

Sakuya used her petite body to weave around the delinquents and cleanly knocked them out with one hit of her sword, steadily reducing their numbers.

“Whoa…! She’s so amazing!” I couldn’t help but admire Sakuya’s combat prowess. She was truly worthy of being the strongest delinquent.

*****

I clicked my tongue in annoyance as I watched my men being toyed around by one little girl. Their number was overwhelmingly superior, yet they couldn’t even touch a single strand of Kagura’s hair. Such useless dogs!

“Hey, stop crowding together like that! Why don’t you use your brain for a bit?! Put some distance between each of you and don’t let her do as she likes!” I shouted at my men.

However, instead of obeying my orders, the delinquents stepped back in fear.

“Banchou, it’s impossible! We can’t win against a monster like her!” One of them ran toward me and shouted in a panic. “At this rate, we’ll lose! Why don’t we retreat and attack in waves—”

BAM!!!

Before that delinquent could finish his sentence, I grabbed his head and slammed it to the ground with enough force to nearly split his forehead open.

“What was that? Are you saying telling me to retreat? Me? Because of a mere little girl? Is that what you’re saying? Huh?” I forcefully lifted his head and had him look at me.

“Hiii…!” He flinched from seeing the crazed look in my eyes. “N-N-No! No, I…!”

“Then are you trying to sabotage me?! Did your previous owner tell you to make me lose?! You dare betray me for that cowardly ex-Banchou?! Answer me, you useless trash!”

With every sentence, I slammed his head to the ground again and again, to the point that his face was completely covered in blood.

“I…I’m…so…rry…I’m…sor…ry…” He apologized repeatedly in a broken voice.

I snorted and threw him aside. The delinquents around us had a terrified look as they stared at the unmoving piece of trash.

“Take her down.” I commanded coldly. “I don’t care what you have to do. It’s fine even if the others got caught up in your attack, as long as you hit her. I want her kneeling in front of me, do you hear?!”

“ “ “YES, BANCHOU!” ” ”

All of Takamine delinquents shouted in response to my order. They started attacking more aggressively, producing more casualties from friendly-fire than what Kagura did. But that tactic worked well against her.

The edges of my lips lifted into a smirk as I saw Kagura’s wrist got restrained by chains. It was all thanks to her soft-hearted act of saving a delinquent who nearly got beaten up by his own comrades. My smirk turned into a full-blown laughter when Kagura was hit mercilessly with baseball bats and she couldn’t dodge.

“You scum!”

My laughter died off when I heard Kagura’s scream. She had broken off the chains restraining her with bare hands and slipped away from the delinquents that besieged her.

“Karasu Natsuhiko, you’re a failure of a Banchou!” She continued shouting, her red-blood eyes glaring angrily at me. “You, with your twisted and rotten pride, don’t deserve the Banchou title!”

I scoffed at her high-handed attitude. “You can say whatever you like after you actually win against me! I’ll even stop being a Banchou if you can defeat all of us! But you don’t have a chance!” I smiled slyly. “Because I’m going to crush you first!”

I directed my attention to the rest of my men waiting for their turn in the rear.

“Go inside the school and wreck the whole place! Beat up her lapdogs and drag them out! Show her what it means to feel despair!” I ordered them.

“Yes, sir!”

Around half of my forces immediately moved toward the school gate.