A Farewell to All Futures

The Practical Exams (Part 2)

"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Mr. Nikei Yomiuri, the Ultimate Journalist, to the stage!"

Nikei walked over to the stage with a few stapled pieces of paper in his arms, his classmates encouraging him as he went. He ascended the steps and faced the judges, silently awaiting their questions.

"Mr. Nikei Yomiuri, what will you be showing us today?" One of them asked.

"Well, I have created an article with collected interviews, inquiries from others, and local news sources regarding the Ultimate Fashionista, Junko Enoshima!" Nikei placed the printed article down in front of one of the judges and stepped back as they read it, forcing himself not to tremble. 

The judge's face seemed to show surprise, then agreement, as if he was swayed by Nikei's article. He passed it to the other judges, who read it and had the same reaction as their peer. After they finished reading the article, they set it back down on the table and began to talk with one another. Nikei could only wait in anticipation as the judges decided his result.

Finally, they turned back to face him. "We must agree, this article is quite well-written. There's really no reason to doubt that Ms. Junko Enoshima is one of the most influential models of the century, not with the way you've shown us." One of them explained, recalling the article about Junko. "For your ability to persuade people through simple writing, we declare that you have passed your practical exam."

Nikei's face lit up like a Christmas tree, and he quickly grabbed his article from the table before running back to his classmates. They congratulated him as he sat down, holding tightly onto Mikado to calm his nerves.

Yoruko leaned over to him. "Hey, didn't you tell me that you were going to show them the one about the elementary school?" She whispered.

"Trust me, I would've if I could." Nikei replied in a hushed tone. "When I tried to post it on my website, it got taken down by a third party within a day. I think the school's trying to cover it up, so I'm only handing it over to those I trust now."

"If the topic's contraband, then you guys better shut up." Sora whispered frantically. "If the guards over there report us, we're screwed, so you'd better keep your mouth shut for now."

***

"Unfortunately, we we're able to see the article, but it sure swayed the judges!" The announcer exclaimed. "Next up, ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Ms. Setsuka Chiebukuro, the Ultimate Billiards Player, to the stage!"

Setsuka went up to the judges while the exam assistants set up a pool table behind her. "Ms. Setsuka Chiebukuro, what will you be showing us today?" 

"Big Sis is just gonna sink all of these balls in record number of shots, that's all!" Setsuka smiled, turning back around and advancing towards the pool table as people cheered. She picked up the cue stick and waited for the cheering to die down so that she could concentrate.

Once the gym was dead silent, she leaned over and began aiming at the white ball, calculating how much strength she needed to use and what angle to hit it at. To make sure she could accurately pull this off, she opened up her right eye, letting the images come to mind. After what felt like an eternity of calculating to her, she pulled back and hit the white ball.

Instantly, the white ball hit the others and scattered them, some of them even going into the pockets. Setsuka waited for them to stop moving before calculating which one to hit next. Once again, she opened her eye, pausing for a moment to change her angle. Bending over and aiming again, she hit another ball and set off a chain reaction, adding another third of the total balls into the pockets.