A/n
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"Save him? By like, finding a way to keep him from self detonating come March or what?" Mimura asks.
"Where do we start?" Okano adds.
"Well, I don't know. Yet. But..." Nagisa trails off. I see a frown grow on Karma's face.
"Totally! I'm game! Korosensei's way to good of a big hunting buddy to let explode." Kurahashi exclaims with a close-eyed smile.
"Kurahashi..." Nagisa murmurs and Kataoka takes a few steps closer to Nagisa.
"Thank you for bringing it up. If you hadn't said something, I would've. Saving him is the least we can do." Kataoka says with a small smile. That's true, but we don't have much time to figure something out. And what have we worked for this whole time? He's been training us since day one for this specific task, it would almost be betrayal. Korosensei has known for nearly a year that he'd die, so he's probably come to terms with it by now, and knowing his past he probably doesn't feel like he deserves to survive past then, which is really sad.
"So you're on board?" Nagisa asks her.
"Seems appropriate. It is what this class has been leading to." Hara says with a smile. Not really. Sugino smiles, looking determined while holding up a fist.
"Damn right. I'm in. As far as I'm concerned it's a whole new challenge." He says.
"Like a new show. Sort of." Fuwa agrees.
"I really don't want to live with the guilt. I mean, we're at least obligated to give it a shot." Okano says, stepping forward as well. An uneasy feeling tingles in my stomach.
"Guys you..." Nagisa stops, looking relieved as half of our classmates gather around him.
"I really hate to be the one who spoils the mood. But I'm against it." Nakamura says, catching their attention as she steps out from under a tree. "We're assassins, he's the target. That's our bond. Korosensei said so himself. I don't know about you, but I cherish that bond. Think about it. Not killing him would defeat the purpose." She explains. I look around and notice I'm not the only one to hang back. Terasaka and his group have as well as a few others, Itona perched in a tree.
"Nakamura, I... you're against it?" Nagisa asks, looking taken aback by her statement as Itona jumps out of his tree to stand by the rest of the people backing up Nakamura, but still, I don't move.
"Look, we get you wanting to save him and all, but how do we even know it's doable?" Terasaka asks skeptically.
"Well, I-" Nagisa is cut of.
"You act like you're the only one who's been thinking about this." Yoshida says.
"Also, what happens if the clock runs out on us before we find a way? Did you consider that?" Muramatsu asks.
"Seriously. You want the octopus's last thought to be 'Damn, my students are a bunch of half asses'?" Terasaka growls.
"No! But we owe it to him-" Nagisa starts, only to be cut off once more.
"Always the talented ones, huh?" Karma finally speaks up, his voice unusually dark. "Figuring whatever the odds, in the end, things will always work out. Wow, listen to you. Getting a tad full of yourself there chief. Granted, you're the most gifted one in our class, but seriously, we should just up and scrap the whole assassination plan? What about the underdogs? Those of us who work ourselves sick just to squeak by on what little talent we have. How are we supposed to feel?" Karma asks, pacing closer to Nagisa before stopping, only a few feet away. "You're like a hot chick telling your homely friends that there's no point in trying to find a man. 'Course you don't have a problem with changing the rules, you've already won the game."
"Th-that's not what I'm trying to say. Besides, I'm not the gifted one. Between you and me, your the better assassin." Nagisa says. Are you that dense? This whole time you've been showing your skill and you didn't even notice?
"Okay, hearing you talk like that just pisses me off even more. You know what your problem is Nagisa? You've got not respect for how hard this is for everyone who isn't you." Karma says irritatedly.
"Woah, woah! Where is this coming from? I'm just telling you how I feel. Do you have an axe to grind with Korosensei or something? He took us, and (Y/n), to the movies, he's made learning fun!" Nagisa protests.
"That's my point! Why do you think he bothered, huh? He didn't want us to end up like a bunch of whiny, half assed jerks, and look at you! Assassinating him is what this entire class is based on, you're just trying to find a loophole! You want to undermine what Korosensei's done, or do you have the mind and the body of a 10 year old?" Karma screams at Nagisa who looks down, a shadow covering his eyes. I stare at them, my eyes wide. I agree with some of what Karma said, but that was a little harsh. This isn't looking very good. Nagisa looks up and locks eyes with Karma, both of them giving off dangerous auras.
"Huh? What's with that look? Oh, the itty bitty mouse wanna roar? Feel like you could take on a lion?" Karma taunts.
"No, I.." Nagisa never finishes his sentence as Karma had stepped forward and shoved him backwards. Nagisa quickly recovers and glares at the red head.
"Got something to say? Kick my ass for once and you can say whatever you like. Oh, don't be shy, what are you afraid of?" Karma asks, shoving him back repeatedly. "Let's settle this like men. C'mon." Karma says, finally pushing Nagisa down, catching him by his tie. Nagisa quickly reacts jumping upwards and wrapping his legs around a Karma's neck in a choke hold, using Karma's arm as a lever for his weight. This catches Karma off guard and his eyes widen. He wasn't expecting Nagisa to hit back. Karma doesn't waste a second, lunging forward and slamming Nagisa to the ground, though the smaller boy still keeps his grip. Karma growls under his breath, straining to try and break away from Nagisa.
"Oh! A flag triangle hold!" Terasaka exclaims.
"I am not... a whiny half ass jerk!" Nagisa yells furiously.
"Well alright then. When did Nagisa learn that move?" Fuwa questions. Karma staggers back to his feet and steadily works towards removing his arm from Nagisa's grasp.
"He's still no match for Karma in hand to hand combat." Kimura comments.
"You little..." Karma growls, finally breaking his arm away from Nagisa, the blue haired boy tumbling back to the ground. Isogai and Maehara jump forward to try and hold back Karma, though struggle in doing so.
"Knock it off!" Maehara yells.
"What the hell are the two of you trying to prove?" Isogai asks as Karma tries to pull away.
"Okay. I don't think I can hold him back!" Maehara exclaims. I glance at Nagisa to see Sugino effortlessly holding back Nagisa, who's attempts at escaping don't even require Sugino to do any more than a loose hold around Nagisa's midsection. "Dammit Karma! Could you chill out already?"
"Karma, now isn't a very good time..." I murmur, though I doubt anyone actually heard me.
"A good old fashioned schoolyard fight. Outstanding." A voice interrupts and the two immediately stop struggling. "However, you're the assassination classroom. This is how we settle our differences." Korosensei says, having appeared before us in a cops uniform. We all fall silent, the only sound to be heard is the chirping from the birds in the forest.
"What kind of mediator are you?!" Several of my classmates exclaim. Korosensei zaps away for a moment to retrieve various weapons as well as jars of blue and red paint.
"Oh. These are just red and blue paint balls." Takebayshi observes as Karma and Nagisa are released.
"Red for those who feel I must be liquidated, and blue for those who beg to differ. Before we begin, I want each of you to state his or her position clearly and choose a color. Then, after battling it out on the mountainside like civilized human beings, the winning teams opinion prevails." Korosensei explains, making his voice sound deep and stern, though it just sounds kind of silly. "Absolutely no grudges allowed. Seem fair? For the record, whatever the outcome, I'll respect your decision. Provided you defend it with everything you have. You are all a family. I can't abide by my students to be at odds with each other. If you truly care about me, promise what we've built here won't crumble into discord." Korosensei says. The first person to walk up to the boxes is Isogai. He turns around and looks at us.
"Well guys?" He asks. We all nod in agreement. This disagreement won't ruin our relationships. "Right. Let's do it. To kill, or not to kill."
"Kay then. So, guess I'll choose a side." Chiba says.
"Me too." Hayami says as they both approach the boxes.
"The insta kill shot's almost there. We've put a lot of work into it. And, as for who, what, got us this far..." Chiba starts.
"I'm sure he'd want to see us take it all the way." Hayami finishes as they both grab a container of red paintballs. "We keep our eyes on the target."
"Chiba... Hayami, you-" Nagisa starts.
"My mind's made up. I've already tried to assassinate him once, and I regret it. I want Korosensei to live as long as possible. My sister felt the same way, must run in the family or something. No more death." Kayano says, walking towards and stopping in front of the boxes and grabbing a container holding blue paintballs. "He's entitled to our protection." Nagisa sighs in relief.
"The power of science is limitless. If it can sew destruction, then surely it can find a way to save." Okuda says, grabbing another container of blue. Takebayshi next to her grabs a gun from the blue box.
"Right. And it's not as though hope's slim. We can do anything together. I know we can." He agrees.
"Sorry, but as hands on types, we kind of see this assassination as our big final project." Okajima says, unsheathing an anti-sensei knife that's covered in red paint, swinging it around a bit, Sugaya and Mimura doing the same. "If Korosensei is going to die anyway, showing him our masterpiece will be his going away present."
"Justice is a tricky concept for a kid like me. You're the one who taught me to respect it. My choice is clear, gotta live up to my name." Kimura states, grabbing a pair of handguns from he red bin.
"I suppose I'm selfish. I want him to keep giving us good advice." Kanzaki says, pulling a rifle from the blue bin.
"Save the planet or save our teacher. Blah blah blah, we're just going around in circles. I'm more of a cut to the chase kind of gal." Hazama says, picking a knife out of the red bin.
"If you can't be true to your own feelings, what hope is there in life? I want him to live, that's that." Yada says, taking a container of blue paintballs.
"Couldn't have said it better myself. We're simple guys at heart, the two of us. We want to save him because we want to save him, y'know?" Maehara says referring to him and Isogai, grabbing another container holding the blue pellets while Isogai takes a gun. "Right?"
"Sure. As long as I can still be sensitive to everyone else's needs." Isogai agrees.
"I'm a simple guy. I joined this class to kill him. I've learned a lot. Even made a few friends." Itona says, looking at me. "Coming up with ways to kill him has been fun, so yeah. More of that please." He says, stepping forward and taking a gun from the red bin.
"It May be my prime directive but, after several attempts to assassinate Korosensei, I'm at a loss. The protocol has changed. I've thought about this, and I've come to the conclusion that the target's death would be an immeasurable loss to us. Their right course of action is clear. My current specks are unable to make an informed decision on the matter. So in the spirit of cooperation, I'll remain neutral." Ritsu says from Kataoka's phone. I wish that were an option for me, but it's not that simple. She literally can't make a decision based on her programming.
"Not gonna lie, I was in the no kill camp, but hearing everyone's thoughts, now I'm not so sure. I have a question. If we do this, does killing you necessarily mean we hate you?" Okano asks.
"Of course not Okano. Quite the opposite, in fact. It's when your killing me that I feel the most loved." Korosensei answers.
"Well, in that case Nagisa, I'm sorry. Pretty sure my feelings are more in line with where these guys stand." Okano says, hesitantly picking up a container of red pellets. Nagisa simply smiles and nods in understanding before he steps up and takes a gun from the blue bin, Karma following close behind but taking his from the red side. They give each other a glare before turning away fro each other and walking to separate sides of the clearing.
"And you, (Y/n)?" Korosensei prompts. It's then that I realize that I'm the only one who hadn't picked a side, or said anything on the matter at all. Kataoka, Sugino, and Hara had all sides with blue, taking their weapons without much to say. I look at the bins and notice there is a gun and a container of paintballs for each still left. Everyone looks at me as I step forward grabbing my gun and container.
"I can understand both sides, but I'd almost feel as if I were betraying him by not trying to kill him. If we don't, what is the point of the skills we were taught in this classroom? I'm with the red side." I say, making my way to said group. When I finally stand next to them, Itona links his pinky with mine.
"Alright. Looks like everyone's picked a side." Isogai says. Our groups stare each other down. After that, we change into our camouflaged gear, save for the armbands showing which team we are on, before we make our way to a large indented clearing on the mountain where we are to compete.
"The object is to steal the opposing team's flag. Or to wipe them out entirely. It's my job to act as referee. I'll be watching from midpoint. If I see zombies or any other illegal moves, I'll call 'em. Don't worry. For all intensive purposes I'm blind to you're respective positions, got it?" Karasuma asks, talking through his headset as out groups listen from our bases. Karma's perched on a rock, playing with an anti-sensei knife as I check my gun and ammo before getting into position. "Here we go. Are you ready? Let the inter-class assassination survival game begin!" He announces. As soon as he says the words, we proceed with the game. I stay hidden in my spot, waiting for the right moment.
"Red team, it's Karma. I'll be taking the lead." The small speaker in my uniform says quietly before issuing orders to Mimura, Terasaka and the others. A bit later, I'm in a tree near Hayami, Itona guarding the ground beneath us as he had failed in making a device to help with the mission in the limited time he had. I get my sights on Hara and eliminate her before a group consisting of Isogai, Yada, Okuda, and Maehara come at us a while later. Hayami moves quickly, shooting Okuda and eliminating her while I look to aim at Isogai.
He's in charge here, so if I get him the others won't do as well. I lock in and pull the trigger, hitting Isogai and eliminating him from the game. Hayami, having not noticed Yada, is eliminated by a shot from the brown haired girl. Itona quickly reacts, shooting and eliminating Yada as well leaving only Maehara. Maehara lunges at Itona with a knife, though the white haired boy blocks it with his gun and jumps backwards, ultimately failing and getting hit by Maehara. I reload and shoot again, hitting Maehara's chest and eliminating him just as he desperately throws a knife back towards me. It grazes my arm and I'm eliminated as well. Itona looks at me a with somewhat guilty look in his golden eyes.
Damn it! We head back to the regrouping point for those of us who are eliminated and watch to the best of our abilities from there.
"Sorry." Itona says shortly once we are at the rendezvous point.
"What for?" I ask, tilting my head slightly.
"I couldn't eliminate Maehara. I'll just have to keep trying." He says. I give him a quick kiss on the cheek before reaching down and grabbing one of his hands in between mine.
"You did just fine." I say with a small smile before turning my attention back to the playing field. I watch as Nagisa appears from thin air and hits Nakamura, Yoshida, Muramatsu, and Terasaka, which leaves only him and Karma left. This is just going to be like their fight earlier, except worse. Their actions will decide what happens during the remaining time in this class, meaning they will both go all out.