"Kiyotaka-kun, we have a problem."
Our lunch break was almost over when I heard these words. The afternoon period was shorter than the morning, but the events were worth a lot more. The tug-of-war, scavenger hunt, four-way tug-of-war, mix gender three-legged race and finally the 1200m relay were all that was left. The boys also had tug-of-war, and the girls had to play ball toss. These were the biggest events of the day, the most exciting, and the most rewarding when it came to points.
Which is why when Kikyou came up to me to give me a warning, I was understandably on edge.
"What's going on?" I asked.
"Well, a bunch of our classmates are too sick to participate anymore. They're all running to the toilets with diarrhoea, so they can't really compete in any races," she explained.
We were standing at the Class D tent getting ready for the next event, the tug-of-war. Everyone was supposed to return to their tents now at the end of lunch but as I looked around it became clear that a significant number of students were missing.
A concerning thought appeared in my mind. "How many of them have been socialising with Class C."
Kikyou was confused only for a moment, before shock appeared in her eyes. "That's right! Everyone thought Class C was being more friendly now, but they just showed it was all a plan didn't they. Thinking about it... a lot of people in our class were making new friends, but for the sick people... I think most of them were eating lunch with Class C today!"
"Poison then. Fast acting laxatives, probably in a drink they brought. Easy enough to purchase from the chemist here, and not very suspicious," I summised. It was a very likely possibility.
"Wait, but that means we're going to struggle for some events. Without all of those people, we don't have a chance!" Kikyou exclaimed.
I looked around the tent. Assuming everyone who would be participating was back now, we were missing 16 people. Ten boys and six girls. Unsurprisingly with the general nature of Class C, more boys were able to get along than girls, although that wasn't very relevant right now.
There were several events where the entire class would participate coming up. Capture-the-flag, the boy's tug-of-war and the girls ball toss would be much harder, down a significant number of students.
There was some hope though. We would most likely lose most of these events, but if we suffered no more injuries the recommended events would still be fine. There were a few people missing, but for the important events, the only person missing was Horikita.
"Horikita wouldn't have been friends with Class C though," I noticed. She was the odd one out of the missing students.
"No, you're right," Kikyou muttered in agreement. "Horikita must be missing for another reason."
"Let's hope she gets back before the 1200m relay. Other than that, we just need to get through the first few events.
"Hey, but is there no way to prove that Class C did something?" Kikyou asked. According to the foul play rules, they could be disqualified for this. Baiting us in with friendship and then knocking us down with laxatives was certainly a punishable offence.
"If you can find any evidence, go ahead and complain. But they most likely shared drinks and pretended to drink themselves. By now, any evidence would have been flushed down a drain. Class C wins this time."
"Aha, once again Kiyotaka-kun is right. We'll just have to do our best and fight on."
"Kushida-san, Ayanokouji, please pay attention." Hirata called us over to where he was trying to give the class a speech. We stopped talking by ourselves and came over to join the group.
"I know it's been a tough day. We've all done our best despite the problems we faced. Our participation table was changed, and our allies were betrayed. And now, lots of us are retiring sick. I'm sure we all have our own opinions on the situation, but it doesn't matter. Our other leader, Horikita, is gone, and no one knows where she is. Right now, we are alone and weak. But that doesn't mean we are going to give up. We're going to get through this day together!"
Not once did Hirata smile at all during his speech. His fists were clenched, fire in his eyes. But it did the job, and the remnants of our class were fired up.
"Yeah, like Hirata-kun said, we've got this!" Kikyou jumped onto the bandwagon, giving a cheer and a jump, boosting the morale of the class from determination to excitement. As expected of the classroom sweetheart, she could always improve a situation. No one could say she was sitting out or playing favourites anymore.
Now that the speech was done, Hirata let everyone break off to prepare for the afternoon session, filling up water bottles or going to stretch. Kikyou returned to my side, muttering "we're completely fucked." Clearly she hadn't believed a word of her support.
"A suggestion. Looking over at Class A they've also been hit hard by Class C." It was understandable, since they were always open to making friend. "The results don't affect how many points the winning class gets. If you're going to lose, just give up and take the loss," I suggested.
"Most people won't like such a cowardly idea," Kikyou reminded me.
"There's no point fighting inevitability. Use the chance to rest and let the opponents tire themselves out. Save our energy for the events that matter later on."
"I'll suggest it, but I don't think anyone will want to go along with it."
"It doesn't matter much either way. Good luck." The class began to split off, the girls going to ball toss and the boys to tug of war.
"Yeah, like luck will help us against an extra 14 students," Kikyou groaned.
I headed off with the boys to the tug-of-war. Our class was missing ten boys, and Class A was missing four. A fourteen-student difference would certainly make it almost impossible to win. Luckily, none of our stongest people were gone, but sheer numbers would overwhelm us eventually.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't Class A and D. You're looking a little worse for wear kukuku." Ryuuen had been waiting for us and didn't hesitate to point out our missing members.
"You'll pay for this Ryuuen," Kanzaki growled.
"Huh? No, I got paid. Besides, they just got a bit of a tummy bug. My class had nothing to do with it." He was clearly taking great delight in teasing Kanzaki and Hirata.
"You're a disgrace, Ryuuen. Such behaviour is disgusting. I'll make sure that you're punished for this." Hirata was borderline yelling at him. It was taking considerable willpower to hold himself back.
"Kukuku prove it then. You don't have any evidence, do you? So, hurry up and get beaten at tug-of war."
Ryuuen sauntered away back to the side of the White Team. In the beginning the situation had looked bleak, but I had thought we could hold our own. Now, with the two most athletic classes against us, and missing fourteen people, it didn't feel realistic at all.
Dubiously, the Class A and D students lined up as we had prepared, from shortest to tallest. The opponents did nothing of the sort, lining up by class.
"Oi, are they not even trying?" Sudou was baffled at their strategy.
"Ah, it's rather simple, red-kun. They are expressing their disrespect for us. We are not even worth their best efforts. Ah, truly a worthless event. I don't see why we should even bother." Kouenji had come along to join in, but with our looming loss his interest was waning quickly.
"Let's see how we go in the first round. If it's a complete loss, then we give up," I suggested.
"I hate to agree with you, Ayanokouji, but I don't really see a point in trying. We don't have great odds of winning," Kanzaki gloomily admitted.
"What the hell? We aren't giving up, dipshits! Let's win this!" Sudou exclaimed, not willing to lose from the start.
Sighing, I picked up the rope. I was only a few people from the end, and Kouenji had bullied his way into being the anchor. This was the best possible setup we could have for a tug of war.
The referee blew their whistle, and immediately there was a strong force pulling against the rope. Both classes dropped down to strengthen their grip and shift their center of gravity backwards. I could feel the strain on the rope as both teams pulled with an immense force, neither willing to back down.
For a long time both sides were holding equal. The rope hadn't shifted from the center, and despite the missing numbers our superior setup was able to make up for the deficit.
All around me I could hear grunts and groans as everyone put their best efforts in. Everyone was straining themselves, including me, just to hold the line in place. The fact that the center line hadn't moved yet was a testament to our efforts. If we hadn't lost fourteen class members, we most likely would have won this event.
That was, until Ijuin near the front lost his footing and fell backwards, before beginning to slip. Even though the amount of power he brough was small, it was enough to shift the momentum back towards the White Team.
We all dug our heels in and pulled as hard as possible, but with that first shift, the rope ever so slowly began to make its way away from our side, until eventually the center crossed into the opponent's territory.
The referee blew the whistle again to signal the end of the game, and everyone dropped the rope in exhaustion.
The White Team were celebrating their victory, laughing and cheering, while the Red Team tried to rest. The difference in the level of exhaustion were obvious between our teams. The White Team hadn't even been trying their best.
"I guess we really can't beat them with this deficit." The mood of the Red Team was steadily dropping. But there was one person who wasn't worried.
"Don't worry guys. We can't win the game, but we can definitely get back at them," Miyake said with a feral grin. He was one of our stronger participants, so I was curious to hear what he had planned.
After a very short confirmation, everyone agreed to his plan, even Hirata reluctantly. We didn't have a very good chance of winning, especially now that our opponents were rearranging themselves properly for optimal strength. The next round would be our last, losing two to zero to the White Team, but Miyake and the rest of us weren't willing to go down without a fight.
Getting into position, the referee blew the whistle, and once again everyone dropped into position. This time though, we weren't taking any risks trying to pull the rope. Instead, we were only trying to hold it in place, a much easier task. Even against the improved strength of our opponents, the center line didn't move.
Finally, the moment we had been waiting for came. Miyake, positioned in the middle of the rope, shouted out 'now!' Instantly, everyone on our team let go of the rope.
The White Team hadn't been expecting such a tactic. The force they had been putting in was immense, and the sudden lack of resistance resulted in all of them falling backwards at awkward angles, landing on top of each other. There were a lot of pained noises, and we watched as White Team members slowly picked themselves up, groaning in pain. Hopefully the injuries would put a hamper on their upcoming events.
Some of them tried to complain, but aside from our actions being not very sportsmanlike, there was nothing in the rules that stated we couldn't do such a thing.
This time, it was the Red Team who was laughing and cheering. We may have lost the event, and the White Team had gotten 500 points, but that was an inevitable outcome. Hopefully we could make up for this in the recommended events, and our seniors wouldn't lose as badly as us.
Nagumo would probably bribe his year to let him win anyway.
We walked away from the tug-of-war, most of us in high spirits despite the loss. It had been expected but was still major damage to our class's chances. I took solace in the fact that Class A was also losing along with us. Knowing their participation table, it was clear they would have to pay for a few replacements in the recommended events, not an inexpensive problem.
We returned to our tent at the same time as the girls came truding back from the ball toss. Based on their dejected appearance, they didn't appear to have won either.
"You too, huh?" I commented as Kikyou approached me, a downcast look on her face.
"It wasn't even close. We got completely run around by their extra numbers. Even if I hadn't suggested it, we probably would have given up early anyway."
So, the girls did end up taking a loss. Right now, it was a deadly situation. Too much more and we could end up tipping the balance.
"We'll just have to pick it up in the rest of the events. You've still got those spare points I gave you, right?"
"Mhm! I can pay for any substitutions we need. I mean, it's only expected that the kindest girl in class would make such a sacrifice," Kikyou explained with a devious grin. At the start of this morning, I had sent her several hundred thousand points just in case of a situation like this. It was much more effective to have Kikyou paying the penalty than for me to.
"Ayanokouji, what do you think of our situation?" Hirata had come over and joined in my meeting with Kikyou.
"I think we're well positioned to take a decent place," I confidently answered.
"You mean it doesn't matter that we're missing so many people?"
"Yeah. Besides from capture the flag everything else is recommended. Class C executed their plan too late in the day to do any major damage," I explained. The 1000 point loss was already heavy, but hopefully we could stem the bleeding there.
"I see. Do you think that Kouenji-kun would be willing to participate in the scavenger hunt? We need to replace Okitani-kun," Hirata explained.
"No, it would be best not to bother him. He understands the situation, and if he wanted to participate, he would. Find someone else," I said. Kouenji would participate, when necessary, but such a luck-based event didn't interest him.
"Fine, I'll trust you at least when it comes to managing Kouenji-kun. Do you have any idea where Horikita-san is?"
"Eto, I saw her going towards the school at some point, but I don't know any more," Kikyou interjected. I shook my head as well. I didn't know any more than Kikyou.
"Well, I guess that's something, Kushida-san. Make sure to win the scavenger hunt. We can't suffer any more losses," Hirata ordered. It was harsh, since it really was based on how lucky you were.
In response, I headed down towards the start for the scavager hunt, while Kikyou began to explain that she was happy to pay for substitutes, having won the Dragon Group on the cruise ship. I was running in the first group, and when I arrived, it became clear just how stacked it was.
Ryuuen, Hashimoto and Shibata were standing there, all ready to compete. This would be the race to watch.
"Well, I'm looking forward to compete one on one with you boss. It's been a while, hasn't it?" Hashimoto said with a grin.
"Hashimoto."
"Ah, that's no way to talk to a fellow partner in crime. And this time we don't have the wet blanket Kamuro to bother us hahaha!"
Ryuuen grinned. "Get ready to be crushed, monster. Even you can't have perfect luck."
"At this point I'll believe anything," muttered Shibata. He was still rather unhappy due to the revelation at lunch about Amikura.
"Oh, is Shibata-kun still upset? Don't worry, I'll protect you from the big bad Ryuuen and his magical plague class."
Before the situation could degrade any further, the referees explained the competition before it started. "Some items in the scavenger hunt are quite difficult to procure. To pick a new item, you can request a redraw, but there will be a thirty-second waiting period. You must make your redraw request to the referee when you draw your lot during the competition. The game ends when three players reach the goal. That's all."
It wasn't long before we were given the signal to start the race. Running forwards, I pulled a piece of paper out of the box, alongside Ryuuen, Hashimoto and Shibata.
The three ran off upon reading their paper, but I froze for a moment.
'Ten Friends'
That was impossible for me. There were people who got along with me, but I could only count one person as an actual friend.
"I'd like to request a change."
In accordance with the rules, I waited for thirty seconds, before drawing out a second piece of paper.
'Someone you love'
If I wanted to win, I would have to lie.
I could hear my classmates shouting at me to hurry up, and so I took off running, sprinting right at them. Some of them seemed shocked, until I ran right up to Kikyou and quickly swept her off her feet and carried her off.
"Ah, Kiyotaka-kun, what's going on?!"
While I ran, I held out the piece of paper so she could read it. "Just go along with it if you want me to win."
I could see Hashimoto already on his way back with a shoe from a classmate, and so I picked up the pace, running as fast as possible, holding Kikyou close to my chest in my arms. I didn't miss how red her face had gotten as I held her.
All around me I could hear cheers and wolf-whistles as I carried Kikyou in a princess hold, stealing her away from the class. I was sure people wouldn't let me forget this.
I reached the tent just before Hashimoto and handed the referee my piece of paper. It was an embarrassing situation, but luckily, they didn't question it, instead handing me back the paper and declared me the winner of the race.
In the end, Shibata came in third, and Ryuuen lost the race, although after his performance in the last team events it wasn't something to be worried about.
I walked back to the team tent, alongside a still completely red Kikyou, only to be greeted by claps and cheers.
"Oi, go on Ayanokouji, what was on the paper?" Sudou called. I could see from everyone around him that the entire class was curious to know.
"Your best friend," I lied. The paper said someone you loved, but there wasn't anyone like that for me. So, I chose Kikyou as the person most likely to understand. Showing that to a girl was as close to a confession as you could get, but if I was going to win the event that was a necessary price to pay.
"Eh? You really swept her in your arms there, Ayanokouji-kun. Like a prince saving his princess from her tower, how romantic," Karuizawa teased.
"S-stop it Karuizawa-san, it's not like that," Kikyou protested.
"It was just the fastest way to get back," I explained.
"Mhm, sure, totally believe you," Karuizawa sarcastically replied. Slowly though, the excitement was dying out, and since the next scavenger hunt was about to begin and the class turned their attention there.
Without anyone noticing, Kikyou somehow managed to drag me to the side and out of the way of the rest of the class. Her face was still just as red as when I picked her up.
"Kiyotaka... about that paper..." She was hesitating much more than usual, extremely embaressed.
"It was a convenient lie to win the race. That's it," I assured her.
"Oh... right..." That answer seemed to disappoint her more than I had thought, but a moment later the bubbly class friend had returned. "Let's go cheer on our classmates, right?"
"Mm. It would be good to pick up a few more points here."
After the six races were run in the scavenger hunt, Class D had managed to miraculously pick up three victories, thanks in part to Onodera and Miyake having good luck with their draws.
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The next event we had was the four-way tug of war. Out of all the recommended events, this was the one I had the most confidence in. Four students were nominated from each class, as opposed to the entire class event. This was a good chance to pick up 500 points from a team event.
In the end, the Class D lineup hadn't been hard to decide on. Kouenji, Sudo, Hirata and I had the highest grip strength, and although Hirata's position had been offered to Miyake, the latter declined it, citing a sore knee from the pervious tug-of-war.
Our opponents weren't going to be a pushover, but I had complete confidence in our ability to out-tug them.
Out of everyone, I was most concerned about Class C. Class B was fronting some strong students, but Yamada was most certainly the biggest threat. Luckily, Class C was on an angle to us, and so we wouldn't have to fight the full force of their pull. Our opponents were Class B.
"Right, let's show them that Class D isn't a pushover! We'll make them pay for the last tug of war!" Sudou shouted.
"I must admit, I'm fairly confident about our chances here," Hirata said. "We held on well in the previous bout, and now the numbers are event we should be able to do well."
"Ha! Of course we shall win this event. You have the power of a perfect existence assisting you, losing is a foreign concept."
"Didn't we lose the last one with your help, Kouenji?" Sudou dubiously asked, only to be ignored by the golden-haired boy.
There was no banter this time, only the concentration of four teams ready to give their all. With Class C's recent comeback, it was once again anyone's game. Unfortunately, Ryuuen had made his move too late. There weren't enough competitions left for him to win.
The referee gave the start signal, and the four of us began to pull. Unlike in the previous tug-of-war, there was a lot less resistance, and the rope slowly but surely began to move in our direction. With the full force of Kouenji, Sudou, Hirata and myself, we quickly pulled the center of the rope across to our side, claiming victory for Class D. This was one of the events I had been confident in winning, and after our string of defeats at the hands of the white team, it was a good morale boost for the class to see such a quick victory.
"Man, you guys really are insane. How did so many strong people end up in Class D?" Hashimoto wondered.
"Because they've all got fucked up attitudes, all four of them. You'd never guess it, but they're all insane," Ryuuen commented. Personally, I thought temperament was the biggest deciding factor in which class a student was placed.
"You aren't wrong there. But still, you'd think someone like Ayanokouji would at least be in Class C," Kanzaki thought aloud. "Say what you want about his attitude, he's definitely smart enough and athletic enough to be placed that high."
"Kukuku spare me your delusions of having a chance with him in his class. Really, someone as fucked up as him isn't going anywhere." Ryuuen had his firm opinion that my mental state kept me in Class D.
"Actually, I scored fifty in the entrance exam," I admitted. "That was probably why I was rated so lowly."
Kanzaki narrowed his eyes at me. "We never got our results back. You could only know that if you did it on purpose. You purposefully scored exactly 50?" So he noticed my slipup.
I shrugged. "Everyone has to impress the interviewers somehow." Deciding that was enough, I turned and began to walk back to the Class D tent, soon followed by Sudou and Hirata. Kouenji had once again pulled his disappearing act.
Before we could reach it however, Hirata put his hand on my shoulder and spun me around stopping us.
"Ayanokouji. I need to know the name of the traitor. If you really have discovered it, please tell me," he asked once again.
"Wait, Ayanokouji you know who the traitor is? Come on tell us! Don't hold back we need to teach them a lesson!" Sudou exclaimed.
But I picked up on the small dart in Hirata's eyes to Sudou as he first spoke. This wasn't for me. Hirata already knew my stance. This entire situation had been developed to involve Sudou, perhaps to add pressure on me to divulge what I knew, or to confirm whether I had figured it out.
"Sorry, but I won't be telling you who changed our participation table. I already owe them a favour." Hirata's face tightened at my words very slightly, but it was Sudou who gave the biggest reaction.
"Augh, they're gonna get away with it! Hey, it wasn't you right, Ayanokouji? I bet you're pretty happy with how the day went!"
"How could I owe a favour to myself Sudou?" I reasoned.
"I mean... I guess that's true. But still!" I managed to confuse him enough.
"Don't bother me with this again Hirata. We're doing well enough that it's not worth worrying over."
I turned and walked away from them, returning to my hammock that I had hidden in the branches of the tree. I had hoped to get some rest before the next event, capture the flag, but it wasn't long before I was interrupted.
"You seem fairly relaxed for someone in a losing position, Ayanokouji."
Manabu and Tachibana had come over to talk to me.
"I'm not worried. You and Nagumo have been pulling your weight for the red team." I had been watching all the year levels today to some degree, just to keep an eye on the potentially changing situation. Luckily, it had all gone as expected.
"Is that enough to make up for your loss of fourteen people?" Manabu questioned.
"You're paying very close attention to us," I noted
"On the contrary, I pay attention to everyone." As expected, Manabu had a counter to everything.
"What is it you wanted to talk about," I sighed.
"How dare you speak to the president in such a manner, and after he is giving up his personal time for you as well?!" Tachibana exclaimed. At this point, I was sure she would realise I wasn't going to change, nor would Manabu care.
"It's fine. I was curious if you had any plans to rectify the situation you're in. Won't you be claiming unsportsmanlike conduct?" He asked.
"Please. You and I are both aware I have no grounds to do so." Manabu should understand that Ryuuen wouldn't have left any evidence.
"Indeed. And yet you aren't panicking."
"There's no reason to. Ryuuen acted far too late. There's still time to win the recommended events. Don't' worry, we won't be costing the red team their win," I assured him.
"While that's a relief to hear, that wasn't what I wanted to talk about."
Oh? As pertains to our class there would only be a few reasons Manabu would care, beyond acting his role as student council president. I had explained them all, all except for one.
"Why was my sister crying near the nurse's office?" Manabu demanded.
"She was crying?" I wondered. That wasn't like Horikita at all. I had expected her to be bottling up her emotions entirely.
"Not much, but she was certainly experiencing a troubling situation," he explained further.
"If you've been watching my class then you should already understand. Besides, I didn't think you cared. Didn't you want her to drop out?" it was a curious position Manabu had taken.
"While professionally I believe she should leave the school, as a brother I can't help but care. From a distance of course, but nevertheless, I am troubled by what's bothering her."
I sighed. "There's nothing you nor I can do at this point. She failed the test to stop any traitors, and so she got what was coming. Now she has to face the consequences."
"That's rather cruel. As a classmate, shouldn't you put more effort into protecting a higher value commodity. To your mind at least, despite her flaws, Suzune is certainly a valuable resource."
"Tomorrow is a hope, not a promise," I explained. "She needed to learn that there is no such thing as inevitability. At any point her world can crash down. It's a lesson she refuses to learn."
Manabu straightened up. "Very well. I'll leave you to your rest, before capture the flag. Take care not to cause problems for the Red Team. We still hold the lead, but only by a thousand or so points. Too many losses will cause problems."
With this warning, Manabu took his leave, Tachibana scurrying along behind him.
There were only a few more events left for today. Would it be enough to bring our class back from defeat?
Authors Notes:
Almost forgot to update today, but remembered right before going to bed.
Ryuuen is having a really good time, things are going well for him. Good to see he isn't constantly getting fucked over in this fic. Had some fun with the scavenger hunt, kept true to canon just because it's way to funny.
Horikita crying? Yes, in her current state I think she might be on the verge of a breakdown here, so not quite crying, but something an older brother would be perceptible to (spoken as an older brother to a younger sister).
And yes, even the godlike strength of Ayanokouji can't make up for such a big deficit in tug of war.
As always, hope you enjoyed!