"National kendo competition?"
With wide eyes, Yuigahama suddenly remembered something. She let out a small gasp. "Ah, that's the issue happening in the kendo club..."
"That issue?" Ignoring the complicated feelings rising within her, Yukino turned to Yuigahama, frowning slightly. "Can you explain? Why would the kendo club, which has already qualified for nationals, seek help from Tenkuji-kun?"
"Well, it goes like this..." After gathering her thoughts briefly, Yuigahama began explaining.
In short, Captain Himura of the kendo club and his vice-captain accidentally got into a conflict with street thugs while eating out. The result? One was unharmed, the other severely injured. All twenty members of the opposing side were knocked unconscious. The scene was reportedly spectacular.
The vice-captain, who suffered serious injuries, had his arm broken by a baseball bat strike. Not only would he not recover in time for the match, but once the Kendo Association learned about the incident, they immediately imposed a suspension penalty—despite them not starting the fight, the fact that a brawl occurred couldn't be ignored. The school couldn't defend them and could only accept the punishment resignedly.
Herein lies the problem: Captain Himura himself is someone who's been suspended until graduation, so it doesn't matter if he wants to compete. But the vice-captain is the second strongest player on the team—the ace of the kendo club, determined to win the national championship trophy.
After the fight, that trophy slipped from his grasp. The club's winning rate also plummeted drastically.
They were originally evenly matched against their current opponent, but now their ace can't participate. There are no reserve members with comparable strength. The dream of victory, once within reach, now faces the threat of shattering—
"At that moment, someone recommended the Senpai who defeated Captain Himura."
Iroha finally looked directly at him. Her eyes held a strange glint. "That's a member of the Kendo Club whom Senpai previously ignored. He said that if his teacher came, they could definitely lead the kendo club to victory..."
"Him? I already told him I'm not his teacher..." Realizing what she meant, Yuu sighed, massaging his forehead. "If you hadn't brought it up, I'd almost forgotten. If I'd known it'd turn out like this, I wouldn't have held that fan meeting—it just brought endless trouble..."
"What? What? Yuu has fans? What do you mean, 'teacher'?"
Hearing an interesting topic, Yuigahama immediately propped herself up on both hands on the table, asking excitedly.
"Putting aside personality and character, in terms of ability, this man is indeed reliable." Yukino gave an objective assessment, adding a subtle jab. "Immature girls naturally get drawn to people like this—becoming blind and easily deceived... Yuigahama-san, please remember this well."
"Eh?" Yuigahama tilted her head in confusion. Then she quickly reacted, frantically waving her hands at Yukino. "I won't be deceived by Yuu! Besides, we've known each other for so long—I know better than anyone else what he's really like..."
"I think Tenkuji-senpai is a good person." Seeing Yuu's expression, already accustomed to such talk, Kanade spoke calmly and gently. "Someone who would give me his last portion of mapo tofu shouldn't be a bad person who deceives others."
"His last portion of mapo tofu? Tachibana-san, did you meet Senpai before?" Iroha stared at the two of them in surprise, as if silently asking, Why didn't I know about this?
Kanade blinked innocently. "In the cafeteria. When Iroha-san bought the macaroni set."
"The cafeteria? Hmm..." Iroha pouted and thought for a moment. Then she suddenly remembered. She placed her finger at the corner of her lips and murmured, "Oh, that time... I didn't know Senpai back then. I don't remember at all..."
"Alright, back to the main topic." Yukino clapped her hands. With a clear voice, she steered the conversation back on track. "So, because the kendo club's ace can't compete, you want to ask Tenkuji-kun to take his place?"
"Exactly right!" Iroha gave a sharp salute.
"In that case, I have several questions for you." Completely ignoring Yuu, the center of attention, Yukino casually raised her index finger. She asked sharply, "First, why didn't the kendo club come themselves to request help? Asking through a first-year underclassman—doesn't that seem insincere?"
Iroha instinctively shrank her shoulders, hastily replying with an awkward smile. "A-actually, they wanted to come personally too, but Captain Himura refused. He said since they lost due to lack of skill, there's no need to trouble others over something like this... But the vice-captain will graduate next year. This is his closest and final chance to become national champion. He didn't want to give up, so he confided in Kanon-chan. Kanon-chan secretly told me and Tachibana-san. After being asked, here we are..."
"Then why didn't Kanon-chan go directly to Yuu? Isn't he her teacher?" Yuigahama, having pieced together the whole story, asked.
Iroha gave a wry smile. "She said... she's afraid. The second-year building, and the silver-haired woman always beside Senpai—everything feels intimidating, making her too scared to approach..."
"Ahhaha..." Yuigahama gave an awkward laugh, her eyes slightly conflicted.
Using her aura to drive away any woman trying to approach Yuu—that was exactly something Masuzu would do.
Chin resting on her hand, Yukino still didn't understand. "But even so, wouldn't it have been faster to ask Tenkuji-kun for help directly? For instance, Isshiki-san, I recall you work at the same place as Tenkuji-kun. Why didn't you ask him then, instead of going through the trouble of coming to the Service Club to formally make a request?"
"Because I wanted to help Kanon-chan and the vice-captain."
With her hands on her knees, Kanade spoke in a clear, calming voice. "This has nothing to do with the student council election. I should've come myself to ask Tenkuji-senpai for help... But I don't know Tenkuji-senpai. I only knew I could come to the Service Club for assistance."
"And when Iroha-san heard I wanted to help, she said she'd accompany me to see Tenkuji-senpai—and she could also help me campaign for student council president at the same time... I never expected Tenkuji-senpai to be the one who gave me his last portion of mapo tofu."
After saying this, she looked at Yuu and nodded gratefully.
Yuu paused briefly, then returned her a gentle smile.
"We don't need the mapo tofu story." Yukino lowered her head resignedly, letting out a soft sigh. "Fine, I understand... One last question."
"Isshiki-san, you came to help Tachibana-san campaign? Can that really be done as an afterthought?"
"Hehehe~ That was just a spur-of-the-moment idea." Iroha stuck out her tongue playfully. But clearly, she wasn't revealing her true intentions.