The next morning, in the hallway of Kasugabe Elementary School.
Nohara Yi was walking towards his classroom with his schoolbag when, after a few steps, he felt his sleeve tighten and his entire body was pulled by a rather impolite force to a inconspicuous corner by the window.
The one who pulled him was a young female teacher in her twenties, with long golden hair similar to Molina's, and a subtle expression on her face that seemed to say, "I finally caught you."
"Ms. Matsuzaka," Nohara Yi helplessly tugged at his crooked sleeve, his tone carrying a habitual complaint, "Even if you're lonely and desperate because of a failed blind date, it's still very bad for your image to publicly drag your own student to be a stand-in."
That's right, the person in front of him was Nohara Yi's teacher, Matsuzaka Take.
Unlike her sister, A Mei, who had long dark green hair and was as beautiful as a walking fashion plate, Matsuzaka Take's temperament leaned more towards intellect, clearly showcasing the strong genetic advantages of the Matsuzaka Family.
"You brat!" Matsuzaka Take, whose thoughts had been exposed, glared at him angrily, reaching out to gently pinch his little face.
"Who, who would be interested in you undeveloped little sprouts! Even my silly sister, A Mei, isn't that desperate. I, your teacher, am just diligently doing my duty, caring about the development of your hobbies and interests! Asking about your club choices."
Hearing this, Nohara Yi's face showed difficulty.
Club?
Just pick the most leisurely one where he could slack off and read extracurricular books, just enough to get attendance credit.
Nohara Yi recalled his university days in his first life. At that time, he had no goals but a lot of energy, and did many things where the effort and reward were disproportionate, participating in inexplicable activities and getting inexplicable school and faculty certificates. It wasn't a pleasant experience.
The primary task at this stage was to focus on studying! Improving academic ability was the core goal!
He yearned to change his destiny through knowledge, growing from a Kasugabe kid to a highly educated talent, reversing the Nohara Family's bottom layer destiny, which was suppressed by mortgage and car loans.
Although Nohara Yi didn't have the diligent spirit of 'hanging one's head by a rope' or 'stabbing one's thigh with an awl', or 'chiseling a hole in the wall for light'.
But he had his biggest trump card, which was Octopus Pi's spiritual power boost from their 'One Mind, One Body' connection.
After a night's rest, he confirmed that the recovery of his lost memories was still ongoing, and that his improved learning ability was not an illusion.
Besides not awakening a Stand, Nohara Yi felt absolutely ecstatic right now!
Was this change caused by the 'One Mind, One Body' connection between the transmigator's soul and Octopus Pi? Or was it an inherent buff that Octopus Pi came with?
He thought it was the former. Otherwise, according to the original story, if Kuse Shizuka's spiritual power also strengthened, there would be a greater possibility that she would awaken a special ability like Kira Yoshikage's 'Bites the Dust' in despair, or use her powerful spiritual energy to acquire knowledge and then retaliate against society. At least, she shouldn't have suffered a mental breakdown in despair.
"Is this club… a mandatory requirement?" Nohara Yi frowned slightly, with the impatience unique to teenagers, "It feels so troublesome."
"You have to choose at least one!" Matsuzaka Take crossed her arms, adopting the authoritative posture unique to teachers.
"Whether it's for hobbies or to enrich your life, in short, after fourth grade, you must choose one."
"Heh, a rotten society of formalism," Nohara Yi muttered to himself.
Actually, Matsuzaka Take's main purpose did not seem to be Nohara Yi's choice.
This mature-minded, opinionated kid in front of her was clearly a special case who didn't need much guidance.
"Oh, and there's one more thing I need your help with, Xiao Yi. After all, you are… quite the little heartthrob in class, aren't you?"
She winked mischievously.
Even though the other party's 26 years of age somewhat poked at Nohara Yi's XP, seeing her ill-intentioned look, he instinctively felt it wasn't a good thing.
"I always feel like everything you're saying implies I'm some kind of central air conditioner." Nohara Yi was not fond of such ambiguous labels.
"Alright!" Matsuzaka Take, as if not hearing his protest, clapped her hands and issued the task, "Help me ask Kuse-san and find out her initial intentions for joining a club."
Her expression became a little more serious, "That child… is a bit special. If I ask directly, I'm afraid she might get nervous or… withdraw. I think if it's you, maybe you can help her relax a bit and express herself."
And so, carrying this 'united front mission' from his homeroom teacher, Nohara Yi returned to the classroom.
With a few minutes left before class, the classroom was filled with the relaxed atmosphere unique to the morning.
He walked directly to the black-haired girl sitting quietly by herself in the corner.
"Kuse-san."
Nohara Yi simply pulled his chair over and sat beside her, saying in a relaxed and casual tone, "The world is so big, do you want to see it?"
He tried hard to lighten the mood.
Kuse Shizuka looked up at his words, a trace of blankness and incomprehension in her large eyes, which were shrouded in faint shadows.
She instinctively avoided his direct gaze, her eyelashes trembling slightly like butterfly wings.
To be honest, she was a bit unaccustomed to such close contact with a thick-skinned boy.
Especially in a passive situation.
To hide her nervousness, she quickly shifted her gaze to the club recruitment flyer on the desk.
Nohara Yi misunderstood her silence and small movements, thinking that Kuse Shizuka had begun to seriously consider, and felt a slight sense of relief.
To see the content on the flyer clearly, he simply dragged his stool a small step closer to Kuse Shizuka.
The distance between the two instantly shortened to where their breaths could be heard.
Kuse Shizuka's body instantly tensed, and she dared not look up even more, only able to stiffly maintain her original posture.
Nohara Yi's gaze fell on the flyer.
This was a rather exquisite and hardcore promotional page, with a prominent title: "Self-Style Musashino Kendo School — Kasugabe City Elementary School Kendo Club Cooperative Dojo Recruiting Members!"
"Kendo Club?" Nohara Yi was a little surprised; this was a direction he hadn't paid much attention to before. "Are you interested in this?"
He looked in the direction where Kuse Shizuka's gaze had previously been fixed.
Scanning further down the information on the flyer, a line about the instructor instantly caught his eye: "Instructor: Musashino Kenta."
"Musashino… Kenta?" Nohara Yi tilted his head, muttering softly.
"Musashino… This teacher's ancestral style, it wouldn't be wielding two swords, playing 'Niten Ichi-ryu', would it?"
A strong sense of déjà vu welled up in his heart; he felt like he had heard this name somewhere before, and it carried a familiar humorous connotation… That's right! Isn't this the uncle who taught Shin-chan kendo in the future? It seems he also charmed Shin-chan's other master… He collected himself, suppressed the urge to complain, and carefully read the detailed introduction of the club.
Upon reading it, he found that this cooperative club of "Musashino Kendo School" offered surprisingly generous and flexible conditions!
Firstly, the club activities were held directly in his private dojo!
Although there were no pictures, someone who could open their own dojo must not be an ordinary person!
Secondly, the club's requirements for training frequency were very lenient!
The recruitment flyer clearly stated, "Weekly practice times can be flexibly arranged according to members' academic and family situations"!
Elementary school clubs required a one-year cooling-off period to switch.
If one didn't choose the right club, they would be forced to participate in activities they disliked every week for an entire year, a torture comparable to cruel punishment.
Finally, the dojo emphasized "holistic development of mind, skill, and body," without overly stressing competitiveness, and the atmosphere also seemed relatively calm.
This was much better than the "Extreme Style Dojo" below, which had a bunch of conditions and also required etiquette and class schedules. It must be very reliable!
Nohara Yi's eyes lit up.
This environment, this degree of freedom, this form of activity that wasn't overly noisy or chaotic… For himself and Kuse Shizuka, who were not good at or enthusiastic about group socializing and needed personal space, it was clearly an excellent choice.