With a delicate shout from the girl, a crisp strike to the face echoed through the air.
Men!
Ryunosuke Nagano was staggered by the blow, nearly falling flat on the dojo floor.
The entire venue fell silent. Everyone except the C University students stared blankly, mouths agape, at the scene before them.
Fast. Precise. Ruthless.
The battle had ended in a flash—not exceeding half a minute.
To everyone watching, it was pure, unadulterated violent aesthetics. There was almost no strategic back-and-forth. All they saw was Hasegawa Saori charging forward, delivering an unknown number of strikes in rapid succession, and then a final, nearly imperceptible blow to the face that sent Ryunosuke Nagano stumbling.
If he hadn't been wearing protective gear, that final strike would have split his head open.
Is this... really a girl?
Where did this stat monster come from?
A myriad of complex emotions surfaced in everyone's hearts. The animosity and dissatisfaction they had felt earlier vanished completely, replaced by deep shock and reluctant admiration.
Too powerful.
That speed and strength—even they wouldn't last three seconds.
Clap, clap, clap.
After a moment, sparse applause broke out.
Tazawa, standing beside Fujiyama Takeo, snapped out of it and couldn't help but pat his captain's shoulder.
"Captain... did you see that clearly?"
Fujiyama Takeo turned his head, first shooting him a sharp look. Then a relieved smile appeared on his face.
"No. I only saw a stat monster running rampant." He paused. "Tazawa."
"What is it, Captain?"
"You'll be the referee next."
Tazawa blinked, bewilderment flashing in his eyes. "Huh? Then what are you going to do? The match isn't over yet..."
"I'm going to call Shiratori."
"..."
Below the stage, Yokoyama Miyu—still kneeling—covered her forehead upon witnessing Saori's merciless strike.
When the girl took off her protective gear and sat down beside her, Yokoyama Miyu couldn't help but scold her.
"You went too far, Saori. What exactly are you trying to do?"
"..."
Hasegawa Saori remained silent. She knelt quietly to the side, pulling a seaweed rice ball from a plastic bag and nibbling on it in small, rabbit-like bites.
She didn't know what "too far" meant.
She only knew that this would make her see him faster.
—
Shiratori Seiya was completely unaware of the chaos currently unfolding in the kendo club.
He walked leisurely toward the club building, explaining the rules of kendo to Takahashi Mio as they went.
"Generally, matches are best of three. If one competitor lands two valid strikes first, they win."
"Valid target areas are the head, throat, wrists, and torso..."
"But merely hitting a target area isn't enough for a valid point. You also need sufficient spirit, correct posture, and complete zanshin—awareness after the strike."
"Mm, mm."
Takahashi Mio nodded along, half-understanding. She had never really paid attention to kendo matches. She'd watched a couple with Reika in high school but hadn't found them interesting.
Now, listening to Shiratori Seiya explain the details of various attacks and strategies, she suddenly found it quite engaging. She made a mental note to maybe buy a bamboo sword and try it out sometime.
Following Shiratori Seiya into the club building, she took advantage of climbing the stairs to turn her head and ask him:
"Um... will you be okay later? Do you need to warm up?"
Shiratori Seiya shook his head. "No need. I train every morning. I've been practicing kendo since middle school. I really enjoy it."
So he likes kendo.
Takahashi Mio narrowed her eyes, filed that information away, and then smiled. "Then you must be very good, right? No wonder your captain came to you for support. He must be confident of victory."
"..."
Hearing this, Shiratori Seiya slowed his pace. He recalled what Fujiyama Takeo had said to him on the phone earlier. An inexplicable bad feeling crept up on him.
After a moment's thought, he said, "It's not so much 'support.' And 'confident of victory' is hard to say. But it should be a back-and-forth match."
"Oh."
Takahashi Mio nodded, but inwardly she found it amusing.
What's this? He practices kendo every day, from middle school until now, and still says things like 'it'll be a back-and-forth match.'
He's just waiting for me to praise him when he wins, isn't he?
Still, she wasn't put off by Shiratori Seiya's "false modesty." If anything, she was rather happy to have such an opportunity to increase her favorability.
How should she praise him when he wins later?
Not too exaggerated. This scoundrel isn't lacking in emotional intelligence—he'd probably see right through it.
Takahashi Mio pondered her wording, and without realizing it, she had already followed Shiratori Seiya to the entrance of the kendo dojo.
The moment he pushed open the door—before he could even clearly see the situation inside—he heard a flurry of clack-clack sounds from bamboo swords, and Fujiyama Takeo rushed over to greet him.
"Shiratori-kun, you're finally here."
He barely finished speaking when he noticed Takahashi Mio following behind Shiratori Seiya. He froze for a moment.
"This is...?"
Takahashi Mio didn't speak. She gave him a polite smile, then naturally linked her arm through Shiratori Seiya's.
"Takahashi Mio. My girlfriend."
"Huh? Girlfriend?"
Fujiyama Takeo's face showed surprise. "You finally..."
He didn't finish the sentence in front of Takahashi Mio.
During a previous club mixer, he had tried to set Shiratori Seiya up with someone, but he had been unequivocally rejected.
"Captain Fujiyama, I currently have no intention of dating."
Fujiyama Takeo remembered Shiratori Seiya saying that. Now it seemed he just hadn't been interested in those particular girls.
He quickly scanned Takahashi Mio.
Although he hadn't looked closely, he could confirm she was a top-tier beauty—roughly on the same level as that stat monster from earlier...
Thinking of this, Fujiyama Takeo seemed to recall something and froze for a moment.
After a brief hesitation, he walked to Shiratori Seiya's side.
"Um... since you'll be competing soon, how about changing clothes first?"
Hearing this, Takahashi Mio naturally released his arm, looking at Shiratori Seiya with gentle eyes.
"Do you want me to help you change?"
Shiratori Seiya gave her a speechless glance. She really was a born actress, always enjoying a performance wherever she went.
But he didn't embarrass her in front of Fujiyama Takeo. He forced a small smile.
"There will be plenty of opportunities later."
With that, he ignored the shy-eyed girl and followed Fujiyama Takeo toward the changing room.
—
"What's going on?"
While putting on his protective gear, Shiratori Seiya asked Fujiyama Takeo.
"I don't know. Did you provoke someone you shouldn't have, Shiratori-kun?"
"Who shouldn't I have provoked?"
"It's a girl from C University. She insists on finding you."
"A girl?"
Having donned his armor, Shiratori Seiya frowned, racking his brain. He couldn't recall any female kendo-practicing friends in Tokyo.
Seeing the bewildered look on his face, Fujiyama Takeo couldn't help but tease him.
"How many women are you entangled with, you scoundrel, that you can't even keep track anymore? Shiratori-kun, I didn't realize you were like this."
"..."
"Never mind. Don't think about it. You'll find out when you go out. That woman is waiting for you in the dojo."
Fujiyama Takeo had a feeling the two knew each other, so he didn't mention her terrifying stats.
Shiratori Seiya thought the same. He rubbed his left arm through his clothes, picked up his usual bamboo sword and helmet, and headed outside.
—
But the moment he pushed aside the curtain—before he could even take a step—a figure stood before him. He nearly bumped straight into her.
Shiratori Seiya instinctively frowned and stepped back.
Then he clearly saw the girl's delicate, fair face.
His gaze met her clear, ethereal eyes.
And he froze completely.
Memories surfaced in his mind, along with voices:
"Seiya, I've been working very hard."
"Saori isn't stupid, you know."
"I'm going to marry you!"
"Are you leaving? You'll come back, right?"
Their eyes met. The once-blurry face in his memory gradually became clear. Her eyes were as pure and ethereal as ever.
Shiratori Seiya opened his mouth, subconsciously uttering her name:
"Saori... you—"
Pitter-patter.
Crystalline tears overflowed from her eyes and fell to the ground.
The girl tilted her head slightly, her eyes curving into crescent moons. A foolish, radiant smile spread across her face.
"Saori is back."