The hallway outside the infirmary had gone completely still.
Nobody wanted to interrupt this.
Not Yuji.
Not Megumi.
Not even Hakari, who usually had something to say about everything.
Takeru stood there with his slicked-back blonde hair, still clearly annoyed, still clearly confused, and still very much holding Hakari in verbal crosshair range.
Hakari sighed.
"…I already told you, I didn't touch your hair."
Takeru narrowed his eyes.
Then looked him up and down like he was inspecting evidence.
"…I look unnatural."
A pause.
"…I ain't even related to ya."
Silence.
That landed harder than expected.
Yuji blinked.
"…That's not even an argument, that's just emotional damage."
Megumi rubbed his temple.
"…He's escalating based on aesthetics now."
Hakari pointed at himself.
"…Why am I the default suspect for genetics?!"
Kinji Hakari
From the infirmary doorway, one of the Shoko didn't even look up.
Shoko Ieiri
"…He's not wrong. That hairstyle is hostile."
The other Shoko nodded.
Shoko Ieiri (alternate)
"…It looks like it negotiates poorly."
Hakari froze.
"…Even the doctors are roasting me."
Takeru exhaled through his nose, still glaring at his reflection in a nearby glass panel.
"…I go unconscious once and wake up looking like I joined a different timeline."
Yuji leaned slightly toward Megumi.
"…Do we fix it?"
Megumi looked at the situation again.
"…We do not fix this."
Fred quietly raised a sign from the corner of the hallway:
"Identity crisis arc initiated."
Takeru turned slightly, still annoyed, still very awake now.
"…Next time I faint, nobody touch anything."
Hakari immediately raised a hand.
"…THAT WASN'T ME—"
Takeru didn't even look at him this time.
"…Too late."