"You don't know?" Yokoshima said, rubbing his chin with a smug, almost greasy confidence. "Figured we could check out what games they've got and, y'know... 'borrow' a few." His eyes practically gleamed with mischief. He didn't say it, but we all knew exactly what he meant.
"Y-You're a bad man..." Kenji muttered, letting out a deep, dramatic sigh. But the act lasted less than a second—his ego slammed the accelerator. Puffing out his chest, he smirked. "Well, with someone as popular as myself here, they'll probably just hand the games over! I'll volunteer to take one for the team."
We all gave him the same blank, unblinking stare.
"You're being narcissistic," we silently retorted in our heads. After all, those background extras didn't even recognize him—even while naming the group after him.
"Hey!" Kenji bellowed, announcing our presence to whoever was inside. Without waiting, he ripped the door handle off and slammed it open with unnecessary force.
"Sorry for the intrus—!"
Before he could finish, a thick wave of smoke billowed out, followed by the harsh, pungent scent of something burning.
"F-Fire!!!" Kenji shrieked, tripping over his own feet as he recoiled, arms flailing wildly like a marionette caught in a hurricane.
While he flailed, I calmly scanned the room. Three people inside, all staring at us, frozen mid-action. Their eyes locked with mine, clearly shocked by the sudden arrival of uninvited guests.
"No, it's not a real fire, just an illusion," said a petite girl, barely looking up from adjusting a fire extinguisher.
"Bullshit! It's way too hot to be an illusion!!" Kenji snapped back, his tsukkomi role firing on all cylinders.
The girl merely shook her head, unfazed. "That just means it's a really good illusion." She then casually pointed toward the far side of the room—toward a crudely drawn 2D bird taped to the window. "Observe that bird beyond the window. Also an illusion."
"You're so damn stubborn!! This isn't the time to admire birds!" Kenji shouted, stomping toward the petite girl. "You're seriously pissing me off!" He snatched the extinguisher from her hands. "Right, give me that!"
"Ah. That fire extinguisher is also an illusion," she said flatly.
"Oh, is that so!?" Kazama finally snapped, his patience snapping like a twig. "Stop with the weird act just because you've got outsiders watching! Think about your gimmick later!"
The girl only gave them a cold, blank stare. "I see... 'think about it later,' huh..."
But Kenji ignored her nonsense, turned toward the flames, and began spraying. Whether real or fake, the fire fizzled out in seconds. It wasn't a big one to begin with—but somehow, putting it out together gave them a weird sense of camaraderie. For a brief moment, they found themselves celebrating.
However, that moment didn't last.
A sharp tingle crawled up my spine. My instincts screamed. Without thinking, I lunged forward—just in time—and when I looked back, I saw Yokoshima jolting like a live wire, steam practically coming off him, as a taser connected. If I hadn't dodged, I would have been turned to crisp like an overcooked gyoza.
"Yokoshima!!" Kenji wailed in terror.
Sweat rolled down my temple. Almost forgot about this part. I clenched my fists and assessed the situation. I needed a plan—and I needed Kenji's help to deal with them. "Kenji—" I started to call him, but—
"NAGAYAMA!!" he shrieked, cutting me off. Nagayama was already flat on the floor, a metal bucket perfectly crowning his head, completely still save for a trickle of (comically censored) red liquid seeping out.
"Y-You... What the hell are you guys trying to do!?" Kenji demanded, visibly rattled.
This is my chance... I thought, taking advantage of the confusion to buy myself time.
"What's that? I'm a lightning element!" said the girl with long black ponytail hair, spinning a taser in her hand.
"And I'm a water element." The pink-haired girl chimed in, smiling sweetly like a villain in a magical girl anime.
Kenji looked at me, dumbfounded. Maybe he expected me to explain, but I gave him nothing. I was already analyzing everything.
Just in time, the petite girl stepped forward. "Don't worry. It's just a little shock to help them forget, you know, reset the memory a bit." Her voice had that eerie calm, similar to what made killers in horror movies terrifying.
"As for you two..." she pointed at Kenji and me. "You'll forget... in the hands of the fire element!"
"...Wait a minute... Did you just say fire?" Kenji suddenly caught on. "So you're the one who started the fire!?"
They rushed at him to pin him down—but I was ready.
I powered my legs and launched myself into the air. My kick aimed for the pink-haired girl, hoping to send her flying through the wall. But she blocked it, only staggering slightly as we separated.
"Kenji!" I shouted. "Take Nagayama and Yokoshima! Get out of here! I'll hold them off!"
Kenji's eyes widened with admiration. He clenched his teeth and nodded. "Shin... I'll never forget your manly sacrifice!" he said—and bolted without hesitation, dragging the two unconscious guys behind him like sacks of potatoes.
I turned back to block their path—but just as Kenji reached the exit—
"Earth punch!—"
BAM!!
Another girl appeared from the hallway and knocked him clean out. Even without looking, I could tell who it was.
"Damn... the mud lady is here." This just got a lot worse; her appearance is earlier than that in the manga.
I watched helplessly as she dragged Kenji's body next to the others. She glanced at me with an amused smirk.
"Oh? You survived their combo?" she said, her tone sultry but sinister. "You must be really strong," she said, then cracked her fingers, the sound like snapping twigs.
The other three gathered behind her, blocking the exit. Now it was 4-on-1. The situation has become extremely unfavorable.
"What now...?" I muttered, my teeth clenched.
Knowing there was no way out, I decided not to put up much resistance. These girls might be violent, but they could be reasoned with.
"I surrender. Can you let them go?" I raised my hands in peace.
"Oh?" The earth girl tilted her head, surprised. Maybe she expected me to fight to the death. She sighed in disappointment. "I thought you'd be the stubborn type."
"Nope. I've already estimated my strength—probably on par with one of you. Fighting four at once? I'd definitely lose. And since you've got hostages—" I nodded toward the unconscious Kenji, "—I won't risk endangering them just to escape. If surrendering gets them released, then I'll gladly do it."
Silence. They stared at me, not sure what to make of my logic. Whether they believed me or not, I could tell they respected the choice.
"Very well," she said after a pause. "We'll release them—if you two join our club."
I didn't agree immediately; instead, I acted dumbfounded. "Join your club? Why is that?"
She merely shrugged, dismissing my question. "You two show potential, so we're adding you to the club. What's your decision? Are you really going to refuse?" She asked, displaying Kenji like a trophy directly in front of me, making it painfully clear that refusal wasn't an option.
I expected that, so I wasn't shocked. "You've got yourself a deal."
Still not trusting me, the lightning girl handed over a form. I filled in both our names, Kazama Kenji and Takao Shin, then threw it to her.
Mud Girl scanned the paper, analyzing its legitimacy. "...Kazama Kenji and... Takao—!?"
Her eyes darted between me and the form. Back and forth. I could already guess the issue.
Before I could say anything, a small figure clung to my back and tugged on my uniform.
"Uhm... do you know someone named Takao?"
"She's my older sister," I said, playing nonchalant.
"I-I see..." The girl lowered her head, tightening her grip. I could tell what was going on between them, but that was Kenji's problem to deal with later.
To ease the awkward tension, the purple-haired girl stepped forward.
"My name is Chitose Karasuyama. Pleasure to feet you." She lifted her foot as if offering a handshake—no, showing off her thighs. Her milky legs, to be exact.
I ignored the gesture and sized her up instead. Long purple hair, bangs draped down to her chest, matching violet eyes. She's kind of cute, in a bossy kind of way. Among them, she is at least the strongest.
"Nice to meet you," I replied. Then turned to the pink-haired one—the one who tanked my kick.
Messy short hair. Slender build. Magenta eyes. The kind of girl that'd be ideal for a girlfriend—if she were human. Not my type, though.
She smiled warmly. "I'm Sakura Mizukami. Would you like some water?"
"I'm good. Appreciate the offer."
My eyes landed on the teacher, who was now dozing off at the desk.
"My name's Minami Oosawa..." she mumbled, not bothering to move, one eye barely open. Her youthful look could fool anyone into thinking she was a student. Blue-ish eyes. Dark blue hair. A character so bland she gets less screen time than the bald extras. What's the author planning? If she's off the protagonist route, should I go after her instead?
I shook the thought away. That comes later.
Finally, the girl still clinging to me looked up. She has short blonde hair with two tiny pigtails. Petite frame. Black stockings. Petite girl in black stockings? That's a dangerous combo.
Feeling left out, she gave a small nod. "My name is Roka Shibasaki. Nice to meet you, Shin-san."
"Nice to meet you too."
Once we were done with the unnecessary introduction—since I already knew them all, of course—I began picking up the deadweights—Kenji, Yokoshima, and Nagayama—one by one.
"Class is about to start. See you later."
With that, I hauled their unconscious bodies off to the infirmary as I made my way through my classroom.