Chapter 8: The Talk
"Kira, over here. I need to talk to you."
Yoshikage Kira had just rushed back to the classroom from the Department of Management building. Before he could even catch his breath, he was immediately called out by Mr. Aizawa.
He followed Aizawa to the door of a meeting room. Just as they arrived, a skeletal man emerged from the room next door, coughing as he walked.
"Aizawa-kun and—!" The man had yellow hair, styled up in two distinct tufts, as if he were a great admirer of All Might. When he noticed Kira and Aizawa looking at him, he began to cough violently, covering his mouth with a large hand and turning his face away as he asked loudly, "Hello there! Could you please tell me where the nurse's office is!?"
"Ah, go out this way, turn left..." Shota Aizawa stared for a second, then pointed in the direction.
"Thank you!!"
The man ran past them with the speed of a hundred-meter sprinter, kicking up a gust of wind that blew through Aizawa's hair, who for some reason was frozen in a daze.
"Honestly... can't even be a little discreet..." Shota Aizawa scratched at his greasy hair with one hand in frustration and turned the doorknob with the other. "Come in, Kira." He paused, then added, "The person you just saw is a staff member here at the school. He's just a bit forgetful. Don't worry about it."
"Is that so..." Although Kira accepted the explanation, he still felt a nagging sense of déjà vu...
"Thank you."
Yoshikage Kira took the disposable cup of water that Aizawa poured for him with both hands. He watched his teacher sit on the sofa opposite him, then placed his own cup on the coffee table. "Sir, did you call me here to talk about the Sports Festival?"
"Ah, yes, that's right." Aizawa picked up his cup, his head lowered. "I know you're all busy with training, so I wasn't quite sure how to bring this up..."
"Kira, I know this might be a bit hard to accept, but could you attend a Sports Festival preparation meeting with the Student Council after school?"
"Aren't we participants in the Sports Festival?" Kira was surprised. "As far as I know, the Student Council usually handles the prep work with the General, Management, and Support courses. The entire Hero Course participates as competitors."
"Yes, that's how it's been in the past. To prevent any information from leaking, Hero Course students are never part of the planning committee. After all, this is a stage prepared specifically for you..." Aizawa took a sip of water and continued, "But this time is different. The 1-B homeroom teacher and I just received a message from the Student Council. They're requesting that the Hero Course class presidents attend the preparation meeting."
Aizawa looked helpless. He was deeply dissatisfied with the Student Council's autocratic decision, but he was just a teacher. He couldn't really interfere in matters of student governance.
"...I only have one question." Kira thought for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Who initiated this meeting?"
"As far as I know, it was the Student Council Secretary."
Meanwhile, in the Student Council office.
An eyeball floated silently in the air, currently functioning as a projector. A blue light emanated from its black pupil, casting an image onto the white wall of the office. The person in the video was Yoshikage Kira.
The footage showed his back as he stood at the 1-B classroom door, then the direct confrontation at the vending machine, followed by the wobbly chase. The video finally paused on the image of Kira standing in front of the Social Experimentation Research Club's door.
"Is this the result you have to show for yourselves?" a girl's voice echoed in the dark, curtain-drawn room, her tone filled with undisguised disappointment. "You were discovered that easily?"
The girl was genuinely surprised. The duo that had been so effective in the past had been defeated so quickly this time, handing over only two short days of surveillance footage.
"What can we do? Komachi did her best," Ueno said in a carefree voice. "That guy is incredibly observant. It was bound to happen. I mean, he did get into the school with the top score."
"First place?" The word seemed to touch a nerve. The girl laughed as if she had heard something hilarious. "Ueno, do you remember Yuta Togashi from Hero Course Class 2-A? He also got in with the top score in the practical exam. And what happened to him?"
"Yeah, yeah, you found proof of his chunibyo phase from middle school, so now he's your personal lackey," Ueno said, plopping down into the president's chair without a care in the world and kicking off the ground to start spinning. "That guy is working so hard to become a reliable senpai. If anyone found out about his eighth-grade syndrome, his image would be completely ruined."
Komachi thought about how she had accidentally seen Togashi through the eyeball a few days ago, standing on the empty rooftop, blushing as he practiced a love confession to a wall, addressing it as Erina. She muttered under her breath, "Actually, I think Togashi-san is enjoying himself..."
"Hmph... exactly!" Erina put down her teacup and stood up from the sofa, a confident smile on her face. "He's just first place. In the end, he will become another slave to my charms."
"Eh? I don't think he's the same as Togashi, you know," Ueno said, tilting her head back and trying to roll her eyes up at Erina. "That guy doesn't even blush when he looks at a girl. He'll even manhandle one to interrogate her without batting an eye. If I had to describe him in one word, it'd be 'pervert'..."
"He manhandled Komachi after discovering her? He doesn't know how to treat a lady?" Erina was surprised. A cute girl like Komachi usually received nothing but doting looks from everyone, including herself.
She then asked, "Do you have it on video? We could accuse him of assaulting a minor."
"Hey! Komachi is a mature adult! Saying something like that is discrimination, you know!?" Ueno leaped from the chair, ran in front of Komachi, and glared angrily at Erina. "Komachi, did you hear that? This person doesn't see you as a friend at all! She just wants to exploit you for her own benefit!"
"I believe in Eri-chan..." Komachi mumbled, blushing.
"Oh?" Erina squinted. "Komachi has always been my best friend. As for you, don't think that putting on a two-and-a-half-meter-tall wig makes you tall. You're just a one-meter-thirty shorty!"
"What, you wanna fight!?" Ueno's canines peeked out from the corner of her mouth as she threatened, "Neither of us has a combat Quirk, but if we fight, you're no match for me!"
"Shorty!" The thought of Ueno's sharp teeth made Erina's arms break out in goosebumps. Her bravado instantly weakened, but she tried to act tough. "If you try to bite me with those dog teeth again, I'll cut your club's entire budget!"
Ueno went ballistic. "AAAAHH! You promise-breaking hag! We had a deal! You said if we helped you, you'd give us a huge research grant!"
Having gained the upper hand, Erina became smug again. "Your club, with only two members, should have been disbanded in the first place! If it weren't for my help, how would you ever have gotten a budget comparable to the sports clubs!?"
"Damn you...!" Ueno grit her teeth, glaring at her. She turned, grabbed Komachi's hand, and stormed towards the door. "Let's not get involved in her business anymore! Let her go and get what's coming to her!"
SLAM! Ueno slammed the door shut.
"Did I go too far...?" Erina sighed. After a moment of disappointment, she looked up at the replaying video, finally pausing it on the frame where Yoshikage Kira was staring directly at the eyeball.
"Yoshikage Kira... you will surely be defeated by me!" the girl declared with conviction. "I swear it on the name of the Totsuki Group!"
~~~
Hey guys, Hollowborn here!
I just uploaded 30 extra chapters on my [Pat-reon.c-om/Hollowborn]. If you've got a few spare bucks and want to read advanced chapters, you can check it out right now! I currently have 9 Fanfiction with advance chapters available, with many more on the way.
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to open the link!)
Thank you'll so much.