Back in the classroom, Hanyu Mochizuki was immediately questioned by his male classmate, Makoto Isshiki.
Makoto Isshiki, whose relationship with him was barely decent, was the only male classmate who could talk to him. After all, people who were "stupid" couldn't keep up with his way of thinking, so conversations naturally didn't last long, and most people looked down on him because he was from a remote, poor mountain village.
Makoto Isshiki, as his name suggested, was a perfect fit for his character.
He was a guy who was sincere and treated everyone and everything with honesty. He was genuinely quite interesting.
At the same time, Makoto Isshiki, like him, had a cool, medium-length hairstyle, with bangs that often poked him in the eyes, yet he always said, "This is a man's charm." It was highly likely that one day he'd be caught by the head of discipline and get a buzz cut.
"Oh, it's like this: that old woman wanted me to join some weird club. I strongly refused, and in a fit of rage, she and the club president started beating me up. Fortunately, I was quick-witted and managed to escape the danger."
"A weird club?" Makoto Isshiki's mouth fell open, his worldview seemingly shattered. Was the world really this terrifying?
He had just transferred here and was scared to death, his heart pounding, because he'd learned that if you didn't follow the teacher's orders, you'd be subjected to a one-sided beating.
Chika Fujiwara, who had been listening with her ears perked up, suddenly spoke, tilting her head and staring intently at Hanyu Mochizuki. "You definitely offended both of them, didn't you? It's lucky you managed to escape."
"Heh, traitor!" Hanyu Mochizuki sneered at the pink-haired girl. "You knew I was in danger and didn't even bother to call 911. What use are you?"
"...N-no way, aren't you perfectly fine right now?" Chika Fujiwara lowered her head and twisted her fingers, wearing a regretful expression, with a watery look in her sky-blue eyes.
"Forget it! Looking at you, you're destined to be a cute mascot for life. There's nothing wrong with living a happy, carefree life. Let me endure the tumultuous and exciting life instead—" Hanyu Mochizuki looked out the window at the blue sky and white clouds, his arms spread out as if to take flight.
"M-mascot? That's a terrible evaluation, I'm angry~~"
"If anger was useful, would there still be 'losers' in the world? Wake up!"
Makoto Isshiki looked on with envy at Hanyu Mochizuki's playful banter with Chika Fujiwara. This radiant and captivating beauty was the object of widespread admiration and affection among the male students.
Why isn't Hanyu-kun flustered at all? This kind of spirit and gallantry was something he truly admired, and he had to learn from it.
Hanyu Mochizuki, who had arrived a few days late due to family reasons, had already met a lot of people in just a few days at school. Compared to him, Makoto Isshiki was far behind.
Unfortunately, he failed to notice that most of the people Hanyu Mochizuki had met did not have a high opinion of him.
"You don't know how to give way to girls at all. You're destined to be lonely forever!" Chika Fujiwara, who had been constantly on the receiving end of his barbs, huffed and turned her head away.
"Honesty is my virtue! I never hide what I'm thinking," Hanyu Mochizuki's smile softened slightly. "I do this only because I know that restraining myself doesn't guarantee success, but indulging myself is definitely easy! Come on, let's get hyped~~"
With that, he suddenly stood up from his seat and, in front of everyone, started a strange, captivating dance, swaying and twisting, lying down, sitting up, and rolling. "Let me show you the true appearance of a nobleman!"
"These dance moves! This flair! Are you scared yet? Are you scared? What? You say you're scared? I can't say I can't forgive you!"
"No one can pull me out of the world of dance—"
"Have you heard of China's 'Burial of Love' family? As a great protector of the 'Burial of Love' family, bearing the family's honor, how can I not live a beautiful and happy life?"
Chika Fujiwara stared blankly at Hanyu Mochizuki's seductive dance, her eyes vacant. Her hanging hands couldn't help but clench slightly, but she reluctantly relaxed them in the end.
Makoto Isshiki had completely covered his eyes. Enough! Enough! Hanyu-kun, please stop! If you keep this up, you'll be socially dead!
He had always thought that Hanyu Mochizuki was eccentric, but now he realized that he had completely overestimated the man's sense of shame...
This kind of devilish, unrestrained dance was truly a rare sight!
After a long while.
"Whew~~" Hanyu Mochizuki stood up with difficulty, breathing a sigh of relief. He looked around with satisfaction, a sense of triumph on his face as he saw the faces of everyone in shock and disbelief. Finally, he looked at Chika Fujiwara. "How was it? Pretty good dance, right, Fujiwara?"
"Liar! Big liar!" Chika Fujiwara's face was filled with infinite annoyance, and she pointed at him and shouted excitedly, "The first time we met, you told me you were great at music and dance... but after seeing this, I realized what you're doing isn't dancing at all!"
"How can that be?" Hanyu Mochizuki's face changed instantly, a mix of surprise and anger. "No! It must be your taste that's wrong! Maybe you can't accept other styles of dance. Look again. The day before yesterday, I specifically went to ask the Dance Club president for help and learned the Soran Bushi dance. This time, it'll definitely be good!"
"Before, it was a folk dance from another country, so the style didn't match your aesthetic! This time, the Soran Bushi dance is Japanese style, so it's definitely fine—"
"No, that's not true! You're not good at dancing at all! You're just a big liar!" Chika Fujiwara held back her frustration and refuted.
But it was all for naught.
Hanyu Mochizuki had already started dancing the Soran Bushi on his own, his moves still as seductive as before.
"Rokushu~ Rokushu~ Soran~ Soran~"
"Rokushu~ Rokushu~ Soran~ Soran~"
Chika Fujiwara stared blankly at Makoto Isshiki, who was using his phone to play the music. She wasn't the only one; most of the students in the class were watching him with dull expressions.
Makoto Isshiki, however, lowered his head and gritted his teeth, unmoved—Hanyu-kun, this is as much as I can help you!
On the spot, Hanyu Mochizuki swayed left and twisted right. His dance looked no different from the one he did before.
"Aah~ I'm dancing with loyalty~ The audience will definitely be moved without even trying~~"
"As long as there is love~ My dance will surely be understood by everyone~~"
Hanyu Mochizuki sang and danced, looking like he was having a great time.
Chika Fujiwara watched blankly, and without realizing it, a few tears appeared. She mumbled, "...That's right, a performance without love will eventually lead everyone down a path of misfortune. Only by showing it with your soul will it be truly moving."
Makoto Isshiki's mouth twitched, standing next to her. Is Fujiwara-san really moved? He just wanted to close his eyes and stop watching, but as Hanyu Mochizuki's friend, he felt that doing so would be disloyal.
Kaguya Shinomiya watched Hanyu Mochizuki's devilish moves with a blank face, thinking to herself, "Is he deliberately using this exaggerated method to influence everyone's opinion of him, or is this so-called 'true expression'?"
That constantly smiling, cheerful face was so annoying in her eyes that her heart was suddenly filled with a terrifying urge for destruction.
Kaguya Shinomiya wanted to destroy it all!
She glanced at her friend, Chika Fujiwara, who was desperately wiping away tears, and then closed her eyes, no longer paying attention.
This is enough.
Yukino Yukinoshita, who had just returned to the classroom, was completely bewildered...
Shinka Nibutani, the class president who was standing next to Hanyu Mochizuki and forcing a smile, was filled with countless silent curses...
Ruri Gokou, a member of the Disciplinary Committee, wore a gloomy expression but did nothing...
Other students from the neighboring classes, who had been attracted by the commotion, were too shocked to say a word...
At the very least, Hanyu Mochizuki's reputation had grown even more.