Instantly, everyone looked at Uekusa.
"Uekusa, what are you doing?" Yamada asked with a frown.
"President, Hattori is the ace of our kendo club. If someone wants to challenge him, they should defeat all of us first. That would be more befitting of Hattori's status."
These words from Uekusa seemed to be elevating Heiji's status on the surface, but they secretly carried a sense of defiance toward him.
[Wanting to establish authority?]
Heiji smiled faintly, then walked to the side. "Okita, I only need five minutes to change my clothes."
This sentence immediately caused the entire hall to fall silent.
Okita's mouth hooked into a confident smile, looking at Uekusa with disdain.
Uekusa's face turned pale. He gripped his wooden sword so tightly that the veins on his hands bulged.
Five minutes!
The implication was that Okita would defeat him within five minutes. This wasn't just disdain anymore; it was complete disregard.
Kazuha followed Heiji, her eyes lighting up with an intense gleam. It had been a long time since she had seen Heiji being so domineering.
Under everyone's gaze, Heiji led Kazuha toward the changing room.
"Wow, Heiji is so handsome."
As soon as they stepped into the changing room, Kazuha threw herself into Heiji's arms, her delicate face full of pride.
Heiji smiled helplessly and embraced the girl.
"Alright, help me get my clothes."
"Understood!"
Kazuha responded playfully and hurried to fetch the clothes.
Soon, Kazuha brought the kendo uniform and skillfully helped Heiji change into it.
Heiji walked out with Kazuha.
There wasn't a single sound in the entire venue!
Inside the circular arena, Okita was standing quietly with his wooden sword, while Uekusa was sitting dejectedly on the side, his wooden sword lying a meter away from him.
"It seems I didn't even need five minutes."
Heiji glanced at Uekusa and walked directly into the center of the field.
This action carried a sense of insult. Some students couldn't help but frown.
"How can Hattori Heiji be like this?"
"Uekusa is one of our own at Kaiho Academy. Hattori Heiji is going too far."
"Has Heiji become too arrogant?"
The people from Kaiho Academy were whispering about Heiji's behavior, and some even began to feel dissatisfied.
"Is that guy really Kaiho Academy's ace? He's making his own teammate lose face like that."
"What a fool."
"It looks like Kaiho Academy's kendo club is truly out of people."
The students from Senshin High School mocked them one after another.
Okita frowned. "Hattori, you shouldn't be this kind of person."
"I have always been this kind of person."
The wooden sword flipped in his hand, suddenly pointing toward Okita.
"Let's begin."
Okita's gaze narrowed, his aura becoming as dangerous as a hunting leopard.
Okita's feet advanced step by step, his shoulders trembling slightly, making it impossible for anyone to judge his move's pattern. Even the wooden sword swayed slightly.
"It's appearing! Okita used that same move to defeat that guy from Kaiho Academy earlier."
"The finishing move is coming."
"Okita, go for it!"
The people from Kaiho Academy remained silent, their expressions somewhat complicated.
[Heiji...]
Kazuha's hands were tightly clasped in front of her chest, her beautiful eyes filled with deep concern. As for his behavior earlier, she ignored it completely.
With a "thud," Okita fell directly to the ground. He clutched his stomach, trying to cry out but unable to make a sound. The veins on his forehead were bursting, and his eyes were bulging in intense pain.
The entire venue fell into a silence!
"One move..."
"Okita was actually defeated in a single move."
"Aren't Hattori Heiji and Okita supposed to be closely matched rivals? Why is he so weak?"
Uekusa's eyes widened as he looked at Heiji in shock. He was a professional, so he understood everything that had just happened even better. Okita's attack was fast enough, but it still wasn't even half as fast as Heiji's.
"In ten minutes, it shouldn't hurt so much anymore."
Heiji lowered his wooden sword slightly, the tip touching the ground.
Then, he looked at Uekusa. "Actually, your ability is quite good, you're just a bit arrogant. Otherwise, you definitely wouldn't have been defeated in five minutes. I hope that after this incident, you can support Kaiho Academy's kendo club."
Uekusa's pupils shrank as he looked at Heiji in shock. "Just now... was that on purpose?"
Heiji smiled faintly and did not answer Uekusa. He handed the wooden sword to Yamada. "President Yamada, I won't be coming to the kendo club anymore in the future."
"Hattori, this..."
"Don't worry, that guy will definitely make Kaiho Academy's kendo club famous at the Kendo Tournament in the future."
Heiji glanced at Uekusa and walked straight toward the changing room.
Kazuha hurried to follow.
Everyone was quiet, staring blankly at Heiji's back. Then, a burst of enthusiastic applause rang out in the hall.
"So Heiji's behavior earlier was just to motivate Uekusa."
"That's wonderful. Heiji is still so perfect in my heart."
"He's truly amazing."
"As expected of a genius high school detective, his character is truly extraordinary."
The people of Kaiho Academy were very excited. The people from Senshin High School looked at each other with awkward expressions.
"Hattori, rest assured, I will definitely not let you down."
Uekusa stood up and bowed deeply toward Heiji's departing back.
Night fell!
Kazuha poked her head out from under the covers and gave Heiji a fierce look before immediately getting out of bed to brush her teeth and rinse her mouth.
After returning, she nestled tightly in his arms.
"Heiji, you were so handsome this afternoon."
Heiji hugged Kazuha tightly and gave her a light pat. "Does that mean I wasn't handsome before?"
Kazuha rolled her eyes at him, pouting her small mouth slightly. "You were even more handsome this afternoon."
The night was enveloped in darkness!
At the Kaiho High School Kendo Club.
Three loud gunshots rang out, and a person slowly fell, blood staining the ground. Two black figures left leisurely.
Kazuha held onto Heiji tightly, her eyes alertly scanning the surroundings. After what happened yesterday, she noticed that the girls' gazes toward Heiji had become even more heated.
"Hmph, a bunch of fan-girls."
Knowing her boyfriend was being eyed by others, her sense of crisis was very strong.
Heiji shook his head helplessly, letting the girl grumble.
At that moment, several police cars passed by with sirens blaring.
"Those police cars seem to be going to our school. Could it be that something happened?" Kazuha asked with a frown.
The police cars clearly caught the students' attention, and they all quickened their pace to follow.
By the time Heiji and Kazuha arrived at the school, the area outside the kendo club was already crowded with students.
"Jun, what happened?"
Kazuha patted Jun's shoulder from behind.
This action startled Jun so much that she cried out, clutching her chest. "Good morning Kazuha, good morning Heiji, you scared me to death."
Kazuha rolled her eyes at Jun. "I was the one startled by you. What happened? Why are there so many police officers inside the kendo club?"
Jun's face suddenly turned pale. "Uekusa seems to have been murdered."
"Is it Uekusa?"
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