The last event of the morning was the scavenger hunt.
Sakurai General Affairs stood outside the field. He hadn't signed up, but in previous rounds, many junior students had approached him.
What kind of prompts did they have?
"The person I like."
Let's just skip that one.
"The person I admire."
That one was normal too.
But he always had a bad feeling.
"Media Department Campus Broadcast: Scavenger Hunt, Round 6! Start!"
This time, it was Kaguya Shinomiya's turn. She held a slip of paper, observed it for a moment, then walked toward Sakurai.
"Sakurai General Affairs, please come with me."
She extended her hand. Sakurai Saki looked at her palm, hesitant to take it. It wasn't out of taboo—he was very curious about what prompt she had drawn.
"Just to ask—the prompt is…?"
"Someone I want to keep as a pet." Kaguya Shinomiya said anxiously. She glanced at her opponents in this round—they were almost done retrieving their items!
"Wait!" Sakurai Saki stepped back two paces. "What makes you think I'd agree to that?"
Who wrote this prompt?
"We're on the same team! Didn't you just say that if the White Team loses, you'd shave your head?" Kaguya Shinomiya no longer cared about his thoughts. She dragged Sakurai—who was currently slacking off and unwilling to move—pulling him forward.
"Shaved head? What the White Team's cheerleading captain says has nothing to do with me."
"Tsk." Miss Kaguya clicked her tongue.
"Hey! You don't think you can fool me, do you?"
Sakurai glanced at the finish line not far away, caught between a rock and a hard place.
The onlookers nearby murmured—
"Wow, it's Sakurai General Affairs and Vice President Shinomiya! They're actually that close?"
"After all, those two have been quite 'fiery' since way back."
"Close? But I heard they even fight during PE class…" a junior student spread gossip.
"A love-hate relationship—isn't that normal?"
Sakurai truly didn't want to be associated with Kaguya Shinomiya. The rumors these people spread really had no chance of becoming reality. Even if he were to be a scoundrel to Miko, Sakurai would never be a scoundrel to Kaguya.
Having said this much, everyone should understand how much Sakurai disliked Miss Kaguya.
"Did you hear that? These people are already spreading rumors."
"Do you care about the opinions of weeds?" Kaguya was quite strong and walked quickly. She was the Archery Club's captain; her muscle level might rank second in the Student Council. As for who was first?
Sakurai: That can only be me!
"Weed—that's really harsh," Sakurai Saki said.
After he spoke, he showed a helpless expression to the junior students watching nearby. This "I have no choice but to obey her" demeanor made the junior students "ship" them even harder.
"What are you doing?"
"Adding fuel to the fire. Understand?" Sakurai Saki whispered.
"Are you sick? I don't want people making up stories about me and you." Miss Kaguya remembered the short story the Media Department had written about her and Sakurai last time. The title had been—The Night of the Ice Queen and the Younger Dog-like Boy.
Younger dog-like boy? This was an untamable wolf. Who would want anything to happen with him? It could only be said that distance made the heart grow fonder. As soon as you interacted with Sakurai General Affairs, you'd discover the darkness hidden beneath his sunny exterior, and then be disgusted by him.
"You just said you didn't care about the opinions of weeds."
Sakurai teased.
"Can you hurry up!?" Kaguya changed the subject.
Ten-odd seconds later, the two reached the finish line.
"First!!!" the student acting as judge shouted.
Kaguya Shinomiya heard this, nodded with satisfaction, and then walked away directly.
"Bye-bye, Sakurai-kun."
She acted just like a scoundrel who used someone and then discarded them.
Sakurai Saki didn't care. He returned to his original spot.
He had lunch with his mother at the cafeteria.
He hadn't made a bento today—mainly because he wanted his mother to experience the school cafeteria.
Afternoon—
The first event was the cheer battle, with ten minutes left until it began.
"How do you feel?" Sakurai glanced at Ishigami Yu, who had already changed into a female uniform.
The Red Team's cheerleading squad had wanted to create a contrast, so they had decided to cross-dress. Sakurai was very glad he hadn't joined the cheerleading squad this year.
"...Sakurai-senpai, I'm a little worried." Ishigami Yu observed the students gradually gathering.
"Worried about their gazes?" Sakurai guessed.
Ishigami Yu didn't speak. He really did care about what others thought. He couldn't help but care about the rumors from his classmates. Students of the same grade, regardless of gender, held more or less malice toward him.
"Just treat them as air, Ishigami-kun." Kaguya Shinomiya walked over to stand beside the two.
Fujiwara Chika was also there. "No need to worry! For trash like Ishigami-kun, there'll only be one or two people on Earth who care about you! Everyone else won't even notice you—they're too lazy to look!"
"Idiot!" Ishigami Yu rolled his eyes at her.
"Saki-kun, look at him! He actually cursed at me!" Chika-chan appealed for help.
"You were the one who spoke ill of him first." Sakurai tapped her head.
At a time like this, to still speak ill of the other person—how much did Chika dislike this junior? However, with her interruption, the atmosphere became much livelier, no longer as heavy as before.
"Ishigami-kun's outfit really doesn't suit him at all." Chika covered her head and glanced at Ishigami Yu's cross-dressing. It was very strange—ugly yet cute, of which 'ugly' probably accounted for ninety-nine percent.
Huh—doesn't that mean it's all ugly and no cuteness?
Chika thought for a few seconds and finally concluded: Ishigami Yu was ugly. Not cute at all.
"Ishigami, good luck." Sakurai patted his shoulder, then tightened the red headband on his forehead. It was about to begin—time to get ready.
"Mm." Ishigami Yu nodded, then straightened his back.
"You're too concerned about Ishigami-kun, aren't you? And President Miyuki too." Kaguya Shinomiya withdrew her gaze from the junior and sighed. "I don't understand you boys."
Sakurai Saki did not answer.
He and Miyuki saw reflections of themselves in each other. Miyuki Shirogane, who was working so hard now, had even thought about giving up when school started last year. Sakurai was the same. Last year, he had drifted along for over two months after school started with a "take it as it comes" attitude—until Miyuki Shirogane had spoken to him.
To put it in a more chuunibyou way, it would be—inheritance. Or rather, kindling the flame. Not expecting anything in return, just wanting to do it. It was that simple.
"If everything required a reason to be done, then this world would be too sad," Sakurai Saki muttered to himself.
13:05 PM. Cheer Battle.
"Next up, the cheer battle brought to you by the Red Team's cheerleading squad!!"
The broadcast sound came through his ears. Ishigami Yu stood among the cheerleading squad members. Beside him, Onodera Rei whispered, "Scared?"
"Do you care about the opinions of weeds?" Ishigami Yu said expressionlessly.
"Don't make a fool of yourself and disgrace the Student Council." Onodera Rei closed her mouth after speaking.
—
"Go! Go! Go, Red Team!!!"
In the crowd, Sakurai Saki watched the red flag dancing in the center of the sports field, with "Wind, Forest, Fire, Mountain" written on it. It came from Sun Tzu's Art of War, which Takeda Shingen had used as his battle standard.
Behind the cheerleading squad, Ishigami Yu's movements were flawless—embodying his two weeks of effort.
Just leave the past behind, Ishigami. Sakurai Saki hoped internally.
People need to learn to look forward.