During lunch break,
on the rooftop of the school building.
It was empty and somewhat desolate, with only the wind howling past,
also fluttering the clothes of the two early arrivals standing in the center of the rooftop.
Hashimoto Masayoshi leaned against the rusty railing,
his golden braid swaying slightly in the wind,
a cynical smile still on his face, as if he were merely there to enjoy the scenery.
Standing beside him was a short-haired male student with purple hair and a steady demeanor—
It was Kanzaki Ryuji, one of the core figures of the current Class 1-C, formerly Class 1-B.
Footsteps came from the rooftop entrance.
Ryuuen Kakeru walked up unhurriedly, his hands in his pockets,
his gaze immediately locked onto Kanzaki Ryuji next to Hashimoto Masayoshi,
openly scrutinizing this "defeated opponent."
The moment Ryuuen Kakeru appeared, the wariness in Kanzaki Ryuji's eyes deepened abruptly.
It was this man who had used unknown methods to integrate that chaotic Class 1-C,
and in the first month, had trampled their original Class 1-B underfoot.
Rumor had it that he was a delinquent who only knew violence, but Kanzaki Ryuji absolutely did not believe it.
A pure brute could never achieve a high score of 910 points.
This man must possess a sharp mind and the ability to employ various tactics.
"Relax, Kanzaki-kun."
Hashimoto Masayoshi seemed to sense the tense atmosphere beside him, smiling as he patted Kanzaki Ryuji's shoulder,
"We are gathered here today to solve a problem, not to relive old grievances, right, Ryuuen-kun?"
Ryuuen Kakeru scoffed and walked in front of the two:
"Heh, of course."
"Let me introduce,"
Hashimoto, as if he didn't catch the sting in Ryuuen's words, casually pointed at Kanzaki, "This is Kanzaki Ryuji, currently the second-in-command of Class C."
He then looked at Ryuuen, "This is Ryuuen Kakeru, the current leader of Class B... Well, I suppose I don't need to introduce him further."
Ryuuen was noncommittal about Hashimoto's introduction, and directly pulled out the stack of test papers he had gotten from Manabe.
He casually tapped them in his hand, his gaze sharp as he looked at Hashimoto: "So, you specifically asked me to bring this thing, what do you want to do? Could it be that Sakamoto-kun also took pity and 'bestowed' the papers upon his own class?"
He deliberately used a probing tone. In their previous phone conversation, he hadn't revealed that he had deduced this was an attempt to frame Sakamoto-kun.
Hashimoto didn't answer directly, but smiled meaningfully and turned to Kanzaki: "Kanzaki-san, bring out your set for Student Ryuuen to see."
Kanzaki Ryuji silently took out a stack of test papers, identical in format and paper, from his personal folder and handed them to Ryuuen.
Ryuuen glanced at them, his eyebrows slightly raised: "What does this mean? To prove that these crappy papers are well-printed and available everywhere?"
"Kanzaki-san, please tell us how your class obtained these papers."
Kanzaki took a deep breath and narrated in his usual steady tone: "Just the day before yesterday, a student in our class was also approached by a Second-Year Senior Student claiming to be from Class C. The same rhetoric, seeing our potential, willing to sell this 'past year's actual exam' for ten thousand personal points, and claiming... that it was at the request of Sakamoto-kun from Class 1-A, hoping we could achieve good results."
After listening to Kanzaki's narration, Ryuuen let out a cold smile: "Heh, as expected. Not only our Class B, but even your Class C has received this 'special treatment.' Then I guess, the bottom-ranked Class D probably can't escape this fate either, can it?"
The question was posed.
Since Classes B, C, and D might have all been "given" the test papers, what about Class A, the only one missing?
Hashimoto took over, his expression becoming a bit more serious: "This is the key. Sakamoto-kun has never mentioned anything related to test papers within Class A. In fact..."
He paused, looking at Ryuuen, "He seems completely unaware of this."
"So,"
Ryuuen concluded decisively, his gaze sweeping over Hashimoto and Kanzaki, "this matter can basically be confirmed to be unrelated to Sakamoto-kun. This is a clumsy frame-up targeting him, coming from a higher grade."
Hashimoto showed an interested expression: "Oh? Why is Student Ryuuen so certain? Tell me."
He had actually suspected this himself for a while, but wanted to hear Ryuuen's analysis.
Hashimoto's negotiation with Ryuuen began with a deliberate coincidence.
At that time, Hashimoto deliberately observed casually at the entrance of Class B, and Ryuuen appeared extremely vigilantly and stared at him.
After several contacts, Hashimoto exchanged some irrelevant information about Class A for Ryuuen's initial trust and successfully exchanged contact information.
He hinted to Ryuuen that he was an "information intermediary beyond factions," hoping to promote "information flow" between different classes.
Now it seemed, this move had indeed come in handy.
But in fact, the first person to contact him was Kanzaki Ryuji.
Kanzaki cautiously revealed the news that Class C had obtained the test papers and mentioned Sakamoto-kun. At that time, Hashimoto was extremely shocked and confused—this completely contradicted his understanding of Sakamoto-kun.
Immediately after, Ryuuen also contacted him, which led to this tripartite secret meeting.
Ryuuen's thinking was clearly even more astute than he had anticipated.
Ryuuen snorted, analyzing: "The method is too clumsy. Spreading a net everywhere, leaving a name, as if afraid others wouldn't know it was Sakamoto-kun who did it. This kind of charitable act of both giving things and leaving a name is not his style. It's more like a rat hiding in the dark, trying to use a borrowed knife to kill, to create chaos within our First Year, and incidentally cause trouble for Sakamoto-kun."
His analysis coincided with Hashimoto's inner judgment.
"It seems our views are consistent."
Hashimoto nodded, "So, combining the current information: a test paper of unknown origin but widely circulated; a name commonly mentioned—Sakamoto-kun; and a manipulator hidden behind the scenes, possibly from the second year."
The three fell into a brief silence, with only the wind whistling on the rooftop.
Finally, a temporary alliance plan, based on common interests, was proposed.
"How about this,"
Hashimoto, as the initiator, proposed a division of labor, "I will be responsible for investigating whether Sakamoto-kun is truly aware, or his reaction to this matter. Student Ryuuen, Kanzaki-san, you will each use your respective channels to investigate the Second-Year Senior Students who contacted you, and... most crucially, verify the authenticity of this test paper. Is it truly a genuine past year's exam, or just a carefully crafted hoax."
Ryuuen and Kanzaki exchanged glances. Although there was still animosity and vigilance in their eyes, in the face of a greater common question and potential threat, they temporarily chose to cooperate.
"Okay."
"No problem."
The two replied almost simultaneously.
The three classes of First Year, the opportunist of Class A, the ambitious one of Class B, and the strategist of Class C, due to a conspiracy targeting a common goal, formed a rare and fragile alliance on the rooftop at this moment.