Chapter 158: Honami Ichinose: No Harm to Naruse-san (Combined 5k) (Patreon)

First floor of the classroom building, the infirmary.

A faint smell of disinfectant hung in the room. It wasn't strong, but it was enough to tell anyone at once where they were.

After the running race in PE class ended, Hikaru Naruse had brought Asuka Shiraishi here after all.

And he'd carried her on his back.

When Asuka Shiraishi suddenly said, "Could you take me to the infirmary?", Ai Morishita had been thrown off by the ruse, but she hadn't just sulked at him.

The girl had always done whatever she pleased. But since growing closer to Hikaru Naruse, she'd learned to give him face and a way out.

After all, refusing at a moment like this would only make Naruse feel it was a hassle.

"Naruse, if she's not feeling well, then take her."

"Okay."

A woman of about thirty, the school doctor, sat in the infirmary. She wore a white coat with her hair tied back in a ponytail, and she looked quite dashing.

She felt Asuka Shiraishi's leg, then looked up and asked.

"How does it feel? Is it your calf or your thigh that's bothering you?"

Asuka Shiraishi paid attention to the sensation, and her pretty purple eyes trembled slightly.

"My calf felt a bit off just now, but it's eased up a little."

"Ah, you probably pushed too hard all of a sudden and strained the muscle a little. Rest for a while first."

The doctor nodded slightly, then glanced back at Hikaru Naruse standing to one side.

"Naruse-san, make sure you look after her."

"Oh… wait, what?"

Hikaru Naruse had just nodded when something suddenly felt off. This was his first time in the infirmary, so how did the doctor know his name?

"You know me?"

"Of course I do. I even voted for you…" The woman doctor winked at him, her tone playful.

"…Is that so? Thank you."

"No need to thank me, Naruse-san. Keep it up, okay?"

"I will."

The doctor's gaze traveled over Hikaru Naruse's face a couple of times. She nodded, quite satisfied, and only then turned and left.

Once she was gone, Hikaru Naruse stood beside the bed with his arms crossed and studied the blonde girl propped against the headboard.

"Shiraishi-san, you've taken quite the detour. You can say what you wanted to say directly now."

"…"

Asuka Shiraishi stuck out her tongue and tilted her head, putting on a cute act.

"What detour? Can't it be that I really did want to team up with you, Naruse-san, but wanted to win the race so badly that I got hurt?"

"Is that so?"

Hikaru Naruse didn't believe Asuka Shiraishi was someone who'd lose her composure like that.

"Yep. Everything I said in class just now was completely sincere."

"Sincere, sure, but I'm guessing there's more you haven't said?" Hikaru Naruse smiled gently. "Let's get to the real business."

"Okay."

Asuka Shiraishi nodded, then added.

"Actually, my leg still hurts a little. Naruse-san, could you massage it for me? Maybe it'll get better faster."

"…"

"Is that a no?" Asuka Shiraishi pulled up the legs of her gym pants, revealing two fair, smooth calves.

"Of course I can."

Hikaru Naruse smiled when he heard that. "But in this case I'm the one taking advantage, Shiraishi-san."

"That's fine. I don't mind if Naruse-san takes advantage of me."

"Really?"

"Mm-hm."

Hikaru Naruse didn't agonize over it. He simply sat down at the edge of the bed, rested Asuka Shiraishi's calves across his thighs, and began pressing them gently.

"Is it here?"

"Mm… Naruse-san's hands are so warm. Is this what boys are like?"

"Yeah. Shiraishi-san, haven't you heard the saying?"

"What saying?"

Asuka Shiraishi smiled softly. Her air had always been gentle and serene, and propped up against the bed like this, she looked even more delicate.

"When you're alone with a boy, watch out, because he might turn into a beast."

"Is that really so scary?" Asuka Shiraishi covered her mouth lightly.

"It is. So you'd better get to the real business first and stop provoking me."

"Fine."

Feeling Hikaru Naruse's gentle pressure on her calves, Asuka Shiraishi's eyes narrowed in comfort. After a moment, she spoke.

"From what I've found out recently, Ayanokoji-kun seems to have gone back to how he was right after school started."

"He may not take an active role in this Sports Festival."

Asuka Shiraishi paused, then continued.

"It seems whatever you talked about with him on the cruise ship last time was important, Naruse-san. It changed him quite a lot."

Hikaru Naruse nodded in satisfaction when she finished.

"That's a minor matter. What counts is whether he's thought things through."

The boy's voice was mild, and his fingers kept pressing evenly along Asuka Shiraishi's calves.

"Everyone who comes to this school has something they want to do. That goes for you, and it goes for Ayanokoji-kun too."

He paused briefly, and his tone sank a little.

"And Ayanokoji-kun's aim is actually simpler. When it comes down to it, reaching Class A is what most people want, but it isn't what he wants."

Whether it was Ayanokoji Kiyotaka from the original novel or the person Hikaru Naruse had met himself, the boy was clearly a very "pure" person.

He hadn't left the White Room and come here to graduate from Class A. He'd come to look for things he'd never learned or experienced before. Or, put another way, to look for freedom.

As for the matters tied to the White Room, they were nothing more than political struggles and the exchange of interests between Atsuomi Ayanokoji and the financial cliques behind him. Those things had swept up Advanced Nurturing High School and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka himself, which was why the situation kept growing more tangled.

What Hikaru Naruse thought now was very simple.

Since he was here anyway, he might as well settle all of it ahead of time. That way he wouldn't have to worry about when he'd have to face a "full-power Ayanokoji," and his school life would get easier too.

"So last time we talked, I made Ayanokoji-kun a promise."

"A promise?" Asuka Shiraishi seemed rather interested.

"Just men helping each other out. No need to be so curious, Shiraishi-san."

Hikaru Naruse smiled faintly, then went on.

"All I'll say is, if things go the way I plan, the ending will turn out surprisingly simple."

"That's good. I hope you get what you want, Naruse-san."

"Mm."

Hikaru Naruse thought for a moment, then asked curiously.

"Shiraishi-san, did you have any contact with Ayanokoji-kun before?"

The original novel had only briefly covered these matters, and Naruse wanted to know why Asuka Shiraishi had a connection with the White Room.

"No, I didn't."

Asuka Shiraishi shook her head when she heard this, her tone candid.

"Before coming to Advanced Nurturing High School, I'd never even met Ayanokoji-kun."

"I see."

Hikaru Naruse nodded slightly and went on.

"Then there's nothing to agonize over. You can relax a bit, Shiraishi-san."

"If Ayanokoji-kun isn't planning to get serious, this Sports Festival is just a big event to him. For me, though, there's quite a lot to do."

"Naruse-san has a lot to do?"

Asuka Shiraishi immediately leaned closer, her tone soft.

"Do you need my help?"

"Not right now, but I might later."

Asuka Shiraishi's intelligence network was no small thing either. While monitoring Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, she'd gotten to know quite a few upperclassmen, which was also where the "Hundred-Man Slayer" rumor came from.

If he was going to deal with Miyabi Nagumo, she could indeed be a real help.

"Sure. If Naruse-san needs help later, call me anytime."

"Mm."

---

Around six in the evening, in a large KTV private room at a certain karaoke place in Keyaki Mall.

Kakeru Ryuen, Mio Ibuki, Albert Yamada, and Daichi Ishizaki sat on one side. On the other side sat the members of first-year Class B.

This was a negotiation.

They had parted on bad terms at the earlier gym meeting. Kakeru Ryuen had said then that he didn't want to cooperate with Class B, even though they were both on the White Team.

But that afternoon, Mio Ibuki had suddenly messaged Honami Ichinose to say they could talk, and that was how they'd ended up here.

Honami Ichinose sat in the middle, with Yuki Himeno and Sayo Ando beside her. The two boys, Ryuji Kanzaki and So Shibata, didn't sit. They stood on her left and right.

After thinking for a moment, Kakeru Ryuen spoke first.

"Ichinose, I'm sure you know the situation is a real headache right now. As the White Team, our advantage isn't big to begin with."

"So?"

Ever since Hikaru Naruse's "counseling" had dispelled the shadow of her past, Honami Ichinose had grown more positive, and her presence had grown noticeably stronger too.

"So we have to pull something unexpected. Only an unexpected move will win it."

Kakeru Ryuen gave a cold laugh, a hint of mockery in his voice.

"Just so you know, the unexpected move I'm talking about may not be all that upright. I hope you good kids from Class B can understand how I do things."

"If you have an idea, Ryuen, just say it. We can hear it out first."

Honami Ichinose's tone stayed calm, unaffected by his words.

"It's simple."

Kakeru Ryuen let the words slip slowly from his mouth.

"The participant lists."

He paused, then went on laying out his thinking.

"Specifically, the list of participants in the [Recommended Events] and the order of the matches."

"If we can get the lists for Class A and Class D's [Recommended Events], we can naturally prepare some plans in advance."

"Once you have the lists, you're not going to use your old tricks again, are you?"

So Shibata, a past victim, demanded irritably.

"Tricks aren't old or new. They're only useful or useless."

Kakeru Ryuen showed not a shred of guilt and answered breezily, "Just get the lists. You don't have to join the later plans. Leave that part to us."

"As for getting the lists, our two classes can split the work."

"Split the work?"

Honami Ichinose didn't follow Kakeru Ryuen's lead by asking what "old tricks" he'd prepared. She asked how they'd divide the work instead.

"Easy. We go by proximity."

Kakeru Ryuen smiled and said it outright.

"Your Class B can go after Class A's list. We'll handle Class D."

The Sports Festival participant lists had to be submitted to the school before the deadline. Generally, only people inside each class knew its list, and often only the core members.

To get Class A's or Class D's list, they'd have to start with someone on the inside. Such "espionage" was hard, but the payoff was high.

At this point, Kakeru Ryuen bared his teeth in a grin and said meaningfully.

"Ichinose, aren't you pretty close to that Naruse guy? You could use him as the way in."

"All you need to do is get the list. That shouldn't be hard for you, right?"

"…"

Hearing this, Honami Ichinose's expression shifted slightly, and she nearly lost the calm she'd just shown.

After everything they'd been through together, Honami Ichinose now cared about Hikaru Naruse deeply, and the feeling carried even more weight than mere "liking."

If she could, Honami Ichinose wished she could see him every day from now on.

"Ryuen, you surely don't think collecting that kind of intelligence is easy."

The girl quickly reined in her emotions and shot back.

"The submission deadline is one week before the Sports Festival. What if Class A hasn't even confirmed its list by then?"

"True, which is exactly why we have to prepare early."

Kakeru Ryuen looked quite confident. After the failures of the Uninhabited Island exam and the VIP exam, this third chance was the last one Mio Ibuki was willing to give him.

If he wanted to win the seat of Class C's leader, Kakeru Ryuen had to give this Sports Festival everything he had.

On top of that, a "mysterious figure" had contacted Kakeru Ryuen yesterday.

The mysterious figure wanted him to target Hikaru Naruse, preferably to make him fail completely. The other party had offered plenty of intelligence and resources, which gave Kakeru Ryuen a lot of motivation.

"I have one more piece of intel for you. You should get in touch with Sakayanagi from Class A," Kakeru Ryuen said bluntly.

"Sakayanagi?" Honami Ichinose was puzzled.

"Yeah. She's Class A's [Rebel Army], after all…"

Kakeru Ryuen smiled, his tone full of amusement.

"Ichinose, you must have heard plenty of rumors back when last term had just started."

"In other words, our plan is really simple. If we can't get all the lists, we can change tack and go straight after Hikaru Naruse."

"That guy is Class A's core fighter. If we take him down, won't Class A take a heavy loss? We'd score better too, wouldn't we?"

"Go after Naruse-san?"

Honami Ichinose's expression shifted again. She was a smart girl and caught on at once.

Kakeru Ryuen had brought up Sakayanagi just now. Could he be planning to use her to go after Naruse-san?

When the first term had just begun, rumors of "infighting" in Class A had circulated, and they'd long been spreading around the first-year grade.

Back when the leader was being chosen, there were supporters of both Sakayanagi and Katsuragi, and the split between the two factions was deep, with no room for compromise.

But since Hikaru Naruse had begun taking control, a term had passed, and Arisu Sakayanagi had barely any followers left in Class A.

The only die-hard ally she had left was Masumi Kamuro. The two often appeared around school together, so it was no secret, and plenty of people knew.

Honami Ichinose had heard something of Arisu Sakayanagi's situation. After thinking it over, she found herself worrying about something else.

Would Sakayanagi do something to hurt Naruse-san?

That couldn't happen!

"I'll think this over carefully."

Honami Ichinose took a deep breath, thought for a moment, and asked again.

"Has Sakayanagi already been in contact with you?"

"That's not your concern. If you do go for it, she'd really be a fitting choice."

"Then how do you plan to break Class D?"

At her question, a wild smile surfaced at the corner of Kakeru Ryuen's mouth.

"That's Class C's business. Anyway, once we have the Class A and Class D lists, the White Team's advantage grows and we earn more points."

"We called you here to discuss cooperation because we're both on the White Team. If you don't want to cooperate, fine. But then you'll end up last in the grade and lose class evaluation points all the same."

"I've told you the intel. The rest is up to you."

"If you don't want to go after Naruse directly, wouldn't it be just as good to hand it off to someone else?"

Kakeru Ryuen knew Honami Ichinose looked down on Class C, but he looked down just as much on Class B's gang of goody-goody kids.

But he didn't have any better options right now. After all this talk, his real aim wasn't to target Class A or Class D at all. It was that the "mysterious figure" had demanded he target Hikaru Naruse.

The offer was huge, and for Class C's plans and the bigger picture, it was a very good deal.

"Understood."

After hearing him out, Honami Ichinose's heart was a tangle of emotions.

By rights, her Class B still owed Class A 3.5 million Private Points. If they could beat the Red Team at the Sports Festival, class evaluation points would rise, and that would be good for everyone.

But from another angle, Honami Ichinose's partiality toward Hikaru Naruse had nothing to do with class competition. It was her own personal feeling.

She had no qualms about attacking Class A.

But if it meant harming Hikaru Naruse, Honami Ichinose would have to think hard about it.

"Then we won't take up any more of your time. Message Ibuki once you've decided, and we'll talk about any further information then."

With that last line, Kakeru Ryuen led the Class C group out. Mio Ibuki had only been a bystander in the negotiation. Class C's situation was truly bad now, and to avoid being overtaken by Class D, she'd had no choice but to agree to give Kakeru Ryuen one more chance.

After the door closed, Shibata spoke up at once.

"Ichinose, are we really going to work with that Ryuen guy? He's no good person."

"But Class C is the only one we can cooperate with. We're on the White Team, after all."

Sayo Ando was reluctant too. This team split was truly hard for them to accept, and she'd almost have preferred partnering with the bottom-ranked Class D.

"But… why did he suddenly bring up Sakayanagi?"

Ryuji Kanzaki thought for a moment and analyzed slowly.

"Ryuen didn't answer that question just now. I get the feeling there's more behind it."

"Right. Why did he say Sakayanagi was such a suitable target?"

"Could they be planning to use her as the one to attack Naruse-san?"

So Shibata thought a moment, then added.

"If a mole made the move, it would probably work… but Naruse-san is…"

Having said this much, everyone couldn't help glancing at Honami Ichinose, who sat there. All of Class B knew full well that her relationship with Hikaru Naruse was no ordinary one.

After a while, Honami Ichinose spoke.

"Everyone, I'd like to talk to Naruse-san. What do you think?"

"Uh… Ichinose, are you sure you want to meet Naruse-san?" Sayo Ando hesitated. With the Red and White teams in competition, meeting him might stir up some rumors.

"I just want to talk to Naruse-san, and find out how things are on their side while I'm at it. Think of it as gathering intel."

Honami Ichinose smiled, her tone calm.

"All right. If you want to go, Ichinose, then go. We support your decision."

The others all knew that Ichinose always cared especially about anything to do with Naruse-san, and that the feeling was only growing stronger.

Otherwise…

Ryuji Kanzaki glanced at the few people beside him. There was a plan they'd secretly discussed, but they hadn't told Honami Ichinose.

There was only one way to cure Honami Ichinose's heartache.