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Volume 5, Chapter 7: What You and I Lack Part 2

"Fuu~......that was unfortunate. A little bit more and we\'d have been able to beat Class B.......".

"I guess so".

We prepared a substitute for the omnidirectional tug-of-war in Sudou\'s absence but we were still soundly defeated just now. We challenged them believing in the slim possibility of success. But we lost. We had plummeted down to the bottom.

As a class, we had decided to re-evaluate our coordination but it was Hirata who, more than anyone else, received the most damage.

Just like with the scavenger hunt, he bore the burden of providing the points necessary for substitution and as such, he\'s lost a considerable amount of points. It\'s an extremely dire situation where we have to tackle any and all contests without our greatest ace, Sudou.

"Doesn\'t look like Sudou-kun\'s coming back yet".

"Hirata, are you planning on providing the points for the next contest as well?".

"Yeah. Because it\'s necessary. A necessary expenditure".

But even so, conveniently for us, Hirata\'s paid for three so far. Twice for Sudou who missed out on the scavenger hunt and the omnidirectional tug-of-war and once for Horikita, who missed out on the latter. It wasn\'t cheap by any means.

If he has to pay for the next one as well it would come to a total of 500,000 points. No matter how many private points he\'s saved up, it\'s still overspending.

"Well.....leaving aside Sudou, Horikita will probably pay for herself later".

She is indeed absent, but it\'s quite the inhuman thing to do having Hirata pay for it all. Fortunately enough, she\'s obtained a large sum of points from the previous exam similar to Hirata himself.

"Isn\'t it about time you let them bear the cost too? The ones participating, I mean".

"That may be so. But 100,000 points is a large amount and saving up that much isn\'t easy after all. I\'m the one who went ahead with the substitutions and all so I can\'t really go around asking them for points".

"Don\'t you think that the one who bailed is at fault?".

On top of that, Hirata got beat up by Sudou. But it seems Hirata thinks nothing of it.

"There\'s the class\'s victory to consider too but if we can rank higher and win prizes here it\'ll give us an advantage in the exams to come. It\'s best to participate still. If they have to pay their own way through, there are probably a lot of students who would pass up on this".

Certainly, most of the students who are in dire need of points in their exams also fret over their financial troubles. Of course they\'d want points for themselves but since there\'s the possibility they\'d plummet to the bottom instead and be at a disadvantage in their exams, they\'d hesitate.

Because it\'d be a miserable sight if they happened to lose both money and points.

The remaining contests are the mixed gender three-legged race and the last one: the 1200 meter relay.

Hirata tries calling out to see if there\'s anyone interested in participating. But before he could, Kushida came running over.

"Umm, Hirata-kun. Could you let me help out too? I\'d like to participate in the three-legged race. Of course, I\'ll pay the points for it.....can I?".

"Ehh?".

Surprisingly enough, it was Kushida who put her own name forward.

"I can\'t let Hirata-kun be the only one bearing the burden. Besides, I also want to try my best to contribute for Horikita-san and Sudou-kun\'s sake as well...".

"Of course that\'s a welcome offer. Since Kushida-san\'s pretty good at sports too".

"Thanks. I\'ll go tell Chabashira-sensei that I\'ll be participating in Horikita-san\'s place then".

Saying that, she ran off.

"Then, now for the boy. I\'ll ask around".

"Hey, Hirata. This contest, is it ok if I act as Sudou\'s substitute? I\'ll pay the points for it too. There\'s no guarantee I\'d be able to contribute to the class but if that\'s fine with you".

"Well---sure. Of course I don\'t mind.....but are you fine with that?".

"It feels awkward having you bear the burden alone. Besides, I\'m feeling a bit anxious about the next exam. I\'d like to secure at least one point".

Having received permission, I immediately went after Kushida. I cut into the conversation she was already having with Chabashira-sensei.

"So, Ayanokouji, you\'re going to be Sudou\'s substitute?".

"Yes".

"This is unusual, considering you like playing spectator".

"So Ayanokouji-kun\'s going to be replacing Sudou-kun. I\'m looking forward to it".

"Likewise. I\'m not very fast so you\'ll have to forgive me for that".

"I think rather than speed, the three-legged race puts more emphasis on coordination though".

While having that conversation, we made preparations right away for the contest.

"Yahho~ Ayanokouji-kun. And also Kikyo-chan. Looks like we\'re in the same group---".

Ichinose came up to us while saying that. Both her and Shibata, that is.

"Wah---tough opponents. To think the two of you would team up......".

"That\'s true for Shibata-kun but I\'m not that special you know? I haven\'t gotten 1st place in anything yet".

"Really? That\'s unexpected".

"I got 2nd place once and I got either 4th place or 5th place for the rest. To tell the truth, someone else was supposed to participate but she sprained her foot in the 200 meter dash before lunch. Looks like quite a lot of people are getting injured this year".

Apparently Class B has their own absentees. So this pair is an improvised one.

"Shibata-kun, is it ok if I tie it now?".

"Okay".

The Class B pair who began happily tying their string.

"Alright then, we should too......umm, can I leave tying the string to you? It wouldn\'t look good for a man to start tying it on his own".

"That\'s fine. But how strange, when you practiced with Horikita-san, you were the one who tied it right, Ayanokouji-kun?".

It\'s a frequent thought of mine but she\'s really observing the class quite well.

"She\'s...an exception. I can\'t afford to do the same with other girls".

"Do you mean to say she\'s someone special to you?".

Rather than a special someone, it\'d be more factual to say she\'s someone with a special status. But it\'d be hard conveying that.

"More importantly, it\'s hard to believe Horikita-san went looking for Sudou-kun.....how should I put it, Horikita-san always makes it a point to never miss classes right?".

"I was also surprised".

"But even so, you didn\'t look that surprised to me".

Kushida said so while crouching down and tying the string to my foot.

"It\'s just because I find it difficult to express myself facially in the first place".

"You mean a poker face?".

"Kushida".

"Wait just a bit longer ok? I\'ll be done tying in a bit".

Replying in a cute voice, Kushida tied the string beautifully. I decided to abruptly interrupt Kushida.

"It\'s you, isn\'t it? The traitor who leaked Class D\'s participation table to Class C".

"...come on, Ayanokouji-kun. What\'s the matter with you all of a sudden? Even for a joke, that\'s far too cruel---".

"I saw it. You snapped a picture of the participation table we drew up on the blackboard with your phone".

"That\'s just a record so I don\'t forget. It\'d be a big problem if I forget my own turn after all".

"To only memorize one\'s own turn through writing it down by hand. Wasn\'t that the consensus?".

"Really? Sorry, I forgot".

Having finished tying the string, Kushida slowly stood back up with her usual smile directed at me.

"By any chance, did that cause you to suspect me?".

"Sorry but I\'m confident I\'m right. If not, Class C wouldn\'t be able to attack us this conveniently".

The time the two of us can be together like this is limited. In a way, this is the perfect opportunity to talk.

"Hmm, but still, even if someone were to leak Class D\'s participation table by any chance, that doesn\'t necessarily mean Class C will be able to conveniently win right?".

"That\'s true".

Of course, since it\'s not like Class C went unmatched in all the contests, it\'s difficult to ascertain the truth. Even if they\'ve figured out Class D\'s order in its entirety, whether they win or not will still depend on the members from Class A and Class B.

Still, it is a fact that this raises their chances of winning that much more.

"Hey, Ayanokouji-kun. Assuming I\'m the culprit responsible for leaking the class\'s information---and me snapping a picture with my phone was the deciding factor, then that must mean you knew the participation table had been leaked right? Then why didn\'t you alter the participation table later? Couldn\'t you have submitted a new participation table later as a countermeasure? If you had done so, the participation table I snapped a picture of would become outdated and meaningless, don\'t you think so?".

"That would be pointless. If the traitor is a student from Class D, all of that would mean nothing".

"And this means?".

"For instance, suppose we altered the participation table in time like you said, Kushida. Then we\'d keep quiet and submit the new participation table. Even if we do that, as long as the traitor\'s a student from Class D, they\'d still be able to check and inspect it anytime they want. If they simply asked Chabashira-sensei to show them the participation table, it\'s well within class rights for them to see it".

If it\'s just checking the list, then you\'d be allowed to do so at any time. In other words, even if we acted behind the scenes, ultimately the order will still be figured out if you repeatedly check the participation table.

Kushida...no, Ryuuen would surely do so in that case.

"But if you had kept the participation table hidden until the last minute and then submitted it, then whoever sees it after wouldn\'t be able to make any alterations to it anymore right? I still think you could it prevented it beforehand".

"In that case, then perhaps the participation table might not have been leaked. I didn\'t think that far ahead".

"Ahh, but if you did something like that on your own then it might end up confusing the others later I guess---.....that\'s no good right?".

That line of thought isn\'t too shabby. To neuter the spying being done on the participation table, it\'s necessary to act in advance. Certainly, like Kushida had said, by submitting the participation table just before the deadline, it would be impossible to accomplish anything even if one obtains said information since the deadline has already passed.

However, doing so would cause confusion amongst our classmates who aren\'t in the know. It would also invite animosity from them since alterations had been made onesidedly despite everyone having already reached a consensus.

That is precisely why, taking that and the possibility of a leak into account, the optimal course of action would have been to come up with multiple participation table patterns for the class.

By doing so, no matter which one is submitted in the end, we\'d still be able to compete regardless. If so, it would also act as a countermeasure for any leaks and it wouldn\'t invite any animosity from the class either, the opponents we\'d face based on this participation table would also be random so there would be nothing they can do about it.

The leak would be completely neutered.

"I get the gist of it but I\'m not the culprit you know? But I don\'t want to suspect my classmates either".

"Then shall we confirm it with Chabashira-sensei? Whether or not any students have gone out of their way to check the list after the participation table was submitted. If such a person exists then surely they\'d be the culprit".

Especially if someone like Kushida, who had already confessed to taking pictures of it on her phone, happened to have gone out of her way to go see it then she\'d be all the more suspicious for it.

"..........".

Kushida closed her mouth and for the first time, her smile disappeared. In other words, it\'s an implicit answer that meant an affirmation. However, she smiled deeply again right away.

"---fufu. You\'re really something else, Ayanokouji-kun".

Kushida laughs. It was a face I had seen before, a Kushida I didn\'t know.

"It can\'t be helped if the cat\'s out of the bag. That\'s right, I leaked the information on the participation table".

"You admit it then?".

"Yeah. It\'d have been surely exposed either way if you had asked Chabashira-sensei. It was only a matter of time. Besides, even if I told you the truth, Ayanokouji-kun, I\'m confident I won\'t be exposed. You haven\'t forgotten, have you? My uniform that you touched? If that\'s revealed, it\'ll become a big deal you know?".

It\'s a threat that if I were to expose Kushida as the traitor to someone, she\'d submit her uniform with the fingerprints on it to the school.

"Certainly, I won\'t be able to expose you as the culprit. But, by the way, tell me something. The exam on the cruise. That result came about because you informed all the students of the fact that you\'re the \'target\' through Ryuuen, right? And you asked Ryuuen for a favor in return for you leaking that information".

"And that favour would be? Do you know what I wanted to accomplish so badly that I\'d even betray the class for it?">

"If you act this blatantly during the sports festival, I\'d end up wising up to it even if I didn\'t want to. It\'s the same request you wanted to make to me a while back isn\'t it?".

"Ahaha.....yeah, I see. So Ayanokouji-kun really figured it out".

"Yeah. Why you would betray the class. I wanted to know the exact reason behind it".

"It\'s because I want to \'expel Horikita Suzune\'. That\'s the reason".

"I just couldn\'t figure out the reason why you\'re so persistent when it comes to targeting Horikita though".

I had wanted them to resolve this matter between themselves before the sports festival but things didn\'t pan out that conveniently.

"Sorry but I\'m going to get Horikita-san expelled. No matter what you say, I won\'t change my mind on this".

"In other words, in order to accomplish that, you\'d even sabotage Class D?".

"That\'s right. I don\'t mind not being able to climb up to Class A. I\'ll settle for getting Horikita-san expelled. But don\'t get me wrong. Once Horikita-san is no longer here, I\'ll wholeheartedly cooperate with everyone from the class and aim for Class A. I promise you that".

Apparently, getting Kushida to stop is impossible. She\'s committing this act of treason with that sort of strong resolve. If necessary, she\'d likely approach even people like Katsuragi, Ichinose or Sakayanagi.

"Ahh, but I have changed my mind about something. Just now too. That\'s the fact that you, Ayanokouji-kun, are now on my list of people to expel. In other words, after the two of you have been eliminated, I\'ll aim for Class A".

She said so with her usual, untiring smile. An expression that\'s almost dazzling.

"Haven\'t you considered the possibility that Ryuuen might expose you?".

"I\'m not an idiot either so I haven\'t done anything that would leave any evidence behind. Ryuuen-kun\'s capable of casually tricking people and he\'s also a liar. Well, whether or not he\'d betray me is a gamble I made though".

Even so, I just wanted to say there are plenty of ways to deceive someone. Looks like Kushida is serious about crushing Horikita.

The way this school is set up, if there\'s a traitor amongst your allies then you\'d end up repeatedly fighting desperate fights. The order on our participation table, our strategy, all that information has been leaked. To ask us to win in spite of all this is unreasonable.

Well...the side that assumed there\'s a traitor present and was left unable to formulate any strategies is also at fault though.

I\'d expect someone truly talented to instead use the traitor and pull a stunt to pave way for victory.

"Horikita-san\'s a mess throughout the sports festival. Shame you couldn\'t save her, right?".

I don\'t know about that. After giving her that brief reply, we participated in the three-legged race while antagonizing one another.