Chapter 22: The Scion’s Battle
“Guh…!”
With a heavy thud, one of them went flying, his back slamming against a locker before he collapsed to the floor.
“O-Oww…”
“What’s this?” I mused aloud, looking over the scene. “For a bunch of jocks, you’re not much.”
The basketball clubroom was more spacious than I had imagined, fully equipped with lockers and more than enough room for a dozen or so members to change and rest. Sprawled across that ample space were four male students, all of them groaning in pain and showing no signs of getting up. The only other person left standing was Fujikawa, who was clutching his stomach, his face contorted in pain.
“Are you alright, Fujikawa?” I asked, my voice calm. “If you start a fight in the clubroom, it could become a problem for the basketball team, you know.”
“K-Kiyomiyaa…” The only other guy left standing in this room seethed, glaring at me sharply.
All I did was land a punch to his solar plexus and a knee to his side.
“Are all these guys on the basketball team?” I continued, stepping over one of the fallen bodies. “Five of you ganged up on one person, let him slip past easily, and ended up like this. You probably can’t even make the regular team with skills like these.”
After school, I had neither run nor hidden, answering Fujikawa’s summons as requested. Waiting for me were five of them, their intent clearly to rough up the “worthless trash,” Kiyomiya Keiji. Things hadn’t gone according to their plan.
“K-Kiyomiya… how are you so…” Fujikawa stammered.
“Look, even if you play basketball every day, you’re still an amateur at volleyball, right? You couldn’t beat our weak team, could you? Fighting’s the same. Just moving your body in club activities every day won’t make you any stronger in a real brawl.”
“S-So you’ve been practicing how to fight?”
“I have,” I answered, wiping my lip where a punch had grazed it earlier. “What about it? Unfortunately for you, I’m the Kiyomiya family’s outcast. And there’s a certain way of life that comes with being an outcast.”
I leaned in closer. “Keep this a secret, Fujikawa. I’m only telling you.”
“Huh?”
“I’m pretty confident in most things. Academics, athletics… I can even do housework if I have to. I don’t have a habit of showing off, so not even my father knows. And of course,” I added, “I’ve trained my fists, too.”
“W-What for?”
“For situations exactly like these,” I said simply. “I’ve always just grinned and borne it when unpleasant things happened, but I’d be in trouble if I got killed by some idiot who doesn’t know their limits and believes their parents can cover up any crime they commit. I trained for when the time came. Though I never wanted to get into a brawl like some old-school delinquent.”
From a former JSDF airborne ranger in charge of security at the Kiyomiya Family Main Residence, I learned not some refined martial art, but how to win a real, no-holds-barred fight. The four guys on the floor each took a single, precise blow—to the head, jaw, stomach, and back. At a glance, you can hardly see any injuries. They always say to hit the body, not the face, but you can knock someone down without leaving a visible mark even if you don’t aim for the stomach. What that old security guy taught me was the art of suppressing an enemy without any rules.
“Fujikawa, I’m done acting submissive,” I declared, my voice dropping.
“Wha…”
“But that doesn’t mean I want to fight with people like you. Winning a fight is nothing to brag about.” I forcefully grabbed him by the collar, holding him up as he looked about to collapse. It wasn’t a threat, just a means of keeping him on his feet. “Hey, I have a favor to ask of you, Fujikawa-kun.”
“A-A favor?”
“From now on, leave me and Sayaka alone. If the Fujikawa Group stops, the others will follow suit, right? Like Iwakura. Do me a favor and act like bullying a guy who just grins is boring. Oh, and while you’re at it, stay away from Maki, too. She’s my friend.”
“Y-You bastard, saying whatever you want…”
“As for Maritsuji… you aren’t stupid enough to mess with the Maritsuji family, are you, Fujikawa? She’ll be fine.”
“…”
He looked at me as if he were seeing something alien. I guess it makes sense. The toy that was supposed to make a sound when poked had suddenly bared its fangs. Now, will he get the message? Fujikawa isn’t dumb, but he has an immense amount of pride. Will he come back, unrepentant, with double or triple the numbers?
“Ah, ha…” A strange sound escaped his lips.
“What is it?” I asked, narrowing my eyes. “What’s so funny?”
“Ahahahaha, this is great, Kiyomiya!” he roared, laughing boisterously even as I held him by the collar. “Kiyomiya, you’ve finally decided to get serious!”
“Huh?”
“It’s just like you said! The grinning you is boring as hell! No matter how much I messed with you, you never once fought back. It was too damn dull!” Fujikawa’s boisterous laughter subsided, replaced by a delighted, almost manic smile. It was beyond creepy. “Man, it’s been a long time coming! I knew you were a guy who could do it if you tried! Seriously, playing the useless fool forever… I was getting worried you’d keep pretending to be trash until graduation!”
“W-What are you on about? Are you okay, Fujikawa?”
“That’s right, the Fujikawa family is second-rate compared to the Kiyomiya family,” he said, his eyes gleaming. “Even if you are the son of some unknown woman and aren’t acknowledged by the clan, you’re still a cut above me!”
“Fujikawa, is that what you thought?”
“That’s what makes it interesting!” he declared. “The moment you just grinned and let it slide no matter how much I provoked you, I knew you were not ordinary. I—only I—knew that you were actually someone amazing, Kiyomiya!”
“…”
Getting praised by a flashy guy like this doesn’t make me happy at all.
“My high school life will only be complete once I take down a guy like you and pull off a giant-killing!” he yelled, his face alight with crazed excitement. “Now, hit me! Beat the crap out of me, and declare war with me!”
Damn, this guy’s insane. This must be an unexpected turn of events for his cronies… but it’s just as unexpected for me.
“You’re just too creepy, Fujikawa,” I muttered.
In any case, I’ve got nine years of pent-up frustration saved just for this guy. I might as well let him have one, right in the face, without thinking about the consequences.
