Chapter 420: What Happened at the National Competition #2
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 420: What Happened at the National Competition #2
The place was packed, probably because it was the day of the National Sports Festival.
Even with the venues split up, this was a bit much.
One wrong move and I could get lost in an instant.
I imagined the area for the popular baseball tournament was probably bursting at the seams.
“What did you eat with Nanase-senpai and Inoo-senpai on the bus earlier?”
I was unloading water for the club members from the luggage compartment when Tetsuya approached me. I answered without even looking at him.
“Jelly.”
“That three-fruit-flavor jelly? The one we used to eat all the time at the academy?”
“Yeah.”
“Isn’t that Miyuki’s favorite? Are you sure it’s okay to just give it away?”
What kind of weird excuse was he trying to pull?
Couldn’t he at least try to pick a fight over something that made sense?
I straightened up and looked at Tetsuya with a dumbfounded expression.
“Is Miyuki the only one who likes it? It’s famous. Most people like it.”
“No, what I mean is…”
“I know what you’re trying to say, but stop trying to assign meaning to every little thing I do.”
“I’m not.”
“That’s what it looks like to me. And I bet other people would think the same thing.”
“You think so?”
Seeing him play innocent made me want to smash his jaw.
I had plenty of other nasty thoughts, but that was the most concise one.
“Anyway, weren’t you supposed to be competing too?”
“I was going to, but since this is a national tournament where results matter, I decided to sit this one out. I’m thinking of trying in the winter.”
Was he taking a jab at me for not competing despite being skilled, or was I just imagining things?
No, knowing him, there was a high chance that was exactly his intention.
“Right. Good luck with that.”
“Thanks. Are you planning to quit kendo for good?”
Ah… that foul stench of bullshit is already spreading… I really hate it.
For now, I’ll just answer obediently. If I tell myself it’s all for the future, I should be able to endure it somehow.
“I don’t know. I don’t think I’ll quit completely.”
“You’ve got talent, too. Why not try taking it seriously?”
He said I have talent, too.
Why was it so damn annoying to see him subtly elevate himself while giving me a half-assed compliment?
I think I’ve reached the point where I get irritated just by watching Tetsuya breathe.
“I’ll handle my own business. I need to unload this stuff, so get going.”
“Alright. Keep up the good work.”
He spoke as if he were talking to a subordinate.
It was so absurd it was almost funny how arrogant he’d gotten just from learning a little boxing.
They say you lose if you get angry, but who wouldn’t lose their temper when someone acts like that?
My patience was wearing thin.
“Junior, Junior. Let me help you.”
Chinami’s voice reached me as I was silently moving the luggage.
She was in a good mood after picking the peach-flavored jelly on the bus, and she looked incredibly cute.
Deciding I needed to wash away the stench of the previous vermin, I pulled Chinami’s small frame into a tight hug.
Then, I buried my nose in her hair and took a deep breath.
“Wha—!? W-What are you doing?”
“There’s a fertilizer smell around here, so I’m trying to get rid of it with my Master’s scent.”
“Fertilizer? But there’s no farmland anywhere near here.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. I don’t smell anything.”
“You don’t need to go looking for it. Your scent is really nice, Master.”
“I-Is that so…? You smell nice too, Junior.”
As we were sharing body heat and exchanging such embarrassing compliments,
“Ugh… there they go again.”
I heard someone muttering.
I turned my head to see Renka staring at us with an annoyed expression.
I released my hug and turned Chinami around. Grabbing her wrist, I lifted her hand and waved it around.
Renka bit her lower lip, seemingly amused by how Chinami just let me move her around like a robot.
I gestured for Renka to come over. She hesitated for a moment before walking up and stopping in front of me.
“What. Why.”
“I’ll be cheering for you, so do your best.”
“...Well… I mean… okay.”
She was so obviously happy but trying to hide it.
Chuckling at her transparent attitude, I took two pieces of candy from my pocket and offered one to each of them.
“Let’s eat these and get energized.”
“How is candy supposed to give us energy?”
Unlike Renka, who grumbled as she took the blueberry-flavored candy, Chinami was delighted as she picked up her share, the peach-flavored one.
“It’s a lucky candy. If I eat this, I’m sure to win.”
Her hopeful words were so positive, it was nice to see.
I wished that Renka, who tends to be negative about everything, would be a little more like Chinami today… but it didn’t matter if she wasn’t.
Her education would proceed the same way no matter what she did.
* * *
The tournament hall was incredibly noisy.
It was the largest tournament of the year, held only once annually, so a massive crowd had gathered.
“Go, Matsuyama!”
“Go, Sena Kendo Club!! Uwaaah!!”
Among the crowd were kendo club members from other academies cheering normally, and others who were screaming to boost morale.
Even though it was the women’s division venue, the smell of sweat seemed to fill the hall.
With that thought, I sat in the designated section for Yebonie Academy members and watched Renka, the Vanguard, and Chinami, the Second-in-Line, check each other’s equipment.
Winning here would be a tremendous honor. An academy with a winning or high-ranking kendo club had a good chance of becoming famous as a prestigious kendo institution.
Not that it mattered much, since Yebonie Academy’s girls’ kendo club was already considered prestigious.
In any case, looking around, our side’s energy was low compared to the other academies.
The cheering was half-hearted, and everyone wore relaxed expressions.
Had they grown arrogant, assuming our girls’ team would naturally place at the top?
It did have a certain air of a champion’s dignity, which wasn’t bad, but the overall atmosphere sucked.
This made us feel less like the protagonists of a youth rom-com and more like the villains.
My lips twitching in displeasure, I waited for a moment when the heat of the hall died down slightly, then shouted loud enough for Chinami, Renka, and all our competing members to hear clearly.
“Yebonie, fighting!!”
“Ah, jeez… you scared me…!”
“What the… is that Matsuda?”
My voice was loud enough to echo throughout the vast tournament hall.
The male and female seniors sitting in front of and behind me reacted according to their personalities.
Some, like the one just now, jumped in surprise and clutched their chests, while a few others snickered.
Now that I had drawn attention to them, they glanced at each other and, without anyone needing to say a word, began to cheer energetically.
It was a little embarrassing, but this is what a youth story should be like.
Now we finally looked like a club the main character belonged to.
I let out a satisfied smile, watching Renka and Chinami give us a thumbs-up, when—
“Can’t you be quiet? You’re being a nuisance.”
—I heard Tetsuya, who was sitting next to me, and let out a long sigh internally.
“What’s so annoying about it?”
“The shouting. Shouldn’t we be cheering quietly and with composure?”
Other people were screaming their heads off, and this guy was spouting absolute bullshit.
No one could hear something like that, so out of place and at such a random moment, without getting pissed off.
I decided to show that I was a little angry.
“Haa… Hey.”
Tetsuya flinched at my call, which came after a deep sigh.
I shot a sideways glance at his pathetic face before turning my eyes back to the arena and continuing.
“I know you don’t like me, but don’t say crap like that, especially not here. It’s annoying.”
“Uh…?”
He looked flustered, as if he hadn’t expected me to call him out so directly.
He must have thought I was a pushover because I’d been putting up with him until now.
The old Matsuda’s bad reputation… I might actually miss it a little.
“Was there some rule that our kendo club had to cheer quietly? You do things your way. Just don’t talk to me.”
“That’s a bit harsh.”
As you go through life, you encounter all sorts of unpleasant people.
There are the ones who argue stubbornly even when they’re clearly wrong, just so they don’t lose a single argument.
And then there are guys like Tetsuya right now, who provoke you just to piss you off, then act like they’ve done nothing wrong and turn the tables on you.
Pride is a big reason they act this way.
Admitting they’re wrong feels like losing, and in Tetsuya’s case, since he sees me as a romantic rival, that feeling must be even stronger.
Maybe, just maybe, on the one-in-a-million chance there was another reason, it would be something negative anyway, so it wasn’t even worth knowing.
“I said, don’t talk to me.”
“Hey… I can’t even offer my opinion?”
“What you just did wasn’t offering an opinion, it was picking a fight. Stop crawling over here just to ruin my mood and shut your mouth. If you don’t like it, go sit somewhere else.”
“You seem pretty worked up. Should we talk later?”
Was he trying to start a fight? Or was he just trying to keep poking at me? I couldn’t tell.
He seemed to think I was getting agitated… How utterly pathetic.
“I’ll say it one last time. Shut up.”
“……”
Did my low voice make him realize it was time to back down?
Tetsuya closed his mouth and said no more, quietly watching the upcoming match with the other club members.
If you’re going to ruin the mood, do it after the tournament is over. He just had to pour cold water on a good day.
Perhaps today, after the tournament, Tetsuya and I would go down a path from which there was no turning back.
I had a feeling. Of course, if that happened, it would be something to welcome with open arms.
I’ll make sure things flow in my favor. I’ll be prepared for any situation.
There was nothing to lose by doing so.