Yuuichi's daily life in COTE

Chapter 2.4

Yuuichi: Hey, Horikita —whispered Yuuichi to Horikita, who remained silent and kept her head down.

Yuuichi: (sighing) This is going to cause me more trouble later —he said as he approached Horikita and kissed her on the cheek.

Horikita: H-hyah?! —Horikita exclaimed with an abnormally feminine voice.

No matter how annoyed or flustered someone may be, if you surprise them enough, they will snap back to their senses. Even if they don't like it. The teachers seemed somewhat surprised by his actions, but at that moment, he didn't care.

Yuuichi: Pull yourself together, Horikita. We're going to lose at this rate. You have to fight! —with a gentle voice.

Horikita S: Tch...

She looked at Class C, then at the teacher, and finally at her brother as if she finally understood our position. It seemed she realized how desperate our situation was.

Horikita: Excuse me. Can I ask a question? —she said.

Akane: Do you mind, President?

Manabu: I'll allow it. However, please answer more quickly next time.

Horikita slowly stood up from her chair.

Horikita: Earlier, you said that Sudou-kun called you to the special building. But, who did Sudou call and why? The Class C students looked at each other, as if saying, "Why is she asking that now?"

Horikita: Please answer —Horikita added these last words to reinforce her aggressive style of interrogation. Secretary Tachibana allowed it.

Ishizaki: Kondou and I don't know why he called us. After we finished practice and changed, he said he wanted to talk with us for a minute. Wasn't the reason simply that he didn't like us?

Horikita: Then, why were you in the special building, Ishizaki-kun? You're not part of the basketball team, so you have no connection to this case. I think your presence there is quite strange.

Ishizaki: Well... I went there as a precaution. There were rumors that Sudou is violent. He's also physically stronger than us. I thought I had to go, you know?

Horikita: In other words, you felt that the situation could turn violent?

Ishizaki: Yes —They answered in unison, almost as if they were expecting these questions. The Class C students had rehearsed thoroughly for this meeting.

Horikita: I see. So you brought Ishizaki-kun as your bodyguard, since he was known to be quite good at fighting. Just in case there was an emergency.

Hondou: It was to protect ourselves. That's all. Besides, we didn't know Ishizaki-kun was known for being good at fighting. We just considered him a reliable friend.

Horikita silently listened to their answers, as if she was running several simulations in her head. Immediately after, she made her next move.

Horikita: I have some knowledge of martial arts, at least to a certain extent. I understand that when you're fighting against multiple opponents, victory becomes exponentially more difficult. So, I don't understand how you were easily defeated, how the fight could have been so one-sided, when you had a skilled fighter like Ishizaki-kun with you.

Hondou: Because we had no intention of fighting.

Horikita: The main factor to trigger a fight is the collision of "energy" between opponents. In the case that you have no intention to fight, or that you are not violent, the probability of you being hurt must be very low. Especially when there are two of you.