"I am sorry, I like someone else so I can't go out with you."
This year also, I wonder how many times it has already been, this honorable certain-death line was quietly said.
The person who refused is the girl. Although the boy is wearing a blazer type uniform, she had an attire that gave a different atmosphere.
White dougi and black horse riding hakama (Umanori Hakama). It was a common appearance for archery.
The height of the boy that asked her out is around 175 cm, she is around the same height. It's a height where their eyes can look straight at each other. The girl will definitely be taller if she wears heels.
Also, her attire was a bit disarranged, but that doesn’t mean she is a disorderly person. It's because of her tall figure and her extra large breasts. Even when she is wearing formal Japanese clothes, those breasts still showed their beautiful presence.
One can see a boy that doesn't have any energy left to call out the girl that left, and has a face like it's the end of the world as he sees her off.
On the slightly wet right sleeve of the dougi is an embroidery for "Hasegawa".
"Good work~, you turned down someone again huh~"
"Haruko, enough with the counting, I did ask to stop right?"
Another person, a girl also in archery clothes, appeared from the road Hasegawa came. Nakatsuhara High school's archery field is on the back of the school building, it stands on the highest hill. She sprang from a tree on the sideway on the way home.
"Even if you said so~, a girl that joins archery club in the wrong season, shoots down Ibuki-senpai's confession and shows the ability to cut down all male students that come to confess their feelings one after the other"
The girl with a notebook on one hand says all this in one breath excitedly and laughs. It's charming. There are many beauties in the archery club. There are also many who are cute as a small animal just like her. Of course, there are also model type girls like Hasegawa.
High school archery, how fearsome.
"Since it has come to this, I have to collect data on this. Subject investigation is the basic, ba-si-c."
Unfortunately in her case, her personality doesn’t match at all with her looks. She is the type that is regrettable when she opens her mouth. It's not wrong to compare her with a cute chihuahua with venomous tongue.
"Since it has come to this, you say? Please spare me from that. I refuse to become a topical person for your own convenience, okay!?"
"But hey, who is the most confessed to girl in the whole school right now?! It is necessary for the creation of the ranking: ‘If you confess to this girl, you will be a hero’, please be patient until we finish tallying the votes♪"
Hasegawa... No, Hasegawa Nukumi sighs from the bottom of her heart. Although she really wants to confront her about that incomprehensible ranking she made, the results probably won't change even if she heard the answer.
If it's announced, the situation could be worse than now. She expects that it will surely worsen.
She thinks that if the other person is serious with their confession, then she should also seriously respond. But if they come for some nonsense like testing their courage to be considered heroes, she doesn’t want to be part of it.
"....If I receive harm because of that ranking, I will expose that you are involved in the creation of it, Haruko."
"Currently, Nukumin and the club president are the favourites, it’s a competition between you two~ huh… eh, ehhhhh?! Exposing a reporter's information is foul play. It's violation of freedom of press! Even if you do know, please at least leave it as reporter A or something like word-of-mouth!"
Due to the nature of the ranking this time, there are quite a lot of names from the archery club members. Being given criminal treatment when she is enrolled in the club herself would be extremely bad. Reporter Haruko that hoped for freedom of press panicked. Forget about looking for excuses, Haruko is actually the very mastermind so she is really the true culprit.
Hasegawa's counterattack was really effective.
"The people placed in that incomprehensible ranking have human rights too! In the first place, aren’t you a first year too, Haruko? You haven’t been able to properly hit the target yet, so don’t go skipping club activity!"
"Muu, to let out my eternal problem like this, Nukumin has gotten quite skilfull in her words huh, yoyoyo."
"After half a year associating with you, of course I am getting used to it. Anyway, go back to the dojo, Haruko."
"... From the moment you said you were going to join, I always thought about it. Nukumin is too serious~"
Haruko, who has a troubled expression as if she was a cat gripped by the nape of the neck, grumbled. It's unknown whether the ranking creation was stopped or just temporarily suspended though.
"Even on the new club member greeting, you actually took what I said seriously and declared that you had a boyfriend"
"Don't say anything about that anymore..."
Nukumi holds her forehead. For some reason, the arm peeking out from her robe showed off her sensuality.
(Wa. Her gesture is lady-like. If she unconsciously lets out so much sex appeal, of course she will be confessed to~ As expected, she already has a man?)
Recently, the growth of Hasegawa Nukumi's femininity and sex appeal’s is somewhat amazing. Is what Haruko thought. The number one reason for that is a boy, she guesses.
"Also about that talk of hitting the target… it was totally similar to how Misumi-senpai talks. Now that I think of it! I heard that senpai suddenly decided to study abroad! It's a lifetime’s mistake~. I also never heard of the destination."
Haruka is regretting because he is a valuable information source.
"...It's Liechtenstein."
“Heh? Lieche?”
“It’s nothing. Let’s go.”
Hasegawa’s body stiffened at the change of subject, but Haruko Yanase’s, whose ambition is to become a journalist, did not realize it. She is still an amateur. By the way, she is a small person. If she and Hasegawa face each other, it would be like she is talking to Hasegawa’s chest.
Hasegawa’s facial expression was hidden by her height, and she might have to be thankful for it. Because if Haruko saw her face, she would have surely realized it.
“Hasegawa-san, did you finish your errand?”
Just before entering the dojo, a voice called her from the side.
“Club president Higashi. I am really sorry. I ended up coming late to practice.”
She lowers her head. The person that calls her is the new club president, Higashi Yukari. Because she was called to a confession, she told the club president beforehand that she will be late because of a class errand.
Honestly, it would better if she met her after she changed clothes, it can't be helped that she meets her in her dougi just like that. Haruko who is in the same grade also stands out, so she was noticed as well.
It seems Higashi Yukari just got back from drinking water.
"Ara, Yanase-san is also together with you?"
"Eh, yes~ that's right! I also helped!"
Hasegawa is amazed and gives a bitter smile at Haruko’s knack for this kind of things.
"I see. Then both of you, let's go."
"Yes!"
Immediately, senpai reduces her walking speed to walk next to Yanase. Higashi Yukari brought her face close to Yanase’s ear without changing her smiling expression and whispers something.
Haruko opens her eyes wide and big, dripping with cold sweat to the point that it felt as if it would let out sound effects. Her face turned pale. Her appearance looks like a cat that was surprised by a loud sound.
Hasegawa wonders what was going on and tried to look at Yukari’s face, but she still can't infer the contents of what was whispered.
"Don't overdo it, ok?"
Saying so, Higashi Yukari went back to the dojo without the first years.
"Hasegawa-chan, let's go back together."
"Ibuki-senpai."
With smiling face, a man approaches Hasegawa while she was wiping up her sweat. One foot taller than a normal Japanese person and natural light chestnut hair. Only his face indicates that he is Japanese.
Even if people exaggerate saying that he belongs to the entertainment industry almost everyone would believe it.
His name is Masamune Ibuki. Nakatsuhara high school second year, an archery club member, and second place in the latest school test rankings in his grade. It can be said that he is a highest ranked superhuman.
But in Ibuki's case, he is a celebrity whose name is often talked about mainly because of his love affairs.
Whatever about it. If you want to take him it's okay, If he is taken it's also okay. If he enjoys it then it's okay. He is a hedonist.
He is a man that prefers enjoying love affairs with everyone, rather than spending time nurturing love. He is someone that is thought of as a nuisance by other boys.
It’s recently become a very common sight at the archery club. Ibuki’s most recent obsession was the first year newcomer, Hasegawa Nukumi.
Even though he said: "I was firmly rejected", his will did not get blown away by the wind, and has not stopped approaches towards the said kouhai.
An admirable spirit.
"If you don’t have any plans, it's okay, right?"
"Senpai is the one that seems to have plans though"
"... Ahaha."
Nukumi says redolent words as she glances at several female students.
"I don't want to be one of senpai's girlfriends"
"Hasegawa-chan, Ibuki-senpai’s quality is that he doesn’t give up"
"Hasegawa's quality is that she wants to be serious with only one."
She exchanged words with senpai like she is accustomed to it. Her interactions with Haruko might have helped in part in getting accustomed to the conversations with Ibuki. If it was her past self, her face would be red in confusion.
"Yah~, I am troubled. But Hasegawa-chan really has changed huh~ I thought you were in a bad mood for a while, but you suddenly matured. Did something happen?"
"Who knows, I don't really know about it myself."
"Really~? Somehow I think I know who is the one responsible for that, but I don't think that it is good to get so affected by it, you know?"
"You can tell… huh. Then, you should have also noticed that I hate this right? Except for the first confession, I thought you were keeping me in check in all the other confessions"
Hearing the ‘check’ word, the friendly smile drops from Ibuki's face. He was barely able to reform his smile.
".....You are really sharp huh. But that’s not the only reason I confessed to you multiple times. I am quite serious for Nukumi..."
Masamune who changed to a serious expression called Hasegawa with her first name. But, those words weren’t tied until the end.
"Ibuki-senpai....I think at most I can only take friendship. I will not become one of senpai's lovers. So please excuse me. Thank you for your hard work."
Ibuki sees off the back of the kouhai entering the locker room.
(Good grief, to think that the first woman i really think of is holding an unrequited love towards a friend of mine. I guess I also got fried. It's cool to just brush it off and watch over it, but to be completely seen through when I was confessing over and over, it’s embarrassing)
He stretched his arm to stop her, but it stays idle in place. Without any other choice, he reluctantly takes his hand to the back of his head and scratches it. As if representing his inability to act on his own feelings.
"Ibuki~ The girls are tired of waiting. Quickly change your clothes and leave."
"On my way."
It can be seen that he is popular with the opposite sex because there are many girls waiting outside the dojo. But there are no archery club members included.
His reputation that is well known inside the club is one of the reasons, but there’s also the simple and surprising fact that he doesn't interact much with the club members of the opposite sex.
The reason is extremely simple. Because he excels in appearance and studies, nevertheless he likes to entertain woman with plenty of topics and that is why he is popular with women.
But the archery club also has different boys that have the same qualities as him.
Because of this, even when he has this many qualities, the girls don’t think of him as faithful (in an earnest meaning), and it's recognized as a fault of him. Leaving aside if it is acceptable, he has a reason as to why he goes out with several girls at once. But if people don’t understand that reason, there’s no point.
(That Makoto, how exactly did he conquer both Higashi and Hasegawa? Good grief, if I lost in both there and archery, I won't have any standing left.)
The boy named Misumi Makoto didn’t plan this at all. Or rather something like a woman's heart, maybe he is dense because of his thoughtless sisters.
The words: ‘Not only at archery’ denoted that Ibuki thought of Makoto as a worthy rival. But it's just one sided feeling from Ibuki.
He has seen Makoto shooting the bow several times. And when Ibuki saw this, for the first time he thought of someone’s skills as god-like.
Far superior technique, it's not weird to compare those skills to that of a god or devil. For the first time, Ibuki Masamune thought of Misumi Makoto’s skill to be in the domain of gods.
Since then, it's certainly because of him recognizing those skills as god-like that his hurdle of god-like things went up. Once something has been recognized, he was unable to accept anything else to be ofthe same level.
That's why he got interested in the person that had her heart taken by Makoto, and he splendidly fell in love with her.
(Naa Makoto. Higashi is good, Hasegawa is good. Aren't both of them great women? You really have to come back sometime. The dutiful you disappeared, so I know it's not just a simple matter. But you know, something happened with those two right? If that is so, then at least settle those matters first. I will do my best to keep strange insects away from those girls so.....Damn it, I got the total loser role. Even though I am confident I have the specs of an MC. My family is quite rich, and my face, stature, and style are also excellent, my single digit ranking in grades has also never fallen, versatile in sports, plus I am also plentiful in topics and am popular with both boys and girls~ No matter how you look, I am an MC, right?)
Certainly, Masamune Ibuki's frightening spec can be boasted about. It's not wrong if you make a graph with perfect scores for it. It's a fact that his total competency far exceeded Makoto… It's different if it's a talk if he can become MC or not.
Misumi Makoto is specialized in one point. In terms of skills, the only one that can be brought in numerical numbers and be able to boast about would be his archery ability. If his ability was presented in a radar chart and you try to match it with the strongest, the result of that graphic would be a perfect line-up. His specialization was on another level.
If you try to find Makoto's good points, perhaps Makoto is more of a pity.
Masamune Ibuki solidified his resolve to watch over the love of his friend who is considered a hero. That determination won't be known to anyone else, and his way of acting friendly towards the girls that have been waiting for him has not changed since his admission.