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Hikaru’s face turned pale after hearing Zul’s words. He gripped his blanket tightly, his expression darkening.
“Is that true, Zul?” Hikaru asked, his voice tense.
Zul gave a small nod. “Yeah, that’s what happened.”
“Damn it… I knew it,” Hikaru muttered, running a hand through his hair in frustration. “Why didn’t Mizuha tell me about it earlier? Why is she hiding this from me?”
“She probably didn’t want to worry you,” Zul replied. “Especially with you being sick like this.”
Hikaru clenched his fists, feeling both frustrated and guilty. He should have noticed something was wrong earlier.
“But don’t worry,” Zul continued. “Even with all that happening, she never gave up. She’s holding strong. And she’s not alone—Elly, Shimizu, and even Takeru have been supporting her.”
Hikaru blinked. “Wait… Takeru too?”
Zul nodded. “Yeah. He stood up for her.”
Hikaru let out a deep sigh. “That guy… I had a feeling he’d do something like that. I should thank him later for helping Mizuha.”
Hikaru then narrowed his eyes. “Did you guys find out who started the rumor in the first place?”
“Not yet,” Zul admitted. “I’ve been looking into it, but I haven’t found anything concrete.”
“I see…” Hikaru exhaled sharply, his frustration lingering. After a moment, he looked at Zul. “By the way… thanks for looking out for her. I appreciate it.”
Zul shrugged. “It’s nothing. I can’t just sit back while a friend of mine gets badmouthed like that.”
He stretched his arms, then picked up his bag. “Alright, that’s all I wanted to say. I should get going now.”
Hikaru gave a small nod. “Yeah. Anyway, thanks for visiting me today. Also, please take care of Mizuha for me.”
“No problem. Just leave it to me. You better get well soon,” Zul said before turning to leave.
Hikaru watched as Zul walked out of the room, his mind still racing with thoughts about Mizuha.
Geez, I'm really totally useless this time, getting a cold at such bad timing. I hope Mizuha will stay strong with everything that has happened, he thought.
Meanwhile, Kurumi and her gang were hanging out at the playground near their school since classes had ended early.
Kurumi smirked and laughed. "Did you see Yuki's face earlier? She was completely messed up, right?"
One of her friends nodded. "Yeah, I've never seen her look so disappointed before."
The group laughed and said "With all this pressure, I'm sure she'll give up on Hikaru. Then you'll have your chance, Kurumi-chan,"
Kurumi crossed her arms. "Oh, come on. Don't get excited too soon. There's still more we need to do."
Suddenly, Kurumi's phone vibrated. She looked at the screen and opened a message. A picture of Mizuha and Zul together appeared. The picture had been taken earlier when they were walking together back from school.
Kurumi smirked. "Oh, looks like we got something interesting. That person really knows how to do their job."
"Hey Kurumi-chan, what's wrong? Smudging like that all of a sudden?" her friends asked. Kurumi took her phone and showed her friends the photo. They leaned in to look at the picture.
"No way! So she's not just two-timing with Takeru—she's going after Zul too?" one of them sneered. "What is she thinking?"
Another friend chuckled. "Hey, we can use this for our next move, right?"
Kurumi grinned. "Of course. This will bring even more chaos for her." She laughed, and her friends joined in.
As the rain started to pour again, Kurumi and her friends wrapped up their conversation and decided to go home. One by one, they split up, heading toward their houses. Eventually, Kurumi was left alone, walking home in the rain while holding her umbrella.
The road was quiet, with only a few cars passing by. As she walked, she felt uneasy, as if someone was behind her. She ignored it at first, thinking it was just her imagination.
But the feeling didn't go away.
Kurumi's steps slowed. Something is wrong, she thought. It felt like someone had been following her for a while.
She stopped walking and turned around.
"Who's there?" she shouted.
No one was there. The street was empty. She scanned the area but saw nothing suspicious. There was no movement, no sign of anyone hiding.
She frowned, still feeling uneasy. To be safe, she walked faster and entered a crowded area nearby. As she blended into the people, the feeling of being followed disappeared.
Even though she felt relieved, something still bothered her. I was sure someone was behind me, she thought.
She slid her hands into her jacket pockets. That was when she felt something unusual—a folded piece of paper.
Her eyes narrowed as she pulled it out. When did this get here? she wondered. She unfolded the paper and saw a short message written on it.
"Enough, Stay out of this!"
Kurumi's face twisted in anger. She didn't feel fear—she felt rage. “What is this? A warning?!”
"This must be Mizuha's doing," she muttered. "She thinks she can stop me like this?"
She crushed the paper in her hand and feeling upset.
"I won't stop just because of this," she said. "If she wants to fight, I'll show her what happens when she messes with me."
A short distance away, the person who had been following her earlier, wearing a hoodie, watched her from afar, then grinned, baring their teeth before suddenly smirking to themselves.
The next morning, Kurumi and her friends gathered in the school bathroom, huddled in a circle as they plotted their next move against Mizuha.
"Let's spread the rumor about those two and show everyone that photo," Kurumi said with a smirk. "Everyone will definitely believe they're dating when they see it."
"Oh, the photo from yesterday? That's a great idea, Kurumi-chan!" her friend agreed.
"Yeah, and we can also start something about Elly and Shimizu," another added. "Get everyone around her involved."
They were so caught up in their discussion that they didn't notice Mizuha had entered earlier and was listening from one of the stalls. She stepped out, her face stern.
"Enough with all this nonsense,you guys" Mizuha said firmly.
"Oh, look who's here—Yuki-san herself," Kurumi said, mocking Mizuha.
At the same time, Takeru walked into Class 1F, looking around the classroom.
"Mizuha, are you here?" he called out. After scanning the room again, he frowned. "Huh? She's not here?"
He spotted Shimizu and Elly chatting near Zul's seat and approached them. Shimizu turned to Zul with a curious look.
"Hey, where did you go with Mizuha yesterday?" she asked.
"We went to visit Hikaru," Zul replied simply.
"How is he doing?" Elly asked.
"He's fine. Said he'll be back soon."
"I see. That's good then," Shimizu nodded.
Takeru suddenly appeared behind Shimizu, throwing an arm around her neck in a friendly gesture. "What's this, Shimizu? Missing Hikaru already? Feeling lonely with no one to tease?" He chuckled.
Shimizu stiffened. "Oh, it's you, Takeru." She glared at his arm. "First of all, watch where you're putting your hands. I'm not one of your buddy-buddy friends, you know."
Takeru's face turned red as he realized his mistake. That's right, she's a girl. I completely forgot about that, he thought, then quickly pulled his arm back.
"Sorry, sorry! It's just a habit—I thought you were one of my guy friends," he said with an awkward laugh.
"You're really hopeless," Shimizu sighed. "Well, I'm not in the mood to be upset about it right now."
“So, why did you come here? Do you need anything?” Shimizu asked.
“Not really, I just wanted to check on Mizuha. I don’t see her here. Hasn’t she arrived at school yet?” Takeru replied.
"Mizuha-chan is already here. She went to the restroom," Elly replied, pointing at Mizuha's seat in front of them.
"Oh, you're right. Her bag is here—I didn't notice it," said Takeru.
"Speaking of that, she's been gone a while. I wonder what's keeping her," said Shimizu.
The classroom situation felt awkward as students whispered about a commotion happening in the toilet.
"Really? Is this actually happening there now?"
"Yes, it actually happened," they said, looking at each other with concern.
Shimizu turned to a classmate nearby. "Hey, what's going on? Everyone seems to be talking about something."
"Ah, Toyama-san," the classmate leaned in. "You see, Yuki-san and Kurumi are having a serious argument in the toilet right now. People say it's getting intense."
Shimizu, Elly, Takeru, and Zul exchanged shocked looks.
"Mizuha-chan..." Elly said, her expression filled with concern.
"We should go check on her," Takeru said, rushing immediately.
Shimizu nodded. "Let's go, you guys."
They rushed toward the toilet, with Shimizu leading the way. As they arrived, they saw a large crowd surrounding the entrance to the girls' toilet.
"What's with all these people?" Shimizu muttered, pushing her way through.
Students in the crowd talked amongst themselves.
"What happened? A fight inside there?"
"I heard shouting. Seems serious."
"Who is involved in this?"
"I heard Yuki-san, the one people have been talking about recently, had a confrontation with her classmate Kurumi and her friends."
"Is this related to the bad rumor surrounding her right now?"
"I think so," the crowd said to each other.
"That's really a lot of people gathering here," said Shimizu.
Takeru noticed Akemi in the crowd and approached her. "Hey Akemi, what actually happened?"
Akemi turned around. "Oh, Takeru-kun, and everyone. You see, Mizuha-chan and the other girl from the same class, Kurumi-san, right? They are arguing with each other inside," she said, pointing at the toilet door.
"Did you hear what they were arguing about?" Takeru asked.
"From what I heard from everyone here before me, Mizuha-chan is trying to stop them from spreading more rumors. Especially since they planned to involve you guys, especially Sakamoto-san and Shimizu, in this rumor too."
"Damn, they're going too far now. I can't hold this any longer. I'm going inside to help Mizuha. Let's go, Elly," said Shimizu, upset, dragging Elly's hand and going through the crowd.
"Wait, Shimizu-chan!" said Elly while being dragged by Shimizu.
"Wait, Shimizu!" said Zul.
"That girl, she really likes to act recklessly suddenly without thinking," said Zul.
"Well, that's how she is... haha," said Takeru with a chuckle.
Suddenly, someone approached them from behind.
"Hey, you guys, what actually happened here? Why are so many people crowded here?" they asked.
As Takeru, Zul, and Akemi turned to face backward, they were shocked by the person who was asking.
"Wait, you..." "Hikaru...?" they said at the same time after realizing Hikaru was approaching.
"Step aside! Make way!" shouted Shimizu while dragging Elly and pushing through the crowd.
"Hey, what are you doing, pushing us like that?" said a male student in front of Shimizu.
"Huh? Did you say something?" Shimizu asked, glaring at him.
The crowd was shocked by Shimizu's approach.
"Oh no, it's that girl—the delinquent, Toyama."
"Why is she here?"
"Hey, just move aside! If she gets mad, she'll beat us up!"
Hearing this, the crowd quickly stepped back, giving Shimizu space to walk through.
Good, they listened, Shimizu thought, smiling and said, "Thank you."
At the same time, Kurumi suddenly shoved Mizuha against the wall. She pulled out the warning note she had received the day before and held it up in front of Mizuha's face.
"You sent this, didn't you? Trying to scare me? Too bad—it's not working."
Her friends gasped.
"Wait... is that true, Kurumi-chan?" one of them asked in shock.
Kurumi scoffed. "Of course! This idiot thinks she can threaten us with a stupid note."
Mizuha's eyes widened. "Wait... are you seriously accusing me of doing that?"
"Who else would it be?" Kurumi snapped. "Enough wasting time on her. Let's move on to the next step of our plan."
"Please... like I said before, if you want to spread rumors about me, then fine. But don't involve my friends in this."
Kurumi and her friends burst into laughter.
"You guys hear that? She's begging us to spare her friends—how pathetic!" Kurumi mocked.
"I don't understand why Hikaru-kun is interested in a pathetic girl like you. He was supposed to get together with me, not you," Kurumi added with a sneer.
"Oh, nevermind, let's go girls," said Kurumi.
As Kurumi and her gang turned to leave, Mizuha reached out, grabbing Kurumi's shoulder.
"Wait... please don't do this," Mizuha pleaded.
Kurumi's expression darkened. With a sudden snap, she shouted, "Don't touch me with your filthy hands!" and shoved Mizuha backward.
Mizuha stumbled and fell, landing hard on the floor. Before she could react, Kurumi stepped forward and pressed her foot against Mizuha's chest.
"I'm surprised you have the guts to stop me, huh," Kurumi sneered. "Looks like you need to be taught a lesson," she continued while pushing Mizuha backward with her leg.
"Why are you doing this to me? Did I do something bad to you before?" said Mizuha, trying to push back Kurumi's leg.
"No, it's nothing, but your presence here is really making me irritated. Since you transferred, I've had no chance to get close with Hikaru-kun, you know."
"That's right, Kurumi-chan likes Hikaru-kun, but you ruined everything," another friend agreed with her.
"You're really such an eyesore," said Kurumi. "Alright, let's make a deal."
"A deal?" Mizuha replied.
"Why don't you distance yourself from Hikaru-kun after this?" Kurumi added.
"If you do that, we promise to leave you alone... how is it?" said Kurumi, holding Mizuha's chin while smirking at her.
"No, I..." Mizuha could not finish her words.
One of Kurumi's friends glanced at the entrance, noticing more students gathering outside and looking shocked. "Hey Kurumi, can we go now? They're hearing us from outside," she muttered.
Kurumi scoffed, ignoring them, but before she could speak, a sharp voice interrupted.
"Step away! Give way!"
The voice was strong and approaching fast. The crowd outside murmured as footsteps drew closer.
"Wait, Shimizu-chan!" another voice followed.
That voice... Shimizu!? Elly-chan!? thought Mizuha.
At that moment, Elly and Shimizu arrived, their eyes widening in shock at the sight before them.
"Mizuha-chan!" said Elly, her voice trembling with concern.
Shimizu, shocked at what she was seeing, really snapped. Without hesitation, she approached Kurumi, pulled her arm, and immediately slapped her face with all her might.
The sound echoed through the bathroom as Kurumi staggered backward, her hand flying to her reddened cheek.
"It hurts! What do you think you're doing?" Kurumi yelled in shock.
One of her friends spoke up. "Wait, Kurumi-chan, that was—"
"Toyama!? What are you doing here?" Kurumi exclaimed, still holding her cheek.
Shimizu ignored Kurumi and turned to Mizuha instead. Elly had already rushed to Mizuha's side, helping her get up from the floor.
"Thanks, Elly-chan," Mizuha said as she steadied herself.
"Mizuha, are you okay?" Shimizu asked with concern.
Mizuha brushed off her uniform. "I'm fine, but my skirt got wet because of the floor," she said with a small laugh.
Shimizu shook her head. "I see, you don't know how to be upset properly. You're too soft on them." Her expression changed slightly. "But you did well defending us from being involved in their mess. Thank you." She straightened up. "Now, let me show you how to deal with these guys."
Shimizu turned back to Kurumi and her friends, glaring as she approached Kurumi. She grabbed Kurumi's collar firmly.
"Kurumi-chan!" one of her friends called out.
"Hey, you! What are you doing? Put me down!" Kurumi demanded, trying to sound brave despite looking afraid.
Shimizu tightened her grip. "You! What do you think you can do to my best friend?" she said. "I know you don't like Mizuha for some reason, but what you're doing is too far and it's making me irritated. I never knew you guys were these kinds of people." She spoke with disgust. "What is this, ganging up on one person because of Hikaru? What's so special about that guy? It's disgusting."
Shimizu pushed Kurumi backward, sending her stumbling into her friends. Some female students who had gathered outside were now watching the confrontation.
Shimizu walked toward the group, cracking her knuckles. "Also, I heard you guys have something to say about me," she said calmly. "Well, say it. I'm here to hear it."
Kurumi clenched her fists, her anger rising.
"You, don't act like you're better!" said Kurumi.
One of her friends quickly grabbed her arm. "Don't do it, Kurumi-chan! You can't win against her," she whispered urgently. "Have you forgotten how she alone managed to defeat those senpai who bullied Sakamoto-san back then?"
Kurumi froze, gritting her teeth as that incident came back to her.
Shimizu noticed her hesitation and smirked. "Oh? So you've heard about that." She leaned in slightly, her voice steady. "You know it, right? That you can't beat me in a fight."
She stepped closer and shoved Kurumi back, making her stumble slightly. "So? Got nothing to say? Then get lost. Dealing with you guys is a waste of my time."
Shimizu's expression hardened. "And if you even think about laying a finger on Mizuha again..." She let the words linger for a moment. "You already know what happens next."
Kurumi bit her tongue in frustration, her cheek still sore from Shimizu's earlier slap. "Tch... Too many damn interferences." She turned to her friends, trying to maintain some dignity. "Let's go, girls," she said and left in a hurry, her friends following closely behind.
As Kurumi and her gang left, the restroom remained tense. Mizuha let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding, while Elly still looked shaken.
Once Kurumi and her gang were gone, Shimizu sighed and shook her head. "Geez, those girls just don't know when to stop." She turned to Mizuha with concern. "But this isn't the end. I'm sure they'll try again."
She then looked at Mizuha and was about to say something when she noticed a tear rolling down her cheek. Shimizu's eyes widened. "Wait... are you crying?"
Mizuha quickly wiped her face, but her voice trembled with emotion. "Shimizu, Elly-chan... thank you. Thank you for coming. I don't know what I would've done without you guys."
Seeing Mizuha like this, Elly's eyes welled up as well. "Please don't cry, Mizuha-chan. If you cry... I..." She couldn't finish her sentence as a tear slipped down her cheek.
Shimizu chuckled. "Look who's talking, Elly. You're crying too."
"Huh? Really?" Elly quickly wiped her tears, sniffling a little.
Without hesitation, Shimizu pulled Mizuha into a tight hug. "Don't worry. Something like this won't happen again," she promised. "Next time, don't try to handle everything alone. Trust us. No matter what happens, we're always here for you."
Mizuha nodded against Shimizu's shoulder.
Shimizu then pulled back slightly and smirked. "And actually, we're the ones who should be thanking you—for standing up for us."
Mizuha smiled through her tears.
"Good for you, Mizuha-chan," Elly said as she wiped her eyes again.
Shimizu turned to her. "Elly, don't just stand there. Come on, let's all hug together."
"Ehh? Do I have to?" Elly hesitated.
"Of course! We're friends, aren't we?" Shimizu looked at Mizuha, who nodded in agreement.
Elly sighed playfully before finally stepping in to join the hug. "Thank you... both of you," Mizuha whispered.
The three of them chuckled softly, their bond stronger than ever.
At the same moment, Hikaru talked to Takeru, Akemi, and Zul about the current situation, and they told Hikaru about it.
Kurumi and her friends exited the toilet, and they seemed awkward as the crowd surrounding them whispered.
"Huh, are they all talking about us?" said her friend to Kurumi. "It looks like the incident earlier must have attracted everyone. Ignore them and just walk. We need to make another plan after this," Kurumi whispered to them.
Suddenly, at Takeru's group, Akemi looked at her phone and said, "Oh, it's almost time. I need to meet the teacher after this. I'll go first." "Then better go first. It looks like they've all finished with it. I'm counting on you, class rep," said Takeru. Akemi then left after that.
At the same time, Hikaru saw them walking and asked Zul, "Hey, Zul, were they the ones...?"
"Yes, they're the ones who did that to Mizuha..." replied Zul.
"Oh, I see... it was them, huh?" said Hikaru.
"Hey, Takeru, I'm going to do something. Can you play along with me?" said Hikaru.
"Do something, wait, don't tell me you're going to..." replied Takeru.
"Yes, it's time to clear this misunderstanding for Mizuha and even for you guys too," said Hikaru.
"Okay, I will play along with it. Let's do that..." said Takeru with a smirk.
Hikaru took a deep breath, then said in a louder voice, "Like I said earlier, Takeru, Mizuha did not two-time you, right?"
Takeru played along and said, "Yes, that's right. What the rumor said is nothing. Me and Mizuha? Since when did I steal her from you, right, Hikaru-kun?"
The crowded attention now focusing to two of them, even Kurumi and his friends looking at them.
Zul, standing nearest to them, held himself back from laughing. These two... really...
The surrounding crowd whispered to each other, "Really? So Yuki-san is not two-timing?" "It looks like that, even Hikaru is declaring about it."
Takeru then continued, "Also, Mizuha cheating during the exam? Are you joking? She did her best by herself. She even taught her friends before the exam and is a great tutor. What nonsense rumor is this?"
"Yes, I can confirm that," said Hikaru.
"Really, so the rumor is false?" the crowd talked among themselves. "So it was a lie, after all?"
"So Yuki-san is not doing anything wrong?"
"Unlike someone over there who is jealous of Mizuha's achievement and spread bad rumors about her, right?" said Hikaru, facing Kurumi's group.
"By the way, I do not trust rumors, especially from people who spread bad rumors. I really hate them..." Hikaru added.
Kurumi was shocked to hear that from Takeru, and her face turned pale. "Hey, Kurumi-chan, he was talking about us, right?" one of her friends said.
"Also, that came from Hikaru-kun too… what should we do now?" another added.
Kurumi remained silent and gritted her teeth before running away from the area. "Wait, Kurumi-chan..." said all of her friends, chasing her.
The crowd stood in silence, guilt washing over them for talking badly about Mizuha because of the rumors.
The girl who had peeked inside earlier during the confrontation said, "We saw what actually happened inside. Yuki-san was standing up for her friends, even while being surrounded by Kurumi's gang."
"We heard that Kurumi was the one planning to do something bad to Yuki-san's friends, but Yuki-san begged them to stop," said another girl.
"Even after those girls knocked her down, she still begged them to stop."
"Really? She prioritized her friends even when her own reputation was being ruined? What a person she is."
"So those rumors have been lying to us this whole time?" the students murmured among themselves.
"We were all wrong about her, and we need to apologize to Yuki-san after this."
"Looks like they're starting to realize the rumor was false," said Takeru.
"Yeah, it looks like that," replied Hikaru.
A teacher noticed the commotion and said, "What's going on here? Why are you all gathered here? It's almost time for the first class. Dismiss immediately and return to your classrooms," ordered the male teacher as he passed by.
"Oh no! He's right, we better get back to class," said a student in the crowd. "Let's go."
The crowd gradually dispersed, and as the number of students decreased, Mizuha, Elly, and Shimizu left the restroom at the same time, while Hikaru, Takeru, and Zul remained outside, waiting for them.
54Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiwcqA26mCt
To be continue…. Amemonogatari VI
54Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZtZ7Hkggho
54Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxvp02hySvG
