NTR Kousuke

Chapter 31

Tanaka: "Kousuke-kun! Good work! Can you take a look at this?"

It had been a week since the new school term started. Just another ordinary day. Sports day was also coming up at the end of the month.

My best friend, Tanaka, came over after club activities and handed me a hard drive.

What is this?

After the seating change, various things for Sports Day were decided, and club activities also started, returning to our usual daily routine.

I, too, spent my days diligently working on club activities and studying.

As for Tomonaga-san, she apparently secured cooperation from influential people in the class and was being hidden so as not to stand out.

While her weight wasn't dropping as rapidly as during summer vacation, it was steadily decreasing.

Today, Tomonaga-san was again running next to the basketball club, managed by Airi-senpai, and helping out with manager duties.

And Tanaka, after handing over the hard drive, whisked Tomonaga-san away.

Was it a regular interview or a boot camp...?

Incidentally, the members of the film club are also losing weight because they're accompanying her on her diet.

I went home, took a bath, and ate dinner.

While reviewing for classes until 22:00, I remembered Tanaka's hard drive.

Should I watch it before bed?

Thinking so, I connected it to my PC and checked, finding a video file inside.

??

Class 1-5 Relegation Match

was the title.

What is this? I tried opening the video file.

The film club's clubroom?

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Occasionally, Tanaka and his friends' commentary will be included.

Please be aware.

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Tanaka: "Yes, hello. This is Tanaka, a first-year, for the commentary."

Tanaka bowed politely.

Airi: "I'm Tendou, a second-year... Tanaka-kun? Are you recording this?"

Tanaka: "Yes, just this part. After this, it will only be audio."

Airi: "Huh? I'm not wearing makeup, and I'm in my jersey after club activities! Don't record!"

Tanaka: "Haha! It's fine, probably only Kousuke-kun will watch it."

Airi: "!! That's not allowed!"

The screen went dark.

Tanaka: "From here on is the live commentary, but Class 1-5 is Mishima Satsuki-san's class. She achieved her long-cherished dream of becoming a top girl in the top clique. But, you know, everyone is aiming for an upset if they get the chance, lol."

Tanaka... looks like he's having too much fun?

Here, the screen switched.

A subtitle appeared, saying "After school on the second day of the new semester."

It said the girls in the class were discussing Sports Day, which they would decide tomorrow.

Tanaka, how did you film this?

Girls were gathered, chattering noisily.

Satsuki, in the center, spoke to everyone,

Satsuki: "For Sports Day, how about all us girls match our headbands like ribbons? And everyone wears team-colored scrunchies to make us look flashy and cute!"

Good idea! Cute! Matching is good! Flashy and cute!

Voices of agreement continued, but then,

?: "Did you forget about the boys in the class? Wouldn't class T-shirts be better?"

Commentary

Tanaka: "Alright! First to speak was Mishima! She's asserting herself as the top, saying, 'The class policy will be decided by my proposal!' And the one who raised an objection was Akino! Until before summer vacation, she served as the top of the second clique, with a good balance of appearance, inner qualities, academics, and sports. The flashy Mishima reigned over the top clique of the class! With her relationship with Yamamoto-kun, her flashy appearance, and her social circle, the top clique of Class 5 was Mishima and her entourage's faction, but..."

Airi: "...Girls, you know, after summer, when they gain [some] confidence, they can become surprisingly beautiful or undergo a complete image change [transform]."

Tanaka: "That's right. Akino is beautiful and well-balanced, but she was a step behind Mishima. However, did she grow beyond summer? She looks prettier, sexier, and more confident than before summer, doesn't she? She's definitely cuter than before summer!"

Airi: "...Mishima-san... this girl is Kousuke-kun's..."

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Akino: "It's not just us girls, is it? Considering the class as a whole, why don't we make it matching T-shirts for the entire class, and then us girls can match with something else?"

Ah, I see. Maybe if the boys also matched, the class would feel more united?

The whole class! What about the boys?

Satsuki: "Huh? Everyone? This is about the girls, isn't it? The boys can do their own thing, can't they? ...I thought Akino-cchi would agree with my opinion, though?"

Commentary

Tanaka: "Akino rejected Mishima's proposal under the guise of the entire class, didn't she?"

Airi: "...Yes, while rejecting it, she also offered a slightly reserved opinion to Mishima, suggesting 'girls can match with something else,' and is now observing her reaction. Is this a battle over who has more influence?"

Tanaka: "So it's a battle of influence. That's why they're speaking while observing the audience's reactions, right? I see, so Mishima's comment, 'I thought you'd agree with my opinion,' is applying peer pressure?"

Airi: "It's a message like, 'Are you going against the top clique...?'"

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Akino: "But you know? The Sports Day executive committee member selected yesterday is my best friend, right? And the class representative is also my best friend, right?"

Satsuki: "Yeah, it's a school-wide event, so the class has to be united! Let's cooperate!"

Akino: "Yeah, yeah! That's right! The executive committee and class representative have it tough! Everyone, please cooperate!"

That's right! Let's show off our unity! It's exciting!

Let's do our best!

The surroundings look like a class that's united and in agreement, but...

Commentary

Tanaka: "At first glance, it seems fine, but...?"

Airi: "No, Akino is declaring that her group, which includes the class representative and executive committee member, will take charge, in response to Mishima's message not to go against the top clique. Mishima then rejects this, saying Akino's faction doesn't matter since it's a school-wide event, and Akino counters by appealing that since the class representative and executive committee are from her group, 'Everyone, we are the legitimate class representatives!'"

Tanaka: "So that's why the conversation feels so tense despite its content. As expected! Girls! Scary!"

Airi: "Not all girls are like this..."

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Mishima: "Yeah, cooperation! It's important, right? By the way? How was your summer vacation? Mine! I was with my boyfriend the whole time!"

Akino: "Oh. I got a boyfriend too!"

Mishima: "Oh, who is it? Since it's Akino-san, is he a quiet, gentle boyfriend?"

Akino: "Yeah, maybe?"

Mishima: "My boyfriend? He's a bit noisy? Always at clubs or night pools? He parties a lot in noisy places and gets excited easily, so I get tired! I'm so jealous!"

Akino: "That sounds tough, doesn't it? My boyfriend is a university student, and he said he's graduated from that kind of thing! Lately, we've just been going on night drives!"

Mishima: "!! Is that so...? University student?"

Akino: "That's right! I spend all my time driving around in the Citroën my parents bought me! Even though they bought me the car because I'm attending a prefectural national university, I'm only using it for dates?"

Amazing! Citroën? An import car? Drive dates...!

So mature! The audience seems to think Akino's boyfriend is superior.

Commentary

Airi: "Mishima changed the subject, didn't she? Since there's almost no difference in their influence, she switched to a battle of who has the more fulfilling life, right? And Mishima is showing off that she has a boyfriend. Like, 'You know, right?'"

Tanaka: "I see. And then Akino said, 'I got a boyfriend too.' Is that the confidence you were talking about earlier? And Mishima asked about Akino's boyfriend, 'quiet and gentle-looking'?"

Airi: "No, Mishima was provoking her, saying, 'Your boyfriend must be plain and unremarkable, right?' And when Akino affirmed it, Mishima immediately pressed on, saying, 'My boyfriend parties at clubs and night pools! Whoo!' and challenged her with a display of having a fulfilling life. But then Akino's boyfriend is a university student!"

Tanaka: "Oh! For us, a university student is on a different level, isn't it? What she said earlier about him being excited sounds childish!"

Airi: "Right? And what's more, the best university in the prefecture, Prefectural National University! Citroën! Night drive dates! Akino went all out at once!"

Tanaka: "Attending a national university! Driving around in a Citroën bought by her parents! Power words exploding! Is this game over?!"

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Mishima: "Let's both cherish our boyfriends, okay? Then for Sports Day! I think I'll leave Sports Day to Akino-cchi! I'll put all my effort into the cultural festival! Let's cooperate with each other!"

Akino: "...Yeah, that's fine! Let's all do our best for both Sports Day and the cultural festival! Let's get results!"

Yeah! Let's do our best! That's right!

Let's cooperate! It's exciting! Yahoo!

Commentary

Tanaka: "Mishima is saying something about 'cherishing our boyfriends,' but...?"

Airi: "This is a proposal to call it a draw. And they made a deal where Akino will be in charge of Sports Day and Mishima will be in charge of the cultural festival. It's like they promised a demotion next season if they don't get results."

Tanaka: "Huh? It looked like Mishima cleverly managed to bring it to a draw?"

Airi: "For a top girl to accept the demands of a second-tier girl and split the events to be in charge is effectively a 'loss.' It's like declaring that their positions will be reversed depending on the event results."

Tanaka: "It looked like Akino was winning... Why did she compromise with an exchange based on next season's performance here?"

Airi: "Even so, the top clique girls are strong. If Akino had lost, she would have been seen as ignorant of her own place! She could have fallen not just to the second-tier, but all the way to the bottom. If the cultural festival and Sports Day were evaluated equally, the top clique girl's position wouldn't have shifted."

Tanaka: "...The title match challenging a boxing champion has the same rules, doesn't it? All those incessant mentions of 'each other' and 'cooperating' are just cold social niceties, aren't they...?"

Airi: "But perhaps, from what I've heard? It gives the impression that Mishima-san, whose superiority in looks, connections, and boyfriend should normally be unshakable, made a concession, right?"

Tanaka: "Ah, that's because Mishima Satsuki-san got red marks in three subjects and her summer remedial classes were prolonged, so I think she panicked, thinking she'd lose if she brought up summer vacation herself and got called out on it."

Airi: "!!! Three red marks... That's fatal... If Akino had known that, it would have been a complete shutout victory..."

Tanaka: "Akino probably didn't imagine it had gotten that far, did she? The top clique girl's promotion/relegation match, where the victor will be decided at the autumn event! This time, Mishima Satsuki barely managed to hold on! The outlook for next season is uncertain! Well then, this live commentary was brought to you by Tanaka from the film club, and..."

Airi: "Tendou, the basketball club manager♪"

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What is this? What have I just been shown?

I don't understand Tanaka-kun lately...!