With a sigh, she walked purposefully into a dimly lit alley, her thoughts consumed by her complex feelings for her classmate, her friend, the leader of Class 3-D. The emotions swirling within her were undeniably intense, simultaneously exhilarating and unsettling.

 

Lost in her thoughts, she continued down the alley when she suddenly heard noises emanating from a group of men who seemed to be ganging up on a middle-school-aged boy. Furrowing her brow, she observed the situation, the men appearing to be five to ten years older than the young boy. Feeling a desire to intervene but uncertain of what to do, she noticed a small but solid rock nearby. A grin crossed her face as she seized the rock and, with determination, hurled it forcefully at the man closest to the boy.

 

The impact caused the man to groan and turn his attention toward her. "Bullying a middle school kid makes you all pests," she commented, earning surprised looks from the group.

 

"Arigatou, anee-san," the black-haired boy said as he rushed toward her. Though she frowned, his face seemed oddly familiar, and she couldn't quite place where she'd seen him before.

 

"Hey, girl, that was a heroic move, but don't you think you're being reckless?" one of the men remarked, prompting her to cast a quiet, piercing glare at him. Another man approached their boss.

 

"This girl's getting cocky and dangerous, boss," he reported, to which the leader simply smirked.

 

Reiko sighed and shook her head, then turned her attention back to the boy. "Go home, kid," she instructed, and the boy nodded, bidding her farewell before departing.

 

The leader, clearly infuriated, charged toward her. She swiftly ducked out of his way and swung her leg, causing him to tumble to the ground. The other four men looked on, stunned. One of them, armed with a pipe, crept up behind her, attempting to trap her with the pipe.

 

Reiko peered over her shoulder, finding herself pinned between the pipe and the man. She grabbed the pipe in front of her, backing away from the man who had tumbled earlier. Quickly, she rolled over the man's back, slipping free from his grasp and maintaining her hold on the pipe. Another man approached her, but with the pipe firmly in her grip, she struck the man's arm, forcing him to retreat.

 

"You sure know how to handle yourself, girly," the boss sneered, his smirk growing wider as he reached into his pocket. Reiko squinted her eyes at the boss, bracing herself for whatever he might have up his sleeve. And indeed, it came to pass as the boss withdrew a pocket knife, lunging at Reiko and swinging it toward her. She deftly evaded the attack, using the pipe to protect herself.

 

The other men closed in around them, and Reiko cursed under her breath. Her eyes widened in pain as the boss managed to grab the pipe and slashed it toward her side. She winced as the blade cut into her arm, causing it to bleed. Through gritted teeth, she muttered, "Kusou, don't underestimate me," before delivering a punch to the man in front of her with her left hand, sending him stumbling away. She reclaimed the pipe, but due to the deep wound on her arm, she had to let go of it and used her right hand to stem the blood flow.

 

"Who are you?!" the boss demanded, clutching his throbbing cheek, while another man from her left tightly gripped her injured arm, causing her to cry out in pain.

 

Summoning her strength, Reiko pulled herself up and pushed herself toward the man who was holding her. She delivered a powerful jab to his stomach. "Who taught you to fight? You're no ordinary girl who knows her way around a brawl, are you?!" he exclaimed, his voice filled with astonishment.

 

Reiko panted heavily, catching her breath as she stood over the boss, who was still seated on the ground. In moments like this, she knew how to humble herself. She allowed an evil smirk to form on her face, one reminiscent of Mizuo's, leaving all five pairs of eyes widened in shock.

 

"Mizuo taught me quite well," she responded calmly as the boss hastily got to his feet.

 

"Y-You're Masaki Reiko?! His queen?" one of the men stammered, clearly surprised.

 

"Damn, I don't want my life to end this soon!" exclaimed another, and they scattered away from her sight.

 

Mizuo's name carried weight, resonating from local thieves and thugs to the depths of the underground mafia.

 

Reiko let out a relieved sigh. She hadn't been in a brawl like this for some time, but she had acquired a bleeding arm in the process. She glanced down at her wounded arm and shook her head in dismay. "Damn, there goes my favorite uniform," she grumbled, then heard a rustling from a nearby trash can. "Who's there?" she demanded, only to be surprised when she found the boy still there, watching her.

 

Blinking in astonishment, the boy approached her and bowed apologetically. "I'm really sorry, anee-san. You got hurt because of me." Raising an eyebrow, she playfully raised her fist and gently tapped the back of the boy's head.

 

"Hey, don't worry about it, kid. You're lucky I spotted you getting cornered by those scumbags. But what brings you here, especially in the middle of the night?" she inquired, offering him a bit of a lecture.

 

"I'm looking for my brother. I thought he might be around here... our father might get angry with him again," the boy explained, looking down guiltily.

 

"Listen, kid, if your brother keeps provoking your father, it's his own fault for being stubborn. You should head home now," Reiko advised, as she began to walk away from the alley.

 

“B-But you’re bleeding, let me help you,” insist the boy as Reiko look back at the kid and shakes her head smiling.

 

“It’s okay, it’s just a scratch. Be careful on your way home,”

 

“A-Ah... I’m --ki Taku, anee-san!”

 

And with that, Reiko just nodded as she took off as fast as she can; she could already feel being light-headed, as she luckily went to her home until she passed out.

 

In the early morning hours, she awoke with a sense of heaviness weighing on her. Wincing in pain, she glanced at her arm and grimaced upon seeing the black gash. Frowning, she proceeded with her morning routine, which included tending to her bleeding arm.

 

She sighed, leaving her house and making her way toward school. The heavy feeling continued to plague her, and she couldn't quite pinpoint the exact cause. It might have been because she hadn't eaten dinner, or perhaps it stemmed from concerns about her cousin or her injured arm. Regardless, she despised the sensation of carrying such a weight on her shoulders.

 

Upon arriving at the school building, she spotted Tsuchiya, Hyuuga, and Takeda waiting outside the classroom. "Takeda-kun?" she called out weakly. Realizing her voice sounded off, she cleared and shook her head.

 

The three young men looked at her, their expressions a mix of surprise and concern. "Reiko?!" Takeda and Hyuuga exclaimed, a blend of relief and worry evident in their eyes.

 

"Why are you all waiting outside the classroom? Where's Hayato and Ryu-nii?" she inquired. Tsuchiya let out a sigh and answered her question.

 

"After we managed to escape from Kudo, we couldn't get in touch with them. We were afraid Kudo might have caught the three of you," Tsuchiya explained, her expression clouded with concern. Suddenly, Reiko winced in pain, and both Takeda and Hyuuga noticed the discomfort on her face.

 

"Reiko-chan, are you okay?" Hyuuga asked, concern evident in his voice, while Takeda furrowed his brow.

 

"You look pale. Are you sick?" Takeda pointed out, prompting Reiko to offer an assuring yet somewhat sheepish smile.

 

"I'm not feeling my best, but I'll manage," she replied, hoping to reassure them. Everyone accepted her words with nods of understanding.

 

“Ryu and Hayato were arrested?” Hyuuga asks, surprise as the entire students were shock to hear what Yamaguchi have told them, even Reiko who is at the back is surprise.

 

She was with Hayato yesterday night, leaving him with his phone ringing. “They haven’t been arrested, they’re just being interrogated,” Yamaguchi assures as Reiko has an idea who did it.

 

“They were definitely framed by Kudo.” Tsuchiya let out as Yamaguchi looked at him confused.

 

“Kudo? Who is that?”

 

“He was studying with us. He’s a student who was expelled last year right before graduation.” Takeda explains as Hyuuga nodded.

 

“We met him yesterday. He’s doing bad things here and there.”

 

“It was Kudo that had used Ryu and Hayato’s name last time,” Tsuchiya reveals as the students look at him incredulously.

 

“Are you serious?”

 

“That’s dangerous!”

 

 

 

Reiko's eyes slowly fluttered open as she emerged from a deep slumber. Taking in her surroundings, she reclined on the bed with a sense of calm. However, as she recalled the recent events, she abruptly sat up, only to wince in pain due to her injured arm.

 

"That's your punishment for being so stubborn," Mizuo chided as Reiko looks to the side to find Mizuo serenely sipping his tea with graceful poise.

 

"How long was I been out?"

 

Mizuo met her gaze with an inscrutable expression. "Tch... just five hours," he replied, leaning back in his comfortable chair positioned beside her bed. "And in case you're worried, those two are no longer considered suspects."

 

Relief washed over Reiko as she realized Mizuo's contribution to the situation. Instead of taking her to the hospital, they were at Mizuo's residence, where he and Shuriko tended to her injured arm. She offered a grateful smile to her friend. "Thank you, Mizuo..."

 

"If you hadn't distanced yourself from Yabuki, you might have been a suspect too, considering you were with them. But you left him..." Mizuo commented, rising from his seat and standing beside her bed. "And now, here you are, as stubborn as ever, getting injured while trying to protect a kid from being bullied. You always manage to find trouble."

 

Reiko sighed and furrowed her brow at Mizuo's observation. She couldn't fathom how he was privy to all the details he mentioned. All she knew was that Mizuo had consistently been her protector and advisor.

 

“Reiko-chan!!!”

 

Her eyes widened as she heard voices calling her name. She turned her gaze to Mizuo, surprise evident in her expression. Mizuo sighed and averted his eyes, reaching for the cup of tea on the table.

 

"They were here... equally stubborn, so I let them in," Mizuo began, "When they realized you weren't with Daisuke to bring them back, he informed them that you were here."

 

The door swung open rather abruptly, revealing Takeda, Tsuchiya, and Hyuuga, along with Ryu and Hayato. She managed a meek smile and offered a wave. "Uh, hi?"

 

"Reiko-chan, we were all really worried about you!" Takeda exclaimed, while Hyuuga nodded in agreement. "We're relieved you got help in time."

 

Her gaze flickered to Ryu and Hayato, but she quickly looked away when she noticed Hayato's intense stare fixed on her. "I'm glad they released you from that place," she responded, and Mizuo observed the awkward tension between Reiko and Hayato.

 

"It was your help and your friends' that made the search easier," Hyuuga chimed in as Euna, Shuriko, and Daisuke entered the room.

 

"It was the least I could do to assist; after all, we're all friends, right?" Reiko said, casting a meaningful glance toward Hayato as she emphasized the word 'friends.'

 

Ryu sighed, striding over to Reiko and softly tapping her head. "You were being reckless again," he chided her, looking down at her with a concerned expression. "Try not to do something so foolish in the future."

 

"Eh?"

 

"Mizuo told us everything about your injury and what happened that night, you foolish girl," Hayato added, and Reiko's senses went haywire, her heart racing.

 

"Yeah, I may have been foolish... but I just couldn't stand by and let that kid get bullied by a gang. That's why I had to help him," she explained, grinning widely at them. Little did she know, the boy she saves was Hayato’s brother.