Kaishu Katsu walked to his desk and faced his students. He took a slow deep breath and spoke, “Place the page with your answers on my desk when class ends. Don’t forget to put your name on it. It’s probably better if we relax for a while and everyone says a few things about themselves so that we can know each other a little better. Who wants to start?”
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A girl in the left row spoke while looking at Sakamo with dreamy eyes, “Sensei, I wouldn’t mind hearing everything about Sakamo-kun! Maybe he doesn’t mind being the first if we ask him nicely!”
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Kaishu Katsu slowly nodded and faced the odd student that was looking at him with an inexpressive face and asked, “What do you say, Sakamo Ryu? Do you mind telling us a little about you? I am also curious.”
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Sakamo slowly got up and spoke after shrugging, “I won’t mind being the first, as long as everyone else does the same, because I want to know a little more about my classmates, as well. I was raised in the Agatsuma Shrine in Agatsuma, Nakanojo. I never knew my father because he died before I was born. My mother died of tiredness when I was three years old, trying to keep two jobs to grant me a house and food. I lived in the streets of Nakanojo for one year after her death, and the Monks took me in. I was homeschooled by them until recently, and I was allowed to enter High School this year so that I could get friends of my age. All my brother Monks are all way older than me.”
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An awkward silence followed his words, except for some sighing from the girls that were all looking at him in amazement. One boy from the central row asked, with a mocking smile, “Is that so? I thought all the Monks were bald, but your hair is even longer than my sister! Are you sure you are a boy? Because you are too good-looking to be a boy!”
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Sakamo answered with a slight smile while facing him, “That’s probably because you are used to your ugly reflection in the mirror.”
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Sakamo continued after noticing that his classmate was turning red in anger. “Don’t mock me, and I won’t do the same to you. I could never shave my hair like all my brothers because the Head Monk, my adoptive father, never allowed me to become a Monk. He always said that he was expecting me to become more than a Monk. I never cut my hair as revenge. I always liked to see his jealous look because he was bald from old age.”
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A girl from two seats ahead of Sakamo asked while looking back at him, “Did you really got a perfect score in the admission tests? Because the Principal said that yesterday when he called out your name to do a speech, and it was funny to see his embarrassed look when you didn’t show up! He had to call the second one, our pretty and always serious, Hojo Masako!”
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Sakamo Ryu looked to where the girl was pointing, and saw a beautiful girl with long, light-dark hair and dark eyes, looking back at him with a serious expression. He raised one eyebrow while speaking, “Really? The Principal mentioned something about being annoyed by my absence. I couldn’t come yesterday. I had too many things to take care of, regarding the moving to my new home.”
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The girl continued while biting her lower lip, and her question made all the girls hold their breath. “Do you have a girlfriend? And if not, are you looking for one?”
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“I don’t have a girlfriend. About looking for one, I am not sure if I can manage the time to be a proper boyfriend. Well, I was never one to begin with. All my knowledge about that matter comes from books and from the talks with my childhood friends in my hometown.”
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The girl quickly raised her right arm with a big smile, “I won’t mind teaching you about that, Sakamo-kun!”
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That remark granted her a few complaints from the girls and laughs from the boys. One boy spoke in between his laughter, “Ahahah! Hangaku-chan found a new target! Better if you be careful, Sakamo-kun! She doesn’t give up easily!”
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Sakamo made a gentle smile at the excited girl. “Thank you for your kind offer, Hangaku-san, but you don’t know me that well, for targeting me as your new boyfriend. I might disappoint you after a while.”
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Hangaku Mae vigorously shook her head. “With your looks? No way I will ever be disappointed!”
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Kaishu-sensei clapped his hands a few times to call for attention. “Alright, calm down everyone. Who wants to speak next? There are more classmates besides Sakamo Ryu!”
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One by one, they all spoke a little about themselves, with Sakamo listening very carefully, to memorize as much as he could about his new classmates.
By the middle of the morning, Kaishu-sensei told them to deliver the papers with the results of the equations and left. That was the girls’ queue to get up and approach Sakamo’s desk, flooding him with questions. Sakamo was looking for a way to escape so many questions, when he saw Takechi Hito looking at him from the door, with a puzzled look. Sakamo tried to go to him, only to have his path blocked by the talking girls.
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He waved at Takechi, asking for help, and what he said made everyone look at the short and round Takechi, puzzled. “Takechi-sama, how was your class?”
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Takechi Hito approached with a raised eyebrow. “Calmer than yours, it seems. You really became popular in such a short amount of time, and you even doubted me when I said this was going to happen!”
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Sakamo scratched his head, but before he could find an excuse for being surrounded by giggling girls, his phone vibrated inside his pocket. Sakamo grabbed it and smiled. “A video call from Tomoe-chan! If everyone excuses me, I need to pick this one.”
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The girls gave him some space, and Takechi tried to leave, only to have Sakamo grabbing his left arm and pulling him near. He whispered while touching the screen, “Don’t leave me alone with them!”
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From the phone came a loud scream, “Kyahh! Ryu-kun, you look so cool in that uniform! Way better than your usual Monk garment! I bet the girls are crazy about you already! Tell them you are mine, they can’t look or touch you!”
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Sakamo smiled at the merry girl on screen. “Tomoe-chan, don’t say that so loud, they might hear you and believe that! Where are you? I see many people in the background.”
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“I am in Tokyo, near the Imperial Palace, filming a commercial. I have a performance tomorrow night. You want to come, considering it’s Friday and you don’t have School on Saturday? I will save you a nice spot backstage!”
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Sakamo made a throw-up face. “To hear you sing? No, thanks! I don’t know why people buy your albums, with that annoying voice of yours! Sometimes you sing in such a loud pitch that I feel my ears about to blow up!”
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“Ryu-kun, stop being so mean! You used to say I had a pretty voice, that’s why I gathered the courage to pursue my career! Are you coming or not? You can bring your classmates, I want to meet them and warn them about you!”
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“Yeah, right, like if any of them want to hear you!”
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Takechi quickly pulled Sakamo’s right arm and asked in a loud voice, “Is that the pop-idol Shubuyaky Tomoe? I want to go! Please, take me with you, Sakamo-kun! I am a huge fan!”
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That made all the girls and boys gather around Sakamo’s desk, trying to look at the screen of his phone. Hangaku Mae shouted when she recognized Sakamo’s friend, “No way! Do you know the amazing Tomoe-chan? I love her music! Hello, Tomoe-chan! I am Hangaku Mae, the future Sakamo’s girlfriend! I hope we can be friends!”
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Shubuyaky Tomoe pretended to be angry. “What are you talking about? Ryu-kun is mine, and I am not sharing! Go get yourself another boyfriend, he is already taken!”
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“No… I… didn’t know… Sorry, I…”
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Shubuyaky Tomoe laughed, “Ahahah! The look on your face, Hangaku-chan! You are cute, but Ryu-kun is a little difficult to deal with! I was just messing with you! I always like to meet my fans! Convince that stubborn to come to my show tomorrow, so that we can talk some more! Bring everyone in your class, I want to meet everyone and tell some of Ryu-kun blunders! You will all be surprised about how crazy he is!”
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Sakamo Ryu frowned. “Don’t you dare, Shubuyaky Tomoe!”
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Hearing her complete name from Sakamo could only mean that he was serious. She immediately nodded. “Of course, Ryu-kun! I was just joking! I know very well how much you value your privacy! But come tomorrow, will you? I miss you a lot! We can talk for a bit during my breaks, and we could go to drink something in the end! I can’t see you before I go on stage because I need to focus and you are an enormous distraction, but we could hang out in the end! Please, pretty please?”
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Sakamo thought for a while, and he then faced Hangaku Mae when he felt a squeeze on his right arm and saw her begging eyes. Takechi Hito was right next to her, almost crying in expectation. Sakamo sighed and looked around. “Everyone wants to go tomorrow night? Or it’s just Hangaku-san and Takechi-sama?”
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They all nodded, overly excited and with big smiles on their faces. Sakamo counted them all and looked at the anxious pop-idol and said, “I guess you will need to find a spot for sixteen guests, Tomoe-chan. I never thought that all my classmates would be your fans.”
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“Of course they would be because I am so amazing! It will be so cool! I have to go, they are calling me! See you tomorrow night, Ryu-kun! Enter through the back door! I will warn my guys! Goodbye, my dear fans! We will meet tomorrow!”
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Tomoe hang-up and Sakamo shouted, “Wait, you didn’t say where!”
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Hangaku Mae spoke with a glow in her eyes, “She will be at the National Stadium at eleven, and another group will sing one hour before her, to set the mood! You don’t even know that? How do you know her? That’s so amazing! And you both seem to have such a good relationship!”
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“We are friends since we were five years old. I could only be with her and the rest of the gang twice a year, but we always had a great time.”
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Takechi Hito asked with a puzzled face, “Only twice a year? How come?”
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“I was raised in a Shrine, and I was only with her in New Year’s and on Children’s Day, because that was when outsiders were allowed among our grounds.”
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Hangaku Mae pointed back with her thumb. “What is more surprising to me is that the overly serious Hojo-san is also a fan of Tomoe-chan!”
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Everyone looked at Hojo Masako, and she spoke with a low and calming voice, “I like her voice. The lyrics on her songs are very melodious, and they actually make sense, comparing with other singers out there.”
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Sakamo shrugged. “I guess you have a point. Tomoe-chan was always very good with rhymes and words. She always saw the beauty around when no one else saw it. I used to be a very revolted and angry boy, and my adoptive father could never put me at ease, not even with all the meditation he forced me to do. Tomoe-chan made me see the beauty in the World, even when I was angry about everything.”
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Hojo Masako made a slight smile, and for a moment, Sakamo detected a faint nervousness in her voice. “You seem to like Tomoe-chan very much, judging by the way you talk about her.”
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“Yes, I do like her a lot. She is my oldest and dearest friend. We almost dated, but we both reached the conclusion that we were better friends than we would ever be boyfriend and girlfriend. She sometimes acts as if she was my older sister, so protective and all when she is really two months younger than me.”
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Hangaku Mae interrupted that talk when she noticed the way they were looking at each other and asked, “I bet you know some stories about Tomoe-chan that never came up in magazines, right?”
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“Maybe, but I will never tell, so there is no point in asking me. I can only tell you that despite everything you read, you don’t know half of how good of a person Tomoe-chan is. Maybe she tells some of her stories tomorrow if she feels comfortable with all of you. Probably it would be better if none of you tells anyone that we are going to meet her tomorrow or say anything about what she might tell unless you want to make her regret trusting on you.”
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Everyone nodded, and they began talking about their favourite song or performance they saw, when another Teacher entered and told them to go to their place, making Takechi Hito rush out the door.
…
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