Class D

After the long winded speech of the principal during entrance ceremony. Kenji decided to immediately go to his classroom.

There he found his seat at the back, near the window. It was truly called the anime protagonist seat.

When he entered people shoot some glances on him. He stands tall at 183 centimeters.

People had already gathered and made groups with each other.

Kenji gazed over his surroundings. He sighed heavily thinking that he won't be able to work at the family restaurant for the next three years.

And then someone sat beside him.

"That's quite a heavy sigh, considering the school year has only begun. Meeting you again makes me want to sigh."

It was the pretty girl that he talked on the bus.

"So not only we're at the same class, but also seatmates, huh..." Kenji muttered.

There are four classes in the first year, and forty students in each class. Statistically it wasn't impossible for them to be together.

"The name's Kawamoto Kenji. What's yours?"

"You just went ahead and introduced yourself?"

"I think we've spoken twice already. Is it really bad for me to do so?"

"Do you mind if I refuse?" she asked.

"Come on now. Sitting beside someone without knowing their name would be strange. Especially that we'll be sitting together for an entire year." Kenji complained.

"I disagree." She glanced at him for a bit before placing her bag at her desk.

"Which middle school did you come from? Do you know anyone from your school here?"

"You're a curious one, aren't you? You won't find talking to me very interesting, though."

"If you find me to be bothersome. You can just tell me to shut up, you know? Not like I'm gonna do that just because you say so. Well are you supposed to be what the people call 'Tsundere'?" he said tilting his head.

"Tsundere? What do you mean by that?"

"I see. Not only you are a Tsundere, but you're playing the role of an airhead. That's quite the mix of attributes looking at your calm and cool beauty."

"Are you making fun of me?" she sharpened her glare.

"I sure am." Kenji said which only made the girl ticked off by him.

She sighed, apparently she changed her mind. She turned her gaze on him and introduced herself.

"I'm Horikita Suzune."

"Let me speak about myself. I dream to inherit my family's small restaurant. I don't really have many friends since I've been spending more time working in it. My family's been worried that I spend more time working than having fun with friends so I intend to make a few."

"You're quite the chatterbox aren't you? I don't think I could ever like such a person." she said.

"People say that to me all the time. But oh boy, you really don't hold back with your words it makes me feel hurt."

"I pray this will be my only upset."

"I sympathize, but, unfortunately, I don't think your prayers will be answered. See that guy?"

"This seems like a rather well-equipped classroom. It would appear to live up to people's expectations, hmm?" It was the guy who quarreled with those women in the bus.

"I see. This certainly is bad luck." she said.

He entered the class and sat at the desk with the name Kouenji on it. Kouenji put his feet on top of the desk, took a nail file from his bag, and hummed while he treated his fingernails. He acted as though he were completely alone.

Within ten seconds half of the class begun drawing way from him.

After a few minutes the bell rang.

At that moment the door opened and a woman entered.

She wore a suit and had delicate features. Her hair seemed long, and she'd tied it into a ponytail.

"Ahem. Good morning to you, students. I'm the instructor for Class D. My name is Chiyabashira Sae. I usually teach Japanese history. However, at this school, we do not change classrooms for each grade. For the next three years, I will be acting as your homeroom teacher, so I hope to get to know all of you. It's a pleasure to meet you. The entrance ceremony will be in the gymnasium one hour from now, but first, I will distribute written materials with information about this school's special rules. I will also hand out the admissions guide."

The students in the front seats passed back the familiar documents.

There was written about rules and regulations.

Kenji flipped the pages.

"I will now hand out your student ID cards. By using your card, you can access any of the facilities on campus, purchase goods from the store, and so on. It acts like a credit card. However, it is imperative that you pay attention to the points that you spend. At this school, you can use your points to buy anything. Anything located on the school premises is available for purchase."

"Your student cards can be used simply by swiping them through the machine scanner. The method is simple, so you shouldn't get confused. Points are automatically deposited into your account on the first of every month. You should all have received 100,000 points already. Keep in mind that one point is worth one yen. No further explanation should be necessary."

The class erupted in surprise.

"Shocked by the amount of points you've been given? This school evaluates its students' talents. Everyone here has passed the entrance examination, which itself speaks to your value and potential. The amount you've received reflects the evaluation of your worth. You can use your points without restraint. After graduation, however, all of your points return to the school. Because it's impossible to exchange your points for cash, there's no advantage to saving them. Once points have been deposited into your account, it's up to you how to spend them. Do as you like. In the event that you don't want to spend your points, you may transfer them to someone else. However, extorting money from your peers is not allowed. This school monitors bullying very carefully."

As bewilderment spread among the students, Chiyabashira-sensei looked over the room.

"Well, it appears no one has any questions. I hope that you enjoy your time here as students."

The students were still shocked and wasn't over with it.

"This school doesn't seem as strict as I thought." Kenji said.

"This school is extremely lenient, isn't it?" Horikita said.

Despite all of the restrictions, like being forced to live in the dormitories, being forbidden to leave the campus, and being prohibited from contacting anyone on the outside, no one here seemed to have any complaints. In fact, you might even say that we'd been given such preferential treatment that it was like they'd thought they've been transported to paradise. Of course, the Advanced Nurturing High School's most impressive statistic was its near 100 percent placement rate for students advancing into higher education or entering the workforce.

This government-sponsored school's thorough guidance of its students hoped to ensure a better future. In fact, the school heavily advertised this. Many of its alumni went on to achieve fame. Typically, no matter how famous or impressive a school might be, the areas of specialization are limited. For example, one school might specialize in sports or in music. Another might focus on something related to computers. However, at this school, any student could hope to succeed, regardless of their field.

"This is almost too much preferential treatment. It's frightening." Horikita said.

Kenji realized they've come to the same conclusion and nod. "Right."

"You're surprisingly silent."

"Well I've figured that being a chatterbox would annoy you." Kenji shrugged.

Once the teacher was gone, the newly rich students began to grow restless.

"Everyone, can you please listen to me for a moment?"

A student with the air of an upstanding young man quickly raised his hand. His hair wasn't dyed. He looked like an honors student.

"Starting today, we're all going to be classmates. Therefore, I think it'd be good for us to introduce ourselves and become friends as soon as possible. We still have some time until the entrance ceremony. What do you say?"

Everyone was lost in thought, unable to react.

"Agreed! After all, we still don't know a thing about each other, not even our names." shouted one student.

After the ice had broken, the previously hesitant students began to speak.

"My name's Hirata Yousuke. Back in junior high, lots of people called me Yousuke. Feel free to use my first name! I guess my hobby is sports in general, but I especially like soccer. I'm planning on playing soccer here, too. Nice to meet you!"

The girl's eyes sparkled looking at Hirata. After all not only was he handsome, but he also had a great personality and a member of a soccer club! He would truly be a perfect boyfriend material for girls dreaming for romance for sure.

Kenji looked at Horikita for a bit. He noticed she wasn't one bit interested on Hirata.

"What are you looking at?"

"Nothing. I just thought you're quite indifferent with handsome guys. So Hirata wasn't your type?"

"I go to this school to study. I don't have time for something useless as romance."

"That's awfully cold of you don't you think? Human beings are made to Love each other after all."

"I don't think so. It would be more fitting to do flirting in a mixer or a matchmaking, but definitely not in school." she said.

Kenji can't say another word. He was just amused by her answers he was having fun.

"Well then, I'd like everyone to introduce themselves, starting from the front. Is that okay?"

Although the girl at the head of the class looked a little bewildered, she quickly made up her mind and stood. Or rather, she'd been pressured, in response to Hirata's words.

"My name is Inogashira…Kokoro. Um, my hobby is sewing. I'm pretty good at knitting. I-It's nice to meet you all." she looked nervous but she was able to pull it off.

Other's introductions continued after her.

"I'm Yamauchi Haruki. I competed in table tennis during elementary school, and in junior high I was the ace player on our baseball team. I was number four. I got hurt during the inter-high school championships, though, and I'm undergoing rehab now. Nice to meet you." he said.

"Well then, I'm next, aren't I?"

The cheerful girl who stood up was the same one who'd helped out the elderly woman on the bus that morning.

"My name is Kushida Kikyou. None of my friends from junior high made it to this school, so I'm alone here. I'd like to get to know all of your names and faces right away and become friends as soon as possible! My first goal is to become friends with everyone. So, after we're finished with introductions, I'd love for you to share your contact information with me!"

"So, after school or during vacations, I want to make all sorts of memories with lots of people. Please feel free to invite me to lots and lots of events! Anyway, I've talked for a long time, so I'll end my introduction here."

After her long introduction claps followed for her.

"Well then, next up is..."

As Hirata looked encouragingly toward the next student, that student glared back. His hair was dyed a fiery red. He both looked and sounded like a delinquent.

"What, are we a bunch of little kids or something? I don't need to introduce myself. People who want to do that can go ahead. Just leave me out of it."

The red-haired guy scowled at Hirata. He had quite a presence, his attitude intense and overpowering.

"I can't force you to introduce yourself, of course. However, I don't think that getting along with your classmates is a bad thing. If I've made you uncomfortable, I apologize."

When Hirata bowed his head, some of the girls glared at the guy with red hair.

"Isn't it fine to introduce yourself?" one of them snapped.

"Yeah, yeah!"

"Shut it. I don't care. I didn't come here to make friends."

The guy with red hair got up from his seat. It seemed he had no intention of getting to know anyone. Several other students followed suit and left the classroom together.

Horikita and Kenji got up from their seats leaving.

"I'm surprised. I would have thought you'd be staying there for introductions. You intend to make friends aren't you?"

"Sure yeah I would like that. But I think it would be more fun to talk more with you."