14 Hikigaya Hachiman (End)

Sun shines brightly, basking the entire world in its glory. Like a spotlight, it shines down upon a young man who is standing uprightly on the ground. Below his feet, the ground is littered with unmoving bodies of the people he has defeated.

His entire being is radiating the aura of solitude.

Whosoever is delighted in solitude, is either a wild beast or a god. At that moment, he is both.

Yes, you are right. I'm talking about myself.

"H-hachiman-kun?"

At Saki's call, I turn my head to her. She is gaping her mouth, clearly couldn't believe what she has just seen. At times like this, I always play it cool.

"Now that the disturbance is gone, let's enjoy our lunch."

I tighten my tie, and wear my glasses back. Like nothing happened, I head to my previous place, sit my butt on the ground, and grab my lunchbox. I look to the side, only to find Saki still standing on her ground, while gaping like an idiot.

|Well... Doth thou fancy not to hath a meal with me?| I said it in English.

Surprisingly, Saki can understand it. |N-no... I was merely shooketh.|

I nod my head in appreciation. This girl is knowledgeable. Not only did she understand what I said, she could also respond me back.

"Then, stop gaping like that. An airplane might mistaken you as a runway."

"Ah.. yes."

Saki comes to sit beside me, then we eat in silence. It's not an uncomfortable silence though.

Saki will steal a furtive glance at me from time to time, and I always ignore it. She seems eager to ask a question, but she's hesitant to do so.

However, she soon gathers her courage.

"A-ano, Hachiman-kun. May I ask you a question?"

|Hit me.| I answered in English.

"No, no, no. Why would I punch you?"

"Huuh... My bad. I shouldn't have said that. Well, ask me your question."

"Do you know those guys have bullied you in the past?"

I am surprised to the point I stop munching on my heavenly cooking. I quirk my eyebrow, and ask Saki, "How did you know I was bullied?"

"Well... I'm sorry!" Saki suddenly bows her head to me. "I have seen them bullied you once, but I was too scared to intervene." She explained herself.

"Hmm... Is that so? Why do you have to be sorry though? It was my fault for not fighting back. You did nothing wrong, girl."

Saki is surprised as she raises her her head immediately. Looking at me with widened eyes, her mouth trembled.

"D-do you not hate me?"

"No, I don't."

"D-did that mean w-we are still f-f-friend?"

"Eh, sure."

"I am glad." Saki puts her hand on her chest, and sighs.

Looking at her in curiosity, I can't help but ask. "Why are you so relieved?"

She jolts in her place, before answering me. "I... don't have friends. Therefore, when we became friends, I was so happy and afraid at the same time. I was afraid you will hate me someday."

"Are you referring to my bullying?"

"Yes." Saki said it in a barely audible voice with head down in shame.

I hum to myself. This girl is honest, and I appreciate honest people. I am indeed insensitive, but I always appreciate those who make their feelings clear. Therefore, I will be honest to her too.

"Listen, Saki." She raises her head, and puts her attention wholly on me. "Wishing to be friends is quick work, but friendship is a slow ripening fruit. Therefore, we are friends, but our friendship isn't established yet. Even so, will you still want to be my friend?"

"Yes!" Her answer is instantaneous. "No matter how long it takes to establish our friendship, I don't care. You are my first friend, so I will cherish our slowly forming friendship!" She answered heatedly.

I smile faintly, and nod my head. "A good answer."

Saki notices her action late, and now she is burying her face in her lunchbox. Being the shy person she is, she must be embarrassed by her action just now.

The lunch is silent, but it's fulfilling.

...

The school has ended, and it's time to get away from this place called school. However before that, I will have to hand over my club application form to my homeroom teacher. Although it's late, I am going to join Basketball Club.

I need it to increase my height. Simply drinking calcium will not bring me that far. I need exercise to boost my height, and playing basket is the perfect exercise.

You may ask why don't I just swim by myself or do some skipping. The reason is simple. I am a lazy ass. If I have no one to whip my ass, I won't move. That's the reason I am enrolling myself to a gym, instead of working out by myself.

I'm already in front of the staff room, and ready to go in. "Excuse me." I said, before sliding the door open.

Rattle.

I enter the room, and quickly find my homeroom teacher, Homura-sensei.

"Hachiman? Have you filled in the form?"

"Yes."

"Very well." Homura-sensei nods his head, and takes the form I am holding. "I will lead you to the Basketball Club now."

At that, I wave my hand, and say, "No, I won't be going today. How about tomorrow? I don't want to get killed by my instructor." Needless to say, Homura-sensei is bewildered.

"Huuh... Why would you apply to attend an extracurricular if you have schedules already?"

"Don't worry, I can manage."

"You're not giving me any reason, Hachiman."

"Thank you, sensei!"

"Wait! Hachi—"

Yeah, I leave before he even finishes his sentence. I don't want to hear his crap. Those guys from the club won't even know I am joining if he keeps mouth shut. Therefore, it'll be fine even if I don't come today.

I stride out of the school, and slither my way to the gym, Grisaia.

Grisaia is a simple looking yet elegant gym. Not many people come to this gym, and this is the reason I chose this gym over the other. I like peace.

Upon opening the door, I am quickly assaulted with the smell of a room perfume.

The owner of this gym, my instructor, doesn't want her gym to be smelly. Although it has never happened before, she still sets the automatic room perfumes anyway.

Upon entering the gym, my instructor quickly greets me. "Oh, Hachiman! You finally came, Brat."

"What's with that face? Were you expecting me dead or something?"

"Kuhahaha! No, I just thought you would be ashamed of showing up in front of me with that uniform."

"Nah, I will never be."

My trainer, Kusakabe Asako, is a well-endowed woman in her mid twenties. She has dark blue eyes, and equally dark blue hair. Just like Shizuka, she is a tall woman as she is as tall as me — 174 cm.

"Ready for the hellish training, brat?"

"I'm here to train my muscles, not to die."

"Kuhahaha! Quickly open your shirt. It's chest day!"

"I am starting to think that you are harassing me each time I come here."

"Hey, what are you saying? I have never harassed you!"

"Oh yeah? What about 'Groin Day'? You have nearly taken off my pants!"

Surprisingly, this shameless woman has the conscience to blush. Still, it doesn't mean she admits her mistake.

"Kuhahaha! People do shit when they are drunk!"

"Bullshit!"

Asako laughs merrily, and acts as if nothing has never done anything wrong. I can see it clearly on her face. She really feels she really has done nothing wrong.

I sigh, and head to the changing room. I wear a tight black training shorts, and nothing else. As Asako has said, it is chest day. Although she looks like that, she knows what she is doing.

She knows how to train muscle perfectly. She can even tell whether someone is doing the exercise wrong by the twitching of their muscles.

Therefore, despite how dangerous the look she gives me whenever I take off my tops, I always comply. The result is clear already.

When I get out of the changing room, Asako takes a good look at my body. She isn't looking at me with a pervert gaze. This time, she is really inspecting my body.

"Hmm... Your abs are fairly visible now. I am glad you stick to your diet. Your biceps and triceps are not developed yet, but they are firm enough."

She motions me to turn around, and then inspects my back. "Hmm... You have a sexy butt."

This woman!

"Anyway, your back muscles need some work. Therefore, today we are going to train your chest, along with your back."

I turn my body around, and face Asako. This time, she is looking at me with a pervert gaze. Yes, she has done it so often she doesn't even bother to hide it anymore. Now that I think about it. She has never hidden it since the beginning!

"What are you looking at? Do some stretching!"

I inhale the fragrant air of the room. It soothes me somehow. At this point, I'm sure Asako has set all of the automatic room perfumes to calm the mind of her victims. Wait, it's victim. The regular of this gym is only me, apparently!

...

I am spent. I am really spent. That crazy woman really means what she said. The training was hellish. It is already crazy usually, but it was crazier today.

Luckily, when I got home, my sweet and lovely Kumacchi has prepared me some food. I take a bath to clean myself, before eating the food Komachi has cooked. I don't care whether it is balanced or not. I'm too spent to care.

Right after that, I open the stock market to trade some stocks, before closing it. When my eyes can't bear it any longer, I fall asleep.

Truly to Asako's word, when morning came, I feel refreshed. It feels like yesterday's hellish training was meant to purge any negative energy I will feel in this morning.

I take a bath, check my face development using the mirror, and dress myself up. I go down the stairs, then eat breakfast with my family.

"Onī-chan, your face is shining."

"Is that so?"

"Komachi is right, Hachiman."

Even my mother can see how exceptionally shiny my face today. Still, I don't care. I am just glad this previously feeble body of mine has turned lighter. Although it is not enough yet, it won't take long to reach the state I desire.

After finishing the breakfast, I head to school. The curious gaze I receive has lessened, but the whispering become even worse than the first day. Surely, I don't pay the mobs any attention.

Upon arriving in the classroom, all eyes are on me. Some are looking at me cautiously, while some are looking at me in amazement. I am puzzled, but as always, I brush it to the side.

It isn't until lunch time, do I figure what causes all eyes are on me from Saki. Apparently, the new "ruler" of Kaihin Sōgō Middle School has just ascended the throne.

His name is Hikigaya Hachiman.

My mind instantly recalls the scene where I beat the shit out of the seven chinpira yesterday, on the rooftop.