26 Chapter 25: Ultra Intuitive

A couple days passed since Zenkichi had Naze told him and Medaka about everything and more of the Flask Plan. Ever since then, Medaka would pout at him whenever he's in her vicinity.

She's unhappy and angry that Zenkichi didn't tell her about such an important conspiracy in the school! She's the student council president. She has obligations and responsibilities to help the students that would become lab rats! She was born to help others!

Which is why she was even more unhappy with Zenkichi because he told her that they shouldn't go the underground laboratory located underneath the clock tower, yet.

~Flashback~

"What?!" Medaka's indignant yell could be heard from outside of the student council room. Her eyes narrowed and her face formed into a frown as she stared and leaned at Zenkichi, who's sitting calmly in his chair with Shiranui in his lap, with both her hands on his table. "Zenkichi, I have to disagree! There's no way in hell I'm going to overlook the entire student body becoming sacrifices for this stupid plan! Like I'd just sit back and watch as it happens–!"

"And you have to understand Medaka." Zenkichi interrupted her sharply with a serious tone and expression. Medaka recoiled back in surprise and shock.

What did he just–?!

"The Flask Plan has been in operation ever since the founding of the Hakoniwa Academy, no, that's wrong. This school was created for the sake of it. It continues to exist for the sake of the completion and succession of the Flask Plan for hundreds of years. Its foundations is deep and profound. It'll take more than just destroying their data and their entire underground laboratory to destroy the project. No. The risks is too much. Unless you'll go as far as kill every scientists, sponsors and everyone else who's involved unethically in the project, we cannot do anything to this project. Until the time is right, we do nothing and stay back. Do you understand?!"

Medaka froze, stunned for a moment in silence.

She then gritted her teeth, her body trembling, both her fists clenched so tight that her fingernails made her palms bleed.

She knew. She already knew from the time she met him back since the first day of Hakoniwa Academy, that the Zenkichi in front of her wasn't the one she knew that had gone through thick and thin, through blood, sweat and tears with.

She didn't know how, or does she have any physical evidence, to prove that the person she was talking wasn't the childhood friend she'd known since she was two years old. But she knew, deep down; her entire being screaming at her...

That Zenkichi Hitoyoshi, was dead. And standing in front of her was someone who's just wearing his skin.

Medaka knew that most of the time, her intuition wouldn't be wrong. It was what made her go check up, back when she was in middle school, to see her friend because she had a bad feeling.

A bad feeling that had proven true and she was too late to fix it.

She just hoped and, for the first time in her life, prayed that her bad feeling was wrong and the boy standing and staying together with her was the same boy who she'd known for almost her entire life.

A denial that continued for several months.

But now. Now she sees that the Zenkichi she thought she knew in front of her, acting as if the lives of at least a thousand students weren't in danger, she couldn't run away from the truth any longer.

Her Zenkichi....was gone.

'I live for the sake of others. That is my reason of living when I was lost. You, gave me that purpose Zenkichi....If you aren't here anymore, then what's the point of me living in this world?'

Her eyes flashed red dangerously at Zenkichi as she cocked her right arm back, ready to punch his face. Her normally dark purple shade of hair started to turn into light red.

The atmosphere in the room suddenly went heavy and a swirl of red energy; killing intent, surrounded Medaka's body. Her killing intent was so powerful that it made the entire wing of the school she was in instantly silent....and it was all focused on Zenkichi.

But as he stared straight at her with calm eyes and a serene smile, her fist that was about to land on his face–stopped.

'Why?' Her fist trembled.

Seeing the look in his eyes. Medaka's anger quickly dissipated and her arm went slacked.

Her eyes glistened with tears.

'Even though you're not him....Even though you're not him....Why? Why? Why?'

'Why can't I help but see the most important person in my life in front of me than an imposter?'

"...."

Medaka went quite, her body trembling as her eyes threatened to spill out like a waterfall.

In the end, she turned on her heels and left the room.

~Flashback End~

Medaka sighed as she rested her chin on her fist as she listened to a member of the Art Club, Yuubaru, go on and on about his request to draw an art for a project and he wanted the student council's help.

Just as she was about to reply to his request about modeling for his art, she suddenly heard loud crunching sounds.

*Nom* *Nom*

Medaka's eyebrows twitched. She turned her head to glance to the side of where Zenkichi's table was at with her expression twisting into a frown. As she spotted a familiar little girl sitting on the vice president's chair as she happily munch potato chips with a blissful expression and closed eyes.

"....Shiranui-san, can you please be a little quieter as you eat? You're distracting Yuubaru-kun here from explaining his request for US to help him with." She said, emphasizing the "us" word.

Today, Zenkichi had unexpectedly called for a leave of absence by messenger and made said messenger his replacement for the time being.

And that messenger was obviously Shiranui.

'Hansode Shiranui, the granddaughter of Hakama Shiranui and a member of the Shiranui Household, serving as my double by the tradition of the Shiranui clan and most importantly....Zenkichi's best friend.' Medaka mentally scoffed at her last thought. If there ever was any reason she disliked something about the lithe girl, it was frustrating this fact.

Her, Medaka Kurokami, one of the greatest and beautiful girl in the world; the childhood friend of Zenkichi, was not his best friend?

'Hmph! Absurd. I have Zenkichi almost all of my life, what makes my double know him more than I do?'

*Nom* *Nom*

She narrowed her eyes at Shiranui when not only did she not listened to her, she's also ignoring her!? Unforgivable.

Medaka rose from her chair and slammed her palms down on her table, spreading out a loud noise around the room that made Yuubaru recoiled back in fear and stayed far away in the corner in silence. But he continued to stay and watched as the scene in front of him unfold. Humans are always so curious after all.

"Shiranui-san. Although you're only acting vice president for today, because Zenkichi is off to who knows what, and I don't really care what you do in private but we're currently in the presence of another student and is requesting our help. So, until he leaves or we finish his request, at least have the self-respect and decency to eat as quietly as you could and follow my orders." She leaned towards Shiranui, her eyes and face showing complete seriousness.

"Do you understand?"

Shiranui took another potato chip into her mouth, and bit it.

Medaka's eyes intensified.

"Shishishishi~" Shiranui chuckled after she finishes her potato chips and turned towards Medaka with a nonchalant expression. "Relax princess. I would never disobey you, you know who I am and what my purpose is after all. Besides, I was given this task by my precious best friend Hitoyoshi-kun~ I would never disappoint him! I had just gotten bored is all, and hungry. Very, very hungry."

Suddenly her entire face turned completely dark, showing only two completely white eyes and an opened maw of jagged teeth.

The two stared at each other.

"...."

A few moments passed and Shiranui was the first to back off. Her face and demeanor going back to normal; as she spun around her chair and took out another snack from.... somewhere.

"How about let's just get Yuubaru request done and get back to being cordial student council members, hm?"

"....Alright." Medaka begrudgingly nodded as she sat back down her chair. She turned towards a stiffed Yuubaru. "Well then, you said you wanted me to model for you? Okay. What–"

"No!" Yuubaru yelled out, shocking the only girls in the room from the sudden outburst. "Don't get me wrong, I still need help for the project I'm doing but I want this magnificent, beautiful, and heaven defying lady to model for me!"

He pointed towards Shiranui, who stared at his outstretched finger in shock and confusion as she tilted her head. While Medaka stared at them both in complete silence before the left edge of her table cracked.

"Eh?!"

"....Eh?"

Meanwhile, with Zenkichi.....

Located deep in the forest behind the school buildings, where trees as tall as a hundred feet stand tall, three people stood facing each other in a circular grass clearing among the sea of trees.

"So, you think you could do it?" Zenkichi asked the bandaged headed scientist with a serious expression.

"Hmph." Naze snorted, taking a step forward, she tilted her head up to stare at him. Her only visible red eye gleamed, prideful and confident. "Who do you take me for? It's not that I could, but I can. I'm the Flask Plan's advisor and lead researcher. Training you to control your strength and your powers, condition your body, and find out more on the limits of what your powers could do is just mere child's play."

"And we'll start by having you spar against Koga-chan here," She stretched her right hand towards said girl, who looked completely nervous as she looked towards Zenkichi, grasped her right shoulder and pulled her into a side hug. "but only in pure, physical unarmed combat. No abnormals. Just plain old street fighting style."

"I see. You want to gauge my physical capabilities first?" Naze nodded.

"Yup. Since you don't want to come with me to my lab, specifically to Koga's gym and testing chamber, I could only find out the data through a more old and direct method."

Zenkichi nodded in understanding. "I see. Well then," He took off his black uniform, leaving him with his white long sleeve shirt, black trousers and black shoes.

Smirking, he held up a hand and curled his fingers into a "come here" gesture towards Koga.

"Shall we dance?"

"You..." Koga's eyes twitched, pushing off Naze, she cracked both of her knuckles. She held up both of her fists in a boxing stance. "Don't underestimate me! With the modifications done to my body, I'm basically Android 18!"

"...You're not blonde."

"Ahhhhh! Shut up!"

❄️

And it is back guys and gals! My OJT is finally, finally, fucking done! Woohoo! Holy shit, the amount of work and money I burned is just heartaching! Haaaa. But, nonetheless, it's over and I'm back to writing my stories!

Also, it is finally revealed that Medaka knew, intuitively, that the Zenkichi Hitoyoshi that was her vice president was not the same Zenkichi that she knew for almost her entire life! Oh no! She's in conflict with herself on what she would do with such a fact...

Would she kill him? Or would she accept the current Zenkichi as the way he is?

For those wondering what Zenkichi got for the last couple of days, and why is he training under Naze's tutelage and what happened between him and Koga before Naze and Medaka entered the student council room....it'll be all revealed in the next chapter?

So as always, comment of what you think, let me know if you guys got any good ideas to add into the story(either comment or chat in discord) and give me a lot of power stones if you all want more chapters! XD