Act 15: Scene 7

After classes for the day finally ended, the students of Class D divided into groups to go around and ask people. However, in reality, there weren't that many helping to search for an eyewitness despite most of the students in class proclaiming that they would help. Hirata and Karuizawa were one group, Kushida and Horikita were another, Ayanokouji and Hasebe, Onodera and Sudo, Matsushita and Wang, Sato and Shinohara, Yukimura and Sotomura, and Ishikura and Minami.

The different groups were spread out across the campus in search of a possible eyewitness. Even so, it'd be difficult to get results in the span of an afternoon, especially since there were only eight pairs who were working to ask other students.

Within the school building, Suzune and Kikyo were walking through the hallways, asking various students if they had possibly witnessed a fight near the bathhouse. They were the only ones who remained here while everyone else was exploring a different part of the campus in their search.

Suzune had her usual cold look as her eyes went left and right, making sure that she doesn't miss a potential student whom they can ask about the Akito's incident. Meanwhile, Kikyo was struggling to keep up her usual smile because her eyebrow was twitching in annoyance and she kept on stealing hidden glances at Suzune with hatred in her eyes. It also seemed like she was starting to feel exhausted.

"We've been asking people around for an hour now..." Kushida commented, trying her best not to let any sign of anger come out even though she was really tempted to. "Horikita-san, I think of myself as someone patient, but I thought you wanted to check out Class C and take a picture of them?"

"Before we do that, we must ask the other students of this school, Kushida-san. I thought you believed that there must have been a person who saw Miyake-kun getting attacked by the three students of Class C?"

"I do," Kikyo sighed, before chuckling in amusement. "I guess I'm just feeling tired of having to be the one to ask people if they were a possible witness. When is it going to be your turn to ask, Horikita-san?"

Suzune turned to look at her friend, and saw Kikyo smiling innocently at her. Despite that, Suzune could tell that that statement was a direct jab at her because, well... her friend was right. For the past hour, Kushida had been doing all the work by asking students about the incident, all while she did nothing but remain quiet and watch.

The black-haired girl sighed. "I apologize, Kushida-san. You have to understand that it is not in my abilities to interact with people as well as you. You are better at this than me."

"Stupid bitch... if I had my way, I wouldn't be stuck with you," Kikyo grumbled in her thoughts in annoyance, but managed to retain her mask. "Oh, I understand... I guess I just feel a bit tired from walking and talking all this time. Maybe we can rest for a bit?"

"Very well," Suzune conceded with another sigh.

The pair found a metal bench as they walked through the hallway, and they chose to sit there for the time being. Kikyo let out a huge sigh of relief at the chance of being able to rest her legs after walking nonstop for an hour and a half by now. And that's not even counting how much she had kept on talking the whole time.

The two were relatively quiet for a few minutes, with both of them savoring the short moment of peace that they had before eventually continuing in their little quest. And then, out of nowhere, Suzune broke the silence by asking her friend a question that caught the beige-haired girl off guard.

"Kushida-san, what do you think of Amasawa-san?"

Kikyo blinked for a few moments, before turning towards Suzune curiously. "Eh? Amasawa-san?" she asked, wondering where this sudden question came from.

"Yes. What do you think of her?" Suzune turned to her in return, her face as serious as ever.

"Well, I think she has a pretty mysterious connection to Ayanokouji-kun... why do you ask?" Kikyo raised an eyebrow at her, feeling both curious and interested in where this conversation was heading.

"Amasawa-san said that the moment she arrived in our class and hugged Ayanokouji-kun all of a sudden was the first time she met him. And yet... she said that she has heard of him before. Why do you think that is, Kushida-san?"

Kikyo thought about that question for a good minute, realizing that there was indeed something strange with that scenario. "Maybe they just came from the same school before this? Amasawa-san does refer to him as her 'senpai'," she suggested.

In return, Suzune thought about Kikyo's answer for a while, letting the implications of that statement register in her mind as well as what it could signify. "That is a possible explanation, but it would also mean that Amasawa-san isn't just any regular student. She's... someone who is more capable than what they seem to be."

"What do you mean, Horikita-san?"

Suzune took a deep breath and breathed into her hands. "On the first day of school, when we first met on the bus heading here, Ayanokouji-kun said that the school he attended before Advanced Nurturing High School only accepted students who excel greatly in comparison to others. A school for the elite, just like this one. I didn't believe him at first because it seemed so far-fetched but after seeing what he's capable of with my own eyes, there may be merit in his words, after all."

"Wait... you're saying that Ayanokouji-kun is a really smart student?" asked Kushida, her eyes widening in shock at what she's hearing from Horikita.

Kiyotaka... is more than just the same guy with a semi-permanent apathetic look whom she had feelings for? For some reason, it didn't surprise as much as she thought it would and if she had to be honest, it honestly made sense. Kikyo didn't let the thought linger for long though, because for all she knew, Horikita might just be making this up.

"Yes, but not only that... if Amasawa-san really did come from the same school as him, then it also means that she's a very capable student like Ayanokouji-kun."

"If that's true, then that means that smug bitch was just playing around the whole time while we're talking to her," Kikyo clenched her fists in secret, being reminded of that exact moment yesterday. That smug little devil pissed her off the whole time, especially that demeanor of hers.

"That being said, it fits perfectly with her words from that day..." Suzune continued. "She said that what she knows about Ayanokouji-kun is strictly confidential. When I asked Ayanokouji-kun about his former school, he had almost the same answer, only that his school wants to remain anonymous in the eyes of the world."

"Really? I'm confused," Kikyo frowned, now feeling as if they hit a roadblock in their thought process. "If their school doesn't want to be found out by other people, then why would it send Amasawa-san to our school? That's what she said when Karuizawa-san asked her about why she's a 'guest' and not a student here."

"That's true... and if what I'm thinking is correct, then it could either mean that Amasawa-san is still a student when she was sent here... or she isn't a student at all."

The two girls continued to think about this strange case regarding Amasawa for a few more minutes, before both shook their heads and sighed.

"This whole thing is confusing..." Kikyo groaned to herself, cursing their twin-tailed kouhai under her breath.

"I have to agree. We need more information about her before thinking about what she really is," Suzune took a few deep breaths to regain her bearings after that discussion, feeling a bit frustrated with herself for not being able to solve this mystery right away despite the clues that were laid out for them.

"We know a few things, though. Like you said, Horikita-san, Amasawa-san isn't just any normal student, and there's something strange about the school that she and Ayanokouji-kun went to."

"Yes, and as much as I would like to continue discussing our theories regarding her, we should get back on track and focus on searching for our eyewitness. Amasawa-san isn't our priority at the moment."

Suzune stood up from the bench and prepared to leave in search of a new possible witness to Akito's case, but Kikyo's voice prevented her from going anywhere.

"Do you want to know something I found out from one of our classmates, Horikita-san? I bet you want to know, because this will be useful to us in the future!" Kikyo asked as she brought out her phone and opened a certain application.

"Know what?" her friend asked while turning to her with an eyebrow raised.

"You can track other people's locations on your phone using an app made by the school."

As she said those words, Kushida showed her phone to Horikita, revealing a map of the entire campus but that wasn't what caught the latter's attention. It's the little portrait of Ayanokouji that was located near Keyaki Mall that got her full attention. Apart from that and the labels on the various landmarks within the campus, nothing else was on the map.

"Ayanokouji-kun is at the mall?"

"Yep! He's there right now, but that's not what I'm trying to say," Kikyo smiled as she continued to show the map to the black-haired girl. "Using this app, we can find out where Amasawa-san is anytime we want."

Suzune raised an eyebrow in keen interest, but she didn't feel quite convinced just yet. "Is it really capable of tracking her, though? That might not work on people who aren't students, Kushida-san."

"Well, I don't really know yet because I haven't tried it..." A nervous chuckle escaped Kikyo's lips before she smiled again. "But if it works, then it's a good thing. We'd be able to keep an eye on Amasawa-san whenever we need to."

Suzune stared at her for a few moments, her attention shifting back and forth between her friend and the map on her phone. She thought about the possibility of putting Kikyo's idea into play, but wondered if it would actually be effective.

And then, all of a sudden, the girl suddenly felt as if someone was watching her from behind with devious intentions, causing Suzune to quickly turn around with a serious look on her face. She narrowed her gaze as her eyes roamed in every direction, searching for the source of that weird presence.

"Who was that?" she asked herself, feeling someone's presence nearby. She couldn't be wrong about her instincts this time, because the gaze that she just felt was definitely from another individual.

"Horikita-san? Is there something wrong?" Kikyo seemingly asked out of concern, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

Suzune continued to observe her surroundings for a few more moments, before letting out a heavy sigh as she worked to calm herself down. "Nothing. Let's continue this conversation later, Kushida-san. We have to keep on searching for our possible witness."

"Okay..."

Although she was confused on what caused her classmate to react so strongly for a brief moment, Kikyo just shrugged it off and followed after Suzune while the other girl led the way.

Meanwhile, even though Suzune herself was trying to shift her attention back to the task at hand, she couldn't help but think about that strange presence she felt just now.

Who exactly was watching them?