Vol. 3 Chapter 7: Mr. Tachibana

Translated and Edited by: ynlucca.

Common Honorifics:
-san: A polite suffix, but not excessively formal.
-kun: A common suffix among friends and younger people.
-chan: A common suffix among people you’re close with, mostly used for feminine nicknames and girls, since it’s cutesy and childlike.
-senpai: A common suffix and noun used to address or refer to one’s older or more senior colleagues in a school, workplace, dojo, or sports club.

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Ugh, my head hurts…

For me, Yamada, hair is life. I’m concerned about its thinning and I take care of it with hair-growth products on a daily basis. I also use a hair drier and wax to give it a fuller look… That’s why I was horrified to have my precious hair pulled.

It was just a joke. I’ve seen his fighting videos, and I was convinced that no matter how strong he was, he’d never get violent. I was also pissed at him for always hanging around cute girls.

“I’m sorry for bringing Yamada here, Mr. Tachibana,” Sawada said.

“No, no, I’m sorry I didn’t notice what was going on all this time.”

These two are crazy. When I was just giving Sawada a scare, he approached me. When I came to my senses, my hair was pulled, I was completely immobile, and all I could see was pitch-black.

The last thing I saw were Sawada’s eyes, so bloodthirsty… He looked like he could easily kill someone with that expression. At that exact moment, every fiber of my being screamed that I shouldn’t go against that guy.

And the icing on the cake is that I have a phobia of the dark. While they carried my immobile, blinded, and scared body, I would constantly bump onto countless things like walls, steps, and even the floor.

I couldn’t stop shaking from that looming fear of darkness I had. Every bump came out of nowhere, and the pain was heightened. And even though I was suffering like that all the time, these two kept talking as if it was some other Tuesday. These two are insane.

After a bit, I heard the rattle of an opening door. The time I spent in the dark was hellish, and although I couldn’t see, I was sure I was at the infirmary.

I thought I’d be released after being dragged for so long, so as soon as I was, I’d kneel down in front of Sawada. Here I had none of my classmates around, not to mention the teacher’s presence watching over us. I’d apologize and beg for forgiveness. At this point, my pride was gone.

However, my hair remained grabbed no matter how long ago I was dragged into the infirmary… What was happening?

“Sawada, by the way, what are you going to do now? Even though it was unofficial, you beat up three underground fighters. As the fight manager of this school, this is a serious issue.”

“… I’m the one asking here. What did you want to do when you approached Eri-chan?”

—Oi, oi! You should let me out of here soon! Why are you two just talking to each other?!

“Ah, you’re talking about Mashima-san… She’s my friend’s daughter, so she’s like a real daughter to me. I was trying to keep a balance so she wouldn’t break down any more than she already did… Now that she’s isolated, I’m just following orders from the top.”

—Ouch! Why are you putting so much force into grabbing my hair, Sawada?! You’ll tear off my precious strands!

“Eri-chan is ‘isolated’…? Tell me all you know, teacher. Who are her parents, and why the f*ck do you guys hate me so much!? Hm…? Wait a second, did you just say you’re her father’s friend?”

“Yeah, that’s right. I’ll do whatever my dear daughter (tentative) tells me to do.”

And there was a loud clang.

—! What the hell is going on?! I–I’m not a part of this! Hey, it hurts—!

“So, you tried to kidnap Reika…?”

“… As I said before, Mashima-san is like a daughter to me. She’s the apple of my eye, and I love her dearly… Without you, she won’t be hurt anymore. I will do my best to persuade upper management so they can make her better… In the house I prepared for her, with the costumes I bought for her, with the homemade food I cooked for her, and with the baths we’ll take together—I’ll do all of that because I love her more than you do, Sawada.”

“… Shut the f*ck up already.”

A series of thuds then ensued, all while my hair was pulled repeatedly. As soon as the shaking stopped, Mr. Tachibana then started to speak.

“Goodness gracious, despite how I look I’m a jealous man… I can’t even begin to tell you how much of an eyesore your presence has been… Well, here we are at the beginning of one of the greatest events in Underground Fighting history… So please, be a sacrifice for my future with Mashima-san.”

—Isn’t this very bad? I’ve heard rumors Mr. Tachibana was a p*do who liked underaged girls… Ugh, I don’t give a sh*t, I just want to get out of here as soon as possible.

While I thought that, the numbness in my hand got progressively better and I managed to shift my blindfold a little.

—What the?!

The first thing I saw was Sawada bleeding, glaring at the teacher with one of the most gruesome, predatory eyes I’ve ever seen. Around him stood a group of men I didn’t know… What the hell is this?!

Just when I thought that I heard the sound of my hair snapping and tearing. I didn’t feel pain anymore, just overwhelming fear. I was crawling on the floor, caught in between two monsters.

And from that day on, I, Yamada, vowed to never hurt anyone ever again. What did I see, you ask me? Well, a fight between two otherworldly creatures.

No, it wasn’t a fight… First of all, I couldn’t even see their fists even though I like and constantly watch martial arts programs. That’s why I could tell it was nothing like that.

Ever heard of military martial arts? I’ve only seen it in movies. The fight between these two beasts was just like watching one of them.

After the two destroyed the infirmary, they rolled out into the wide hallway. Mr. Tachibana was built like a bear under his suit, and he overpowered Sawada.

I saw my classmate covered in blood, and I thought he was definitely gonna die. Being slammed face-first into the wall was no joke. Mr. Tachibana then took out something that looked like a baton from his pocket, only to be met with Sawada’s laugh.

I didn’t understand what it meant. I mean, he was about to die, yet he laughed…

Do you know the expression “killing intent” that’s constantly being thrown around in manga? Now I feel like I truly understand that. Mr. Tachibana was seriously trying to kill Sawada.

After laughing, my classmate took out a ballpoint pen from his pocket… It truly was ust your ordinary pen. However, the moment he grabbed it, Sawada’s mood flipped.

I’d seen him fight before, both with Hiratsuka and Hirano. However, now I truly realize he was holding back all this time… I was wrong. I wanted to beat my past self for bullying Sawada, who was the real monster all along.

“Fuuh… I haven’t used a weapon since my sparring with grandpa. Oh, are you alive, Mr. Tachibana? You’re sturdy so you’ll be fine, I’m sure. You haven’t yet paid for the crime of trying to kidnap Reika, y’know? —Yamada? What are you doing here? Oh, now I remember, I was going to straighten you up. Hmm, I’ll finish you first. Reika will worry if I don’t hurry… I don’t want that hard-earned lunchbox to get cold after all.”

He approached me while saying all of that. I panicked with sheer desperation and punched myself repeatedly. I had no idea what he was going to do with me, so I had to pass out before I could find out.

I could feel snot running down my nose, and I couldn’t stop crying. My pants got wet, and sweat poured out of every hole in my body.

“Don’t worry, Yamada. After you, I’ll correct all our classmates.”

I’ve never prayed to God before, so this was the first time I desperately clung to any chance I could take.

I’ll never bully you again, and I don’t care if I go bald… Just please, please, let me go…

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