The date was set: August 31, the last day of summer vacation.
Kurumi, Nanaougi, and I reached the gym early.
“Whoa, look at this. Quite a venue.”
We stepped inside, scoping out the place. Colored tape festooned the ceiling; cloth covered the walls dotted here and there with paper flowers. Rows of tables were set out, ready for party food.
This was all expected, of course. The last day of summer vacation was the Wrap-up Assembly—a party in name only, designed to reinforce the worship of the better classes.
This would be the site of our next attack.
“They’re just reusing decorations from the Culture Festival’s closing ceremony,” I said. “They didn’t even take them down.”
“Aha. That explains it,” said Kurumi. “This school cuts every corner!”
Behind us, Nanaougi snorted. “You can say that again.”
I agreed entirely.
“We bought a bunch, but will it be enough?” asked Kurumi, cat mask on as she peered into a plastic bag. It was filled with the equipment we’d need for our attack.
“I think so. The real question is, will we have the time to use it all?”
“Fair point. We’ll just have to work fast!”
I know that. Don’t up the ante by spelling it out.
Like Kurumi, I had on a mask—one with a fox design. I sighed quietly so she wouldn’t hear me.
“I’ll be as quick as I can, so go break a leg!” she said.
“Don’t expect much! I’m no athlete.”
Her eyes met mine through the eyeholes of our mask, and she seemed to say “Don’t disappoint me.”
She clearly wasn’t listening. But I did plan to live up to my end of the bargain.
“Okay, it’s just about time.”
Kurumi glanced at the clock on the wall. It was almost five. According to the schedule, today’s big star would be here soon. But would she really show? Now that Nanaougi had struck out, it was more than possible she wouldn’t answer the call…
We waited for about ten minutes. At last, the gym door slowly opened, and in she came—a short woman in a suit, her long, wavy hair swaying.
It was Kanae Ookuma, the woman at the heart of our plan.
“…Augh, you’re actually here.” The moment she spotted us, her baby face started twitching. “You all again… What’s the big idea?” She held up a sheet of paper—the summons we’d left for her. “‘If you want your planner back, come to the gym tomorrow morning. Tell no one, and come alone. If you bring backup, we’ll inform the whole school what’s written in it.’ Explain yourselves!” Ookuma stalked across the gym, voice raised.
Letting her control the conversation would work against us. It was time we got our plan underway. I shot Kurumi a glance, and she nodded.
After setting down the bag, she straightened up. “Then let our attack begin. Nanaougi, secure the escape route.”
“Yeah, okay. On it.” Nanaougi sped off toward the back door.
Ookuma shot her a dubious glance, then turned back to us. “Judging from those masks, you’re the same cronies from last time, right?”
“Far from it. Nanaougi is not part of our resistance, and I’m the one in charge.”
“Huh? You are? What?” Ookuma reeled.
As she did, we stepped closer. And, just as planned, we tore off our masks.
“Kurumi Hoshimiya, Class 1-6. Nice to meet you, I suppose? I’m the mastermind here.”
“Ren Natsume, Class 2-5. We already know each other.”
Ookuma froze at this sudden reveal, gaping. But she soon recovered her wits and tried to stare us down. “Why tell me who you are now? Are you turning yourselves in?”
“Not at all. We want to make an impression on you, Kanae Ookuma. Carve ourselves deep into your heart. And to that end, we felt it was best to show ourselves.”
“Carve…? What do you mean?”
“We’re here to make a request.”
Kurumi put her cat-eared newsboy cap on and took another step closer. Ookuma braced herself.
“Ookuma, will you join us?”
“This again? Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not getting involved in this nonsense.”
“Ah-ha-ha, right you are. I knew you’d say that.” Kurumi spun around and moved back to my side. “You’re so hung up on being a grown-up that nothing we say will get through. That’s why we set all this up—to show a hardheaded teacher our resistance in action.”
“What…?”
Kurumi reached into the bag and pulled out the day’s artillery. We could hear the pea rattling inside a can of spray paint. The bag was stuffed with cans of every color.
“…What’s that for? What are you up to?”
“There’s only one thing for bad children to do with spray paint.”
Kurumi flashed a mean grin, then danced off toward the gym’s back wall, currently festooned with party decor. She shook the can a few times, making it rattle—and then unleashed a spray of black paint.
In giant letters, she wrote, WORLD’S WORST SCHOOL!
“Ah! You idiot! What are you doing?!” Ookuma howled, running over to stop her.
But I wouldn’t let her past. I stepped out in front of her, physically blocking her path. I wasn’t that big, but she was pretty small. If I crouched and threw my weight at her, I could easily hold her at bay.
“What the—? Let go! Outta the way!”
Grappling, we glared at each other.
“Ms. Ookuma, please reconsider. You don’t want to stop this.”
“What?! Of course I do! Isn’t that obvious?”
“Not really, no. Come, now. Pipe down and watch for a minute.”
“What? You pipe down! This is against so many rules!”
Ookuma’s tiny hands shoved me away, and she once again tried to run over to Kurumi. She’d clearly played her share of sports. I staggered but managed to keep her in check.
“Dammit! Come on! The school isn’t going to forgive you for this!”
“Kurumi and I were never expecting them to.”
“…What does that mean?!” Ookuma stuck one hand in her suit pocket.
If this were a normal fight, I might have worried she’d pull a knife on me—but this was a teacher. I knew better.
As expected, she pulled out a phone. She must have decided this was too much for her to handle alone and was trying to call for backup.
I quickly moved in, slapping her wrist and knocking the phone away.
“Goddamn it!” Ookuma abandoned her phone and turned on her heel.
She was trying to flee the scene—but we were prepared for that.
I gave chase and grabbed her shoulders near the door. I stopped her, then went around in front of her and pushed her back into the gym.
“You’re not going anywhere. You need to see what we’re doing.”
Her breathing was ragged as she glared up at me furiously. “…What’s that supposed to mean?” she hissed. Then her voice rose in a roar. “What is your problem?! Why would you do this?! Why a resistance?! Enough! If you hate this school that bad, just drop out!”
“Ah-ha-ha!” Kurumi laughed, still spray-painting more graffiti. “Now who’s being ridiculous? Dropping out would just be running away!”
“Then report your concerns to the proper authorities! There are other approaches!”
“There aren’t. Even if we reported the school, all it would do is end our misery. It’s not enough if we don’t get payback! Our hearts demand vengeance!” Kurumi moved to the next section of the wall, shaking the can. “You get that, right? This is our revenge! You dismissed our attacks, calling them absurd—and now we won’t be satisfied until we make you understand how we really feel!”
“Revenge, my ass! That won’t make you feel any better!”
“Won’t it? Maybe if we had a mentor with morals, we’d have worked that out!”
Kurumi’s sarcasm made Ookuma grind her teeth. It was a solid dig. I was starting to feel sorry for her.
“Ms. Ookuma, we’re way past what you’re saying.” Kurumi tossed the can aside. “I’m done putting up with this crap! Done doing what useless grown-ups say!” She rubbed her nose, then spread out her hands. “Behold! Our frustrations have grown so vast, we needed writing this big to vent them!”
The whole wall was filled with protests.
“What do you say? I don’t know what this ‘Wrap-up Assembly’ is supposed to be, but go ahead and hold it like you always do. Ignore the screams of our hearts! I know you’re more than capable of that.”
WORLD’S WORST SCHOOL! DAILY INSULTS! TEST SCORES DON’T DECIDE YOUR WORTH! NO MORE GRADES-BASED DISCRIMINATION! THIS IS MADNESS! HUMAN RIGHTS MATTER!
Our cries, our motives—they were all on display.
And Ookuma’s eyes stuck on one phrase in particular.
I DON’T WANT TO TELL KIDS TO DROP DEAD. I DON’T EVEN WANT TO HEAR THAT. I WISH I WERE DEAD.
Those lines were taken right from Ookuma’s planner.
“Heh-heh, well? Doesn’t it fit right in with our words?” Kurumi rubbed her dirty palms together as she headed back toward us. Flashing a malicious grin, she held out a hand. “Ms. Ookuma, when I saw your planner, I knew. You’re no grown-up. You’re every bit as starry-eyed a kid as we are. Come on, be bad like us.”
“Wh-what? Be bad? I can’t…!” Eyes wide, she looked up at Kurumi, then softly shook her head.
Kurumi leaned in close. “Why are you hesitating? You hate this school just as much as we do. Lend us a hand! Change this school with us! Get payback!”
“Payback…? I’m not— I don’t…”
“Don’t you want it? Vengeance—a whole heap of spite dumped on this twisted hellhole! If you understand where we’re coming from at all, then join us!”
“…No! Lending a hand to delinquents isn’t a teacher’s job!”
“Then what is your job? Insulting students? Milking them for money? Go on, fill me in. Teach me what your damn job is.”
This brutal salvo left Ookuma twitching.
“Kurumi, you’re going too far.”
“Oh… Sorry! Got a bit carried away.”
At my prompt, Kurumi took a deep breath. Ookuma was staring at her, stunned. Kurumi flashed her a smile that was half mercy, half pity.
“I hate you, too! I need to make you understand our resistance is not just some game! But I also want to save you! Why don’t you get that?!”
“I didn’t…”
“Don’t tell me you can’t because you’re a grown-up, or because you’re a teacher. Spare me the platitudes. I’m talking to you—Kanae Ookuma. Join our resistance. Let’s get vengeance on this godforsaken school together!”
“……”
“Ms. Ookuma, I know you hate the teachers here, too. Nanaougi told you to join us as penance, but I disagree. This is for your own good. Make up your mind. You need this. It’s your salvation! Please.”
“……”
“If you don’t act, you’ll die. Your body or your soul—whichever goes first.”
“I… I…”
No further answer came. Ookuma just stood there, stiff as a board, eyes on Kurumi.
After a long moment, Nanaougi came running from the back door.
“Ren, Kurumi, time’s up! We’ve gotta bail!”
“Fine. C’mon, Kurumi.”
“…Right. Well, Ms. Ookuma. Goodbye.”
We fled using the route Nanaougi had secured, making sure no one spotted us.
We hadn’t succeeded, but we hadn’t failed either. This was the attack Kurumi had envisioned.