CHAPTER 39: THE TRACK OF RIVALRY (part 1)
After recovering from the sheer humiliation of his cycle crash and falling flat on the ground, Takeshi Sakuraba was trying his absolute best to get back into his strict sports teacher persona.
He dusted off his dark blue tracksuit, ran a hand through his thick black pompadour to fix it, and, snapping into serious mode, blew the whistle hanging around his neck with all his might.
"PRRRRRRRTTT!"
Takeshi sir placed both hands on his hips, his face filled with rage.
"Has everyone lined up together?!
I want a perfect, straight line! Are all the students present here?!"
he roared in a loud, thunderous voice.
Standing right at the front of the line, the Iron Monitor, Tsuyoshi Taro, checked his clipboard without a single trace of emotion.
There was a cold disappointment in his rust-colored eyes.
In a flat, authoritative voice, he stated, "No, sir. One student is still missing. The class is incomplete."
Takeshi sir's face turned completely red with anger. He clenched his fist in the air and yelled in an irritated tone,
"Who exactly is this lazy boy who couldn't arrive to class on time?!
This disrespectful brat doesn't know the value of time! Let him come,
I will personally teach him how to respect time and discipline!"
Looking up at the sky in pure frustration,
Takeshi sir began delivering a dramatic lecture.
"Discipline is the true mark of a man!
Arriving on time is the ultimate rule of this school!"
However, the students standing in the line were covering their mouths, muffling their laughter at his ridiculous overacting.
A student standing in the back hid his face and whispered to his friend in a sarcastic tone,
"Bro... look who's talking.
The guy who showed up 20 minutes late himself, and that too by crashing a runaway cycle."
On one side of the line, there was an isolated silence that completely drowned out the surrounding noise.
Zixuan Lee stood there.
His cyan hair blew gently in the cool breeze.
His posture was absolutely flawless, and he wore an incredibly calm and emotionless mask on his face.
His ruby eyes cast a cold, calculating glance at Takeshi sir, who was still staring at the sky.
Right beside Zixuan, Satoshi Ichigaya stood in his usual manner, keeping his eyes firmly closed.
Satoshi wore a casual, mysterious smile, standing there with a thoroughly amused expression.
"What a circus,"
Zixuan thought to himself in a cold, irritated manner.
"Because of this new guy,
I have to listen to Takeshi sir's nonsense.
Man, this teacher is so annoying."
Satoshi's gaze suddenly shifted toward the corridor. Behind his closed eyes, his smile widened just a fraction as he thought,
"Finally, he is here..."
From the far end of the corridor, the sound of slow, exhausted, and heavy footsteps echoed. Everyone's eyes turned toward that direction.
On the other side, Junpei Kurodan stood silently in his place, completely unbothered.
The new student, Renjiro Hoshino, was making his way toward his spot.
He was panting heavily and completely drenched in sweat from running, but this time, there was a subtle change. His head was not hanging low in fear.
While the piercing, judging stares of Hoshigawa High's elite students still made him nervous, the determination from his earlier resolve flickered in his eyes. He was holding his ground.
"There... he is," Tsuyoshi said in a cold, disappointed tone as he watched him.
"The last student."
Takeshi sir, who had been busy delivering his lecture to the sky, turned around and asked, "Who exactly is this lazy human?!"
The moment Takeshi sir turned and laid eyes on Renjiro, his lecture instantly died in his throat.
His jaw dropped in utter shock. An incredibly bewildered and awkward expression washed over his face.
Widening his eyes, he asked, "Wait... is this the boy you guys were talking about?"
Takeshi sir's expression immediately shifted into a grumpy scowl.
He stared Renjiro's heavy body up and down.
"Hmmm..."
Takeshi sir made a bothered face and spoke with a hint of disgust.
"You look incredibly lazy to me!
Your body is completely bloated!
Looks like in the name of exercise, you just sit around, and in the name of a diet, you just stuff your face with pizza and burgers!
I think You only fill your stomach!
Why consumeming unappropriate fast food "
Renjiro panicked completely.
The stares of the crowd and this direct, public humiliation shook him to his core. He stammered fearfully, "S-Sir, I-I—"
"Oh, keep quiet!"
Takeshi sir suddenly cut him off, raising his hand.
He instantly switched his mood, flashing a confident smile as he announced,
"I only need five months to turn you from this bloated state into someone totally fit and slim!
But for that, you will have to obey every single word I say!
You will have to work like a storm on this ground, understand, Fatty?!"
The moment the word 'Fatty' left his mouth, a wave of laughter rippled through the entire class.
Most of the students in the crowd flashed mischievous smiles and openly began mocking Renjiro.
Renjiro lowered his head even further; his weakness was still overpowering him, and he stood there in total silence.
One student snickered loudly and said,
"Oh man, look at this!
Sir just straight-up called him fatty in front of everyone!
Hahaha!"
Takeshi sir suddenly realized that the class's discipline was breaking apart.
His face morphed back into a scary, angry glare.
He spun around to face the crowd and roared loudly,
"YOU GUYS ARE ENJOYING THIS A LOT, AREN'T YOU?!
STOP LAUGHING!
There is no comedy show going on here!
Understand, you idiots?!"
Pin-drop silence fell over the entire class in a single second.
Then, the teacher turned to Renjiro and asked, "What is your name, boy?"
"Sir, my name is Renjiro Hoshino."
Takeshi sir then addressed the whole class,
"Everyone, put on your P.E. uniforms and immediately assemble at the outdoor running track outside!" he ordered.
When Renjiro stepped out onto the massive outdoor sports ground without changing his uniform, his eyes were completely dazzled.
Seeing the vast, professional-grade synthetic tracks, the stadium-like seating, and top-tier outdoor equipment, he was left in a state of absolute shock.
"Is this a school ground or some international Olympic stadium?
I still can't believe how a fat guy like me even got admission into this elite school,"
he thought, cursing his own luck.
Takeshi sir stood in the center of the massive outdoor ground. He blew his whistle loudly.
"LISTEN CAREFULLY, EVERYONE!
All students must run two laps around this outdoor track!
At full speed!"
Panicky whispers instantly broke out across the class under the bright sky.
One boy made a freaked-out face and whispered to his friend,
"Oh man!
Looks like Sir is planning to tire us to death under this sun today!"
The second boy replied,
"You're right about that, bro..."
Junpei stood quietly on the grassy side of the ground as well, his arms crossed in a silent 'X' posture.
A fashionable girl in the class flipped her hair, looking incredibly annoyed and exasperated.
"We're going to die running in this heat!
All my makeup is going to melt off in the sweat!"
Takeshi sir glared at them angrily and pulled a shiny silver coin from his pocket.
"STOP MAKING NOISE!
Let's toss to see who runs on the track first! Boys, or Girls?
Tell me, what do you want, Heads or Tails?"
The crowd erupted into a shouting match.
"WE WANT HEADS, SIR!"
"NO, NO, GIVE US TAILS!"
Takeshi sir grabbed his ear in frustration and made a totally fed-up expression.
"ALRIGHT, EVERYONE SHUT UP!
And listen to me,
I will decide myself!
TAILS for Boys, and HEADS for Girls!"
The coin was tossed high into the air.
To be continue ...