The Physical Education training consisted of learning how to steal the ball from the opponent in handball. Yukino, eight years old, was face to face with the girl who had accused her of pulling her hair.
The whistle blew, and the teacher threw the ball up so one of them could grab it first. The other girl jumped high, while Yukino gave a short, lazy jump.
The girl ran straight toward the goal. Yukino paused for a moment and waited for her to move farther away. No one understood what she was doing; some even complained that she was just standing still.
Suddenly, she started running, speeding up and stretching her hand forward. All she wanted was to find the right distance and moment. Then she reached the other girl's ponytail. She grabbed it and pulled hard. The speed made the girl fall to the floor and lose the ball.
The classmates and teachers who were watching didn't understand what was happening.
"There! Now you're right! Now I did pull it!" Yukino shouted.
The teachers ran over to ask what had happened. She explained the whole incident in detail. They listened carefully, looked at the class, and asked who had lied.
Silence filled the court. No one spoke, but it seemed the teachers already suspected as much. She wasn't sent to the principal's office, and the class went on as usual.
The lack of punishment made the bullies feel sick and uneasy. They started wondering if the long-haired, black-haired girl was being "protected" by the teachers.
But some things changed after that day. Yukino's drawings were no longer torn apart, and her art supplies stopped showing up broken.
A few days later, the girl who had accused Yukino came up to her and apologized. She had found out who had actually done it and didn't think it was fair what she had said.
Yukino also apologized for what she had done, admitting that she had been stupid too. The truth was that both of them had been tricked by the same person.
The year went by, and the teasing decreased, but that didn't stop Yukino from being a lonely child. Until the following year, in third grade.
The following year – beginning of classes, third grade
It was the start of another school year, and, as always, there was a new student. This year, it was a girl unusually tall for her age. She entered the classroom quietly, and the teacher introduced her to everyone:
"Hey, class, this is our new student, Aino!"
The students greeted her. The teacher looked around, noticed an empty seat, and said:
"You can sit there, next to Yukino!"
She pointed at the empty desk beside the girl, who was at that moment deeply focused, drawing before class began.
Aino walked to the desk but stopped before sitting down, her eyes fixed on the drawings coming to life from Yukino's hands.
"Hm?" murmured Yukino, noticing she was being watched.
"Your drawing's beautiful!" said Aino, amazed.
At first, Yukino wasn't sure whether Aino truly meant it or if it was just first-day politeness. She was used to people admiring her at first and forgetting her later.
But as time passed, she realized Aino genuinely liked her art. The two quickly became friends. Yukino was thrilled, it was the first time someone truly cared about what she did.
They shared ideas; Aino made sincere comments and suggested things she thought would be cool to draw or create. Yukino was happy, but since she didn't know how to express her feelings well, she ended up playfully hitting her new friend sometimes.
Soon, they discovered they were distant relatives. They spent a lot of time together, especially during recess, and eventually made friends with other girls too.
But when Yukino learned about one of Aino's secret talents, she realized her friend had a peculiar way of thinking:
"No, Yukino, I don't want anyone to know I write poems. Everyone who stands out or is different ends up suffering for it. You draw, and I think that's cool, but everyone calls you weird for it. Isn't it enough that people already say I look sick because I'm so pale? My voice is higher than normal, and they tease me for that too. I can't help it, I was born this way. I just don't want more trouble."
Despite all her excuses, Yukino insisted that she should enter the school's poetry contest. Aino finally got the courage, wrote her poem, and submitted it. She was selected.
Yukino also joined the contest to design the book's cover art. The results took longer than usual to be announced. When the day came, the teacher entered the classroom holding the model book to present it to everyone.
"Kids! Look how cool! Our class has the winning cover!" said the teacher.
The class got excited, curious to know who had won.
"Yukino, everyone agreed yours was the most beautiful. But since you're the only one in school who knows how to draw, it wouldn't be fair to give you the prize. I hope you're not upset."
Yukino froze. Her eyes stared blankly, not focusing on anything real. She couldn't believe what she had heard. Her mind tried to rationalize the situation, but it was impossible to find any logic in it. It simply didn't exist. She never entered another contest at that school.
Aino tried to cheer her up, but Yukino pretended everything was fine. Normally, she couldn't express her feelings well, and she was good at hiding them. Her face said one thing, but her heart said another. Inside, her blood boiled with anger.
The following year, Aino transferred schools, and Yukino's fourth-grade experience turned back into a nightmare.
One day, their parents met by chance and talked. They discovered that Aino had also suffered severe bullying at her new school. Despite being her friend, Yukino had no idea.
Yukino's bullying had been open and obvious, while Aino's was silent and hidden, making it harder to notice.
When Aino's mother said she was doing much better at her new school, Yukino's mother got interested, and when Yukino reached fifth grade, they transferred her too.
By fate or coincidence, the two ended up in the same class again. And indeed, compared to the previous school, the new one was much better.
There were still fights and bullying, but no one was ever completely alone, someone always stepped in to help.
The teachers didn't pretend to be blind either. If they saw a problem, they acted and solved it. Because of that, issues didn't drag on for months or years like before.
Yukino learned how to befriend the teachers, which helped a lot. She also developed better communication skills.
She was still known as "the creepy weirdo who likes to draw," but she learned to brush it off, and when things crossed the line, she solved them through fighting.
At twelve, she began practicing martial arts. People thought it was for self-defense, but the real reason was her search for discipline and self-control.
The "you didn't really draw that" and "it's not fair because only you can draw" comments still happened. She decided to live with it and apply the self-control she was learning.
School – April 2 – Back to the present day
Yukino's mind had drifted far away, recalling many moments from her past when she had faced countless conflicts.
"This flashback got way too long... and I even left out a bunch of stuff... like that time a 'friend' asked her boyfriend to hit me... Well, no wonder things like this keep triggering memories like that." she thought, irritated at her lack of control over her thoughts.
School – April 3 – Day 6 of the School Tournament – Saturday
Only a school competition could make students excited to go to school on a Saturday morning. The sun shone brightly in the blue sky.
The gymnasium would host the final round of the battle between the Firefighters, Glaciers, and Oceanics. At this time of year, the place was packed like never before, and you could practically feel the participants' excitement in the air.
The teams shouted their war cries. The stadium was ready for battle. The dance teacher, Rubi, would be the MC for this event and was completely in the competition spirit.
"And now, let's move to the final challenge! It's time to test our students' intellect! Welcome to 'Questions and Answers'!" Rubi shouted as she climbed the stage and grabbed the microphone.
She stretched out her arm to present the competitors.
"Our participants are ready! Who will win this time!?"
Then she started her commentary, pointing to Miyu:
"The brilliant botanical girl! She joined the school this year and has already outshined the top students?"
"Botanical what?" murmured Miyu.
"Or will it be the tallest girl in school, whose intellect matches her height?" said the teacher, referring to Naoko.
Naoko didn't comment but looked visibly uncomfortable.
"Or maybe our Greek god, who proved he's not just a pretty face!" said the teacher about Adonis.
"What the heck is a 'pretty face' supposed to mean?" asked Adonis, confused.
"Now let's go to the first question! And to warm up, this one's easy! 'Five times one hundred' corresponds to which number?" asked Rubi, marking the official start.
Naoko quickly hit her bell and answered, "Five hundred!"
"She's fast!" thought Adonis and Miyu at the same time, realizing they didn't even have a chance to ring first.
"What's the most expensive metal in the world?" Rubi asked next.
"Gold!" answered Adonis quickly.
"Wrong!" said the teacher.
"Rhodium!" answered Miyu, taking the chance.
"Correct!" said Rubi, giving a point to the Firefighters.
"When did World War I start and end?" Rubi asked again.
"From 1915 to 1918." said Miyu.
"Incorrect!" said the teacher.
"From 1915 to 1919." said Adonis.
"Incorrect! Oceanics, do you know?"
"From 1914 to 1918." answered Naoko.
"Correct answer!" said Rubi, giving a point to the Oceanics.
"When was the National Library of Brazil founded, and why on that date?" asked Rubi.
"October 29, 1810. That's when the first collection of books arrived, transferred from the Royal Portuguese Library." said Adonis confidently.
"Very good! That's two questions in one!" Rubi announced, giving two points to the Glaciers.
The competition remained fierce; the contestants were both hitting and missing answers. The crowd was tense, it was nearly impossible to tell who was ahead. The questions ranged from school subjects to general knowledge.
After nearly an hour, the "Questions and Answers" event finally came to an end. The teacher blew her whistle and announced:
"And that's it, everyone! We've reached the end of the final challenge, and the results are coming up!"
Now it was time to wait. Miyu, Naoko, and Adonis were tense, anxiously wondering who would earn the title of the school's smartest student.