Chapter 25: The Insufficiency of the Relevant Party's Capacity
Whoosh—!
Akishin pushed open the heavy doors of the Service Club, stepping into the classroom with a shinai in hand and a distinct lack of motivation written across his face.
He had just invited Hiratsuka Shizuka out for a meal at a nearby stand, but he'd been shot down; Shizuka had claimed she'd take him up on it in a few days instead.
Inside the clubroom, Yukinoshita Yukino sat alone in a chair by the window. The dim light filtering in from outside cast a soft glow over her, lending her an air of quiet, refined beauty.
Hearing the noise, Yukino looked up. When her eyes met Akishin's, her brow furrowed ever so slightly.
"Chishima-sensei."
"Hello there, Yukinoshita-kun. I half-expected you to be angry," Akishin said, lingering by the door before strolling over to Hikigaya's usual seat to set down the practice sword.
"My apologies, but I'm not the type to get worked up over such trivialities. However, I still find your presence somewhat offensive, Chishima-sensei. Please don't take it personally."
"Right, right. Whatever you say."
Akishin narrowed his eyes. She's definitely angry.
It wasn't a massive explosion of rage, but her words were a preemptive strike, effectively shutting down any chance of him teasing her further. Not that he actually planned on "getting back" at her. The rigid etiquette and overblown pride that Japanese society obsessed over meant very little to someone like him.
"And what brings you here, Chishima-sensei?" Yukinoshita asked, though she clearly already knew the answer.
"Just looking for my little disciple. Thought I'd teach him a thing or two."
"I'm afraid I must correct you. This is my Service Club, not the Kendo Club. If you wish to tutor Hikigaya Hachiman, please do so elsewhere." Yukino spoke without a hint of hesitation, showing zero deference despite the fact that she was speaking to a teacher.
Sobu High did indeed have a Kendo Club. Akishin had observed them during his free time and, in his private opinion, they were just playing house.
Of course, that was just his take. In reality, the Sobu Kendo Club was quite reputable; they had even made it to the national Gyokuryu-ki tournament. Even if they'd been knocked out early, reaching the nationals was an impressive feat by any standard.
Akishin didn't bother arguing. Instead, he cradled the two bamboo swords and flashed a smile. "Yukinoshita-kun, do you have any friends?"
Yukinoshita Yukino adopted a pensive expression. "Let me see... first, we would have to establish a formal definition of what constitutes a 'friend'..."
"Stop right there." Akishin cut her off. "That right there is exactly what people with no friends say."
"You look like the type of person everyone would adore, yet you're totally isolated. How does that even happen?" Akishin asked, his smile never wavering.
"You wouldn't understand."
As if he'd struck a nerve, Yukino turned her face away. She stood up, her voice regaining its edge. "I've been... very cute, ever since I was a child."
Akishin's smile faltered for a fraction of a second.
Yukino set the novel she had been reading onto the desk and picked up another book. "Because of that, almost every boy who approached me harbored some form of romantic interest."
"Is there something wrong with that?" Akishin could already guess where this was going. Japan really was a strange place.
"If it were genuine affection, perhaps it would be a good thing." Yukino gazed out the window before turning back to face him. Her eyes were unnervingly calm. "In elementary school, my indoor shoes—my uwabaki—were stolen and hidden about sixty times. Fifty of those times, it was done by the girls."
She slowly walked back and lowered herself into her chair. "Thanks to them, I had to bring my shoes and my recorder home with me every single day."
Akishin chuckled dryly. "You've really had it rough, haven't you?" It was the classic, nauseating brand of bullying found in Japanese schools.
"It was agonizing. All because I was too cute." At this point, a trace of sorrow flickered in her pale blue pupils. "But it was unavoidable. Humans aren't perfect; they are weak and ugly creatures. They'll ostracize anyone out of pure envy. It's a tragic irony—the more superior a person is, the harder their life becomes."
"It's just too irrational!" Yukino's voice rose as she stared at the sky. "That's why I want to change this world, and the people in it."
Akishin smiled and offered a simple commentary: "How noble."
"I'm glad you understand. So, if you intend to teach Hikigaya-kun kendo, I expect you to take it elsewhere. I'll even provide him with a club withdrawal form if I have to."
"But you see..."
Akishin completely brushed off her irritation. He shifted the topic, his expression still light. "You're already a second-year! Hiratsuka-sensei told me you've been running this club for a full semester. So, where's this 'change' you were talking about?"
"That..."
Yukino opened her mouth to retort, but the words died in her throat. She had no defense.
Akishin kept his gaze fixed on her. "Yukinoshita-kun, have you ever heard of the Seven Deadly Sins? Pride, Envy, Wrath, Sloth, Greed, Gluttony, and Lust. They are the shadows within every living being. Essentially, they are survival and reproductive instincts—at their core, they aren't 'wrong.' Without them, humanity might not even exist. It was only after society grew large that these traits were branded as 'evil.' In neighboring China, they have a similar concept: the Seven Emotions and Six Desires. The Seven Emotions are Joy, Anger, Sadness, Thought, Grief, Fear, and Shock. The Six Desires involve the Eyes, Ears, Nose, Tongue, Body, and Mind. The Chinese concept suggests that a human is only 'human' if they possess all of these. Especially the Seven Emotions—if you lack even one, you aren't whole."
Akishin grinned. "What I'm trying to say, Yukinoshita-kun, is that your wish to change others and the world is an impossibility. The suffering you went through is shared by others; some have it far worse than you. Your words sound like the protagonist of some hot-blooded anime shouting, 'It's not me who's wrong, it's the world!' It has no practical meaning. To put it simply: you were bullied in elementary school. Add some family baggage—like that overbearing older sister of yours—and you get the personality you have now."
"I don't agree—" Yukino stood up, her emotions finally bubbling over.
"Be quiet."
Yukino's vision blurred for a split second. Before she could blink, Akishin was standing directly in front of her.
The shinai he'd been carrying was leveled at her, the tip of the wooden sword hovering less than ten centimeters from her throat.
At the other end of the blade was Akishin. His eyes were smiling, but the sheer killing intent radiating from him caused Yukino's pupils to contract in terror.
Yukino sank back into her seat. Akishin lowered the sword and nodded. "There we go. Don't interrupt when a teacher is talking. I'm giving you a life lesson here."
The killing intent vanished instantly. Akishin strolled over to Hikigaya's chair, sat down, and tapped the two bamboo swords together.
"Yukinoshita-kun, I'm a firm believer in a certain saying: 'All the suffering and misfortune in this world is caused by the insufficiency of the relevant party's capacity.' You were bullied because you were too weak. If you were strong enough that no one dared touch you, you'd find the world to be a beautiful place. Everyone would greet you with a smile. As for being 'ostracized' or feeling 'out of place,' that's just your own mental fragility. It's a weakness. Just look at yourself now. Take Hayama Hayato from Hikigaya's class—you should know him. He's equally 'superior,' yet he's the center of his social circle. You might say he's just sucking up to people. I don't know the details, but I hope you understand one thing: the ability to 'suck up' is a skill in itself, and a highly effective one at that. Don't be fooled by appearances."
Akishin's expression turned solemn. "Yukinoshita-kun, have you ever been truly hungry? Have you ever had a day where you ate once and had no idea when your next meal would come? No, of course not. Well, I have. I've known the feeling where nothing matters except staying alive. Pride, being bullied... those are luxuries. To get a single bite of food, I've knelt in the street to beg. I've fought stray dogs for expired scraps in trash cans. Don't look away, Yukinoshita-kun. You haven't lived someone else's life, so you have no right to call their choices 'wrong.' You see the homeless on the streets of Japan, right? Some of them wear decent, clean clothes. They might have been directors of major firms or elite bank employees. They lost their jobs for various reasons and couldn't face their families. Can you really say they lack 'fighting spirit'? That they're just lazy? Maybe you can, but again, you have no right to judge them. They fought with everything they had just to live; they just wanted to rest for a moment."
Finally, Akishin looked at the stunned Yukino and smiled. "Yukinoshita-kun, I can see that the person you really want to change isn't 'the world'—it's yourself. But you haven't found the path yet. You and Hikigaya Hachiman are two sides of the same coin, you've just chosen different roads. Neither road is necessarily 'bad.' Perhaps as you grow and experience more, you'll both find a way to shine. But for now, I just want you to be happy. Life is short. Making your own existence meaningful and happy is what matters most. That's my little life summary for you. After all, I've... already experienced a very real death once before."
Yukino's eyes widened.
Slide—!
The door slid open, startling her. Hiratsuka Shizuka and Hikigaya Hachiman stepped into the room. Shizuka was biting down on a cigarette she had clearly just lit.
She glanced at Yukino first, then turned a complicated look toward Akishin.
As for Hikigaya Hachiman, he was staring at Yukino with an equally complex expression—he couldn't believe Chishima-sensei had just called the two of them 'the same.'
Akishin smiled at the newcomers. "So, how long have you two been eavesdropping?"
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