Chapter 39: The Traits Are Too Similar!
"I... I'll come along too! D-Don't get any strange ideas, alright? I'm just worried you'll be too distracted and forget about Mashiro, so I'm tagging along!"
After holding it in for a long time, Eriri finally blurted out this awkward excuse.
Shunsuke simply shrugged, thinking, "As long as it makes you happy."
The four of them made their way to the nearby school building, where most of the arts and culture clubs, aside from the sports teams, were located.
"Fujii-senpai!"
Seeing Shunsuke, Marin Kitagawa shouted cheerfully, waving her hand high and running over with a bright smile.
Shunsuke nodded in greeting, "Kitagawa-san."
"Lucky! I ran into senpai again," Marin said eagerly, launching her energetic greeting. But in the next second, she noticed the three other girls behind him and froze.
—Why are there so many blonde beauties following Fujii-senpai? Doesn't this overlap a bit with my own appeal? Do I still have a chance?
—No, wait. If he's surrounded by blondes, maybe that means he likes blond hair, which actually gives me an advantage?
Shunsuke pretended not to notice her surprise and asked, "Kitagawa-san, what brings you here? Looking for a club that interests you?"
Marin nodded blankly. "I wanted to see if there's an anime club or cosplay club, but it doesn't look like there is."
"How could Sobu High possibly have clubs like that?" Shunsuke gently tapped her head with a playful chop.
Sobu High was one of the three top schools in Japan, alongside the prestigious Shuchiin Academy and Hyakkaou Private Academy.
As a public school representing high standards, it would never approve of clubs that might "hurt its reputation" or distract from college prep.
Although Shuchiin had those kinds of clubs, it was a school for the elite—kids who could afford to play around, where even things like unplanned pregnancies in high school didn't seem to be a big deal.
Marin lowered her head, discouraged. "A person's gotta have dreams, you know?"
"Yeah, well, dreams over," Shunsuke quipped.
"Hey, Shunsuke, and who's this girl?" Eriri interrupted, visibly irritated by Shunsuke and Marin's conversation in their little world.
"Her name's Marin Kitagawa. She's a new first-year student I met a couple of days ago when I was out in Akihabara."
"What were you buying to meet…?"
Eriri's voice trailed off as she suddenly remembered what he was out shopping for two days ago—it had been her request, too. She turned beet red, flustered and embarrassed.
—Someone he met while buying Wet Girls 2… How could she be a good influence?
Eriri was so flustered that she started smacking her own cheeks.
Shunsuke continued introducing Mashiro and Koizumi.
Despite her flashy appearance as a "gyaru," Marin Kitagawa greeted everyone with polite bows at a precise 15-degree angle, as expected of Japanese, who, even in lively, direct styles, nailed polite greetings effortlessly.
Koizumi ignored her, Mashiro gave a faint nod, and Eriri's strained smile barely looked sincere.
If Marin were an ordinary first-year, she might've felt awkward and excused herself. But Marin wasn't one to shy away—she thrived on social interactions.
Spotting Eriri's earlier hesitation, Marin's eyes sparkled, and she affectionately linked her arm with Eriri's, as if they were close friends.
"Wh-What are you doing?" Eriri stammered, clearly rattled.
"Sawamura-senpai, you're the one who asked Fujii-senpai to buy Wet Girls 2, right? I play that game too! I didn't expect to meet someone who's also into it, and such a cute senpai at that. I'm so happy!"
"Ah… no, I… I mean, it's not me! I don't even know what this Wet Girls thing is!"
Marin's straightforward words left Eriri defenseless, exposing every weakness.
Marin didn't let up. "Oh, Sawamura-senpai, my favorite character is Shizuku! Who's yours? How about we cosplay together at the comic convention? Let's become the school's cosplayer duo!"
"N-No, I'm not cosplaying at the con!" Eriri instinctively confessed, much to Shunsuke's amusement.
Shunsuke put a hand over his face, thinking, "I'm not the one exposing you, Eriri. You're doing that on your own."
"So, you really are into it, Sawamura-senpai! No need to hide it! I'm open about being an anime fan with my whole class," Marin said enthusiastically, pressing on until Eriri looked about to cry, like a lost puppy, pleading silently with Shunsuke to save her.
Shunsuke ignored her, thinking it was about time someone put her tsundere attitude in check.
When she realized Shunsuke wouldn't help, Eriri shot a desperate glance at Mashiro.
Mashiro tilted her head. "Eriri, do you dislike her?"
"No, I don't dislike her, but—"
"I understand," Mashiro nodded. "So, this is what they call 'tsundere' in manga. You're actually happy, right? Shunsuke now has a perfect reference for manga material."
Shunsuke nearly burst out laughing. "Typical Mashiro—she's doing this on purpose."
"Wow, Shiina-senpai, you draw manga? I love manga! My favorite is…" Marin eagerly switched her attention to Mashiro, launching into another enthusiastic conversation.
The group continued their playful banter as they made their way to the Classical Literature Club. By now, poor Eriri was entirely at the mercy of Marin Kitagawa, who had not only managed to strike up a conversation with Mashiro but was only struggling to make an impression on the aloof Koizumi.
Both Eriri and Koizumi shared a tsundere streak, but Koizumi was not as transparent as Eriri, who wore her emotions on her face.
Koizumi's guarded demeanor was a classic blend of tsundere and kuudere—an impenetrable wall.
Her defense was maxed out, and any direct approach would only fail. Winning her over was a slow game, and Shunsuke had spent years just getting to their current level of friendship.
Shunsuke knocked on the door and called out, "Excuse us," before pushing it open. To his surprise, three more familiar faces were waiting inside.
Kasumigaoka Utaha, Iwase Aiko, and… Chitanda Eru.
He felt a hint of awkwardness.
"Chitanda-san, why are you here too?" he asked, starting with the least likely of the three, remembering she had previously told him she didn't know about the Classical Literature Club.
Shunsuke didn't imagine someone as straightforward as Chitanda would lie about that.
Chitanda smiled shyly. "After you mentioned the Classical Literature Club, Fujii-kun, I got curious, so I came to check it out."
Shunsuke understood immediately—knowing Chitanda's curiosity and initiative, this was entirely possible.
Just then, a cold voice cut through the air: "So the stalker masochist underclassman actually followed us here, huh? Iwase, hurry and call a teacher. There's a creep in the room."
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•Iwase Aiko [Bakuman]
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