Chapter 51: Feint King
The chapter begins with Haruna thinking that it's better not to have something that you want to protect, because having something you want to hold onto means getting to know your own weaknesses. The action starts with a quick flashback to Haruna and Kubo sneaking into the warehouse that Tsujigane and his friends use as their “base.” Once inside, they don't see anyone, and Haruna thinks that this warehouse doesn't seem to be in use. As they look around, Kubo spots a door that has been blocked by file cabinets. They look in, and see Saeka on the other side. As they work at unblocking the door, Saeka tells them, “Haruna, you have to call Kyou-chan right away! Tell him he shouldn't come here!” Haruna tells her to wait a minute while they move the boxes, then asks her what happened. Saeka tearfully explains that she heard Kyou was going to be caught and beaten up by an older student from their old middle school. It was all she could think of... Looking out the window, Kubo calls out that those guys came back. They're in the parking lot next to the warehouse... Haruna joins him at the window, and they see Kyou getting out of the car. Kubo points out that it looks like they're going into an office, and turns to ask Haruna what he thinks they should do. Haruna starts to suggest that, for now, they should try to get over there... and Saeka simply takes off running toward the office. They follow, and Haruna stops her before she opens the door. He tells her to wait; he hears people talking. The chapter meets up with where the last chapter ended, as Saeka overhears Kyou begging Tsujigane to leave her alone. As Saeka is opening the door, Haruna thinks that Kyou is really going to owe him after this is over. Saeka declares her feelings, and Haruna smiles that Kyou's wish is coming true... and he's frozen in place!
After a moment, Kyou turns to Haruna, and says, “Haruna, this is bad... Am I already dead...? There's absolutely no way I'd ever hear that said in real life, so... tell me the truth. No, don't tell me!” (Haruna is thinking: “You pain in the ass...”) Kubo declares that it's all right – Prince-senpai is not dead! He turns to Haruna for agreement, and Haruna looks at him witheringly. Kubo doesn't need him to back him up on that... Haruna gives Kyou a little smile, and tells him that he did what he needed to do, so of course this was possible. Finally addressing Saeka, Kyou asks, “Saeka, did you really say that you...” She cuts him off by throwing an empty can at his head, telling him, “I'm not saying it again...” At this point, Tsujigane calls an end to the discussion, and two of his henchman hold Saeka back while another pins Kyou to the floor. Tsujigane crouches down next to Kyou (as Kyou's arm is twisted painfully behind him). It was nice of to let them have their confession time, wasn't it? Not that it's anything to him... So, shall he let them move on to the climax of the play? It'll be pretty cool to be beaten up in front of his girlfriend, right? Kyou looks a bit panicked, and Tsujigane stands back up. Now, on to Kubo and the other guy... They're just middle school kids. What are they going to do? Haruna assesses the situation, trying to estimate how many guys are on Tsujigane's side. They seem to be growing in number; so, to help Saeka and Kyou and make it out of there... Is impossible, isn't it? Haruna concludes that they can only bulldoze their way through. He turns to Kubo... and finds that he's already being held back by a couple of guys. As he flails, Kubo tells him, “Sorry, Haru-chan!” (Haruna is thinking, “Kubo!! Put your massive body to use!”) Tsujigane turns to Haruna, and asks him who exactly he is. Was he hoping to get something out of this? Is Murakami paying him? Tsujigane smiles, and tells Haruna that it's OK. If he does it now, he can walk right out. If he's in the same class as Kubo, they're preparing for exams. It would be better not to cause any problems, wouldn't it? Haruna asks Tsujigane what he'd do if he tried to call the cops, and Tsujigane answers that he expects that he'll be gone before they could arrive. Haruna thinks that having something you want to protect is a burden, and puts his head down. Tsujigane tells Haruna he can go right out that door, and Haruna responds, “I'm an outsider in this, but Kyou, Saeka, and Kubo are important to me.” (The bottom panel shows their reaction to Haruna's statement, and Kubo seems especially touched, with tears in his eyes.) Haruna continues, “And you... If you're these guys' upperclassman, don't you want to keep being someone they can respect?” Tsujigane puts his head down in mock contriteness; Haruna has a way with words. Narrowing his eyes, Tsujigane questions why a middle school kid is preaching at him. He picks up an ashtray, and Kubo yells at Haruna to run. Haruna steps back nervously, thinking that it seems he can't talk his way out of this. Tsujigane says that he's going to teach Haruna a lesson about what happens when he shows off, and swings the ashtray at Haruna's face.
Before he can make contact, Nori leaps at Tsujigane from the window frame and kicks him in the side of the head. He's knocked out cold, and everyone else in the room stares in disbelief. Nori explains that she thought Kyou was acting strange, so she tried to track him and see what was up. Once he got in the car, she sort of lost track of him, and it got tough! Haruna, still in disbelief, asks, “You ran here?” Nori tells him she did, and asks if he's all right. He tells her that it's dangerous, so she should probably get out of here, but Nori ignores him. Charging in, Nori yells, “Where's your boss!?” Haruna tells her that he's the one she just kicked... Tsujigane starts to come to, and Haruna thinks that this is bad... He's going to snap! Tsujigane looks back furiously, muttering, “You bastard...” Haruna yells, “Nori, hurry! This way!” Hearing that, Tsujigane's face starts to soften with recognition, and he says, blushing, “No-... Nori?” Noticing Tsujigane's reaction, Haruna narrows his eyes. Seriously? Nori starts to yell at him, “How long are you going to keep doing this to Saeka and Kyou...” Haruna steps in front of her, and announces, “Nori is my girlfriend.” Tsujigane is crestfallen, repeating, “Girl... friend...?” (Haruna's thought: “Bingo.”) One of his friends grabs Nori's arm, telling her, “Shut up, monkey girl!” Haruna punches him, then backs him up to the wall, telling him, “Keep your filthy hands off her.” Haruna recalls that he always thought it was best not to have anything worth fighting for, until he came to this town. Haruna presses his forearm against the other guy's neck, and Nori yells at him not to do that. Hearing the name “Haruna” again, Tsujigane yells at everyone to stop. Scratching his head, Tsujigane says, “Haruna, Haruna... Ah. I remember. There's something I've been stuck on this whole time... I'm not sure what your connections are to this town, but you know Onohira? Your ex-girlfriend, or whatever that was. Her father ran a subsidiary of our loan company, before he was arrested. I know about you. I heard about you from her. Of course, that includes your secrets.” Haruna thinks that even if it means that his weakness will be exposed, he wants to hold on to this. The chapter ends with Nori listening, wide-eyed.
The chapter begins with Haruna thinking that it's better not to have something that you want to protect, because having something you want to hold onto means getting to know your own weaknesses. The action starts with a quick flashback to Haruna and Kubo sneaking into the warehouse that Tsujigane and his friends use as their “base.” Once inside, they don't see anyone, and Haruna thinks that this warehouse doesn't seem to be in use. As they look around, Kubo spots a door that has been blocked by file cabinets. They look in, and see Saeka on the other side. As they work at unblocking the door, Saeka tells them, “Haruna, you have to call Kyou-chan right away! Tell him he shouldn't come here!” Haruna tells her to wait a minute while they move the boxes, then asks her what happened. Saeka tearfully explains that she heard Kyou was going to be caught and beaten up by an older student from their old middle school. It was all she could think of... Looking out the window, Kubo calls out that those guys came back. They're in the parking lot next to the warehouse... Haruna joins him at the window, and they see Kyou getting out of the car. Kubo points out that it looks like they're going into an office, and turns to ask Haruna what he thinks they should do. Haruna starts to suggest that, for now, they should try to get over there... and Saeka simply takes off running toward the office. They follow, and Haruna stops her before she opens the door. He tells her to wait; he hears people talking. The chapter meets up with where the last chapter ended, as Saeka overhears Kyou begging Tsujigane to leave her alone. As Saeka is opening the door, Haruna thinks that Kyou is really going to owe him after this is over. Saeka declares her feelings, and Haruna smiles that Kyou's wish is coming true... and he's frozen in place!
After a moment, Kyou turns to Haruna, and says, “Haruna, this is bad... Am I already dead...? There's absolutely no way I'd ever hear that said in real life, so... tell me the truth. No, don't tell me!” (Haruna is thinking: “You pain in the ass...”) Kubo declares that it's all right – Prince-senpai is not dead! He turns to Haruna for agreement, and Haruna looks at him witheringly. Kubo doesn't need him to back him up on that... Haruna gives Kyou a little smile, and tells him that he did what he needed to do, so of course this was possible. Finally addressing Saeka, Kyou asks, “Saeka, did you really say that you...” She cuts him off by throwing an empty can at his head, telling him, “I'm not saying it again...” At this point, Tsujigane calls an end to the discussion, and two of his henchman hold Saeka back while another pins Kyou to the floor. Tsujigane crouches down next to Kyou (as Kyou's arm is twisted painfully behind him). It was nice of to let them have their confession time, wasn't it? Not that it's anything to him... So, shall he let them move on to the climax of the play? It'll be pretty cool to be beaten up in front of his girlfriend, right? Kyou looks a bit panicked, and Tsujigane stands back up. Now, on to Kubo and the other guy... They're just middle school kids. What are they going to do? Haruna assesses the situation, trying to estimate how many guys are on Tsujigane's side. They seem to be growing in number; so, to help Saeka and Kyou and make it out of there... Is impossible, isn't it? Haruna concludes that they can only bulldoze their way through. He turns to Kubo... and finds that he's already being held back by a couple of guys. As he flails, Kubo tells him, “Sorry, Haru-chan!” (Haruna is thinking, “Kubo!! Put your massive body to use!”) Tsujigane turns to Haruna, and asks him who exactly he is. Was he hoping to get something out of this? Is Murakami paying him? Tsujigane smiles, and tells Haruna that it's OK. If he does it now, he can walk right out. If he's in the same class as Kubo, they're preparing for exams. It would be better not to cause any problems, wouldn't it? Haruna asks Tsujigane what he'd do if he tried to call the cops, and Tsujigane answers that he expects that he'll be gone before they could arrive. Haruna thinks that having something you want to protect is a burden, and puts his head down. Tsujigane tells Haruna he can go right out that door, and Haruna responds, “I'm an outsider in this, but Kyou, Saeka, and Kubo are important to me.” (The bottom panel shows their reaction to Haruna's statement, and Kubo seems especially touched, with tears in his eyes.) Haruna continues, “And you... If you're these guys' upperclassman, don't you want to keep being someone they can respect?” Tsujigane puts his head down in mock contriteness; Haruna has a way with words. Narrowing his eyes, Tsujigane questions why a middle school kid is preaching at him. He picks up an ashtray, and Kubo yells at Haruna to run. Haruna steps back nervously, thinking that it seems he can't talk his way out of this. Tsujigane says that he's going to teach Haruna a lesson about what happens when he shows off, and swings the ashtray at Haruna's face.
Before he can make contact, Nori leaps at Tsujigane from the window frame and kicks him in the side of the head. He's knocked out cold, and everyone else in the room stares in disbelief. Nori explains that she thought Kyou was acting strange, so she tried to track him and see what was up. Once he got in the car, she sort of lost track of him, and it got tough! Haruna, still in disbelief, asks, “You ran here?” Nori tells him she did, and asks if he's all right. He tells her that it's dangerous, so she should probably get out of here, but Nori ignores him. Charging in, Nori yells, “Where's your boss!?” Haruna tells her that he's the one she just kicked... Tsujigane starts to come to, and Haruna thinks that this is bad... He's going to snap! Tsujigane looks back furiously, muttering, “You bastard...” Haruna yells, “Nori, hurry! This way!” Hearing that, Tsujigane's face starts to soften with recognition, and he says, blushing, “No-... Nori?” Noticing Tsujigane's reaction, Haruna narrows his eyes. Seriously? Nori starts to yell at him, “How long are you going to keep doing this to Saeka and Kyou...” Haruna steps in front of her, and announces, “Nori is my girlfriend.” Tsujigane is crestfallen, repeating, “Girl... friend...?” (Haruna's thought: “Bingo.”) One of his friends grabs Nori's arm, telling her, “Shut up, monkey girl!” Haruna punches him, then backs him up to the wall, telling him, “Keep your filthy hands off her.” Haruna recalls that he always thought it was best not to have anything worth fighting for, until he came to this town. Haruna presses his forearm against the other guy's neck, and Nori yells at him not to do that. Hearing the name “Haruna” again, Tsujigane yells at everyone to stop. Scratching his head, Tsujigane says, “Haruna, Haruna... Ah. I remember. There's something I've been stuck on this whole time... I'm not sure what your connections are to this town, but you know Onohira? Your ex-girlfriend, or whatever that was. Her father ran a subsidiary of our loan company, before he was arrested. I know about you. I heard about you from her. Of course, that includes your secrets.” Haruna thinks that even if it means that his weakness will be exposed, he wants to hold on to this. The chapter ends with Nori listening, wide-eyed.