Soul for a Girlfriend?

"Just an acquaintance who lost his way, isn't it right, buddy?" Vivian asked for my affirmation, which he indirectly meant for me to leave.

"Is it?" I tilted my head in confusion.

"Yeah, that's what he is asking?" The other guys said to me,

"No, I'm pretty sure I'm not lost." Looking at him, I replied in a plain tone.

"Just get out already!" Vivian pointed towards the door.

"No!" 

A bit of back-and-forth exchange between us was going on, until the other guy said, "Oh, so you're the one I kept hearing so much about."

"Me? Popular?" I looked at him with a confused look, even though everything was quite conveniently following what I had in mind. So I was playing along with that.

"You definitely are… especially after what you did…" He said with a bright smile.

"Well… understandable." I shrugged. The other guy turned around and called for some.

"Oi, Yuna-san… look at him." 

"What is it, Ryuhan-san?" I heard a sharp feminine voice reply to his call from behind them.

"See, he is the guy who asked Naoto-san out." So the name of this guy was Ryuhan. And the way he is calling Tsubakihara senpai by her first name, that shows he is quite close to her too. Classmates probably? Or could they be lovers? Wait, is he the boyfriend that Tsūmen and Gaisen were talking about?

"Him?" A petite girl with ginger hair appeared from behind Ryuhan. She wasn't in her kendo outfit, rather, she was wearing the normal school uniform and her hair was tied in a long braid that came around her neck.

"Oh… he is so cute." She looked at me for a few seconds and commented in a cheerful voice. She was a bit shorter than me and she advanced her hand to pull my cheeks, but I stepped back as it was awkward.

"So Vivian got his ass kicked by this dude?" She asked, shifting her gaze towards Vivian.

"He didn't even touch me once." He mumbled with a grunt.

"Still, the fact that you were armed, and he wasn't, is impressive." Ryuhan said, but in all honesty, I didn't find anything impressive about it.

"What's your name?" The girl named Yuna asked while looking at me with her curious blue eyes, which were quite contrasting to her ginger hair.

"Sakamaki Saishi." I replied, but it was really hard to keep up with all of their positive high energies.

"Oh yeah… I forgot… I remember it was something starting with S." Her eyebrows raised a bit as she nodded her head slowly.

"Well… that's one way to remember it." 

"Sakamaki, how was it?" Ryuhan asked in a deep voice while looking me in the eye.

"Huh?" Three of us had the same reaction as we looked at him suspiciously.

Realizing what he said might have given us a different idea, he specified with an awkward smile, "You know… fighting against this guy."

"This guy is actually crazy." I said, looking at Vivian, who was staring at me.

"Tell us something new." Yuna said while laughing.

"Oh… you're aware that he has loose screws?"

"Yeah, pretty much." Ruyhan wrapped his hands around Vivian's shoulder and pulled him closer.

"What a pleasant group of friends you have, Senpai." I chuckled at Vivian. I was purposely trying to piss him off.

"I so want to punch your teeth out right now." He sighed.

"Vivian getting pissed is funny." Ryuhan brushed Vivian's hair with his right arms while both of them were laughing.

We stopped talking for a bit as all of us were looking at Naoto. The way she fights isn't much different from others, but what sets her apart is her mindset.

The person she was sparring with will lose this match anyway because of those hesitant strikes and late movement. There is no place for self doubt in a fight. The more one questions themselves, the more their will is shaken.

The person sparring with her already knows who they are sparring with. So with that in mind, they already assumed that they'll lose against her because it's the Tsubakihara Naoto they're facing. A graceful swordswoman with an unshakable will.

That's the only difference between her and her opponent. But of course she is quite talented herself. Her movements are smooth as fluid and her sword strikes are precise and well timed. Years of training were put behind this and it could be easily judged.

Of course I did not know about kendo, but I think disciplines in martial arts are the same no matter what style one practices. As my Sensei used to say, "It's not only training of the body but also the training of one's mind."

"So Sakamaki-kun, you've quite the courage to outright ask her out." Yuna's eyes moved onto me.

"It seemed like that, but it took a long time to build up that courage." I gave an answer that would seem the most plausible at that moment.

"Of course, but building up the courage and then facing the obstacle unwavered is an impressive feat." Ryuhan patted my shoulder. They were definitely treating me like a kid, although they were only a year older than me.

"Well, I guess.. thanks?" I said in a hesitant voice because I was actually at a loss for words.

"Oh… don't tell me… you're socially awkward?" Yuna instantly said with a smug on her face that was quite suspicious.

"I...uh…" I tried to say something, but she advanced her hands towards my face and pulled my cheeks this time. 

"How cute…!?" She exclaimed, as I stepped back and covered my cheeks with my hands.

"Tell me, tell me" She said with much excitement in her voice. It was definitely difficult to keep up with her. 

"Wha….?" I asked but before I could complete even a single word, she hurled the question at me like we hurl grenades while playing online shooter games.

"Why do you like her?"

"Ahh… umm…" I couldn't find a suitable set of words to form a plausible answer.

"Yuna… don't bully a junior." Looking at me troubled, Ryuhan smacked her on the head and scolded her. This reminds me of the time I smacked Reina because she was bullying Chiaki.

"Ouch!" Yuna held her head and stepped backward while looking at Ryuhan with a pissed look on her face.

"Yes, don't bully him…" Vivian said and looked at my face before adding, "He deserved to get beaten, not going to lie." 

"As if…" I rolled my eyes and that triggered him.

"Huh? What was that brat?" 

"Nothing…" And a few minutes after that, Naoto's sparring was also over and the bell also rang so I had to go back to class. I couldn't talk with her today, even though I talked with some members, among which one could be her boyfriend.