“I’m so jealous!”
“Yeah, I wonder what Akiba sees in that gloomy guy…”
“Haven’t you heard? Apparently, they’re childhood friends!”
“Ugh! I want to be Akiba’s childhood friend too! “
As Akiba Sakura followed Yuuma Tsugumu down the school hallway like a little lost puppy, the students who recognized her couldn’t help but whisper among themselves.
After all, in their eyes, Akiba Sakura was an untouchable Flower on a High Peak, while Yuuma Tsugumu, walking ahead of her, was just some gloomy loner.
The fact that these two, who seemingly had nothing in common, shared a bond as childhood friends was enough to make many envious.
In most manga and novels, childhood friends usually ended up together… unless a Newcomer Love Interest showed up, of course.
‘Heh heh heh… that’s right — exactly like that. It seems I’ve maintained my image as the perfect Flower on a High Peak in front of everyone! That must mean Tsugumu’s heart is already starting to flutter for me, right?’
Sakura was feeling so smug her nose could have rivaled Pinocchio’s, when the person in front of her suddenly came to a dead stop.
Before she could react, Sakura slammed hard into Tsugumu’s back.
‘Son of a — dammit! Is Yuuma Tsugumu freaking kidding me right now?!’
Despite the string of curses running through her mind, Sakura maintained her gentle, sweet smile.
“What’s wrong, Tsugumu? Why did you stop so suddenly?”
Her reprimand sounded more like a pampered pout, but Tsugumu merely turned around and rolled his eyes at her.
“I’m going to the bathroom. Are you going to follow me in there, too? “
“Ah — !”
Sakura hurriedly waved her hands and shook her head, a faint blush creeping onto her pale, delicate face.
“No, no! Go ahead — “
‘Oh my god, how embarrassing!’
As she watched Tsugumu walk into the men’s room, Sakura’s face turned bright red.
At Asahi High School, the bathrooms for boys and girls were completely separate and not even close to each other.
The layout followed the principle of “men on the left, women on the right” — the boys’ room was at the left stairwell corner of the hallway, while the girls’ room was at the right stairwell corner.
They were separated by more than ten classrooms.
Even though Sakura was determined to conquer Tsugumu, she still had a basic sense of human decency.
‘For god’s sake…’
Sakura retreated to the hallway in front of the stairs and pursed her lips.
‘A lot of people saw that just now. I hope it didn’t ruin my image.’
In reality, the onlookers who witnessed the scene simply thought Sakura had a clumsy, cute side, which only made her seem more adorable to them.
The main reason Sakura cared so much about her reputation was simple — she was scouting for a Yellow Hair.
Whether it was her outfit or her behavior, Sakura had used her experiences from her past life to mold herself into what she considered the “perfect girl,” and she had indeed gained many admirers.
She had been receiving love letters since middle school, but she had rejected every single confession.
There were two reasons for this —
First, Yuuma Tsugumu hadn’t shown any signs of actually liking her yet, and they weren’t officially a couple.
Second, the standards for a Yellow Hair couldn’t be too low.
Sakura didn’t expect a Yellow Hair to be as exceptional as she was in her past life, but he at least couldn’t be too ugly or greasy.
He also couldn’t be too physically strong.
Sakura had absolutely no intention of actually letting another man touch her.
This was why she had been secretly training her physical fitness.
In the future, once she had protected her virtue and successfully witnessed that guy’s expression of grief and despair, she would kick the Yellow Hair to the curb just like she did in her previous life, achieving her ultimate goal.
‘There is no way I’m getting defiled in this life. Absolutely no way!’
While Sakura was busy lost in her fantasies, Tsugumu had already emerged and was quietly trying to slip past her.
He watched her out of the corner of his eye, his movements cautious.
‘Just like this — nice and quiet…’
“Tsugumu~”
But as if she had teleported like a ghost, Sakura suddenly appeared behind him.
Her voice was gentle, yet carried a hint of irritation.
“Were you going to leave me behind and go back to class alone? Tsugumu, you really are a bad child~”
“…”
“Fine, I give up.”
—
“Sakura! You’re still sticking to Yuuma today, huh?”
“Don’t scare me like that, Aoi!”
As soon as she returned to her seat, her friend in the desk behind her, Momoka Aoi, reached out and hugged her from behind.
“Hehe~”
Aoi let go and hopped around to stand in front of Sakura.
Her short yellow hair was like a sunflower, radiating sunshine, and her bright, energetic eyes darted back and forth.
“Hey, hey. Is Yuuma still acting as cold as ever to you today, Sakura?”
Aoi squinted as she looked at Tsugumu, who sat in the desk next to Sakura.
Her tone was playful.
“Weren’t you guys really close back in elementary school?”
“Since when were we close?”
Tsugumu rolled his eyes, then turned his head to stare out the window.
“Hmph, what a boring guy!”
“So sorry I don’t meet your standards — “
“Hehe~”
Watching the interaction between Aoi and Tsugumu, Sakura felt a bit uneasy.
‘Seriously, why can he joke around normally with other girls, but with me, it’s like he can barely be bothered to speak…?’
Aoi, Tsugumu, and Sakura had been classmates since elementary school.
After starting high school, the three of them naturally hung out together.
It was fine back in elementary and middle school, but ever since that summer break before high school when Sakura began her aggressive pursuit of him, Tsugumu’s attitude toward her had plummeted — yet he remained the same with Aoi.
‘Was I too impatient?’
Sakura watched Tsugumu as he deliberately avoided her, unable to figure it out.
It wasn’t that Sakura didn’t understand the concept of a “tsundere,” but the look Tsugumu gave her wasn’t that of a tsundere at all.
It was a look filled with a hint of surprise, disgust, and dissatisfaction.
That kind of look shouldn’t exist between a couple who liked each other.
Thus, Sakura knew clearly that the current Tsugumu didn’t like her.
On the contrary, he seemed to find her somewhat repulsive…
“What are you thinking about, Sakura?”
Seeing Sakura go quiet, Aoi looked at her with curiosity and a bit of concern.
“Ah, no, it’s nothing — “
Sakura quickly forced a wide, cheerful smile.
“If you’re so free, go eat some Liuliumei.”
“…”
Sakura’s mouth twitched as she looked at Tsugumu, who had just uttered that snarky remark.
‘No… was this guy always this punchable when we were kids? Did I really choose this brat as the target for my Grand NTR Undertaking…?’
With Sakura’s current charm, she could easily switch targets and find a different “Victim,” but a childhood friend-style NTR was the primary goal she wanted to achieve.
After all, the only person she had cultivated a childhood friend relationship with was Yuuma Tsugumu.
“Hehe, Tsugumu, you’re so funny…”
“…”
Tsugumu looked up at her as if she had just told a joke.
“You really think so?”
“…”
Her fist clenched… Sakura’s fist was really clenching.
‘I really want to give you a taste of my Iron Fist of Justice ‘
“Of course~”
Sakura nodded with a smile, though internally she was weeping over the Victim she had chosen.
She had made her bed, and now she had to lie in it.
‘Just you wait, Yuuma Tsugumu! Once you fall in love with me, I’m definitely going to find a Yellow Hair to cheat on you with! I will make sure I see that moronic look on your face when you’re forced to watch me and a Yellow Hair being all lovey-dovey while you can only cry in the corner!!!’