Chapter 11: School Trip, Part 1 (Parts 3-4)

Chapter 11, Part 3

— Woah! It looks delicious!

When the food arrived, Miru-chan was the first to show excitement.

It's really a seafood feast.

Fried fish with rice, two corn tortillas, salad, a seafood soup, and a soda from a national brand, Sodashanpan!

— You know, at least here they cook the fish.

I really don't get why in Japan they prefer raw fish…

— But you don't have any fish. — Kenji says to me as he looks at my plate with two slices of pizza.

— W-well, it's just that I don't like seafood.

Everyone gives me a weird look.

— Who cares? Let's eat, I'm starving here. — says Hiroki seriously.

— Thanks for the food! — we all say before starting to eat.

In the midst of it all, some stray dogs approach with a menacing look.

I start noticing the discomfort on my friends' faces, while I remain as usual.

— Hey, why are there so many dogs? — Hiroki asks.

— A-and why are they looking at us like that? — Sora asks, trembling with fear.

— Well, stray dogs are as common here as cars are in Japan. Only for every car there, there are three stray dogs here. — I say, not even sure if that's true.

— And what sense does that make?! — Kenji asks.

— Ummh... I don't know.

Saying that, I casually throw the crust of my pizza towards the dogs, and they start fighting over that piece.

— Kya! — Sora screamed in fright.

— Hey, feed us too! — Kibō yells from under the table.

With him were Chikara and Ai.

— Yeah, you idiots, I'm starving! — Chikara shouts.

— Can I go for a swim? — Ai says quietly.

— You can swim when no one's watching, Ai-chan. — Miru-chan tells her.

— Stop shouting…

I toss a piece of pizza, and Chikara starts fighting with Kibō for the food.

Miru-chan gives Ai a piece of fish straight into her mouth.

The food is really delicious, this pizza tastes just like I remember.

I wish I could have it again with my dad…

— Uraseku-kun! You lost the surfing match and didn't pay for the food, you should at least get a punishment. — Sora tells me.

— Take them to see that "Reina-dono-sensei" you admire so much. — Kibō says from under the table with a pepperoni on his face.

— Oh, that's right! You say she inspired you to make pupusas and that her way of cooking is like a martial art. — Kenji says.

Do I owe them something?

Hmm, I could take them, but since we're on a school trip, I'm not sure if it's the right thing to do…

— I want to see her! — says Sora, very excited.

Hiroki and Kenji start giving him weird looks, staying silent for a moment.

— Hey, who the hell are you? — Hiroki asks Sora, clearly confused.

— I'm Kobayashi Sora, student representative and member of the student council.

Sora answered his question, very proud of his position at the institute.

— And since when did you join us? — Kenji asks.

— I didn't want to get lost here because I don't know Spanish, so I'm sticking with Uraseku-kun all the time!

That's a good excuse.

— He's just a lost kid I adopted.

Hearing that from me, Sora is left speechless.

— Besides, neither Hiroki nor Miru-chan were with us, Kenji.

— T-that's true…

Kenji replied while scratching his cheek.

Although it's true, Hiroki and Miru-chan didn't spend much time with us in the past. Especially Hiroki…

If it weren't for the diamond situation, we wouldn't be as close as we are now.

— You better not do anything stupid on this trip! — Miru-chan tells us all.

— Don't worry, I've got an idea to make it fun!

Kenji stands up from his seat and, with a deep, fake voice, says to us:

— We must avenge what happened at the bar.

— Huh? — Miru-chan, Hiroki, and Sora seem confused.

I have no idea what he's talking about either.

— What are you talking about?

— Did you forget? We didn't get a single girl's number at that bar! And Makoto got all the fun.

Ah! How can he talk about these things in front of Miru-chan?!

— Just drop it, Kenji. We were just being dumb, that's all. — I reply.

— It was your fault for dressing so ridiculously!

— I still see him dressed ridiculously… — Hiroki says.

Sora, still looking confused, asks:

— What are you guys planning?

Kenji, excited, responds:

— Girls, buddy! The beach is a paradise full of beautiful women, and as men, we're going hunting! Are you in?

— Eh…

— I don't have anything better to do, so I'm in. — Hiroki says confidently.

As he says that, he tosses a fish under the table, and Kibō and Chikara start fighting over it.

We all finish eating.

— Well, I'm coming too! — Sora says, standing up and looking very excited.

I don't think this is going to end well…

Kenji, a bit nervous, turns to Miru-chan and says:

— S-sorry… Miru-chan, but I don't think you can join us.

Miru-chan stands up, smiles, and replies:

— No problem! I actually had plans with some friends anyway, excuse me.

She bows, takes Ai, and leaves while Kibō and Chikara fight over the fish head covered in sand.

— Great job, you scared away the first girl… — I told them.

— We hadn't even started! — Kenji says to me.

— If we're going to do this, we need to act fast. — Hiroki says determinedly.

Kibō and Chikara enter their respective diamonds as we start the operation… well, luckily it doesn't have a name.

Chapter 11, Part 4

Under the scorching summer sun in El Salvador, a quartet of idiots is looking for a girl to hang out with.

The number four…

A perfect number for a boy band, a good number for forming groups at school, the Fantastic Four have it in their name… the square has four equal sides, making it a very strong geometric shape.

Four people are almost indestructible…

And then there's us four… Hiroki, Kenji, Sora, and me, the four idiots.

…

At least I don't say these things out loud.

— What's the plan? — Sora asks.

— We don't need a plan. Women in this country are attracted to foreigners.

— It'll be easy. — Hiroki says confidently.

— We don't speak Spanish, so please translate for us. — Sora says, super excited.

Before starting, the four of us strike an epic pose to boost our confidence.

I'm glad to see that they're going along with it this time.

— Hey! — Kenji says. — Do you see those girls? Let's go after them…

— Alright…

Like hunters after their prey, we approach them while I think about what to say.

It's my moment to talk to them.

I pull out my best lines in Spanish to sound more convincing… and the pressure is intense!

However, all those dating sims have prepared me wonderfully.

I'm a scholar in this area, someone qualified…

So then…

Why am I shaking so much?!

I get close to them, and, extremely nervous, I say:

— H-hi ladies…

What the hell was that?!

— Me and my friends… they don't speak Spanish, but I… I do… and we were wondering if… you… umm… well… you all…

Take note, dating sims don't work in real life…

I guess it also doesn't help that I only get the good endings by using online guides because I usually don't end up with anyone in those games…

— Hey, why are you shaking so much? — Hiroki asks me in a low voice.

— I-I… don't know how to take the lead.

I replied as the girls started to look uncomfortable.

— Idiot, say this.

Kenji begins whispering in my ear.

Say what?!

What he whispered to me is not fit to be written in this family-friendly novel, or maybe I'm just exaggerating…

— I'm not saying that vulgarity, you say it!

— We don't speak Spanish! — Sora replies.

Just as we start arguing in Japanese, it inevitably makes the girls uncomfortable, and they end up leaving.

After a moment of arguing, we realize they're gone.

— T-they left…

Everyone's disappointed faces are painfully obvious.

I didn't even hear their voices…

But we won't get discouraged!

— Hey! What do you think about that girl over there?

Sora's sweet voice comes like a gentle breeze in the summer, especially when he's pointing out a girl!

— Come on, I'll try to step up…

Third time's the charm… wait, this would be the second.

— Hey there, beautiful… um… we're foreigners, and we were wondering if you could join us somewhere so we could talk.

My flirting strategies are terrible…

— Sure, handsome Asian boys. — she says in a sweet voice.

She responded?! I'm starting to shake like I just drank four liters of espresso!

But before I can say anything, I sense danger behind me.

Someone tried to hit me, but thanks to the power of the diamond, I managed to dodge it.

What was that?!

When I turn to look, it's a really strong guy.

— How dare you hit on my girlfriend?! — he asks us, furious.

— What did he say? — Sora asked.

— H-he said that's his g-girlfriend…

As soon as they hear that, Sora and Kenji drop to the ground, begging for forgiveness.

— We're really sorry!

— I'm not scared of you. — Hiroki replies.

Seeing his support, I gain confidence and say in Spanish:

— I'm not scared of you either…

— You've got guts! But you're just a bunch of dumb Chinese kids from Chinameca! Or are all of you Jackie Chan over there?

Huh…?

C-Chinese kids from Chinameca? Jackie Chan?

What kind of response or racism was that?!

— What did he just say? — Hiroki asks.

— He said we're a bunch of dumb Chinese kids from Chinameca, and we look like Jackie Chan. — I reply, barely holding back my laughter.

— What?!

Hearing that, Sora and Kenji stand up and say:

— We're not Chinese!

— That's right… we're Japanese. Well, they are, I'm from here. — I reply.

— I'm going to kill you!

Huh?

Hiroki charges at him and, with the strength of the diamond, lands a punch that knocks the guy out cold.

— Gah!

— I-I think I overdid it…

— Let's run!

This idiot can't control his emotions! 

After a long run, we collapse onto the sand. 

We looked like lizards sunbathing... 

— From now on... we should only approach girls our age and in groups... 

I guess that's for the best...

If the police see an adult woman with us minors, she could get into trouble...

I thought this would be an easy mission...

— Hey, those girls playing soccer look young.

We all turn to look where Kenji pointed.

— Let's go, Uraseku-kun! — Sora says, jumping to his feet. 

They recover way too quickly from defeat... 

— Uh... I'm not good at sports...— I reply as I turn my face to the hot sand on the beach. 

— Ha! You forget that I'm good at sports, let's go! 

Hiroki, Sora, and Kenji move forward, dragging me along. 

I wonder what they're trying to achieve by talking to girls... 

Are they looking for something serious or just a fling? I don't quite get it. 

I'd rather wait for the right one. 

When we get to where they were, they whisper in my ear what I have to say. 

— What's up, girls? Are you from around here? Huh? Yeah, I'm from Japan, that's in... Ouch! 

As I was saying my line straight out of a movie, Hiroki smacks me on the head. 

— I just told you to introduce us! 

— Alright, alright... well, we're Sora, Hiroki, Kenji, and I'm Rasec, we were wondering if... you know, if we could play a match with you if you'd like. 

— Ummh… Sure! 

— She said yes! — I tell my friends in Japanese. 

— That was easy! 

It was extremely easy; I guess they just want to have fun. 

In that case... 

The four of us strike a Jojo pose before starting. 

— Let's play... 

Sora will take care of the goal, Kenji and Hiroki are up front, and I'll defend. 

And the beach soccer match begins. 

It starts normally; the four of us were holding back since we were playing against girls, but we didn't expect them to be really good at this. 

They steal the ball from us, and before we know it, the first goal is scored against us. 

— Goal! Come on, it's your kick-off! 

— Ah…! 

We're all confused, but Hiroki tries to calm us down: 

— That was just a fluke; let's show them we're better! 

Despite playing more aggressively, the girls are so good that even playing seriously, we couldn't do much. 

We're getting destroyed. 

— We're losing! — says Sora. 

— No kidding! — I reply sarcastically. 

This calls for extreme measures... but it doesn't matter... because I have the diamond of hope! 

— Listen up, everyone, I've got an idea. Kibō... if you help me with this... I'll let you out! 

With that, I let out a loud scream and unleash my aura. 

— Huh? 

— I didn't know Japanese people could transform in real life. — says one of the girls. 

Sora looks more surprised than the girls. 

— Hiroki, pass it to me! 

— Chikara! 

Hiroki also gathers his power. 

Sora passes it to Kenji, and he passes it to Hiroki. 

— Here it comes! 

Hiroki passes it to me in the air. 

As I jump, I start spinning so fast to make sure I gather all the momentum I can.

When the ball comes, I set up for a bicycle kick and strike. 

The hit is so powerful that the ball starts creating a wave of sand around it, it heads straight for the goal, knocks out the goalkeeper, and goes in, tearing the net apart. 

What a goal! 

— Yes! We did it, we did it! 

The four of us celebrate… wait, did we lose seven to one? Who cares... 

— So, girls, will you go out with us…? 

... 

... 

What happened? Kuroda-san, is that you? 

Chapter 11 - Final Part

— You're finally awake. 

— K-Kuroda-san... 

I find myself in our hotel room; Sora seems to be asleep in his bed while Kuroda-san has been watching over me. 

— W-what happened? 

— Some girls knocked you guys out; you're lucky I was nearby to bring you back. 

— Yeah, lucky that... wait, we got knocked out by who?

W-wait, knocked out by some girls?! Do these diamonds only work on guys or what?! 

— Sakurai-san helped me bring you all back... 

Miru-chan... 

— Anyway, go back to sleep, we're leaving early tomorrow, Zeido-san. 

After all, Kuroda-san seems to be a really kind person... 

Damn it, I didn't think those girls would go as far as to knock us out...

Oh well, tomorrow's going to be a long day, better close my eyes and rest.