Ch. 26 - Smashing Todo!

[My college tuition fees are higher than I expected. So I placed some goals with rewards on my Patreon.

1st Goal: 50 Active Paid Patrons - Updating Schedule will include Saturdays!

2nd Goal: 100 Active Paid Patrons - Straight update schedule from Monday to Sunday!]

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"Y-You! Onii-chan!" Blushing hard, Tomoko glared at Kenshin and pointed her finger at him.

Alya, meanwhile, simply looked away with a blush on her cheeks.

As for Aio Todo? He was covering his mouth as his eyes welled up in tears.

"W-What a manly answer." He sobbed.

"….Thanks." Kenshin's face turned sour, somehow he had a bad feeling about this.

Unbeknownst to him, Todo's consciousness reeled back to his mind, a flashback of his memory playing out.

***

A memory of him and Kenshin standing side by side, wearing an average high-school uniform.

"Yosh! Today, I'll be confessing my love for Takada-chan!" Todo clenched his fists and loudly declared, the strong wind blowing his hair away, courtesy of their staying on the school rooftop.

"Of course, Todo-san! With your manliness and charm, no doubt Takada-chan would fall the moment she lays her eyes on you! I believe in you, Todo!" Kenshin, on the side, shared the same energy as him and proudly encouraged him.

"You truly are my best friend, Kenshin!" Wiping away the tears on his face, Todo gained a resolute look on his face as he continued.

"Alright! Just stay here and wait for the good news! I'll definitely captivate Takada-chan with my looks!" Waving his hand goodbye, Todo exits the rooftop, determined to confess his feelings to the school's top beauty.

A few minutes passed and the two can now be seen standing side by side while walking home.

Contrary to his high energy from earlier, Todo's face was solemn and his back was hunched, looking extremely defeated.

"Don't worry about it, Todo. Perhaps she just likes to focus on her studies first. After all, from what I've heard, most girls declare themselves as study-first, prioritizing their education rather than forming relationships." Kenshin patted Todo's back and comforted him.

"Don't be down. How about this, let's go to our usual ramen spot and this time, it's on the house, come on!"

Hearing his words, Todo finally recovered and straightened himself, and clenched his fists.

"You're right! Absolutely right! How could I have never seen it? She was always at the top of the class, of course, she wants to focus on studying first! You really are my brother, Kenshin!"

"I'll always be your brother, Todo. Now, hurry up, if I get there first, you'll be the one to pay!" Without hesitation, Kenshin exploded and started running.

"Wha-!? Wait! That's cheating! Wait for me!"

***

Back to the present, Todo's face was full of tears and snot while staring at the sky.

"Kenshin, even back in the day, you have always been there for me. When Takada-chan refused my confession, it was you who cheered me up!" Wiping his face, Todo gritted his teeth and loudly declared.

"Kenshin! You are my Besto Friendo!"

"My Bruzzah!" Todo flashed a genuine grin on his face as he stared directly into Kenshin's eyes.

On the other hand, Kenshin—for some reason, felt an inexplicable warm feeling in his heart.

Sure, he had a trauma in men like Todo due to his experience in the world of Fantazio but the way he called him his best friend and a brother along with a sincere smile on his face, it was the first time Kenshin received something like it.

Before he knew it, he smashed his hand on Todo's and loudly replied.

"You're right! You are my brother! My one and only best friend in the world!"

"Bruzzah!"

"Bruzzah!"

Watching the two loudly declare their brotherly love for each other, Alya and Tomoko finally found something they both could agree on.

They absolutely don't know Kenshin and will never associate with him!

***

"Kenshin-dono! You must join me at Takada-chan's meet and greet! I have brought plenty of her merch!" To prove his words, Todo brought out several clothes, caps, and posters from out of nowhere before shoving some to Kenshin.

"My brother. You may not like Takada-chan right now but I know, deep down in your heart, you'll soon appreciate her beauty!"

"It depends but don't get your hopes up, Todo-san," Kenshin replied with a simple shrug, not refusing the posters that Todo gave to him.

"Though if I were you, I'd refrain from falling in love with her." Todo's face turned serious once again.

"Why is that?"

"Because Takada-chan's true love is me! I'm the only one she loves!" He celebrates with a small smile on his face, a single string of tears dripping down his left cheek.

"…You sound like a creepy stalker, you know that, right?" Kenshin gave him a dull stare while pointing out.

"Hah! I've heard that many times and I'll repeat it once again! I'm not a creepy stalker if my love for her is the purest!"

"That's exactly what a creepy stalker would say!"

Seeing that it is pointless arguing with Todo, they proceeded to line up, and thanks to Todo's menacing face with a scar and his suffocating aura, some weak-willed fans couldn't help but give up their position to them, quickly putting them ahead of the line.

As for Alya and Tomoko, the two seemed to have found an interesting vendor stall.

Of course, as a filial older brother, Kenshin gave some money to Tomoko to spend as much as she wants. It is his duty, after all!

In return? He got himself a kiss on the cheeks from his little sister.

Of course, there's nothing more about it. It's just a simple show of affection from a little sister to her older brother—that's all.

A few minutes passed and Todo could be seen kneeling on the ground in front of Takada-chan, revering her like a goddess.

"Takada-chan, every day that I wake up, it was always you that I'm always grateful to be able to live to see another day. I'd like you to know that my love for you is pure! No one but us would understand the relationship that we have!"

Todo's face turned dashing and captivating as he looked directly into Takada-chan's stunned eyes, as if trying to make her fall through eye contact.

"Oh, it's you again...T-Thanks, I guess." Takada-chan shifted uncomfortably and slightly bowed her head.

Before Todo and Kenshin could react, the security suddenly grabbed them before pushing them off the line.

Seeing Todo still kneeling and staring at the ground, Kenshin felt bad for the big man and couldn't help but crouch and pat his shoulders.

"Hey, Todo. Are you okay? At least we managed to get her to sign the merch, right?" However, when Todo raised his head and revealed his face, Kenshin quickly reeled back his concern.

Todo was smiling, not out of sadness but out of joy.

"Did you see that, Kenshin? Takada-chan smiled and talked to me. She looked at me, Kenshin! She looked at my eyes! There must've been a spark earlier!" Todo's face was filled with joy and excitement, and not a hint of anger or anything negative could be seen on his face.

'This guy is definitely a creep!' Kenshin screamed in his mind.

"….O-Okay. Whatever suits you…" Kenshin stood and muttered the last sentence to himself.

"Anyways, let's go and find my sister and Alya…" Right exactly as he finished his words, his sharp eyes immediately caught the two of them, flanked by three men wearing only pants and showing off the lines of muscle on their upper bodies.

Judging by Alya and Tomoko's facial expression, Kenshin could already tell his uncomfortable they were uncomfortable around them.

At the same time, his ears caught their conversation.

"Hey there, beautiful lady, I see you've done well in your cosplay. Cosplaying as my girlfriend!" A man with an ugly grin on his face inched towards Alya, ignoring the disgusted look on her face.

"How about you enjoy the rest of the day with me—" Just as the man was about to go ahead and touch Alya's shoulders, a hand stretched out and tightly grabbed his wrists.

"What the—Gagh!" The man's face was full of shock before turning into pain as the grip on his wrist was tight enough to fully stop the circulation of blood to his hand.

"W-Who are you!?" Amidst the pain, the man still managed to get a glimpse of who grabbed him and saw a dark-haired man, younger than him staring down coldly at him.

The eyes. They say the eyes never lie.

And in the boy's eyes was pure coldness and filled with a murderous intent, as if the boy was already killing him a thousand times just by staring alone.

"L-Let g—" Before he could try to resist, the hand that was grabbing his wrist suddenly pushed forward, bending his wrist in impossible ways.

His two companions, on the other hand, finally recovered their composure and were about to step forward and help their friend when suddenly, two arms of pure muscle locked upon their necks.

"Do you know one of the things I hate the most? Disrespecting the friend and sister of my best friend." Todo whispered in their ears as his elbows continued to tighten around their necks.

His stone-like muscle, pushing against their trachea caused them to be unable to breathe and soon lose their consciousness and fall on the ground.

"Pathetic." He gave the two figures a glance of disgust before shifting his focus to Kenshin.

The said man right now, kept pressing the bent wrist forward, further causing pain to the thug.

"Y-You!" Despite the pain, the man finally gathered the strength to retaliate, using his free hand and throwing it towards Kenshin's face.

Just as Tomoko and Alya tried to yell for him, the fist missed its target.

No, more like Kenshin tilted his head slightly and the fist passed by a hair's breadth.

"You are too slow." He said before raising his knee towards the man's face.

Bam!

The force of the knee was strong enough to fully dislocate the man's nose and knock him unconscious.

It's not worth killing the man or causing more pain, especially in a public space. Not to mention, he's right in front of his little sister and Alya.

Doing something like killing or breaking the man's body would cause trauma to the two.

Better leave the matter to the police and write it off as self-defence and defending a friend.

"Let's go." Kenshin grabbed both Alya and Tomoko's hands before walking away.

Following behind them was Todo, who coincidentally stepped on the unconscious bodies on the way.

"My bad." He waved his hand and said without turning back.

The crowd, that has gathered due to the commotion started to disperse and mind their businesses while a few called the police and nearby security.

***

Outside the convention, Alya and Tomoko were both still blushing, due to the fact that Kenshin was still holding their hands.

"Uhm. How long are you gonna hold my hand?" Alya finally gathered the courage to point out.

Hearing her, Tomoko had a crash out in her mind.

'Lady are you crazy!? Are you trying to make him let go of our hands!?' She couldn't help but curse the albino gorilla and glare at her.

Oblivious to this, or perhaps just ignoring her, Alya continued to stare at Kenshin, waiting for his reaction.

However, what she wasn't expecting was Kenshin's response.

"Would it be a problem if I want to hold it for as long as I want?"

"…" Alya's cheeks gained another tint of red before bowing her head to hide it from him.

"Конечно, я хочу, чтобы ты продолжал держать меня за руку, идиот."

Secretly understanding her, Kenshin softly smiled and didn't continue the matter. Though in the end, he decided to let go of their hands.

Not because he wants to but because it feels weird to do so while Todo was behind him covering his mouth while giving him a thumbs-up.

'You truly are my brother, Kenshin!' He yelled in his mind while silently cheering for his best friend. Unlike him who's a hopeless romantic, his best friend seemed to have a higher luck in romance than him.

In his heart, Todo started to see Kenshin as someone to look up to, especially when it comes to matters of complications of love.

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[Next Chapter: Ch. 27 - Kenshin-sensei!]