B Group Chapter 17 – Name

“How many are there?”

Ryou asks Erika while jogging towards her.

“Three from our school, six from the other school.”

Hearing Erika’s words, Ryou’s feet come to halt.

“Three? Six? …Are they all men?”

Erika, while surprised at Ryou who suddenly stopped, answers his question.

“Y-yeah. They’re all men…”

Ryou has an openly relieved face, while flicking his hands he says to Erika.

“What. Then just leave them.”

With the exception of Ryou, huh? the others are hardened with their mouth opened.

“Wa-wait a minute. You’re not going to help them?”

Erika who had seen what was happening is in a hurry, having recovered she quickly asked Ryou.
Ryou, nods his head as if to say that’s how it is.

“Ah, they’re men? A man’s quarrel is their own trouble.”
“Bu-but there’s twice as many people!”
“If you pick a fight there, then it’s their responsibility. Besides, who says that the three are going to lose?”
“No, the three from our school, they’re hurt and surrounded!”
“Fuun? Then isn’t it already over?”

Hearing that the three are surrounded, Ryou’s complexion doesn’t even change, Erika who is getting irritated latches onto his arm and pulls him.

“A-anyway, come quickly!”
“Fine then.”

In a corner of the plaza, three people who have fallen down are enclosed by six people, the surrounding six seem to be cheerful as the three are kicked repeatedly.

“They’re going at it~”

Ryou spoke in carefree manner while watching the plaza from behind cover. That sort of Ryou has his am gripped and shaken by Erika as she appeals.

“Please, help them!”

Erika’s words makes Ryou show a troubled face, when he is about to open his mouth to explain, Azusa talks before him.

“Erika! Those three, they’re from our class!”
“Eh!?”

What Azusa said surprises Erika, immediately she looked at the plaza again.

“You’re right! It’s Okamoto-kun, Yoshida-kun and Kudou-kun!”

Azusa and Saki seem to feel sick seeing someone they’re acquainted with bleeding and their faces are a little pale.

“Yes, on that morning some time ago, they’re the three who suddenly confessed to Erika.”

Azusa’s words made Ryou think there was even less necessity to help them.
Erika’s grips Ryou’s arm tighter.

“Hey, please! Save them! They’re my classmates!”

Ryou then says to Erika while being troubled.

“It’ll be over soon. Isn’t fine to just take them to the hospital after that?”
But it’s better if you go earlier!”
“It’s alright. For such an injury, one, two weeks of rest is enough to get well.”

Erika is astonished at how coldhearted Ryou’s words were. She knows Ryou to be a gentle person, but the person before her eyes now doesn’t even try to help a human being who is being hurt in a fight. Is the person she came to like such a cold person, while Erika is in shock Azusa lets out her voice.

“Sakuragi-kun, though I don’t know why you won’t help them, I ask you, won’t you save them?”

Amazed at Azusa’s words, Ryou says to her.

“You…just now, are you aware you’re telling me to go pick a fight with six people by myself?”

Erika and Azusa at this point, realize they’re asking for a selfish thing which could put Ryou in danger.

“That’s right! But isn’t it alright if it’s Sakuragi-kun? That time when you saved me…”
“That time with you was three people, this time it’s six. By simple calculation it’s twice as many, but the degree of difficulty it isn’t only doubled.”

Ryou calmly points that out to Erika who is at a loss, Azusa says.

“I think you’ll be okay. I don’t have a strong basis for it, but I think it’s possible in your case, I think that’s the reason I as well as Erika are asking you.”

Erika nods greatly to Azusa’s words, and behind Erika is Saki who is nodding many times.

Eyes with such unconditional confidence are thrown out to Ryou, he scratches his head briskly with a troubled face. Looking at his appearance of not going, Azusa believes that if she herself goes then Ryou will also follow, facing towards the plaza she said.

“Then, I’ll go, its fine if you come in afterwards.”

Popeyed from surprise, Ryou grabs Azusa’s arm.

“That’s a stupid thing to say. If you go, what do you think will happen?”

While trying to shake off Ryou’s hand, Azusa makes a resentful face.

“As for this, I…”
“Is it aikido? But with your arms, after throwing down one or two people, even if you’re cautious you’ll be caught and just end up as a hostage.”

Ryou interrupts what Azusa was going to say, though her face was stiffened wither mouth open, she let out her doubts.

“H-how, that’s…”

Ryou doesn’t reply to Azusa’s question, separating his hand, as he was about to open his mouth to give a reason for not helping them, Erika runs past Ryou’s side, startled he grabs Erika’s hand.

“Let go! I’m not asking Sakuragi-kun now! I must stop this!”

Erika’s face is red and she looks reproachfully at Ryou through teary eyes.

“You’re being foolish. Look at those guys, do you think they’ll stop if you ask? You’ll be captured.”
“I said that I will do that! They’re being injured!”
“Therefore…”
“Enough already! Let go!!”

Perhaps because of Ryou’s carelessness, or because it’s the hand of the girl he likes, Ryou was grabbing weakly so as not to hurt her, Erika shook Ryou’s hand off and started running.
Surprised, Ryou clenches his hand which separated, and calls out to Erika to stop.

“Wait! Erika!”

‘Wait’ is it a reaction to that word, or because of not being able to go against Ryou’s words, or that for the first time the one she like called out her name, Erika came to a stop. Ryou promptly takes Erika’s hand, pulling her towards himself, he says unpleasantly.

“You being injured in front of my eyes isn’t something I can allow.”

Erika looks at Ryou absentmindedly. Looking over Erika who’s like that, Ryou turns back to Azusa nd pushes Erika towards her.

“Azusa, hold onto Erika tightly. I’ll go so you three go home before me.”

For an instant, Azusa has a taken aback appearance, noticing the meaning of Ryou’s words, she quickly said.

“Wait for a moment, are you going alone? You can’t do it alone…”

Before Azusa finished talking Ryou said.

“I never said a single word that I can’t handle six opponents.”
“No, however…”

Ryou interrupts Azusa’s words.

“It’s fine, so go home. Saki, Erika and Azusa, return ahead of me.”

Shifting her attention to Saki, Saki nods and grabs Erika’s and Azusa’s hands. When Ryou sees Saki’s actions, he pats Saki’s head while smiling, bending a little to match Saki’s height, he said.

“Good, absolutely don’t allow the two to come towards me.”

Was it pleasant being patted, Saki’s eyes are partly closed, hearing Ryou’s words, her face became earnest and nodded.
Erika and Azusa were staring in wonder while looking at the two. Ryou turned to Erika.

“Erika.”
“Yes!”

Surprised at her name being called, Erika answered like a student called by a teacher.

Ryou says with a serious face.

“It’s fine. I’ll go, so don’t wait and return home. Please return, okay?”

Erika strangely couldn’t act against what Ryou said, and nods.

“Then, I’m off.”

Even if Ryou says so, the three’s legs weren’t quite moving. With a trouble face Ryou says to them.

“If you don’t return quickly, I won’t help them.”

Taken aback by Ryou’s words, the three started to run. While running, Erika looked back to Ryou several times.

Ryou makes sure the three were running, then takes off his non-prescription glasses, sighing greatly, he scratches his head, he starts running to this group fight, or rather bullying by six people against the three they’ve enclosed.

Without a disturbance in his breath, Ryou stops his legs just before the bullying and calmly calls out to the group.
“You guys, stop it.”