Chapter 95: Chapter 95: Blindfolded Eyes
Is the only thing that crushes the bullied truly the oppressor's violence?
When Yoshino Junpei was surrounded and beaten behind the school building, he still held on to some hope of resisting.
But when he saw through the window that the school counselor, passing by the hallway behind the bullies, stopped, watched the entire scene, and then walked away as if nothing had happened, the spark of hope in Yoshino Junpei's heart was completely extinguished.
If even the school's sensei couldn't help him, who else could possibly pull him out of this pit of despair?
The teacher, with his neatly parted hair, took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat off his face, though Itadori Yuji thought it was pointless since the man's white shirt was already soaked through.
The black-haired girl standing before him radiated a subtle air of pressure, completely unlike a typical student from Satozakura High, who would instinctively lower their attitude toward a counselor.
And that guy next to her, who looked like a delinquent at first glance, clearly didn't care about his authority either. What a pair of annoying kids!
The middle-aged man was drenched in sweat.
He slowly shifted his gaze to Yoshino Junpei, the only student from his school present.
"That's not what happened, right, Yoshino? I think your friends must have misunderstood. Why don't you explain it to them, okay?"
Yoshino Junpei clenched his fists tightly.
His face was partially hidden by his bangs, making it impossible to see his expression.
Finally, under the expectant gaze of the man, he slowly began to speak:
"That day, I was cornered by those three dead guys in the empty lot behind the school building. While they were beating me up, you walked by in the hallway and stopped."
"But… you just stopped for a second, looked over, and then walked away like nothing happened."
"After that, they forced me to eat disgusting bugs…"
Yoshino Junpei's voice trembled with hoarseness, filled with painful memories of that dreadful day. Despair and suffering spilled from his words.
He finally raised his head, brushing aside the bangs covering his right eye, revealing a cigarette burn scar on his forehead.
His mouth twisted into a chilling smile, and his bloodshot eyes reflected the teacher's strained expression.
"The sticky, foul-smelling bug guts burst in my mouth, and the insect legs kicked around on my tongue… I'd really like you to experience that too, Sensei."
Sensing the killing intent flickering in Yoshino Junpei's eyes, Itadori Yuji worriedly placed a hand on his shoulder.
"W-Wait, weren't you just playing around?"
The middle-aged man stammered, wiping his sweat with a shocked expression.
"How can you mistake a one-sided beating for playing around?"
Seeing his surprised reaction, which didn't seem fake, Yukinoshita Yukino couldn't help but find it amusing.
"But… those three are already dead due to an accident…"
The teacher muttered awkwardly.
"Does death erase what they did and the mistakes they made?"
The black-haired girl questioned.
"This…"
Not wanting to argue further with this unqualified teacher, Yukinoshita Yukino asked directly:
"Do you know Itou Shota ?"
"Of course! Itou is one of our school's outstanding students. He excels in academics and sports, respects teachers, and gets along well with classmates…"
As he spoke, he noticed the trio's expressions growing more skeptical, causing him to trail off nervously.
"D-Do you know Itou?"
"The 'outstanding' Itoy you mentioned was one of the bullies who tormented Yoshino Junpei."
Yukinoshita Yukino sighed, feeling exhausted from talking to this man.
"Anyway, please take us to him. We're here to settle this matter."
"I… I understand. Please follow me."
Though reluctant to let outsiders into Rion High, the black-haired girl didn't seem like a typical student at all. And if what she said was true, this was a serious issue that needed proper handling.
With the school's dean leading the way, Yukinoshita Yukino and Itadori Yuji, both from different schools, easily entered Sazakura High School without any trouble.
"Itou is a second-year student in Class C. Let me check their class schedule in the office. Wait here for now—it wouldn't be good if other teachers saw students from another school wandering around."
After saying that, the dean hurried off.
Watching his chubby figure wobble as he jogged away, Itadori Yuji chuckled. "That old guy's really trying his best, huh?"
His cheerful mood seemed contagious, as even Yoshino Junpei couldn't help but laugh. The sight of the dean running, especially with his center-parted hair bouncing with each step, was genuinely amusing.
The gloom weighing on Yoshino Junpei's heart lightened a bit.
Since classes were in session, the schoolyard was empty. While waiting, Itadori Yuji looked around out of boredom and casually struck up a conversation.
"By the way, Junpei, what movie did you watch at the theater back then?"
Caught off guard by the sudden question, Yoshino Junpei paused before answering. "It's a pretty obscure film. You've probably never heard of it."
"Who cares? Just tell me—we're killing time anyway," Itadori Yuji said, sitting down on the steps.
"It was *Earthworm Man 3.* It's such a boring movie."
"Ugh, that one's super boring!"
They both spoke almost at the same time. Yoshino Junpei was momentarily stunned, but then his eyes lit up, and he eagerly dove into a movie discussion with Itadori Yuji.
Meanwhile, Yukinoshita Yukino, having expressed no interest in the topic, quietly stood aside, waiting.
Just as their conversation got lively, the out-of-breath dean returned, wiping sweat from his forehead.
"Itou's class is in PE right now. Let's head straight to the sports field."
Under the dean's lead, they soon arrived at the field.
After scanning the area, the dean pointed toward the basketball court, where a tall boy was playing.
"There he is—that's Itou."
The moment Yoshino Junpei saw Itou Shota, his previously uplifted mood instantly plummeted.
"Yeah, that's him," he said grimly.
Having confirmed Itou Shota's identity, Yukinoshita Yukino stepped past the dean and walked straight toward the basketball court, Itadori Yuji following closely behind.
After a moment's hesitation, the dean reluctantly followed.
"Itou Shota."
A cold, clear voice rang out.
Hearing his name, Itou Shota paused mid-dribble and instinctively searched for the source of the voice.
When he saw a striking black-haired girl standing by the court, clearly not wearing a school uniform, a glint of admiration flashed in his eyes.
There were no girls this pretty at his school.
"Are you looking for me?"
Grinning, he dropped the basketball and strutted over with what he thought was his most charming smile, while his teammates cheered and whistled teasingly.
"Are you new here? I've never seen you around before," he said, still smiling.
"Hand over your phone," Yukinoshita Yukino ordered flatly.
"Huh? What?"
Itou Shota was momentarily stunned but quickly recovered. Maintaining his practiced smile, he felt secretly thrilled.
"Are you asking for my number? Of course! But girls as straightforward as you are pretty rare."
He immediately reached into his pocket to grab his phone.
"It seems the suspect isn't very cooperative," Yukinoshita Yukino remarked coolly.
"Courtesy comes first, but I've already been polite enough."
"Itadori."
"Oh!"
Already eager to act, Itadori Yuji rushed past the girl and stood in front of Itou Shota.
Itou Shota finally noticed the three people behind Yukinoshita Yukino. Besides the unfamiliar face, the other two were people he "knew" quite well — one of whom was glaring at him furiously.
"Yoshino... and the dean?"
Sensing something was off, Itou Shota frowned.
"What are you planning to do?"
"Isn't it obvious? We're here to beat you up!"
As soon as Itadori Yuji spoke, he threw a punch that landed squarely on Itou Shota's face, sending him flying. A canine tooth and the phone he had just taken out of his pocket went flying as well.
"Hey! What the heck are you doing?!"
"How dare you fight in broad daylight?!"
"You must be here looking for trouble!"
On the basketball court, Itou Shota's friends shouted angrily as they surrounded Itadori Yuji. However, he saw them as accomplices in the bullying and promptly grabbed and tossed them one by one.
Screams echoed through the air, drawing the attention of other students on the field.
"Huh? What's going on?"
"Looks like a fight. Judging by their uniforms, they're not from our school."
"Wow, the one getting beaten up is Itou-senpai! That's harsh!"
The surrounding students chattered while pulling out their phones to record the scene.
"Wait! What are you doing?! How can you hit people like that?!"
The dean, stunned by Itadori Yuji's sudden action, panicked.
"What do you mean? We're collecting evidence," Yukinoshita Yukino replied matter-of-factly.
Collecting evidence by beating people up? Isn't this just violent proof-gathering?!
The dean, at a complete loss, shifted his gaze back and forth between the calm-looking girl and the students groaning on the ground. After some hesitation, he finally chose to check on the injured students.
Ignoring the onlookers, Itadori Yuji picked up Itou Shota's phone from the ground and walked up to him.
Seeing Itou struggle to get up, he raised his fist again and spoke coldly, suppressing his emotions:
"This punch... is for Junpei."
His fist came down again, knocking Itou Shota out cold.
Using Itou's fingerprint, Itadori Yuji unlocked the phone and began searching through the photo gallery. He soon found the videos of Itou bullying Yoshino Junpei hidden in a private folder.
The videos didn't just show Yoshino; other victims were recorded too.
Clenching the phone tightly in anger, Itadori Yuji caught himself before he could crush it, realizing that destroying the phone would mean losing the evidence.
"Found it, Yukinoshita-senpai."
He walked back to Yukinoshita Yukino and handed her the phone.
After reviewing the contents, she nodded.
"These videos should be enough as evidence."
"Let me see."
Having confirmed that the injured students were not seriously hurt, the dean approached. Yukinoshita Yukino handed him the phone.
"Take a good look at your school's "model student.""
The middle-aged man took the phone. When he saw the videos listed on the screen, cold sweat poured down his face. He randomly tapped one to play, only to see the footage of Yoshino Junpei being burned on the forehead.
Junpei's screams echoed from the phone, silencing the students gathered around.
The victim himself froze upon hearing his own cries, his fists clenching as he was dragged back into those painful memories.
"You okay, Junpei?"
A gentle pat on his shoulder snapped Yoshino Junpei out of it. He looked up and met Itadori Yuji's concerned gaze. Taking a deep breath, he forced a faint smile.
"I'm fine."
The video didn't need to be watched any further. The counselor turned it off, then suddenly his legs gave out, and he collapsed to the ground in front of everyone.
In a daze, he murmured, "I… I never realized it this whole time…"
How many times had such terrible things happened right in front of him while he dismissed them as nothing out of the ordinary?
He recalled Yoshino Junpei's vengeful words at the school gate and the look in his eyes at that moment.
Without meaning to, he had killed Yoshino's spirit.
Noticing something, Yoshino Junpei froze. He saw the counselor looking at him with helpless, lost eyes.
"Why…"
Yoshino Junpei whispered, "Why are you giving me that look?"
A surge of anger flared up inside him, almost burning away his reason.
He suddenly stepped forward, grabbed the man by the collar, and shouted, "Do you think you're innocent? Just because you pretended not to see!?"
Yoshino Junpei's sudden outburst shocked everyone.
"N-No, that's not it…"
The middle-aged man's lips trembled, his face showing the helplessness and guilt of a child caught doing something wrong.
"I really didn't know… I-I'm so sorry."
"I'm… truly sorry… sob…"
---
...
---
You can read 10 advanced chapters at my patreon.com/YeyeQiu