I'm in a Messed Up Situation that I Couldn't Care More. - Chapter 9: Initiative

Chapter 9: Initiative

“Hyaa!”

“Hah!”

Everyone was shouting as they punched and kicked the air.

I had no idea what was going on, but I decided to follow along and mimic their movements.

Next to me, Mamejiro was panting heavily as he slowly threw out a punch.

It seemed like he wasn’t very physically fit.

The club that Aoi-chan was a part of turned out to be the Shaolin Kung Fu club, a very athletic and martial arts-focused group.

Their practice involved a lot of punching and kicking the air.

*******************

Several hours earlier…

“I’ve decided to join the same club as Aoi-chan.

I just submitted my application.”

I declared to Mamejiro.

“Wow, you have a lot of initiative.”

Mamejiro said, clearly surprised.

“Of course, Mamejiro, you’ll join too, right?”

“Huh? Me…? But I’m terrible at sports.

And martial arts are definitely out of the question.”

“But Mamejiro, you were hired to support me, right?

If I’m alone, there’s a high chance Aoi-chan will reject me. Please help me out here.”

Mamejiro fell silent for a moment, glaring at me.

“Damn it. If you two start dating, I’ll quit the club immediately.”

“Great! It’s reassuring to have you, Mamejiro.”

After that exchange, Mamejiro and I headed to the Shaolin Kung Fu club room.

Since we didn’t have uniforms yet, we started practicing in our gym clothes.

As I practiced, I kept my eyes peeled for Aoi-chan.

She was small, so she was a bit hard to spot.

Plus, everyone was wearing the same white uniform, which made it even more challenging.

As I scanned the room, I accidentally made eye contact with the girl who looked like a Japanese doll.

She quickly blushed and quickly looked away from me.

After practice ended, a group of female club members gathered around Mamejiro and me.

“Kashitani-kun, can I call you ‘Cassy’ for short?”

“Huh? No one’s ever called me that before.

Just call me Koichi. You can call him Mamejiro, too.”

“Are you really going to join our club? We’ve been struggling because there are so few male members.”

Indeed, about 80% of the club members were female.

“I thought Shaolin Kung Fu would be more popular with guys? Why are there so many girls here?”

One of the girls answered.

“It’s not Shaolin Kung Fu, it’s Shorinji Kempo.

Our club actually has a lot of female members. Maybe it’s because they admire our captain?” 

“Captain?”

‘Kashitani-kun and Ishii-kun!’

Just then, the Japanese doll-like girl approached us.

“This is our captain, Yamaguchi-san. Her name is Yamaguchi Yuuka.”

So, the Japanese doll-like girl was named Yamaguchi Yuuka, and she was the leader of this club.

As she arrived, the other club members quickly dispersed.

“You can buy anything you need for the club on this website.

For now, just get a uniform. We have enough protective gear.”

Yamaguchi Yuka kept her eyes on Mamejiro and avoided looking at me.

“Yamaguchi-san, about what happened yesterday…”

I opened my mouth, intending to tell her that my confession had been a mistake.

“I was surprised that you went as far as to join the club.

But I guess we can go on a date once or twice.”

Yuuka said in a low voice, almost as if she was whispering to herself.

“A date…?”

I tilted my head, confused.

Going on a date with Yuuka-san wouldn’t be very enjoyable for me.

Suddenly, a brilliant idea popped into my head.

I could invite Aoi-chan on the date too!

“How about we all hang out together?

The four of us: Sakurazawa, Yamaguchi-san, me, and Mamejiro.

We can go somewhere together!”

Today, my brain was working overtime.

I didn’t even need Mamejiro’s support after all.

“With Aoi too? Hmm… That might be better than being alone with you. I agree.”

Yuuka said, nodding.

“Yes! I’m so happy!”

I made a fist pump.

How about that, Mamejiro!?

I’m amazing, right?

I turned to Mamejiro, expecting to see a proud look on his face, but instead, he just stared back at me with dead fish eyes.