The Kansai Villain’s Rebirth: I Accidentally Ended Up With a Harem. - Chapter 141: Former Protagonist and Momodani Shouma.

Former Protagonist and Momodani Shouma.

From a third-person perspective.

“Thank you so much, Shouma-kun! Today was really fun!”

“Yeah, I had a great time too. Getting to see you all dolled up like that was worth it.”

“Ehehe! Well then, see you tomorrow!”

“Yep, see you at practice!”

Momodani Shouma had just finished walking his girlfriend, Makino Kana, home and was now heading back on his own. He had only been walking for a short while when—

“Momodani…”

A figure suddenly stepped out from the shadows. It was Imamiya Toshiya—the former basketball club member who had been forced out of the team by Tenma Kentarou and their advisor, Morinomiya-sensei.

“Huh? Oh, if it isn’t the missing-person Imamiya.”

“…What?”

Imamiya had cornered Shouma while he was walking alone. Yet he found himself momentarily stunned by the casual response. That was just how Shouma was—his offbeat remarks often left even Kana, his girlfriend, and his usual partner Kentarou completely baffled.

“So, what do you want? It’s getting late. You should head home before it gets dark.”

“I’ll leave once I get the answers I came for. You were with Tennouji today, weren’t you? Where did you go?”

“What’s this, you his stalker now? I don’t think Daiki would be too thrilled about some guy tailing him.”

“That’s not what I asked. Where. Did. You. Go?”

(This guy’s trying to dig up something on Daiki. Better not tell him the truth.)

Shouma was a point guard talented enough to be selected for the national team. He could survey the entire court in an instant and issue precise instructions to his teammates—a true floor general with terrifyingly quick thinking. It took him no time at all to read Imamiya’s intent: he was fishing for any scrap of information on his sworn enemy, Tennouji.

“Spin spin spin spiiin~ That information is classified! I’m afraid I can’t disclose it!”

“Tch! Then who was the girl you were with!? You can at least tell me that much, right!?”

(So he didn’t realize it was Natsume. Daiki did say not to mention names too casually… He’s trying to keep Shina hidden. Is this guy targeting her? Or is someone behind him pulling the strings?)

Having guessed that it involved Natsume Shina, Shouma continued to play dumb.

“Apparently she’s the girl who helped out when someone tried to dine-and-dash on taiyaki while making ‘nom nom’ sounds. Her name was—something like Moon—”“Don’t screw with me! Answer seriously!”

Imamiya closed in, furious. But Shouma remained utterly unfazed, his expression as calm as ever.

“You think I’d leak info about a friend to some shady guy acting suspicious? What exactly are you planning, sniffing around Daiki like this?”

“That’s none of your business! Just answer honestly—or you’ll regret it!”

“Oh? Regret it how? You wanna fight? Fine by me, let’s go. What’ll it be—first to three points in basketball? Or sumo?”

“As if I’d do that! Listen up—I’ve got some seriously dangerous people backing me! Taishou-senpai, Tsuruhashi-senpai, and even a semi-criminal group called Shien!”

“Hmm…”

The instant those words left Imamiya’s mouth, the light in Shouma’s eyes changed. It was the look of someone who had been expecting better and felt betrayed—or perhaps simply lost interest. A gaze tinged with disappointment as he regarded Imamiya.

“You said the same Taishou who bullied you mercilessly back when you first joined in first year is one of your backers now? You’re really okay with that?”

“Answer only what I ask! I’m the one asking questions here!”

“You come at me looking for a fight, then refuse to fight on your own merits? You think name-dropping Taishou or whatever that ‘pien’ group is called will scare me into selling out a friend? Using someone else’s strength to act tough is just pathetic.”

“Guh…”

“Are you looking down on me? Even giving you a hundred steps head start, come at me with your own strength. Or are you seriously trying to look strong by cozying up to the same guy who tormented you?”

“Sh-shut up!”

“You’ve really fallen low. What’s driving you to chase Daiki this far? The Imamiya Toshiya I knew loved basketball more than anything! No matter how much he was bullied, no matter how brutal the practice that made him want to puke, he never gave up—he pushed through to the end with pure guts! What the hell are you now, Imamiya Toshiya!?”

Shouma’s voice rose in genuine fury—at his former teammate’s downfall, at his utter lack of pride.

“Wh…”

“I thought you were earnest back in first year! Even when Taishou’s harassment made you cry, you desperately picked up balls, assisted the seniors, asked anyone—senpai, Kentarou, me, even the advisor—about anything you didn’t understand, honed your skills without complaint, and gave every practice everything you had. You were an incredible guy who never stopped fighting!”

In his anger, Shouma rattled off all the things that had once made Imamiya admirable. Yes—the original Imamiya had been diligent and wholehearted in everything he did. He had earnestly nurtured love with the heroines, played solid basketball even if he didn’t stand out, earned a regular spot, and been cheered on by Akitani Mio… Yet the Imamiya standing here now was a mere shadow of that person.

“So what…!?”

“The you right now is garbage! You sulk instead of reflecting on what you’ve done! You won’t even acknowledge your own mistakes! Who do you think brought you to this point!?”

“That’s obviously… Tennouji, who stole the childhood friend I loved… Everything is Tennouji’s fault!!”

The moment those words left his mouth, Shouma seized Imamiya by the collar. He drove a headbutt into him and roared.

“Are you an idiot!? Everything that’s happened is your own damn fault!!! Getting shunned by every girl not just in class but the entire grade! Losing your regular spot! Getting kicked off the team! Falling in with semi-criminal groups and guys like Taishou!! It’s all on you!!! Stop blaming someone else!!!”

“…Ugh…!”

“You got shunned because you threw away Akitani’s lunch! You shot your mouth off with Takii and the others about pointless lewd crap involving Akitani and Natsume! You pulled stupid passes against Daiki at the sports festival and got marked by the advisor! That forced us into talks we never wanted about whether to bench you! You skipped studying and got failing grades, so you couldn’t even join the cheering squad for the Winter Cup! You ditched practice matches to go to love hotels with girls and got expelled!! And you’re saying all of that is Daiki’s fault!? Answer me!”

Everything Shouma said was undeniably correct. Pure, unassailable truth. Tennouji had never once directly caused Imamiya’s downfall.

“You earned your regular spot through effort, right? Daiki started dating Akitani and the others because he turned himself around in the second semester and worked his ass off. The thing with Fuyuki is the clearest example—he put in the effort, they saw it, fell for him, and started dating. That’s all.”

“U… uu…”

“Wake up, Imamiya! If you keep walking this path… if you keep hanging around Taishou and the rest… the place you’ll end up isn’t just rock bottom. Your life will be over.”

Taishou, Vivian, Shien, Tsuruhashi—associating with antisocial elements like them was a one-way ticket to ruin. Surround yourself with people who treat dangerous drugs and worse as everyday things, and the destination was obvious: a living hell. A future pitch-black. Expulsion from school was almost certain. With only a middle-school diploma, finding decent work would be nearly impossible. And if arrest and a criminal record followed, employment would become even harder. The only path left would be back into the arms of those same criminal groups. A vicious downward spiral. Imamiya’s life would remain at the bottom forever.

“Come back… You can still come back now…! Come back, Imamiya!”

“!!! I know that!!! I already know!!! In my head, I know I’m the one at fault!! I pinned it all on Tennouji… I ran away!!! I told myself everything was his fault, and right when I was plotting revenge, Taishou-senpai, Tsuruhashi, Ayumi… they gave me a place to escape to… they welcomed me kindly…!”

“You seriously believe they accepted you as a real comrade? Is your brain a happy meal?”

“H… huh?”

“They’re just using your desire for revenge against Daiki. They’re only being nice to exploit that. Have you thought about what happens after their goal is achieved?”

“…No.”

“Think, you idiot. People like that are incredibly kind at first. But once time passes, once their purpose is served—you’ll be discarded like a used hand warmer. They’ll bleed you dry for money, toy with you, or at worst… kill you.”

“There’s no way—”“You can’t say there’s no way! Especially when the same Taishou who treated you like trash is among them! And dangerous semi-criminal thugs on top of that! Think a little about what could happen!!”

“Why… why are you going this far for me…!? You could just leave me alone! I’m not even on the team anymore!!”

“Former teammate!! We played basketball together in the same club! We’re classmates!! That’s more than enough reason not to abandon you!! Got a problem with that!?”

“H… eh?”

“I selfishly considered you a friend… and stopping a friend from going down the wrong path… that’s only natural, isn’t it…?”

At that moment, tears began to spill from Shouma’s eyes. Imamiya could only stare in bewildered silence.