Changing Masks

by Nicholas Metelsky

  'Look, Shina-Chan, those two idiots are in the same class as us again this year.'

  'Actually, they aren’t idiots. Hey, the students in the class are almost all the same. Just a few new names.'

  'That's true. Could it be because we are doing so well they decided not to add anyone new?'

  'Yeah, that could be it.'

  'Shina,' I interrupted. 'I'm gonna go. I might see you tonight.'

  'Hold on,' she stopped me. 'I keep forgetting to tell you something.' She approached me and leant in close looking serious.

  'Remember this once and for all! This is not a regular school like the one you're used to. This is Dakisyuro. The majority of students here (about 80 percent) are involved in martial arts while others are somehow connected with it, more often through their relatives. In general, we have no hazing like in other schools, but that is just because we have too many fighters, and until you get your butt kicked, you won't know who is stronger. Also, almost every student has a powerful relative, and those who can't defend themselves are able to get support from them. You're an exception though. You're not doing martial arts, and you have no powerful relatives. You're completely defenseless, and you can be sure that you'll come across someone who decides to pick on you.' In the corner of my eye, I noticed Mineh raising an eyebrow. 'Remember: If you can’t avoid a fight, just mention my name, tell them who your neighbors are, and what they’ll be dealing with if they don't leave you alone. Understood? I know you're no fool, and in many situations, you can eek your way out, but if you can't, don't be shy — let them know who they’re dealing with.' Mineh's face was full of contempt. 'Oh, and just one more thing. Knowing your character as I do, I have to warn you: if you initiate, then you're in trouble, and I won't be there to help you and you’d be best to leave the country as soon as you can; although, I might find you anyway. Is that clear? Keep that in mind.'

  Inhale, exhale. Okay, Max, just calm down. She's not doing it on purpose. She just doesn't understand that she's putting me on the spot. Does she think that the more people hear this, the less they'll come after me? It doesn't really make any difference because she just made me look a complete dork. And given the fact that freshmen are already at the bottom of the ladder, I don't know if they'll beat me up or bully me. I don't really care. I'll be stuck here for three years and then enjoy the freedom. There are a few caveats though. Not a single male in the species would like it if a beautiful girl called him a wimp publicly and promised to defend him against the bad guys. It is humiliating for any man.

  This is just the beginning. Remember that Dakisyuro is home to the future elite of Japan, and soon, I'm going to join them. I have been given a chance to start my life over and keep my previous knowledge and skills, so why don't I? It's just that she put a cross on it all in the first couple of minutes and has now made it so complicated. In the near future, I'll have to deal with the ones who are present right now. What can I possibly accomplish with such a poor reputation?

  Without peeking into the future, I still reflect on her grandfather's words about building connections. How am I supposed to network and build connections now? What crap!

  'Hello? Do you understand? Repeat it now.' Great! Is she doing this on purpose?

  'This is a school of bullies; I shouldn't get involved; if I have any problems, I'll call super-robot-transformer Shina,' I reported springing to attention. There we go, now I'm gonna harvest the consequences.

  'You look too cheerful,' she added placing her hand on my shoulder. 'Perhaps, I should break a few of your bones myself, just for the sake of preventative care. So you'll grasp it better.'

  'Whatever you say, my lady,' I demonstrated sorrowful obedience.

  'Sakurai Shinji!!' If you do not stop goofing around, you won't like the outcome.'

  'Okay, I get it. I’d better go to my classroom.' Accompanied by the crowd's glares, I headed to the main entrance.

  The school, in fact, was founded over a hundred years ago. Of course, it had been renovated many times since then. The school was last remodeled 23 years ago. Thank you, grandfather for this useless information. It looked quite impressive. The campus had four buildings that were 5-storey and made out of brick, glass, and plastic. They included several sports fields, four swimming pools, a variety of extensions, and individual buildings. I was certain everything was top-notch inside.

  I was approaching the main entrance, located between two external, convex, rounded walls that turned into glass at the second floor and above. Through the glass, I could see a staircase and students running back and forth.

  All freshmen classes were held on the fifth floor; apparently, they don't allow the young ones to slack too much and literally keep them on their toes. After finding the '1-D' sign, I entered the classroom and noted that a third of the seats were already occupied, long before the class was supposed to start.

  'Hey guys! What's with the faces? It's the beginning of a school year! Cheer up! Alarms at 7 a.m., angry teachers, testing and exams, a bunch of homework, short weekends — doesn’t that sound like a paradise on Earth!' The locals looked really droopy. Since I had to establish contacts, why not start right away?

  'Okay, new friends, new knowledge, the Fall Fest, beautiful girls, Valentine's Day, after all.' A dark-haired guy with a ponytail down to his shoulders and unruly bangs half-rose from his chair, expressing his emotions.

  'A nerd?' I asked him cheerfully.

  'No, just a zombie,' he replied mournfully. At least, now, the faces of the guys and girls sitting in the classroom softened, and some of them even flashed smiles. That's all I needed for now.

  There was a spot next to the guy who had responded. Should I take it? I approached the desk and put my backpack on it, then I reached out to the guy who kept staring at me.

  'Sakurai Shinji.'

  'Okhayashi Rydon,' he replied to my handshake. Rydon turned out to be an interesting guy, a cheerful, intelligent, and highly resilient individual. He was also a descendent of the Ohajasi clan — the fourth child of the head of the clan. The clan specialized in aircraft: small and medium-sized planes, helicopters, and even types of drones including civilian and military modifications. In particular, the famous drone fighter MPIBA-4 was a development of the Ohajasi Machine Group.

  Clans and, more specifically, the national clans, were the elite and aristocracy of any country in the world. They were recognized by the Head of State of the Organization, that is, they entered into some kind of agreement which gave the clans very considerable rights in exchange for unswerving loyalty. On a side note, they do not become vassals of the sovereign, rather, they become, figuratively speaking, loyal friends. The loyalty of a clan is supported by all clans in the world. After all, no one wants to lose their rights and liberties because of one jerk. Therefore, to the clans, honor and reputation mean everything.

  An example of one was sitting at the desk next to me. I was pleasantly surprised that he wasn’t displaying any arrogance — just a normal guy. His sister was a sophomore here. In half an hour before the class, he had managed to tell me a bit about himself and about half the class.

  'Hey, how do you know so much?' I asked him, five minutes before the class started. 'Well, I get it, being a socialite, you are supposed to know a lot of people, but not necessarily so many. I mean, you know what half the class is up to. Considering how many people go to this school, that's insane.’

  'Yeah, it kind of shocks me too. I'm not a walking encyclopedia like my sister though. Take my acquaintances of the same age as me, for example. If you put them in Dakisyuro, they'd make up a quarter of the class in each grade. Well, that's if you evenly distributed them. Not all of them would make it here though. There are other schools. So, it must be a coincidence.' He shrugged, 'It just happened that way.'

  It wasn’t actually a class. It was our first day, after all. For the next fifteen minutes, the teacher went all out about the new school year, new friends, new opportunities, the school rules. It was the usual 'New School Year
' teacher talk which probably bore him just as much as it did us. At the end of his speech, he advised us to get into school mode and put all our efforts into our studies. He reminded us that we were required to join a club and that the opening ceremony is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. Since nothing else was going on that day, he made his way out of the classroom. The first class was supposed to be for independent student work, and the rest of the time before the ceremony was for freshmen orientation and club activities. After the teacher left, the students broke into groups. Some were trying to get to know each other, some were playing cards, and others were just taking a snooze. Those who were shrewd got their textbooks out, just in case.

  'Well, what are we gonna do?' Rydon asked. Rydon was a cool guy. I don't know why, but I liked him immediately.

  'No idea,' I replied. 'Shall we watch a movie?' I always have my laptop with me, and I thought we could stream something off the Internet, which, by the way, has the same name in this world.

  'Nah, we’re better off chatting with the girls.'

  'Which ones?'

  'Those,' he waved his hand.

  'Umm, I don't know. You know, I am a...,' I demonstratively snapped my fingers, 'peasant. I have no money, no relatives. What should I converse with them about?' I wasn't against girls in general, but I'd already had enough of the ones who appeared to be my neighbors. 'If you want to hit on someone, you have to do some homework first, find out something about them, and then go dive into it.' This applies to all girls, not just the rich ones, and only when the opportunity arises, like right now.'

  'Oh, come on! All we're gonna do is introduce ourselves and make an appearance. You're right, there is no need to hurry. If you're stressing out about money and relatives, there’s no need. They are human just like us. Girls are girls wherever you go.' Wow, I’ve fallen to the level where a 16-year-old kid has to teach me about the opposite sex.

  'Anyway, something tells me that these ladies will tell us to get lost,' I truly believed that.

  'OK then. In that case, let's go hit on them,' he waved his hand again.

  'Wow, you're a maniac.'

  'No, not a maniac at all, just an ordinary guy,' he said, embarrassed.

  'Ordinary guys are out there playing cards, and you are trying to hit on girls on the first day of school.'

  'Well, it's spring,' he fought back, 'hormones and all that.'

  'Hormones, I agree,' I said. 'Having hormones is quite natural. Just don't squirt them on me.' We spent the rest of the class teasing each other and browsing the Internet until the bell rang. When I left the class for a recess, I found out that Shina had broken my MP3 player out of rage.

  * * *

  'What have you got there?' Rydon looked at the broken player in my palm. 'What happened?'

  'There's a person here who gets into somebody else's things,' I said sadly. 'I was her whipping boy for six years, but she would never break anything of mine.'

  'There is a first time for everything,' he patted my shoulder. 'Who is this person?'

  'Koyama Shina. We should go. The ceremony is just about to start.' After the second period, we stood and got ready to go to the auditorium for the opening assembly. 'Dang it, I was counting on the player for the assembly.'

  'Koyama Shina? You know Koyama Shina?!'

  'Is she a celebrity? Why are you so surprised?'

  'Heck, yes, she is known to be the strongest teenager in Japan and the youngest Teacher in the last thirty years, if I'm not mistaken!' And you just trivialize the fact that for the past six years, you've been beaten up by the genius of the Koyama clan?!' What? Dang. Dang it!

  'A genius of the Koyama clan?' I asked carefully.

  'What did you think? That clan is full of geniuses. It is said that their head, Koyama Kenta, also became a Teacher when he was about 16 years old. So, the people here believe that Koyama Shina, like her grandfather, will receive Virtuoso when she's in her thirties.' FYI, Virtuoso is the highest rank in the martial arts. People like that are 1 in 500 billion who occupy this world. Trust me, they are real beasts. However, that's not what I cared about right now. Shina's ranks and skills didn't really interest me. I had to think about it in a more relaxed atmosphere, at home, for instance.

  'Uh-huh, that's cool. Being Virtuoso is cool,' I replied with a pensive look.

  'Listen, you have known Koyama Shina for six years?!' Oops. Had he only just realized this?

  'Actually, I've known her all my life. She is my neighbor.'

  'You are a neighbor ... you ...' The young man zoned out for a moment. 'Wow, you're lucky,' he breathed out. Lucky? Did he just say, 'lucky?!' I shook my head. What a fool.

  'What are you are shaking your head for?'

  'Nothing, we should go; otherwise, we'll be late.' We asked some sophomore how to get to the auditorium and then headed to the opening assembly. The assembly was a pretty standard event held by all schools. At least, this is how it was in middle school.

  All the students lined up in classes in the auditorium. Poorer schools held it in the gym, where students were forced to listen, sometimes for several hours, to monotonous speeches given by the principal and teachers. In the second half of this action, the students were told more informative things about the school. That's when I learned about the annual tournament, which would be held at the start of the second trimester and at the end of the first. Then, the School Board President and one of the freshmen gave a speech. The president preached, and the freshman appealed to us to study hard. The President reminded everyone that participation in a school club is obligatory, and that after the ceremony, the clubs would make presentations, which he strongly recommended us to attend. Finally, the principal summed up this yakety-yak and wished good luck in the new academic year to all students, after which, everyone was dismissed. But the day was clearly meant to melt my brain, and the assembly was all part of the grand plan. How else could you explain the fact that the school principal turned out to be the old man Kenta, head of the Koyama clan and my neighbor?

  * * *

  'Hey, Okhayashi-kun, do you know our principal's name?' I asked. The opening assembly had just ended, and Rydon and I stood near the exit.

  'Umm...' He looked at me with surprise and suspicion. 'Koyama Kenta. It's weird you don't know that, considering that you're his neighbor.'

  'Yeah, yeah. Koyama Kenta,' I muttered. 'You see, I had no idea that he was the principal of Dakisyuro. I was hoping I had dreamt it up.'

  'Hoping?' the guy looked shocked.

  'Ah, just ignore that. I have a somewhat weird relationship with the Koyama family.'

  'I see.' 'Why don't you tell me what you're doing now? Are you gonna go home or do you wanna hang out at school?'

  'What's there to see? We'll eventually get to explore it anyway.'

  'Sakurai-Kun, do you remember that we have to join a club?' Today they're presenting the clubs. We should go and take a closer look.'

  'Clubs...' I made a sour face. 'How could I forget?' Slight discontent sounded in my voice.

  I wasn't against school clubs. They were simply of no interest to me, and I ignored them. In the case of Dakisyuro, however, they were a requirement, and that annoyed me even more. I could do better things with the few hours every day that would be taken up by club activities.

  'Judging by your face, you're not too eager to join,' Rydon noted. 'Is there a reason? Or are you simply too lazy?'

  'I don't think clubs are completely useless, on the contrary, but I'm already going to be busy. I don't want to waste my time on a school club.'

  'Hmm, I get it. In that case, we have to pick something...' he snapped his fingers, '...different.' In this school, a lot of clubs actively participate in competitions, exhibits, and presentations. Dakisyuro supports the clubs as much as possible. So, just pick one that doesn't offer traveling or competing. Something like the spiritual sciences club would work.'

  'Get out! Is there really something like that?'

  'How would I know? There might be. That was
just an example. You might be able to find a club with minimal involvement. Anyway, we have to go check them out.'

  'Well, let's go loo...'

  I was interrupted by some girl who was passing by and bumped my shoulder. I almost did a 180 degree spin. She stopped and faced us. She looked quite surprised. She was probably wondering what had just happened.

  Although the first thing that caught my eye was not her facial expression but her hair. It was green. She had a sharp chin, snub nose, neat lips and emerald eyes. She actually looked quite beautiful. The only drawback was the green monstrosity on her head, gathered in two long pigtails, which created an unappealing sight and distracted from the rest. Not long after, the surprise on her face was replaced by irritation.

  'People walk here, just so you know!' I raised my eyebrows in surprise and ostentatiously looked around. Rydon and I were standing on the curb, on the right side of the road.

  'Excuse me?' I retreated.

  'You. Are. In. My way. Who are you, anyway?' I was so blown away by her rudeness that I replied simply.

  'Sakurai Shinji.'

  'Hey, are you that loser who was chastised by Koyama this morning?' There it goes. It looks like I'm becoming famous. Why is this day so...long?

  'Who do I have the honor of...'

  'None of your business, loser! Why don't you tell me why you're in my way instead?' Oh, I wanted to curse so bad.

  'What a polite, well-mannered girl you are. Not surprising, judging by the color of your hair.'

  I think I was able to throw her off.

  'What does anything have to do with my hair?'

  'Just bad associations.'

  'What?' she looked bewildered.

  ‘Never mind!' I nudged Rydon to leave. 'We're out of here. All the best!' We managed to take a couple of steps past her just as she came to her senses.

  'Stay right there! I haven't permitted you to leave yet,' we heard from behind. Permitted? Who is she to talk to me like that? Making a sharp turn and coming in close to her, I literally hissed in her face.