[93] Grade 11: Crane Cry Hall
However, the regional differences have been made up for over time.
—Imaidegawa was in the same cohort as the earliest characters in the storyline.
This allowed the Heming Hall to spread slowly and steadily throughout his three years at high school, like a stream nourishing the soil, accompanying him on the national stage, in regional competitions, and even through word of mouth within the industry.
After making a name for himself in his first year of high school, he then accumulated knowledge and skills over three years.
Even if we can only meet all the characters in the future, the earlier timeframe will bring more rewards to Tsurumeikan.
The historical record of fame that Crane Cry Pavilion has accumulated over the past year is already outstanding among all of Little Fat Bird's previous hosts.
Seeing that every promise Imaichi Chuan made to it came true, and that every time he led the team to victory in regional and national competitions...
Principal Bird of Crane Pavilion was thoroughly delighted.
—The feeling of being carried away is so wonderful!!!
That initial overdraft of energy was used brilliantly!! It was truly the best decision of its career!!
It has such a keen eye for talent!
Principal Kotori placed his wholehearted trust in Imadegawa, a trust that gradually evolved into a near-blind worship.
In its mind, what Imadegawa said was the truth, the decisions he made were the optimal solutions, and the direction he pointed out was the broad road to victory and greater fame.
No matter what demands Jin Chuchuan makes, no matter how outrageous they sound, it will flap its wings and rush to carry them out without thinking.
Now, Principal Bird stands at the edge of the large desk in the student council president's office.
Jin Chuchuan didn't even need to look up to feel that almost tangible, burning, and trusting gaze.
After finishing processing three budget reports, Ichikawa reviewed the physical fitness data of the new volleyball players.
Finally, he closed the final confirmed plan for logistical support in his hand and placed it neatly on top of the pile of processed documents.
He looked up, his gaze sweeping over the simply designed digital clock on the table.
—That's about it, time to go to class.
Imaichi Kawaki prefers a planned and strictly adhered-to lifestyle.
Every day, it starts with volleyball team morning training at 6 a.m., followed by academic classes at 8 a.m., and then specialized training and tactical study in the afternoon and evening...
Therefore, even though he is the actual controller of the special school, Tsurumyoukan, and possesses higher levels of power and ability, and even though the current focus is on system tasks, Imadegawa still maintains his student status and follows the curriculum created by the teachers he selected.
After completing the national IH exam in the first year of high school, Heming Hall has planned out the time after the academic courses. Unless there are special circumstances, Jin Chuchuan will not miss any academic classes.
The golden-eyed boy stood up nimbly.
The little chubby bird immediately flapped its wings and flew up, circling him once before finally landing steadily on his left shoulder.
"Are you going to class, Yuzuru?" Principal Kotori also noticed the time.
"Mm." Imadegawa responded simply, straightening the collar of his school uniform.
"Then go ahead."
The little bird principal reluctantly clung to him before flying back to its nest.
While Imaichi was attending classes, Little Fatty would stay in his office and continue watching the melodramatic TV shows he never got tired of.
The little chubby bird would only accompany Imadegawa when he returned to his office or when he was training at the gym.
Little Chubby Bird has absolutely no interest in watching high school students in class.
Now, I close the door behind me, step out of my office, and walk through the empty and quiet corridor of the administration building.
The light here is slightly dim, with wooden lattice windows on both sides. The sunlight is cut into thin strips of light, which are obliquely projected onto the polished dark wood floor, forming bright but restrained patches of light.
His footsteps echoed in the empty corridor.
The air is filled with a faint woody fragrance and the unique scent of old books. This is the distinctive aroma of Tsurumyoukan, calm and timeless, perfectly matching the character of Kyoto, the ancient capital.
To get from the administration building to the teaching building, you need to pass through a semi-open corridor, on one side of which is a meticulously maintained dry landscape garden.
The white gravel was raked into even ripples, symbolizing the flow of water, and several ancient-shaped boulders were scattered among them, like islands in the sea.
Bronze wind chimes hang under the eaves of the corridor. Occasionally, a gentle breeze will pass through, and they will emit a clear and melodious tinkling sound, adding to the tranquility.
As you walk to the middle of the corridor, Koizumi is already waiting there.
He leaned against the vermilion pillar, the afternoon sunlight dancing on his soft hair.
Unlike Imadekawa, Koizumi was not wearing the school uniform from Tsurumyoukan—a dark-colored stand-up collar with delicate crane patterns embroidered on the shoulders, giving it an overall dignified and elegant appearance.
Instead, they wore carefully coordinated outfits.
A soft, off-white knitted cardigan was casually left open, revealing the neatly pressed light blue shirt collar underneath. She paired it with slim-fitting khaki trousers and clean white sneakers.
This outfit made him appear even more approachable and gentle, as if even the afternoon sunlight seemed to linger on his slightly curled hair.
Such casual attire doesn't seem out of place inside the Crane Cry Pavilion.
This special school has never mandated that teachers and students wear school uniforms during school hours—after all, it is not, in essence, an ordinary school that follows the conventional education system, but rather an entity built upon the foundation of Imadegawa and Little Fat Bird.
Therefore, the management philosophy of Heming Hall towards teachers and students tends to be more self-disciplined and inclusive. As long as they do not violate safety rules such as "it is strictly forbidden to damage campus facilities" or "it is forbidden to use open flames in forest areas", they have always enjoyed full freedom in other minor matters such as clothing choices.
This is why there is such a diverse range of clothing styles on campus.
Students dressed in various modern costumes moved among the buildings.
Everywhere you look, you see casual outfits of hoodies and cargo pants, or carefully coordinated shirts and vests, and occasionally you can see a few girls in Lolita-style dresses walking by chatting and laughing.
There are also many teachers with distinctive personalities in their attire.
The young female teacher who teaches foreign languages always wears the latest fashion styles and pursues the forefront of fashion.
The advisor of the kendo club always wears a dark haori hakama and a wooden sword at his waist, as if he has just stepped out of a historical drama.
The music teacher, on the other hand, always wears a well-fitting kimono with a haori (a type of traditional Chinese garment) printed with crane patterns as she walks slowly around the campus every day.
"Tsuru-chan~" Koizumi waved to Imadegawa with her eyes crinkling, her voice as sweet as melted honey.
He leaned closer and naturally took Imadegawa's arm, just like a female high school student.
Because there weren't many students at Tsurumeikan, and not many classes in a grade, Imadegawa and other core members of the volleyball club, such as Koizumi, Saotome, Aoyagi, and Akiyama, were simply assigned to the same class.
Imadegawa nodded, showing no particular reaction to this overly intimate physical contact. He didn't push him away, letting Koizumi walk forward with her shoulder close to his.
Saotome appeared at the corner of the corridor in front of them without them noticing. He was wearing a crisp, dark school uniform, with even the top button fastened meticulously.
Koizumi originally wanted to ignore him and deliberately slowed down her pace, dawdling and not wanting to catch up with Saotome.
However, due to the winding design of the corridor, Saotome had already noticed them in advance.
"Yuzuru! Good afternoon!" Saotome skipped over Koizumi and greeted Imadegawa directly.
"Good morning, Chizuru," Imadekawa replied.
Koizumi could only reluctantly greet Imadegawa, "Chihaya-chan's here too~"
Saotome frowned slightly as he looked at Koizumi: "Don't use such disgusting terms. Also," his gaze fell on Koizumi's body, which was almost pressed against Imadegawa's arm, "please maintain an appropriate distance on campus."
"Chihaya-chan is so fierce," Koizumi pouted, her free fingers fidgeting with the ends of her hair. "Even though Tsuru-chan didn't say anything~"
“Yuzuki has only tolerated you because she’s too good-tempered,” Saotome retorted bluntly, her tone as straightforward as ever. “And you always push your luck like this.”
Caught between the two, Imadegawa looked straight ahead and suddenly interjected with a comment completely unrelated to the current topic: "It's a bit hot."
This abrupt and seemingly unrelated statement startled both of them.
Koizumi subconsciously released her arm from Imadegawa's, and Saotome also temporarily withdrew her glare at Koizumi.
They all understood that Imadegawa didn't want to see them continue their entanglement.
So they simply picked a obviously perfunctory remark to extinguish the almost-argumentative exchange between them.
Just then—
"Hey—! Wait for us!"
Akiyama's signature loud voice came from the other end of the corridor, gradually approaching and breaking the brief silence.
Turning my head, I saw Aoyagi and Akiyama walking briskly up the corridor from the direction of the training hall.
Both of them had fine beads of sweat on their foreheads, and their breathing was more rapid than usual—clearly, they had "secretly" gone for extra practice again at noon.
As Aoyagi approached, he slowed his pace and habitually walked a little behind the others.
His gaze lingered, avoiding eye contact, and he simply greeted them softly, "Good afternoon..."
"Oo-chan is still so shy~" Koizumi immediately found a new target and leaned over with a smile.
Sure enough, Aoyagi froze for a moment, like a frightened little animal, and unconsciously shrank behind Imadegawa, trying to avoid Koizumi.
"Koizumi..." Aoyagi's voice was even lower.
"Hey, don't hide," Koizumi said, taking another step closer, her smile growing even brighter. "Aren't we teammates? What's wrong with being a little closer?"
"Alright," Saotome interrupted, her tone slightly impatient, "Stop teasing Mio."
He glanced at Aoyagi and Akiyama, who were still slightly out of breath. "Going to practice again? Not getting enough rest during lunch break will affect the efficiency of afternoon classes."
Akiyama fanned himself with his hand and grinned nonchalantly, "It's alright, Saotome! Anyway, the first class this afternoon is Japanese literature, so it's fine to listen while lying down!"
As soon as Akiyama finished speaking, he noticed a glance from Imadegawa, immediately realized he had misspoke, and quickly tried to salvage the situation, "Uh, I meant... we'll listen carefully!"
Imaichi's gaze moved from Akiyama's guilty face to Aoyagi's still-unsteady breathing, and finally swept over their slightly disheveled clothes.
"Additional training at lunchtime is fine, but the intensity and duration must be controlled. After school in the afternoon, you need to do an extra 20 minutes of relaxation and stretching."
"Yes," Qingliu replied softly.
He secretly breathed a sigh of relief; at least Xihe hadn't directly forbidden them from doing extra training.
Akiyama scratched his head and obediently agreed, "Okay!"
Koizumi blinked, and said with a hint of coquettishness, "Tsuru-chan really cares about everyone~"
Imaichi Kawai tilted his head slightly, his golden eyes gleaming in the light: "Of course I care, after all, you're all the same."
He spoke softly and counted slowly and deliberately.
“Minato practiced until midnight last time and didn’t go back to the dorm; Chihaya is the first one to arrive at the gym every day to start morning training; Mio practices blocking until her knees tremble but doesn’t say a word; Kenya finishes all his training before resting, no matter how tired or hungry he is…”
It seemed like a reproach, yet also like praise.
"These team members are so lovely. If we don't take good care of them, it would be bad if they ruined their health from training."
Koizumi's ears turned red, Saotome turned her face away awkwardly, Aoyagi buried her face even lower, and even Akiyama was unusually quiet.
Imadegawa still wore that gentle expression, his tone light and cheerful:
"So, besides practicing, remember to rest well and continue to be my teammate."
————————!!————————
(Sucking the little ones' paws ——————)
Goodnight everyone!!! (Draws herself under the covers)
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