Hachiman’s Classroom of Strength’s Supremacy

Chapter 140: Surprised or Not, Unexpected or Not!

On the seventh day, the exam ended. Following the rules, all the students cleaned up their trash and packed up their tents before heading to the beach.

That was where the exam results would be announced.

Before that, however, each homeroom teacher met with their respective class.

Class A’s homeroom teacher, Mashima, handed a pen and a form to Katsuragi.

This was the phase where they guessed the leaders.

As the homeroom teacher, Mashima gave the form to Katsuragi. However, the actual leader was Totsuka Yahiko, meaning that it wasn’t a requirement for the leader to be the one making the guess.

This also subtly indicated that Mashima still valued Katsuragi.

When Katsuragi received the form, several students gathered around him, including Hashimoto from Sakayanagi’s faction.

Katsuragi didn’t mind. Rather, he trusted his classmates, and at this point, nothing could go wrong anymore.

The form had the names of the four classes—A, B, C, and D—on the left side, with blank spaces on the right for filling in the leader’s name.

Class A’s leader slot was crossed out.

Of course, since they couldn’t guess their own leader.

Katsuragi took the form and calmly wrote “Shiranami Chihiro” for Class B and “Koenji Rokusuke” for Class C.

However, the space for Class D was left blank.

“Is this fine?” Mashima asked.

“Yes,” Katsuragi Kōhei nodded.

But that wasn’t the end. He picked up a small notebook from the table and muttered as he wrote,

“Our Class A formed an alliance with Class D. We didn’t spend any of our initial 300 points, only losing 50 points due to operational errors and another 30 points due to Sakayanagi’s absence. But given our current standings—18 points from occupying a base, 220 initial points, and 100 points from correctly guessing the leaders of Classes B and C—we should have a total of 338 points, which is more than enough.”

His words seemed like a monologue, as if explaining to Mashima why he had said, “Is this fine?”

However, Mashima’s expression remained unchanged. He stayed calm.

“Katsuragi-kun, the official results will be released in an hour. I cannot disclose anything right now,” Mashima stated.

Something about his tone felt odd.

But Class A wasn’t filled with fools.

They quickly realized that Katsuragi’s response and behavior had actually been a test.

He was trying to get some information out of Mashima, hoping to confirm if their score calculations were correct.

However, Mashima was strict.

He was intelligent, composed, and extremely fair. He refused Katsuragi outright.

This left some Class A students disappointed, but at the same time, they felt that this was exactly the kind of teacher an excellent Class A should have.

But then—

Hashimoto, who had been watching from the side, suddenly spoke up.

“Class A’s leader slot is crossed out because we can’t guess our own leader, right?” Hashimoto said. “Then why is Class D’s slot still available if they already forfeited?”

Huh?

The students around him froze for a moment.

Then, Katsuragi’s eyes widened as realization struck him.

“Mashima-sensei, I think I need to reconsider my answer,” he said, retrieving the form.

Class A had allied with Class D, agreeing to pay Ryuen 1.2 million private points each month.

In return, Class D had provided them with supplies, allowing Class A to retain its initial points. This meant that Class D had effectively sacrificed their own chance at competing. Later, it was officially announced that Class D had forfeited.

However, Ibuki and Kaneda had remained behind to gather information on the other classes’ leaders. Katsuragi knew this.

They had completed their task—taking photos of the leaders of two other classes—and then reported back before Class D forfeited.

So logically, that should have been the end for Class D.

However—

Since Class D’s leader slot was still available, that meant… Class D had not fully given up on the exam.

They had also participated in the leader-guessing phase.

And this was something Ryuen hadn’t mentioned.

Which meant Ryuen had another plan.

“I think Ryuen is still on the island,” Hashimoto said. “Katsuragi, just write down Ryuen’s name. That way, we can earn an extra 50 points.”

“But if we guess wrong, we lose 50 points,” Totsuka Yahiko pointed out.

“In the end, Class D’s students forfeited, but we never checked if all of Class D’s students forfeited,” Totsuka continued.

“So Class D’s leader might not be Ryuen. If we get it wrong, who’s going to take responsibility? Hashimoto, can you take responsibility?”

Totsuka immediately challenged him.

He was a die-hard supporter of Katsuragi, so naturally, he took Katsuragi’s side.

And he had another reason for opposing Hashimoto—he had once believed Hashimoto supported Katsuragi, only to realize he was actually a lapdog of Sakayanagi.

To Totsuka, Hashimoto was a traitor.

“Of course, I can’t take responsibility. I’m just offering a possibility,” Hashimoto replied casually, unbothered by Totsuka’s attack.

He had intentionally brought up Ryuen’s name.

That way, if Class A’s leader got guessed correctly by someone else, he could clear himself of suspicion.

After all, if he had been working with Ryuen, why would he so openly try to get Ryuen’s name on the form?

No one would suspect that he was a traitor to Class A who had secretly made a deal with Ryuen.

—

Meanwhile, in Class B, their homeroom teacher, Hoshinomiya Chie, brought them their leader-guessing form.

Ichinose and Kanzaki quickly filled it out.

Since they couldn’t guess their own leader, they left Class B’s slot blank. They also left Class C’s slot empty but filled in their answers for Classes A and D.

“You guys are really decisive,” Hoshinomiya commented. “I barely saw you doing any scouting, yet you managed to figure out the other classes’ leaders.”

She had handed them the form, and within a minute, they had returned it, completely filled out.

“Well…” Ichinose scratched her head, looking slightly embarrassed.

In reality, they had secretly struck a deal with Class C.

Their answers for Class A and Class D’s leaders were the result of that trade.

But then—

“By the way, you went to the White Tower before, but why did you leave so quickly?” Hoshinomiya asked.

She was really wondering—if they had found the base, which was worth 51 points, why didn’t they claim it?

“Ah…”

Kanzaki answered, “It was dangerous there. Our class still had plenty of initial points, so if we got injured and had to withdraw, the penalty wouldn’t be worth it.”

“I see.”

That made sense.

The reward was 51 points, but if a student was injured and had to withdraw, they’d lose 30 points.

However, if the leader got injured and penalized, their class could actually benefit.

Hoshinomiya thought to herself.

In her previous year, she had also been in charge of Class B.

But the students in that class hadn’t been as united as this one.

This class felt like a group of little angels.

They were all good kids.

Both Kanzaki and Ichinose still fell into that category.

However—

“I’m looking forward to seeing how you all develop,” Hoshinomiya said. “Especially you, Ichinose.”

Right now, they seemed gentle, unaggressive, even too kind.

But if they kept suffering losses, they might eventually snap.

And that could be very interesting.

After all, there were plenty more special exams ahead, and the gap wasn’t that wide yet.

Meanwhile—

In Class C, the students had already taken down all their tents and were cleaning up the surrounding area.

Everyone had tasks, so no one was idle.

Hachiman was sweeping leaves while his partner, Sakura, held open a black garbage bag for him.

Then, Chabashira Sae arrived.

“The teacher is now wearing the same sportswear as us, which looks quite refreshing,” Hachiman said. “It makes you look like a senior student.”

“I wore it on the first day of the exam,” Chabashira replied.

“I didn’t pay much attention at the time,” Hachiman admitted honestly.

Chabashira then handed over a form.

The section for Class C was crossed out.

However, the other three class sections were still available for filling in.

“So,” Chabashira said, “do you have confidence in this exam?”

“The additional points for securing a base are still unclear, but conservatively speaking, our score should be at least 441+,” Hachiman said.

“I see,” Chabashira responded, collecting the form for guessing the leaders.

With this final step completed, all students gathered at the beach at 10:30 AM.

—

“With this, everyone should be here, right?”

On the beach, Class A’s homeroom teacher, Mashima, held a megaphone.

In front of him, the students of all four classes stood neatly arranged before the four small boats that would take them back to the main ship.

But what was surprising was that in the area designated for Class D, which had supposedly forfeited, there was still a student present.

That student was Ryuen Kakeru, his clothes slightly dirty, his chin covered with a bit of stubble from lack of grooming, giving him a somewhat rugged appearance.

Ryuen’s presence immediately caused an uproar in Class A.

“It’s Ryuen! It’s really Ryuen!”

“So, the leader of Class D really was Ryuen!”

“Katsuragi, you didn’t write down Ryuen’s name, did you? Why didn’t you?”

The students of Class A were fixated on the equation “Ryuen = 50 points.”

Now, some of them believed they had lost those 50 points because they had seen that Katsuragi hadn’t filled in Ryuen’s name.

“We allied with Class D,” Katsuragi said. “Writing down Ryuen’s name would be inappropriate.”

Indeed, he hadn’t filled in Class D’s leader’s name.

As pointed out earlier, while it was clear that Ryuen still had ambitions, they hadn’t verified how many students in Ryuen’s class had actually forfeited.

So, it was possible that the leader wasn’t Ryuen. If they guessed wrong, Class A would have lost 68 points.

That was a risk.

Besides, they had an agreement with Ryuen.

Since they were allies, wasn’t it a bit too much to try to guess the other’s leader? Katsuragi believed Ryuen probably thought the same way.

Since they could cooperate in this exam, Katsuragi considered that perhaps they could collaborate again in future exams.

So, this was a gesture of goodwill.

Meanwhile, over at Classes B and C…

In Class B, Katsuragi quickly spotted Shiranami Chihiro as the class leader.

Ryuen’s appearance was a bit of a surprise, but their information on Class B’s leader was solid.

With 338 points secured, even if Sakayanagi had been present, she wouldn’t have been able to guarantee such a score.

“Hmph.”

Standing at the front of Class A’s group, Katsuragi’s lips curled slightly.

Although Ryuen being the leader was unexpected, as long as there were no unforeseen incidents, Class A would definitely take first place in this exam.

Ryuen, meanwhile, stood alone in Class D’s designated area.

However—

Holding a wooden stick as a makeshift cane, Ryuen still exuded confidence.

“You really are a surprising guy,” his homeroom teacher, Sakagami Kazuma, remarked. “Even though you didn’t secure a single point from a base.”

“But you did submit three names in the leader-guessing phase.”

“And, you also managed to score points from Base No. 25. That base grants a 50-point bonus, plus it had been occupied once, so it provides 51 points in total!”

“In this exam, your class could earn a maximum of 201 points,” Sakagami praised.

“It’s probably not 201 points,” Ryuen shook his head. “It’s likely only 151 points.”

“Huh?” Sakagami was puzzled.

“I was correctly identified as the leader by Class C. So we’ll lose 50 points,” Ryuen explained.

“I see…” Sakagami continued. “That’s a bit unfortunate, but still, gaining an extra 151 points is impressive.”

With that, he straightened his posture, preparing to await the official results.

It seemed that teachers generally didn’t know the leader identities of other classes.

Hachiman took note of this thought.

At that moment, Mashima, holding the megaphone, began to announce:

“Now, for fourth place.”

“Class D—0 points!”

“……”

Hearing this result, Katsuragi glanced toward Ryuen, who stood far away, and shook his head slightly.

He admitted that Ryuen had some cunning, and the fact that Ryuen had stayed on the island suggested he had some kind of plan.

But in the end, the final score was 0 points.

It seemed that Ryuen’s efforts had been in vain.

Wait a minute.

Katsuragi suddenly realized that something was off about this 0 points.

Since Ryuen knew the leaders of both Class B and Class C, he should have earned 100 points. And since he himself hadn’t guessed Class D’s leader, the only explanation for Ryuen’s 0 points was that both Class B and Class C had guessed Ryuen correctly?

Or—

Something had gone wrong with the leaders of Class B and Class C.

Katsuragi quickly turned his attention to them.

Shiranami Chihiro was still standing among the ranks of Class B, looking stable.

But—

When Katsuragi turned to look at Class C, he noticed something strange.

The students of Class C were lined up in two rows—one for boys and one for girls. However…

Among the boys, Katsuragi couldn’t find the tallest, most muscular man.

Could it be…

Could it really be…?

A cold sweat suddenly broke out on Katsuragi’s back.

At that moment, Mashima-sensei continued announcing the results with a blank expression.

“Third place—Class A, 70 points.”

“What?!”

Katsuragi, who had just been thinking about Class C’s leader, nearly jumped at the announcement. His eyes widened in shock, veins bulging on his forehead.

“How is that possible?!”

“Why is it like this?!”

“Weren’t we supposed to have 338 points?!”

The ranks of Class A erupted in chaos.

“Second place,” Mashima-sensei sighed slightly before continuing, “Class B, 170 points.”

“170 points, huh…”

This result was within the expectations that Ichinose had estimated the day before, so the students of Class B could accept it.

However—

“And finally, in first place—Class C, 491 points!”

“Whoa!”

The entire area instantly erupted in an uproar.