Reborn as the Man Who Takes Away the Protagonist’s Beloved Childhood Friend

To protect

Sagara, a boy who was training in the baseball club, had a strong physique. He was diligent in his daily practice and never neglected weight training, so it was only natural. However, even so, he couldn’t gain an advantage against a robust man like Tachibana.

“Run now, Uchida-san!”

“B-but!”

“Hurry up!”

Although he managed to push Tachibana, who was in a dominating position, the moment Tachibana regained his stance, the difference in strength became evident. Therefore, Sagara tried to hold back Tachibana to help Uchida escape.

“Get a teacher or anyone! Hurry!”

With a thud, Tachibana’s fist struck Sagara’s cheek, who was looking at Uchida. Sagara held his cheek, fell down, and upon seeing this, Uchida let out a small cry.

“Don’t mess around, kid. We were just getting started!”

Tachibana, who discarded his sweet facade to reveal his despicable nature, kicked the fallen Sagara once, then turned back to the terrified Uchida. However, even though Sagara was down, he never allowed Tachibana to approach Uchida. Despite his nosebleed and broken teeth, he firmly grabbed Tachibana’s leg.

“I’m telling you to run away quickly!”

For Sagara, Uchida was a girl he cared about. But for now, he wanted her to listen and run away quickly, so he conveyed this in a commanding tone. Uchida nodded slightly at Sagara’s words, shed tears, and left the warehouse.

“…Is this… good…?”

As Sagara watched Uchida escape, relieved for a moment, a sharp kick struck his side like a stab. Gasping for breath and unable to stop coughing, Sagara’s hair was grabbed by Tachibana, who opened his mouth in anger.

“Don’t get in the way, kid. You stick your nose where it doesn’t belong, and this is what happens.”

Indeed, at this moment, a scene was unfolding where Sagara was beaten up badly, while Tachibana didn’t have a scratch. Some might think of it as a case of a student unable to match up to a strong man. But Sagara had his own feelings.

“…So what, you bastard. I have… more to protect than you do.”

“Huh?”

Sagara continued, explaining why he didn’t strike back like Tachibana.

“I want to punch you too. But soon, I’ll become the captain of the baseball club.”

Yes, Sagara was scheduled to become the captain after the seniors retired. Tachibana seemed not to grasp the significance of this, but that’s why Sagara refrained from retaliating.

“Regardless of the reason, if I hit you, it might cause trouble for everyone in the club. I have juniors who have worked hard with me since I entered here. If I caused a problem by hitting you, it might affect our practice. I can’t forgive that!”

He managed to push Tachibana away by shaking off his arm, but the damage from being hit and kicked was significant. If he could be forgiven, he would want to just lie down and rest. But still, Sagara had no intention of letting Tachibana go, as what he did to Uchida was unforgivable, more important than the club activities.

“My father always said, a man’s fist is not for hurting but for protecting. Understand, you jerk? I don’t have a light fist like you that can be swung around easily!”

“You’re annoying, man.”

Tachibana, who had lived as he pleased, probably couldn’t understand Sagara’s feelings in the midst of his youth. Just as Tachibana was about to hit Sagara again, the voice of Uchida, who had escaped, echoed.

“Sagara-senpai!!”

“Is Sagara okay?!”

And at the same time, the voices of reliable classmates, who had become closer, were heard.

“Yukishiro-senpai! Onmura-senpai! Sagara-senpai…!!”

We were searching for Uchida, and the person we were looking for appeared in front of us, and we felt relieved. However, Uchida seemed unusually flustered. Upon asking, it turned out that when she was about to be attacked by Tachibana, Sagara appeared and helped her. But right after that, Sagara was hit, and he was told to run and call for help, so she ran to us.

“Hurry, Towakun!”

“Got it! Hey, Endo-sensei too!”

“Pant… Pant… Damn it! Being out of shape at a time like this is the worst!”

We headed towards the gymnasium warehouse Uchida had mentioned, and when we forcefully opened the slightly ajar door, we saw Tachibana about to hit Sagara.

“Sagara-senpai!!”

“Is Sagara okay?!”

His cheek was swollen, and blood was coming from his mouth. I had just learned that he liked Uchida, but I realized that he wanted to protect her even if it meant getting into this state. But let’s not indulge in sentimentality like this for now. As our presence distracted Tachibana from Sagara, he turned his gaze towards us. I didn’t miss this opportunity and kicked the basketball that happened to be in a perfect position right at Tachibana’s face.

The kicked ball hit Tachibana’s face perfectly. As expected of Towa, his ball control was top-notch, just as I thought.

“Ugh!!”

I pushed Tachibana, who was crouching with his face in pain, and helped Sagara up.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“…Yeah, somehow.”

“Sagara-senpai…! I… I…!”

Marie was in tears while holding Sagara’s hand. Sagara, feeling satisfied for being able to protect Marie, despite his swollen face, was smiling more brightly than usual.

I was relieved that both Marie was safe and Sagara, while not entirely unharmed, seemed okay… maybe that’s why I didn’t notice Tachibana standing behind me.

“Yukishiro-senpai!”

“Yukishiro!!”

As the two shouted, I turned my gaze backward… Tachibana was raising something like a stick. In that slow-motion moment, as if pondering it casually like a flashback, long black hair swayed right in front of me.

Stepping in between Tachibana and me was Ayana. Tachibana, surprised by Ayana’s move, hesitated for a moment, but Ayana didn’t miss the chance and kicked Tachibana in the groin with all her might.

“……Ughhhhh!!”

That surely was an unspeakable scream. Tachibana couldn’t help but crouch down, clutching his groin, groaning in pain.

“Yukishiro! What’s with Onmuna—… what’s going on here?”

Teacher Endo, who appeared later, might handle the rest… Still, Sagara and I couldn’t help but sympathize with Tachibana on this one.

“…That’s gotta hurt.”

“Is his ‘jewels’ okay?”

Seeing Tachibana crouching, Ayana reached out to me, so I grabbed her hand to help her up. Ayana, with a very nice smile, said this:

“I kicked with all my might, hoping to crush them. It’d be nice if they’re crushed, then girls won’t suffer from trash like him anymore.”

Marie let out a small scream, but I understand her feelings. I’m scared too.

“Hey, Yukishiro, is Onmuna-san really scary?”

“If you don’t find that scary, I’d say go to the hospital.”

“…Don’t worry, I was so scared I forgot about the pain in my body.”

The two of us realized once again that when women get angry, they can be scary.

After that, Teacher Endo called the police, Tachibana was taken away, Sagara went to the hospital. Marie also went to the hospital with Sagara, and as for me and Ayana, we were no longer available to help with the sports festival.

“It’s spreading quite a bit.”

“Yes, if the police come to the school, it can’t be helped.”

Neighbours might say various things, but from the school’s perspective, it’s better to acknowledge the situation before it gets out of control.

Teacher Endo mentioned not to make things bigger regarding the vice principal. But if the situation has escalated to this point, hiding it unnecessarily would only deepen the wound. I’m not an adult… more like a teacher, but seeing the vice principal act like that, it seems like their self-preservation is more important than the students.

“…Well, I guess we can relax for now.”

“Yes… but more importantly—”

Ayana jumped into my chest. Wondering what was wrong, I saw Ayana trembling slightly.

“I felt my blood run cold when he tried to hit Towa-kun. If that had hit his head, it wouldn’t have been safe, and I would have been so sad again.”

“…I see. I’m sorry, Ayana.”

Whether it was when we went shopping with Shuu or now, trying to protect something always comes with the risk of hurting something in return. It would be nice if we could protect everything, but it’s not always that simple… protecting is complicated.

“Towa-kun, please kiss me. It’ll help me calm down.”

“Got it.”

If that’s what you desire, then as much as you want.

Ayana lifted her face, the tears that ran down her cheek etched in my heart.

We probably can’t afford to lose either one of us. That’s why I vow to stay by her side. To protect the girl who seeks me and the girl I seek.