Saiko and Hinami have very protective personalities and in the face of injustice and trouble towards a friend, they have no problem in stepping forward, they've done it many times in the past. However, they work better as a duo, they complement each other's strengths. So, seeing her friend being sexually assaulted would definitely activate their sense of justice and make them act as a team to protect Azumi from any further harm, even if it meant going a long way and taking testimony in court. 

Women really are fearless, especially when it comes to protecting someone important to them.

"So, the underwear was the third piece of evidence?" asked Azumi.

"Exactly. To avoid the credibility of Mr. Nogi's version of the story, we needed to make it look like a premeditated assault. That's why we created a background story in advance.

As I asked you to steal some female underwear from random colleagues, we managed to create a rumor about an underwear thief lurking in the school. Having that same underwear planted in his sport bag along with a small flask of chloroform, one would start to connect the pieces together and assume that malicious act had later turned into a more ferocious assault. Even though the security guard found it before the police, it would eventually be found one way or another, it could've gone either way. With that said, photos of the incident, witnesses willing to take testimony and a vicious background story about the offender, which the witnesses can even corroborate…I'd say he doesn't stand a chance."

Azumi stared at Hinato for a few seconds, in awe, as he finished his explanation.

"Woah, that was clever I must admit it, you really thought that through. When you explained to me what you had planned, you were very brief, compared to now." acknowledged Azumi.

"Well I had to give some thought to it, after all I didn't want to put you in some sort of unpredictable danger. And I kept it brief so as to not confuse you with too many details."

"I do have one more question though…won't the police want to confirm that Mr. Nogi did use that flask of chloroform to knock me out? If I deliver some blood tests or whatever, won't they find it suspicious that there are no traces of it?"

"I do understand your concern, but don't worry. Even though there are tests to measure chloroform in body fluids and tissues to determine if you've been in contact with it, these tests are only useful a short time after you've been exposed, because it leaves the body quickly."

Azumi smirked and slowly clapped her hands at Hinato's response.

"Bravo, I didn't know that. Aren't you a mastermind?"

"It is no reason for praise, anyone could know this if they searched it online. I need to ask you something though…how do you feel having done this? Do you feel guilt?"

"Well from all the dangerous things I have done in my life, this was certainly the most stressful one, there was a lot at stake. But Mr. Nogi is a disgusting monster, not only did he constantly harass my friends during classes, he also made perverted approaches towards girls after class. 

Saiko told me that he once made a girl stick around the gym helping him store the equipment used in class, and when she was trying to reach for a higher shelf, he came from behind her and held her breasts to 'help' her reach it. The girl was in such shock she pushed him and ran towards the exit, but he grabbed her arm, held her against the wall. He threatened her saying no one would believe her and the moment he knew she had spoken, he would make her life a living hell. Only close friends know about it, but no one dares to say anything as they don't want to make it worse. Besides, even if they wanted to help, there aren't any cameras at the gym, there would be no way to prove it."

Azumi sighed after telling that horrific incident and recalled the event that took place in the locker room. 

"When I was laying down on the locker room's floor, I felt his hands reaching for my thighs before he tried to wake me. I could feel his smelly breath on top of me, getting accelerated, as if he was getting extremely turned on by that situation. Even if there was an ounce of concern for my well being, I could feel that was the last thing in his mind. I think…no I'm sure he was going to touch me further if Saiko and Hinami hadn't shown up. I guess that was kind of scary…but it is like I said, he has harassed and threatened friends and colleagues of mine and no one could do anything about it. As disgusting as this was, it was a way to retaliate, to prevent anyone from falling victim to him ever again. So, no, I don't feel guilty, people who abuse others could all die for all I care."

Even though she tried not to show it, you could understand how all of it had a huge impact on Azumi, she really seemed concerned for all those who fell victim to Mr. Nogi's vicious conduct. Although she despised abuse towards others like any normal person would point out, something in her speech made it feel personal to her.

"You were very brave Azumi, really, thank you. If anyone could know about this, they'd tell you the exact same thing." remarked Hinato, while looking into her eyes and smiling gently. "That is why I only trust you to do this, because you have that sense of justice, and, unlike almost everyone at school, you're willing to do something about it. However, from now on, things will only get more complicated. There'll be people who will oppose and condemn our actions. There'll be times where you'll wonder if you're doing the right thing. No matter what happens, what obstacles come before us, we'll have to remain focused and unshaken, we'll continue to move forward until we reach our goal. So, with that in mind, I'm only going to ask you this once…do you want to drop out?" asked Hinato with a serious look on his face.

"I confess that I've given some thought about it, if I should pursue this or not. But after yesterday, I trust you even more. You're right, there are a lot of wrong things with this school, like how they allow unspeakable things to take place and do nothing about it. They don't care about us, they only care about prestige and their public appearance. They can't keep getting away with it. I don't care about other people's morals, I believe that you're doing the right thing and I want to help you. So, you can count me in" stated Azumi.

I like your attitude, Azumi. After going to such an extent to frame Mr. Nogi and hearing your perspective on this matter, I've confirmed that you're loyal.

"Very well, I won't question you any further. And I promise you, I'll do everything within my reach to protect you from any harm. Or all of this would be pointless." remarked Hinato.

"Then what is the next step?"

"Until now, we were responsible for two incidents, one didn't have the effect we wanted, and the other massively did. But they were nothing more than tryouts, to test the extent of our influence. Before we set the acts for the main stage, we need to complete our team."

"You're going to involve more people in this?"

"Only one more person, if it gets too crowded, it gets more unstable."

"And why do we need one more person?"

"We need someone who can handle advanced computing, it will be crucial in the next events."

"Well, my classmate Yukimura knows a lot about computers, even helped me out numerous times in computing class. Maybe he could be a potential candidate?"

"Yes I know him, but he won't do."

Yukimura is too weak-spirited, he wouldn't leave his comfort zone for something of this scale. He doesn't have a reason to.

"Then I can search for someone else if you like."

"Don't worry about it, I already have someone in mind. I just need to confirm some aspects about that person. I'll keep you updated."

"Sure thing, boss!" teased Azumi. 

Hinato looked at her with a disapproving gaze over that label, but then, his gaze changed direction. He suddenly kept looking over Azumi's shoulder while they continued their conversation. 

Azumi took notice of this.

"Do I have a spider on my shoulder or something?!" asked Azumi, while shivering at the thought of having a disgusting crawling insect on her.

"What?"

"You keep looking over my shoulder, is something wrong?! Come on, give me the bad news already!"

"Oh, no it's nothing you're fine. There is no spider. But I don't know what you're going to do about that bee hovering behind you though." mocked Hinato.

"Eeek!!! Where is it?! Huh?! Hinato, we're indoors, there is no bee. Don't scare me like that!" snapped Azumi.

"You're right, maybe I confused it with that flying cockroach that has been hovering behind you."

"WHAT?!!!"

After calming Azumi down and some more random chatting, they both stood up and left the cafe. The mall was getting emptier compared with when they first arrived as it was getting late. 

As they headed towards the exit, Hinato remembered something.

"Oh that's right! Azumi, I just remembered that today, in class, Mrs. Naomi added one more component to include in that group project."

"A new component?! But we were almost finished!"

"Yeah, she told us she had forgotten to inform your class and that she would be sending an email later. But I figured I'd warn you about it anyway."

"Shit, I can't believe this. I've to call Hinami."

"Sure, I'll be heading home now. See you."

"Okay Hinato, thank you for the waffles! See you tomorrow!"

As they parted ways, Azumi called Hinami through facetime to talk about the group project. 

Meanwhile, after a short distance, Hinato stopped walking for a second and looked over his shoulder at the direction where Azumi was headed. 

He seemed troubled by something.

(…)

While still chatting and laughing with Hinami on facetime, Azumi was walking through an empty children's park, completely unaware of her surroundings. This was a path she took quite often, nothing unusual happened here, so there was no need to be worried…right?

"Traumatized, aren't ya?!"

At the sound of that voice, Azumi gasped and stopped in her tracks. She felt a cold shiver run down her body, her pupils dilated, and her face became immensely pale.

She knew that voice. As she looked behind her, she saw a fat middle-aged man staring at her, with an angry look, his face was red and filled with anger. This man had been involved in a scandalous incident the previous day, one which had involved Azumi as well.

This man was no other than…

"Mr. Nogi…" muttered Azumi.

"Look at you, laughing like you didn't just ruin my fucking life, you little cunt!" shouted Mr. Nogi. "You planned this didn't ya?! You just wanted to fuck with me, right? Acting like a little bitch! Oh he raped me, he raped me!! Ewww ewww! You little bitch, you got some nerve…because of you, I'm getting charged with attempted rape! Even the dumb fucking lawyer told me to just come clean about it, to get minimal time possible. Can you believe that?!"

Azumi, slowly, started to walk back without turning her back on Mr. Nogi. She was trembling with fear. At that moment, she didn't feel like she could run at all, she thought he'd eventually catch up with her. She also thought about screaming, but she couldn't find the strength to speak. Besides, there was no one around, this was a park with a few trees around it, no shops and no houses nearby.

No one would hear her scream.

"Azumi, what's going on?!!! Who is that?!!!" Hinami shouted through Azumi's phone. They were still in a call, and, as the camera of Azumi's phone faced Mr. Nogi, Hinami could glimpse a dark figure in the distance.

"You know what? Fuck it! Since I'm being charged for raping you, I might as well do it for real!"

As Mr. Nogi shouted that horrific sentence, he revealed a baseball bat that he was holding with his right hand behind his back.

"But first…why don't I beat you unconscious? I don't want ya spoiling the fun!"

In a swift move, Mr. Nogi launched himself towards Azumi, ready to violently hit her with his bat.