Hikigaya doesn't want to be a force of strength

Shiina's straight ball attack was so direct that Hikigaya couldn't defend himself.

He never thought that the other party would have the courage to take the initiative to ask him to "make friends".

So, the question is myself, do I really want to be friends with Shiina Hiyori?

Or to put the question more broadly...

Is there anyone you really want to be friends with in your life?

Lone Ranger...Does he really need friends?

Chapter 270 Ichinose, do you want to know the identity of the leader of Class A?

Hikigaya has always been proud of being a lone ranger.

A lonely soul wandering in the world does not need any place to stay.

However, ever since he came to this school and received the condition from his sister that he must make 10 friends, he felt more and more that his beliefs were shaken.

Whether it was when he had to talk to Horikita Suzune in the beginning in an attempt to make friends, or when he later passively talked to various people in the school, his attributes as a loner were gradually reduced, causing him to have unnecessary interactions with other people.

As the saying goes, emotions bring weaknesses.

No one pays attention to them, which means they have no weaknesses, so the Mavericks are invincible.

But if the Lone Ranger develops unnecessary emotions and is dragged down by meaningless interpersonal relationships, will he be able to maintain his current relaxed and safe state?

Hikigaya was inexplicably resistant to that kind of thing.

Yes, from the very beginning, Hikigaya never thought about making real friends.

Maybe on the surface, he did make a lot of efforts to make friends, but he always kept a distance from others.

In this respect, he is very similar to Ayanokouji.

Deep down, they all instinctively don't want to have anything to do with anyone.

It’s just that Ayanokouji’s expression is inexplicably smooth, while Hikigaya’s expression is almost extreme inferiority and self-exile.

It was because his heart was resisting the so-called "friends" and denying such boring interpersonal relationships that, even though he did appear to be trying to make friends, he actually never really wanted to make any friends.

The overly strong barrier of his heart blocks out any external emotions that might be directed at him.

Therefore, he would use bad means to solve class problems again and again, and would not care about his reputation within the class.

Because to him, those things were nothing to worry about.

He reached a transcendent state of mind where he was neither happy with things nor sad with himself.

However, Hikigaya himself also realized that the state he was in was not permanent. Once he sincerely wanted to make friends with someone and had a yearning for a certain feeling from the bottom of his heart, his position would fall from the pinnacle of the lone ranger and become a mortal.

Although Hikigaya doesn't care whether he will become a mortal or not, he at least won't allow himself to develop unnecessary emotions or unnecessary weaknesses.

"Shiina, why do you want to be friends with me?"

Finally, Hikigaya asked Shiina Hiyori a question that went straight to the heart.

In a sense, this is also a question he is asking himself.

Why do you want to be friends with other people?

What is the meaning of friends?

Is this feeling genuine?

Deep down, Hikigaya has a low self-esteem as an individual, and he has never been arrogant enough to analyze people's emotions rationally.

After all, he had known for a long time that the answer that could not be calculated was emotion.

However, he still longed for an answer.

This is just like an insecure child who instinctively develops a confrontational consciousness when faced with something that is completely unfamiliar to him.

He hoped that there was something he could understand, something that could replace his rationality in accepting the other person, and something that would allow him to not have to bear any risks, and to lie comfortably in bed and enjoy absolute peace.

As long as I can get an answer that I can accept, maybe I...

Under Hikigaya's overly calm gaze, Shiina Hiyori fell silent.

She didn't expect Hikigaya to ask her such a question, and her expression became noticeably stiff.

"That's because, of course, I..."

The words came to my lips, but I couldn't say them at all.

Shiina Hiyori finally said with an embarrassed look on her face: "I'm sorry, but I just want to be friends with Hikigaya-kun. Does this really require a reason?"

"..."

Hearing this answer, Hikigaya let out a long sigh, "Indeed, I am a little weird."

Shaking his head, Hikigaya suppressed all the overly troublesome emotional thoughts in his mind.

It's just making friends, what nonsense are you thinking about?

Isn't this a very simple thing that I have always dreamed of?

He began to reflect on his habit of overcomplicating things.

So, Hikigaya smiled naturally and said, "Sure, if it's you, Shiina, I'd like to be your friend."

"Really?!"

Hearing Hikigaya's words, Shiina Hiyori immediately showed a happy expression.

When she was about to continue speaking, Hikigaya spoke first: "By the way, I have something else to do. Can I go first?"

"This……"

Looking at Hikigaya's back as he left silently, Shiina Hiyori originally wanted to say something, but the words were stuck in his throat.

Very strange.

Even though Hikigaya had just promised her that they could be friends, she couldn't feel happy at all.

Moreover, she had clearly made up her mind just now that as long as Hikigaya agreed, she would ask the other party to add him to her mobile phone address book.

But when the moment came, she inexplicably gave up making the request.

Maybe I made the wrong choice...

Shiina Hiwa truly felt this at this moment.

However, there is no regret medicine in this world that can allow people to go back to the previous save point and make a new choice after making a wrong choice.

Confusion and bewilderment appeared on the girl's face, and she could only watch Hikigaya's figure walking farther and farther away, until he finally disappeared at the end of her sight.

……

The forest walkway.

"I think I have finally completed one tenth of Komachi's requirements."

As Hikigaya went to check on the situation of Class B and Class A, he muttered to himself, "It turns out that making friends is such a simple thing. I always felt that I thought it was too complicated before."

Although he always felt that there was a certain sense of incongruity, Hikigaya was still glad that he finally made his first friend in his life.

This should be something to be happy about.

Originally, Hikigaya felt that the word "friend" represented a more complex and heavier concept, something he never wanted to touch in his life.

But now, after making his first friend, he unexpectedly found it very easy.

It seems that nothing has changed from the past...

Hikigaya's heart was calm. He quickly put the matter behind him and headed to Class B's camp base according to the description of Class B's vice-captain Kanzaki Ryuji.

He quickly followed Kanzaki's instructions and entered the forest through the broken roots of the giant tree.

The road is easy to walk on as it looks like it was walked on by many students. If we simply follow the traces, we should be able to reach the Class B camp.

This class is still as defenseless as ever.

With a relaxed mood, Hikigaya smoothly walked into the camp of Class B, and saw the scene of the class base at a glance - a well serving as the base, surrounded by many trees. Because there was no space to place tents, a large number of hammocks were set up. A large number of students worked in the base to contribute to the camp.

This class has a special atmosphere that other classes do not have, a peculiar centripetal force that can be actually felt.

Hikigaya couldn't help but be immersed in this atmosphere.

"Hey, Hikigaya-san?"

The girl's voice suddenly rang out, and Ichinose Honami, wearing the school's uniform sportswear, ran over happily from a distance.

Kanzaki Ryuji's figure was also a little further away.

"Hey, Ichinose." Hikigaya took the initiative to greet him. "Your class seems to be going well."

“Ahaha, it only looks easy on the surface.” Ichinose smiled as usual, “We tried every possible way and put in all kinds of effort to do it, but in the end, there was more to do.”

"Is that so? I'm sorry to bother you."

Hikigaya thought this was an order to leave, so he turned around and left.

“No, no, no, I’m not going to chase you away.” Ichinose immediately grabbed his hand and said, “If it’s Hikigaya-san, it’s okay if you’re delayed for a while.”

"This……"

Why is there nothing wrong with what I say?

I'm not from your class?

Hikigaya couldn't help but feel helpless about Ichinose's over-trust in him, but he still stayed and continued to observe the situation of Class B.

As if she knew his intention, Ichinose naturally took out the manual from the bag at her feet.

"We bought things like hammocks, cooking utensils, a small tent, lanterns, a makeshift toilet, fishing rods, and an outdoor shower... plus food, the total cost was exactly seventy dollars."

“It’s about the same as our class.”

The cost of living in Class D is 60 points, and the food on the first morning is 10 points.

The efficiency of point usage of the two classes is exactly the same.

This further proves the fact that saving alone will not make a difference in this exam.

Therefore, the most difficult part of this exam is not the consumption of points, but how to spend as few points as possible while maintaining unity.

Class D was a result that was achieved with the help of coordination among many parties.

Class B seemed to have relied on Ichinose's prestige and had not encountered any trouble from the beginning.

Even so, Class D was forced to lose an additional 30 points due to Koenji's withdrawal.

The gap between classes is obvious.

If Class A develops normally, they will definitely be able to save more points.

Therefore, if you want to fulfill Sakayanagi's request and truly defeat Class A, you need to make more efforts.

Thinking of this, Hikigaya looked at Ichinose and Kanzaki in front of him and said slowly: "Actually, I came here because I have a piece of news I want to sell to you."

"Do you want to know the identity of the leader of Class A?"

Chapter 271: The Great Fraudster Hikigaya

"Eh?"

After hearing what Hikigaya said, Ichinose and Kanzaki's expressions changed noticeably.

After all, this happened too suddenly.

It has only been one day since all the students arrived on the uninhabited island, and most classes have not even finished tidying up their campsites.

No one could believe that Hikigaya knew the identity of the leader of Class A so quickly.

"Could it be possible... that Hikigaya-san got some clues?"