Kushida Kikyo's brain completely crashed.
She blinked, then blinked hard again, almost suspecting that she was hallucinating from extreme anger.
But the scene before her was suffocatingly real—
Sakamoto, that Sakamoto from Class 1-A, was standing on the turbulent surface of the sea in a way that defied physical common sense!
The ski-like devices under his feet vibrated at high frequency, pushing away the seawater and creating two white wakes, as if he was harnessing an invisible force, cutting through the night tides, and speeding towards the shore where she stood!
WHAT THE FUCK?!
This had completely exceeded Kushida's cognitive scope.
Her expression was completely frozen; she had even temporarily forgotten whether her hysterical, true-self-exposing curses had been seen or heard by him.
At this moment, her entire mind was occupied by this unbelievable sight.
Sakamoto's speed was extremely fast; in a flash, he had approached the shallows.
And with him came a surging wave, stirred up and carried by his high-speed gliding!
The wave, as if alive, rose high, carrying immense power, and lunged towards Kushida on the shore!
Kushida's pupils constricted; a strong sense of danger made her instinctively want to dodge backward.
But it was too late!
At this critical moment, Sakamoto, who was already close to the shore, used the rebound force generated by the final collision of the boards under his feet with the wave.
He suddenly leaned back, elegantly completing a perfect backflip in the air!
His movements were as fluid as a dance, landing precisely on the shore not far from Kushida.
However, the wave he brought with him did not lose momentum; it still roared, crashing down on the two people on the shore, seemingly about to engulf both Kushida and the newly landed Sakamoto!
Kushida didn't even have time to express her shock at Sakamoto's superhuman entrance; her survival instinct made her suddenly raise her arms, crossing them in front of her, and closing her eyes, preparing to face the impact of the cold seawater and a messy, embarrassing outcome.
The anticipated impact and soaking sensation did not come.
Instead, there was a dense and crisp "pat-pat-pat" sound,
It sounded like a torrential downpour striking a hard surface.
She opened her eyes in startled disbelief.
She saw a transparent barrier, which had appeared at some point, now firmly separating her from the surging waves.
No, that wasn't a barrier... it was a gigantic, transparent umbrella, opened wide!
Sakamoto had produced this umbrella from somewhere, and now stood tall and straight in front of her, holding it with one hand.
The umbrella canopy precisely met the incoming spray, perfectly blocking and diverting it.
Water splashed everywhere, yet not a single drop managed to reach the two people beneath the umbrella.
Their clothes, shoes, and socks were as dry as before.
And Sakamoto still had those oddly shaped skis on his feet.
"Good evening, Kushida-san."
Sakamoto turned his head, his gaze calm behind his black-rimmed glasses as he looked at the still-shaken Kushida, his tone as composed as ever, "I was practicing a secret technique here. I apologize if I disturbed you."
Kushida: "..."
She was completely bewildered.
Her brain's capacity to process information seemed to have reached its limit.
Skiing on the sea?
Riding the waves?
A backflip in mid-air?
Opening an umbrella instantly to block a giant wave?
Could this series of actions even be performed by a human in the real world?
She seriously wondered if she had finally gone insane from too much stress and was now having a bizarre nightmare.
Sakamoto seemed to sense Kushida's confusion and said nothing more.
He began to pack up unhurriedly.
He bent down and skillfully unstrapped the skis from his feet.
Only then did Kushida notice that the bottom of the skis seemed to have a detachable mechanism, clearly specially modified.
He put away the skis and folded the umbrella, his movements smooth and natural, as if everything that had just happened was as ordinary as a daily stroll.
This fluid series of actions finally brought Kushida back to her senses slightly.
This wasn't a dream.
Sakamoto had really appeared.
And what she had just done... her completely undignified, resentful, jealous, and furious outburst... he had seen it all.
He had heard it all.
This realization was like a bucket of ice water poured over her head, instantly extinguishing all shock and confusion, replaced by a bone-chilling cold.
He knows my true self.
Kushida's expression quickly cooled, her eyes becoming deep and sharp.
Sakamoto's trivial 'kindness' of blocking the water for her just now was instantly thrown to the back of her mind.
Now the most important thing was to silence him.
She had to find a way to prevent him from revealing this secret.
A simple, crude, yet potentially effective idea instantly popped into her head—create leverage.
Kushida's face darkened, her normally clear and innocent eyes now only held cold calculation.
She suddenly took a step forward, and while Sakamoto seemed focused on packing his items and was completely unguarded, she reached out and grabbed for Sakamoto's chest!
The plan was simple: forcibly press his hand against her chest, create a scene of indecency, and leave fingerprints on her clothes as evidence.
With this, she would threaten him: if he dared to speak, she would accuse him of sexual harassment.
However, she clearly underestimated Sakamoto and overestimated herself.
Or rather, she was completely overcome by panic and forgot what inhuman reactions and abilities the other party had just displayed.
Just as her fingers were about to touch Sakamoto's clothes—
Sakamoto's palm, as if precognitive, moved later but arrived first, lightly sweeping upwards, perfectly blocking Kushida's wrist.
The movement was gentle yet incredibly precise, as if he had already anticipated her action.
"Oh my?"
Sakamoto raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of surprise in his tone, as if he had encountered something interesting, "Kushida-san actually has the refined taste to spar with me in the art of 'pushing hands'? In that case, I beg your indulgence."
Pushing hands?!
Sparring?!
Kushida was stunned again, her mind completely unable to process it.
What on earth was this guy talking about?!
Before she could understand this bizarre development, Sakamoto's blocking hand had already changed its move, and a clever force was transmitted!
Kushida felt her center of gravity shift, and her body involuntarily tilted slightly forward.
A feeling of humiliation instantly flooded her heart.
Damn it!
He's actually toying with me like this!
Consumed by rage, Kushida abandoned any plans, her mind heated, and she thrust both palms out, pushing with all her might towards Sakamoto!
However, her attack seemed like slow motion to Sakamoto.
Sakamoto's body leaned back slightly like a willow catkin, easily avoiding her palms.
Immediately after, an even more astonishing scene occurred—Sakamoto's arms suddenly spun rapidly like windmills!
He wasn't actually touching Kushida, but rather drawing circular trajectories in front of him at an extremely high frequency, creating a strong, visible airflow!
This airflow was like an invisible wall, not only instantly disrupting Kushida's balance but also generating a peculiar pushing force!
Kushida gasped, and under this sudden wind pressure, her center of gravity completely lost control, and her entire body involuntarily fell backward!
Just as she was about to fall awkwardly to the ground—
At that critical moment, the hooked handle of the transparent long umbrella, which had just been folded, silently extended as if alive.
He accurately hooked Kushida-san's wrist as she threw her hand back, and gently pulled upwards.
A steady force came, instantly stopping her backward fall and helping her regain her balance.
Kushida-san stood there blankly, her mind empty.
Sakamoto slowly retracted his umbrella, elegantly re-hanging it as if everything that had just happened was merely an afterthought.
"I yield to you, Kushida-san. The art of push hands emphasizes the center of gravity; you still need more practice."
He nodded slightly, his tone calm and unruffled.
"It's late; I'll take my leave first."
With that, he turned and walked leisurely towards the dormitories.
After a few steps, he didn't look back, but his voice carried clearly on the wind, reaching Kushida-san's ears:
"Attacking others with words is indeed a way to vent emotions. But venting is not the only path. Showing your true self is not a bad thing either."
As his words faded, his figure gradually merged into the night.
Only Kushida Kikyo was left, standing stiffly by the shore alone.
The sea breeze still blew, but it couldn't disperse the tumultuous waves in her heart.
Within a few short minutes, she had experienced furious breakdown, extreme shock, panicked calculation, futile counterattack, and finally, a conclusion that was completely beyond imagination.
All her darkness, calculations, and attacks seemed so ridiculous and powerless in the face of his absolute strength and composure.
Her taut nerves suddenly relaxed, and an intense feeling of exhaustion washed over her.
Her legs gave way, and she didn't care about her image, leaning back and lying directly on the cool ground of the shore.
Her gaze was vacant as she looked up at the star-studded night sky.
What on earth had she just done?