BNHA: I am Reiji Toga Chapter 59: Girlfriend? (1)

'Nejire, my girlfriend...?'

Reiji walked through the U.A. hallways with a completely neutral expression, but inside he was still processing the ntal exhaustion that conversation had left him with.

After lunch, Mina had spent practically the entire remaining class trying to convince him that there was so kind of romantic relationship between him and Nejire.

The worst part was that she hadn't been the only one.

Toru had joined in. Camie too. Even so more subtle questions from other classmates had made it quite clear that the entire class had jumped to strange conclusions simply because he saw her sharing a table with two people.

All over lunch.

A simple lunch.

'Don't you two have anything better to do...?'

The irony was that he hadn't even had a particularly important conversation with either of them. He'd spent most of his ti listening to Himiko and Nejire talking amongst themselves while he tried to finish his al in peace. However, apparently, that had been enough to create a whole story that was now circulating around the class.

And knowing Mina, it would probably continue to circulate for days.

He let out a small sigh as he turned down one of the main corridors.

His day had been strangely long.

And there were still things left to do.

Luckily, the next activity was much simpler. Or at least as simple as anything related to i Hatsu could be.

As he walked toward the support building, part of his attention automatically shifted to his costu. The observations he had made during practice were still fresh in his mind. The belt tended to shift slightly when he used certain combat stances, the boots distributed so of the pressure unevenly during prolonged movents, and there were still several minor details that could be optimized.

They weren't major flaws. But if he simply wasn't comfortable with them, it was only natural to change them, especially since there was still the issue of his costu's hood.

If he'd learned anything during his years as an agent, it was that small problems always escalated into big ones at the worst possible mont.

It was best to fix them now.

Besides, he hadn't visited i even once since officially enrolling at U.A. It hadn't been that long, just two days, but it was a good ti to make up for that.

He finally arrived at the support building.

Unlike other areas of the academy, this place seed to operate according to its own laws of physics. The clatter of tools echoed constantly behind several closed doors. So windows emitted flashes of welding. A small explosion followed by a shout echoed from a distant spot.

The most unsettling thing was that this was normal.

When he opened the main door to i's workshop, the sll of hot tal, industrial oil, and electrical components hit him imdiately.

The place seed even more chaotic than last ti.

Cables dangled from various structures.

Tools covered entire tables.

chanical parts were scattered everywhere, and at least three inventions whose function was impossible to identify at first glance.

Reiji closed the door behind him.

"i?"

"At the back! And if anything starts moving as you pass, ignore it!"

Her voice ca from sowhere in a cloud of steam. Reiji noticed a chanical sphere suspended above a shelf.

The sphere rotated, following his path, but just as i had said, he prayed it wouldn't decide to turn on him.

He found i working on a dubious-looking hydraulic structure. Her protective mask was pulled up over her head, and there were several grease stains scattered across her face, arms, and apron.

When she saw him enter, she imdiately smiled.

It was a dangerous smile.

The sa one that appeared whenever she had a new idea.

"Look who's here!"

i practically jumped up to approach him.

"Did sothing break? Do you need improvents? Or did you finally co to admit that my creation is the best thing that's ever happened to you?"

"Neither," Reiji replied. "I just need so adjustnts, and to look into the hood issue that was left unresolved."

That seed to excite her even more.

"Perfect! Tell the flaws!"

"The belt shifts to the sides when the number of flasks is excessive. My wristbands shift slightly during fast movents. And the support on the left boot puts too much pressure on the heel."

i was already taking notes.

"Uh-huh."

"I also think I'll need two additional cuts at rib level for my Quirk."

"Uh-huh."

"And..."

"Uh-huh."

Reiji watched her write.

"I don't think you're listening."

"Of course I'm listening," she replied without looking up. "The belt, the wristbands, the left heel, and the additional cuts. I could also add two canes on your back to contain your blood, maybe so thrusters in your boots, and..."

"I don't want anything else..." Reiji stated firmly, but i barely heard him and continued taking notes.

"If the best inventor in Japan recomnds sothing, you should just listen."

"I don't think so. I don't usually use weapons in my fighting style, and I don't want to start now."

"Uh-huh."

Finally, i raised her head.

Then she began to slowly circle him.

Like a predator observing particularly interesting prey.

"Are you putting the suit on properly?" the girl asked. "Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Didn't you grow five centiters overnight?"

"No."

"Two?"

"No."

"What a disappointnt. I don't think the problem is the suit I made, but I'll take a look anyway."

i concluded, tapping the paper with her pencil.

"I'm sure the suit is the problem."

"Always so direct, Bloody Boy."

"Soone has to be."

"And soone has to be funny." She pointed to herself.

"I do both," Reiji countered.

"You do neither."

Reiji decided to ignore her.

She decided to continue teasing him.

The natural balance of their relationship, after years of knowing each other, had shifted. i's impulsiveness had cald down because having Reiji test all her inventions had generated a wave of confidence in her creations.

She no longer needed an excuse to create sothing; whatever she made would be tested by Reiji under any conditions.

Reiji, on the other hand, had remained much more expressive than at the beginning, learning and improving his own analytical skills with that type of object, understanding i and her explosive creativity perfectly.

i ended up getting even closer as she examined various parts of Reiji's body, a formality to ensure that his body hadn't changed and, therefore, that the asurents of his suit weren't incorrect.

"You know?" she comnted while observing the height of his shoulder.

"You're my best client and also my biggest investnt," i said casually.

"Thank you."

"So I hope that in the future you can take my agency as far as All Might took David Shield."

"I don't think that's a fair price."

"Nor can I tolerate you saying that the problem is my equipnt," she continued. "And also, that you don't let modify my own creations."

"I suppose you're right."

i walked away laughing as she gathered several tools. To continue taking Reiji's asurents, i climbed onto a stool to reach his height. The chair seed dangerously wobbly, but the young inventor didn't pay much attention to it.

"1.79 ters. One more since the last ti I asured you. My suit definitely wasn't the problem..." she remarked with an air of superiority, making Reiji sigh in resignation.

"..."

"Hey, you should give so credit!" i retorted when Reiji remained silent. She leaned back slightly, trying to et his gaze.

"Wah—!"

That was enough to make the wobbly chair cause i to lose all balance, propelling her to the side.

Reiji reacted purely on reflex.

He caught her before she hit the ground.

One hand gripped her arm. The other wrapped around her waist to steady her.

The movent was so quick that neither of them had ti to properly process it.

For a second, the workshop fell completely silent. Reiji watched i's face with a raised eyebrow, waiting for her to utter one of her typical phrases to extricate herself from the situation.

However, i slowly opened her eyes, having missed the blow. The first thing she noticed was Reiji's expectant face just inches away, his arm wrapped around her waist.

He was much closer than she had expected.

She could clearly make out Reiji's features.

The usual calmness in his gaze.

And, unfortunately for her, that only made the heat rise in her cheeks.

"I think," Reiji said after a few seconds. "You should give so credit."

i opened her mouth.

She closed it.

She opened it again.

And finally let out an awkward cough.

"That was an unscheduled reflexes test!" she declared.

"Uh-huh."

"And you passed!"

"I'm glad to hear it."

"Don't write it down in any report!"

"There isn't a report."

"Then don't forget it either."

That made Reiji raise an eyebrow.

i imdiately looked away.

Which only made things worse.

She finally managed to regain so composure as she returned to her work table.

"Co back tomorrow," she said, her mind still replaying Reiji's face. "I'll have it ready."

"Good." Reiji picked up his jacket. "See you tomorrow."

And he simply left. It wasn't unusual for sothing like that to happen, so she didn't think much of it.

The door closed behind him.

The workshop fell silent again.

i stared for several seconds at the place where he had left.

Then she slowly lowered her gaze to her own hands.

They were still a little shaky.

"What a hassle..." she muttered to herself.

***

As promised, and with a record of over 200 Power Stones, we have two additional chapters this week, plus the one for today. That makes a total of three.

I appreciate the renewed support for the story. We saw an exponential increase in support last week, although I think it's waning a bit because of the World Cup, hahaha.

Anyway, I totally understand. Even though my country didn't qualify, I've still been watching the matches, and it's been a little difficult to write.

Anyway, I hope your teams go far. It's really great to support your team in a World Cup. If you have any Power Stones to spare, and you enjoy the story, leave your Power Stones to unlock the additional chapters. Or, if you don't want to wait, you can support and get more than five additional chapters.

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