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Minato Elementary School opened as scheduled, but on this day, Yaeko was unable to take leave to send Shouko to school, so she asked Shizuka to do it instead. Shizuka said these were all small matters as long as Yaeko explained things clearly to Shouko; otherwise, she was afraid Shouko would be sad.
On the first day of school, the new students only had to go to their classroom, find a seat, and introduce themselves before they could go home, so they arrived later than the older students.
Shizuka walked into Minato Elementary School holding the hands of the two cute kids and saw only the new students and their parents. The older students had all returned to their classes, except for a few who were late.
When passing by the notice board with the freshmen's class assignments posted, Tsuna immediately noticed a child with a hedgehog hairstyle and a young woman holding his hand in the crowd.
With just a quick glance, Tsuna looked away and walked in the direction indicated by the class sign. The first and second graders were all on the first floor and didn't have to climb stairs, which Tsuna thought was nice.
In the corridor outside Class A, he saw that almost all the students were already there.
"Mom, are you going to go back first or wait for us outside?" Tsuna looked up and asked Shizuka outside the classroom.
"Do you know the way? If you do, I'll go back and prepare lunch." Shizuka let go of their hands, squatted halfway down, and spoke to Tsuna in a gentle voice.
Tsuna nodded to show it was no problem. Seeing this, Shizuka reached out and touched the heads of the two kids. Before leaving, she reminded Tsuna, "Remember to call me if you need anything."
"Got it." Tsuna nodded and prepared to hold Shouko's hand and walk into the classroom. A few days ago, Shizuka had bought him a watch that could make calls and tell the time.
"Let's go, Shouko."
"Yeah!" Shouko was excited at the thought of meeting new friends soon.
Tsuna led Shouko inside and saw that there were only two empty seats left in the back row by the window; the rest of the seats had only one spot remaining. Tsuna noticed that the seats were spaced half a meter apart front to back, and a meter apart left to right, with no seats connected.
They walked over to the two empty seats, and Tsuna spoke to Shouko in a gentle voice: "You pick first." Finally, Shouko chose the front seat, saying it didn't matter as long as Tsuna sat next to her.
After Tsuna and Shouko chatted for a while, a woman in a suit, black-framed glasses, and a high ponytail walked in from outside, went up to the podium, and knocked on the blackboard behind her.
"Shouko, the teacher's here, sit up straight now." Tsuna's attention was drawn by the knocking sound. Seeing that it was the teacher, he reminded Shouko, who hadn't noticed.
"Everyone, sit down! My name is Minagawa Junko, and I'm your new homeroom teacher. Just call me Minagawa!"
Tsuna guessed from her outfit and tone that she was probably a decisive person. He felt she looked specifically at him and Shouko after speaking.
Once everyone had settled down, Teacher Minagawa said loudly, "From left to right, come up one by one and introduce yourselves." She then walked to the classroom doorframe, stood with her arms crossed over her chest, and gave the podium to them.
After about three minutes of self-introductions, a girl with brown hair in twin ponytails, wearing a yellow short-sleeved shirt and an orange skirt, walked up to the podium and confidently called out to the students below, "My name is Matsuoka Miu. Please take care of me!" She bowed to everyone after finishing.
After she returned to her seat, a girl with black hair tied in a single side knot, wearing a blue short-sleeved shirt and shorts, walked up to the podium and stiffly said, "My name is Ito Chika. Please take care of me!" She also bowed afterward.
When it was Shouko's turn, Tsuna encouraged her first, and she mustered the courage to walk to the podium. This class was full of normal students, and she was the only one wearing a hearing aid. She was a bit afraid that everyone would exclude her.
"My name is Nishimiya Shouko. Please take care of me. I want to be good friends with everyone!" Shouko nervously finished her introduction in one breath. Just as she was about to bow like the others, a voice from below interrupted her.
"Why are you wearing that red thing on your ear?" a little boy asked curiously.
"Huh!?" Shouko didn't hear him clearly.
"Shouko, he asked why you're wearing the red thing." Tsuna, seeing from his seat that Shouko hadn't heard, quickly stood up and repeated it loudly for her.
Shouko would have to tell them sooner or later. Rather than have her ask again under everyone's curious stares, it was better for Tsuna to help her draw some of the attention.
Shouko gave Tsuna a grateful look, raised her hand and touched the hearing aid, and explained: "This... this?"
After a brief pause, she looked at Tsuna, then changed her tone from nervous and restrained to calm and firm: "This is a hearing aid. I have a hearing impairment. If I don't wear it, I can't hear everyone clearly. But with it, I can make friends with everyone normally."
When the boy wanted to say more, he was interrupted by a serious voice: "If you have questions, ask after school." Then Minagawa softened her tone toward Shouko and said gently, "Shouko, you did very well. Go sit down next!"
When Shouko returned to her seat, Tsuna praised her with plenty of encouraging words.
Later, Tsuna went up, simply said his name, and returned to his seat without even bowing. Some students thought he was arrogant and cocky, while others thought he looked cool just now.
After everyone finished introducing themselves, Tsuna counted the students; there were 36 in Class A, with two more boys than girls, and six first-grade classes in total.
Teacher Minagawa cleared her throat, drawing everyone's attention back to her, and said seriously, "Alright, everyone, go out and line up in a row. We'll adjust the seats."
Suddenly, the sound of chairs being moved echoed in the classroom, and soon everyone had filed outside. Teacher Minagawa called two boys who were waiting in the corridor to move the desks and chairs. Several girls came over to talk to Shouko, including the two girls from before, but no boys came over to talk to Tsuna.
"Okay! Now line up in two rows, from shortest to tallest!" After five minutes, Teacher Minagawa stepped into the corridor and called out to those who were still chatting noisily.
Tsuna looked through the classroom window and saw that the desks inside had all been arranged in pairs. He wasn't worried about the new seating at all. Teacher Minagawa would seat Shouko and him together.
But Shouko, standing near the front of the line, didn't think the same way. She was very nervous. From their earlier conversation, Shouko knew that the teacher would seat them according to height. Now she was near the front, and Tsuna was near the back, so it seemed impossible for them to sit together.
Neither Tsuna nor Shizuka had told Shouko that Daisuke had used his connections to ensure they were in the same class.
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