Author's Note: Hey everyone, welcome back to "Soldier of Hope School Days." I'm glad to see that I've managed to entertain you all and I want to thank you for your continued support. If you haven't already, I suggest you follow my IG ( Fire_slash_fanfiction). I post updates as to when I plan on updating stories and is the best place to reach me now that I no longer get notified of PMs for some reason.

Anyways, that's enough out of me. Let's get right to the story. Review and enjoy :-)

0000

WAKE UP!

"!"

His body shooting upwards, Naegi practically leapt off his bed and hid behind it, scanning his room for possible threats. Immediately, his soldier instincts began kicking in as he attempted to think of a way to combat the threat approaching him. Sadly, his pistol was in his drawers on the other side of his bed, meaning he couldn't rely on it for aid. Thankfully, he hid his switchblade underneath his bed, so he had a weapon on hand. Clutching it, Naegi was preparing to stab whatever was approaching. Typically, Naegi was confident in his ability to take out whatever threats he sensed or discovered, but there was a problem this time; for whatever reason, his body was acting up. His breath was rapid as he felt himself suffocating. His vision was blurry and his body was rapidly shaking. It was as if his room had been bombed with some sort of chemical that was disorienting him, but he could neither see or smell anything...

*BANG!*

Jolting upwards, Naegi shot another glance around his room. The loud sound that had reverberated around his room was most certainly a gunshot. Whoever was here, they were dangerous…

"Guh!"

It was at this point when Naegi's body started to get worse. His vision began to blur even further, a battlefield filled with soldiers flickering in his room briefly before returning to his normal state. Breathing began suddenly harder to accomplish as Naegi felt himself being choked by some unknown force far stronger than anything he ever experienced. As all this was going on, he felt something large approaching him. Pointing his switchblade in front of him, Naegi was prepared to stab this unknown body, wanting to remove the imminent danger…

And then he blinked…

Suddenly, his body stopped shaking as his breathing returned to its normal pattern and his vision became more clear. Quietness filled his room and Naegi no longer felt any sort of presence in his room. It was at this moment that Naegi knew what had just happened to him,

"...Another attack."

Picking himself up, he recalled his switchblade and kicked it under his bed. There was no threat present, his PTSD simply kicked in.

Groaning, Naegi opened his drawer and took some pills. He really hated waking up this way…

0000

Despite classes not being mandatory, Naegi decided that he was still going to attend them. Unlike some of his other classmates, he really didn't want a career relating to his talent, so it would be best for him to get an education. What he wanted to do after Hope's Peak was something he still didn't know, but he'll figure it out later.

Yawning, he opened the door to his classroom and began scanning his surroundings. Only a handful of his classmates bothered showing up today. In the front of the room, Ishimaru was having a passionate conversation with the shy Fujisaki. In the middle of the room sat Ikusaba, all alone without her twin sister. The two made eye contact for a second and he was sure the girl was attempting to analyze him. Not wanting to be rude, he simply smiled at her, which much to his surprise, caused her to immediately look away. Unknown to the boy, a bit of red had made its way onto her cheeks. Finally, in the back of the room sat Ogami and Asahina, the fighter most likely having had to convince the swimmer to show up.

Spotting an empty seat next to one of the windows, Naegi sat down and began preparing for class, unaware that another student had just entered the room until they took a seat next to him.

"Good morning Naegi."

"Ah, morning Maizono," Naegi greeted the idol, making sure to keep his guard up around her. Maizono's sharp intuition was quite dangerous, as was proven yesterday, and her ability to mask her emotions was also nothing to scoff at. She doesn't seem to be a bad person though, but it was still best for him to keep his guard up at all times. "I'm surprised you're here honestly. I thought you'd be preparing for your upcoming concert."

"That's important, yes, but so is my education," Maizono responded. She then tilted her head on mocking confusion. "How'd you know that I have a concert coming up?" Her face then playfully lit up. "Don't tell me... you're a fan of mine?"

Naegi would be lying if he said he wasn't one, but admitting that to her outright would be somewhat embarrassing seeing as she was his classmate and all. If he encountered her after a concert or in public, sure, but something about them being classmates made admitting so a bit awkward for the already awkward teen. "I mean, I am, but my sister is a huge fan of yours as well." That wasn't a lie. Komaru was probably more of a fan of Maizono and her group. "She's always claiming to be the number one Sayaker."

Maizono pretended to be surprised. "Oh, really? Maybe I should meet her then…"

"She'd probably pass out from shock," Naegi laughed, imagining Komaru actually getting the chance to meet one of her idols.

"Well, looks like I have no choice but to meet her," Maizono said in a semi-serious tone. Whether she was actually serious or not, Naegi didn't know. "I am." Crap! He lowered his guard again. As the 'ultimate soldier,' he should be better than this. Well, at least he now had an answer.

It was then that the teacher of Naegi's first period class walked in, ending all discussions occurring in the room…

0000

"Junko, I'm back," Ikusaba said as she entered their shared dorm room. When classes ended, the lucky student immediately made a dash towards her sister. It wasn't like she had anything else to do, especially since she had no other friends besides her twin. "I took notes."

"Psh, the great Junko Enoshima has no need for your amatuer notes," the model said in a tone that seemed to be an impersonation of some sort of royal. The girl's form then began to sulk, as if depressed. "I was in the middle of something."

Glancing over her sister's shoulder, Ikusaba noticed that her sister was indeed doing something, having scribbled down multiple, seemingly unrelated, plans. None of them appeared to be for something positive. "Sorry."

Enoshima's body suddenly perked up as she adopted a 'cutesy' persona. "I forgive you. After all, you can't help that you exist."

Seemingly ignoring the insult, Ikusaba glanced at all the papers littered around their desk. "What's all this?"

"These,my dear sister, are how I'll be spreading despair," the model explained. "Soon, the world I desire will come into fruition and it will be glorious."

Glad to see that her sister was happy, Ikusaba began looking at the papers in depth, wishing to experience the same happiness Enoshima was feeling, but the model slapped her in response.

"No looking! Only I'm allowed to look at them! Can't have others knowing about this."

Ikusaba shot her sister a somewhat offended look. The reason for it wasn't because Enoshima slapped her though, it was because Enoshima seriously thought Ikusaba would betray her or something. "I would never tell anyone."

"You say that, but when push comes to shove, who knows how you'll react." Ikusaba tried to open her mouth to retort, only to shut it as she caught a bucket thrown by her sister. "Fill this up, I got to burn these."

"Do you not need them?" Ikusaba asked, confused as to why she was burning what seemed to be important papers.

"I already have them memorized," Enoshima said with a shrug. Honestly, Ikusaba forgot how scary her sister's mental prowess were even though she's seen it in action multiple times. Pulling out a lighter from a drawer, Enoshima crossed her arms in annoyance. "Where the hell's my water? As much as I'd love to burn this place down, there's a thing called 'playing it smart.' Not sure if you heard of it…"

"Sorry." Running into the bathroom, the lucky student began to do as she was told, not wanting to upset the one person she cares about.

0000

When classes finished up, Naegi decided to take a walk around the campus of Hope's Peak. Despite having been there for almost two days now, the boy never bothered looking around outside the main building. Thirty minutes later, he ended up realizing why he never did so as other than the school's large track field, there was nothing of interest. Well, there was the reserve course building, but there wasn't anything there for him. It was nice to find out where it was though in case he made friends in the reserve course.

Sitting down on a bench, Naegi decided to glance around the campus, enjoying the tranquility of the world around him. Ever since he left Fenrir, Naegi had developed a habit of watching peaceful scenes occurring around him. It always helped him relax himself. Closing his eyes, Naegi began to take in the sounds of the wind blowing, only for them to widen as he detected something which unnerved him. Searching around, the boy was surprised to see that he couldn't find anything. Even so, he could still feel someone watching him. Whoever this person was, they were emitting a sense of danger unlike Naegi has ever felt before. This person's aura dwarfed any person he's met and any army he's faced. Hell, even Ogami, who was probably the most dangerous person he's ever met, didn't have an aura this intense.

Heightening his awareness of his surroundings, Naegi continued surveying the area, desperate to find who was causing him such discomfort. Unfortunately, he couldn't find anyone. Well, that was a lie. A few seconds after he began his search, he ended up spotting a girl with her hair styled in horns. As luck would have it, she seemed to notice him as well. Her face lighting up, she shot forwards towards him with impressive speed. If it wasn't for the fact that she seemed to be happy, Naegi would be preparing for a fight.

"Hi!" The girl said once she stopped in front of him. "I'm looking for my friend. He has an ahoge just like yours, but bigger and less cuddly looking. Have you seen him?"

"Uh, no…" Naegi admitted, somewhat surprised at how fast this girl can talk. It was at this moment when he realized that he no longer felt like he was being watched. It seems like the girl's presence caused whoever was watching him to leave. "Sorry."

"Aw," the girl pouted. "Ibuki sucks at hide-and-seek, but he wanted to play. Well, it was more like 'Ibuki, don't follow me,' but whenever he says that, he's trying to be an edgy loner."

Naegi blinked. What the hell did he get himself into?

"Oh! Ibuki never introduced herself," the girl said before clearing her throat as if she was about to sing a song. Sure enough, that's what she ended up doing. "'I,' 'Buki,' 'Mio,' 'Da!' Put it together and what do you get Ibuki Mioda, ultimate musician!"

'Ultimate musician… Maizono would definitely be interested in meeting her,' Naegi thought to himself before introducing himself. "I'm Makoto Naegi, nice to meet you."

Mioda's face lit up as if she recognized his name. "Ah! You're that kid Owari said she wanted to fight! You look a little small though…"

'Why does everyone pick on my height?' Naegi thought to himself as he frowned. He then realized that he forgot to let Sakura know about Owari's challenge. 'Hopefully she shows up to class tomorrow…'

Mioda's face suddenly scrunched up as she appeared to be trying to remember something. Eventually, her face lit up once again. "Oh, Ibuki still needs to find her friend. It was nice meeting you Naegi!"

"It was nice meeting you-" Naegi tried to say, only for the musician to dart off in search of her friend. "...too. You know what? I think that's enough time outside."

Walking back to his dorm, Naegi began to think over some stuff. Who was the one that caused his senses to flare up? What did they want? Why did they leave when Mioda showed up? Was this person the friend Mioda was looking for?

Naegi sighed. It's only been the second day of classes and his head already hurts…

0000

Author's Note 2: Some of you may have questions about that last scene. Don't worry, all will be explained eventually.