It turned out that, just as Kanzaki Saku had thought, Hiratsuka Shizuka had managed to convince herself after a period of internal struggle.
"Kanzaki-kun, what you said does have some truth to it. As your teacher, it is my duty to help students overcome obstacles in their studies and personal growth."
She turned towards the small whiteboard in the corner of the office and picked up a pen, her back to Kanzaki Saku, as if speaking this way made it easier for her to accept.
"You were saying you're having trouble with English studies, that you're always distracted, can't remember words or grammar, right?"
Kanzaki Saku immediately understood and nodded. "Yes, Teacher. Especially with complex sentences, I always get them mixed up. As soon as I see a long sentence, I get restless and can't focus at all."
"Alright then." Hiratsuka Shizuka turned around, her expression shifting to one of serious teaching, though the slight blush on her cheeks betrayed her true state.
"We'll start from the very basics today. The most important thing in learning a foreign language is an immersive environment and a lot of practical exercises."
She gestured for Kanzaki Saku to come closer. "First, pronunciation correction. Your pronunciation of certain phonemes isn't accurate enough; you need the teacher to personally guide your mouth shape and tongue position."
Kanzaki Saku stepped in front of her, lowering his head slightly. "Please guide me, Teacher."
Hiratsuka Shizuka raised her hand, her fingertips trembling slightly, but she gently cupped Kanzaki Saku's chin. "Open your mouth, let Teacher see your pronunciation shape."
This "inspection" lasted for quite some time. Hiratsuka Shizuka's face grew redder, her breathing slightly quickened, but she insisted on critiquing in a teaching tone.
"Hmm, your tongue's flexibility is decent, but the pronunciation still isn't accurate enough; it needs repeated correction."
Kanzaki Saku responded vaguely, indicating understanding.
"Next is listening comprehension training." Hiratsuka Shizuka cleared her throat and took a small step back. "In language learning, understanding is more important than speaking. You need to carefully listen to the most standard pronunciation examples and try to imitate their rhythm and cadence."
"To achieve the best teaching effect, we need to eliminate distractions as much as possible and establish a direct audio transmission channel." Her gaze drifted elsewhere, her voice lowering.
Kanzaki Saku pondered. "Teacher means..."
"Practice makes perfect." Hiratsuka Shizuka avoided his gaze, her voice dropping lower. "Only the closest 'connection' can ensure the complete transmission of the signal, making you feel like you're there, deepening muscle memory."
Kanzaki Saku established the information transmission channel as per Hiratsuka Shizuka's guidance. The air in the office became thick, with only the monotonous repetition of English words remaining.
After a while, Hiratsuka Shizuka's slightly suppressed voice sounded intermittently. "Ah... Oh..."
"Yes... Yes..."
"Did you... did you hear the pronunciation technique for this plosive sound clearly?"
"Yes, Teacher's demonstration was very clear." Kanzaki Saku's voice also carried a slight huskiness. "It's just that the rhythm is a bit slow. I think with my learning ability, we can appropriately speed up the learning progress a little."
"Then let's proceed at your pace, but pay attention to the decomposition of each syllable." Hiratsuka Shizuka's breathing grew heavier.
"Teacher, how is the placement of this inserted phrase?"
"Not good... not good enough... Teacher will help you 'fix' it. Like this... Remember? You need to embed it at this 'node' in the main clause..."
The whiteboard marker fell to the floor at some point and rolled to the side of the bookshelf. The whiteboard remained completely blank, not a single word written on it.
Just as the "one-on-one in-depth tutoring" entered a critical stage, and Hiratsuka Shizuka was trembling as she explained the continuity of the "present perfect continuous tense".
"Knock, knock." A soft knock sounded at the door.
The sounds from the office abruptly ceased.
Hiratsuka Shizuka was extremely flustered. After all, she was privately giving Kanzaki Saku extra English lessons, and if anyone found out, she would lose her job!
Kanzaki Saku also stopped his "oral practice" at this moment, his eyes signaling her to calm down.
"Teacher Hiratsuka? Are you in there?" A familiar voice came from outside the door. Kanzaki Saku knew it was Bocchi-chan.
Hiratsuka Shizuka hastily tried to push Kanzaki Saku away, but Kanzaki Saku shook his head at her and made a "shushing" gesture with his finger. His gaze swept across the office, quickly locking onto the wide, solid wooden desk.
He moved silently and quickly behind the desk, crouched down, and signaled Hiratsuka Shizuka to sit back in her office chair and pull it closer to the desk.
Hiratsuka Shizuka immediately understood his intention. She forced herself to remain calm, fumbled to tidy her slightly disheveled shirt and skirt, took several deep breaths, and then spoke in as steady a voice as possible. "Please, please come in."
The door was pushed open forcefully, and Bocchi-chan swaggered in. It was evident that Cute Shizuka had very little authority among the students.
"Teacher Hiratsuka, isn't Kanzaki-kun here with you?"
Kanzaki Saku had been called out by Hiratsuka Shizuka from the faculty room earlier, so Bocchi-chan assumed it was normal for him to be in the office.
"N-No, he's not here. After we finished talking, he left~" Hiratsuka Shizuka tried to keep her voice sounding normal, but the trailing end still trembled slightly.
She was sitting upright now, her hands on the desk, leaning slightly forward, pressing tightly against the edge of the desk.
"I see." Bocchi-chan was about to leave since she couldn't find Kanzaki Saku, but before leaving, she sensed something unusual about the atmosphere.
So she asked directly, "Teacher, are you feeling unwell? Your face is a bit red, and your voice sounds off."
"I-It's nothing!" Hiratsuka Shizuka immediately cut her off, raising her voice slightly before quickly lowering it again. "It's just... I have a bit of a cold, my throat isn't feeling well."
"Oh." Bocchi-chan nodded, but didn't leave immediately. She seemed to have something else to say.
Hiratsuka Shizuka was extremely anxious. The "extracurricular tutoring" under the desk had not stopped because of the visitor. Kanzaki Saku was clearly a diligent student, and even in this tense environment, he remained focused on listening comprehension training, even becoming more focused on analyzing every subtle change in pronunciation due to the tension of the situation.
She had to bite her lower lip hard to suppress the strange sounds that almost escaped her throat, and fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.
"Go-Gotoh-san, is there... anything else?" Hiratsuka Shizuka asked through gritted teeth, each word squeezed out as if from between her molars.
"It's about that..." Bocchi-chan, usually straightforward, became hesitant. "I want to apply to form a club, and I hope you can be the advisor..."
Before she could finish speaking, she saw Teacher Hiratsuka's whole body tremble violently, as if struck by something. She leaned forward, her forehead almost hitting the tabletop.
"Te-Teacher?!" Bocchi-chan was startled.
"It's... it's nothing!" Hiratsuka Shizuka quickly lifted her head, her hands gripping the edge of the desk tightly.
She took a few rapid breaths before managing a strained smile, but the smile looked stiff no matter how you looked at it.
"Th-The application form, you can leave it here... I, I'll look at it later... Now Teacher... isn't feeling well and wants to sleep for a while to rest!"
Her words at the end carried a clear sense of wanting her to leave. For once, she was unusually firm at a critical moment.
Bocchi-chan, no matter how slow-witted, realized that she might have come at the wrong time. She quickly placed the form on the desk, bowed, and said, "I'm sorry! I'm disturbing Teacher! I'll leave now!"
With that, she practically sprinted out of the office, not forgetting to gently close the door.
Back in the classroom, Gotoh Hitori was still marveling at the teacher's dedication, persisting in teaching even when so ill; what a model teacher!
The moment the office door closed, Hiratsuka Shizuka slumped down as if all her strength had left her, her body collapsing onto the desk, her shoulders trembling slightly.
The English tutoring had also entered the final sprint review phase. Kanzaki Saku, the student, was diligently reciting and consolidating all the knowledge points he had just learned, striving for perfect mastery.
After a while, Hiratsuka Shizuka's annoyed complaints could be heard again from the office.
"You, you're really too reckless! What if someone saw..."
Kanzaki Saku poked his head out from under the desk. "Teacher taught too well, I couldn't help but want to practice a few more rounds of dialogue."
He stood up, stretching his legs, which had gone numb, and looked at Hiratsuka Shizuka, who was still slumped on the desk, breathing slightly heavily. He said considerately:
"It seems the practical teaching effect is significant. I feel like a lot of the distracting noise in my brain has indeed been covered by Teacher's standard pronunciation."
Hiratsuka Shizuka glared at him, but her gaze was soft and lacked any deterrent power, looking more like a gentle scolding.
"Now, can you focus on studying?" she asked weakly.
"Mhm." Kanzaki Saku nodded seriously and helped her tidy the messy desk. "Thank you for your insightful guidance, Teacher. I feel my sense of English has improved a lot."
Hiratsuka Shizuka buried her face in her arms, her earlobes bright red, her muffled voice coming out:
"Next time, next time don't do this! If you need tutoring, it absolutely cannot be when someone else is around!"
"Yes, Teacher. I'll pay attention to the occasion next time and find a safer time to ask Teacher about 'academic problems'."
Kanzaki Saku replied with a smile, knowing that this weak and easily embarrassed teacher had fallen. It seemed that asking her academic questions in the future would be much more convenient.
Finally, he glanced at Gotoh Hitori's club application form on the desk and saw the names of all four members of Kessoku Band, including Gotoh Hitori.
It was reasonable, after all, in this world, the four of them were at the same school, and establishing a club would indeed facilitate band practice.
Kanzaki Saku casually added his own name to it. He wasn't worried about his application being rejected.
Having a male member in a club could increase funding, not to mention he was the Vice President of the Student Council.
"Teacher, please rest well." Kanzaki Saku looked back at Hiratsuka Shizuka, who was still lying on the desk, before leaving. "I'll come back another day to report on my study progress."
After a long while, Hiratsuka Shizuka on the desk finally recovered. She raised her hand to cover her face and let out an annoyed yet powerless exclamation.
"My life is over!"
_____
New Story: Bleach: Dominating Soul Society in One Sting
✅ Unlock a 40-chapter backlog for ALL my series.
✅ Receive exclusive content and regular updates!
Help us reach these goals:
🎯 100 Powerstones = +1 universal bonus chapter
🚀 140 MEMBERS = +5 extra chapters for ALL STORIES!
👻 P - Walnutchan