“--- C’mon! Why aren’t ya fighting back?! What are you?! A frickin’ girl?!”
Eikichi stopped in his tracks and turned his head, the words that rang out temporarily freezing him. Was he hearing what he thought he was hearing? It was hard to discern a particular voice or sound amidst all the rest of the chatter echoing across the hallways, but if his instinct was any reliable source, he needed to at least try. What he’d thought he heard was no friendly small talk, no playful bickering or an innocent little brawl -- but rather something quite unpleasant; and thus worth looking into. This was his school, his students. As the Boss, he was in charge. He’d taken the responsibility of attempting to eliminate the school’s unfortunate reputation and tasteless nickname, he had promised to make a change. It was his job to set things straight, to keep up a relatively peaceful atmosphere within the school property and among its students.
A minute passed by but he was still listening, paused in the middle of the third floor hallway - hands on his hips and brows furrowed, waiting for another, similar sound to reveal its original source. After a while, he was finally able to detect the same kind of snickering as a moment before, seemingly somewhere around the corner. Even without knowing the identity of its maker, the intention carried in the unknown student’s voice was, to Eikichi, extremely clear. This was a tone that the boy himself was all too familiar with, if not one that years ago had constantly tormented him. Such was the laughter of a bully, targeting anything he perceived weaker, taking out on others his own insecurities.
Once he knew where to go, the Boss wasted no time going after what he could only assume to be an act of unwarranted harassment. Taking long strides, he turned around the corner and towards the suspicious sound, until a couple of footsteps later a scenario in full swing unfolded before his eyes; only to prove his earlier suspicions right on target. As if with a snap of one’s fingers and without a single second thought, Eikichi’s blood pressure had already shot through the roof in obvious anger at what he was witnessing, letting out a roar of a shout that was sure to instantly startle each individual involved.
"HEY, you worthless punks!! THE HELL do you think you’re doing?!”
It was three students in total -- ( everyone else seemed to have fled the scene, cowards ! ) -- two taller (and much bigger) guys surrounding a dark-haired boy, kneeling down on one knee, holding his head between his hands as if in pain - even when no physical touch seemed to be laid on him. Well, that didn’t make the act any less despicable! In no time, it appeared that the Boss’ unfiltered rage had reached the ears of the two bullies as well, as the two swiftly bolted off, just as could have been expected. In any other case Eikichi would have already darted straight after them, making sure the bullies instantly got the humiliation that was coming for them. This time, however, he found himself instead too focused on the poor victim to leave the scene, the boy still kneeling down in the same position - shaking - not moving an inch nor showing any response. He would find the guys responsible for this later! But right now, he needed to make sure this guy was alright. He looked to be new around the school, too, from what he could remember. To think one of HIS students dared to push around a complete newbie.
“...Hey. You all right?” Eikichi finally said in a calm tone and still keeping some distance, trying to appear as friendly and unthreatening as possible. This guy looked like he’d already been through hell, after all. “Don’t worry about those guys, I’m gonna make ‘em pay for that!” he exclaimed, puffing up his chest, forming a fist with his right hand and promptly swinging it in the air. A pause, until he took on a milder demeanor once more, making a hesitant attempt at a conversation.
“--- Uh... You’re new here, right? What-- what’s your name?”