Chapter 575

The Eighty-Seventh The reversed arrow began to twist.

Naoko’s line of sight was blurred by her own tears, but she didn’t flinch or avoid, merely gazing at everyone with utmost sincerity.

Everyone’s gaze, however, avoided her.

Neither they themselves knew what exactly they were avoiding.

“This, everyone must surely remember!”

After rummaging deep in the backpack, the girl finally produced a red-and-white short stick. Everyone recognized it as the baton used in the track and field relay event during the school sports meet, even bearing their names written on it.

Another memory flickered through the girls’ minds—the afternoon of the sports meet, at the award ceremony. Students from the neighboring class cheered for their cross-country champion, while those who hadn’t even placed huddled together in a corner, crying.

“What, how did this happen?” Akane’s voice faltered slightly. “Do you mean the last athletics event we all participated in? Yeah, we practiced together hard, yet ended up in last place because you fell during the final sprint. Isn’t that right?”

“That’s right!” Naoko nodded vehemently in affirmation. “But at the beginning of that sports meet, due to insufficient participation from our class and other classes’ snide remarks, I almost quit out of pressure. It was encouragement from everyone that convinced me to stay!”

“Initially, it was Akane who opposed you, then Rihua; witnessing this situation, Yayoi and Miyuki who aren’t usually athletic joined in at the end.”

“Everyone trained hard to participate together in the race. We pledged to win this championship and shock the sneering classmates from other classes!”

At this moment, on the “stage,” an unfamiliar and flawed drama unfolded. Performers without any acting skills poured their hearts directly into the scene, intermixed with joy and tears, playing a one-woman show.

“Our efforts weren’t in vain. After the final baton was passed, I indeed surpassed the original first place, but stumbled just before crossing the finish line!”

Regardless of the quality of this play—whether exquisite or execrable—none of the other girls could mock her as they once did. Naoko’s present state was too difficult for them to face directly.

“At last finishing at last place, I cried, thinking you would all be disappointed. But instead, everyone embraced me, comforting me and saying ‘at least we didn’t give up.’ In the end, everyone cried…”

For some reason, Miyuki and Yayoi started feeling their eyes well up, even Akane and Rihua couldn’t help but…

“Though we lost, it was everyone who reminded me that our combined efforts were never in vain. Even if the outcome wasn’t ideal, I felt then that our bond indeed held strong! Ahh! Waa!”

Halfway through, more tears rolled down Naoko’s face. Though her words were unclear, her voice filled with sobbing and pure sentiment, blurring her green-eyed gaze.

“Stop doing this.”

She was clearly speaking coldly.

“But I… I don’t want to see this right now!”

No matter who it was, no one could bring themselves to look anymore, feeling deeply distressed.

How could it turn out this way?

Even the Joker, who seemingly controlled everything, couldn’t sit still any longer.

How could it be like this? I reversed their feelings towards me so drastically! With tragic energy, I changed this rule. Rules should be absolute, so why?

They should be completely indifferent to such matters. Why such a strong reaction!

“Tsk—”

Finally, someone couldn’t take it anymore.

“Even if you no longer recognize me, I still believe in you…”

“Why are you so stubborn? You can’t even transform into the light warrior anymore!”

Suddenly, the arrow-shaped clown monster and Joker, descending from above, interrupted the girl’s speech, sending Naoko flying away, and the Joker, typically wearing a malicious smirk, now twisted with fury seeing the plan disrupted.

If the Precures didn’t come out soon, who knows what troublesome miracles they might create, especially considering the possibly existing Fairy Kingdom Queen behind them; she was no easy target.

“Claiming you want to awaken your friend, yet everyone considers you as the ugliest existence, almost forgetting you!”

The clown’s raised arm cast a shadow, about to crush physically the unwavering Naoko mentally.

“What reason do you have to defend them? Without your transformation power, if you continue not to give up, you’ll only face this fate!”

Four beams of light flashed past Naoko, Miyuki, Yayoi, Akane, and Rihua transformed into Pretty Cure. Together, they caught and pushed back the clown’s grasping hand.

“Really appearing here, then —”

There’s no time to worry about anything else. Defeating the clown is now the top priority!

“Precure Beauty Blizzard!”

Pushing back the heavy clown effortlessly and without planning a close-quarters battle to drain its stamina, Rihua skillfully slashed the ice in a hexagon shape, while her right palm struck, causing the blizzard to engulf the non-deflecting arrow-clown, shrouding its form in smoke.

“It worked, we defeated it!”

As everyone—including Naoko—jumped for joy, the smoke cleared, revealing the unscathed clown mocking the sweating girls with a comical expression.

“This time’s clown is a ‘Super Clown,’ created from two healing trinkets. Your special moves won’t work on it.”

As Joker said, this time’s clown’s nose contrasted with the red and blue ones they had previously defeated.

“Then, combining everyone’s cleansing power! Miyuki shouted with the others preparing to use their joint purification technique, but suddenly froze.”

Indeed, they were only four Pretty Cure now, unable to perform the five-person collaborative move.

Now things were truly dire.

“Gwaaah!”

Due to the mechanism issues, the strengthened Pretty Cures were defeated by the also-boosted clown, unable to inflict injury, merely enduring blows like wind-tossed leaves, falling heavily to the ground.

“—!”

That scene, which once appeared in her dreams, now played out before her very eyes.