In this post, we will summarize and break down the events of Classroom of the Elite Season 2 Episode 8. This episode gives a peak into the true nature of Kushida and what is motivating her.
Plot Summary
Classroom of the Elite Season 2 Episode 8 begins back in the destroyed classroom from Kushida and Horikita’s middle school. A young girl is seen muttering to herself in the middle of all the destruction. The scene fades to Kushida and it becomes certain that the girl who destroyed that classroom was Kushida. The reason she so desperately wants to get Horikita expelled is to ensure her past is sufficiently buried.
The episode continues with the class deciding to split into two study groups in order to prepare for the Paper Shuffle special test. Study group 1 is held after class while study group 2 is held after clubs. Each gets two hours allotted for studying. Hirata is in charge of group 2 while Horikita is in charge of group 1. Kushida will help with both groups. Yukimura also decides to help Miyake and Hasabe study. It seems that everyone is pulling their own weight except Ayanokoji. Horikita seems to notice this herself and implores Ayanokoji to join Yukimura’s group to ensure they make adequate progress. During her entreatment, Sakura is watching from behind a corner.
Next, we flash forward to Yukimura and Ayanokoji’s study group. Here we see Ayanokoji interacting with Hasabe who exclaims that Ayanokoji is invisible and barely even noticeable as a part of Class D. We also learn that Ayanokoji’s birthday is fast approaching. As the study group progresses, Ayanokoji comes to the conclusion that they need to determine just what kind of questions the school will be accepting. In order to do so, they need to submit “dicey” questions which will test the boundaries of what is appropriate. More importantly, Ayanokoji received a message from Ryuen, addressed to: “Mastermind.” The contents are simply: “Who are you?”
This represents the first time that Ayanokoji has been confronted as the true puppet master of Class D. Episode 7 continues with Sato deciding to join Ayanokoji in Horikita’s study group. She seems really excited to be studying with Ayanokoji and calls him “cool” and “calm.” Ayanokoji doesn’t seem to reciprocate in any fashion. As the study session ends, Horikita leaves to confront Kushida. She attempts to make a bet with Kushida. Kushida agrees. As a part of the bet, Kushida also explains the true origin of her incident in middle school. With that, the episode ends.
Analysis
Bet between kushida and horikita
The bet that Horikita proposes to Kushida goes as follows:
- The Winner will be whoever scores higher on the test in the subject of math.
- If Kushida wins, Horikita will be forced to leave the school.
- If Horikita wins, Kushida will have to cease her subterfuge and quit trying to have Horikita expelled.
- If the two tie, the bet is a wash and neither party wins.
- Horikita’s older brother (the former Class President) will serve as a witness to their agreement. He is there to make sure all parties stick to their agreement.
Later, Kushida attempts to add a condition to the bet in order to have Ayanokoji similarly expelled if she scores higher than Horikita. Horikita refuses but Ayanokoji cuts in and tells Kushida that he’ll agree to the condition.
It’s very difficult to see what Ayanokoji hopes to achieve here. While knowing Kushida’s past may be useful in understanding her true character (and therefore how to undermine her), it doesn’t seem like it would be worth the risk of being expelled. However, Ayanokoji always seems to have some kind of trick up his sleeve in these types of situations. I’m sure he’s plotting something.
Kushida’s Incident in Middle School
It seems that Kushida’s story goes all the way back to her elementary school days. As a child, she was heaped with praise over her small achievements. She cherished being the center of attention and desired it above all else. Basically, she was addicted to the spotlight. Unfortunately, once she got to middle school she realized she was just an average student and an average athlete. She couldn’t excel above others and no longer received the praise she so ardently desired. As a result, she began volunteering to do the tasks no one else wanted to do. She tried to be friendly with everyone and become number 1 in popularity. Except there is a reason no one wanted to do those tasks. They’re undesirable. Every day, Kushida tortured herself for the sake of popularity. Her only outlet was an online blog where she wrote nasty messages about her classmates. She used that blog to vent her stress and anger. It worked well until her classmates found her blog. They instantly turned on her and confronted her for writing horrible things about them. That’s when Kushida decided to air out the entire class’ dirty laundry. Every bad thing she knew about them was let out into the open. It caused the whole class to turn on each other and a massive fight broke out.
From these past events, it becomes clear just how dangerous Kushida really is. Once again she has become the most popular girl in school. She’s privy to countless students’ secrets. She may be the one person who can truly destroy Class D.