And so, Daichi Yayahara sacrificed three whole hours—an act of bleeding himself dry to help a certain academic disaster named Nobita with his studies.
By the time they finished reviewing everything in the math curriculum, Daichi felt like he'd glimpsed the edge of despair.
When Nobita declared they were done, both boys collapsed face-down onto the desk. Nobita was simply exhausted. Daichi, however, was furious.
"No wonder this guy always scores zero in the anime. It actually makes sense now…"
To defy the rules of this world had cost him far too much.
He glanced at the time—5 p.m. Already late. Thankfully, Daichi had informed his foster parents earlier that he wouldn't be home for lunch and had also reported in safe. It was time to go.
He politely declined the Nobi family's invitation to stay for dinner. After all, the walk between their homes was barely ten minutes.
As he walked, Daichi simmered with regret. If I'd known this would be such a pain, I'd never have tutored him…
Back at home, Dekisugi was helping his mom with dinner, while his dad watched TV.
Though the couple didn't involve themselves much in their children's lives, they were dependable when it came to housework.
Only now did Daichi realize how empty the words "treat both kids equally" really were. In truth, they barely cared about him—or Dekisugi, for that matter.
He called out a greeting to confirm he was back, then headed into the kitchen to help with dinner prep.
Japanese cuisine wasn't usually heavy on volume, but it was elaborate and time-consuming.
The next morning, Daichi woke up earlier than Dekisugi as usual. He sometimes watched the couple leave from the upstairs window before climbing onto the roof to sunbathe.
When it was nearly time for Dekisugi to wake up, Daichi came back down, changed clothes, and went to wash up. Sharing a sink meant strategic timing.
At school, the day began with bad news—an unexpected test.
Daichi was unfazed. Bring it on. Anything but Japanese is fair game.
He glanced at the test sheet. Math, huh? Piece of cake.
Then he looked toward Nobita. He had just tutored the guy yesterday. Could he possibly avoid scoring zero this time?
That afternoon, the teacher returned with graded tests. "Dekisugi: 100. Yayahara Daichi: 100. Shizuka: 94… Nobi Nobita: 41. That's all. Looks like Nobita's been putting in effort lately. Let's give him a round of applause!"
The class clapped. Nobita blushed and smiled proudly.
Daichi sighed. Forty-one, huh? Still terrible. But considering how bad his foundation is, and how short our review was, that's actually decent progress.
But the celebration didn't last long. Nobita soon got caught sleeping in class again and was dragged out to the hallway for punishment.
Daichi facepalmed. This guy's hopeless.
After class, Daichi walked over to Nobita's desk and collected his test paper. He planned to help him correct it later.
Being his de facto tutor, Daichi couldn't just let him keep failing. Plus, if Nobita's grades improved, he might be able to negotiate a better salary. Yeah… let's be honest, that was the real goal.
School ended. Halfway through correcting the test, Daichi headed home. Nobita had been dragged off for another round of scolding, and Daichi had no patience to wait.
He figured he could just finish up at home and bring it over later.
Meanwhile, Nobita was rushing home after school, eager to avoid another scolding from his mom.
"I'm home!" he shouted into the living room, only to be immediately summoned by his mother.
"Kneel down. I've got something to ask you."
Nobita knelt before her obediently.
"I heard there was a test today," she said sternly. "Show me your paper."
Whew. So that's all? Nobita thought. It's not a zero this time—she might even praise me.
He rummaged through his bag.
…Only to find that his test was gone.
What?! No! It was finally not a zero!
His mom's patience wore thin. "Did you flunk the test again and hide the paper? Are you pretending the test didn't happen so you can lie to me?!"
Nobita waved his hands desperately in denial, but she cut him off. "I can't believe you'd lie to me again! I hate liars! I was going to make steak tonight, but you're not getting any! You'll get dinner when you apologize!"
And with that, she stormed off, leaving Nobita sitting there—crushed and misunderstood.
Even his own mother didn't believe him.
Tears welled up as he dragged himself upstairs, once again ready to beg Doraemon for help.
After hearing the story, Doraemon said, "Well, what did you expect? You lie so often, of course no one trusts you."
That only made Nobita cry harder.
"Alright, alright, I get it," Doraemon relented. "I'll help you. Let's see… Ah, here it is—the Snail Shell!"
He pulled out what looked like a giant snail shell.
"Just stay inside this thing and no one will be able to touch you. But in return, I get extra snacks today."
Nobita nodded eagerly. Doraemon handed him the Snail Shell.
Not long after, his mom came upstairs.
"Nobita, if you apologize, I'll forgive you," she said through gritted teeth.
Nobita, nestled safely inside, stuck out his head and made a face at her.
His mom's face turned red with fury. "Fine then! No dinner for you tonight!" she yelled before stomping downstairs in a rage.
Once she left, Nobita snuck down, hoping to steal some of today's treats.
He found two plates of dorayaki on the table. Just as he reached for one, Doraemon's paw snatched it back.
"I told you—I get more than you today."
So Doraemon divided the treats: one for Nobita, three for himself.
Grinning mischievously, Nobita snatched Doraemon's plate instead.
But Doraemon was fast when it came to dorayaki. He grabbed the Snail Shell and yanked it out from under Nobita's butt.
Nobita didn't care. He dashed out of the dining room, snacks in hand—only to run right into his furious mother.
Terrified, he rushed back, shoved the plate at Doraemon, and snatched the Snail Shell from his hand.
Doraemon just laughed and munched happily on the dorayaki.
Not learning his lesson, Nobita headed to the front door.
He saw the classic duo—Gian and Suneo—outside and promptly stuck his head out to taunt them.
The two hot-headed boys immediately went into rage mode and started pummeling the shell.
But this was future tech—they couldn't leave a scratch.
Eventually they gave up, nursing sore fists. "We'll let you off today, Nobita! But next time, you won't be so lucky!"
Nobita stuck his head out again and made another face. They scowled and walked off.
Meanwhile, Daichi finally finished correcting the test. Two full pages of explanations.
He sighed. I didn't even try this hard in college. Being a kid again is exhausting…
"Alright, let's wrap this up." He packed the test and answer sheet, cast Wind Step, and sped off to Nobita's house.
Two minutes later, he arrived—and was met by the sight of a giant… snail shell?
With a human head poking out of it.
Am I hallucinating? Or did a snail just become sentient?
Then he saw the face. Oh. It was Nobita.
"Of course. Doraemon's gadget. Thought I'd have to fight something for a second."
He walked over casually.
Nobita spotted Daichi and smirked. Heh heh, time for some payback!
He stuck out his head and started making faces.
Daichi stared blankly. You've gotten cocky, Nobita. Forgotten who you're messing with?
As Nobita continued to make faces, Daichi lost his patience.
He took a step forward—and punched Nobita right in the face.
With Wind Step enhancing his speed, Nobita didn't even see it coming.
He slumped over, instantly KO'd.
Daichi grabbed him, dragged him out of the shell, and carried both the boy and the gadget into the house.
(End of Chapter)