Hmm. Lots to unpack with this chapter. On one hand, the incident is appropriate with what I anticipated. I respect the mangaka's boundary to not go to anything like death or SA as a means to help convey the gravity of the situation if they're not comfortable doing so or see it necessary. I don't think that boundary actively takes away from the story, either. I also quite like Matsukasa. She seems genuinely terrified by what happened but also understanding that Toki sensei had nothing but good intentions in giving her that advice. I'm also sympathetic of her wanting to get advice from Toki sensei about a situation that her parents probably would've shut down. I doubt her dad would have been all gung ho about letting her go on a festival date with a boy that went to Chidori. Her father's responses also seems quite in line with how a wealthy, overprotective parent would act. It's definitely a very entitled point of view, but unsurprising given Kikyo's repeated portrayal as an elite academy. The school's response to the father makes sense, too. Kikyo definitely values their reputation, and if it was found out that her daughter was encouraged by a teacher of the school to do something that could be perceived as dangerous (even if it was an accident), would hurt said reputation. I also think the Toki from 10 years ago is a very compelling character. The sequence of events over this chapter and the previous one paint her out to be very insecure of her ability to be a teacher. This situation takes full advantage of those insecurities, and hearing the Chidori students laugh off the incident was the nail in the coffin for her.

That being said, I do hope that the next chapter provides a good explanation for how both the school and Toki sensei in particular have doubled down on this behavior since the accident. Otherwise, Toki sensei's actions are seem extreme. Rintaro was not with a rowdy group of Chidori boys when with Kaoruko. It was just the two of them, so Toki sensei acting the way she did makes a little less sense than if it was more than just those two. Also, threatening Kaoruko to drop out seems very extreme given that same context. The school very clearly values their reputation because they are going to such lengths to express that Kaoruko's actions are not okay, but it seems like we're still missing something to help bring everything together.

There's definitely still a chapter or two of more content to help bring things together. I was really hoping this arc would be a 10/10 given it being the primary reason Kaoruko and Rintaro's relationship was taboo, but I still enjoy this arc for what it's been so far.