Kiyotaka Ayanokōji/Relationships

Though Kiyotaka has trouble making friends, he managed to gain some associations and connections with some of his fellow classmates which extend to those of other classes and even the Student Council. These are the known relationships of Kiyotaka with those who have truly interacted with him thus far.

Family
Not much is known about Kiyotaka's family, but according to him, he was barely allowed to meet any of his relatives while in middle school. His father is said to be in charge of the White Room where Kiyotaka received his training as a child. Kiyotaka's father is also the only specific member of his family to be mentioned in the series.

Kiyotaka's Father
As Kiyotaka had not been seen interacting with his father Prof. Ayanokōji, only a few contextual fragments are known between the two. During the school cruise, his father contacted Sae to tell her to expel Kiyotaka for unknown reasons. Kiyotaka did not seem startled most likely because he caught onto his father's involvement however, he was angry when Sae tried to blackmail him into reaching A-Class.

During the survival test, he had reflected on his past once again and remembered an unnamed man telling him that only fools waste their greatest talents. It was hinted that the mysterious man is his father, this was due to the fact the man had a similar facial feature as him and was very familiar with him as he addressed him by his first name "Kiyotaka" rather than his last name "Ayanokōji". Also, this interaction with the man may give a reason as to why Kiyotaka hides his true capabilities from others giving him the motivation to do things without revealing his talent. After the survival test, Kiyotaka was told that it was indeed his father's wish to expel and stated that Kiyotaka will soon pick expulsion out of his own will. Undeterred, Kiyotaka simply stated to Sae that he will continue to defy his father's wish by carrying on his usual school life the way he sees fit.

Suzune Horikita
Suzune was the first person that Kiyotaka interacted with before entering the school. He first caught notice of her when they were on the bus after they witnessed Kikyo trying to persuade Rokusuke to move from his seat to no avail.

They formally meet when she inquired as to why he was looking at her as he stated he saw a similarity between them in the bus incident. She told him not to compare them as she chose not to involve herself in such trivial manner as he noted she's worse than him. They are later shocked to learn they are classmates, which Suzune stated was a bad coincidence after they seated alongside to each other.

After a few days, the two appear to get along in class since they are both loners who barely associate with their fellow classmates. In fact, it was noted by Kikyō that Kiyotaka is the only one in the entire class that Suzune interacted with. For that purpose, she tried asking him to help her befriend Suzune, but it failed. In response to his supposed connivance, Suzune forced Kiyotaka to aid her in reaching A-Class and though reluctant he complied after she puts pressure on his choice.

Though technically forced to help her reach her goal, they appeared quite close as when he noticed her about to be assaulted by her brother Manabu, he quickly intervened on her behalf and demanded her to be let go. When she cried out for him to stop, he noted on the sincerity in her voice which he never saw in her while she watched in awe at him nimbly avoided her brother's strikes. After her brother left while hinting that Kiyotaka is more than he appears to be, she herself began to inquire about him only to receive vague answers. In response, Kiyotaka asked Suzune if she ever considered her anti-social behaviour was the reason she was placed in D-Class.

It seemed after this, Suzune recognized his talents as she immediately knew Kiyotaka had a hand in giving the test scores rather than Kikyō, but he didn't give her a clear answer.

Suzune later asked him about his close association with Kikyō noting he seemed more inclined to help her, but is unwilling with her leaving him unable to answer and confused by her sudden change in behaviour.

He helped her come back to her senses when she is scared by her brother's presence at the hearing. A day later, they work over the case with Ken by putting his accusers in a losing situation which forced them to withdraw their complaint. Later, he gave Suzune full credit for the plan when talking with Honami, Ken and Manabu after he is believed to be the orchestrator. He soon met with Suzune (who spoke with Sae about him) and they walk in the rain where she accuses him of manipulating her and decides to ask about his motives and tells him if he truly wants to help her reach A-Class he'd have to be honest.

He tells her she forced it on him and that he may have gone along with it as he was just looking out for a friend, but she disregards this as a lie pushing him to reveal his history which causes him to briefly reflect on his life. He tells her that he will help her reach her goal but sternly tells her to not inquire about his history, marking the first time he was ever serious with her.

Despite this little turbulence, they are shown to still be on good terms as Kiyotaka invited her to the pool where asked her to aid him in stopping the boys of their class from peeping on the girls during the summer break. Kiyotaka also tried to get her to loosen up, by having her play with the students though she also wondered why he hid his physical capabilities. Later on, she helped him stopping the other boys' plans of peeping by giving a speech to distract everyone. He thanked her and tried again to get her to shake off her strict nature by pushing her in the pool which caused her to do the same to him, but this act somewhat worked as it gets her to play with the other students.

Later that night, Kiyotaka sends Suzune an email which is a picture of her with the other students.

During the school survival test, they spend time together and Suzune asks Kiyotaka about his future, but gets no answer. When panties are stolen, D-Class goes on alert and when the girls asked for Yōsuke to keep an eye on the boys to move from the camp, she makes sure Hirata is also watched by putting Kiyotaka on guard as well. When he asked why she did this, Suzune states she doesn't trust Hirata as he seemed secretive, which implied that she trusted Kiyotaka to a degree as she mentioned he seemed secretive. Also, Kiyotaka discovered she was sick and hiding it from the class expressing concern for her health.

After the survival test, he found Suzune injured after her fight with Ibuki and took her to a tree before she awoke. They talk where he discovered her reasons for reaching A-Class and noticed she wanted allies before he implored her to withdraw from the test, but she refused out of pride though she fell unconscious forcing him to carry her and have her withdraw due to her ailing health. After the test, she questioned on how the class passed the test and unlike his other times; he tells her his plan of outsmarting the other classes. His tactic and ingenuity left her in amazement at his intellect and question what drives him since he doesn't want to reach A-Class. He also gave her credit for the correct guessing of the other class leaders, much to her dismay.

In the anime Suzune also caught up to Kiyotaka and confronted him once more as he calmly stated she needed allies as he noticed she finally changed her ways. After he confirms he did everything to help her, she got flustered and blushed before begrudgingly thanking him as she stated she will see him as an ally. However, it is revealed that Kiyotaka doesn't truly acknowledge her as an ally, but merely a pawn in helping him win.

Kikyō Kushida
She was one of the first people in his class to initially interact with and befriend him. His first impression of Kikyō is of her being a bubbly sweet girl who will be extremely popular in the class. He gets along very well with her having no problem in playing part in her attempts to befriend Suzune.

She was surprised at how clever he was after he got the old test scores for the class and when he told her to take credit since he didn't like drawing attention. She seems to be aware of his capabilities as she asked Kiyotaka if he had anything to do with stopping Ken's expulsion which caused everyone to stop their activities at the celebratory party, but he gave Suzune the credit.

He was surprised to see her violent personality wondering if that's who she really was. Kikyō threatened him with the false accusation of sexual harassment by putting his hand on her breast. She told him not to tell the tell their class about her secret which he promised to not expose as she went back to her bubbly-self causing him to wonder which was her real self.

In Episode 4, he was shown to be a little uneasy about her as he was surprised to see her with Suzune and has a little problem in talking with her. When Honami inquired if they were together, Kikyō stated they were not as he told himself that's probably what she thinks of him. He also tried to stop her from asking Honami for help thinking it might be a prank, while Kikyō seemed curious about his relationship with Honami after she said that she owed him a favour.

In Episode 5, it was shown that while he is still able to hang out with her, he still has his doubts about her due to noting of Airi's uneasiness about her wondering if it was due to noticing Kikyō is hiding something. His close association with Kikyō was questioned by Suzune, she inquired as to why he is hesitant in doing a request for her, but all willing with Kikyō to which he can't answer.

During the school cruise, he talks with her and notices that her bubbly nature almost makes him forget about the more persona he saw in Episode 3. When he tries to leave, Kikyō stops him shifting back to her darker personality to make him talk with her. She inquired if he was nervous and wary being alone around her, to which he confirms, as she goes back to her other personality, and tells him that she just gets lonely when left all alone. She also appeared to want to tell him something, but backs out at the last minute and simply leaves.

After the survival test, they talk and she explains that she hates Suzune because of her not having a hidden side. She also asked if he had to choose between siding with her or Suzune as he remarked he didn't know as she jokingly calls him mean. However, it is revealed that Kiyotaka doesn't acknowledge her as an ally, but merely a pawn in helping him win.

Airi Sakura
They are classmates, but the two don't take notice of each other until Suzune pointed out that she was the only person who was reluctant to help Kikyō out. Kiyotaka reflected that he barely recalls her by appearance. They officially met when Kiyotaka and Kikyō go to talk to her for help. However, Airi didn't want to get involved, thus running off leading to accidentally breaking her camera in the process. She soon requests that he and Kikyō accompany her to get it fixed though he did ask her why he had to come before realizing her shy personality was something the flirty and pushy store clerk took advantage of her. He helped her by telling the clerk to send him the notice for the camera as she looked at Kiyotaka while blushing, in shock, she later thanked him for his actions. Kiyotaka simply told her not to act formal around him, since they were the same age and that he was really helping her out.

While Kikyō was away, Airi asked him what she should do about Ken as he told the decision was up to her. He then asked why she wanted advice from him as she replied it was because his eyes weren't scary causing him to be confused by it. He told her to do what she felt and that the decision she makes shouldn't have to burden her. She blushes at his words and becomes flustered when Kikyō returned, as she tried to cover up her embarrassed face. Because of his inspiring words, Airi decided to help him in his case to save Ken from expulsion and went to the hearing and provided evidence for the incident.

After the hearing, she apologized to him for not working up the nerve to help out sooner, but he told her not to worry as she proved herself helpful. When Manabu hinted that side of her could be lying, Airi got intimidated for a while but Kiyotaka quickly intervened by saying he believed Airi's word, much to her relief. She seemed worried about him after Manabu tried to attack him though he avoided it.

They meet the day after and would talk to her where he told her to be at ease since she was a big help. He then told her if she ever needed him he promises to be there, as she is touched by this and tried to ask him something, but he had to leave for something promising to hear it later. It is shown they exchanged contact information as Airi soon made an urgent call to him, he seemed confused by the sound in her voice and attempted to call her back when she suddenly hung up. When the store clerk (who previously made advances on her) attempted to force himself on her, Kiyotaka came to her aid by appearing on the scene and threatening the man with incriminating evidence as well as having Honami Ichinose and the police subdue him. After the man was taken away, Kiyotaka expressed relief they exchange contact information which allowed him to find her quicker.

When she apologized for dragging him into the incident, he comforted her by replying it was not her fault as she decides to reinvent herself by embracing her status as an idol and discarding her glasses. He offered advice for her in any future burden she may face before helping her up while she looked at him in surprise and blushed. Facing him, she noted on the look he gave her as he was confused after she shrugs it off with a smile. This causes her to develop romantic feelings for him from her side due to their talks and his recent actions in saving her in her time of need. It appears that Kiyotaka is unaware of her romantic affections for him, though if he feels any romantic affections for her is unknown but he considers her a very sweet girl due to their close interactions and his tendency to help her out, in most cases all the time, where he enjoys having her with him.

During summer break, it was mentioned that he invited her to the pool and she accepted. They hung out by playing volleyball with the other students, seemingly having fun though Airi was nervous while interacting with others. Later, most of the students started splashing each other, she did the same to him, but was seen nervous and slightly blushing after he looked at her. Catching a glimpse of him, his stare causes her to apologize and sink in the pool out of embarrassment.

On the cruise, he finds her alone talking to herself, trying to practice her confession for him as he stops to speak with her, surprising her, and causing her to get flustered as she asked if he heard her. After confirming he didn't hear her earlier words, she is relieved and instead asks Kiyotaka if he could help her in socializing with their class since she still has problems properly talking with them. He agrees as she becomes elated at this grabbing his hand out of gratitude, this ceases when Kikyō appears and Airi quickly excuses herself. Kiyotaka was confused by her sudden change and looks after the leaving Airi, wondering if she is still afraid of strangers.

During the survival test, she is paired up with him in a group and travels through the forest with him. When they discover a spot, Kiyotaka has to hide her and cover her mouth after she tries to move ahead and when Kōhei appears. While being held tightly by him, Airi was shown heavily blushing full red before the coast was clear, before Kiyotaka released her. He apologized for his sudden action, but she was seen still heavily blushing and squirming on the ground, as she nervously mumbles that it was fine, much to his confusion. Kiyotaka also asked her to come along with him, to look for branches for starting a campfire, after he initially asked Suzune who refused, and Airi was seen staring at him blushing before and made a sound gesture, sounding happy when he invited her, though Haruki was also seen deciding to tag along with the two of them.

The day after, Kiyotaka was also shown talking to Airi asking her if she wanted to stay in a pair with him, to which she confirmed and apologized for dragging him down in the search. He then asked her if she was afraid if people started talking to her, as she told him that she didn't really care about that. Airi explained that she was down on the school trip due to not having friends, but now was glad that she came. Airi then looked at him in an admiring way and stated regrettably that she wanted to have her camera so that she could take a great picture of him, which hints that she probably thought that he would look good in a picture, as he was seen expressing confusion at her words.

At the final day of the survival test, she was helping Kiyotaka cleaning up the campsite, where she asked him how many points that he thought their class were going to get. Kiyotaka then wondered about that and looked at Hirata afterwards. Due to his real thoughts, it is unknown what he really thinks of her.

Kei Karuizawa
During the survival test, when Suzune selected Kiyotaka to serve as a guard along with Yōsuke Hirata to watch over the boys in the class, she noted on him being invisible to the rest of the class, but agreed with anyways as he didn't seem lecherous.

It was something he later complained about, as he was selected as a final resort. This shows that she barely acknowledges his presence in their time as classmates. Due to his real thoughts, it is unknown what he really thinks of her.

Ken Sudō
He tried to recruit Ken in Suzune's study group, but he angrily turned it down even grabbing Kiyotaka but not hurting him. Kiyotaka later noticed Ken when he was facing Kakeru and his men before Honami broke it up. He then stopped Ken from escalating the brawl even further before he invited him again to Suzune's study group though Ken latter turned it down but joined after Suzune herself persuaded him.

When the whole class passes the test, Ken is the only one who didn't get a passing grade and was at risk of being expelled, but Kiyotaka came to his aid along with Suzune by sacrificing 50,000 points so he wouldn't be expelled. Later on, a celebratory party is thrown at Kiyotaka's room where Ken and his friends attend. When Kikyō hints that Kiyotaka helped Ken out, the latter and the others had stopped their activities and looked to see if this was true but he casts the credit to Suzune.

When Ken is accused of attacking students of C-Class, Kiyotaka decided to help in stopping Ken's expulsion by enlisting aid from others and did so by finding out that Honami and Airi had evidence to prove his innocence in the setup.

In Episode 5, he is one of the few students who encountered Student Council to help prove Ken's innocence in the fighting incident.

When C-Class withdrew their complaint against Ken, he happily informed Kiyotaka of this news. Once again, Kiyotaka hid his involvement in the act by congratulating Ken and giving Suzune the credit after the excited Ken wondered if Suzune did something to help him. After the brief celebration, Ken left for practice as Kiyotaka looked on.

Due to his real thoughts, it is unknown what really thought of him or if he was simply using him as a pawn like he does to the others.

Yōsuke Hirata
They first met when D-Class started to introduce themselves and Kiyotaka immediately guessed Hirata would be popular. Hirata also applauded him for at least trying to make a good impression after he messed up somewhat.

They barely interacted, but during the cruise Yōsuke tried to get Kiyotaka to help him get Suzune to open up and get him to socialize with the rest of the class as a means to be a mediator between Suzune and others.

During the survival test, he and Yōsuke work together in getting things ready for the camp. When Kei's underwear is stolen, Yōsuke searches the boys for them and Kiyotaka thought he might be caught as when Yōsuke found them on him (after Kanji placed them on him) he believed it was over. However, Yōsuke covers for him, to the Kiyotaka's surprise. Kiyotaka soon questioned him on covering for him as Yōsuke reveals he knows that Kiyotaka wouldn't do such a thing. This implies he trusts him to a degree, despite barely knowing him.

After the survival test, it is revealed that Kiyotaka doesn't acknowledge Yōsuke as an ally, but merely a pawn in helping him win.

Teruhiko Yukimura
He was briefly seen in the survival test, where he was berating the girls for depending on the usage of points. Although their interactions haven't been seen yet, it appears Kiyotaka recognizes his intelligence as in the survival test he knew that Teruhiko would accept a logical answer, when it comes to having the girls toughen up on a simple bathroom or use points to buy an actual bathroom due to the hygiene issues.

Other Classmates
Besides Suzune, Kikyō, Airi, Ken and Yōsuke, he interacts with his other classmates as well. In Episode 1, when the other students introduce themselves, he tries his best to make a good impression, but has a plain explanation that confuses the other students. In Episode 2, Kiyotaka is downcasted that everyone else made friends, but he is still the same boat as he started school. Though in Episode 3, a celebratory party is thrown into his room after a recent quiz while happy he is apart of a social event but was dismayed at the mess made. He hides his involvement in stopping Ken's expulsion by giving credit to Suzune after Kikyō hints that it was him. In Episode 4, he appears to work well with his classmates as they all try to find evidence to prove Ken's innocence. When Honami offered help as she states she owed Kiyotaka while slyly winking at him, causing Kikyō, Kanji and Haruki to jealously wonder what an attractive girl like her owed him. In Episode 7, Kiyotaka agreed to be part of the group of boys who wanted to peep on girls though his real intentions were to stop them from getting their class in trouble. With Suzune's help, the plan was foiled and nobody was aware of the events as he did so subtly.

During the survival test, his lack of prominence in the class was really shown after Suzune volunteered him as a guard after underwear was stolen causing a few of them to note on how invisible he seemed to them. However, a majority agreed to put him on guard duty since he didn't lecherous like the other boys in the class.

Due to his real thoughts, it is unknown what really thinks of his classmates or if it was simply using all of them to fulfil his own goals. However, it seems his actions help them out in the long run as shown in the survival test where the class wins, but he covers his tracks by giving Suzune the credit.

Mio Ibuki
Kiyotaka first met Mio on the school cruise where he witnesses her being knocked down by Albert after being shunned by Kakeru. He goes to help her up, but she angrily slaps away his hand telling him to stay out of her business before running off. His noticing her confrontation with Kakeru caused him to see C-Class was falling apart.

They met again the survival test where he finds her hurt for unknown reasons. Kiyotaka even found himself stopping Haruki from approaching Mio, due to having suspicions about her. He later says it was nothing, as they offer her help, by letting her come to their base camp. Though Ibuki refuses help from an enemy class, she accepts their offer and returns to their camp, but makes it clear she isn't trying to be friendly with them.

On the day after Kei's underwear is stolen, he is approached by Mio who asks if he believes she was responsible for the underwear theft since she was an outsider, but he says that he knows she didn't do it, to her surprise. He states that while the other students in his class don't trust her, he does which causes her to nervously thank him for having belief in her as he responds he was just being honest as she blushes. She was also seen curious, as she glanced back from behind when Kikyō and Haruki commented on how incredibly close Suzune and Kiyotaka have gotten lately.

After the survival test, it is revealed that Kiyotaka knew she was a spy and he outsmarted and manipulated her by using various tactics which helped his class pass the test.

Kakeru Ryūen
No direct interaction was made in the anime, although they saw each other face to face in the survival test. Kakeru did not appear to think much of Kiyotaka, while the latter took note of former's camp noting something was off. He soon realized the Kakeru's plan and foiled it brilliantly and flawlessly.

Other C-Class students
Kiyotaka met a few of them during their attempts to frame Ken and foiled their plans with help from B-Class, Suzune and Airi.

Honami Ichinose
Kiyotaka first met Honami when she passed by the school store after Kikyō stated they had already become friends and her goal of being friends with everyone even those from other classes. He soon watched her prevent Ken from getting into a further trouble with some of her schoolmates in C-Class.

They later met formally at the dorm ground floor where she asked Kikyō if she was dating Kiyotaka, but is told that it wasn't the case. She later begged him for aid by asking him to pretend to be her "boyfriend" after one of her friends gave her a love letter. This showed in spite of just meeting him, she trusted him to an extent as she could have chosen anyone besides him but needed his help the most. He refused while she begged him as she is unsure of how to answer the confession but in a split-second, her admirer showed up. When asked what kind of relationship they have, Honami tried to nervously "confirm" that they were a couple, but before she fully stated her side, Kiyotaka immediately interrupted by stating that he and she were simply friends with no strings attached. Both girls were surprised by his bold statement. He left Honami by telling her to talk it out with her friend, due to the courage she mustered up to confess. She was amazed by his wisdom and proceeded on by deciding to follow his advice. This event showed he has no problems associating with her and is willing to help her. Whether he truly sees her as a friend or if it was a ruse to cover for her is another contextual fragment that is yet to be revealed.

After Honami turned down Chihiro, she thanked Kiyotaka for helping her and apologized for dragging him into her mess, but he was fine with it as Honami stated she owed him for his help. She acted on her word and offered to help him and his class in proving the innocence of Ken as he was confused by her act, thinking it might be a trick. However, she swore that her intentions are pure and slyly winked at him after she reminded of the debt she owed him while he simply gave a blank but understanding expression. This display gained curious attention from Kikyō and the other students who wondered exactly what an attractive girl like Honami owed Kiyotaka.

Honami acted on her word as she helped him get evidence for the case that may help his class in their investigation. While she aided him, Kiyotaka noticed she had no problems in approaching him after she let him borrow her phone before he saw how many points she had and seemed curious that she amassed such large points until she took back her phone, but still promised future help, leaving him to wonder about her.

He soon requested her aid by borrowing points from her to use cameras that would cause C-Class to withdraw their complaints. After the plans, he spoke to her to pay her back for help as Honami expressed amazement at his intelligence and started questioning how he was placed in D-Class, but he gave her vague answer and most of the credit of the idea to Suzune. She noticed his uncomfortable attitude and simply smiled in response, probably out of consideration for his privacy. The two later worked together in saving Airi from a crazed stalker who attempted to force himself on her. This interaction would suggest they are indeed friends since she was willing to help him save Airi though she had no obligation to help.

They later hung out at the pool where they had fun with their classmates.

Unknown to him, while on the cruise, Honami spoke with her homeroom teacher, Chie, about him and it appears she recognizes his intelligence and is curious enough as to why he hides his talents. Due to his real thoughts, it is unknown what Kiyotaka really thinks of her though he seems to consider her as a valuable associate as they get along so well. In the survival test, he took their class alliance into consideration on not wanting to jeopardize their collaboration.

Arisu Sakayanagi
No direct interaction has been seen and established yet between the two in the anime. During the survival test, he only asked Honami about Arisu and learned of her prominent stature in the school.

Manabu Horikita
Kiyotaka first saw Manabu giving a speech at the first year students' entry ceremony and soon wondered if he was related to Suzune after hearing they have the same last name.

They had their first encounter when he found Manabu about to assault his sister Suzune, he quickly intervenes by grabbing Manabu's hand admonishing him for his actions before telling him to release Suzune but she begged him not to get involved. He complies but by stopping Manabu he earned the latter's fury, the student council president wasted no time in trying to attack him, but Kiyotaka easily dodged all his strikes, much to Manabu's surprise. Impressed by his skill, Manabu soon questioned Kiyotaka over the fighting style that he practices only to receive a vague answer before he recalled Kiyotaka as the student who scored about half the total score on his entrance exams and his recent quiz. He then inquired about this even hinting that Kiyotaka was hiding his intelligence on purpose but the latter shrugged this off.

They met again by both being present at during Ken's case assault. It was shown that Manabu had some expectations for Kiyotaka as he stated that he believed that Kiyotaka's presence at the hearing meant that he had a strategy but his question was disregarded. Manabu attempted to attack Kiyotaka again as the latter dodged his strike and Manabu questioned as to whether he has something planned. After quick drivel, he only got a vague answer.

When C-Class's complaint against Ken is withdrawn, Kiyotaka met with Manabu and his secretary, Akane, in the hallway. He talked to him about the event before he congratulated him on his victory, but Kiyotaka once again gives Suzune all credit for the act. Glaring at Kiyotaka, Manabu asked Tachibana if they had an opening on the secretary post of Student Council which she confirmed. Manabu offered the position to Kiyotaka, showing that he truly saw him worthy of higher status than others. Kiyotaka turned down the offer in favour of living a normal school life. Manabu conceded by accepting his decision for now.

Sae Chabashira
Sae is his homeroom teacher while he doesn't interact with her personally in the first episodes. After a class test, he begs her to halt the expulsion of Ken through offering her points. Having learned it was within the rules as Sae is amused by his offer, she demands a sum that will require nearly all his points, but his efforts are aided by Suzune who offers some of her own points. Sae was amused by their actions as it was something that never happened in the school and she relents in expelling Ken telling the two to continue in making things interesting for her. Unknown to Kiyotaka, she has an opinion of him as she considers him the most "defective" of the class as he has extreme intelligence and talent that he keeps secret from others, but he stays in a lower class instead of higher one like he deserves.

During the school cruise, Sae talked to him and informs him there was an unknown man who said to expel him. She promised to protect him, but only if he will start working to reach A-Class. However, Kiyotaka refuses to comply with this as she promised that he will be expelled which causes him to grab her by the collar in a threatening manner to get her to back off and warn her not to manipulate him or else she will regret her actions. This was remarkable as he never resorted to physical threats to someone. It's currently unknown why she wants him to advance to A-Class when he has no intention of trying to reach the class. Her reason might because she feels he is wasting his talents in a low class and feels he is better suited for the upper classes.

After the survival test, she summons him to the theatre where she commends him on his victory over the other classes and reveals that it was his father who had made the request to expel him. Once again, he refuses her demand to advance A-Class which Sae doesn't protest or threaten him, unlike last time. Instead, she simply laughs and reveals her knowledge of his past after he states he won't do anything for her without proof. Sae then asks him what he plans to do now to which he vaguely answers as she smiles in amusement.

Chie Hoshinomiya
Despite not having any interaction in the anime, it appears that Chie had suspicions about his intelligence as in a talk with Honami she recognized him as a person from D-Class to watch out for the most.

White Room
As a young child, Kiyotaka was a part of this unknown organization, which greatly contributed to his vast and extreme intellect, talents and skills. In a flashback on a Episode 10, it can be seen that he was taking an examination, that can be considered as extremely and immensely challenging, let alone, heavily advanced for a young child. This emphasized and proved that he had an extremely advanced upbringing, which could explain his vast and extreme intellect, giving him a very high mental prowess. It is also assumed that he not only underwent heavy mental training there, but also went through a very intense physical training like studying martial arts and learned various self-defense techniques, giving him a very high physical prowess. However, it is unknown what his experience there was like and whether he had any friends. Later on, it was shown that he gets very angry towards his past being mentioned as shown in his talk with Suzune in Episode 6, where he sternly warned her not to pry into his past ever again.

It appears from his time there, he picked up the belief that winning is everything and doesn't hesitate to use people as a means to do so. This harsh upbringing would likely explain why he speaks in a monotonous way to cover up his feelings.