Episode 31 – Visitor

Dum-dum-dum

Nakanishi and Imahara try to get the ball from Kunimatsu Senpai, who approaches slowly while dribbling nimbly, but as expected of the captain of the basketball team, he does not let them get it easily. The two were completely outplayed.

[[[Kyaaa! Kunimatsu senpai is so cool !!!]]]

It seems that even with a personality like that, he has a certain group of fans.

Well, I guess he usually tries not to show it.

The senpai, who received the cheers, was appealing to Koharu, but Koharu was only looking at me, who had been standing there for a while.

“Look~, I can even do this ~♪”

Perhaps the cheers from the female students helped him get into the swing of things, but Kunimatsu senpai lightly brushed aside the two blockers and went all out with his moves.

[[[Kya~! Beautiful !!!]]]

“Ha ha ha~!”

“Damn…”

I mean, this senpai is so relaxed that he looks away during the game.

Just in time, I jump out from Nakanishi and Imahara’s blind spot and take the ball.

“The next one is this~Hmm? Wait what ? the ball?”

I threw the ball to Kohei, who was in front, while Senpai was fidgeting on the spot, as if not realizing that the ball had been taken from him.

“Nice pass !!!”

Pashuuts

(SFX)

“Ehehe, Nice Ryouma !!”

“Yeah”

I knock fist to fist with Kohei, who runs up to me.

Kunimatsu senpai understood what had happened and came up to us, shaking his shoulders.

“You ! Can you not see it !? It’s my turn now !!!”

What are you talking about? There are many turns in a game, and offensive-defensive transitions. 

“Haa? What are you talking about ? It’s worse to look away during the game.”

“Shut up ! It’s better to get out of the way!!”

“If that’s the case, why don’t you just avoid the block so you don’t get in the way?”

“Ugh….tch!!”

Senpai who had returned with a tongue-lashing had indeed thought that he could counter it, but his expression had changed to a serious one, unlike before.

I was playing 1-on-1 with a senior who got really serious, and I thought that he was trying to make a move.

At first, I had trouble dealing with it, but once I figured out the seed, I was able to stop it easily, so I did not have that much trouble.

After holding off the seniors, the game was not one-sided and we were able to finish the first half with a 10-point advantage.

“Damn! Shit! ！！！！ What the fuck are you guys doing!!!! Why do I have to get beat up so bad by just another freshman! I’m captain of the basketball team!”

Apparently, Kunimatsu senpai is very angry that this result is the fault of his teammates other than himself.

Is it okay that I’m attracting a lot of attention? The girls up there are making a very interesting face..

“Oh, calm down, Kunimatsu… We’re not experienced and we can’t move like these guys.”

“Haa !? you have to be able to do it against the 1st graders !! Damn useless !!”

“Tssss….”

“O-oi are you okay ?!”

The other teammates rush to the student who had his shoe thrown, but Senpai is still angry and is hitting the other teammate hard.

“Uwa, what’s that ? Isn’t that terrible?”

“So Kunimatsu senpai was such a person.”

“Saeki kun might be better than Kunimatsu kun. I’ll go over there and cheer for him.”

The girls who had been cheering for the seniors cooled down completely and began to move to the opposite side where we were.

And when the second half began and we returned to the court, the area behind us was filled with a crowd that could’ve been a cheering squad before we knew it. 

Kunimatsu senpai, who noticed the situation, flew into a rage and grabbed me. 

“What the fuck did you do ! ! Why are the girls who were with us over there ! !” 

“O-oi Kunimatsu ! ! just drop it ! !” 

The senior male referee tried to stop him, but Kunimatsu senpai wouldn’t listen to him. 

I calmly shook my arm free, straightening my collar, and telling the truth plainly. 

“Isn’t it because senpai just hit a team member earlier? If you choose between a violent basketball captain or a friendly looking freshman, you know who you’d root for, right?” 

“Hey you too, don’t provoke this guy too much ! !” 

“Ha ! ? When did i…. Oi ! Let go of me ! !” 

When that senpai is dragged by the team members and returned, the signal for the start of the second half of the game is sounded forcibly. 

However, from there, something terrible is happening. 

“Oops, my foot slipped ! !” 

“Ouch…” 

“Oh, I didn’t realize you were behind me ! !” 

“Guh…” 

You can’t get in the defensive position properly because your feet will be stepped on and their elbows will hit you at times when the referee doesn’t notice. 

“Hey, isn’t that a violation ??” 

“I wonder if Saeki kun is okay…” 

The answer to why the senior can’t get a foul is simple. 

That’s because the referee who had been grinning at us since a while ago wasn’t the same referee who stopped us, but instead, he’s a senior who’s close to Kunimatsu. 

Once I took a timeout, Asahi who’s worried about me, rushed over. 

“Ryouma ! change with me !” 

“I’m still fine. If Asahi doesn’t stop it, Sasajima won’t be able to score. Besides, how can we just sit back and let them beat us?” 

“Oh, then that’s okay !” 

With that said, Asahi returned to his position.

Oi, you’re too trusting. Worried about me a little more.

Well that’s fine. 

When I returned to the court again, i’m thinking as I played defense. 

Yup… I thought they could get a foul by pretending to be in pain, but I guess that’s impossible. They’ve been relentlessly aiming after my leg since a while ago, and I’ve been avoiding it, so there’s almost no pain, so I’m fine with it. As expected, it’s a pain in the ass. 

The senior came up to me, as if he didn’t know what I was thinking. I think he’s trying to hit me by pretending to lose his balance when he catched the ball. 

I sensed this, and fell hard on purpose. 

“Eh?” 

“Ryouma kun ! !” 

Phwwwwht ! !

“F-foul ! !” 

Yeah, as I expected, you really stopped it. I get up and roll my shoulders. 

Rumble* 

“O-oi ! Saeki ! Are you okay !?” 

I got up and walked over to the senior, who’s still in disbelief, regardless of my classmates rushing towards me. 

“Senpai.” 

He trembled at the sound of my voice and slowly looked up at me. 

“Are you satisfied now?” 

I smiled at the senior as I said that. 

“Eh, no..that’s…” 

“Are you satisfied??” 

“No, I didn’t mean to go this far…” 

I grab the senior who claims that it’s not his fault and make him stand up. 

“Then, how far do you intend to go. If it wasn’t me, you wouldn’t have gotten away with just a minor injuries,” 

“T-that’s…” 

“You can be as competitive as you want, but if you’re going to do this any further, I won’t tolerate it either.” 

I let go of him  and turned around with a guts pose.

(TL/N: kinda like a fist pump pose or maybe it is) 

It’s settled.

I once read a sports manga where a senior who harasses someone changes his mind and befriends them. 

I responded in the same way with a little hope because the situation was similar, and he might change his mind.

That doesn’t mean I’m going to get along with him or forgive him, but we can start over. 

I think we can at least regain the trust that fell apart here. 

With this in mind, I looked back at the senior again and there he was, in tears and worn out. 

“Eh?” 

“Hiks…hiks…” 

“Wait, senpai??” 

“Uwaaaaaaaaaaa ! ! ! Mamaaaaaaaaaaa ! ! ! ! !”

No one was able to stop senpai who rushed out of the gymnasium while screaming, and the rest of us could only look at the exit with a blank stare. 

“U-um because of Kunimatsu withdrawal…. The winner is 1-A..” 

That’s how we won the basketball competition.