The lunch bell had just rung.
Sakuragi sat at his desk, stuffing yakisoba bread into his mouth so quickly that his cheeks puffed out like a hamster’s.
“Sakuragi.” Yohei pulled out the chair beside him and sat down.
A canned drink rested in his hand while one arm draped casually over the back of the chair.
His posture looked relaxed.
But there was an unmistakable seriousness in his eyes.
“Hm?” Sakuragi answered through a mouthful of bread.
“Have you really thought this through?” Yohei asked quietly.
“About joining the Basketball Club.” Sakuragi swallowed the bread, snatched the canned drink from Yohei’s hand without hesitation, and took a huge gulp.
“Of course!” His voice was filled with absolute confidence.
“The teacher said it himself.” “I’m a genius!” “…Genius?” A sarcastic voice drifted over from beside him.
Takamiya Nozomi’s round face suddenly appeared on Sakuragi’s left, his eyes narrowed into crescents.
“A genius at shooting airballs?” Sakuragi’s smile stiffened.
Another face popped up on his right.
Ohkusu Yuji.
“A genius at traveling.” “And…” Noma Chuichiro suddenly appeared behind Sakuragi with a wicked grin.
“…A genius at losing games.” Three attacks.
Three critical hits.
Silence filled the classroom.
Half a second later…
A vein slowly bulged on Sakuragi’s forehead.
He turned his head little by little.
The murderous glare in his eyes felt like an icy wind blowing through a crack in a winter door.
Takamiya.
Ohkusu.
And Noma.
All three sensed danger at the exact same moment.
The smiles on their faces instantly froze.
“I-I just remembered something!” Takamiya turned and bolted.
“I forgot my manga!” Ohkusu grabbed his schoolbag and sprinted toward the classroom door.
“I’ve gotta use the bathroom!” Noma disappeared in a single leap.
In the blink of an eye…
The three of them had vanished into the hallway as though launched by springs.
“They’re pretty fast.” Sakuragi snorted before pulling another piece of bread from the paper bag.
Yohei glanced toward the hallway, smiling helplessly before turning back to Sakuragi.
“I’m serious.” His voice lowered.
Only the two of them could hear it.
“Have you really thought this through?” “Don’t let this become another three-minute obsession.” Sakuragi paused halfway through another bite.
Yohei didn’t continue.
He simply watched him quietly.
Among the Sakuragi Army…
Yohei had always been the one who understood Sakuragi the best.
Sometimes…
Even better than Sakuragi understood himself.
Tall.
Red-haired.
Never lost a fight.
Loud.
Hot-tempered.
Always laughing like an idiot.
Always acting as though nothing bothered him.
But…
That wasn’t the whole story.
Yohei knew things no one else did.
After Sakuragi’s father died of a heart attack…
He had been left alone.
No one looked after him.
No one praised him.
No one ever told him, “You’re good at this.” “This is where you belong.” He was like a wild weed growing on an empty roadside.
Untended.
Ignored.
He grew tall.
He grew strong.
But inside…
There was always an emptiness.
No amount of food could ever fill it.
That was why he kept confessing to girls.
Behind the gym.
Outside classrooms.
On the walk home.
Thirty-four confessions.
Not because he had truly fallen in love thirty-four times.
He was simply trying to grasp onto something…
Anything…
That could fill the hole in his heart.
He wanted someone to acknowledge him.
To accept him.
To tell him…
“You’re enough.” Yohei had understood that all along.
“This time is different.” Sakuragi’s voice pulled Yohei back to reality.
He stuffed the rest of the bread into his mouth.
After swallowing it with some effort, he brushed the crumbs from his hands.
“I’ve thought about it.” His expression became unusually serious.
“I’ve really thought it through.” “Oh?” Yohei raised an eyebrow.
“The teacher said I’m a genius.” As he spoke, the corners of Sakuragi’s mouth slowly curled upward again.
“He said that if I train properly…” “I can become the ace of the Basketball Club.” “Then…” His expression gradually changed.
His grin widened.
His eyes narrowed.
A very…
Very suspicious smile slowly spread across his face.
“Oda…” “…will become my underling.” As he continued speaking, his eyes gradually lost focus.
His gaze drifted toward some distant corner of the classroom.
The smile stretched wider and wider.
His cheeks turned slightly red.
“…Hehehe…” A strange chuckle escaped his throat.
Yohei stared at the increasingly ridiculous expression on Sakuragi’s face.
For two whole seconds…
He said nothing.
Then…
He understood.
That grin.
That laugh.
That dreamy expression.
It was exactly the same face Sakuragi wore every single time before confessing to a girl.
Actually…
No.
This one was even more shameless.
This idiot wasn’t imagining himself becoming the Basketball Club’s ace.
He was imagining replacing Oda as the most popular guy in school…
And being surrounded by girls instead.
The corner of Yohei’s mouth twitched.
He slowly inhaled…
Then sighed.
So much for “thinking it through.” His passion for basketball was probably fake.
His desire to become popular with girls…
That part was absolutely genuine.
“…Fine.” Yohei stood up.
He pushed his chair back under the desk and casually brushed imaginary dust from his pants.
“You’ll understand once you’re there.” “I just hope…” “This isn’t another passing craze.” He didn’t say anything else.
Some roads…
People simply had to walk themselves.
No matter how much he warned Sakuragi now…
It wouldn’t make any difference.
Sakuragi remained seated, still chuckling to himself.
“Hehehe…” Completely unaware that Yohei had already gotten up.
Looking down at him, Yohei couldn’t help sighing once more.
Still…
Spending time at the Basketball Club was better than wandering around getting into fights every day.
Throughout the afternoon…
Sakuragi didn’t hear a single word the teachers said.
He sat in the back row with one hand supporting his chin.
His eyes stared blankly at the blackboard.
But inside his mind…
An entire movie was playing.
He wore the Basketball Club uniform.
He dominated every game.
The crowd roared his name.
Girls screamed from the stands.
Meanwhile…
Oda Tatsumasa stood respectfully on the sidelines, carrying towels and bottled water.
“Lord Sakuragi.” “You’ve worked hard.” “…Hehehe…” Sakuragi accidentally laughed out loud.
The student sitting in front of him slowly turned around.
The look in their eyes practically asked, “Is this guy okay?” Sakuragi noticed nothing.
Inside his fantasy…
He was currently surrounded by beautiful girls.
His arms overflowed with love letters.
He frowned dramatically.
“Which one should I choose…?” “Sakuragi-kun.” Thunk!
A piece of chalk flew through the air with remarkable accuracy.
It smacked him squarely on the forehead.
“Ow!” “What are you laughing about?” “We’re in the middle of class!” The teacher glared at him.
Sakuragi rubbed his forehead while the classroom erupted into quiet laughter.
He glared back at everyone.
Then obediently sat up straight.
Three seconds later…
His eyes unfocused once again.
Finally…
The last class ended.
The instant the dismissal bell rang— Sakuragi shot to his feet.
His chair scraped backward across the floor with a harsh screech.
“Let’s go!” His face was filled with impatient excitement.
“We’re not joining the Basketball Club.” Takamiya shrugged.
“Let’s go play pachinko instead.” “Another time.” Ohkusu shook his head.
“I want to watch this idiot embarrass himself first.” Yohei grinned.
“Exactly.” “Pachinko isn’t going anywhere.” “But a show like this?” “You don’t get to see one every day.” The four members of the Sakuragi Army immediately followed behind Sakuragi.
Like four satellites orbiting a blazing sun.
They walked through the hallway.
Down the stairs.
Across the school grounds.
Step by step…
The Basketball Gymnasium drew closer.
Finally…
Sakuragi and the others came to a stop in front of the gymnasium entrance.