bookbashuk Page 86
Page 86
Hachiman sighed, but quickly resumed his cool demeanor.
Although it was a bit embarrassing, it was all worth it for Saika!
"Huh? What method?"
Yui was stunned for a moment. Was Hikigaya only now going to unleash his full power?
"Hmph, when I get serious, kneeling and licking shoes are nothing."
"What do you mean?"
"that is……"
"No! Neither Xiaoxue nor Xiaoqing will be happy if that's the case. And have you forgotten what Xiaoqing said at noon? Shouldn't we ask Xiaocai what she thinks more?"
Yui's brain suddenly clicked, and she finally understood that Hachiman actually wanted to save the tennis court by sacrificing himself, which is why she interrupted Hachiman's words, which is quite unusual.
Perhaps because he had spent so much time with Su Qing, Hikigaya actually saw a faint resemblance to Yui at that moment, but it vanished in an instant.
"I'm sorry, I didn't think it through. Now let me make one last effort!"
Hachiman glanced at Saika subconsciously, only to realize that she had been watching him the whole time. Ashamed of his earlier thoughts, he picked up his racket again, looking determined and ready to fight.
If it's for the sake of color addition, what's wrong with 1v2?
Even if it's Miura, a former prefectural tennis player, I can beat you!
"Um, wait a moment."
As if she had thought of something, Yui left with those words and limped away, leaving Hachiman still in shock.
Damn it, the perfect atmosphere has been ruined in an instant!
"Haha, what's going on? Is there infighting? It's too pitiful to be abandoned by your comrades."
Miura saw that only Hachiman was left on the opposite court and gloated.
"Hachiman, Hachiman has not been abandoned!"
In the audience, Cai Jia stood up despite the pain in her knees, and looked intently at Miura.
"Ha, this shouldn't concern you, right?"
When Miura saw that it was Ayaka, since they didn't have much interaction, his tone wasn't as disdainful as he had been towards Hikigaya. He just frowned unhappily and asked.
"Of course it's related, because... I'll always be Hachiman's comrade!"
Saika's sudden announcement left Hachiman momentarily stunned...
Are you stupid? You know the definition of forever and you're just using it like this? Ugh, if this keeps up, I'm really going to confess to you!
No, if there weren't so many people here, I probably would have already confessed my feelings to them!
Although Hikigaya felt a mix of emotions, those thoughts were quickly overwhelmed by joy and emotion, and now his smile was like a blooming chrysanthemum.
"Tsk, okay, okay, so you mean you're going to replace Yui now? I don't care, it's all the same anyway."
Miura shrugged.
"I……"
Although Saika also longed to stand on the court and fight alongside Hachiman, a thought she had always held, the pain in her body ruthlessly shattered that possibility.
"I can handle people like you all by myself!"
Seeing Saika being bullied, Hachiman couldn't stand it any longer and decisively stood up to respond forcefully, but all he got in return was a cold laugh from Miura, who was even more disdainful.
"Huh, just you?"
"What kind of farce is this now?"
At this moment, Yui returned to the tennis court with Yukino, clearly having just gone to fetch reinforcements.
Are you going to go on stage?
"I didn't expect that your twisted personality hasn't been corrected yet, and your eyes have become twisted too? But... you did very well this time."
"Oh... I should."
Faced with Yukinoshita's sudden praise, Hachiman awkwardly scratched his head, but his gaze remained fixed on the medical kit in Yukinoshita's hand.
Yukinoshita had changed into her gym clothes and was carrying a first-aid kit in one hand, while Yui had changed back into her school uniform.
"I begged Xiaoxue to come, because it would be so frustrating to lose like this. I was also thinking of looking for Xiaoqing, but it seems like we don't have enough time."
Yui touched her own dumpling and said with a silly grin.
"So why did you come to me first? And how did you know I was in the infirmary?"
Yukinoshita was on her way back from the infirmary when she ran into Yui, who was limping.
"Because we're a mixed doubles team, among my female friends, you're the only one I can handle this kind of thing! And... and I know you're so kind, Xiaoxue, you must have been looking for a first-aid kit for Xiaocai."
"You...you guessed pretty right. But, friends..."
"Yes, friend!"
Yui nodded with unwavering determination.
Chapter 112 The Changes in the Two
"Please take care of it yourself first. I'm sorry for the delay, as I couldn't find the school nurse."
Yukino handed the first-aid kit to Ayaka, who accepted it and thanked her before returning to the tennis court.
"I knew Xiaoxue was the gentlest, hehe."
"Well... if you consider me a friend, then... I don't mind."
Faced with Yui's praise, Yukinoshita responded to her friend's earlier conversation. Although her tone was calm, the blush on her face betrayed her shyness.
Upon seeing Yuki's condition, Yui could no longer contain her excitement and limped over to hug the adorable Yuki!
"Anyway...can we not get so close? It's too hot."
Yukinoshita's main character is someone who says one thing but does another. Although she says not to get so close, the smile on her lips has changed from helplessness at the beginning to helplessness plus a little bit of doting now.
Over time, she gradually got used to Yui's physical contact, and even found that her arms were actually quite comfortable like that after Yui adjusted her position...
"Hehehe, it's okay, just hug for a while."
Yui continued to laugh carefree, while also noticing that the other person was no longer as stiff as before, and even seemed a little resistant. This made her even more excited, thinking that this slightly arrogant Yuki was even cuter!
Therefore, the two lumps of slime deformed to a greater degree.
Hmm... it felt better the way it was before.
This is Yukino's evaluation of Yui, the 66th female teacher.
"Yukinoshita, is that it? You'd better get ready before you go on stage, or I won't go easy on you."
Just then, Miura walked over to the tennis ball, breaking the rather warm atmosphere.
"Really? But don't worry, I'll go easy on you."
However, it seems you've bullied my friends quite a bit. Don't let my appearance fool you, I hold grudges very well.
Faced with Miura's provocation, Yukinoshita responded assertively. However, as she finished speaking, she inexplicably recalled Su Qing's question from that day: "What would you do if Yui was bullied?"
"My friend..." Yukino murmured to herself once more, while also wondering:
Why did Su Qing take so long to buy candy? Could it be that she fainted due to low blood sugar?
I hope... everything is alright.
In short, let's end this farce quickly and then go look for it.
After all, we can be considered friends.
……
With Yukinoshita joining the fray, the situation on the court quickly turned around. Although Miura's individual skills were arguably the strongest among everyone present, Hayama's strength was the weakest among them, so Hikigaya and Yukinoshita quickly won the first set.
Now, they only need to win one more game to win the match 2-0.
"So the best-of-three format is being used?"
She was panting under the snow, and her voice became somewhat weak.
"That's right... I was prepared for the worst from the start, to delay until you guys came back. I should have decided the outcome in one game."
Hachiman felt a pang of regret. If they had only played one game, it would be over by now, and there would be no more variables.
"This isn't your fault, please continue."
Yukinoshita knew that what her opponent did was the best choice. Before knowing the opponent's strength, a best-of-three series would indeed be the safest option.
"I'm sorry, Yumiko, I've let you down."
Meanwhile, on the other side of the court, Hayama looked apologetically at Miura, who simply shook his head and comforted him:
"It's alright, Hayato, there's still a chance!"
After a few minutes of rest, the second set of the match began.
"1 to 0."
"1 to 1."
"2 to 1."
"2 to 2"
……
Because it was the deciding set, the score was even more intense than in the previous set. Every time Yukinoshita and Hachiman won a game, Miura would cling to them like a venomous snake and quickly catch up.
When the score was tied at 4-4, it was Miura's turn to serve.
She tossed the tennis ball high into the air, then leaped lightly, sending it flying in a perfect parabola through the air, whistling through the wind, straight towards the corner of the defensive zone under the snow.
The speed is slower than the last game.
Although the ball speed was still very fast, and he and Yui suffered a lot because of it at the beginning, after a set, the opponent's ball speed obviously slowed down. Moreover, Yukinoshita was able to catch Miura's peak ball speed in the last game, so this time it should be no problem.
"0 to 15."
The referee's voice rang out, and Hikigaya paused for a moment before seeing Yukinoshita's racket had slipped from her control and fallen to the ground, clearly knocked away by the force of the shot.
How could this be? How could Miura's strength suddenly increase so much that he even knocked Yukinoshita's racket away?
Do not…
Looking at Yukino's pale face and the large beads of sweat on her forehead, Hikigaya suddenly realized: Yukino's stamina was clearly running out!
"Hey, what's going on? You can't even hold the racket anymore? Looks like I should really thank you for going easy on me."
When Miura saw Yukinoshita's racket fly out, he was overjoyed. Fortunately, her opponent's stamina couldn't match her tennis skills, otherwise he would have really lost to her in today's match.
Yukino didn't say anything after hearing this. She glanced at Miura, picked up her racket, and got back into position to prepare for the next ball.
Hachiman remained silent as well. He never expected that the nasty girl he first met in the Service Club would need to start by discussing the definition of friendship when asked if he had any friends. In such a short time, she had already become like this, fighting for her friends without saying a word even when she was exhausted.
Because of the short distance, Hikigaya could hear Yukinoshita and Miura's conversation clearly at the net. Yukinoshita clearly intended to say "company member" at first, but for some reason, she quickly changed her words to "friend."
However, things changed in Yukinoshita, and so did they in Hikigaya.
Before this, he was just a gloomy, ignored person in the class, but now he's inexplicably involved in this kind of troublesome matter. How could he possibly get involved?
But if it's for the sake of adding color, then there's no other way but to go for it!
……
However, even if one's inner conviction about the reasons for pursuing victory becomes stronger, the objective fact that one's physical strength is weak under the snow cannot be changed in the short term.
As a result, the situation quickly reversed once again.
"1 to 1, 5-minute break, then the deciding set."
With the referee's announcement, the second set ended, and Yukinoshita returned to her chair in the rest area with somewhat heavy steps.
Her body trembled slightly, as if she had not yet recovered from the fierce battle. Her face was as pale as paper, her lips had lost their usual rosy color, and her eyes revealed a trace of fatigue.
"Is Xiaoxue alright? Have some water first."
Yui, who was standing to the side, was extremely anxious. Although she was still injured, she held a bottle of water in one hand, opened the cap for her, and handed it to her. With her other hand, she used a towel to wipe the sweat from her cheeks and neck.
"Thank you, I can manage."