Finally, it's time for training. "I work hard in class for times like this," said Hayato as he stretched. "Yes, time to get to work. I'll dunk everything today," said Liam as he smiled. "Oh, good evening, Yukio, Takahiro. Are you guys ready for training?" asked Liam.
"Yes, I'm looking forward to today's session," replied Yukio.
"Me too. I was getting sick of sitting in the classroom for so long," said Takahiro as he stretched. "I wonder where Nanaho and the first years are. It's unusual for her not to be here," said Yukio.
"Ow, ow, ouch!! Are you going to frickin' tear my ear off? That hurts, goddammit!" yelled Noboru in pain.
"Shut up!!" said Nanaho angrily as she punched him in the head.
"Yes, she's really pissed. Remind me not to get on her bad side," said Makoto.
"Yes, hopefully I don't as well," said Shino.
Tetsuo, who was walking with them to the court, was lost in his thoughts. "Her eyes, they changed once more—so gloomy and sad, nothing but darkness, nowhere to turn to. Pain and suffering is all I can see in them," said Tetsuo to himself as he recalled the fire that took the lives of his parents.
"Alright, let's go," said Makoto as he dribbled the basketball at the top of the key where Hayato stepped to guard him. Tetsuo then cut through the key, and Yukio set a screen for him so he could be free from Takahiro's defense. Makoto quickly made a pass to him, but as he was about to shoot a mid-range shot, Liam jumped into the air and swatted the ball to the ground.
Makoto and Hayato then quickly ran after the loose ball; however, Makoto caught it and touch-passed it to Yukio, who scored a layup.
"Wow, nice shot, Yukio-senpai!!" shouted a girl.
Tetsuo stood in one place and looked down at his hand in silence.
"Hey, Tetsuo, are you okay?" asked Makoto.
"Yes, I'm fine. Let's get back on defense," said Tetsuo as he got back.
As Hayato came down the court, he made a pass to Liam in the post, who overpowered Yukio and dunked the basketball. Makoto then came down and called for a screen from Yukio. He then spun to get past Hayato and shot a two-pointer that swished. Hayato passed the ball to Takahiro, who was guarded by Tetsuo. Takahiro then dribbled and got by Tetsuo and scored an easy floater.
"Nice one, Takahiro," said Liam as he smiled and gave Takahiro a high five.
Shino was in a corner practicing his dribbling by repeatedly attempting to do the behind-the-back dribble. "I really wanted to play out there with them today, but I need to improve so that I can keep up," said Shino to himself as he concentrated.
"Goddammit, this sucks. Why am I the only one here doing push-ups?" said Noboru frustratedly while he struggled.
"Oh, I don't know, maybe it's because someone got a detention. Do you know how much trouble I had to go through to bail you out of detention? I had to beg Hamada-sensei to let it slide, and thankfully he did, however, at the cost of me helping him mark all of the first-year exam papers. So now you're going to pay with two hundred push-ups and fifty suicides," said Nanaho.
"What? But that's unfair! How am I going to finish all of that and still find time to train?" said Noboru.
"Well, anything you missed out on today can always be made up for tomorrow," said Nanaho as she smiled.
"This girl is insane. I can't keep up with this anymore," said Noboru.
On the next possession, Makoto passed the ball to Tetsuo, who shot a three-pointer over Takahiro's hand that hit the rim and missed. Yukio and Liam jumped into the air and competed for the rebound; however, Liam won.
As soon as he came down with the ball, Makoto quickly tipped it out of his hand and made a pass to Tetsuo at the three-point line once more. Tetsuo then shot another three-pointer that swished. The girls spectating screamed in excitement that he scored.
"Tetsuo is really something else, isn't he?" said Harumi to herself as she smiled.
"Nice shot, Tetsuo," said Yukio as he raised his hand for a high five.
"Yes, Captain," said Tetsuo in a low tone as he jogged back on defense.
"Is it just me, or did Tetsuo look a bit off today? He's more quiet than usual, and not to mention he was playing sloppy defense today. That's not like him," said Makoto.
"Now that you mention it, he did seem a bit off. That was the first time since I started playing with you guys that I was able to block him," said Liam.
"Today was the first time I ever saw him miss a shot, also, so it's kinda concerning," said Hayato.
"Are you guys dumb? He's still the same, he's always been quiet and reserved, and he hardly says what's on his mind at all. So what if he missed a shot or got blocked by you? Even great players have an off day or two," said Noboru.
"You have a point, Noboru, but in his case, there seems to be something going on. He even left earlier than the rest of us, and normally he would have waited," said Nanaho with a worried look on her face.
"Think about it, Noboru, or maybe because of how dull your brain is, you wouldn't know if something feels off about him even if he broke a leg," said Makoto.
"What? I'm not going to sit down and get insulted by a lazy bum who can't even concentrate in class," said Noboru.
"For your information, I might not be awake in class, but I study the content later, unlike you, who does nothing but annoy everyone and fail to understand the basic concepts. Your whole existence is but a comedian's dream," said Makoto.
"Why you..." said Noboru as he was about to go after Makoto. However, Liam lifted him into the air.
"That's enough. It's not good to fight amongst each other," said Liam as he smiled.
"Hey, let go of me right now, you big giant!" said Noboru as he tried to shake out of Liam's hand.
"Come on, everyone, let's go home," said Liam as he walked off.
"Didn't you hear me? I said let go!!"
"What do you think is happening, Yukio?" asked Nanaho.
"To be honest, I'm not sure myself, but we can't be worrying about it too much. He won't stay like that for too long. He'll be right back to the Tetsuo we know in no time. Let's go, Nanaho," said Yukio as he walked off.
"I'm home," said Tetsuo in a low tone as he shut the door behind him and took off his shoes.
"Welcome home, big brother. I was getting tired of waiting for you. I made dinner tonight as well," said Usagi as she smiled.
"Thanks. I don't know what I would do without you," said Tetsuo as he patted her on the head.
"Big brother, are you okay? You're not acting like your usual self. What happened?" asked Usagi, concerned.
"I'm fine. There's nothing wrong," replied Tetsuo.
"I might not fully understand you at all because you always keep everything bottled up, however, I can tell that something is bothering you. So please tell me," said Usagi with a concerned look on her face.
Tetsuo then looked into her eyes and sighed. "There's this girl I met at school in the literature club, and the first thing I noticed about her was her eyes. They were cold as ice, and they had no light in them. So I figured that something terrible must have happened to her in the past that caused her eyes to be so empty.
Her eyes reminded me so much of mine. It's like I was looking into a mirror at my reflection whenever I look into them, and for that reason, I felt drawn to her. So I subconsciously decided to help her. However, it seems like I've made the situation worse. That's why I've been like this all day. It's a new feeling to me," said Tetsuo.
"No, you didn't make it worse. I'm surprised that you went out of your way to try and help that girl. That's new for you, and I'm really happy that you feel this way.
However, don't blame yourself for trying to make her feel better because it was out of genuine kindness. You tried your best, and she acknowledged and accepted that. She knew that you meant her good, so don't let this get you down," said Usagi.
"Thanks for that, Usagi. I really mean it," said Tetsuo.