Chapter 11: Kainan
The much anticipated moment had come. It was the game between Shohoku and Kainan and both teams arrived on court at the same time. As they were preparing themselves, Kiyota Nobunaga of Kainan approached Shohoku to boast, remarking that this year would be the best year for Kainan because he, the number one rookie was finally here.
As if to emphasise his point, he stole the ball from the hands of Sakuragi and started to show off his ball-handling skills. Not to be outdone, Sakuragi displayed his own ball-handling skills. The showdown between the two freshmen didn't last long though, as both got a knock (more like a punch) on the head from their respective team captains and was pulled away by the ear.
Finally, the game began. Akagi and Kainan's Takasago Kazuma matched for the jump ball. Miyagi got the ball and went for a quick attack. He passed the ball to Rukawa and the latter tried to dunk but Maki was there to block him so he passed the ball to Mitsui who was behind him, only to have the ball stolen by Jin.
Jin passed the ball to Kiyota but Sakuragi was faster and managed to catch the ball after performing a very beautiful jump. Unfortunately he was charged with travelling. Other than that, Sakuragi's performance was nothing short of amazing. Every time there was a rebound he was always the one to get it, no matter how many players were there with him.
His excellent rebounding skills attracted Maki's attention. When Maki swiped the ball away from Sakuragi, the ball was about to go offside, but still Sakuragi managed to bring it back into play, and that was after he actually caught up with Maki, who was also going after the ball. His incredible speed and jumping ability impressed Kainan's coach Riki Takato, for he had not seen anyone who was faster than Maki.
Maki, who was also very impressed with the redhead, issued a challenge to Sakuragi by guarding him personally. It was supposed to be a serious matter, but trust Sakuragi to turn it into a funny scene. Having looked at Maki at a closer range, he called out to Kiyota.
"Oi, nozaru! How dare you guys get a professional adult basketball player to play in this game! That's cheating you know!"
"Baka! Maki-sempai is a third-year student in Kainan. He's only 17 years old!" Kiyota shouted back.
"Eh?" Sakuragi looked at Maki again. "Baka nozaru! Who do you think you are kidding? He doesn't look like a third-year student. He looks like an old man!"
Everyone in the audience gasped, especially the Miuradai and Shoyo players who had come to watch. They couldn't believe that Sakuragi had just insulted the number one high school player in Kanagawa. They waited to see what Maki's reaction would be.
Back on the court, the referee had issued a warning to both Kiyota and Sakuragi not to talk during the game. As the two players glared at each other, Maki took a step forward, and pointing at Akagi, he said, "Akagi looks older than me."
The whole stadium was suddenly engulfed in pin-drop silence. The referee was too shocked to blow his whistle. Even his own team-mate, Jin Soichiro, didn't think that he would actually feel insulted by that remark. Anyway, despite being insulted by Sakuragi, Maki insisted on guarding him himself. Time and time again, he successfully stopped Sakuragi, much to Sakuragi's annoyance, who, given his ignorant attitude, didn't know that Maki was the number one high school player in Kanagawa.
Not long after, Takato-sensei called for a timeout. He asked Maki what he thought about the performance of Shohoku. Maki admitted that the starting five members of Shohoku were indeed great players. Especially the one under the ring. He was referring to Sakuragi, of course. Takato-sensei then decided to send in a third-year, Miyamasu Yoshinori, to replace Jin. His plan? To eliminate Sakuragi out of the game.
The game resumed. Out of orders from Takato-sensei, Miyamasu was guarding Sakuragi. Naturally, Sakuragi felt angry and insulted. He thought that he didn't deserve to be guarded by a player like Miyamasu, who was, by the way, thin, short (160 cm) and looked weak. Having got the ball, he attempted a shot, but failed to get the ball in because he was distracted by Miyamasu's carelessness. Even when he got the rebound and tried to shoot again, he still failed to get it in.
Hanayuki soon realised what Takato-sensei was up to. When faced with the best opponents, Sakuragi would unwittingly give out his best in order to beat them, due to his very competitive nature. But when faced with a weak and careless contender, he was easily distracted and loses his concentration. Takato-sensei... he is certainly not the coach of the best team in Kanagawa for nothing. It only took him a while to discover oniichan's weakness. Now, what am I going to do?
Back to the game, Maki stole the ball from Miyagi and then passed it to Miyamasu. To everyone's surprise, he made a three-point shot. It seemed that Miyamasu was an excellent three-point shooter, and later even got another shot in. Trying to help Sakuragi overcome his problem, Akagi told Sakuragi to ignore Miyamasu, and just aim to dunk. Sakuragi took the advice and was almost successful in making one, if not for Maki, who knew of his plan.
By stopping Sakuragi, Maki was charged with an intentional foul, but knowing that Sakuragi was bad at taking free throws, he was willing to make the foul. As expected, Sakuragi missed the free throw, and because the ball also missed the ring, possession of the ball went to Kainan. Not wanting her brother to reveal anymore of his weaknesses, Hanayuki decided to substitute Sakuragi with Kogure.
The score was 23-39. Rukawa started to attack, and marking him was Kiyota, who was fooled by a fake by Rukawa, giving him (Rukawa) the opportunity to aim for a three-point shot. Later, Rukawa advanced forward and hastily performed a lay-up shot. It didn't go in, but Akagi got the rebound, and passed the ball back to Rukawa, who then successfully got the ball in, scoring another 2 points for Shohoku. However, the 2 points came with a heavy price. Upon landing on the ground, Akagi twisted his ankle, and had to be taken off the game. Sakuragi was sent back in to take Akagi's place.
As soon as the game resumed, Sakuragi immediately intercepted a pass and turned the attack in Shohoku's favour. Kogure got the ball and was about to score with a lay-up shot, but Kiyota swatted it aside, only to have Rukawa get the deflected ball and score the point.
The score was now 30-39, with Kainan still leading by 9 points. Several times, Sakuragi, who was defending the basket, was duped by fake movements, but Rukawa was ever present to support the defense of the basket. However, the Kainan offense didn't relent, and although Rukawa deflected two of the attacks, Kiyota came in with the third. Sakuragi, seeing the danger, reacted and tremendously swatted the ball away.
In another Kainan offensive, the ball missed the basket and Sakuragi managed to get the rebound. Mitsui got the ball, which was then passed to Kogure. In succession, Kogure passed to Rukawa, and Rukawa got in another 2 points. Next, using a fake, he got in 2 more points. Later, it was Kainan's ball, and a pass by Kiyota to Maki was intercepted by Rukawa. Another 2 points scored by Rukawa.
With only 1 minute and 11 seconds left in the first-half of the game, the score was 40-47 in Kainan's favour. Rukawa took control of the situation by forcing his way through the Kainan defense. He then forced a shot under guard to get yet another 2 points. 5 more points to go. Still not stopping his assault, Rukawa once again got the ball, and this time, he shot in a three-pointer.
It was a devastating strike to Kainan who were now only 4 points up. Kainan pressed forth their attack and, when Sakuragi got the rebound, he was immediately surrounded by 3 Kainan players, who were determined to stop him from passing.
As Sakuragi tried to stop them from stealing the ball, he couldn't help but let his mind wander a little. How nice it would be if I could just headbutt them one by one. But of course, he couldn't do that, and so could only hold on to the ball as the 3 Kainan players waved their hands about in front of him.
It was then that Rukawa ran back to allow Sakuragi a chance to pass the ball. At the sidelines, Hanayuki was praying silently that Sakuragi would pass the ball to Rukawa, and, to her immense relief, he did. This time however, Maki was determined to stop Rukawa. As Rukawa leaped up for a dunk, Maki also leaped up to swipe the ball, but Rukawa avoided the swipe by snatching it back and slammed in the ball.
The score was 47-49. It was again Kainan's ball, but Rukawa stole the ball from Kiyota, leaving him and all the Kainan players horrified, and scored the last 2 points needed to level the score. The whistle was blown to signal the end of the first-half of the game.
In Shohoku's locker room...
Hanayuki sat down beside Rukawa, handing him another bottle of water. He took it from her and drank from it thirstily, finishing the whole bottle in less than a minute. Noticing that Hanayuki was still looking at him, he turned to face her.
It was a while before she finally spoke, "You did a great job, Rukawa-kun." She smiled before continuing, "I think we can expect more fans turning up at our next game, don't you think?" He just looked at her without answering.
"I must admit, though, I wanted so much to join them in their cheering. You have no idea how it feels like to have to sit down quietly on the bench, not being able to squeal and scream in delight whenever you score. It was pure mental torture," she laughed while shaking her head. When she looked at him again, she didn't miss the doubt in his eyes.
Still smiling, she said, "I am not joking you know. I mean, it is so sad that as your good friend, I couldn't cheer for you as much as I should. Or, as much as I would like to."
He still didn't say anything, but his hand reached out to give her hand a little squeeze.
At the same moment, Sakuragi butted in and squeezed in between Rukawa and Hanayuki. "Hana-chan, what did you think of my performance just now?"
Hanayuki laughed and said, "You were wonderful, oniichan. Absolutely wonderful. Just don't lose your concentration anymore, yeah?"
"Hai. The Tensai does not lose his concentration, Hana-chan. Nyahahahahahaahahaha!" said Sakuragi before laughing his Tensai laugh.
You had better not, oniichan. Without you, I don't think we can win this game.
The second-half was about to begin, and Akagi took his place, preparing to take the jump ball. Ayako noticed that he was already sweating profusely even before the game began, and contemplated whether or not she should stop him from playing in the game.
His ankle was very swollen, but he had insisted on playing in the second-half, saying that he would not give up his dream of playing against Kainan, even if he wouldn't be able to walk in the future. She had helped him bind the ankle tightly with bandages, but she knew that it wouldn't stop the pain.
Suddenly, she heard Hanayuki speak, "Ayako-san, please do not worry. If I find that Akagi-sempai's ankle is getting worse, I will remove him from the game. For now, I'm afraid that we need him to play. Besides," Hanayuki looked at Ayako, and smiled a little, "I don't think he would listen to me either if I asked him not to play." Gesturing towards the court, she continued, "And, I think oniichan will try his best to help make Akagi-sempai's job easier."
As if on cue, Sakuragi stepped in and insisted on replacing Akagi to take the jump ball. Having his way, Sakuragi managed to get to the ball first. The ball then fell into the hands of Rukawa who tried to score, but Kiyota, who had vowed to stop him, stopped him. It was a rebound, and the person who got the rebound turned out to be Akagi. Without hesitation, Akagi did a slam dunk, putting Shohoku in the lead for the first time since the game began.
Despite the fact that his foot was injured, he still managed to run and score, and his defense under the basket hadn't weakened at all. Maki was really impressed with Akagi, and whenever Maki was impressed with someone, he would always challenge the person using all his skills. In the meantime, guarding Maki was Miyagi, who was looking very tired. In a flash, Maki got past Miyagi, and Akagi moved in to stop Maki. However, Maki forced the ball in and scored.
It was Shohoku's ball. Rukawa got the ball and passed to Akagi under the Kainan basket, who then got pass Takasago to score. Not willing to submit to defeat, Maki attacked the Shohoku basket. This time, Akagi and Sakuragi were at the basket to defend. This didn't stop Maki as he scored past them too. Akagi then told Sakuragi that Maki was the number one player in the district. Sakuragi, being Sakuragi, liked the title, and decided to surpass Maki to gain the title.
The score was 53-55. Maki attacked again and sent the score to 53-57. At this point, Shohoku decided to use another strategy to stop Maki. When Maki got the ball, both Miyagi and Mitsui gathered to guard him. Unsuccessful was the word, as Maki managed to elude the two. But awaiting him was the next line of defense, made up by Sakuragi and Rukawa. Maki pretended to force his way through, but actually passed to Jin. Jin performed a three-pointer, and scored. Kainan didn't stop, and once again Jin was allowed the chance to score 3 more points. And then another.
The score was 63-73 when Hanayuki called for a timeout. Gathering them around her, she started to explain her strategy. "Listen. Kainan's offense starts after Maki penetrates into our defense. Therefore, to stop their offense, we have to stop Maki."
Making use of the strategy board, she placed 4 chips on the board. "Akagi-sempai, Rukawa-kun, Hisashi-niichan, Miyagi-sempai. When Maki penetrates," she placed another chip on the board and moved it to the middle of the earlier 4 chips. "The four of you will surround him and guard him together." She moved the 4 chips to surround the one in the middle.
At this, Mitsui quickly said, "But that would leave the other 4 players free."
"Yes, that's right, Hisashi-niichan," Hanayuki replied, taking in the doubtful expression on their faces. She knew what they were thinking about. The truth was, even she didn't know for sure whether this plan would work, but remembering what her otousan had told her the night before, she knew that she had to take the risk. Taking a deep breath, she continued, "It is a risk. But... Maki Shinichi is worth it."
"Because he is the number one player in Kanagawa," Sakuragi mumbled under his breath.
Hanayuki heard him and replied, "Yes, oniichan. Because he is the number one player in Kanagawa. That was exactly what otousan had told me yesterday on the phone." Everyone was quiet for a while.
"Of course, there are risks to be taken into account. But," she turned to look at Sakuragi, "this is where you come in, oniichan."
In the audience stand, the whole Ryonan team was watching the game in progress, having won in their game against Takezato. Taoka-sensei remarked that all the Shohoku's players were already exhausted from the game. To which Sendoh replied, "Iie. There is one player left who is still fit and full of energy." His gaze was fixed on the only redhead of the team, before it fell onto the girl who was busy explaining something to the same redhead.
The game was resumed, and the plan was set into motion. When Maki got the ball, the four players immediately moved in to guard him. Surprised, Maki passed to Jin, only to discover that he was being guarded by Sakuragi. The shot was deflected, and Sakuragi ran to attack Kainan's basket. He missed, but Akagi arrived and scored.
So far so good, thought Hanayuki.
There was one moment when Maki managed to pass to another player, by the name of Muto Tadashi, who was about to shoot. It almost gave Kogure (yes, Kogure) a heart attack, and he turned to look at Hanayuki, only to see her clasping her hands together, her eyes closed and her lips mumbling, "Please, Kami-sama. Don't let the ball go in. Don't let the ball go in." Frantic, Kogure did the same thing.
"Kami-sama, please don't let the ball go in!"
And the ball bounced off the rim.
"Thank you, Kami-sama!"
Meanwhile, Takato-sensei was also surprised at the strategy used by Shohoku. He thought that the strategy was brilliant, but who could have devised it? Anzai-sensei was not around, and he didn't think that any of the players could have come up with the plan. That left only the non-players of Shohoku, the two girls sitting on the bench. One of them was the manageress, he knew, but who was the other one?
She looks too old to be a student of Shohoku, but too young to be the coach. But, if it wasn't her, who else could it be? He decided to send in Miyamasu to check his theory. He watched as Hanayuki called out to Miyagi and pointed to Miyamasu. It is her.
Anyway, back to the game, both Maki and Jin were effectively stopped from scoring. Once more the ball was deflected, and Sakuragi was again running to attack the Kainan basket. Maki was also running to stop Sakuragi, and reached the basket first, but Sakuragi didn't care. He leaped up to slam in the ball. Maki was determined not to let Sakuragi score. He jumped up and swiped, knocking both the ball and Sakuragi to the floor. Obviously this was a personal foul by Maki, but he knew that Sakuragi was no good at free throws. Or so he thought.
Knowing very well his own weakness, Sakuragi took a different approach to shooting. Instead of doing it the usual way, he bended his knees slightly and held the ball between his hands. Then, the ball was tossed into the air and was allowed to fall down into the basket. It was with this method that Sakuragi managed to get both of the free throws in. Not only that, the possession of the ball also belonged to Shohoku.
The score was 72-78. Kainan was still leading by 6 points. Shohoku immediately attacked, with Sakuragi getting the rebound, and then passing the ball to Miyagi who scored in 2 points. As Kainan attacked, Maki was once again heavily guarded, so he passed to Kiyota. Kiyota tried to slam in the ball, but Akagi swatted the ball away.
It was a foul, and two free throws were awarded to Kiyota. Both didn't go in. Sakuragi got the rebound, and then passed to Miyagi again. A pass to Mitsui was intercepted by Miyamasu, who then fooled Miyagi to pass to Maki. Rukawa was guarding Maki, but was eluded in a flash by Maki, who brought the score to 74-80.
There was only 1 minute and 41 seconds left in the game. With only 19 seconds left of possession time, Mitsui attempted a three-pointer shot, but missed. Akagi leaped up to steal the rebound, but due to his injured ankle, he wasn't able to. The ball was about to go offside when Sakuragi ran after it and crashed into the Kainan bench, but not before swatting the ball back into the court and into the hands of a surprised Rukawa.
Jumping up from the mess he had created, Sakuragi shouted at Rukawa that lucky shot or not, he had better get the shot in. Furious, Rukawa muttered to himself that unlike Sakuragi, he had the talent and ability, and slammed the ball in, before collapsing onto the floor.
The score was 86-90. Because Rukawa was too exhausted, Kogure was sent in to take his place. At the sidelines, Rukawa collapsed again, and had to be helped to be seated on the bench. As he sat, he clenched his fists tightly, angry that he couldn't play in the game until the end. His whole body was trembling, and Hanayuki, who was sitting beside him, could feel it. As much as she would like to comfort him, she could not do so, as she had to concentrate on the game. Without looking at Rukawa, she said, "Rukawa-kun. You have done a great job. You should leave the rest to your team-mates now." Her hand reached out to touch his.
On the court, Maki was attacking again, and took a shot. However, Akagi covered Maki's line of sight and the ball bounced off the rim. Akagi jumped up and successfully got the rebound.
In the audience stand, Uozumi was so motivated by Akagi's performance (despite his injury) that he stood up from where he was seated and shouted to Akagi to beat Maki. The rest of the Ryonan players, including Sendoh, stood up to show their support to Shohoku. Hanayuki looked up at them and caught Sendoh's eye. She smiled at him before turning her attention back to the game.
One minute left. Akagi and Sakuragi found themselves tightly guarded by Maki and Takasago respectively. Finding Mitsui free, Akagi passed the ball to him. Kogure however, noticed that Mitsui was distracted and breathing heavily. As the ball whizzed past Mitsui, Kogure somehow managed to grab the ball and threw it back into the court, before the ball hit Kiyota's knee.
With only 45 seconds left, the referee declared that the ball belonged to Shohoku. As an act of encouragement, Sakuragi delivered a hand-chop to Mitsui's head to wake him up, and was hand-chopped in return by Mitsui. Akagi then told Sakuragi that rebound was the key to winning the game and that, this time, he should make an offensive dunk without hesitation should he get the ball. If he's too far from the basket, he should pass it to him (Akagi).
As the game restarted, Mitsui passed the ball to Kogure, but was blocked by Kiyota. He then passed to Miyagi, who was unable to elude Miyamasu. Miyagi passed back to Mitsui, who attempted a three-point shot, but the ball bounced off the rim. Sakuragi was having difficulty getting the rebound due to Takasago's tight guarding. As a result, Takasago got the ball, only to have Miyagi break through the inner zone and tap it out of his hand.
Sakuragi quickly recovered the ball and faked a shot, causing Takasago to jump up prematurely. Free from guard, Sakuragi leaped up to dunk, knocking down Maki who tried to block him, and scored (88-90). Maki was fouled and Sakuragi was given a free throw. By this time, everyone on Shohoku's side of the bench was standing up, including Rukawa, who had earlier on shouted to Sakuragi not to miss the shot.
As Sakuragi prepared to shoot, he remembered Akagi's final words to the team in the locker room before the game started. Using his unique method, Sakuragi deliberately missed the free throw, hoping that Akagi would get the rebound. Akagi did get the ball, and, as if everything was planned before hand, he passed it to Mitsui who shot. Kiyota jumped up to block the shot, but Mitsui was confident that the ball would go in. Therefore, he was shocked when the ball bounced off the rim.
10 seconds left. Maki got the rebound, but Sakuragi tapped it out of his grasp and gained possession of the ball. Guarded fiercely by Jin and Maki, and remembering Akagi's instruction to him a while ago, he passed to the person under the basket, believing it to be Akagi.
Alas, it turned out to be Takasago. The buzzer was sounded, and the game was over. Kainan had successfully defended their winning streak. Everyone in the Shohoku team, in and out of the court, was shocked to silence, some even tears, by the loss.
"Hey."
Mitsui turned to face the person calling him. It was Kiyota. "That was close."
Mitsui's eyes widened in surprised. "You touched the ball?"
Holding up his hand, Kiyota said, "Only the tip of the fingernail," and smirked.
Hanayuki saw their exchange. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but seeing Kiyota holding up his bloodied finger, she understood what had happened. Smiling bitterly to herself, she thought, Of course, he is part of the Kainan team after all. What more can we expect from a Kainan player? She watched with a heavy heart as her brother cried on the court.
In the hallways...
Hanayuki stood in front of the vending machine and fed in some coins. She pressed on the button and waited. Nothing came out of the machine. She pressed the button again. Still, nothing came out. She pressed the button again. And again. And again. It wasn't long before Hanayuki was thumping her fists on the machine and kicking it, all the while cursing in English.
"Stupid fucking machine! How dare you cheat my money! Stupid dumb machine! Give me back my money! Fuck!"
Slowly, her curses trailed off, her thumping and kicking ceased, and she slid onto the floor. Hugging her knees to her chest, she buried her head between them and started crying. She didn't want to cry. In fact, the fact that she had managed to hold back the tears and put on an expressionless face all the while when she was with the team had made her feel proud of herself. But, all it took was a faulty vending machine to open up the dams and let the tears flow freely down her face.
She gasped and sat up immediately when she felt a pair of arms wrap themselves around her. Turning around, she found herself looking at Rukawa, whose face was as emotionless as always, but whose eyes were so full of emotion, it was almost unnerving looking at them.
"Rukawa-kun..." she croaked, trying to stop herself from bursting into another round of tears. But, as Rukawa gathered her fully in his arms, she buried her head into his chest and started crying all over again. Rukawa rested his head on hers and stroked her hair gently, which, by the way, was no longer tied back, since she had broken the clip out of frustration and disappointment after the game.
Amidst her cries and sobs, she said, "Look at me. What kind of a coach am I? Crying's supposed to be the last thing I should be doing after a game. And that's exactly what I am doing now. Crying. I'm hopeless."
Rukawa kept quiet for a while, before he said, "I'm sorry. It's all my fault."
Hanayuki quickly lifted her head to look at him and shook her head. "No. It's not your fault. It's not anybody's fault." She paused for a while, before saying, "I am not saying that we never had the chance to win against Kainan, but... this is Kainan we are talking about. We don't lack in skills. We don't lack in confidence. What we lack in is experience. And... and maybe a little bit of luck..." Her voice trailed off.
Rukawa wiped off the tears on her face with his hands, and then kissed her forehead. Hanayuki rested her head on his shoulders. Sighing, she said softly, "I'm worried about oniichan. It's not his fault that we lost. It was never his fault. I hope that he wouldn't take it too hard upon himself."
He wouldn't. I wouldn't let him, Rukawa thought to himself.
"Ahem."
Both Hanayuki and Rukawa broke from their embrace and looked up to see the whole Kainan team standing in front of them. While Takato-sensei, Maki and the other seniors looked embarrassed, Kiyota was smiling mischievously.
Rukawa stood up first and gave his hand to Hanayuki to help her get to her feet as well. Smiling apologetically, she bowed to Takato-sensei and extended her hand. "Gomen, Takato-sensei. Omedetou gozaimas, on your team's victory. Oh, and by the way, my name is Tsukino Hanayuki. Yoroshiku."
While Takato-sensei shook her hand, Maki was looking at her curiously. He thought that somehow, with her hair down, Hanayuki looked much younger than she had looked when her hair was tied back. Not only Maki, but the rest of the team thought the same too.
In the meantime, Rukawa was staring at Kiyota icily, as the latter kept on smiling mischievously (it was almost wickedly) at him.
"Hey, Rukawa. I didn't know you prefer older women. Perhaps I should recommend my aunt to you. She's 50 this year and still not married. I wouldn't mind having you as my unc- ITAI!" He didn't have the chance to finish his sentence, for Maki had given him a reallyhard punch on the head. And it was a good thing he did too. Rukawa was about to punch him out himself, if it wasn't for Hanayuki noticing quickly and holding him back.
Maki apologised for Kiyota's rudeness, and Hanayuki smiled graciously at his apology, saying that it was nothing. Despite that, she was beginning to dislike the Kainan freshman herself, and so set out to give him, and his team-mates, a shock. She looked at Kiyota, who was still kneeling on the floor, clutching his head in his hands, and said, "Kiyota-san, Rukawa-kun and I are very good friends."
Kiyota looked up at her, still clutching his head. Smiling sweetly at him, Hanayuki continued, "Besides, Kiyota-san, I am at the same age as you are." She happily took in the shock and disbelief that was written all over his face. She was aware that the rest of the Kainan members were also shocked beyond words, but she didn't care about them. It was Kiyota she wanted to get back at, and she was enjoying every second of it. Rukawa himself was trying to resist the urge to smirk.
And then, as if to answer Kiyota's unspoken question, Hanayuki nodded her head and said, "Oh yes, Kiyota-san. I am a first-year student at Shohoku myself, just like Rukawa-kun here. In fact, we are classmates." Kiyota could only open and close his mouth like a goldfish.
From the background, Hanayuki could hear Mitsui calling for her. A little disappointed that she couldn't continue shocking Kiyota any further, she turned to Takato-sensei and Maki and bowed to them again. "Gomen, Takato-sensei, Maki-san. I think I'd better get going. Anyway, congratulations again."
Turning around, she walked towards Rukawa, who was waiting for her with his hand outstretched. She took it, and together, they left the Kainan team staring at their backs, and Kiyota still opening and closing his mouth like a goldfish.
The next night...
Ring!
"Who is it?" Hanayuki called out. There was no answer. She walked to the door and cautiously opened it.
"Rukawa-kun? What are you doing here?" she asked. Then she saw the bruises all over his face. "What happened to your face?"
Rukawa just stood there in front of her and shrugged. A little irritated, she pulled him into the house and said, "Right. I should have known that you wouldn't say a thing. Anyway, just go sit down somewhere while I go get some ice-pack for your bruises. You can do that, can't you?"
She disappeared into the kitchen. When she came out, she was holding an ice-pack in one hand, a towel in the other, and walked towards Rukawa, who had already seated himself on the sofa in the living room.
"Now, sit still, alright?" she said, and started dabbing the ice-pack which was wrapped in the towel at the bruises on his face. They were silent for a while, and then she asked, "Who did you fight with this time?"
A careless shrug. Fully expecting it, she continued, "You promised me you won't fight again, you know."
"I said maybe," came the reply, earning him a sharp glance from Hanayuki. Her eyes narrowed dangerously, and she stopped what she was doing.
Dropping the ice-pack into his hands, she said, "Fine. Then you can treat the bruises yourself." She went back into the kitchen, coming out a few seconds later with a small bucket of ice-cream, and plopped down on the sofa, ignoring Rukawa, who was watching her every move. She concentrated on the ice-cream and the song playing on her stereo, 'Suka-retto', the only Japanese song she listened to. Neither of them spoke throughout the whole song.
Surprisingly, when the song ended, it was Rukawa who broke the silence. "You like that song?"
Hanayuki looked at him in surprise, completely forgetting that she was supposed to ignore him. Blinking a few times, she shrugged and said, "Well, yes, I do. Since it's the only Japanese song I listen to anyway. You like it too?"
He nodded. Hanayuki raised her eyebrows. "That's surprising. I never thought you would like this kind of songs. It's a rather sad song, don't you think?"
"It's the only soft and slow song that I like."
Hanayuki smiled at him, and then returned to eating her ice-cream. Another moment of silence ensued between them before, once again, it was broken by Rukawa.
"What song is this?" he asked, referring to the song that was now being played on her stereo.
"It's a Chinese Mandarin song, 'Huang Hun'. It means sunset," she answered him. "One of my favourite songs."
"Sunset..." Rukawa whispered, almost inaudibly. Their gazes locked for a while, before Hanayuki looked away.
Deciding to change the subject, she said, "I went to oniichan's house this evening, but there was nobody at home. I am really getting worried about him. I hope he comes to school tomorrow, or at least, come to practice tomorrow."
"He will," said Rukawa. Hanayuki looked at him, eyeing him suspiciously. And then, slowly, realisation dawned upon her.
"You were fighting with him, weren't you?" Getting no answer from him, she considered her suspicions confirmed. "Where did you meet him, Rukawa-kun?"
"Locker room."
"What was he doing there?"
"Being a do'aho." Hanayuki sweatdropped.
"Ooo-kay. Other than that?"
"Brooding."
"Ah... and so you decided to um... 'knock' some senses into him." Shaking her head, she said, "I can never understand you guys. Your idea of knocking some sense into each other is to engage in a fight, and an almost-brutal one at that. Couldn't you guys do it some other way? Anyway, how is he?"
"Still a do'aho."
"Uh-huh. I take that as he's still breathing. That's good." Hanayuki stood up and went into the kitchen again to dispose of the empty bucket of ice-cream. Coming out of the kitchen, she yawned and said, "Well, I'm going to sleep. Good night."
Halfway up the stairs, she stopped and turned around. "By the way, Rukawa-kun. Thank you. About oniichan." She smiled, and then continued on her way.
Rukawa remained seated on the sofa, slowly dabbing his bruised face with the not-so-cold-anymore ice-pack. When he heard the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs, he turned to see Hanayuki looking at him.
"I almost forgot to tell you. As usual, make yourself at home, feel free to sleep anywhere, yadda yadda... Just make sure you remember this. Stay away from my room. Get it? Stay. Away. From. My. Room. That's all. Good night." In a flash, she was gone.
Hmm...
The next morning...
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Rukawa was awakened from his slumber by a piercing scream. Before he could even swing his fist, he found himself being hit endlessly by something soft, but nevertheless big. He struggled to sit up, his hands held up in front of his face. He opened his eyes a little to take a peek.
"Stupid, stupid Rukawa! I thought I told you to stay away from my room. Don't you understand simple Japanese? I specifically told you to stay away from my room. Do you have any idea how shocked I was to see you sleeping beside me the moment I opened my eyes? Do you really want me to die from a heart attack, you stupid boy? Some friend you are, always shocking me to my wits end! Take that!" Hanayuki shouted at Rukawa, all the while hitting him non-stop with her pillow.
Rukawa tried to stop the smile from forming on his lips, and although he managed to minimize it to the minimum, it didn't escape from Hanayuki's keen eyesight.
"Is that a smile I see on your face? Why you! How dare you smile! Take that, and that, and that!"
Sigh... such a pity. The only time our famous Super Rookie Ice King decided to smile, only to be punished for it.