Chapter 9

Blue Team 18, Red Team 12

The next afternoon, Nyamo announced the next event for this battle.

"The next event is the Team Relay Obstacle Course." She announced, "In this event, five members will be racing through the course that Yukari and Miss Anegasaki created. First, you have to go through the tire path…"

A field of tires is laid about, on the track.

"Next, you must swing over the huge vat of mud, full of dirt clods and thick round pillows. Yukari had to make it more fluffy and muddy, at the same time."

A huge pool of mud and pillows was shown, like it was a king-sized soup.

"Then, you must crawl under a net, full of thorns and nails, mounted on the ground, like it was an army training net. After that, you go to the nurse's office, while the 4th teammate climb up a slippery wall that Miss Anegasaki created."

Anegasaki replied, "I call it the "Slick Wall"."

Nyamo stated, "And finally, you must run around each of the huge wooden trees, while you serpentine to the clear path."

Itoko said, "In this, the first runner will start off, until you go through the track. Once you go through the wood obstacles, the first runner that you give back the item will race to the finish line."

Nyamo said, "For this, the first person to finish gets 5 points. Anybody who tries to use a short cut, or anybody who drops their baton, is disqualified."

Chiyo smiled, "This is great."

Itoko said, "Now, for this, each team pick who you'll do the race with. Remember, your own team must help out."

Chiyo gulped, "WHAT?"

Osaka asked, "Wow. I guess we cannot choose our rivals, huh?"

Chiyo slapped her and snarled, "Shut up, Miss Osaka!"

She growled, "Why? Tenma is the weakest… and there are six players that have athletic form, like Miss Sakaki…"

Tenma and Karasuma aren't athletic.

She continued to brood, as Yomi grew concerned, "I wonder why Chiyo is angry."

Seems that the Azu Girls are concerned about Chiyo-Chan, but they didn't know that she wants Tenma finished.

The Red Team chose their players. Sakaki will run for the start and finish.

"I'll do it," she said.

Kaorin called, "I'll race, too!"

Tomo smirked, "Then, I shall do so. Hopefully, I am going to run through this race, easily."

Yomi said, "Good. You take the thorn net."

Tomo pleaded, "That's not what I meant! I can't go through that!"

She blushed, "Not while Harima is watching me…"

Kagura sneered, "Is that so? Why do you love him?"

Tomo smiled, "No reason… But I cannot say… He's such a hot stud in whiskers."

Osaka asked, "Any idea who would do the mud one? I'll do it."

"Chiyo-Chan, what about you?" Yomi asked.

Chiyo said, "I'll sit this one out."

Yomi said, "Okay. Sakaki will take the start off, while Osaka takes the mud swing. Tomo will go to the barbed wire net, while Kaorin will take the slippery wall."

"NO!" Kaorin cried, "I'll take the fifth leg and give it to Sakaki!"

Yomi nodded, "Okay. So, the order for each runner is Sakaki, Osaka, Tomo, Kagura, and Kaorin."

Kagura said, "Easy. I can take a slippery wall that Yagami's nurse made! So much I can take!"

Tomo giggled, "As long as the wall isn't oily."

Sakaki blushed, "Thinking… back… I never even went through tires, before. Maybe I can map these out."

She gasped, "Maybe a kitten might be in there…"

She then imagined how she would go through the tires…

The pistol was shot, as Sakaki ran through the long tires, hoping each leg, left and right. However, when she made it halfway…

Meow…

A gray and white kitten was in one tire, staring at her. She stopped and blushed, not moving.

"I… I can't… go through…" she moaned, "I'm too scared to hurt it."

Sakaki felt uneasy, as she remembered if the kitten would appear. Sakaki then said, "I'm out."

She sat down and felt uneasy about the tire path.

Yomi groaned, "Oh, man…"

She insisted on taking her place. Chiyo sighed, "Well, I can always wait until the Egg Put."

She went for a walk and thought, "I should take a breather, in case anything goes awry."

XXXXXX

As for the Blue Team, Eri suggested her teammates' order.

"In short, we should pit the most athletic, and work our way up. Remember, the stronger we use, the easier we'll win."

Yakumo said, "I'm out."

Karasuma added, "Ditto."

Hanai barked, "So, in order of athletic endeavors, it will be, in order, Suo, myself, Harima, Sawachika, and Takano."

Harima said, "I suppose I could help out."

He thought, "I do this for Tenma, of course…"

Eri said, "So, it's agreed."

Mikoto asked, "Say, I've been asking…"

She bellowed, "Since when do YOU give orders?"

Eri explained, "Well, we have no leader, for this, and let's not forget that these girls tied our unmentionables up a flagpole, while ruining our bodies and hair, with Nakamura's cooking! It's retribution time!"

Mikoto shouted, "Well, I'm for revenge, but Hanai deserves to lead!"

They started to bicker at each other.

"Yeah, well, I don't play ball with some girl that couldn't have a beauty inside her own thick skull!"

"ME? Look at you, prissy blonde!"

"You want a piece of me, bimbo?"

"Bimbo? How dare you?"

They growled at each other, as Tenma went between them.

"STOP!" She cried, "You're losing this team's morale! You cannot fight like this… AGAIN!"

Harima replied, "Please, you guys! If we lose this event, we'll lose everything!"

"SHUT UP!" They shouted, "STAY OUT OF THIS!"

Yakumo explained, "He's right. You cannot fight like this, all because-."

Eri and Mikoto turned away, "Hmph!"

Karasuma, "Miss Tsukamoto and I will take over for them."

Akira said, "Good idea. If you two are fighting, we cannot have your anger in it, ruining us. Tenma will take Eri's spot in the wall, while Karasuma will take the start-to-finish anchor."

Tenma was shocked, as Chiyo-Chan overheard the conversation. She snickered, as she returned to her team.

Tenma asked, "Oh! Wait! Let me take the starting position!"

She thought, "Imagine… I could get the baton from Karasuma…"

She blushed and giggled, "Karasuma… I cannot wait."

Harima then thought, "Tenma, at the start?"

He cried out, "I CALL THE SWING!"

Hanai said, "I suppose we should. In order, Miss Tsukamoto, Harima, myself, Akira, and Karasuma!"

Eri and Mikoto groaned, "Why did we say it now?"

They dropped their heads in shame, "We're screwed…"

XXXXX

Back at the Red Team, Yomi was about to give the final call. Chiyo returned and said, "Miss Yomi! WAIT!"

Yomi said, "Sorry. We have decided. I'll take the first leg and Osaka will-."

Kaorin said, "It's okay. She'll take my place."

She whimpered, "Miss Sakaki bailed on us, at the last minute!"

Chiyo said, "If it is okay, I'll take the fifth obstacle! I'm small enough to go through each wooden tree."

Yomi nodded, "Fair enough."

Tomo cheered, "ALRIGHT! Way to go, Chiyosuke!"

So, the Red Team's order is: Yomi, Osaka, Tomo, Kagura, and Chiyo. While the Blue Team's order is: Tenma, Harima, Hanai, Akira, and Karasuma.

Chiyo snickered and thought, "This is too easy. Tenma's in it, so I can watch her make a monkey out of her own self. And with me in the fifth leg of the obstacle course, and Tenma's uncanny lack of physical activity, the five points are ours."

She then said, "It'll be easy to go around these huge poles, once I give it to Miss Yomi."

And the race was about to start.

XXXXX

Yukari snickered evilly, as she announced, "Prepare yourselves… We're ready to perform the Tanizaki-Anegasaki Relay Course of DOOM!"

Nyamo sighed, "I don't care what you call it…"

Yomi and Tenma were at the starting line, as Chiyo viewed from the distance, near the tall poles.

"Could be easy…" she said, "As long as Sloth Tenma is the easy win for us."

Nyamo called, "Ready!"

She fired the pistol, as Yomi and Tenma started to run through the tires. In the middle of the course, Tenma tripped and fell, but held onto her baton. She landed, face first, onto a tire, and hit her nose.

"How dangerous," Yukari smiled.

She and Tae high-fived, as Itoko sighed, "Teachers have different types of evil in them. And here I thought Miss Anegasaki is sweet and pure."

Yomi went through the tires, as Tenma got up. Yomi gave the baton to Osaka, as she went to the swinging vat. She swung over, halfway, and plummeted into the vat of mud, with a SPLAT! Osaka let out a giggle, as she swam up, holding the baton. However, it slipped out of her hand and sunk inside.

Osaka gasped, "AH!"

Tenma ran off, heading to Harima. He let out a smile, "Tenma…"

"Harima!" She called out, "HURRY!"

"RIGHT!" He cried, as he dashed to the vat.

He thought, as he was running, "Tenma… I felt it! Tenma gave me the baton! This is awesome!"

He didn't swing. He was running that he forgot about the mud vat.

SPLOOT!

Harima sunk down, as Itoko groaned, "Moron."

Osaka arose from the mud, as Tomo snatched it. She scolded, "Do you WANT to get us disqualified?"

Osaka giggled, as she was covered in mud, "It tickles. Plus, it's so cozy."

Tomo ran off, as she saw Harima heading back to the platform, to swing over the mud.

Tomo whizzed past Hanai and shouted, "See you on the winner's circle, loser!"

Harima arrived, as he gave Hanai the baton. Hanai ran really fast, going past the Wildcat Girl. They halted, seeing that they have to go under the net.

"Simple and easy enough, Miss Takano!" Hanai barked, "I, Haruki Hanai, can challenge anything!"

Tomo bellowed, "SO DO I! I'm the Wildcat High School Girl!"

Hanai went under, as Tomo yelled, "And it's TAKINO!"

She kicked Hanai's foot, which jumped him up, scratching his body.

"AAAAAAAAAHHH!"

She went under and growled, "Now… Got to make sure it gets to Kagura…"

The baton was in her teeth, as Hanai was bleeding, heading to the end of the net.

"You think a little blood will stop me, think again!" Hanai shouted.

Tomo screamed, "Oh, yeah? Not once the net ruined my cute body!"

She got up and ran towards Kagura, giving her the baton. Kagura dashed off to the wall. Hanai panted, as he saw Tomo, running off. He saw Harima, all muddy, and ran to him.

"Kenji," she reddened.

"Tomo Takino will clean you up, Kenji!" She cheered, but…

Akira tripped her, flinging her into the net.

CRASH!

"YAAAAAH!" She screamed, as she was tangled.

Hanai said, as he gave the baton to Akira, "Thanks, I owe you one."

Akira ran off, "Don't mention it."

She went to the wall, as Kagura tried to climb up. She kept falling down, trying to go over it.

"What is this wall lubed up with, grease?" She yelled.

Akira examined it and said, "No. I think it's massage oil."

"EEW!" Kagura gasped, "Did Kimura did this wall?"

"Miss Anegasaki made it. You're thinking of someone else."

She tried to go over the wall, but with great ease. Kagura was astonished.

"How did she do that?" she thought.

She tried the wall again, and instantly fell down into the ground, dropping the baton into her shirt. She dashed off, heading to Chiyo-Chan. Karasuma was already at the poles, walking left and right, around the poles. Chiyo thought, "Whoa… That boy must be a slow runner. … Or maybe he's taking caution for Tenma."

Kagura called, "Chiyo-Chan!"

Chiyo grabbed the baton and ran to the tall poles. But…

WHAM!

She collided into the first pole and fell down. She groaned, as she swelled up in tears, "Ow. Why that dirty…"

She went around the poles, left and right, colliding at each. She grumbled, only to be too late. Tenma grabbed the baton from Karasuma and slowly ran, since she was in awe of romance.

"Karasuma… Oh… He gave me the baton…" she whispered, "This is wonderful."

However, she was going the wrong way. She was running back to start. Yomi cried out, "HEY! You're going the wrong way!"

Mikoto sighed, "What is wrong with her?"

Eri shouted, "TENMA!"

The entire Blue Team yelled at her, trying to focus, but Chiyo laughed evilly, giving the baton to Yomi. She ran to the finish line, as Tenma thought, "Wow! I never knew the whole path to the finish was long…"

She opened her eyes and gasped, "WAH!"

She plummeted into the mud vat, with Osaka and Harima stuck in it.

SPLOOSH!

Yomi ran to the finish line and panted. Chiyo was confused. She asked, "What the heck happened?"

XXXXXX

After the race, in the Blue Team's cabin, Tenma was crying in her bed, feeling upset that she ruined the race. Yakumo comforted her, as Eri said, "We had to fight… Mikoto started it, of course."

Mikoto shouted, "Excuse me? Who said that I started all this?"

Tenma bawled, "NO! NO! Stop fighting! WAH!"

Yakumo said, "There, there… It wasn't your fault."

Eri said to Mikoto, "Egg Put?"

Mikoto nodded, "Egg Put. We'll settle this, once and for all."

They shook hands and agree to take the next event.

At the Red Team's cabin, Chiyo and Osaka were in a meeting.

"We need to use our expert abilities for the next event, following the Surfing Contest. Miss Sakaki, Miss Chihiro, and Miss Yomi will participate, and since Tomo is being bandaged up, which means… if Tenma will participate, we can sabotage her."

Osaka asked, "Chiyo, don't you think the others will wise up to us? I mean, we're not bad girls, you know. But I like the idea."

She sneered, with an evil look, "You leave the sabotage to me… Heh…"

What is Osaka planning? It will happen, later on…

Blue Team 18, Red Team 17, after 8 events

To be continued…