Shikime Natsu followed the members of Class A and soon arrived at the indoor gymnasium.
The hardware facilities of this school could be called luxurious, and the internal space was quite spacious. In the center was a standard basketball court, the floor polished until it was shiny.
Shikime Natsu stood by the sidelines, looking at the hoop, calculating slightly in his heart. If he wanted to flex here, just having physical fitness wasn't enough; he had to have some genuine technical skills.
Although he had obtained tennis skills capable of fighting aliens from Amikura Mako, when it came to basketball... to be honest, he wasn't proficient. He hadn't even played it before. He had only felt his blood boil while watching Slam Dunk.
Of course, if he relied on his 'Double A' stats in strength and speed, it would be a breeze to crush some noobs. It was just that fighting like that would be too simple and crude, lacking a sense of beauty.
"Students of Class A and Class D, line up!"
The PE teacher blew his whistle, signaling the students of the two classes to assemble.
"Today's lesson content is basketball."
As soon as the teacher's voice fell, a distinctively discordant voice immediately rang out from the Class D queue.
"Hehe, speaking of basketball, that is this great master's strong point!"
Shikime Natsu didn't even need to turn his head. Just hearing that wretched voice carrying a few hints of arrogance, he knew who the speaker was. Aside from that pseudo-human Yamauchi Haruki, who else could it be? Had the effect of guilt already ended? What a pity.
It had to be said, this guy really was an all-around talent. Not only could he play baseball, but he could also play tennis, and now he claimed basketball was his strong point. Coupled with his usual posturing as if he were giving guidance to the world, those who didn't know better would think he was some retired sports superstar.
"Really? Haruki, you can play basketball too?"
The chiming in that followed immediately came from his good buddy Ike Kanji—no need to even think about it. The sound of their call-and-response communication could be heard clearly by everyone in the entire gymnasium.
Quite a few surrounding students cast gazes of disdain or looked at them like they were fools, but these two seemed completely unaware, still immersed in their own little world. However, it was fortunate that Class D's Class Points had already returned to zero. They belonged to the typical category of "those with bare feet don't fear those wearing shoes."
Even if points were deducted for this kind of classroom discipline issue, it was estimated to just be a numerical change without any actual loss. Though, one wondered if Class D managed to turn things around and gain points in the midterm exam, would these deductions be settled later?
Of course, since it was PE class, the atmosphere was relatively relaxed. The teacher only frowned and didn't rebuke them excessively.
"Alright, everyone do warm-up exercises first."
The teacher clapped his hands and began organizing the students to loosen up their muscles and bones.
"After the warm-up ends, I will teach everyone some basic dribbling and shooting techniques. Of course, this isn't mandatory. If there are students who don't like playing basketball, you can move freely or rest on the side after the warm-up ends."
Speaking to this point, the teacher paused and threw out a heavy-weight bait.
"However, if there is a student who performs outstandingly in the upcoming basketball test, I can reward him with 5,000 Private Points."
"5,000 points?!"
Hearing this number, the eyes of the Class D crowd instantly lit up. For them, who had zero income this month, 5,000 points was simply a huge sum of money!
"Good! I'm definitely taking these 5,000 points!"
Yamauchi Haruki delivered his acceptance speech immediately. That confident appearance made it seem as if the points had already been transferred to his card.
"Come on, Haruki."
Although Ike Kanji usually liked to suck up, he still had a bit of self-awareness at critical moments.
"If we're talking about playing basketball, surely Ken is a bit more powerful, right? After all, Ken is in the basketball club, and I heard he's about to be selected as a regular player soon."
Hearing this, Yamauchi Haruki wasn't embarrassed. He immediately borrowed the slope to get off the donkey, changing his tune:
"Indeed, if it's Ken, then there's definitely no problem."
"Hey, Ken! Take down these 5,000 points, and remember to treat us to a meal! We don't want to eat that damn mountain vegetable set meal anymore!"
With the encouragement of his two "stooges," Sudou Ken, who had been rubbing his fists and wiping his palms on the side, also shouted loudly, patting his chest as he spoke:
"Rest assured! Leave it to me!"
It had to be said, although Sudou Ken had a violent and irritable personality and his brain wasn't too sharp, he indeed possessed capital for pride in terms of sports. Those solid muscle lines were smooth; while not as exaggerated as Kouenji Rokusuke looking like a bodybuilding champion, one could tell at a glance he was an athlete who exercised frequently.
Soon, the warm-up exercises ended. The teacher spoke up again:
"Alright, students who want to participate in the test, please step out now."
"I'm coming!"
Sudou Ken was the first to raise his hand, walking to the front of the queue with large strides. Seeing Sudou Ken sign up, Yamauchi Haruki, who had originally been clamoring to take the points, chose to give up very naturally. This kind of behavior—"a giant in words, a dwarf in action"—naturally garnered quite a few gazes of disdain again.
But Yamauchi Haruki didn't care at all. Anyway, Sudou Ken was also a member of their "Yamauchi Haruki Trio." Hey, hey, hey, do you understand the gold content of a three-man group named after himself? If Sudou Ken won, rounding it up meant that he, Yamauchi Haruki, won. Nothing wrong with that.
On the Class A side, the atmosphere seemed somewhat deserted. Everyone looked at each other; it seemed no one wanted to go up and join the fun.
Although Katsuragi Kouhei was large in build, he was actually a typical "brain type" and wasn't good at this kind of intense ball sport, so he stood in place with self-awareness. As for Kitou Hayato, he also looked very good at sports, but he didn't like to show off in this kind of setting because he was inferior about his appearance. His dream was to enter the fashion industry, and graduating from Class A to get that guarantee was his goal.
Totsuka Yahiko and Hashimoto Masayoshi also had no intention of taking the field, but their gazes invariably turned toward Shikime Natsu. Shikime Natsu looked somewhat interested.
"Does Shiki-san also want to try?"
Instantly, the attention of the entire venue was attracted to Shikime Natsu. Handsome guy + basketball = perfection.
Over at Class D, the small group of girls led by Karuizawa Kei also walked over.
"Eh? Is Shikime-san participating too?"
Karuizawa Kei was wearing sportswear, holding a basketball in her hands, looking at Shikime Natsu with some curiosity. Shikime Natsu turned his head, his eyes happening to meet Karuizawa Kei's gaze.
[CG43: Do you like playing basketball? (Karuizawa Kei)]
[Shikime playing basketball must surely be very handsome too!]
[Congratulations Host for obtaining Skill Card: Basketball Master (The current you can exchange moves even with superpower basketball players)]
Shikime Natsu couldn't help but sigh with emotion in his heart; he didn't expect to be so lucky. Now he had casually obtained another decent technique. Feeling the massive amount of basketball skills and muscle memory instantly flooding into his mind, the corners of Shikime Natsu's mouth hooked up into a confident arc.
Cheats, activate!
Although 5,000 points wasn't much to the current him, even a mosquito was meat. So Shikime Natsu also chose to participate.
Class A representative: Shikime Natsu.
Class D representative: Sudou Ken.
The confrontation between the two instantly ignited the atmosphere of the whole venue. Shikime Natsu's peripheral vision glanced at a corner.
He saw that man with long blond hair, narcissistic to the extreme, Kouenji Rokusuke, sitting on a bench with his eyes closed. He had a look of enjoyment, seeming to be performing some kind of meditation. The muscle lines on that guy's body were simply as perfect as a sculpture, full of explosive power.
Was this guy not participating? Being in Class D, did he not lack Private Points? However, Shikime Natsu didn't place too much focus on Kouenji Rokusuke, instead placing it on the PE teacher in front of him.
The teacher simply demonstrated the standard dribbling method and shooting posture, then tossed two basketballs to Sudou Ken and Shikime Natsu respectively.
"The rules are very simple. First, conduct shooting training. Everyone has 5 shooting opportunities; the shooting spot is your choice. Scoring from outside the three-point line gets 3 points, inside the three-point line gets 1 point. The one with the highest final score can take those 5,000 Private Points. If the scores are the same, a 1-on-1 single-man confrontation will be held."
Sudou Ken looked at Shikime Natsu with full confidence. He knew Shikime Natsu played tennis well, but tennis and basketball were not the same thing.
"I can go first, right?" Sudou Ken glanced at Shikime Natsu and spoke.
Shikime Natsu shrugged indifferently and made a "please" gesture. "Please do."
Sudou Ken took the ball and actually walked directly outside the three-point line.
"Woah!"
A burst of low cries rang out around them. He actually chose a three-pointer directly?
Sudou Ken took a deep breath, adjusted his posture, jumped, and released. The basketball traced a graceful parabola in the air.
Swish!
Hollow net entry!
"Good shot!"
Yamauchi Haruki and Ike Kanji immediately let out exaggerated cheers, as if Sudou Ken had already won. He secured 3 points. Sudou Ken revealed a trace of smugness on his face, then immediately shot the second ball.
Clang!
The basketball hit the edge of the rim and bounced out. Missed. Sudou Ken frowned, adjusted his breathing, and released the third ball.
Bang!
This time the force was slightly too much; the basketball hit the backboard and bounced away. Missed again. Having missed two consecutive balls, Yamauchi Haruki and Ike Kanji, who were cheering just now, suddenly became somewhat anxious.
"Hey! Ken! Don't show off!" Yamauchi Haruki shouted loudly. "Hurry up and move forward a bit! Even if it's just a one-point shot, it's fine! As long as you shoot two more one-pointers in, you'll have 5 points! That guy Shikime, even if he has good luck and bluffs a few in, can't possibly make them all, right? 5 points is absolutely a guaranteed win! This is 5,000 points! Steady! Don't be reckless!"
Hearing his companion's shouts, Sudou Ken hesitated. Although he really wanted to continue attempting three-pointers to prove himself, reason told him that for the sake of the points, he should indeed play it safe.
Thus, he walked forward a few steps very reluctantly, arriving at a position in front of the backboard where scoring was relatively easy. Jump, shoot.
Swish! Swish!
Both balls went in. Adding the three points from the first ball, he took a total of 5 points.
"Awesome! Steady, steady!"
Yamauchi Haruki and Ike Kanji breathed a sigh of relief and cheered again. In their view, a score of 5 points was already an insurmountable mountain for an amateur player who wasn't in the basketball club. Even if Shikime Natsu knew how to play tennis, surely he didn't understand stuff like basketball, right?
Next, the pressure was given to Shikime Natsu's side. Everyone looked at Shikime Natsu somewhat nervously. After all, besides tennis, they had never heard of Shikime Natsu's performance in other sports events. Could he really beat Sudou Ken?
It had to be said, that hollow three-pointer from Sudou Ken just now indeed gave everyone quite a shock. No wonder he could be fancied by the basketball club; even if he wasn't a shooting guard, this touch was quite good.
Shikime Natsu held the basketball and walked onto the court with a calm expression. Just when everyone thought he would choose to play it safe and walk under the backboard to shoot one-pointers...
He stopped his footsteps.
That position was... outside the three-point line!
Hiss—
A sound of sucking in cold breath rang out across the venue. Did Shikime Natsu also want to shoot three-pointers?
"Hahahaha! Trying to make me die of laughter!" Yamauchi Haruki shouted his mockery directly upon seeing this. "Who do you think you are? You also want to learn from Ken and shoot threes? Stop dreaming! You definitely can't do it! Ken is a professional!"
Facing Yamauchi Haruki's noise pollution, Shikime Natsu didn't even lift an eyelid. He just gently patted the basketball in his hand, feeling that familiar texture and weight. That feeling was like it was innate.
Cheat, activate!
Jump, hang in the air, a light flick of the wrist, release the ball. The movements were flowing clouds and flowing water, so standard they were simply like a textbook.
The first ball.
Swish!
The basketball entered the net in response to the sound. The crisp sound made the mockery of the entire venue instantly get stuck in their throats.
The second ball.
Swish!
Another hollow net entry. The following three balls were also all hit!
Five shots, five hits. All three-pointers! Total score: 15 points!
The entire venue was silent. Everyone opened their mouths wide, staring blankly at the young man standing in the center of the court, as if they had seen an alien.
Was this... Shikime Natsu's strength? This was too outrageous, right?!
It wasn't until a few seconds later that cheers like thunder suddenly erupted.
"Shiki-san! Too awesome!!!"
Totsuka Yahiko was so excited his face was red and his neck was thick, shouting until his voice was hoarse. Even the PE teacher at the side watched in a daze, his eyeballs almost popping out.
He walked quickly to Shikime Natsu and asked with an excited face: "Shikime-kun! Do you... do you have any interest in developing in the direction of a professional basketball player? With your talent and touch, you are absolutely a future superstar!"
Shikime Natsu smiled and shook his head. "Sorry, Sensei, I don't have this plan. This is just... a little hobby."
As soon as his voice fell, he was completely surrounded by a group of girls from Class A and Class D.
"Shikime-san! You're so amazing!"
"Shikime-san, can you teach me to play basketball?"
Looking at Shikime Natsu clustered in the middle by girls, like stars cupping the moon, Yamauchi Haruki was so angry his teeth itched. Not only did he watch helplessly as those 5,000 points flew away, but he also had to watch that guy Shikime Natsu steal all the limelight. This feeling was simply more uncomfortable than killing him.
"Damn it..."
He hid in the corner, muttering to himself indignantly. "If I had gone up... I absolutely wouldn't have let this guy be so arrogant! I can also make three-pointers! Really!"
Of course, no one paid him any attention. Sudou Ken was also staring blankly at Shikime Natsu. Being so good at shooting, and with movements so standard—this was the first guy he had seen who was so good at shooting since entering this school. If he let this guy join the basketball club as a shooting guard... maybe they could make it to the nationals.
Soon, the PE class ended in this enthusiastic atmosphere.
"Alright, today's class ends here."
The teacher checked the time and announced the dismissal. "Finally, two people are needed to stay behind to pack up the equipment. Then... Class A's Shikime Natsu, and Class D's Karuizawa Kei, you two are responsible for retrieving the basketballs and putting them back in the equipment room."
____
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