Chapter 224: Haruka: Yoshi, let me use Hachiman for a bit!
"Airi, are you still doing okay?"
"Mhm~ I can manage."
"Then shall I pick up the speed a little?"
Hikigaya carried Sakura Airi on his back, moving briskly across the lawn.
"Eee~" Under the influence of inertia, Sakura Airi's body leaned backward. She instinctively leaned forward, wrapping both arms around Hikigaya's head.
Hikigaya only felt his vision go dark.
'What is this that has shielded his eyes?'
"S-sorry!" Sakura Airi hurriedly sat back up straight.
"Thanks for the treat."
"Eh, eh?!"
"I'm joking."
"I hate you~~"
Hikigaya said that to lighten the atmosphere.
"Airi, during the competition, try your best not to lower your head."
The rule of the cavalry battle is that one person acts as the "horse" and another as the "rider" within a specific area, competing to snatch the headband worn on the opponent's head. The action of lowering one's head easily exposes a weakness, allowing the opponent to take the headband.
"Yes, I understand." Sakura Airi nodded earnestly.
The two practiced for a while longer. Sakura Airi finally gained a preliminary grasp of balance.
"Hachiman-kun, aren't you tired?
How about we take a break first?"
Sakura Airi noticed the beads of sweat on his forehead and felt distressed for him.
"No matter, my endurance is alright."
Hikigaya indicated it wasn't a problem.
To be honest, if it were manual labor, he would complain about being tired even if he wasn't—his main principle was to slack off whenever possible.
But carrying a beautiful girl full of vitality and smelling the sweet fragrance drifting from her body, he didn't know the meaning of fatigue at all!
"Oh my, oh my~ The two partners are practicing quite well~~"
Hasabe Haruka, who had gone to the equipment room for a full half-hour, finally arrived late.
"Haruka!" Sakura Airi felt embarrassed and proactively got off Hikigaya's back.
"I feel so tired, how about we practice the two-legged race tomorrow?" Hikigaya said casually.
"No way! How can Hachiman favor beauty over... beauty?" Hasabe Haruka placed her hands on her hips, accusing him with feigned anger.
"Haruka, that idiom isn't used that way, is it?" Hikigaya looked speechless.
"It's all the same anyway!
Also, when there are no outsiders around, call me Haruka!" Hasabe Haruka corrected him.
Sakura Airi smiled faintly and proactively stepped aside: "Hachiman-kun, Haruka, I'll go buy some water for you guys."
"Yoshi~ I'll borrow Hachiman for a bit then!" Hasabe Haruka gave her a thumbs-up.
"You two really get along well." Hikigaya's gaze was somewhat subtle.
Thinking back to the experiences in his dreams where the two of them tried to "steal each other's home base," it was truly hard to keep a straight face.
"That's a given! Besties for life!" Hasabe Haruka spoke with absolute certainty.
"I hope so..." Hikigaya shook his head, pushing the stray thoughts out of his mind.
"Here~ it's our turn to practice!" Hasabe Haruka handed him a bundle of straps.
"Yes, yes~ Since when did you care so much about the sports festival?"
After taking the straps, Hikigaya squatted down. He bound their legs together and secured them.
"Heh~ Hachiman's calf muscles are quite developed." Hasabe Haruka teased playfully.
"Your legs are just too thin, no muscle at all."
"Thanks for the compliment~"
"I wasn't complimenting you! Ibuki from the class next door is small, but her legs are very solid... Ouch!"
Hasabe Haruka suddenly reached out and pinched the soft flesh at his waist hard, glaring at him crossly.
"How do you know about that Ibuki person's legs?"
"I'm in the same club as her. It's normal to press each other's legs during warm-up exercises, isn't it?"
"Shut up! When you're with me, you're not allowed to mention other girls' names!!"
"That phrasing sounds a lot like a girlfriend's line."
"Eee! Is Hachiman finally unable to hold back and wants to confess to me?"
"Your topics jump around too much."
"No can do~ Hachiman belongs to Airi."
"Hey, hey?"
"But~ let me inspect you first, surely Airi wouldn't mind?"
"Can you understand human speech?"
To prevent her from continuing to talk nonsense, Hikigaya started walking. Tugged by the strap, Hasabe Haruka was forced to start walking as well.
However, before taking two steps, she tripped.
"Kya~ Hachiman, don't go so fast all of a sudden..."
"I think your concentration is just lacking!"
Hikigaya put one arm around her shoulder and helped her up.
"Let's continue."
"...Can we rest for a bit?" Hasabe Haruka wore a look of suffering.
"No, this is an important sports festival." Hikigaya stared with his dead-fish eyes.
"Why does that line sound so familiar?"
The tables had turned.
"Ready, start running!"
"One-two, one-two, one-two..."
A moment later. Hasabe Haruka collapsed on the grass, panting and exhausted. Just then, Sakura Airi returned with fruit juice.
"Haruka, are you okay?"
"Heh~ that's what happens when you don't exercise normally."
Hikigaya gloated. He didn't feel tired even after practicing two sessions by himself.
"Waaa~ Airi, how about we swap competition events?
I want to ride Hachiman too~~"
Hasabe Haruka hugged her best friend's thigh and acted spoiled.
"Well, about that..." Sakura Airi looked a bit troubled.
"No." Hikigaya refused.
"Why? I'm the same size as Airi, aren't I?" Hasabe Haruka held up her chest with both hands, expressing her dissatisfaction.
"Haruka!" Sakura Airi's face instantly turned red to her ears, thinking that the other was being way too improper.
"..." Hikigaya's gaze paused for a moment, and his mind wavered.
However, to divert attention, he chose to nitpick: "Airi's waist is a bit slimmer than yours."
"Wh-what?!" Hasabe Haruka instinctively opened her arms and circled Airi's waist. Then she measured it against herself and was instantly struck as if by lightning.
"It's... it's only a tiny bit thicker..." Hasabe Haruka held out two fingers, gesturing the distance between her fingertips.
"A fingertip universe." Hikigaya intentionally widened the distance between the two fingers.
"Baka Hachiman! Can you stop being so... Hachiman?" Hasabe Haruka was instantly so angry she started cursing.
"Wait? Hachiman isn't a curse word, is it?"
The corner of Hikigaya's mouth twitched wildly.
"Airi, you be the judge!
Eh~ shall we drink some juice first?" Sakura Airi was caught in the middle.
"Fine then, Airi, whose side are you on? Is it me who's important, or is it Hachiman?"
Hasabe Haruka was relentless.
"You're both very important!" Sakura Airi's face grew anxious, and she stepped forward to hug the two of them.
"Whether it's Hachiman-kun or Haruka, I like you both the best!"
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