Hikigaya shouts as he slides back, trying to catch the ball. The others watch in hopes that he will succeed. He slides all the way back to the final line of the court but stops there. He struggles with the ball for a moment more.
"We are going to win..! We are going to help Mr. Goda achieve his goal!"
He shouts before slamming his hands into the ball harder causing a large boom and dust cloud to appear suddenly. Everyone is excited to see what happened as the class coughs and bats away the dust.
"Hikigaya, are you alright?!"
Shiori calls to him but there is no answer. Slowly the dust begins to clear revealing Hikigaya standing tall, holding the ball in his right hand, still within the court. No one says a word as they are all stunned by the action. Shiori just smiles. Then the referee shakes his head, breaking free from his daze, and sharply blows his whistle.
"The ball was caught. You're out!" He shouts as he points at Eden.
"And would you look at that! Hikigaya has actually caught the ball! I would've never guessed in my entire life that anyone would've been able to do that yet here we are! A second year, no less, has caught the ball of the most devastating throw I have ever seen! We are truly getting down to the wire here!"
Shuhei cheers excitedly. Eden has a look of disbelief before beginning to cry a little.
"I'm sorry Emiko! I should've taken them all out! I should've been stronger…" Eden cries out.
"It's okay Eden."
Emiko places a hand on her shoulder and gives her a thumbs up.
"You really came out of your shell today. That's some amazing progress."
Eden timidly smiles in return.
"T-thank you..!"
As they talk for that moment, Ryuji's eyes focus on the boy in the back. He sweats a bit as the boy turns a page of the book he's reading.
'Now could be our only chance to get him, while they're distracted…'
He thinks. He then quickly grabs a ball from the ground and prepares to throw it. Emiko's eyes dart towards him but it's too late. Ryuji throws the ball hard and fast directly at the boy.
Suddenly, the ball stops right in front of him. The boy raised his hand and caught the ball before contact. Ryuji sweats and gets a look of frustration and disappointment knowing he got out.
"Emiko…"
The boy speaks. He closes his book and gently places it on the ground just outside of court lines.
"I really wish you would take your own advice." He says.
"Hey, there's only like four of them left. I knew you could handle it, Kenzo!" She says back with a smile.
"Mhm." He hums before turning his a ttention to the class. "And you lot. I really wish you wouldn't involve me in your pointless games. I chose this specific spot to stand in because it statistically is the least attacked spot with the fewest points of proper attack without disruption. I could've stayed there the whole match and not needed to move once if you didn't single me out, so why bother?"
Kenzo explains as he pushes up his glasses.
"Besides, you stand no chance of winning so admit defeat already. I have a much more interesting story to stay involved in."
He then throws the ball high and to the side, nowhere near any of the others. They all get confused faces as Kenzo eyes the ball.
'With the wind speed and direction today, combined with the weight of the ball and spin I gave it, accounting for the force I threw, it should end up… there.'
Suddenly, midair the ball starts to turn. It then falls at high speed aimed right for Chizuru. She looks around confused before noticing the ball above her with a look of shock to see the ball curve so intensely and head straight for her.
"Chizuru, watch out!"
Shiori calls out. Before she can do anything, the ball collides with her arm then hits the ground.
"That's a curveball." Kenzo says adamantly.
"See? I knew you had it in you to play! You're so good too!" Emiko says happily.
"I don't want any part in your game. I'm only here because I owe you." Kenzo says defiantly.
"Oh, you say that every time!"
Kenzo blushes a bit while pushing up his glasses. Shiori and Hikigaya look with disbelief as they are the only two left.
"That curveball really was something, wasn't it?" Shuhei asks Ashley excitedly.
"It was, I didn't even know those balls could move like that!" She answers enthusiastically.
"Well, however it did, it doesn't change the current situation. We are down to the final few players here. Which class will come out on top?"
"What do you say? You take the one on the left, I'll take the one on the right?" Shiori offers Hikigaya with a slightly anxious look.
"Sounds like the best plan we got." Hikigaya says back equally as anxious.
"No, the best plan would be to focus your efforts and get Emiko out then leave me for last. She is way out of your league, you won't be able to take her on alone. But hey, who am I to tell you what to do, right?"
Kenzo says sarcastically. They growl at his sarcasm for a moment before focusing.
"Our way?" Shiori asks with a smile.
"Our way."
Hikigaya answers with a smirk. Kenzo rolls his eyes as Emiko smiles widely with anticipation.
"Alright Shiori. Let's see what you got!"
Suddenly, both of them dash to grab a ball from the ground. They both pull back and wind up their throw before releasing incredibly fast throws. Their aim being the same, the balls collide with each other right above the centerline.
"Woah, would you look at that! It seems the final contestants have begun the final phase of this match with astounding speed and precision! Both sides want this win but who wants it more? Who will take the lead in the first match of the day?!"
Shuhei riles up the crowd. The balls shove each other for a moment before they both snap back from the force. Shiori and Emiko then rush around the court grabbing balls and throwing or defending, each strike missing its target with a close dodge. Meanwhile, Hikigaya makes the first move against Kenzo. He quickly grabs two balls off the ground and aims for him.
"Two hands huh? In that case…"
He says with an unimpressed look. He then closes his eyes and bends to the side a bit. Hikigaya's eyes widen in surprise a bit but he follows through with his throw anyway. The ball shoots for Kenzo and curves as it does but it barely misses him due to the way he bent.
As soon as the ball passes him, he then leans back a bit. Hikigaya follows up his first throw with his second ball immediately. This too, misses its target by almost nothing. Hikigaya grits his teeth in frustration as Kenzo opens his eyes and stands up straight.
"Your ball curve is quite impressive. It seems you even aim with it. I'd expect nothing less of Mr. Goda's second pick but nevertheless. You cannot defeat me. I am well versed in all types of sports and am a master of strategy. Any move you make, I will see it coming a while away. Observe."
Kenzo then picks up a ball from the ground and lifts it up. He stares at it for a moment before looking at Hikigaya. After a second, he pulls his arm back and prepares to throw the ball. As he launches it at him, Hikigaya sweats and darts in a different direction.
"You fool."
Kenzo says while pushing up his glasses. The ball then hits the floor at high speed but doesn't bounce immediately. After a moment of spinning at high speeds on the ground, it changes directions all together and bounces up after Hikigaya. He looks back with shock on his face as the ball tags him on the back. It bounces away as Hikigaya strains with a look of intense shock. He slowly looks up at Kenzo.
"Of course, the ball hit the ground first so you're not out but I thought I'd give you a little demonstration of what I'm capable of. You see, I knew what direction you'd try to escape to. It was the most predictable path after all. So once I knew where you'd be, I just needed to send something after you. Adding a slight flick to my wrist with the right amount of force was the perfect trick to get the ball to hit the floor and spin in your direction. Pretty fascinating, isn't it?"
Kenzo asks, genuinely a little entertained by the demonstration. Hikigaya sweats as his mind races. Shiori looks over at them and sweats too.
"That doesn't sound good…"
"Don't lose your focus!"
Emiko shouts. Shiori snaps her head back in Emiko's direction before dodging at the last second. The ball barely misses her shoulder and as soon as she looks back, she jumps in the air barely dodging another ball.
"Take your eyes off me for a second and you'll lose!"
Emiko shouts with a wicked smile on her face. As soon as Shiori lands, she grabs a ball and jets it at Emiko.
'I'm sorry Hikigaya, she's right. I can't stop focusing on her. You're on your own here…'
She thinks to herself while worrying about Hikigaya. Hikigaya pants as he gazes intensely at Kenzo.
"Racking your brain for ideas won't do you any good. I've already thought of them all. Soon enough you'll just run out of steam and that's when I'll make my move."
"Oh yeah? Well if you've got all these ideas, I'll just have to keep striking you to make sure you can't make any moves at all!"
Hikigaya shouts as he picks up another couple balls and yells as he throws them at Kenzo.
"Completely useless. I can see the most likely shots you'll make to strike me out and dodge before they leave your hand."
As Kenzo stares at Hikigaya preparing to throw the ball, he sees multiple different paths they'll take and leans in the direction where no ball is. Just as he thought, Hikigaya throws the balls and neither one hits him.
The referee and other students around the court area roll the balls back onto the court as the students cheer for their classes. Hikigaya picks up another two and throws again only for Kenzo to dodge effortlessly. He continues to do his best to keep attacking but quickly begins to tire out.
"You have to realize by now that this isn't going to work." Kenzo says.
"Shut up! I'll do what I want!"
Hikigaya bites back. Kenzo is taken aback by his aggressive tone before sharpening his gaze.
"Fine, then I'll do the same."
He then grabs a ball from the ground while dodging a couple balls from Hikigaya. He steps in deep to the centerline and pulls back to throw a ball to a now open and vulnerable Hikigaya. Hikigaya is standing with his legs apart and hands thrown up into the air, leaving his whole body open.
"Goodbye second year."
Kenzo says under his breath. Shiori's eyes widen as she looks at him from the side. Emiko smiles for a moment before her eyes widen too. Kenzo then throws the ball hard straight for his body as Hikigaya looks down.
Suddenly, a ball comes falling from the air above it and collides with Kenzo's ball heading straight for him. This causes Kenzo's ball to change direction and slam right between Hikigaya's legs, missing his target. Kenzo sweats and is shocked.
"When did you..?"
"What? You're not the only one who can make plays like that."
Hikigaya says with a smug smirk. Kenzo thinks back to the moment Hikigaya threw the balls at him and the third one Kenzo lost track of right before he threw directly at Hikigaya.
As Kenzo is lost in the thought of what just happened, Hikigaya grabs another ball from the ground and pulls his arm back.
"Let's go Shiori!"
He shouts. Shiori gets a look of sudden determination as she prepares to throw too. Not letting himself stay distracted, Kenzo focuses up.
"It's no use! I can see your paths clear as day! I'll just dodge!"
His eyes widen again as he sees Hikigaya turn and aim away from him.
'What..? He's aiming at Emiko? That must mean..!'
He turns his head to see Shiori aim her throw for him. He is shocked but stays focused.
'Emiko will be fine. I just need to dodge! You may have me at the last second but it's no match for my strategy!'
He thinks then sees all the new paths Shiori's ball will take.
'It's over!' Kenzo thinks as his eyes stay sharp at the coming attack.