Chapter 82: The Second Tennis War (4)
Faced with Miura's disgusted expression, Luke sensed something bad coming and decisively threatened Miura Yumiko.
"Miura, I recently learned a move called 'Rocket Racket,' so you'd better not say the rest of that adjective."
"Rocket Racket?! What's that?"
Miura Yumiko blinked in confusion.
"Exactly what it sounds like. Launching the racket like a rocket."
"You can't use violence! That's illegal!"
Yuigahama hurriedly shouted, then quickly turned to wave her hands at Miura Yumiko with an awkward smile.
"Yumiko, don't mind him. He's just joking."
Luke added along the way, "As long as you use it enough times and no one finds out, then it doesn't count as—"
"No!"
Yuigahama glared and interrupted him.
Miura simply glared at him too, saying nothing more.
"Fine, no more jokes."
Luke stood up and stopped teasing them.
"Totsuka-kun borrowed this tennis court, so we can't hand it over for you to play."
Miura swept her gaze over the empty tennis court.
"But you're not using it right now, are you?"
"We're in the middle of a break! We're going to continue practicing in a bit!"
"Oh~~ Even if you're practicing, I remember you're not a member of the tennis club, right? Doesn't that mean the court isn't only for the boys' tennis club?"
Mm…
That did sound like it had some logic.
"No, we're helping Totsuka train. That makes us outside support."
He reacted and immediately shot back.
"Okay, okay, let's not get worked up."
Hayama Hayato, standing nearby, hurriedly stepped in to stop the argument from escalating.
"Although that's true, everyone playing together might be more fun, right?"
Mm. Very good.
That fit the Hayama image he had learned from other people perfectly: a guy who blindly searched for compromise methods both sides could accept.
"Hayama-kun, this kind of measure that looks like everyone wins doesn't actually solve the problem. Not everyone likes group activities."
Luke answered Hayama's question and casually moved a little farther away from him.
Every time Hayama got a little closer, Ebina's eyes became a little scarier. Seriously, judging from her appearance, she looked like a pretty quiet girl…
"Is that so?"
Hayama lowered his head thoughtfully.
Since Luke had decided to help Totsuka, he would help to the end.
So he turned his head back toward Miura.
"Miura-san, not everyone is as upright, generous, kind, and friendly as I am… cough."
Under everyone's disgusted gazes, he stopped summarizing his own virtues and continued.
"So not everyone can tolerate your willfulness the way I do."
"Eh?!! What nonsense are you suddenly saying?!"
Miura Yumiko cried out in panic, but then her face reddened as she turned away, fiddling with her hair while muttering softly.
"And I'm not that willful…"
Eh?
Luke furrowed his brows in confusion.
Why did this girl suddenly make a shy maiden expression?
Whenever Miura's true feelings were exposed and she felt embarrassed, she would unconsciously play with her curled hair while immediately arguing back.
"I just wanted to play some tennis…"
She continued muttering.
"Then how about this…"
Hayama stopped thinking and made a decision. He did not continue following Luke's line of thought and directly turned to Totsuka Saika.
"Totsuka-kun, let the people who aren't in the tennis club hold a match. The winning side can use the court during lunch break from now on, and of course, they also have to practice with you. That should definitely be more helpful, and everyone will be happy too."
"A match?"
Luke and Miura raised their heads, both showing interested expressions.
Totsuka Saika avoided Hayama Hayato's gaze.
"I-is that so…"
He still could not make up his mind. The courage he had shown by raising his hand earlier had already vanished completely.
"It's fine, Totsuka. If it's a match, then it's a match."
Luke comforted Totsuka.
This group's interest in tennis was just Miura's passing whim. At most, it would last for this lunch break. It was not like he could actually use the Rocket Racket.
Besides, a match really could help Totsuka more effectively, and also…
Matches were genuinely fun!
Luke said to Totsuka, "Leave it to me. I'll go test them myself!"
Having found someone to rely on, Totsuka nodded at Luke, who wore a confident smile, and agreed.
"Mm. Then I'll leave it to you!"
"So that means you accept this proposal?"
Hayama Hayato let out a relieved breath and smiled.
"Of course!"
Luke smiled brightly.
But Miura Yumiko, whose senses received that smile very differently, looked at Luke's "ferocious" grin and quietly stepped back twice.
Remembering that serve from before, which could practically be used to kill someone, her whole body felt uncomfortable.
"You're not allowed on the court!"
"Eh? Why? Didn't you say people who aren't in the tennis club? I'm not!"
Luke pointed at himself in confusion.
He was pretty sure he had not misremembered the range of people Hayama Hayato mentioned.
He still wanted to make Miura cry again!
"Yes, members who aren't in the tennis club, that part is correct. But on top of that, we also have to exclude people who can use dirty moves like Rocket Racket!"
Miura Yumiko pointed at him and declared that.
Yuigahama nodded in agreement.
"Mm-hm! Dirty!"
"…"
Yuigahama, whose side are you on?
Centrists never have good endings…
Still, that reasoning made Luke fall silent. He thought for a moment, quickly found an excuse, and tried to argue back.
"I…"
"Don't even try saying it was a joke or some excuse like that. People have to take responsibility for their own words and actions."
"…But…"
"And don't try saying there's no one else to play either. That's your problem!"
Luke pressed a hand to his forehead and crouched back down in defeat.
No, seriously. What was with Miura?
Was she going to rename herself Miura Kongming or something?
How had she seen through all the brilliant strategies filling his mind?
Honestly, why had he used Rocket Racket to scare her in the first place?
Was he some kind of brat?
He once again began criticizing himself in his heart.
He swept his gaze over the teammates around him.
Yuigahama, the centrist whose faction was unknown.
Hikigaya, the one who had shared Rocket Racket with him.
Yuigahama's combat power was basically zero.
And even if Hikigaya, who had some tennis skill, went on the court, he probably would not be a match for athletic expert Hayama Hayato or Miura, who was already very good at tennis.
Luke looked at the ants moving house on the ground and asked Hikigaya with one last shred of hope.
"Can you beat either of those two?"
"You're overestimating me way too much."
Hikigaya did not move his gaze away from the ants.
"Then do you have any ideas?"
"I could raise a white flag and beg them for mercy, see if they'll be generous enough to let us go."
"With Miura's awful personality, she'd probably just take it for granted and push even further."
The two fell into silence.
Finally, they let out another dispirited sigh.
"So it really has to be Rocket Racket after all?"
…
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